Butler Wins Twice at Pagoda on Day One of WCW; Houdeshell Is First Time SpeedSTR Winner
Putnam and Dinatale are Slingshot Winners On Day One
Birdsboro, PA (October 17)— The term “Hat Trick” usually applies only to those sports where goals are scored. On Night One of SpeedSTR World Championship Weekend, however, Bobby Butler nearly pulled off an auto racing “triple score.” But Scott Houdeshell had other ideas that prevented Butler from earning a trifecta at the Speedway at Pagoda MC near Birdsboro, PA.
Butler prevailed in a nail-biting duel for the lead with Tim Buckwalter, then proceeded to blitz the SpeedSTR field in the first of Twin 20 lap features on Saturday. The Milford, NJ wheel-twister then switched cars and captured the first-ever Speedway at Pagoda race for the 602 Crate Modifieds.
In the second 20 lapper for the SpeedSTRs, Butler again fought tooth-and-nail with Buckwalter, but this time it was for the runner-up position. Houdeshell raced into the lead early and set a blistering pace. Once he secured second place, Butler closed in and harassed Houdeshell but could not find a way by the Enola, PA driver. Houdeshell went on to win the first SpeedSTR feature of his career.
All Star Slingshot point leader Brett Putnam strengthened his hold on first place in the standings by winning his third race of the season at Pagoda. And Anthony Dinatale, from Jonestown, PA, recorded his second Junior Slingshot victory of the current campaign in a non-stop, green-to-checkered 15 lap A-Main.
“I’ve run this car with a Modified motor all year, and we’ve had rotten luck,” said Bobby Butler after his triumph in the Traffic Jam 25 for 602 Crate Modifieds.
“But we put the 602 in it for last week at Bridgeport and again tonight. We’ve been looking to adjust some bite into it, and I think we found that bite tonight,” smiled Butler.
He started fourth in the 25 lap affair but climbed forward quickly, slipping past Steve Young for second on lap six as Brett Gilmore maintained the top spot.
Butler closed in on the leader and gave up his trustworthy high groove to try the bottom as he wrestled for the lead with Gilmore. Racing off turn four to complete the tenth revolution, Butler forged ahead and took a lead he would not relinquish.
Young zipped past Gilmore for the runner-up slot just past the halfway mark, and he closed in on Butler within a few circuits. But he could not find the opportunity he needed to pull alongside Butler, even with the leader dicing in lapped traffic.
Butler went on to win the Traffic Jam 25 over Young, Gilmore, Mike Loney, and Kyle Hartzell.
In the first of Twin 20’s for the River Valley Builders SpeedSTRs, Butler started on the pole and paced the field in the early going. Tim Buckwalter, leading both the track points and World Championship standings, took second away from Houdeshell as they blasted off turn two on the fifth tour.
Buckwalter caught Butler as the leader encountered heavy lapped traffic. When Butler lifted just a bit because he was trapped behind a slower car, Buckwalter took advantage and roared around him to snatch the top spot in the second corner on lap eight.
The first yellow flag appeared with 12 trips complete and on the restart, Butler zipped past Buckwalter to take command once again. Houdeshell muscled his way by Buckwalter for second with two to go, but Butler had checked out by that time.
At the finish, it was Butler registering his fourth Pagoda win of the season, tying him with Buckwalter for most SpeedSTR victories in 2026 (at the D-shaped Demon).
Houdeshell finished second with Buckwalter claiming the final podium spot. Kenny Miller and Steve Drevicki completed the top five.
In race number two, Jason Musser bolted to the early lead but a storm was brewing behind him as Houdeshell, Butler, and Buckwalter waged an incredible fight for second through fourth. Houdeshell went high and grabbed the lead from Musser on the fourth revolution, just before the first caution period when Mussser spun off turn four.
Houdeshell opened a comfortable lead as Butler and Buckwalter waged war for the runner-up slot. Butler eventually secured the spot and set sail to try and catch the leader. He was able to pull up to Houdeshell’s rear bumper just past the halfway mark, and a terrific battle ensued for the number one position. Butler slipped a bit in turn four with ten to go, wiggling just enough to allow Houdeshell to scoot away by several car lengths again.
Houdeshell went on to his initial triumph in SpeedSTR competition, with Butler besting Buckwalter for runner-up honors. Brad Arnold and Earl Paules made up the top five when the checkered flag waved.
“I have to thank Tim Buckwalter,” said an elated Houdeshell after the race. “He gave me some set up ideas and they obviously worked really well. The track was great and this car was wonderful; we have a good set up in it now.”
Buckwalter was a disappointed third in the race, but the main reason for his somber mood was mechanical, not emotional. “We hurt the motor in that first race,” noted the Douglassville, PA driver. “I only had about 20 pounds of oil pressure in this last race. It would not have lasted many more laps.”
The plan now is to prepare and race his backup car on Sunday in the World 75, a 75 lap grind that will determine this year’s Speedway at Pagoda champion, and also the 2026 SpeedSTR World Champion.
New York’s Brett Putnam found himself leading the All Star Slingshot main after a wild set of circumstances sent Terry Noll and EJ Hatch (who came into the weekend trailing Putnam by just 30 points in the battle for the track’s point title) to the rear after contact sent Hatch spinning in turn four.
Brayden Ketchum did his best to stay with his teammate, but Putnam was too strong in this 20 lapper. The point leader notched his third victory of the season at Pagoda, with Ketchum a solid second and Hatch rebounding nicely to finish third with a bent front axle. Brett Bieber was a close fourth and 12th starting Dave Carraghan finished fifth after running as high as third.
The Junior Slingshot drivers did a fantastic job of running clean and green for all 15 laps in their A-main. Anthony Dinatale of Jonestown, PA, led every one of those 15 trips around the clay.
Landon McNichol, this year’s Action Track USA Junior Slingshot champ, moved into second with just two circuits remaining. McNichol put some pressure on Dinatale, but the No. 00 could not be beat on this night.
Dinatale hung on, despite the pressure from McNichol, to win his second Speedway at Pagoda MC Junior Slingshot feature of the season. Brayden Stratton took the checkered in third, with Billy Pauch III in fourth and point leader Aubrey Romig finishing fifth.
Day Two of SpeedSTR World Championship Weekend, on Sunday, will see pits open at 10 a.m. and spectator general admission tickets go on sale at noon. There will be a Chapel Service, led by track chaplain Chuck Zechman, in the Pagoda MC clubhouse at 11:30 (everyone is welcome).
Warmups begin at 1:30 and racing will follow the hot lap sessions and opening ceremonies.
The SpeedSTRs will be joined by the All Star and Junior Slingshots, along with the 500cc and 300cc PA Micro Midgets.
Speedway at Pagoda point titles are on the line in the River Valley Builders SpeedSTRs, All Star Slingshots, and Junior Slinger divisions. And the SpeedSTR World Champion will be determined after that division’s World 75; a three-quarters of a century grind that will feature a mandatory pit stop between laps 21 and 75.
RESULTS:
602 Crate Modifieds Traffic Jam 25: 1.Bobby Butler, 2.Steve Young, 3.Brett Gilmore, 4.Kyle Hartzell, 5.Mike Stofflet, 6.Shawn Light, 7.Mike Loney, 8.Jakoby Thompson, 9.Colton Perry, 10.Brandon Banos, 11.Dallas Breidenbach.
River Valley Builders SpeedSTR Feature 1, 20 laps: 1.Bobby Butler, 2.Scott Houdeshell, 3.Tim Buckwalter, 4.Kenny Miller, 5.Steve Drevicki, 6.Dan Lane Jr., 7.Brad Arnold, 8.Tanner VanDoren, 9.Jason Musser, 10.Chase Hartline, 11.Jordan Cox, 12.John Repsik, 13.John Andericka, 14.Matt Janish, 15.Earl Paules, 16.Jase Smith, 17.Cale Zangli, 18.James Hill. DNS: Jasper Ziegefuse.
River Valley Builders SpeedSTR Feature 2, 20 laps: 1.Scott Houdeshell, 2.Bobby Butler, 3.Tim Buckwalter, 4.Brad Arnold, 5.Earl Paules, 6.Steve Drevicki, 7.Tanner VanDoren, 8.Jasper Ziegefuse, 9.Jason Musser, 10.Jase Smith, 11.James Hill, 12.Chase Hartline, 13.Jordan Cox, 14.Dan Lane Jr., 15.John Andericka, 16.Cale Zangli, 17.Matt Janish.
DNS: Kenny Miller, John Repsik.
All Star Slingshots A-Main, 20 laps: 1.Brett Putnam, 2.Brayden Ketchum, 3.EJ Hatch, 4.Brett Bieber, 5.Dave Carraghan, 6.Barry Seaman, 7.Terry Noll, 8.Brian Smith, 9.Mason Lineman, 10.MacKenzie Henn, 11.Hayley Thunberg, 12.Dan Lane Jr., 13.Darrin Schenk, 14.Joshua Hellinger, 15.Jared Hale, 16.Mike Walsh, 17.Devin Knispel, 18.Bryan Sharp, 19.Amanda Angstadt, 20.Hunter Handelong. DNS: Joe Bodenschatz.
Junior Slingshots A-Main, 15 laps: 1.Anthony Dinatale, 2.Landon McNichol, 3.Brayden Stratton, 4.Billy Pauch III, 5.Aubrey Romig, 6.Mason Noll, 7.Khloe Dennis, 8.MJ Trailes, 9.James Labar, 10.Brody Jennings, 11.Braden Sier, 12.Emma Sneddon.
