RAIN DATE RESULTS IN SPECTACULAR RACING
July 5,2021
By: Kayla Peting and Nathan Aldrich
As mid summer storms swept through the area dousing everyone’s early plans for the holiday weekend, the Penn Can speedway would call an audible, racing Monday night under gorgeous skies. Spaulding Foundation and McDoanld’s night featured fireworks and packed stands as the drivers prepared to strap into their cars. With no points on the line drivers drew for their starting positions and qualifying heats got underway.
Three Stafursky Paving Sunoco Race Fuels modified heats would set the field for the 30 lap main event. The invaders got the advantage early as Rusty Smith held off Derrick McGrew and Nick Rochinski to win the first heat. Next came Alex Yankowski in heat two battling Brad Schaffer in the early laps then gaining ground to the checkers. Heat three went to Penn Can regular Brian Malcolm who held off a hungry pair of Alan Rudalavage and Danny Creeden. With the Monday show using a redraw format instead of handicapping the top competitors waited anxiously to find out their feature starting positions.
Rudalavage and Yankowski brought the field to green as Rudalavage set a slow pace through turns three and four. Yankowski was ready as the young driver launched down the frontstretch vaulting himself into the lead as the field worked through turns one and two. While Yankowski set a blistering pace Rudalavage had his hands full with Malcolm moving to his inside. As the two raced door to door for second Smith took over the seventh spot moving Casey Plummer back to eighth. Smith brought last season’s track champion Brett Tonkin with him as he moved through the field, Tonkin took eighth from Plummer on the next lap while Smith got McGrew for sixth. As drivers began to settle into a rhythm Yankowski encountered the first lapped cars. He slipped past Erick Williams before coming up on the battling pair of Dave Zona and Stanley Wilkins. When the two split apart Yankowski made his move catching some clear track over the ensuing laps.
As Yankowski held the lead Malcolm and Rudalavage began to contend with the lapped cars as Creeden chased both down. On lap 12 Bud Phillips brought his machine to the infield, followed a couple laps later by Zona. Smith and Rochinski battled to make the top 5 as the leaders passed the halfway point and the yellow came out just as Yankowski was about to catch the next group of lapped cars on lap 20. A Brad Schaffer flat in turn two brought out the yellow for a ten lap run to the finish. Coming to the green McGrew would slow through turns 3 and 4 and the field would get another try at the restart. Yankowski bolted away as Malcolm once again looked to the inside of Rudalavage. While Rochinski made contact with Creeden behind the front three, Creeden held on to the spot before the caution again fell on lap 23. As Smith gathered the car back up out of turn four Alex Stanton and Kevin Hertnett headed pitside.
Yankowski checked out on the restart bringing home the win with Rudalavage second and Malcolm third. Creeden and Rochinski would trade paint in the closing laps swapping the spot multiple times but Rochinski would get the fourth spot in the end with Creeden fifth. Tonkin, Smith, Darwin Greene Sr., Sam Allen and Jamie Bedford. Yankowski has a perfect record at Penn Can so far picking up 2 wins in his 2 appearances at the speedway. Starting from the front row it was important to “keep momentum up on the start” and getting the early lead helped him to focus on just hitting his marks. With the long green flag runs Yankowski was just focused on extending his lead and getting away without losing too much time to the lapped traffic. The young driver isn’t intimidated to race against big names, “the more you compete with them the more comfortable you get with it”. Late in the race Alex worked to defend the cushion and was able to work both lines throughout the night. He would like to thank Stafursky Paving, FNCB Bank, Stafursky Auto, Falcon Oil, Bassler Equipment, Dave, Billy the Kid Engines and his entire crew.
Sleepy Hollow Turf 602 Crate sportsmen were brought to green by Dave Dickey and Bryce Bailey as Bailey got a little over eager and the start was brought back. The second try at the start brought Bailey out to the lead before Dickey quickly closed back in, the two made contact on lap one and Dickey moved into the lead. Behind the top two Ray Leonard moved past AJ Konopka for third as Leonard worked the outside. While Bailey recovered from his bobble Leo McGurrin took the fifth spot away before the field was slowed for the spinning Dale Folejewski in turn 3. Dickey took the inside on the restart, pulling away from Randy Brokaw as Rey Leonard coasted to a slow exit and the field stayed green. Greg Crooker took the fourth spot from Bailey with Ryan Conrad quickly trying to follow. Conrad, Konopka and Folejewski got together the next lap resulting in a Folejewski spin and Jordan Millard pulling to the infield.
Dickey got the jump on the restart before McGurrin slowed to the outside of turn 4 after restarting from third. The second try at the lap 11 restart went well for Dickey as he pulled ahead of Brokaw and the battle for third heated up between Bailey and Greg Crooker. Crooker took the spot with Konopka next moving in to challenge Bailey who would hold on to the spot using the high side momentum. Bailey’s left front made hard contact with the rear of Crooker on lap 16 ending the night for Bailey. Dickey led the single file restart back to green as Conrad and Crooker made contact on the lap 17 restart ending Crooker’s night as he slowed to a stop in turns three and four. Dickey hit his marks in the closing laps getting a jump on the restart and staying in front to take the checkers with Brokaw, Carter Crooker, Konopka and Doug Snyder rounding out the top 5.
This was Dave Dickey’s first 602 win and could not have been more excited about finally getting to victory lane. Dickey says the cautions made him extremely nervous with the exceeding amount of talent there was in the field. “The lanes came in late, but when they did it made for excellent racing and battles” says Dickey. Although the cautions made him worried, it certainly did not show a bit, he states that he prefers to have a long green run to be able to hit his marks to stay in the lead. Dickey showed much appreciation to Rusty Smith for allowing him to drive the car and get to this point. He also gives his many thanks to Bryant Hill, Matt Bleyle, Joe DeBrita, Gordon Smith and Jeff Meek for all working on the car to make it race ready every week. He would also like to thank his sponsors: Upstate Companies, Diaz Aviation, DJ Acres, Crocker Cutters, and Cummings Auto Machine.
The A&E Tire and Auto Service Center 600cc Modifieds were led to the green by Adam Mudge and Travis Rooney. As the flag dropped Mudge would take the early lead as Brenton Miller would make some quick moves to pass Rooney and move in on Mudge for the first place spot. Miller would take the lead over Mudge and allow Rooney to battle with Mudge’s 5AM car for second. Rooney would take over as second while track regular Brett Gray would take a sharp turn to the infield and head pit side to end his night early with motor issues. Ali Scutt in the 108 would battle hard with John Glover for the ninth spot and ultimately claiming it. On lap 5 the first caution of the night would come out as Baldwin spins in turn two, while he was catching the field Mudge, who was running third, would slow in turn four and be unable to complete the race. Sharon Sealy would also get loose and spin in turn one while under caution. On the restart Miller would take the low line with Rooney as his dancing partner to his outside, however the restart would not count as a driver fired before the leader, bringing Miller and Rooney to lead the field to green allowing Molly Mroz to pull quickly to the infield. Miller would get the jump over Rooney to take the lead, a little ways back Scutt would step up to challenge Doug Lattner on the inside for fourth, but Lattner would hold off the young driver to keep the position. Baldwin had made his way through the field to set his sites on the young Darwin Greene Jr. for eight and the two would battle door to door through turns one and two before taking the spot from Greene Jr.
On lap 8 Chuck Lohmeyer would head pit side with problems with his 5 machine, the battles continued to rage on as Baldwin would challenge Mike Frye for the seventh position and ultimately take the spot.The final caution of the night would come on lap 17 as Scutt had slowed on the backstretch and headed pit side, with Nate Oropallo close behind her. Scutt would return before the single file restart led by Miler could fire off. On the restart battles were constant as the laps wound down, Dominick Amato would challenge Lattner for the fourth spot and claim it briefly as Lattner and Amato went door to door through turn two with Lattner taking the position. Greene Jr. was determined to keep making moves as he challenged Amato for fifth and took the spot. Amato had slowed slightly and would drop several positions. Baldwin would make his way from the back of the field throughout the race and quickly pass Amato for sixth. Scutt, CJ Jochum, Devon Sieban and Sealy would also make their way past Amato as the laps would come to a close with Miller taking the win. Rooney, Glover, Lattner, Greene Jr., Baldwin, Scutt, Jochum, Sieban and Sealy would round out the top ten. Feature winner Brenton Miller said having a good starting spot made life a little easier this week as well as the backing of a good team is the key to wins. Brenton would like to thank Wade and Brett Gray, Shannon, Carol and sponsors Moose Wraps, Crawn Trucking, Gray’s Trucking and All Things Vinyl by Alecia.
The factory stocks would be led to the green by Kevin MacDonald and Alecia Towner with the 9X of Alecia Towner taking first. Tommy Groover’s 7R machine would make quick work of MacDonald and would look to the outside of Alecia Towner for first with slight contact being made between the two in turn four before Groover took the lead. Jason Rhodes would pass the 9X machine for second and Charlie Towner would move to third as Alecia Towner would slow. Charlie Gilbert would make his way past the 9X for fourth before challenging Charlie Towner for third and claiming the spot. A lap 3 yellow caution would be thrown for Alecia Towner, who would be stopped right out of turn two before heading pit side, but would return before the leaders could fire. On the restart, Groover would take to the outside with Gilbert to his inside, Groover would quickly capture the lead. Alecia Towner would start at the rear of the field and would quickly pass Michelle Romanik, CJ Swanson and John Picchio to move into the tenth position. A lap six caution would come out for debris on the track, on the restart Groover would start to the outside and Gilbert to his inside. Groover would take a lead and put ground between himself and Gilbert while Charlie Towner would look to the inside of Rhodes for third, but Rhodes was not giving up the spot. On lap 9, Groover would start catching the back of the field and maneuvering his way through. Groover would take the win followed by Gilbert, Rhodes, Charlie Towner, Kevin MacDonald, Ned Fitch, Austin Manzer, Alecia Towner, Picchio, and Rick Glover would round out the top ten. Feature winner Tommy Groover was happy to recover from his recent streak of bad luck in what has been an up and down season so far. The early cautions helped to keep things bunched up as he could get through the field quickly. Tommy would like to thank Dave’s Buy Rite Auto Sales, T-Shirt Shack by Vinyl Obsession, Red Barrell Cars, Wildside Graphics, T.J. 's Auto, Pops Automotive and Denny Decker Logging.
The Gary’s U-Pull It 4 Cylinders were gearing up for an excellent race as the field of 10 cars were led to the green by Todd West and Tim Vandermark. The start would be called a no start as some drivers were eager to get going, and were put back to the original start with West and Vandermark would now get the green flag waved. Vandermark would get the quick lead with Andy Bolles making quick work in passing West for second. The 16 of Kenny Underwood would look to the outside of West for third and would take the spot. The first caution of the night would come as Dakota Fuller would come to a stop along the backstretch and head pit side. Vandermark would take to the outside with his dancing partner Bolles on the inside, Vandermark would take the lead quickly while Mike Ferris would pass Underwood for third. Underwood would make an abrupt turn to the infield, resulting in his night ending early. Rich Wagner would pass Josh Gunn for fifth and quickly look to the inside of West to take fourth. On lap 6 Vandermark would begin to close in on the back of the field with Bolles right behind him. Wagner would pass Ferris for third while Bolles and Vandermark swapped paint for the lead. Bolles and Vandermark would run each other hard as Bolles would take the lead by pulling a slider. As the laps were winding down, who would take the checkered was up in the air, Bolles would lead down the back stretch before slowing in turns three and four giving Vandermark the win followed by Wagner, Ferris, Bolles, and Gunn would round out the top five. Feature winner Tim Vandermark was running hot at the end of the main event and knew he was losing power in the closing laps. With both he and Bolles having overheating issues late in the race it was a matter of surviving until the end. Though there wasn’t a big change in the track state from heat to feature the multi time winner at the can this season prefers the tacky side of things. Coming from the outside pole is Tim’s favorite place to start but he knew Andy would be coming so he quickly had to move to the bottom as the high line went away. Tim would like to thank his grandfather, girlfriend Liz, Mom, Grandma and all of his family for their love and support.
The Juniors would take the track with Josh Landers and Evan O’Hara starting on the front row. Landers would get the early lead as O’Hara and Avery Decker battled for second. Unfortunately, for track regular Trevor Houghton something had gone wrong during the heat race and was unable to make the call to the green. Anthony Mancini would go a lap down in the feature, but the determination was present as the young driver kept on going. Landers would take the win followed by O’Hara, Decker and Mancini rounded out the field.
With the weather being as it has been this summer and due to some shortages in the racing world, there have been some changes to the schedule. The Hot Summer Nights has been canceled due to conflicting schedules and tire shortages resulting in mid week races being put on hold. Friday will be the GRIT series Factory Stock Homer Ferrante Memorial Race, July 16th will be a complete show for all divisions, July 23rd will be a complete show minus the factory stocks as the CRSA Sprints will return to the speedway. Be sure to check out the new website and our Facebook to get driver profiles, schedule updates and more! Find us at the: The Penn Can Speedway
Stafursky Paving SUNOCO Modifieds
WINNER- 9Y- ALEX YANKOWSKI
2.) 145- Alan Rudalavage 3.) 119-Brian Malcom 4.) 20R- Nick Rochinski 5.) 16X- Danny Creeden 6.) 9- Brett Tonkin 7.) 34- Rusty Smith 8.) 1- Darwin Greene 9.) A11- Sam Allen 10.) 111J- Jamie Bedford 11.) 73- Casey Plummer 12.) 14- Stanley Wilkins 13.) 21X- Eric Williams 14.) 117- Alex Stanton 15.) 133- Kevin Hartnett 16.) 26- Derrick McGrew 17.) 014- Brad Shaffer 18.) 99Z- Dave Zona 19.) 23P- Bud Phillips
Sleepy Hollow Turf & Insinger Performance 602 Crate Sportsman
WINNER- 23T- DAVID DICKEY
2.) B17- Randy Brokaw 3.) 32C- Carter Crooker 4.) 14K- AJ Konopka 5.) 27- Doug Snyder 6.) 51A- Za-c McDonald 7.) 327- Ryan Conrad 8.) 35- Craig Crooker 9.) 88- Alan Komar 10.) 16- Ned Fitch 11.) 27J- Jared Miller 12.) 32R- Dale Folejewski 13.) 88A- Amanda Scholtisek 14.) 70J- Leo McGurrin 15.) 51- Greg Crooker 16.) 2B- Bryce Bailey 17.) 99- Jordan Millard 18.) 3R- Ray Leonard 19.) 4J- Joe Buchanan DNS 20.) M7- Mike Nagel Jr.
A&E Tire & Auto Service Center 600cc Modifieds
WINNER- 29- BRENTON MILLER
2.) 54T- Travis Rooney 3.) 72- Travis Glover 4.) 101- Doug Lattner 5.) 1JR- Darwin Greene Jr. 6.) 17- Jeff Baldwin 7.) 108- Ali Scutt 8.) 777- CJ Jochum 9.) 167- Devon Sieben 10.) 22C- Sharon Sealy 11.) 79 Dominick Amato 12.) 12M- Mike Frye 13.) Nate Oropallo 14.) 5- Chuck Lohmeyer 15.) 75- Mollie Mroz 16.) 5AM- Adam Mudge 17.) 28- Brett Grey
Factory Stocks
WINNER- 7R- TOMMY GROOVER
2.) 28- Charlie Gilbert 3.) 57- Jason Rhodes 4.) 5T- Charlie Towner 5.) 27M- Kevin MacDonald 6.) 9 3/4- Ned Fitch 7.) 617- Austin Manzer 8.) 9X- Alecia Towner 9.) 74- John Picchio 10.) 4- Rick Glover 11.) 22- Michelle Romanik 12.) 3- CJ Swanson 13.) 3S- Caden Swanson
Gary’s U-Pull It 4 Cylinders
WINNER- 107- TIM VANDERMARK
2.) 8W- Rich Wagner 3.) 17- Mike Ferris 4.) 324- Andy Bolles 5.) 8K- Josh Gunn 6.) 5- Josh Wilder 7.) 28- Shawn Forman 8.) 15X- Todd West 9.) 16- Kenny Underwood 10.) G55- Dakota Fuller
Juniors
WINNER- 33- JOSH LANDERS
2.) 91X- Evan O’Hara 3.) 22A- Avery Decker 4.) 3- Anthony Mancini 5.) Trevor Houghton
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