Local Racing
Spithaler and Rudolph Get First Tri-City Scores of the Season; Repeat Victories for Tyler Wyant and Greeley
FRANKLIN, PA (August 8, 2021): Brandon Spithaler earned his first Shawgo Real Estate LLC 410 Sprint Car win of the season to highlight the Sunday Thunder racing program at Tri-City Raceway Park. Empire state veteran Erick Rudolph made his first visit to the track this season a successful one in the Krill Recycling LLC 358 Modifieds. Teenager Tyler Wyant and Chad Geeley each scored their second feature wins in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks and the 4 Your Car Connection Mini Stocks, respectively.
Spithaler started on the front row, with Brandon Matus by his side. Points leader Jack Sodeman was in the third spot, with his protege, Darin Gallagher next to him. Row three had Logan McCandless and Clay Riney. Veterans George Hobaugh and Bob Felmlee rolled away in row four, with Bryan Salisbury and Brent Matus in row five. Steve Bright and Gale Ruth, Sr. started in row six. Ken Rossey, Jr. tagged the tail.
In search of his third career win at Tri-City, Spithaler took the lead at the start. Sodeman, who was looking to pad his point lead, quickly moved into second, ahead of his championship rival, Brandon Matus. Sodeman provided stiff competition through the first half of the event. His closest challenge came on lap fourteen in traffic, when he was able to pull alongside the leader. But Spithaler was better able to navigate through the slower cars and he pulled out to a comfortable lead.
Spithaler held the top spot to the checkered, completing the twenty-five laps in less than seven minutes! To be exact, the time of the event was six minutes and 52.292 seconds. Sodeman was second, 3.087 seconds back. Brandon Matus was third. Gallagher crossed in fourth, with Riney taking fifth. Felmlee, Hobaugh, McCandless, Rossey, and Bright completed the top ten.
The Donovan & Bauer Auto Group heat races for the Shawgo Real Estate LLC 410 Sprint Cars went to Sodeman and Felmlee. There was no B Main.
With his heat win and second place finish in the feature, Sodeman gained a few points on Brandon Matus for the seasonal championship. Just eight counters separate them going into the final race of the regular season.
Rudolph was paired up with Kyle Fink on the front row of the Krill Recycling 358 Modified feature race. Sid Unverzagt, Jr. and Kevin Hoffman were in row two. Max Smoker and Lonnie Riggs were right behind them. Tom Holden and his nephew, Jimmy, were in row four. Nick Joy and Ryan Riffe had the fifth row covered. In row six, it was D.J. Schrader and Kevin Green. The Shingledecker brothers, Travis and Jeremiah, were in the final row.
Rudolph jumped out to the lead, with Unverzagt in tow. Rudolph’s early advantage was nullified when Tom Holden slowed with rear suspension damage. Jeremiah Shingledecker, who was working his way forward from his last place starting spot due to four consecutive wins, was also involved. He was sent to the rear for the restart, of course.
Rudolph resumed the lead when the green flashed on again. But only two more laps were completed before the race was slowed for Schrader’s misfortune.
Once again, Rudolph took command. Unversagt was holding second, his best run of the season so far. Jimmy Holden took third from Fink on the eighth circuit. Jeremiah Shingledecker climbed back through the field, briefly displacing Jimmy Holden from third on lap eighteen. However, Holden regained the position before the final caution was displayed
Rudolph completed the three lap dash to get the win, his third ever at the speedway. Unverzagt finished second, which certainly boosted his confidence. Jimmy Holden was followed across the line by Jeremiah Shingledecker and Fink. Riggs, Travis Shingledecker, Riffe, Schrader, and Smoker were the next five across the finish line.
In the Krill Recycling LLC 358 Modifieds, there were a pair of heat races held on behlaf of the Donovan & Bauer Auto Group. Winners were Rudolph and Fink. There was no B Main.
Jeremiah Shingledecker was the hard charge on the night, picking up ten positions to earn the bonus offered by Fisher and Father Napa Auto Parts. He will head into the final night of racing with a commanding lead in the standings.
Josh Seippel had the pole for the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stock main, with young Mr. Wyant to his right. Darr Diegelman and Russ Coyne were in teh second row, with Patrick Fielding and Jason Johns trailing them. Bobby Whitling and points leader Curtis J. Bish were in the fourth row. Curt Bish and Shane Applebee started in the fifth row. Matt Bernard started shotgun on the field.
Tyler Wyant surged ahead at the drop of the green and he had smooth sailing throughout the event. Seippel was a close second. The battle for third went to Curtis J. Bish over Johns and Whitling. Curt Bish, Bernard, Fielding, Diegelman, and Coyne rounded out the top ten.
A pair of Donovan & Bauer Auto Group preliminaries were held in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks as well. Victories went to Tyler Wyant and Whitling. There was no B Main.
Wyant’s successes in the heat and feature allowed him to close the gap slightly on Curtis J, Bish for the point championship. Just eight points separate them. Seipple remains close, just seventeen points removed from the top position.
Levi Maskal and points leader Justin Bailey brought the 4 Your Car Connection Mini Stocks to the green flag. Todd Hanlon and D.J. Macrae were in the second row. Chad Greeley and Jesse Armstrong were in row three. The fourth flight consisted of Kevin Watson and Daltin Speer. The fifth row had Evan Sobieski and Bodey McClintock and the sixth had Nick Steiger and Michael Barr.
A first lap incident marred the start of the night’s final race, the twelve lapper for the Mini Stocks. Five cars were eliminated.
On the second attempt, Bailey took the lead. But he gave way to Greely on lap two. Dalton Speer charged from eighth to second, and he was giving Greeley all that he could handle for the race lead. However, Speer’s car lost power on lap eight causing a caution. The final caution period came with two laps remaining, but Greeley had no difficulties with either restart. Maskal used the final restart to take second, which would be his best finish of the season. Macrae, Bailey, and McClintock were third through fifth. Armstrong, Jamie Tasker, Barr, Diezel Marvin, and Speer rounded out the top ten.
The 4 Your Car Connection Mini Stocks spun off two heats and the wins belonged to Hanlon and Speer. There was no B Main.
Bailey enters the final points race 24 points ahead of Speer and 35 up on the surging Greeley.
The final points race of the regular season will be held at Tri-City Raceway Park next Sunday, August 15. Champions will be crowned, so you will not want to miss that one. There will be action in all four Sunday Thunder divisions. The racers will have off for two consecutive weekends after that. However, there will be the Renegade Monster Truck show on Saturday, yes, Saturday, August 28. Be sure to bring the children to see one of their favorite forms of motorsports!
And, don’t forget the huge Labor Day extravaganza coming soon, on September 3-5. The first night will be an open practice session for all classes. The drivers will compete for a total purse exceeding $70,000 beginning on Saturday, September 4. The Shawgo Real Estate LLC 410 Sprints will headline that card, but there will be plenty of variety to interest all racing fans. There will be a bonfire and music after the racing. Then, the racers will be back on Sunday, September 5, with all divisions except for the Krill Recycling LLC 358 Modifieds. They will be eligible to compete against the Big Blocks of the BRP Modified Tour and there will be a special bonus for the three top finishers out of the top ten in Tri-City points running their trusty 358 against the ground pounding BRP Mods. More details will be available in the forthcoming weeks.
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.
Shawgo Real Estate LLC 410 Sprint Cars: Brandon Spithaler, Jack Sodeman, Jr., Brandon Matus, Darin Gallagher, Clay Riney, Bob Felmlee, George Hobaugh, Logan McCandless, Ken Rossey, Jr., Steve Bright, Bryan Salisbury, Brent Matus, Gale Ruth, Sr.
Krill Recycling LLC 358 Modifieds: Erick Rudolph, Sid Unverzagt, Jr., Jimmy Holden, Jeremiah Shingledecker, Kyle Fink, Lonnie Riggs, Travis Shingledecker, Ryan Riffe, D.J. Schrader, Max Smoker, Kevin Green, Tom Holden, Kevin Hoffman, Nick Joy.
Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Pro Stocks: Tyler Wyant, Josh Seippel, Curtis J. Bish, Jason Johns, Bobby Whitling, Curt Bish, Matt Bernard, Patrick Fielding, Darr Diegelman, Russ Coyne, Shane Applebee, Aaron Smith (DNS), Josh Blum (DNS).
4 Your Car Connection Mini Stocks: Chad Greeley, Levi Maskal, used the final restart to take second, which would be his best finish of the season. D.J. Macrae, Justin Bailey, Bodey McClintock, Jesse Armstrong, Jamie Tasker, Michael Barr, Diezel Marvin, Dalton Speer, Evan Sobieski, Kevin Watson, Nick Steiger, Matt Urey, Devin Erwin, Todd Hanlon, Andrew Proper (DNS), Charles McClintock (DNS).
PITTSBURGH, PA (May 3, 2024) Rain is forcing local tracks to cancel their events this weekend.
Lernerville Speedway was the first to pull the plug on Friday’s program after late afternoon showers and an ominous forecast forced the tracks hand. Racing returns to ‘The Action Track’ on Friday, May 10 as the Jay’s Automotive ULMS Late Models take center stage, complemented with the remaining Fab4 racing divisions.
Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway was next to throw in the towel. PPMS and BRP Modified Tour officials made the difficult but necessary decision to cancel the BRP Big Block Modifieds + Cinco De Mayo Fiesta event. The event will not be rescheduled. All tickets purchased online will be fully refunded. PPMS and BRP look forward to scheduling a 2025 date! PPMS hopes to be able to get in Nostalgia Night and Action Event next Saturday.
Rain late Friday evening and through the early morning hours on Saturday brought over a half-inch (0.51) of rain to Latrobe Speedway, forcing the cancellation of Saturday’s (May 4) FAST-Five racing program. The rain gauge at the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport, just 2 miles away, continues to record the rain. The airport forecast calls for an 80 % chance of showers, mainly before 1 pm, and a 100% chance of showers continuing again tonight.
Next Saturday, May 11, Latrobe plans to hold the Dave Kittey Memorial ULMS Super Late Models. The 30-lap $4,000-to-win feature also offers bonuses for ULMS racers. 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 will also be on the card.
SARVER, PA (April 26, 2024) AJ Flick picked up his first Peoples Natural Gas Sprint Car win of 2024 at Lernerville Speedway on Friday night and Michael Norris made it back-to-back wins in the Late Model Division.
Flick started fourth on the grid and passed leader and pole-sitter Carl Bowser using the bottom side on lap 8 while Bowser worked the high side. Bowser wouldn’t go away easily, pulling side-by-side with Flick at the halfway mark. Flick eventually was able to hold Bowser at bay, building a three-second lead as he encountered lap traffic.
A caution flag with five-laps-to-go bunched up the field but Flick got an impressive restart and kept the field at bay to pick up the victory. Bowser finished second and Michael Bauer finished third after starting eighth.
“I didn’t expect it to slick off as much as it did,” Flick said about the track conditions. “It was odd because it wasn’t really wide but yet the actual racing groove was getting slick and starting to come in already. I missed it in the heat race, but come feature time it seems like we’re starting to dial it in a bit more.”
Norris started 10th and put on a clinic coming through the field to make it two straight at ‘The action Track.’
“Luck was on our side tonight,” Norris said. “I always seem to have late race cautions. Thanks to John Garvin for leaving me a lane, he got me pretty good on that last restart but I knew as long as I could be even with him going into turn one, the top was so good and it was.”
Erick Rudolph made the trip to Sarver from Ransomville, New York and it paid off. Rudolph took home the feature victory in the Diehl Automotive Big Block Modified main event.
“There’s something about Lernerville Speedway,” said Rudolph. “It’s one of my favorite tracks in the country and anytime we get a chance to come down here it’s always something we look forward to.”
Tyler Dietz proved to be the class of the field once again, garnering his first feature win in the Millerstown Pic-A-Part Pro Stock main event. Dietz survived a late race restart and held off front row starter Tim Bish and a hard charging Chris Schneider to grab the checkered flag.
“I kind of thought that he (Bish) was going to take the bottom,” Dietz stated, remarking about the crucial restart. “I was hoping he would go high because I think I was better up high but I just never got the chance to go up there.”
PITTSBURGH, PA (April 24, 2025) The Historic Stock Car Racing Association (HSCRA) is joining the lineup of racing groups at this year’s Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix (PVGP) Historics at Pittsburgh International Race Complex. This is the first time the HSCRA will race in the PVGP Historics 3-day weekend, July 26 to 28, 2024.
“We are thrilled to welcome the HSCRA to our 2024 event,” said Dan DelBianco, Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix. “Their participation not only broadens the appeal of the PVGP Historics but also aligns with our mission to celebrate all automotive history. This is a fantastic opportunity for race fans of all types to witness the power and beauty of historic stock cars in action.”
The HSCRA, renowned for its commitment to preserving and celebrating the history of stock car racing, will bring a new dimension to the PVGP Historics. The group is open to all stock cars that ran in one of the major NASCAR series.
“The HSCRA is anxious to bring NASCAR to Pittsburgh,” said Carlus Gann of HSCRA. “We look forward to making this a regular stop on our tour. Western Pennsylvania has deep roots in racing, and building a world-class track at Pitt Race in Beaver County makes it a perfect fit.”
The most popular class is Generation 4 Cup cars built for the 1992-2007 seasons. During this era, teams built a few cars for the two road courses on the schedule.
“We are hoping for a full field of meticulously restored stock cars,” added Chris Evans of the HSCRA. “Former NASCAR winners like Joe Nemechek and a competitive lineup of today’s top historic stock car drivers will be on hand.”
Gary Moore, a seasoned participant in over a dozen PVGP races, knows the intricacies and challenges of the Pitt Race track. Moore will be showcasing his 1969 Mercury Cyclone (right), victoriously driven by Cale Yarborough, exclaiming, “It’s quite the adventure behind the wheel!”
The HSCRA will have a practice session in the morning and a qualifying race in the afternoon on Friday, July 26. A morning and afternoon practice session on Saturday, July 27. Sunday, July 28 will see the HSCRA have a short morning warm-up prior to being one of the featured Sunday afternoon races.
The Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix Motorsport Festival features two weekends of racing action. The first weekend is the PVGP Historics at Pittsburgh International Race Complex. The second weekend is racing through a 2.33-mile road course set on the streets of Pittsburgh’s Schenley Park. In addition to the race weekends, the PVGP stages car shows, parties, road rallies, and a black-tie formal. The PVGP’s mission is to provide residential care, treatment and support for people with autism and intellectual/developmental disabilities – donating $6.7 million to charity since 1983.
Dewease and Hammaker Get First Wins for New Car Owners at Williams Grove Speedway
Mother Nature winning the weekend as local tracks cancel events
McLaughlin goes back-to-back at Barber Motorsports Park
Macri Gets Third Straight Kauffman Classic at Port Royal; Amantea and Craig Perigo Also Score
Flick, Norris, Rudolph and Dietz Victorious at Lernerville
Borden Thrills at Port Royal; Robinson, Covert, and Hart also Score
Team Penske Penalized for St. Pete Infractions. Newgarden Stripped Of Win
Historic Stock Cars to run at Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix
Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway Cancels Saturday Program; Pivots To Flood Relief Drive
