Muskegon's Mike Garvey Takes the Bounty on Grand American Race Cars

Mike Garvey took the bonus with his first Blizzard Series win at Five Flags on Friday. Photo Courtesy of (Speed51.com Photo)

Mike Garvey Takes the Bounty on Grand American Race Cars

Feuds Were the Theme of the Night as Battles On the Track Highlight Blizzard Series

51 Sports/Blizzard Series PR

Five Flags Speedway put down an extra $513 dollars for a driver who could win the race and stop chassis manufacturer Grand American Race Cars’ dominance at the Pensacola, Florida track in the Buddy’s Home Furnishings Blizzard Series. What followed was an amazing race with lots to talk about as Mike Garvey beat TJ Reaid & David Rogers on the race’s final restart to win the Papa John's 100 the $513 bonus when he drove his Port City Chassis to victory lane.

"It's an awesome feeling," said Garvey. "We worked out this deal with Harley Boeve from Port City Race Cars and these things are getting better and better each week. We could sit there and bide time and then pick it up and pass people when we wanted too. The car is great and we are going to keep working on it and see if we can get that (Snowball) Derby this year."

The $513 bonus was added for the Papa John’s 100 to see if any driver could be the first non-GARC chassis to win a Blizzard Series race at the track since 2009, a span of 13 races.

Garvey, like some others, had some minor obstacles to overcome. In the middle part of the race, he and Reiad had a paint-swapping affair that settled down allowing them to run one-two.

"I never touched him," laughed Garvey. "I guess I was hitting him with my rear bumper. It was a little aggravating, but we were able to drive away."

Reaid made one last bid to keep up the GARC domination with his Bill Elliott Racing No. 51, but came up just a few laps short of catching Garvey.

"We were really good tonight and this place is all about surviving attrition," said Reaid. "We have some work to do as the right rear was gone at the end. Garvey doored me a little bit and I wanted to let him know I was not happy about it. All in all we are not here to tear up race cars. We both got good finishes and some others didn't."

Most of the race was lead by Augie Grill or Casey Smith, who both put on a show for the fans in attendance as they traded the lead swapped paint for the top spot for two-thirds of the race. Both ended up having flat tires, but Smith made it back to sixth while Grill ended up 17th.

Behind the top three, Bubba Pollard came home fourth after setting fast time and held off Fort Kent, Maine driver Austin Threiault. The rest of the top 10 was made up of Smith, Donnie Wilson, Josh Hamner, Dennis Schoenfeld and Chris Davidson.

The most serious altercation involved DJ VanderLey, who was second in last year's Snowball Derby, and Grant Enfinger. Several incidents between the drivers during the Papa John’s 100, culminating in a late-race crash under caution, resulted in Five Flags Speedway Officials suspending VanderLey for the remainder of the 2012 Five Flags regular season on Monday.

The next round in the Buddy’s Home Furnishings Blizzard Series will be on Friday, May 25th. This will be the third race of the season and fifth overall for the Gulf Coast Championship Series.

The five Blizzard Series’ and five Miller Lite Series’ events at Mobile International Speedway (AL) will make up the Sunoco Gulf Coast Championship series, where drivers competing at both tracks are eligible for an overall Championship.

For more information about Five Flags Speedway, the Papa John's 100 or the 45th Annual Snowball Derby, please visit www.5flagsspeedway.com or contact the track by calling (850) 944-8400.