In 2014, after 25 years of service, Rich Begenwald retired from the Pittsburgh Police force and moved the family to Sarver — across Route 356 from Lernerville Speedway.

“What are those strange noises on Friday evening?” asked his young son, Jake. After watching their first heat race, Jake and his sister, Bella, were hooked on racing!

“I didn’t even know cars competed on an oval,” Jake said.

Their father and mother, Melanie, have provided plenty of opportunities for both Jake and Bella to pursue their passion for racing.

Rich met former Lernerville pace truck driver Barry Lewis at Blairsville Speedway Go-Cart track. Lewis was there with his grandchildren, who are champion Go-Cart drivers. In 2018, Rich bought 9-year-old Jake and 11-year-old Bella a Go-cart. Jake won the first heat he entered and eventually won a 2019 track championship in the Champ-One division. In 2020, he raced at Blanket Hill Speedway and was the Junior Sprint Champion. He then moved up to a 600cc Micro-sprint at Blanket Hill and won the Championship in 2021.

In 2022, the Begenwalds ran only 12 races because the family was busy with school sports and other activities. In 2023, Jake moved into the 305 Allegheny Sprint car class and won a feature at Hidden Valley.

Two weeks ago, Jake, at 15 years old, capped his meteoric rise in racing and entered the 410 Sprint division at Lernerville. Rich had purchased the race car from J J Seigel and it was Jake’s first-time racing with the veteran 410-Sprint drivers.

It was unbelievable that this teenager was so cool, calm and collected as he raced up front with his favorite driver, six-time Lernerville Sprint champion A J Flick, and others like Dale Blaney and Cody Bova for about 13 laps, eventually finishing eighth.

He feels confident in his abilities; confidence can be a key factor in achieving success in any pursuit.

Rich said, “He gets that calmness from his mother, I am a hothead! My only driving experience comes from police car chases. We were allowed to do that way back when!”

Flick, Rod Jones, Johnny Walker, and Bobby Seigel have all shared advice with Jake. His crew chief is Josh Hartman and other crew members include Bobby Fugate, Steve Watson, Howard Rider, and Chubbs Witherup.

“Safety is my biggest issue,” Jake said, “but I know I have really good equipment! I am wearing a Simpson hybrid neck brace, a good helmet, and a three-layered fire suit.”

At Freeport High School, Jake will be a sophomore this fall and is a member of the golf team. He especially likes classes where he works with his hands, like wood-shop. In his spare time, he enjoys fishing, playing video games, riding bikes, and motor bikes. Bella is a senior.

Rich has instilled a sense of discipline, determination and responsibility in Jake, which are valuable traits for a race car driver. Racing can be exhilarating, but it's crucial to stay focused to make the most out of his talent. As a young driver, he is building a strong foundation and continuously improving, which will help him to achieve his goal.

“I’d like to become a World of Outlaws Sprint driver some day!” With the right mindset, Jake will achieve great things in the world of motor sports.

Racing notes

Who is the Lernerville driver that won the most feature races in one season? Tommy Kristyak won 15 feature events in 1981 in a Six Cylinder.

Colten Flinner’s wife had their baby girl this past week. They named her Markella. His late dad Mark just loved seeing their first child every day and made a stock car stroller for the pits!

Friday will be Championship night at Lernerville Speedway and the divisional titles will be awarded. A J Flick (364 points) has already secured his seventh title over Darin Gallagher (271. Flick is the only Sprint driver to achieve this fete of seven! Modified driver Brian Swartzlander holds the record with eight titles!

Mike Norris (328) and Tyler Dietz (326) are separated by two points in the Super Late Models. Norris won two previous championships in 2017 and 2018. If Dietz of Saxonburg, is able to capture both the Late Model and

Pro Stock titles, he will be the first driver to do it in 41 years. Blackie Watt was the last to do so, winning Late Models and Modifieds in 1982. Ralph Quarterson won titles in the Sprints and Modifieds in 1971.

Rex King Jr. (424) tops the Modified chart by 22 points over Garrett Krummert (402) with only 40 points awarded in one night. King Jr claimed titles in 2018 and 2014. Krummert won the championship in 2020.

Dietz (370) is the 2023 Pro Stock Champion over Cody Koteles (300). Dietz also won titles in 2022, 2020 and 2019.

Carol Gamble is a racing columnist for the Butler Eagle