Rusty Schlenk was back on top again winning the Howard Miller Memorial Late Model Feature at Oakshade Raceway after finishing second to Matt Miller the week before.
Zack Olger grabbed the lead at the drop of the green flag after starting on the outside of the front row. Schlenk started inside row two and quickly put the pressure on Olger for the lead. The two battled side by side for several laps with Schlenk eventually taking the lead for good by lap six of the 30-lap feature.
Hillard Miller looked strong winning his heat race earlier in the night, but suffered mechanical issues in the feature and fell off the pace on lap 11. Josh Steinacker ran into the back of Miller’s car causing Miller’s car to pour gasoline onto the track which brought out the red flag until Miller’s car was safely back in the pits.
After the restart with Schlenk continuing to lead, Rody Schroyer got by Olger to take over second.
One more caution would slow the race on lap 18 after Bob Miller and Curtis Diesenroth got together in turns three and four.
Schroyer put the pressure on Schlenk just after the restart, but after a few laps Schlenk began to open up his lead and went on to win his third Late Model feature of the year.
Schroyer settled for second and Duane Chamberlain moved up from the 10th starting position to finish third. Olger slipped back to a fourth place finish with Justin Paxton, who also started in the middle of the field, finishing fifth.
Joe Derbeck and Brad Kendall battled for the early lead in the Howard Miller Sportsman Feature. Derbeck would win that battle as Kendall began to slip back out of the top five by lap six.
Ray Klawitter worked his way up to second and tried to put some pressure on Derbeck for the lead, but Derbeck held him off.
As most of the front runners hugged the inside groove through the corners, Josh Steinacker, who started ninth, had his car hooked up in the high groove and charged to the front.
Steinacker got up alongside Derbeck a couple times and the caution kept coming out for other incidents on the track saving Derbeck’s lead. Eventually Steinacker got by on the outside for the lead by lap 13 and began to pull away the final seven laps of the race.
That gave Steinacker his second Sportsman feature win of the year. Derbeck finished a strong second followed by last week’s winner Brian Fisher.
Rusty Schlenk was fourth and Mike Jessen finished fifth.
Craig Dippman won the special Bomber Australian Pursuit race earlier in the evening and started on the pole of the Bomber A Main.
Dippman led a spin-filled first half of the race with Tom Ordway knocking on his back door. Ordway finally got to the inside of Dippman and took the lead away on lap nine.
Ordway, who says he is having a lot of fun this year, went on to post an easy victory, his fourth A Main win of the year. Dippman held on to finish second ahead of Jake Rendel, Dan Dippman and Randy Roseman.
A nasty looking wreck brought out an early caution in the Bomber B Main as Jerry Signor tried to get to the outside of Jarrett Rendel for the race lead. Signor got a little too high in turn four and got loose coming off the corner. Richard Noonan III hit Signor’s out of control car sending him spinning down the front stretch and just after his car came to rest, Brad Brehm plowed into Signor’s car ending both drivers nights. Noonan was able to continue without ever stopping on the track.
Dave Sibberson tried to get to the inside of Rendel for the lead going in to turn three, unfortunately there was not enough room and Rendel ended up spinning after contact on his left rear from Sibberson.
Chris Henry took advantage of the situation and got around both Rendel and Sibberson during the incident to take over the lead. After a slew of more caution periods, Henry went on to win his second consecutive Bomber B Main. Sibberson was second and Richard Noonan III survived to finish third. Satch Crispen and Gene Potridge were the rest of the top five finishers.
Cautions were again the rule in the night’s final event, the Bomber C Main.
Jim Guinn got by Josh Overmyer on the second lap to take the lead for good. Guinn went on to lead the field to the checkered flag, but was disqualified after the race for having a different driver in the car during his heat event and not starting at the tail of the feature. That gave Scot Mills credit for his first Bomber Feature win of the year.
Eric Potridge was second followed by Joe Hefner, Craig Turner and Jared Rohrs.
The American Vintage Race Cars will have their cars on display and put on an exhibition race on Saturday, July 8 at Oakshade Raceway in addition to the regular UMP Late Model, UMP Sportsman and Bomber program. Gates open at 4pm and races begin at 7pm.