Local Racing
Rahmer Holds Off Montieth in Lincoln Thriller
ABBOTTSTOWN, PA (Pittsburgh Racing Now – June 20, 2020): The Fabulous Lincoln Speedway lived up to its billing on Saturday night when Freddie Rahmer Jr. held off a last-lap challenge from seven-time track champion Brian Montieth. Montieth actually took the lead briefly in turn one, but Rahmer came storming back on the outside of turn two to regain the advantage which he held to the finish line. Lurking right behind the leaders was Danny Dietrich.
Remarkably, all three drivers came from deep in the field to produce one of the most exciting events in the virus-interrupted season. Rahmer, who now has won two in a row at Lincoln and three races overall in 2020, started in 13th. Montieth, a winner at Lincoln this season, started 23rd, and Dietrich, a winner with the All Stars this season, started 17th. Their marches forward were aided by only one caution, that coming on lap 17 of the 30 lap race.
While the superstars produced the late-race excitement, some early highlights were provided by Brent Shearer and Bradley Howard. Shearer jumped out front at the start of the race, with Howard and rookie Aaron Bollinger fighting for second. Kyle Moody picked up a few spots in the early going while Cale Thomas and Brett Michalski were in the mix as well.
Howard took over second and he started to close in on Shearer. Soon, the two were in a side by side battle for the lead. The two nearly collided on the front stretch after popping wheelies coming off turn four! They both maintained control, and the battle royale resumed.
Howard pulled off a slider in turn one to grab the lead on the fifteenth circuit. He slowly started to pull away from Shearer and fans must have wondered whether Howard could pull off the upset.
Things became more difficult for Howard on lap seventeen when Dylan Norris brought out the only caution in the contest. Howard restarted on the point, of course, but now the hounds that were chasing him could see the rabbit out front and there were no lapped cars separating any of them. One contender retired under the caution, as Thomas pitted to get his nose wing retired. That moved Rahmer into the fifth spot and Montieth into ninth. Dietrich was still outside the top ten at this point.
When the green light came on again, Howard still had the lead, but Rahmer picked up a pair of positions. Soon thereafter, Dietrich vaulted into the top five.
Rahmer reeled in Howard and he was trying different lines to try to gain the advantage. Rahmer made a slider stick in turns one and two on lap 22 to take the lead. Now Bradley was under attack from Moody and Dietrich. While this was happening, Montieth got his momentum up and he started picking off cars. Over the last five laps of the race, he put on a clinic passing lapped cars and contenders with ease.
Montieth reached second as Rahmer got hung up behind a slower car. Montieth dropped to the inside and got a tremendous surge off turn four as the white flag was displayed. He pulled up beside Rahmer and got his nose out front briefly in turn one. But Rahmer rallied and took the lead back in turn two, never to be headed again.
Rahmer crossed ahead of Montieth to pick up another $4,000. Dietrich was a close third. Howard held off Moody for the fourth spot. Point leader Brandon Rahmer was sixth. Alan Krimes, Adam Wilt, Jimmy Siegel, and Chase Dietz followed.
Shearer, Howard, and Michalski led the way in their respective heat races. Dietz was the best in the B Main.
In the Limited Late Models, veteran Alan Sagi picked up the win. It was the fifth decade in which Sagi took a checkered flag. Chad Ernst, who led the fist 13 laps, held on for second. Craig Wagaman, Kurt Zimmerman, and D.J. Mease completed the top five. Wagaman and Mease copped the preliminaries.
Will Walls earned the victory in the Street Stocks on the final lap. He was trailed by Ryan Smith, Greg Diehl, Jasen Geesaman, and Michelle Walls. Heat winners were Geesaman and Will Walls.
Lincoln will host a pair of 410 Sprint events during the Central PA Speedweek. Round two will pay $9,200 to the winner of the Kevin Gobrecht Memorial on Saturday. Two nights later, round four will pay $7,000. Lincoln will have the 358 Sprints take center stage on July 4 as the 410 Sprints will conclude Speedweek at Port Royal Speedway. Joining the 358s will be the 305 Sprints, 600 Xcel Modifieds, and Stocks.
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
