RGeeProductions
09-02-2012, 11:54 PM
Street Stock 100 to Jason Frey
Earl Paules steered clear of a major wreck and then drove away to his third win Modified of the season in Saturday's 35-lap feature at Mahoning Valley Speedway.
Paules, of Palmerton, used the win to slightly extend his division points lead over top contender Don Wagner, who finished in third spot.
"Don (Wagner) came up to me earlier tonight and told me he's reeling me in," Paules said good-naturedly in Victory Lane. "I told him it's time to get a bigger reel, because the fish got bigger."
Added Wagner, "Earl is the man. We're having a great point’s race and it will come down to the last night."
Paules started from eighth spot and moved to third while wild things unfolded at the front. First, pole starter Chip Santee, driving a Zacharias-owned No. 56 car, spun from the lead on the second lap. Then, on lap five, Terry Markovic and Nevin George tangled while racing side-by-side for first, sparking a huge pileup.
As Markovic spun inside turn four, George slide across the front stretch. Tommy Flanagan then launched over George's car and hit the turn one wall, while Kevin Rex Jr., Roger Coss, Eric Kocher and D.J. Wagner piled in behind George. The crash eliminated George, Flanagan and D.J. Wagner.
After a lengthy clean-up, the race restarted with Paules out front. And while eventual race runner-up Tyler Haydt kept Paules honest over two late-race restarts, Paules was not to be denied, winning by nearly a full second margin. John Markovic and James Pritchard Jr. completed the top five.
Between the Modifieds and Late Models, this was the 40th start of the season for Paules. No other driver in track history has run more races in a single season.
The Street Stocks ran their annual Labor Day 100 lapper, this one in memory of Mike Krempasky, a former Dorney Park Speedway Late Model driver and the 2011 championship Mahoning Street Stock car owner.
At the end of grind, Jason Frey of Lehighton, won the $1,000 first-place prize plus $1,255 in posted lap money.
Frey timed ninth fastest, drew the pole in a re-draw for the top 12 positions, then took off at the drop of the green. Kyle Strohl, Steve Hoffman, Joe Steigerwalt, Joe Mooney, Josh Mooney and T.J. Gursky all spent time in the runner-up spot but none could get past Frey.
Frey's closest call came on lap 71 when he got knocked sideways off turn four. But he righted his car and held onto the lead. In the end he claimed his second victory of 2012 and first in a 100-lapper.
"This is excellent," Frey said. "It was a hard race. I had the 26 (Steigerwalt), 19 (Gursky), 62 (Josh Mooney), and the 36 (Joe Mooney), they all ran me great and ran me clean. There was a little bumping and banging but that's the rule for this class."
Gursky, who drives the Chevrolet Monte Carlo that Krempasky owned, finished second, his fourth top two in a row and with that has assumed the point’s lead. Josh Mooney, Joe Mooney and Steigerwalt completed the top five.
After a year of racing Modifieds in 2011, Frankie Althouse of Lehighton returned to the Late Model ranks earlier this season. On Saturday he drove to his first 2012 victory in an expert performance.
Althouse started second but faded to third early as George Ramos III, leading a feature for the first time this year, and Paul Koehler, Jr., battled for first.
With 13 laps in Ken Hein moved inside the two leaders and, racing three-wide, took command. But moments later Hein and Mike Sweeney tangled, with Hein spinning and Sweeney being sent to the rear.
The turn of events put Ramos back up front, with Koehler to his outside. On lap 16 Althouse moved inside the dueling Ramos and Koehler for the lead and win. Austin Kochenash came from 10th starting spot to finish second, with point leader Paules third.
"When we raced Modifieds last year we couldn't afford to put on four new tires every week," said Althouse, who has not had a finish worse than sixth. "We've had the same four tires on this Late Model for four weeks and tonight we won."
He dedicated the win to his son Wyatt, who turned 5 on Friday and spent a night in the hospital recovering from an infection.
Two-time Dirt Modified champion Randy Thomas of Palmerton took his fourth win of 2012 in that division's 20-lap feature. While Thomas worked his way up from seventh starting spot, his brother Dave, Jr., moved from sixth to first with a mid-race pass of early leader Mark Levy.
Everything changed on a lap 14 restart when Dave, Jr., was penalized by track officials for passing under the red, white and blue stripes on the far inside of the track.
That put Randy Thomas ahead for good. Dave Thomas came back for second with a last-lap pass of Kris Graver, while Friday night Big Diamond Speedway dirt-track winner Ricky Yetter finished fourth.
Jake Kibler of Lansford, took the lead at the start of the 20-lap 4-Cylinder feature. Class point’s leader Jeremy Miller ran side-by-side with him for the first five laps before Kibler sped away to his second win of the season in a non-stop event completed in just less than 4 minutes. Dan Freundt finished fifth as the first front-wheel-drive car across the line.
A pair of features for the visiting 4C Super Modifieds meant double wins for Wes Gilbert of Preston, MD. In both races he passed his car builder, Mike Renn, to gain the triumph.
Modified feature finish, 35 laps: 1. Earl Paules Jr., 2. Tyler Haydt, 3. Don Wagner, 4. John Markovic, 5. James Pritchard Jr., 6. Matt Wentz, 7. Kevin Rex Jr., 8. John Bennett, 9. Shawn Sitarchyk, 10. Lou Strohl, 11. Terry Markovic, 12. Eric Kocher, 13. Matt Higgins, 14. Chip Santee, 15. Joe Mooney, 16. Nevin George, 17. Tommy Flanagan, 18. Roger Coss, 19. D.J. Wagner, 20. Scott Meckes.
Late Model feature finish, 25 laps: 1. Frankie Althouse, 2. Austin Kochenash, 3. Earl Paules Jr., 4. Paul Koehler Jr., 5. Rick Wallace, 6. Ken Hein, 7. Mike Sweeney, 8. Dave Wallace, 9. Mark Simon, 10. Paul Effrig III, 11. Glenn Slocum, 12. Casey Creyer. DQ: George Ramos III.
Street Stock feature finish, 100 laps: 1. Jason Frey, 2. T.J. Gursky, 3. Josh Mooney, 4. Joe Mooney, 5. Joe Steigerwalt, 6. Steve Hoffman, 7. Randy Ahner Jr., 8. Jason Kuhn, 9. Gene Bowers, 10. Todd Ahner, 11. Jason Beers, 12. Scott Meckes, 13. B.J. Wambold, 14. Kyle Strohl, 15. Eric Danyluk, 16. Stacey Brown, 17. Mike Garris, 18. Dale Santee, 19. Jillian Long, 20. Zach Graver, 21. Joe Roberts, 22. Jon Tracey. Did Not Qualify: Matthew May, Joe Stamm, Guy Ackerman, Tiffany Wambold, Cody Roth.
Dirt Modified feature finish, 20 laps: 1. Randy Thomas, 2. Dave Thomas Jr., 3. Kris Graver, 4. Ricky Yetter, 5. Mike Stofflet, 6. Bill Sitler, 7. Scott Hulmes, 8. Joe Stangle II, 9. Mark Levy. Did Not Start: Frank Parastino.
4-Cylinder Stock feature finish, 20 laps: 1. Jake Kibler, 2. Jeremy Miller, 3. Tyler Stangle, 4. Doug Knauss, 5. Dan Freundt, 6. Kyle Strohl, 7. Justin Martinson, 8. Stone Wentz, 9. Bob Kibler Jr., 10. Nick Baer, 11. Robert Miller.
4C Super Modified first feature, 20 laps: 1. Wes Gilbert, 2. Bob Renn, 3. Mike Renn, 4. Mike Crispo, 5. Steve Renn, 6. Art Merlino, 7. Ron Merlino, Sr., 8. Harry Weed, 9. Ron Merlino Jr.
4C Super Modified second feature, 20 laps: 1. Gilbert, 2. M. Renn, 3. S. Renn, 4. R. Merlino, Jr., 5. B. Renn, 6. Weed, 7. Crispo. Did Not Start: Art Merlino, R. Merlino, Sr.
Dino Oberto
Earl Paules steered clear of a major wreck and then drove away to his third win Modified of the season in Saturday's 35-lap feature at Mahoning Valley Speedway.
Paules, of Palmerton, used the win to slightly extend his division points lead over top contender Don Wagner, who finished in third spot.
"Don (Wagner) came up to me earlier tonight and told me he's reeling me in," Paules said good-naturedly in Victory Lane. "I told him it's time to get a bigger reel, because the fish got bigger."
Added Wagner, "Earl is the man. We're having a great point’s race and it will come down to the last night."
Paules started from eighth spot and moved to third while wild things unfolded at the front. First, pole starter Chip Santee, driving a Zacharias-owned No. 56 car, spun from the lead on the second lap. Then, on lap five, Terry Markovic and Nevin George tangled while racing side-by-side for first, sparking a huge pileup.
As Markovic spun inside turn four, George slide across the front stretch. Tommy Flanagan then launched over George's car and hit the turn one wall, while Kevin Rex Jr., Roger Coss, Eric Kocher and D.J. Wagner piled in behind George. The crash eliminated George, Flanagan and D.J. Wagner.
After a lengthy clean-up, the race restarted with Paules out front. And while eventual race runner-up Tyler Haydt kept Paules honest over two late-race restarts, Paules was not to be denied, winning by nearly a full second margin. John Markovic and James Pritchard Jr. completed the top five.
Between the Modifieds and Late Models, this was the 40th start of the season for Paules. No other driver in track history has run more races in a single season.
The Street Stocks ran their annual Labor Day 100 lapper, this one in memory of Mike Krempasky, a former Dorney Park Speedway Late Model driver and the 2011 championship Mahoning Street Stock car owner.
At the end of grind, Jason Frey of Lehighton, won the $1,000 first-place prize plus $1,255 in posted lap money.
Frey timed ninth fastest, drew the pole in a re-draw for the top 12 positions, then took off at the drop of the green. Kyle Strohl, Steve Hoffman, Joe Steigerwalt, Joe Mooney, Josh Mooney and T.J. Gursky all spent time in the runner-up spot but none could get past Frey.
Frey's closest call came on lap 71 when he got knocked sideways off turn four. But he righted his car and held onto the lead. In the end he claimed his second victory of 2012 and first in a 100-lapper.
"This is excellent," Frey said. "It was a hard race. I had the 26 (Steigerwalt), 19 (Gursky), 62 (Josh Mooney), and the 36 (Joe Mooney), they all ran me great and ran me clean. There was a little bumping and banging but that's the rule for this class."
Gursky, who drives the Chevrolet Monte Carlo that Krempasky owned, finished second, his fourth top two in a row and with that has assumed the point’s lead. Josh Mooney, Joe Mooney and Steigerwalt completed the top five.
After a year of racing Modifieds in 2011, Frankie Althouse of Lehighton returned to the Late Model ranks earlier this season. On Saturday he drove to his first 2012 victory in an expert performance.
Althouse started second but faded to third early as George Ramos III, leading a feature for the first time this year, and Paul Koehler, Jr., battled for first.
With 13 laps in Ken Hein moved inside the two leaders and, racing three-wide, took command. But moments later Hein and Mike Sweeney tangled, with Hein spinning and Sweeney being sent to the rear.
The turn of events put Ramos back up front, with Koehler to his outside. On lap 16 Althouse moved inside the dueling Ramos and Koehler for the lead and win. Austin Kochenash came from 10th starting spot to finish second, with point leader Paules third.
"When we raced Modifieds last year we couldn't afford to put on four new tires every week," said Althouse, who has not had a finish worse than sixth. "We've had the same four tires on this Late Model for four weeks and tonight we won."
He dedicated the win to his son Wyatt, who turned 5 on Friday and spent a night in the hospital recovering from an infection.
Two-time Dirt Modified champion Randy Thomas of Palmerton took his fourth win of 2012 in that division's 20-lap feature. While Thomas worked his way up from seventh starting spot, his brother Dave, Jr., moved from sixth to first with a mid-race pass of early leader Mark Levy.
Everything changed on a lap 14 restart when Dave, Jr., was penalized by track officials for passing under the red, white and blue stripes on the far inside of the track.
That put Randy Thomas ahead for good. Dave Thomas came back for second with a last-lap pass of Kris Graver, while Friday night Big Diamond Speedway dirt-track winner Ricky Yetter finished fourth.
Jake Kibler of Lansford, took the lead at the start of the 20-lap 4-Cylinder feature. Class point’s leader Jeremy Miller ran side-by-side with him for the first five laps before Kibler sped away to his second win of the season in a non-stop event completed in just less than 4 minutes. Dan Freundt finished fifth as the first front-wheel-drive car across the line.
A pair of features for the visiting 4C Super Modifieds meant double wins for Wes Gilbert of Preston, MD. In both races he passed his car builder, Mike Renn, to gain the triumph.
Modified feature finish, 35 laps: 1. Earl Paules Jr., 2. Tyler Haydt, 3. Don Wagner, 4. John Markovic, 5. James Pritchard Jr., 6. Matt Wentz, 7. Kevin Rex Jr., 8. John Bennett, 9. Shawn Sitarchyk, 10. Lou Strohl, 11. Terry Markovic, 12. Eric Kocher, 13. Matt Higgins, 14. Chip Santee, 15. Joe Mooney, 16. Nevin George, 17. Tommy Flanagan, 18. Roger Coss, 19. D.J. Wagner, 20. Scott Meckes.
Late Model feature finish, 25 laps: 1. Frankie Althouse, 2. Austin Kochenash, 3. Earl Paules Jr., 4. Paul Koehler Jr., 5. Rick Wallace, 6. Ken Hein, 7. Mike Sweeney, 8. Dave Wallace, 9. Mark Simon, 10. Paul Effrig III, 11. Glenn Slocum, 12. Casey Creyer. DQ: George Ramos III.
Street Stock feature finish, 100 laps: 1. Jason Frey, 2. T.J. Gursky, 3. Josh Mooney, 4. Joe Mooney, 5. Joe Steigerwalt, 6. Steve Hoffman, 7. Randy Ahner Jr., 8. Jason Kuhn, 9. Gene Bowers, 10. Todd Ahner, 11. Jason Beers, 12. Scott Meckes, 13. B.J. Wambold, 14. Kyle Strohl, 15. Eric Danyluk, 16. Stacey Brown, 17. Mike Garris, 18. Dale Santee, 19. Jillian Long, 20. Zach Graver, 21. Joe Roberts, 22. Jon Tracey. Did Not Qualify: Matthew May, Joe Stamm, Guy Ackerman, Tiffany Wambold, Cody Roth.
Dirt Modified feature finish, 20 laps: 1. Randy Thomas, 2. Dave Thomas Jr., 3. Kris Graver, 4. Ricky Yetter, 5. Mike Stofflet, 6. Bill Sitler, 7. Scott Hulmes, 8. Joe Stangle II, 9. Mark Levy. Did Not Start: Frank Parastino.
4-Cylinder Stock feature finish, 20 laps: 1. Jake Kibler, 2. Jeremy Miller, 3. Tyler Stangle, 4. Doug Knauss, 5. Dan Freundt, 6. Kyle Strohl, 7. Justin Martinson, 8. Stone Wentz, 9. Bob Kibler Jr., 10. Nick Baer, 11. Robert Miller.
4C Super Modified first feature, 20 laps: 1. Wes Gilbert, 2. Bob Renn, 3. Mike Renn, 4. Mike Crispo, 5. Steve Renn, 6. Art Merlino, 7. Ron Merlino, Sr., 8. Harry Weed, 9. Ron Merlino Jr.
4C Super Modified second feature, 20 laps: 1. Gilbert, 2. M. Renn, 3. S. Renn, 4. R. Merlino, Jr., 5. B. Renn, 6. Weed, 7. Crispo. Did Not Start: Art Merlino, R. Merlino, Sr.
Dino Oberto