SHARON SPEEDWAY UP NEXT FOR THE PACE RUSH LATE MODEL FLYNN'S TIRE/BORN2RUN LUBRICANTS TOURING SERIES; SATURDAY'S $3199 TO-WIN "BILL FORNEY MEMORIAL" MARKS THE 1ST TOUR RACE AT SHARON SINCE 2016; CANFIELD/SHARON DRIVERS REUNION TO BE HELD
By Mike Leone
August 25, 2021 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Hartford, OH)...After a weekend off, the Pace Performance RUSH Late Model Series together with Sweeney Chevrolet will head to Sharon Speedway this Saturday night (August 28) for a Flynn's Tire/Born2Run Lubricants Touring Series event. Race #12 of the 2021 season will be the inaugural "Bill Forney Memorial" paying $3,199 to-win, and will also include the Canfield/Sharon Drivers Reunion (1949-1973) with dinner from 4-6 p.m. This will be a big night for RUSH as the RUSH Sprint Cars and RUSH Sportsman Modifieds will also be on the card. Warm-ups for the Late Models begin at approximately 6:15 p.m. followed by group qualifying and racing at 7. Event t-shirts will be on sale for $25.
Bill Forney, one of, if not the greatest racer to ever wheel a Late Model in the region, passed away on August 10, 2019 at the age of 92. Forney made famous the candy-striped #199 Late Model, thus the additional $199 added to the winner's share in Memory of Bill from Bill's children, Mike Forney and Anita Carson. The inaugural event was scheduled for last year; however, was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, and then this year was rained out on July 17 and postponed to this Saturday night. Former racer and car owner, Bob Williams of Canfield, will award the feature winner a large trophy.
Forney was a fixture at both Canfield and Sharon Speedways. Forney's racing prowess earned him the Late Model track championship at Sharon in 1964, and an unprecedented seven championships at Canfield (1959-1960, '61, '63, '65-66, '68) - a track that had a national reputation for tough as nails competition. All totaled, Forney had hundreds of feature wins, many at these two tracks. Forney was inducted into the inaugural Twin State Auto Racing Club's Hall of Fame in 2010, and is also a member of the Cloverleaf Speedway (Cleveland) Hall of Fame.
"We're honored the Forney Family is allowing their father's memorial to be a RUSH event," stated RUSH Director Vicki Emig. "We got to know Bill very well and he was certainly supportive of the RUSH concept and followed our Series closely right up until his passing. I'm sure he'd be tickled to know that his memorial event was a RUSH Late Model show at Sharon. Bill was a legend in local Late Model racing and is very deserving of a memorial race- one that we're proud to have under the RUSH banner. Adding the Sharon/Canfield Speedway drivers reunion to this special night in Bill's honor is a perfect fit for the fans and I believe it will truly be a night to remember! We have to thank the many donors that helped us raise the purse up from the standard $2,000 to-win show to what it is (see donor list below)."
The Tour last appeared at the 3/8-mile showplace in Hartford, Ohio in 2016. That was prior to the new red clay surface that has produced tremendous racing in recent years. The RUSH Late Models ran weekly at Sharon from 2011-2014. After a four-year hiatus, Sharon hosted a Weekly Series special last year that saw Max Blair top a 22-car field. Will Thomas III is the division's all-time winner with 13 victories, and will make his 2021 RUSH Tour debut Saturday. The Tour returns to Sharon on September 10-11 during the "Apple Festival Nationals" for the $4,000 to-win "Cider Jug 40" presented by Zarin Truck & Auto.
"Our racers have been yearning to return to Sharon for several years," acknowledged Series Director Vicki Emig. "Between COVID and rain, hopefully the third time is a charm on Saturday night. The competition level has really ascended since our last visit. There are so many racers that are anxious to compete at Sharon, and we can't wait to see the cars race on the red clay surface."
In conjunction with the "Bill Forney Memorial" will be the Sharon/Canfield Speedways Drivers Reunion. Drivers that competed on the dirt at these speedways from 1949-1973 were invited to the event free of charge and will enjoy a complimentary dinner in the pavilion prior to the event. Special thanks to Jeff Teeters, Jeff Johnson, Steve Haefke, Joe Gabrielson, John Sandquist, Jr., and Wayne Tessean for their generous contributions to cover the cost of the complimentary meals for the retired drivers. The fathers of all these racers competed during this era.
Drivers/car owners that have confirmed their attendance include John Czoka, Tom Czoka, Jim Dandy, Sr., Don Downey, Skip Evans, Mike Forney, Butch Haefke, Tim Henrich, Jeep Iacubucci , Tom Jarrett, Bobby Johnson, Jamie Joyce, Dan Lewis, Sr., Terry May, Ed McGarry, Clair Mizner, Ron Novak, Jerry Postlethwait, Jerry Rydarowicz, John Sandquist, Michael Saverko, Tubby Tessean, Bob Williams, Wally Yeager, and Dave Yobe.
Virginia racer Kyle Hardy leads the RUSH Tour to Sharon with six victories including the most recent show on August 15 at Eriez Speedway as he topped a 46-car field for "Manufacturers Night". Hardy has a 77-point lead in the $12,000 to-win championship. Joe Martin, a former regular at Sharon when the division ran weekly, has worked his way up to second in points thanks to eight top six finishes in the last nine events. Defending and three-time Series champion, Jeremy Wonderling, has dropped to third in points with three wins.
Michael Duritsky, Jr. and J.J. Mazur are fourth and fifth in points in search of their first career Tour wins. 2016 RUSH Tour champion John Waters is sixth, while Bud Watson and Ryan Frazee are tied for seventh. Kyle Lukon and Logan Zarin complete the top 10.
FK Rod Ends will award $100 for the fastest overall qualifier and pay $25 to each heat race winner. Precise Racing Products will award a $100 gift card for the "Pedal Down" Hard Charger that passes the most cars in the feature. The TBM Brakes “Tough Brake of the Night” will award three bottles of Xtreme6 Racing Brake Fluid valued at approximately $45 along with a certificate for a discount off any TBM Brakes purchase.
The feature winner will receive a 5-Gallon Race Jug from Precise. Ontime Body & Graphic's "Spoiler Alert" will award a $150 spoiler kit to the 12th place finisher (note: if a driver has already won a spoiler this season, spoiler will be awarded to the next position).
The Sunoco Dash winner will not only receive a $100 Sunoco gift card and earn the feature pole position, but also $100 cash in recognition of all of the drivers that ran the Bill Emig #1. One driver will be randomly selected at the drivers meeting for a $100 Sunoco gift card thanks to the "Fill'er up with Sunoco Bucks" program presented by Sunoco and Zarin Truck & Auto. Also, Performance Bodies will award a $100 gift card to the first non-qualifier as part of the "Nosed Out" program.
Thank you to the following that financially contributed to the event to increase the purse: Forney Family (Anita Forney-Carson, Craig Carson, Colleen & Mike Forney along with grandchildren Jenn, Sarah, Taylor & Joshua), Ron Anderson, Jim Balentine, Sr/Balentine Racing Photos, Barris Truck Service, Mike Borawiec Family, BRE Racing/Dick Berry, Buccella Family, Mike Cicchillo, File's Auto Wrecking, Don Kromer, Jamie Joyce/Cathy Hanes, Terry May, Ed Miller, Molnar's Concessions, Lori Murphy, Postlethwait Family, Rocky's Body Shop, Christine Statler, Wertz Towing, Wilhelm Family, and Bob Williams Racing.
Sharon Feature Payoff: 1. $3,199 2. $1,500 3. $800 4. $600 5. $500 6. $475 7. $450 8. $425 9. $400 10. $350 11. $310 12. $300 13. $275 14. $270 15. $265 16. $260 17. $255 18-24. $250.
Non-Qualifier Payoff: 1. $200 2. $190 3. $185 4. $180 5. $175 6. $170 7. $165 8. $160 9. $155 10-24. $150. Tow $125.
You do not have to be a member of RUSH to compete only to receive Weekly and/or Tour points. The entry fee is $100. AMB/MyLaps transponders will be used; Westhold transponders will NOT work. Units are available to rent for $25. Driver radio channel will be 454.000.
Pits will be open throughout the afternoon with pit passes going on sale at 4 p.m. A drivers meeting will be held at 5:50 p.m. with warm-ups at approximately 6:15 followed by group qualifying and racing. Pit passes are $35.
Sharon Speedway is a 3/8-mile dirt track located on Custer-Orangeville Road in Hartford, Ohio near the intersection of Routes 7 & 305. For more information, check out their website at www.sharonspeedway.com or call 330-772-5481. Become a fan of Sharon Speedway on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sharonspeedway and follow them on Twitter at www.twitter.com/sharonspdwy.
RUSH Racing Series is brought to you by Pace Performance together with Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC along with the support of Hoosier Tire, Bilstein Shocks, Sunoco Race Fuels, Bazell Race Fuels, Insinger Performance, MSD Performance, Holley Performance Products, Hovis Auto & Truck Supply, Born2Run Lubricants, Flynn's Tire & Auto Service, FK Rod Ends, Schoenfeld Headers, Jones Racing Products, TBM Brakes, Performance Bodies & Parts, Racing Electronics, Dirt Defender, Wrisco Industries, Frankland Racing Supply, Landrum Performance Spring, Ontime Body & Graphic, Zarin Truck & Automotive, Sherwood Wheels, Alternative Power Sources, Precise Racing Products, Stop-Fyre, Lincoln Electric, Velocita-USA, Waterstone Mortgage Hermitage, CrateInsider.com, and Wedge Motorsports.
E-mail can be sent to the RUSH Racing Series at [email protected] and snail mail to 4368 Route 422, Pulaski, PA 16143. Office phone is 724-964-9300. The RUSH Late Model website is www.rushlatemodels.com. Like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/rushlatemodels and follow us on Twitter @RUSHLM.
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