Published: July 04, 2007 11:27 pm      

Troyers dominate Twelve Mile 500

Randy Troyer wins back-to-back Modified title; Walsh tops Briggs field

A dynasty is alive and well in the Twelve Mile 500 Riding Lawnmower Race and its name is Troyer.

Randy Troyer won his second consecutive Modified feature here Wednesday on a splendid Fourth of July day, marking his seventh win at Plank Hill Park.

But perhaps even more impressive than his win was what the Troyer family was able to accomplish, and that was nab the top four spots in the Modified Division.

All starting among the top seven qualifiers, Randy, John, Zach and Joe Troyer crossed the finish line first, second, third and fourth, in that order — a clean sweep.

Darrell Ulerick was the closest to the Troyers. He finished fifth.

“The Troyers know exactly how to do it,” said race manager Mark Lowe, who is also outgoing president of the Twelve Mile Lions Club, sponsors of the race. “They have a system, and that’s what makes the difference.”

Jeremy Walsh, the 2001 winner, captured the Briggs Division, topping Mark Babb, Jerome Emery, Todd Martin and Andy Pickens, who finished second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

Randy, Zach and John Troyer were all atop the leaderboard at one point or another during the Modified feature. Zach led early but gave way to his dad, Randy, after five laps and an early mandatory pit stop.

Randy led John, his brother, at that point and the two were never far from each other after that. A late black flag for John handed the lead back to Randy around lap No. 50 of 60 laps, and it was smooth sailing for him from that point on.

It was win No. 7 for Troyer, who won his first 500 Lawnmower Race in 1996, then back-to-back in 1998 and ’99. He won both features in 2000 and again last year.

“I’m right up there with Earnhardt and Petty now,” said Troyer, stealing a page from NASCAR greats Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty. He credited his pit crew, as all drivers are mandated to make three complete stops with engines shut off.

“It was won right here in the pits,” he said. “My pit crew was fighting for me every step of the way. Clean pits, getting in and out. That’s what it’s all about — getting in and out.”

Randy Troyer’s day wasn’t without problems. He received two black-flag penalties of his own, about average for the leaders.

Troyer got a stiff challenge from Chase Gearhart, whose Deichman Excavating/Cat Special draws a lot of attention from the timers but still managed to get by with only two penalties.

Gearhart, the 2004 winner, ran second to John Troyer around lap No. 30 and gained the lead briefly when Troyer made a pit stop.

Gearhart pitted, fell back to fourth and moved as high as second behind John Troyer until he experienced mechanical problems on lap No. 46.

Gearhart tried desperately to restart his mower but had to push it back to the pits. The problem, as they say, was operator error.

“My fuel regulator is on the side (of the engine) and I knocked it off,” said Gearhart, who had to settle for 12th place. “I ran second and fourth pretty much all day.”

Randy Troyer had been dueling with Gearhart for fourth place while John Troyer was enjoying about a half-lap lead.

“I heard (Gearhart’s engine) poppin’ and crackin,’” Randy Troyer said. “I just followed him for quite a while. I’d pass him and he’s pass me. I thought, ‘Well, there’s no point in this. We’ll just sit and run to the end and battle it out.’”

That left a duel between the Troyers, Randy and John, and John — driving the “Cheater” — was black-flagged shortly after he had passed Randy.

“I had to try (speeding),” John Troyer said. “You can’t just sit back at that point. You’ve got to roll the dice. That’s OK. We came in here to have fun and didn’t expect to win it anyway.”

Zach Troyer also thought he had a shot at his dad but got confused about his track position.

“I didn’t even know half the race where I was at,” said Zach, who, like the other leaders, received two penalties. “I thought for sure I passed him for the win, but I guess I was a lap down.”

Walsh’s win was far less harrowing for the Kewanna resident. He inherited the lead on lap No. 35 from John Troyer in the Briggs feature after Troyer’s mower couldn’t stay running.

Walsh won without any penalties, leading every lap from that point in the race to the checkered flag.

“When I won in 2001 I didn’t get any penalties,” he said. “The first couple laps when they started penalizing people I knew how fast they were going to let us run and just ran that speed.

“I actually ran the same speed every lap. I’ve got a (tachometer) for how fast to go and I just ran it. Everybody had to run slower in the corners it seemed. I just waited until they washed up high and passed them.”

John Troyer certainly had a hard-luck day, seemingly in position to win either feature and came away empty handed. His ride kept stalling and he finished 17th in the Briggs Division.

“I’m not quite sure what the problem was, but I think it was heat-related,” said Troyer. “This engine has been tested before a lot on a different mower, usually at night races where it’s open speed.

“But out here it’s a different story. You get a hot day like this and you can’t run it wide open and you’re not in clean air and it was struggling to keep cool enough.”

Runner-up Babb had a harrowing experience of his own on his rear-engined rider.

“My seat came off!” he exclaimed. “I was riding with no seat. It’s kind of rough when you’re straddling a bar and you’ve got no seat under your butt.

“The nuts worked their way right off. We should have welded it.”

Babb came from fourth place with just five laps to go.

“The track was so crowded (with 32 mowers) I took my pits early,” said Babb, whose father, Mike, and two uncles have all raced at Twelve Mile. “Toward the end the traffic wasn’t so heavy. It was easier to maneuver around.”

The Briggs Division wasn’t without a bit of controversy. Jim Hoover, who had led several laps early, blew out a right-front tire and ran on the rim for a while until he was black-flagged permanently. He finished 30th.

Adam Offutt took over from there but fell off the pace to finish 14th. That left the field open to Walsh and Troyer.

Lowe thanked the many Lions volunteers and sponsors that helped make the 2007 event another success, including Moss Fertilizer and Mike Anderson Chrysler/Dodge and Mike Anderson Pontiac/GMC Trucks, which donated the two pace cars that were given away.

“We couldn’t do this if we didn’t have the racers,” Lowe said. “We try to be fair with them.”

Chris Garner can be contacted at (574) 732-5180 or via e-mail at chris.garner@pharostribune.com