– Lance Dewease and Freddie Rahmer don’t get the chance to race outside Pennsylvania much.
Dewease is in his 35th year of racing and runs a limited schedule with Kreitz Racing, while Rahmer is often tied up working at Jacob Schmidt & Son, a stainless steel fab shop.
So, when Lincoln Speedway became the first track in central Pennsylvania to open since the statewide shutdown, both were understandably thrilled to regain some normalcy amidst uncertain times.
“I’m happy [Lincoln Speedway] took the chance,” Dewease said. “People need to stand up for our freedoms. [Lincoln] is taking that chance. Like they told me, they’ll see what happens after today and go on from there. … I think a lot of the speedways are looking to see what happens. What comes down or what comes after [Monday], if they get fined or whatever. And then the other speedways will see and make decisions off that.”
Dewease hasn’t raced since March 15 when he won his 113th career race at Port Royal, but Rahmer had to make a rare trip to Missouri with the World of Outlaws to quench his racing thirst.
He finished 16th and 21st in both WoO races at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 on Friday and Saturday.
“You go somewhere else, race there, and it’s normal or close to normal,” Rahmer said. “And then you’re stuck here because of a couple people in charge and you can’t race. It’s hard. We’ve been busy, it’s just we haven’t been able to race. That’s all we look forward to. It’s pretty depressing, really.”
Dewease earned fast time honors on Monday night with a lap of 13.309 seconds and finished third in the 35-lap feature.
Rahmer, on the other hand, had an eventful night: racing from 20th to third in the feature before colliding with Steve Buckwalter racing for second with three laps to go. He eventually finished 19th.
– Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf indirectly addressed Lincoln Speedway’s return-to-racing efforts Monday night even though the track has not been cleared to race under governmental watch.
“Per the governor’s phased reopening plan, for counties like Adams that are in the yellow phase, groups of more than 25 are prohibited, as is entertainment, as well as professional sports without an approved plan from the Department of Health. Local law enforcement would have jurisdiction over enforcement,” Wolf said.
“The phased reopening plan was implemented with public health and safety as the highest priority, and while most businesses and individuals are abiding by the reopening plan, it’s disappointing to see isolated cases of businesses and individuals not prioritizing health and safety during this global health crisis.”
– Robert Ballou failed to qualify for Monday’s 35-lap feature at Lincoln, but not due to a lack of speed.
After spinning all by himself in his heat, which forced him to the C-main, the 2015 AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car Series champion went from 20th to ninth in the 12-lap B-main, coming four positions shy of a transfer spot.
Ballou is set to run winged races on a limited basis this season under the watchful eye of veteran engine builder Don Ott.
– Lincoln Speedway is set for another show this upcoming Saturday and opened the floodgates for neighboring tracks like Selinsgrove and BAPS to host events with safety measures on Friday and Saturday, respectively.