Archive for August, 2017
David Gravel Back on Track at Nodak
Posted by: | Comments
World of Outlaws
Contact: Anthony Corini
World of Outlaws PR
408-825-3360 | acorini@dirtcar.com
Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article
David Gravel Back on Track at Nodak
Gravel ends Schatz 5-race win streak at Nodak with 13th win of the seaosn
MINOT, ND - August 20, 2017 - After a pair of pedestrian finishes Friday and Saturday, David Gravel and the CJB Motorsports No.5 team switched cars and scored their 13th victory of the season Sunday night at Nodak Speedway. Gravel's win stopped Donny Schatz, who finished second, five-race win streak at the Minot oval. Brad Sweet challenged Gravel for the lead early, but ended up settling for third.
Gravel led all 35 laps, although it was not easy. The Nodak Speedway track crew watered the track prior to the Feature, leaving the surface faster and heavier than many teams anticipated.
The inside row got a good intial start, allowing third place starting Brad Sweet to be second by the backstretch. Schatz got in line in third as the track continued to widen out as the Feature progressed. Sweet pulled even with Gravel for the lead multiple times coming off of turn four, but could never pull ahead.
The first caution of the event came for Jason Sides, who was backwards in turn four, on lap 24. Sheldon Haudenschild made contact with the wall and spun on the ensuing restart. Sheldon was running sixth at the time.
Gravel extended his lead once again, made the right decisions in lapped traffic and picked up the victory without seeing another serious challenge. When asked about stopping Schatz five race win streak at Nodak, Gravel said with a smile, "He wins too much. I want some wins too."
"We brought this car down and I'm glad we got it done tonight because we were not very good the last two nights. This is three straight wins for this car," the Watertown, CT native said upon exiting his No.5 machine.
Like many, Schatz anticipated the track would slow down earlier in the race. "We got going at the end. I think I used way too much of my tires to get there, though. We did the best we could and sometimes you are going to have that," a content Schatz said.
Schatz scored at least a top-five finish in every start this season in his home state of North Dakota. He spoke highly about the North Dakota faithful, who packed the grandstands for the third consecutive night, "North Dakota has a huge presence with the World of Outlaws and I don't think anyone realizes how big it is. Thank you to the fans, without you guys we would not have nearly as much fun as we do."
Brad Sweet picked up his 44th top-five of the finish of the season, completing the podium. "We were right there a lot of the race. David never made any mistakes and then I made one and Donny got by me," Sweet said. "All in all it was a good night."
Shane Stewart and Daryn Pittman completed the top five. Saturday's Feature winner at Red River Valley, Jason Johnson, picked up the KSE Hard Charger award in sixth.
The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series takes a few days off before returning to the Black Hills Speedway in Rapid City, SD Friday August 25th.
RACE RESULTS FROM : Nodak Speedway - August 20, 2017
Feature (35 Laps) 1. 5-David Gravel [1][$10,000]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [2][$5,500]; 3. 49-Brad Sweet [3][$3,200]; 4. 2-Shane Stewart [4][$2,800]; 5. 9-Daryn Pittman [7][$2,500]; 6. 41-Jason Johnson [12][$2,300]; 7. 17-Jac Haudenschild [5][$2,200]; 8. 1S-Logan Schuchart [10][$2,100]; 9. 18-Ian Madsen [9][$2,050]; 10. 19-Brent Marks [15][$2,000]; 11. 11K-Kraig Kinser [13][$1,500]; 12. 3-Tim Kaeding [18][$1,200]; 13. 35-Jamie Veal [6][$1,100]; 14. 4-Paul McMahan [14][$1,050]; 15. W20-Greg Wilson [17][$1,000]; 16. 7S-Jason Sides [11][$900]; 17. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [16][$800]; 18. 13-Clyde Knipp [20][$800]; 19. 7T-Trent Stengl [24][$800]; 20. 21-Ryder Olson [23][$800]; 21. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild [8][$800]; 22. 6N-Greg Nikitenko [19][$800]; 23. 20-Kevin Lawson [22][$800]; 24. 1A-Jacob Allen [21][$800]; Lap Leaders: David Gravel 1-35; KSE Hard Charger Award: 41-Jason Johnson[+6]
Qualifying: 1. 49-Brad Sweet, 13.477; 2. 2-Shane Stewart, 13.544; 3. 15-Donny Schatz, 13.565; 4. 5-David Gravel, 13.576; 5. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.604; 6. 18-Ian Madsen, 13.611; 7. 9-Daryn Pittman, 13.642; 8. 17-Jac Haudenschild, 13.654; 9. 41-Jason Johnson, 13.656; 10. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.672; 11. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.713; 12. 35-Jamie Veal, 13.738; 13. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 13.741; 14. 4-Paul McMahan, 13.796; 15. 19-Brent Marks, 13.852; 16. 13-Clyde Knipp, 13.866; 17. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.931; 18. 6N-Greg Nikitenko, 14.026; 19. 41S-Dominic Scelzi, 14.059; 20. 21-Ryder Olson, 14.141; 21. 3-Tim Kaeding, 14.166; 22. 1A-Jacob Allen, 14.251; 23. 91K-Kyle Fedyk, 14.289; 24. 7T-Trent Stengl, 14.444; 25. 10-Tyson Turnbull, 14.91; 26. 90-Randy Blotsky, 15.384; 27. 20-Kevin Lawson, 15.852; 28. 20L-Dusty Lawson, 15.945; 29. 14-Bill Holler, 16.1; 30. 17M-Todd Mickelson, NT
Heat #1 (8 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 49-Brad Sweet [1]; 2. 5-David Gravel [2]; 3. 9-Daryn Pittman [3]; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart [5]; 5. 11K-Kraig Kinser [4]; 6. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [7]; 7. 13-Clyde Knipp [6]; 8. 1A-Jacob Allen [8]; 9. 10-Tyson Turnbull [9]; 10. 20L-Dusty Lawson [10]
Heat #2 (8 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 2-Shane Stewart [1]; 2. 17-Jac Haudenschild [3]; 3. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild [2]; 4. 7S-Jason Sides [4]; 5. 4-Paul McMahan [5]; 6. W20-Greg Wilson [6]; 7. 91K-Kyle Fedyk [8]; 8. 21-Ryder Olson [7]; 9. 90-Randy Blotsky [9]; 10. 14-Bill Holler [10]
Heat #3 (8 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. 35-Jamie Veal [4]; 3. 18-Ian Madsen [2]; 4. 41-Jason Johnson [3]; 5. 19-Brent Marks [5]; 6. 3-Tim Kaeding [7]; 7. 6N-Greg Nikitenko [6]; 8. 7T-Trent Stengl [8]; 9. 17M-Todd Mickelson [10]; 10. 20-Kevin Lawson [9]
Craftsman Club Dash (6 Laps) - 1. 5-David Gravel [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [2]; 3. 49-Brad Sweet [4]; 4. 2-Shane Stewart [3]; 5. 17-Jac Haudenschild [5]; 6. 35-Jamie Veal [6]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 6N-Greg Nikitenko [2][-]; 2. 13-Clyde Knipp [1][-]; 3. 1A-Jacob Allen [4][-]; 4. 10-Tyson Turnbull [7][-]; 5. 21-Ryder Olson [3][-]; 6. 7T-Trent Stengl [6][-]; 7. 20 – Kevin Lawson [7][$300]; 8. 20L-Dusty Lawson [10][$250]; 9. 14-Bill Holler [11][$225]; 10. 90-Randy Blotsky [8][$200]; 11. 91K-Kyle Fedyk [5][$200]; 12. 17M-Todd Mickelson [12][$200]
Sam Hafertepe, Jr. Dominates Lucas Oil ASCS At Missouri State Fair Speedway
Posted by: | Comments
ASCS National Sprint Series
Sam Hafertepe, Jr. Dominates Lucas Oil ASCS At Missouri State Fair Speedway
SEDALIA, Mo. (August 20, 2017) Picking up his second win of the season at the Missouri State Fair Speedway, Sam Hafertepe, Jr. made it 11 Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series National Tour presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network wins in 2017 with Sunday's triumph at the "Historic Half-Mile".
Taking his overall win total on the season to lucky No. 13, Hafertepe began his 25 lap quest from the cushion side of the front row with Aaron Reutzel taking the green from the pole.
Chasing the No. 87 on the start, Hafertepe ran anywhere from two to six car lengths away from Reutzel's back bumper as the pair rolled up on traffic with five laps complete. Both running the cushion in turns one and two, Hafertepe began searching for options at the opposite end of the Speedway. Sliding himself through the third and fourth turns, Sam was on par with Aaron's pace.
Working the eighth trip around the Missouri State Fair Speedway, the cushion in turn-two would end up being Aaron Reutzel's undoing as the Momentum Suspension No. 87 hopped the curb and spun to a stop off the exit of the second turn.
"Traffic was tough, and I knew Aaron was going to be running hard and that's what happened is he ran just a little too hard in traffic and got bottled up and gave us a clean track," commented Hafertepe who has one four Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour events in Missouri. "I wasn't really trying anything. Really, I was just waiting for him to mess up. That was my game plan the whole race because we just had a really good car."
Handing the Heidbreder Foundation Service/Keith Dobbs Motorsports No. 15h command of the A-Feature, as the field reverted to Lap 7, Sam was gone quickly from the battle for second between Giovanni Scelzi in the BDS Motorsports No. 1, and the RAMS No. 14k of Kyle Bellm. Taking over the runner-up spot from Giovanni, the driver from Nixa, Mo. would not be alone on the pass as Brian Brown maneuvered his seventh starting Casey's General Store/FVP No. 21 to third.
Trading the second position a number of times, the pair would not be able to run-down Sam Hafertepe, Jr. even as the No. 15h rolled through traffic. With his margin of victory right at a half straightaway, the silver would be awarded to Brian Brown with Kyle Bellm ending his night third.
Racing back and forth with Seth Bergman in the closing laps, Giovanni Scelzi crossed fourth with Bergman fifth.Brad Loyet rolled forward six positions to sixth with Miles Paulus seventh, after having run in the top-five for much of the first half of the race. Jonathan Cornell was eighth, followed by Wayne Johnson. Earning the CP-Carrillo Hard Charger of the race, Johnny Herrera moved up eight spots to round out the top-ten, and also pocketed $400 from Don Long's Searsboro Telephone Co.
A field of 23 drivers was on hand at the Missouri State Fair Speedway. Three Heat Races were also sponsored by Don Long's Searsboro Telephone Co with Giovanni Scelzi, Jonathan Cornell, and Seth Bergman each getting an extra $200 for their Heat Race wins. No B-Feature was contested.
The Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network is in action again on Thursday, August 24 at Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. before heading to Smoky Mountain Speedway in Maryville, Tenn. on Saturday, August 26.
For continued updates on the American Sprint Car Series, from the National Tour to any of the seven regional tours that make up the over 150 dates across the ASCS Nation in 2017, log onto www.ascsracing.com.
Race Results:
Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
ASCS Warrior Region
Missouri State Fair Speedway - Sedalia, Mo.
Sunday, August 20, 2017
Car Count: 23
Searsboro Telephone Co. Heat Races (All drivers to the A-Feature)
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 1-Giovanni Scelzi, [1]; 2. 14K-Kyle Bellm, [3]; 3. 44-Chris Martin, [4]; 4. 21P-Miles Paulus, [7]; 5. 3-Ayrton Gennetten, [8]; 6. 20K-Kevin Ulmer, [2]; 7. (DNF) 45X-Johnny Herrera, [5]; 8. (DNF) 38-Mike Dapra, [6]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 28-Jonathan Cornell, [2]; 2. 21-Brian Brown, [1]; 3. 86-Tony Bruce Jr, [3]; 4. 2C-Wayne Johnson, [4]; 5. 52-Blake Hahn, [6]; 6. 17W-Harli White, [7]; 7. 14-Randy Martin, [8]; 8. (DNF) 27-Danny Thoman, [5]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 23-Seth Bergman, [2]; 2. 87-Aaron Reutzel, [4]; 3. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr, [6]; 4. 95-Matt Covington, [3]; 5. 05-Brad Loyet, [7]; 6. 5-Matt Close, [1]; 7. (DNF) 99-Skylar Gee, [5]
Protect the Harvest A-Feature:
A Feature (25 Laps): 1. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr, [2]; 2. 21-Brian Brown, [7]; 3. 14K-Kyle Bellm, [6]; 4. 1-Giovanni Scelzi, [3]; 5. 23-Seth Bergman, [5]; 6. 05-Brad Loyet, [12]; 7. 21P-Miles Paulus, [4]; 8. 28-Jonathan Cornell, [8]; 9. 2C-Wayne Johnson, [13]; 10. 45X-Johnny Herrera, [18]; 11. 52-Blake Hahn, [15]; 12. 44-Chris Martin, [9]; 13. 87-Aaron Reutzel, [1]; 14. 86-Tony Bruce Jr, [11]; 15. 14-Randy Martin, [17]; 16. 99-Skylar Gee, [21]; 17. 95-Matt Covington, [23]; 18. 17W-Harli White, [14]; 19. 3-Ayrton Gennetten, [10]; 20. (DNF) 27-Danny Thoman, [22]; 21. (DNF) 5-Matt Close, [19]; 22. (DNF) 20K-Kevin Ulmer, [16]; 23. (DNF) 38-Mike Dapra, [20]
Lap Leader(s): Aaron Reutzel 1-7; Sam Hafertepe, Jr. 8-25
CP-Carrillo Hard Charger: Johnny Herrera +8 ($400 from STC)
FSR High Point Driver: Jonathan Cornell
Provisional(s):N/A
2017 Lucas Oil ASCS A-Main Winner(s): Sam Hafertepe, Jr. - 11 (3/17 - Devil's Bowl Speedway; 3/18 - Devil's Bowl Speedway; 4/7 - Texas Motor Speedway; 4/8 - Texas Motor Speedway; 4/15 - Missouri State Fair Speedway; 6/13 - Devil's Bowl Speedway; 6/14 - Lawton Speedway; 6/23 - Skagit Speedway; 6/24 - Skagit Speedway; 7/14 - Black Hills Speedway; 8/20 - Missouri State Fair Speedway); Aaron Reutzel - 5 (5/11 - Lakeside Speedway; 6/15 - Creek County Speedway; 6/17 - Lucas Oil Speedway; 6/22 - Skagit Speedway; 7/15 - Black Hills Speedway); Wayne Johnson - 2 (7/7 - Gallatin Speedway; 7/8 - Gallatin Speedway); Jake Bubak - 1 (6/9 - West Texas Raceway); Kyle Bellm - 1(6/10 - Route 66 Motor Speedway); Brian Brown - 1 (6/16 - Randolph County Raceway); Matt Covington - 1 (6/30 - Grays Harbor Raceway); Roger Crockett - 1 (7/1 - Grays Harbor Raceway); Terry McCarl - 1 (7/29 - Knoxville Raceway); Gregg Bakker - 1 (7/30 - Mason City Motor Speedway); Tim Shaffer - 1 (8/3 - Knoxville Raceway); Greg Hodnett - 1 (8/4 - Knoxville Raceway); Clint Garner - 1 (8/5 - Knoxville Raceway);
2017 Lucas Oil ASCS Driver Standings (Top 10): 1. Sam Hafertepe, Jr. 3,513; 2. Aaron Reutzel 3,347; 3. Wayne Johnson 3,231; 4. Matt Covington 3,177 5. Johnny Herrera 3,171; 6. Seth Bergman 3,171; 7. Blake Hahn 2,963; 8. Skylar Gee 2,780; 9. Harli White 2,499, 10. Josh Baughman 1,627;
NEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY RESULTS – SATURDAY, AUGUST 19, 2017
Posted by: | Comments
New Egypt Speedway
.
.
.
.
.
New Egypt Speedway
Route 539, New Egypt, NJ
Track Phone: 609-758-1900
Website: www.newegyptspeedway.net
Facebook: www.facebook.com/newegyptspeedwayofficial
Twitter: www.twitter.com/nesspeedway
Contact: Mike Wisniewski – Wiz Motorsports Communications, 856-982-5137
COMING EVENTS:
Wednesday, August 23, 2017 – Jersey Rush VII – 410 Sprint Cars and Modifieds (Big Block/Small Block)
3:30 p.m. – Pit gates open
5:00 p.m. – Grandstand gates open
7:00 p.m. – Hot laps start
7:30 p.m. – Racing starts
Saturday, August 26, 2017 – Black Horse Racing presents Fan Appreciation Night ($10 Admission for Adults) - Hammer Sportsman – Mr. Sportsman Classic (30 laps), Northeast Wingless Sprint Cars - Mr. Wingless Classic (25 laps), Crate Modifieds (25 laps), Street Stocks, 4-Cylinder Cars, Garden State Vintage Stock Car Club & Mechanic’s race.
4:00 p.m. – Pit gates open
4:00 p.m. – Grandstand gates open
6:00 p.m. – Hot laps start
7:00 p.m. – Racing starts
BOUC BLASTS TO HIS SECOND WIN OF THE SEASON AT NEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY
New Egypt, NJ (August 20, 2017) – At New Egypt Speedway’s Central Paint Night, Danny Bouc blasted to his second 358 Modified feature win of the season. Mike Lyons scored the victory in the Hammer Sportsman contest. Ryan Godown took the checkered flag in the Northeast Wingless Sprint Car main event. The Crate Modified feature was taken by Tommy Tanner.
As the 30-lap feature for the 358 Modifieds began, PJ Oliver hopped to the front of the pack with John McClelland in second. Seventh place starting Danny Bouc was rapidly on the move and motored into third with two laps completed. After a caution period on the second circuit, Oliver was still in front when racing resumed with Bouc taking second from McClelland. Quickly, Bouc engaged Oliver in a battle for the lead with Bouc coming out on top on lap four. After two additional yellow flags on laps ten and eleven, Bouc was still the leader with Billy Pauch, Jr., David VanHorn, McClelland and Oliver next in line. Bouc tried to distance himself from Pauch, Jr. and the field but two red flag incidents on the fourteenth and sixteenth circuits slowed his progress. Once action returned on lap seventeen, Bouc remained in front with Pauch, Jr., McClelland and VanHorn trying to maintain the pace. On lap twenty-one, Bouc was beginning to pull away from his rivals when Oliver and Ryan Krachun, who were engaged in a spirited battle for fifth, caused the last caution of the event. On the final restart of the event, Bouc repelled a challenge from Pauch, Jr. to remain in front with VanHorn driving into third. For the remainder of the race, Bouc stayed in control to collect his second win of the 2017 season. Pauch, Jr., the current point leader, came home in second place. VanHorn’s strong run netted him third. Fourth went to McClelland and Ryan Godown finished in fifth. PJ Oliver, Danny Bouc and Bryan Kuhl won the 358 Modified heat races.
Mike Lyons won for the second time this year after taking the checkered flag in the 20-lap Hammer Sportsman feature. Steve Desmelyk paced the opening two circuits before the sixth place starting Lyons took over. Following a caution and restart on lap thirteen, Bob Lineman, Jr. grabbed the lead from Lyons. With five laps remaining, Lyons regained the top spot after a vigorous duel with Lineman, Jr. Lyons held on to his advantage in the final tours for the win. The runner-up position was snared by JR Fulper. Cale Ross took third. Pat Wall was fourth and fifth was captured by Billy Osmun, III. The Hammer Sportsman qualifying races were captured by Mike Lyons and Bob Lineman, Jr.
For the eighth time in 2017, Ryan Godown was victorious in the Northeast Wingless Sprint Car main event. In the 20-lap affair, Larry Drake led the opening two tours before Rich Mellor gained the advantage. On the sixth circuit, Godown passed Mellor and led the remaining distance for the win. Lee Nardelli came home in second. Mellor, Bob Tersillo and Jermain Godshall completed the top five. Lee Nardelli and Ryan Godown took the Northeast Wingless Sprint Car heat races.
In the non-point 20-lap contest for the Crate Modifieds, Tommy Tanner took the lead from polesitter Kyle Kania with three circuits remaining and paced the field for the remainder of the race to collect his first career New Egypt Speedway checkered flag. Kania claimed the runner-up spot. John Criscione was third, Jason Dunn came home in fourth and fifth was taken by Ryan Simmons. Jeremy Martino and Jason Dunn grabbed wins in the heat races for the Crate Modifieds.
This week at New Egypt Speedway, two big events are on the docket. On Wednesday, August 23, Jersey Rush VII takes place with the 410 Sprint Cars and Modifieds (Big Block/Small Block) seeing action in a spectacular two-division mid-week show. Each class will compete in 30-lap feature events with big money on the line. The 410 Sprint Cars will race for a $5,000 winner's share, with $1,000 going to the tenth place finisher and $400 to start the A-main. The Modifieds will compete for a $3,000 top prize with $1,000 going to the fifth place finisher and $250 to start the feature event. The festivities will kick-off with the pre-race driver Meet and Greet in the pit area from 5:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. For Jersey Rush VII, the pit gates unlock at 3:30 p.m. with the grandstand gates opening at 5:00 p.m. Warm ups get underway at 7:00 p.m. and the first green flag waves at 7:30 p.m. Adult admission for Jersey Rush VII is $30 and Children (6-11) are $10. Kids 5 and under are FREE! Pit admission is $35 with no license required.
On Saturday, August 26, Black Horse Racing presents Fan Appreciation Night. The Mr. Sportsman Classic takes place on this special evening of racing with a 30-lap feature for the Hammer Sportsman along with the Mr. Wingless Classic 25-lap main affair for the Northeast Wingless Sprint Cars. The Crate Modifieds, Street Stocks, 4-Cylinder Cars and the Garden State Vintage Stock Car Club will be on the agenda as well. An exhibition race featuring crew members from several race teams will close out the night. Grandstand admission prices will be discounted and plenty of giveaways are slated to be doled out on this special night honoring the fans of New Egypt Speedway. All gates will open at 4:00 p.m. Warm-ups start at 6:00 p.m. and racing gets underway at 7:00 p.m. Admission to the grandstand is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors 65 and older, $5 for teens 12-15, $5 for military personal and their spouses with ID, and kids 11 and under are free! Pit admission is $30 with a New Egypt Speedway license and $40 with no license.
New Egypt Speedway is located on Route 539 just minutes from Six Flags Great Adventure and the New Jersey Turnpike. A racy 7/16-mile D-shaped dirt oval, New Egypt Speedway serves Garden State race fans with some of the best competition in the country. New Egypt’s state-of-the-art facilities feature daylight-quality lighting and excellent sightlines from any seat in the house. The grandstands are fully wheelchair accessible with wide, clear, and well-groomed walkways. Concession facilities serve up everything from Jersey Burgers to ice cream treats at family-friendly prices.
For more information, visit online: www.newegyptspeedway.net, “Like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/newegyptspeedwayofficial, or follow us on Twitter @nesspeedway.
NEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY RESULTS – SATURDAY, AUGUST 19, 2017
358 Modifieds
Heat 1 - 1. PJ Oliver 2. Ryan Godown 3. John McClelland 4. David VanHorn 5. Steve Davis 6. Chad Barney
Heat 2 - 1. Danny Bouc 2. Billy Pauch, Jr. 3. Kevin Vaclavicek 4. Tim Apgar 5. Rich Rutski 6. John Pakenham
Heat 3 - 1. Bryan Kuhl 2. Doug Ostwald 3. Ryan Krachun 4. Rocco Infante 5. Brandon Grosso 6. Ryan Simmons
358 MODIFIEDS - 30 LAPS FEATURE
1. DANNY BOUC 2. Billy Pauch, Jr. 3. David VanHorn 4. John McClelland 5. Ryan Godown 6. Rich Rutski 7. Brandon Grosso 8. Ryan Krachun 9. Rocco Infante 10. PJ Oliver 11. Ryan Simmons 12. Kevin Vaclavicek 13. Tim Apgar 14. Bryan Kuhl 15. Jim Bobbitt 16. Doug Ostwald 17. Tad Cox 18. Chad Barney 19. Steve Davis 20. Blaine Bracelin
DNS: John Pakenham, Rick Holsten
Hammer Sportsman
Heat 1 - 1. Mike Lyons 2. Will Dupree 3. Billy Osmun, III 4. TJ Lilly 5. JT Trstensky 6. Jason Kosch
Heat 2 - 1. Bob Lineman, Jr. 2. Pat Wall 3. JR Fulper 4. Steve Desmelyk 5. Cale Ross 6. Marty Resnick
HAMMER SPORTSMAN - 20 LAPS FEATURE
1. MIKE LYONS 2. JR Fulper 3. Cale Ross 4. Pat Wall 5. Billy Osmun, III 6. TJ Lilly 7. Will Dupree 8. Marty Resnick 9. Jason Kosch 10. Shaun Ratchford 11. Andy Visinski 12. Steve Desmelyk 13. Bob Lineman, Jr. 14. JT Trstensky 15. Jimmy Amato 16. Rick Wegner, Jr.
Northeast Wingless Sprint Cars
Heat 1 - 1. Lee Nardelli 2. Rich Mellor 3. Eric Jennings 4. Bob Tersillo 5. Larry Drake
Heat 2 - 1. Ryan Godown 2. Heidi Hedin 3. Larry McVay 4. Jermain Godshall 5. Brian Spencer
NORTHEAST WINGLESS SPRINT CARS - 20 LAPS FEATURE
1. RYAN GODOWN 2. Lee Nardelli 3. Rich Mellor 4. Bob Tersillo 5. Jermain Godshall 6. Brian Spencer 7. Larry McVay 8. Duane Nixon 9. Eric Jennings 10. Joseph Vandenbogart 11. Larry Drake 12. Heidi Hedin
Crate Modifieds
Heat 1 - 1. Jeremy Martino 2. Kyle Kania 3. Eric Palmer 4. Jason Bittner 5. Rob Mancini
Heat 2 - 1. Jason Dunn 2. Tommy Tanner 3. John Criscione 4. Ryan Simmons 5. Dan Fleming
CRATE MODIFIEDS - 20 LAPS FEATURE
1. TOMMY TANNER 2. Kyle Kania 3. John Criscione 4. Jason Dunn 5. Ryan Simmons 6. David Burns 7. Dan Fleming 8. Jeremy Martino 9. Joseph Brown 10. Aaron Weaver 11. Chris Bennett 12. Robbie Dunn 13. Rob Mancini 14. Jason Bittner 15. Eric Palmer 16. Walt McIntyre
MID-ATLANTIC SPRINT SERIES RECAP 8/18/2017
Posted by: | Comments
Mid-Atlantic Sprint Series
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
SCOTT ELLERMAN TOPS THE CHARTS IN CO-SANTIONED MASS/PASS RACESAVER SPRINT FEATURE AT WILLIAMS GROVE MECHANICSBURG, PA
By ERIKA PALMAI WAGNER
Scott Ellerman took home quite a bit of hardware Friday night after winning the co-sanctioned Mid-Atlantic Sprint Series/PA Sprint Series Racesaver/IMCA twenty lap feature event at Williams Grove Speedway, as well as the Beer Hill Cup Summer Series championship which was sponsored by the famous Beer Hill Gang. Austin Bishop, Bobby Butler, Jaremi Hanson and Zach Newlin completed the top five.
An astounding forty-five cars came together at the historic Central PA half mile oval, with heat race victories going to Stephanie Dodson, Bobby Butler, Dave Brown and Jaremi Hanson, and two consolation wins going to Colby Dice and Jon Haegele.
The third place starting PA Sprint Series regular took the lead from Mid-Atlantic Sprint Series young gun Bobby Butler on lap five after an exciting battle for the top spot ensued between Ellerman and the two pole sitters Dave Brown and Butler. After taking over command of the top spot, the fight for the lead continued throughout the entire duration of the race with Butler staying within a car length away from Ellerman for the remaining fifteen laps.
“I knew we were going to have to be good on the top in order to be fast tonight, so we worked on the car in the pits after the heat race, and we kind of just threw something at it, and I’ll tell you what, if my front nose didn’t break, I think we could have had that race,” Butler said post-race.
“I heard him behind me, but I just kept on hitting my marks, and holding on to make sure he wouldn’t get by,” Ellerman explained. “We’ve won here before last year, and then one earlier this year at Susquehanna, so it’s a great feeling to be able to win tonight, and on top of that, the Beer Hill Cup! I just want to thank Matt Miller and the Beerhill Gang for sponsoring PASS and for allowing us to have the opportunity to be able to earn a little extra on top of what we already do. It’s great to have the support they give us.”
In the final circuits, fifth place starter Austin Bishop, who was steady running in third, began to catch ground on the top two running cars, looking more and more like another possible contender for the win as the laps counted down. Bishop, who has been a “bridesmaid” more times than one in his rookie season has been persistently eyeing his first career Racesaver/IMCA Sprint Car win, with just recently finishing in second the week before.
“Those first few laps, we had a hard time getting heat in the tire with those cautions, so once we were finally able to run some green flag laps, I started to figure out the line on the top,” Bishop stated. “I saw Bobby and Ellerman fighting up ahead, so I kind of took advantage of that, ran them down, and I took second from Bobby on the bottom, and by the time I looked up, the race was over. I’m defiantly looking for a win here real soon, so we are going to take this finish and what we learned tonight, and bring it to Bridgeport next weekend!”
With a three-race weekend on tap for the PA Sprint Series, many MASS drivers and teams like Dave Brown, Eddie Wagner, Tom Carberry, David Bonner, Scott Frack and Austin Bishop will continue onto Selinsgrove Speedway tonight, and then ending the extended race weekend tomorrow night at Susquehanna Speedway. Next Saturday, the Engler Machine and Tool Mid-Atlantic Sprint Series will return back to New Jersey, at Bridgeport Speedway, for the Mach 1 sponsored event. Teams will have the opportunity to compete for the advertised purse, as well as a bare front axle and nerf bar kit provided to the series by Mach 1 chassis.
For more information on upcoming events, race day LIVE coverage, and exclusive interviews with drivers, visit our Facebook page and our website at www.masprintseries.com.
PASS/MASS RACESAVER/IMCA SPRINT FEATURE (20 LAPS): Scott Ellerman, Austin Bishop, Bobby Butler, Jaremi Hanson, Zachary Newlin, Dave Brown, Tyler Reeser, Eddie Wagner, Colby Dice, Darren Miller, Cale Reigle, Tommy Carberry, Rick Stief, Jeff Geiges, Jon Haegele, Scott R Frack, Jay Krout, Tom Carberry, Kyle Ganoe, Ian Cumens, Stephanie Dodson, Dave Grube, Tim Tanner Jr., Ken Duke Jr., George Gege Riden, Fred Arnold
DNQ: David Bonner, Teddy Thomas, Mike Allman, Brendon Poff, Erin Stattler, Kyle Smith, Kassidy Kreitz, John Walp, Kristen Hess, Keith C Andersen, Josh Fox, Andrew Hake, Kurt Krepper, John Scarborough, Rod Ort, Sydney Prince, John C Webster, Vance Berry, Jared Zionkowski
Jason Johnson Goes Flag-to-Flag at Red River Valley
Posted by: | CommentsWorld of Outlaws
Contact: Anthony Corini
World of Outlaws PR
408-825-3360 | acorini@dirtcar.com
Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article
Jason Johnson Goes Flag-to-Flag at Red River Valley
Johnson scores third victory; K. Madsen and Stewart complete podium
WEST FARGO, ND - August 19, 2017 - Jason Johnson started on the outside of the front row, took command down the backstretch on the opening circuit and never looked back to score his third win of the season Saturday at Red River Valley Speedway. Johnson survived heavy traffic and multiple restarts to pick up the popular victory. Australian Kerry Madsen and Shane Stewart completed the podium.
Johnson got the jump on pole-sitter Kraig Kinser and established a healthy advantage before a caution for a slowing Jamie Veal on lap four. On the ensuing restart, Dominic Scelzi and Brent Marks took a wild ride on the front stretch. Both drivers were uninjured in the accident.
Stewart got underneath Kraig Kinser for second and began chasing down Johnson as lapped traffic intensified. Kerry Madsen began his charge on the bottom of the racing surface as he surged by both Kinser and Thomas Kennedy to move into third.
Johnson battled with the slower car of David Gravel, allowing Stewart and Madsen to close in. Once Johnson cleared Gravel, he re-extended his lead and drove away from the field for the victory.
"My guys never give up. During the 'Month of Money', the tracks got a little slick and we struggled a bit. But this is my type of race track. Cowboy up," an elated Johnson said upon climbing out of his Priority Aviation, Mesilla Valley Transportation backed No. 41.
"With the World of Outlaws, these guys are so tough night in and night out, to win one of these races speaks magnitudes about this team," Johnson reiterated.
Kerry Madsen praised his team once again after landing on the podium for the second consecutive night. "It was a fun race, bouncing around and driving hard," the hard-nosed Australian said.
Shane Stewart, who is now the new track record holder at the Red River Valley Speedway, came home third after grappling with pesky lapped traffic. "Quick time, which I'm usually not, a new track record, which is cool, and a podium finish. We'll just carry this on to tomorrow and hopefully keep the momentum going," the Bixby, OK native said following his strong, consistent evening.
Kinser and Donny Schatz completed the top five. Tim Kaeding was the KSE Hard Charger. Clyde Knipp scored his first career top-ten with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series with a 9th place finish.
Sunday night the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series concludes a three-race swing through North Dakota in Minot at the Nodak Speedway.
RACE RESULTS FROM : Red River Valley Speedway - August 19, 2017
Feature (30 Laps) - 1. 41-Jason Johnson [2][$10,000]; 2. 2M-Kerry Madsen [6][$5,500]; 3. 2-Shane Stewart [3][$3,200]; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser [1][$2,800]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [7][$2,500]; 6. 17-Jac Haudenschild [8][$2,300]; 7. 21K-Thomas Kennedy [4][$2,200]; 8. 49-Brad Sweet [5][$2,100]; 9. 13-Clyde Knipp [12][$2,050]; 10. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild [10][$2,000]; 11. 9-Daryn Pittman [14][$1,500]; 12. 7S-Jason Sides [9][$1,200]; 13. 1S-Logan Schuchart [16][$1,100]; 14. 3-Tim Kaeding [22][$1,050]; 15. 18-Ian Madsen [13][$1,000]; 16. 5-David Gravel [21][$900]; 17. 24-Terry McCarl [15][$800]; 18. 4-Paul McMahan [19][$800]; 19. 35-Jamie Veal [18][$800]; 20. 7T-Trent Stengl [24][$800]; 21. 13JT-Mark Dobmeier [17][$800]; 22. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [11][$800]; 23. 19-Brent Marks [20][$800]; 24. 1A-Jacob Allen [23][$800];Lap Leaders: Jason Johnson 1-30 ;KSE Hard Charger Award: 3-Tim Kaeding[+8]
Qualifying: 1. 2-Shane Stewart, 11.925 (NEW TRACK RECORD); 2. 41S-Dominic Scelzi, 12.043; 3. 41-Jason Johnson, 12.079; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 12.114; 5. 21K-Thomas Kennedy, 12.116; 6. 49-Brad Sweet, 12.148; 7. 18-Ian Madsen, 12.195; 8. 9-Daryn Pittman, 12.208; 9. 7S-Jason Sides, 12.221; 10. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.233; 11. 17-Jac Haudenschild, 12.25; 12. 13-Clyde Knipp, 12.26; 13. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild, 12.277; 14. 13JT-Mark Dobmeier, 12.338; 15. 24-Terry McCarl, 12.339; 16. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 12.342; 17. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 12.405; 18. 35-Jamie Veal, 12.431; 19. 4-Paul McMahan, 12.432; 20. 5-David Gravel, 12.439; 21. 3-Tim Kaeding, 12.493; 22. 19-Brent Marks, 12.52; 23. 1A-Jacob Allen, 12.632; 24. 8-Casey Mack, 12.688; 25. 7T-Trent Stengl, 12.694; 26. 6N-Greg Nikitenko, 12.73; 27. 82-Dusty Zomer, 12.857; 28. W20-Greg Wilson, 12.866; 29. 13X-Ty Hanten, 13.4; 30. 91M-Jackson Moffett, 13.414; 31. 17M-Todd Mickelson, 15.218
Heat #1 (8 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 11K-Kraig Kinser [2]; 2. 2-Shane Stewart [1]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [4]; 4. 93-Sheldon Haudenschild [5]; 5. 18-Ian Madsen [3]; 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart [6]; 7. 19-Brent Marks [8]; 8. 4-Paul McMahan [7]; 9. W20-Greg Wilson [10]; 10. 7T-Trent Stengl [9]; 11. 17M-Todd Mickelson [11]
Heat #2 (8 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 21K-Thomas Kennedy [2]; 2. 2M-Kerry Madsen [6]; 3. 17-Jac Haudenschild [4]; 4. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [1]; 5. 9-Daryn Pittman [3]; 6. 13JT-Mark Dobmeier [5]; 7. 5-David Gravel [7]; 8. 1A-Jacob Allen [8]; 9. 13X-Ty Hanten [10]; 10. 6N-Greg Nikitenko [9]
Heat #3 (8 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 41-Jason Johnson [1]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [2]; 3. 7S-Jason Sides [3]; 4. 13-Clyde Knipp [4]; 5. 24-Terry McCarl [5]; 6. 35-Jamie Veal [6]; 7. 3-Tim Kaeding [7]; 8. 8-Casey Mack [8]; 9. 82-Dusty Zomer [9]; 10. 91M-Jackson Moffett [10]
Craftsman Club Dash (6 Laps): 1. 11K-Kraig Kinser [1]; 2. 41-Jason Johnson [3]; 3. 2-Shane Stewart [4]; 4. 21K-Thomas Kennedy [2]; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [6]; 6. 2M-Kerry Madsen [5]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) - Top 6 Transfer: 1. 4-Paul McMahan [1][-]; 2. 19-Brent Marks [4][-]; 3. 5-David Gravel [2][-]; 4. 3-Tim Kaeding [3][-]; 5. 1A-Jacob Allen [5][-]; 6. 7T-Trent Stengl [7][-]; 7. 82-Dusty Zomer [9][$300]; 8. 91M-Jackson Moffett [12][$250]; 9. W20-Greg Wilson [10][$225]; 10. 6N-Greg Nikitenko [8][$200]; 11. 13X-Ty Hanten [11][$200]; 12. 17M-Todd Mickelson [13][$200]; 13. 8-Casey Mack [6][$200]
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: MSD Ignitions ($25 cash): Jacob Allen; MSD Ignitions ($50 cash): Jason Johnson; JE Pistons ($50 cash): Jac Haudenschild; VP Racing Fuels ($50 cash): Brad Sweet; Edelbrock ($50 cash): Clyde Knipp; Comp Cams ($50 cash): Sheldon Haudneschild; Extended Stay America ($50 cash): Daryn Pittman; Cometic Gasket ($50 cash): Jason Sides; Super Flow ($50 cash): Tim Kaeding; Craftsman Club Fast Five ($100 cash): Kraig Kinser, Jason Johnson, Shane Stewart, Brad Sweet; Craftsman/Sears: Thomas Kennedy; KSE Hard Charger: Tim Kaeding; Comp Cams ($50 product certificate): Jason Johnson; JE Pistons (Set of Rings): Terry McCarl; JE Pistons: Brent Marks
Season Winners:
Donny Schatz - 17 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19, Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19, LoneStar Speedway on March 3, The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 9, The Dirt Track at Las Vegas on March 10, Thunderbowl Raceway on March 18, Missouri State Fair Speedway on May 5, 81 Speedway on May 6, Eldora Speedway May 13, Knoxville Raceway on June 10, Granite City on June 20, Dirt Oval at Route 66 on June 27, Dakota State Fair Speedway on July 1, Eldora Speedway on July 15, Lernerville Speedway on July 18, Knoxville Raceway on August 12 (NP), River Cities Speedway on August 18
David Gravel - 12 (Thunderbowl Raceway on March 17, Placerville Speedway on March 29, Perris Auto Speedway on April 1, Gator Motorplex on April 13, Plymouth Speedway on April 28, Lincoln Speedway on May 17, Williams Grove on May 19, New Egypt Speedway on May 24, River Cities Speedway on June 16, Attica Raceway Park on July 11, Hartford Speedway on July 28, Wilmot Raceway on July 29, Knoxville Raceway on August 10 (NP))
Brad Sweet - 4 (Stockton Dirt Track on March 25, Devil's Bowl on April 15, Jackson Motorplex on June 3, Knoxville Raceway on June 9)
Shane Stewart - 4 (Williams Grove Speedway on May 20, Lawrenceburg Speedway on May 29, West Liberty Raceway on June 23, Beaver Dam Raceway on June 24)
Kerry Madsen - 4 (Jackson Motorplex on June 2, Cedar Lake Speedway on July 7, Cedar Lake Speedway on July 8, Eldora Speedway on July 13)
Logan Schuchart - 4 (Keller Auto Speedway on March 31, Eldora Speedway on May 12, Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 26, Ohsweken Speedway on July 25)
Jason Johnnson - 3 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 17, Devil's Bowl on April 14, Red River Valley Speedway on August 18)
Brian Brown - 1 (Cocopah Speedway on April 7)
Rico Abreu - 1 (Arizona Speedway on April 8)
Parker Price-Miller - 1 (Tri-State Speedway on May 14)
Ian Madsen - 1 (Jackson Motorplex on June 1)
Kyle Larson - 1 (Eagle Raceway on June 13, Knoxville Raceway on August 9 (NP))
Kraig Kinser - 1 (Deer Creek Speedway on July 6)
Christopher Bell - 1 (Eldora Speedway on July 14)
Brock Zearfoss - 1 (Williams Grove Speedway on July 21
Daryn Pittman – 1 (Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 on August 4
GRANT GETS IT; WINS BETTENHAUSEN 100 FOR FIRST SILVER CROWN WIN
Posted by: | Comments
The United States Auto Club.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Justin Grant enjoys the spoils of victory with wife Ashley and their twins after winning Saturday's 'Bettenhausen 100' at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield. (Brendon Bauman Photo)
GRANT GETS IT; WINS BETTENHAUSEN 100 FOR FIRST SILVER CROWN WIN
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Springfield, Illinois....August 19, 2017 - Justin Grant was fully aware of the situation at hand on the final restart of Saturday's "Bettenhausen 100" at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.
The Ione, California native had the nose of the white No. 63 driven by the two-time USAC Silver Crown champ and winner of the last two "Bettenhausen 100" races right on his tail for the final 25 laps after Swanson had put on one of his patented late-race clinics down the stretch.
Intimidation was not in Grant's vocabulary on this day as he was able to stave off Swanson's charges in the final laps, including a green-white-checkered finish to capture his first career USAC Silver Crown Champ Car Series presented by TRAXXAS victory in his Carli-Hemelgarn Racing/Carli Motorsports - Hemelgarn Enterprises/DRC/Speedway Ford. In the process, he became the first driver to get his first series win at the Springfield Mile since fellow Californian Cole Whitt in 2009.
"With Kody behind you, you want to start running the thing harder because you know he's so good," Grant explained. "At the same time, that's what he's so good at. He gets you to run your car harder, miss your marks and burn your stuff up. I just knew we had to keep doing what we were doing without making a mistake. I couldn't leave anything out there. I had to run it hard, but I still had to hit my marks. The guys on the radio were telling me to just keep doing what I was doing and I'd be fine."
Grant began his race from the outside of the front row, using a big run on the outside to snare the lead from ProSource pole winner Jerry Coons, Jr. on the opening lap heading into turn one, instantly building a four-car-length lead by the time the field hit the back straight.
Meanwhile, three-time "Bettenhausen 100" winner Brian Tyler had clicked his way from 10th to 5th by the opening lap. Notorious for his steadfast movement through the field throughout his career, Tyler's three Springfield wins had come from starting positions of 21st, 16th and 14th!
On the lap 20 restart, third-running Chris Windom's car didn't get up to speed when the green flag fell. As the rest of the field scrambled to avoid him, Keith Burch, making his Silver Crown debut, made hard contact with the outside turn one wall. He was able to climb out of the car under his own power, but was done for the day.
By lap 36, Tyler had climbed to second and sized up Grant to make his move for the lead to the outside entering turn three where he took charge and instantly pulled away to a 10-car-length advantage.
Grant had settled into his groove in second and used the strategy of following Tyler instead of engaging in a cat and mouse game that could wear out his tires. Even though that was the plan and he was going to stick to it, Grant admits his relative lack of experience in Silver Crown compared to Tyler (most starts in series history at 192) didn't give him complete confidence until he saw the condition of the right rear rubber on Tyler's car past the halfway mark.
"I haven't done this long enough to say there's no question that I'd get back by him," Grant said. "That was the thought. It's a long race and my crew said Tyler was running pretty hard to get by us. We just had to let him do his thing. From my view, it looked like his tire was flapping around like it was blistered. That made me a little more confident and I knew I just had to keep the thing straight and not try to catch him. I just needed to run behind him and let him use his stuff up."
Opportunities to gain positions are abundant on restarts, and on the lap 57 edition, a scramble assumed in the middle of the pack, sending Zach Daum helicoptering down the front straightaway upside down before coming to a rest up against the turn one wall. He would walk away from the frightening accident unscathed.
Under the open red flag, several teams made adjustments to their cars, but not Grant's crew. However, it gave the team a chance to inspect their car, mainly the tires, where they determined that changes were unnecessary. They liked what they saw and had full intentions to ride it out to the finish.
"We didn't make any changes during the red. We just left it alone," Grant said. "It was nice for confidence because our guys got to look at the tires and saw we had a ton of tire left. Starting up front sure helps that a lot because you don't have to race your way through. You can go into conservation mode earlier and keep the tires under it. The plan for the last 44 laps was to keep conserving. At around 40 laps, it's basically a sprint car race - a long, abrasive sprint car race."
On the lap 57 restart (part deux), it was déjà vu for Grant who mimicked the same move used on the original start to blast around the outside of Tyler to take the lead. Lurking in the shadows, though, was Swanson after methodically picking his way from ninth.
Swanson peered around the outside of Coons for third entering turn one on lap 69. A lap later, he used a run down the front straight, swapping to the inside of Coons to beat him to the inner rail for the position in turn one with 30 to go. Five laps later, Tyler was within Swanson's range. Swanson pulled the trigger and fired off around the outside of the two-time USAC National Sprint Car champ in turn one for second with only a quarter of the race remaining.
From there, Swanson gnashed the loudpedal with his right foot, erasing three-tenths of a second per lap as he put the chase on Grant for the lead. By lap 80, though, Grant gapped Swanson slightly, rebuilding his lead to just a tick over a second with just 20 laps remaining, almost as if it were by design.
"Once we get inside 20 to go, that's when we turn it loose," Grant explained. "That's about the same time Swanson started to turn his loose too. Once we get inside 10 to go, you got to hustle it for all she's worth."
With 17 laps to go, third-running Tyler's magnificent run came to an end as he slowed to a stop on the high side of turn four to bring out the yellow, ending his bid for a fourth "Bettenhausen" win. He finished 21st.
On the restart with 14 laps to go, it became a two-horse race as the two jockeys - Grant and Swanson - separated themselves from the rest of the pack by a half-straightaway. Grant maintained a three to four-car length lead over Swanson when Leary's day came to end while running fourth, slowing to a stop at the entrance of turn one, thus necessitating a yellow. That set up a green-white-checkered finish, providing Swanson one last shot at Grant.
"You have to use the racetrack to make your car better if you're going to try to win," Swanson said. "I found something with the racetrack to try to help put us up there. I felt like we gained on him a lot in those two laps before the caution from where I had been. When the caution came out, I thought, if I do it right, I have a chance. I can't say I thought I was going to win. The best I could hope for was a chance. These restarts in Silver Crown are tough. If you're struggling taking off, you're a sitting duck. That's something that's been tough for us at times."
And, that's exactly what happened. When the green flag fell, Grant scooted away while Swanson's car didn't get up to speed right away. That gave fourth-running Jeff Swindell exactly what he needed and he jumped at the chance, roaring to the outside of both Swanson and Coons to move from fourth to second. Swanson maintained his composure and used a drive on the bottom of turn two to get back by Swindell for the runner-up spot.
Justin Grant leads Kody Swanson to the finish line to win Saturday's 'Bettenhausen 100' at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield. (Brendon Bauman Photo)
However, Grant was too far gone at that point as he flashed out front to an eight-car-length lead where he'd finish off his masterful drive to win by just under seven tenths of a second over Swanson, Swindell, Coons and Dave Darland.
After an arduous season that began with high expectations, Grant's team has been plagued with a myriad of issues that produced zero top-five finishes in seven series starts this season. It's enough to shake one's confidence, but the effort and the speed were there. Lady luck just needed to fall on their side.
"For a while, I thought this win was coming," Grant believed. "Then, I started wondering if I was ever going to win one. This year has been tough. We've had a lot of gremlins through nobody's fault. I've made some mistakes and we've just had some weird things going on with the car, just stuff that you wouldn't expect to go wrong. We had speed all year. It just felt like everything was working against us. To finally get a win for (car owners) Chris Carli and Ron Hemelgarn means a lot. Those guys have put a lot of effort and money into this deal and it feels great to get them one."
After two-straight "Bettenhausen 100" wins in 2014 and 2015, Kingsburg, California's Swanson had to settle for second in his DePalma Motorsports/Radio Hospital - Hampshire Racing Engines/Maxim/Hampshire Chevy. With that said, it was a hard-fought, honorable effort. It was a day that began with one issue after another on the car, but the team stuck with it and, as they do more often than not, they ended up in a position to win at the end of a 100-mile race.
"The only thing I could do is drive in harder and make sure Justin had to earn it," Swanson said. "I couldn't roll the center or get off the corner as good as he could. I pressured him to make a mistake and he didn't. He earned it today."
"I knew early our only chance to win was if we could save better than everyone," Swanson explains. "A lot of good cars were starting in front of us. We had issues in practice and qualifying. Afterward, we changed the steering gear and the pump hoping to help it. Unfortunately, that wasn't it. But, that's why I love these 100-mile races. It gives you time to figure it out. I was trying to save my tires as best as I could and when it came time to go, we had to make some pretty bold moves to get up through there. We did everything we could to put us in a position to win. We don't quit. That's what makes us strong in these long races.
Swanson makes due with what he has and what he has is a great combination that has worked highly-successfully over the past four years and, this year, has allowed him to extend his series point lead to 96 heading into the "Ted Horn 100" at the Du Quoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds on Sept. 3.
"A lot of guys will have cockpit adjustable shocks, weight jackers and all of that," Swanson begins. "Of all the races I've driven the No. 63 dirt car, all I've had is a brake, a throttle and a steering wheel. You drive it, you use the racetrack and figure it out. The track will change. Maybe the rubber will lay a little differently. Maybe you use the brake a little differently. Maybe you do something with your steering and your timing with how you use the pedals to make the car work for you. They set it up and I drive it to try to get the most I can out of it. Sometimes you have to drive smarter than those guys to put yourself in a position to win. Sometimes you just want it more. You just drive it into the corner harder than the other guy. We made up a lot of ground that way today."
"I feel like racing's a relay," Swanson continued. "It's a team sport. Everyone on the crew does a great job, but then the baton is handed to the driver last. When the green drops, it's up to me to figure it out, good bad or indifferent. Whether it's minimizing mistakes or trying to make something happen, it's your job to go out there and give everything you have to win for your team. today. Today, we just came up one short."
Another Swanson who had a solid day is car owner Mark Swanson whose driver, Jeff Swindell of Germantown, Tennessee, drove to his second-straight podium finish with the Silver Crown Series after finishing runner-up at Du Quoin in September of 2016 in his Swanson Racing/Jet Star - Rosewood Machine & Tool - Jeff Freel/Maxim/Toyota. Swindell, the longtime, versatile racing veteran, has Indiana State Fairgrounds and Du Quoin State Fairgrounds victories on his great resume, but will have to wait another year to pick up a first Springfield victory following an incredible charge from 28th to 3rd to pick up KSE Racing Products Hard Charger honors for the afternoon. Swindell explains the process of running a successful 100-lap on a dirt mile.
"Here at Springfield, it's really a tire burner," Swindell said. "You have to pace yourself for the first half of the thing and just put yourself in a position to take a spot when somebody messes up in front of you. You try to get a feel on the starts before falling into line and waiting on somebody to give you the spot. You don't want to press it too much. When you see a hole open, you got to jump in it. You just don't want to lean on the power too much because you have to make it last. I kind of overdid it and that made the tire worse than what I wanted it to be at the end. It went down on us a little bit. I think it had a little hole in it, which had some effect on it.
"On the restarts, the little Toyota took off pretty good," Swindell credits. "It stutters for about 30 feet, then it cleans up and really drives on. We passed cars on the restarts all day. I really didn't think we'd be able to do that once we got into fourth. I thought all those guys would take off on me. That thing jumped up and took off every time. I thought we were going to have a shot at them on the last laps. I ran up close to him going into three, made up a little ground and figured what the hell, I jumped into a podium. I can give it away or try going for the win. I drove it in a little too hard, but it was a good comeback from 28th to 3rd."
Contingency awards Saturday at the Illinois State Fairgrounds included Jerry Coons, Jr. (ProSource Fast Qualifier), Jeff Swindell (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger) and David Shain (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher).
---------------------------------------
USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES (presented by TRAXXAS) RACE RESULTS: August 19, 2017 - Springfield, Illinois - Illinois State Fairgrounds - "Bettenhausen 100"
PROSOURCE QUALIFYING: 1. Jerry Coons Jr., 20, Nolen-29.988; 2. Justin Grant, 91, Carli/Hemelgarn-30.220; 3. J.C. Bland, 5, BBE-30.375; 4. Keith Burch, 24, Burch-30.464; 5. Chris Windom, 92, Kazmark-30.501; 6. C.J. Leary, 30, Leary-30.539; 7. Dakota Jackson, 201, Nolen-30.540; 8. Joey Moughan, 29, Moughan-30.542; 9. David Shain, 7, Hardy-30.619; 10. Tyler Courtney, 97, Lein-30.704; 11. Kody Swanson, 63, DePalma-30.706; 12. Brian Tyler, 12, Galas-30.789; 13. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-30.824; 14. Dave Darland, 27, Phillips-30.846; 15. Shane Cottle, 81, Williams-30.849; 16. Steve Buckwalter, 53, SET-30.911; 17. Zach Daum, 14, McQuinn-30.975; 18. Damion Gardner, 6, Klatt-31.004; 19. Patrick Bruns, 95, Full Throttle-31.010; 20. Casey Shuman, 55, Bateman-31.064; 21. Terry Babb, 42, Babb-31.141; 22. Russ Gamester, 51, Gamester-31.148; 23. Joss Moffatt, 32, Williams & Wright-31.311; 24. Patrick Lawson, 2, Lawson-31.489; 25. Korey Weyant, 99, Weyant-31.503; 26. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-31.530; 27. Chris Urish, 77, Urish-31.575; 28. Jeff Swindell, 21, Swanson-31.771; 29. Joe Liguori, 4, Liguori-31.852; 30. Danny Long, 44, Long-31.976; 31. Jacob Wilson, 07, WBR-31.991; 32. Chris Fetter, 88, Fetter-32.659; 33. David Byrne, 40, Byrne-33.510; 34. Hunter Schuerenberg, 120, Nolen-NT; 35. Kenny Gentry, 18, Gentry-NT; 36. Dave Berkheimer, 31, Berkheimer-NT; 37. Brady Bacon, 48, Martens-NT; 38. Shane Cockrum, 71, Hardy-NT; 39. A.J. Fike, 3, RFMS-NT; 40. Austin Nemire, 16, Lesko-NT.
FEATURE: (100 laps) 1. Justin Grant, 2. Kody Swanson, 3. Jeff Swindell, 4. Jerry Coons Jr., 5. Dave Darland, 6. Shane Cottle, 7. Aaron Pierce, 8. David Byrne, 9. Joe Liguori, 10. Steve Buckwalter, 11. Jacob Wilson, 12. Patrick Lawson, 13. David Shain, 14. Matt Goodnight, 15. Joss Moffatt, 16. Chris Fetter, 17. Damion Gardner, 18. Chris Urish, 19. C.J. Leary, 20. Tyler Courtney, 21. Brian Tyler, 22. Korey Weyant, 23. Casey Shuman, 24. J.C. Bland, 25. Chris Windom, 26. Zach Daum, 27. Austin Nemire, 28. Joey Moughan, 29. Keith Burch, 30. Dakota Jackson, 31. Terry Babb, 32. Patrick Bruns, 33. Russ Gamester, 34. Danny Long. NT
------------------------------
**Daum flipped on lap 57 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-35 Grant, Laps 36-56 Tyler, Laps 57-100 Grant.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER AWARD: Jeff Swindell (28th to 3rd)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: David Shain
NEW USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMPIONSHIP (presented by TRAXXAS) POINTS: 1-K.Swanson-554, 2-Coons-458, 3-Windom-439, 4-Byrne-372, 5-Grant-360, 6-Bobby Santos-350, 7-Pierce-349, 8-Liguori-258, 9-Gardner-248, 10-Moffatt-242.
NEXT USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR RACE (presented by TRAXXAS): September 3 - Du Quoin, IL - Du Quoin State Fairgrounds - "Ted Horn 100"
HAMLIN SPEEDWAY NEWS
Posted by: | CommentsHamlin, PA - Powerful Storm Halts Hamlin Speedway Action After Five Feature Events
By: Steve Pados, GA Motorsports Media
The splendid warm rays of the summer sunshine continued to latch onto the scenic Pocono Mountain landscape for most of Saturday but the weather quickly reared its ugly head after five features had been completed and turned the Hamlin Speedway grounds into a sea of mud. Promoters Denise and Randy Smith ushered in another fabulous edition of the 2017 racing season at Hamlin and with it another exciting night of racing entertainment. The large crowd on hand was treated to another all-out display of daredevil, seeking out the cushion activity from the more than one hundred racers that came to do battle on Saturday evening. The last event was checkered at 18-laps when the skies opened up and had everyone seeking shelter from the storm that followed. The five feature card was once again presented by JPA Masonry located in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania and S&S Speedways Indoor Go Karts located in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. The remaining two feature events for the All Star Slingshots and the Hampton RV & Trailer Sales Stage One Modifieds will be added to next week's show making the evening a nine feature event spectacular.
When the final scorecards were tallied it was Mike Taylor racing to his fourth win of the season in the Super Slinger finale. Also claiming wins in the star studded events included "The Travelin Man" Mick D'Agostino as he ruled the roost from every angle around the speedway to capture his second win of the season in the JPA Masonry Wingless 600 Sprint main. "The Fearless One" Kyle Ferrucci added another notch to his gun belt with his fourth win of the season in the Wingless 270 Sprint main. "Junior Excitement" JJ Rice scored his second win of the season at Hamlin in the Junior Slingshot finale in an event where the final laps resembled a small car demolition derby. Paul Richards Jr was spot on as he sped to his third victory of the season in the JPA Masonry Rookie Wingless 600 feature event.
The five feature events were exciting to say the least and the "stars of tomorrow" Junior Slingshot division began well with Abby Yates having the quick right foot as she jumped into the lead at the drop of the green flag and attacked the race track as she quickly sped away from the rest of the field. A couple of cautions slowed the pace but each time Yates was able to hold the field at bay with some 14.7 second lap times. With two laps to go, Yates was spun out by Mikey Johannes causing a caution and ending Yates bid for her second win at the speedway. On the restart JJ Rice was the leader but was bumped by John Kendall. Kendall was the leader on lap-19 but Rice came storming back and additional contact caused more commotion and Rice was able to keep his momentum going and scored the win. Austin Homan, Joey Kalafut, Rachel Dickinson and John Kendall completed the top five. Adam Buchel headed up the remainder of the finishers followed by Abby Yates, Mikey Johannes, James Hendricks and James Benz.
The JPA Masonry Rookie 600 Sprints found pole sitter Tyler Lindsey out dragging Tony Parlanti into turn one. Lindsey would lead for four laps before yielding to the baseline hugging Paul Richards Jr. Richards owned the bottom of the speedway on this night and would go on to capture his third feature win despite solid performances by Tyler Lindsey in second and Joey Amantea finishing third in a new ride for him. Noah Zielinski was fourth and last week's winner Ryan Stangle rounded out the top five. Ryan Lacoe, the returning Scott Rupp, Jack Hanna and newcomer Dennis Chamberlain completed the field.
The Wingless 270 Sprint headliner found Alex Reinsmith getting the jump on Glenn Macomber when the green flag came out. The event settled into a high speed chase as third starting Kyle Ferrucci was on the move and slipped past Macomber and set sail for Reinsmith. Lap seven proved to be the winning move for Ferrucci as he drove by Reinsmith to take over the point. Ferrucci would lead the remaining laps to go and score his fourth win of the season. Reinsmith, Macomber and newcomer Nathanial Krotzer completed the field.
Super Slinger action found Mike Taylor getting the jump on the field at the start of the event. Taylor would build up a huge lead while Dale Kober and Jeff Haduck were lodged in a great battle for the runner-up role. This night was taylor-made as Mike Taylor would go on to score his fourth win of the season. Kober had more than enough power to land in the runner-up role with Jeff Haduck third in a great run, Wes Hearn fourth, the returning Roger Collins fifth and Jimmy Conroy sixth. and fifth.
The JPA Masonry Wingless 600 Sprint main found Mick D'Agostino grabbing the lead going into turn one as he outhustled Jacob Balliet for the point. While securing the lead, D'Agostino was put to work with Balliet, Joel Smith, Damon Paul and Colin White working every angle to try to make something big happen. D'Agostino worked his lane to perfection and turned in consistent laps of 12.3 seconds to drive to his second win of the season for the Massachusetts based speedster. Balliet was excellent in a strong runner-up performance. Joel Smith and Damon Paul put on an excellent show of racing and sportsmanship on the speedway for third and fourth place while Colin White completed the top five. The second five were close as well with Chad Sandt, Duane White, Mack Brink, Ryan Neil and Cody Smith completing the top ten.
PEARL JAMS:
Heat racing action at Hamlin continued to fuel the fires that make Hamlin Speedway the place to be on Saturday nights as Joey Amantea and Paul Richards Jr were victorious in the Rookie 600 Sprint heat events. Two heats were required for the Stage One Modifieds with Cody Motto and John Comandini securing wins. Mike Taylor captured the heat win for the Super Slingers. Damon Paul and Jacob Balliet enjoyed great nights all around as they captured heat wins in the Wingless 600 Sprints and had great finishes in the feature headliner. Glenn Macomber captured the heat win in the 270 Sprints. The All Star Slingshots ran two heats with Taylor Mills and CJ Fritz capturing the wins. The Junior Slingshots ran one heat with JJ Rice securing the win.
Newcomers or returning racers to the Hamlin Speedway for the Saturday night racing action included Ryan Neil and Adam Huff in the 600 Sprints. Roger Collins returned to action for the Super Slingers. Scott Rupp and Rich Maguire were first timers for the Rookie 600 Sprints with Maguire steering the former Jerry Rutledge racer. Meredith Howell put the Smith Fabrications Stage One Rental car through its paces for the evening.
Joey Amantea had a wreck at another speedway and returned to Hamlin on Saturday evening in another racer they recently purchased. Savannah Leggio expired a motor in her 600 Sprint.
With the heavy amount of precipitation that has fallen recently, another yeoman's effort was turned in by Randy Smith and Staff as they kept pace with the speedway all evening long until the storms rolled into the speedway.
Some big events will be coming to Hamlin in the last few weeks of the season. The added two postponed features will be run next week with the JPA Masonry Wingless 600 Sprint special taking place. A dual heat format along with a hefty payday should bring out a nice field of race cars to the Poconos for the event.
The Roy Smith Memorial for the Hampton RV and Trailer Sales Stage One Modifieds will welcome in Labor Day weekend at the speedway. A dual heat format and a 30-lap feature will honor one of the pioneers of Modified racing on the East Coast.
RESULTS:
All Star Slingshots: (Postponed until August 26th) Starting Lineup: Taylor Mills, CJ Fritz, Josh Marcus, Austin Silfee, Tess Horvath, Cole Stangle, Mike Taylor, Cody Kline, Wes Hearn, Dale Kober, Tyler Peet, Amanda Buchel, Samantha Muller, Troy Langendoerfer, Alan Kober, Ashley Kober, Corey Zielinski, Jared Silfee
Hampton RV And Trailer Stage One Modifieds: (Postponed until August 26th) Starting Lineup: Cody Motto, John Comandini, Anthony Recchio, Pat VanVarick, Joel Smith, Cole Stangle, Andrew Vreeland, Michael Samony, Mike Jablonka, Meredith Howell, Evan Civick, Mark Corna
Wingless 270cc Sprints: Kyle Ferrucci, Alex Reinsmith, Glenn Macomber, Nathanial Krotzer
JPA Masonry Wingless 600cc Sprints: Mick D'Agostino, Jacob Balliet, Joel Smith, Damon Paul, Colin White, Chad Sandt, Duane White, Mack Brink, Ryan Neil, Cody Smith, Joseph Smith, Tyler Lindsey, JD Casazza, Danny Buccafusca, Adam Huff
Junior Slingshots: JJ Rice, Austin Homan, Joey Kalafut, Rachel Dickinson, John Kendall, Adam Buchel, Abby Yates, Mikey Johannes, James Hendricks, James Benz
Super Slingshots: Mike Taylor, Dale Kober, Jeff Haduck, Wes Hearn, Roger Collins, Jim Conroy
JPA Masonry Rookie 600cc Wingless Sprints: Paul Richards Jr, Tyler Lindsey, Joey Amantea, Noah Zielinski, Ryan Stangle, Ryan Lacoe, Scott Rupp, Jack Hanna, Dennis Chamberlain, Savannah Leggio, Dennis Stawinski Jr, Rich Maguire, Zack Weisenfluh, Ron Bosga, Macy Litchauer, Tony Parlanti, Carmen Leggio Sr
Racing every Saturday evening from April through September. The next event on the Hamlin Speedway schedule is set for August 26th when all regular divisions will be in action and highlighted by the JPA Masonry Wingless 600 Sprints rocking the house with $750.00 going to the winner based on a 24-car starting field. The 600 Sprints event will follow a dual heat format.
Make sure to check the Hamlin Speedway website or Facebook page for any additional information. Pit Gates open at the speedway at 3 PM; Drivers Meeting at 5:45; Hot Laps are at 6:00 and the racing begins at 7 PM sharp. Admission Prices for regular shows are: Adults $10.00; Senior Citizens $5.00 Children under 6 are Free
Please support the many great sponsors who assist in working and sponsoring the season long events at the speedway. Tilcon, Ron Brown Hauling, JPA Masonry, RockAuto.com, S&S Speedways and Yankowski Enterprises are all part of the advertising family at the speedway and we graciously thank them for their support.
Hamlin Speedway is seeking additional marketing sponsors to join the speedway team for the 2017 racing season. For more information, contact Steve Pados at: 484-784-7756 or through email at: steveswp@ptd.net or Denise Smith at S&S Speedways at: 570-420-5500 or at: www.SSSpeedways.com or on facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/SSSpeedways/ or www.HamlinSpeed.com or facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/HamlinSpeed
For photos of the great racing action at Hamlin, please contact Tim Krysiuk at: https://strictlydirtphotography.smugmug.com/
Visit us often for a great night of racing action as.........................
The Hamlin Speedway Is The "Pearl" Of The Poconos
