Wacky races
BUFFALO TWP — A three-time champion needed his car towed to victory lane.
Bob Lipinski needed his cushion. Brian Swartzlander wished he had had one.
The final Friday night of points racing at Lernerville Speedway was a bizarre one indeed.
Alex Ferree of Saxonburg won his third consecutive Late Model title — despite not finishing the feature. He pitted with damage to the right front of his car before a 20th-lap restart and didn't return.
Ferree was able to beat out Lynn Geisler of Cranberry Township in points — 366-349 — because Geisler was forced to pit with a flat tire and other problems on the seventh lap.
"This definitely stinks for the fans," Ferree said. "It would have been a lot more fun if Lynn and I were battling side by side for this.
"This isn't the way I wanted to get it done, but I'll take it any way I can get it."
Officially, Ferree was credited with an 11th-place finish while Geisler was 13th. There were only 14 Late Models at the track.
Gregg Satterlee won the Late Model feature by passing Slippery Rock's Dave Murdick on Turn 4 of Lap 24. Murdick was bidding for his first feature triumph in the division when Satterlee's car slid underneath him. The cars made contact and Satterlee wound up in front.
"I got into Murdick there on the last lap," Satterlee admitted. "It was nothing intentional. I was just trying to get by him."
Satterlee's win was his fifth of the year at Lernerville and his 12th overall this season. He leads all Western Pennsylvania Late Model drivers in feature wins this year.
But the points trophy belongs to Ferree.
"Two years ago, I set the bar pretty high for myself and I haven't been able to do that again," Ferree said. "But the luck's been on my side for three years now."
Luck wasn't on Swartzlander's side Friday. The veteran Leechburg driver of the No. 83 Modified was bidding for his seventh points title at Lernerville, which would have been a track record for a single division.
Swartzlander began the feature with a nine-point lead over Kevin Bolland and a 13-point edge on Jeremiah Shingledecker.On a third-lap restart, however, Swartzlander spun out on Turn 1 and sustained damage to his front end. He tried to continue on a tire that was going flat, but he spun again on a Lap 6 restart and was struck by another car as his sat sideways on the track, forcing him to the pits.Unable to return to the race, Swartzlander helplessly watched as Shingledecker won the feature and his first career points crown."Somebody got into me on that (third lap) restart and spun me around," Swartzlander said. "It's nice of the guys to give somebody room when he's racing for points. ... I appreciate that," he added sarcastically."We wanted to come back out late, but we were down laps. ... There was nothing we could do."Because Shingledecker won the race, Bolland had to finish third to tie him for the points title. He finished fourth after he was unable to get around Dean Pearson of Harrisville coming off the final turn."I'm speechless over this," Shingledecker said. "I didn't even bother doing the math coming out here tonight. I figured I had no chance."I can't say I hated to see it end this way, but I do feel badly for Brian. He had a great year."Shingledecker has been dirt track racing for 14 years, This is his third full season at Lernerville. He finished with 411 points to Bolland's 409 and Swartzlander's 403.Ed Lynch Jr. won his eighth Sprint feature of the year at Lernerville — most of any driver in any division in 2009 — and 101st of his career. But Rod George finished third and claimed his third career points crown at the Sarver track.
George previously won track titles here in 1986 and 2002."I didn't race here for a lot of years, but our pace quickened once I came back," George said. "I've had the same crew chief all along, the same sponsors — we never had to start over from scratch and I'm grateful for that."George finished with 423 points to Lynch's 408. Lynch missed a few Fab Four nights to compete in All-Star or World of Outlaws races."Rod's done a great job all year," Lynch said. "He's the points champion and we respect that."Lipinski began the Sportsman Stock feature with a 25-point lead on runner-up Joe Kelley, the track's career wins leader in that division. While going for the lead on a 16th-lap restart, Lipinski ran into the rear of Kelley's car.Lipinski's car sustained heavy suspension damage, which finished him for the night. He held on for the points title by six, 462-456.Like Ferree's, Lipinski's car had to be towed to victory lane."I made it, but I wanted to drive my car out here," Lipinski said. "I was going for (the win). The track was fast and you had to make your moves pretty quick."Kelley increased his Sportsman Stock track record win total to 32."Congratulations to Bob Lipinski," he said. "He deserves it. He worked hard all year and he's been at this about as long as I have. He's paid his dues."<B>Notes: </B>There were 74 cars in the pits. At least 1Z\x inches of rain fell on the track earlier in the day. ... Kelley won 10 heat races this year, most in any division. ... Murdick picked up his third runner up finish in the No. 1J Late Model. ... All-Star Sprints and Late Models will be at Lernerville next Friday. Starting time is 8 p.m.
