By Kasey Kreider
The return from the annual off week at the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway signifies the first foray into the heart of the season, with several prestigious and big-money races on the docket for the coming weeks. On Veterans Night at the Clyde, where all veterans and active members of the armed services received free grandstand admission into the speedway, fans were treated to some of the best on-track action of the year so far.
Hyper Racing Wingless 600
After picking up a win in his first trip to Linda’s Speedway on Friday night, Gunnar Pio decided that two wins was twice as nice, as the thrilling young driver held off defending champion Bradley Brown to score his first win at the Clyde.
Pio started third for the A-Main behind polesitter James Fries and second-place starter Dominic Foster. But the Kunkletown, PA pilot wasted no time getting to the front, as he squirted the No. 64 under both drivers through the center of turns 1 and 2 on the opening lap.
Foster’s spin in turn 1 on the second lap brought out what ended up being the only caution of the A-Main, and set up a restart with Pio and Chase Layser on the front row, with Brown waiting in the wings in third.
Brown got a great restart, getting past Layser and moving to the high line through the first set of turns. Throughout the entire run, Brown tinkered with the middle and the top, trying to find any grip to gain an advantage. But he could only maintain the gap to Pio, as he was hooked up on the bottom. Pio put a couple of lapped cars between himself and Brown as a buffer with just a few laps remaining, and that gave him all the breathing room he needed to hold on for his first win.
“The car was really good,” Pio said. “You had to really hook up on it… the track got super slick at the end… but we came out on top.”
Brown held on for another runner-up finish, while Christian Bruno came from 10th to score his second straight third-place result. Layser finished fourth, and Dominic Schmidt completed the top five.
With a charge from 20th at the green flag to ninth at the checkers, Marty Brian claimed the $100 hard charger bonus courtesy of D&D Pressure Washing. The charge also allowed Brian to retake the points lead entering next weekend’s events.
Results:
1. 64-Gunnar Pio[3]; 2. 23-Bradley Brown[5]; 3. 5-Christian Bruno[10]; 4. 7L-Chase Layser[4]; 5. 08-Dominic Schmidt[7]; 6. 2SZ-Zachery Bealer[9]; 7. 54-Dakota Bartlet[14]; 8. 71-Brian Kramer[6]; 9. 16-Marty Brian[21]; 10. 7-Shelby McLaughlin[8]; 11. 11H-Holden Eckman[13]; 12. 17-Cole Perez[17]; 13. 3B-Dallas Damask[12]; 14. $30-Dominic Foster[2]; 15. 44-Alex Heckendorn[16]; 16. 10L-Lukas Kostic[11]; 17. 3Y-Zachary Young[19]; 18. 2K-Nathan Miller[18]; 19. 1F-James Fries[1]; 20. 18-Jared Lilly[15]; 21. (DNS) 96-Zach Jurcik
Points (Top 5):
1. 16-Marty Brian[461]; 2. 23-Bradley Brown[-2]; 3. 03-Ryan Groff[-14]; 4. 08-Dominic Schmidt[-68]; 5. 3B-Dallas Damask[-72]
Gunnar Pio took the lead on the start and picked up his first career win at Lanco in the Hyper Racing Wingless 600s. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman
Back-to-back runner-up finishes before the off-week had Bret Cronrath hungry as ever to get one spot higher up the finishing order as the month of June began. This time, the two-time Sportsman champ would not be denied, as he took the lead from Dave Ravel with eight laps to go and picked up his third win of the season.
Ravel started on the pole for the event, in search of his first feature win in three years. It looked as if it could be coming his way, as he dominated the first half of the feature with Justin Harrington behind him and Cronrath trying to move through the field from eighth on the grid.
But a lap 12 caution bunched the field back up and put Cronrath well within range. The Blandon, PA native got past Harrington on the restart and stalked the No. 21v before making a bold pass on the bottom of turns 1 and 2 to take the lead. Cronrath clipped a tire in the next set of turns, which allowed Ravel to briefly reclaim the spot, but Cronrath crossed him over and took the lead for good.
Unfortunately for Ravel, his good run came to an end when he and Josh Stoyer made contact on the frontstretch, sending Ravel for a spin in front of the field. Stoyer got an opportunity to start alongside Cronrath for the restart, but couldn’t do anything with him, as the No. 5 pulled away for the win.
“It gets treacherous there when everybody’s fighting for the same real estate,” Cronrath said. “This car just rotates and she drives off the corner… if you can keep her straight coming off the corner, it usually helps.”
Stoyer finished second with Corey Schmuck, Jr. in third and Harrington holding on for fourth. After a heat race flip, Dan Lane, Jr. fought from 17th at the start to round out the top five.
Results:
1. 5-Bret Cronrath[8]; 2. 15-Josh Stoyer[10]; 3. 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[5]; 4. 1J-Justin Harrington[2]; 5. 25X-Dan Lane Jr[17]; 6. 77-Michael Kreiser[4]; 7. 8-Michael Spadafora[9]; 8. 19-Wes Fasnacht[20]; 9. 20-Max Fasnacht[6]; 10. 23K-Courtney Kupp[23]; 11. 16P-Patrick Kirn[7]; 12. 21D-Dave Williams[15]; 13. 77J-Jade Smith[18]; 14. 2T-Doug Pearson[13]; 15. 54-Lisa Warren[16]; 16. 21V-David Ravel[1]; 17. 28-Kyle Lindsey[12]; 18. 53S-Shannon Slaughter[14]; 19. 21-Alex Lukacs[3]; 20. 22-Clinton Hauser[11]; 21. 4W-Brandon Worthington[19]; 22. 31-Tyler Martin[21]; 23. 53-Jared St John[22]
Points (Top 5):
1. 5-Bret Cronrath[580]; 2. 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[-70]; 3. 15-Josh Stoyer[-96]; 4. 25X-Dan Lane Jr[-103]; 5. 1J-Justin Harrington[-198]
Bret Cronrath charged from eighth to take his third Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman win of the year. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
270
While Jason Swavely and Bill Schenck had been unbeaten in their three prior races in 2023, their match was met on this night in the form of Billy Logeman and Mike Rutherford, as Logeman finally turned weeks of speed into the first checkered flag of the season.
Anthony Yerger made his return to the 270 division after a win three weeks before by starting on the pole for the feature. But Logeman made a power move to rip away the lead on a lap 3 restart, and began to pull away as the fastest car on the racetrack.
But it wasn’t long before Swavely found his way into second, and a long green-flag run during the middle of the race seemed as if it could give the Fleetwood, PA native a chance at his fourth win of the year.
As Logeman was held up in traffic, Swavely’s best shot at the lead came with about eight laps to go, as he got a run off of turn 4 and pulled alongside Logeman back to the turn. Logeman shut the door on the No. 92 as the two drivers barely avoided contact, and the yellow flag then flew for Brianne Cronrath-Wittmer’s stopped vehicle.
That proved to be Swavely’s best opportunity, as Logeman had the quicker car all night long in clean air. The Reinholds, PA driver came across the finish line eight-tenths of a second in front of Swavely to take the victory.
“Mike puts a heck of a car together,” Logeman said. “I got real tired on that long run and I knew Jason was coming… I seen his nose once or twice and I kind of had to shut the door, but I felt that we were way too good to let it go like that.”
Josh Stoyer grabbed back-to-back podiums, following up his Sportsman finish with a third-place result in the 270s. Mike Skias turned in a great drive from 17th to fourth, and Kyle Lindsey finished off the top five.
Results:
1. 27O-Billy Logeman[5]; 2. 92-Jason Swavely[7]; 3. 3-Josh Stoyer[4]; 4. 8S-Mike Skias[17]; 5. 17-Kyle Lindsey[2]; 6. 52K-Alex Lukacs[10]; 7. 3S-Nick Skias[15]; 8. 11R-Tommy Rinck[24]; 9. 4-Dylan Pence[11]; 10. 21D-Dave Williams[12]; 11. 22-Clinton Hauser[20]; 12. 28S-Brian Sholley[8]; 13. 16-Brianne Cronrath Wittmer[9]; 14. 1L-Dave Labe[6]; 15. 96W-Chase Walker[19]; 16. 67-Cooper Schoenly[22]; 17. 5A-Anthony Yerger[1]; 18. 74F-Cody West[16]; 19. 14C-Carter Weiant[23]; 20. 21J-Josh Weiant[18]; 21. 91-Jack Redcay[21]; 22. 45O-Pat Bealer[3]; 23. 48-Jonah Meck[14]; 24. 34-Christi Sweigart[13]
Points (Top 5):
1. 92-Jason Swavely[528]; 2. 17-Kyle Lindsey[-60]; 3. 11R-Tommy Rinck[-90]; 4. 3S-Nick Skias[-112]; 5. 48-Jonah Meck[-133]
Billy Logeman held off Jason Swavely in lapped traffic and then pulled away on a late restart to win the 270 A-Main. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
125/4 Stroke
Motor issues had plagued the start of the season for Chris Dolan, the 125/4 Stroke division’s winningest driver in 2022. With the week off to reset, Dolan returned back to old form with a thrilling drive from 10th to claim his second win of the year.
The Holmes siblings, Dylan and Alyssa, shared the front row for the A-Main, and it was Dylan who led in the early laps with plenty of speed under his No. 81. But Dolan was the quickest mover through the field, as he climbed into the top five in just three laps before the caution flag flew.
While Holmes pulled away a bit on the restart, second-place runner Justin Harrington soon had company in the form of the No. 7D, as both drivers began to reel in the leader after a few laps. With excellent drive off the corners, Dolan made the pass on both drivers in the run down to turn 1. And once he took away the lead on lap 11, it was game over, as he pulled away to a multi-second advantage in lapped traffic in a race that ran green for the final 22 circuits.
“We definitely had the car to beat all night,” Dolan said. “I was really killing them off of [turn] 4, just shooting low, getting a huge run down the straightaway. When it’s hooked up like that, it’s not a lot of work to do.”
Harrington finished in second and took over the points lead, while Matt Fernsler had an impressive drive through the field in his own right, coming from 11th to third. Don Hess kept his great start to the season going with a fourth-place finish, and Mike Coen rounded out the top five.
Results:
1. 7D-Chris Dolan[10]; 2. 75-Justin Harrington[3]; 3. 19-Matt Fernsler[11]; 4. 15H-Don Hess[8]; 5. 26C-Michael Coen[5]; 6. 16-Steve Simmons[13]; 7. 32-Michael Hoffmaster[7]; 8. 8-Michael Spadafora[6]; 9. 81-Dylan Holmes[1]; 10. 14-Seth Gregory[17]; 11. 15-Alyssa Holmes[2]; 12. 78C-Sara Borror[4]; 13. 04-Sam Borger[16]; 14. 22J-Jon Hellinger[9]; 15. 82-Andrew Maurer[14]; 16. 112-Dylan Yeingst[12]; 17. 20J-Jarrid Hellinger[15]
Points (Top 5):
1. 75-Justin Harrington[551]; 2. 19-Matt Fernsler[-71]; 3. 32-Michael Hoffmaster[-76]; 4. 82-John Maurer[-86]; 5. 15H-Don Hess[-97]
Chris Dolan carved through the field from 10th and picked up a dominating win in the 125/4 Strokes. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Hyper Racing Winged 600
Jason Swavely and Jesse Maurer have been no strangers to putting on exciting battles over the years in the Hyper Racing Winged 600 division. With Maurer returning to the seat on this night, the two competitors renewed pleasantries and went at it in a hard, clean battle which saw Swavely come out on top to become the season’s first repeat winner in Winged 600 competition.
Lanco newcomer Zach Curtis and Winged 600 rookie Shannon Slaughter shared the front row for the start, but Maurer got a better start than both drivers and pulled his Groff Motorsports ride to the inside down the frontstretch and completed the pass by the time the field came back around the speedway.
Swavely got to second following a restart though, and began tracking down Maurer for the lead. The two traded the top spot briefly after Maurer got hung up behind a lapped car, and a caution on lap 9 set up a 17-lap chess match between the two veterans all the way to the finish.
Maurer pulled away by a couple of car lengths while running in the middle of the track. Swavely struggled to close, but after being forced to the bottom by a lapped car, he found speed on the inside line. Swavely threw the wing in the trunk and wrapped the tires through the turns, making the pass for the lead on the bottom with nine laps to go.
Despite a freight train of lapped cars in front of him, the defending champ was able to hold on over the final few laps to become the first two-time winner of the season in the division.
“The racing between me and Jesse is always good… I could get to him but I really couldn’t do anything with him,” Swavely said. “We got to that one lapped car and I slowed down a ton and ran the bottom, and I’m like, ‘wow, this is pretty good…’ when I went down there and got alongside Jesse, I figured, you know what, I’m gonna try it. And here we are.”
Maurer brought home a second-place finish while Christian Bruno completed the podium. Nick Skias finished in fourth, and Bradley Brown completed the top five.
After starting 18th, Cecelia Perrotti made up nine positions to finish in ninth and take home the $100 hard charger bonus from D&D Pressure Washing.
Results:
1. 14-Jason Swavely[5]; 2. 3-Jesse Maurer[3]; 3. 5-Christian Bruno[9]; 4. 88-Nick Skias[10]; 5. 23-Bradley Brown[4]; 6. 15P-Christopher Panczner[8]; 7. 17-Brent Ely[11]; 8. 21C-Zach Curtis[1]; 9. 87C-Cecelia Perrotti[18]; 10. 11Z-Zachary Light[12]; 11. 75-Mark Yoder[13]; 12. 75K-Jarid Kunkle[14]; 13. 71-Brian Kramer[16]; 14. 5A-Anthony Yerger[20]; 15. 97-Billy Logeman[15]; 16. 53S-Shannon Slaughter[2]; 17. 2K-Nathan Miller[6]; 18. 66A-Marvin Albright[24]; 19. L13-Robert Potter[21]; 20. 24T-Thomas Greve Jr[7]; 21. 44-Alex Heckendorn[19]; 22. 19-Rob Bomgardner[22]; 23. 117-Cody West[17]; 24. (DNS) 64-Gunnar Pio
Points (Top 5):
1. 14-Jason Swavely[532]; 2. 88-Nick Skias[-81]; 3. 23-Bradley Brown[-116]; 4. 97-Billy Logeman[-136]; 5. 75K-Jarid Kunkle[-143]
Jason Swavely found the bottom and found the lead, passing Jesse Maurer with nine laps to go to win the Hyper Racing Winged 600 A-Main. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Next Saturday, June 17th will be the Father’s Day Eve Special at the Clyde. All fathers in attendance will be able to receive general grandstand admission into the speedway for only $5. In addition to the five weekly classes, there will also be the annual quarter midget exhibition taking place for some of the future stars of the sport during intermission. The K.I.D. Night activity will be “My Dad Rocks,” as all kids in attendance will have the opportunity to participate in rock painting at the beginning of the night. Gates will open at 4:30, with warmups and racing beginning at 6:00. Spend your special day with dad at the races, and come out to LIVE the excitement that is Lanco!