After Teddy Gibala and rookie Zane Ferrell won preliminary heat races for the Martella's Pharmacies RUSH Late Models, Mike Hemminger led lap one of the 30-lap feature race.  Jeremy Hill started on the pole, but “Hollywood” Hemminger roared to the front, from the second starting spot.   Ferrell moved into second place after launching from position number four.  Ferrell, the former Modified Champ, maintained the runner-up position for eleven laps, although Hemminger was ahead by more than a few car lengths.  A crash on lap eight, eliminated Gibala and defending Champion Jeremiah Kuntz.  Kuntz was third in the Championship standings, only seven points out of first place, before he hit the front straight wall.  Barry Awtey, the leading winner of 2018, started in tenth place, and passed Garry Wiltrout for third position on lap nine.  Awtey then took second place from Ferrell on lap twelve.   Wiltrout followed Awtey around Ferrell, and was racing in third place while Hemminger’s lead interval increased.   Awtey started closing in on his good friend, Hemminger, while Wiltrout patiently watched from a distant third.  Awtey soon pulled even with Hemminger, as Awtey used the inside lane and Hemminger used his preferred upper groove.  The duel lasted several laps, then became a three car fight for the lead.  Wiltrout, suddenly came to life, and caught the duo at the head of the pack.  All three drivers had the fans on their feet, for an ongoing battle, in which no contact was made.  Wiltrout and Awtey, both former Champions, traded second place with four laps to go.  Now a Ford versus Chevy fight, Witrout made two attempts to steal the win from the inside lane.  But Hemminger held on for a narrow victory.  Hemminger posed for victory lane photos for the second time in 2018, standing alongside his North Star Equipment/Jeffrey Carey & Associates Chevrolet.  Wiltrout, also a two time winner, is tied with Hemminger atop the Championship point standings with three races remaining.  Awtey finished the race in third place, and after suffering slight damage in an early race crash, Bryan Shipp advanced to fourth position.  Shipp was gaining on the lead trio as the laps concluded.  Ferrell placed fifth.     

Defending Champion Chris Brink started on the pole for the Stoystown Auto Wreckers RUSH Modified division’s 20-lap feature race.  Brink led the first three laps, before “Racin’ Jason” Busch took the top spot.  Both drivers were big winners last year, and both are seeking a first trophy of 2018.  Adam Kostelnik took second place from Brink on lap five.  Kostelnik, a 2018 winner, started in eighth spot but advanced to the runner up position.  Busch, the popular Pittsburgh veteran, was twice a winner in 2017, and was too strong for Kostelnik to pass.  With five laps to go, point standings leader Anthony Aiello grabbed the second position, and immediately closed in on leader Busch.  On lap 18, Aiello made the winning move, passing Busch and claiming his ninth victory of the year.  Aiello, the former Street Stock Champion, is a rookie to the Modifieds, and started in eleventh place to earn the win.  Busch, Kostelnik, Brink, and recent winner Jarred Barclay all earned top five positions at the conclusion of the race, that was contested without a caution flag .

A lap one crash on the back straight eliminated several top drivers from the J&J Truck Equipment RUSH Street Stocks’ 20-lap feature.  Point standings leader Josh Coughenour’s machine was sidelined for the event, as one of six damaged cars.  Mel Wilt started the event in sixth place, but led the first lap.  In pursuit of Wilt, was a pair of two-time 2018 winners.  Aaron Van Fleet and rookie Jeremy Shaffer were part of the three-car-train pulling away from the rest of the field.  Although Shaffer’s car was crinkled in the accident at the start, he was able to stay within striking distance of the lead, as the speedy trio raced close together.  Wilt would never surrender his lead, and just like the two drivers chasing him, he became a two time winner this season.   The official top five finishers were Wilt, Van Fleet, Shaffer, young Angie Kimberly, and Steve Long.  Long, a former Champion of Chargers and 4-Cylinders, made his first start of 2018, into a top five accomplishment.

Young Carly Awtey led the first of 15 laps in the Farmers Union Co-Op Charger feature.  A caution flag incident sent three cars to the tail of the field.  After the chaos of lap one, Dan Jackson advanced from his original starting position of eighth, to the lead on lap two.  Just a few laps later, the top two drivers in the Championship points battle, collided and hit the wall in turn two.  Dale Kimberly and Casey Fleegle’s year long rivalry overheated, but both drivers were uninjured from the vicious impact.  Jackson, a long time dirt track racer, is a 2018 rookie to asphalt surface racing, and continued to lead.  After improving greatly at the start of the season, Jackson has been a contender at the front of the pack for several weeks.  Veteran Scott Mitchell, a winner in 2017, threatened Jackson’s lead several times, racing side-by-side with the freshman.  The dramatic battle was carried into the last lap, when the two made contact, and Jackson made a terrific “save,” sliding through the final turn to his first ever Jennerstown victory.  Mitchell spun to the inside of the track, handing second place to young Riley Hemminger.  Also a rookie, Hemminger started fifth to earn his best career finish.   Steven Brown placed third, after being involved in the lap one incident, with Cody Gaynor and Awtey finishing fourth and fifth. A winner on dirt tracks in the region earlier in his career, Jackson took a victory lap, in memory of his father after his achievement on the pavement speedway.

Joe Laposky, seeking a first win, grabbed the lead at the start of the Somerset Trust Company Fast 'n Furious 4-Cylinders’ 15-lap feature.  A strong contender in 2017, Laposky has only competed a few times in 2018.  After starting outside of row one, Laposky defended his lead from the challenges of Aaron Karasack.  Karasack borrowed the Casey Fleegle car for this race, and quickly made his way into second position, after starting fifth.  With five laps to go, Karasack made the winning pass, and took command of the event.  Late in the race, four time winner Andrew Pluta climbed into the second position after starting sixth.  But, Karasack drove to his first career victory, when the checkered flag was displayed.  Nearly all of this competitors visited victory lane to congratulate Karasack.  Pluta, point standings leader Evan Nibert, Laposky, and defending Champion Brent Bickerstaff finished in positions two through five.

Saturday, September 1^st, Riggs Industries presents “Motor Mountain Mania” with five division racing starting at 6pm.  After the races, the One Stop Auto Sales & Service Enduro will take place.  The event will be the final round of the 2018 Ron’s Collision Center Enduro Series.