MARION CENTER SPEEDWAY August 16, 2014

Marion Center Speedway made up its rained out features from August 2, the Willow Farm Campground Strictly Stock and the Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic Crate Late Model divisions, Saturday night plus held the Championship Kids’ Bike Races sponsored by Mike’s Towing of Clymer.  Earlier in the afternoon “Froggy” from Froggy 95 FM Radio came to the Marion Center Speedway Kids Club Party held at the track and Ethan Fulmer won a bicycle that was given away at the party.  Froggy 95 gave away tickets to Del Grosso Amusement Park and the Pittsburgh Zoo.  And Bertolini Racing gave the Kids a ‘Back-to-School’ packet of neat things they can use for coloring, drawing and for lots of fun and maybe even homework.  Thanks to Ashley and all the helpers who organized and ran the Kids Club this season and the party that was a huge success.  During the Kid’s Bike Races a bicycle was given away by a drawing of tickets given to the Kids, and Joshua Rushton was the winner of the second bike from Marion Center Speedway and Mike’s Towing.  As the drivers gear up for next weeks Butler Auto Supplies Season Championships the race for the Points Championships are far from over.  None of the divisions have a clear winner of the point’s race and with next Saturday being a triple point night for the final point’s race of the season anything can happen. Check out marioncenterspeedway.net for the point standings.  Here’s what happened on the track Saturday night:

Once again a new name was added to the list of winners of the Lias Tire Super Late Model division keeping Doug Glessner as the only repeat victor this season.  The most recent winner is Duane Stiner from Houtzdale.  Stiner started the twenty five lap feature in the outside second row position following outside pole Dane Laraway of Harrison City.  Laraway was on a roll leading the whole caution free first twenty laps and then starting losing the lead as power went out of the car and he lost positions on the track.  Duane Stiner had been following Laraway the whole time and took over the lead left by Laraway.  Stiner then had Billy Eash from Johnstown on his tail looking to be a repeat winner and possibly take over the points lead, but Stiner foiled that plan and put his own name on the list of visitors to the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle.  Billy Eash finished in second place with John Garvin of Sarver next in third.  Fourth place went to Rod Phillips of Punxsutawney; Ken Schaltenbrand of Sarver was fifth then came Jerry Redden who had started on the pole and he was followed by Shawn Claar, Wally Fox, Dave Blazavich and Herman Bertolini for the top ten.  Rounding out the field were Denny Fenton, John Oaks, point’s leader Doug Glessner, Jim Detman, Bill Burns and John Myers.  Laraway did not finish the feature and Joe Zulisky didn’t take the initial green flag but got some laps in, and Mike Blose had problems earlier in the heats and didn’t run the feature.  The Lias Tire Super Late Model heat races were won by Billy Eash and Rod Phillips.

In the Force Inc. Steel Block Limited Late Model feature it appeared as though Gale Huey from Glen Campbell was going to pick up his first victory of the season-which his car did, but Huey wasn’t driving it.  In the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle, Rod Phillips climbed out of the car.  Phillips started back in the third row the fifth out of eighteen cars in the feature, and worked his way to the front where Cheyenne Reed of Punxsutawney was leading the race.  Reed started on the outside pole and led the first fourteen laps before Phillips got around him to take the lead away.  Then Joe Petyak, who is second to Reed in the point’s standings, made a pass on Reed and was challenging Phillips in the Huey car for the lead.  At the checkers it was Phillips with the win, Petyak from Gallitzin second and Reed in third.  Fourth place went to Jeff Weakland of Hastings, and Tom Shaffer from Punxsutawney was fifth.  Rounding out the top ten Force Inc. Steel Block Limited Late Models were Frank Brocious, Scott Stein, Sam Gindlesperger, Curtis Teats and Dylan Fenton.  Cheyenne Reed and Tom Shaffer won the preliminary heats for the Force Inc. Steel Block Limited Late Models.

The Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic Crate Late Models ran in two features Saturday night at Marion Center Speedway, one to make up the August 2 rain out and the regular night’s race.  In the make-up feature that was held first, Mike Laughard from Twin Rocks “rocked the track” by leading nearly all twenty laps for the victory trip to the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle.  Joe Martin from Ringgold tried to keep with Laughard but only did so for the first half of the race when Corey Neal from Trade City took over second place and then took the lead away from Laughard.  Neal enjoyed the front position for a few laps before Laughard was able to take back the top spot.  Laughard then held the lead for the remaining laps for the win.  Corey Neal finished second and Shane Weaver from Marion Center took third place pushing Joe Martin back into fourth.  Rich Logan from Latrobe was fifth and the top ten finished with Gary Stahl driving for Patrick Waugh in sixth then Jeremy Buck, Cody Hummel, Scott Ickes and then Jason Mullen.  The heats for this race were ran back on August 2.

In the second round for the Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic Crate Late Models, it was a battle from the “L’s.”  Rich Logan from Latrobe who drives the 33 L and Mike Laughard the driver of the 38 L started side by side in the front row and battled around the track with Logan in the lead and Laughard in a close second.  All twenty laps went that way until the checkered flag was displayed for Logan breaking his seven year winless streak (in the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle, Logan said his last win was in 2007).  Laughard picked up second place and Shane Weaver of Marion Center was third.  Joe Martin took fourth place and Corey Neal was fifth.  The top ten finished in the order of Gary Stahl-sixth and then Jason Mullen, Cody Hummel, Jeremy Buck and Scott Ickes.  The Hoosier Tire mid-Atlantic Crate Late Model heat race went to Shane Weaver.

After a late start on his season, Jeff Sweeney from Marion Center got his first trip to the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle this year for the W. G. Satterlee & Sons Street Stocks.  Only racing for about a month, Sweeney got the lead in a late race pass on Dan Smeal that took him all the way to the checkered flag.  Smeal from Houtzdale had started on the outside pole with Sweeney right behind him.  The pair ran first and second with Smeal leading the way for much of the race until Sweeney made his move in the final five laps.  Sweeney passed Smeal to take over the lead and then Luke Barnett of Mahaffey took second place away from Smeal for the final two laps and the finish.  At the Checkers it was Jeff Sweeney the winner, Luke Barnett second, and Dan Smeal third.  Fourth place went to Brian Rhed of Brockway and Bob Roseman who started on the pole was fifth.  Sixth through tenth places went to Matt Krause, John Myers, Gary Furman, Jr., Curtis Teats and Andy Burns respectively.  The W. G. Satterlee & Sons Street Stock heat races were won by Jeff Sweeney and Dan Smeal.

The Willow Farm Campground Strictly Stock division also ran two features Saturday night.  In the first round Nick Fulmer of Marion Center dominated the race for the trip to the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle.  Fulmer, the point’s leader for the division, started on the pole and took every lap to give him his ninth victory of the season.  Chris Hickok from Commodore followed Fulmer around the track trying to catch the leader but was left in second place.  Third place went to Jim Hamilton from Coalport and Rich Waltman, Jr. of Coolspring was fourth. Fifth place was taken by Nick Erskine of Mahaffey and the top ten consisted of Ed Vogel, Kenny Haight, Ryan Caldwell, John Phillips and Dean Haight.  The heats had been run back on August 2. 

The rest of the night didn’t go as well for Nick Fulmer as he had problems in the heat races with his car being struck in the left front wheel area sending him into the pits by tow truck.  He made repairs and was able to come out for the feature, but the point’s leader for the Willow Farm Campground Strictly Stock division was not competitive in the race.  But Jim Hamilton certainly was. Hamilton started in the third row and worked his way to the front to challenge the leader, Nick Erskine of Mahaffey.  Erskine had started on the pole but Justin Queen from Irvona took control of the first lap.  Erskine recovered the lead and looked as though he could take it to the checkers but Jim Hamilton was planning a different finish.  On the final lap, Hamilton made a pass on Erskine to take the lead and victory away from Erskine and make his first trip this season to the Integra Racing Shocks Winner’s Circle.  Nick Erskine was second and Justin Queen took third.  Rich Waltman, Jr. of Coolspring finished fourth and Chris Hickok from Commodore was fifth.  Ben Krause, Ed Vogel, Tyler Wagner, Ryan Caldwell and Kenny Haight made up the top ten.  The Willow Farm Campground Strictly Stock heat races were by Jim Hamilton, Nick Erskine and Jon Lee.

Marion Center Speedway is currently making plans to have a “Front Wheel Drive, V-6, pure stock car” division next season.  The idea is to provide a division for low budget racing, cars without modifications from the factory, no turbos, nothing but nearly street legal cars without the glass attached and roll bars added.  MCS staff is currently working on rules/spec sheets for the division so keep an eye on the website for more information to come.

Marion Center Speedway Kid’s Club Members and others can keep up to date with what’s happening and the point’s standings via the internet and our website: marioncenterspeedway.net, or Facebook and our blog.  You can also get race day information on Saturdays by calling the Speedway Race Day Hotline at 724-397-2108, or now go online to RainedOut.com and follow the easy instructions to get race day text or e- mail messages sent to you directly.  Also stayed tuned to Froggy 95 for Speedway information and a chance to win free admission tickets.  That’s 95.5 on the FM dial for Froggy 95.  

Special thanks to the drivers, fans and staff for their continued support of the Potts family operating Marion Center Speedway for the past 48 years.  Thanks to our sponsors which include:

AmsOil, Butler Auto Supplies ofIndiana, Colonial Motor Mart, Delaney Hyundai, Force Inc., Huey Brothers Inc., Froggy 95, Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic, Integra Racing Shocks, Lias Tire and Auto Service, Mike’s Towing from Clymer, Tri-Star Motors of Indiana, W. G. Satterlee & Sons and Willow Farm Campground. 

  See you next Saturday for the Butler Auto Supplies Season Championship Races at Marion Center Speedway which will be the final night for points for all divisions and those points will be tripled for the night.  Marion Center Speedway, “The Little Track with the Big Attitude,” “The Thrill on the Hill.”