Dirt Racing
Gravel Grabs Lincoln Loot
ABBOTTSTOWN, PA (May 8, 2024): David Gravel continued his hot streak on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car tour at the Fabulous Lincoln Speedway. His sixth victory of the season was his third in his last four outings, and he stretched his points lead over Donny Schatz to more than fifty counters entering the weekend’s action at the Williams Grove Speedway.
“I started on the pole and I didn’t know what kind of pace to be running, or where to run. If I was running third, I would have been searching around. I started low and went to the middles for two laps in (turn) one and two, and then I went to the top and I was able to carry some speed.” Gravel was challenged in the middle part of the race by Carson Macedo, but as the race wore on, Gravel’s dominance became apparent.
Second place finisher, Giovanni Scelzi, gave props to Gravel and company. “They are really fast right now. There’s no excuses from me,” he added. “We flat out got beat.”
Macedo, who eventually finished third, observed, “I was good early in the feature, I was pacing myself, but then I had a bad restart, and Gio got by me.” Macedo overlooked the fact that Anthony Macri also passed him in the later stages of the race, but Macedo was able to recover his position before the restarts switched to single file for the final ten laps of the contest.
Gravel and Macedo occupied the front row as a result of their performances in the Dash. Gravel noticed that Macedo’s team was changing torsion bars before the Dash. “They were looking for something,” he said. “I was comfortable with my car though,” and he was able to make the pass in the final thirty yards of the Dash.
Behind them were Buddy Kofoid and Scelzi. Kody Hartlaub and Macri made a PA third row. They were followed by Schatz and Chase Dietz. Bill Balog and Troy Wagaman, Jr. shared the fifth row. Lucas Wolfe and Sheldon Haudenschild were in row six.
With the exception of hometown Outlaw Logan Schuchart, the second half of the field was reserved for the PA Posse. Stuck back there were Kyle Moody, in thirteenth, Freddie Rahmer, Jr., in seventeenth, his brother Brandon, in twenty-first, Devon Borden, in twenty-second, and Danny Dietrich, in twenty-fourth.
Gravel led Macedo into turn one on the opening lap, with Kofoid, Scelzi, Macri, Hartlaub, Dietz, Schatz, Wagaman, and Balog following. Thigs remained unchanged until Gravel raced into lapped traffic on lap eight. At that point, subtle changes started to take place in the top ten.
Scelzi slipped by Kofoid for third. Soon thereafter, Kofoid was under attack from Macri. Dietz was hot on his heels. Schuchart reached into the top ten, as did Wagaman, but they were not able to remain there.
In the middle stage of the thirty-five lapper, Macedo closed in on Gravel and he made a bid for the lead in turn one. Gravel rallied, and kept the challenger behind him.
The first caution of the contest was shown on lap twenty-three, when Moody slowed to a stop on the front straight. On the ensuing restart, Macri picked off Kofoid. Scelzi was hounding Macedo, and he took over second on lap twenty-four. Macri was working on Macedo when the race was halted for a flip by Balog, who crashed out of the top ten. Balog’s car also caught fire, but the safety crew quickly doused the flames. Balog was not hurt, but his car was substantially damaged.
The field logged two more laps before the next red flag appeared. This time, It was Hartlaub who went over at the exit of turn two. Wolfe, Rahmer Jr., and Chad Trout were also involved. Hartlaub and Rahmer Jr. were unable to continue.
Despite these distractions, Gravel remained in control. He led the final seven laps without further incidents. Scelzi, Macedo, and Macri held their positions as well. Schatz moved up to fifth in the final laps. Haudenschild, Kofoid, Wagaman, Danny Dietrich, and Dietz completed the top ten.
Dietrich was the hard charger, passing fifteen cars during the race.
The four heat winners were also the night’s four fastest qualifiers. They were Schatz, Gravel, Macri, and Macedo. The quick time was registered by Schatz, at 13.487 seconds. The B Main winner was Brandon Rahmer, who dropped from his heat while running in second position, which would have made him eligible for the Dash. So, instead of locking into the first eight, he was relegated to twenty-first on the grid.
Lincoln Speedway will not race on Saturday evening. There will be a car show and exhibition racing for vintage cars in the afternoon. There will also be an auto thrill show in the evening. A 410 and 358 Sprint Car double header will be held on May 18 as part of the Fallen Firefighters Memorial program. May 25 will be the Don Leiby Memorial, which will have ARDC Midgets and Late Models added to the 410 Sprint Car staple.
PITTSBURGH, PA (May 18, 2024) – Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway and Latrobe Speedway are cancelling their Saturday programs because of rain.
“We can’t get a break,” said SNB Promotions Dennis Bates. “The speedway grounds are too wet after Friday’s storms. We are looking forward to the next Blue Collar Night at the Races on August 10.”
Next Saturday Latrobe Speedway plans the Memorial Day Clash as the Penn Ohio Pro Stocks Touring Series returns to Latrobe. They will be joined by the FASTrak Pro Late Models, the Joe’s Body Shop & Towing Pure Stocks, the Special T Metals LLC Modified 4 Cylinders, and the Marilungo Disposal LLC Strictly Stock 4 Cylinders.
“Heavy overnight rains and saturated grounds have forced us to cancel tonight’s Action Event + RUSH Sportsman Modifieds event,” PPMS said in a statement. “This marks our third consecutive cancelation.”
Next Saturday PPMS plans the Choice for Change Action Event + RUSH Sprint Cars.
They’re not the only ones. Lernerville Speedway was forced to cancel Friday night, which was the third week in-a-row for ‘The Action Track’. The make up date for the BRP Modified Tour portion will be held on July, 26.
MECHANICSBURG, PA (May 17, 2024): Lucas Wolfe had to play defense in the final five laps of the 410 Sprint Car race, but the strategy paid off. He captured his first win of the season at Williams Grove Speedway. But, getting his first career win at the track was Andy Best in the 358 Sprint Cars.
“I did see him (Freddie Rahmer, Jr.), he was beside me, but I had good enough traction coming off turn two, and I got to three ahead of him,” Wolfe said. Rahmer was not done, though. With Wolfe stuck behind a lapped car, Rahmer took to the outside in an unsuccessful attempt to overtake the leader. “I had trouble getting by a lapped car, so I took the ‘all over line,’” Wolfe added. His final defensive maneuver was to crowd Rahmer going down the backstretch with two to go.
Kyle Reinhardt and Wolfe were on the front row under the point average handicapping system employed for this race. Devon Borden and Chad Trout were in row two. Tim Wagaman, Jr. and Rahmer were the final cars subject to the handicap. Row four consisted of Dylan Cisney and Ryan Wilson. Jeff Halligan and Jarrett Cavalet made up row five. The sixth belonged to Logan Wagner and Matt Campbell.
Wolfe got a great start, and he led Reinhardt and company by several car lengths entering turn one. Trout ducked under Reinhardt for second, and Rahmer settled into fourth as the field rounded turn two. Borden, Wagaman, Wilson, Cisney, Campbell, and Halligan followed. As the field began to sort itself out, a light rain began to fall, resulting in a caution on lap two.
After a brief delay, the cars returned to the track to complete the race. Wolfe started on the point, and he maintained the lead when the race went green again. Rahmer moved ahead of Reinhart, but the running order otherwise remained static.
Another caution came on two laps later for the spin by Tony Jackson in turn three. On the ensuing restart, Wolfe led Trout, Rahmer, Reinhardt, Wagaman, and Borden.
Halligan, who was running inside the top ten at the time, spun himself out of contention on lap seven. That turned out to be the final incident of the race.
Wolfe opened up a slight margin over Trout on the restart. Rahmer continued in third, with Wagaman and Borden now running ahead of Reinhardt.
Soon after the halfway signal, Rahmer began to challenge Trout for second. Trout was able to stay ahead of the current points leader for a couple of laps, but he lost the position in turn one when he got over the cushion with fifteen laps complete.
Rahmer then began to close in on Wolfe. By lap twenty, Rahmer was stalking the leader. Rahmer tried the inside line, but Wolfe won the drag race to turn three to preserve his dwindling lead.
Wolfe caught up to a lapper soon thereafter, but he could not make the pass to earn some breathing room. Rahmer came charging back, this time to the outside. Wolfe moved up the track on the backstretch with two to go, and Rahmer had to burp the throttle a bit. That allowed Wolfe to scoot away by a car length or two.
Wolfe maintained the advantage to the checkered flag. Rahmer was a close second, followed by Wagaman, Trout, and Campbell. Campbell’s strong stretch run earned him the hard charger award. Borden, Reinhardt, Wagner, Justin Whittal, and Cisney completed the top ten.
Reinhardt, Wolfe, and Borden captured the heat wins. Ryan Taylor prevailed in the B Main. The evening’s fastest qualifier was Wagaman, who toured the speedway in 16.609 seconds.
Andy Best romped to an easy win in the nightcap for the 358 Sprinters. “It was a really good piece,” he said with a sigh of relief. “We struggled the last three weeks, we were a lapped car. We just threw things at it,” the Delaware pilot explained.
Best had a prime starting spot for the twenty lapper, outside row one. On the pole was Logan Rumsey. In the second row were Derek Locke and Steve Owings. The third row paired Sam Miller and Joe Timmins. Chase Gutshall and Tyler Rutherford made up row four. Behind them were Justin Foster and Dwight Leppo. Wyatt Hinkle and Kyle Spence occupied row six.
Best hopped out to the early lead, with Locke, Owings, Rumsey, Gutshall, and Leppo in tow. As Best drove away from the field with ease, the first five remained in order, but the second five were battling for positions.
Best’s lead was erased when the red flag came out for the spectacular crash by Miller at the entry to turn three. He was not hurt, but his car was demolished.
Best picked right up again after the stoppage. He completed the remaining ten laps with Locke giving chase. Owings, Gutshall, and Rumsey were the first five finishers. Next in line were Hinkle, Spence, Doug Hammaker, Leppo, and Adam Carberry.
Rumsey, Best, and Locke scored the heat wins. Carberry claimed the B Main, which put him into position to be the hard charger.
Next week, Williams Grove Speedway will present the John Trone Tribute race, with a hefty $10,039 going to the winner of the 410 Sprints. The PASS IMCA 305 Sprints will provide support. Fireworks will also be included. The merry month of May will close with a 410 and 358 Sprint Car doubleheader. The 410s will pay $8,000 to the winner. Extra money will be on the line for the 358s as well, with $2,500 on the winner’s nose from a purse that will exceed $12,000. The first Friday in June will be fan appreciation night. The 410s will be joined by the USAC East Coast Sprints with 5Gs going to the winner of the Bill Gallagher Memorial.
FRANKLIN, PA (May 15, 2024): After a delayed, but highly successful opening event featuring the FAST on Dirt Sprint Cars, Tri City Raceway Park will be ready to present its second show of the season on Sunday, May 19. The program will consist of five exciting divisions, and the high speed thrills will start at 6 p.m.
“We were extremely happy with the support and encouragement of the racers and the fans for our first program,” Josh Shiffer said. “We learned some things that will make future events better and we will be ready to incorporate new ideas as we move forward,” the track’s new owner added.
Two time and defending track champion, A.J. Flick, served notice last Sunday that he is prepared to compete for a third consecutive title in the Krill Recycling 410 Sprint Cars. He romped to the win against the touring series and he will compete against the best that Western PA has to offer this week.
In the 21st Century Energy Group 358 Modifieds, Chad Reitz took his Ford powered car to victory lane. He held off the Chevrolet contingent, which was led by young Hayden Holden and veteran Steve Slater. They will be back to give the Bowtie fans something to cheer about.
There was a banner field in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks last week, too. Regional star Chris Schneider took the top prize, but the question on everybody’s mind is whether he will be back for a second crack at the fast half mile. Even if Schneider does not participate this week, top runners like Tim Bish, Hunter Exley, Josh Seippel, Rod Laskey, Pat Fielding, and many more will battle for top honors.
Matt Urey kicked off his title defense with a win in the 4 Your Car Connection Mini Stocks. He made a late race pass to take the victory away from Dillon Morrison, who was driving a nearly identical Honda. They will face a dozen or more challengers.
Joining the fun will be the Old Skool Kool Tour vintage racers.
Pit gates will swing open at 2 p.m., and spectators can grab their favorite seats starting at 4 p.m. Practice sessions will begin at 5 p.m. and the races will start at 6 p.m.
The adult admission price will be $15. Seniors (ages 62 and up), students (ages 11 to 16), and military will be admitted for $13, all with proper I.D. The children (ages 10 and under) will be admitted for free. Pit passes will be $35, with the exception of children ages two and under, who will be admitted to the pits for $15.
If you cannot make it to Tri City Raceway Park this weekend, plan to come out Memorial Day weekend for the first appearance of the BRP Modified Tour. The 305 Sprint Cars, Pro Stocks, Mini Stocks, and Vintage racers will also be on the May 26 card.
Remember that you will need to check the Facebook page, Tri City Raceway Park, for current information. The former website is not updated and will soon be replaced.
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.
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