laurelhighlandssprintseries Archives

Duke Dominates at Hagerstown

By Jim Haines HAGERSTOWN, Md. (Aug. 2, 2025) — Just one night after parking it in victory lane at Clinton County Speedway, Ken Duke Jr. made it two in a row by cruising to another Virginia Sprint Series win Saturday at Hagerstown Speedway. The event, co-sanctioned with the Laurel Highlands Sprint Series, drew a strong field of 22 RaceSaver IMCA Sprint Cars. Ryan Lynn and Josh Shantz led the field to green with Shantz jumping out front early and Lynn settling into second. But Duke was on the move from the drop of the flag, quickly working his way forward. Following a lap two caution for a quick spin, Shantz led the restart, but Duke wasted no time charging low to grab the lead. Once out front, he began to check out from the rest of the field, while the Weaver brothers — Kolby and Kasey — started climbing the leaderboard behind him. Kolby Weaver made his way to second, with Kasey eventually slipping past Lynn to take third. Stevie Kenawell also began slicing his way [Read More]

Young Lasso’s Sprint Car Field at Winchester

By Jim Haines WINCHESTER, Va. (July 26, 2025) – Drew Young spent years on the rodeo circuit, but on Saturday night, it was horsepower of a different kind that he wrangled. The former rodeo cowboy turned racer put a lasso on the field at Winchester Speedway, scoring his first RaceSaver IMCA Sprint Car victory of the season in Virginia Sprint Series competition. The event was co-sanctioned with the Laurel Highlands and PASS Sprint Series under hot and humid skies at the Northern Virginia clay oval. Young and Matthew Leach brought the field to green in the main event. Young shot to the front early, with Leach dropping into second while Ryan Lynn, A.J. Barton, and Landon Price followed closely behind. The laps clicked by quickly as Young found a rhythm and held Leach at bay until a stalled car brought out a quick yellow to bunch the field back up. On the restart, Young returned to his groove and kept the field behind him, lap after lap. A second yellow for a spin set up a [Read More]

Heffner Takes Hagerstown Win

By Frank Buhrman HAGERSTOWN, Md. (May 17, 2025) — Kenny Heffner wasn’t going to let this one get away. Last month at Selinsgrove Speedway, the Watsontown veteran led a good part of the feature only to be passed by Doug Dodson for the win. At Hagerstown Speedway Saturday, there were challenges, but the driver of Cale Reigle’s no. 97 mount wasn’t going to be denied his seventh career trip to the River Valley Builders PA Sprint Series victory lane. The co-sanctioned event with the Virginia Sprint Series and Laurel Highlands Sprint Series also happened to be the middle race in the three-event BrokersRealty.com Speed Weekend for the RaceSaver IMCA Sprints, which put Heffner in a good position to claim the $750 bonus to the top team in points after Sunday’s final event at BAPS Motor Speedway. It was Heffner’s front-row challenger, Mike Koehler, who grabbed the initial lead in the 25-lap feature, but only after an earlier start attempt was called off after eighth-starting Mike Melair got into the second turn wall, spun, and collected Mid-Atlantic Sprint Series [Read More]

Shatzer Storms to Win at Hagerstown

By Jim Haines HAGERSTOWN, MD (Apr. 19, 2025) — Starting out as a warm spring race night, Dylan Shatzer took Al Moser’s sprinter to the top spot and stayed there in the 25-lap RaceSaver IMCA Sprint Car feature at Hagerstown Speedway. The co-sanctioned event between the Virginia Sprint Series and Laurel Highlands Sprint Series marked the 2025 season opener for the Virginia tour and showcased Shatzer’s dominance on the historic Maryland half-mile. As storms were on the way the feature started with Kolby Weaver and Colton Hindershot pacing the field to green, Weaver stayed high as Shatzer dove to the inside rail and was already going for the lead off turn four as he crossed the line just in front of Weaver and Donnie Hendershot. Shatzer really had the bottom line working as Ken Duke made his way to second with Weaver and Donnie Hendershot in tow. At the halfway mark it was still Shatzer with Duke and now John Scarborough making up the top three. Nobody was giving up the bottom line up front [Read More]

Heffner hoists Hagerstown hardware

By Jim Haines HAGERSTOWN, Md. (June 15, 2024) – The annual Dad’s Night Out Race at Hagerstown Speedway didn’t disappoint from Kenny Heffner’s perspective. Heffner led the distance in winning the Saturday event, contended by 41 IMCA RaceSaver sprinters and co-sanctioned by the Virginia Sprint Series, Laurel Highlands Sprint Series and Pennsylvania Sprint Series. AJ Barton and Heffner paced the feature field to green with Heffner inching out front up top as Barton stayed low and stayed close with Zac Rhodes quickly in third with Tim Iulg and Austin Reed rounding out the early top five. After a quick caution, Heffner showed a smooth, steady pace keeping his lead as the field raced behind to track him down. Austin Reed made it to third with Barton still second as Rhodes and Iulg raced for fourth. As the laps were winding down and traffic came in to play, Reed was chasing down Heffner, but with the track smooth and wide Heffner was keeping a good pace as he came to pass the back end of the [Read More]

Bittner wins after Reed dominates at Hagerstown

By Jim Haines HAGERSTOWN, Md. (May 18, 2024) – Timmy Bittner was in the right place at the right time. Austin Reed was not, in the Saturday feature race at Hagerstown Speedway co-sanctioned by the Virginia Sprint Series and the Laurel Highlands Sprint Series. With rain outs in the area everywhere, 35 IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Cars signed in to the smooth fast oval and the feature line up was led by Ken Duke and Kenny Heffner. As the field went green, out front like a rocket was Reed, who started to pull away lap after lap, leaving Duke, Heffner and Bittner to fight over the runner-up spot. Reed was not going to be caught as the laps were winding down, with Bittner making his way to second, Heffner in third and Josh Spicer and Duke acing for fourth. But coming to two to go in turn three, it all went wrong with the leader getting together with a lapped car and going out of the park. Emergency personnel quickly made their way to help Reed. He [Read More]

Shatzer gets to lead late in Winchester RaceSaver win

WINCHESTER, Va. (April 27, 2024) – He didn’t lead the most laps, just the most important one. Dylan Shatzer raced in the top three for the whole feature and was finally able to swoop around the leader in traffic after taking the white flag in second and go on to win in the Saturday IMCA RaceSaver event co-sanctioned by the Virginia Sprint Series and Laurel Highlands Sprint Series at Winchester Speedway. Matt Klien and Ryan Lynn started on the front row of the feature but Klien stopped in turn two with a broken rear axle, which could have been a disaster at speed. After clearing the car, Croix Beasom and Lynn paced the field to green with Beasom out first, Lynn second and Shatzer third. Action would continue after a red flag for three cars bicycling and stopping or flipped in turn one with Beasom out again with Lynn and Shatzer on the really fast clay oval. Lap after lap they chased each other as the pack behind them were changing every circuit. As they [Read More]

Shatzer Streaks to hometown Hub City Win

By Jim Haines HAGERSTOWN, Md. (Aug. 5, 2023) – Hometown driver Dylan Shatzer streaked to heat and feature wins in the Saturday night IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car show at Hagerstown Speedway. Twenty-four cars took to the Hub City oval in the Laurel Highlands Sprint Series and Virginia Sprint Series co-sanctioned event. Shatzer and Ryan Lynn paced the field to green with Shatzer low and Lynn high, but before the field could even settle down, Lynn coasted to a stop with mechanical issues. On the restart, Shatzer took off with Reed Thompson and Stevie Kenawell close behind. Shatzer was trying to run away as Thompson and Kenawell were keeping in touch, but even as traffic came in to play the track was wide with many groves it wouldn’t hold up Shatzer. It all went wrong for Kenawell as he slid to a stop with a few laps to go, giving Thompson one more shot at the win. On the green, Shatzer took off clean and Thompson stayed close, but not close enough to mount a charge [Read More]

Scarborough sweeps Winchester

By Jim Haines WINCHESTER, Va. (July 29, 2023) – John Scarborough had a perfect night Saturday, winning his heat and taking the top spot of the feature at Winchester Speedway co-sanctioned by the Virginia Sprint Series and Laurel Highlands Sprint Series. Twenty-four IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Cars signed in on what turned out to be a breezy, nice evening. Scarborough and Ryan Lynn paced the feature to green with Scarborough staying low and leaving Lynn to deal with a charging Donnie Hendershot. The track was full of cars and traffic came in to play quickly, bunching up the frontrunners. Scarborough stayed low and worked his way through but not without Hendershot and Lynn staying right on him and sometimes next to him. Hendershot made a run for the lead after getting by Lynn but a yellow for a stalled car slowed the pace. With two to go, Scarborough took off and Hendershot was not able to keep Lynn behind him as retook second and laps ran out to make a charge as Scarborough flashed under a [Read More]

Bittner sprints to Founders Cup, Nittany 40 sweep

Story Courtesy of Clinton County Speedway MILL HALL, Pa. (June 30-July 1, 2023) – Timmy Bittner had the best weekend of his IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car career over the weekend, capturing two hallmark Laurel Highlands Sprint Series events at Clinton County Speedway. Bittner won the Founders Cup event Friday and then put his name in the history books by capturing the coveted Nittany 40 Championship on Saturday. Owen Dimm took command of the field early on Friday in the race honoring speedway founders Del Shank and Tedd Reitz as Zach Rhodes advanced to second and the eighth starting Bittner to third. Bittner was in second when lap five was scored, caught Dimm for the point on lap eight and then built a respectable lead while navigating lapped traffic. Dale Schweikart took over second on the 19th circuit and came within striking distance but had to settle for runner-up honors. Dimm, Josh Beamer and Kasey Weaver ran third through fifth, respectively. Tim Iulg and Ken Duke were on the front row for the start of Saturday’s RaceSaver [Read More]