Standard-Speaker from Hazleton, Pennsylvania • 21

Saturday, June 11,2005 21 StandardS peaker Auto Racing ARCAS eries marks 40th visit to Pocono Raceway Pocono ARCA 200 is today teal tAriw Ml Z7 us and to NASCAR and it's to our advantage to keep them," said Pocono CEO Dr. Joe Mat-tioli. Indeed. When ARCA comes to Pocono it continues to be one of the definitive events each year on the tour. There are always strong fields of cars that stem not just from the ARCA regulars but in recent years several Nextel Cup drivers have been making it a double duty weekend.

In 2004, NASCAR Nextel Cup Series rookie Scott Riggs piloted his Valvoline Pontiac from 30th to first, winning during his first ARCA REMAX Series attempt. In addition to Riggs, some of the biggest names in stock car auto racing have competed in past ARCA REMAX Series events at Pocono, including Ryan Newman, Casey Mears, Casey Atwood and Ken Schrader. On the ARCA front the assault is led by series kingpin Frank Kimmel. Following the 1-2 finish from he and rookie Joey Miller last Saturday at the Milwaukee Mile, the championship points battle remains close. Kimmel, who has one victory at Pocono in 1999, leads 20-year old Miller by 45 points headed in today's 80-lap contest.

Miller will make his first Pocono attempt this Saturday in the No. 9 Country Joe Homes Dodge. Kimmel and veteran Mark Gibson will be making their 28th career series starts at Pocono. Kimmel is the only former Pocono winner entered. Tim Steele is the all-time winner at Pocono with nine victories including five in a row ('96 through '98) followed by Bob Schacht with six and Bob Keselowski with five.

Mike By DINO OBERTO For the Standard-Speaker LONG POND For some fans heading to Pocono Raceway this weekend they view the appearance of the ARCA RE MAX Series as a nice addition to accent the NASCAR Nextel Cup activities. But ARCA is much more than an alternative to its NASCAR counterpart. For 53 years the ARCA REMAX Series has been providing superior racing and -although not quite on the level as a Nextel Cup event, there is still an abundance of high quality competition from start to finish. Today's Pocono ARCA 200 also marks a milestone for the Toledo, Ohio based organization as this will be the 40th time the sanctioning body has raced on the 2.5 mile track since 1983. It should be noted, however, that ARCA first raced on the defunct -mile oval at Pocono which was in 1969.

That race was by Bobby Wat-son in a Dodge. Before he went on to NASCAR fame, that year's ARCA champion Benny Parsons was also in the field. "We are thrilled to continue our long-lasting relationship with Pocono Raceway," said ARCA President Ron Drager. "In the past, this event has provided great racing excitement for drivers and fans alike and this year should be no different." "These guys, (ARCA) have been running here since 1969 and I wouldn't get rid of them for anything. I mean I can try to make more money if I went with a Busch race or something like that but these ARCA people are very important to ERIC CONOVFRStandard Speaker Frank Kimmel's car carrier sits in the ARCA garage area at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond.

Kimmel and the rest of the ARCA REMAX Series drivers will mark the series' 40th visit to Pocono today in the Pocono ARCA 200. Wallace has three while Jimmy Horton and Casey Mears each have two. One-time winners include the late Blaise Alexander, Casey Atwood, Kerry Earnhardt, Ben Hess, Bobby Jacks, Kimmel, Damon Lusk, Ryan Newman, Jeff Purvis and Lee Raymond. Other noteworthy opponents will be Lebanon's Bobby Gerhart, who will be in the Lucas Oil Chevrolet. He was honored this past Tuesday in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in Harrisburg for his three Daytona ARCA 200 victories.

Other Pennsylvanians' entered in the Pocono ARCA 200 include Andy Belmont (Penndel), Brian Kaltreider (Moshannon), Norm Benning (Pittsburgh) and Dale Schweikart (Linden). Ricky Gonzalez of South Plainfield, NJ, is a former runner at nearby Mahoning Valley Speedway in Legends Cars and Micro Stocks. He will be making his first Pocono ARCA start in the MAB Paints Chevrolet. One driver that will be a definite threat is NEXTEL Cup Rookie if the Year contender Travis Kvapil. His entry is filed under Penske Racing, the team which he drives for in NASCAR.

If history is any indication then he could be the hot ticket. Penske Racing, with driver Ryan Newman aboard, won the Pocono ARCA 200 in 2000. Another possible ace in the whole may be Kyle Krisiloff, on the Hendrick Motorsports driver development plan through Bobby Gerhart Racing who will be making his first Pocono attempt this weekend. Erin Crocker, who is said to be NASCAR's answer to Dani ca Patrick, was originally planning to enter this race. She is a developmental driver for Evernham Motorsports, but has yet to file her entry.

This morning Pork Pole qualifying gets under way at 9:30 a.m. The race is scheduled to take the green flag at 3:10. ARCA may be number two in terms of the country's top stock car series but rest assured that the Pocono ARCA 200 as well as every event they run, is terrific racing and never a disappointment. It will be well worth watching. Patrick in spotlight at Texas Speed gives F-l an American driver Speed also will test the Red Bull car next Friday at the U.S.

Grand Prix in Indianapolis. Discovered through Red Bull American Driver Search in 2002, Speed has spent the last two years living in Austria racing in F-l 's junior divisions, where he currently ranks second in the GP2 standings. With F-l making its only two trips to North America, Red Bull gave Speed the opportunity to get into the car. It's a marketing dream for the team and Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz, who has spent millions in recent years to up the presence of his energy drink. But the Red Bull team is adamant that Speed earned the right to be in the car and this two-week test wasn't given to him for publicity.

"He's here because of his ability," team director Christian Horner said. "He's very much here on merit." MONTREAL (AP) Scott Speed became the first American since 1993 to drive a Formula One car when he tested for the Red Bull Racing team Friday at the Canadian Grand Prix. Speed, a 22-year-old from Manteca, participated in both of Friday's practice sessions in a third Red Bull car that is sent out onto the track for testing purposes. His presence marked the first time an American has been in Grand Prix activities since Michael Andretti in 1993. Speed was 15th in the first practice session, then had trouble in the second when he spun halfway through to end his day in the car.

The Red Bull team thought the spin might have been caused by a mechanical problem. "The second session we had a big moment and we are still investigating the reasons why it happened," Speed said. "It's still a big mystery as to why it happened." She has improved in each of the five races so far, coming back strong from a crash in the opener at Homestead, that left her with a concussion. The last two races have been Patrick's best as she has led and finished fourth in both. "She's done a lot for women," Kanaan said.

"She's the fastest woman ever. But, in my opinion, she's getting too much attention. But that's the way it is. We go with what makes news, right?" But Kanaan said he isn't criticizing Patrick for taking advantage of the opportunities she is getting. It's just that he believes she has a lot yet to prove.

"It's going to get to a point where, if she wants to be the best of all, she's going to have to prove that she can win races and she needs to win championships," the Brazilian said. "Otherwise, it's going to just die out." Patrick is determined that is not going to happen. But the lV-mile Texas oval is one of a number of new tracks that she is going to face in the next few months as she continues to learn her craft. "It's going to be tough, really tough," she said. "I've only had one other race where we've run side-by-side.

"This might be a time when I start to show (I'm a) rookie again, just being at tracks where I haven't been before and trying to learn them. But I do have a good team and good teammates to help me accelerate that program," she said, referring to Buddy Rice, returning from a neck injury sustained in a crash early last month at Indy, and Vitor Meira, who finished second to Dan Wheldon in the 500. Wheldon, trying for a record fourth straight IRL win and fifth in six races this season, also is getting a little weary of all the questions about Danica. "There are other guys out there other than Danica, and a lot of them are pretty good, too," he said Friday. "But I think we all understand why this is happening and we just have to keep remembering it's a good thing for all of us." Kanaan, Wheldon's Andretti Green Racing teammate agreed, adding, "Even if she is getting too much attention, if they come to watch her, they're going to have to watch us.

It's all about bringing people to the track. Once they're in, we can change their minds." By MIKE HARRIS AP Motorsports Writer FORT WORTH, Texas The media glare focused on Danica Patrick at Texas Motor Speedway might be daunting to drivers with far more time in the spotlight. But the 23-year-old Indy Racing League rookie isn't the least bit bothered. In fact, she's having a pretty good time as she balances the frenzy of fan attention and a multitude of interview requests with preparations for tonight's Bombardier Learjet 500, a race likely to see lots of three-wide racing at more than 200 mph. The first question Patrick fielded Friday during a packed press conference was about the cool, calm demeanor she has worn since the beginning of the month of May at Indianapolis, where she led laps and finished fourth both firsts for a woman in the 500.

Asked if she somehow knew this "Danica Mania" was going to happen someday and had prepared herself for it, Patrick smiled shyly and replied: "Would it sound cocky if I said yes? "I never knew what was going to happen. All I knew is that, best case scenario, it would, that it would be big news and that it would have an impact and it would help the series and it would inspire young kids and girls and be a really great story. "Maybe that's why I feel completely myself. It's a big deal, but I don't feel it's something that I'm going to overanalyze and say, 'Wow! I'm in the newspapers every I feel it's just kind of a story right now, something that people are excited, interested and curious about, to see how it unfolds." Tony Kanaan, the reigning champion of the IRL and winner of four races in the IndyCar Series, stood briefly at the back of the crowded room, watching and listening. As he turned to leave, Patrick saw him and said, "Next question, Tony Kanaan." He smiled as he left the room, turning and saying, "You're doing OK." Kanaan and some of the other IRL drivers are impressed by the way Patrick, who was racing in the developmental Toyota Atlantic series a year ago, has dealt with her new ride in Rahal Letterman Racing's 650-horsepower IndyCar, as well as her newfound celebrity.

rr IK I 1 FTMJ iLVA For The i If vj 7 Advertisement With the AHL xim Phantoms breeze to Calder Cup title of Philadelphia's four major professional teams has won a championship since the 76ers captured the NBA title in 1983, and those pro franchises have won only nine titles in more than 120 years. After a scoreless opening period, Philadelphia broke the game open with four goals in a 14:15 span. They outshot the Wolves 20-5 in the second period. Sharp opened scoring with a four-on-four goal at the 5:32 mark, Sim and Ben PHILADELPHIA (AP) The Philadelphia Phantoms swept the American Hockey League's Calder Cup finals Friday night, beating the Chicago Wolves 5-2 in front of sellout crowd of 20,103 fans at the Wachovia Center. Jon Sfm and Patrick Sharp each scored two goals, and Antero Niittyma-ki made 28 saves for the Phantoms, the Philadelphia Flyers' top farm club.

The Phantoms also won the 1998 Calder Cup. None Stafford made it 3-0 with goals less than 6 minutes apart, and Sim added his 10th playoff goal with 13 seconds left in the period on a five-on-three power Play-Steve Maltais and Lonny Bohonos scored for Chicago-Notes: The Flyers' Trenton affiliated also won the East Coast Hockey League title this season. Philadelphia has won an AHL-record 1 1 straight home playoff games. On Tires and Auto Service in This Sunday's Standard-Speaker Local Section.