Asel, Flinner, Shannon & Steis Among New Winners At The Bird
11 min read
Reynoldsville- Night #2 of the 2023 racing season got underway Saturday night at Hummingbird Speedway. Four drivers visited Carns Powersports Victory Lane for the first time this season, while two others repeated as winners. In the Andy Man’s Car Care Economods, the #0 of Dennis Asel picked up the win, his first in the Economod division. In the Srock Contracting Super Late Models, it was the #48 of Colton Flinner capturing the checkered flag in his fourth career appearance at the speedway. The #11 of Kyle Shannon snapped a winless streak that dated all the way back to 2014 by winning in the Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models. Tim Steis in the #34 rounded out the drivers that took their first trip to victory lane this season with a win in the Brian Savino Motorsports Pure Stocks. Two drivers added to their 2023 win totals. The #910 of Zack Frantz (driving for Travis Timko) won both the 5/13 feature as well as the resumption of the feature from last week. In the Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks, the #101 of Bruce Hartzfeld secured back-to-back victories to start the season.
The Andy Man’s Car Care Economods kicked off the feature racing action with their 15-lap feature. Orin Taylor and Bob McMillen led the field to the opening green flag. Taylor got the lead on the start and led the opening lap over Dennis Asel and Steve Simon, as McMillen got shuffled to fourth. On lap 2, Asel looked to the inside of Taylor and made the pass to take the race lead. Simon followed Asel past Taylor to move into second. Another 2 or 3 laps were completed before the first caution flag was displayed for a spin in turns 3 and 4. On the restart, Simon got to the inside of Asel to challenge for the top spot. Simon completed the pass on the low line and led lap 6 over Asel and Taylor. Asel took the lead back from Simon one lap later. The second and final caution flag was displayed later on lap 7. On the final restart, it was Asel out to the lead over Simon and Taylor. At halfway on lap 8, Asel led the way as Taylor edged ahead of Simon for second. On lap 10, Simon worked his way back past Taylor for the runner-up position. Asel would go unchallenged in the final 5 laps as he cruised to his first win of the season and his first career Economod win. Asel was followed by: Simon, Taylor, McMillen, Nate Fleck, and Cody Stronghart. McMillen won the heat race.
Justin Finland and Troy Bennett led a near full-field of Four-Cylinders trackside for their 15-lap feature event. After a quick caution flag on the start, it was Bennett out to the lead on start. Bennett led lap one over William Kephart and Zack Frantz (who was driving for Travis Timko) as they both got around Finland for second and third respectively. On lap 2, Kephart made the pass to the inside of Bennett in turns 3 and 4 to take the race lead. A few laps later, on lap 5, Frantz made his way past Bennett for the second position. On lap 6, Camden Frantz entered the top 3 by passing Bennett for third. At the halfway mark on lap 8, it was Kephart continuing to lead the way over Zack Frantz and Camden Frantz. On lap 10, Zack Frantz used the inside line to his advantage to make the pass on Kephart for the race lead. A caution for a stopped car in turn 4 later that lap set up one final restart. Zack Frantz got out to the lead on the restart over Kephart and Camden Frantz. Zack Frantz began to extend his lead as Camden Frantz began to challenge Kephart for second. On the final lap, Camden Frantz made the pass on Kephart for second. In the meantime, Zack Frantz cruised to his first win of the 2023 season. Camden Frantz, Kephart, Bennett, Virgil Meyer, Ben Lehane, Bruce Long, Devon Trayer, Bryun Hackenberg, Jeremy Harris, Justin Finland, Adam Pluebell, Jimmy Delozier, Kevin Piper, Sam Fye, Rob Williams, Louis Young, Coty Maines, Heidi Miller, Michael Young, Shawn Hadden, and Josh Lindemuth rounded out the field. Hadden, Kephart, and Zack Frantz won the heat races.
The Srock Contracting Super Late Models were next to the track for their 25-lap feature race. Clay Ruffo and Paul Kot led the field to the green flag. Ruffo jumped out to the lead briefly on the start, but was quickly overtaken by Kot on the highside of turns 3 and 4. Kot led the opening lap over Ruffo and Colton Flinner. On lap 2, Doug Eck used the cushion to get past both Flinner and Ruffo to move into the second spot behind Kot. Then, on lap 3, Flinner made the pass to the outside of Ruffo for third. Flinner began to close in on Eck for second as the laps clicked away. Flinner caught Eck, but couldn’t make the pass before a caution for a spin in turns 3 and 4 on lap 10 set up the first restart. On the restart, Eck spun out of the second position in turns 1 and 2, bringing out the caution flag. The spin moved Derek Rodkey to third for the restart. Kot jumped out to the point on the ensuing restart over Flinner and last week’s winner Dwayne Brooks as he was able to make his way around Rodkey. At the halfway point on lap 13, it was Kot still out front over Flinner and Brooks. On lap 15, Flinner got a run to the inside of Kot and pulled a slide job in turns 3 and 4 to take the race lead. Flinner began to distance himself from the field a bit as Brooks put the pressure on Kot for second. On lap 19, Brooks made the pass on Kot for second. After one final caution flag, both Kot and Ruffo were able to get back around Brooks to move into second and third with just a few laps remaining. It was too little too late for Kot and Ruffo as Flinner held on to take the checkers in just his fourth visit to the Bird. Flinner was followed by: Kot, Ruffo, Brooks, Eck, Rodkey, Dennis Curry, Nathan Brady, and Orvis Newcome lll. Brooks and Flinner won the heat races.
Kyle Corah and Jim Challingsworth led the Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks into the 1/3 mile bullring for their 20-lap main. Challingsworth jumped out to the lead on the start and led lap 1 over Fuzzy Fields and Corah. On lap 2, last week’s winner Bruce Hartzfeld made the pass on Corah to move into the third spot behind the leaders. A handful of laps later, on lap 5, Hartzfeld made the pass on Fields to move into the runner-up position behind Challingsworth. At the cross flags on lap 10, it was Challingsworth continuing to lead the way as Hartzfeld began to slowly close in with Fields following behind them in third. Hartzfeld closed right to the back bumper of Challingsworth with just a handful of laps remaining. Challingsworth and Hartzfeld battled side-by-side for the lead as they closed quickly on a lapped car. Challingsworth got tangled up with the lapped car on lap 17, bringing out the lone caution flag of the race. Challingsworth was charged with the caution which moved Hartzfeld to the lead with Fields and Challingsworth following behind. Challingsworth made the move on Fields for second as the field came to get the white flag. Hartzfeld went unchallenged in the final few laps enroute to taking his second consecutive trip to Carns Powersports Victory Lane in the Pro Stock division. Challingsworth, Fields, Corah, Jim Bloom, and Allen Lamb rounded out the field. Lamb won the heat race.
The Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models were next to the track for their 20-lap feature. Dan Smeal and Joe Loffredo led the field to the opening green flag. Three quick caution flags to open the race kept the field close with just one lap getting completed. Joe Loffredo led the way over Steve Scaife Jr. and Kyle Shannon. On the restart following the cautions, it was Joe Loffredo out to the lead as Shannon made the pass to the inside of Scaife Jr. in turns 3 and 4 for the second position. On lap 6, Nick Loffredo used the low line to his advantage to get the third position from Scaife Jr.. At halfway on lap 10, it was still Joe Loffredo leading the way as Shannon began to close with Nick Loffredo following behind. After a number of laps of battling side-by-side, Shannon finally edged ahead of Joe Loffredo for the lead on lap 16. Shannon was able to clear Joe Loffredo a lap or two later and began to pull away slightly from Joe Loffredo, Nick Loffredo, and the rest of the field. Shannon took the lead on lap 16 and never looked back on his way to taking his first checkered flag of the season, and his first since 2014. Shannon was followed by: Joe Loffredo, Nick Loffredo, Scaife Jr., Nick Erskine, Adam Nixon, Smeal, Deegen Watt, and Doug Surra. Nick and Joe Loffredo won the heat races.
Dustin Challingsworth and Tim Steis led the Brian Savino Motorsports Pure Stocks trackside for their 15-lap feature event. Challingsworth got the lead on the start and led lap 1 over Steis and Jake Foradori. On lap 5, Steis was able to make the pass on Challingsworth for the top spot. At the halfway mark on lap 8, Steis continued to lead the way over Challingsworth and Foradori. The race remained under green flag conditions all the way until the last lap when the first and only caution flag was displayed for a slow car on the backstretch. This would set up a green-white-checkered overtime finish. On the restart, Challingsworth drove his car to the inside of turns 1 and 2, trying to find some grip on the bottom to get past Steis. It was to no avail though as Challingsworth not only lost ground to Steis, he lost the second spot to Foradori as the field came to get the white flag. Steis held on in the final lap to capture his first checkered flag of the season at Hummingbird. Foradori, Challingsworth, Josh Fields, Wayne Truitt, Ashley Kilhoffer, Renae Meyer, Devin Dickey, Noah Bloom, Kyle Lindemuth, and Paul Metz Jr. rounded out the field. Foradori and Steis won the heat races.
The Four-Cylinders concluded the evening with the resumption of their 15-lap feature race from Opening Night last week. Two laps were completed at the time that the race was suspended, so that is where the race picked up. William Kephart, Camden Frantz, and Zack Frantz were the top 3 bringing the field to the green flag to resume the race. Kephart jumped out to the lead on the restart, but he was quickly pursued by both Zack and Camden Frantz. On lap 3, both of the Frantz’s made it past Kephart to move into the top two positions. At the halfway point on lap 8, it continued to be Zack Frantz out front over Camden Frantz and Kephart. Camden Frantz tried to close in on Zack Frantz for the race lead as the laps continued to click away. Camden did catch him at one point, but to no avail as Zack held on to the race lead. Ben Lehane was able to make the pass on Kephart late in the race to move into the third position behind the leaders. No one had anything for Zack Frantz though in the closing laps as he went on to win for the second time on the night in the make-up feature. Zack Frantz was followed by: Camden Frantz, Lehane, Greg Kiehl, Kephart, Bryun Hackenberg, Devon Trayer, Rob Williams, Michael Young, Louis Young, Jimmy Delozier, Adam Pluebell, Troy Bennett, Justin Finland, Bruce Long, Kevin Piper, Coty Maines, Shawn Hadden, Kevin Wice, Josh Lindemuth, Jeremy Harris, Dillon Morrison, Greg Snell, Hunter Olszewski, Matt Urey, and Jim Boyer. Camden Frantz, Urey, Kiehl, and Hadden won the heat races.
Speedway Notes: 63 cars were in attendance for Night #2 of the 2023 racing season. That breaks down to: 6 Economods, 22 Four-Cylinders, 9 Super Late Models, 6 Pro Stocks, 9 Semi Late Models, and 11 Pure Stocks. We will be back in action this coming Saturday, May 20th, for Armed Services Night. Headlining the night will be a $1,200/win Semi Late Model special. The Super Late Models, Economods, Pure Stocks, and Four-Cylinders will be running as well. The Pro Stocks will be off the next two weeks (5/20 and 5/27) to allow them to attend bigger races in the region. Free general admission will be granted to our service men and women with a Military ID. Gates open at 4:00 with racing beginning at 7:00. The Sub Hub Kids Club gets underway every Saturday night at 6pm by the pit gate entrance. It is a great place to take your kids to do some fun kids club activities as well as meet some drivers prior to racing getting started. For more information, call the track office at (814) 653-8400 or visit the tracks’ website at www.hummingbirdspeedway.com. You can also follow the track on Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok.
Results:
Andy Man’s Car Care Economods
1st) #0 Dennis Asel
2nd) #1S Steve Simon
3rd) #21T Orin Taylor
4th) #50 Bob McMillen
5th) #71 Nate Fleck
6th) #36 Cody Stronghart
Four-Cylinders
1st) #910 Zack Frantz
2nd) #158 Camden Frantz
3rd) #007 William Kephart
4th) #33 Troy Bennett
5th) #13M Virgil Meyer
6th) #1 Ben Lehane
7th) #44B Bruce Long
8th) #79 Devon Trayer
9th) #850B Bryun Hackenberg
10th) #427H Jeremy Harris
11th) #56 Justin Finland
12th) #6 Adam Pluebell
13th) #19R Jimmy Delozier
14th) #317 Kevin Piper
15th) #8F Sam Fye
16th) #17X Rob Williams
17th) #65 Louis Young
18th) #03C Coty Maines
19th) #35K Heidi Miller
20th) #65Y Michael Young
21st) #3H Shawn Hadden
22nd) #29L Josh Lindemuth
Srock Contracting Super Late Models
1st) #48 Colton Flinner
2nd) #36 Paul Kot
3rd) #14 Clay Ruffo
4th) #1B Dwayne Brooks
5th) #20 Doug Eck
6th) #14R Derek Rodkey
7th) #75 Dennis Curry
8th) #77 Nathan Brady
9th) #66N Orvis Newcome lll
Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks
1st) #101 Bruce Hartzfeld
2nd) #44 Jim Challingsworth
3rd) #28 Fuzzy Fields
4th) #152 Kyle Corah
5th) #37A Jim Bloom
6th) #104 Allen Lamb
Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models
1st) #11 Kyle Shannon
2nd) #9J Joe Loffredo
3rd) #9N Nick Loffredo
4th) #7S Steve Scaife Jr.
5th) #5X Nick Erskine
6th) #47 Adam Nixon
7th) #44 Dan Smeal
8th) #17 Deegen Watt
9th) #3xAA Doug Surra
Brian Savino Motorsports Pure Stocks
1st) #34 Tim Steis
2nd) #14 Jake Foradori
3rd) #46 Dustin Challingsworth
4th) #88 Josh Fields
5th) #54 Wayne Truitt
6th) #50 Ashley Kilhoffer
7th) #56K Renae Meyer
8th) #18 Devin Dickey
9th) #37B Noah Bloom
10th) #72 Kyle Lindemuth
11th) #14M Paul Metz Jr.
Four-Cylinder Make-Up Feature from 5/6/23
1st) #910 Zack Frantz
2nd) #158 Camden Frantz
3rd) #1 Ben Lehane
4th) #17X Greg Kiehl
5th) #007 William Kephart
6th) #850B Bryun Hackenberg
7th) #79 Devon Trayer
8th) #35K Rob Williams
9th) #65Y Michael Young
10th) #65 Louis Young
11th) #19R Jimmy Delozier
12th) #6 Adam Pluebell
13th) #33 Troy Bennett
14th) #56 Justin Finland
15th) #44B Bruce Long
16th) #317 Kevin Piper
17th) #03C Coty Maines
18th) #3H Shawn Hadden
19th) #187 Kevin Wice
20th) #29L Josh Lindemuth
21st) #427H Jeremy Harris
22nd) #251 Dillon Morrison
23rd) #17S Greg Snell
24th) #4234 Hunter Olszewski
25th) #501 Matt Urey
26th) #11 Jim Boyer
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