Since the inception of the Slingshots in 1999,drivers from the ages of 6 to 86 have taken a lap or two around
many ovals in the United States and Canada. Many of these drivers have moved to various forms of racing in
the bigger car classes, with quite a few making some headlines. Billy Pauch Jr., Ryan Smith, Kyle Ebersole,
Billy Van Inwegen Jr., Anthony Perrego, Jim Housworth, Sean Merkel, Joe Funk and Steve Hicks to name a
few.
The Slingshots race in two primary categories, the basic weekly track racer and the championship tour
followers in which award money is distributed each season to the Elite 11 in the All Star Class and the Great
8 for the Junior Class , which is the 8 to 14 year olds. There are many racers that have been racing the
Slingshots for many years due to its affordability and overall enjoyment of actually competing.
For many of these veterans such as Simon Egan, Dale Kober, Brett Bieber, John Bockhorn, Kurt Bettler, that
have seen their names listed among the top runners year after year, a new crop of racers, many not yet old
enough to drive a street car are becoming a dominant force in the Slingshots. Dylan Hoch, winner of the
Shellhammer's Spring Spectacular and currently in the top 5 in 2014 National points, Louden Reimert, who
finished 2nd to Brett Bieber in the 2013 championship points race and recently a 1st time winner at Linda's
Speedway, Jared LaBagh,2013 Junior National Champion, winner of numerous events this year at Accord
and Hamlin are looking to move into the upper tier of Slingshot racers. Kassidy Kreitz has shown her ability
to wheel a Slingshot after her time in the Junior Class and Jim Chisholm has taken the Midwest Region by
storm winning the 2013 Great Lakes Region and being an Elite 11 member, not bad for a 13 year old.
Not to be overlooked are the Junior racers, some of which ,will enter an All Star event and be very
competitive or become a dominant force in the Junior class, such as Damon Paul, Dakota Kohler, Chloe
Andreas, Dylan Swinehart, Daniel Morgiewicz Jr. and Kyle Smith.
Slingshot racers have many weekly and selected tour tracks to race at from the AC Indoor Series to the Fall
Jamboree. It's tracks like Linda's, Hamlin, Action Track ect.
and even a track built especially for the Slingshots
for a onetime event, the Nesquehoning Grand
Prix. The talent level of the Slingshots will never
peak, because every year new drivers will enter
the class, the veterans will work to improve their
programs and the tried and true will battle it out
wheel to wheel with their younger counterparts
or even a rookie driver that is in their 30's or 40's.
But in 2014, the younger talent is making quite a
few race fans take notice that driving a Slingshot
has no age restrictions, both young and old.
August 2014 ~ 21