By Kasey Kreider
In front of a packed house full of fathers and fans of all things fast, the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway provided thrilling action from start to finish on Father’s Day Eve. A fast and furious quarter midget exhibition for the future stars of the Clyde set the tone for the rest of the night, as the Hyper Racing 600 divisions stole the show with two wild finishes, and all five classes featured a driver making their first trip of the season to victory lane.
270
After a start to the season plagued by misfortune, Mike Skias finally had Lady Luck on his side. Aided by pole position and a few timely yellows, last year’s Clyde Martin Memorial winner drove the wheels off of his No. 8s Viper Chassis to turn a year filled with bad breaks into a trip to the winner’s circle after 25 tough laps.
Skias led early from the top spot, but had company throughout the entire first run in the form of Bridgeport, NJ native Alex Swift, who never had his No. 15 Johnny Blanda Racing ride more than about three car lengths off the tail tank of the leader.
It looked as if things were about to get spicy as the front runners caught lapped traffic, but Dave Labe’s flip in turn 1 brought out the caution on lap 10 and brought momentary relief for Skias, as the caution kept him from having to deal with the snarling pack of lapped cars.
The next run of the race was nearly a carbon copy of the first. Skias pulled away by a few car lengths in clean air, and he had lapped cars in his sights once again when the caution waved with eight laps to go. The yellow flew for a rare motor issue for points leader Jason Swavely, and it pretty much ensured the Skias would be done dealing with lapped traffic for the remainder of the race.
Swift also had gremlins strike his car under the caution, as he felt something amiss and pulled into the infield just prior to the restart. That moved Bradley Brown, making his return to the 270 class in substitution driving for Nick Skias, into the runner-up spot.
But with Skias’ main rival for the win out of the picture, the Sinking Spring, PA native was able to check out over the last couple of restarts and avoid any challenges from behind en route to the checkered flag.
Skias scored his first win since that Clyde Martin Memorial race triumph nearly 11 months ago, while Brown held on for second and Brandon Heist put Mike Rutherford’s 450 on the podium in third. Josh Stoyer finished fourth, and Anthony Yerger came from 14th to round out the top five.
Results:
1. 8S-Mike Skias[1]; 2. 3S-Bradley Brown[4]; 3. 45O-Brandon Heist Sr[9]; 4. 3-Josh Stoyer[7]; 5. 5A-Anthony Yerger[14]; 6. 22-Clinton Hauser[6]; 7. 11R-Tommy Rinck[5]; 8. 34-Christi Sweigart[17]; 9. 27O-Billy Logeman[11]; 10. 17-Kyle Lindsey[20]; 11. 48-Jonah Meck[21]; 12. 21D-Dave Williams[15]; 13. 19-Matt Fernsler[23]; 14. 4-Dylan Pence[19]; 15. 49W-Johnny West[24]; 16. 23K-Courtney Kupp[2]; 17. 74F-Cody West[22]; 18. 2-Mike Miller[16]; 19. 15-Alex Swift[3]; 20. 92-Jason Swavely[12]; 21. 52K-Alex Lukacs[8]; 22. 17J-Jarrett Imler[13]; 23. 91-Jack Redcay[18]; 24. 1L-Dave Labe[10]
Points (Top 5):
1. 92-Jason Swavely[562]; 2. 17-Kyle Lindsey[-34]; 3. 11R-Tommy Rinck[-52]; 4. 8S-Mike Skias[-103]; 5. 48-Jonah Meck[-110]
Mike Skias led all 25 laps of the A-Main to score his first win of the season in the 270s. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
125/4 Stroke
Young drivers such as Chris Dolan, John Maurer, and Matt Fernsler had ruled the 125/4 Stroke division over the past several weeks of racing at the Clyde. But don’t tell former 4 Stroke champion Mike Coen that the youth movement is in full swing. The Shamokin, PA driver showed the kids how it was done, grabbing the lead from Don Hess and holding off Dolan’s late charge to grab his first win since last September.
Hess and Coen made up an all-4 Stroke front row for the A-Main, and the increasingly fast No. 15H led in the early going with Coen tucking in line in second. Hess began to struggle coming off the corners, though, and the door was opened for Coen to make the pass, as he shot to the bottom on lap 7 and snagged the top spot away.
Justin Harrington became the second points leader in as many features to suffer mechanical woes, as his stopped vehicle brought out the first yellow flag on lap 10. Former Sportsman champion Steve Simmons made his way into the runner-up spot on the restart and brought Dolan with him, as he continued his climb from sixth.
On a 13-lap green-flag run to the finish, Dolan was able to make the pass on Simmons for second and began trying to track down Coen, who was more than 1.5 seconds up the road. Dolan methodically chipped into the gap over the final laps, but needed just a little more help to catch the No. 26c. It looked as if lapped traffic could provide that last little assistance, but when Dolan got checked up behind a few of the cars with just a couple laps remaining, that spelled the end of the charge.
So it was Mike Coen who turned what he called one of the best cars he’s ever had at the Clyde into a winner, with Dolan coming home in second and Simmons completing the podium. Maurer finished in fourth, with Fernsler just behind in fifth.
Results:
1. 26C-Michael Coen[2]; 2. 7D-Chris Dolan[6]; 3. 16-Steve Simmons[3]; 4. 82-John Maurer[4]; 5. 19-Matt Fernsler[9]; 6. 15H-Don Hess[1]; 7. 8-Michael Spadafora[8]; 8. 32-Michael Hoffmaster[7]; 9. 44-Riley Simmons[15]; 10. 04-Sam Borger[13]; 11. 14-Seth Gregory[10]; 12. 81-Dylan Holmes[12]; 13. 66-Tommy Ratchford[19]; 14. 78C-Sara Borror[18]; 15. 112-Dylan Yeingst[14]; 16. 15-Alyssa Holmes[5]; 17. 21S-Dale Speraw[17]; 18. 22J-Jarrid Hellinger[20]; 19. 4-Michael Miller[11]; 20. 75-Justin Harrington[16]
Points (Top 5):
1. 75-Justin Harrington[585]; 2. 19-Matt Fernsler[-25]; 3. 82-John Maurer[-35]; 4. 32-Michael Hoffmaster[-42]; 5. 16-Steve Simmons[-53]
Mike Coen took his No. 26c to victory lane for the first time this year in the 125/4 Strokes. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Hyper Racing Winged 600
For the second straight week, the Hyper Racing Winged 600 class was filled to the brim with a full field of entries vying for the checkered flag. More cars also leads to more frequent and more heavy lapped traffic. And on a multi-groove Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, that lapped traffic set the stage for a dramatic finish that saw Christian Bruno rip the win away from Bradley Brown in the final half-lap of the race.
Brown started on the outside pole for the feature, and took the lead away from Billy Logeman running the high side just a few laps into the race. Bruno followed the No. 23 up through the field in short order, and through a few early cautions, found himself in the second spot by lap 6.
While the race struggled to get into a flow early, the final caution of the event ultimately flew on lap 12, meaning that a 14-lap green-flag run separated either Brown or Bruno from their first Winged 600 wins of the year.
In clear racetrack, it seemed like no contest, as “The Highsider” had the field covered on that top line. As Brown approached the back of the field, he was fortunate that several of the lapped cars were running on the bottom, giving him the chance to get by pretty much unimpeded.
But with about three laps to go, Brown got to the cars that were racing side-by-side for position, and with nowhere to go but the middle, Brown stayed in line behind Cody West’s lapped vehicle as Bruno ate chunks out of the gap.
After pedaling hard behind the wheel of Chris Snyder’s No. 5 Hyper Chassis, Bruno got to Brown on the white flag lap, and with Brown staying up top through turns 3 and 4, Bruno wrapped the tires around the corner and used the West machine as a pick to box Brown in behind him. All three cars had a coming together down the frontstretch, but it was Bruno who got to the flag first while West and Brown crashed into turn 1.
The defending Labor Day Shootout winner picked up his first Lanco win of 2023 with the huge charge at the end, while a frustrated Brown finished with a runner-up result and a torn up race car. Behind them came Brian Carber, who rounded out the podium but couldn’t get to the front two. Jason Swavely finished fourth, and Holden Eckman came home in fifth.
Results:
1. 5-Christian Bruno[5]; 2. 23-Bradley Brown[2]; 3. 9C-Brian Carber[11]; 4. 14-Jason Swavely[6]; 5. 11H-Holden Eckman[10]; 6. 3-Ryan Groff[13]; 7. 8-Kyle Lick[19]; 8. 17-Brent Ely[12]; 9. 15P-Christopher Panczner[22]; 10. 43-Caleb Scarborough[20]; 11. 75-Mark Yoder[16]; 12. 11Z-Zachary Light[4]; 13. 117-Cody West[3]; 14. 53S-Shannon Slaughter[17]; 15. 23X-Beckham Malone[9]; 16. 51-Ryan Hook[15]; 17. 97-Billy Logeman[1]; 18. 66A-Marvin Albright[23]; 19. 0K-Pat Kelly[21]; 20. 2K-Nathan Miller[8]; 21. 71-Brian Kramer[14]; 22. 75K-Jarid Kunkle[18]; 23. 87C-Cecelia Perrotti[7]; 24. (DNS) 5A-Anthony Yerger
Points (Top 5):
1. 14-Jason Swavely[617]; 2. 23-Bradley Brown[-106]; 3. 88-Nick Skias[-166]; 4. 5-Christian Bruno[-167]; 5. 97-Billy Logeman[-181]
Christian Bruno chased down Bradley Brown in lapped traffic and made the pass for the win in the final corner of the Hyper Racing Winged 600 A-Main. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman
Courtney Kupp had been close multiple times to finishing on the podium and parking her No. 23K on the frontstretch victory lane. On this night, it all finally came together, and she did so in style, crossing the finish line in second place before eventually being awarded her first career victory.
Corey Schmuck, Jr. started from the pole position and led the first 17 laps of green flag running, while Kupp settled in line in the second position. A spin by Tyler Martin in turn 4 slowed the action on lap 18, and set up what appeared to be a critical restart, with Schmuck, Jr. and Kupp at the front but Dan Lane and Max Fasnacht looking to insert themselves into the battle for the win.
Lane got a great restart, and pulled inside of Kupp for the second spot coming back to turn 1. However, something then went awry on the No. 25x, as Lane’s car slowed in front of the field before being clobbered by Bret Cronrath and a few other competitors. Lane was okay, but the car suffered heavy damage, and Cronrath was forced to retire as well, bringing an end to his streak of 11 straight podium finishes.
The single-file restart that followed saw Schmuck, Jr. leading Kupp and Fasnacht, and that’s how the three drivers would finish, as Schmuck, Jr. pulled away on the last run and took the checkered flag first.
On the frontstretch victory lane, Kupp celebrated her first podium as if she had won the race. And as it turned out, she did. Schmuck, Jr.’s car did not pass the post-race technical inspection, meaning that Kupp would receive credit for the victory after the best run of her career.
Fasnacht was promoted to second after a fantastic night in his own right, while Josh Stoyer moved to third, Mike Kreiser came home fourth, and Justin Harrington completed the top five.
Results:
1. 23K-Courtney Kupp[3]; 2. 20-Max Fasnacht[9]; 3. 15-Josh Stoyer[12]; 4. 77-Michael Kreiser[4]; 5. 1J-Justin Harrington[6]; 6. 22-Clinton Hauser[7]; 7. 21-Alex Lukacs[15]; 8. 8-Michael Spadafora[19]; 9. 28-Kyle Lindsey[20]; 10. 21D-Dave Williams[10]; 11. 30-Ryan Heckman[21]; 12. 31-Tyler Martin[11]; 13. 53-Jared St John[13]; 14. 08-Nate Gibble[16]; 15. 19-Wes Fasnacht[8]; 16. 77J-Jade Smith[2]; 17. 4W-Brandon Worthington[18]; 18. 54-Lisa Warren[14]; 19. 25X-Dan Lane Jr[5]; 20. 5-Bret Cronrath[17]; 21. (DQ) 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[1]
Points (Top 5):
1. 5-Bret Cronrath[614]; 2. 15-Josh Stoyer[-40]; 3. 25X-Dan Lane Jr[-101]; 4. 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[-104]; 5. 1J-Justin Harrington[-152]
Courtney Kupp picked up her first career win in the Skeet Craft Collision Sportsman division. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Hyper Racing Wingless 600
The Hyper Racing Wingless 600 A-Main had a lot to live up to following the wild Winged finish earlier in the night. But the wingless cars responded with what may have been the best race of the season, as Christian Bruno was back in the mix, this time with Brian Carber, all the way to the finish. Carber held off numerous challenges from the Deptford, NJ driver, including a slide-job through the final set of corners that “Big Money” crossed over on. By .003 seconds, Carber won the drag race back to the finish line.
Polesitter Michael Nolf led the first two circuits of the A-Main before Carber and Bruno found their way to the top two spots after starting third and fifth, respectively. Carber’s car had been strong in both winged and wingless competition, but as the runs wore on, it was apparent that Bruno’s No. 5 was just a little bit quicker. As is always the case when racing against the best, catching is one thing, but passing is another.
So the two drivers began trading sliders. Each time, Carber had an answer, and every successful defense gave Carber a couple laps to breathe while Bruno tried to regroup and reel him back in. Bruno’s car was free off corner exit and seemed to struggle to get the power down. But when Bruno hit it right, he would build the run he needed to make another bid for the lead.
Bruno tried a slider with a few laps left, but it didn’t work, and Carber again scampered away by a few car lengths. As Bruno tried to close back in, Carber reached the lapped car of Justin Yohn, who was running the high line and slowed up Carber just a touch. Coming to the white flag, Bruno hastily tried to get past Yohn and stay with Carber, and Yohn got turned around on the frontstretch, setting up a one-lap dash to the finish.
As the drivers ran single-file, nose-to-tail through turns 1 and 2 on the last lap, everybody in Newmanstown knew what was coming once the leaders got to turn 3. Bruno pulled off the slider to near perfection, easily clearing Carber and getting about as good of a run as possible off the top after the big move. But the multi-time Speedweek winner timed his run back down the hill and pulled back inside down the straightaway. A front bumper, if that, was all that separated Carber from Bruno as the Pipersville, PA native barely eked out the win at the flag.
Behind Carber and Bruno came Holden Eckman, who finally had a night where nothing went wrong and had an outstanding podium finish to show for it. Dominic Schmidt continued his incredible consistency and made up plenty of ground in the points chase as he finished fourth. And Geoff Federspiel backed up some great Lanco runs from last season by bringing home the top five.
Results:
1. 9C-Brian Carber[3]; 2. 5-Christian Bruno[5]; 3. 11H-Holden Eckman[4]; 4. 08-Dominic Schmidt[7]; 5. 21G-Geoff Federspiel[10]; 6. 3B-Dallas Damask[11]; 7. 2S-Garyt Smith[2]; 8. 7L-Chase Layser[14]; 9. 19W-Jasper Zeigafuse[16]; 10. 17-Cole Perez[6]; 11. 21-Mason Beinhower[21]; 12. 71-Brian Kramer[19]; 13. 96-Zach Jurcik[17]; 14. 8-Kyle Lick[18]; 15. 25-Kenneth Beinhower III[15]; 16. 94-Hayden Wise[23]; 17. Z29-Evan Nolf[12]; 18. Z71-Randy Nolf[20]; 19. 9Z-Nate Freed[13]; 20. 23-Bradley Brown[9]; 21. 00-Justin Yohn[22]; 22. 54-Dakota Bartlet[8]; 23. Z17-Michael Nolf[1]; 24. 22-Kyler Heiney[24]
Points (Top 5):
1. 23-Bradley Brown[493]; 2. 08-Dominic Schmidt[-15]; 3. 03-Ryan Groff[-26]; 4. 3B-Dallas Damask[-28]; 5. 16-Marty Brian[-32]
Brian Carber beat Christian Bruno to the finish line by .003 seconds to claim the Hyper Racing Wingless 600 feature win. (Photo Courtesy of Amy Williams/Amy’s Photos)
Next Saturday, June 24th will be East Coast Transponders Night at the Clyde. East Coast Transponders has put up an extra $250 to the winners in each of the five classes for next weekend, with an extra $100 going to each second-place finisher and an extra $50 going to third. It will be a regular points show for all five classes, and gates will open at 4:30 with warmups and racing set to follow at 6:00. As we kick off the months of money here at the Clyde, there has never been a better time than now to come out and LIVE the excitement that is Lanco!