RPW Exclusive: The Youth Movement Was On Full Display For The Super DIRTcar Opener At New Egypt

Column By: JOSEPH PHILLIPS / RPW – NEW EGYPT, NJ – Race promoters have always rolled the dice and tried to get the season started early.

Sometimes, the gamble works.

Saturday’s Power in The Pines Super DIRTcar Series race at New Egypt Speedway appeared to win the roll.

The day started with temps in the 80’s and sunshine all around. When the sun set, the script flipped and did so dramatically. The winds picked up and temperatures dropped, quickly.

Not only was the weather finicky but the track had drivers and crews chasing set ups all night.

“It was a challenging race track,” Modified winner Stewart Friesen said.  “It was racy at first.  The top was the quick way around but it quickly changed to the bottom.”

Speedway officials tried to work the track to keep up with the weather changes. A few intermissions were needed to water the track and repack the surface. There was a bit of downtime but the track should be applauded for the work to produce a good surface.

Friesen qualified through his heat race and pulled the no. 2 during the redraw. Starting on the outside pole, Friesen made quick work of early race leader Mat Williamson and wasn’t seriously challenged for the top spot.

Many drivers were able to adapt to the surface.  Guys like Matt Sheppard and Anthony Perrego among others steadily marched to the front.  Others, on the other hand, such as Peter Britten, Danny Creeden, and Jack Lehner struggled all night.

The surprise of the race was what could be called the “youth movement.”  Alex Yankowski worked his way up to second place when the race reached its conclusion.

“We just took our time,” Yankowski said.  “We waited for the bottom to come around.”

For those who chose the right set up, the bottom came around, indeed.

Another driver taking advantage of the change in grooves was teenager Logan Watt. Coming off an eighth place finish in the Short Track Super Series race at Bridgeport Motorsports Park one week ago, Watt brought the momentum to New Egypt and was rewarded with a fine third place finish.

Using the same strategy as he did at Bridgeport, Watt stayed up front all race long.  After pulling the no. 4 in the redraw, he methodically picked off cars, slowly working his way as high as second during the event before getting passed late by Yankowski.

“We went with a harder compound tire tonight,” Watt said.  “The car really seemed to take off when the tire fired up.”

This is the first Big Block season for the 16-year-old, who is former a Sportsman winner and champion.  He made the journey to All Tech Raceway in Florida this winter to shake the rust off, but that was with his Sportsman.

Now, he’s getting the experience with more power, and is thriving.

“The Big Block is a game of patience and throttle control,” he said.  “With the Sportsman, the driver has to go hard from the start.”

Even the victor was impressed with Watt.

“I saw the 4 car on the board and thought it was Perrego,”  Friesen said.  “But it was Logan.  He’s been doing a really good job.”

With folks such as Friesen looking, Watt is quickly gaining a reputation as a solid wheelman who will be a threat for years to come.

The Power in the Pines was a night of surprises.  Weather and track conditions played the spoiler but New Eqypt’s track prep crew worked all night extremely hard.  Many top drivers went home disappointed as well, but for Alex Yankowski and Logan Watt, the night was solid.  It was a solid payoff for the work the teams put in behind the scenes and the young guns put in behind the wheel.