Sharon Speedway
July 21, 2012
________________________________________

SAMMY STILE TAKES $2,000 FASTRAK NE LATE MODEL TOUR EVENT AT SHARON TO BECOME 8TH DIFFERENT WINNER; PAUL JABLONSKI WINS SWEENEY 604 ENGINE GIVEAWAY

By Mike Leone
(Hartford, OH)… The Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series returned to Sharon Speedway on Saturday night for the third of six appearances during the 2012 season.  Race #15 of the record 25 event slate drew a Sharon season high 42 cars on Sweeney Chevrolet Night marking the sixth time this season that over 40 cars have competed! 

Ironically the night’s two biggest winners weren’t even planning on being at Sharon when they woke up Saturday morning; however, heavy rains on Friday forced Hesston and Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway to cancel their events and sent Sammy Stile and Paul Jablonski to Sharon.  The duo would end up winning the feature and the Sweeney 604 engine giveaway respectively! 

The rookie Jablonski, of Carnegie, Pa., made his first ever Tour start and first ever Sharon appearance in his Classic Landscape, Inc. #3.  Jablonski was the final car to arrive at the speedway as he just barely made the pill draw, and received just one chance at the engine because he wasn’t a FASTRAK Weekly or Touring Series member.  Jablonski’s ticket was selected in victory lane and he took home the new engine valued at over $5,000!

Stile was planning on racing his Super Late Model at Hesston’s event, but after the cancelation decided to make his first FASTRAK start since finishing runner-up back on April 1 at Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex in the “Super Nationals I” event.  The move paid off as Stile passed Dan Angelicchio on a lap 17 restart and held off a furious charge by 10th starting Matt Latta to become the Series’ eighth different winner of the season!  The 30-lap victory was worth $2,000 as Stile has now earned $3,500 in just two FASTRAK starts!

“It was fun,” acknowledged the 41-year-old Charleroi, Pa. Late Model star.  “I was heading to Hesston, but they rained out at noon.  This car has been sitting since the first show.  I had it ready and we decided to bring it up.  Things just fell into place.  These guys are all tough.  This is a great facility and nice crowd!  This is my first time being here since 1995 when I ran on the old half-mile.  I just spent $2,000 for tires on my Super Late so this helps out.  This car is for sale and complete- they can race it tomorrow.” 

By virtue of his K&N Dash win, Angelicchio earned the pole position for the feature and sped off into the lead.  Chad Ruhlman passed Josh Double for second with Stile advancing from sixth to fourth after one lap, but John Over would slap the fence bringing out the caution with one lap scored.  Over was selected as The Brake Man “Tough Brake of the Night”.

When racing resumed, Double and Stile moved past Ruhlman for second and third respectively.  Latta was quickly on the charge and took over fourth with a three-wide move on lap three.  The event was slowed with four laps completed for a spin by Tommy Schirnhofer, Jr.  Back under green, Stile raced ahead of Double for second.  Latta moved one spot closer to the front getting by Double on lap six for the third spot.  After seven green flag laps, the caution was displayed for a spin by Chad Wright.

When green replaced yellow, it was side-by-side for the lead, but Angelicchio was able to hold on.  Ruhlman, who fell out of the top five, was able to get back to fifth on lap 12 taking the position from Andrew Satterlee.  Angelicchio and Stile were able to distance themselves from the field, while the battle for third was hot and heavy with Latta trying to hold off Double and Ruhlman. 

Mike Pegher, Jr. had moved from 22nd into eighth, but his fine run ended with a flat tire with 16 laps in the books.  This time, Stile got a great restart and used the cushion and momentum off the top side of the speedway to power past Angelicchio out of turn two.  Angelicchio then slipped high in turn four allowing Latta to grab second.  Ruhlman drove under and past Angelicchio for third on lap 20.  Fifteenth starting Max Blair moved into the top five for the first time on lap 22 as he passed Double. 

Lap 23 saw Stile slip high, which allowed Latta to close in.  Lapped traffic came into play for the first time of the event on lap 28 during the long green flag run.  Latta was able to pull even with Stile, but Stile crossed the line as the leader before Wayne Robertson brought out the event’s final caution.

Stile was barely able to hold off Latta on the restart and final two laps in his #2s to become the Series’ 34th different all-time winner in 88 events run!  “He (Angelicchio) crowded me pretty good up high on the first restart so I tried to keep pace with him,” explained Stile.  “My temperature was starting to heat up.  “I kept looking down and missing my marks.  I figured I was going to give the race away, but I got it cooled down on the last caution and just stood on it!” 

Latta, who recently won his first career Tour event at Eriez Speedway, just missed out on another $2,000 victory, but his runner-up was worth $1,000 as he recorded his sixth straight top 10 Tour finish.  Latta also picked up his third Genesis Shocks “Top Dog of the Night” $100 certificate.

“I want to congratulate Sammy, and it was a good run for Chad,” expressed the 20-year-old Conneaut Lake second-year racer.  “I want to thank all of my family and especially my brother, my mom and dad, Nick, crew guy Chad, Candy, Lisa and everyone that helps out on the car.  I wouldn’t be here without all my sponsors as well.  I was praying for no cautions, but once it came out I knew I had to get a good restart and slide him into (turn) one.  He had a good run though off the top and I was hoping he’d screw up in turn four again.  It was a great run for him though.”

Ruhlman’s third place coupled with Pegher’s DNF moved him back to second in the Series’ points.  Though it was a disappointing fourth for Angelicchio, his performance marked his sixth top five finish in 13 starts and fourth top four finish in the last six races!  Blair was fifth for his 12th top five in 15 starts. 

Sharon point leader and last week’s Mercer Raceway Park winner, Will Thomas III, came home sixth for his eighth straight top nine finish since rejoining the Tour one month ago at Sharon’s “Gary Knollinger Memorial”.  Satterlee was seventh.  Shane Weaver had a great run finishing eighth after starting 16th for his second best ever Tour finish.  Butch Lambert was ninth after missing the last two events from an accident at Pittsburgh that forced him to get his frame fixed.  Lambert didn’t even get his car back until Thursday.

Fresh off a career best runner-up in Weekly Series action on Friday night at Raceway 7, Lauren Longbrake charged from the 24th starting spot to finish 10th matching her best finish of the season.  The 14-year-old Columbus, Ohio racer also received her first Precise Racing Products “Pedal Down” $100 Hard Charger gift card for advancing the most positions (14)!

Eric Wilson finished 16th and was the final car on the lead lap to win the Utsinger’s Towing Hoosier Tire giveaway for the first time this season.

Second year racer, Bobby Pifer, led all 10 laps of the non-stop non-qualifier event for his first ever checkered flag.  The victory was worth $175 for the Pierpont, Ohio 42-year-old racer as he became the 23rd different winner in 29 non-qualifier races held all-time!

Pifer raced into the lead past Ben Black, who won last year’s Sweeney 604 engine giveaway.  John Wyer of Cambridge, Ohio was making his first ever Series start.  Wyer qualified for the feature through his heat, but came up light at the scales and missed out on transferring for the feature through his B main.  Wyer started fifth in the non-qualifier and was up to fourth after the first lap.  Wyer then passed Randy Wyant for third on lap two and Black for second with an inside move on lap four. 

Wyer ran down Pifer on lap seven.  Wyer was all over Pifer in the final three laps and pulled even on the final lap, but Pifer was able to hold on in his Charlie’s Auto Parts/Main Ave. Insurance-sponsored #6P.  Black was third over Wyant, Clay Ruffo, and Bob Diver.  Sammy Stile’s brother, W.L., finished ninth and extended his point lead in the “Wheelman” Bonus Event Challenge Series.

Satterlee, Bobby Whitling, Thomas, Sammy Stile, and Double were heat race victors.  An invert nine from the heats was pulled by Satterlee, which put Angelicchio on the pole of the K&N “Cold Air Induction” Dash.  Angelicchio picked up his second dash win, worth a $100 K&N certificate.  Ryan Montgomery was second for the $50 K&N certificate, while Ruhlman, Double, and Kugel earned $25 cash for finishing third through fifth.  The B mains were won by Andrew Wylie and Pegher. 

Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series Race #15 (30 laps, $2,000 to-win): 1. SAMMY STILE (2S)  2. Matt Latta (Bidwell B1D)  3. Chad Ruhlman (Suppa 4s)  4. Dan Angelicchio (14)  5. Max Blair (111)  6. Will Thomas III (9)  7. Andrew Satterlee (2)  8. Shane Weaver (Ruffner 325x)  9. Butch Lambert (27)  10. Lauren Longbrake (27)  11. Rocky Kugel (21KRT)  12. Tommy Schirnhofer, Jr.(8s)  13. Justin Tatlow (Kratts 81)  14. Brad Kling (Powell 100)  15. Brian Booher (Hoover 00H)  16. Eric Wilson (27W)  17. Wayne Robertson (Knapp 20)  18. Josh Double (38)  19. Bobby Rohrer (11)  20. Mike Pegher, Jr. (Geisler 1c)  21. Bobby Whitling (7W)  22. Chad Wright (6)  23. Joe Martin (55)  24. Andrew Wylie (84)  25. Ryan Montgomery (12)  26. John Over (K2).  Note: Brad Kling took a Series provisional & Brian Booher took a Track provisional.)

Non-Qualifier (10 laps, $175 to-win): 1. Bobby Pifer (6P)  2. John Wyer (16)  3. Ben Black (27B)  4. Randy Wyant (11T)  5. Clay Ruffo (14R)  6. Bob Diver (23)  7. Paul Jablonski (3)  8. Jeremy Adamik (7)  9. W.L. Stile (2$)  10. Jason Stanke (44)  11. Josh Holtgraver (00)-DNS  12. Rusty Cade (47)-DNS  13. Jason Knowles (4)-DNS  14. Junior Peters (00)-DNS  15. Jason Longwell (114)-DNS  16. Tom Copeland (98)-DNS.

Heat Winners: Satterlee, Whitling, Thomas, Stile & Double
B Main Winners: Wylie & Pegher
K&N Cold Air Induction Dash: 1. Dan Angelicchio  2. Ryan Montgomery  3. Chad Ruhlman  4. Josh Double  5. Rocky Kugel. 

Feature Lap Leaders: Angelicchio (1-16), S. Stile 17-30)
Car Count: 42

Genesis Shocks “Top Dog of the Night”: Matt Latta
Precise Racing Products “Pedal Down” Hard Charger: Lauren Longbrake
Utsinger’s Towing Hoosier Tire Giveaway: Eric Wilson
Brake Man “Tough Brake of the Night”: John Over

2012 Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series Results
Date/Track/State/Winner/# of Wins/To-Win Amount/Car Count
April 1 Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex (PA)/Max Blair (1)/$3,000/47
April 20 Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex (PA)/Mike Pegher, Jr. (1)/$1,200/42
May 13 Eriez Speedway (PA)/Max Blair (2)/$1,200/32
May 20 Humberstone Speedway (ON)/Max Blair (3)/$2,000/26
May 26 Sharon Speedway (OH)/Max Blair (4)/$1,500/34
May 27 Sharon Speedway (OH)/Feature to be made up 8/18/12/$1,500/31
June 8 Dog Hollow Speedway (PA) /Max Blair (5)/$1,200/32 (41 between the 2 nights)
June 16 McKean County Raceway (PA)/Ryan Montgomery (1)/$1,200/24
June 23 Sharon Speedway (OH)/Joe Martin (1)/$2,000/35
July 4 Expo Speedway (OH)/Will Thomas (1)/$2,000/30
July 5 McKean County Raceway (PA)/Max Blair (6)/$1,200/49
July 6 Raceway 7 (OH)/Max Blair (7)/$1,200/33
July 7 Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway (PA)/Chad Ruhlman (1)/41
July 14 Mercer Raceway Park (PA)/Will Thomas III (2)/24
July 21 Sharon Speedway (OH)/Sammy Stile (1)/42

The next race for the Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series will be on Saturday, August 11 at Black Rock Speedway for the $3,000 to-win “Empire State Classic”.