SELINSGROVE, Pa. – Jeff Rine won the sixth Selinsgrove Speedway Late Model National Open of his career on Saturday night, pocketing $4,000 for the win after coming out on top of a battle with Rick Eckert and Gregg Satterlee.
In the limited late model main, Andrew Yoder scored for the second time this season by passing Troy Miller for the win while Brad Mitch scored the roadrunner feature event.
Rine started second in the Late Model Open with Satterlee on the pole and Eckert lining up third.
Rine beat Satterlee in to the turns when the green flag unfurled but before the pace could get settled a caution flag appeared with just five laps away.
The ensuing 23 laps would run nonstop with Rine entering the rear of the field on lap 15 as Satterlee kept pace with him in and out of traffic.
By lap 22, Rine was using all the race track to get by cars and Satterlee was close to his rear bumper as Eckert began working the middle lanes in turns three and four.
While Eckert was making that lane work, Satterleee began firing his tires low off of the second turn, allowing him to rocket up on Rine as the pair entered the third corner.
Both Satterlee and Eckert were racing each other and stalking the leader, poised to made advances when another caution flag unfurled on lap 28, breaking up the intense battle at the front while also taking lapped traffic out of the equation.
The restart saw Eckert pounce on Satterlee for second and Eckert brushed across Satterlee’s nose for the spot as the pair crossed the finish line on lap 31.
Eckert then ran up on Rine but with two to go he jumped the cushion upon entering the first turn, surrendering vital distance to Rine that he could not reclaim before the checkers.
Already the winningest driver in the history of the Late Model Open entering the event, Rine scored his unprecedented sixth Open victory by .527 seconds over Eckert.
It was also the 110th victory for Rine at the oval where he owns 12 track titles, but it was his first speedway win of the season.
Satterlee was third followed by Jason Covert and Andy Haus.
Trent Brenneman took the lead at the start of the 20-lap limited late model main only to see his pace halted for a seven car fracas at the end of the backstretch on the second lap.
Brenneman had Troy Miller breathing down his neck for the lead when action resumed with Andrew Yoder racing in third.
The pair of Brenneman and Miller crossed the line nearly equal with eight loops completed and then Miller went out in front as the pair hit the first turn.
Miller then saw his pace slowed with seven laps to go, finding Yoder up to second for the return to green.
Yoder blasted to Miller’s outside when action got going but Miller reclaimed the spot heading into the third corner.
So Yoder simply drove higher around the track as he set his car into the first corner and cowboyed his way out front with the effort, surging into control as the pair shot onto the backchute.
Yoder went on to take the victory by 1.919 seconds over Miller, Todd Snook, Jared Fulkroad and Devin Hart.
The win was the fourth of Yoders career at the track and his second in a row this season.
Brad Mitch won his first roadrunner main of the year by besting Jake Jones after the two battled for the top spot.
Mitch first tried to get the lead from Jones on lap eight but to no avail but the next time around Mitch made the move stick to get control with two laps to go.
It was Mitch’s 26th career win at the oval, tying him with Bob Bussey on the track all-time roadrunner win list in second spot.
Jones rode home second followed by Will Brunson, Tom Underwood and Johnny Palm.