By Kasey Kreider
Any fan knows that racing, particularly at the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, is a game of inches. However, it may have come down to even less than that to decide the victor of Saturday night’s Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman feature. As Bret Cronrath pulled alongside of Clinton Hauser exiting turn 4, both drivers rushed toward head starter Mike Fry, who waved the twin checkers over what seemed to be a dead heat at the finish line. When the numbers popped up on the electronic scoring system, the margin of victory showed 0.001 seconds, the closest finish possible short of an exact tie. It was Hauser who had withstood the challenge by just that much to pick up his first victory of the season, while Cronrath would have to settle for the agonizingly close runner-up result.
In the other races on the evening, it would be T. J. Greve taking home not one, but two victories on the night. Greve would battle and hold off Brian Kramer for the victory in the Hyper Racing 600s, while also staving off challenges from Brent Shearer and Toby Blumenshine to take the win in the 270 feature. In the 125/4 Stroke feature, Justin Harrington would turn in a bounce-back performance, leading wire-to-wire and picking up the victory, while massively extending his points lead over nearest challenger Alex Lukacs in the process.
As part of the evening’s festivities for Kids Night at the Clyde, there was a quarter midget exhibition at intermission. After drivers took several laps on the track, a group photo was taken with all drivers and cars on the backstretch. (Photo Courtesy of Brandon Worthington/Mike Knappenberger Photos)
The Skeet Craft Collision Sportsmans would contest the first feature of the evening, and an inversion pill of 2 would keep all three heat race winners in the top three starting positions. Clinton Hauser would start on pole, with Brianne Cronrath-Wittmer and Robert Shanaman going off from second and third on the grid. Bret Cronrath was the quickest driver in warmups, but the handicap rule meant that he would have to come from the tenth starting position in the lineup, eventually moving up to ninth when Max Fasnacht’s car had issues prior to the green flag. The field would also feature one notable absence, as Toby Blumenshine, who entered the evening with a 54-point lead in the championship standings, would not be one of the 24 participants in the main event. Blumenshine was driving the No. 11g ride usually occupied by Nate Gibble, but gremlins that popped up in both the heat race and the consi kept Blumenshine from qualifying for the feature.
After Cronrath-Wittmer was called for jumping the race’s initial start, Hauser and Shanaman should share the front row for the second attempt. On that second attempt, Anthony Yerger, winner from two weeks earlier, would go for a flip up over the infield tires in turn 4. Despite heavy damage to the wing, Yerger would be able to continue. The third try at the start would finally see the race go green for a few laps, and in that time, Hauser was able to build up a mammoth advantage, stretching his lead to more than two and a half seconds over the race’s first six laps. A caution on lap 7 would give an opportunity for everyone to regroup, with Hauser and Shanaman still one-two, but Josh Stoyer, Jamie Flickinger, and Cronrath working their way through the field to complete the top five.
Hauser would continue to lead through the race’s middle stages, but the battle for second would brew between Shanaman, Stoyer, and Cronrath. After several restart opportunities, Stoyer and Cronrath would finally move past Shanaman around the race’s midway mark, and with ten laps to go, Cronrath would make the move into the runner-up position, with an opportunity to chase down Hauser. Cronrath would close right to Hauser’s back bumper prior to a caution with eight laps remaining. That would set the stage for the finish, as the two drivers would restart nose-to-tail for what would turn out to be the race’s final restart.
Hauser would scamper away ever so slightly on the restart, but Cronrath would pull right back up to the tail of the No. 22 machine, looking to find any opportunity to get around. Cronrath would hound Hauser all the way to the white flag, but after Hauser opened up the gap just slightly exiting turn 2, it seemed as if he may have had his first win of the season in the bag. However, Cronrath’s car would roll the bottom superbly through turns 3 and 4, giving him an opportunity to duck to the inside with a full head of steam and a great run off the corner. Cronrath would have all the momentum, but would just barely run out of time in the drag race to the finish line. By 0.001 seconds, Hauser would hang on for his first win of 2021. After parking in victory lane after the race, both drivers would immediately climb from their cars and congratulate each other on a hard-fought battle, showing a great deal of sportsmanship in the Sportsman division. On this night, though, the Emmaus, PA driver would be the one coming out on top.
Cronrath’s runner-up result would feature him setting the race’s fastest lap, with a time of 11.176 seconds. It would also see him take over the points lead, something that seemed almost unthinkable just a few weeks back. With seven points races remaining, including the double-points-paying Clyde Martin Memorial, Cronrath would leave with a 21-point advantage over Blumenshine. Stoyer would complete the podium by finishing in third, while Cronrath-Wittmer and Flickinger would bring home the rest of the top five.
Clinton Hauser edged out Bret Cronrath by 0.001 seconds to take a dramatic first victory of the season in the Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman division. (Photo Courtesy of Keegan Simmons/Mike Knappenberger Photos)
The Hyper Racing 600 feature would see Zach Light start from the pole position, looking for his second win of the year. T. J. Greve would start alongside on the front row, looking for his third 600 win of the campaign. Points leader and quick-timer in warmups Jason Swavely would roll off sixth, with heat race winners Cody West and Nick Skias behind him on row 4.
Light would lead the race’s initial laps, but not without a substantial battle from Greve, who would be side-by-side with the No. 11z machine before the caution waved on lap 4. On the restart, Light would retain the advantage on the bottom until the leaders exited turn 2. There, Greve would blast around the outside, finding just enough space between Light’s car and the outside guardrail to complete the pass. Greve would pull out to a lead of several car lengths after getting through to the point, but the challenges would not be over. Brian Kramer moved his No. 71 into the runner-up position and began closing the gap as Greve began to catch the tail of the field. Chris Panczner, rebounding from a big accident two weeks prior, would run right behind in third, keeping Kramer honest.
As Kramer closed the gap down to about two-thirds of a second, the caution would wave with eight laps remaining, giving Kramer a shot from the outside of the front row. That opportunity would be short-lived, however, as an incident in turn 4 would quickly put the field back under caution and set up a single-file restart. That restart, however, would give Kramer the opportunity to throw some slide jobs on Greve for the first few laps after the race went back green. Greve would have an answer for each move, though, and would eventually break away to a comfortable margin, leaving Kramer and Panczner to settle things for second.
The Hartly, DE driver would take home the victory by 0.927 seconds over Kramer, who was able to hold off Panczner for the runner-up spot. Greve also registered the race’s fastest lap, with a time of 10.595 seconds. Behind Panczner would come Light in fourth and Swavely in fifth. Swavely would extend his points lead from 51 to 55 over Heath Hehnly, who would finish the race in sixth.
T. J. Greve held off late challenges by Brian Kramer to take his third victory of the season in the Hyper Racing 600s. (Photo Courtesy of Keegan Simmons/Mike Knappenberger Photos)
An inversion pill of 4 would see points leader Justin Harrington, looking to bounce back from a few tough weeks of performance, start from the pole position of the 125/4 Stroke feature. The heat race winners Jarrid Hellinger, Kenny Bushey, and Mike Coen would start in positions two through four. Meanwhile, Alex Lukacs, who was quickest in warmups, would have to start the race from 12th position, as he entered just 19 points behind Harrington in the championship chase.
Harrington would break away at the start and leave Hellinger, Bushey, and Coen to battle for second over the first few laps. A caution for debris would wave on lap 2, followed by another caution on lap 3 involving Tyler Martin and John Maurer. Under that caution period, Lukacs’ car, which had already worked up to seventh, would come to a stop on the frontstretch and have to be pushed to the infield, signaling the end of his night. The ensuing restart would see Harrington break away back to the lead, with Coen moving up into second. A long green-flag run would see the race leaders have to negotiate their way through lapped traffic, which gave Coen an opportunity to close the gap to under a second as the race wound down.
A caution with eight laps to go would rerack the field, taking lapped traffic out of the equation, but also erasing Harrington’s nearly nine-tenth-of-a-second lead. Coen would give a challenge to the pilot of car No. 76 on the restart, but was unable to make a move once Harrington got clear. Coen would be left to battle Chase Layser for second as Harrington would pull away to a 1.533-second margin of victory. It would be the Manheim, PA driver’s third win of the season, and one in which he had also set the fastest lap of the race with a time of 11.658 seconds. Coen would hold off Layser for second after Layser had rallied from tenth to third. Charles Hellinger and Mike Miller would complete the top five. Lukacs, meanwhile, would be credited with a 22nd-place finish, allowing Harrington to open up his advantage in the point standings from 19 to 89 points.
Justin Harrington dominated the 125/4 Stroke feature to take his third win of the season and extend his points lead over Alex Lukacs. (Photo Courtesy of Brandon Worthington/Mike Knappenberger Photos)
The 270s would contest the final feature of the evening, and an inversion pill of 6 would put Mike Uhrich’s car on pole for the second straight points race. Toby Blumenshine would roll off from the outside of the front row, with the heat race winners Jason Swavely, Brent Shearer, and Mike Skias following behind. T. J. Greve, who was quickest in warmups, would round out the front three rows.
Unlike two weeks ago, Uhrich would actually get the chance to take the green flag from the pole position. However, it wouldn’t take long for Blumenshine to rocket his way to front, as Shearer would follow him through to second. An early caution would regroup the field, and the restart would see an issue for Swavely’s car, as he would lose power and come to a stop on the backstretch. Swavely had entered the evening with an 89-point lead in the championship, but his issues would put that margin in jeopardy, despite him being able to regain power and join back at the tail of the field. The restart would see Blumenshine and Shearer begin to battle for the lead, as Greve worked his way into the third spot. Shearer would close the gap and begin diving to the inside, trying to make the pass for the lead stick. The two would eventually make contact while battling wheel-to-wheel in turn 4, which slowed both cars down momentarily and allowed Greve to make it a three-car battle for the lead. After getting past Blumenshine, Greve was able to make the move for the lead stick on Shearer a lap or two later, and began to pull away.
Even through lapped traffic, Greve was able to maintain a comfortable advantage. But the complexion of the race would change with six laps to go, as Bradley Brown’s car slowed and brought out the caution. The restart would be set up with Greve and Shearer on the front row, and Blumenshine starting on the second row with Skias. The battle would be on, as the two leaders would trade slide jobs while making a little bit of contact in the process. The battle would come to a head with four laps to go, as Shearer would try to poke his nose to the inside coming through turns 1 and 2. The two leaders would again make contact as the door closed, knocking Shearer’s car sideways at the exit of the corner and in front of the field. There would be nowhere for Blumenshine to go, as he would make contact with Shearer’s sideways vehicle, sending it completely around and over onto its side. Skias and Andrew Dietrich would both try to take evasive action as well, but Dietrich’s car would get pinched into the outside guardrail, sending him around and leaving a solid amount of damage on his No. 88d machine. Both Shearer and Dietrich would be out of the race, while everyone else would remain running.
The battle for the win would come down to Greve and Blumenshine, and despite a couple charges to the inside by the No. 21, Greve was able to withstand those and hold on to take his second victory of the evening, and second of the year in the 270s. Blumenshine would come across 0.543 seconds behind Greve in the second position, with Mike Skias, Heath Hehnly, and Nick Skias completing the top five. Shearer turned the fastest lap of the race at 11.206 seconds, but would be credited with a 16th-place result following his incident. In the meantime, Swavely would be credited with an 18th-place finish, falling out of the race for good with five laps remaining. That would allow Nick Skias to close Swavely’s points lead down to 47, with Hehnly moving past Mike Rutherford, who did not race, and into the third position, 85 points behind.
T. J. Greve made it two victories on the evening after taking home the win in the 270 feature. (Photo Courtesy of Brandon Worthington/Mike Knappenberger Photos)
Next Saturday, July 17th will be Back to School Night at the Clyde. There will be backpack giveaways with school supplies included for some of the kids in attendance. All four regular classes will be back in action once again, with gates opening at 4:30 and warmups and racing slated to begin at 6:00. With a little over two months remaining in the season, now is the perfect time if you haven’t already to come out and LIVE the excitement that is Lanco!
Results:
Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman A-Main (25 Laps):
1. 22-Clinton Hauser
2. 5-Bret Cronrath
3. 3s-Josh Stoyer
4. 16-Brianne Cronrath-Wittmer
5. 9g-Jamie Flickinger
6. 15-Robert Shanaman
7. 21d-Dave Williams
8. 77-Mike Kreiser
9. 16p-Patrick Kirn
10. N8-Nate Gibble
11. 5a-Anthony Yerger
12. 99k-Chad Kreiser
13. 53s-Shannon Slaughter
14. 30-Ryan Heckman
15. 22s-Brett Sculley
16. 53-Jared St. John
17. 8-Michael Spadafora
18. 128-Princess Paige
19. 13s-Charles Hellinger (DNF)
20. 20-Max Fasnacht (DNF)
21. 13b-Matt Yoh, II (DNF)
22. 4-Broc Emery (DNF)
23. 26-Corey Schmuck, Jr. (DNF)
24. 19-Wes Fasnacht (DNF)
Hyper Racing 600 A-Main (25 Laps):
1. 24t-T. J. Greve
2. 71-Brian Kramer
3. 15p-Chris Panczner
4. 11z-Zach Light
5. 14-Jason Swavely
6. 5-Heath Hehnly
7. 117-Cody West
8. 23-Bradley Brown
9. 75k-Jarid Kunkle
10. 3-Jesse Maurer
11. 7w-Jayden Wolf
12. 7-Nick Skias
13. 1e-Aaron Espenshade
14. 75-Mark Yoder
15. 1j-Jonathan John (-1L)
16. 41-Logan Rumsey (DNF)
17. 42u-Tyler Ulrich (DNF)
18. 1-Will Urkuski (DNF)
19. 11-Dan Souder (DNF)
20. 28q-Austin Quick (DNF)
125/4 Stroke A-Main (25 Laps):
1. 76-Justin Harrington
2. 26c-Mike Coen
3. 7L-Chase Layser
4. 78c-Charles Hellinger
5. 3-Mike Miller
6. 19-Matt Fernsler
7. 44-Riley Simmons
8. 32-Mike Hoffmaster
9. 3x-Kenny Bushey
10. 78-Jarrid Hellinger
11. 7d-Chris Dolan
12. 17-Masen Stapleton (-1L)
13. 81-Dylan Holmes (-1L)
14. 112-Dylan Yeingst (-1L)
15. 04-Sam Borger (-1L)
16. 15-Alyssa Holmes (-1L)
17. 16c-Don Hess (DNF)
18. 28-Kyle Lindsey (DNF)
19. 82-John Maurer (DNF)
20. 5-Terry Ellex (DNF)
21. 3h-Corey Harting (DNF)
22. 44x-Alex Lukacs (DNF)
23. 26-Tyler Martin (DNF)
24. 57k-Blaire Schoenly (DNF)
270 A-Main (25 Laps):
1. 52T-T. J. Greve
2. 21-Toby Blumenshine
3. 8s-Mike Skias
4. 82-Heath Hehnly
5. 3s-Nick Skias
6. 5a-Anthony Yerger
7. 3-Pete Skias
8. 2-Mike Miller
9. 11-Mike Uhrich
10. 21d-Dave Williams
11. 27x-Tyler Grau
12. 27-Dallas Schott
13. 34-Christi Sweigart
14. 48-Jonah Meck (-1L)
15. 98-Cody Johnson (-1L)
16. 76b-Brent Shearer (DNF)
17. 88d-Andrew Dietrich (DNF)
18. 92-Jason Swavely (DNF)
19. 59j-Kayla Fetter (DNF)
20. 23-Bradley Brown (DNF)
21. 96w-Chase Walker (DNF)
22. 91-Jack Redcay (DNF)
23. 9k-Dave Labe (DNF)
24. 55x-Jimmy Wampole (DNF)
Point Standings:
Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman Point Standings (Top 10):
1. 5-Bret Cronrath (734)
2. 11g-Toby Blumenshine (-21)
3. 3s-Josh Stoyer (-103)
4. 22-Clinton Hauser (-129)
5. 26-Corey Schmuck, Jr. (-158)
6. 9g-Jamie Flickinger (-165)
7. 77-Mike Kreiser (-187)
8. 21d-Dave Williams (-190)
9. 15-Robert Shanaman (-191)
10. 99k-Chad Kreiser (-259)
Hyper Racing 600 Point Standings (Top 10):
1. 14-Jason Swavely (696)
2. 5-Heath Hehnly (-55)
3. 15p-Chris Panczner (-85)
4. 75k-Jarid Kunkle (-113)
5. 7-Nick Skias (-118)
6. 23-Bradley Brown (-126)
7. 3-Jesse Maurer (-159)
8. 11z-Zach Light (-171)
9. 2s-Mike Rutherford (-183)
10. 17-Brent Ely (-187)
125/4 Stroke Point Standings (Top 10):
1. 76-Justin Harrington (811)
2. 44x-Alex Lukacs (-89)
3. 19-Matt Fernsler (-130)
4. 7L-Chase Layser (-164)
5. 11h-Holden Eckman (-287)
6. 32-Mike Hoffmaster (-332)
7. 26-Tyler Martin (-350)
8. 26c-Mike Coen (-359)
9. 28-Kyle Lindsey (-376)
10. 81-Dylan Holmes (-384)
270 Point Standings (Top 10):
1. 92-Jason Swavely (753)
2. 3s-Nick Skias (-47)
3. 82-Heath Hehnly (-85)
4. 8s-Mike Skias (-118)
5. 27o-Mike Rutherford (-143)
6. 23-Bradley Brown (-203)
7. 52T-T. J. Greve (-217)
8. 3-Pete Skias (-237)
9. 5a-Anthony Yerger (-252)
10. 21d-Dave Williams (-257)