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FREE "Fan Appreciation Night", autographs & a return to heat races Saturday; "Summer Jam & BBQ Series" on Friday

By Mike Leone

July 21, 2015

(Hartford, OH)…A big weekend is in store at Sharon Speedway beginning on Friday night (July 24) with the “Summer Jam & BBQ Series III� followed up by FREE “Fan Appreciation Night� presented by University Hospital on Saturday night featuring the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds, Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds, Weller Hughes Contracting & Developing RUSH Sportsman Modifieds, Gibson Insurance Agency Stock Cars, HTMA/Precise Racing Products Econo Mods, and Deforest Used Parts Mini Stocks Action gets underway at 7 p.m.

Friday’s entertainment will include the “The Next Doors�- a Doors Tribute Band at 7 p.m. followed up by the main act, “Ball & Chain� – a Janis Joplin Tribute Band at 9. Gates open at 6 p.m. The food menu will include BBQ chicken dinner, BBQ country ribs, pulled pork sandwiches, and hot sausage sandwiches. Admission is $5. Free camping is available.

Saturday’s third annual FREE “Fan Appreciation Night� will allow everyone to attend the races free of charge in the grandstands for general admission! In addition, there will be a Gold Rush for the kids behind the grandstands at 6:30 p.m. and an on-track autograph session with all the drivers and their cars during intermission. A meet and green with Princess Anna and Queen Tesla will be available for $5 that includes a photo and an autograph at 7:30. The 50/50 and beer proceeds will benefit the Wounded Warrior Charity.

We will be utilizing the former heat race format for all divisions instead of group qualifying that we have been experimenting with throughout regular events in 2015. Feature laps will revert to last year’s totals for all divisions. There continues to be no annual registration fee. We continue to encourage fans and racers to offer feedback. Feel free to e-mail dave@sharonspeedway.com or call the office at 330-772-5481.

It’s looking like the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply DIRTcar Big-Block Modified Championship is going to come down to Rex King and his son Rex, Jr. Rex, Jr., who has three feature wins, leads his father and one-time winner by just three points! The Kings opened up the season winning the first four events, but have been shutout of victory lane at the last three races as Brian Swartzlander, Jim Weller, Jr., and Ricky Richner have been victorious. Richner, Jim Rasey, and Weller are currently third through fifth in points.

Two-time RUSH Late Model Champion, Will Thomas III, currently sits atop the Summit Racing Equipment Modified standings. The Sharpsville, Pa. racer, who won Saturday’s RUSH Late Model feature, is in his first year of running open wheel cars and leads the way by 15 points over former champion Mike Kinney. Dwayne Clay and Joel Watson are third in fourth in points, while fifth is a tie between Bruce Powell and Paul Davis.

With the RUSH Sportsman Modifieds in their first year of running weekly, Greg Martin is on track to become the inaugural champion. On Saturday night, the Wilson, New York driver made a late race pass of one-time winner, Rocky Kugel, for his season’s fourth win. Nick Ritchey, another one-time winner, sits second in the Weller Hughes Contracting & Developing points 30 behind Martin. Kugel, Kole Holden, and Chelsie Kriegisch complete the top five.

The Stock Cars have raced five times in 2015 with five different winners! Rusty Moore became the newest last Saturday as the New Castle, Pa. racer captured his first ever win in the division at the track to go along with a Mod win back in 1998. Defending two-time champion, Mike Clark, is one of those winners as he leads the way by 18 over Mike Miller in his bid for three straight Gibson Insurance Agency championships! One-time winner, Brian Carothers, is third over Brian Mulichak and veteran Charlie Jasinski.

Casey Bowers and Ryan Fraley have separated themselves from the pack in the Econo Mods as the drivers to beat. Fraley won his second feature of the season last Saturday night to close within one-point of 16-year-old Bowers, who also has a pair of wins in the HTMA/Precise Racing Products-sponsored division. Keith Felicetty and Brian Foley, Jr. are third and fourth in points looking for their first career wins. Jamie Scharba is fifth.

For each of the last four Mini Stock events, new drivers have invaded and left victorious. It started with Doug Hensel followed by Andy Proper, Casey Butler, and most recently Brian Felmlee. Through it all, the division’s all-time winner and defending two-time champion, Bill Fuchs, continues to lead the Deforest Used Parts points. The Greenville, Pa. driver has opened up a 31-point lead over Michael DelliQuadri, who is in his first full season of racing. Matt Rubright, Jamie Maxwell, and Joe Keney are third through fifth in the standings looking for their first career wins.

Hovis Auto & Truck Supply will again award six complimentary pit passes for the following week; a pair going to the hard luck driver in DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds, a pair to a lucky driver in the division that competes first, and a pair to a lucky fan. Summit Racing Equipment will award $25 gift cards to the hard charger in the Modified, Stock Car, Econo Mod, and Mini Stock divisions.

Pits open at 4 p.m. with grandstands at 5, and heat races are slated for 7. Pit passes are $30. As always, children under 13, parking, and camping is always FREE! Sharon has a no carry-in cooler policy.

Sharon Speedway is owned by the Blaney, Weller, and Kirila Families and is a 3/8-mile dirt track located on Custer-Orangeville Road in Hartford, Ohio near the intersection of Routes 7 & 305. For more information, check out the website at www.sharonspeedway.com or call 330-772-5481. Become a fan of Sharon Speedway on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sharonspeedway and follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/sharonspdwy.

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