The biggest weekend of late model racing in Western Pennsylvania started off wet but ended hot with some great racing in front of a huge crowd at Lernerville Speedway.
(Photo: Max Blair of Titusville scored a pair of big wins over the weekend at Lernerville Speedway. Photo by Zack Anthony)
Before action could get started, track officials were forced to cancel Thursday preliminary action on Wednesday night. Sunny skies prevailed on Friday and the 13th annual Firecracker 100 was able to get underway featuring the World of Outlaws late model series.
Joining the super late models were the RUSH crate late models for their biggest event of the year, as they competed in the Bill Emig Memorial with $10,000 up for grabs.
When the action got underway on Friday night, it was defending track champion Michael Norris winning one for the home team. Norris would dominate the $ 6,000-to-win preliminary feature driving for new car owner Todd Cerenzia.
On Saturday, fans were treated to one of the most exciting Firecrackers ever and one of the most popular wins in recent history. Eleventh starting Tim McCreadie would take command of the 100-lap feature with just three laps remaining and held on for his first-ever Firecracker 100 victory worth $30,000. Darrell Lanigan, Brandon Sheppard, Jonathan Davenport, and Josh Richards would round out the top five.
Tim McCreadie took home $30,000 for winning the 13th annual Firecracker 100 at Lernerville Speedway. Photo by Zack Anthony Photo.
Over 50 RUSH late models checked in for their biggest race to date. It was only fitting that the driver who has dominated crate late model racing in Western Pennsylvania since its inception took home the $10,000 winner’s check. Max Blair of Titusville would make the winning pass of Ross Robinson with just five laps to go in the 50-lap affair to score the big win.
Blair made it two wins on the weekend by dominating the Uncle Sam 30 during super late model completion adding another $3,000 to his winnings.
This Friday, Lernerville will shift gears as the track presents a sprint car quadruple header. The popular BOSS wingless sprints will make their only visit of the season. They will be joined by the RUSH wingless sprints, 305 Race Saver sprint cars, and 270cc micro sprints.
After a pair of rainouts including their Ohio Speedweek date, Sharon Speedway was back in action this past Saturday with the makeup of the Bickerstaff Cup for the e-mods.
Brian Ruhlman made his first career Sharon win a good one by taking home the honors. Another first time Sharon winner was Brian Woodhall who picked up his first career RUSH sprint car victory.
The 410 sprint cars return to Sharon Speedway this Saturday for another $3,000-to-win event.
Racing resumed at Michael’s Mercer Raceway this past Saturday with the Little Guys Summer Spectacular featuring the Penn-Ohio Pro Stock Series. Tim Bish was the big winner taking home over $2,000 for the series win.
This Saturday the BOSS wingless sprints will make their maiden voyage to the Mercer oval. They will be joined by the micro sprints, mini stocks, mod lites, junior sprints, and a fireworks display.
Hummingbird Speedway also returned to action on Saturday where Paul Kot topped the late model competition on 70’s night. Track champion Doug Surra won an exciting semi late feature that came down to a three-wide photo finish at the line. Other winners Saturday included; Mike Anderson (pure stocks), Bob Egley (street stocks), and Keegan Bell (4 cylinders).
Hummingbird will be back in action this Saturday with another five-division race program.
After a week off, Thunder Mountain Speedway will return to action this Friday night. The BRP Modified Tour will be in action along with the super late models, super stocks, and four cylinders with racing getting underway at 7:30 p.m.
A rain plagued Ohio Speedweek was completed Saturday at Wayne County Speedway this past Saturday where Buddy Kofoid of California scored his first career All-Star victory worth $10,000.
Despite only four of the scheduled nine races being completed Dale Blaney still managed to take home $4,000 for his sixth Speedweek championship.
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About Rick
Rick Rarer, a Franklin resident, is the owner of Racestud.com and SprintCarNews.com. He has been covering racing for 19 years, taking racing photos for 14 years, and has covered races at over 100 tracks in 15 states. Most recently, Rick won the Bill Steinbach Media Award at the Lernerville Speedway Annual Awards Banquet.
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