Column By: MIKE TRAVERSE / RPW – ACCORD, NY – Who says that you can’t win a Dirt Modified feature when starting last?
If you were at Accord Speedway on Friday, you would have seen Cody Higbie pull off just that rare feat.
“I broke a jack shaft in the heat and had to start 22nd tonight,” Cody explained.
But the last starting spot did not hamper Higbie on this night as he roared through the field at the Bullring and scored his third Modified win of the season, dodging several mishaps that occurred in front of him.
“I just wanted to keep the car in one piece,” he said. “I finished the race and somehow it was a win.”
For the longest time, it looked like Jimmy Wells was going to take the win on Friday. Wells got out front early and looked to be in position. But as Higbie moved through the field, he was passing cars at the top of the running order at a rapid clip.
‘I was just biding my time in the early part of the feature,” Cody said. “I was just trying to keep my nose clean from the back. I was able to miss some wrecks and that helped.”
Once in the top 5, Higbie wasn’t about to be stopped. On lap 28, he went by Michael Storms for 2nd and quickly moved in on Wells, passing him a lap later and he swiftly pulled away in the last few laps, finishing with a winning margin of 4.88 seconds.
“My car was very maneuverable and it was sticking wherever I put it,” Cody said. “Wherever the car in front of me wasn’t, I filled in the gap. Even the lapped traffic wasn’t a factor, even when it was getting a little heavy.”
And the young driver saw his confidence grow as he raced to the front in the latter stages.
“Once I got into 4th, I thought I had a good shot. The car was under me the whole time. I knew if it just stayed under me the rest of the way that I had a good shot,” Higbie said.
Wells saw his great run vanish in a large plume of smoke on the final lap which elevated Storms to the runner-up position. Tyler Johnston continued with impressive finishes as he crossed the finish line 3rd. Travis Green was 4th and Chris Stevens 5th.
Completing the top 10 were Randy Green in 6th, Danny Tyler 7th, Daniel Morgiewicz Jr. 8th, Scott Ferrier 9th and Kevin Ward 10th.
Nick Plumstead made a return trip to Victory Lane in the Sportsman on Friday.
Plumstead took the lead from Eddie Owens on a lap one restart and was never challenged.
While the racing for the lead was decided early on, there was a furious battle for the spots behind Plumstead. As the race moved into the late stages, Kevin Stevens, who started 9th, made a late race charge, moving past Whitey Slavin for 2nd and Owens on lap 23 to grab the 2nd place finish.
Owens held off Slavin for 3rd as Whitey crossed the finish line 4th and Mike Travis 5th. Always improving Rookie driver Brayden Traver finished 6th with Jackie Brown Jr. 7th, Jared LaBagh 8th, Phil Recchio 9th and Ryan Behrent 10th.
Speaking of LaBagh, he was fortunate to get as good a finish as he did. After a consultation with the flagman on lap 8, an obviously displeased Pat Mann made hard contact with LaBagh under yellow. LaBagh made repairs and returned to action while Mann was towed off.
Bill Deak Jr. made the pass of leader Shawn Williams on lap 6 of the Pure Stock feature. Williams finished 2nd with Ray Tarantino 3rd, Walt Henry 4th and Jayden Sleight 5th.
Brian Chirico finished 6th with Hank Morin 7th, John Tood 8th, Preston Demorest 9th and Anthony Tarantino 10th.
The Accord Speedway Vintage Modifieds were in action on Friday and it was Larry Ricci with his flashback #213 taking the overall win. Harry Baldwin was 2nd and the top finishing Mystique car. Adam Douglass was 3rd, Jay Haviland 4th and Gary Reynolds 5th.
Brianna Reynolds was Friday’s All Star Slingshot winner. Ryan Dennis finished 2nd and Walter Henry IV 3rd.
Tim DeGrote won his 2nd consecutive 4 Cylinder feature on Friday. Cadin Biondin was 2nd and George Barringer 3rd.
Accord Speedway has a busy week lined up for next week. On Tuesday, July 30th Associates Golf & Utility Vehicles presents the Ron Van Etten/ King of the Catskills Modified race which has a $7,000 winner’s purse attached to it.
The track will again be in action on Friday, August 2nd with it’s usual weekly program and the NEWS Sprints.