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Montgomery and Lynch Celebrate Holiday at Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex; No Race Until June 5

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MARKLEYSBURG, PA (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex held a Memorial Day doubleheader weekend. On Saturday evening, Flyin’ Ryan Montgomery had a perfect night in the Super Late Model division, setting the fastest time and sweeping his heat, the dash, and the feature event. On Sunday night, third generation driver Sye Lynch won the 410 Sprint Car race. Both drivers received $3,000 for their wins. However, after four successful programs over a three-week period, Roaring Knob will be dark this weekend, as Pennsylvania State Police asked the speedway to shut down. The track plans to resume racing on Saturday, June 5.

Other winners on Saturday included Braeden Dellinger in the Fastrak Crate Late Models and Drake Troutman in the E-mods. Joining Lynch in victory lane Sunday were Garrett Bard in the Allegheny Sprint Tour 305s and Corey Myers in the 270 Micros.

Montgomery’s Magic

Ryan Montgomery and Tyler Carpenter were on the front row for the Late Model main, with Matt Sponnaugle and Michael Lake right behind them. Brian Bernheisel and Shawn Jones were in the third row, with Andy Anderson and Doug Eck in the fourth row. Ken Schaltenbrand and Travis Stickley made up row five.

It took two tries to get the race going, but when the laps started counting, it was clear that Montgomery was the man to beat this night. While he was able to lead the way, he could never break free form Carpenter, especially in the first half of the race. Numerous cautions for minor skirmishes kept giving Carpenter opportunities to challenge but he could not cash in on any of them.

Sponnaugle raced along in third the entire distance. But, behind him, things were pretty intense.
Lake and Bernheisel were mixing things up with Stickely, Jones, and Anderson. In the middle stage of the race, Bernheisel got to the fourth position. He started to close in on Sponnaugle in the second half of the contest, but he ran out of laps.

Drake Troutman came on strong in the second half as well. Starting in row seven, it did not take the young man very long to crack the top ten. He made it up to seventh or eighth and it looked as though that would be his place in the final running order. But then he found something extra and started his march toward the front, reaching fifth by the time the checkers waived.

At the finish, it was Montgomery by several car lengths over Carpenter. Sponnaugle, Bernheisel, and Troutman rounded out the top five. Lake faded to sixth. Dylan Lewis, Stickley, Kyle Knapp, and Clinton Herst were the rest of the top ten.

Heat winners were Montgomery, Anderson, Sponnaugle, and Carpenter. Montgomery won the dash. He also turned in a lap of 15.580 to get the bonus money put up for the fast time.

Trevor Collins jumped out to an early lead from his second starting spot in the Fastrak feature. However, Breaden Dellinger moved into second and he chased Collins for the first seven or eight laps. Just before the midpoint of the race, Dellinger made his move in turns three and four. He ducked under Collins to take the lead.

Dellinger then had to fend off the challenges of two-time winner Joe Martin over the second half of the race. Logan Zarin advanced from row six to the third position. Collins held off Michael Duritsky for fourth. Steve Lowery, John Over, Ryan Frazzee, Jennae Piper, and Andy Spooner were the next five finishers.

Collins, Over, and Martin prevailed in their preliminaries.

Drake Troutman went wire to wire in the E-mod fearure. Mitch Thomas rallied from an early spin to claim the second position. Darcy Rex fell back to third in the waning laps. Greg Hauger and Amber Mills completed the top five. Troutman was the heat winner as well.

Lynch’s Luck

A draw for the first two finishers from each of the four 410 Sprint Car heats put Landon Myers on the pole with Bradley Howard next to him. Sye Lynch lined up in third, flanked by Billy Dietrich. Then came Shelby Sheffer and A.J. Flick. Tim Shaffer shared row four with Chase Dietz, while Trey Jacobs was paired up with Danny Smith in row five.

Three Rivers Karting

Myers got out to an early lead, followed by Howard, Flick, Lynch, and Dietz. They maintained that running order through the first five laps. That was when Tyler Ross rolled to a stop on the backstretch. That stoppage enable Lynch to bolt into second on the restart. Shaffer followed into the fourth spot.

The field completed another five rounds before Danny Smith spun in turn two. The restart saw another move in the lead group, as Shaffer passed Howard for third in turn one after taking the green flag.

Myers continued to set a torrid pace, while Shaffer began to close in on Lynch. Another caution came out just after the halfway mark, as Flick slowed. He drove off the track in turn two, ending his bid for a top ten finish.

Myers completed three more laps as the leader when he, too, suddenly slowed. He came to a stop midway down the backstretch, handing the lead over to Lynch.

Lynch held control for the remaining ten laps of the contest. Although Lynch was able to gain some separation in the race’s longest green flag run, Shaffer came storming back in the last few laps. Lynch had caught some slower traffic and that enabled the veteran to close the margin substantially.

When the lead duo took the white flag, Lynch’s lead had shrunk to just a car length or two. Shaffer tucked in behind Lynch as they raced through turns one and two, and he moved around on the backstretch searching for a spot to make a pass for the win. Shaffer dipped to the inside coming off turn four, while Lynch stayed in the middle of the track. Shaffer got to Lynch’s left rear wheel just as the checkers waived.

Behind Lynch and Shaffer was Billy Dietrich. Dietz turned in a creditable run for fourth. Fifth was Cole Duncan, who passed twelve cars to gain the hard charger bonus for the race.

Jeff Halligan was sixth, followed by Howard, Tyler Walton, Jack Sodeman, Jr., and Ross.

The heat winners were Flick, Lynch, Dietrich, and Sheffer. T.J. Michael looked like he would join that group, but a hard crash in turn one on the final lap eliminated him from further competition. he was unhurt. The pair of B Mains went to R.J. Jacobs and Dylan Cisney.

Layton Wagner and Jason Dolick also flipped in turn four in separate incidents, but neither of them were injured. Wagner was able to make repairs and started his heat and the B Main. Dolick was done after his heat race miscue.

In the Allegheny Sprint Tour feature, Bard made his big move on the opening lap wrestling the lead away from Jake Frye as they raced through turns one and two. Kyle Keen and Brandon Hawkins had ringside seats for that display of power. Kyle Colwell and Justin Clark raced along from their third row starting positions.

Bard , Frye, and Keen had a fairly easy time at the front of the field. Clark, Colwell, Hawkins, and Dave Brown were mixing things up for the next several positions. Their battle came to a halt when Colwell slowed for the second caution of the race, with just five laps to go. While the field was circulating under the yellow, Clark came to a stop as well, so two top contenders were eliminated.

Bard completed the final five rounds without incident, as did Frye and Keen. Hawkins crossed in fourth, followed by John Walp. The next five to the finish line were Brown, Larry McVey, Jacob Gomola, Tyler Cochran, and Don Melair.

The three heat winners were Frye, Hawkins, and Clark. Saban Bibent took his car back to Cincinnati with heavy damage as he crashed from the lead of the third heat. He, too, was unhurt. There was no B Main.

In the 270 Micros, Corey Myers easily outdistanced the other racers. But Brian Borawiec and Todd Ruesser put on quite a show fighting for the second spot, which ultimately went to Borawiec. Steve Dunmire was fourth and Ryan Fredericks was fifth. Federicks and Myers split the heats. There was no B Main.

Dirt Racing

Macri Masters BAPS

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Paul Arch

NEWBERRYTOWN, PA (March 26, 2023): Anthony Macri scored his first victory of the 2023 campaign. During the second caution period on lap twenty-five, race officials decided to shorten the race due to the excessive tire wear observed on several of the few remaining participants. So the field went to a green-white-checker finish. Taking the honors in the companion 358 Sprint Car division was Derek Locke.

“I was more worried about running out of fuel than the tire,” Macri confided. He explained that his crew only added five gallons of fuel when they had the opportunity, and that the crew told him the tire was good enough to go the distance.

Her added, “I wanted to win fair and square, and when you knock laps off, it’s not fair.”

Macri made his winning move driving under Danny Dietrich in turns one and two on lap eighteen. “I knew the rubber was there, I just wanted to stay as straight as I could,” he explained. Once he was in the lead, Macri had to scale back his aggressiveness and concentrate on keeping the car straight to conserve the tires.

Danny Dietrich pulled the pole for the race that was originally set for thirty laps. Kyle Moody was on his flank. Macri and Billy Dietrich were right behind them. Freddie Rahmer, Jr. and Gerard McIntyre were in row three. Chad Trout and Bradley Howard were paired in row four. The fifth row consisted of Austin Bishop and Mark Smith. Tyler Ross and Lucas Wolfe were the unlucky ones in the re-draw for the first three finishers from each of the four heat races.

Double D and Moody traded sliders but their spectacular display went for naught, as Justin Peck stopped on the outside of turn four. On the second try, Danny Dietrich assumed commence and Moody was in no position to mount any counterattack. Following them were Macri, Billy Dietrich, McIntyre, Rahmer, Smith, Howard, Trout, and Bishop.

Danny Dietrich set a quick pace. Macri moved into second, but he was several car lengths in arrears. Moody held down third, with Billy Dietrich keeping Rahmer at bay. Macri moved to the outside and he began to whittle away at Dietrich’s lead as the leader had to navigate through some back markers.

Dietrich moved off the bottom to set up a lapped car for a pass to the outside. That left the inside line open for Macri who maneuvered past both cars in turns one and two.

Soon after Macri took over, a caution came out for Dylan Norris stopping outside turn two.

Three Rivers Karting

On the restart, Rahmer faltered and he lost several positions entering turn one. The field was thundering into the corner, and things got congested very quickly. A couple of cars went around, and Troy Wagaman, Jr. tipped over in the process. Other cars involved were Trout, Ross, and Michael Mallard.
During the red flag, Danny Dietrich headed pitside and did not return. That put Moody into second for the restart, with Billy Dietrich, Rahmer, Smith, Kyle Reinhardt, McIntyre, Howard, Bishop, and Devon Borden following.

Cautions on laps twenty-one and twenty-three, and two on lap twenty-five disrupted the flow. Officials declared a fuel stop on one of the lap twenty-five stoppages. During the second, they opted to shorten the race, as only ten cars remained on the track and several of them had visible signs of heavy tire wear.

There was one last caution on the white flag lap.

Macri completed the race, with Moody, Rahmer, Jeff Halligan, and Reinhardt making the top five. Borden, Wolfe, Norris, Tyler Esh, and Peck were scored in positions six through ten.

The four heat wins went to Bishop, Rahmer, Wolfe, and Moody. Wagaman was the B Main winner. Thirty-two 410 Sprints were registered, with ten using the new design Hoosier tires. The others remained on the older style rubber.

In the 358 Sprint nightcap, Derek Locke led wire to wire for his first tally of the season. Steve Owings made a bid for the lead with about five laps remaining, but Locke held him off. A single file restart with two to go ensured that Lock had a comfortable margin at the checkers.

Taking third was Kyle Spence, ahead of Chris Frank and Brett Strickler. Wyatt Hinkle, Kyle Keen, Cody Fletcher, and Doug Hammaker rounded out the top ten.

Heat winners were Frank, Hammaker (from tenth), and Owings. Kody Hartlaub took the B Main.

The next 410 Sprint Car show will be on April 16, with 602 Crate Sportsmen and Wingless Sportsmen providing support. Regular racing with the Winged Super Sportsmen as the headliners will be held on April 1, 8, and 15.

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Dirt Racing

Dietz Does It

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ABBOTTSTOWN, PA (March 25, 2023): Chase Dietz recovered from an inauspicious start to his night at the Lincoln Speedway by leading all thirty laps of the 410 Sprint Car A Main. The $4,000 victory was the first since he returned to his own equipment for the 2023 season. Also scoring was Tanner Jones in the debut for teh Central PA Legends Cars.

“I’m still pissed that I spun in hot laps,” Dietz said. He recovered nicely in his heat race, though, winning in dominant fashion. In the feature event, he weathered six tries to get the race going. Although he was credited with leading the entire distance, Dietz benefited from a caution on lap eight, when he lost the lead briefly to Zane Rudisill in traffic. Rudisill could not get back around to the scoring loop before the caution was displayed, so Dietz was restored to the point for the restart.

Dietz was able to retain his advantage throughout the remainder of the race despite losing his brakes. “It was a long race in general,” he noted. “I lost my brakes, I was trying not to use them in traffic, I was just holding on.” He added that he tried to stay on the bottom, but he admitted to making some mistakes along the way.

Dietz was handicapped to the pole for teh start of the event, with Rudisill next to him. Cole Young and Lucas Wolfe were in row two. The third row belonged to Aaron Bollinger and Tyler Ross. Then came Tim Wagaman and Kyle Moody. The fifth row paired Dylan Norris and Justin Peck. Devon Borden and Cameron Smith were slated for row six. High point men Danny Dietrich and Freddie Rahmer, Jr. were buried deep in the pack after lackluster heat race finishes.

Four cautions, two reds, and a fuel stop delayed the start of the thirty lapper. No racers were injured in the incidents, which included solo flips by Bollinger and Young. Eight cars were eliminated from the action before a single lap was scored, though. Track officials opted for a single file start, which worked like a charm.

Dietz took the early advantage, but Rudisill remained close. Wolfe settled into third, followed by Ross, Moody, Peck, Norris, Smith, Anthony Macri, and Brandon Rahmer. Dietz and Rudisill drew away from Wolfe, who was hounded by Ross and Peck through the first segment of the race.

The caution on lap eight put Dietz back in the lead, which he resumed under green flag conditions. Surprisingly, the green remained out for the rest of the race.

At the halfway mark, Dietz and Rudisill again had a substantial lead over Wolfe. Peck was up to fourth, followed by Ross, Norris, Moody, Smith, Macri, and Brandon Rahmer.

Three Rivers Karting

Peck went to work on Wolfe, and he finally took over third with twenty-four laps down. Macri surrendered his top ten spot during that stint.

The final laps were uneventful for those in the top positions. Matt Campbell made some headway, though, racing into the back half of the top ten before the checkers came out.

Following Dietz and Rudisill was a fast closing Peck. Then came Wolfe and Ross to complete the top five. Norris, Moody, Smith, Campbell, and Brandon Rahmer rounded out the top ten.

Heat wins were scored by Rudisill, Dietz, and Wolfe. There was no B Main, as all twenty-five entrants started the race.

Tanner Jones came from seventh to earn the win in the nightcap for the Central PA Legends. Seth Kearchner, Stephen Wurtzer, Lincoln Kearchner, and Travis Perry completed the top five.

The next five finishers were Chris Transeau, Rick Hartwig, Colton Fries, Jeremy Ott, and Justin Wagaman. Fries was the hard charger, passing seventeen cars in the contest.

Jones, Wurtzer, Transeau, and Logan Carbaugh triumphed in the heats, The B Main went to Bill Diehl.

Next weekend, on April 1, Lincoln Speedway will present its first Sprint Car double header of the season. The 358 Sprints will make their first start of the year, while the 410 Sprints will take the sixth green flag of the season. The same program will be presented on April 8 and 15. April 22 will have the Central PA Legends Cars back on the card with the 410 Sprints. The month of April will close out with 410 and 358 Sprints joined by the Penn-Mar Vintage Modifieds.

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Dirt Racing

Rico Races to Outlaws Win

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ABBOTTSTOWN, PA (March 18, 2023): Rico Abreu made his 2023 Sprint Car debut a triumphant one, scoring his second career win at the Fabulous Lincoln Speedway. This one was especially memorable for the diminutive California hotshoe, as it came against the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series.

“I have never been in Pennsylvania in March, he noted. He added that he was worried about the weather, as he observed snow along the side of the road coming across the Pennsylvania Turnpike. But his crew chief, Ricky Warner, cut his teeth in the midstate area before going on to great success for many years with the touring series.

Abreu was thankful for the efforts of Warner and the rest of his crew. “I’ really thankful, thankful for my guys. They worked so hard on this thing.” Abreu went on to explain that Warner was able to adapt to the new Hoosier tires which were rolled out for this event. “New tires. I didn’t know that until we rolled through the gate tonight.” Abreu added that he was patient, knowing that Warner would have his car set up for the end of the race, after the fuel load burned off.

Still, Abreu had a close call during the race. Freddy Rahmer, Jr. was challenging Brad Sweet for the lead with eight laps down. The two made contact and Rahmer spun between turns one and two. Abreu, who was running in fourth at the time, clipped Rahmer as he went by. “I thought that my tire was going down, or that I knocked the (Jacobs) ladder out of it,” he commented. But whatever damage there was to Abreu’s car was minor, for his car got better as the race went on.

By winning the dash, four time and defending Outlaws champion Brad Sweet had the pole and two-time Lincoln winner Freddie Rahmer, Jr. was beside him. Abreu and Devon Borden lined up in row two. Logan Schuchart and David Gravel lined up in the third row. Danny Dietrich and Spencer Bayston were the final dash participants, starting in row four. Then came Carson Macedo and Buddy Kofoid, followed by Matt Campbell and Justin Peck.

Sweet powered off turn four with a slight advantage over Rahmer heading to the green flag. Abreu fell into third ahead of Borden, Gravel, Bayston, Schuchart, Dietrich, Macedo, and Kofoid. Things stayed the same through the early laps, with the exception of Peck slipping ahead of Kofoid for the tenth position.

Sweet caught the rear of the field by lap seven. While he dealt with the slower cars, Rahmer closed in. Rahmer was ready to make a move to the front when misfortune struck. Not only did the spin take him out of contention, but his crew was unable to make repairs to get him back into the fray.

Three Rivers Karting

Rahmer’s miscue benefited Borden, who had moved ahead of Abreu just before the caution. Borden took up the chase of Sweet, but he was unable to make any headway. Gravel was now up to third, while Abreu raced along ahead of Schuchart and Dietrich.

Another brief caution, on lap twelve, for a spin by Dylan Norris gave Borden another shot at the leader. This time, he stayed closer to Sweet. Abreu moved back into third, and Macedo picked his way into the top five.

The green flag remained out for the next twenty-three laps. About halfway through that long run, Borden made his move. He did briefly nose ahead of Sweet in between turns one and two, but he could not hold the position. Sweet scooted back into the lead, and Abreu moved into second.

Sweet moved up the track, leaving the inside line open for Abreu. On lap twenty-three, Abreu went low into turn one, pulling up beside Sweet. They raced wheel to wheel through turn two. Abreu got a slight advantage coming off that corner and he pulled ahead as they raced toward turn three. Abreu pulled away coming off turn four.

Sweet held onto second the rest of the way. Borden maintained third. Macedo crossed in fourth, good enough to take the bonus money offered for a handful of early season races scheduled for Florida and Pennsylvania. Fifth went to Peck. Dietrich, Schuchart, Giovanni Scelzi, Brent Marks, and Gravel rounded out the top ten.

Heat wins went to Gravel, Dietrich, Rahmer, and Sweet. Troy Wagaman, Jr, captured the C Main, and Scelzi won the B. Provisional starting spots were granted to James McFadden, Sheldo.n Haudenschild, Kyle Moody, Donny Schatz, Casey Kahne, and Brock Zearfoss. Ryan Timms was unhurt in the only flip of the night

Lincoln Speedway will be back in action next Saturday, March with 410 Sprints and Central PA Legends, with a 6 p.m. start. Sprint Car doubleheaders, 410 and 358 style, will be held on April 1, 8, and 15, also with 6 p.m. starts.

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