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KENLY _ Goldsboro driver Andy Smith became Southern National Speedway's first 2001 two-time winner during Saturday night's ANECO Electrical Construction 260 auto racing program.

Smith, however, was the first to have a shot at back-to-back wins this season. SNS's 2001 green flag dropped last week but only the Lee Motor Co. Stock Four-Cylinder feature _ which Smith won _ was completed before inclement weather intervened. Claiming the checkered flag in their respective division's 2001 debuts Saturday night were Jamey Caudill of Four Oaks, Brandon Head of Goldsboro, Ron Langley of Elm City and Junior Mewborn of LaGrange.

Caudill, in a Monte Carlo, dominated the 100-lap Late Model Stock final. Head, the 2000 champion, ran away in his Chevrolet in the Pro Trucks 75-lapper. In the closest duel, Langley took the 35-lap Super Stock feature in his Cutlass. Mewborn's Monte Carlo emerged the class of the Foss Auto Salvage Stock Look-Alike 25-lapper.

Smith continued his tear after winning 21 races at a handful of tracks in 2000. Smith, in his Mustang, fought off a stout bid from Goldsboro's Mike Bridgers in a Toyota and then survived Bridgers' protest. Instead, Bridgers' racer did not pass the post-race inspection and his runner-up finish negated.

"The car is handling," Smith said. "We have good power, but we do not have any more power than anybody else. I can just drive it where I want it to go. He (Bridgers) was good, but I think I could turn off the low side and he couldn't. He was good and I appreciate him racing me clean."

Smith endured a late-race caution that provided Bridgers a final shot.

"It couldn't hurt us," Bridgers said of the two-lap shootout. "We were just really loose. We thought it might help us, but it didn't."

Lee Kozikowski of Clayton, in a Celica, claimed second, with Ricky Mitchell of Kenly third in a Mustang, Al Lane of Wilson fourth in a Pinto and Matt Fitzgerald of Selma fifth in a Mustang.

"He (Smith) was quicker than last week," Bridgers said of the protest. "We've got to know now if we're going to run him all year."

In Late Model Stock, Caudill ruled to the extent that only eight other cars finished on the lead lap

"We had a good car," said Caudill, a former SNS champion who won the first two 2000 Late Model Stock races as the 4/10-mile track. "But I don't know if we were that much better than everybody else or they were not up to where they usually are. This place is really hard to get a hold of. The track is so worn out that after 50 laps . . ."

Caudill, the polesitter, lost ground to the Thunderbird of Benson's Jentry Godwin the final 20 laps but was not seriously threatened.

"We might could have run a little harder at the end,"Caudill said, "but we ran a little too hard to begin with. We didn't have much tire left. If we had gotten a caution and everybody had been back together, it might have been a different race."

The 23-year-old Godwin, the division's 2000 Rookie of the Year, emerged the jubilant runner-up. His Thunderbird never relinquished the position after starting on the outside pole. His best 2000 finish was seventh.

"I'm give out but tickled slam to death," Godwin said. "I had a really good car. It was a little loose but, the longer we ran, the better it got.."

The racing was back in the 19-car pack. The Monte Carlo of Newport's Jim Kelley, the division's 2000 champion, ran third most of the way. But the Taurus of Kinston's Hank Jarman charged into third on the final lap. Rookie Ryan Rhodes, who maneuvered into the third spot on the 97th lap, settled for fourth. Kelley rounded out the top five.

Langley, in Super Stock, fended off Wilson's Gary Gardner in a Monte Carlo. Gardner frequently maneuvered the nose of his racer at the bumper of Langley's ride the final laps.

But the 53-year-old Langley added an exclamation point to his intent to surface as the scourge of the division.

"I want to win the championship," Langley said. "That's my goal. It's great to win this first one. But he (Gardner) was dead-on. He was up there under me. There was nothing to give him."

And Gardner wasn't taking.

"It wasn't going to happen without Ron moving out of the way and giving me the lane," Gardner said. "That's the only way. I didn't want to knock him out. It's not worth tearing up something."

Following Langley and Gardner to the stripe, respectively, were John Whaley of Goldsboro in a Monte Carlo, Jerry Howard of Wilson in a Cutlass and Perry Bauer of Clayton in a Monte Carlo.

The 33-year-old Mewborn, coming off a pair of 2000 wins, set the Stock Look-Alike pace from the pole. His Monte Carlo pulled away from the Camaro of Goldsboro's Jon Howell early and held off the Camaro of Pikeville's Jamie Mozingo late.

"We were good from the start," Mewborn said. "We tried some funky stuff and it worked out. We didn't know what was going to happen."

Mozingo worked past Howell and into second place on the 20th lap. Howell wound up third in just his third SNS race. The Monte Carlos of Chris Head of Snow Hill and Brandon Gray of New Hope finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Howell's car was on the verge of overheating.

"The temperature got to up 240 degrees and I kept losing power," Howell said.

After a trio of preliminaries that were virtually trouble free, eight cautions marred the Budweiser Pro Trucks 75-lapper. A mid-race caution may have prevented Head from lapping the field.

"I can't help it," said Head, who anticipates a limited Pro Trucks schedule this season. ""It's an awesome piece. I don't have to drive it hard and it turns in the corners. It's the total package."

Mark Howell of Pikeville charged to a second-place finish after starting second. Rookie Wil Smith of Raleigh finished third in a Ford, followed by veteran Linwood of Mozingo of Pikeville fourth in a Dodge and 2000 runner-up John Jones of Goldsboro fifth in a Ford. Jones started eighth.

"It was good," Howell said of his ride. "The more I ran, the better it got."

However, Howell suggested second was the best he could expect.

"That was all we could get," he said. "That's all anybody is going to get." Wil Smith, with over 50 career Four-Cylinder wins, termed his Pro Trucks debut as "great."

"We did well for our first race," he added. "If we can get a little more horsepower and get the truck handling a little better, I don't see why we shouldn't win some races."

SNS racing resumes next Saturday night.