Archive for month: September, 2022

Coming off a pair of top ten runs with the Tezos All Star Circuit of Champions (ASCoC) in New York the previous week, Kyle Reinhardt entered a swing across Pennsylvania and New Jersey with the series carrying momentum and optimism, especially given he had a lot of laps around the upcoming tracks in his Capitol Renegade / Capitol Custom Coaches & Trailers / Champion Hi-Tech Lubricants / J&J Auto Racing No.91.

Reinhardt and his team have been working hard to continue the recent trend.  The goal was to have enough success in August, September and October to make all the early season struggles worth going through.  A five-race dose of home turf seemed to come along at the right time.

August 24:  Bloomsburg Fair Raceway / Bloomsburg, PA

     [19 cars, Qualifying 5th, Heat 1st (1), Dash 2nd (3), A-main 5th (2)]

A modest field of 19 teams made the tow to the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds in northeastern PA for the Wednesday night show at the 3/8-mile oval.

Reinhardt put the 5th quickest lap in the books and earned the pole of the second heat in the process.  He went on to lead all eight laps of that qualifying race, posting the win by 1.5 seconds over Gio Scelzi.

The heat win earned Reinhardt a spot in the dash redraw.  He drew the third starting spot and went on the offensive at the drop of the green, grabbing the runner up spot.  There was no catching Justin Peck though, who pulled out to a quick lead and went on to hold Reinhardt off by over three seconds.

Reinhardt’s Dash finish put him on the outside of the front row for the 30-lap A-main.  On a track that had ‘a lot of character’ as drivers like to say with a grin (referring to a rough surface), Reinhardt settled into second and held the spot through the first ten laps.

In the middle phase of the race, Tyler Courtney worked his way past Reinhardt, dropping the Capitol Renegade No.91 to 3rd.  Reinhardt slid back a couple more spots in the closing segment but held on to record a top five finish.

August 25:  Bridgeport Motorsports Park / Swedesboro, NJ

     [27 cars, Qualifying 15th, Heat 4th (5), A-main 8th (11)]

The All Star tour moved on to NJ, Reinhardt’s home state, on Thursday night for a $12,000 to win event at the 4-tenths mile, high banked Bridgeport Motorsports Park.

Reinhardt was the 26th of 27 cars to go under the clock for qualifying, registering the 15th fastest lap in the field.  The lap earned him the 5th starting spot in the third heat race.  The top six finishers from each of the three scheduled heats would transfer to the A-main, with the balance of the starting lineup being filled by the top six finishers from the B-main.

In the heat race, Reinhardt was able to move into 4th on the opening lap.  He pursued 3rd place Danny Dietrich throughout the 8-lap qualifying race but settled for a 4th place finish.

Reinhardt started 11th in the 30-lap A-main and immediately surged inside the top ten, reaching 9th on the opening lap.  By the halfway point of the event, the Neptune City, NJ native was running 7th and working toward a top five finish.

The very competitive Bridgeport track always provides close racing, and this night was no different.  Reinhardt was engaged in a tight battle for position, getting shuffled back as far as 9th with less than ten laps remaining.  At the finish, he crossed the line in 8th.

August 26:  Jack Gunn Memorial / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA

     [33 cars, Qualifying 7th in Group C, Heat 6th (7), B-main 4th (3), Twin 20 #1 19th (24), Twin 20 #2 12th (19)]

When the All Stars rolled into the heart of PA Posse country Friday night for the Jack Gunn Memorial Twin 20’s at Williams Grove Speedway, the field grew to 33 teams.  $4,000 was up for grabs to the winner of each of the feature races.  The car count put the four-group format into play for the night.

Kyle Reinhardt’s night was sluggish out of the gate.  He could only summon the 7th best lap in his group, putting himself and his team in a bit of a hole they would have to work to climb out of.

Reinhardt was able to move forward from 7th to 6th in his 8-lap heat race, but that wasn’t quite enough to make a top five transfer spot.  In the B-main, he started inside row two and held on to the 4th and final transfer spot to secure the final starting spot in the first 20-lap A-main.

The Capitol Renegade No.91 made some forward progress in the first feature, advancing from 24th to 19th.  Reinhardt and team made the most of the break before the second feature, tweaking their J&J Auto Racing machine in the right direction.

Reinhardt charged from 19th to 13th in the first five laps of the second Twin 20 and was able to pick up one more position in the final five laps.  He finished 12th and earned the Hard Charger Award.

August 27:  Kramer Klash / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA

     [39 cars, Qualifying 3rd in Group A, Heat 2nd (2), A-main 16th (9)]

Saturday night’s $7,300 to win Kramer Klash at Lincoln Speedway brought the largest car count of the week with 39 teams in the pits to take their shot at the cash.  Once again it would be the four-group All Star format in use.

Reinhardt went out 7th in Group A for qualifying and laid down the 3rd quickest lap in the group, which put the 28 year old on the outside of the front row for heat number one.  He held the runner-up spot behind Hunter Schuerenberg and ahead of Anthony Macri throughout the 8-lap race.

Starting 9th in the 35-lap A-main, Reinhardt was well-positioned to add another race to his recent tally of top ten finishes.  He slipped a couple spots on the start, then battled just outside the top ten over the first twenty laps.

Following a restart with eleven laps remaining, Reinhardt’s No.91 faded.  He fell from 13th to 16 in the closing laps.

August 28:  Junior Ritchey Tribute / Bedford Speedway / Bedford, PA

     [19 cars, Qualifying 10th, Heat 4th (3), A-main 6th (11)]

The five race stretch wrapped up Sunday at Bedford Speedway much the way it had started, with 19 cars pit-side.  The car count meant single group qualifying, three heats and a B-main would set the field for the main event.

Reinhardt timed 10th best in the field, putting himself on the inside of row two in the first 8-lap heat race of the evening.  He held the third position to the midpoint of the race, then Justin Peck muscled his way past the Capitol Renegade driver.  Reinhardt rode home in 4th.

Reinhardt lined up 11th for the 30-lap A-main.  Throughout the first half of the event, he was in and out of the top 10.  

The story for the second half of the race was a better one.  With his car coming alive, Reinhardt began to gain ground.  He moved into 9th on lap 15, then 8th on lap 17.

The steady progress continued as Reinhardt battled his way around Gio Scelzi and into 7th on lap 22.  Three laps later the caution appeared for Justin Peck who exploded a right rear tire while running second.  

Reinhardt restarted 6th.  Scelzi reclaimed the spot on the restart, then went on to pass Bill Balog.  One lap later, Reinhardt passed Balog and moved back into 6th.  He held that spot over the final laps, finishing less than a second behind 5th place Scelzi.

“We’ve got things going the right direction.  We struggled earlier this year but we’re competitive now and getting closer every time out.  The guys are working really hard to keep this going.  We have some big races coming up at the end of the year.“, Reinhardt commented.

The stats certainly back up his statement.  In 8 ASCoC features since the Knoxville Nationals, Reinhardt has 5 top ten finishes.  Prior to Knoxville, he had recorded just 7 in 29 ASCoC features.

Up Next

Reinhardt will be in Hartford, OH this weekend with the Tezos All Star Circuit of Champions at Sharon Speedway for the Sharon Nationals / Lou Blaney Memorial on Friday and Saturday, September 2nd and 3rd.  With ten races remaining, he currently sits 8th in the series’ point standings, 62 points behind 7th place Chris Windom.

Current team plans are to be in attendance at Port Royal Speedway on Monday for the 71st Annual Labor Day Classic.  Reinhardt captured his first ever 410 sprint car victory in the traditional afternoon race back in 2019.

Season Stats

55 races, 0 wins, 5 top 5’s, 14 top 10’s, 29 top 15’s