HARE & MILLS GET FIRST WINS IN SUSQUEHANNA OPENER

Newberrytown, PA: Les Hare and Jamie Mills won their first career Susquehanna victories Friday night on Rock-It Pizza and Bumper Bob's Welcome Night. A special pair of Opening Day 30-lap features for both the Super Late Models and 358 Modifieds paid $1500 to win.

Les Hare of New Park, PA led every lap of the Late Model feature, but not without challenges right down to the checkered flag. The early challenge came from Rusty Sites until Tom Myers joined in on the action. The three cars battled throughout surviving six caution flags including the last on lap 26 for Jere Weirman who hit the wall while running a solid fifth.

Myers, who took control of second on lap twenty, give a valiant run for the win, but came up a little short. Sites settled for third while a pair of number fives, Kirk Ryan and Wes Bonebrake rounded out the top ten.

A most impressive run was put in by Coleby Frye who started 28th and climbed sixteen positions to a 12th place finish earning him the MMI Racing Components hard charger award.

In the Modified feature, again three cars battled for most of the race leaving the final two to settle it at the wire. Four-time track champion, Jeff Strunk took the early lead for the first four circuits until Jamie Mills wrestled it from him on lap four. Mills got stunned when Tom Hager ran him down and took over the lead on lap twenty.

Mills re-captured the top spot on the next lap then changed his strategy. "There were three lane out there so I took the middle one and figured I'd let everyone else try to go around me." proclaimed Mills in victory lane. It seems to work, but not without some anxious moments. Hager took the low groove and Strunk regained momentum on the high side. Strunk re-claimed second on lap 25 and raced door-to-door with Jamie to the checker. Jeff even chased Mills down in victory lane to congratulate him on a good race.

Hager finished third with Kevin Hirthler getting a strong fourth and Ray Swinehart rounded out the top five which saw 12 caution flags during the event. A crazy night of spinouts and fender benders had four restarts on lap 11 alone. The most significant yellow came in the last few laps when Randy Fortna running fourth hit the wall on lap 24 retiring him for the night.

Lap 28 saw Ray Swinehart tangle with Smokey Warren, who was turning in a great performance running fourth. Warren spun causing seven other to bunch up to avoid the incident, but sending all eight cars to the rear. Joe Corrigan passed slew of cars on the restart penalizing him eleven spots and forced a jumbled running order for the final tally.

In a much calmer PA 4-cylinder stock main event, Brian Lesley took over the lead from Ronnie Buck on lap 2 and went on to victory in a non-stop 12-lap feature. Lesley refusing to be teched was later disqualified giving the win to Buck. Following him across the line were Wes Irwin, Ed and Eric Hollerbach, and Jerry Schott.

Enduro feature was curfew and will run two main events this Friday, June 14th. American Flag Day Giveaway will present free hand waving flags to the first 1,000 customers in the grandstand. Gates open at 5:00 and racing begins at 7:45 pm. Handicapping this week will invert the starting field. Milford's Jamie Mills became the first Delaware driver to win an RSCA promoted modified feature event in 975 tries.

PA 4-Cyl Stocks Feature (12 Laps): 1- Ron Buck; 2- Wes Irwin; 3- Ed Hollenbach; 4- Eric Hollenbach; 5- Jerry Schott; 6- Ken Miller; 7- Mike Buckley; 8- Len Parsons; 9- J.T. McLanigan; 10- Dale Kreiser; 11- Chris McLanigan; 12- Jennifer Lesher; 13- Butch McLanigan; 14- Dave Topper; 15- Dave Stirk; 16- John Stoll; 17- Zac Beck; DQ- Brian Lesley

Heats: Buck, Lesley

Top 24 - Super Late Models

Pos. Driver Car #

1 Les Hare 1H

2 Tom Myers 43A

3 Rusty Sites V1

4 Kirk Ryan 5K

5 Wesley Bonebrake 5

6 Mike Chrisopher 66

7 Kenny Pettyjohn 38

8 Scott Sipe 88

9 Larry Baer 0

10 Gary Wareheim 36

11 Jamie Eichholz 11

12 Coleby Frye F1

13 Eddie Drury 72

14 David Pettyjohn 9

15 Chuck Yingling 91

16 Harold Beinhower 33

17 Sterling Kinard 12

18 Chris Hiser 24H

19 Bob Spahr 86

20 Mike Spangler 28

21 Jere Weirman 65

22 Chris Shuey 21

23 Hal Browning 46

24 Mike Atherton 11

Top 24 - 358 Modifieds

Pos. Driver Car #

1 Jamie Mills 1W

2 Jeff Strunk W9

3 Tom Hager 43

4 Kevin Hirthler 117

5 Ray Swinehart 33

6 Ryan Watt 14W

7 Tom Umbenhauer 19

8 Tracy Readinger 2T

9 Kyle Strickler 16

10 John Willman 74W

11 Scott Albert 10

12 Tom Miller 24M

13 Scott Gilbert 69z

14 Gene Hornberger 3H

15 Bob Ebersole 27

16 Larry Solomon 517

17 Gene Weidman 03

18 Smokey Warren 178

19 Randy Stoudt 10

20 Nino Dinatale 00

21 Joe Corrigan 18

22 John Tschudy 2

23 Randy Mohn 505

24 Todd Huffman J7