Lincoln Speedway 2000-06-17

JIMMY MCBEE ENDURES RAIN, RAHMER AND SIEGEL FOR FIRST CAREER WIN;
Todd Rittenhouse Jr. endures for his first career URC win too; Thundercar feature postponed until June 24th

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA, 6/17/00 - You couldn't have scripted a better ending. After enduring over two and a half hours of rain delays, those that stuck it at out Lincoln Speedway Saturday night saw one of the most inspiring races ever. Gettysburg's Jimmy McBee grabbed the lead from his fourth starting spot on the opening lap of the 25 lap super sprint feature and held off several challenges by Steve Siegel and Fred Rahmer over the race's final eight laps to pick up his first career win at 2 a.m. in the morning. "To be honest, this is like a dream come true for me," said McBee during a festive victory lane celebration. "All I've ever wanted to do is race sprint cars and to be honest, if I died tonight I would be a happy man." "A couple years back when I was on the road working on World of Outlaw cars I always watched those Central Pennsylvania tapes I remember one of them Fred Rahmer and it was at the beginning of the year when he said, ‘we got the first one under our belt now and the rest of them will come easier'. I don't know if there is any truth to that but I sure do hope so because it's nice to be here." The win, worth $2,500 to McBee, ended six-time Lincoln winner and three-time defending track champion Rahmer's two race win streak at the Pigeon Hills oval. "I was wishing it was over after the second lap," said a outwardly happy McBee in victory. "Because when you have guys like Steve Siegel and Fred Rahmer behind you...as far as I'm concerned they are the best of the best and for me to be able to hold them off I feel very privileged." The outset of the feature saw McBee charge from the second row to pass both frontrow cars of Billy Sims and Shane Smith for the lead before the first lap was in the books. Sixth-starting Jeff Rohrbaugh moved into second place on the third lap and eighth-starting Steve Siegel raced into third on the fourth lap while McBee pulled out to a 1.98 second lead. A Brook Weibley spin on the ninth lap brought out the race's first caution to put both Rohrbaugh and Siegel right on McBee's bumper for the restart. McBee was able to maintain the top spot through the ninth lap before the caution flag waved again on the 10th lap for a Curt Michael (who was driving the Walt Dyer No.461) and Pat Cooper spin in the third and fourth turns. The red flag waved on the restart for a Tyler Walker flip in the first and second turn which also collected Jeremy Trout and Weibley. Again McBee was able to remain in front on the 10th lap restart as Rohrbaugh began to show his nose on the inside of McBee in every turn. Meanwhile Rahmer, who started ninth, joined the action up front in fourth place as all four cars began to race together through lapped traffic. Siegel was finally able to get by Rohrbaugh for second place on the 15th lap and immediately began to pressure McBee. Rohrbaugh's strong run ended on the 17th lap when he was caught up in a first and second turn melee which involved Jesse Wentz, Shane Smith, John Garrett and Pat Cooper. Garrett rolled his sprinter int he incident but was not injured. On the 17th lap restart Siegel ducked under the Gettysburg speedster in the first and second turns to grab the, only to have McBee fight back in the third and fourth turns to take it back. "I figured I better get my act together and get going or he was going to blow by me," said McBee on almost losing the lead to Siegel on the restart. "It surprised me too." "We've been kind of struggling when it blows off and gets kind of slick. This deal tonight was just our deal...this rain really helped us." It then became a three-car fight to the checked with Siegel and Rahmer engaged in a heated battle for second place that saw Rahmer finally getting the runner-up spot with two laps to go. But McBee was able to masterfully navigate through lapped traffic and never gave Rahmer a clear shot to take the lead and drove under the checkered .72 seconds ahead for his inaugural win, and in the process became the seventh different winner out of 13 races at Lincoln this year in the wee hours of the morning. "Brian Gobrecht's my best friend and I was just going to be a mechanic on his car all year basically," McBee added. "Donnie Little came to me and he sat me down with Denny Neiderer and we worked out a deal (to driver the No.10N sprinter ) and I just can't thank him and the whole team enough." Siegel settled for a hard-earned third place finish while P.J. Chesson, Dave Ely finished fourth and fifth respectively. Completing the top-10 was Danny Jones (driving the Dan Long No.99 sprinter), Johnny Mackison Jr., James Chesson, Sims, and Rohrbaugh. Heats for the 31 super sprints on hand were won by McBee, Wentz, and Chris Knopp, with Trout winning the consolation event.

Todd Rittenhouse Jr. endured a long mid-race rain delay to grab the lead from Billy Ellis on a 11th lap restart and raced away to his first career win in the 25 lap United Racing Club (URC) feature. Outside frontrow starter Ellis grabbed the lead over polesitter Rittenhouse at the start of there feature held the Rittenhouse at bay for the first 10 laps. A caution followed by a pair of red flags on the 11th lap was preceded by a steady drizzle which forced URC officials to bring the sprinters back into the pits while URC and Lincoln officials debated what action to take. But the crack Lincoln track crew was able to get the track back into shape and the green flag waved to restart the feature at 12:45 a.m. in the morning - much to Rittenhouse's delight. On the 11th lap restart Rittenhouse flew by Ellis in the third and fourth turns to grab the lead and held onto the top spot until the red flag waved again on the 22nd lap when before a three-car flip on the backstretch brought the action to a halt. An ensuing caution waved on the restart for the final stoppage of action. But Rittenhouse was not to be denied this night as he was able to hold on for his first career URC win by .59 seconds over a closing Brian Seidel and Steve Siegel. Ellis settled for fourth and was followed by Curt Michael in fifth. Completing the top-10 was Doug Esh, Bill Brian Jr., Danny Massey, Justin Barger, and Becca Anderson. Heats for the 38 URC Sprints on hand were won by Trevor Lewis, Sam Ross, Rittenhouse, and Tim Hogue. Winning the C-Main was Bobby Seidel, while George Suprick won the B-Main.

After enduring the lengthy rain delay Lincoln Speedway officials opted to postpone the 15 lap thundercar feature until next week, June 24th. Heats for the 28 thundercars on hand were won by Tony Kuhn, Greg Feltch, and Allen Haines, with Cork Laughman getting the win in the consolation event.

Next Saturday night, June 24th, Lincoln Speedway will kicking off PENNSYLVANIA SPEEDWEEK action for the super sprints with the inaugural running of the KEVIN GOBRECHT MEMORIAL. Pennsylvania Speedweek will cover eight different tracks over the course of 10 days. But it all starts at the Pigeon Hills oval next Saturday night with time trials set to get underway at 7:30 PM. Also joining the sprinters that same night will be the thundercars who will be running there postponed June 17th feature along with there regularly scheduled program . Gates will open at 5 PM.

RACE RESULTS
Saturday - June 17, 2000
LINCOLN SPEEDWAY
Abbottstown, PA

Super Sprints:

Feature (25 Laps) - 1. 10N-Jimmy McBee ($2,500); 2. 77-Fred Rahmer; 3. 59-Steve Siegel; 4. 76-P.J. Chesson; 5. 77E-Dave Ely; 6. 99-Danny Jones; 7. 65-Johnny Mackison Jr.; 8. 22-James Chesson; 9. 55S-Billy Sims; 10. 29-Jeff Rohrbaugh; 11. 94-Glenndon Forsythe; 12. 7J-Jeremy Trout; 13. 2W-Jesse Wentz; 14. 07-Alan Cole; 15. 34-Al DeAngelis; 16. 4L-Josh Wells; 17. 0-Billy Wilburn (DNF); 18. 26-Pat Cooper (DNF); 19. 00-Shane Smith (DNF); 20. 0-John Garrett (DNF); 21. 6-Chris Knopp (DNF); 22. 12-Tyler Walker (DNF); 23. 32-Brook Weibley (DNF); 24. 461-Curt Michael (DNF). No Time

Lap Leaders - Jimmy McBee (1-25)

1st Heat (10 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 10N-Jimmy McBee; 2. 29-Jeff Rohrbaugh; 3. 65-Johnny Mackison Jr.; 4. 99-Danny Jones; 5. 77E-Dave Ely; 6. 461-Curt Michael; 7. 81-Bob Beidleman; 8. 34-Al DeAngelis; 9. 56-Becca Anderson; 10. 9-Gordon Senft; 11. 30-Darren Eash (DNF). Time - 2:21.78

2nd Heat (10 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 2W-Jesse Wentz; 2. 59-Steve Siegel; 3. 55S-Billy Sims; 4. 76-P.J. Chesson; 5. 26-Pat Cooper; 6. 94-Glenndon Forsythe; 7. 7J-Jeremy Trout; 8. C4-Dave Cook; 9. 0-Billy Wilburn; 10. 7K-Dan Shetler (DNF). Time - 2:26.15

3rd Heat (10 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 6-Chris Knopp; 2. 77-Fred Rahmer; 3. 12-Tyler Walker; 4. 00-Shane Smith; 5. 22-James Chesson; 6. 32-Brook Weibley; 7. 17N-Niki Young; 8. 07-Alan Cole; 9. 4L-Josh Wells; 10. 0-John Garrett. Time - 2:24.26

Consolation (10 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 7J-Jeremy Trout; 2. 07-Alan cole; 3. 0-Billy Wilburn; 4. 34-Al DeAngelis; 5. 4L-Josh Wells; 6. 0-John Garrett; 7. 9-Gordon Senft; 8. C4-Dave Cook; 9. 81-Bob Beidleman (DNF); 10. 17N-Niki Young (DNF); 11. 56-Becca Anderson (DNF); DNS - 7K-Dan Shetler, 30-Darren Eash. No Time

United Racing Club (URC) Sprint Series:

Feature (25 laps) - 1. 5G-Todd Rittenhouse Jr. ($1,500); 2. 19-Brian Seidel; 3. 6-Steve Siegel; 4. 27-Billy Ellis; 5. 99-Curt Michael; 6. 6E-Doug Esh; 7. 16-Bill Brian Jr.; 8. 76-Danny Massey; 9. 32-Justin Barger; 10. 56-Becca Anderson; 11. 3-Dave Gable; 12. 2-Tim Hogue; 13. 89-Fred Kennedy; 14. 97-Chris Coyle; 15. 24-Mike Haggenbottom; 16. 87-George Suprick; 17. 5-Sam Ross; 18. 25-Jon Eldreth; 19. 33-Kramer Williamson; 20. 669-Dave McGough; 21. 31-Tim Higgins; 22. 4-Travis Quinn; 23. 21-Trevor Lewis; 24. 39-Fran Hogue. No Time

Lap Leaders - Billy Ellis (1-10), Todd Rittenhouse Jr. (11-25)

1st Heat (8 Laps/5 to qualify) - 1. 21-Trevor Lewis; 2. 4-Travis Quinn; 3. 3-Dave Gable; 4. 19-Brian Seidel; 5. 39-Fran Hogue; 6. 87-George Suprick; 7. 39M-Matt Gerber; 8. X-Todd Wise; 9. 40-Mike Kostic; 10. 3A-Chuck Wilde. Time - 2:00.02

2nd Heat (8 Laps/5 to qualify) - 1. 5-Sam Ross; 2. 27-Billy Ellis; 3. 669-Dave McGough; 4. 6E-Doug Esh; 5. 31-Tim Higgins; 6. 76-Danny Massey; 7. 16-Bill Brian Jr.; 8. 10-Bobby Seidel; 9. 0-Pete Green; 10. 25E-Kevin Eldreth. Time - 1:59.97

3rd Heat (8 Laps/5 to qualify) - 1. 5G-Todd Rittenhouse; 2. 24-Mike Haggenbottom; 3. 25-Jon Eldreth; 4. 97-Chris Coyle; 5. 6-Steve Siegel; 6. 34-Kevin Kelly; 7. 99-Curt Michael; 8. 11-Tommy Martocci; 9. 76-Jamie Bodo. Time - 2:03.91

4th Heat (8 Laps/5 to qualify) - 1. 2-Tim Hogue; 2. 32-Justin Barger; 3. 33-Kramer Williamson; 4. 56-Becca Anderson; 5. 89-Fred Kennedy; 7. 1-Scott Purcell; 8. 9C-Bill Case Jr.; 9. 18-Adam Gordon. Time - 2:03.88

C-Main (8 Laps/4 to advance to B-Main) - 1. 10-Bobby Seidel; 2. X-Todd Wise; 3. 9C-Bill Case Jr.; 4. 0-Pete Green; 5. 11-Tommy Martocci; 6. 40-Mike Kostic; 7. 25E-Kevin Eldreth; 8. 76X-Jamie Bodo; 9. 3A-Chuck Wilde; 10. 18-Adam Gordon. Time - 2:06.46

B-Main (10 Laps/4 to qualify to feature) - 1. 87-George Suprick; 2. 76-Danny Massey; 3. 99-Curt Michael; 4. 16-Bill Brian Jr.; 5. 1-Scott Purcell; 6. 8-Midge Miller; 7. 9C-Bill Casr Jr.; 8. 39M-Matt Gerber; 9. 34-Kevin Kelly; 10. 10-Bobby Seidel; 11. X-Todd Wise; 12. 0-Pete Green (DNF). Time - 2:33.78 (Established new 10-Lap record)

Thundercars:

Feature (15 Laps) - Posponed until next Sat., June 24th.

1st Heat (8 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 6-Tony Kuhn; 2. 95A-Allan Cullum; 3. 21A-Mike Zeigler; 4. M1-Mike Potts; 5. 21-Jerry Bingaman; 6. 30-Bryan Wagaman; 7. 11R-Jim Rost; 8. 100-Mike Zeigler Jr. (DNF); DNS - 16J-Randy Zechman. No Time

2nd Heat (8 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 4-Greg Feltch; 2. 8MD-David Prunkl; 3. 22-Nat Tuckey; 4. 10-Steve Clabaugh; 5. 95-Fred Cullum; 6. X-Bernie Beard; 7. 60-Cork Laughman; 8. 24C-Keith Cook; 9.9J-Mike Johnson (DNF). Time - 2:53.33

3rd Heat (8 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 13-Allen Haines; 2. 3-Duane Watson; 3. 5-Bobby Beard; 4. 1-Neil Smith; 5. 25-Sean Herrick; 6. 78-Josh Hamilton; 7. 3R-Bobby Rudisill; 8. 2-Joe Wilson; 9. 7-Duane Hahn; 10. 61-Mike Ciezobka (DNF). Time - 2:50.90

Consolation (8 Laps/6 to qualify) - 1. 60-Cork Laughman; 2. 100-Mike Zeigler Jr.; 3. 3R-Bobby Rudisill; 4. 11R-Jim Rost; 5. 9J-Mike Johnson; 6. 7-Duane Hahn; 7. 61-Mike Ciezobka; 8. 2-Joe Wilson; 9. 24C-Keith Cook; DNS - 16J-Randy Zechman. Time - 2:09.28