Archive for month: April, 2025

Everything came together just in time last week for Austin Berry to roll his Tuscarora Restoration, Juniata Veterinary Clinic, Berry’s Siding & Seamless Gutter, Dye It Rite, SRI Performance, VP Racing Fuels No.86 out of the shop and head to Selinsgrove Speedway for his first laps in a super late model since June of 2024.

His limited late model ride would be waiting there for him as well, making for a double-duty night.

SNYDER COUNTY DOUBLE

Berry didn’t seem to lose a step in his super late model despite the long layoff.  He qualified 5th quickest in his group in qualifying, then moved forward to a 4th-place heat race finish to give himself the 11th starting spot in the main event.  

In the 25-lap finale, Berry struggled a little, sliding backwards to a 17th-place finish.

“We just missed the setup for the feature.  We learned from it and put it in our notebook.  Things change rapidly in this sport, so we will have to play a little catch-up since we’ve been on the sidelines since the middle of last season.”, Berry said.

Berry had a great night going in the Dunn No.34D limited late model, scoring a runner-up finish in his heat race and then charging from his 6th starting spot in the feature to challenge for 3rd late in the race.  Unfortunately, with five laps remaining, his right rear tire gave up and he slipped to an 11th-place finish.

“We picked the wrong right rear, and it basically melted.  I had no grip the last few laps.  We’ll know better next time.”, Berry shared.

QUICK RESULTS:

• Date/Location:  April 18, 2025 / Selinsgrove Speedway, Selinsgrove, PA
• Division:  Limited Late Model
• Stats:  Heat 2nd (3), A-main 11th (6)

• Date/Location:  April 18, 2025 / Selinsgrove Speedway, Selinsgrove, PA
• Division:  Super Late Model
• Stats:  Group Qualifying 5th, Heat 4th (5), A-main 17th (11)

PALACE RECAP

Berry woke up Saturday morning with no plans to race that night, but by late morning, all that had changed, and the team decided to prep the car, load up their super late model, and make the short tow to The Speed Palace, Port Royal Speedway.

The stout field of 35 cars was split into two groups for qualifying.  Berry and his entire team were all smiles after qualifying after the Mifflin, PA driver timed 3rd quickest in his flight.

Berry started on the front row of his heat race, but one midrace bobble cost him a couple of spots and relegated him to a 4th-place finish.  In the uneventful main event, he started 14th and finished 16th.

“It never feels good to go backwards, but it was nice to have speed in qualifying again!  The motor ran great all weekend.  We just need to tune on our package for later in the night, and we will be ok.”, Berry commented.

“We have a couple of weeks off with the super, so we will wrench on her and get ready for the next one at Selinsgrove on May 2nd.  Thanks to my great crew for all their hard work all week long, getting both cars ready and all their efforts at the track! Also, a huge thanks to all our partners, without them it wouldn’t be possible!”

UP NEXT

Berry will be back in the Limited Late Model this Saturday, April 26th, at Selinsgrove Speedway.  On May 2nd, he will return to double-duty, racing both his super and limited at Selinsgrove Speedway.

Austin Berry’s 2024 super late model season ended prematurely when his lone powerplant failed.  The issues were extensive and expensive to repair, leaving the Mifflin, Pennsylvania driver’s program sidelined for the remainder of last season.

It was a tough pill to swallow, given that the engine was refreshed prior to the season.  An expensive repair wasn’t in the budget, especially so soon.

What many fans didn’t know was that Berry strapped into a racecar a few more times before 2024 came to a close.  To have a little fun and keep his skills sharp, he accepted an offer to pilot Bobby Dunn’s modified in a handful of races in Pennsylvania and Virginia.  

Despite never wheeling a modified before, Berry scored a podium finish in his first outing and followed it up with some impressive stats.  In 5 races, he accumulated 4 top-tens, 3 top-fives, and 2 podiums. 

LIMITED OPPORTUNITY

The modified venture spurred offseason conversations that led to a 2025 opportunity for Berry. Dunn offered him the seat of his No.34D limited late model for 15-20 races.

Berry accepted.  Two of his primary partners, Tuscarora Restoration and Juniata Veterinary Clinic, will join him aboard the No.34D for 2025.

The Dunn/Berry limited late model team will focus primarily on Selinsgrove Speedway in 2025, but they did kick things off last weekend by entering the Sunday afternoon show at Hagerstown Speedway, then hustling to Bedford Speedway the same night to complete the double.  

Their efforts yielded feature finishes of 8th and 4th, respectively, at the MD and PA speedways.  Solid results for the new pairing.

SUPER RETURN

The good news doesn’t end there for Berry.  He will also return to the seat of the Austin Berry Racing Tuscarora Restoration, Juniata Veterinary Clinic, Berry’s Siding & Seamless Gutter, Dye It Rite, SRI Performance / Stock Car Steel & Aluminum, VP Racing Fuels No.86 super late model in 2025.

The team’s Cornett engine has emerged from the shop at Barron’s Racing Engines ready for battle, and the team plans to kick off their season at Selinsgrove Speedway Friday night, April 18th.

Berry plans to compete in 12-15 super late model events at Selinsgrove, Port Royal, Bridgeport, and Clinton County, including some Appalachian Mountain Speedweek and Fall Clash events.  The team is also considering possible trips to Path Valley and Bedford Speedways.

Approximately ten of Berry’s race nights will involve double-duty, wheeling both the No.86 and No.34D on the same night.

FULL PLATE

Not only will Berry be at the wheel of two racecars this season, but he will have a lot going on away from the track, too.  

“My wife and I recently broke ground for our new house.  We’re building on a piece of land we bought a few years ago, and we are managing the project ourselves, so we will be pretty busy with the house this year, not to mention continuing to raise our two young girls, who are getting busier and busier.”, Berry shared.

“With everything going on, our race schedule for both cars may be very fluid.”

Berry’s new house will also include a new race shop, which he hopes to be able to move into during next offseason.

UP NEXT

Berry will be in action this Friday night April 18th, pulling double duty, piloting both his No.86 super late model and Dunn’s No.34D limited late model.