Galletta's Karting Club

6/5/2013 – 18th Annual Galletta’s Greenhouse Karting Season Opener (45-Laps) won by Chris Stevens in The Deuce! +YouTube

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5TH 2013 – The 18th Annual Galletta’s Greenhouse Karting Club Season Opener (the original, longest-running, most competitive, and largest karting class in Oswego, NY) was scheduled for Sunday, June 2nd, 2013, but for the 2nd (or 3rd or 4th?) year in a row, rained out (technically, the rain stopped in time for a race, but the track was far too wet to prepare). We did not announce a rain date publicly because we flat out did not know what day we were going to run (a lot of track work and kart work was needed and rain was on the horizon). Wednesday wound up being the best day with rain forecasts for the weekend, so we hurried up and ran with it. 8 veterans made it, no surprise that they were the top-8 points-earners in 2012 – and we obviously lost a few rookie 1st-timers because of our short-notice wid-week rain date – but we still put on a tremendous race for our opener. Chris Stevens won the opener in his old kart, the Galletta’s Greenhouse Bluestreak #2, which is usually a rental kart that rookie 1st-timers get lapped in and say is slow! (Well, guess that Chris and Matt really DON’T give themselves the fastest karts, is it?) Why was he in this usual Galletta’s Team “rental” kart when he has two karts of his own? And why is his cousin Brian Galletta sneaking up behind him with an evil look in his eyes? Find out below!

In the offseason, we finally upgraded our cameras. We had been using analog Hi-8, Digital Hi-8, and VHS-C cameras hooked up to stand-alone DVD-recorders via analog cables (and sometimes VHS tapes for older races as well). Effective, and better than nothing, but only standard definition. So now, with all technology, it keeps advancing, and prices keep dropping. So two HD cameras were finally purchased in the offseason and they immediately paid dividends with some crisp, clean, HD footage for the YouTube videos and snapshots from them! We are now able to produce Blu-ray discs in addition to regular DVDs of higher quality as well! As usual, each DVD is $5, and the price of a Blu-ray copy is yet to be determined.

Heat 1

At Galletta’s, heats count for bonus points and also let the drivers warm up the motors and get a feel for the karts. The finish does not influence the start of the feature, which is handicapped in the same manner as the heats. So… don’t beat up your kart, but still go for it!

Start

1. Eric Woolworth  (in the Raven Tavern #88)
2. Dave Spanfelner  (in the DS Humphreys #54)
3. Joe Sereno (in the Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)
4. Matthew Stevens (in the Galletta’s Greenhouse #33)

Heat 1 was fully dominated by Eric Woolworth in his Raven Tavern House #88 (the former Larry Phillips L&K Small Engine#04). Eric looked very fast and pulls away when he gets the lead, but just as with last season, his test is finishing features.

Heat 1 Finish:

1. Eric Woolworth  (in the Raven Tavern #88)
2. Dave Spanfelner  (in the DS Humphreys #54)
3. Matthew Stevens (in the Galletta’s Greenhouse #33)
4. Joe Sereno (in the Galletta’s Greenhouse #5)

HEAT 2:

Start:

1. Adam Lytle (Adam Lytle Racing #33c)
2. Brian Galletta (Brian Galletta Racing #13)
3. Chris Stevens (in the Galletta’s Greenhouse #8-DNF; #4-DNF)
4. Melissa Stevens [and Lillibeth] (Scissors n/ Fur #19)

Heat 2 had Brian Galletta and Chris Stevens fighting to get around Adam Lytle in his #33c (the former Gary Miller #24). But…

…Chris had bad luck strike TWICE. First, his chain blew off in his 2011-13 Klassic-winning Galletta’s Greenhouse/Chrusher.com #8. No problem, as he has a backup, the Galletta’s Greenhouse/Chrusher.com #4. Big problem… the motor blew.  Not a full-blowout with a hole through the block, but enough internal damage to require some rebuilding (and most likely anew  full engine block will have to be acquired). Brian then stormed by Adam for the heat win in his #13 kart and Chris hopped into the Galletta’s #2 for the feature.

Heat 2 Finish:

1. Brian Galletta (Brian Galletta Racing #13)
2. Adam Lytle (Adam Lytle Racing #33c)
3. Chris Stevens (in the Galletta’s Greenhouse #8-DNF; #4-DNF)
4. Melissa Stevens [and Lillibeth] (Scissors n/ Fur #19)

45-LAP FEATURE:

At Galletta’s, we created a unique handicap system that we believe is the greatest in motorsports. It’s everything we ever wanted to see when watching other forms of racing, and what we feel gives everyone a great shot in ours. The lineup is inverted by first feature wins and then points. Low points/low wins in the front and progress to high-win/high point earners start in the back. At the start of the year, we go by all-time statistics until everyone is worked into the system.

START:
1st. Eric Woolworth (Raven #88)
2nd. Adam Lytle (Lytle #33c)
3rd. Dave Spanfelner (B.Galletta #28)
4th. Brian Galletta (B.Galletta #13)
5th. Joe Sereno (Galletta’s Ghs. #5)
6th. Chris Stevens (Galletta’s Ghs. #2)
7th. Matt Stevens (Galletta’s Ghs. #33)
8th. Melissa Stevens w/Lilybeth (Scs.n’Fur #19)

The 45-lap feature begins! Melissa Stevens, who is pregnant with her and her husband Matt’s first child, is taking the optional one lap and pulling off to earn points and then pulling off to operate a camera. We’ll count their daughter Lilly Beth for points as well! She only needs to line up for the start to be counted for and earn the last place points, but she went ahead and pulled a green flag lap as well! Wow, what a trooper!

Eric Woolworth stormed the Raven Tavern #88 into the lead and started pulling away. But Eric’s bad luck struck again and he lost a clutch and pulled off the track.

Brian Galletta dominated the show after Eric’s early exit and pulled away from the pack. Chris and Matt also worked their way into 2nd and 3rd, and after a restart, they were close to him in hot pursuit, but the Brian Galletta #13 is a FAST kart, built just before Klassic last year, and being one of the earliest club members, Brian has the experience to put it in victory lane.

The fast-as-heck lapped kart (Brian Galletta #28) driven by Dave Spanfelner was doing a good job holding Brian, Chris and Matt off for a large chunk of the race. In fact, if we had 1 restart, he would’ve probably been right with us. Instead, he held off the leaders who did not have the speed to get by. With two laps to go, he slowed badly in turn 1, and Brian did not want to smash into his own backup kart and decided to go low. This exposed the quicker outside groove to Chris, who put the trusty old Galletta’s Greenhouse #2 in front. Probably the 1st time Chris has done this since 1999, when it was his starter kart and he won the ’99 track championship and ’99 Klassic in it.

Chris holds on for the win, much to the chagrin of Brian Galletta, who had a stranglehold on the race until lap 43.

Here we see just how close the finish was. At the end of circuit 45, Dave holds off the leaders and Chris Stevens crosses the finish for the win, and less than a kart behind were Matt Stevens and Brian Galletta in a tie for 2nd. We had three digital HD cameras on it, freeze-frame, and slow-mo, it is just too close to call one way or the other definitively.

Eric Woolworth took a video clip of the close finish on his phone and uploaded it to his Facebook:

Matt has more ties than every other karter in Galletta’s history COMBINED because of his incredible ability to come out of turn 4 strong and pull alongside someone to the line. Many drivers try this move and lose a TON of ground. It’s this mastery of the turn 4 slingshot that has netted him many narrow wins, ties, and narrow losses through the 18 year history of our point series. His brother Chris has also taken a few races with the move, but none as many as Matt.

Chris picks up the 1st feature win of the 2013 season. But even though his bro won, Matt was quite proud of the Galletta’s Greenhouse #2, often ignored, but one of the oldest karts in the fleet and a wicked fast machine. Chassis built from scratch in 1998 and parts stripped off the old Black Bart #1, which we now call the “#01”, a Thunder Island kart that sits on the side of the greenhouse waiting a rebuild. The #2 has been fast, as Randy Platt has won recently in it, Jason Mills a few years back, and Kyle Reuter piloted it to a 2nd place finish in last year’s Klassic – with a flat right front tire! If not for that, he may have even be quick enough to challenge for a win. That kart is a beast, and capable of winning a race any night.

Final Order of Finish:

MAKEUP-RACE CREDITS:
For a few years now, we give ample opportunities for drivers who miss races to get back into the points race vie retcon makeup races (small heats races before the regular events and are counted at the end of the earliest race missed that season). Good drivers can get it done and compete. Problem is, it seems we can’t find enough good drivers. Regardless, here are make-up points earned in later-races (page edited when the points are earned, but points not added until the week they race.):

COULD NOT MAKE IT: Justina Gaylletta, Randii Plattina and Jessii Vivlemoretoluv could not make the show due to having their their periods. 😉

SIDE NOTES: The open challenge gauntlet from January 2009 has still not been answered – no non-Galletta’s Club driver (a handful of guys that race there also raced with us – we’re not talking about them) from the “local pay track” is in our league can come to our track and win. The entire revolving roster of countless divisions with nameless faces and random body weights ages and cookie-cutter karts… are all still held winless.

Although Chris won, Brian’s heat victory and leadership of the vast majority of the feature led to him scoring enough bonus points to take the lead in the points in week one!

2013 1WD Gas Flathead National Championship Point Standings after 6/5/2013’s Event

For the Galletta’s Karting Club’s World Championship of 1WD Gas Flatheads held on Galletta’s Greenhouse Backyard Karting Speedway for the 2013 season to date, scored in this manner. Our complete All-Time Points Standings from 2000-to-‘the-last-completed-season’ are found on this webpage, our division’s complete 2006-08 standings on Oswego Speedway’s cutesy lil’ Kiddie Kartway on this page, and our 2000-to-‘the-last-completed-season’ wins are on this page. At season’s end, the current totals will be added into the below: