Sidewinder Sprints – Trail-Way; Kearchner strikes againThe Friday night racing at Trail-Way with the 358 sprints provides the teams with a totally different atmosphere. The 358 sprints at Trail-Way are Central Pa’s best kept secret as they are really suited to the smaller oval and put on one hell of a show in front of an appreciative crowd. When the Sidewinders are on the schedule you get an added bonus and last Friday night was no exception.
Heat race action saw Jim Young prove the competitiveness of the smaller 600cc engine with the weight rules and Jim came from 6th starting position t take the win. The 2nd heat race saw Brandon Yarlett take the win over Mike Zielonis and Seth Kearchner. All 3 cars crossed the finish line under a blanket.
The feature race start saw the Friday 13th jinx strike Rohan Beasley as he pulled to the infield with “engine mounting issues”. Josh Chess made the most of his front row start and jump to an early lead. Chess was running a great race and was able to hold the field at bay until lap 14 when he started to run wide in the corners. Initially it looked like fatigue had set in, but later in the pits Josh explained that he had actually hurt his hand and was having a hard time holding on to the steering wheel. Third starting Kearchner was like a shark and you could see he smelt the “blood in the water”. As Chess ran wide exiting turn 4, Kearchner pounced and took over the lead. Jim Young was on a charge from his eighth starting position and managed to take over 2nd. Jim had the car on rails and his mid corner speed was the key to his ability to pass. Jim’s competitiveness so far this year should be an eye opener for other 600 teams and potentially provide them enough confidence to step up to the challenge.
Victory lane saw Kearchner unveil his unique race suit and later Seth explained “The Friday night track preparation at Trail-way was great for some fast laps. The 358 Sprints put in some extra grooves and ruts for the smaller cars which made the challenge against the track. Strong arms and mental stability were the key to making every lap count over the bumps. Chasing down the leader I could tell he was getting weak as mistakes were being made and finally coming out of turn 4, the 72 of Josh Chess jumped out of the groove and that was all I needed to take the lead and set my pace. A few cautions slowed the race and gave every driver a chance to relax, especially me. As I saw the leader board change to the number 8 of Jim Young in the second position I knew the race would be on between us and pushed the car ever harder after the last caution with 6 laps to go. The track wore me out and I was not only excited but relieved to see the checkered first. In victory lane I climbed from the car to display my new "tuxedo" themed suit by Velocita race wear. Thanks go to Probe Chassis, PR2 engines, American Racer Tires, Aero Wings, His Place Inc., DB Communications, Lincolnway Powder Coating, NAPA of Taneytown, Fastener Specialties, Viper Venom Fuels, and a new product this week, Competition Suspension Inc. Without their help and great products my job would be much harder. I am extremely proud of my Married to Motorsports race team to have such a great start to the 2012 season, all the hard work between races is really paying off. Visit
http://www.marriedtomotorsports.com for results and upcoming events.”
Chassis / Wing / Wheel Parity Report: An even mix of 13 and 10” wheels including a less than 750cc car in 2nd !
1st Micro 16sq / 13” 2nd Micro 12sq / 10” (<750CC) 3rd Micro 12sq / 10” 4th Micro 12sq / 10” 5th Micro 16sq / 13”
Sidewinder Feature Finish, 20 Laps, Car #, Name, (Started) 1st 30 – Seth Kearchner (3); 2nd 8 – Jim Young (8); 3rd 4T – Brandon Yarlett (1); 4th 81- Mike Zielonis (9); 5th 33 – Brad Gleason (4); 6th 26 – Jerry Strausbaugh (7); 7th 72 – Josh Chess (2); 8th 5J – Jared Esh (10); 9th 75 – Zach Overmiller (5); 10th 21 – Jason Eisenhart (6); 11th 14 – Rohan Beasley (11);
Lap Leaders – Josh Chess (1-13), Seth Kearchner (14-20)
Heats to Young and Yarlett
Tire Shootout Invitational Results; American Racer extends their lead
1st American Racer 2nd American Racer 3rd Hoosier 4th American Racer 5th Hoosier
American Racer – 11 pts
Hoosier – 4 pts
TotalAmerican Racer – 44 pts
Hoosier – 16 pts This week’s question;Q. Next Friday sees the Sidewinders joining the 358 sprints in the Sidewinders first night time race at Trail-Way in 2012. With 3 races and 3 different winners in the books, will Friday night produce another new 2012 winner?
A. Close but no cigar, Josh Chess looked good leading the first 13 laps before he injured his arm and started to run high allowing Seth Kearchner to drive through for the win on lap 14. This is Seth’s 2nd win for the season.
Next week’s question;Q. With the proof of the evenness of the less than 750cc cars (600’s), especially on the smaller tracks like this week’s race at Shippensburg, will we see the 2nd win of the season by a less than 750cc car ( Jim Young has already won at Trail-Way in his 600cc car.)
Sidewinder Sprints are accepting 2012 registrations.
Drivers wishing to join are reminded to register with us ASAP (click the registration link on our website) to reserve your car number, as we do not allow duplicate numbers, and to receive important "registered team" only emails regarding rules, contingency requirements and schedules.
Sidewinder Sprints will be appearing at:Shippensburg 04/21/12
Path Valley 04/27/12
Port Royal 04/28/12
Trail-Way 05/04/12 – Friday Night
For all your racing needs please contact our following partners:
Season Sponsors;
American Racer – Lias Tires (http://www.americanraceronline.com )
Hoosier Tire - Hoosier Tire Mid Atlantic (http://www.hoosiermidatlantic.com )Contingency Awards: Guhl Motors (
http://www.guhlmotors.com) ; For all of your Fuel Injection needs. “Highest eligible Guhl injection finisher”; Seth Kearchner
Henchcraft Top Gun Challenge (
http://www.Henchcraftracing.com): Rear of field challenge;
Hyper Hard Charger (
http://www.Hyperracing.com); Most positions gained in the feature; Jim Young
Aero Wings (
http://www.aerowingsonline.com) ; Winners use Wings by Aero. "Lucky 7"; Josh Chess
Keizer Wheels (
http://www.keizerwheels.com ); Fast Fifth Award.; Brad Gleason
SC Signs and Designs (
http://www.scsigns.net );
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