Danner Nabs 2nd SpeedSTR Victory; White Finally Wins in 600’s at Foley Cat Action Track USA
Dylan Hoch & Matthew Laubach Take Slingshot Speedweek Checkereds
Kutztown, PA (Weds.) — Allentown’s Briggs Danner knows that racing can be very similar to riding a roller coaster…sometimes you’re cruising right to the top, and sometimes you’re going downhill very fast.
Right now, and for much of the 2024 season, Danner has been at or near the very top of the coaster.
Wednesday, on Foley Cat Night at Action Track USA on the Kutztown Fairgrounds, “the Natural” captured his second SpeedSTR triumph of the campaign. He’s also won a 600 Sprint feature at the race place located across the street from Kutztown University, and he is probably best known for earning his first pair of USAC AMSOil National Sprint Car victories (and he could have conceivably notched three or four additional non-wing Sprint Car triumphs) this summer.
Joining Danner in the winner’s circle on Wednesday were Colin White (Hyper Racing 600 Sprints); Dylan Hoch (All Star Slingshots Speedweek); and “the Salt Shaker”, Matthew Laubach (Junior Slingshots Speedweek).
There are just two more events on the 2024 schedule at Foley Cat Action Track USA. This Sunday, August 18, the Dick Tobias Classic takes center stage. The USAC East Coast Sprint Cars, All Pro SpeedSTRs, and Hyper Racing 600’s will compete in qualifying races and 30 lap main events. Grandstand gates open at 5 p.m. and warm-ups go green at 6:15. There will also be a matinee program in the afternoon, beginning at 12:30, featuring the winged 270 Micro Sprints along with the Speedweek finale for the All Star and Junior Slingshots.
Wednesday, August 28 is Championship Night at the speedway. The curtain-closing event ends the point-paying season and the 2024 champions will be crowned in the All Pro SpeedSTRs, Hyper Racing 600’s, and the All Star & Junior Slingshots.
In last Wednesday’s 30 lapper for the SpeedSTRs, Danner grabbed the lead on a restart with nine to go after Cole Stangle set the pace for the first 21 trips around the clay. With Stangle leading the first two-thirds of the affair, Paulie Hartwig III and Dustin Morris battled fiercely for the runner-up position. Danner, who started tenth, cracked the top five on the ninth revolution. Morris eventually secured second over Hartwig just past the halfway point, and Danner—picking off cars one at a time in steady fashion—worked past Morris to gain the runner-up spot with ten to go.
Briggs then muscled his way past Stangle in turn two, on a restart with 21 tours complete, to snatch the top spot. The final laps saw a terrific tussle for positions two, three, and four between Stangle, Matt Janisch, and Tim Buckwalter. As they dashed under the checkered flag, Buckwalter nosed out Stangle for second place cash. Janisch and Hartwig completed the top five.
Buckwalter’s runner-up effort combined with a fourth place finish for Janisch increased Buckwalter’s point lead to 70 with two races remaining.
Danner’s victory, his second SpeedSTR triumph of the year, was also the tenth of his career at Action Track USA. He is fourth on the all-time SpeedSTR win list at the track, trailing Billy Pauch Jr. and Tim Buckwalter (tied with 24 wins each), and Billy Pauch Sr., who has 13 career wins.
In the Hyper Racing 600 Sprint feature, Tyler Henry headed the field on lap one before James Roselli took the point on the second excursion around the ultra-racy oval. Roselli’s time at the head of the pack would be short-lived, however, as fourth-starting Colin White floored his No. 6 to the number one spot on lap three.
Tim Buckwalter, a three-time feature winner this year in 600 Sprint competition, fought with Roselli for a half dozen circuits before he laid claim to the runner-up position and began his pursuit of the high flying leader. Slowly but surely, Buckwalter reeled in White and, as the leader caught the back of the field and had to begin lapping cars, Tim’s No. 71 salivated in anticipation of attacking the race leader.
Buckwalter was soon on White’s tail tank as the duo navigated their way in and out of lapped traffic. When White maneuvered between, then past, two slower cars and Buckwalter got hung up between that pair of racers, White scooted away to the advantage he needed to record the win.
While it was Colin’s first triumph of the season at Foley Cat Action Track USA, it was his ninth career victory at the speedway. And, perhaps more importantly, it propelled the resident of South Abington Township, PA, to the point lead with just two events left on the schedule. Connor Gross, who held the top spot in the standings when the night began, had a rough outing as his front end was damaged early on in the 25 lapper. Gross soldiered on to a 26th place finish and slid backwards to third in points as Christian Bruno, who ended up fourth in the feature, also slipped past Gross in points.
Unofficially, as the points are being double-checked for accuracy, White now leads Bruno by 60 points while Gross falls to third, 91 tallies behind the new leader.
The 600’s went nonstop in their 25 lap main on Wednesday, with White completing the distance in a tick over 5 minutes, 20 seconds.
Mertztown, PA’s Dylan Hoch powered around the outside of Brett Bieber—off turn two on lap five—to snare the top spot of the All Star Slingshot Speedweek feature. Hoch went on to record his third victory of the season and the 16th of his Action Track USA career. He is only three wins behind Bieber on the All Star Slingshot all-time feature victory list.
Bieber chased Hoch to the checkered with the winner’s brother, Tyler, crossing the line in third. Dave Carraghan and Chase Schott finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
Matthew Laubach, from Hellertown, PA, passed Hailey Eroh for the number one position on lap three of the Junior Slingshot Speedweek feature. Laubach then had to fend off the challenges of Eroh as the two battled in and out of lapped traffic during the middle to late stages of the 20 lap race. Laubach held on for his third Action Track USA triumph of the season, with opening night victor Eroh settling for second. Landon McNichol wound up third with Aubrey Romig fourth and EJ Hatch racing home in fifth.
All Star and Junior Slingshot Speedweek will wrap up at Berks County’s number one bullring on Sunday, August 18.
RESULTS:
All Pro SpeedSTR Feature, 30 laps: 1.Briggs Danner, 2.Tim Buckwalter, 3.Cole Stangle, 4.Matt Janisch, 5.Paulie Hartwig III, 6.Mike Bednar, 7.Dustin Morris, 8.Bobby Butler, 9.Kyle Herve, 10.Jax Yohn, 11.Cale Zangli, 12.Tyler Kehs, 13.Shea Wills, 14.Scott Houdeshell, 15.Gary Wagner, 16.John Oliver, 17.Billy Pauch Jr.
DNS: Dan Schumaker.
Hyper Racing 600 Sprints, 25 laps: 1.Colin White, 2.Tim Buckwalter, 3.James Roselli, 4.Christian Bruno, 5.Cole Dewease, 6.Briggs Danner, 7.Billy Koch, 8.Gunnar Pio, 9.Kenny Miller III, 10.Jacob Severn, 11.Steven Snyder Jr., 12.Tyler Henry, 13.Preston Lattomus, 14.Aidan Donaldson, 15.Connor Mirabelli, 16.Gabe Gerber, 17.Danny Buccafusca, 18.Zack Weisenfluh, 19.Dakota Barlet, 20.Ryan Groff, 21.Matt McAnally, 22.Kayden Barker, 23.Jasper Ziegafuse, 24.Justin Yohn, 25.Joe Nemeth, 26.Connor Gross, 27.Able Engler.
DNQ: Kyle Lick, Jace Marshall, Sonny Tete, Matt Warner, Zach Curtis, Jarid Kunkle, James Hendricks, Lukas Kostic, Ethan Irons, Korey Inglin, Cole Gerber, Dylan Hahn, Shelby McLaughlin, Jared Kreider, Billy Calvert, Jacob Homnick, Tyler Lindsay, Damien Bauer, Weston Doklan, Fred Heinly, Chase Wehr, Eddie Mort, Adam Buchel, Dan Lane, Jake Fisher, Aidan Svanda, Richie Baker, Tommy Errico Jr.
All Star Slingshots Speedweek Race #2, 25 laps: 1.Dylan Hoch, 2.Brett Bieber, 3.Tyler Hoch, 4.Dave Carraghan, 5.Chase Schott, 6.Luke McCloskey, 7.Patrick Weiss, 8.Austin Kroboth, 9.Gavin Danner, 10.Colton Williams, 11.Daniel Betz, 12.Brianna Snyder, 13.Tyler Lilick, 14.Darian Danyluk, 15.Nathan Abrahim, 16.Shawn Dengler, 17.Garrett Chillot, 18.Faith Turnbaugh, 19.Amanda Angstadt.
Junior Slingshots Speedweek Race #2, 20 laps: 1.Matthew Laubach, 2.Hailey Eroh, 3.Landon McNichol, 4.Aubry Romig, 5.EJ Hatch, 6.Jon Severn, 7.Lilly Barrett, 8.Jocelyn Darinsig, 9.Billy Pauch III, 10.Carter Mullins, 11.Lily Esterly, 12.Charlie Geibel, 13.Anna Strachko, 14.David Morrison, 15.Colton Henry, 16.Mackenzie Henn, 17.Miles Zehner, 18.Brandon Lilick, 19.Gavin Wolfe, 20.Hailey Burnatowski, 21.Kaleb Stofflet.
