Story By: A2DPR / AUSTIN BERRY RACING – ABBOTTSTOWN, PA – Coming off his runner-up finish at Selinsgrove Speedway, Austin Berry planned a two-race Memorial Day Weekend, hoping to continue building his team’s momentum.
It would be a challenging path to establishing that momentum. The stops on his weekend schedule were Bedford Speedway, a destination that has never awarded Berry with great results, and Lincoln Speedway, a facility he had never visited before.
Berry headed west to Bedford Speedway Friday night with The Tire Mart Tire Pros of Harrisburg, Juniata Veterinary Clinic, Berry’s Siding & Seamless Gutter, SRI Performance, VP Racing Fuels, JDS Racing, Locust Hill Custom Butcher Shop, Nathan Berry Beef Farm, Addicted2DirtPR.com, A&C Racing Engines, GO Lithium, Valvoline Pro-V Racing, Super Clean, Rocket Chassis No.86 and joined 32 other teams at the Turk Burkett Tribute race.
Berry circled the fairgrounds half-mile in 19.873 seconds, which was 9th best in Group A and placed him 5th in the starting lineup for heat race number one. The Mifflin, PA native was unable to gain any ground in the heat race and ultimately slid to a 6th place finish, missing the transfer by one spot.
After making some adjustments for the B-main, Berry was able to capitalize on his front row starting spot to win by nearly 2 seconds.
Berry and his team continued to tweak the setup for the 40-lap A-main and it paid off. Berry was able to work his way forward from his 21st starting spot to record a 13th place finish, wrapping up the night with something positive for the ABR notebook.
“Bedford has always been a challenge for me. Seems like I can’t put together a full night here.“, Berry said. “I think it’s a little bit about making adjustments to my driving style. I repeat some old (bad) habits here. More laps here will help fix that.“
“We got better by the end of the night and overall, we have a better notebook here now than we ever have. Every time I come back here it’s because I want to overcome the challenge. I want to get this place figured out and post a podium finish someday soon.“
Saturday afternoon Berry ventured to Lincoln Speedway for the first time in his racing career. With nothing more to go on than studying videos and a little info from some fellow racers who had more experience at the Abbottstown, PA oval, Berry was there to start building some notes for the upcoming Appalachian Mountain Late Model Speedweek.
By virtue of the pill draw, Berry was slated to start 2nd in the first heat, however during hot laps something was amiss with the carburetor or fueling system. The team scrambled to make a change but couldn’t complete the work in time to start the heat race.
Berry’s ‘never give up’ attitude surfaced again for the B-main. From his 10th starting spot, on a surface he had yet to make a competitive lap, Berry blasted his way all the way to 3rd by lap two, then into 2nd the following trip around.
When the field took the halfway sign in the 10-lap consolation race, Berry was out front and in command. He went on to win by an impressive 3.7 seconds.
Berry picked up right where he left when the green flag dropped on the 30-lap A-main. From his 19th starting spot, he reached 11th on lap six. Berry continued to knock on the door of the top ten for the next half-dozen laps.
On lap sixteen, it all fell apart when something in the engine expired. Berry’s official finish was 19th.
“This place is different but it sure is fun.”, Berry shared with a grin after exiting his Rocket XR1. I’ve raced other smaller places in the region like Clinton County, BAPS and Path Valley, and of course all the bigger tracks in the area like Port, The Grove, Selinsgrove and Hagerstown…but this was my first time here.“, Berry said.
“I can’t wait to come back for (Appalachian Mountain Late Model) Speedweek. Now I know what to expect and what we need to work on.”, Berry continued. “I’m not going to tell you I’m disappointed. The reality is I’m mad. We have been plagued by these kinds of issues and we need to figure out how to solve it once and for all if we are going to keep growing this team and getting better. We can win more races but we need to be out there consistently to do it.“
Be sure to scroll down to watch the team’s YouTube video recap from Bedford, plus subscribe to Austin Berry Racing’s YouTube Channel to see the Lincoln recap later this week!
It will be Camera and Autograph night for the fans when Austin Berry Racing returns to Port Royal Speedway on Saturday, June 3rd. Come out early before racing begins and stop by to get an autograph or take a photo with Austin!