Column By: BOBBY CHALMERS / RPW – FONDA, NY – Andy Bachetti’s track record at Fonda Speedway hasn’t been as good as he would like through the years.
That’s why the 2022 Lebanon Valley Speedway Big Block & Small Block Modified Champion was at “The Track of Champions” on Thursday, gaining as much time on the speedway as he could in anticipation of what might be the biggest win of his career.
That is, if he could change his luck and win the $53,000-to-win Short Track Super Series Fonda 200 on Saturday night.
“This is a pretty awesome race track, really,” Bachetti said. “If you get hooked up here, get the car turning and driving right, it’s a real fun race track to be at. However, for some reason, we’ve struggled here.”
Bachetti was turning laps around the Mohawk Valley oval on Thursday along with several other competitors, trying to get their race cars dialed in for Qualifying night on Friday before the big event on Saturday.
“If you draw a bad number here, you start in the back,” he said. “We’ve got great equipment, great sponsors and a great team right now. Hopefully, we can shake the curse and get in the hunt for the win and see if we can drag a few bucks out of here.”
Was there something Bachetti wanted specifically with his #4 machine on Thursday, or was this mainly just to find a baseline setup they can work off of for the rest of the weekend?
“I’m just looking for a good, drivable piece that can withstand 200 laps,” he said. “I just needed to get comfortable. I don’t come here often and when we do, we’re just never comfortable and tonight was all about race prep. It was a good time to practice, get our stuff comfortable and get me comfortable. Then, we’ll see where things stand.”
Friday night will be night two of the Fonda 200 Weekend with Qualifying for the Modified feature taking center stage. The event, sanctioned by the Short Track Super Series, will hold four 15-lap qualifiers to set the majority of the field for the $53,000-to-win event.
Also on the card will be the CRSA Sprint Cars, Pro Stocks, Street Stocks & Four Cylinders.