Dale Earnhardt Jr. draws crowd to Lernerville Speedway
With a large group of people around him, hoping for a picture or an autograph, Dale Earnhardt Jr. walked along the front of the grandstands at Lernerville Speedway.
It was a major moment in the long, storied history of the Buffalo Township racetrack, and it brought out a standing-room-only crowd.
Earnhardt came to Lernerville on Tuesday night to spectate the High Limit Sprint Car Series $50,000-to-win Commonwealth Clash.
He had a live podcast with co-host Mike Davis and guests Kyle Larson and Brad Sweet, who co-own the High Limit Series, on a stage near the flag stand in front of the grandstands.
Once Earnhardt was able to navigate to the stage, he addressed the crowd.
“I appreciate everyone being here,” Earnhardt said. “Mike Davis and I are excited to come and see the racing tonight. I’ve been to pretty much any kind of race except a winged sprint car race. I’ve been watching on TV for years but have never had a chance to go to one.”
Earnhardt’s appearance was a trade-off with Larson.
Earnhardt co-owns the CARS Tour, a regional asphalt late model series based in the Carolinas. He approached Larson with a proposition.
“I asked Kyle if he would drive in my series, and I would come to one of his events, bring the podcast and have some fun. He agreed to do that, which I didn’t think he we would, but he loves to drive and will race anything. We put him in our car, and he had a lot of fun racing our late model car at Carraway Speedway. That was his half of the deal, and I think I got the better end of the deal. I’m excited to be here.”
During the podcast, aptly named “The Dale Jr. Download,” Earnhardt and Davis asked Larson and Sweet about owning a series and their racing careers. The High Limit series is in its inaugural season.
Prior to the podcast, Earnhardt signed autographs, along with Larson, in Larson’s merchandise trailer.
Nick Erskine, a Punxsutawney native, was one of many who got a signature for Earnhardt. He’s a limited late model racer at Hummingbird Speedway in Clarion County. He came to Lernerville with his family to take in the races and meet Earnhardt.
Erskine has met Earnhardt at a couple NASCAR races but was happy to see him supporting a local speedway.
“He’s a really cool, laid-back guy,” Erskine said. “We’ve met him to Martinsville and Charlotte. We also came to watch Kyle Larson. We’re big Kyle Larson fans, sprint car fans and NASCAR fans, but we’re always and Earnhardt fan, so it’s cool to see Dale Jr. here. I hope the fans let him enjoy the program.”
Several World of Outlaws teams return to Lernerville
When the High Limit series came out in January, David Gravel immediately circled the Commonwealth Clash at Lernerville as a race he was adding to his schedule.
Gravel has had a ton of success at Lernerville in the past, winning multiple Don Martin Memorial Silver Cups and Commonwealth Clashes when the races were sanctioned by the World of Outlaws.
But when the series and the track parted ways following the 2021 season, Gravel and the rest of the Outlaws weren’t able to race at Lernerville until Tuesday night.
Gravel was one of three World of Outlaws drivers to make their return to Lernerville along with Sweet and James McFadden.
“Lernerville is one of my favorite tracks,” Gravel said. “It sucks that we don’t come here anymore with the Outlaws. It’s a place that I’ve had a ton of success, and it’s a really good track to race at. It’s wide. It gets slick and puts on really good racing.”
There would have been more Outlaws teams in attendance Tuesday, but a late change to the schedule gave teams a choice.
Each Outlaw team was given four free races outside of the series to attend. Most teams saved their final race for Lernerville, but the $60,000-to-win Tuscarora 50 at Port Royal Speedway in Juniata County was rained out over Labor Day weekend and rescheduled for next Thursday.
The Outlaws race at Port Royal on Friday and Saturday, so they waived a 48-hour rule in their contract to allow their teams to race the Tuscarora 50 and most teams chose to go to Port Royal.
Gravel said he and his team contemplated going to Port Royal as well but stuck to the original plan.
“I was hoping they would let us go to Port Royal and not have it count as one of our races, but they didn’t, so we had to make a decision and this is what we decided to do,” Gravel said.
There were 59 cars entered.
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