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EXCITED CROWD RETURNS TO PERRY

As Wyoming County International Speedway welcomes 80-year charter Boy Scout Troop 4045 and entertains a grandstand of cheering fans

Written by Tommy Smith, Contributing Editor

For 17 months the grandstands along the western skyline of the facility on Adrian Road lay silent.  Pit road has been waiting for the "greenlight" from state law makers and the CDC, that would finally allow for the opening of their gates.  As the light came on, the gates did indeed swing open, wide open, and a flood of drivers, crews, and spectators rolled through in massive numbers for the June 5^th season opener.

The excitement of auto racing once again ignited the Perry atmosphere, as 5 dozen blazing race cars took to ‘The Bullring’ asphalt on Saturday.  The long-awaited hope of watching children breath in the aroma of grilled burgers, sausage, hotdogs, and salt potatoes has finally been fulfilled; the flavors of which are matched well beyond the anticipation.

The 2021 season at Wyoming County International Speedway opened with an impressive showing from Boy Scout Troop 4045 out of Perry under the leadership of David Hopkins and Jim Stollo.  The Scouts presented the American flag along with the Troop's color banner during the playing of our National Anthem.  The Troop is proud of its long history.  They have been actively chartered for 80 years through the dedicated effort of the Perry Fire Department.

The surface of the speedway has been crying out for action for far too long... and action it received!  Turn by turn, the echo of horsepower rang through the warm evening air.  The thrill is back, and racing continued throughout the night.  Door-to-door high speed driving will certainly cause incidents (crashes) that force drivers onto pit road.  Repair crews will feverishly scramble in an attempt to get their driver back onto the track, some able to return.

Dan Majchrzak and his #14 SST Modified car found their way back after the team hustled to rebuild the front steering from a crash during the qualifying race, while another SST driver, Toad Bradshaw in his #00, worked with his crew to replace a broken rear axle before returning.  4 Cylinder Stock driver Megan Schoelles piloted her #19 onto the entrance of the speedway and realized she was out of gas.  Her team rushed to her aid with gas cans in hand, barely splashing enough fuel into the tank to get her fired back up.  Then the crowd watched as she pushed her way to the front of the pack, leading her race for nearly 12 laps.  She finished in 4th place of the 15 lap race.

By the end of the night most of the 60+ cars managed to cross their finish line, but not all of them.  First year driver Clayton Evans recognized that the damage sustained after plowing into the concrete wall with his #34 Super Stock on lap 6,  was too extensive to see lap 7 or beyond.  After wrestling with the wheel for 25 laps on a charge for the front, an unfortunate spin due to a leaking rear axle took away the chances of seeing checkered flags by veteran SST Modified driver John Barber in his #01.

Super Stock competitors Chris Jurek, Travis Delude, Paul Flye, and Dave Wilson also had shortened nights due to mechanical problems, while additional sad stories occurred for Neal Dietz, Jr., Bill Kosachook, Billy Mislin, and Zach Kosachook having their nights ended early in the SST Modified division.  That does not suggest their chance for a 2021 Season Championship has vanished.  There is plenty of great racing ahead, and they are all well aware of it and every one of them will be back redeem their misfortune in the weeks to come.

In spite of the mishaps and slip ups on opening night, there was also plenty of super fast and unmatched skillful driving at ‘The Bullring’ on Saturday.  The Grandpa Dog 4 Cylinders showed up in force for their Pro and Stock/Junior events, which saw 3-first time winners at ‘The Bullring’:  Nick Galusha #20 GDog 4 Cylinder Pro event, Ryan Lent #35 in his first ever race in the GDog 4 Cylinder Stock division, and Bryson Smith #02jr bringing home the GDog Junior feature event.

The 6 Cylinder race was a nail biter from start to finish.  The dash to the checker flag was a fight between the #95 of John Parthemer, #21 of Dana Fogle, and 14jr of Frank Parsons.  Although Fogle carried the lead throughout most of the race, it was Parthemer who captured it on the final lap, sending him into victory lane.

Also adding to the skillful excitement was the #4 Super Stock driver Joe Horvatits, who started his race in 4th position and found the lead within 4 laps.  He commanded a 4-car length advantage throughout the entire race, scoring the first win in that division for 2021.  Will he be able to take the first 4 races?  Let's find out.

Dan Majchrzak proved it as well.  You might remember he needed to replace the steering after his crash during his qualifying heat race.  He returned to the track for the feature race, started in 11th position, and eventually drove his car to take the lead at lap 31 and finished as winner of the 40 lap SST Modified race.

Join us next week as we continue celebrating our 61st year in Perry by honoring our hard-working community during "Local Business Night" at ‘The Bullring’.  Yours Truly will be in the announcers' tower alongside Dan Turner.  Be sure to ask for us at the track office.  We will come down to meet you and be sure to salute you, your family and friends over the PA system, see you there!

Official Results 6/5/21:

SST Modifieds (40 laps) -

1. Daniel Majchrzak #14 (Started 11th), 2. Cam Barber #10 (1st), 3. Jeff Pringle #96 p (6th), 4. Kevin Lewis #27 (3rd), 5. Alan Bookmiller #40 (7th), 6. Toad Bradshaw #00 (12th), 7. Timmy Lewis, Jr. #41 (10th), 8. Cody Jenkins #92 (13th), 9. Nathan Michielsen #68 (9th), 10. Neal Dietz, Jr. #84 (4th), 11. John Barber #01 (8th), 12. Bill Kosachook #19 (5th), 13. Ryan Nugent #42 (2nd), 14. Mike Rogers #8 (14th)

Did Not Start - Zach Kosachook #5, Billy Mislin #99

Heat Race Winners - Kevin Lewis, Cam Barber

Hard Charger Award - Daniel Majchrzak #14 ($50 Bonus courtesy of the Packman Family)

Hard Luck Award - Ryan Nugent #42 ($50 Bonus courtesy of the Packman Family)

Super Stocks (25 laps) -

1. Joe Horvatits #4 (Started 3rd), 2. Justin Myers #02 (6th), 3. Rob Miszcak #1 (1st), 4. Russ Knutsen #97 (14th), 5. Frank Kline #33 (13th), 6. Mike Piccirrilli #88 (7th), 7. Hunter DeGroff #11 (2nd), 8. Chris Handley #94 x (9th), 9. Russ Bulger, Jr. #32 j (10th), 10. Russ Bulger, Sr. #32 (11th), 11. Dave Wilson #21 (4th), 12. Paul Flye #94 (5th), 13. Tyler Day #01 (16th), 14. Travis Delude #15 (15th), 15. Clayton Evans #34 (8th), 16. Chris Jurek #7 (12th)

Heat Race Winners - Rob Misczak, Justin Myers

Grandpa Dog 4 Cylinder Pro (20 laps) -

1. Nick Galusha #20 (Started 8th), 2. Russ Bulger, Sr. #00 (3rd), 3. Matt Hurlburt #14 m (4th), 4. Jody Krieb #1 (7th), 5. Mike Bradshaw #02 (2nd), 6. Kathie Ricketson #44 (6th), 7. Tommy Hughes #24 (1st), 8. Kevin Kocher #3 k (11th), 9. Mason Offhaus #5 ny (9th), 10. Evan Reardon #87 (10th) 11. Jon Klamut #7 (12th), 12. Russ Bulger, Jr. #55 (5th)

Did Not Start - Dave Heimes #8, Bill Kenny, Jr. #8 ny

Heat Race Winners - Tommy Hughes, Kathie Ricketson

6 Cylinders (15 laps) -

1. John Parthemer #95 (Started 1st), 2. Dana Fogle #21 (4th), 3. Frank Parsons, Jr. #14 jr (2nd), 4. Robert Cassidy #16 (3rd), 5. Matt Moreau #38 (7th), 6. Eddie Parsons #3 (6th), 7. Phil Rodriguez #81 (5th), 8. Thomas Torpey #95 x (8th)

Heat Race Winner - Robert Cassidy

Grandpa Dog 4 Cylinder Stock/Junior (15 laps) -

1. Ryan Lent #35 (Started 1st), 2. John Byrd #11 (5th), 3. Bryson Smith #02 jr (4th - Junior Feature Winner), 4. Megan Schoelles #19 (3rd), 5. Colton Ingerick #2 jr (6th), 6. Jeana Dietz #84 jr (8th), 7. Eric Black #76 (7th), 8. Rich Fraser #32 j (9th), 9. Donnie Byrd #75 (10th), 10. Justin Sass #2 (2nd)

Heat Race Winner - John Byrd

Vintage Racecars (15 laps) -

1. Chic Voit #4, 2. John Alford #00, 3. Marcia Sanford #49, 4. Dale Hamilton #4d, 5. Clayton Evans #14e

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