New Egypt, NJ (June 8, 2013) – Gary Butler of Phillipsburg, NJ won his second feature of 2013 on Saturday evening as he took top honors in the 30-lap 358 Modified main event. Butler took advantage of a restart on lap 19, charging from 4th to the lead and then went on to beat Billy Pauch by five car lengths at the finish.

Chris Grbac grabbed the lead at the start as Willie Osmun quickly moved to second and shadowed every move that Grbac made. Grbac was not rattled however, as he ran flawlessly our in front thru the opening laps. Butler, who started 10th, quickly moved up to challenge for the fifth spot only to watch 5-time Modified champion Billy Pauch fly by as he advanced to the front. Pauch seemed to be on a mission as he moved into third behind Osmun on lap 12 and began to close in on the two leaders. The yellow slowed the torrid pace with 19 laps in the books setting up a double file restart under the new 2013 fan friendly rule of not going single file until 5 laps remaining. At this point Gary Butler seemed to have leveled out in 6th position and is early race burst was now a memory for most fans. The first attempt to restart found Butler charging around everyone only to have Neal Williams stop on the frontstretch. The second attempt never got past turn two as John McClelland and John Stangle, who were running 4th and fifth tangled. This moved Butler up to fourth, and on the next try he drove around the top three racing side-by-side with Osmun for the lead. Butler then grabbed the lead and pulled away as Pauch battled with Osmun for second. Pauch completed the move in second with five laps remaining but Butler had too much on this night as he took the victory. Pauch settled for second with Osmun crossing the line third. Jimmy Blewett came from deep in the pack to finish fourth and Bob Drayton posted his best finish of the year so far in fifth.

Bob Lineman Jr. of Doylestown, PA also scored his first win since opening night in the 20 lap Sportsman feature event, but in much more dramatic fashion. Lineman got under Ebby Ridge on the final lap and with sparks flying was able to hold on for the win by a mere five feet! Ridge settled for second with Clay Butler, Kevin Vaclavicek, who came back from and early race tangle, and Mike Lyons rounding out the top five. Vaclavicek had an eventful evening as he captured his fourth career win early in the night winning the 20 lap make-up feature from May 18th. John Cornell and Mike Howardson were a very close second and third, followed by Lyons and Lineman.

The TSRS 305 Sprints were on hand with 35 cars in the pit area and Mario Page took a spectacular win in the 20 lapper. Page lead the entire event over Chuck Palmucci, and Palmucci mounted a late race charge over the final 6 laps. Palmucci pulled alongside of Page to lead lap 19 by a wheel and then went in front in turn one. But Page drove back under him with an incredible power move in turn three and four, incredibly getting the car to stick as they exited the final turn. Palmucci was not done however as he pulled back even with him in the final drag race down the front straightaway with the two cars touching about 10 yards from the finish line and Palmucci spinning wildly across the finish line backwards just 1/100 of a second behind Page!! Palmucci fortunately spun thru an opening between victory lane and the first turn guard rail in a cloud of dust unscathed in what certainly will be remembered as one of the most memorable finishes ever at NES.

BECHTELSVILLE, PA 

Coming from 16th, his usual starting spot during his winning streak, Duane Howard charged in front of Meme DeSantis on the 18th lap of the TP Trailers 30-lap NASCAR Whelen 358 Modified feature on Saturday night at Grandview and drove to his fifth win of the season. Danny Snyder earned his first 25-lap Late Model feature win of the season starting last and leading at the checkered flag. The NASCAR Sportsman feature race had Brett Kressley in front at the finish for his third feature win of the season.

 Mark Kratz set the pace in front of the 30-car starting field for the NASCAR 358 Modifieds but a couple of early race accidents that included top talents such as Craig VonDohren, Frank Cozze, Jeff Strunk and others. All three were able to continue. In the third lap Mark Kratz, the leader, lost a wheel in turn one putting him out of action and gave the lead to Justin Grim. With six laps in the record book Meme DeSantis, charging from 11th starting spot, took the top spot.

 A wild multi car accident on the backstretch brought out a red flag with no one injured but a couple of cars eliminated including Jason Clauss. On the restart DeSantis was in front and at the 10 lap marker Duane Howard became a factor running second.

 DeSantis and Howard put on a fan pleasing battle for the top spot for several laps with Howard getting the edge on the 18th circuit of the one-third-mile banked clay oval.

 For the balance of the 30-laps Howard (Oley) held off challenges from DeSantis and Craig VonDohren and brought the Chad Sinon owned BPG Racing No. 4 home first to pick up his 5th win of the season earning $2750 including a $250 bonus from TP Trailers of Limerick.

 As Howard dominated the final laps fans were fascinated by the impressive run made by Craig VonDohren (Oley) as he came from the tail end of the field after going to the rear early in the feature. A few more laps, who knows what would have happened had VonDohren and Howard been able to battle for the win. Third spot went to Meme DeSantis (Temple) followed by Jon Kellner Sr. (Lansdale) and Jeff Strunk (Pottstown) who also had to go to the rear after an early race incident.

 In victory lane Howard, the current NASCAR 358 Modified point leader, had high praise for his BPG Racing team and his car owner. Basically he reminded fans and racers that he and his team are there to win and that is what they are doing right now.

FULTON, NY – JUNE 8,2013(By Dave Medler) - It had been since May 21, 2011 since Dale Planck had been to Fulton Speedway victory lane. Saturday night, Planck jumped behind the wheel of a team car (No.99L) of Larry Wight and put on a driving clinic in a convincing win in the 35 lap Tracey Road Equipment Big Block Modified feature.

Other winners were, Ron Davis III, SUNY Canton Sportsman, Rick Miller, NAPA Late Models, Hilary Ward, E&V Energy Novice Sportsman and Chuck Powelczyk, Four Cylinder Stocks.

Before a lap was complete in the Modified feature in turn four, pole sitter Joe August Jr. got upside down causing a red flag period. Joe was uninjured. On the second attempt to get the 35 lap feature underway, Tim Sears Jr. bolted out to a narrow lead over Dale Planck.

With 5 laps complete, Sears still set the pace with a two-car advantage over Planck, just behind the top-two, Chris Hile, Ryan Phelps and Roy Bresnahan raced for third through fifth.

On lap 10 Sears still led, but was now getting pressure from Planck. Just one lap later, Sears looked to have jumped the cushion allowing Planck to drive by to be scored the new leader on lap 11.

At the halfway point, Planck was on cruise control building up a three-quarters of a straightaway lead over Chris Hile. Ryan Phelps and Larry Wight were in a tight battle for third with Bresnahan showing in fifth.

With 10 laps to go, Planck appeared to be getting quicker as he built up an almost 4 second lead over the rest of the field. Hile and Larry Wight battled for second, with Ryan Phelps and Bresnahan showing on the scoring tower in the top-five.

On lap 31 Wight moved into the runner-up spot and needed a yellow to have any shot at Planck. No yellows would happen as Planck cruised the rest of the way to the win. Larry Wight, Chris Hile, Ryan Phelps and Roy Bresnahan finished second through fifth.

In the 20 lap SUNY Canton Sportsman feature, Ron Davis III would take the lead on a lap 9 restart and never look back for his second  victory of the 2013 season. Kyle Fink, Justin Crisafulli, Matt Emmons and Jordan Bennett would round out the top-five.

WOODHULL NY…

It was roughly 25 years ago when Billy VanPelt won his first feature ever up on the high banks, and very rarely does it take VanPelt until the second week of June to pick up his 2nd feature event of the year. VanPelt started on the outside pole once he was able to pass Brian Doolittle, it was all Billy VanPelt from that point on. When getting interviewed down in the Instant Heat Wood pellets victory lane, he said “the past couple of weeks, I have tried a number of different set ups, and none seemed to work, the same set up we have used for the last couple of years was not working for us this year, so it definitely feels good to be back in victory lane.” Dylan Dewert finished 2nd, Alan Rudalavage, Joe Dgien, and Donnie Lawson rounded out the top five. Heat winners went to Billy VanPelt and Frank Dunning.

The famous saying “it isn’t over ‘til the fat lady sings” played a role in the 360 late models 25 lap Scott Denison Memorial. It all started when former Woodhull Super stock driver, Scott Dennison’s daughter Kennedy, age 10, dropped the green flag. Jason Knowles started on the point and led the opening laps but then came the Whitesville speedster, John Waters making a clean pass on Knowles. For a number of laps, everything was working for Waters where he opened up the lead. Then lap traffic became a factor where Mr. Excitement, Jeremy Wonderling picked the correct lane and passed Waters with just laps to go. Waters tried to regain the top spot but it was not enough and Jeremy Wonderling picked up his second feature of the year. Jason Knowles was able to settle for 3rd, followed by Brian Knowles and Cecil LaBarron, the top five. Heat winners were Waters, Bruce Miller and Brian Knowles.

A full field started for the Crate sportsman where John Hargrave picked up his second feature of the year. A number of drivers challenged Hargrave for that top spot, such as Connor Brown, Chris Daugherty, and Ray Smith but it was simply not enough. Smith did end up second, followed by Daugherty, Brown and Rod Mullen the top five. Josh Sawyer picked the consolation event. Heats went to Ryan Tracy, Russ Morseman, Hargrave and Smith.

FULTON, NY – JUNE 1,2013 (By Dave Medler) – Mother nature threw her best punches Saturday night when the skies opened up causing an over an hour rain delay. Instead of throwing in the towel, the Fulton Speedway track crew got to work providing a fast track surface for the nights features.

“I can be in pain at home on the couch, or be in pain in the race car, I’ll take the race car,” said Pat Ward after undergoing an appendectomy this past Tuesday after falling ill Monday at the Utica-Rome Speedway. Ward gave himself the best medicine in the world, as he picked up the Tracey Road Equipment Big Block Modified feature win Saturday night at the Fulton Speedway.

Other winners on Oswego County Today.Com/The Effect Group Night were, Justin Crisafulli, SUNY Canton Sportsman, Dale Caswell, NAPA Late Models, Gary Hoppins, E&V Energy Novice Sportsman, Eric M Zirbel, Four Cylinder Stocks and Doug Williams Mod Lites.

Matt Hulsizer would grab the early lead to start the 35 lap Tracey Road Equipment Big Block Modified feature on a tacky and quick racing surface.

With 5 laps complete, Hulsizer would hold a narrow lead over Kane, Chuck Bower and Tim Sears Jr. with Ryan Phelps right there in fifth.

The first yellow would fly on lap 7 for Tom Sears Jr. who stopped on the top of turn two. That gave  the field a chance to catch their breath, as there were two and three-wide battles around the speedway.

On lap 10, using the cushion, Tim Sears Jr. would be scored the new leader by inches over Hulsizer at the line.

With 15 laps showing on the scoring tower, Sears, Hulsizer and Bower were in a three-car breakaway, as they raced nose to tail and side by side at the front of the field. Coming quick behind the top-three was Pat Ward who would soon make it a four-car fight for the top-spot.

At the halfway point, Sears was still setting the pace, but couldn’t put any distance between himself and Hulsizer and Bower. Ward and Chris Hile showed in the top-five.

Rob Bellinger and Larry Wight would be involved in an incident on the back straightaway bringing out the yellow on lap 24.

When the green came back out, Sears appeared to jump the cushion exiting turn four, that allowed Hulsizer, Bower, Ward and Billy Decker to shoot by. Just before another yellow, Ward, through sure horsepower went from fourth and into the lead. The caution was for Sears who appeared to be hit hard by debris. Sears luckily would climb from his car under his own power.

Over the closing laps, Ward was a man on a mission, as he was able to outrun Billy Decker who moved into second but could get no closer than a few car lengths at the checkers. Chuck Bower, Matt Hulsizer and Dan Vauter finished third through fifth.

Canandaigua, NY – June 1, 2013 – Dave Roberts, Canandaigua Motorsports Park PR Correspondent           

Mother Nature attempted to rear her ugly head Saturday night at Canandaigua Motorsports Park, but it was to no avail as the racing program was completed by 10:15pm with three new winners added to the 2013 season.

The night was interrupted by a 35-minute rain delay following the night’s qualifying events. Track maintenance, along with nearly the entire pit area, worked the track in and put together a super racing surface for the feature events.

Gary Tomkins (Team Tire Master Big-Block Modified); Steve Gray (Safety Awareness Sportsman) and Blane Smith (Parts Plus Street Stock) scored victories for the first time this season. Smith’s win erased a six-week winning streak by current points leader Mike Welch.
 
For Tomkins, it had been four years since he had won a feature event at the Ontario County Fairgrounds. Tomkins, of Clifton Springs, NY, drove into the lead on lap 22 and held off a determined Matt Sheppard at the finish as the pair had to go through heavy lapped traffic during the second half of the scheduled Team Tire Tester Big-Block Modified 35-lap feature.
 
“This is a lot of relief…and a lot of joy,” Tomkins said in victory lane. “As you can see by the side of the car, it has to make a lot of it’s own money. Tonight, everything worked out.”
 
Marcus Dinkins started on the front row and led the first nine laps with pressure from Chad Homan. Homan eventually took over the top spot after Dinkins got too high coming into turn three. Matt Fink moved into second-place with Tomkins following behind in third.
 
Tomkins got into second on lap 12 while Homan enjoyed a 1.8 second lead. By lap 20, Tomkins was side by side with Homan. Two laps later, Tomkins slipped by for the lead.

Matt Sheppard, who started  18th, was into second on lap 26. Both drivers were masterful going through lapped traffic as Sheppard looked to move up on Tomkins but he would have to settle for the runner-up position.

“The one good thing about racing here is that you can see who’s behind you,” said Tomkins, who added his 46th career win at CMP. “Matt is at the top of his game but I stuck to the bottom of the race track at the end and it really helped us.”
 
Finishing third was Billy Dunn, who was impressive after starting 14th along with Chad Homan in fourth. Vince Vitale brought his mount home to a fifth-place place finish.
 
Heat race winners were Marcus Dinkins, Tim Currier and Billy Dunn. The consolation event was won by Rich Scagliotta.  
 
In the 25-lap Safety Awareness Solutions Sportsman feature, Steve Gray returned to victory lane after a two-year absence, taking the lead on lap eight and dominating the event, leading by nearly seven seconds over second-place finisher Nick Guererri.
 
“It’s been too long,” Gray said afterwards about his lack of wins over the past two years. “I think the rain really helped us. This car was fast tonight.”
 
“We made a lot of changes to the car over the past week,” Gray added. “It made a difference.”
 
Russ Marsden and James Maier combined to lead the opening five laps. Nick Guererri then took over the top spot with Gray behind him. On a lap seven restart, Gray took over the lead for good and got better after every lap.

Nick Guererri took home second, third went to Dave Marcuccilli and rounding out the top-five were Rob Bussey and Frank Burnell Jr. Gray started fifth in the main event.
 
Heat race winners were Nick Guererri, Kane Bristol and AJ Lloyd.
 
In the 15-lap Parts Plus Street Stock feature, Blane Smith broke the six-week winning streak of Mike Welch as he made a pass for the lead as the two came down the front chute under the checkered flag side-by-side with Smith winning by a bumper as the two crossed the finish line to end the race.
 
Welch looked like a sure winner for his seventh victory of the season when he began to slow with three laps remaining. It turned out to be a carburetor issue as Smith’s pass at the finish line proved to be the best race of the night.
 
“I’m just so happy to be here,” Smith said as he celebrated in victory lane. “This car has been so loose this year.”
 
Welch held on for second followed by Jack Terrell in third. Rounding out the top-five were Nate Peckham and Steve Pesarek. Bill Weller and Steve Pesarek led the early race laps until Welch took over on a restart on lap six.
 
The heat race winner was Bill Weller.

BECHTELSVILLE, PA June 2, 2013 . . . With Craig VonDohren closing quickly Duane Howard was able to keep his BPG Racing No. 4 in front of the field and win the 30-lap PBGW Accounting Night NASCAR 358 Modified feature race at Grandview Speedway on Saturday night. Former sprint car racer Sam Schlosberg brought his Green Lane Auto No. 70 to the finish line first just ahead of Kory Fleming in the 25-lap Late Model feature and it was Paul Kline driving his Roadrunner Racing Fuels/Margaritaville Pizza No. 16 to victory in the 25-lap Sportsman main event in front of a large crowd on the first good weather night of the season.

Jon Kellner Jr. set the pace for the first two laps of the NASCAR Whelen All American 358 Modified feature with Ray Swinehart charging to the front on the third circuit of the one-third-mile, banked clay track. Meme DeSantis challenged Swinehart in a fan pleasing battle for several laps before taking the top spot on the seventh trip around the clay oval. Just short of halfway Duane Howard, coming from 16th starting spot, move in to challenge DeSantis and just a little after the halfway mark Howard charged past DeSantis coming off the fourth turn to take control of the race.

Once in front Howard set a quick pace but with five laps remaining Craig VonDohren became a factor with his Pioneer Pole Buildings No.1c and looked to be in a position to get his second win of the weekend (having won the night before at Big Diamond Speedway). However Howard was able to keep his Bicknell racer in front of the field the Oley racer earned his fourth win of the season and $2750. VonDohren (Oley) had to settle for second, a very close second, followed by Meme DeSantis (Temple), Ray Swinehart (Perkiomenville) and Doug Man miller (Shoemakersville).

In victory lane Howard apologized to some turmoil that eliminated Jeff Strunk early in the race. “You have to race aggressively here at Grandview,” said Howard. “I apologize for what happened but I am here to win. It was a great win for the team.”

As has become the norm for the Late Models it took a couple of cautions to get the 25-lap feature race moving along but once it was underway Sam Schlosberg has a relatively easy time of it leading all the laps to take his first win of the season. The Green Lane racer did have Kory Fleming, making his best showing of the season, to contend with throughout the entire 25 laps and that kept the fan interest. At the finish Schlosberg was just a narrow margin in front of second place Fleming (Milford, NJ) who was closing as the checkered flag fell. Third place was earned by Sean Merkel (Gilbertsville) followed by Jason Miller (New Tripoli) and Wayne Pfeil (Mohnton).

Tommy Scheetz II was quick to gain control of the 24 car starting field in the 25-lap feature for Sportsman. Scheetz set the pace for the first seven laps but a two car tangle on the backstretch brought out a caution and on the restart Paul Kline went to the front of the field.
The Muhlenberg racer had little competition until the closing laps when Jared Umbenhauer (Richland), coming from 14th starting spot put his Eastern Rigging No. 5 in contention for the win. The defending Sportsman champion was gaining on the leader as the race ended and had to settle for second. Tommy Scheetz II (Boyertown) finished third followed by Kyle Borror (Peach Bottom) and Kenny Gilmore (Fleetwood).

MINERSVILLE, PA – JUNE 1st, 2013

The pits were bursting at the seams on Friday, as a staggering 138 cars signed in to do battle at Big Diamond Speedway on a hot and steamy evening.

First on the agenda were the ZY Pyrotechnics 358 Modifieds. Current point leader Craig Von Dohren continued the torrid start to his 2013 campaign, winning his 3rd feature event of the season. Ironically, all three victories have been in extra distance, 30 lap, $3,000 to win events.

Craig Whitmoyer bolted into the lead at the start of the event from his pole starting spot, followed closely by Kevin Smith from spot number three. The first half of the event saw Whitmoyer and Smith exchange the top spot several times, all while 9th starting Von Dohren meticulously worked his way to the front. One lap after the halfway signal was given to the field, Von Dohren made his move past Smith and into the top spot. Behind Von Dohren, Meme Desantis and Doug Manmiller all of a sudden made their presence known, and began an epic battle with Tim Buckwalter for the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th positions. These three drivers were definitely the show over the last half of the race, while Von Dohren checked out to his 3rd win of the season. Desantis was able to come home 2nd, with Manmiller, Buckwalter, and 25th starting Billy Pauch Jr. rounding out the top five. Jeff Strunk, Kevin Smith, Craig Whitmoyer, Andy Burkhart, and Kevin Albert Jr. completed the top ten. Heat races were won by Dan Hineline, whose car failed to fire at the start of the feature, Desantis, and Von Dohren.

In the Sportsman 20 lap main event, Doug Hendricks led from his pole starting spot, followed closely by Billy Moyer Jr. These two drivers ran neck and neck the first few laps, each holding the lead at numerous times. Right before the midway point of the event, Kevin Beach Jr. bolted into the lead coming off of turn two, followed closely by Jared Umbenhauer. Beach continued to lead until a caution on lap 14. During this caution, Beach dashed into the pit area, victim of a flat tire due to contact with another car earlier in the event. This handed the lead over to Umbenhauer, who never faltered over the final six laps and went on to score his third victory of the season at Big Diamond Speedway. Billy Moyer Jr. continued the great start to his season by coming home second, followed by Hendricks, Mike Lisowski, and Corey Renninger. Wayne Witmer, Ray Woodall Jr., Colt Harris, Robin Schultz, and Tim Fitzpatrick rounded out the top ten. Heat races were won by Umbernhauer and Moyer Jr.

Marc Berzowski raced to his forth win of the season in the Roadrunner division, grabbing the lead from Shon Elk near the halfway point of the event and never looking back. Elk held on for his best finish of the season, coming home second, followed by Jim Kost, Tim Spesak, and Chris Holland. Terry Kramer Jr., Kris Ney, new high school graduate Kyle Killian, Joe Kavanaugh, and Tim Fitzpatriack Jr. rounded out the top ten. Heat races were won by Jeremy Becker and Elk.

Joe Lord was able to score the victory in the TSRS 305 20 lap Sprint feature, while Jonathan Pepe was victorious is the 600cc Modified event.

The entire evenings events were sponsored by Ken’s Tire Company.