United States Auto Club's 'Eastern Storm' set to blow through region
The United States Auto Club’s wingless 410 sprint cars are heading to the region this week for “The Eastern Storm.”
Six consecutive days of wingless 410 sprint racing are planned. The standard USAC national purse offers $6,000 to the winner.
The series kicks off with Thunder on the Hill at Grandview Speedway in Berks County on Tuesday. The USAC series sprint cars will compete in the Jesse Hockett Classic. USAC competed at Grandview twice last year, with Brady Bacon and Justin Grant each collecting wins.
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Grandview’s modifieds will also be a part of the program.
Wednesday, the Eastern Storm moves off to Bridgeport, New Jersey, where the series will be joined by the 602 crate modifieds. Last year at Bridgeport, the USAC sprint feature was won by Robert Ballou.
Thursday’s Eastern Storm event is set for Selingrove Speedway in Snyder County, where USAC’s wingless 410 sprint program will be joined by a full program for the local winged 410 sprint cars. Last year, Justin Grant won at Selinsgrove when USAC visited.
Friday, the USAC series is off to Williams Grove Speedway in Cumberland County, where again the local 410 winged sprints will also be in action. Williams Grove didn’t host USAC’s sprint cars last year, but an event for the Silver Crown cars was won by Shane Cockrum.
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Saturday, the Eastern Storm has a big program at Port Royal Speedway in Juniata County. Not only will the USAC sprint cars compete, but the Silver Crown series will be there as well. On top of that, the local winged 410 sprint cars also compete. Last year, the Port’s USAC sprint show was rained out.
The Port is offering $8,000 to win the Silver Crown race, $6,000 to win the USAC feature and $5,000 for the winner of the winged 410 feature.
The Eastern Storm wraps up on Sunday at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds, where the USAC-sanctioned SpeedSTRs also compete. In last year’s USAC sprint feature at Bloomsburg in Columbia County, Kevin Thomas Jr. was the winner.
As many fans in this area know, USAC sanctions wingless 360 sprint racing with their East Coast class. Many of the East Coast regulars will compete in the national series events this week. Some will use their 360 engines, but many of the East Coast regulars will unbolt the 360s and drop in a 410 for these events. There’s a chance that USAC will have large fields for the Eastern Storm this season.
PIT STOPS
Other local events this weekend: Of course, USAC won’t be the only game in town this week.
Other local tracks will still be in action as well.
Bedford Speedway’s Friday program in Bedford County highlights the super late models.
Saturday, Lincoln will go with a Speedweek Tune-Up for the local winged 410 sprint cars. A complete Speedweek format, with single-car time trails, will be used to set the field for the $5,000-to-win event. The limited late models will also be on the program, which is also Auto Racing Club of Hagerstown Night.
Selinsgrove is back in action on Saturday night with the super-late-model National Open event that pays $5,000 to the winner. The limited late models and roadrunners also compete.
The limited late models also race at Path Valley Speedway in Franklin County on Saturday in a “topless” event.
Hagerstown Speedway’s Saturday show at the northern Maryland track features the 305 sprints, late-model sportsmen, pure stocks and hobby stocks.
BAPS Motor Speedway in northern York County will be invaded by monster trucks for Friday and Saturday programs.
Speedweek looming: The Red Robin Pennsylvania Sprint Car Speedweek is fast approaching.
There will be 10 races in 10 days with large purses for the winged 410 sprint cars.
It’s set to begin Friday, June 24, at Williams Grove. That event will honor the career of Billy Pauch Sr., who is now semi-retired from racing. It pays $7,001 to win. Pauch drove to many wins in the Zemco No. 1.
Saturday’s second race of Speedweek on June 25 is at Lincoln and pays $9,200 to win in honor of the late Kevin Gobrecht and his family-owned No. 92 car.
Sunday’s third race is at BAPS on June 26 and pays $7000 to win.
Monday, June 27, it’s back to Lincoln for the fourth race, which also pays $7,000 to win.
Tuesday, June 28, it’s the Hodnett Cup at Grandview’s Thunder on the Hill program, with $10,000 going to the winner in a race honoring the late Greg Hodnett.
Wednesday, June 29, Port Royal’s first race of Speedweek will offer $7,000 to win.
The seventh race of Speedweek is at Hagerstown on Thursday, June 30, and pays the winner $8,000.
The Mitch Smith Memorial at Williams Grove is the eighth race on the second Friday (July 1) of Speedweek. It pays $15,000 to win.
Port Royal’s Greg Hodnett Classic on the second Saturday (July 2) of Speedweek offers $10,000 to the winner.
Speedweek wraps up on Sunday, July 3, at Selinsgrove, where the $7,500-to-win race honors all three members of the legendary early-1970s team of driver Jan Opperman, car owner Dick Bogar and mechanic Ralph Heintzelman Sr.
Rainout: The Sunday evening 410 sprint race at Kutztown in Berks County was rained out.
It will be rescheduled for later this summer.
CHAMPION RACING OIL
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA
SPRINT CAR SERIES
Presented by Hoseheads.com
(Wins in parenthesis)
1. Anthony Macri (11) 867
2. Danny Dietrich (6) 762
3. Freddie Rahmer (3) 539
4. Brent Marks (3) 524
5. Logan Wagner (4) 347
5. Lucas Wolfe 347
7. Justin Peck (1) 339
8. Devon Borden (1) 303
9. Dylan Cisney 294
10. Dylan Norris (2) 291
Reach Bryan Householder at sports@yorkdispatch.com or on Twitter at @ydsports.