Archive for category: Late Models

Last season, just weeks after his first career super late model win at Port Royal Speedway, Austin Berry reached his first Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series preliminary feature event during the Rumble by the River event at ‘The Speed Palace’, but the rains came on Saturday night and wiped out Saturday’s finale.

When the series rolled into town last weekend for the 2022 edition of the event, Berry was back at Port Royal and ready to take his shot at another career first; a Lucas Oil series finale main event.

August 26:  Rumble by the River – Night 1 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA

     [51 cars, Qualifying 18th in Flight A, Heat 5th (6), A-main 15th (15)]

A stout field of 51 super late models entered competition Friday night, August 26th for night one of the Rumble by the River at Port Royal Speedway.  A new preliminary night format for the event split the field into two groups for the night, which would allow every team in attendance to compete in a feature event.

Two sets of timed qualifying and heat races set the twin 25-lap feature lineups.  Teams accumulated points throughout the night and those points would determine the starting lineups for six heat races the following night, leading to the $50,000 to win finale on Saturday.

Berry timed 18th quickest in Flight A, a little off his goal of a top ten qualifying run.  Less than half a second separated him from that goal, but with the team’s bigger engine in the shop they knew it could come down to that.  

While the qualifying run may not have handed Berry a front row starting spot, the car has raced well all season, so he would just have to pass some cars in his heat race to improve his starting position in the feature.

Teams waited out a lengthy rain delay before heat races could hit the track.  When racing finally resumed, Berry started outside the third row in the heat number three.  In the opening laps, he battled closely with the No.32 of Shaun Jones, but eventually worked his way past and into 5th.  At the close of the 8-lap qualifying race, Berry crossed the line in 5th.

In his 25-lap A-main, Berry rolled to the green flag from the 15th position.  The Mifflin, PA resident slipped to 16th in the hectic opening laps, then recovered to 15th for the first half of the race.  Just past the halfway point, things started coming together for Berry.  He worked his way into the 13th position on lap seventeen.

The mid-pack battle was fierce.  Berry fought hard to not lose any ground in his Tire Mart of Harrisburg / JDS Racing / Berry’s Siding & Seamless Gutter / Locust Hill Custom Butcher Shop / Nathan Berry Beef Farm / A&C Racing Engines / Swift Springs / Addicted2DirtPR.com / Penske Racing Shocks / Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic / VP Racing Fuels / Rocket Chassis XR1 No.86, but when the checkered flag flew and the dust settled, Berry was scored 15th.

August 27:  Rumble by the River – Night 2 / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA

     [51 cars, Heat 4th (5), B-main (DNS)]

Friday’s preliminary night effort wasn’t great, but it was good.  Berry came into Saturday’s action sitting 30th in points of the 51 drivers competing for the 24 available starting spots in the 50-lap main event.

Six heat races were lined up based on the accumulated points, with the six highest drivers in points getting to start on the pole, the next six would start second, and so on.  This put Berry in the 5th starting spot in the final heat race.  Only the top three finishers from each 8-lap race would advance to the A-main.  The remaining teams would compete in one of two B-mains, from which only the top two finishers would advance.

Berry came out of the gate strong, surging past Tyler Erb in turns one and two on the opening lap to take the 3rd spot down the backstretch.  Erb fought back around Berry in turn four and took back the final transfer spot at the line.  

Berry chased Erb, trying a couple different lines to close the gap enough to wrestle the spot away, but he wasn’t able to do so.  He finished 4th, at least providing himself with a better shot in the B-main.

With only the top two finishers transferring from his 10-lap B-main, Berry was hoping to strike quick from his third starting spot.  This was his best shot so far to reach another career goal by making a Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series finale.  The team finished preparations and he rolled into staging to wait for the call.

When the time came, Berry flipped the switch on the dash to fire the engine.  Instead of the usual roar of a race engine, there was smoke from under the dash, then the gauges all went dark.  The crew scrambled but there wasn’t enough time to diagnose and fix the issue.  Optimism turned quickly to disappointment as the B-main went green without Berry, bringing an end to his Lucas Oil weekend.

August 27:  Makeup Feature / Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA

     [15 cars, Heat #1 2nd (8), Heat #2 1st (1), A-main 10th (2)]

Following the Lucas Oil Late Model feature, Port Royal Speedway was scheduled to run the completion of the final 21 laps of their August 6th feature event that was suspended by rain.  In the opening four circuits before the rains came that night, Austin Berry had fallen back to 5th from his starting spot outside the front row.  With the new opportunity, he hoped to recover and make his way back to the front.

Before he could do that, electrical repairs needed to be completed.  The Austin Berry Racing team, with assistance from the Gary Stuhler Racing team, identified the issue.  A plastic zip tie, valued at less than a penny, had broken and allowed a starter wire to make contact with the header, which melted the coating and caused a short.  

The timing of the unusual issue couldn’t have been worse, costing Berry a very good chance at making the lineup for the $2,000 to start feature.  While that opportunity was lost, fortunately the issue was resolved in time for Berry to compete in the makeup race where he could hopefully finish the evening on a high note.  

When the race resumed, Berry held down the 5th position until he finally worked his way past Hayes Mattern and into 4th on lap 13.  As the race entered the final five laps, Berry was closing in on Gary Stuhler and pressuring him for 3rd.

That’s when bad luck reared its head for the second time of the night.  Berry’s left rear tire exploded with just four laps remaining, bringing out the caution.  Despite not receiving any courtesy laps to make the change, the ABR crew executed a quick tire change to get the No.86 back on the track.  Berry was able to get to 10th by the time the checkered flag fell on the event.

“The guys have been working really hard and we found a lot of speed.  I’ve been able to get some of the feel that I’ve been looking for.  We just had some terrible luck this weekend and didn’t get the results we felt like we should have.“, Berry commented.  “We were really close to having a great weekend.  I’m happy with where we are at with the car, but of course there’s always more to do.  I feel like I’ve learned a lot and improved behind the wheel this year too.”

“We’ve got a few races left this year and I still feel like we can get a win before we’re done.“

Up Next

Berry will look for a little better luck this Saturday night in the 19th Annual ULMS Late Model Butch Renninger Memorial at Port Royal Speedway, the traditional Juniata County Fair opening night event.

Season Stats

14 races, 0 wins, 3 top 5’s, 6 top 10’s, 9 top 15’s, 12 top 20’s

Austin Berry arrived at Port Royal Speedway Saturday night looking to maintain the roll he has been on since his recent return from the sidelines of the racing season in Pennsylvania.  His first two races back yielded a top-10 at Selinsgrove and a 2nd place finish at ‘The Speed Palace’.

Berry’s night was a good one from start to finish.  It kicked off with fun Kid’s Night activities and closed with another top-5 finish.

July 9:  Port Royal Speedway / Port Royal, PA

     [24 cars, Qualifying 4th in Group B, Heat 2nd (1), A-main 4th (3)]

The speedway’s Kid’s Night meet and greet before the program was a great start to the night for Berry, who always enjoys interacting with fans, especially the young ones who are just being introduced to the sport.

There were countless hero cards signed, photos taken and smiles all around during the pre-race festivities.  Berry and his wife, Chasity, gave away goodie bags to all the kids who stopped by to visit, including two special bags that contained golden tickets, good for a free kid’s shirt.

The 24-car super late model field that signed in Saturday night at Port Royal Speedway was split evenly into three groups for time trials and heat races.  The top four cars from each time trial group would be inverted to set the starting lineup for the 8-lap heat races.  All cars would transfer to the 25-lap A-main, but only the top three finishers would be handicapped to make up the top nine starting spots in the finale.

Austin Berry took advantage of his pole position starting spot in heat race number two and jumped out to a commanding lead early.  He maintained that lead through the first six laps of the race.  Gary Stuhler had begun to gain ground on Berry mid-race, but Berry got back into his rhythm and had put some distance between himself and Stuhler again on lap seven when the caution lights flashed on.  When the race resumed, Stuhler found his way past and picked up the win, while Berry came home 2nd, still comfortably in a handicap spot.

As an added bonus to the Kid’s Night activities, following the heat races, two dozen nerf balls that were donated by Berry’s primary sponsor The Tire Mart of Harrisburg, PA, were tossed to kids in the grandstands.  One of those balls was autographed by Berry and the lucky boy or girl to catch the special ball won an Austin Berry shirt.

Berry started inside row two in the feature event.  He moved into 2nd spot on lap four and kept a firm grasp on the position through lap twelve.  It was then that, once again, Gary Stuhler came knocking and moved past the Mifflin, PA driver to take the runner-up spot.  

The very next lap, Jared Miley arrived on the scene and did the same to Berry.  In a race that lasted over 9 minutes, about 45 seconds had not gone Berry’s way, but it was enough to lose two spots.  

As the laps wound down, Berry began to reel Miley in, but it was too late to complete the recovery and he settled for a 4th place finish.

“We had a 2nd place car, but the driver put on a 4th place performance.“, Berry said, summarizing his night with a combination of humor and disappointment in his voice.  “The guys who race here are all so good, it’s hard to get away with a mistake.  You make the wrong choice, they pounce.“

Berry went on to tell the inside story to explain his comments.

“Early in the race when Jeff (Rine) was out in front of us leading by the better part of a straightaway, I could only maintain the gap, not close it.  I changed my corner entry to try to improve on exit and try to reel him in.  Instead of helping, it made me worse.  I couldn’t tell for a few laps because Jeff didn’t seem to be getting any further away, so I probably ran a half dozen laps like that.  By the time I decided to give up on improving my corner exit, I had caught lapped traffic and Gary was on my heels.  Within a couple laps both he and Jared (Miley) had slipped past me.  At that point I went back to my original line, and I got quicker again, but it was too late.  I should have gone back to that line two or three laps earlier.  If I had, we probably finish second.  Lesson learned the hard way.”, Berry shared.

The finish may have fallen short of Berry’s growing expectations for himself and the team, but it kept their momentum going.   Finishes of 10th, 2nd and 4th since their return are a solid stretch of runs they can continue to build on.

“I’m glad we were able to have a solid run tonight when our partner The Tire Mart was here at the track.  We thank Greg and his family for coming out tonight.  We hope they had a great time and we thank them for their support of our race team.  We truly appreciate it.“, Berry said.

Up Next

Austin Berry Racing and The Tire Mart / JDS Racing / Berry’s Siding & Seamless Gutter / Locust Hill Custom Butcher Shop / Nathan Berry Beef Farm / A&C Racing Engines / Swift Springs / Addicted2DirtPR.com / Penske Racing Shocks / Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic / VP Racing Fuels / Rocket Chassis XR1 No.86 will head south of the Mason-Dixon Line this Saturday night, July 16th, to compete with the ULMS series at Hagerstown Speedway, which is located just off Highway 40 west of Hagerstown, MD.

Season Stats

9 races, 0 wins, 3 top 5’s, 5 top 10’s, 6 top 15’s, 8 top 20’s

Austin Berry’s 2022 season got off to a solid start back in March and April and optimism in the ABR pit area was high.  The team appeared poised to build on their 2021 success, which included Berry’s first super late model victory.

The month of May wasn’t as encouraging.  The team was sidelined as a result of parts delays.  That was followed by a short-lived return in late May when they encountered another part failure.

Last weekend, The Tire Mart / JDS Racing / Berry’s Siding & Seamless Gutter / Locust Hill Custom Butcher Shop / Nathan Berry Beef Farm / A&C Racing Engines / Swift Springs / Addicted2DirtPR.com / Penske Racing Shocks / Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic / VP Racing Fuels / Rocket Chassis XR1 No.86 finally returned, and Berry appears ready to pick up where he left off in April.

June 25:  Selinsgrove Speedway – Selinsgrove, PA

     (22 cars, Heat 5th, A-main 10th)

Austin Berry unloaded at Selinsgrove Speedway on Saturday night, June 25th along with 21 other teams.  The field was divided into three, 8-lap heat races using a pill draw.  The outcome of the qualifying races would set the starting lineup for the feature event.

When a team isn’t racing, they aren’t able to keep up with the changes in the sport and they aren’t improving themselves.  The goals for ABR Saturday night were simple:  get back to work on the handling of their Rocket XR1 and get through a complete night in one piece.

The night started with a brief hot lap session and ABR’s plans quickly got derailed.  During the three lap session, a clump of mud had impacted the cooling fan, broke the blades and sent one into the radiator, damaging it beyond repair.

Berry’s team was able to borrow a radiator from Trent Brenneman’s limited late model team and install it just in time to make the call for their heat race.  Using a great start to surge forward, Berry raced his way from his 8th starting spot to a 5th place finish in the first heat race of the night.

Upon his return pit-side, Berry learned his newly installed radiator was leaking.  The issue was significant enough that it was clear it would not last long enough to get through the 25-lap feature event later in the evening.

Once again, the team turned to a fellow competitor for help, this time borrowing what they needed from Tim Wilson.  They scrambled to complete their 2nd radiator change of the evening in time for the main event.

The work was wrapped up in time for Berry to assume the 13th starting spot for the feature.  He used the opening laps to find his rhythm, then began to move forward.  By lap nine Berry had cracked the top ten and began challenging for more.

Late in the race, Berry found himself in the midst of a battle for positions seven through nine when the caution lights flashed on.  The final restart didn’t play out in Berry’s favor.  He slipped slightly to a 10th place finish.

“Considering we spent the majority of the night solving radiator problems, we weren’t too bad out there tonight.  I just wish we had been able to spend a little more time focusing on improving the handling of the car, but that’s how it goes sometimes.“, Berry shared.

Berry and his team may have only accomplished one of their goals for the night by finishing the 25-lap feature and putting the car in the box in one piece, but they’ll take it.  

“What happened after the last restart and during the final few laps is on me.  I didn’t take care of my tires the way I should have during the caution, so my restart wasn’t what it should’ve been.  Learned a lesson the hard way.“

“I can’t thank Trent (Brenneman) and Tim (Wilson) enough for helping us out tonight.  We needed to get through a night, and we couldn’t have done it without them.  I’m really looking forward to getting back to Port Royal next week.  We were tied for 3rd in the points there when we had issues in late April, so I want to get back there and pick up where we left off.  I’m ready for this monkey on our back to find somewhere else to hang out.“, Berry commented, trying to bring some humor to what has been a frustrating stretch for him and his team.

Up Next

Austin Berry Racing will return home to Port Royal Speedway for their first race there since April.  The super late models will be on the card as part of the PA Sprint Car Speedweek Greg Hodnett Classic.

Season Stats

7 races, 0 wins, 1 top 5’s, 3 top 10’s, 4 top 15’s, 6 top 20’s