Kutztown
season at Action Track USA wraps up with the fourth annual Dick Tobias Classic on Sunday, August 21. The SpeedSTRs will compete in the 75-lap Tobias Classic and will be joined by the Hyper Racing 600 Sprints and the NAPA Auto Parts All Star Slingshots as the 2016 point championships are decided for all three weekly divisions.
Billy Pauch Sr. started 12th in Wednesday’s SpeedSTR main and gradually worked his way to the runner-up position by the halfway point of the 30-lapper. Pauch trailed race leader James Morris by several car lengths as the laps wound down, but an untimely (for Morris) yellow flag gave the wily veteran one more shot with six laps remaining.
On the restart, Pauch hung with the Quality Shoppe of Kutztown No. 13 of Morris as the two leaders ran side by side down the backstretch. As Morris explained, he drove too hard and too deep into three and four, skating up the banking as Pauch also drifted up a bit but got back into the gas and shot off turn four with the race lead.
At the finish, it was Pauch over a disappointed Morris, with Tim Buckwalter, Jay Hartman, and Steve Nederostek making up the top five. Buckwalter started 11th, Hartman 16th, and Nederostek was 18th when the race began.
Pauch’s fourth win was his first since June 15, and his tenth career victory at Action Track USA. He is now the leader in alltime SpeedSTR wins at the speedway, breaking a tie with his son, Billy Jr.
The AEI Equipment 600 Sprint Fair National, a 60lap contest of endurance and chassis set-up, Robbie Hocker finally broke through for his first Action Track USA feature win. Hocker did not take the Gambler’s Challenge when he signed in, so the triumph was worth $1,000 to the New York wheel-twister.
Hocker snatched the lead from Tommy Kunsman on the fifth trip around the progressively banked oval. He was hounded by several drivers during the first half of the event, including Kunsman, Jason Swavely, Nate Brinker, Eddie Strada, and last year’s winner of the 600 Fair National, Pat Bealer.
A multi-car incident with 17 circuits complete almost cost Hocker the top spot, as he got turned sideways in one and two. Swavely knocked him straight and he continued without stopping, but Swavely flipped and several of the top runners were collected in the melee.
As the race approached its halfway mark, Sam Kravitsky made his presence known in the top five - after starting 26th! He and Eddie Strada, who spun with nine laps down and restarted in the rear, sliced their way through heavy traffic to battle Tim Buckwalter and Jay Hartman for second and third as Hocker pulled away.
The second half of the race had the fans watching the progress of Doug Snyder, who suddenly navigated his way past Kravitsky and Hartman, then passed Buckwalter for the runner-up position with 15 laps to go. A caution period with 13 tours remaining set up a nip-andtuck duel for the win between Hocker and Snyder.
Hocker held on for the narrow victory over Snyder, with Jay Hartman finishing third, T. Buckwalter fourth, and Kravitsky ended up fifth. Strada completed his comeback with a sixth place effort. He finished one position in front of Billy Pauch Jr., enabling the Lake Ariel driver to take a five point lead over Pauch into this Sunday’s finale. Buckwalter, now third in the standings, still has a shot at his second consecutive title when the season concludes on Sunday evening.
Kyle Smith started on the pole and dashed to his first All Star Slingshot triumph at Action Track USA, covering the 20-lap distance in 5:20.412.
Smith cruised to the non-stop win over rookie Zac Kistler, Canadian Alex Lizotte, Matt Miller, and Grandview Late Model Champ Chuck Schutz.