Hamlin Speedway Honors 2019 Champions At 14th Annual Awards Celebration
Story By: STEVE PADOS / HAMLIN SPEEDWAY – HAMLIN, PA – The 2019 Hamlin Speedway racing season officially came to a close on Saturday evening as a packed house of more than 300 plus people gathered together to celebrate the Hamlin racing season and to honor all of the 2019 seasonal speedway champions and place winners in a special evening of friendship and camaraderie.
The S&S Speedway complex, located in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania provided the backdrop for a gracious and a fun filled evening in which the Smith Family completed their fourteenth successful season of promoting the Hamlin facility, a shuttered speedway they took over the reigns of in 2006. The S&S Speedway Complex, a great place to party and have tons of fun, allowed the young racers a great opportunity to go head to head with their rivals on the tricky D-shaped speedway and enjoy some great fun as well as later taking part in the awards ceremony, a gathering Announcer Steve Pados noted was a great group of friends sharing some off season fun.
The popular multi-division speedway, located in the heart of the Pocono Mountains, enjoyed an 17 event season in 2019 season with great results as the driving stars at the speedway rose to the occasion to shine brightly for the great racing fans who came out to witness the thrill a second excitement….Hamlin Style! The fabulous seven division weekly show proved to be over the top in racing excitement as more and more driving stars etched their names into the Hamlin Speedway record books. The thrill and excitement to compete at Hamlin brought many new faces and talented drivers to the forefront at the speedway including many drivers who transitioned from one division to another for the 2019 season. The solid family oriented atmosphere at Hamlin has placed the speedway in a league of it’s own for small division racing with the Smith Family making a commitment to make their fifteenth season in 2020 an even greater experience.
After a fun-filled three hour afternoon period of allowing the drivers to trade paint and laughs on the S&S Speedway racetrack, a happy hour followed and a sumptuous buffet meal from Cook Corners was enjoyed by everyone. Banquet Emcee and Speedway Announcer Steve Pados took to the stage to announce the award festivities. First and foremost, the success of any speedway promotion is determined by a loyal and hard working track staff and Pados was on-point to recognize the great work staff at Hamlin for their total work ethic and dedication to the speedway. Promoters Randy and Denise Smith, Allesson Rode, Olivia Mease, Becky Otto and her daughters Cassie and Emma, Russ& Mary Furry, Jimmy & Sara Silfee and the Concession Staff of Michelle, Ron Thoman, Maddie Dissinger and Trina Bechtold, Dale Kober, Amy Hanna, Shane Potonsky, Dave Bechtold, Jill Brink, Wes and Wesley Hearn, Mike and Danny and Steve Pados and the ERT Staff headed up by Tom Rode, Kyle Rode, Joe & Brandy Brown, Shawn Eckhoff, Andrew Frailey, Eric Freldman, Ryan Mathieson and Will Vitulli were recognized and thanked for helping make the Hamlin Speedway the most diversified racing facility in the country today. Each division was introduced by Pados with each individual recognized for his/her performance and awards for the champions and place winners included Champion Jackets, Trophies, Gift Certificates and Cash Awards.
The “Stars of Tomorrow” from the talented Junior Slingshot division were honored first with New York hot shoe Kasey Hufcut claiming the track title at Hamlin for the season. Place winners included Kylie Hendricks, James Hendricks, Isabella VanOrden, Chase Zimmer, Doug Smith, Aidan Elliot, Charlene Benz and Aidan Donaldson. 29 Junior Slingshot drivers were in competition during the season that produced four different feature event winners.
The next division honored was the JPA Masonry Rookie Wingless 600 Sprints and claiming the title in 2019 was Dingman Ferry, Pennsylvania driving talent Jacob Eby. Additional award winners for the fast growing division included Tony Parlanti, Carmen “Pops” Leggio, Dennis Chamberlain and Cody Powell. A total of 42 drivers made up the Rookie 600 Sprint roster with nine different feature winners in 2019..
“The Oxford Express” Dale Kober captured the Super Slinger track championship by a runaway margin on the basis of a five win and total consistency during the season. The highly competitive Super Slingshot division was filled with jam-packed action throughout as 21 drivers and eight different feature winners provided for a great season in the over 35 years of age division. “The Ambassador” Wes Hearn, David Guest and Wally Bell were additional place winners honored for their concentrated efforts.
Crowned for the third consecutive time in the JPA Masonry Wingless 600 Sprint division was Taunton, Massachusetts hot-shoe “The Travelin Man” Mick D’Agostino. D’Agsotino earned one win and over the top consistency paid huge dividends for the champion. Additional place winners included Zack Weisenfluh, Tyler Lindsay and “The Mac Attack” Mack Brink, The season had 67 competitors and nine different winners.
Young gun Scott Neary captured the All Star Slingshot championship at Hamlin, earning his second consecutive All Star title at the speedway. The Blairstown, New Jersey earned three wins and enjoyed great consistency in bringing the Silfee Family owned racer to the title. The spectacular racing division saw 58 drivers test their skills at the speedway with eight drivers finding sweet success in victory lane. Additional place winners included runner-up Shelby McLaughlin, “The Oxford Express” Dale Kober, Brian Smith, James Benz, Joey Kalafut, Andrew Turpin, Wes Hearn and Jared Silfee.
The Hampton RV and Trailer sponsored Stage One Modifieds completed their eighth season at the speedway and produced some memorable feature events throughout the season. Headed up by Northeast Modified legend “Rapid” Richie Smith, the sharp looking and quick throttled race cars were loaded with driving talent and the racers put it all out on the speedway clay. “TVD” Tanner VanDoren put all of the pieces together and carved out a seven feature win season to capture the track title for the season. Adam Buchel, utilized a two win season to keep pace and score runner-up honors. Anthony Chrobak, Jeff Hineline, Amanda Buchel, Joel Price, Evan Civick, Michael Samony and James Costlow were additional place winners as 22 drivers and seven winners took part in the exciting racing action.
Top-flight racer, “The Rockaway Rocket” Danny Buccafusca, along with the John and Lois Gilroy from Gilroy Northeast placed a great deal of effort into the Second Annual “Bucky” Award named in honor of Danny’s late father David who passed away during the previous racing season. Buccafusca honored his father with a stirring speech regarding how his father assisted him in racing and in life. Honored with the awards were Hufcut Family in the Junior Slingshots and the NearyFamily in the All Star Slingshots. The award will be given annually at the Hamlin Speedway and donations for this award will be accepted at the Hamlin and S&S Speedways or through Gilroy Northeast.
Shelby McLaughlin and her group gave Randy and Denise Smith a great plaque for their dedication to racing.
A great raffle period closed the show with many prizes available and many people walking out of the arena with their arms filled with some great prizes.
Keep in touch with all of the latest updates of the Hamlin Speedway by visiting their website often. All of the news regarding the new 2020 racing season and some special events will follow in a timely manner. Included in the plans for the following season will be the addition of the X-Cel Modified division on a weekly basis. In the past the X-Cel brand was on a special event program. The Smith Family would like to thank all of the drivers, owners, staff, the loyal band of race fans and the supporting sponsors who have helped make the Hamlin Speedway the finest well-rounded small car division racing facility in the country.
