The Triathalon Sprint Series headed for Mercer on Saturday. A season high car count of 37 sprinters were on hand. But as usual, Ed Lynch Jr started right on the front row and led every damn lap. Why can't these tracks find a better way of lining up the races? The faster cars NEED to start in the back. And, I might add, if a certain few fast guys in the area were real racers, like Fred Rahmer, they would elect to go to the back if started up front. Heats went to Chad Hill, Todd Bauer, Jason Dolick, and Ralph Engel. Andy McKisson and Eric Smith won the B-mains. Chris Knopp was up from central PA to get ready for the upcoming All-Star show at Mercer. He smacked the third turn wall in his heat ending his night. Craig Keel gently rolled over in his heat and called it quits for the night. I might add that Keel left Raceway 7 Friday evening before ever putting heat in his motor. I'm guessing he took one look at the payoff and ran! The next race at Mercer will be the "7th Annual Chuck Marsh Memorial" for the All-Star Circuit of Champions on Saturday September 20.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ED LYNCH JR 2. Jamie Smith 3. Tim Hunter 4. Jason Dolick 5. Mark Murphy 6. Troy Preston 7. Gary Kriess, Jr. 8. Arnie Kent 9. Todd Bauer 10. Nick Naber 11. Andy McKisson 12. Rod George 13. Gary Edwards 14. Scott Barris 15. Eric Smith 16. Chris Shuttleworth 17. Gary Rankin 18. Vaughn Nystrom 19. Ralph Spithaler, Jr. 20. Brent Matus 21. Chad Hill 22. Ralph Engel, Jr. 23. Rob Eyler 24. Chad Levingston DNQ: Chris Matthews, Butch Beasley, Roger Bennett, Pup Nystrom, Jimmy Barill, William Kiley, Sheila Rankin, Scott Groves, Craig Keel, Jeff Banyas, Gale Ruth, Jr., Paul Kish, Chris Knopp.
I apologize for no column last week, my computer decided to throw a fit on me last Sunday. The first annual Labor Day Classic at Tri-City was a success and I'm sure it will be back next year. The sprint portion of the program was a Triathalon Sprint Series race. Rod George picked up the win.
The Lynch/George win streak at Tri-City was finally broken Sunday evening. You ask how? Well, Jason Jacoby was just hooked up. He ran a real good race. He was perfect through lapped traffic, and despite having Lynch right on his tail he did'nt make a single mistake. Lynch nearly spun in turn four in the opening laps and was on a mad dash from there. George however did'nt really come on until late in the race. A good field of 22 sprints were in attendance. A few new cars were in the pits as well including Wayne McPeek, and his dad Larry McPeek, rookie Russ Sansosti, Robert Van Tassel, and Ralph Engle Jr. Engle crashed in his heat and was'nt able to run the feature. Heats went to Jarod Larson and Rod George. Don't forget in two weeks on August 31 Tri-City will be having their "Labor Day Classic" featuring the Triathalon Sprint Series, BRP Modified Tour, late models and stocks.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. JASON JACOBY 2. Ed Lynch Jr 3. Rod George 4. Scott Bonnell5. Andy McKisson 6. Jarod Larson 7. Kevin Schaeffer 8. Wayne McPeek 9. Chad Hill 10. Scott Priester 11. Brent Matus 12. Todd Bauer 13. Gary Rankin 14. Gale Ruth Jr 15. Butch Beasley 16. Larry McPeek 17. Bill Jones 18. Russ Sansosti 19. Sheila Rankin 20. Robert Van Tassel 30. DNS Ralph Engle Jr Randy Kriegisch.
After three sprint heats and one big-block mod heat the rains came and washed out the rest of the night at Mercer Saturday night. The track was super fast and smooth after the showers that came through earlier in the day. 31 sprints were signed into the pits along with a few new comers including John Ivy, Mike Linder, Craig Keel, Scott Kraylek, Lee Jacobs, and Nick Nabor. The $3,000 to win Sprint Slug-Out has been rain dated for Monday, September 1 which is Labor Day. Hopefully the new date will draw in even more competitors. That race will be Mercer's final points race.
August 11, 2003
Don't ask me how, but Tri-City managed to get all of their racing in Sunday night! A look at the radar before leaving home showed alomst solid green and areas of red all around the Franklin area. I think the bad weather had an impact on the car count which was a season low of 11. Daryl Steimling and Rod George won heats. Scott Bonnell had problems in the heat which ended his night lowering the field to 10 for the feature. George took home the feature win from his front row starting spot.
Ed Lynch Jr was absent from Tri-City Sunday night. The team was on their way out to Knoxville.
Bill Jone's #12J made first start at Tri-City this season. Look for Bill to run some more shows at Mercer and Tri-City this year as well as the Triathalon Sprint Series race at Raceway 7 on September 5.
Coming up at Tri-City on August 31 will be the first annual "Labor Day Classic" featuring the Triathalon Sprint Series 25-laps $2,000 to win, BRP Modified Tour, and late models.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ROD GEORGE 2. Daryl Stimeling 3. Jason Jacoby 4. Todd Bauer 5. Gary Rankin 6. Brent Matus 7. Butch Beasley 8. Bill Jones 9. Sheila Rankin 10. Scott Groves DNS: Scott Bonnell
Saturday afternoon around 6:00 pm, officials at Mercer decided to pull the plug on the nights racing due to severe thunderstorms headed directly for Mercer County. Next Saturday August 16 Mercer will have the Sprint Slug Out $3,000 to win sprint special.
42 sprints entered the "Historical Big One" at Eldora Saturday night. Greg Hodnett set fast time at 13.097. Daryn Pittmann won the race and picked up the $100,000 paycheck for doing so.
PAUL KISH
How did you choose your car number? It's my dad's lucky number. He was born in 1945.
Hometown: Poland, Ohio
Chassis/ Engine Builder: 91 Gambler / Denny Battles Enterprises
Birthdate: July 5, 1980
Family: Parents Paul & Agnes Sister Connie
Occupation: Student
Crew: Car Owner Butch Beasley, Denny Battles, Paul Kish Sr, and The Yoder Family
Sponsors: Yoder's Amish Shop
Favorite Track: I enjoy all tracks.
Divisions competed in: Go-Karts and Sprint Cars
Years Racing: 10
Wins/Championships: 50 wins in Go-Karts / 5 Go-Kart championships
Regular Tracks/Series: Lernerville, Mercer, Tri-City
Hobbies: Racing
Favorite TV Show: Raceday
Favorite Music: Classical
Favorite Band: Phillip Jones Brass Ensemble
Favorite Food: Nachos
Favorite Restaurant: Old Country Buffet
Favorite Driver: Steve Kinser
How did you get started in racing? Watching at Lernerville back in 1993 and somebody mentioned to us about go-kart racing.
Who had the biggest impact on your racing career and why? My dad. He taught me at an early age about the importance of preperation and to be a good mechanic.
What would you be doing if you were'nt racing? Fishing
What is your favorite aspect of racing? Watching or driving a race machine at it's absolute limit and recognizing it as an artform.
What is your greatest accomplishment/best memory? Winning the 2000 BRE Unlimited All-Stars Season Championship
What is the worst thing that has happened to you in racing, or your worst season? Everything in racing happens for a reason and when obstacles arise you just need to work to overcome them.
In your own words, describe your 2002 season: A learning season in which my dream of driving a sprint car came true.
What are your plans for the 2003 season? work hard and learn as much as I can
Where do you see (your division) racing in 5 years from now? I honestly don't have a clue.
What is your ultimate goal? World of Outlaws
Anything else you would like to add: Thank you to Butch Beasley for giving me the opportunity to drive a sprint car.
Gary McCullom had not won a feature race for eight years until Saturday night at Mercer. The 39-year veteran's last win came in the 360 sprint ranks at the Hickory Speedway way back in 1995. Needless to say the win was a very popular one. His only challenger the entire race was Troy Preston who snuck to the inside of turn three on a lap six restart but could not make the pass stick. The #17 of McCullom then proceded to pull away as Preston and Kent fought for second. Heats for the 23 sprints went to Jeff Banyas, Troy Preston, and Mark Murphy. Banyas was also the highest finishing 360 in the field earning him the extra $150.
McCullom's win came in a Tognotti chassis. You don't see many Tognotti's around anymore.
Bill Jones made his first start in quite some time Saturday at Mercer.
Young Joe Sanger of Conneaut, Ohio flipped hard into turn one and destroyed his car. You may not see the team out for a while.
Hav'nt seen much of Mark Murphy this year. You've got to like a guy who builds his own cars and motors.
Over $5,000 in kids prizes were givin away Saturday evening. You would'nt find many other tracks doing that.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. GARY MCCOLLUM 2. Arnie Kent 3. Troy Preston 4. Rod George 5. Jamie Smith 6. Jeff Banyas 7. Ralph Spithaler, Jr. 8. Chris Shuttleworth 9. Jason Dolick 10. Jamie Martin 11. Chris Matthews 12. Vaughn Nystrom 13. Charlie Holben 14. Jeremy Cook 15. Butch Beasley 16. Randy Kriegisch 17. Bill Jones 18. Joe Sanger 19. Dwight Kingry 20. Chad Levingston 21. Gary Rankin 22. Pup Nystrom 23. Mark Murphy.
Rains hit the speedway grounds around 3pm forcing officials to cancel Sunday night's racing at Tri-City. The cancellation is only the second full rain out all year.
The World of Outlaws just finished up three nights of racing at Williams Grove. The Posse did a good job of defending their home turf as Don Kreitz Jr won Friday night with Keith Kauffmann second. Rahmer, Michael, and Dewease also cracked the top ten for night one. Donny Schatz won night two and $20,000 for night three.
The Lakeville Speedway held part two of their "Stoneman Supply Big Four Series" for 360 sprints. Aaron Shaffer picked up the win over a field of 18 sprinters. George Prosser, Bill Morrison, and Jamie Martin took heat race wins.
Gamblers Raceway Park held their second of three 305 sprint car races last Saturday evening July 19. The event drew a good field of 16 sprints with former 410 driver Von McGee taking home the win. It would be nice to see Gamblers run 305's every Saturday night. The third round of the Leitzinger Imports series will be run Saturday, August 16. Here are some photo's of the 305 sprint action from Gamblers courtesy of Deon from Keystone Breakdown.
Finally, some good weather for the wingless show at Mercer! This year the format was quite different than usual. The sprints and ARDC midgets both ran features with wings and without! ARDC ran two 20 lap features without heats. The sprints however ran heats wingless then two features. It was a good night of racing to say the least. 19 midgets and 23 sprints signed in pitside. Here's how the four mains brokedown. Midget Race #1 (wingless): Ed Stimely from his front row starting spot grabbed the lead at the start of the race. 12th place starter Ray Bull had made his way into second by a lap 9 restart for Lou Blair. On the restart Bull ran too hard into turn one and ate the fence thus ending his good run. Stimely then cruised on to win his first race of the year with ARDC. Midget Race #2 (winged): WOW! winged midgets really fly! Stimely again started on the front row and lead flag to flag. But, there was some pretty hot action back in the pack. Michele Miller ran a very good race and finished a career high second. Best of all was the wild last lap between Ray Bull and Don Trent. While going for third the two made contact three times on the last lap! Bull however claimed the spot. Sprint Race #1 (wingless): Arnie Kent took the lead at the start and led for 12 laps. But anyone who's seen the western PA locals run wingless knows that Jamie Smith is usually the man to beat. And he did'nt let us down. Jamie made the winning pass on Kent entering turn one on lap 13. Cris Shuttleworth dropped out while running fifth on lap nine. Johnny Heydenreich was in competition. He finished 21st in the first feature and opted not to run the second one. Sprint Race #2 (winged): Quite simple, Ralph Spithaler showed everyone who's boss applesauce. He started in the third row and was leading by the third turn on the first lap. Smith caught up to him late in the race but got too loose to give a challenge.
I really enjoyed the format and I'd like to see the exact same show next year.
Another big crowd at Mercer, and the track was good all night.
You should see the outfit that Mike Miller has. "BIG" truck and trailer carrying four cars! A sprint and midget for himself plus two more midgets for his two daughters Michele and Tracy.
Heats for the sprints went to Randy Kreigish, Jamie Smith, and Cris Shuttleworth.
The Sporstman Mod race was a real barnburner between Andy Paden and Gary Smoker. Smoker won.
FEATURE FINISHES: ARDC MIDGET RACE #1 (wingless): 1. ED STIMELY, JR. 2. Scott Lawrence 3. Travis Miniea 4. Don Trent 5. Fred Schell 6. Steve Lenig 7. Tracy Miller 8. Michele Miller 9. Dave Shirk 10. Scott Zipp 11. Bobby Watkins, Jr. 12. Randy Mausteller 13. Kathy Kurtz 14. Mike Miller 15. Ray Bull 16. Lew Blair 17. Jim Knickerbocker 18. Chris Rupp 19. Ted Schmid.
ARDC MIDGET RACE #2 (winged): 1. ED STIMELY, JR. 2. Michele Miller 3. Ray Bull 4. Don Trent 5. Tracy Miller 6. Bobby Watkins, Jr. 7. Scott Zipp 8. Dave Shirk 9. Ted Schmid 10. Scott Lawrence 11. Randy Mausteller 12. Steve Lenig 13. Travis Miniea 14. Chris Rupp 15. Kathy Kurtz 16. Fred Schell 17. Mike Miller-DNS 18. Lew Blair-DNS 19. Jim Knickerbocker-DNS.
SPRINT RACE #1 (wingless): 1. JAMIE SMITH ($1,300) 2. Arnie Kent 3. Rob Eyler 4. Scott Bonnell 5. Ralph Spithaler, Jr. 6. Jeff Banyas 7. Randy Kriegisch 8. Pup Nystrom 9. Gary McCollum 10. Scott Priester 11. Mike Miller 12. Troy Preston 13. Paul Kish 14. Butch Beasley 15. William Kiley 16. Brent Matus 17. Tom Quarterson 18. Chris Shuttleworth 19. Chris Matthews 20. Jeff Kasbee 21. Johnny Heydenreich 22. Charlie Holben 23. Vaughn Nystrom.
SPRINT RACE #2 (winged): 1. RALPH SPITHALER, JR. ($1,300) 2. Jamie Smith 3. Scott Bonnell 4. Arnie Kent 5. Troy Preston 6. Rob Eyler 7. Jeff Banyas 8. Chris Shuttleworth 9. Mike Miller 10. Gary McCollum 11. Pup Nystrom 12. Chris Matthews 13. Butch Beasley 14. Vaughn Nystrom 15. Brent Matus 16. William Kiley 17. Randy Kriegisch 18. Jeff Kasbee 19. Scott Priester 20. Paul Kish 21. Tom Quarterson-DNS 22. Johnny Heydenreich-DNS 23. Charlie Holben-DNS.
Back to Tri-City for thier Sunday night racing card. Ed Lynch Jr, without brakes, kept the Lynch-George winstreak alive by starting on the pole and leading every lap. The 20-lap race went non-stop. Good to see Todd Allen and Todd Zinn in competition. Heats for the 16 sprints went to Rob Eyler and Lynch. Andy Mckisson broke a rocker arm in his heat, but the team made repairs and ran the feature.
This coming Saturday July 26 at Tri-City will be the DIRT driving experience. For $600 you get 60 laps, 30 laps for $300, or 10 laps for $150. The 60 lap package sounds good to me :)
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ED LYNCH JR 2. Rob George 3. Jarod Larson 4. Rob Eyler 5. Jason Jacoby 6. Bob Altmeyer 7. Todd Bauer 8. Andy McKisson 9. Gary Rankin 10. Todd Allen 11. Brent Matus 12. Butch Beasley 13. Sheila Rankin 14. Todd Zinn 15. Paul Kish DNS: Mel Straley
The URC Summer Nationals took center stage this Saturday evening at the Mercer Raceway Park. Mike Woodring of Eden, New York bested a field of 41 sprinters to take home the $2,500 top prize. He found a perfect line around the high side mid-way throught the 25-lap race. At the start of the race Curt Michael took the lead with Kramer Williamson running a close second. Michael and Williamson ran the bottom the whole race with Chris Coyle and Mike Woodring on the top side. Woodring ran down Williamson on lap 20 then Michael for the lead on lap 21. Williamson finally got by Michael for second on lap 24. Erin Crocker became the first female driver to set fast time in qualification with the URC. She posted a lap time of 14.376. Heats went to Brian Seidel, Randy West, Doug Stanley, Midge Miller, and Mike Haggenbottom. It was good to see George Prosser pick up the B-main win. Scott Purcell won the C-main.
22 URC regulars towed west to compete in the URC 360 Summer Nationals.
Arnie Kent was the highest finishing local with an 11th place finish.
Over at the Sharon Speedway the AMA Flat Track Series was in competition. Jake Johnson took home top honors.
In two weeks on Saturday July 19 Mercer will be hosting "Wingless - The Return/Part III". Featuring winged "AND" wingless features for both sprints and ARDC midgets.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. MIKE WOODRING 2. Kramer Williamson 3. Curt Michael 4. Erin Crocker 5. Bill Brian, Jr. 6. Doug Emery 7. Chris Coyle 8. Kevin Welsh 9. Dave McGough 10. Ed Aikin 11. Arnie Kent 12. Jason Dolick 13. Randy West 14. Mike Haggenbottom 15. Tim Hogue 16. Dave Ely 17. Scott Bonnell 18. Justin Collett 19. Scott Pursell 20. Brian Seidel 21. Midge Miller 22. Mike Lutz 23. Doug Stanley 24. George Prosser 25. Jason Clauss 26. Pup Nystrom DNQ-Jeff VanDusen, Trevor Lewis, Josh Weller, Chris Shuttleworth, Nick Mulheim, Danny Massey, Jamie Martin, Heath Henley, Jeff Banyas, Ashley Parlett, Bryan Grove, Vaughn Nystrom, Paul Kish, Chris Matthews, Dustin Dinan.
For the second week in-a-row Tri-City was lightening fast due to rain. Rains hit the speedway shorty after the gates opened delaying the start of the program by an hour and a half. Hats off the the crew because when the track was ready for racing it looked great. To make matters worse later in the evening, just before the sprint feature, a heavy fog rolled in delaying the program once again. But, a number of drivers in all divisions brought their racecars trackside and lifted the fog. Then it was time to race. Brian Ellenberger grabbed the lead at the start and led for 17 laps in his best performance in a while. Rod George spoiled Ellenberger's good run on the 18th lap when he passed the #20 off turn four and went on to win. Heats for the 16 sprinters went to George and Ed Lynch Jr.
George flew in from North Carolina to race at Tri-City Sunday night. Obviously he likes racing there.
The Triathalon Sprint Series's next race is slated for Sunday August 31 at Tri-City.
The Triathalon E-mod series at the Eriez Speedway drew in 40 cars! It's too bad the sprint series can't do the same. When will somebody really try to lower the cost of sprint car racing?
The fog rolled back in after the stock car feature and forced officials to cancell the remaining two races. The track will run double features for the Big-Block Modifieds and Thundercars this coming Sunday night.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ROD GEORGE 2. Brian Ellenberger 3. Ed Lynch Jr 4. Jason Jacoby 5. Arnie Kent 6. Scott Bonnell 7. Andy McKisson 8. Charlie Holben 9. Brent Matus 10. Sheila Rankin 11. Mike Dehner 12. Deana Barbara 13. Paul Kish 14. Gary Rankin 15. Phil Mott DNS: Mel Straley
Arnie Kent gave himself a fine birthday present Saturday evening by winning the 20-lap main at the Mercer Raceway Park. Jeff Banyas looked strong at the start by taking the lead at the green flag. One lap into the race a nasty accident took place exiting turn four when Gary Kreiss slid high and smacked the turn four wall. Kreiss's car began rolling before being pummled by Brian Ellenberger and Butch Beasley sending the #55J high in the air. Kreiss's mount settled to a stop infront of the flag stand with the entire front end, both wings, and fuel tank gone. All drivers escaped harm, perhaps the luckiest being Beasley. A closer look the the Rootstown, Ohio native's #1 sprinter after the race found a severed torsion bar stuck in the right side body work sticking into the cockpit! Luckily his only injury was a sore right elbow. When racing resumed, Banyas held onto the lead. He led until the seventh lap when Kent manuvered by on the top side of turn four. Banyas slipped to fourth at the finish but still picked up the extra $150 for being the highest finishing 360 in the field. Heats for the 17 sprinters went to Brian Ellenberger and Jamie Smith.
Mercer has now upgraded their safety training to the 15-hour level, and is the first track in Pennsylvania to be certified for motorsports safety.
Chad Blonde made the trip south-east from Michigan to visit Mercer for the second time this season Saturday night. Blonde and his crew like Mercer's tacky track surface.
"The Wheelman" URC 360 Summer Nationals presented by Armstrong Zoom Cable Internet Service is set to go this Coming Saturday July 5 at Mercer. The feature will pay $2,500 to win with time trials starting at 6pm.
Good to see #67 of Chad Livingston at Mercer again.
Tough night for Beasley Racing. Butch suffered heavy damage in the feature and Paul Kish blew his motor while running third in his heat.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ARNIE KENT 2. Jamie Smith 3. Chad Blonde 4. Jeff Banyas 5. Charlie Holben 6. Troy Preston 7. Mike Shearer 8. Chris Matthews 9. Pup Nystrom 10. Chris Shuttleworth 11. Chad Levingston 12. Vaughn Nystrom 13. Gary Kriess, Jr. 14. Brian Ellenberger 15. Eric Smith 16. Butch Beasley 17. Paul Kish-DNS.
Rod George picked up yet another win Sunday night at the Tri-City Speedway. Rain in the afternoon made for good track conditions. A rain delay followed the completion of the heats and made for an ultra-fast racetrack. It was great to see the track in such a fast condition, and the pace of the racing was incredible. Scott Preister took the lead at the green and led for three laps until being overtaken by George. Ed Lynch Jr and George ran nose to tail for several laps until Lynch and Mel Straley made contact on the frontstretch on the 14th lap sending Lynch around. Somehow he did'nt roll over. George went on to capture his 21st win at Tri-City which ties him for third on the all-time winners list with Johnny Beaber. Daryll Steimling and Ed Lynch Jr won the heats.
The Big-Block Modified race was a good one Sunday night. In his FIRST outing of the year, Rex King came from 11th to battle for the lead with Brian Swartzlander. With two laps remaining, Swartzlander's car broke in turn one directly infront of King ending both driver's night. The accident in turn handed the win to Kevin Bolland who started 15th!
Did I mention how fast the track was?
The rain delayed the program by a half-an-hour. It was nice to see some of the Thundercar guys come out and help pack in the track. Thanks guys!
Kevin Schaeffer made his first appearance of the year at Tri-City. So did Shawn Minor.
Kyle Ganoe made the tow west to Tri-City for the second weekend in-a-row.
Don't miss the Triathalon Sprint Series this coming Sunday July 6. This event was raindated from June 8. There will be no E-mods with the program.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ROD GEORGE 2. Daryl Stimeling 3. Scott Priester 4. Jason Jacoby 5. Ed Lynch Jr 6. Scott Barris 7. Kevin Schaeffer 8. Brian Ellenberger 9. Kyle Ganoe 10. Brent Matus 11. Paul Kish 12. Mel Straley 13. Sheila Rankin 14. Shawn Minor 15. Gary Rankin 16. Scott Bonnell
Rod George has been fast all year at the Tri-City Speedway, and he won once again Sunday evening on the high banked dirt oval. At the start of the 20-lap sprint feature Rock Creek Ohio's Jarod Larson took the lead and led the first twelve laps. George made the winning move in turns 1 and 2 through lap traffic. Later in the race Jason Jacoby tapped Larson in turn one and sent the #47 around. Larson did a 360 without causing a caution and recovered to finish fifth. The race ran non-stop from start to finish for the second week in-a-row! Heats for the 16 sprints went to Ed Lynch Jr and Deana Barbara.
Deana Barbara's first visit to Tri-City this year resulted in a heat race win and a 12th place finish in the A-main. It would be nice if more of the local racers like Deana would do more racing on Sunday nights.
Charlie Holben was in competition at Tri-City for the second Sunday in-a-row. Most teams are only running one or two nights a week these days. Holben is a good example. He runs Lernerville and Mercer, and when one gets rained out he's likely to race Sunday night. The cost of sprint car racing needs addressed very soon.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ROD GEORGE, 2. Jason Jacoby, 3. Brian Ellenberger, 4. Ed Lynch Jr., 5. Jarod Larson, 6. Andy McKisson, 7. Rob Eyler, 8. Brent Matus, 9. Butch Beasley, 10. Paul Kish, 11. Gary Rankin, 12. Deana Barbara, 13. Todd Bauer, 14. Sheila Rankin, 15. Mel Straley. DNS: Charlie Holben
Much of the racing in the Northeast was cancelled due to rain this weekend. The World of Outlaw show at the Sharon Speedway was cancelled eight laps into the main event Friday night. While fans were filing out, part of the grandstand walkway caved in injuring several people. Thank goodness the most serious injury was a broken ankle! The rest of the feature will be made up when the WoO visit the Hartford, OH facility again on July 30th. Gee, I wonder if the outlaws will even be around by then?
The Triathalon Sprint Series kicks off their 2003 season at Tri-City this Sunday night June 8. The original 03 opener at the Latrobe Speedway was rained out. Info on a rescheduling for Latrobe will be released when available.
REGIONAL RESULTS:
CLINTON COUNTY SPEEDWAY: 1. DARYL STEIMLING 2. Blane Heimbach 3. Chuck Roan 4. Joe Diehl 5. Nyle Berkes 6. Brett Ramano 7. Von McGee 8. Joe Davis 9. Jeff Weaver 10. Tracy Potter
CLINTON COUNTY SPEEDWAY: (make up feature) 1. BLANE HEIMBACH 2. Jeff Weaver 3. Joe Diehl 4. Kyle Ganoe 5. Daryl Stimeling 6. Joe Davis 7. Mike Walter 8. Chuck Roan 9. John Miller 10. Nyle Berkes
LERNERVILLE SPEEDWAY: 1. ED LYNCH JR 2. Ralph Spithaler Jr 3. Dan Shetler 4. Eric Smith 5. Jamie Smith 6. Gary Kreiss 7. Rod George 8. Brent Matus 9. Arnie Kent 10. Kevin Schaeffer
When's the last time you saw over 80 sprint cars at any track in Western Pennsylvania? Probably never until Saturday night at the Mercer Raceway Park. The "Slidewayzzz Dual Sprint Car Event", sanctioned by the Patriot Sprint Group and the NRA Sprint Invaders, drew 29 410 sprints and an outstanding 52 360 sprints! The 410's competed for $2,000 to win while the 360's raced for a top prize of $1,500. Starting out with the 360 portion of the show, heats went to Chris Matthews, Mike Lutz, JR Stewart, Cris Shuttleworth, Darren Long, and Scott Cramer. The three B-mains went to Dwain Leiber, Gordy Button, and Steve Leiber. At the drop of the feature green flag, Tim Hunter took the lead over Doug Stanley and led for six laps until a restart allowed Mike Lutz to slip by in turn one. Meanwhile the black #6 of Mike Dussel, from his seventh place starting spot, had made his way up to third and then second on lap nine. Dussel realed in the #58 of Lutz throught lapped traffic and got beside the VanDusen owned mount on the 12th circuit. But Lutz was able to stay out infront and lead the rest of the way to win the first ever Patriot/NRA sanctioned race in history. Dussel, the defending NRA points champ, held on for second bringing along Tim Hunter, Doug Stanley, and JR Stewart.
Jason Dolick flipped his #70 in the 2nd B-main after riding over the left rear tire of Paul Kish.
Tim Allison missed the show by one spot in the 2nd B-main.
George Prosser and Kent Wolters flipped on the last lap of the third B-main in turn three.
Vaughn Nystrom tumbled in the fourth heat race in turn one.
Several teams brought two cars to compete in both sprint divisions. Scott Bonnell, Tim Hunter, Jeff Banyas, Scott Groves with drivers Jason Dolick and Jimmy Hawley, Tony Beaber, and Arnie Kent.
The team cars of Pup and Vaughn Nystrom competed in both divisions.
Still can't believe all of the sprint cars that were there! Not to mention great racing all night long!
Now onto the 410 part of the program. Heats for the 410's went to Scott Bonnell, Jamie Smith, and Brian Ellenberger. Gary Kreiss crashed Friday night at Lernerville and had motor problems all night at mercer which kept him form running his heat, but the #55 came out strong for the B-main and passed Arnie Kent for the win. Chad Blonde of Michigan made the tow east to visit Mercer a second time and the decision was a good one. Blonde lead the feature from green to checkered to collect the $2,000 paycheck. Blonde raced in the All-Star show at Mercer in 2002.
Tim Hunter flipped his #2 in the feature.
The track stayed in excellent shape all night despite being hammered by some 140 total cars pitside, and a good crowd turned out for the races.
FEATURE FINISH: (360 Sprints) 1. MIKE LUTZ 2. Mike Dussel 3. Tim Hunter 4. Doug Stanley 5. J.R. Stewart 6. Bill Coffey II 7. Arnie Kent 8. Darren Long 9. Jeff Banyas 10. Matt Alloway 11. Chris Matthews 12. Eric Hysong 13. Chris Shuttleworth 14. Scott Cramer 15. Billy Krull 16. Chris Muhleisen 17. Gordy Button 18. Scott Bonnell 19. Tim Zimbardi 20. Jeff VanDusen 21. Aaron Shaffer 22. Mike Brecht 23. Steve Leiber 24. Dwain Leiber DNQ-Gary Troutman, Tim Sites, Tim Kern, Tony Beaber, Tim Allison, Justin Barger, Brad Knab, Dan Bennett, Ryan Myers, Tim Barnard, Jared Zimbardi, Curt Shuttleworth, Don Adamczyk, Paul Kish, Kent Wolters, Ray Preston, Dwight Kingry, George Prosser, Jeremy Barnard, Tom Taber, Pup Nystrom, Dan Deming, Jason Dolick, Jason Troutman, Nick Patterson, Vaughn Nystrom, Jeremy Cook, Jeff Kasbee.
FEATURE FINISH (410 Sprints) 1. CHAD BLONDE 2. Rod George 3. Jimmy Hawley 4. Scott Bonnell 5. Rob Eyler 6. Brian Ellenberger 7. Charlie Holben 8. Arnie Kent 9. Ralph Spithaler, Jr. 10. Jamie Smith 11. Troy Preston 12. Todd Bauer 13. Tony Beaber 14. Gary McCollum 15. Brad Knab 16. Butch Beasley 17. Pup Nystrom 18. Curt Shuttleworth 19. Brent Matus 20. Randy Kriegisch 21. Chris Shuttleworth 22. Jeff Banyas 23. Gary Kriess, Jr. 24. Tim Hunter DNQ-Paul Kish, Dwight Kingry, Vaughn Nystrom, Mike Shearer, Jeff Kasbee.
Rod George used a late race caution to track down Ed Lynch Jr and win at Tri-City Speedway Sunday evening. Lynch took the lead early in the race and lead until the final lap when George worked the bottom in turns one and two to steal the victory. Heats for the 16 sprints pitside went to Daryll Steimling and Ed Lynch Jr. The only caution in the race occured on lap 14 when Sheila Rankin spun and collected Andy McKisson.
Rod George's last lap pass of Ed Lynch Jr had to be the best race I've seen so far this year. It's always exciting to see a race for the lead come down to the final lap!
Daryll Steimling made his first visit of the season to Tri-City Sunday evening. The car now sports a new cream colered paint scheme with the number 98 on it.
Skip Moore lead wire to wire in the Big Block Mod feature for his first-ever career win in the class.
The track has released word of a big announcement concerning September 7th. What it is I don't know but a statement is expected to be released very soon.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ROD GEORGE 2. Ed Lynch Jr 3. Jarod Larson 4. Daryl Stimeling 5. Brent Matus 6. Scott Priester 7. Gary Rankin 8. Jason Jacoby 9. Andy McKisson 10. Phil Mott 11. Butch Beasley 12. Paul Kish 13. Scott Groves 14. Sheila Rankin 15. Dwight Kingry 16. Mel Straley
REGIONAL RESULTS:
BRIDGEPORT SPEEDWAY: (Limited Sprints) 1. WARREN DURBIN 2. Steve Schmidt 3. Matt Beasley 4. Ron Karnbach 5. John Wyers 6. Mares Stellfox 7. Steve Strubble 8. Jeff Foote 9. Don Smith 10. Bob Adams
FREMONT SPEEDWAY: 1. JEFF SHEPARD 2. Dale Blaney 3. Chad Kemenah 4. Byron Reed 5. Kenny Jacobs 6. Greg Wilson 7. John Ivy 8. Phil Gressman 9. Andy James 10. Bobby Clark
PORT ROYAL SPEEDWAY: 1. TODD SHAFFER 2. Mark Smith 3. Mike Wagner 4. Daryll Steimling 5. Rick Lafferty 6. Todd Hestor 7. Mike Erdly 8. Kevin Scheaffer 9. Dustin Hoffmann 10. Dave Hahn
LERNERVILLE SPEEDWAY: 1. ED LYNCH JR 2. Jamie Smith 3. Rod George 4. Jack Sodeman Jr 5. Arnie Kent 6. Roger Bennet 7. Charlie Holben 8. Brian Carlson 9. Davey Jones 10. Ralph Spithaler
LINCOLN SPEEDWAY: 1. DOUG ESH 2. Lance Dewease 3. Jeff Busby 4. Fred Rahmer 5. Greg Hodnett 6. Jim Siegel 7. Josh Wells 8. Niki Young 9. Brook Weibley 10. Johnny Mackison Jr
LINCOLN SPEEDWAY: (358 Sprints) 1. ERIC STAMBAUGH 2. Scott Ausherman 3. Shawn Weaver 4. Randy Rhoads 5. Dan Dietrich 6. Chad Trout 7. Tim Hershey 8. Cory Haas 9. Keith Prutzman 10. Kenny Foor
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY: (358 Sprints) 1. DAVIE FRANEK 2. Nate Snyder 3. Chad Layton 4. TJ Stutts 5. Troy Long 6. Dale Hammaker 7. Charlie Andersen 8. Scott Tate 9. Donnie Beaver 10. Kevin Nagy
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY: (URC Sprints) 1. Dave Ely 2. Brian Seidel 3. Dave McGough 4. Jon Eldreth 5. Kevin Welsh 6. Curt Michael 7. Chris Coyle 8. Ed Aikin 9. Doug Emery 10. Trevor Lewis
SHARON SPEEDWAY: 1. JAROD LARSON 2. Chad Hill 3. Ed Lynch Jr 4. Jack Sodeman Jr 5. Tom Quarterson 6. Mike Kekich 7. Kevin Andrusky 8. CW Harshman 9. Andrew Palker 10. Jason Jacoby
Troy Preston picked up his first win of the season Saturday evening at the Mercer Raceway Park. Gary McCullom took the lead at the start of the race with Rob Eyler running second. On the second lap Eyler spun his #5 exiting turn four with no help. Preston passed Mccullom on the 12th lap in turn four and went on the win. Scott Bonnell and Arnie Kent made contact on the fourth lap sending both cars through the infield bringing out the caution. Gary Kreiss ran into Jason Dolick heading into turn three on the 13th lap. Luckily, nobody turned over. After spinning on the second lap, Eyler made his way up to third and by a last lap restart was able to move past Arnie Kent and finish second. Heats for the 22 sprints pitside went to Rob Eyler and Arnie Kent.
Butch Beasley lead several laps in the second heat and ended up finishing second to Arnie Kent. Good run for the Beasley Racing #1.
Chris Shuttleworth #11 made his first start of the season at Mercer Saturday evening. The team is from New York and is planning on running semi-regularly at Mercer. Chris placed 6th in his heat and 6th in the feature Saturday night.
Doug Stanley blew his motor in his heat and was unable to race the rest of the night.
Jason Dolick #70 was in action driving a team car to Jimmy Hawley who was NOT there.
For the third Saturday the #5L of Micro Sprint graduate Jeremy Cook was in competition.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. TROY PRESTON 2. Rob Eyler 3. Arnie Kent 4. Gary McCollum 5. Jeff Banyas 6. Chris Shuttleworth 7. Chris Matthews 8. Randy Kriegisch 9. Vaughn Nystrom 10. Mike Shearer 11. Jason Dolick 12. Butch Beasley 13. Jeff Kasbee 14. Dave Wagner 15. Pup Nystrom 16. Jeremy Cook 17. Paul Kish 18. Scott Bonnell 19. Gary Kriess, Jr. 20. Ralph Spithaler, Jr. 21. Charlie Holben 22. Doug Stanley DNS.
I am sick and tired of seeing Ed Lynch Jr start from the pole and lead every lap, every night, at every track. Now, I don't hold anything against the driver of the 2L but you know it get's old watching the best equiptment start up front and walk away with the race so often. A simple handicapping system or maybe a better pill draw would help fix the problem. Fans don't want to see the fastest cars start up front and lead every lap, except for a handfull and you'll find that those people are either family/friends of the beneficiary, which is understood, or just don't know much about good racing. Like I said before, I dont have a problem with Ed Lynch Jr or any of the other fast guys who repetitively start up front due to pill draw, nor do I have a problem with them winning, but at least make them start in the back and make them work for it. Fans pay good money to see good racing, not a parade.
With that said, Ed Lynch Jr started from the front row and lead every lap Sunday evening at the Tri-City Speedway. Scott Preister flipped his 11x on the ninth lap in turn one. Ricky Ferkel also made contact with the first turn wall on the 10th lap resulting in a caution. Heats for the 15 sprints went to Rob Eyler and Ed Lynch Jr.
Bobby Clark was present Sunday evening. The #8 of Clark started the feature in the 6th hole. He moved passed Rod George for 3rd on the 10th lap and then by Eyler for 2nd on the 13th lap. It would be nice to see the team run regularly at Tri-City.
The duo of Mike Woodring and Erin Crocker made the trip south the compete with the Tri-City regulars. Crocker had the honor of being the first flip victim of the year at Tri-City. On the 1st lap of the 1st heat the #16 hooked a rut in turn one and flipped out over the bank. She was uninjured and was able to make repairs and start the feature. Woodring finished 6th with Crocker placing 10th.
FEATURE FINISH: 1. ED LYNCH JR 2. Bobby Clark 3. Rod George 4. Rob Eyler 5. Jason Jacoby 6. Mike Woodring 7. Ricky Ferkel 8. Gary Rankin 9. Brent Matus 10. Erin Crocker 11. Butch Beasley 12. Sheila Rankin 13. Brent Covell 14. Todd Bauer 15. Scott Priester
Congrats to Ricky Ferkel on his first career win at the Lernerville Speedway Friday evening.
REGIONAL RESULTS:
FREMONT SPEEDWAY: (ASCoC) 1. KELLY KINSER 2. Greg Wilson 3. Chad Kemenah 4. Jimmy Stinson 5. Dale Blaney 6. Danny Smith 7. Byron Reed 8. John Ivy 9. Dean Jacobs 10. Paul McMahan
FREMONT SPEEDWAY: (305 Sprints) 1. ROGER SHAMMO 2. Mark Lang 3. Matt Merrill 4. Scott Miller 5. Caleb Griffiith 6. Chad Laux 7. Bill Kralyek 8. Andy Shammo 9. Bryan Sebetto 10. Ryan Lowe
PORT ROYAL SPEEDWAY: 1. MARK COLDREN 2. Rick Lafferty 3. Len Thompson 4. Mike Erdley 5. Keith Kauffmann 6. Todd Hestor 7. Dustin Hoffmann 8. Mike Wagner 9. Adrian Shaffer 10. Klye Ganoe
LERNERVILLE SPEEDWAY: 1. RICKY FERKEL 2. Ed Lynch Jr 3. Roger Bennett 4. Jamie Smith 5. Kevin Schaeffer 6. Gary Kreiss Jr 7. Eric Smith 8. Brian Woodhall 9. Jack Sodeman Jr 10. Rod George
LINCOLN SPEEDWAY: 1. CRIS EASH 2. Lance Dewease 3. Fred Rahmer 4. Doug Esh 5. Greg Hodnett 6.Brook Weibley 7. Craig Smith 8. Steve Seigle 9. Chris Knopp 10. Billy Sims
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY: 1. CHAD LAYTON 2. Donnie Beaver 3. Kyle Purks 4. Scott Tate 5. Rick Hench 6. Nyle Berkes 7. Brian Powell 8. Blane Heimbach 9. Darren Eash 10. Davie Franek
WILLIAMS GROVE SPEEDWAY: 1. LANCE DEWEASE 2. Sean Michael 3. Greg Hodnett 4. Todd Hestor 5. Fred Rahmer 6. Doug Esh 7. Rick Lafferty 8. Don Kreitz Jr 9. Keith Kauffmann 10. Mark Smith
WILLIAMS GROVE SPEEDWAY: (358 Limited Sprints) 1. CHAD LAYTON 2. Billy Johns 3. Cory Haas 4. Darren Eash 5. Alan Krimes 6. TJ Stutts 7. Keith Prutzman 8. Scott Ausherman 9. Dale Hammaker 10. Rick Hench
A big crowd turned out for Mercer Raceway Park's season opener Saturday evening. Thanks to the early season pill-draw, Ed Lynch Jr started from the pole position and lead all 20 laps. Several cautions slowed the race. Mark Smith brought out the first caution on lap six after a water line broke, but he was able to fix it and not loose a lap. Also on lap six Dave Wagner flipped his car exiting turn two. On lap 10, Pup Nystrom turned over after contact with another car. On the restart Jamie Smith and Jason Jacoby made contact sending Jacoby's car over. Heats for the 28 sprints went to Arnie Kent, Ed Lynch Jr, and Kevin Andrusky. Jeff Banyas picked up the 3-lap B-main win.
Mark Smith with the Shawn Keen racing team left the races at Port Royal Speedway Saturday afternoon and headed straight for Mercer. The team called the track and were told they could tag the field for the B-main because they would be arriving after the heat races. The team pulled onto the speedway grounds at 7:30.
(FEATURE FINISH) 1. ED LYNCH, JR. 2. Scott Bonnell 3. Arnie Kent 4. Troy Preston 5. Rob Eyler. 6. Gary Kriess, Jr. 7. Mark Smith 8. Davey Jones 9. Kevin Andrusky 10. Brent Matus 11. Deana Barbara 12. Butch Beasley 13. Jeff Banyas 14. Vaughn Nystrom 15. Jeff Kasbee 16. Jamie Smith 17. Jason Jacoby 18. Mike Shearer 19. Pup Nystrom 20. Gary McCollum 21. Dave Wagner 22. Mark Imler 23. Chris Matthews 24. Jeremy Cook-DNS DNQ-Randy Kriegisch, Mike Dehner, Charlie Holben, Paul Kish.
Mother nature just would'nt cooperate with us this weekend. Lernerville Speedway officials were forced to cancel their racing program due to weather Friday night. Mercer Raceway Park was unable to kick off their season Saturday evening due to cold weather and rain. Officials there also opted to nix their Sunday rain date. Also, Sharon Speedway had to cancel their Sunday practice date for cold weather. Winter does'nt want to leave I guess. Coming up this weekend, Lernerville, Mercer, and Sharon will be open, weather permitting, with the All-Star Circuit of Champions at Sharon after being kicked-out for a year and replaced by WoO and WoO 2. I'm not so sure that move was exactly a successful one. They lost an Ohio Sprint Speedweek date and the Sharon Nationals has now been reduced to a one-day unsanctioned sprint and modified race. Day two which was always a $10,000 to win 40-lap sprint car race will now be an endure and demo derby.
REGIONAL RESULTS:
LINCOLN SPEEDWAY: 1. CRIS EASH 2. Fred Rahmer 3. Lance Dewease 4. Greg Hodnett 5. Keith Kauffman 6. Josh Wells 7. Sean Michael 8. Steve Siegel 9. Doug Esh 10. Johnny Mackison Jr
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY: (358 Limited Sprints) 1. DARREN EASH 2. Adrian Shaffer 3. Nate Snyder 4. Rick Hench 5. Blane Heimbach 6. Keith Prutzman 7. Cliff Brian 8. Donnie Beaver 9. Bob Beidleman 10. Clair Wintermyer
BIG DIAMOND SPEEDWAY: (KARS Limited Sprints) 1. DALE HAMMAKER 2. CHAD LAYTON 3. ADRIAN SHEAFFER 4. KEVIN NAGY 5. MATT BEASLEY 6. KEITH PRUTZMAN 7. DAN RICHCREEK 8. MIKE RESSLER 9. KEITH WETZEL 10. BRIAN EICHELBERGER
