Grandview Sportsman Pit Notes 8/05/22 – Decker Swinehart Claims Second Win of Season After Side by Side Battle with Steve Young   

Decker Swinehart and Steve Young battled side by side for the first 13 laps of the feature and on the 3^rd restart the leader Steve Young gave Decker Swinehart the top which was all Decker needed to break away from Young and the rest of the field to take the win of the season by a 2 second margin of victory.  

Steve Young jumped out the early lead over Nate Horn until Decker Swinehart arrived in second place on lap 4.  For the next ten laps, Decker and Young battled side by side for the lead with Decker going both high and low in his attempts to get by Young for the lead.  The third and final yellow came out on lap 13 with Young still in the lead.  Young choose the bottom for the restart and gave Decker the top which he used to charge into the lead and separate from the field.  Decker drove into victory lane for his second Sportsman win of the season at Grandview.

Brian Hirthler made a strong run to 2^nd place from his 14^th starting position but just ran out of laps.  The top ten was rounded out with Nate Horn in 3^rd followed by Adie Delliponti, Steve Young, Cody Manmiller, Joey Vaccaro, Dylan Hoch, Lex Shive and Jimmy Leiby in 10^th place.

Heat winners for the field of 28 sportsman were Nathan Horn, Steve Young, and Decker Swinehart.  Lex Shive won the last chance consolation.

SPORTSMAN FEATURE FINISH (25 laps):

1.DECKER SWINEHART, 2. Brian Hirthler, 3. Nathan Horn, 4. Adrianna Delliponti, 5. Steve Young, 6. Cody Manmiller, 7. Joey Vaccaro, 8. Dylan Hoch, 9. Lex Shive,10. Jimmy Leiby, 11. Jesse Hirthler, 12. Nathan Mohr, 13. Mike Schneck Jr., 14. Ryan Graver, 15. Parker Guldin, 16. Hunter Iatalese, 17. Dakota Kohler, 18. Mark Gaugler, 19. Kenny Bock, 20. BJ Joly, 21. Bryan Rhoads, 22. Zach Steffy, 23. Kyle Hartzell, 24. Kyle Smith

Did Not Qualify: Wayne Rotenberger, Zane Roth, Mike Stofflet, Keith Haring

Grandview Sportsman Pit Notes 8/05/22 –

Decker Swinehart finished 1^st from his 6^th starting position and picked up his 2^nd win of the season. Steve Young took the early led with Decker moving into 2^nd on lap 3.  Decker went to the top and threaten for the lead which triggered Young to opt to the top and force Decker to pass him from the bottom.  It was tight racing with Young maintaining his slight lead when the caution came out on lap 14.   Young had been running the top and holding Decker at bay, but on the restart, Young choose the bottom giving Decker the top line which he proceeded to use to take the lead for the first time in the feature and then check out from a fading Young and the rest of the field for his second win of the season.  

On his 3^rd race of the season Decker had a contact wreck that sent him into the backstretch wall at top speed and destroyed his car.  Decker returned 3 weeks later without missing a race thanks to a couple of rainouts and the hard work of his family team.  In only his 6^th outing in the new car, Decker picked up his first win of the season and then added his second win tonight  four weeks later.

In victory lane Decker stated “Early in the race Steve was running good on the top and I was right there with him on the bottom.  When the caution came out Steve decided to choose the bottom and give me the top on the restart.  So, I figured let’s see what’s the top has, and I was able to get around him on the restart, make it stick and ended up in victory lane.  This thing is a rocket ship and really works and reactive to anything we do to it.”  

Postrace Decker noted “We had a great night beginning with the heat race win from the 2^nd starting position.  In the feature I started 6^th and was able to pass cars on the bottom and top on the way to the front.  On lap 4 I arrived in second and went to the top to pass Steve for the lead.  The top was pretty far up there tonight but it was fast.  Steve saw me on the top and came up to take the top away and block me, so I went down to the bottom.  The bottom was just as good as the top and we were running “even steven” and side by side right to the first caution on lap 14.  On the restart, Steve gave me the top which surprised me because he was running the top.  I got a good start and passed him before he could come up to block and I ran away with the win in the final 11 laps. This was one of the best cars we have had all year it was a rocket ship tonight.  The competition at Grandview is second to none and is why we are here.”

Brian Hirthler finished 2^nd from his 15^th starting position.  Brian has finished top five in his last 7 races with 2 wins, 2 seconds, 2 thirds and one 4^th while all along adding to his points lead which is now 271 points over 2^nd place Dylan Hoch.

Brian commented “In the feature the key again was being patient and missing the accidents.  Track was looking like it was different than normal, but it tricked me, and not sure if it was all the extra caution laps on lap 2 & than 3 that led to it drying out quicker than I expected or just the lack of water this week before the feature.  The track was certainly different than what I anticipated tonight.”

Brian continued “I believe the track started to latch down on the bottom at some point about halfway which allowed some of the cars get out pretty good on me.  It took longer than expected to get to the front, and  in turn I ran out of laps at the end.  Decker was good enough to get to the front without cautions.  It would have been tough to run him down without any extra laps.  I also lost a few spots early when I thought I saw a second accident happening in turn 3 and went high.  I lost a bunch of ground and a few spots but we still got to 2nd and the car is straight so we will take it and move onto next week.”

Nat Horn finished a career and season best 3^rd from his 2^nd starting position.

Postrace Nat reflected “We had a rough month of July which ended up putting us back pretty far in points, so I was fortunate to handicap and start up front in both the heat and the feature.  In the heat race I got a good jump on the leader and after the 3rd attempt of the initial start finally got to the front and led all 8 laps of the heat race.  Car felt pretty good but definitely had room for improvement in the feature.”

“We didn’t make many changes for the feature and felt like we have set up pretty close to where it needed to be.  The 3 cautions in the feature didn’t help me too much since it doesn’t take long for the fast guys to get to the front when they have cautions.  I just need to work on my driving and be more aggressive and hit my marks.  Grandview is a tough track to maneuver around from what most people tell me, and it shows how one little mistake can cost you a lot of your night.” 

Adie Delliponti finished 4^th from a 10^th starting position and has posted two top five finishes in her three last races.

Adie noted “ We changed a few things on the motor this week.  In the heat we had engine issues again but still managed to finish 2^nd.  We change the spark plugs and the problem was solved for the feature.  In the feature they gave me a great car and we moved forward  from 10^th to 4^th with only three cautions in the feature.”

Steve Young posted a season best 5^th place finish from the pole position and lead the first 14 laps until his tires sealed over on the first restart.

Steve stated “ We had a good car and ran the bottom for the first few laps.  I saw a nose, so I went up top and stayed there until the caution.  My tires got cold and sealed over during the caution and then I choose the bottom for the restart which turned out to be the wrong lane.  The restart cost us a few spots tonight.  I ran the modified on Tuesday night, the extra 150 HP definitely makes you drive more aggressively, and it showed tonight with how hard I was coming into 1 & 2 and driving all the way up to the top.”

Cody Manmiller finished 6^th from his 11^th starting position and posted his 4^th top ten finish in a row and is right in the thick of the battle for 5^th place in the season points with 4 other drivers.

Cody noted “It’s definitely a lot less stressful getting a 6^th place finish from 11^th this week instead of starting 20^th like we did last week.  We made it a priority to make the invert this week and thankfully we did with a favorable change in our racing luck this week in the heat.  We were decent in the feature and definitely did not need that last caution because I was 6th and gaining on 3rd-4th-5th.  The caution bunched everyone up back up and my lane got bottled up a bit which cost me a few positions. So, we ended up 6th instead of maybe a 3rd or 4th.  But I’ll take it.  From a points perspective, I missed two races due to weddings and bachelor parties so I was never going to contend for the title, but I’m knocking on the door for 5th which would be a nice accomplishment considering we missed two races this year.”

Joey Vaccaro finished 7^th from his 5^th starting position and is hoping that two top ten finishes in the last 3 starts is the beginning of some consistent up front finishes and the end of the tangles and  23^rd place DNF finishes for this season.

Joey commented “We finally had a bit of luck tonight and got up to 3^rd at the start.  We tried some things tonight that worked but we are still looking for a little more.  The car faded to a 7^th place finish and got snappy coming off the corners.  The top went way higher than normal, and 1 & 2 rubbered up so you could run wide open through there later in the race.  Our car is straight tonight and I’m really happy with that.”

Dylan Hoch finished 8^th from his 13^th starting position and now ”the rest of the story” for this week.  It started enroute to Grandview when Dylan’s tow rigg broke down on the road and had to get another truck to come out and bring him in to the track.   He arrived just in time for hot laps.  For the third week in a row Dylan made the invert and had his best starting position of the season in 13^th starting position.  Seems like the further up Dylan starts the more trouble that he finds himself in.  For the 3^rd week in a row, Dylan found himself in an early tangle that sent him to the pits again.  The heat races results have improved in the past 3 weeks with Hoch making the invert, but the features have been very disappointing due to three weeks of early tangles at the start of the feature despite starting in an invert position.

Dylan recalled “On the way to the track we had truck issues. We had to swap out vehicles to get there so we were late.  It’s very frustrating that we keep getting tangled in these early lap wrecks because people are not driving smart.  We need cars at the track every week, but there are drivers that are consistently involved in tangles every week which is not helping the cause of keeping cars on track every week.  A lot of guys running for points have been screwed over due to getting caught up in these frequent early tangles that have cost them points, time, & money fixing a wrecked racecar every week.  It’s frustrating to say the least and I’ll just leave it at that for now.”

Lex Shive finished 9^th from an 18^th starting position.  Lex noted “We still have the same car we picked up our win with this season.  This week I tried to bite off more than the track would let me chew in the heat race and went 6th to 7th although I had Kyle smith and that 38 covered but couldn’t stick the pass.  In the consolation I got the outside pole, and it was a crate vs open motor race between Leiby and myself.”

“In the feature the car started out fast and consistently made passes on the bottom and top.  We were almost point and shoot good, but we did fade a bit at the end. I thought I could get into the top 5 but just got too loose and couldn’t find any passing line in the last few laps. Overall, a very good night ending with car rolling into trailer under its own power which is always good.” 

Jimmy Leiby finished 10^th from a 19^th starting position and is back in the top ten after two disappointing weeks of flat tires and a power steering failure.

Jimmy commented “Heat was okay, we were just in the wrong place in some spots missed qualifying  by one spot.  In the consolation expected the track would have more grip but did get 2^nd and transfer.”

“In the feature we made the wrong  shock choice along with some changes in our attempt to get better.  Lately it has just been a big guessing game as to what the track surface will be like in the feature.   One week the track is cut, next week it is watered, and the next week nothing is done before the feature, so you never sure how to set the car up.”   

Jesse Hirthler finished 11^th from his 21^st starting position and for the second week in a row made a strong back to front run in the feature.  In addition, the 15 year old rookie has moved into 10^th place in the point standings for the first time this season with 5 races to go.

Jesse stated “In the heat race I am starting to struggle again.  Just making some driver mistakes and things are not going my way.  In the consolation I was conservative with my setup and knew that I was safe to qualify with a 3^rd.” 

“In the feature, I am always coming to the front now no matter where I start.  I knew I would have a strong car and be able to make moves whenever and wherever I needed to.  I was patient at the start because you never know what’s going to happen up front in the beginning of a feature.  I was fortunate enough to miss the early wreck and Kyle Smith when he broke.  At that point, I knew I could go but I still had to be careful.  I was working the top pretty good and rolling a lane above the bottom which was really good for me as well.  I made some good moves and a couple of 3 wides on my way to the front.  There were a couple of things that caused me to not be higher up then 11th but I will take it and hope to get a better finish next week.”

Mike Schneck finished 13^th from his 15^th starting position.  A lap 1 tangle sent him to the rear of the field with damage, but he was able to ride it out to a solid 13^th place finish.

Mike reflected “In the feature we were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and got collected in the first tangle of the night.  I saw a car spinning down and I was just about stopped but still got hit.  Later another spin on front stretch took out the left side of the car.  No major damage just the body and axle.  I knew at that point I had to regroup and move forward only thing to do from the last row.  To salvage a 13^th with a bent up car was huge after the way this race started out for us.”

Parker Guldin finished 15^th from a 12^th starting position and navigated the final 20 laps with a broken torsion bar after quickly getting up to 9^th by lap 4.

Parker recalled “Unfortunately, we had a torsion bar go bad around lap 5 and I practically had no right rear suspension in the feature tonight.  It was extremely frustrating to have a torsion bar fail, but we are going to make sure that we never let that happen again.  Even though the car was bad and ill handling, I was still able to keep pace, salvage a 15th and keep my nose clean which is something that many at Grandview unfortunately can’t say recently.”

 The battle for 5^th place in the season points standing has turned into a very close points chase between four drivers who are all within 115 points of one another with five races to go: Parker Guldin (1715); Mike Schneck (1672); Cody Manmiller (1615); and Dakota Kohler (1600) are all within striking distance of a 5^th place finish in the season points.  Stay tuned as this should produce some good racing for points right to the end of the season. 

Kyle Hartzell finished 23^rd in the feature but qualified for the first time this season.  Kyle is in his first season of racing and has attended every race this season except last week when he was on  vacation.

Kyle reflected “So this is my very first car I’ve ever been in and have always wanted to race because my family is a racing family.  My grandfather (Ron Hartzell) use to run at Dorney park speedway back in the day and my dad (Mike Hartzell) use to run at Mahoning Valley speedway. The first few weeks we were challenged with motor issues which we finally got sorted out.  Next came was learning the ins and the outs of the car and the track.  We  struggled a lot with setup, tuning, & handling early in the season but thanks to help from Chris Esposito and Darrin Schuler we have gotten progressively better each week.”

Kyle continued “thanks to everyone’s help we have had a good setup in our last two outings.  Car is working so much better in the corners and it’s much easier to keep my line.  In the heat race this week for the first time I was able to make the invert for the feature.  I was just trying to hold my line and keep everything clean for the entire heat race.  I know what it’s like to have bent up equipment and it’s not fun, so my main goal was to keep my car and everyone else’s car safe.  Car felt great in the heat and ran very well.  We ended up 4^th and made the invert to the pole position in the feature .”

“Feature time I elected to start in the rear, with this being my very first feature I didn’t want to put myself or anyone else in a spot we didn’t want to be in.  We are still struggling a little with our slick track setup, but it was nice to make the feature and  get some feature seat time which is what’s most important right now for us.  Tried some different lines all race and we are just trying to get better each week.  After ten races things are starting to sort out and turn around.  It’s hard not to feel overwhelmed at times, but with support from family and friends we have been able to stick it out and continue to get better every week.  I’d also like to thank my crew Jeff Hartranft and my dad, who put in so many hours every week to put me out on the track.  Without them none of this would be possible.”

The next event on the Grandview Speedway schedule is next Saturday, August 13, featuring the much anticipated Summer Classic, the 52^nd annual Forrest Rogers Memorial for the T.P. Trailer Modifieds who will be racing for 50-laps and $10,000 to win the race in honor of the man who created and built Grandview Speedway.

This race program will also include the T.P. Truck Equipment Sportsman in another NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Racing Series double-header starting at 7:30 pm.

Pit gates will open at 4 pm. with grandstand gates opening at 5:30 pm. warm-ups will be starting at 6:30 pm. Adult grandstand admission is $30, while children ages 6-11 are $10, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge.