newsletter

Hazelton, PA – The Mothers Day spectacular at Mountain Speedway went to Flemington NJ driver Brian Braddock as he scored a perfect day in the Modified Outlaw Micro Stock event. Capitalizing on a front row starting position, Braddock led every lap of his heat race to claim the pole for the feature event. At the drop of the green flag, Braddock, Andy Hiddemen, and Nick Cottone pulled away from the rest of the field, and by lap two Braddock had separated himself from the field.

Cottone and Hiddemen battled side by side for 2^nd while Bill Kreigner Sr. and Tom Ervin fought over 4^th. Cottone won the battle for 2^nd, setting up a 3-way battle for 3^rd between Kreigner Sr., Hiddemen, and Ervin. Cottone claimed that spot, followed by Ervin and Hiddemen while Dennis Hiddemen moved up to challenge Kreigner for 5^th. The order stayed the same with the top 7 cars running in line for a few laps until Ervin made an outside bid to pass Cottone. The two battled side by side for several laps with Ervin ahead at the stripe and Cottone fighting back in the corners.

While this was gong on, Dennis Hiddemen got past Kreigner Sr. to grab 5^th and the following lap passed Andy Hiddemen to claim 4^th. Braddock continued to run comfortably in first, while the battle between Cottone and Ervin allowed Dennis Hiddemen to close in and join the fight. Dennis first tried 3-wide on the outside and then a slick inside move to pass both Ervin and Cottone in the same lap. Ervin and Cottone continued their battle for a couple more laps with Ervin prevailing. Ervin ran down Dennis but was unable to mount a challenge as Dennis Hiddemen, Ervin, and Cottone began to close the gap on Braddock. This was to be Braddocks day, however, as he cruised to victory. In the closing laps Braddocks team mate Jim Van Dine edged Andy Hiddemen to claim 5^th. Jean Hiddemen was the Controlled Stock class winner, finishing 9^th overall. Dennis Hiddemen and Ervin tied as the hard chargers of the event by each gaining 5 positions in the feature.

Brian Braddock drives the Carl Scheier owned #82 Banzai Modified Micro Stock with power from Braddock Racing Engines. Brian is sponsored by Total Clean and BR Fabrication.

Finishing Order: Braddock, D.Hiddemen, Ervin, Cottone, Van Dine, A. Hiddemen, Kreigner Sr., Bill Kreigner Jr., J. Hiddemen, John Brennfleck.

The Modified Outlaw Micro Stocks will return to Mountain Speedway on May 25^th. There is no club fee to compete with M.O.M., and all Modified and Controlled Stock racers are welcome to participate.

Tom Ervin, Ricky Taylor and Rick Lafferty (who drove in a one race deal in the third K&K kart) raced in the extreme karting race. Ervin got a great jump at the start and pulled to an early lead as Lafferty and Taylor battled in a crowd-pleaseing duel for second place. Taylor would pull ahead to finish second with Lafferty third. After the race it was discovered that Lafferty's tires had spun the screws out of one of the tires resulting in a flat. This is the first time in four tries at the Arena that Ervin won the ICE kart race.

Microstock driver Tom Ervin took a break from his usual ride to pilot the Smith racing #49 Champ kart at the Atlantic City Gambler's Classic.

During the feature race Ervin made several breath-taking moves that saves him from getting caught up in the wreck filled race .

In one instance, at the top of the backstretch, a major pileup occured when a couple champ karts got together and they started collecting the field. At the end the karts were stacked 3 high and nearly had the whole track blocked.

Moving with fluid, cat-like reflexes Ervin, slammed on the breaks, turned the kart left, them right, then left and snaked his way through the only open opening on the track unscathed through the pile of wrecked karts.

A few laps later he did a simular breath-taking move to avoid a wreck at the top of the front stretch.

Ervin didn't win but he brought home the kart in one piece. All who saw him in that race were amazed and after the race many racers came up to him in the garage and complimented his driving.

Here Ervin describes his race. "I was driving in a type of vehicle I had never driven before, so I expected somewhat of a learning curve. There was a registration cutoff of 50 entries, but exceptions were made and 61 karts attempted to make the field.

We went Thursday night for the extra practice sessions, where the kart handled great. Friday we went out for the final round of practice where I got caught up in an incident that ended with me getting hit after the caution by someone still running full speed. The Smith Family team (with help from my regular car owner and a regular competitor of ours) thrashed to get the kart ready for the heat race (which Ron and Lindy saw). I started 3rd in the 3rd of 4 heat races and ran fine the first 3 laps before the kart developed a vicious hop mid corner. I hung on for a while, then got passed by 2 faster karts. I used them to open the door for me to pass the 2 karts I had been following and retook 3rd. I ran there until 2 laps to go when the kart hopped wide, opening the door to the freight train behind me. I jumped on the gas trying to beat them up off the corner from the outside but to no avail. On the last lap I dropped from 5th to 6th - just missing the last transfer position. The first thing Ron said to me when he next saw me was that I got back on the gas too soon. I guess I was just trying too hard. After the heat race we made major changes to the chassis setup in preparation for the Saturday consi.

Saturday afternoon we made even more changes (still finding damage from the wreck in practice) and went out for the 2nd consi at 4:30PM. This time the kart only hopped slightly, and I led much of the race. One of the heat race winners from the previous night had been DQ'ed, so he came from the back and hammered on my bumper for about 4 laps before he got me loose enough for a pass. This time there was no freight train (it turns out we had about a full straight over 3rd) and I easily transferred into the feature.

After the fan fest and a couple of other races, we went out for the feature starting 24th out of 30 karts on a course literally laid out on top of a hockey rink. There was a lot of carnage, but that didn't appeal to me so I dodged all of the wrecks. In traffic I was able to grab several positions from the outside lane on every restart (which surprised me) but we still didn't have the speed we needed to go for the win. Since the Champ Kart race was not the feature attraction, little time was spent by the officials putting karts into the proper spot for restarts and I lost a lot of positions following the second red flag of the event. Scoring was also a little suspect, as I finished right behind a friend of mine but was scored 4 spots back for 15th. Not one of my better runs, but we all had fun and the team owner said it was the least amount of parts he had ever had to replace (rear bumper, LR rim) at this event in the 3 years he had run there."

Welcome to the 2007 edition of the K&K Racing Newsletter.

After being rained out on several occasions in April, The K&K Race Team finally started the 2007 racing season on April 29th. While the Modified Outlaw Micro Stocks had decided to remove Wall Township Speedway from their schedule in 2007, the track was still running Modifieds so John and Tom took the #90 and #99 to the season opener. John had an experimental motor in the #90 for this event and Tom was breaking in a new motor in the #99. Heat race action saw John leading the race until about halfway when the motor quit, handing the lead to Tom who went on to win. A pit side attempt by the crew to fix the #90 proved unsuccessful, and John was not able to start the feature. Tom led the feature from start to finish in the #99 K&K Express, bringing home the first team victory of the season for team sponsors K&K Industries and C&M Automotive Warehouse.

May 6th the entire K&K Race Team traveled to Mahoning Valley Speedway for the Modified Outlaw Micro Stocks (M.O.M.) season opener. Tom was in the #99 as usual, but rookie Billy Kriegner Jr. was at the wheel of the #16 for the first time, and his dad Bill Kriegner Sr. was at the wheel of the #90. For those of you who don't remember, Bill Sr. was a race-winning driver for the K&K team in the past. Bill Sr. and John shared the driving chores in the #90 this season.

After a couple rounds of practice where Billy Jr. gained precious experience in the #16, heat race action began with Tom taking 2nd in the #99. Bill and Billy were scheduled to run the second heat, but the #90 refused to start. Billy Jr. ran great in his first ever race and climbed to take 2nd. The troubles in the #90 were traced to a defective spark plug, and Bill Sr. took the car to a 3rd place finish in the Feature. Tom faded in the #99 to 5th place, while Billy brought the #16 home in 7th place.

May 20th the whole K&K Race Team returned to Mahoning Valley speedway for the second M.O.M. race of the season with Billy Jr. in the #16, Bill Sr. in the #90, and Tom in the #99. Tom won the first heat race, while Bill Sr. and Bill Jr. took second and third in the second heat. Starting on the pole in the feature, Tom led from start to finish. Bill Sr. ran top three for a while, but an overheating motor in the #90 eventually dropped him to 5th place. Billy Jr. continued to improve on the track, and brought the #16 home in 6th place.

June 1st John and Tom took the #90 and #99 to Wall Township Speedway. Heat race action saw Tom ride the #99 from last to first on the first lap, while John ran close behind to claim second. Rain postponed the features until the next week.

June 10th John and Tom returned to Wall to make up the rained out feature and run a second program as well. In the make up feature Tom took 2nd with John on his rear bumper for 3rd. In the heat race Tom and John finished 3rd and 4th, and were unable to improve their positions in the feature.

June 17th the K&K Race Team traveled to Mahoning Valley for round 3 of the M.O.M. series. Billy Jr. was in the #16, Bill Sr. was in the #90, and Tom was in the #99. As the previous M.O.M. event winner Tom was required to start last in both his heat and the feature. Bill Sr. and Tom were in the first heat race, where Tom charged to second and ran out of time while passing the leader. Bill ran strong to finish 3rd in the #90. Billy Jr. had to run a back up engine in the #16 for his heat race, but the motor performed flawlessly and Billy ran faster than ever. Some adjusting in the pit between races had the temperature in the #90 under control, and in the feature Bill Sr. made an early charge and ran as high as 3rd in the #90 before slipping to 6th. Tom had the #99 flying as well and came from 10th to challenge for 3rd before settling for 4th. Billy Jr. passed 2 cars on the initial start, ran all race on the lead lap, and was along side another car trying to make another pass when the checkered flag fell leaving him in 8th.

June 24th John and Tom took the #90 and #99 to Wall Township Speedway. In the heat race Tom charged from the back to the front to win while John took 3rd. In the feature event both cars slowed (the #99 drastically) as Tom dropped back through the pack after leading early to finish 4th with John closing in 5th.

July 1st the entire K&K Team journeyed to Mahoning Valley Speedway for another M.O.M. race. In the first heat race the Kriegners put on a show, as Bill Sr. took 2nd in the #90 with Bill Jr. on his rear bumper in the #16. In the second heat Tom finished 4th in the #99. In the action packed feature Tom and Bill Sr. looked strong as the #99 pushed the #90 into the lead and the 2 team cars pulled away from the field. In the caution filled event Bill Jr. dropped out with a bent axle on the #16, Tom got spun into the wall during a caution, and Bill Sr. got crashed out of the lead. By the end of the feature Tom had rebounded (literally) to win, Bill Sr. hung on for 5th, and Bill Jr. ended up watching after a very strong run. After the races the team enjoyed a picnic hosted by the track management.

July 15th the team returned to Mahoning Valley with the usual line-up. All three cars had patched up the scars from the previous race, and the day was much less eventful. As the previous race winner Tom started last in the feature. Tom and Bill worked together in the feature to move up through traffic with Tom taking 4th, Bill in 6th, and Billy Jr. in 7th.

August 5th John and Tom took the #90 and #99 to Wall Township Speedway. John was experimenting with a new motor and experienced some minor issues that hurt the performance of the usually quick #90, while the crew worked with the motor and tires on the #99 to improve on the previous recent Wall races. Tom led every lap in the heat race, while John struggled to a 3rd place finish. In the feature Tom had his hands full with the improved competition, but regained the lead to take his 4th win of the season. John worked on the handling of the #90 and made gains but again finished 3rd.

August 12th the team was back in action at Mahoning Valley Speedway for another M.O.M. race. Tom started on the pole in the first heat and went on to win while Bill Jr. ran a strong 5th in the #16. Bill Sr. also won his heat race in the #90, setting up a K&K Team front row start for the feature. At the start Bill tucked the #90 in behind the #99 and the 2 drivers pulled away from the field, but the engine in the #90 began to falter and Bill retired from the race. Bill Jr. ran as high as 4th in the race, taking 5th at the checkered flag, while Tom went on to win his 5th race of the season.

August 18th Tom and John hauled the #99 to Cuddebackville NY for a race on the Oakland Valley Dirt Oval. In the first heat Tom started 5th and dropped to 7th on the start, but quickly passed everyone and pulled out to a decisive win. In the second heat things started well, as Tom started 4th and quickly jumped to 2nd. While running down the leader Tom got wide and hooked a loose board on the front stretch wall, sending the #99 into the air followed by a series of snap rolls. Tom sustained minor bruises and abrasions but the #99 didn't fare as well. Extensive damage to the car forced the team to pack up and leave early.

August 19th Tom and John returned to Wall Township Speedway. John was at the wheel of the #90, but the #99 was unavailable for Tom, so the team unloaded the #93 for the first time this season. John drew 3rd starting position in the heat race. Since the #93 was set up and geared for Mahoning Valley, Tom elected to start in the rear. Tom worked his way up to 3rd in the #93 while John hung on for a 5th place finish in the #90. Rain struck the track shortly after the heat race, so feature events were postponed.

August 26th the M.O.M. race at Mahoning Valley was rained out, so John and Tom took the #90 and #99 to Wall Twp. Speedway. The first race of the day was the make-up feature from the previous week. The repairs to the #99 kept the car handling flawlessly, but an experimental motor had some problems and Tom was lucky to hang on to 3rd. John had troubles of his own with the clutch in the #90 and finished 5th. For the regularly scheduled heat race John elected not to run the #90, but Tom changed engines in the #99 and ran much stronger - running right with the leaders but still 3rd. When feature time rolled around the #99 refused to start, but John was ready with the #90 and came from the back to finish 3rd as the clutch repair greatly improved the performance of the car.

September 2nd the K&K Team returned to Mahoning Valley Speedway for the final points race of the season. In practice Bill Jr. appeared to have the fastest car on the track, but at the start of his heat race Billy lost control of the #16 and crashed, retiring the car from competition for the rest of the day. Bill Sr. had much better luck as he grabbed the lead in the #90 at the start of his heat race and went on to win. Tom started last in his heat and moved up to 3rd. At the start of the feature Bill dropped into 2nd with the #90 and pressured the leader all the way to the checkered flag for a strong 2nd place finish. Tom started last in the #99 and managed to work his way up to 5th in the #99.

That ended the M.O.M. season points race with Tom and the #99 in 3rd with 3 M.O.M. feature event wins, Bill Sr. and the #90 in 5th, and Bill Jr. and the #16 in 7th place in his rookie season. Mahoning Valley Speedway track points mirrored the M.O.M. results for the K&K Team.

September 9th the K&K Team was back in action at Mahoning Valley Speedway for a post-season money race. In the first heat Tom dropped out with motor troubles in the #99. In the second heat Bill Sr. won in the #90 while Bill Jr. grabbed 3rd in the #16. In the first of 2 features Tom took 2nd, with Bill Sr. in 4th and Bill Jr. in 6th. In the second feature Tom and Bill Sr. worked together to get to the front with Tom in second for much of the race, but on the last lap Tom made an unsuccessful attempt to take the lead on the outside, handing 2nd to Bill Sr. and dropping Tom to 4th. Bill Jr. ran as high as 5th in the feature before retiring the #16 with clutch troubles. The K&K Team also unloaded the #93 for the second feature event. Track Promoter Ward Crozier started the race from the pole in the #93 and held on to second for several laps before withdrawing from the race to catch his breath (the car was fine).

September 30 the K&K Team took 3 cars to Wall Township Speedway, with John in the #90, Tom in the #99, and Bill Sr. turning his first laps ever at the track in Bill Jr's #16. Since there were double features scheduled, the track did away with practice sessions. In the heat race Tom led early in the #99 but retired with engine gremlins. John led the charge for the K&K Team; coming from the back to take 3rd in the #90, while Bill brought the #16 home in 5th. Rather than do further damage to the engine in the car, the team retired the #99 for the rest of the day. John turned the #90 over to Tom, who started the first feature event in last place due to the driver change. Despite the unfamiliar car Tom charged through the field to claim second, while Bill struggled with the handling on the #16 to finish 7th. In the second feature Tom finished 3rd while Bill's work on the #16 gained him 2 positions as he finished 5th.

October 7th the K&K Team returned to Wall Township Speedway with Bill Sr. in the #16, John in the #90, and Tom in the #99. Heat race action saw Tom lead wire to wire while John and Bill had a fierce battle, swapping second several times before Bill dropped out with engine troubles. For the feature John stepped out of the #90 to let Bill Jr. get his first taste of the speedway. Bill Sr. dropped out on the pace lap as the motor in the #16 stalled again, but Tom again checked out from the field in the #99. Bill Jr. quickly adjusted to the new track and the different car, bringing the #90 home in 2nd.

October 21st the K&K Team returned to Wall Township Speedway for the final points race of the season with Bill Sr. in the #16, John in the #90, and Tom in the #99. Heat race action saw Tom bring the #99 from last to first with John 3rd in the #90 and Bill rebounding from a lap 1 pile-up to claim 4th. In the feature Tom dropped to 3rd with John in 4th. Bill dropped out with a stuck throttle on the #16.

November 11th the K&K Team ventured out in the cold for the 1st Annual Wall Township Speedway Sunday Series Turkey Derby. Bill Sr. was back at the wheel of the #16 with John in the #90 and Tom in the #99. All 3 cars had new or experimental motors for this event. The experimental motor in the #90 ran very well in warm-ups, but John felt that the motor was starting to tighten up so he retired the car for the day rather than damage the motor. In the heat race Bill and Tom started on the front row. Cold conditions and old tires on the #16 sent Bill spinning but Tom easily won with the new motor in the #99. In the feature event Tom picked up where he left off in the heat race, while Bill made a charge from the back to run a close second until the motor in the #16 died with two laps to go. Tom went on to lap the remainder of the field in the final race for the K&K Race Team of the 2007 season, becoming the winner of the first ever Wall Township Speedway Sunday Series Turkey Derby.

This brought the 2007 racing season to a close. In Wall Township Speedway season points Tom took 3rd with the #99, John took 5th in the #90, and Bill Sr. took 6th in the #16. In the Modified Outlaw Micro Stock series Tom took 3rd in the #99, Bill Sr. took 5th in the #90, and Bill Jr. took 7th in the #16. In Mahoning Valley Speedway points Tom took 3rd in the #99, Bill Sr. took 5th in the #90, and Bill Jr. took 7th in the #16. Tom scored a total of 7 feature event wins in the #99.

Over the winter the K&K Team will be rebuilding the cars for next season, as well as participating in several race car shows and attending awards banquets. Some team members will also be participating in other forms of racing during the off season.

Special thanks to our sponsors for the 2007 season: K&K Industries and C&M Automotive Warehouse, and to all of our friends and fans as well.

K&K Race Team Sponsors

K&K Industries Ewing Twp. NJ 609-882-8927

C&M Automotive Warehouse Trenton, NJ 800-293-4087

By Robin Ervin
7/1/07

Mahoning Valley, PA - Saturday, July 1, the Modified Outlaw Micro Stocks returned to Mahoning Valley Speedway and it was evident that the full moon was still exerting its influence. The action in the feature was so wild; those who saw it, for years to come, will no doubt talk it about.

Richie Price started on the pole in his #42 with Bill Kriegner Sr behind in the #90. Kriegner dove to the inside on the start. Kriegner’s teammate Tom Ervin in the #99 hooked up behind the #90 and pushed him into the lead past the #42. Lap after lap the #42 raced along side the #99 in a heated battle for second while the #82 of Brian Braddock pressured Ervin from behind.

Just past halfway, a caution was brought out by a three car pileup in turn 1 involving rookie driver Billy Kriegner Jr. in the #16, the #57 of Tony Lemma and the #5 of Nick Cottone. Earlier the #16 been involved in a similar racing incident that sent the #15 of Andy Hiddemen and the #6 of Dennis Hiddemen behind the wall. As the field, with Kriegner Sr in the lead was slowing down to take the caution flag, the #42 accidentally made contact with second place Ervin and sent him into the backstretch wall. The Styrofoam had barely stopped bouncing when Ervin blasted from behind the Styrofoam and rejoined the field. Since Ervin had hit the wall under caution he was allowed to restart from the position he’d held before the incident in second place.

Ervin’s engine was down on power now and on the restart, Braddock quickly took second from Ervin and a lap later was challenging Kriegner Sr for the lead. They ran side by side for over a lap until they got together in turn 1. Ervin quickly darted to the outside and missed the spinning cars to take the lead.

With 3 laps to go Ervin took the green and held off the #42 of Price and the #12 of Jim Van Dine to take the win as the three cars raced three-wide out of turn four to the checkered flag. Ervin’s winning margin was just 1?2 a car length.

After Ervin got out of his car after the race he noticed that the reason his engine was down on power was because the exhaust had been ripped off the engine when he hit the wall and was being held on the car just by the two support braces. Ervin stated that he finished the race with almost no brakes. When asked about his stunning victory Ervin stated “ I was as surprised as everyone to win this race. I didn’t think I had a chance (to beat the #90). I was just trying for a 1-2 team finish.” Ervin is the first repeat winner for the M.O.M. 2007 racing season. Ervin drives the John Kazmierski-owned K&K Express #99 Modified with K&K power and sponsorship from K&K Industries and C&M Automotive Warehouse.

The final finishing order in the feature was Ervin, Price, VanDine, Braddock, Kriegner Sr., Lemma, Kriegner Jr., Cottone, A. Hiddemen and D. Hiddemen. The heat race winners were Richie Price and Jim VanDine. The hard charger was Tom Ervin who started in 6th position and overcame contact with the wall to win the feature.

This race heated up the points battle for the M.O.M. championship. The top four drivers are now separated by just 30 points with Braddock in the lead, Ervin just 10 points behind in second and Van Dine 10 points behind him in third position followed by rookie Richie Price in fourth.

The next M.O.M. race will be at Mahoning Valley Speedway July 14. Gates open at 10AM, sign-in at 11AM, and racing starts at 12PM. You don’t need to be a member to race with M.O.M., just bring your Modified Micro Stock.

Trenton, NJ - Trenton based C&M Automotive Warehouse will be sponsoring the John Kazmierski owned K&K Race Team of Ewing Twp., NJ for the 2007 racing season. Carrying the C&M Automotive Warehouse logo for the 2007 season will be the #90 Modified Micro Stock driven by Team Owner John Kazmierski and the #99 Modified Micro Stock driven by Ewing's Tom Ervin.

C&M Automotive Warehouse is wholesale supplier of quality auto parts to automotive service centers in the central New Jersey and adjacent Pennsylvania areas. Family owned since 1964, C&M Automotive Warehouse uses 22 delivery trucks to assure quick delivery of the over 40,000 quality brand products in stock. In addition to major domestic lines, C&M Automotive Warehouse also carries many import-specific lines including KYB, BOSAL, BOSCH, DENSO, STI, CORTECO & TALON. In order to meet high quality standards, C&M Automotive Warehouse operates a shuttle that makes four trips a day to South Jersey warehouses. C&M Automotive Warehouse can be reached at 609-396-5086. They can also be found on the web at http://www.cmautoparts.net.

The K&K Race Team will be making it's first appearance representing C&M Auto Parts on Friday, December 8th at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, NJ as C&M Automotive Warehouse will be hosting "C&M's Customer Appreciation Day", including a Trade Show, Dinner, Prize Raffle, and a Hockey Game (by invitation only).
K&K Team Owner John Kazmierski has decades of experience in racing, most recently claiming the 2005 Mahoning Valley Track Championship. As an employee of C&M Automotive Warehouse, Kazmierski is also knowledgeable about the auto parts business and a natural choice to represent C&M Automotive Warehouse.

K&K Team driver Tom Ervin is also a veteran of the sport with 23 Modified Micro Stock Championships and over 100 feature event wins.

The K&K Race Team will be competing for the 2007 season in the Modified Outlaw Micro Stock series, at Wall Township Speedway, Mahoning Valley Speedway, and various other tracks. For more information about the K&K Race Team and C&M Automotive Warehouse, visit http://www.ervinracing.com.