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Dirt Racing

Marks Makes Up for Misfortune and Miscue

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Photo: Paul Arch

WILLIAMS GROVE, PA (April 22, 2022): After two disappointing outings earlier this week due to a mechanical failure and a poor driving performance, Brent Marks rebounded with a big win in the Tommy Classic for the All Stars Circuit of Champions at Williams Grove Speedway. The race paid homage to the late Tommy Hinnershitz, who won the first race ever staged at Williams Grove Speedway more than 80 years ago.

“We worked really hard and put ourselves into position to win these things,” Marks said with a sigh of relief. He added, “we just had a really good car (that) I could put it wherever I wanted to.” For most of the race, that meant running the low groove. “I felt the top going away and I went to the bottom. I know the Lance Dewease line and I knew that he would have to pass me on the top,” Marks explained.

Marks started from the pole, with Dewease on his right flank. They started the dash the same way and Dewease chased Marks home in that six-lap showdown. Parker Price-Miller and Tyler Courtney, the current All Stars points leader and defending champion, were in row two. Red Hot Anthony Macri rolled away in fifth in his quest for a fifth consecutive win. He had T.J. Stutts beside him. Danny Dietrich and Williams Grove’s teenaged points leader, Dylan Norris, made up row four. Ryan Smith and Kyle Reinhardt were in row five. Zeb Wise and Justin Whittal started from row six.

As they did in the dash, Marks and Dewease set sail at the drop of the green. Courtney nestled into third with Macri, Price-Miller, Norris, and Dietrich trailing. Things were pretty much unchanged through the first ten laps, with the exception of Freddie Rahmer, Jr. charging toward the front. He made it all the way from seventeenth on the grid to sixth! However, while the field was getting realigned after a lap eleven caution for Cory Eliason, Rahmer’s right rear tire went soft and he pitted for a replacement.

Rahmer regretted the decision to mount a new tire, as he was involved in a crash between turns three and four just four laps later. He was moving forward again and got tangled with Tyler Esh. Both cars flipped, with Esh’s mount suffering more damage. Fortunately, neither driver was harmed.

Officials declared an open red and all racers were able to take fuel, adjust air pressures in their tires, and make minor adjustments. The second chance to get the proper set-up did not change much for the second half of the race though.

Marks took off again and he stretched his advantage over Dewease in the clean air. When Marks approached slower traffic, Dewease began to close in on him, but another caution with eight laps remaining gave Marks more clean air to work with.

This time, though, he did not drive away from Dewease. Without the aid of lapped traffic to slow Marks down, Dewease began to close in but he ran out of laps.

“I think he (Marks) was in cruise mode,” Dewease said. “I went up top and heated up the tire and fell back. He’s a good racer, but we have nothing to hang our heads about,” Dewease added. He concluded by saying that he was looking forward to racing Saturday night again, as this was only his third outing of the season. Dewease expects more frequent appearances with some of the bigger paying races popping up on the schedules in the weeks ahead.

Courtney and Macri battled for third for most of the final fifteen laps. However, Dietrich charged forward in the last couple of rounds, passing them both on his way to a strong third place finish. “I got into clean air once I got by Anthony (Macri), and I could go where I wanted,” Dietrich said. He explained that the cars have become so aero-dependent, especially with the long straights at Williams Grove.

Courtney was fourth, earning more points than any of his All Stars rivals. Macri was fifth in the race that broke his winning streak at four in a row. Price-Miller, Whittal, Norris, Stutts, and Reinhardt completed the top ten. For Whittal and Norris, these top ten runs were career best performances against any touring series.

There were five heats staged for the 41 cars that competed. Taking the wins were Dietrich, Marks, Norris, Smith, and Price-Miller. Justin Peck triumphed in the B Main. Lucas Wolfe took a track provisional to start twenty-sixth and he was the hard charger at plus twelve. Other provisionals went to Bradley Howard for the All Stars and Brett Shearer for the speedway. Macri was the top qualifier on the night at 16.902. Dewease was the only other racer below seventeen seconds in time trials. He logged a best lap of 16.939 seconds.

Williams Grove Speedway will present a Sprint Car doubleheader next week. The URC 360 Sprints will challenge the track’s 358 Sprints as the undercard to the 410 Sprint Cars. The month of May will start with a tune-up for the invasion of the World of Outlaws. The 358 Sprints will provide support on May 6. The Outlaws will be in town on May 13 and 14 for the Morgan Cup. Coming up on May 27 will be an All Stars event paying $10,000 in honor of Randy Wolfe.

Dirt Racing

Peck Pounces in 410 at Williams Grove; Locke Lands 358 Win

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MECHANICSBURG, PA (April 10, 2026):  High Roller Justin Peck took advantage of an off-weekend with the High Limit Sprint Car Series to get some track time, and the win, at Williams Grove Speedway. He took advantage of an open red with four laps remaining to dial his car in for the final laps. He rolled around the outside of turns one and two to overtake Ryan Smith at the start of lap twenty-four, and then he held off a last lap challenge from Smith in the same corners.

In the first of three Dirty Deeds special events for the 358 Sprint Cars, Derek Locke drove by Cole Young on lap twenty and went on to score his eighteenth career victory at the track.

“We were down and out,” Peck said about his prospects for victory before the open red that changed the complexion of the race. He explained that he could not get any drive coming off the corners. “We made some changes on the car during the open red.” After the adjustments, he said, “we were able to rotate around the corner.” He added, “I think he (Ryan Smith) missed the bottom a couple of times.”

Buddy Schweibinz and Ryan Smith drew the front row for the start of the twenty-five lapper which was aligned using the Speedweek format. Peck and Brent Shearer were in row two, and the other preferred starting spots belonged to Brent Marks and Lance Dewease. Doug Hammaker and Troy Wagaman, Jr. were in the fourth row, followed by Dylan Norris and Aaron Bollinger. Cameron Smith and Brock Zearfoss lined up next.

Ryan Smith got the jump on Schweibinz on the initial start, but a caution due to the flat left rear tire on Freddie Rahmer, Jr.’s car required a second attempt to get the race started. This time, Schweibinz was better prepared, and he beat Ryan Smith to turn one.

Peck settled into third, followed by Dewease, Marks, Shearer, Hammaker, Bollinger, Wagaman, and Zearfoss. There were no changes in the top ten in the early going.

A caution for Cameron Smith, on lap four, gave Ryan Smith another shot at the leader. Schweibinz was up to the challenger, though, and he paced the field for the next fourteen laps.

On lap fifteen, Ryan Smith started to test the inside line. He got beside Schweibinz on one occasion, in turn one, but Schweibinz was able to ride the cushion to preserve his lead.

Ryan Smith went to the cushion in turns one and two three laps later and he was able to drive by Schweibinz. However, Zearfoss tangled with a lapped car in turn two, and the resulting caution nullified the pass for the lead.

Schweibinz was restored to the point for the restart, with Smith in second. Peck, Dewease, Marks, and Hammaker were the next three in line.

On the restart, Ryan Smith went low in turn one, and he was able to take the lead away from Schweibinz. On the next trip around the speedway, Peck got by Schweibinz, who was struggling to hold his position.

While Dewease was pressing Schweibinz for third,  Hammaker was challenging Marks for fifth. Unfortunately, Hammaker jumped the cushion in turn four and flipped on lap twenty-one. He was not injured in the tumble.

Track officials opened the red to allow the racers to add fuel and make changes for the stretch run.

Ryan Smith brought the field to the green for the final time, followed by Peck, Schweibinz, Dewease, Marks, Wagaman, Norris, Bollinger, Rahmer, and Tanner Holmes.

Dewease dove under Schweibinz on the restart. They raced side by side until turn three, when Dewease was able to pull ahead.

Meanwhile, Peck stayed in Smith’s shadow for the next several laps. At the start of lap twenty-four, Smith entered turn one on the inside again. However, Peck moved to the outside. He was able to carry some momentum through the corner and he drew along side of Smith. Peck rode the rim to gain the lead coming through turn two to lead the lap.

Smith tried the inside line on the final lap, but Peck stayed up on the cushion. Once again, Peck was able to keep his speed up and he drove off turn two with a lead of a couple of car lengths.

Peck took the checkers more than eight tenths of a second ahead of Ryan Snith. Dewease was third, followed by Schweibinz, and Marks. Wagaman, Norris, Rahmer, Chase Randall, and Bollinger completed the top ten.

Ryan Smith, Dewease, and Peck were the heat winners. No B Main was needed for the twenty-four car field. Marks was the fastest qualifier for the night, clocking in at 16.916 seconds for Group A.

Jacob Galloway drew the pole for the 358 Sprint nightcap. However, he could not take advantage of the prime starting position, for he spun in turn one on the opening lap. Fortunately, all but one car avoided him. Eli Tuckey made enough contact to collapse the front suspension of his car.

That moved Cole Young up to the front row for the second try. Young grabbed the lead and, for the first nineteen laps, it appeared as though he would get the win.

However, Derek Locke was biding his time. He raced along in third for the first three laps before making a move on Hunter Fulton for second. On lap twenty, Locke went under Young in turn one to take control of the race. Fulton held onto third through lap seventeen before fading from contention.

At the checkers, it was Locke by 0.864 seconds over Young. Austin Reed was third, with Matt Findley and Cody Fletcher rounding out the top five. Fulton was sixth. Steve Wilbur, Chase Guttshall, Brayden Mickley, and Brett Wanner were seventh through tenth.

Locke remarked, “he (Young) was really good on the tope, We were both running the top the first ten laps. He was better on the top than me. He went to the bottom once, and I almost got him around the top. But, I knew the rubber would come in and we were better down there.”

Young, Fletcher, and Locke scored in the preliminaries. The twenty-five car field did not use a B Main.

Next weekend, Williams Grove Speedway will present the Tommy Classic, named in honor of the first driver to register a win at the famed speedway, Tommy Hinnershitz. The 358 Sprints will again provide support for the 410s.

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Dirt Racing

Wagaman Wins 410 Thriller at BAPS, Fletcher Flies in 358 Finale

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BAPS Motor Speedway

YORK HAVEN, PA (March 29, 2026): Troy Wagaman, Jr. kept throwing sliders at Freddie Rahmer Jr. until he finally got enough separation to thwart any counterattacks from him. Wagaman finally succeeded with two laps remaining and he took the checkers just 1.907 seconds ahead of Rahmer Jr. And, to add a little spice in the closing laps, Rahmer held off a strong charge from Chase Dietz to preserve the second spot.

In the 358 Sprint Car nightcap, Cody Fletcher charged from sixth to the lead in just under two laps. Fletcher withstood a mid-race challenge from Jayden Wolf, whose engine expired moments after he had chased down the leader. Fletcher then generously donated half of his winnings to the Jeff Rohrbaugh Tribute fund.

Wagaman was still excited after reaching victory lane. “That was fun. I like racing with Freddie, but, damn, it feels good to beat him.”

Wagaman was skeptical about the track conditions after the heat races were completed. However, the track crew worked hard to bring in a second groove during the intermission and Wagaman was surprised how racy it was for the feature event. “When it widened out, I thought I could throw a bomb.” Nonetheless, Wagaman conceded, “I just tried to time it up and not wreck him (Rahmer Jr.).”

The Speedweek format was used for this event. So, the three heat winners and the three fastest qualifiers drew again for the first six starting positions.

Wagaman drew the pole, with Rahmer Jr. to his right. Anthony Macri was slotted to third, with Cameron Smith as his dance partner. Then came Lance Dewease and Danny Dietrich. Preston Lattomus and Gerard McIntyre, Jr. claimed row four, followed by Dietz and T.J. Stutts. Dylan Norris and Brock Zearfoss made up row six.

Wagaman surged into the lead at the drop of the green, but Rahmer Jr. was close on the outside. Rahmer Jr. took the lead away on the second circuit. Meanwhile, Macri and Danny Dietrich were battling for third, followed by Smith, Dewease, McIntyre, and Norris.

Smith slowed drastically as he was completing his third lap. Several racers got bottled up behind him, allowing Dietz to slip into the top five. Smith stopped in turn one to require a restart.

Rahmer resumed control on the restart, as the first six cars got into single file formation around the rim of the speedway. Toward the end of this six lap run, a car in the middle of the field did a 360 spin between turns one and two. It kept moving, but a caution was called for debris anyway.

One lap after the race got started, there was another caution for Zearfoss and Kody Hartlaub, who were running in eighth and twelfth, respectively before they came to a stop in turn four.

When the green light flashed on again, Rahmer Jr. and Wagaman picked up where they left off. Dietrich slid by Macri for third. Dietz held fifth, ahead of Dewease and Norris.

Wagaman increased his pressure on Rahmer Jr. after the lap ten restart. He attempted slide jobs at both ends of the speedway, but each time, Rahmer was able to turn back under him to maintain the lead. Soon thereafter, Rahmer Jr. made contact with the lapped car of Andy Best in turn one. Best got up over the cushion, and stopped for the final caution on lap fifteen.

On the ensuing restart, Dietz made a power move around the rim to take over fourth, behind Rahmer Jr., Wagaman, and Macri. Danny Dietrich, Dewease, and Norris began to wrestle for fifth.

The next ten laps or so were uneventful. But, after the five lap sign was displayed, the action started to heat up again.

Wagaman was hounding Rahmer for the lead. Wagaman threw a slider in turn three with three laps remaining, but, once again, Rahmer turned back under him. On the next trip around, Wagaman tried the maneuver once more in turn three. This time, he carried more speed, and after he cleared Rahmer Jr. he had enough of a lead that Rahmer Jr. could not make the attempt to turn back under him in turn four.

Macri tried a similar move in an attempt to take second, but Rahmer was able to hold him off. Macri switched things up in turns one and two, going to the outside to try to pass Rahmer Jr, for second. However, Macri got pinched off against the backstretch wall, losing several positions.

Dietz was the next one to throw his hat into the ring. He came after Rahmer over the final two laps, but he could not pick up the position.

At the checkers, it was Wagaman, over Rahmer Jr., Dietz, Danny Dietrich, and Macri. Norris, Dewease, Tyler Ross, Stutts, and McIntyre completed the top ten.

Wagaman’s car began leaking fluids in victory lane and was towed back to the pit area. One had to wonder if he could have completed another lap if necessary.

J.J. Loss picked up and extra $300 as the hard charger. He advanced nine spots to reach thirteenth at the finish.

Three heats were contested for the thirty-car field. Grabbing the wins were Macri, Rahmer Jr., and Danny Dietrich. Each of them received $200 for their efforts. Dewease was the fastest qualifier, topping Group A with a lap of 14.532 seconds. He was rewarded with a stipend of $245.

Brian Wolf and Eli Tuckey brought the 358 Sprints to the green for the final race of the night. Matt Findley and Tom Senseney were right behind them. Then came Jake Eldreth and Cody Fletcher. Hunter Fulton and Steve Wilbur were next. Cole Young and Derek Locke  sewed up row five.

Brian Wolf led the initial lap, using the bottom line. But all eyes were on Fletcher, who rode the rim to third in turns one and two. He reached second before the first lap was completed. A caution gave Fletcher a clear shot at the leader on the restart. Fletcher did exactly as expected, rolling the outside of turn four to take a lead he would never relinquish.

While Fletcher built his lead, the racer to watch in the middle stage of the race was Jayden Wolf. He climbed from thirteenth on the grid to second in the first eleven laps. Jayden Wolf narrowed the margin to three tenths of a second with nine laps remaining, but he was leaking oil from the left cylinder bank. He made another lap and a half before stopping in turn two.

In the stretch run, Locke battled with Tuckey for second. He claimed the spot for good with three laps remaining. Following Tuckey were Cole Young and Adam Carberry. Chase Gutshall, Brian Wolf, Brock Hammaker, Steve Wilbur, and Austin Reed rounded out the top ten.

Wilbur, Brian Wolf, and Senseney won the three heats for the twenty-seven cars on hand. Timmy Wagaman captured the B Main.

The 410 Sprints will return to BAPS Motor Speedway on Sunday, April 12. The 358 Modifieds will provide support.

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Dirt Racing

Dewease Dominates Grove Opener

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MECHANICSBURG, PA (March 22, 2026):  For the third time in his illustrious career, Lance Dewease captured the season opener at Williams Grove Speedway. The victory was number 117 for the all-time winner at the Grove. His first in the newly formed PA Possee Sprint Car Series was worth $6,000.

When the drivers drew for their starting positions for the feature event, Dewease, of Fayetteville, explained that the outcome would be determined by the luck of the draw. He was fortunate enough to pull the number three pill and most of the other contenders would be starting behind him.

Dewease was right, although racer’s luck was also on his side. Early in the feature event, Dylan Norris was leading Freddie Rahmer, Jr, with Dewease running in third. On the second lap, Rahmer slid high between turns one and two and spun out. That moved Dewease to second for the restart. He stalked Norris for five and a half laps when the race resumed. Norris got out of his groove in turn three and Dewease drove under him to lead lap eight. Dewease led the rest of the way. Norris closed in on him in the last few laps, but the track was bottom dominant by that time, and that played right into Dewease’s strength.

After climbing from his car, Dewease thanked his former car owner. “I’d like to thank Barry Shearer and the Shearer family,” he said. “We had a lot of fun for two years. This opportunity (to drive for Rich Eichelberger) came along and I had to take it.”

Dewease and Eichelberger initially planned to race together about forty times in 2026. But Dewease has revised the figure upwards. Now, the tentative schedule calls for double that number. “There are some things I want to do, and there are some things that Rich wants to do,” Dewease explained. “We’ll see how it goes. If I need a break, we’ll figure out how to do it.”

Dewease started the season with some cars held over from last year, when Brock Zearfoss was Eichelberger’s pilot. “This is a new car, the first of my cars, built for me,” Dewease noted. “The other cars were left over. Now we have to work on the motors.”

Dewease had plenty of power for the daytime surface. Indeed, he slowed his pace as the race went on. “I slowed up because I didn’t want to get to the lapped cars. Somebody was putting oil down. I thought we’d get a yellow,” he added. But no caution came and Norris and others stacked up behind Dewease as the race drew to a close.

Norris and Cole Knopp occupied row one, Dewease and Rahmer were in the second row. Danny Dietrich and Justin Whittall were in the third. They were followed by Kody Hartlaub and Brent Shearer. Cameron Smith and Billy Dietrich made up the sixth row.

Norris took control at the drop of the green. Knopp went high in turn one and that opened the door for Rahmer to take second. Dewease battled with Knopp for third, but the veteran grabbed the position by the time the field came around to complete the first circuit. Whittall, Danny Dietrich, Hartlaub, Smith, Billy Dietrich, and Shearer followed.

A critical moment in the race came on lap two, when Rahmer spun at the entry to turn two. Dewease benefitted from the miscue. Rahmer opted to retire from the event rather than struggling from the rear.

On the restart, Dewease stayed close to Norris. He followed the younger driver for a handful of laps before making the winning pass in turn three on lap eight.

The second, and final caution came on lap ten. Buddy Schweibinz spun in turn two. Dewease led the parade to the green flag, with Norris, Whittall, Double D, and Hartlaub in tow. Smith, Shearer, Billy Dietrich, Anthony Macri, and Dale Hammaker ran in the top ten at that time.

The final fifteen laps were completed without any disruptions. Dewease remained out front, moderating his pace so that he would not have to contend with any of the slower cars. Norris got to his rear bumper in the final few circuits, but there was no contact, and Norris tucked in behind Dewease for the run to the checkers.

Dewease took the win by almost nine tenths of a second. Norris, Whittall, Danny Dietrich, and Hartlaub completed the top five. Smith, Shearer, Billy Dietrich, Macri, and Hammaker were the next five across the scoring loop for the last time.

Brock Zearfoss was the hard charger. He was plus-eight. He went from 24th to 16th.

The three heat winners were Dewease, Whittall, and Smith. Tyler Ross took the B Main victory. There were twenty-eight cars registered for the event.

Williams Grove will switch to its usual Friday night program on the 27th of March. The 358 Sprints will join the 410s for the first time of the season. They will be paired up again on April 3, which will include Easter holiday festivities for the younger set.

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