Lernerville Opens Gates on 2014 Season

From Contributor Kristin Swartzlander


Lernerville Speedway Gearing Up to Go Green on the 2014 Season



At a Glance:


After a long winter, Western Pennsylvania race fans will finally be able to get their racing fix on Friday nights with the opening of Lernerville Speedway tomorrow, April 18th. Gates open at 5:00 and racing will start at 7:30pm. Local recording artist Justin Fabus will be on hand to sing the national anthem.



Opening night will feature the weekly Fab Four divisions, including the Peoples TWP 410 Sprints, Precise Racing Products Late Models, Diehl Auto Group Big Block Modifieds and Millerstown Pic-A-Part Sportsman, with Budweiser Points beginning as well. 



Fans can follow along with live lap time reporting this year via the Race Monitor app for both iPhone and Android phones. Although some races can be viewed for free, it’s in the race fan’s best interest to sign up for a monthly or annual subscription at $4.99/year or $.99/month to view all live races on the network.

Preview: 

In the sprint car division, defending track champion Brandon Spithaler will be competing against a number of local and regional drivers traveling to the area for the $4,000-to-win sprint car show at Mercer Raceway Park on Saturday night. Drivers anticipated to be on hand include 2013 runner-up Brandon Matus, 2011 Track Champion Carl Bowser, 2010 Track Champion Danny Holtgraver, and the always competitive teams of Jack Sodeman, Jr., Sheldon Haudenschild, and Eric Williams. 

Alex Ferree will look to defend his title in the late model division over John Garvin, Jr. and Jared Miley. Miley is coming off of a strong performance at Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway last week, where he picked up his 25th career victory at the track. Brian Swartzlander made major improvements in the division in 2013, earning a fourth place spot in the points, and Mike Pegher, Jr. will be one to watch as well in the always-competitive Lynn Geisler #1 Cochran entry.

In the big block modifieds, defending track champion Mat Williamson is expected to go head-to-head again with seven-time champion Swartzlander. The Canadian driver made Lernerville his home for the first time in 2013 and is anticipated back in 2014. Veterans Jeremiah Shingledecker and Dave Murdick will give Williamson and Swartzlander a run for their money, but don’t count younger drivers like Brad Rapp and Steve Feder out as we continue to see improvements from both teams.




With the most competitive points battle of 2013, expect the sportsman division to be as exciting as ever. Defending track champion Corey McPherson won’t have runner-up AJ Flick to worry about as he has moved up to the 410 Sprint division, but competition will be stiff as long as veterans Joe Kelley, Mike Miller and Jim Fosnaught are around. Expect to see Brett McDonald in the mix this year as well, along with a number of other competitive teams.