He missed the first two race days of the season.
For that, Jerry Gascon's competitors are breathing sighs of relief.
Gascon, a 50-year-old local stock car driver, currently holds down fourth place in the street stock points standings at PGARA Speedway Park. If he had been on the track for the first two meets, May 15 and May 29, he'd be fighting for the overall lead.
In June 19 and July 10 races, Gascon piled up 82 points, a total that puts him behind only Darrell Horwath (132), Jim Chapman (91) and Shane Murphy (84). Gascon has taken checkered flags in four of six races -- two dashes, one heat and, on July 10, a 30-lap main event.
"He's been doing awesome," Horwath said of Gascon, who is driving a 1979 Monte Carlo. "I helped him set up his car a little bit, got it dialed in for him a little bit more, and he was ecstatic when he won the last main event. He was about six feet off the ground and had a smile from ear to ear. He's definitely in his glory right now and if he would have been able to get that car out there at the beginning of the year, he would have been right up there in the points and challenging for the championship for sure."
See Wednesday's Citizen for more.
