IMPERIAL, PA (April 20, 2024) Aliquippa’s Tim Shaffer started on the pole position and survived several caution flags and restarts to win the Herb Scott Memorial Saturday night at Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway (PPMS).

“Boy I earned that one huh,” said Shaffer following the race.  “These wins just keep getting better and better. Herb Scott won a lot of features and I have a long way to go to catch him, but my career went on the road and it became hard to win races. It’s kind of back home racing now for me and it’s a lot of fun.”

Brock Pinkerous and Dave Hess Jr. staged an epic battle over the last several laps with Pinkerous scoring an emotional runner-up finish.

“Congrats to Tim on the win,” said Pinkerous, who hails from Ellenville, NY. “He’s really good at this track. Him and Dave are legends around this area. It’s really cool to battle with them; they raced me clean and I raced them clean. Even though we didn’t win tonight, this is for my uncle tonight who passed away about a month ago. I hope he’s watching over us tonight, and I really love you uncle Chris.”

“We were really good on those restarts,” said Hess, the 39-year-old Waterford, Pa. driver. “A little tweak to the car and maybe a gear change and we could have had something for the leaders. Once those two (Shaffer and Pinkerous) got rolling, they were a little better than I was.”

Kyle Lukon finished fifth and Logan Roberson rounded out the Top 5.

A Feature (30 Laps): 1. 45-Tim Shaffer[1]; 2. 555-Brock Pinkerous[4]; 3. 44-Dave Hess Jr[21]; 4. 184-Kyle Lukon[5]; 5. 17R-Logan Roberson[19]; 6. 10S-Joe Martin[16]; 7. 36-Cody Dawson[7]; 8. 3J-Jeremy Wonderling[10]; 9. 42-Daryl Charlier[6]; 10. 184C-Justin Chance[13]; 11. 21J-Jim Rasey[24]; 12. 184P-Cole Petrelle[20]; 13. 77-Tom Klein[23]; 14. 57-Charlie Sandercock[11]; 15. 36B-Colby Beighey[15]; 16. 18-Mike Wonderling[25]; 17. 29-Ryan Hare[17]; 18. 60H-Brian Huchko[22]; 19. 9R-Mike Reft[14]; 20. 25-Zachary Kane[9]; 21. 72B-Kassidy Kamicker[18]; 22. 75-Jared Miley[3]; 23. 60-Brandon Burgoon[2]; 24. 14AJ-AJ Miller[8]; 25. 14G-Jake Gunn[12]

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA (April 20, 2024): Anthony Macri made a triumphant return to the Keystone State. After spending a few weeks racing in the Midwest, Macri came back for some top-paying races in his own backyard. Weather claimed the first night of racing, at Williams Grove Speedway, but Macri made up for it by earning $20,000 in the 20th Annual Weldon Sterner Memorial at the Lincoln Speedway. It was his second victory of the season in the Pigeon Hills.

Macri, who was dominant running up near the wall in turns three and four, said “I think running out on the road made me more comfortable running up there, and running at that pace.” He did admit, though, that he did back off a bit in the late stages of the race in order to conserve his tires because this was the longest race he has run this season and he was not sure how the tires would hold up. “I was worried about tire wear. I had to run a good pace to make sure the tires would last.”

The luck of the draw put Macri on the pole for this forty lapper. Next to him was Aussie Ryan Newton. Billy Dietrich and Freddie Rahmer, Jr. were in the second row. Danny Dietrich was scheduled to start fifth, but a magneto problem forced him to pit just as the A Main was about to push off. The car could not be repaired in time to allow him to tag the tail of the field. So, Lucas Wolfe slid over to fifth and Troy Wagaman, Jr. became his dance partner. Cameron Smith and Kody Hartlaub were in row four. Behind them were Kyle Moody and Chad Trout, whose car was carrying the Sterner Cement wing to commemorate the event. Kyle Reinhart and Matt Campbell were in the sixth row.

Macri led Newton and Rahmer Jr. in the opening laps. Wagaman, Wolfe, Billy Dietrich, Moody, Smith, Campbell, and Hartlaub were next in line. A caution on lap three for Cory Haas bunched things up again, but the running order remained unchanged after the green lights came on again.

The first significant move occurred on lap twelve, when Rahmer Jr. worked the inside line to take over second. As Rahmer began his pursuit of Macri, Newton was busy keeping Wagaman and Wolfe at bay.

After a caution on lap sixteen for debris, Wagaman moved ahead of Newton, who struggled to stay ahead of Wolfe. In the second half of the race, Wolfe got stronger. He moved ahead of both Newton and Wagaman.

Macri continued out front, of course. Rahmer Jr. still held second, but Wolfe was closing in on him. Wagaman, Newton, and Campbell were battling for positions in the top five.

The final caution was displayed with seven laps remaining. Macri got away cleanly, and Wolfe resumed his attack on Rahmer Jr. As they contested the second spot, Macri began to pull away.

At the checkers, it was Macri ahead of Rahmer Jr. by over 2.4 seconds. Wolfe was a close third, followed by Wagaman and Newton. Billy Dietrich rallied in the closing laps to take sixth. Campbell, Devon Borden, Rinehart, and Brandon Rahmer completed the top ten.

Heat winners were Wolfe, Billy Dietrich, Macri, and Smith. Tyler Ross won the B Main. The evening’s fastest qualifier was Rahmer Jr., with a time of 13.768 seconds. He earned a $300 bonus for that accomplishment. Danny Dietrich received the hard luck award, worth $100. T.J. Stutts was the hard charger at plus eight. He, too, received $100 extra.

Ayden Hare will forever remember his sixteenth birthday, as he celebrated the occasion in victory lane after just his fourth 358 Sprint Car race. The teen drove a flawless race, leading wire to wire. “I am at a loss for words, I am so happy,” he said.

Scott Fisher had the pole, with Hare to his right. Behind them were Doug Hammaker and Frankie Herr. Row three consisted of Adam Carberry and Preston Lattomus. Jayden Wolf and Ashley Cappetta were in the fourth row. The fifth belonged to Mike Bittinger and Tyler Ulrich. Dylan Norris and Cody Fletcher claimed row six.

Hare won the race to turn one and he claimed the middle groove as his own. Fisher and Herr were side by side fighting for second, with Hammaker lurking in fourth. Carberry, Lattomus, Wolf, Bittinger, Cappetta, and Norris strung out behind the leaders.

Hare began to pull away from Fisher and Herr as they continued their struggle for second place.

A red flag on lap eleven for Wolf’s flip between turns three and four brought Hare back to the rest of the racers, but the teen had no trouble building his advantage up again in the final nine laps.

Hare, Fisher, Herr, Hammaker, and Carberry were the top five finishers. Bittinger, Cappetta, Norris, Lattomus, and Logan Rumsey were sixth through tenth. Wolf received the hard luck award and Jude Siegel was the hard charger, at plus seven. They each received $250.

Next week, Lincoln Speedway will present another 410 and 358 Sprint car doubleheader. The same two divisions will return on May 4. The World of Outlaws will be in for the Gettysburg Clash on May 8. There will be no racing on May 11, but the speedway will host the Hot Rod Annual for the Eastern Museum of Motor Racing.

SARVER, PA (April 19, 2024): Brandon Spithaler held on for the win in a non-stop twenty-five lapper to open the season for the 410 Sprint Cars at Lernerville Speedway. Defending track champion A.J. Flick raced from thirteenth to second. Taking the checkers in the Late Models was defending champion Michael Norris. Garrett Krummert earned his first opening night victory in the DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds. Christian Schneider closed out the night holding the checkered flag in the Penn Ohio Pro Stocks.

“With (Will) Flemming getting into the fence coming to the white, I got out of (the throttle), maybe too much. I saw the 2 (A.J. Flick), that was the first time that I saw anybody.” Spithaler said. He maintained his outside line on the final trip around the track, and then he was able to pin Flick behind a lapped car coming off turn four to preserve the win. “The car was a lot better than last week. We came back from Attica (Raceway Park) and made a lot of changes to the car. We went back to some of the things that worked for us last year.”

Cody Bova and Jared Zimbardi paced the start of the first 410 Sprint Car feature event of 2024 season. Blaze Myers made his first 410 start at the Action Track from row two, along with Brandon Spithaler. Matt Farnham and Dan Kuriger were matched in row three. Hall of Fame racer Dale Blaney lined up with Carl Bowser in row four. Ohio invader Ricky Peterson and Michael Bauer had row five. Jeremy Weaver and Pete Landrum made up row six.

Although Bova led the field into turn one, it did not take Spithaler very long to vault into the lead. He shot from fourth to the front coming off turn two. Bova tucked into second, with Zimbardi, Blaney, Peterson, Kuriger, Farnham, Bowser, and Flick in tow.

With Spithaler setting a blistering pace, Zimbardi drove into second place. However, Blaney was making headway, and soon he was challenging for the role of first chaser. Also on the move was Flick, who reached the top five by lap eight.

Blaney took over the second position by lap ten and, just two laps later, Flick was up to third. Continuing his charge, Flick wrestled the second spot away from Blaney in the final five laps.

Spithaler’s lead was shrinking as the laps were counting down. Flick was within striking distance when an opportunity presented itself at the start of the final lap. Spithaler checked up because a lapped car got into the outside wall, but Flick could not scoot by. Flick took another run at the leader in the final corners, but Spithaler pinned him behind a lapped car coming off turn four to ensure the victory.

Blaney held on for third, with Zimbardi and Bova rounding out the top five. Kuriger, Peterson, Bowser, Myers, and Brandon Matus were finishers six through ten.
Sprint Car heats were won by Dale Blaney, Matt Farnham, and Cody Bova. Jacob Begenwald captured the B Main.

Michael Norris was relieved to get the win to open up his title defense in the Late Model ranks. “I pretty much thought that I had that race lost,” he said. He explained that he was running the bottom when Alex Ferree sailed by on the outside. That took Norris by surprise. However, a late race restart gave him the opportunity to battle Ferree for the lead again.

Ken Schaltenbrand was flanked by John Garvin for the start of the race. Tyler Dietz and mid-state racer Jon lee had row two. Daryl Charlier and Norris were dance partners in row three, with Jared Miley making his return in row four. He was paired with Ferree. Logan Zarin and Michael Lake were positioned in row five. Taking up row six were Michael Duritsky and Coltin Flinner.

The first two attempts to start the race were waived off. Miley’s spin in turn two accounted for the first one, and a false start justified the second. When the race did get going, Schaltenbrand was the leader, with Garvin’s new ride holding down the second spot. Trailing them were Dietz, Norris, and Lee.

There were no changes in the running order for the first several laps. Norris claimed third on lap seven. Two laps later, Garvin rode the rim coming off turn two to take command. Soon thereafter, Norris slipped into second. Norris remained close for the next three laps. He made his move to the front on lap twelve. Ferree climbed into third on lap thirteen.

The double file restart on lap sixteen had Norris to the inside and Ferree on the outside. They ran side-by-side for a lap, with Ferree getting a nose out front at the scoring loop. Another caution set them up for a rematch, but Ferree switched things up by taking the inside for the restart. He was able to get to turn one ahead of Norris and Ferree slid across the groove to get to the cushion first.

Ferree started to pull away, but the final caution, on lap twenty-one, wiped out his advantage. On the ensuing restart, Norris executed a slide job to regain the lead, but Ferree battled back. He was out front again using the high line through turns three and four.

On lap twenty-three, Norris returned the favor. He blasted around Ferree using the cushion to his advantage at the north end of the track.

Norris took the checkers ahead of Ferree, with Flinner in third. Lake and Garvin rounded out the top five. Dietz crossed in sixth, followed by Schaltenbrand, Zarin, and Tyler Wyant claiming tenth.

The trio of Late Model heats belonged to Logan Zarin, Jared Miley, and Alex Ferree. The B Main victory went to R.J. Dellape.

Garrett Krummert was the fourth and final leader of the DIRTcar Big Block Modified race. “We were pretty good anywhere,” Krummert noted. He said that the team tried some different things on the car, and he was able to run the top or the bottom. Krummert was able to take the lead away from Jeremiah Shingledecker on the final restart of the contest, coming on lap twenty-one. “I was surprised that Jeremiah gave me the outside for that restart.”

Will Thomas and Rex King, Jr. were on the front row, with brad Rapp and Shingledecker in row two. Colton Walters and Dave Murdick were in row three. Justin Shea and Krummert lined up in row four, ahead of Jordan Ehrenberg and Mike Kinney. Jeff Miller and Steve Slater departed from row six.

Thomas took the early lead, with King, Rapp, Shingledecker, Shea, and Walters following closely. A caution just three laps into the event gave King another shot at the lead, and he did briefly take the top spot. However, Thomas rallied as the duo came toward the scoring loop, and he was credited with the lead on lap four. King prevailed after another caution, and he continued to lead through lap twelve.

On that trip around the speedway, Shingledecker grabbed the lead using the high line. Krummert used the inside to take second, and King was stranded in the middle. He held onto third, ahead of Thomas and Walters.

While Shingledecker was leading, Krummert began searching for a better line. He was challenging for the lead when Shingledecker used a lapped car as a pick to gain some breathing room.

The final caution set Krummert up to make an outside charge to the front. Shingledecker held second, but a late race mistake cost him dearly. He got up over the berm in turn four losing several positions in the process. Shingledecker’s miscue enabled King to get back into second and Thomas into third.

At the checkers, it was Krummert, King, Thomas, Shingledecker, and Shea making up the top five. Rapp, Walters, Steve Feder, Murdick, and Rodney Beltz were the next five to cross the loop.

A pair of heats were contested for the DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds. Justin Shea and Garrett Krummert took the honors. There was no B Main.

Christian Schneider raced his way to the front early in the nightcap for the Penn Ohio Pro Stocks. To get there, he had to pass defending champ, Tyler Dietz, and Schneider’s legendary father, Chris. The father chased the son the rest of the way, but he could not regain the lead.

On lap twenty, it was Christian getting the nod over Chris in the family feud. Dietz, Cody McPherson, and Jason Fosnaught were third, fourth, and fifth. Fosnaught was subbing for Brett McDonald. Next in line were Brett Hutira, Cody Koteles, Tyler Schneider, Jacob Dietz, and Cole Miller.

The Pro Stocks spun off two heats, with the wins going to Chris Schneider and Christian Schneider. There was no B Main.

Lernerville Speedway will present another action packed four-division program on April 26. Coming up on May 10, the ULMS Late Models will make their first appearance of 2024.