Struble savors fun of winning

By LOGAN NEILL

© St. Petersburg Times,
published June 12, 2001

INVERNESS -- Alan Struble admits that his need to be a winner on the track has frequently taken a back seat to his desire to go out and just have fun. So when the opportunity to do both comes along, it can make for a special moment.

Struble enjoyed one of those moments Saturday night at Citrus County Speedway when he outran defending Sportsman champion Mike Veltman to the checkered flag.

"It was what racing should be like," Struble said. "We ran each other hard and clean, and the guy with the faster car won."

Starting from the outside pole, Struble pushed his Hernando Oil-sponsored No. 93 quickly past pole-sitter Mark Dominique. However, it wasn't long before Veltman appeared in Struble's rear view mirror. Though the two drivers spent more than 12 laps nose-to-tail, Struble thought he had the superior handling machine. "He was driving really hard into the turns, but I don't think his car was sticking too good, otherwise he'd have been up beside me," Struble said.

The victory offered something of a validation for Struble, who has devoted most of his time and energy to his younger brother Rex's bid for a Sportsman championship. By helping his brother, finding time to attend to the needs of his own car is difficult. However, with the help of friend and sponsor Robbie Aaron, Struble has seen great improvement. He considers his car to be a weekly top-five contender, and that's a little surprising to the 32-year-old from Brooksville. "Usually, I just go out there and play around, nothing really serious," Struble said. "But it's nice to know you're good enough to win one every once in a while."

FEATURE WINS REVOKED: The cars of Rick Coleman and Victor Stanley, winners of the Mini Stock and Street Stock features, respectively, were declared illegal in post-race tech inspections. The drivers were forced to forgo all points and money earned in the races.

Coleman's victory was taken away when his car was found to be underweight. His nephew, John Coleman, was declared the winner.

In Street Stock, Stanley, who would have scored his first win of the season, was disqualified for a motor mounting violation. The victory would have gone to runner-up Don Teague. But he was disqualified for a weight violation, thus giving the win to third-place finisher Mark Sanders.

CITRUS COUNTY SPEEDWAY

SATURDAY'S FEATURE RESULTS

SPORTSMAN: 1. Alan Struble, 2. Mike Veltman, 3. Mark Dominique, 4. Terry Cater, 5. Johnny Sanders

STREET STOCK: 1. Mark Sanders, 2. Ernie Reed, Jr., 3. Dean Lawyer, 4. James Creen. Jr., 5. Travis Nichols.

HOBBY STOCK: 1. Richie Smith, 2. Eric Sharrone, 3. Roy Perkins, 4. Tommy Smith, 5. J.D. Goff.

MINI STOCK: 1. John Coleman, 2. Frank Coleman, 3. George Neumann, 4. Doug Hopper, 5. Mark Sowell.

FIGURE 8: 1. Scott Knight, 2. Peanut Higginbotham, 3. Robert Aaron, 4. Robbie Hage, 5. Bob Hage.

STREET-LEGAL JUNKERS: 1. Joe Rauner, 2. Jerry Hoover, 3. Allen Turner.

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