For Mike Bordt, speed is the name of the game and he has become a member of the Mars auto racing connection.

Bordt, who is a police officer, changes into a fire suit and dons a helmet Friday evenings at Lernerville Speedway, competing in the Pro Stock class!

Bordt experienced a new level of appreciation when he drove around the Sarver oval for the first time. Although he had been on Butch Lambert’s Pro Stock pit crew since he was 12, it was a whole new ball game for him when he got behind the wheel.

“Butch made it look a lot easier than it was. I thought I would just get in the car and be ready for action,” said the third year chauffeur. “You have to pay your dues on the learning curve.”

Rooting for Martin Truex in the NASCAR events and going to Lernerville when he was 9, with his uncle Joe Cole and his friend, Charlie Neely, initiated Bordt’s love for action packed racing.

“We went Friday, Saturday and Sunday,” he boasted.

While in fourth grade at Mars Elementary, Bordt became friends with Clayton Kennedy and Zach Morrow and the camaraderie continued throughout high school.

“Now Clayton is a Late Model driver and Zach has a Rush Sprint car. All we needed was to have a Modified friend,” said Bordt. “We were all in each other’s wedding too.”

In 2015, Bordt needed to try his hand at racing and bought Randy Hanovik’s Pro Stock that was designed by Chris Schneider.

“I think that half of the Pro Stock field is a Schneider Chassis,” claimed Bordt.

Although he had helped Lambert, there was a 10-year gap in set-ups from that time.

“Things we used to do back then wouldn’t work now,” he lamented, “but Chris has been a big help.”

His pit crew consists of Andy Kennedy, Ron Weaver and Logan Watson. They won a heat race at Marion Center. Bordt likes watching Corey McPherson, Tyler Dietz, Joe Kelley, Wayne Carbo, Lambert, and Schneider race.

Last week, his wife Kattie Kay brought their 14 month-old son, Jamison, to the races for the first time and he loved it! They have just purchased a small farm and will be moving soon.

Bordt’s other hobby that he loves is archery hunting.

The Pro Stock is such a competitive division; His immediate goals would be to finish in the top five at the track and break into the top ten in points.

Nostalgia Night

The recent Lernerville Nostalgia Night was a huge success.

Accolades go to Don Gamble, Dave Oliveri, the Tomson family and a host of others who brought together retired drivers and a dozen vintage racecars.

Listening to some of the elder drivers’ conversations was humorous. With a twinkle in his eye, Sprint driver Mark Casella said, “I still carry my helmet bag in my trunk just in case someone asks me to drive.”

He babysits his grandchild three days a week. Late Model driver Harley Chuba asked Dick Swartzlander if he still had all his original parts. Dick said, “I think so!”

Harley shared that he would be getting a knee replacement this week. That evening the Dave Thompson Memorial race paid tribute to the first Late Model titlist in 1968. His daughter Bonnie, her husband Chuck Sarver, and friends collected $1,600 to pay $3,000 for first place that Jared Miley captured. Then they added another $2,000 back through the purse.

Wins No. 1

Congratulations to Sprint drivers George Hobaugh for nabbing a career first at Sharon and Sye Lynch for his big win at Lernerville, where his father holds the record of 111 victories.

An excited Joey Zambotti climbed the fence at the Sarver oval after his recent Pro Stock triumph.

Big Truck Night

Big Truck Night was a popular event at Lernerville last week. Local businesses had brought 18-wheelers, a cement truck, scrap metal bin haulers and a host of others for all to look at and check how they operate. That was a first at local speedways,

Forgot the wheel

It was an embarrassing situation for Bob Yohe.

He brought his Super Late Model to the track and asked Crate Late Model driver Todd Weldon to pilot it. When Weldon got into the car, something was missing … the steering wheel. It was back at the garage.

Fortunately, race drivers share and someone had a spare!

Carol Gamble is a racing columnist for the Butler Eagle