Bill Emig Memorial To Feature RUSH Late Model Tour At Sharon

By Mike Leone

Hartford, OH May 22, 2013 Sharon Speedway will celebrate the Memorial Day Weekend by hosting two events with complete shows both Saturday and Sunday nights (May 25-26)! The Bill Emig Memorial “Wild Card Weekend” will feature the Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC RUSH Dirt Late Model Touring Series both nights!

Saturday night will also include the Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds, HTMA/Precise Racing Products Econo Mods and Deforest Used Parts Mini Stocks, while Sunday night’s program will also have the Governor Insurance Agency DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds, Open Stock Cars, and the Mini Stocks. All divisions will be racing for increased payouts. Race time is 7 p.m. both nights.

“We are really looking forward to the weekend,” stated General Manager Dave Willoughby. “We tried this two-day Memorial Day Weekend format last year, but the weather ruined Sunday’s event. It’s looking like a beautiful weekend so we invite everyone out to enjoy two big days of racing.”

After a wildly successful debut on April 20 at Hagerstown Speedway, the Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC RUSH Dirt Late Model Series comes to Sharon Speedway to continue a busy holiday weekend after a scheduled event Thursday at McKean County Raceway. The weekend is expected to draw competitors from Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New York, Maryland, Delaware, and Ontario, Canada.

RUSH will compete in complete events each night paying $1,500 to-win as part of the “Bill Emig Memorial” and will also be eligible for the “Wild Card Weekend” point fund. An extra $1,500 will be posted with $500 going to the champion using overall points for the weekend plus a nightly card draw to add to those scores.

Former Bill Emig driver, John Buzzard, will be remembered with a dash held each night that will pay $100 to-win. Also, TurboStart Batteries will award one lucky RUSH racer a 16-volt racing battery by luck of the draw! Drivers will get one chance each night.

Former Seattle Seahawk, Rick Singleton leads the Sweeney RUSH Tour to Sharon following his Hagerstown win and has a two-point lead on Maryland driver Glenn Elliott. All of the top Touring racers will be on hand in addition to Sharon’s regulars that have the advantage of competing in five weekly Sharon events to date. Dennis Lunger, Jr. is the current Sharon point leader with two victories, while 2011 and 2012 champions Josh Double and Will Thomas III have also been victorious this season in addition to Touring regular Mike Pegher, Jr.

The Governor Insurance DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds have gotten off to a strong start with solid car counts and five different winners! The ground-pounding big blocks will share the top billing with RUSH on Sunday paying $1,500 to-win as well. The Kings started off the year victorious with Rex, Jr. winning opening night followed by Rex, Sr. The veterans continued to shine the last three weeks with Jim Weller, Brian Swartzlander, and Dave Murdick all picking up victories. King, Sr. currently has just a two-point advantage on Weller.

It could easily be argued that the Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds have been putting on the best racing week in and week out. Strong car counts and quality racing have been the norm. The ante will be upped on Saturday as the Mods battle for $750 to-win, $100 to-start in their 20-lap feature.

Defending co-champion Joel Watson has been the only racer to repeat this season, while Alan Dellinger, Jeff Johnson, Randy Hall, and most recently Bob Diver have won events. Dellinger has an 18-point lead over Mike Kinney with Shawn Shingledecker, Clayton Kennedy, and Joe Gabrielson rounding out the top five. Ironically drivers in second through fifth in points are searching for their first wins of the season.

Things will change up a little bit for the Gibson Insurance Agency Stock Cars as they’ll have the night off Saturday, but will be in action on Sunday in an “open rules” event. While the Stocks normally race for $350 to-win, Sunday’s event will pay $750 to-win and is expected to attract some outside talent. In regular Stock Car competition, Mike Clark, Tim Burns, Bryan Wagner, Paul Davis, and Bob Sloss all have a victory.

The upstart Econo Mod division continues to attract approximately 20 cars per week. The HTMA/Precise Racing Products division will be on the card Saturday night racing in a 15-lap feature paying $350 to-win. The youngsters have had their way to date with Ryan Fraley winning the first two races of his career to lead the points by nine over two-time winner Jeremy Double. Others winners have included Steve Burns, Jr. and last Saturday night Jacob Eucker became the youngest winner in the track’s 84-year history taking the win at age 12!

Rounding out the weekend card will be the Mini Stocks. And like the Barris Supply RUSH Late Models, they’ll be in action both days as well. The Mini Stocks will battle for $200 to-win each night. The track’s only three-time 2013 winner, Scott Gilliland, also has the biggest point lead of any division at 39, but with two nights of points on the line, things could really change this weekend. Bill Fuchs, Ray Gregory, last year’s champ Jim Haefke, Jr., and last Saturday’s first ever winner Travis Creech complete the top five in points.

Once again for both nights, one lucky boy and girl under the age of 14 will win a bicycle or scooter thanks to King Bros and Sharon Speedway. This promotion will continue throughout the 2013 season. The home-cooked kitchen special is fish dinner with macaroni and cheese and mixed veggies.

No annual registration fees for new cars will be charged this weekend. Pits open at 4 p.m. Saturday with grandstands at 5 and heat races slated for 7. Sunday’s gate times will be one hour earlier, but racing will still begin at 7. Grandstand admission for those 14 and over is $13 on Saturday and $15 on Sunday, while children under 14 are always free. Pit passes are $30 on Saturday and $35 on Sunday. Parking and camping is always free.

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 @SharonSpdwy.