BUFFALO TWP - Jeff Jones helped his older brother win a Late Model points championship at Lernerville Speedway in 2000.

And he didn't do it strictly out of brotherly love.

"I enjoyed helping him out," the Evans City resident said. "But I wanted to learn as much as I could about the race car, too."

That's because after 22 years of watching older brother Nick on the track, Jeff Jones was going racing.

Nick Jones has been in his No. 15 Late Model for eight years. While his younger brother worked on his pit crew during that championship season, he could be found in the stands most other years.

"When I went to the track, it was pretty much to spectate," the younger Jones said. "I guess I just got tired of watching.

"I decided to get into an E-Mod, and that type of car has a lot in common with a Late Model. I figured I could learn from Nick if I was involved on his crew," he added.

The older Jones was surprised at the timing of his brother's decision to get behind the wheel.

"If he was gonna do it, I figured he would have started years ago," Nick Jones said.

Now 41, Jeff Jones raced an E-Mod for three years at Challenger Raceway, Sharon and the Pennsylvania Motor Speedway. He won two feature races during that time, both at Challenger.

Last August, he bought one of his brother's old Late Models and switched divisions.

He raced the car five times toward the end of last year, finishing as high as 11th.

"Just getting seat time was all I wanted," he said.

Jones even took a shot at FallFest, a 100-car Late Model race at Challenger at the end of last season.

"I crashed in the B-Main," he said. "It was my worst performance so far."

So far this year, Jones is doing OK. He finished sixth in the Late Model feature at Lernerville Speedway on opening night, then finished 18th in the feature last Friday.

"Hey, I'm realistic about this," Jones said. "I'd like to finish in the top 10 in points and get a heat win if I can.

"I don't anticipate winning a feature this year, but that doesn't mean I won't be out there trying," he added.

Jones pits his No. 27J car near his brother's No. 15 at Lernerville, but that's as close as the two get during the week. While Jeff Jones has his car in a garage in Cranberry Township, Nick Jones has his at a garage in Ross Township, where he lives.

"That's pretty far apart, and with work and everything, we don't really have time to compare notes during the week," Nick Jones said.

"Jeff's pretty good on the track. He stays out of trouble and avoids wrecks. and that's a big part of this. As he experiences more races on the track, he'll become more aggressive out there. It's aggressiveness combined with the ability to stay out of trouble that wins races," he added.

The younger Jones said the biggest difference between E-Mods and Late Models is pure speed.

"E-Mods are a good 20 to 30 miles per hour slower," he said. "That's a big difference, and it will take me a while to totally adjust to that."

Jones has no paying sponsors right now. His two main crewmembers, Brian Davidson of Mars and Don Dramsky of Cranberry Township, have been with him since he started racing.

"We have a limited budget, but we can fix something if it breaks," Jones said.

Jones is employed as a data base administrator.

"This will never become a second job to me," he said of racing. "I'll do it until I'm no longer having fun doing it."

And does Nick Jones foresee racing his little brother for the checkered flag some Friday night?

"Never say never," big brother said with a smile.

Lernerville Points Standings

(top 15 through April 9)

Sprints

Ed Lynch Jr. 38, Arnie Kent 37, Chad Hill 33, Jack Sodeman, Jr. 32, Rod George 30, Gary Rankin 28, Dan Shetler 28, Kevin Schaeffer 27, Scott Barris 26, Davey Jones 24, Brent Matus 23, Jerry Matus 19, Mike Dehner 18, Bob Altmeyer 16, Gale Ruth Sr. 15

Late Models

David Scott 40, Ron Davies 37, John Flinner 34, Dave Satterlee 32, Matt Lux 32, Ken Schaltenbrand 29, Mike Blose 29, Gary Lyle 24, Mark Moats 24, Doug Eck 23, Jim Dandy 23, Scott Johnson 21, Scott Gurdak 18, Spanky Dougherty 18, Chuck Kennedy 16, Lynn Geisler 16

Modifieds

Jim Weller Jr. 38, Brian Swartzlander 38, Dave Murdick 35, Lonny Riggs 34, Tom Winkle 32, Chanda Reitz 28, Mark Flick 26, Del Rougeux, Jr. 25, Gary Risch, Jr. 23, J.R. McGinley 22, Pete Simpson 22, Tommy Marshall 20, Rob Curtis 18, Rob Krystiak 18, Carl Murdick 17

Pure Stocks

Rob Shook 39, Bob Lipinski 36, Jason Fosnaught 36, Joe Kelley 32, Herman Bertolini 31, Bob Egley 27, Greg Beach 27, Mike Turner 26, Gary Norman 25, Chuck Kremer 24, Dave Spangler 20, Doug Graham 20, Nick Reges 17, Wayne Carbo 17, Lenny Wright 15