MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – May 11, 2012 – To say Fred Rahmer knows his way around Williams Grove Speedway is an understatement.
Since claiming the 1986 Rookie of the Year, Rahmer has amassed eight track championships en route to becoming the winningest driver in Williams Grove history. He added to that list on Friday and picked up his fifth career World of Outlaws feature victory in front of a packed crowd on Night 1 of a weekend doubleheader at the historic paper-clip half-mile oval.
“Any time you get a win against this group, plus our local guys, it’s a good win,” Rahmer said. “When you respect somebody as much as most of the guys around here respect (the Outlaws), it feels really good. It’s tough to put a whole night together and end up standing here in the winner’s circle.”
The Hall of Famer timed in third quick of the season-high 45 cars. He then finished fourth in his heat race to advance to the feature and lock himself into the dash. The invert was a six, starting Rahmer fourth in the six-lap dash. He gained a position to earn the third starting spot for the 25-lap feature and then he began to play the guessing game.
“I knew watching the (Last Chance Showdown) that there was no way it could sustain life on the top the whole race,” he said. “I just hoped it gave up quick enough and it did. I saw Steve (Kinser) driving across the track in the (Last Chance Showdown) and that’s my best line. We were just fortunate that it gave up just enough right at the right time.”
Rahmer, who rocketed into second place as polesitter Jason Sides took an early advantage in the feature, peaked late in the race. Midway through the event Rahmer fell to fourth place as Greg Hodnett began to work his way toward the front.
Hodnett passed Daryn Pittman and Rahmer to advance to the runner-up position on lap 13. Hodnett reeled in Sides through lapped traffic and slid for the lead in turn four on lap 19.
At that time Rahmer also found a groove and advanced to second on the ensuing lap. He then passed Hodnett for the top spot as the duo exited turn two on lap 21.
“I thought we were pretty decent,” Hodnett said. “I was floating around, not really running the bottom, not really running the top. I just kept doing what I was doing and I think it kind of took half rubber on the bottom of (turn) four. I just kept sliding by it and I was having to slow down too much to get to it.”
The only caution came on lap 22 as Sides appeared to have something break in the front of his car entering turn one while running fourth. He spun up the track and had to be towed to the pits.
Rahmer lined up on the inside for the double-file restart and checked out during the last four laps. Pittman slid Hodnett for second place in the final couple of laps.
“To be good enough to race with Fred and actually pass Hodnett back, those guys have been really good and we haven’t even been in their league,” Pittman said. “It’s fun to be competitive again.
“Every time I thought I had something figured out I’d change around and get better. The track really, really changed a lot as the race went on. That was fun driving it, so that had to have been fun to watch.”
For Hodnett, it was a disappointing end to a promising night in his return to a sprint car. It was Hodnett’s first race back since his father, Hoyette, passed away last Saturday.
“We want to come out with a win every night, but this one would have been pretty nice,” he said. “Obviously we’re going to try again tomorrow, but I really wanted to win this one and it just didn’t work out.”
Danny Dietrich, who claimed his first career World of Outlaws win on Thursday at Lincoln Speedway, finished fourth and Steve Kinser led the Outlaws with a fifth-place finish.
Stevie Smith was sixth, Don Kreitz Jr. placed seventh and Sammy Swindell earned the KSE Hard Charger Award after driving from 23rd to eighth. He also reclaimed the World of Outlaws points lead, which has swapped each of the past seven races.
Craig Dollansky, who set quick time with a lap of 17.118 seconds, finished ninth and Lucas Wolfe rounded out the top 10.
Dietrich, Hodnett, Smith and Wolfe each claimed a heat race victory. Kinser won the Last Chance Showdown and Paul McMahan was victorious in the C Main.
The Outlaws return to Williams Grove on Saturday for a full night of racing that includes not only the 30-lap A-main, but also the Morgan Cup Challenge featuring PA Posse drivers against World of Outlaws drivers in a 12-lap dash.
Williams Grove Speedway Notebook
CONTINGENCY WINNERS – Penske Shocks ($100 certificate): Brian Montieth; MSD Ignitions ($50 cash): Daryn Pittman; Comp Cams ($50 certificate): Daryn Pittman; Armor All (case of product): Daryn Pittman; STP ($50 cash): Daryn Pittman; UNOH ($50 cash): Steve Kinser; Gravely Tractors ($50 cash): Sammy Swindell; VP Racing Fuel ($50 cash): Craig Dollansky; Comp Cams ($50 cash): Lucas Wolfe; JE Pistons (set of rings): Kerry Madsen; Cometic Gasket ($50 cash): Kerry Madsen; Wix Filters ($50 cash): Joey Saldana; Superflow ($50 cash): Joey Saldana; JE Pistons ($50 cash): Alan Krimes; JE Pistons (set of rings): Jason Sides; MSD Ignitions ($25 cash): Kraig Kinser; Klotz Synthetic Lubricants ($50 cash): Donny Schatz.
WINNERS – Sammy Swindell – 4 (Eldora Speedway on May 5, Knoxville Raceway on April 28, Missouri State Fair Speedway on April 20 and Merced Speedway on March 30); Donny Schatz – 3 (Farmer City Raceway on April 25, Silver Dollar Speedway on March 23 and Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19); Craig Dollansky – 2 (Tri-State Speedway on April 21 and Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19); Tim Kaeding – 2 (Thunderbowl Raceway on March 16 and The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8); Joey Saldana – 2 (Paducah International Raceway on April 13 and Perris Auto Speedway on March 10); Danny Dietrich – 1 (Lincoln Speedway on May 10); Chad Kemenah – 1 (Eldora Speedway on May 4); Danny Lasoski – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 18); Fred Rahmer – 1 (Williams Grove Speedway on May 11).
TIME TRIALS – Craig Dollansky was the fastest qualifier around the half-mile oval with a time of 17.118 seconds to earn five championship points. Also earning points were Joey Saldana (4 points), Fred Rahmer (3), Jason Sides (2) and Steve Kinser (1).
WE’RE ONLINE – Make sure to check out WorldofOutlaws.com for the latest news and results, plus exclusive driver interviews, video and pictures. Also listen to every event live at DIRTVision.com .
Williams Grove Speedway Statistical Report; Mechanicsburg, Pa.; May 11, 2012
A-Main – (25 Laps) – 1. 51-Fred Rahmer [3] [$8,000]; 2. 27-Daryn Pittman [2] [$4,000]; 3. 39-Greg Hodnett [6] [$2,500]; 4. 48-Danny Dietrich [4] [$2,200]; 5. 11-Steve Kinser [11] [$2,100]; 6. 19-Stevie Smith [5] [$2,000]; 7. 69K-Don Kreitz [12] [$1,800]; 8. 1-Sammy Swindell [23] [$1,600]; 9. 7-Craig Dollansky [8] [$1,500]; 10. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [9] [$1,300]; 11. 7L-Chad Layton [10] [$1,200]; 12. 29-Kerry Madsen [14] [$1,100]; 13. 21-Brian Montieth [20] [$1,000]; 14. 9-Joey Saldana [7] [$700]; 15. 77-Aaron Ott [18] [$600]; 16. 30C-Lance Dewease [13] [$600]; 17. 15-Donny Schatz [24] [$600]; 18. 87-Alan Krimes [15] [$600]; 19. 11K-Kraig Kinser [25] [$]; 20. 19M-Brent Marks [21] [$600]; 21. 7S-Jason Sides [1] [$600]; 22. 98-Danny Lasoski [17] [$600]; 23. 63-Chad Kemenah [19] [$600]; 24. 30-Doug Esh [22] [$600]; 25. 5-Jac Haudenschild [16] [$600]; 26. 44-Frank Cozze [26] [$]. Lap Leaders: Jason Sides 1-18, Greg Hodnett 19-20, Fred Rahmer 21-25. KSE Hard Charger Award: 1-Sammy Swindell [+15].
Qualifying – 1. 7-Craig Dollansky, 17.118; 2. 9-Joey Saldana, 17.135; 3. 51-Fred Rahmer, 17.184; 4. 7S-Jason Sides, 17.231; 5. 11-Steve Kinser, 17.274; 6. 69K-Don Kreitz, 17.308; 7. 27-Daryn Pittman, 17.368; 8. 30C-Lance Dewease, 17.391; 9. 29-Kerry Madsen, 17.396; 10. 87-Alan Krimes, 17.396; 11. 5-Jac Haudenschild, 17.399; 12. 7L-Chad Layton, 17.405; 13. 48-Danny Dietrich, 17.416; 14. 39-Greg Hodnett, 17.431; 15. 19-Stevie Smith, 17.506; 16. 5W-Lucas Wolfe, 17.514; 17. 98-Danny Lasoski, 17.529; 18. 77-Aaron Ott, 17.530; 19. 63-Chad Kemenah, 17.540; 20. 2-Ryan Bohlke, 17.564; 21. 21-Brian Montieth, 17.565; 22. 19M-Brent Marks, 17.579; 23. 44-Frank Cozze, 17.595; 24. 30-Doug Esh, 17.631; 25. 16-Gerard McIntyre, 17.671; 26. 5G-Curt Michael, 17.707; 27. 1-Sammy Swindell, 17.708; 28. 1Z-Sam Hafertepe Jr, 17.711; 29. 15-Donny Schatz, 17.742; 30. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 17.752; 31. 11C-Cory Haas, 17.757; 32. 35-Justin Henderson, 17.761; 33. 15A-Adam Wilt, 17.810; 34. 747-Davey Sammons, 17.811; 35. 4-Cody Darrah, 17.813; 36. 13-Paul McMahan, 17.820; 37. 69-Ryan Smith, 17.835; 38. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 17.840; 39. 17B-Steve Buckwalter, 17.849; 40. 75-Nicole Bower, 17.920; 41. 8R-Michael Ruttkamp, 17.941; 42. 3W-Sheldon Haudenschild, 17.968; 43. 6-Bill Rose, 18.034; 44. 12W-Troy Fraker, 18.172; 45. 20S-Derek Sell, 18.253.
Heat 1 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 48-Danny Dietrich [1]; 2. 7-Craig Dollansky [4]; 3. 29-Kerry Madsen [2]; 4. 98-Danny Lasoski [5]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [8]; 6. 11-Steve Kinser [3]; 7. 21-Brian Montieth [6]; 8. 20S-Derek Sell [12]; 9. 15A-Adam Wilt [9]; 10. 69-Ryan Smith [10]; 11. 8R-Michael Ruttkamp [11]; 12. 16-Gerard McIntyre [7].
Heat 2 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 39-Greg Hodnett [1]; 2. 9-Joey Saldana [4]; 3. 87-Alan Krimes [2]; 4. 69K-Don Kreitz [3]; 5. 77-Aaron Ott [5]; 6. 19M-Brent Marks [6]; 7. 5G-Curt Michael [7]; 8. 1S-Logan Schuchart [10]; 9. 747-Davey Sammons [9]; 10. 11K-Kraig Kinser [8]; 11. 3W-Sheldon Haudenschild [11].
Heat 3 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 19-Stevie Smith [1]; 2. 27-Daryn Pittman [3]; 3. 5-Jac Haudenschild [2]; 4. 51-Fred Rahmer [4]; 5. 1-Sammy Swindell [7]; 6. 63-Chad Kemenah [5]; 7. 4-Cody Darrah [9]; 8. 11C-Cory Haas [8]; 9. 44-Frank Cozze [6]; 10. 6-Bill Rose [11]; 11. 17B-Steve Buckwalter [10].
Heat 4 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [1]; 2. 7L-Chad Layton [2]; 3. 7S-Jason Sides [4]; 4. 30-Doug Esh [6]; 5. 30C-Lance Dewease [3]; 6. 1Z-Sam Hafertepe Jr [7]; 7. 35-Justin Henderson [8]; 8. 2-Ryan Bohlke [5]; 9. 13-Paul McMahan [9]; 10. 12W-Troy Fraker [11]; 11. 75-Nicole Bower [10].
Dash – (6 Laps, finishing order determined first 10 starting positions of A-feature) – 1. 7S-Jason Sides [3]; 2. 27-Daryn Pittman [2]; 3. 51-Fred Rahmer [4]; 4. 48-Danny Dietrich [7]; 5. 19-Stevie Smith [9]; 6. 39-Greg Hodnett [8]; 7. 9-Joey Saldana [5]; 8. 7-Craig Dollansky [6]; 9. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [10]; 10. 7L-Chad Layton [1].
C-Main – (10 Laps – Top 2 finishers transfer to the B-feature) – 1. 13-Paul McMahan [2] [-]; 2. 69-Ryan Smith [3] [-]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [4] [$125]; 4. 17B-Steve Buckwalter [5] [$125]; 5. 75-Nicole Bower [6] [$125]; 6. 12W-Troy Fraker [10] [$100]; 7. 4-Cody Darrah [1] [$100]; 8. 6-Bill Rose [9] [$100]; 9. 3W-Sheldon Haudenschild [8] [$100]; 10. 8R-Michael Ruttkamp [7] [$100]; 11. 20S-Derek Sell [11] [$100].
B-Main – (12 Laps – Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 11-Steve Kinser [1] [-]; 2. 63-Chad Kemenah [2] [-]; 3. 19M-Brent Marks [5] [-]; 4. 21-Brian Montieth [4] [-]; 5. 11C-Cory Haas [11] [$200]; 6. 2-Ryan Bohlke [3] [$180]; 7. 44-Frank Cozze [6] [$175]; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser [10] [$160]; 9. 1Z-Sam Hafertepe Jr [9] [$150]; 10. 15A-Adam Wilt [13] [$150]; 11. 13-Paul McMahan [15] [$150]; 12. 16-Gerard McIntyre [7] [$150]; 13. 35-Justin Henderson [12] [$150]; 14. 5G-Curt Michael [8] [$150]; 15. 747-Davey Sammons [14] [$150]; 16. 69-Ryan Smith [16] [$150].
World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Top 20 Championship Standings
| Pos. | Driver |
Total |
Diff |
Wins |
T5s |
T10s |
QT |
| 1 | Sammy Swindell |
2347 |
0 |
4 |
9 |
13 |
3 |
| 2 | Donny Schatz |
2339 |
-8 |
3 |
7 |
14 |
0 |
| 3 | Steve Kinser |
2293 |
-54 |
0 |
7 |
12 |
0 |
| 4 | Joey Saldana |
2292 |
-55 |
2 |
7 |
12 |
2 |
| 5 | Kraig Kinser |
2212 |
-135 |
0 |
4 |
11 |
2 |
| 6 | Craig Dollansky |
2206 |
-141 |
2 |
6 |
9 |
2 |
| 7 | Jason Sides |
2084 |
-263 |
0 |
5 |
9 |
0 |
| 8 | Chad Kemenah |
2080 |
-267 |
1 |
2 |
6 |
2 |
| 9 | Cody Darrah |
2061 |
-286 |
0 |
3 |
5 |
0 |
| 10 | Lucas Wolfe |
2044 |
-303 |
0 |
1 |
5 |
0 |
| 11 | Kerry Madsen |
1986 |
-361 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
0 |
| 12 | Bill Rose |
1703 |
-644 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
| 13 | Jac Haudenschild |
1315 |
-1032 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
| 14 | Terry McCarl |
1236 |
-1111 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
| 15 | Paul McMahan |
1148 |
-1199 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| 16 | Austen Wheatley |
1096 |
-1251 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
| 17 | Jason Meyers |
1054 |
-1293 |
0 |
3 |
4 |
1 |
| 18 | David Gravel |
1044 |
-1303 |
0 |
2 |
4 |
2 |
| 19 | Danny Lasoski |
1012 |
-1335 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
0 |
| 20 | Daryn Pittman |
966 |
-1381 |
0 |
3 |
4 |
1 |