Turns Lincoln season around after leading every lap for a second straight year

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA , 5/16/13 – He did it again.

Defending Lincoln champ Danny Dietrich turned around a rough start to the 2013 season by leading every lap of World of Outlaws STP Sprint Series feature on Thursday night.

“These guys are tough,” said a jubilant Dietrich after finishing a celebratory wing dance on top of his Gary Kauffman-owned Sandoe’s Fruit Market #48 in victory lane, “And I have respect for all of them. Hopefully, we can continue this luck into tomorrow and Saturday (at Williams Grove).”

Luck did play into Dietrich’s night. A little girl from the stands drew the #8 pill for the inversion, placing Dietrich on the pole for the dash. His subsequent win in the 6-lap dash put him on the pole for the 35-lap “A” main.

Earlier, Dietrich came out late in time trials and turned a lap of 13.918 seconds, good enough for 14^th quick and placing him on the pole for his heat.

By virtue of his second-place finish in the dash, five-time World of Outlaw champ Donny Schatz started beside Dietrich in the front row and challenged Dietrich for the lead the entire way. Thrilling wheel-to-wheel racing that saw Schatz stay within a car length of Dietrich forced fans to their feet from laps 15 through 26.

It wasn’t until after a lap 27 caution for a spinning Craig Dollansky that Dietrich was able to pull away, crossing about four car lengths in front of the STP #15 as the two caught lapped traffic as they crossed under the checkered flag.

“That was all joking around,” said Dietrich about his bold talk this week on the internet, “But to back it up feels great.”

“I want to thank all the fans for coming out,” concluded Dietrich, “This is the best track in the country to race and see a race!”

The crowd was so huge that the 50/50 winner won more than Dietrich. Proceeds from the 50/50 drawing were donated to the Eastern Museum of Motor Racing.

Sammy Swindell came from sixth starting spot to finish third, with Tim Kaeding (in his first ever Lincoln run) and invader Brad Sweet completing the top five. Three-time 2013 Lincoln winner Brent Marks was sixth.

Daryn Pittman earned the KSE Hard Charger Award after maneuvering from 17th to 7th. Rounding out the top ten were Lincoln points leader Fred Rahmer, invader Sam Hafertepe, Jr., and Brian Montieth.

Thursday evening rain date to be used

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA , 5/15/13 – A passing shower early, followed by a passing shower later, forced World of Outlaw officials to postpone Wednesday night’s Gettysburg Clash featuring the World of Outlaws and the Pennsylvania Posse.

43 “410” sprints cars had just completed the first of two sets of hot laps when the final shower arrived at 8:45 p.m.

Realizing that it would be at least 10:30 or 11:00 before the show could begin, World of Outlaw STP Sprint Series officials decided to postpone the program until the scheduled rain date of Thursday (5/16).

All activities will be run at the same time, with pit gates opening at 2 PM, general admission gates opening at 4 PM. Time trials are slated for 7:30 PM.

Chase Dietz makes daring pass to claim first career “358” sprint car win; Walls wins third of the year in thundercars

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA , 5/11/13 – Brent Marks was the class of the field in claiming the $4,000 top prize in Saturday’s Prospect Metal and Used Auto Parts Night World of Outlaw tune-up at Lincoln Speedway Saturday night. 

It was Marks’ third win of the year in the Pigeon Hills, and ended a perfect night for the BAPS Auto Paints and Supply/Fredericksburg Eagle Hotel/KC Automotive/Creekside Auto Sales #19M after winning his qualifying event for the eighth week in a row.

The World of Outlaw format placed Marks on the outside of the front row for the start, and he led every lap, despite late-race pressure from eighth-starting Brian Montieth over the closing laps.

“For all the rain we’ve had, Fred (Putney) did an awesome job on this track,” said Marks in victory lane, “That race was awesome.  Kudos to Lincoln for running tonight.”

The start of the show was delayed by 45 minutes after a series of rain showers during the day, the last of which didn’t end until after 5:00 p.m.

“We needed this win really, really bad,” continued Marks, “We’ve been struggling for a few weeks here, and falling from first to fourth in the point standings was pretty depressing.  The team behind me is awesome.  We went through some difficult times this week, made some changes, and I can’t thank these guys enough.”

Polesitter Gerard McIntyre, Jr. chased Marks the first seven laps before fourth-starting Stevie Smith grabbed second on lap eight.

“I thought Stevie was going to give me a good run there, but I knew the bottom was still too slimy, and I learned my lesson there in the dash, when I just spun my tires there.”

Marks and Smith pulled away from the field until McIntyre and third-starting Logan Schuchart got together while racing for third on lap 15, resulting in a Schuchart flip on turn two.

That put Montieth on the rear bumper of Smith for the restart.  Marks opted for the outside for the double-file restart, and Montieth drove around Smith in the first two turns of the restart.  Fifth-starting Greg Hodnett caught Smith for third a lap later, and Marks, Montieth, and Hodnett ran first through third the rest of the way.

Smith and seventh-starting Fred Rahmer completed the top five, with Alan Krimes, Robbie Kendall, Steve Owings, Cory Haas, and Kyle Moody rounding out the top ten.

It didn’t take Marks long to start looking toward Wednesday night’s Lincoln showdown with the famous World of Outlaws.

“I know the track will be different, and I can’t go with the same set-up as tonight, but we’ll adapt accordingly and, hopefully, give them a run for their money.”

The other red flag of the event came on the opening lap, when defending champ Danny Dietrich rolled onto his side in turn two.  Dietrich was uninjured, made repairs and returned, but dropped out several laps later with front brake problems.

“410” Sprint heats were won by Kendall, Schuchart, and Marks, with Lance Dewease setting a new 12-lap track record of 2:48.149 in the B-Main.

McIntyre won the Dash in a record-setting 6-lap time of 1 minute, 24.420-seconds. Fast time in time trials over the 26-car field was set by Montieth, with a one-lap time of 13.408-seconds (100.686 MPH).

York’s Chase Dietz drove around both Mike Duncan, Jr. and Jeff Rohrbaugh to grab the lead as the three were completing lap seven to score his first career win in the 20-lap “358” sprint car feature. 

Dietz, who will turn 16 next Friday (5/17), started fourth and steered clear of a slowing outside front row starter Chandler Leiby on the first lap to maintain fourth.  He caught third-starting Mark Stickler on lap two and ran third until blowing around both Duncan and Rohrbaugh at the same time.

Rohrbaugh passed Duncan for second on lap nine, and Austin Hogue came from tenth starting spot to finish third.  Ninth-starting Tim Wagaman and 11^th-starting Niki Young completed the top five.  Sixth through tenth were Duncan, Tyler Ross, Mike Bittinger, Strickler, and 17^th-starting Matt Findley.

Heats for the 28 “358” sprinters were won by Young, Strickler, and Dietz, with Scott Fisher winning the consolation.

Gettysburg’s Brian Walls picked up his second win in-a-row and third of the year in the 20 lap Thundercar feature.

Outside frontrow starter Brian Diehl grabbed the lead at the outset and held off polesitter Wayne Dutterer and sixth-starting Jamie Zentmyer.

Meanwhile Walls, was patiently working his way front from the back of the field and got by Zentmyer for second place at the halfway mark.

One lap later Walls went to the outside of race-long leader Diehl and made his winning pass. Walls led the rest of the way, and survived a one-lap dash to the checkered for his 13^th career win, tying him with Ron Shultz for 14^th on the all time Thundercar win list.

(Click on link above for full point standings run-down)

as of 5/4/2013   Last Week Driver Car No. Points Points Behind Wins Top-5 Top-10 1. (1) Brian Walls 2W 1380 0 2 4 4 2. (2) Duane Watson 3W 1310 -70 1 3 4 3. (6) Danny Beard 60 1295 -85   2 4 4. (3) Jimmy Combs 54J 1295 -85   2 4 5. (7) Jason Townsend 72 1280 -100 1 2 3 6. (5) Mikey Guise 83 1280 -100   1 4 7. (4) Todd Miller 3 1270 -110   2 3 8. (8) Wayne Dutterer 39 1215 -165   1 2 9. (9) Roy Warehime 54W 955 -425   1 3 10. (10) Brian Diehl 9 945 -435   1 3 11. (12) Jamie Zentmyer 81J 735 -645   1 2 12. (11) Dave Good, Sr. 101 595 -785     1 13. (13) Bobby Beard 11 315 -1065     1 14. (14) Tom Walls, III 44 310 -1070     1 15. (15) John Stoll, Jr. 11S 305 -1075     1 16. - Greg Emlet, Sr. 1E 290 -1090       17. (16) Josh Angle 33 285 -1095       18. (17) Tom Walls, II 11 280 -1100       19. (18) Donnie Murphy 23B 100 -1280

Young fifth different winner in five events in “358” sprint cars; Blaine Leppo scores first Lincoln win in Legends

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA , 4/27/13 – Brian Montieth ended a personal dry spell by coming from ninth starting spot to claim his second win of the year in the 25-lap “410” sprint car feature at Lincoln Speedway Saturday night.

And he did it in his normal thrilling style, advancing to the top five by the end of the second lap and passing Robbie Kendall to move into fourth on lap four. That’s when he joined a wild four-car battle for the lead.

Polesitter and race-long leader Jacob Allen got swallowed up John Rudisill, Billy Dietrich, and Montieth as they all passed for position on lap six.

Rudisill came out with the lead and ran the cushion, leading the next 11 laps. Montieth moved past Dietrich into the runner-up spot on lap 10, and tried numerous times to drive under Rudisill in turn three and four, to no avail.

Montieth finally drove low in turns one and two and pulled even driving up the backstretch of lap 17 to finally grab the lead.

Seventh-starting Adam Wilt caught Rudisill for second as the leaders raced through lapped traffic on the next lap, and Rudisill brought out the caution when he spun on turn one of lap 20.

Once in front, Montieth left no doubt, crossing 1.56-seconds ahead of Wilt, with 11^th-starting Fred Rahmer, Cory Haas, and tenth-starting Alan Krimes completing the top five. Sixth through tenth were Billy Dietrich, Kendall, Jim Siegel, Brent Marks, and Gerard McIntyre, Jr.

“The track was a little faster than I thought it was going to be,” said Montieth in victory lane, “We’ve been running like crap for the last couple of weeks. We’ve been struggling, but we’re getting better I guess. We’re trying to figure out some stuff before the Outlaws get here. I don’t know if we’re straightened out, but tonight we were a little better than what we’ve been, so I guess it’s baby steps at a time...I don’t know.”

Montieth’s 36^th-career Lincoln win moved him into a tie for seventh with Lance Dewease on the all-time Lincoln win list.

Heats for the 26 “410” Sprinters were won by Krimes, Marks, and Haas.

Niki Young became the fifth different winner in as many races in the 20-lap “358” sprint car feature.

Like Montieth in the “410” sprints, he also won convincingly, advancing from tenth starting spot to third by the end of the third lap and catching polesitter Scott Fisher on lap four. He chased down outside front row starter and race-long leader D.J. Montgomery, grabbing the lead as the two drove under the crossed flags.

Montgomery hit the inside guardrail and spun as the cars entered turn one of lap 11, putting Fisher back on Young’s back bumper for the restart. But three laps later, 11^th-starting Ryan Wilson drove around Fisher for second.

Young led the last ten laps to cross 2.06 seconds ahead of Wilson, with Fisher settling for third, 12^th-starting Austin Hogue advancing to fourth, and Ted Thomas, Jr. fifth. Sixth through tenth were Dale Hammaker, Tyler Ross, 15^th-starting Jeff Rohrbaugh, Tim Wagaman, and 17^th-starting Mike Bittinger.

Heats for the 25 “358” Sprints were won by Hogue, Brie Hershey, and Thomas.

Spring Grove’s Blaine Leppo claimed his first career Lincoln win in the 15-lap Central PA Legends feature.

Leppo started on the pole and led every lap, despite heavy race-long pressure from Scott Haudeshell and Bob Stough. Haudeshell and Stough swapped second several times, and both drivers challenged Leppo at one point in the race.

In the end, Stough crossed second, .53 seconds behind the winner, followed by Haudeshell, Rick Miller, and Bill Diehl.

Austin Hogue victor in “358” sprints; Jason Townsend wins first of career in Thundercars

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA , 4/20/13 –“I like running the schedule that we run…traveling and getting to do what my grandpa did, seeing different tracks. But by far, I love Lincoln Speedway the best. I consider it my home track, and it’s a real fun track to race here. There’s no better fans in the country. To come back home and race in front of these people right here. It’s exciting, they hype up sprint car racing, and definitely make it fun for this area.”

So said 2012 national 410 sprint car rookie of-the-year Logan Schuchart after claiming his first career Lincoln 410 sprint win in Saturday night’s 25-lap feature event.

Schuchart, grandson of the legendary Bobby Allen, was slated for a sixth-starting spot in the Your Auto Source/Rick Fogle Custom Pole Buildings/Brenneman Painting/CnB Mushroom Farms #1s, but started on the outside of row two when Todd Rittenhouse, Jr. scratched from the feature and gave up his second starting spot.

Cory Haas assumed second for the start, and both he and Schuchart got around polesitter Hunter Mackison in the first two turns. Schuchart chased Haas the first 16 laps before diving under the lapped car of Tim Glatfelter and Haas entering turn three of lap 17. From there, Schuchart pulled away for the win, with Haas settling for second and fifth-starting Adam Wilt third. Ninth-starting Fred Rahmer and eighth-starting Brian Montieth completed the top five.

Schuchart’s official time in the non-stop feature was 6 minutes, 37.236 seconds. In fact, the entire 410 sprint portion of the show was run caution-free.

Sixth through tenth were 14^th-starting Danny Dietrich, 12^th-starting Alan Krimes, 13^th-starting Jim Siegel; Brent Marks, and J.J. Grasso.

Heats for the 26 “410” Sprinters were won by invader Brian Paulus, Fred Rahmer, and Brent Marks, with Ryan Smith winning the consolation.

Manchester’s Austin Hogue became the fourth winner in as many races in the non-stop 20-lap “358” sprint car feature.

Third-starting Tyler Ross drove under both polesitter Brad McClelland and outside front-row starter Hogue for the lead at the start, but a red flag for a flipping Eric Tomecek on turn four resulted in a complete restart. The Livingston Lawn Care/BAPS Auto Paints and Supply #52 drove around McClelland for the lead on the restart, and Hogue led every lap for his third win of 2013 (previous wins at Trail-Way and Williams Grove).

Niki Young caught McClelland for second on lap 13 and finished runner-up, with Ross crossing third, Mark Smith catching McClelland for fourth on the final lap. Sixth through tenth behind McClelland were Tim Wagaman, Dale Hammaker, Brie Hershey, Jeff Rohrbaugh, and Mark Strickler.

Due to the complete restart at the beginning, Hogue’s 5-minute, 35-second win was an officially-timed 20-lap event.

Heats for the 29 “358” Sprints were won by Ross, Wagaman, and Young.

After years of trying, York’s Jason Townsend found his way to victory lane in winning the 20-lap Thundercar feature.

Townsend grabbed the lead from his outside frontrow starting position over polesitter Wayne Dutterer at the drop of the green and pulled out to a comfortable lead of the first half of the feature.

Meanwhile a battle raged for second through fifth as Dutterer, Jimmy Combs, Duane Watson and Brian Walls were passing each other for position lap-after-lap. With five laps to go Walls and Watson had moved solidly into second and third and began to chase down the leader.

On the final lap, Walls pulled alongside Townsend coming off the final corner to the checkered but was able to hold him off for his career first thundercar victory as they leaned on each other to the checkered.

Watson settled for third, Dutterer fourth and Combs fifth.

Abbottstown, PA - 4/15/2013 - The 2013 tire rule for the 358 Sprints goes into effect this Saturday, April 20.