Stewart Friesenis the STSS Middletown winner. (26th of October BLOG)

The race season is drawing to a close , with just a few big shows left on the agenda.

One of the last of the ‘must see’ events of the year is always the Eastern States Weekend at the Orange County Fair Speedway in Middletown , NY .

My first visit there was 24 years ago , back in 2002.

At that time it was a Dirt MotorSports member track and the Eastern States was usually the final points show of the year for all the divisions, Big Blocks, 358’s , Sportsman and Pro Stocks . The fairgrounds would be full with campers getting their last fix of the year at the three day show.

Back then , I was yet to become a media photographer so on my first few visits I sat in the packed grandstands.

When the track ceased to be part of the DIRT MOTORSPORTS / DIRTcar empire the event lost a bit of it’s grandeur (in my opinion).

The crowds are not the same these days, as what they used to be , a fact not helped by the loss of some of the Fairgrounds camping spaces . A large sector of the land has become a moto cross style dirt track.

The DIRT Motorsports (DIRTcar) Final Points weekend was obviously moved to other venues .

All of this hasn’t stopped my love of the event , and since my first visit to the Eastern States , over 24 years ago, I’ve returned numerous times .

With the departure of the SUPER DIRTCAR SERIES , in recent years, Brett Deyo’s SHORT TRACK SUPER SERIES has moved in to be the opener of the weekend on Thursday night.

My trip to the O.C.F.S this year was a bit of a last minute decision . With plans already in motion for an upcoming trip to North Carolina, just a few days later, my original plan was to give it a miss.

Then my buddy Don Simpson happened to mention he was going down there just for Thursday’s STSS show and offered me a ride . That was perfect , as it gave me a weekend back home to prep for North Carolina.

So on Thursday morning , I left home in Cornwall to meet up with Don in Ogdensburgh NY .

My car was left at our Pro Stock buddy, Dakota Sharp’s , Maple City Auto’s and we headed south in Don’s Honda.

It’s a six hour drive to Middletown , so the plan was to pre book the Red Roof Inn at Binghamton for our return trip later that night. Binghamton is about a 0ne hour 30 minute drive from the track .

To avoid having to check in , late at night or during the early hours , we took care of it on our way down .

We arrived at the track just before 5-00pm .

I had time to wander the pits and listen in at the drivers meetings.

Brett Hearn who has been a many times , past winner of the Eastern States, is now part of the promoting team.

Here he is conducting the domestic Sportsman drivers at their pre race briefing.

STSS boss, Brett Deyo did likewise at a separate meeting for the Series drivers.

I must admit , I was expecting an nice early finish to the show like most STSS events, but this idea quickly got dispelled when it was announced there were about 70 Sportsman in attendance .

They would be there to qualify for their big race of the weekend , that was taking place on Friday night . That was a lot of Sportsman racing to get through before we got to the headline race for the STSS Modifieds.

Both the Sportsman and Modifieds had their warm ups , time trials, heats and LCQ’s , before we got to the main event, which was the last race of the night.

These dragged out for an eternity , and just like the Sportsman at SUPER DIRT WEEK , their races were painful to watch with an abundance of yellow flags .

Eventually , the race we’d all come to see got under way.

The 50 lap Short Track Super Series.

It was nice to see veteran driver Frank Cozee, still out there racing .

Looking good at the start were the two Alex’s , Payne and Yankowski, as was Danny Creeden .

Meanwhile , the main contenders , Matt Sheppard , Mat Williamson, Stewart Friesen and Antony Perrego were not far behind. ,

Matt Sheppard started moving up , and got to the front , with Friesen chasing

Then Sheppard’s motor let go , and that was him done for the night .

Friesen inherited the lead with Yankowski chasing

Yankowski stayed close , but couldn’t catch Friesen, while Perrego and Williamson both kept in sight

At the checkers it was Stewart Friesen , adding yet another Victory to his resume

Alex Yankowski chased him across the line for second , with Anthony Perrego completing the podium.

It turned out to be a lot later finish than we expected.

By the time we got done with Victory Lane pics it was past 11-30 pm .

Once back on the road we were pulling in to the Red Roof Inn in Binghamton by about 1-45 am .

I’m so glad we did the check formalities in advance.

We left there around 9-00 am in the morning for the return drive up the I81 .

We were at Dakota’s place in Ogdensburgh by 12-30 , just right for a lunch time chat.

After thanking him for allowing me to park overnight, I was soon back behind the wheel of my Impala and heading for Cornwall.

I then had a restful weekend at home , following the Eastern States Weekend , on line .

The Sportsman race on the Friday was won by LJ Lombardo .

On Saturday Matt Williamson was the 358 winner.

The big race of the weekend , Sundays Eastern States 200 was a complete sweep for Canadian drivers.

1st Stewart Friesen , 2nd Mat Williamson and 3rd Felix Roy ,