Williams Grove Speedway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Williams Grove Speedway is a half-mile automobile race track located in Williams Grove near Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. It opened in 1939, and hosted Championship Car races from 1949 to 1959 named the "Indianapolis Sweepstakes", contested by a small field of the best Champ Car racers. Many notable drivers have raced here, including A. J. Foyt and Mario Andretti. The track is still in operation today, with racing every Friday and many special events. One of these special events is the Williams Grove National Open for sprint cars sanctioned by the World of Outlaws racing series.
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[edit] Track records (1939 through 2005)
[edit] Total wins
71 wins: Fred Rahmer
62 wins: Lance Dewease
50 wins: Don Kreitz, Jr.
49 wins: Keith Kauffman
43 wins: Lynn Paxton
41 wins: Smokey Snellbaker
38 wins: Kenny Weld
37 wins: Steve Kinser
36 wins: Bobby Allen
32 wins: Steve Smith
31 wins: Todd Shaffer
30 wins: Greg Hodnett
27 wins: Mitch Smith
25 wins: Bobbie Adamson
23 wins: Cris Eash
21 wins: Kramer Williamson
20 wins: Doug Wolfgang
19 wins: Jan Opperman, Steve Smith, Tommy Hinnershitz
18 wins: Mark Kinser, Ray Tilley
15 wins: Van May, Billy Pauch, Sammy Swindell
14 wins: Bobby Davis, Jr.
13 wins: Kenny Jacobs, Jim Nace, Ted Horn, Gus Linder
11 wins: Randy Wolfe
10 wins: Paul Lotier
9 wins: Paul Pitzer, Steve Siegel, Bobby Weaver, Donny Schatz
8 wins: Joie Chitwood, Kevin Gobrecht, Dave Kelly
7 wins: Kenny Adams, Dave Blaney, Dan Dietrich, Jeff Sheppard, Steve Stambaugh
6 wins: Allen Klinger, Johnny Thomson, Maynard Yingst
5 wins: Joey Allen, Jimmy Edwards, Johnny Grum, Frankie Kerr, Joey Kuhn, Mark Light, Lee Osborne, Troy Ruttman, Jimmie Sheaffer, Billy Stief, Scott Tobias, Doug Esh
4 wins: Jimmy Boyd, Jimmy Bryan, Barry Camp, A.J. Foyt, Bill Holland, Johnny Mackison Jr., Curt Michael, Sean Michael, Duke Nalon, Vic Nauman, Tony Willman, Ed Zirkle, Lucas Wolfe
3 wins: Duane Carter, Brad Doty, George Ferguson, Eddie Gallione, Joey Gravino, Dale Van Johnson, Ron Kramer, Dub May, Jay Myers, Rick Schmelyun, Len Thompson, Todd Hestor, Brian Leppo, Jason Johnson, Mark Smith
2 wins: Scott Ausherman, Lou Blaney, Billy Brian Jr., Wally Campbell, Billy Cassella, James Chesson, Bobby Courtwright, Dave Ely, Earl Halaquist, Jac Haudenschild, Johnny Herrera, Jimmy Horton, Lou Johnson, Paul Kline, Lucky Lux, Johnny Mantz, Roger McCluskey, Ernie McCoy, Mike Nazaruk, Brian Paulus, Tom Price, Ronnie Rough Sr., Bill Schindler, Jimmy Sills, Tom Spriggle, Doug Stambaugh, Gene Varner, Brook Weibley, Craig Keel, Danny Lasoski, Paul McMahan
1 win: Walt Ader, Don Branson, P.J. Chesson, Buddy Cochran, Alan Cole, Justin Collett, Kevin Collins, Larry Dickson, Craig Dollansky, Ronnie Dunstan, Darren Eash, Craig Eshenaur, Cotton Farmer, Glenn Fitzcharles, Pat Flaherty, Damion Gardner, Elmer George, Rod George, Bobby Gerhart, Daryl Gohn, Frank Gorichky, Pete Green, Dave Haight, Scotty Haus, Alan Heath, Andy Hillenburg, Steve Howard, Larry Jackson, Henry Jacoby, Gordon Johncock, Parnelli Jones, Kasey Kahne, Mack Clingan, Al Keller, Gene Kohr, Lenny Krautheim III., Don Kreitz Sr., Lee Kunzman, Bob Landis, Roger Larson, Chad Layton, Binky Lederer, Ralph Ligouri, Mark Little, Mike Lloyd, Tommy Mattson, Jim McWhitey, Milt Miller, Charlie Musselman, Johnnie Parsons, Jiggs Peters, Dave Randolph, Hal Retburg, Junior Ritchey, George Robson, Hank Rogers, Sr., Buddy Rush, Randy Ruth, Eddie Sachs, Joey Saldana, Everett Saylor, Tighe Scott, Johnny Shackleford, Adrian Shaffer, Tim Shaffer, Bob Shaw, Ron Shuman, Kenny Slaybaugh, Jerry Stone, T. J. Stutts, Dick Tobias, Mike Wagner, Bruce Walkup, Mike Walter, Chuck Ward, Josh Wells, Kevin Welsh, Jesse Wentz, Jimmy Wilburn, Herman Wise, Ted Wise, Steve Yodock, Chuck Yost, Niki Young
[edit] Top ten winning car owners
- Al Hamilton, 87
- Bob Weikert, 81
- Bob Stewart, 54
- Don Kreitz, Jr., 50
- Walt Dyer, 49
- Karl Kinser, 44
- Joe Harz, 43
- Gary Beam, 32
- Gary Wasson, 29
- Charlie Lloyd, John Zemaitis, 27
[edit] Other record holders
Most modern-day wins through 2005: Fred Rahmer, 71
Most wins in a single season: Keith Kauffman, 13 (1984)
Most consecutive wins: Steve Smith, 6 (1976)
Most top five finishes in a single season: Keith Kauffman, 25 (1984)
Most top five finishes in a career: Fred Rahmer, 236
Most Point Championships: Fred Rahmer, 6 (1997- 2000, 2004-2005)
[edit] Lap Records
- 1 lap: Brian Paulus, 16.140, 4-26-02
- 4 laps: Fred Rahmer, 1:15.35, 8-28-98
- 5 laps: Rick Lafferty, 1:2.77, 5-20-05
- 6 laps: Fred Rahmer, 1:37.29, 10-1-05
- 8 laps: Kraig Kinser, 2:13.88, 10-4-03
- 10 laps: Niki Young, 2:46.38, 5-20-05
- 12 laps: Sammy Swindell, 3:25.81, 5-27-04
- 15 laps: Barry Camp, 5:03.13, 9-30-88
- 20 laps: Lance Dewease, 6:08.77, 8-30-02
- 25 laps: Jason Johnson, 7:43.42, 7-21-05
- 30 laps: Steve Smith, 9:30.24, 5-29-98
[edit] Record setting years
Most Winners in a Single Season: 23 (1988)
Most Top 5 Finishers in a Single Season: 40 (1983, 1987)
[edit] AAA Champ Car race winners
All winners were 
American
| Season | Date | Winning Driver | Chassis | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | July 31 | Johnny Mantz | Kurtis Kraft | Offy |
| 1950 | August 12 | Troy Ruttman | Lesovsky | Offy |
| 1951 | July 29 | Troy Ruttman | Kuzma | Offy |
| 1952 | July 27 | Paul Russo | Kurtis Kraft | Offy |
| 1953 | July 26 | Jimmy Davies | Ewing | Offy |
| 1954 | July 25 | Jimmy Davies | Ewing | Offy |
| 1955 | July 31 | Jimmy Bryan | Kuzma | Offy |
[edit] USAC Champ Car race winners
All winners were American
| Season | Date | Winning Driver | Chassis | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | July 22 | Jimmy Bryan | Kuzma | Offy |
| 1957 | July 21 | Jud Larson | Watson | Offy |
| 1958 | July 20 | Jud Larson | Watson | Offy |
| 1959 | July 19 | Rodger Ward | Watson | Offy |
[edit] Publicity
This track was featured in the World of Outlaws Video Game
[edit] External links
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