Sweeney RUSH LM & Mod Tour Sharon & Tri-City 9/16-18/16 preview

SWEENEY RUSH SERIES DOUBLEHEADER AT SHARON FRIDAY & SATURDAY WITH "GARY KNOLLINGER" MEMORIAL FOR LM TOUR PLUS BICKNELL RUSH MOD TOUR; TRI-CITY TO HOST RUSH MOD TOUR RACE SUNDAY
By Mike Leone

September 14, 2016 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Pulaski, PA)...The Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC RUSH Racing Series powered by Pace Performance is primed for a huge weekend of racing. On Friday and Saturday (September 16-17), Sharon Speedway will hold a RUSH doubleheader with the "Gary Knollinger Memorial" for the Sweeney Late Model Tour along with the Sportsman Mods in a Bicknell Tour event. Tri-City Raceway Park will then conclude the weekend on Sunday afternoon (September 18) with a Bicknell RUSH Mod Tour event. Racing begins early all weekend at 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Sharon will host the prestigious sixth annual “Gary Knollinger Memorial” with $2,000 on the line in a "Marquee" Tour event as part of the “Apple Festival Nationals”. The winner will also get the coveted "Gary Knollinger Memorial" statue trophy. Friday will include $100 Bobby Lake Motorsports "Shock the Clock Qualifying" along with $25 to-win Bobby Lake Motorsports heat races. Saturday will be the last chance B mains, K&N dash, the 30-lap feature, and non-qualifier event, if necessary.

“It’s an honor to again be able to hold a memorial for Gary,” expressed RUSH Co-Director Vicki Emig. “Gary was a standout Crate Late Model racer from Triadelphia, West Virginia. We, and many of the racers, became very close to Gary and his family when he was a fierce competitor before his tragic passing on Christmas 2010. Sharon was Gary’s favorite track as he had a lot of success there, and has been the site of the memorial all but last year due to the rain out, which was then held at Lernerville and won by fellow West Virginia racer Jacob Hawkins. Max Blair, Joe Martin, Ryan Montgomery, and Russell King have also captured the meaningful event win.”

New York racers Bryce Davis, John Waters, and Jason Knowles lead the way in the Sweeney Late Model Touring Series standings. None of the three have ever won at Sharon or a Series title for that matter. Davis and Waters have been nip and tuck all season long. The duo both have three Series wins as Davis currently has an eight-point lead. Dave Lyon has worked his way up to fourth in points in his first season on the Tour. Completing the top 12 points paying positions are Brian Knowles, former Sharon Late Model and E-Mod champion Will Thomas III, Bruce Hordusky, Jr., Eric Wilson, Mike Pegher, Jr., Alan Dellinger, Tony White, and Brian Swank.

The Sweeney RUSH Sportsman Modifieds completed their second season as being a weekly division at Sharon and the average rose from 15 cars per night in 2015 to over 22 this season with eight different winners. This weekend, the RUSH Mods will race in their third Bicknell Racing Products Touring Series event of the season at Sharon. Greg Martin won the non-points make-up from last year's "Apple Festival Nationals" on April 16, while Chas Wolbert won his first career Tour race on June 25 as part of "Manufacturers Night". Wolbert is coming off a Bicknell Weekly Series win last Saturday at Lernerville Speedway, and leads the Bicknell Tour points thanks to all top seven finishes.

On Sunday afternoon, the RUSH Sportsman Mods head northeast to Tri-City Raceway Park for their second race of the season. This will also be a Bicknell Tour event as $600 will go to the feature winner of the 20-lap event. Sunday will be Tri-City's "Apple Fest". Adam Hilton won the June 19 event.

For the Modifieds both nights, the K&N “Cold Air Induction” Dash will be run for the first four drivers that finish outside of the feature redraw spots both nights and will pay $100 K&N certificate to win, $50 K&N certificate for second with $25 cash going to the third and fourth place finishers. Meanwhile for the Late Models, the K&N Dash will set the beginning rows of the feature lineup depending on how many heat races are run.

For both divisions, Precise Racing Products will award a $100 gift card for the "Pedal Down" Hard Charger that passes the most cars in the feature. The TBM Brakes “Tough Brake of the Night” will award three bottles of Xtreme6 Racing Brake Fluid valued at approximately $45 along with a certificate for a discount off any TBM Brakes purchase in all events this weekend.

RUSH Officials will choose the "Maxima Performance" Award for a driver that exhibits a performance worthy of such for both divisions. The winner will receive a free case of either Maxima Semi-Syn High Performance Racing Oil or Maxima Performance Racing Oil of your choice. In addition, the winner will receive one can of SC-1 clear coat, one 16-oz bottle of Maxima Cool-Aide concentrate, one 32-oz quart of Maxima PSF power steering fluid, and a Maxima t-shirt. The value of this prize package is $170!

The driver that finishes last on the lead lap in both divisions will receive a $25 gift certificate from CrateInsider.com. For the Sportsman Modified Series, RUSH Officials will determine the Sherwood Racing Wheels "Man of Steel" award winner as one that bounced back from an earlier mishap to finish the event strongly. The selected driver will receive a certificate for a free Sherwood Racing Wheel.

Sharon Late Model Feature payoff: 1. $2,000 2. $1,000 3. $650 4. $550 5. $470 6. $435 7. $410 8. $370 9. $340 10. $310 11. $280 12. $270 13. $260 14. $250 15. $240 16. $230 17. $220 18-24. $210.

Sharon Late Model Non-Qualifier payoff: 1. $175 2. $150 3. $140 4. $135 5. $130 6. $125 7. $120 8. $115 9. $110 10-24. $105. Tow $100.

Sharon Sportsman Modified Feature Payoff: 1. $800 2. $500 3. $350 4. $300 5. $250 6. $220 7. $180 8. $175 9. $170 10. $165 11. $160 12. $155 13. $150 14. $145 15. $140 16. $135 17. $130 18-24. $125. Tow $60.

Tri-City Sportsman Modified Tour Feature Payoff: 1. $600 2. $400 3. $300 4. $250 5. $225 6. $200 7. $170 8. $165 9. $160 10. $150 11. $140 12. $135 13. $130 14. $125 15. $120 16. $115 17. $110 18-24. $100. Tow $50.

2016 Sweeney Late Model Touring Series Points (must be a Touring Series member to receive points): 1. Bryce Davis 782 2. John Waters 774 3. Jason Knowles 720 4. Dave Lyon 708 5. Brian Knowles 705 6. Will Thomas III 699 7. Bruce Hordusky, Jr. 688 8. Eric Wilson 678 9. Mike Pegher, Jr. 661 10. Alan Dellinger 606 11. Tony White 544 12. Brian Swank 542 13. Clinton Hersh 455 14. Matt Latta 427 15. Kyle Zimmerman 325 16. Damian Bidwell 280 17. Randy Hall 270 18. W.L. Stile 219 19. Jared Kane 210 20. Max Blair 200 21. Charlie Duncan & Michael Duritsky, Jr. 166 23. Dennis Lunger, Jr. 161 24. Josh Double 89 25. Mike Franklin 71.

2016 Bicknell Sportsman Modified Touring Series Points (must be a Touring Series member to receive points): 1. Chas Wolbert 383 2. Brian Schaffer 373 3. Kole Holden 369 4. Brandon Ritchey 367 5. Kyle Martell 363 6. Chelsie Kriegisch 354 7. Jeremy Weaver 352 8. Tiffany Williams 345 9. Steve Slater 337 10. Jessica Kriegisch 321 11. Josh Seippel 318 12. Michael Sparks 317 13. Nick Ritchey 290 14. Jerry Schaffer 245 15. Will Schaffer 241 16. Justin Shea 174 17. Preston Cope 160 18. Jordan Ehrenberg 154 19. Blaze Myers 80 20. Rocky Kugel 78 21. Jacob Jordan 70.

You do not have to a member of RUSH to compete. The red AMB transponders will be used at Sharon and Tri-City. RACEceivers will be mandatory. The entry fee for the Late Models at Sharon is $100. The entry fee for the Sportsman Modifieds is $35 at Sharon and $25 at Tri-City.

On Friday at Sharon, pits open at 2 p.m. with registration opening at 3. The drivers meeting and pill cutoff will take place at 5:30 with group qualifying getting underway at 6. The same times will be utilized on Saturday. Sharon Speedway is a 3/8-mile dirt track with a GPS address of 3241 Custer-Orangeville Rd. NE, Burghill, OH 44404. For more information, check out their website at www.sharonspeedway.com or call 330-772-5481. As for their social media outlets, you can like their page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SharonSpeedway or follow them on Twitter @SharonSpdwy.

On Sunday at Tri-City, gates open at 1 p.m. with a drivers meeting at 3, drivers meeting at 3:30 and racing at 4. Tri-City Raceway Park is a ½-mile dirt track located at 3430 Route 417, Franklin, PA 16323. For more information, check out their website at www.tricityracewaypark.com or call 814-676-2894 on race day. Like their Facebook by searching Tri-City Raceway Park and follow them on Twitter @TriCityRaceway.

RUSH Late Model marketing partners include Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC, Pace Performance, Hoosier Tire, Bilstein Shocks, Sunoco Race Fuels, Bazell Race Fuels, Insinger Performance, MSD Performance, Maxima Racing Oil, Jones Racing Products, Alternative Power Sources, Precise Racing Products, ARbodies, TBM Brakes, K&N Filters, Lincoln Electric, Beyea Headers, FK Rod Ends, Bobby Lake Motorsports, Velocita-USA, High Gear Speed Shop, CrateInsider.com, B.R.A.K.E.S., RockAuto.com, and Valley Fashions.

RUSH Sportsman Modified marketing partners: Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC, Bicknell Racing Products, Pace Performance, Hoosier Tire, Bilstein Shocks, MSD Ignition, Maxima Racing Oil, Jones Racing Products, VP Racing Fuels, FK Rod Ends, Sherwood Racing Wheels, Velocita-USA, Precise Racing Products, Alternative Power Sources, K&N Filters, TBM Brakes, Lincoln Electric, CrateInsider.com, Rocket Racing, and B.R.A.K.E.S.

###