“SNEEKY PETE” TAKES SECOND STRAIGHT WIN
It has been many years since a CAT-powered Big Rigs has been a force in the premier modified semi truck division now running in North America, but 2011 is looking like the year of the CAT as Joe Guilitto from Portage County, Ohio has now taken two straight wins in the Big Rigs Pulling Series sanctioned by USA-EAST Sled Pulling. Giulitto’s beautiful yellow Peterbilt is powered by a 3406 CAT engine that was running at top efficiency at the Big Butler Fair on Saturday near Prospect, Pennsylvania. Giulitto is a former driver for the Fred Sanders’ Pulling Team from Ravenna, Ohio and built his own Big Rig truck just last year for competition. “Sneeky Pete” also took the top spot during the recent Keystone State Nationals pull in Brooville, Pennsylvania just two weeks prior.
The cast of characters has changed just a bit for the Big Butler Fair but still five of the Big Rigs made the pull-off. The newcomer was the beautiful Peterbilt from Navarre, Ohio driven by Joe Hoffa and owned by Chris Wood. This seldom used machine is also CAT powered and finshed up 4th in the pull-off at Butler. The runner-up by less than two feet was Richard Scott’s “Silver Bullet II” from Palmyra, Ohio – a Mack Superliner with a powerful V-8 Mack under the hood. Scott is the crew chief for the Sanders’ Pulling Team. The owner of the team, Fred Sanders, fared much better with his newly prepared “Silver Bullet I” with Cummins power. Sanders was able to make the pull-off for the first time in 2011, but chose not to return to the track to make a second run and ended up fifth on this night.
Bill Christ’s “Sticks and Stones” has quietly assumed the point lead in the USA-EAST Big Rigs Pulling Series for 2011 at the mid-point of the season. Christ’s 1979 Kenworth with a very strong KT-600 Cummins for power has been the most consistent truck this season but has failed to gain a number one finish. But that consistancey has paid off well for the Galion, Ohio puller as he is at the top of the point charts.
