After raining out last week The Penn Can Speedway was back in action on Friday night with all six divisions hoping to go racing. Mother Nature was not helping, but Keith Beach and crew were ready to get the track back in shape. Fans would get to see 85 drivers battle it out across all divisions. There were some new and familiar faces in victory lane on Friday and the Factory Stock bounty was claimed. It was an action-packed night despite a slight rain delay that made the track that much quicker.
The Stafursky Paving Modifieds were ready to battle after a lengthy rain delay and the field would see John Michael Phillips Jr on the pole with Travis Brockner to his outside.
Scott Stevens would throw the green off turn 4 and Phillips would take the early lead while battles would quickly take place behind him. Alex and Brett Tonkin would look low to slide past Brockner to take second and third to chase down Phillips. Lap 2 would see the first cautions of the night for Brad Shaffer spinning in turn 2 and then again off the initial restart for Brian Malcom and Nick Petrilak tangling along the front stretch wall. Phillips would select the low line for the restart with Alex Tonkin to his outside, Phillips would take the early lead while Darwin Greene Sr would look low to move around Alex Tonkin and Brett Tonkin to move into second. Brad Szulewski would try the high side to move around Alex Stanton to claim sixth, but Stanton would maintain the hold on the position. Stanton would try to defend his own position while working inside Brockner for fifth, but would not make the line work. Danny Creeden would work the high side to manuver around Szulewski to move into seventh. Lap 5, race leader Phillips would spin in turn 2 after having a solid lead over the field. Greene would be the pole sitter on the restart and would have Alex Tonkin to his outside. Out of the restart zone Greene would take off while the Tonkin brothers would battle for second with Alex emerging in second place.
Stanton and Creeden would battle each other hard for fourth place and Creeden would claim the spot using the high line. Malcolm would be making moves throughout the pack and would slide outside of Casey Plummer to claim eighth before the yellow would come out. On lap 10, Hunter Metzger would come to a stop in turn 2. Greene and Alex Tonkin would line up again and Greene would gain the early lead, but Alex Tonkin was not giving up so easily as he slid low to take over the lead. Stanton would step up to challenge Creeden for fourth but would be unable to claim the spot. Alan Rudalvage would move low to move around Szulewski to claim seventh, but the two would battle for a few laps and Rudalvage would solidify his position. Stanton would begin to slow in turn 3 and come to a stop in turn 4 resulting in the yellow coming on lap 17. Alex Tonkin would be penalized a spot for contact on Darwin Greene. Greene would lead the field in a single file restart with Alex Tonkin close behind him. The field would stretch out and Greene would claim his first win of the 2023 season. Alex Tonkin would take second followed by Brett Tonkin, Creeden and Malcom rounding out the top 5.
Greene would pull into victory lane and take a few victory laps around his car. Greene has had tremendous luck the past two weeks as he claimed the win at Afton last Saturday night. Greene stated that they have been having great luck with both of the cars and hope it continues. He would like to thank his wife for helping out in the garage and as well as his son for putting in work as well.
Erik Hines Trucking LLC 602 Crate Sportsman would see Eddie Kudrako and Brett Wooster on the front row of the 25 lap feature. Wooster would take the early lead but it would not last as no laps would be completed when the yellow came out. Marty Goodwin, David Dickey, Dave Rosa, and Allen Kellogg would all spin between turns three and four. Eddie Kudrako would be sent to the rear of the field for contact resulting in the caution. Wooster would become the new race leader with Alex Konopka to his outside. Konopka would take the early lead and Kolyn Schane would look outside of Wooster to move into second. Mike Schane would look high to battle with Ray Leonard for fourth with Mike Schane claiming the spot. Dickey would look to the highside as well to manuver around Ralph Mele for eleventh. Mike Schane would power on and use the low line to move into third over Wooster. Father and son duo, Mike and Kolyn Schane would battle door to door for two laps for second with Kolyn claiming the spot. Brad Weaver would find a groove that would work on the lowside as he passed Tommy Groover and Wooster to move up to fifth. Lap 8 would see a caution for Wooster spinning in turn two. Konopka would choose the low side to place Mike Schane on the high side. Mike Schane would claim the lead over Konopka off the restart. Once the green flag was thrown Weaver became a man on a mission as he manuvered his way up to fourth using the low lane to pass Mike Nagel Jr. and Kolyn Schane. Groover would follow in Weaver’s tire marks as he would pass Kellogg and Kolyn Schane to move into fifth. By lap 15, the field was spread out and leader Mike Schane would begin to catch the rear of the field. Mike Schane would claim the win followed by Konopka, Leonard, Weaver and Groover rounding out the top five.
Mike Schane would pull into victory lane and would give kudos to Keith Beach for doing a great job with the track after the rain delay. Mike said they had made changes to the car from the heat to the feature, but the delay left way too much time to think if they made the right changes to the car. When asked about racing door to door with son Kolyn, Mike claims it is always fun to run against him and how Kolyn is due for a win and hopes that he gets it soon. Schane would like to thank the Longstreet family for allowing him to run the 197 machine and his sponsors: Drydene Performance Products, Sleepy Hollow Golf Carts & Turf Equipment, Applewood Farm- The Nogan’s, Candy’s Place, and many more.
A & E Tire and Auto Center 600cc Modifieds had a field of 10 cars ready to do battle and were led by Jeff Baldwin and Darwin Greene Jr. Baldwin would gain the early lead while the field quickly fought for positions. Kyle Percey, Chuck Lohmeyer and Larry Furman would go three wide for fourth with Lohmeyer claming the spot. Eric Boynton would look inside of Percey for sixth, but Percey would maintain control over the position. Percey would then step up to challenge Furman for fifth, but would stay in the sixth place spot. Lohmeyer had caught up to Greene and would take the high side to take over second. On lap 4, race leader Jeff Baldwin would come to a stop on the top of turn two and would need a tow to the pits. Lohmeyer would become the new race leader and would select the inside lane for the restart placing Greene Jr to his outside. In the restart zone, Lohmeyer would fire first and take the lead while Nate Oropallo would go high to slide past Green Jr. to take over second. The field would spread out and Lohmeyer would have a slight lead over Oropallo. Lohmeyer would take the checkered flag followed by Oropallo, Greene Jr, Percey and Boynton would round out the top five. This is the second time the 5 machine has parked in victory lane this season and was glad to be back after winning the opening night feature. Lohmeyer could hear Oropallo coming and was focusing on hitting his marks and running a clean line. He would like to thank Accuracy Automotive Inc, Sam the Beer Man, his son and dad, and Wayne Walker for the help with the car.
The Factory Stocks would be the final event of the evening with a 20 lap feature led to the green by Adam Gilbert and Rich Sharspteen. Adam Gilbert would take the early lead out of turn four. No laps had been completed when the yellow would come out for Adam Gilbert spinning in turn two. Josh Towner would be sent to the rear of the field for contact with Adam Gilbert. Sharpsteen would now sit on the pole with Charlie Gilbert to his outside. Out of turn four, Charlie Gilbert would become the new race leader while Rich Green would move inside Sharpsteen for second. Eric Beach, Justin Slezak and Sharpsteen would go three wide for third, but Slezak would move into third. Green would quickly move to the inside of Charlie Gilbert to take over the lead and would rapidly pull away. However, the lead would not last as the yellow would come out on lap 2 for debris along the back stretch. Charlie Gilbert would be the leader again and would select the high side with Green to his inside. Off the green flag, Green would take the lead while Beach would look inside of Slezak to take over third. Josh Towner would make his way up to sixth passing Sharpsteen on the inside. Beach would try his luck again by using the low line to get around Charlie Gilbert but would be unable to claim second. Green would park the 22M machine in victory lane and profusely thank the Matthews family for giving him a ride and not letting me retire because racing is too much fun for them. Green was also really excited to claim the bounty that was placed against Eric Beach and simply had fun out there.
Gary’s U-Pull It 4 Cylinders would see a 15 lap feature led by Dakota Fuller and Mike Jenks and out of turn four Fuller would take the early lead but it would not last as Rob Sterling and Collin Mills would collide in turn three. The field would go to an original restart aside from Rob Sterling and Collin Mills.The field would stay green for one lap until Jeff Sterling would slow with a flat tire resulting in a yellow and he would then return to join the tail of the field after heading pit side. Off the restart Jenks would gain the lead, but Fuller would try to go high to claim first and would stay in second. Brian Salmini would look inside of Fuller to take over second and begin to chase down Jenks. Collin Mills would move up through the pack and challenge Bryant Beach for fourth but would be unable to claim the spot. Jeff Sterling would be a man on a mission as he would quickly make his way up to fifth to challenge Beach for the fourth place spot before claiming the position.
At the halfway mark another caution would come out for Beach slowing with a flat tire and would head pit side before rejoining the field. Jenks would lead the field to a single file restart and battles would quickly follow. Shawn Mills would look to pass Jesse Lovejoy on the lowside for fifth, but Lovejoy would keep a steady hold on the spot. Jeff Sterling and Fuller would battle back and forth for third before Jeff Sterling would claim the spot. Going into turn one, Jeff Sterling took the 56 machine up high to get around both Salamini and Jenks to take over the lead, but it would not work in his favor as a yellow would fly. The final caution of the event would be for a slowing Josh Wilder in turn three before heading pit side and Shawn Mills would come to a stop at the top of turn four before being towed pit side. Jenks would lead the field again with two laps remaining, in turn one Jeff Sterling took a chance once again and put the car on the highline and passed Salmini and Jenks to take over the lead. Jeff Sterling would take home the win followed by Jenks, Salmini, Fuller and Beach would round out the top five. Jeff Sterling would claim another win in the 2023 season and it has been the most thrilling so far. He thought he wouldn’t pull off the win with getting the flat, but stuck the car where it needed to go to claim the victory. He would like to thank everyone for the work they do on the car, his dad and his fiancee Corinna for letting him do what he loves every week. He would also like to thank his sponsors: Stone Brothers Automotive, Signworks Fleet Graphic Services, Vanteger Towing & Recovery, Beach Industries, McCain Gas and Electric.
The Limited Sportman were led by Charlie Towner and Amanda Scholtisek with PJ Thomas right behind them. Scholtisek would take the early lead, but Towner was right behind her. Towner would look to the inside of Scholtisek and would take over as the race leader. Towner’s lead would keep growing and would ultimately take the win followed by Scholtisek and Thomas. Towner has had great success in his car and plans on moving up after points are done because he wants that championship. Towner would like to thank his sponsors: Nate Shay Racing, Tanner Mechanical, Glover Boxers Farm, Scentsy by Lisa White and Red Barrel Carburetors.
The Penn Can Speedway will be back in action on the 16th with all six classes on the card plus the 604 Crate Late Models. It will also be Pappy Bevan’s Memorial Night with additional laps. The Penn Can Speedway is also holding go-kart racing every Sunday with the pit gates opening at 10 am and racing starts at noon. Be sure to follow our Facebook page to stay updated on the things happening at The Penn Can Speedway.
Stafursky Paving Modifieds
WINNER - 1 - DARWIN GREENE SR
2.) 22-Alex Tonkin 3.) 27K-Brett Tonkin 4.) 16X-Danny Creeden 5.) 119-Brian Malcolm 6.) 127-Frank Yankowski 7.) 145-Alan Rudalavage 8.) 14Z-Brad Szulewski 9.) 23JR-John Michael Phillips 10.) 280-Justin Holland 11.) 014-Brad Schaffer 12.) 88-Alan Komar 13.) 73-Casey Plummer 14.) 117-Alex Stanton 15.) 66M-Matt Soblechi 16.) M85-Hunter Metzger 17.) 484-Travis Brockner 18.) 17-George Kostelansky 19.) 72-Nick Petrilak DNS 52B-Brandon Fritsch, 5-Kevin Hartnett, 84Y-Brian Franko
Erik Hines Trucking LLC 602 Crate Sportsman
WINNER - 197 - MIKE SCHANE
2.) 14K- Alex Konopka 3.) 3R- Ray Leonard 4.) 26- Brad Weaver 5.) 7R- Tommy Groover 6.) 54T- Travis Rooney 7.) M7- Mike Nagel Jr. 8.) 23- David Dickey 9.) 711X- Allen Kellogg 10.) 84- Mike Wilcha 11.) 61- Dave Rosa 12.) 711- Ralph Mele 13.) 32- Eddie Kudrako 14.) 16- Ned Fitch 15.) 11- Brett Wooster 16.) 10K- Kolyn Schane 17.) 55- Marty Goodwin DNS 44- Jim O’Hara
A & E Tire and Auto Center 600cc Modifieds
WINNER - 5 - CHUCK LOHMEYER
2.) 30NN-Nate Oropallo 3.) 1JR-Darwin Greene Jr 4.) 314-Kyle Percy 5.) 2H-Eric Boynton 6.) 117-Jeffrey Martin 7.) 67-Tori Straway 8.) 217-Larry Furman 9.) 999-Ethan Johnson 10.) 17-Jeff Baldwin DNS-1*-Alan Bibalo
Factory Stock
WINNER - 22M - RICH GREEN
2.) 28-Charlie Gilbert 3.) 617-Eric Beach 4.) 919-Josh Towner 5.) 28X-Adam Gilbert 6.) 83T-Rich Sharpsteen 7.) 19-Darren Davies 8.) 35H-Justin Slezak 9.) 44-Tom Shaffer 10.) 9J-Jordan Towner 11.) 81-Justin Lovejoy 12.) 89-Randy Matthews DNS 23S-Kyle Spoor, 711-Blake Furman
Gary’s U-Pull It 4 Cylinders
WINNER - 56 - JEFF STERLING
2.) 21MJ-Mike Jenks 3.) 77-Brian Salmini 4.) G55-Dakota Fuller 5.) 5L-Bryant Beach 6.) 18-Jesse Lovejoy 7.) 71-Rob Sterling 8.) 17-Mike Ferris 9.) 8W-Rich Wagner 10.) 08-Shawn Mills 11.) 5-Josh Wilder 12.) 23-Collin Mills 13.) 6-Tanner Million 14.) 354-Andy Bolles DNS 316-Michael Girjatowicz, 21-Scott Beach
Limited Sportsman
WINNER - 5T - CHARLIE TOWNER
2.) 88A-Amanda Scholtisek 3.) 6X-PJ Thomas