Week ahead features big-money sprint programs from Wednesday through Sunday
This will be a very busy week for the area’s 410 sprint racers.
If the weather permits, there will be a chance for a driver to compete in races every night from Wednesday through Sunday.
Bridgeport was scheduled to run a super-sprint show Tuesday, but a look at the long-range forecast led the track officials at the New Jersey facility to move their race day to Wednesday, so things will kick off then. That race will offer $7,500 to the winner.
Then the All Star circuit moves into the area.
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Thursday evening will mark the first time the 410 super sprints visit the new oval at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds in Columbia County. The track in Bloomsburg opened last season, but the 410 sprints didn’t make last year’s schedule. This time around, the All Stars will bring the 410s to Bloomsburg for the first time. That one offers $6,000 to win. The Speedsters will also compete at Bloomsburg.
Friday, the All Stars move on to Williams Grove Speedway in Cumberland County for the “Tommy Classic.” The event honors the legendary Tommy Hinnershitz, who was the first feature winner at the Grove back in 1939. Nineteen of Tommy’s 103 sprint wins came at the Grove. The Tommy Classic offers $6,000 to win. The Eastern Museum of Motor Racing will be on hand with a display of vintage race cars.
Saturday, the All Stars move on to Port Royal Speedway in Juniata County for the Keith Kauffman Classic. The event honors one of the living legends of the sport. Kauffman is the all-time win leader at the Port and still ranks third all-time in the area for sprint wins. The Keith Kauffman Classic pays the winner $10,000. The United States Auto Club East Coast wingless 360 sprints will also be on hand.
On the same night, Lincoln Speedway also offers up sprint racing on Gene Latta Ford Wheel of Fortune Night. While the event is a regular one for the sprint cars, Gene Latta Ford will give the winner at the Adams County facility a chance at increasing his winnings by spinning the wheel of fortune. At the least, the winner’s share will increase from $4,000 to $5,000. It could go much higher. The limited late models and legends racers also compete at Lincoln.
Sunday, the All Stars stop off at the Bedford Fairgrounds in Bedford County on their way back out west for the Johnny Grum Classic, which offers $6,000 to win. Grum, who hailed from that area, was a top contender in the area in the 1960s and 1970s and won the Williams Grove National Open in 1970.
That same night Selinsgrove Speedway offers up the Ray Tilley Classic for the sprint cars. Tilley was one of the area’s biggest winners in sprint cars and the bugs that preceded them. He still leads Selinsgrove’s all-time win list. In honor of his famed car number, the race at at the Snyder County track will add $88 to the $5,000 winner's share. Also at Selinsgrove that night are the super late models and roadrunners.
While the sprint cars will take center stage this weekend, there is other racing as well. BAPS Motor Speedway in northern York County hosts the super sportsmen and the wingless super sportsmen on Saturday evening, along with the extreme stocks and a demo derby.
The 305 sprints join the regular classes at Path Valley Speedway in Franklin County on Saturday, and Hagerstown Speedway in northern Maryland hosts the 305 sprints, the late-model sportsmen, pure stocks and hobby stocks on Saturday.
Rare events occur Saturday: Nonstop sprint features on the central Pennsylvania dirt-track circuit are not rare, but they are not something that happens every week.
Track-record nonstop sprint features, however, have become very rare since the inception of weight rules a number of years ago.
So, to have two new feature-distance track records set on one night is something that is indeed very rare.
It happened Saturday evening at both Port Royal and Lincoln speedways.
More:It was a record-setting Saturday night on central Pennsylvania dirt tracks
At Port Royal, Dillsburg’s Anthony Macri raced to his second win of the weekend and fourth overall this season. He did it in record fashion, taking just 7 minutes and 17 seconds to complete the 25-lap distance. Macri’s win was his second this season at the Port. He also won at Williams Grove on Friday and has an early-season win at Lincoln.
While Macri was setting the world on fire at Port Royal Danny Dietrich was doing the same at Lincoln. Dietrich raced to his third Lincoln win in the last four races and he too did it in record fashion.
Dietrich was timed at 7 minutes, 44.249 seconds for the 30-lap distance at Lincoln. Not only did Dietrich win the race and set a record, but the three drivers next in line behind him also ran the race faster than the old record. That occurred even though Dietrich topped second-place Devon Borden by 5 1/2 second at the end.
More impressive than the wins and records for both drivers is that they didn’t score their wins from the front row. In fact, both drivers started eighth in their respective features. Dietrich left only 10 cars on the lead lap at the end of the event, which saw 22 of the 24 starters still running at the end.
CHAMPION RACING OIL
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA
SPRINT CAR SERIES
Presented by Hoseheads.com
(Wins listed in parenthesis)
1. Anthony Macri (4) 350
2. Danny Dietrich (3) 344
3. Freddie Rahmer (1) 211
4. Justin Peck (1) 204
5. Brent Marks (1) 173
6. Logan Wagner (2) 120
6. Lucas Wolfe 120
8. Buddy Kofoid (1) 119
9. Dylan Norris (1) 115
10. Dylan Cisney 114
Reach Bryan Householder at sports@yorkdispatch.com or on Twitter at @ydsports.