by Barry Angstadt
Jonestown, PA - The 25th Anniversary of the National Open at Linda's Speedway had a little bit of
everything...lots and lots of racing, huge car counts, mysterious rainfall, a first year driver adding
his name to the event's prestigious list of winners, and redemption for another after a heart
breaking loss in the 2013 edition of the Open.
Logan Diehl ran 600cc Modifieds until he switched to 270cc Micro-Sprints near the end of the '13
campaign. This year, in his first full season of 270cc activity, the 20-year-old improved immensely
throughout the summer and into the fall before putting together a fantastic couple of nights that
culminated in a National Open victory.
Jay Hartman, from Flagtown, NJ, figured this race owed him after a gut-wrenching defeat last
October, and he gained his revenge on Saturday with a pulsating triumph in the 600cc portion of
the National Open at the Jonestown, Pa. quarter-mile.
Diehl scored the win in Thursday's National Open prelim, parlaying his victory into a third-place
starting spot for Saturday's 50-lap A-Main. The pole sitter, Randy West, declined to take the Front
Row Challenge that would have paid a whopping $10,000 if he gave up his starting position, then
won the race after starting from the rear of the field. His front row mate, Steve Dunmire, also
refused the opportunity, as did Diehl and Nick Skias, the drivers who would line up in row two.
When West and Dunmire got into one another and a bit out of shape on the original start, Diehl
shot between them and into the lead as the trio exited turn two for the first time. West and
Dunmire battled one another for the runner-up spot as Pat Bealer rumbled from fifth to make it a
three car fight for second.
A fairly heavy rain shower (that appeared from out of nowhere, as none of the local forecasts
predicted any precipitation for the entire weekend) moved in and doused the speedway right after
the conclusion of the 600cc A-Main - and right before the 270cc A-Main was pushed onto the
track. A long delay - after the rain finally subsided - to get the track back into shape had everyone
scratching their heads over set up and tire choice because the moisture from above turned the
quarter mile oval from black and slick to heavy and tacky.
With softer tires bolted on, rather than the hardest rubber they could find, the groove moved up
and the 270cc wheel-twisters were flying as the A-Main proceded toward a mandatory stoppage at
the halfway point. Diehl was sailing off into the corners, his No. 94d hooked up in the higher line as
he negotiated lapped traffic. Some timely yellow flags provided clear race track in front of him, and
on each restart, he simply powered away from his pursuers.
November 2014 ~ 11