Connor Victorious In $1,000/Win Semi Late Special At Hummingbird
For Immediate Release
Saturday, June 26th, 2022
By: Steven Curry - Race Reporter
Reynoldsville- A 25-lap, $1,000/win Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Model Special sponsored by Srock Contracting headlined the fifth night of racing in 2022 Saturday night at Hummingbird Speedway. The #27C of Eddie Connor took the lead on lap 15 and went on to get the win and capture the big payday. Eddie's win was his 4th career Semi Late victory at the track and his first at the Bird in 2022. Our other five regular divisions were in action as well. In the Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks, the #55 of Brandon Connor collected career win #16 in the Pro Stock division at Hummingbird and his second this season at the speedway. The #36 of Paul Kot picked up his 4th win in 5 races to start the season in the Carns Powersports/Mountain Extreme Super Late Models. His win was his 28th career Late Model victory at the Bird which puts him just 5 wins behind Luke Hoffner for second on the win list since the track reopened in 2000. Paul also picked up a $100 bonus from Battle Chassis for being a Battle Chassis car to win either the Semi or Super Late features. The #1S of Erie, PA's Steve Simon became the fourth first-time winner in five races in the Andy Man's Car Care Economods joining Royce Stanley, Brad Curran Jr., and Bob McMillen. The win was Steve's first at Hummingbird in his first appearance. In the Sunny 106 Four-Cylinders, it was the #3H of Shawn Hadden notching career win #12 in the Four-Cylinder division at the track which puts him in a three-way tie for fourth on the all-time win list with Matt Bryant and Randy Albert. It was Shawn's third win of 2022 at the Bird. The PA Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau Pure Stocks concluded the evening with the #34 of Tim Steis taking his first trip to Carns Powersports Victory Lane this season. The win was his 16th career Pure Stock win at the speedway which puts him in a three-way tie for 6th on the win list with Brian Rhed and Matt Heindl.
Bo Lockwood and Chris Hackett (subbing for George Bailey) led the Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models trackside for their 25-lap, $1,000/win special sponsored by Srock Contracting to kick off the feature racing action. Lockwood and Hackett battled side-by-side on the start before Lockwood edged out to the lead and led lap one over Hackett and Eddie Connor. Only the first lap was completed before a caution for a car hitting the frontstretch wall set up the first restart of the race. One lap was completed on the restart with both Connor and Gary Little working their way past Hackett for second and third respectively. The red flag was then displayed for a hard crash involving many drivers in turns 3 and 4. Thankfully, all drivers involved were okay. On the restart, it was Lockwood out to the lead over Connor and Little. The field completed three more laps on the restart, to lap 5, before the caution flag was displayed again. Another lap was possibly completed on the restart before another caution flag came out, bringing about the first extended green flag run of the race. On the ensuing restart, it was Lockwood again out to the point over Connor and Little. Lockwood continued to lead the way as the race neared halfway. Connor began to put the pressure on Lockwood for the top spot. At the halfway mark on lap 13, it was Lockwood holding off Connor for the lead with Little following behind in third. A couple of laps later, on lap 15, Connor got to the inside of Lockwood and made the pass to take the race lead. At the five-to-go signal on lap 20 from flagman Earl Jackson, it was Connor out front with a fairly comfortable lead over Lockwood and Little. The race remained under green flag conditions until two consecutive caution flags on the final lap sent the race into overtime and a green-white-checker finish. On the final restart, Connor pulled out to the lead as Doug Surra began to challenge Lockwood and Little for second and third on the highside. Connor held on in the final couple of laps on his way to claiming the win and the $1,000 payday. Surra made the pass on both Lockwood and Little on the outside on the final lap to finish in second with Lockwood in third. It was Eddie's 4th career Semi Late win at Hummingbird and his first at the track in 2022. Connor was followed by: Surra, Lockwood, Little, Ryan Jacoby, Rod Phillips, Chris Hackett, Dennis Curry, Kyle Shannon, B.J. Hudson, Bill Phillips Jr., Raven Fuller, Nick Loffredo, Gabe Shaffer, Kyle Corah, and Mervin Killion. Hudson set fast time in Hot Lap Qualifying. Lockwood and Hackett won the heat races.
The Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks were next to the track with Zack Gustafson and Josh Seippel leading the field to green for their 20-lap feature event. A quick caution flag on the opening lap of the race kept the field close. On the restart, it was Seippel out to the lead over Gustafson and Bob Connor. The first lap was completed before a caution for a wreck in turn 1 set up another restart. On the ensuing restart, Seippel jumped out to the lead over Gustafson and Bob Connor. On lap 2, Bob Connor powered past Gustafson on the highside to move into the second position. Then, on lap 3, Bob Connor made the pass on Seippel on the outside to take the race lead as Brandon Connor made the pass on Gustafson for third. Later that lap, a caution for a wreck in turn 4 brought about another restart. Bob Connor pulled out to the lead on the restart as Brandon Connor began to pressure Seippel for second. On lap 4, Brandon Connor made his way past Seippel to move into second. Then, on lap 5, Brandon Connor made the pass on Bob to take the top spot. The race stayed green for another lap before the caution flag was displayed for a spin in turns 1 and 2. On the restart, it was Brandon Connor leading the way over Bob Connor and Seippel. On lap 7, Gustafson made the pass on Seippel to move back into the third position behind the Connor's. Then, on lap 8, Bruce Hartzfeld worked his way past Gustafson to move into third behind the leaders. Hartzfeld continued his march to the front on lap 9 as he made the pass on Bob Connor for second. At the halfway point on lap 10, it was Brandon Connor out front over Hartzfeld and Bob Connor. On lap 14, Gustafson made his way around Bob Connor for the third spot. The caution flag was displayed one final time on lap 18, but it did not phase Brandon Connor as he fended off Hartzfeld, Gustafson, and the rest of the field in the final couple of laps enroute to collecting career win #16 in the Pro Stock division at the Bird. The win was also his second of the 2022 season at the speedway. Hartzfeld, Gustafson, Jim Bloom, Seippel, Bob Connor, Cregen Brady, Fuzzy Fields, Allen Lamb, Brian Fabiano, Pernell Beimel, Ray Reynolds, Dave Shagla Jr., and Brayden Seippel rounded out the field. Bob Connor and Bloom won the heat races.
The Carns Powersports/Mountain Extreme Super Late Models were next to the 1/3 mile bullring for their 25-lap feature race. Dylan Cecce and Denny Fenton led the field of 13 to the opening green flag. Cecce jumped out to the lead on the start as Denny Fenton was challenged for second by Wyatt Scott. As the field completed lap 1, it was Cecce in the lead as Scott made the pass on Denny Fenton for the second position. Only the first lap was completed before a caution for a wreck in turn 4 set up the first restart of the race. On the restart, it was Cecce out to the lead over Scott and Denny Fenton. On lap 3, Jon Lee powered past Denny Fenton on the outside to move into third behind the leaders. Another lap was completed before a caution for a spin in turn 4 brought about another restart. On the ensuing restart, it was Cecce out front over Scott and Lee. On lap 5, Paul Kot made his way past Lee for third. Later that lap, the caution flag was displayed again for a spin in turn 4. Another lap or two were completed on the restart before a caution for a wreck in turn 4. A couple of more quick caution flags came out following that one before the race saw what would ultimately be the final restart. On the final restart, Cecce led the way over Scott and Kot. Scott looked to the inside of Cecce for the lead as they came to the line to complete lap 8 side-by-side. One lap later, on lap 9, Scott completed the pass on Cecce to move into the race lead. A few laps later, on lap 12, Lee, who was continuing to make the highside work, powered past both Cecce and Kot to move into second behind Scott. At halfway, it was Scott still leading the way as Lee was quickly closing in on the outside. Kot made the pass on Cecce to take the third position also on that lap. Scott moved to the highside to take Lee's line away which allowed him to maintain the lead for the time being. Lee then fell into the clutches of third place Kot as the laps continued to click away. On lap 18, Kot made the inside work enough to edge ahead of Lee for the second spot. Then, on lap 19, Kot was able to use some lap traffic as a pick and take the lead away from Scott. Scott slid up in turns 1 and 2 and jumped the cushion which allowed Lee to get by and move into second on lap 20. Lee gave it all he had in the closing laps as he continued to rim-ride around the 1/3 mile, but it was to no avail as Kot took his 4th trip to Carns Powersports victory lane in five races so far this season. Also, Cecce made a last-lap pass on Scott to get a podium finish of third. Paul's win was his 28th career Late Model victory at Hummingbird. Paul also collected a $100 bonus from Battle Chassis for being a Battle Chassis car to win either the Semi or Super Late features. Kot was followed by: Lee, Cecce, Scott, John Weaver, Denny Fenton, Dylan Fenton, Rich Runyan Jr., Derek Rodkey, Cody Lucas, Dwayne Brooks, Nathan Brady, Bill Davis, Orvis Newcome lll, and Doug Eck. Scott and Denny Fenton won the heat races.
Mike Anderson and Brad Curran Jr. headed the 15-lap Andy Man's Car Care Economod feature. After a quick caution flag to start the race, it was Curran Jr. out to the lead over Anderson and Steve Simon. Curran Jr. led lap one over Anderson and Simon. On lap 2, Simon made the pass on Anderson on the inside to move into the second spot. Another lap or two was completed before a caution for a spin on the frontstretch set up what would ultimately be the final restart of the race. On the final restart, it was Curran Jr. leading the way as Simon began to put the pressure on him for the race lead and Anderson in third. On lap 6, Simon made the pass on Curran Jr. on the lowside to move into the race lead. Then, on lap 7, Orin Taylor worked his way past Anderson to move into third behind the leaders. At the cross flags on lap 8, it was Simon out front as he was beginning to extend his lead over Curran Jr., Taylor, and the rest of the field. Simon would go unchallenged in the second half of the race on his way to notching career win #1 in his first appearance at the Bird. Simon became the 4th first-time winner in the division this season joining Royce Stanley, Curran Jr., and Bob McMillen. Curran Jr., Taylor, McMillen, Anderson, Nate Fleck, and Dennis Asel rounded out the field. McMillen won the lone heat race.
The Sunny 106 Four-Cylinders took to the track next for their 15-lap main. John Brown and Cory Price led the field of 19 to the opening green flag. Price edged out to the lead initially on the start, but he was overtaken by Brown at the line as he led lap 1 over Price and Shawn Hadden. On lap 2, a charging Shawn Hadden made the pass on both Brown and Price to move to the head of the field. Another lap was completed before a caution for a wreck in turn 1 set up the first restart of the race. On the restart, it was Hadden leading the way over Brown and Price. On lap 4, Joe Huber made the pass on Price for the third position. Then, on lap 5, Dave Smail worked his way past Huber for the third spot. The race stayed under green flag conditions until just after the halfway mark on lap 8 when a caution for a wreck on the backstretch brought about the final restart. It was Hadden leading the way for the final restart over Brown and Smail. Hadden jumped out to the lead on the final restart and never looked back enroute to capturing his 12th career win in the division which put him in a three-way tie for fourth on the all-time win list with Matt Bryant and Randy Albert. It was Shawn's 3rd win of the 2022 at the track. Hadden was followed by: Brown, Smail, Adam Bales, Huber, Eric Luzier, Ryan Lippert, Cody Baughman, Virgil Meyer, Isaac Irvin, Louis Young, Shane Wagner, Heidi Miller, Price, Calvin Bowman, MItch Stiles, Damian Hand, Brian Snyder, Jake Pennington, Martin Neeper, and Allen Robison. Smail, Bales, and Hadden won the heat races.
Tim Steis and Jake Foradori led the PA Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau Pure Stocks trackside for their 15-lap race to conclude the evening. Steis jumped out to the lead on the start and led lap one as Andy Frey and Jenna Pfaff both made their way around Foradori to move into second and third respectively. Just one lap was completed before a caution for a spin in turn set up the first restart of the race. On the restart, it was Steis out to the lead over Frey and Pfaff. On lap 2, Josh Fields looked to the inside of Pfaff and made the pass for third and then set his sights on Frey for second. Then, on lap 3, Fields and Pfaff were both able to get around Frey as he slid up the track in turns 1 and 2 to move into second and third respectively. Later that lap, the caution flag was displayed for a spin in turn 4. The caution would ultimately be the last one in the race. On the final restart, it was Steis pulling out to the lead over Fields and Pfaff. On lap 4, Frey got back around Pfaff to move back into the third position. Then, on lap 5, Pfaff worked her way back around Frey to move back into the third spot behind the leaders. At the halfway point on lap 8, it was Steis continuing to lead the way over Fields and Pfaff. Steis went unchallenged in the second half of the race and cruised his way to his first win of the 2022 season at Hummingbird. The win was Tim's 16th career Pure Stock win at the speedway which put him in a three-way tie for 6th on the win list with Brian Rhed and Matt Heindl. Fields, Pfaff, Frey, Joe Malobicky, Ashley Kilhoffer, Bruce Hartzfeld Jr., Casey Wolfe, Caleb Bloom, and Foradori rounded out the field. Steis and Foradori won the heat races.
Speedway Notes: 83 cars were in attendance for the fifth night of racing in the 2022 season. That breaks down to: 16 Semi Late Models, 14 Pro Stocks, 15 Super Late Models, 7 Economods, 21 Four-Cylinders, and 10 Pure Stocks. We will be off this Saturday, July 2nd, for the Independence Day holiday. We will return to racing on Saturday, July 9th, when we will hold Mid-Season Championship Night. Double points will be awarded in all 6 of our divisions. Also, the first PowderPuff race of the 2022 season is scheduled to take place. Gates open on July 9th at 4:00 with racing beginning at 7:00. The Sub Hub Kids Club gets underway every Saturday night at 6pm by the pit gate entrance. It is a great place to take your kids to do some fun kids club activities as well as meet some drivers prior to racing getting started For more information call the track office at (814) 653-8400 or visit the tracks’ website at www.hummingbirdspeedway.com. You can also follow the track on Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok.
Results:
Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models ($1,000/win)
1st) #27C Eddie Connor
2nd) #3xAA Doug Surra
3rd) #57 Bo Lockwood
4th) #69 Gary Little
5th) #88J Ryan Jacoby
6th) #1P Rod Phillips
7th) #49 Chris Hackett
8th) #75 Dennis Curry
9th) #11 Kyle Shannon
10th) #23 B.J. Hudson
11th) #23JR Bill Phillips Jr.
12th) #10R Raven Fuller
13th) #9N Nick Loffredo
14th) #28S Gabe Shaffer
15th) #152 Kyle Corah
16th) #8M Mervin Killion
Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks
1st) #55 Brandon Connor
2nd) #101 Bruce Hartzfeld
3rd) #983 Zack Gustafson
4th) #37A Jim Bloom
5th) #84S Josh Seippel
6th) #V2 Bob Connor
7th) #2 Cregen Brady
8th) #28 Fuzzy Fields
9th) #104 Allen Lamb
10th) #35 Brian Fabiano
11th) #43 Pernell Beimel
12th) #23JR Ray Reynolds
13th) #6JR Dave Shagla Jr.
14th) #39B Brayden Seippel
Carns Powersports/Mountain Extreme Super Late Models
1st) #36 Paul Kot
2nd) #5L Jon Lee
3rd) #18* Dylan Cecce
4th) #x3 Wyatt Scott
5th) #W3 John Wayne Weaver
6th) #55 Denny Fenton
7th) #56 Dylan Fenton
8th) #18 Rich Runyan Jr.
9th) #14R Derek Rodkey
10th) #67 Cody Lucas
11th) #1B Dwayne Brooks
12th) #77 Nathan Brady
13th) #3-D Bill Davis
14th) #66N Orvis Newcome lll
15th) #20 Doug Eck
Andy Man's Car Care Economods
1st) #1S Steve Simon
2nd) #C17 Brad Curran Jr.
3rd) #21T Orin Taylor
4th) #50 Bob McMillen
5th) #76 Mike Anderson
6th) #71 Nate Fleck
7th) #0 Dennis Asel
Sunny 106 Four-Cylinders
1st) #3H Shawn Hadden
2nd) #419B John Brown
3rd) #81S Dave Smail
4th) #26B Adam Bales
5th) #8H Joe Huber
6th) #6 Eric Luzier
7th) #58R Ryan Lippert
8th) #15M Cody Baughman
9th) #13M Virgil Meyer
10th) #14I Isaac Irvin
11th) #65 Louis Young
12th) #43 Shane Wagner
13th) #35K Heidi Miller
14th) #88 Cory Price
15th) #69 Calvin Bowman
16th) #54 Mitch Stiles
17th) #34 Damian Hand
18th) #4T1 Brian Snyder
19th) #00P Jake Pennington
20th) #62N Martin Neeper
21st) #3C Allen Robison
PA Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau Pure Stocks
1st) #34 Tim Steis
2nd) #88 Josh Fields
3rd) #33 Jenna Pfaff
4th) #55X Andy Frey
5th) #46 Joe Malobicky
6th) #50 Ashley Kilhoffer
7th) #101JR Bruce Hartzfeld Jr.
8th) #6/2P Casey Wolfe
9th) #37B Caleb Bloom
10th) #14 Jake Foradori