Dirt Racing
Schuchart Succeeds in Sprints and Manmiller Handles the Mods at Grandview
BECHTELSVILLE, PA (July 2, 2024): A pair of traveling men found their ways to Grandview Speedway for Tuesday night’s Thunder on the Hill event that was part of the Pennsylvania Speedweek 2024 edition. Logan Schuchart, who was given a reprieve by the World of Outlaws, made the relatively short trip from his Hanover home to place his name on the Hodnett Cup. Doug Manmiller left his family at the shore to come to the speedway to compete in the NASCAR Modified portion of the program.
Schuchart Speedweek Star
Logan Schuchart did not race at Grandview Speedway for more than a decade, but he quickly remembered the fastest way to get around the track. After setting the evening’s best time in qualifications (12.073 seconds), he battled with Anthony Macri throughout the thirty-five lap affair. The two young lions swapped the lead a couple of times, with Schuchart leading the final seven laps to claim the $10,000 victory.
“I haven’t been here since 2010, but I’ve watched a lot of videos.” Schuchart explained, “the videos showed the top is better until the rubber comes in on the bottom.” He admitted to having some difficulty deciding when to move down. He said that he took his cue from the cars that he was trying to put a lap down.
“When I had some problems with lapped cars, I knew that it was time to move down.”
Macri, who finished second despite contact with the wall in turn three on the last lap, agreed. “It was pretty hard dealing with lapped cars. I took a chance and he (Schuchart) got by me.”
Devon Borden made another impressive run despite losing his crew chief just before the start of Speedweek. Borden’s father came in from Washington to lend a hand and Devon was appreciative. “I’m feeling really good,” he said. “My guys gave me a good car and I was really comfortable.”
The luck of the draw placed Schuchart and Macri on the front row for the thirty-five lapper. Jesse Attard and Emerson Axsom were in row two, with Borden and Danny Dietrich the last two drivers eligible for the re-draw. Tim Gee and Troy Wagaman, Jr. were matched in row four. The fifth row included Kody Hartlaub and Aaron Bollinger. Taking row six were Ryan Taylor and Lucas Wolfe.
Schuchart entered turn one with the lead, but Macri went upstairs. He built momentum on the top and he surged off turn two with the lead. Tucking into third was Attard, with Axsom, Borden, Dietrich, Wagaman, Gee, Bollinger, and Hartlaub in tow.
Macri ran out front for the first eight laps of the contest. However, Schuchart began to reel him in when Macri had his first encounters with slower cars.
Schuchart had a big run into turn three and he blew by Macri and a lapped car at the same time to grab the lead when the lap counter showed number nine.
Schuchart went on to lead about a dozen laps. Macri stayed close, and he battled Schuchart side by side for a couple of rounds as they tried to work through more traffic. Macri did slip ahead for a few more rounds, but the slower cars were his undoing once again.
Schuchart took command again on lap twenty-eight. Macri remained close in the final laps. He began searching for a better line, but he could not find a place to make a pass.
Macri made one last desperate move on the leader in the final two corners. He sailed into turn three on the outside. However, he got up over what little cushion was still there and he brushed the wall. He kept his car moving, but the impact gave Schuchart extra breathing room to score the win.
While Schuchart and Macri were fighting for the lead, there was a good battle going on between Borden and Dietrich for the third position. Borden controlled it through most of the second half of the race, but Dietrich was in hot pursuit.
Gee made some last lap magic to take the fifth position. Following him across the finish line were Axsom, Wagaman, Hartlaub, Kyle Reinhardt, and Dylan Norris.
Three heats were presented for the twenty-four cars on hand. Dietrich, Borden, and Attard were victorious. There was no B Main.
The tour moved on to Port Royal Speedway. Danny Dietrich saw his point lead shrink to 75 markers over Macri. Wagaman, Borden, and Hartlaub complete the top five with five races remaining.
Manmiller the Mod Man
Doug Manmiller, the “Handler,” made the long ride from the shore alone to go racing at Grandview Speedway on Tuesday. The trip paid off as he took the NASCAR Modified main that was part of Thunder on the Hill. It was career win number thirty-six for the veteran from Shoemakersville, PA. He earned $3,000 for his troubles.
“It was vacation week,” Manmiller explained. “Sometimes, it is a pain to come all the way back alone. Usually, I have somebody riding with me, but they said ‘go have fun,’ and, here we are.”
Manmiller worked the outside to get past the early leader, Tim Buckwalter. “I knew Timmy wasn’t going to give up the bottom, but I knew I had to go.” Manmiller added, “I got him on the top. We had a good side by side run, but I think he bobbled.”
Buckwalter and Manmiller occupied the front row for the thirty lapper that closed out the night. Behind them were Duane Howard and Rick Laubach. Then came Craig Von Dohren and Brian Hirthler. Justin Grim and Danny Bouc were in row four. The fifth paired up Louden Reimert and Dave Dissinger. Jeff Strunk and Mike Gular were in row six.
Buckwalter took the initial lead, followed by Manmiller, Howard, Laubach, Von Dohren, and Brian Hirthler. Just a couple of laps into the fray, Manmiller rode the outside line to take the lead away from Buckwalter.
A caution eight laps in slowed the pace, and set up the first of three double file restarts. Buckwalter could not take advantage of the opportunity to start inside of Manmiller. He fell in line in second, but Von Dohren moved into the third position, followed by Howard, Gular, Laubach, and Strunk.
During the thirteen lap run that followed the first caution, Strunk began to make some forward progress. He was fifth at the halfway mark and fourth by lap twenty.
A pair of cautions, on laps twenty-one and twenty-three gave Strunk the chance to advance again. He took advantage, and he moved ahead to third on the last restart.
Manmiller switched from the outside to the inside for the last two restarts, and he preserved his lead over Buckwalter each time. Strunk crossed in third, followed by Von Dohren and Gular. Positions six through ten went to Howard, Alex Yankowski, Laubach, Billy Pauch, Jr., and Kevin Hirthler.
There were three Modified heats, which were won by Von Dohren, Howard, and Manmiller. There was no B Main.
The Modifieds will be back at Grandview Speedway on Saturday, July 6. With them will be the 602 Sportsmen. There will be double features for that class due to a rain-out the week before. What is more, the admission price will be just $10 as part of the 90’s celebration.
FRANKLIN, PA (June 1, 2025): In just his fifth winged 410 Sprint Car start ever, Steven Snyder, Jr. of Rising Sun, MD scored the big win at Tri City Raceway. The victory was his first in the class, and, most likely, his first top five finish as well. The highly successful driver of 600 Micros was the 100th 410 Sprint Car driver to grace victory lane at the Venango County oval. He earned $4,000 for the impressive effort and he secured second place in the points for the Western PA Speedweek series, which was abbreviated due to wet weather.
Blaze Myers and Jake Gomola won the support races for RUSH (Crate) Sprints and Allegheny Sprint Tour 305s, respectively.
“I didn’t expect to win,” Snyder said modestly. He explained that he had just finished some Midget racing in Illinois and it took him some time to get adjusted to the winged Sprint Car. The first night of Western PA Speedweek, at Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Motor Speedway, may well have been his first race of the year in a Winged Sprint.
Snyder came on strong in the closing laps, chasing down and then passing Jeremy Weaver in the final 50 feet, or less. “I hope that you (the fans) enjoyed that,” Snyder exclaimed. “He (Weaver) was kinda bound up front. I saw him enter high down there (gesturing toward turns three and four). We were good in three and four.” Snyder then won the dash to the scoring loop.
What is even more remarkable about Snyder’s win is that he survived a kamikaze attack by Ricky Peterson on lap nine. Snyder was leading at the time, with a lapped car separating him from Peterson, who was then racing in second. Peterson dove low entering turn three to get under the lapper, and his extreme momentum carried him well past the slower car and directly into Snyder. The two collided side to side very forcefully and, amazingly, they both maintained control of their cars. They bounced away from each other and kept on going. In the confusion, Weaver snuck by them both, grabbing the lead which he held until the stretch run on the last lap.
“I don’t know what that guy (Peterson) was thinking,” Snyder mused. “He about cleared us out.”
Weaver, who also ran second to Brandon Spithaler in the opening round of Speedweek, noted “I’m trying not to pout too bad. That’s two (races) that I gave away in traffic this week.” Weaver, who was running his old faithful mount this night, chalked it up to experience. His disappointment with the individual race results was assuaged by his achievement in the abbreviated series. His pair of second place finishes clinched the point championship by eight markers over Snyder. The adjusted point fund paid him $2,000.
Taking third was another unexpected competitor, Brock Hallett. His first outing at the track was a successful one for the Australian pilot. “That was different,” he said. Elaborating, he mentioned that the tracks in his homeland are much smaller than Tri City. He added, “I would have liked a few more laps. I like it in traffic.” He was able to reel in Snyder and Weaver in the closing laps as he negotiated the slower cars.
The luck of the draw placed Weaver and Snyder on the front row for the twenty-five lap finale. Behind them were Hallett and Peterson. In the third row were Brandon Spithaler and Adam Kekich. Then came Matt Farnham and Michael Bauer. Zane Devault and Brandon Matus were the last two racers eligible for the drawing. To be eligible, one had to finish first or second in the heat or be first or second in qualifying time.
Snyder used the middle of the track to race out to the early lead over Weaver. They were followed by Peterson, Hallett, Kekich, Spithaler, Bauer, Farnham, Devault, and Brandon Matus. Spithaler soon slowed to a stop, bringing out the only caution of the race on lap two. His misfortune eliminated him from any chance of taking the overall Speedweek title.
On the restart, Snyder resumed control, with Peterson holding second over a trio of cars numbered five: Weaver, Hallett, and Kekich. Farnham moved ahead of Bauer. Devault, Matus, and A.J. Flick closely followed.
Snyder maintained his lead despite encountering some lapped cars. However, on lap nine, he averted disaster. After being struck by Peterson, Snyder relinquished the lead to Weaver, who ducked low to avoid any involvement with them. In the aftermath of that incident, Hallett also advanced past Peterson. Kekich remained in fifth.
In the second half of the event, three racers moved forward. Farnham and Flick moved into the top five and Logan McCandless reached the top ten. Peterson faded, due in part to wing damage he sustained in his shunt with Snyder. Kekich also drifted out of the top ten.
Although Snyder’s car was leaking some oil, it continued to run smoothly. He chased down Weaver, who was having some difficulty with lapped traffic. Snyder made his dramatic move coming off turn four, nipping Weaver by just 0.079 seconds at the line.
Following Snyder, Weaver, and Hallett were Farnham and a fast closing Flick. Positions six through ten went to Devault, Peterson, McCandless, Bauer, and Brandon Matus.
Farnham, Devault, Bauer, and Hallett won their respective heats. Brent Matus prevailed in teh B Main. The evening’s fastest qualifier was Brandon Spithaler, with a lap of 15.104 seconds.
In the RUSH Sprint Car twenty lapper, Cooper Fritz used his front row starting spot to grab the early lead. However, eighth starting Blaze Myers zipped past him four laps into the fray. Gale Ruth, Jr. moved into second by the halfway mark.
Myers led the ramaining laps to earn his second victory of the season at Tri City. Ruth was second, followed by Fritz, Curt Emings, and Zach Morrow. Luke Mullichak, Arnie Kent, Ricky Tucker, III, Lucas Roessner, and Devon Deeter completed the top ten.
Ruth, Morrow, and Myers scored in the preliminaries. There was no B Main.
The Allegheny Sprint Tour closed out the night of open wheeled action. Jake Gomola, the founder of the AST, swept the heat and feature events. On the fifteen lap main, Gomola took the lead on the opening round. Although a caution wiped out his substantial lead, he was again able to build up a comfortable margin over Jim Pattock in the final six circuits.
Vivian Jones fought off Jeremy Kornbau in the second half of the race to earn the third position. Arnie Kent came on late for fifth. Roman Jones and Jazlyn Boyles were the final two finishers. Nolan Groves and Brandon McWilliams did not finish. Seth Harrelson did not start the contest.
Western PA Speedweek Round 2 Official Finish: Steven Snyder, Jr., Jeremy Weaver, Brock Hallett, Matt Farnham, A.J. Flick, Zane Devault, Rocky Peterson, Jr., Logan McCandless, Michael Bauer, Brandon Matus, Adam Kekich, Carl Bowser, Dalton Rumbaugh, Cody Bova, D.J. Christie, Jacob Begenwald, Dusty Larson, Todd Hoddick, Chase Metheny, Bodey McClintock, Andy Cavanaugh, Brent Matus, Brandon Spithaler, Michael Lutz, Jr. DNQ: Jimmy Morris, Jack Sodeman, Jr., Steve Bright, Louie Mattes, IV, Natalie Brannon, David Kalb, Jr., Davey Jones, Cale Thomas, Logen Lockhart.
RUSH Sprint Cars: Blaze Myers, Gale Ruth, Jr., Cooper Fritz, Curt Emings, Zach Morrow, Luke Mullichak, Aenie Kent, Ricky Rucker, III, Lucas Roessner, Devon Deeter, Grayson Bayle, Charlie Utsinger, T.J. Rosario, Cooper Macormac, Zach Wilson, John Mollick, Wyatt Long, Samantha Priest, Joe Buccola (DNS), Jesse Armstrong (DNS).
Allegheny Sprint Tour 305 Sprint Cars: Jake Gomola, Jimmy Pattock, Vivian Jones, Jeremy Kornbau, Arnie Kent, Roman Jones, Jazlyn Boyles, Nolan Groves, Brandon McWilliams, Seth Harrelson (DNS).
IMPERIAL, PA (May 31, 2025): Christian Schneider had a perfect night at Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Motor Speedway. He captured heat and feature wins in the top two divisions, RUSH (Crate) Late Models and Penn Ohio Pro Stocks. Also reaching victory lane were Leroy Brown in the Hobby Stocks and Cameron Hollister in the Open Four Cylinders.
After the RUSH Late Model win, Schneider said, “this thing has been a rocket ship since we got it. We’re still learning.”
Daryl Charlier and Clinton Hersh brought the RUSH Late Models to the green flag. They were followed by Brandon Burgoon and Kassidy Kamicker. In row three were Schneider and Brian Huchko. Timmy Shaffer and Jacob Billyk lined up in row four.
Hersh drove by Charlier in turns one and two to take the early lead, with Schneider up to third on the opening lap. Burgoon, Kamicker, and Huchko trailed. Charlier used the high line to take the lead away from Hersh on lap seven. Schneider soon followed into second.
Schneider also used the outside line in turn four to grab the lead on lap eleven. He pulled away from Charlier in the remaining nine laps.
Following Schneider and Charlier at the checkers were Hersh, Burgoon, and Tommy Schirnhofer, Jr. Kamicker, Huchko, Matthew Bernard, Billyk, and Michael Stephens completed the top ten.
Charlier and Schneider took the heat wins. There was no B Main.
In the Penn Ohio Pro Stock fifteen lapper, Stephen Shelpman blasted from the pole to the early lead. However, Christian Schneider claimed the second position on the opening lap, followed by Cody Koteles, Chris Schneider, and A.J. Poljak.
Christian Schneider grabbed the lead on lap four and Poljak took over second two laps later. Christian Schneider maintained a comfortable margin for the balance of the event.
At the checkers, it was Christian Schneider ahead of Poljak, Chris Schneider, Shelpman, and Cody Koteles. Daryl Charlier, Nick Cocuba, Logan Koteles, Jason Fosnaught, and Jackson Billyk were the next five finishers.
Poljak and Christian Schneider claimed the preliminaries. There was no B Main.
Leroy Brown went wire to wire for his win in the Hobby Stocks. Young Mark Corio was second, followed by Garrett O’Patchen, Joe Brown, Jr., and Kyle Janas. The next five to cross the scoring loop were Devan Jones, Tom Anton, Karlee Kovacs, Cole Cochran, and Sadie Snatchko.
O’Patchen and Kovacs were the heat winners. There was no B Main.
Cameron Hollister was the feature victor in the Open Four Cylinders, with Anthony Udderstrom, Mike Kelly, Jacob Wiser, and J.R. Matthess in the top five. Gavin Kokolis, Lucas Weaver, Nathan Olenik, Curtis Mohney, and Ray Tichnor were sixth through tenth. Heat wins belonged to Tyler Hollister and Mohney. There was no B Main.
On June 7, PPMS will present the 14th Annual Ed Laboon Memorial, one of the region’s biggest events for the Penn Ohio Pro Stocks. All of the top competitors are expected for the prestigious race. Joining the Pro Stocks will be the RUSH Late Models, Hobby Stocks, Open Four Cylinders, and Young Guns.
IMPERIAL, PA (May 29, 2025): With the cancellation of Michaels Mercer Raceway’s event on Wednesday, Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway once again played host to the first night of Western Pennsylvania Speedweek. Taking the win in the twenty-five lapper was Brandon Spithaler. It was his career win first at the speedway, and he positioned himself at the top of the points heading into round two to be held at Lernerville Speedway. He cleared $3,500 for the race.
The luck of the draw set the starting line-up for the A Main. The racers eligible for the draw were the top three finishers in the heat races and the fastest car to qualify.
Mark Smith nabbed the pole, but his luck ended when the cars pushed off for the finale. He had a mechanical problem, which required him to stop on the track, relegating him to the final row for the green. Jeremy Weaver slipped to the inside of row one, with Brandon Spithaler taking over P2.
Steven Snyder, Jr. and Michael Bauer were the new occupants of row two. Brandon Matus and A.J. Flick claimed row three. Ryan Smith and Matt Farnham followed. Carmen Perigo, Jr. had row five with Dan Kuriger as his running mate in the realignment. The sixth was populated by Ricky Peterson, Jr. and Carl Bowser.
On the initial green, Flick aggressively rolled around the top in turns one and two, establishing the lead entering upon the back stretch. However, his effort went for naught, as Jimmy Morris came to a stop along the outside of turn one.
Spithaler took note of the dazzling move by A.J. Flick, racing from sixth to the lead on the initial start. However, when that was called back due to the caution for Morris, Spithaler and others moved to the outside. Spithaler was unable to get the immediate advantage, though, because the pole sitter, Weaver, slid up to take command.
Thus, Weaver held the early lead, followed by Spithaler, Bauer, Snyder, and Flick. With the top line unavailable to Flick, his momentum suffered. He did reach fourth in the early going, but he gradually fell back in the running order thereafter.
Several laps into the race, Weaver encountered lapped traffic, and that was his undoing. Spithaler chased him down and rolled around the top to take the lead. Spithaler maintained control through the rest of the non-stop affair, but Weaver began to close in the stretch run.
Farnham showed early speed and followed Spithaler and Weaver across the finish line. Bowser advanced to fourth, earning the hard charger award. Bauer held on for fifth. Flick, Snyder, Ryan Smith, Peterson, and Brandon Matus completed the top ten.
After the aborted start, Spithaler “knew that the top was available, but I knew that Weaver would try to slide me.” Weaver’s move did not affect the ultimate outcome because Spithaler was able to race by him in traffic. Nonetheless, Spithaler became concerned about the slower cars as the race progressed. “I thought that I was wasting time with (Mark) Smith and (Adam) Kekich.” However, Spithaler’s margin was big enough that Weaver could not completely close the gap in the final laps.
“I kinda kicked myself, there,” Weaver said. “That race was won on experience.” He explained, “when I got to the lapped traffic, I had trouble and he (Spithaler) got me.” Nonetheless, it was a strong outing for Weaver and car owner Bob McMillan, as they rolled out an entirely new car for the race.
Farnham, who was third, commented that “pretty much the redraw won that race. Hopefully, I can get a better number for the next race.”
Three heat races were staged for the twenty-seven car field. Wins went to Matt Farnham, Ryan Smith, and Brandon Spithaler. Mike Lutz, Jr. was unhurt in a spill during his heat race.
Jimmy Morris took the B Main.
The evening’s fastest qualifier was Ryan Smith, with a lap of 17.365 around Dirt’s Monster Half Mile.
Timmy Bittner and Jim Pattock paced the field for the fifteen lapper for the Allegheny Sprint Tour for IMCA 305 Sprint Cars. Jake Gomola and Kruz Kepner made up row two, followed by Jeremy Kornbau and Jarrett Cavalet. Robbie Bartchy tagged the tail.
Bittner jumped out to the early lead and completed the non-stop fifteen race without any challenge. Kepner ran second until the midpoint of the contest before surrendering the position to Jim Pattock. After Pattock and Kepner came Kornbau, Gomola, and Cavalet. Bartchy did not finish the race.
Jimmy Pattock and Jake Gomola won the heats for the AST 305s. There was no B Main.
Speedweek Round One Official finish: Brandon Spithaler, Jeremy Weaver, Matt Farnham, Carl Bowser, Michael Bauer, A.J. Flick, Steven Snyder, Jr., Ryan Smith, Ricky Peterson, Brandon Matus, Logan McCandless, Carmen Perigo, Jr., Danny Smith, Cody Bova, Jacob Begenwald, Adam Kekich, Mark Smith, John Mollick, Andrew Cavanaugh, Danny Kuriger, Brent Matus, Jack Sodeman, Jr., Bob Felmlee, Jimmy Morris. DNQ: Michael Lutz, Jr., Louie Mattes, IV, and Davey Jones.
AST Sprints Official Finish: Timmy Bittner, Jim Pattock, Kruz Kepner, Jeremy Kornbau, Jake Gomola, Jarrett Cavalet, Tobbie Bartchy.
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Christian Schneider Sweeps Two at PPMS
Alex Palou and Chip Ganassi Racing win the 109th Indianapolis 500
Barry Wanser and Russ Thompson win the Robin Miller Award at Indianapolis
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