BUFFALO TWP — When it came to racing their Sprint cars without the wings last Friday at Lernerville Speedway, most of the area drivers politely declined.

Veteran Sprinters Ed Lynch Jr., Rod George and Ralph Spithaler — all with plenty of career wins under their belts at the Sarver track — were no-shows for the United States Auto Club's Wingless Series appearance.

A few of the area drivers did compete, however, and would do so again.

"If there was a wingless series around here, yeah, I'd probably do it,"said Gary Rankin of Renfrew. "It's a different type of racing and it's more competitive.

"It's also a lot more dangerous. There's no disputing that."

Rankin has raced wingless before and has experienced the danger first hand. He totaled his car in a violent flip at Knox two years ago.

"The wing softens the blow when you flip," Rankin said. "The crashes are brutal without it."

Charlie Holben of Cabot flipped his No. 42Gcar during time trials Friday night and was taken to an area hospital for evaluation. He returned to the track, but did not compete.

Other area drivers who did race Friday included Arnie Kent, Brent Matus, Scott Bonnell and Sheila Rankin. There were no serious mishaps during the 30-lap feature.

The last USACwingless race in this area was Sept. 11, 1999, at Tri-City. Dave Darland, a regular on the USACtour, won that event.

Friday night marked the first wingless race at Lernerville since 1990, when Dean Jacobs took the checkered flag.

"There is a heightened danger factor involved and I guess that's why (wingless) races aren't held around here,"Matus said. "I haven't done one in 10 years or so, but I'm excited about this one.

"The cars are always tighter together on the track, and taking the wings off helps even the playing field. Everybody has a chance out there. It's not all about the money."

Bonnell won a wingless race at Tri-City a few years back. He competed in a wingless race as part of a series in Florida in January.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's the best deal out there,"Bonnell said of the Sprint division. "You have to know how to navigate the turns, let off the gas a little bit. It's more on the driver than the car."

The USACregulars dominated Friday's race. Rankin was the highest finisher among local drivers and he was 17th. None of the locals finished among the top five in their respective heat races.

"We just haven't done this enough to get a real feel for it,"Matus said. "I (was) afraid I wouldn't be very competitive. I still wanted to experience the race."

Rankin said it reminded him of a Modified race, a division he used to run.

"The cars really lift coming off the turns and you have to get used to that," he said.

A wingless series in Western Pennsylvania would solve that problem.

"Show me and I'll sign up,"Bonnell said. "I'd definitely be interested."

Lernerville Speedway Points Leaders Top 15 through May 5SprintsRod George 64, Ralph Spithaler Jr. 58, Ed Lynch Jr. 56, Cory Good 56, Skip Daugherty 54, Scott Bonnell 51, Arnie Kent 48, Kevin Schaeffer 48, Brent Matus 47, Carl Bowser 44, Mike Shearer 43, Terry Bowser 40, Brian Ellenberger 38, Gary Rankin 37, Joe Butera 32

Late ModelsLynn Geisler 70, Jared Miley 64, Ken Schaltenbrand 60, Dave Hess Jr. 58, Matt Lux 54, Mike Blose 53, Alex Ferree 46, Tony Burke 41, Josh Richards 40, Carl McKinney 34, Dutch Davies 34, Gary Lyle 33, Dave Satterlee 33, Chris Schneider 32, Greg Satterlee 30

ModifiedsKevin Bolland 72, Brian Swartzlander 71, Tom Winkle 65, Dave Murdick 64, Jim Weller Jr. 50, Carl Murdick 43, Tim Doran 42, Skip Moore 42, Dean Pearson, JRMcGinley 41, Mark Flick 38, Del Rougeux Jr. 37, Jim Weller III35, J. Shingledecker 28, Joe Crawford 28

Pure StocksMike Pegher Jr. 76, Butch Lambert 74, Wayne Carbo 67, Jason Fosnaught 57, Greg Beach 54, Jake Ayers 51, Paul Schrecengost 50, Pat Hanley 49, Bob Egley 48, Terry Young 41, Jim Fosnaught 38, Tony Iarrapino 37, Dave Baker 32, Martin Viale 29, Andy Buckley 28