Grandview Sportsman Moneymaker Pit Notes – Brian Hirthler Wins Grandview Sportsman Season Opener at Bruce Rogers Memorial

The 2023 Grandview Sportsman season opened with a battle of the 4 cars. The defending 2022 sportsman champion Brian Hirthler in his 4* battled the 4M of Logan Watt virtually side by side for first couple of laps until Hirthler took the lead on a lap 13 restart and then held off a late charge by Bett Gilmore to take his first win of the season and the early 2023 championship points lead.

Heat race winners for the 40-car sportsman field were Logan Watt, Brian Hirthler, Mark Mohr, and Logan Bauman.

 Cody Manmiller and Ryan Graver won the consolation races.

SPORTSMAN FEATURE FINISH (25 laps):

1.BRIAN HIRTHLER, 2. Brett Gilmore, 3. Logan Watt, 4. Kyle Smith, 5. Mike Schneck Jr., 6. Brad Grim, 7. Andy Ressler, 8. Michael Burrows, 9. Cody Manmiller, 10. Adrianna Delliponti, 11. Mark Kemmerer, 12. Mark Mohr, 13. TJ Mayberry, 14. Ryan Graver, 15. Tyler James, 16. Nathan Horn, 17. Parker Guldin, 18. Nathan Mohr, 19. Colton Perry, 20. Kyle Hartzell, 21. Jesse Landis, 22. Steve Young, 23. Logan Bauman, 24. Addison Meitzler, 25. Jesse Hirthler, 26. Mark Gaugler

DID NOT QUALIFY: Hunter Iatalese, Decker Swinehart, Zach Steffy, Ronnie Solomon, Tom Miller II, Tom Miller, Keith Haring, Kaitlyn Bailey, Molly Struss, Kenny Bock, Zane Roth, Troy Gibson, Dallas Bridenbach, Bryan Rhoads

SPORTSMAN PIT NOTES –  BRUCE ROGERS MEMORIAL MONEY MAKER

Brian Hirthler collected his 19^th career win from his 2^nd  starting position to become Grandview’s all-time sportsman win leader.  Polesitter Logan Watt jumped out to the early lead and after 14 laps Hirthler passed Watt on a lap 13 restart and moved into the lead. On lap 18 Brett Gilmore arrived on Hirthler’s bumper for a few laps but by the final 5 laps Brian gained separation and cruised into victory lane with over one second margin of victory.

Brian noted “Luck always plays a part and that starts with the luck of the draw. My niece picked a 2 out of the bag and that put us pole in heat two which is a big advantage in a heads up  format.  This race is a rare chance for us to start up front since during the season the handicap  format usually puts us somewhere around 15^th starting position. We started on the pole in our heat which we won and that put us on the outside pole in the feature. During the night we made a couple of gear changes due to a new chip rule but nothing crazy. With the cool temperatures my focus between the heat and feature was keeping heat in the motor since it was about a 2 hour wait to run the feature.”

“ The feature started out with Logan and I running side by side for first few laps until he cleared me with a slider. It was too early to battle hard and risk  possibly getting any damage or cutting a tire, so I tucked in and started searching the track out as it was a bit different than the heat racetrack as expected. I pulled close to Logan on a few laps and lost some ground some on other laps. After a mid-race restart, I went to the middle lane and was able to pass Logan to take the lead. I remained in that line until Brett Gilmore put some pressure on me with about 5 laps to go. So, then I went back to searching for a better lane. I was lucky and able to find a faster line and was able to get about a one second separation from Brett by the time the checkered flag flew.

Brett Gilmore finished 2^nd from an 8^th starting position as he returns to the sportsman division for the 2023 campaign.  Gilmore Racing will have two team cars in the sportsman division with Brett driving the 7 and Adrianna Delliponti driving the 7A.

Brett reflected “We made the switch back to sportsman class this winter and it was about costs and opportunity.  I got an offer to run my own car in the sportsman division, so we put together a Morgantini open motor with the same frame from last year since we know it works great. Adrianna and I have the same frame and motor which should allow us to exchange some information. The only thing that is different between our cars is that I’m on coils and Adrianna is on torsion bars.

“We had a great opening day with a 7^th to 2^nd run in the heat and then a 8^th to 2^nd  run in the feature.  In the feature I knew the bottom of the track would be were I needed to be. My cousin Kyle Smith and I found rubber early and that is how I was able to pass Logan and make a run on Hirthler.  It was a fun night and great start to the season with a top three finish.”

Logan Watt finished 3^rd from his pole starting position and lead the first 14 laps in his Grandview regular season debut.

Logan noted “So my first night at Grandview was great! I picked the pole for the heat and picking good for opening night makes things much easier especially at Grandview.  Starting on the pole in the first heat I knew the track would be heavy and probably one lane.  We won the heat which setup on the pole for the feature.

“In the feature I lined up in the front row next to Brian Hirthler.  We raced clean side by side for 2 laps until I was able to move into the lead.  On the lap 13 restart Brian got by me for the lead and Gilmore followed him by me.  We were very pleased with a solid 3^rd place in the season opener and look forward to racing with a field full of excellent sportsman drivers every week at Grandview.”

Kyle Smith finished 4^th from a 6^th starting position and has begin his quest for the 2023 sportsman points championship.  Kyle commented “It was a heavy and tough track to figure out tonight. Turn 3 and 4 were quick and very tricky. I’ll take a 4^th considering there were four very fast cars in the feature.  It’s going to be challenging and a lot of fun keeping up with Brian Hirthler but now your adding my cousin Brett Gilmore back from modified and of course Logan Watt.”

In the feature Mike Schneck finished 5^th from his 12^th starting position and is already in mid-season go-forward form.  On a heat and tough to pass heat racetrack Mike moved forward from 8^th to 3^rd. Mike finished fifth in the 2022 point standings and is already 10 spots ahead of his 2022 opening day finish of 15^th.     

Mike Schneck stated “We have the same exact car as last year and have gone over every nut and bolt on the car this winter. We missed practice this year, but the car did not miss a beat first time this season in hot laps. I started  8^th in the heat which is where essentially where I handicapped every week last year. I made some quick passes and to 4^th and then got an extra spot on a restart.  In the feature I was searching the top and bottom to find were I could run best. We did not have any significant tire wear considering the cold and damp weather.  It was great to get a top five at the opener and move forward in both the heat and feature with an extremely competitive 40 car field on the grounds today.”

Brad Grim is another modified driver returning to the sportsman ranks.  He quickly made his presence know with a 6^th place finish from a 17^th starting position.  Brad recalled “Heat draw was bad and put us in 10th the first heat, but we were able to move forward and to get it in the show. Our feature started out bad with the power steering belt coming off while heading out for the feature. Luckily with the help of a couple guys that stopped by to help we got a new belt on and made it out to start the feature. Once we got on track, we were superfast on the bottom and rebounded for a 6^th place finish.”

Andy Ressler finished 7^th from his 5^th starting position in his return to racing on the Hill after leaving the Grandview modified ranks in 2015.  Andy purchased Ron Kline’s 2017 Troyer and changed it over to coils and a 602 Crate motor.

Andy reflected “In the feature my car was way too tight, and we had this same issue at Selinsgrove STSS race and Grandview practice.  I also need to get more gear in the car for the Hill. So, for the feature I put on an old, worn out LR tire on that got me the stagger I wanted, and it definitely helped the car turn better. Driver error kept me from having a better finish, a podium finish was definitely possible. The track was good, especially for it being their first race of this spring. My RR tire did take a beating and the lap 13 restart was my demise. I lost power steering on that restart for four laps and then it suddenly came back.”

Cody Manmiller finished 9^th from a 21^st starting position and managed to salvage a top ten finish on a night that started with a bad pill draw and a trip to the consolation race.  Cody noted “I had a horrible pill draw like usual, the car was nasty tight and just wasn’t any good at all in the heat race.  That sent us to the consolation where able to get the car sorted out for the feature.  I got caught up in a lap 3 tangle, but car was still good and moved forward to a top ten finish.”

The 40-car field had 27 Crates and 13 sportsman motors.

Next up on Saturday, April 15 will be a two-division program under the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series banner for the T.P. Trailer 358 Modifieds and T.P. Truck Equipment Sportsman. The program will consist of qualifying races leading up to the 30-lap Modified and 25-lap Sportsman main events.