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Port Royal Speedway takes center stage this evening with the annual Living Legends Dream Race.
Honored tonight are driver Randy Wolfe and car owners John and Pee Wee Zemaitis. An autograph session will be held behind the grandstand from 5 to 6 p.m. with the honorees plus former drivers and car owners affiliated with the trio.
Wolfe car owners Jim and Laura Allebach, Glen Hyneman, and Rick and Joe Woelfing will be on hand. Zemaitis drivers Lucas Wolfe, Stevie Smith, Jeff Shepard, Bobby Weaver and Sean Michael also are expected.
The race format will include two 16-lap features followed by a 35-lap A-main. Up for grabs is $55,000 of purse money plus contingency prizes for the open cockpit stars. Late models also are in action battling for an higher purse. Racing gets underway at 7.
Selinsgrove Speedway continues in makeup mode this evening, adding an extra late model event tonight to its regular four-division show of 360 sprint cars, late models, pro stocks and roadrunner cars.
Lincoln Speedway features 358 sprint cars as the main event tonight. There’s also super late model racing this evening at Hesston Speedway near Raystown Lake.
Fans of topless late model racing can find the same this evening at the Hagerstown, Maryland, Speedway.
After tonight’s Dream Race at Port Royal a number of area sprint car teams head west for next week’s Sprint Car National in Knoxville, Iowa. Next Saturday night’s finale pays the winner $150,000. Teams from our region already entered include Logan Schuchart, Danny Dietrich, Logan Wagner, Greg Hodnett, Chad Trout, Jacob Allen, Stevie Smith, Lucas Wolfe and Brent Marks. McClure driver Phil Walter filed an entry for the 360 sprint car nationals, also at Knoxville.
Jeff Gordon will make his 800th career Sprint Cup start at Watkins Glen, New York, this weekend. Look for Gordon to continue to substitute for Dale Earnhardt Jr. through the month of August. Earnhardt is making slow but definite progress recovering from concussion-like symptoms from a crash at Michigan International Speedway.
Speaking of Jeff Gordon, I must say he experienced a freakish and scary event this past Monday at Pocono International Raceway. Gordon’s right lap seat belt malfunctioned and unhooked while at high speed. Gordon was in seventh place at the time and dropped to 27th position before being able to reharness himself. Gordon stated that is the only time he has experienced that during his racing career.
Over the years I’ve been critical at times about Pocono International Raceway. I stopped attending the track, saying I didn’t care if I ever returned to a race there. This season I told friends if the race was postponed I would attend on Monday. That is exactly what happened.
I was pleasantly surprised at the many improvements made and the professionalism of every staff member and police officer I encountered.
I joined friends who camped in the infield for the weekend. They paid $100 for three racing events. Shuttle buses took them to the main grandstand where they were allowed to sit in general admission seats. The grounds were mowed, maintained and plenty of paving was done. Disposal trucks lapped the grounds all day keeping the facility clean. Trucks were available to pump waste from campers. Ice trucks delivered to camp sites, And wood fires in the new containment rings were allowed.
There was nightly entertainment in the campground provided by the raceway. I left the track with new respect and I will return to another event. If you hold negative thoughts to the track I’d urge you to take another look.
Don’t forget Ye Olde Hotel in Milroy presents its Need for Speed show next Saturday starting at 10 a.m. Several area racers with cars are expected to attend. Drivers will join PA Sports Network host Jed Donahue for interviews.
Have a great week end. I hope to see you at an area speedway.
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Craig Rutherford writes about motorsports for The Sentinel.