Dirt Racing
Farnham and Vigneri Haul Tri-City Loot Across the Border; Mollick, Scott, Seippel, and Morrison Also Score

FRANKLIN, PA (August 27, 2023): Two New York pilots won their first career victories at Tri-City Raceway Park, and in doing so, they carried the biggest checks across the border. Taking the Diehl Chevrolet 410 Sprint Car feature was Matt Farnham and Phil Vigneri had the honors in the Pitt Stop Pub 358 Modifieds.
Also scoring a win was Jammin’ John Mollick in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply RUSH Sprint Cars presented by Billy’s Garage. Mollick was also the hard charger in picking up his first victory at Tri-City Raceway Park.
David Scott captured the A & MP electric, Inc. UMP Modified Main, Josh Seippel got his third consecutive win in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks, and Dillon Morrison in the 4 Your Car Connection Four Cylinder Mini Stocks.
Matt Farnham and A.J. Flick brought the Diehl Chevrolet 410 Sprints for the green flag in their twenty-five lapper. Andy Priest and Bob Felmlee started in row two. The third row consisted of Steven Bright and Bodey McClintock. Andy Cavanaugh and Nathan McDowell started in row four. Jack Sodeman, Jr., last week’s winner, started scratch because he was unable to start the heat race.
Farnham took the lead entering turn one and he never looked back. “The car was really good, we made a bunch of changes after the heat race,” he said. “I know that A.J. (Flick) was going to be good and that Bob (Felmlee) was also going to be good. I knew that I just had to concentrate and hit my marks.”
Flick ran second in the early going. Felmlee dipped to the inside in turns one and two and he powered by Flick. Felmlee gave chase, but he was unable to get close enough to Farnham to challenge for the lead.
A red for Nathan McDowell did close up the ranks five laps into the feature. However, Farnham got away cleanly on the restart.
Farnham led the remaining twenty laps without much ado. Felmlee raced in second, several car lengths ahead of his rival for the point championship, Flick. Flick was third. Then came Andy Priest and Bodey McClintock. Andy Cavanaugh and Steven Bright were sixth and seventh. McDowell was scored in eighth.
In the Diehl Chevrolet 410 Sprint Cars, there was only one heat. The win went to Bob Felmlee. There was no B Main.
Chad Reitz and Steve Slater had the front row for the Pitt Stop Pub 358 Modifieds. Phil Vigneri and Nick Joy were in the second row. Point leader Ayden Cipriano lined up next to Hayden Holden. Tom Holden and Lenny Leibold, III were in row four.
Chad Reitz wrestled the lead away from Steve Slater on the opening lap. However, on lap two, Phil Vigneri got inside of Slater to take tghe position away, and Slater spun, ending his night. The restart put Vigneri on the front row, and he soon assumed command.
Reitz continued in second, with Joy running in third. Joy had some difficulties on laps thirteen and fourteen, causing yellows on each of those laps. That moved Tom Holden into third for the restart, followed by Cipriano and Leibold.
Although Vigneri led the final six laps, he had to be getting nervous because his car developed a miss about three laps from the finish. He held on, though, to claim the win.
“I didn’t know if I could make it to the end,” he said. “But, I was going to make sure that it did.”
Reitz got second with his Ford powered 358 Modified. Cipriano, Joy, and Tom Holden took the top five spots. Then came Leibold, Hayden Holden, and Slater.
The Pitt Stop Pub 358 Modifieds also had one heat race. The victory went to Phil Vigneri. There was no B Main.
Zack Wilson and Blaze Myers paced the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply RUSH Weekly Sprint Car feature. Chad Ruhlman and A.J. McQuarrie were in row two. The third row matched Gale Ruth, Jr. and John Mollick. Row four belonged to Arnie Kent and Brian Hartzell. The fifth row paired Rick Tucker, Jr. and Brian Cressley. In the sixth row, Billy Myers was inside of Rick Regalski.
Blaze Myers grabbed the early lead, followed by Ruhlman, Mollick, Ruth, and Cressley. Ruhlman challenged early, but then dropped back into second as the race went on.
Mollick set a steady pace and he overhauled Ruhlman near the halfway mark. On lap thirteen, he tracked down and passed Myers. Myers fought back for a couple of laps, but Mollick was not to be denied.
After Mollick and Blaze Myers were Ruhlman, Wilson, and Ruth. Kent, Cressley, Hartzell, Zach Morrow, and Joe Buccola completed the top ten.
The Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Weekly Series for RUSH Sprint Cars presented a pair of heats. The wins belonged to Chad Ruhlman and John Mollick. There was no B Main.
“Slow Ride” David Scott raced to the lead from his third starting spot and he controlled the pace through the A & MP electric, Inc. UMP Modifeds. Mike Potosky, the primary sponsor for the contest, ran second. Alan Atkinson, Bruce Dreistadt, and Gary Sullivan completed the field. The fifteen lapper went non-stop.
Scott has the distinction of winning in four different classes at Tri-City Raceway Park, including 410 Sprint Cars and Super Late Models. He also won a special race consisting of Super Late Models and Big Block Modifieds held in 2005.
The A & MP Electric, Inc. UMP Modifieds had a single qualifier. The winner of that event was Mike Potoski. There was no B Main.
Josh Seippel was a winner for the third race in a row in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks. His was a race of attrition, as only three cars finished the main event.
There was a major crash around lap five that took out several contenders.
Following Seippel across the line was Chargin Charlie McMillen and Matt Bernard. Pat Fielding was credited with fourth and Rod Laskey, fifth. Jake Whitling, Andrew Hammond, Tyler Wyant, and Aaron Smith were the other competitors.
In the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks, Josh Seippel captured the lone heat race. There was no B Main.
Dillon Morrison was the surprise winner in the 4 Your Car Connection Four Cylinder Mini Stocks. Points leader Matt Urey seemed to have the race well in hand, but a mechanical failure knocked him out of the race. For the restart, Joe Campbell and Tim Callahan had the front row, but Campbell missed a shift and Morrison slipped into the lead.
Campbell recovered to finish second, with Callahan third. Matt Daugherty was fourth and Chad Greeley was fifth. Urey, Thomas Warren, and Kevin Wice were the other competitors.
The 4 Your Car Connection Four Cylinder Mini Stocks had one preliminary. The victory belonged to Matt Urey.
Tri-City Raceway Park will close out the 2023 racing season with the big holiday weekend bash. Points will be awarded for all of the track’s regular classes. Friday will be an open practice session. Saturday will have the BRP Modified Tour headline the card, with support provided by the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks, the 4 Your Car Connection Four Cylinder Mini Stocks, and the Old Skool Kool Vintage Tour. Sunday, the Diehl Chevrolet 410 Sprint Cars will top the card, with the Pitt Stop Pub 358 Modifieds, the A & MP electric, Inc. UMP Modifieds, Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks, and the Old Skool Kool Vintage Tour. A bonfire and live music will complete the festivities. Remember that there will be free camping all weekend (no hookups provided).
Further information about Tri-City Raceway Park can be obtained by calling the track office at 724-967-4601, or by e-mailing the office at tricityracewaypark2020@gmail.com. Or, you can check the web at Tri-CityRacewayPark.com, or the Facebook page at Tri City Raceway Park. Tri-City Raceway Park is located just a few miles north of Franklin, PA, at 3430 State Route 417 in Oakland Township. Professional auto racing will be presented in a family friendly atmosphere most Sunday evenings from May through Labor Day weekend.
Diehl Chevrolet 410 Sprint Cars: Matt Farnham, Bob Felmlee, A.J. Flick, Andy Priest, Bodey McClintock, Andy Cavanaugh, Steven Bright, Nathan McDowell, Jack Sodeman, Jr. (DNS).
Pitt Stop Pub 358 Modifieds: Phil Vigneri, Chad Reitz, Ayden Cipriano, Tom Holden, Lenny Leibold, III, Hayden Holden, Steve Slater.
Hovis Auto & Truck Supply RUSH Weekly Sprint Cars presented by Billy’s Garage: John Mollick, Blaze Myers, Chad Ruhlman, Zack Wilson, Gale Ruth, Jr., Arnie Kent, Brian Cressley, Brian Hartzell, Zach Morrow, Joe Buccola, Ricky Tucker, Rick Regalski, A.J. McQuarrie, Charlie Utsinger, Trent Marshall, Billy Myers, Brandon Shugart, Devon Deeter, Tyler Clark, C.J. McClintock.
A & MP Electric, Inc. UMP Modifieds: David Scott, Mike Potosky, Alan Atkinson, Bruce Dreistadt, Gary Sullivan.
Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks: Josh Seippel, Charlie McMillen, Matt Bernard, Pat Fielding, Rod Laskey, Jake Whitling, Andrew Hammond, Tyler Wyant, Aaron Smith.
4 Your Car Connection Four Cylinder Mini Stocks: Dillon Morrison, Joe Campbell, Tim Callahan, Matt Daugherty, Chad Greeley, Matt Urey, Thomas Warren, Kevin Wice, Jr.
Dirt Racing
Luck Rides with Larson to Third Chili Bowl Title

TULSA, OK (January 18, 2025): There is an old adage in racing that goes something like this: “It is better to be lucky than good.” That statement accurately summed up Kyle Larson’s Chili Bowl win. Larson collected a cool $20,000 for his effort.
Larson survived two incidents on his way to a third Chili Bowl crown. The first came in the middle of the race when he ran over a disabled car between turns three and four. The other came with just three laps to go when he climbed the front stretch wall but drove off before a caution was called for debris.
“It just was a very difficult race track to run the line that I was running,” Larson observed. “It comes with a lot of reward with the risk that you’re taking. I messed up on the straightaway a couple of times. I’m glad that I kept going there because that caution really, really saved me and allowed it to be a little bit easier run to the finish. I think if we stayed in traffic, Daison (Pursley) would have had a lot of opportunities to throw stuff at me.”
Perhaps Larson’s good luck even started before the drop of the green. Larson started on pole.
The ten cars that locked into the A Main participated in the Pole Shuffle. The Pole Shuffle was a series of head-to-head timed laps. The faster driver continued on and the slower one was eliminated. Larson drew the number one, so he was assured of a front row starting spot regardless of how he timed.
The second bit of pre-race luck was that Daison Pursley ran out of fuel one round too soon. Pursley showed consistent speed throughout the Pole Shuffle. He won the first several rounds. When he squared off against Landon Brooks in the penultimate round, his car sputtered to a stop. Brooks advanced to the final round by default.
So, the front row of the finale belonged to Larson and Brooks. Pursley and Logan Seavey were in row two. The third row consisted of Tanner Thorson and Emerson Axsom. Row four paired Gavin Miller and Shane Golobic. The last two members of the Pole Shuffle were in row five, Ryan Bernal and Brenham Crouch. The B Main winners, Corbin Rueschenberg and Christopher Bell, made up row six.
As expected, Larson scooted out to the early lead, followed by Brooks, Pursley, Seavey, Thorson, and Golobic. The leaders ran in formation at the top of the track through the first caution, which came on lap nine for a crash by Jonathan Beason in turn two. Beason was the only racer to transfer into the A Main from a C Main.
The caution nullified Thorson’s pass for fourth.
Larson led the parade after the restart. Pursley began to press Brooks for second. On lap thirteen, Pursley’s slider in turn three improved his position by one. He then chased Larson as the leaders started to work their way through traffic. Thorson picked off Seavey as the race approached the midpoint.
As the laps clicked off, the traffic intensified, Larson maintained his lead, but it was shrinking. Brooks, Thorson, and Seavey remained in the top five.
The first bit of drama occurred on lap twenty-two. Jacob Denney and Brenham Crouch tangled between turns three and four. Denney continued, but Crouch stopped in the middle of the track. His nose was slanted toward the infield. Larson had no place to go. He drove over the left front of Crouch’s car. Larson’s car stalled while in mid air. It refired when all four wheels returned to the track. Because Larson was able to keep moving, he was not called as part of the caution.
Larson’s car sustained no apparent damage. He was able to maintain the lead when the race resumed. Pursley kept pace with Larson. Brooks was still third, but after two laps, Golobic gained two positions. Thorson slipped back to fifth.
As Larson ran alone out front, Brooks was stalking Pursley. He took over second pn lap thirty-one, but Pursley regained second within a couple of laps. He then resumed his chase of the leader.
Pursley climbed the front stretch wall with about five laps to go. There was a large accumulation of dirt along the wall that acted as a ramp. It took a deft hand to pull the car down from the wall and to keep it straight. In the process, though, Pursley loosened a sponsor banner that was attached to the wall.
Larson tore the banner off on lap thirty-seven when he, too, climbed the wall. Larson climbed higher than Pursley, as the undercarriage was visible to the fans in the stands. Larson careened off the wall toward the infield. As he regained control, Pursley was coming. They entered the first turn side by side. Larson cut a better corner and kept the lead.
As Larson and Pursley raced off turn two, the caution light came on for debris, which was the banner that was now strewn across the middle of the track.
Larson kept the point for the final restart. He got away cleanly. Pursley stayed close. He tried a slider in turn four but he did not have enough momentum to get his nose ahead.
At the checkers it was Larson over Pursley. Pursley had mixed emotions afterwards. “I tried to pace Kyle for forty laps. It was a very technical track where you’d make room in one corner and then give it back the next.” He added, “it’s unfortunate. I really wanted to win this one, but there’s nothing to hang your head about when you’re racing against the likes of Kyle Larson. I’ve been coming here since I was little, so this really means a lot to me.” He concluded, “I thought we might have had the chance when the yellow came out due to the banner, but there’s so many woulda, coulda, shoulda’s that happen in this building, that’s what makes it so tough to win here.”
The Matt Wood team of Pursley, Golobic, Bernal, and Brooks completed the top five. While much attention was directed to the fleet of cars entered by Keith Kunz Motorsports, the accomplishments of the smaller Matt Wood Racing cannot be overstated. Golobic, who also acted as the crew chief for the entire team, gave props to Wood, who keeps the cars idle throughout the season. Golobic explained that they did not get a chance to knock the rust off because one of the Fall’s big events was rained out.
Positions six through ten went to Buddy Kofoid, Seavey, Miller, Axsom, and Bell.
Tim Buckwalter was the hard charger, racing from twenty-second to thirteenth.
Dirt Racing
Success for Seavey

TULSA, OK (January 17, 2025): Logan Seavey, a two-time and defending Chili Bowl Champion, was confident throughout the Friday preliminary event, and it showed even when his car did not perform up to his lofty expectations. “I ran a little bit of an ugly race but when it mattered I ran good laps, and my car was good enough to do it,” he explained. He stuck a hard slider to take the lead on lap twenty-seven and he led the remaining laps to lock into the Saturday A Main. “I could see Gavin (Miller) and there’s like two laps where he made mistakes and those were probably my two fastest laps of the race. I got off two really good and just went for it.”
“I’m always confident,” Seavey added. “Even today where I didn’t feel as good as I have in the past, still had speed, could still keep up with guys, lost a little balance to be able to maneuver as good as I needed to in traffic. When I could get up against the cushion by myself I could make a tin of speed. Finally in the feature, I could crawl the bottom and make speed early. We definitely got going in the right direction which helped. I feel like I made a lot of ugly laps there, and fortunately I happened to make them at the right times. When I did make good laps, it was really when I needed them.”
The first three cars in the starting line-up were fielded by Keith Kunz Motorsports. The drivers in the front row were Ryan Timms and Michael Pickens. In third spot was Gavin Miller. Tyler Edwards was his dance partner. Daryn Pittman started in row three, along with Jason McDougal. Seavey and Justin Grant took up row four, followed by Andrew Felker and Cole Vanderheiden. Michael Faccinto and Tyler Courtney made up row six.
The KKM triumvirate took the top three spots at the drop of the green, with Edwards and McDougal looking on. The action was slowed a couple of times, most notably when Pickens suddenly stopped in turn two on lap two. Timms and Miller took off again when the race resumed. McDougal, Pittman, and Seavey took up the chase.
An engine failure caused an extended caution on lap six so the oil could be worked into the surface.
The next ten laps under the green had Timms continuing out front, but Miller was staying close to his teammate. McDougal, Pittman, and Seavey battled for third, with Seavey and Pittman shuffling McDougal back in the running order.
Seavey did piece together a couple of competitive laps and he was making a bid for the second position. Miller picked up his pace as well.
Unfortunately, the leader, Timms, was hard on his brakes entering turn three and Miller was unable to check up. There was contact, and Timms spun to the inside, ending his chance for a win.
Miller was apologetic for the incident. “I was just racing very hard with Logan there, and Ryan kind of slowed up a lot towards the middle of that race. Me trying to cross back Logan there, Ryan went to the bottom I really didn’t think he was going to slow up that much. I kind of locked up the brakes, just slid too far, kind of hooked his bumper. Apologized to him, talked to him back at the trailer, it wasn’t anything I really meant to do, it was just hard racing.”
Nonetheless, Miller assumed control for the lap sixteen restart. Seavey and Pittman were battling for second. McDougal came upon them quickly and he made contact with Pittman. McDougal spun from contention on lap eighteen.
Pittman made a good restart and took over second with a power move on the inside of turn two. Within a couple of laps, however, Seavey drove by Pittman for second.
Seavey started to stalk Miller. Seavey got a good run off turn two with three laps remaining. He entered turn three with a lot of momentum. His slider came up a bit short, and there was contact with Miller. Miller checked up and Seavey drove away with the lead.
Miller drove conservatively for the final laps to ensure his transfer into the Saturday A Main.
Tyler Courtney closed fast to get third ahead of Pittman and Justin Grant. Edwards, Faccinto, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Sam Johnson, and Felker completed the top ten.
Nine heat races started the night. The winners were Timms, Chase McDermand, Felker, Stenhouse, McDougal, Miller, Vanderheiden, Grant, and T.J. Smith. Grant, Miller, Pittman, and Edwards prevailed in the qualifiers. Ronnie Gardner and Taylor Courtney topped the D Mains. Gardner and Don Droud, Jr. captured the C Main victories. The B Mains went to Hayden Reinbold and McDermand.
Dirt Racing
Thorson Thrills on Thursday
TULSA, OK (January 16, 2025): After regaining the lead from Christopher Bell with five laps to go, Tanner Thorson had to survive a frantic two-lap dash to the finish with Bell and Ryan Bernal to capture the fourth preliminary night victory at the Chili Bowl.
“I felt good there that last bit kind of tracking down Bell and then the yellow came out and Bell is the last person I wanted behind me on a restart. I’m looking for my guys to tell me where to go. I didn’t know where to go, I about gave it away. I thought it was going to be Bell on my inside, and it’s Bernal, I’m like, ‘Holy Crap,’ we’re about to get our doors blown off.”
Bernal made the most of the last caution and the final restart. He explained, “the white flag came up and those two (C.J. Leary and Parker Jones) got together and (I) literally did monster truck() over both of them. I was like “well, we’re in third now,’ and now green, white, checkered and I’m looking up at Shane (Golobic) and he (was) telling me to be smart, and come around again he says be smart again and just go to the bottom because I didn’t run a consistent lap all night on the top. It worked out great. I missed the bottom miserably coming to the checkered but we are locked in.”
Bell became the odd man out in the final two laps. He took the green in second–a transfer spot–but could not hold on to it. One might have thought that he would be disappointed with the outcome. But, surprisingly, he was enthused. “The last green, white, checkered was just cat and mouse. (It) was wherever Tanner went I was going to go opposite, and I felt like I was really in a good spot coming off turn two, he ran the bottom I ran the up and I had momentum on him. Bernal plugged the bottom and blocked my line. Once Bernal blocked the bottom, it was pretty . . . I (thought) I was going to be OK and Bernal snuck by on the bottom and made us three wide and it was a great race!”
Thorson started the feature from the pole position. His running mate was Karter Sharff. C.J. Leary and Christopher Bell were in row two, followed by Ryan Bernal and Parker Jones. Shane Cottle and Matt Westfall made up row four, with Matt Sherrell and Kyle Spence in row five. Jacob Denney and Bradley Fezard were next in line.
Thorson took the lead at the drop of the green, but on lap three, Sharff executed a slider in turn four to take the lead. Leary, Bell, and Bernal were looking on.
On the next trip around, there was a six-car tangle in turn three.
After the race resumed, Sharff was still the leader, but Thorson regained the lead one lap later. He held control for a couple of laps, but he was being challenged by Sharff and Bell. Bell got the inside line working, and he made a bid for the lead in turn one on lap seven. He could not pull off the pass, but he persisted. He went two-for-one in turn four to take the point on lap ten.
Bell continued to lead through the next caution, on lap twenty-one. During his time out front, he began searching for a quicker line, as Thorson was pressing him for the lead. Bell moved to the top and he seemed to be comfortable up there.
However, on the restart, Bell went back to the bottom. That worked for several laps. But the outside line was open for Thorson. He went upstairs and passed Bell with five laps to go. Thorson explained that he was able to adjust his shocks under the caution.
Soon thereafter, a caution was displayed for a flip by Casey Shuman.
When the green light flashed on again, Bell was chasing Thorson. Behind them, the action was heating up. Things boiled over on lap twenty-nine, when three cars running in the top five got together in turn two. Eliminated from the race were Leary and Sharff. Jones was able to continue. The biggest beneficiary of this development was Bernal, who drove through the carnage and moved into third for the restart.
This incident set up a green-white-checkered finish. On the restart, Thorson and Bell went high into turn one. Bernal got a great restart, and he entered turn one on the bottom.
The three-car battle for the lead intensified after the white flag came out. The contestants were three abreast! Bernal was on the bottom, Bell was in the middle, and Thorson was on the cushion. Bernal and Thorson got a slight advantage on Bell coming through turn two. Bell got a good run into turn three, and he tried the high line. Thorson came off the top to try to thwart Bernal’s inside charge. Bell was charging on the outside, but his car faltered coming off turn four.
At the checkers, it was Thorson over Bernal by less than a car length. Bell was a close third. Westfall and Denney completed the top five. Frank Flud, Spence, Shane Cottle, Brody Fuson, and Brady Bacon were sixth through tenth.
There were nine heat races. Bradley Fezard, Jeff Stasa, Cottle, Sharff, Bacon, Thorson, Bell, Chris Windom, and Bernal were the victors. Thorson, Sharff, Sherrell, and Bernal won the qualifiers. The pair of D Mains went to Elijah Gile and Jeffrey Newell. C Main wins belonged to Cade Morton and Spencer Bayston. Drake Edwards and Casey Shuman split the B Main honors.