By Kasey Kreider
(Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of Wayne Hohler Photography)
On a chilly and blustery night at the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, early morning downpours cleared out in time for a fast and frantic night of racing at the Newmanstown bullring. Saturday morning’s rain led to a heavier racing surface that produced multi-groove action for the 600 classes, while presenting a more technical challenge to the 270, Sportsman, and 125/4 Stroke competitors.
The 600 features bookended the night, with Marty Brian running the catfish line to score a Hyper Racing Wingless 600 victory, while Chris Gerhart ripped the lip to beat Bradley Brown in the EVO Fuel Injection Winged 600 A-Main. Nick Skias scored an impactful victory in the Border Magic 270 division, taking uncle Chuck Skias’ No. 3 into the winner’s circle. Dylan Pennypacker made the pass on Max Fasnacht with two laps to go to grab his first Lanco win in the Step Brothers Concrete & Fence Sportsman class. And John Maurer came out on top of a mid-race battle with Brent Shearer and Rilynn Hannula to make it back-to-back wins in the 125/4 Strokes.
EVO Fuel Injection Winged 600
Despite having shoulder injuries derail each of his last two seasons of racing, Saturday night proved that 2010 track champion Chris Gerhart still has his fastball when it comes to wheeling around the Clyde.
The Bechtelsville native – known for being more of a bottom-feeder – pounded the top side of the speedway for the duration of the 25-lapper while defending champion Bradley Brown – referred to as “The Highsider” for good reason – was forced to roll the bottom. Despite neither driver racing in their “preferred” groove, they each put on a thrilling show, with Gerhart coming out on top after a green-white-checkered finish.
Gerhart started the A-Main from the pole position, but quickly surrendered the lead to Pat Bealer, who was trying to end his first Lanco appearance of 2025 in victory lane. But Bealer’s car then suffered an issue following a lap 4 restart, forcing him to retire from the race and handing the top spot back over to Gerhart.
Gerhart continued to lead through the middle of the race, but once Brown moved into second, last year’s track champion used the bottom groove to run nearly side-by-side with the No. 51 for the better part of the next 10 laps. After Gerhart briefly pulled away following a restart with 11 laps to go, Brown moved up to the high side of turns 1 and 2, while maintaining the low groove in turns 3 and 4. That line allowed Brown to close the gap once more, and it seemed as if he was setting up Gerhart for a move right before one final caution waved with two laps remaining.
Despite Gerhart admitting post-race that he didn’t want to see that final caution, he was able to get the fire-off that he needed to gap Brown off the restart. Despite Brown’s best efforts over the final couple of laps, Gerhart was flawless on the high side, and crossed the line two car lengths in front of the No. 23 to pick up first win since last April.
Chris Gerhart (No. 51) fought with Bradley Brown (No. 23) in a hard — but clean — battle in Saturday night’s EVO Fuel Injection Winged 600 feature. (Photo Courtesy of Mike Knappenberger Photos)
Behind Gerhart and Brown, Chris Panczner rounded out the podium. Brent Shearer finished fourth, and Billy Logeman came home fifth.
Results:
1. 51-Chris Gerhart[1]; 2. 23-Bradley Brown[4]; 3. 15P-Christopher Panczner[9]; 4. 29-Brent Shearer[5]; 5. 97-Billy Logeman[10]; 6. 11H-Holden Eckman[15]; 7. 17-Brent Ely[8]; 8. 39M-Austin Mieczkowski[13]; 9. 5A-Anthony Yerger[19]; 10. 53S-Shannon Slaughter[11]; 11. 51B-Amanda Onimus[14]; 12. 55-Bob Rankin[18]; 13. 11Z-Zachary Light[6]; 14. 12S-Brianna Snyder[2]; 15. 11R-Tommy Rinck[12]; 16. 29B-Pat Bealer[3]; 17. 14-Jason Swavely[7]; 18. 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[16]; 19. 71-Brian Kramer[17]
Points (Top 5) (After 2 of 15 Races):
1. 23-Bradley Brown[185]; 2. 51-Chris Gerhart[-9]; 3. 29-Brent Shearer[-15]; 4. 17-Brent Ely[-33]; 5. 97-Billy Logeman[-33]
Chris Gerhart went back to victory lane almost one year to the day since his last victory in EVO Fuel Injection Winged 600 competition. (Photo Courtesy of Mike Knappenberger Photos)
Hyper Racing Wingless 600
Saturday’s Hyper Racing Wingless 600 feature event saw the cream rise to the top, as the previous two track champions in Marty Brian and Ryan Groff drove to the front and fought for the win. The decisive pass for Brian came with 10 laps to go, and “The Gunslinger” cruised from there to his first win of the year.
Groff was the first of the former champions to find the front, as he rolled the bottom groove up from the fifth starting position and got around pole-sitter Holden Eckman on the third lap. While Dominic Schmidt and Gunnar Pio were among the drivers trading slide jobs and fighting for position on the upper groove, Brian used the same strategy of creeping around the low side to work up into the runner-up spot.
The 2023 champ then set his sights on the 2024 champ and quickly closed the gap. Brian first tried to circle around Groff in the middle groove, which may have been successful in baiting Groff to the top of the speedway. As Groff left the bottom for just one corner, Brian instantly ducked inside to fill the hole, and completed the pass for good off the following set of turns.
The Ephrata driver was unchallenged the rest of the way, as he sped off to victory by a margin of over two seconds. Groff came home second in his first race of the season, while Schmidt completed the podium. Jace Marshall and Matt Warner were the rest of the top five.
Results:
1. 16-Marty Brian[6]; 2. 03-Ryan Groff[5]; 3. 08-Dominic Schmidt[3]; 4. 2J-Jace Marshall[4]; 5. 98-Matt Warner[17]; 6. 10L-Lukas Kostic[13]; 7. 1F-James Fries[12]; 8. 34-Abel Engler[9]; 9. 90-Trent Warner[15]; 10. 11H-Holden Eckman[1]; 11. 2S-Garyt Smith[11]; 12. 20S-Nicholas Skias[24]; 13. 39-Richie Hartman[23]; 14. 2L-Luke Hess[10]; 15. 00K-Peyton Knecht[7]; 16. 9W-Weston Doklan[20]; 17. 3Y-Zachary Young[21]; 18. 15H-Don Hess[14]; 19. 28P-Gunnar Pio[8]; 20. 49-Brandon Fidler[22]; 21. 22H-Fred Heinly[19]; 22. 3B-Dallas Damask[2]; 23. 17-Cole Perez[16]; 24. $30-Dominic Foster[18]
DNQ: 90X-PJ Reid
Points (Top 5) (After 2 of 16 Races):
1. 16-Marty Brian[172]; 2. 2J-Jace Marshall[-2]; 3. 08-Dominic Schmidt[-2]; 4. 98-Matt Warner[-16]; 5. 1F-James Fries[-32]
“The Gunslinger” Marty Brian parked his No. 16 Hyper Chassis in victory lane following Saturday night’s Hyper Racing Wingless 600 feature. (Photo Courtesy of Wayne Hohler Photography)
Border Magic 270
Going into last year’s season finale, it had been nearly two and a half years since Nick Skias’ most recent victory in 270 competition at the Clyde. In that final race, Skias picked up one last win for car owners Randy and Tina Schaefer, and clinched his third track championship. And on Saturday night, in just his second outing in uncle Chuck Skias’ No. 3 built originally for his father Pete, Nick Skias went back to the winner’s circle in the Border Magic 270 A-Main.
Skias – who was the hard charger of last weekend’s 270 feature after starting 15th – only needed to come from second spot on the grid on this Saturday night. Dan Lane, Jr. put up a strong fight at the front to hold onto the top spot for the first six circuits. But on lap 7, Skias slipped to the inside of the No. 16x, and took away the race lead.
From that point forward, Skias was firmly in control, and the Wernersville native picked up a dominating victory, coming across the finish line more than three seconds ahead of second-place finisher Richie Hartman.
Hartman grabbed his second runner-up finish in as many races to start the 2025 season, while John Maurer charged up from 17th to take third. Billy Logeman picked up the Border Magic Hard Charger Bonus for his 19th-to-fourth run, and Lane, Jr. completed the top five.
Results:
1. 3-Nick Skias[2]; 2. 747-Richie Hartman[5]; 3. 82-John Maurer[17]; 4. 27O-Billy Logeman[19]; 5. 16X-Dan Lane Jr[1]; 6. 48-Jonah Meck[12]; 7. 11R-Tommy Rinck[14]; 8. 34-Christi Sweigart[8]; 9. 81-Dylan Holmes[4]; 10. 77G-Isaac Graby[9]; 11. 47X-Ernie Newmaster III[16]; 12. 5R-Brandon Heist Sr[22]; 13. 94-Dallas Sanders[13]; 14. 4S-Kiptyn Stratton[3]; 15. 8S-Mike Skias[7]; 16. 11H-Chason Hauck[6]; 17. 4-Dylan Pence[15]; 18. 21D-Dave Williams[11]; 19. 95-Jack Skelton[10]; 20. 1L-Logan Hess[23]; 21. 1J-Toby Blumenshine[21]; 22. 96W-Chase Walker[20]; 23. 10A-Anthony Yerger[18]
Points (Top 5) (After 2 of 16 Races):
1. 747-Richie Hartman[190]; 2. 3-Nick Skias[-5]; 3. 27O-Billy Logeman[-25]; 4. 82-John Maurer[-64]; 5. 5R-Brandon Heist Sr[-64]
Defending champion Nick Skias put the No. 3 Viper Chassis in the winner’s circle in the Border Magic 270 A-Main. (Photo Courtesy of Wayne Hohler Photography)
Step Brothers Concrete & Fence Sportsman
The Step Brothers Concrete & Fence Sportsman division saw another pass for the victory within the final laps for the second week in a row. After Josh Stoyer got past Corey Schmuck, Jr. late in last week’s feature, this time it was Dylan Pennypacker who slid by Max Fasnacht with just two laps left to score his first Lanco victory.
The former Airport Speedway champion started second to Fasnacht in the feature event, and after a rough start to the race which included an open red flag for an eight-car pileup, the A-Main eventually got into a groove with Fasnacht hugging the bottom, Pennypacker experimenting with the middle, and Schmuck, Jr. pounding the top side.
After a restart with nine laps remaining, Fasnacht and Pennypacker began to break away and would settle the race amongst themselves. Pennypacker tried on several occasions to swoop to the outside of Fasnacht in turns 3 and 4 and carry his momentum past the No. 20 car down the frontstretch, but to no avail.
The decisive move came as the leaders were completing lap 23, when Pennypacker instead carved to the inside off of turn 4 and got inside of Fasnacht entering turn 1. Fasnacht was forced to breathe out of the throttle, and that gave Pennypacker all the room he needed to complete the pass and drive off into the sunset for his first win at the Clyde.
Fasnacht made it two runner-up finishes in as many weeks, while Schmuck, Jr. also had to settle for another third. Former champions Brandon Heist and Mike Kreiser completed the top five.
Results:
1. 27-Dylan Pennypacker[2]; 2. 20-Max Fasnacht[1]; 3. 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[4]; 4. 99-Brandon Heist Sr[7]; 5. 77-Michael Kreiser[3]; 6. 28-Kyle Lindsey[15]; 7. 17-Masen Stapleton[8]; 8. 1J-Justin Harrington[11]; 9. 21D-Dave Williams[14]; 10. 21V-David Ravel[17]; 11. 30-Ryan Heckman[10]; 12. 15-Josh Stoyer[6]; 13. 05-Evan Lawrence[18]; 14. 31-Tyler Martin[9]; 15. 77J-Jade Smith[13]; 16. 8-Michael Spadafora[12]; 17. 19-Wes Fasnacht[5]; 18. 23K-Courtney Kupp[19]; 19. 22J-Jonathan Hellinger[16]
Points (Top 5) (After 2 of 16 Races):
1. 20-Max Fasnacht[190]; 2. 26-Corey Schmuck Jr[-10]; 3. 28-Kyle Lindsey[-29]; 4. 77-Michael Kreiser[-30]; 5. 15-Josh Stoyer[-36]
Dylan Pennypacker was jubilant in victory lane following his first Lanco win in the Step Brothers Concrete & Fence Sportsman class. (Photo Courtesy of Mike Knappenberger Photos)
125/4 Stroke
Despite having to deal with the “winner’s handicap” of starting no better than sixth in Saturday night’s A-Main, John Maurer overcame the track position deficit to make it back-to-back victories in the 125/4 Stroke class to kick off the 2025 season.
The Fleetwood driver rolled off from the outside of row 3, while Rilynn Hannula led the field down to green in search of her first Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway win. Hannula paced the way through the opening segment of the race while both Brent Shearer and Maurer quickly worked through traffic and began to chase the No. 89 car down.
A trio of cautions just prior to midway point of the feature set up a few important restarts, and the third and final one is where Maurer made his move, as he shot to the outside of Hannula’s machine while Shearer split to the inside, making it a three-wide fight for the lead down the backstretch. Maurer drove deep into turn 3 to clear both drivers, and began to set sail from that point forward.
A couple hairy moments in lapped traffic cut Maurer’s advantage down slightly as the race wound toward its conclusion, but at the finish, the No. 82 still crossed the finish line over one second in front of Shearer to complete the victory.
Seth Gregory rounded out the podium with a third-place finish, while Hannula came home fourth for the second straight week. Steve Simmons finished off the top five.
Results:
1. 82-John Maurer[6]; 2. 75-Brent Shearer[8]; 3. 14-Seth Gregory[9]; 4. 89-Rilynn Hannula[1]; 5. 04-Steve Simmons[7]; 6. X-Dave Schroeder[4]; 7. 3H-Corey Harting[12]; 8. 4W-Brandon Worthington[3]; 9. 26C-Michael Coen[5]; 10. 19-Matt Fernsler[14]; 11. 15-Alyssa Holmes[11]; 12. 44S-Trevor Waegel[10]; 13. 23-Asher Kempton[16]; 14. 78C-Sara Borror[2]; 15. 5-Keegan Stratton[15]; 16. 112-Dylan Yeingst[13]; 17. 8-Michael Spadafora[17]
Points (Top 5) (After 2 of 16 Races):
1. 82-John Maurer[200]; 2. 14-Seth Gregory[-30]; 3. 89-Rilynn Hannula[-30]; 4. 26C-Michael Coen[-41]; 5. 04-Steve Simmons[-44]
John Maurer made it two-for-two to start off the season in the 125/4 Stroke division. (Photo Courtesy of Wayne Hohler Photography)
Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway kicks off the month of May next Saturday, May 3, with another five-division show on tap. The Hyper Racing Wingless 600s, Border Magic 270s, Step Brothers Concrete & Fence Sportsmans, and the 125/4 Strokes will all return for their third points races of the season. However, the EVO Fuel Injection Winged 600s will have the weekend off, and in their place will be the only scheduled appearance of 2025 for the All Star Slingshots. Gates will open at 4 p.m., with warmups and on-track action beginning at 5:30 p.m. For those unable to attend in person, live streaming coverage will be provided by The Cushion.