Surra, Fields, Kot, Connor, Hadden, and McMillen Crowned 2022 Champions At Hummingbird
For Immediate Release
Saturday, August 27th, 2022
By: Steven Curry - Race Reporter
Reynoldsville- Hummingbird Speedway concluded their 2022 points season Saturday night with Season Championship Night. Double points were awarded in all six of our divisions. One driver visited victory lane for the first time while the five others all made repeat trips as we also crowned our 2022 track champions. In the Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models, it was the #3xAA of Doug Surra collecting his fifth victory of the season and his second consecutive track championship in the division. The #34 of Tim Steis picked up the win in the PA Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau Pure Stocks, his third of the season at the Bird. With a second place finish in the feature, the #88 of Josh Fields was crowned track champion in the division for the second time in his career. In the Carns Powersports/Mountain Extreme Super Late Models, the #36 of Paul Kot was victorious for a seventh time this season as he also notched his fifth career championship in the division. The #00 of Tyler Dietz took his first trip to victory lane at Hummingbird in the Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks. And, in his return to racing from being the flagman the last handful of years, the #V2 of Bob Connor clinched his sixth career track title in the division, which leads all drivers. In the Sunny 106 Four-Cylinders, the #3H of Shawn Hadden captured his seventh checkered flag of the season on his way to being crowned track champion for the first time in his career. The #76 of Mike Anderson took the checkers for the second time this season in the Andy Man's Car Care Economods. The #50 of Bob McMillen clinched the points championship in the division and became the second different champion in the two years that the division has been run at the speedway. The championship was McMillen's first of his storied 40-year racing career.
The Swanson Heavy Truck Repair Semi Late Models kicked off the night with their 20-lap feature event. Nick Erskine and points leader Doug Surra led the field to the opening green flag. Erskine got out to the lead on the start as Surra was challenged by Dan Smeal on the inside for the second spot. Erskine led lap one as Smeal edged ahead of Surra for second at the line. On lap 2, Surra was able to retake the second position from Smeal on the highside of turns 1 and 2. Then, on lap 3, Surra made the pass on Erskine to move into the top spot. Surra began to check out on the field as Smeal challenged Erskine for second. On lap 9, Smeal edged ahead of Erskine to move into the runner-up position behind Surra. At the halfway mark on lap 10, it was Surra continuing to lead the way over Smeal and Erskine. Smeal gave it his all trying to close in on Surra for the lead throughout the second half of the race, but it was to no avail as Surra held on to pick up his fifth win of the 2022 season, leading all drivers in the division. Smeal, Erskine, Kyle Shannon, Dennis Curry, Deegen Watt, and Bill Phillips Jr. rounded out the field. Erskine won the heat race. In addition to the win, Surra was also crowned the track champion in the Semi Late division by a 138 point margin over second place Dennis Curry. This was Doug's second consecutive track championship in the division.
Barry Burritt and Tim Steis led the PA Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau Pure Stocks trackside for their 15-lap feature race. Steis jumped out to the lead on the start and led the opening lap as point leader Josh Fields and Dalton Gustafson both made their way past Burritt to move into second and third. Steis began to extend his lead a bit over Fields and Gustafson as the laps clicked away. On lap 6, Casey Wolfe made the pass on Gustafson to move into third behind the leaders. At the halfway point on lap 8, it was still Steis leading the way over Fields and Wolfe. Steis received a fair amount of pressure from Fields for the race lead throughout the second half of the race, but Steis was able to hang on and capture his third checkered flag of the season at Hummingbird. Steis was followed by: Fields, Wolfe, Dustin Challingsworth, Gustafson, David Lowe, Jenna Pfaff, Joe Skinner, Barry Burritt, Ashley Kilhoffer, Devin Dickey, Renae Meyer, Mitch Stiles, Noah Bloom, Wayne Truitt, and Cody Wolfe. Burritt, Steis, and Fields won the heat races. With his second place finish, Fields was crowned the 2022 track champion in the Pure Stock division by 101 points over second place Dustin Challingsworth. This was the second Pure Stock championship for Fields in his career.
The Carns Powersports/Mountain Extreme Super Late Models took to the track next with point leader Paul Kot and Denny Fenton on the front row for their 25-lap feature. A quick opening lap caution flag involving Denny Fenton and others, moved Clay Ruffo to the front row for the restart. On the restart, it was Kot out to the lead over Ruffo and Dwayne Brooks. Kot led lap one over Ruffo and Brooks. On lap 4, recovering from the earlier caution flag, Denny Fenton made the pass on Brooks on the lowside of turns 3 and 4 to move into third behind Kot and Ruffo. As the race neared halfway, it continued to be Kot leading the way by a fairly comfortable margin over Ruffo and Denny Fenton. At halfway on lap 13, it was Kot still out front with Ruffo in second and Denny Fenton in third. The race remained under green flag conditions until lap 17 or 18 when a caution for a wreck in turn 2 brought about another restart. On the restart, it was Kot out to the point with Ruffo and Denny Fenton following behind. On lap 23, Ruffo tagged the frontstretch wall which allowed Denny Fenton to move into the second position behind Kot. Denny Fenton tried to close in on Kot in the final couple of laps, but he came up short as Kot held on for win #7 of the season. Denny Fenton, Ruffo, Dylan Fenton, Joe Loffredo, Orvis Newcome lll, Brooks, Rich Runyan Jr., Bill Davis, and Scott Alvetro rounded out the field. Kot and Denny Fenton won the heat races. In addition to the feature win, Kot clinched the 2022 Super Late Model track championship by a 167 point margin over second place Dylan Fenton. The championship was Kot's fifth in the division.
Tyler Dietz and Zack Gustafson led the Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks to the 1/3 mile bullring for their 20-lap main. Before the race began, Jim Bloom, who trailed point leader Bob Connor by just 5 points entering the night, was unable to get his car fired for the feature which pretty much sealed the deal for Connor to win the championship. Tyler Dietz got out to the lead on the start and led the opening lap over Gustafson and Fuzzy Fields. The race stayed green until lap 5 or so when the caution flag was displayed for a spin in turns 1 and 2. After another quick caution flag, it was Tyler Dietz in the lead over Gustafson and Fields. On lap 7, both Fields and Bob Connor were able to make their way around Gustafson to move into second and third respectively. At the halfway mark on lap 10, it was Tyler Dietz continuing to pace the field with Fields and Connor following behind. The caution flag was displayed one final time on lap 12 before the race saw its final restart. Tyler Dietz jumped out to the point on the restart over Fields and Connor. Tyler Dietz began to pull away from the rest of the field as Fields and Connor raced side-by-side for several laps, battling for the second position. It was not until the white flag was displayed by flagman Earl Jackson that Connor was able to clear Fields for second. By that time, Tyler Dietz had opened up a 3-3.5 second lead over them. Dietz cruised to his first career Hummingbird Speedway victory in dominating fashion leading all 20 laps. Tyler Dietz was followed by: Connor, Fields, Jacob Dietz, Gary Miller Jr., Gustafson, Ray Reynolds, Brian Fabiano, Bloom, and Coleton Longwell. Tyler Dietz and Gustafson won the heat races. With a second place finish in the feature, former flagman Bob Connor clinched his sixth career Pro Stock track title by a 73 point margin over second place Brian Fabiano. His six Pro Stock division titles I believe are the most of any one driver in any one division.
The Sunny 106 Four-Cylinders were next to the speedway with Shawn Hadden and Zack Frantz (subbing for Travis Timko) leading the field to the green flag for their 15-lap feature race. Hadden got out to the lead on the start and led the opening lap over Frantz and Dave Smail. Hadden began to extend his lead over Frantz, Smail, and the rest of the field as the laps clicked away. At the halfway point on lap 8, it was Hadden continuing to lead the way over Frantz and Smail. Hadden would continue to extend his lead over the course of the rest of the race on his way to capturing his seventh checkered flag of the season in a caution-free feature at the Bird. Frantz, Smail, Randy Albert, Joe Beningo, Carl Killinger, Ernie Irvin, Kevin Killinger, Christina Killinger, Caelan Hughes, Cory Price, and Heidi Miller rounded out the field. Hadden and Frantz won the heat races. In addition to the win, Hadden was also able to clinch his first track championship of his career by a 151 point margin over second place Dave Smail.
The Andy Man's Car Care Economods concluded Season Championship Night with their 15-lap feature. Mike Anderson and Orin Taylor led the field to the opening green flag. Anderson pulled out to the lead on the start and led lap one over Taylor and Nate Fleck. On lap 2, point leader Bob McMillen made the pass to the inside of Fleck to move into the third position. Then, one lap later on lap 3, McMillen made the pass on the lowside of turns 3 and 4 to take the second spot from Taylor. Anderson began to extend his lead a bit over the field as the laps continued to click away and the race neared halfway. At the cross-flags on lap 8, it was Anderson continuing to pace the field with McMillen in second and Taylor in third. Anderson would go unchallenged in the final 7 laps or so of the race on his way to becoming the fourth repeat winner of the season in the Economods. Anderson was followed by: McMillen, Taylor, Fleck, Royce Stanley Jr., Alex Siekkinen, Travis Newberry, and Brad Curran Jr.. Anderson won the heat race. With his second place finish in the feature, Bob McMillen was able to clinch his first track championship in his storied 40-year racing career by a mere 29 points over Taylor.
Speedway Notes: 63 cars were in attendance for Season Championship Night. That breaks down to: 7 Semi Late Models, 16 Pure Stocks, 10 Super Late Models, 10 Pro Stocks, 12 Four-Cylinders, and 8 Economods. We will be taking this coming weekend, September 3rd, off for the Labor Day holiday. We will return to racing for one final weekend on Friday, September 9th and Saturday, September 10th. This two-day event to conclude the 2022 racing season at Hummingbird will be the inaugural running of the Dirty Bird Bash. On Friday's portion of the weekend, there will be a $1,500/win Super Late Model special that will headline the evening with the winner guaranteeing themselves a spot in the Spider Barnett Memorial on Saturday. Also on Friday night, there will be $1,000/win Semi Late Models, $700/win E-Mods (Open to UMP & Pro Mods), $500/win Pure Stocks, and $500/win Four-Cylinders. Then, on Saturday night, the Super Late Models take center stage once again with the annual running of the Spider Barnett Memorial. The Spider Barnett Memorial will be $3,000/win, $250/start minimum with time trials to set the heat races and a redraw or dash for the feature. In addition to the Spider Barnett Memorial, the Pro Stocks will battle for $700/win, the Pure Stocks will run a regular race plus a mechanic's race, and the Four-Cylinders will run a regular race with the 24+ car payout along with a PowderPuff race. You will not want to miss these last two action-packed nights of racing to close out our 2022 season at the Bird! Gates will open at 4:00 with racing beginning at 7:00 on both nights. Looking ahead, the 2022 Outdoor Awards Banquet will take place on the hill above the track on Sunday, October 16th at 1pm. Tickets are $10/person and will be available in the pit concession stand during the 2-day show. For more information on all of this 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
1st) #3xAA Doug Surra
2nd) #44 Dan Smeal
3rd) #5X Nick Erskine
4th) #11 Kyle Shannon
5th) #75 Dennis Curry
6th) #17 Deegen Watt
7th) #23JR Bill Phillips Jr.
PA Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau Pure Stocks
1st) #34 Tim Steis
2nd) #88 Josh Fields
3rd) #6/2P Casey Wolfe
4th) #46 Dustin Challingsworth
5th) #4 Dalton Gustafson
6th) #21 David Lowe
7th) #33 Jenna Pfaff
8th) #69 Joe Skinner
9th) #07 Barry Burritt
10th) #50 Ashley Kilhoffer
11th) #18 Devin Dickey
12th) #55X Renae Meyer
13th) #7X Mitch Stiles
14th) #37B Noah Bloom
15th) #54 Wayne Truitt
16th) #97W Cody Wolfe
Carns Powersports/Mountain Extreme Super Late Models
1st) #36 Paul Kot
2nd) #55 Denny Fenton
3rd) #14 Clay Ruffo
4th) #56 Dylan Fenton
5th) #9J Joe Loffredo
6th) #66N Orvis Newcome lll
7th) #1B Dwayne Brooks
8th) #18 Rich Runyan Jr.
9th) #3-D Bill Davis
10th) #64 Scott Alvetro
Cypress Clock & Gift Shop Pro Stocks
1st) #00 Tyler Dietz
2nd) #V2 Bob Connor
3rd) #28 Fuzzy Fields
4th) #27B Jacob Dietz
5th) #1M Gary Miller Jr.
6th) #983 Zack Gustafson
7th) #23JR Ray Reynolds
8th) #35 Brian Fabiano
9th) #37A Jim Bloom
10th) #7 Coleton Longwell
Sunny 106 Four-Cylinders
1st) #3H Shawn Hadden
2nd) #910 Zack Frantz (subbing for Travis Timko)
3rd) #81S Dave Smail
4th) #17 Randy Albert
5th) #21 Joe Beningo
6th) #76K Carl Killinger
7th) #98E Ernie Irvin
8th) #24K Kevin Killinger
9th) #8K Christina Killinger
10th) #54 Caelan Hughes
11th) #88 Cory Price
12th) #35K Heidi Miller
Andy Man's Car Care Economods
1st) #76 Mike Anderson
2nd) #50 Bob McMillen
3rd) #21T Orin Taylor
4th) #71 Nate Fleck
5th) #57S Royce Stanley Jr.
6th) #20 Alex Siekkinen
7th) #60T Travis Newberry
8th) #C17 Brad Curran Jr.