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Austin Kochenash Doubles Up At Mahoning Valley Speedway Opener With Modified And Late Model Wins

By DINO OBERTO

(LEHIGHTON, PA 4-13-13) Since he began his stock car career over five years ago, Austin Kochenash has had some great nights at Mahoning Valley Speedway but none will ever top Saturday’s season opener as the 17-year old from Danielsville took wins in both the Modified and Late Model mains. Kochenash made a late race pass in both features en route to scoring the victories.

The Modified win was very sweet as it was his first start with the class and it came in a 50-lap, $2000-to-win feature. The Late Model verdict was his 17^th at Mahoning which boosted his take for the night to nearly $3000.

“This feels great. There was a lot of good cars here tonight and I just can’t thank my uncle enough for letting me drive his car and the whole crew for the hard work they put in over the winter, it all paid off,” said Kochenash, who drove the VRP Shocks No. 31 owned by Roger Heffelfinger, Jr.

For the start of the Modified main Kochenash lined up third behind the front row of Nevin George and John Bennett. At the drop of starter Bobby Stuhl’s race commencing green George took control of the field and by lap two Kochenash was in second. Despite repeated tries from Kochenash, George was running stout and ably held his ground.

The race ran clean through the first 17 laps before the caution waved. Don Wagner had spun on the back straight and in an attempt to avoid contact several cars took evasive action. In the aftermath reigning Mahoning Modified champ Earl Paules had slide into the wall and needed to be towed from the track. He was unable to return and it marked the first time in over two seasons that he had to drop out of a race. His 18^th place finish would be the worst in that same span.

When the action was back underway George again led the way while Bennett used the restart to get around Kochenash. Eric Beers then joined the fray with the front trio.

With the help of another yellow on lap 34 Kochenash was able to bounce back to second. Bennett, however, remained as close as could be plus the pair kept within in reach of George.

With just under 10 laps to, Beers got pinched and spun in turn four which prompted the yellow flag. It was on that restart that Kochenash would pull his race winning move by overtaking George in turn four. Bennett was able to follow into second.

Although a few more caution periods took place over the waning laps, Kochenash stayed the course for the popular win. George ran side-by-side with Bennett before retaking second for good with five laps to go. Eric Kocher and Roger Coss completed the top five. 

“I knew we had a good car for the long run and I bided my time and saved my tires. On that restart I pushed him (George) a little bit in the corner and when I saw the opening I just drove under him. It was a good night for sure and hopefully we can run for the championship in both cars,” said Kochenash.

George, who was third in points last year, showed that he will again be amongst the lead runners and title hopefuls after his solid performance.

“Nobody wants to finish second but Austin (Kochenash) had been fast for all the pre-season practices and I knew he was going to be a threat for sure. It’s disappointing when you can lead most of it and then end up in second but we’re here for the big picture, we’re here for the points so we’ll take this and move on to next week,” said George.

Heat wins for the 24 Modifieds went to George, Bennett and Kochenash with Chip Santee annexing the consi.

Dave Wallace and Paul Koehler, Jr., share the front row for the 25-lap Late Model event with Koehler getting a great jump at the start and darting out to the early lead. Wallace kept tabs on the leader as did Kevin Graver, Jr. but there was no denying the fact that Koehler had the strongest car as he maintained a safe 1-2 car length advantage.

By lap 13 Paul Effrig was making his presence felt and began to challenge with the lead pack. On a restart one lap later he was attempting to make a go at Koehler but after slight contact in turn four he lost traction and spun. The caution came out and at this time Kochenash, who started ninth, was now lined up with Koehler.

Over the next half dozen laps these two past class champs waged a torrid battle. Kochenash continued to up the pressure and on lap 21Koehler got nudged entering turn one and could not hold on as he spun from the lead. Kochenash then cruised through the final four circuits to pick up his first Mahoning Late Model win since the final race of 2011.

“We weren’t good in the heat so we had to change up a few things for the feature and the car was pretty good tonight,” said Kochenash. “Overall this was a great night I won’t soon forget. What a way to start the year.”

AKR would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season.  In addition, we would like to thank our sponsors for their support throughout the season-VRP Shocks, Horrock's Fire and Rescue Apparatus, Frogg Toggs, M&T Repair, Ironton Telephone, Sparco, Stan Graver Auto Sales, Balliet Construction, Wentz Autobody and Performance Driveline.

We are looking forward to next season and have already started working on the cars for next year.

 

Finish at Caraway Speedway not indicative of the 66 Team’s Efforts

(SOPHIA,NC 11-10-12)  The AKR team traveled down to Sophia, NC for the 10^th Annual North/South Shootout with the Asphalt Modified. The race weekend started out on Thursday with practice all day and then practice in the am on Friday and qualifying in the evening. 

The car was tight but the team was able to gain speed by making adjustments and keeping up with the track.

On Austin’s first qualifying lap-he went in a little too hard and over drove the car. He tried to rebound

on his second lap but he could only gain so much time.  Austin’s time placed him 6^Th starting spot in the second heat race. He finished 5^th in the heat which then placed him in the 22^nd starting spot for the A-main. 

We knew starting mid pack was going to be challenge however when you have a driver with

Austin’s reaction time-it makes everyone’s job a lot easier! Austin dodged numerous accidents and carefully picked off the cars in front of him one by one. He was strong on the outside although there wasn’t much a groove-he made his own.  A number of the leaders pitted on the first caution

but Austin chose to stay out to gain track position. The next caution, it was time to bring the #66 down

pit road for a few adjustments and a tire change. The pit stop was flawless and Austin did a great job

sandwiching himself in between two cars that were already pitted.  After the pit stop there were about #70 laps to go,

Austin said over the car radio-“he was ready to go!”  And “go” he did-he worked himself up to 4^th spot and

was reeling in the leaders.  He had at least 7-8 car lengths between the Horrocks Fire and Apparatus,

VRP Shock Troyer Chassis and 5^th place car.  The caution flew and on the restart Austin was on the outside

with an overly anxious driver behind him.  The driver behind him got into the car on the inside of Austin.

Mayhem broke loose and Austin got plowed into the car in front of him with nowhere to go. He was a victim

along for the ride.  The front end was bent and was not competitive but Austin limped around to finish the race. 

Pretty ironic the driver (anxious driver behind Austin) that caused the accident that Austin got tangled up in caused

3 caution flags and took out 3 other drivers but then went on to win the race.  In the end, he was deemed illegal

due to exceeding the tire limit.

All in all- it was a great learning experience for AKR.  We had a great pit stop, great communication, practiced

conserving tires, and again gained the respect of our competitors.  As soon as we get the monkey off our back-look out!

We will be back next year!

 

 

 

Austin Wins his Heat and Second in the Feature (LEHIGHTON, PA 10-27-12)  The Octoberfast 2012 goes down as one of the most successful days in track history and brings to a close the first year of promoting under Floyd Santee. The racing was the track’s season finale and was part of a close to $50,000 purse. It drew 34 Modifieds, 20 Late Models and 31 Street Stocks from throughout Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. In the Late Model 75-lapper it was a race long barnburner amongst the last three seasons track champions as Paules, Austin Kochenash and Paul Koehler, Jr.,  took up the top three spots over the second half of the race. Mike Sweeney, 2012 point’s runner-up, came from third to first on lap one and had Geno Steigerwalt and Koehler in close pursuit. Koehler would take over second on lap five and began a hot battle with Sweeney. In near side-by-side formation, they raced with intensity with Sweeny just barely holding off each passing lap advance of Koehler. On a lap 24 restart, Koehler suddenly lost the handle and went into a spin. Paules, second at the time, now assumed the runner up spot and when the race eventually resumed he hounded Sweeney for the next few laps, finally getting by him on lap 29. Kochenash followed suit and from there on it became a crowd pleasing dogfight to the finish. Each and every lap saw Kochenash make repeated tried to get underneath the new champ and each time those tries were denied. You couldn’t have asked for a better way to close out the season as it was nothing short of good hard clean racing, one very exciting feature indeed. Right down to the last lap Kochenash went after Paules while Koehler watched from nearby third, just waiting for a miscue on their part to seize the lead. “Every time I looked out my window he (Kochenash) was alongside me but we hung on and this was a great way to end our season,” said Paules. “He’s good and ran me clean. He could have taken me out. It was a tough battle out there that was for sure. I really had to protect the bottom and he still snuck underneath there a few times but he gave ne room. This marked his 10th win of the season which ties a division record for most wins in a single season with Tyler Haydt. “It was a good race and not much contact, we were pretty evenly matched. We had a lot of fun out there and I’m sure the fans really enjoyed that,” said Kochenash. “The car stuck real good to the inside and I think we just needed a couple more laps. All in all it was a good race overall.” Frankie Althouse had to fight from the back of the pack several times and came home fourth with Steigerwalt rounding out the top five. Heat wins went to Zane Zeiner, Travis Fisher and Kochenash.     Late Model Feature Finish, 75 Laps: 1. Earl Paules, 2. Austin Kochenash, 3. Paul Koehler, Jr., 4. Frankie Althouse, 5. Geno Steigerwalt, 6. Travis Fisher, 7. Mike Sweeney, 8. Aleia Geisler, 9. George Ramos, 10. Barry Kutz, 11. Rick Wallace, 12. Zane Zeiner, 13. Craig Weinstein, 14. Dave Wallace, 15. Paul Effrig, 16. Billy Swartz, 17. Stone Phillips, 18. Dave Imler, 19. Casey Creyer  Did not start: Mike Stringer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ROC Race at DTRP

September 16, 2012

AKR packed up and rolled into Dunn Tire Raceway Park for the ROC US Open on Saturday night.

The practice and heats were rained out on Thursday and Friday which meant for a long, full day of racing on Saturday.  AKR started off the night with a stellar heat win which had the team feeling confident going into the 100 Lap Main Event.  Winning the heat put Austin in the redraw for the feature where he drew 10^th starting spot.

The race was originally slated to go off around 7-8 pm but due to rain the previous two days-the main was pushed back and did not start until after 11pm.

The late start caused a moisture build up and lack of grip on the track which limited the drivers to basically one groove.  The race started and Austin attempted a few outside passes.  A few stuck and a few didn’t due to the lack of grip.  Austin managed to work his way through the field to the 4^th spot with 25 laps to go.

The caution fell and it was time to get some new tread and a few adjustments.  Austin restarted in the rear field so it was time to go with only 25 laps left in the race!  Austin moved to the outside to make a pass on a competitor when a car spun in front which caused a chain reaction. Austin was turned into the 4th turn and then tagged on the side. 

The accident ended AKR’s night which was disappointing however the AKR team learned a lot about

strategy and patience.

We will be back next year! A huge thanks to DTRP for their  hospitality!

 

 

 

Austin K Dominates and Nabs the Biggest Win of His Career in the Modified at Mountain Speedway in the 75 Lap Main Event

July 28, 2012

Austin started the main event in the 11th position and patiently picked his way through the field.  He got tagged from behind early on in the race which loosened the car up. The 16 year old contemplated pitting to tighten the car up but he made the call to work with it and boy did he ever! Austin knew that he had to start making his move so when the chance arose to take the outside, he gladly took it.  The charge on the outside gave him the track position that he needed. The following two restarts, the "Young Gun" took the outside line however his competitor attempted to run him up to the boards.  Austin held on lap after lap but then decided to duck into second and save his tires for the extended race.   On the restart, with 32 laps to go Austin started on the point and never looked back. He distanced himself by 5 or 6 car lengths from the second place car.  There were multiple restarts but he restarted the race like a veteran and brought home his third win in a row in the Modified 75 Lap Race.

 Austin would like to thank his crew, family, fans and sponsors-Performance Driveline, Horrocks Fire and Rescue Apparatus, Stan Graver Auto Sales and Service, M&T Green Repair, FroggToogs, Ironton Telephone, VRP Shocks

 

 Austin in V-lane with Miss Mountain Speedway 7/30/2012

 

AKR is proud to announce a new addition to their racing family.  AKR and Horrocks Fire and Rescue Apparatus have joined in a partnership for the 2012 racing season.  Please visit their website at www.Horrocksfire.com

 

  

AKR is proud to new announce a new partnership with Frogg Toggs. Please visit Froggtoggs.com to get ready for the heat and rain this summer.

 

 

Kochenash rebounds after flat tire to bring it home fourth in Oswego at the ROC

July 20, 2012

Austin started out the day with a third place finish in his heat race. The redraw  placed the "PA Young Gun" in the sixth starting spot for the 50 lap main event.  On the start, Austin hung on the outside for a few laps but then settled into seventh spot. Eight laps into the race, Austin felt a tire going down. He had a left rear flat and had to make a pitstop for a tire change.  Restarting in last, Austin had to work his way through the field and did so in a methodical fashion.  He was patient and made his move when the time was right. He worked his way up to fifth spot when he was spun coming out of turn four. The driver that spun Austin was parked for the night for rough riding.  Once again, Austin started in the rear and worked his way up to the fourth spot. The charge did not come easy and required Austin to work the outside groove, something no one else did all night.  With 8 laps to go, Austin went high, went low trying to make the pass on the 4th place car but everywhere he went the fouth place car blocked.

Austin finished the night in 4th place.  He learned alot and got to race with a number of seasoned veterans. He was commended by competitors for his charge to the front on the outside.  It was a great experience for Austin and he is looking forward to next year.

Austin would like to thank his sponsors: Performance Driveline, VRP Shocks, MT Green Repair, Stan Graver Auto, Balliet Construction, Ironton Telephone and Blue Moutain Evergreen AND of course his crew!!! 

 

AKR traveled to Seekonk, Mass to race the Modified in the Wednesday night Madness but the rain prevailed.  The race is rescheduled for August 1.

 

 

Austin on WNEP TV 16 last week:

http://wnep.com/2012/06/28/week-5-of-inside-track-june-28-2012/

 

 

The Teenager Makes it TWO in a Row with the Modified at Mountain Speedway

June 30, 2012
It was a blistering Saturday night but the heat did not stop Austin from blazing to his second win in a row in the Modified at Mountain Speedway.
Austin started the heat in fourth spot and finished in fourth spot. The car was tight so they made some adjustments for the feature event.

He started the feature in the ninth starting spot. There were a few cautions during the beginning of the race and Austin steered clear of the incidents.  Once given the oppurtunity to make his move on the outside, he did.  AK was racing hard on the outside to pass the leader but ran out of real estate and settled in line for a few laps. Austin immediately started working on the car in second position. The leader and second place cars tangled which put Austin in the right spot, at the right time.  On the restart, AK pulled away from the field at one point had almost a half track lead of the second place car.  A few more caution flags flew but Austin maintained his lead and raced to his second feature winner in a row. Austin was ecstatic after the race since he felt as though he had the car to beat. He asked me to give a special shout out to his fans (especially Mikey), his crew and family for their support and hard work.  Bully Racing is back!!!

 

 

 

Austin Kochenash makes history as the youngest driver to win in the Modified Division at Evergreen/Mountain Speedway
June 24, 2012
In Austin's fifth start of the season as a rookie, he was able to get the "monkey off his back" and take his first career modified win.

Austin started outside pole in his heat race and quickly took command on lap 1.  He led the remaining nine circuits and take his 3rd modified heat win of the season.

With the heat win, that placed the 16 year old on the pole position for the main event.  At the beginning of the race, the car was a bit tight but during the long runs it freed up and Austin was able to get some breathing room.  There were numerous restarts so the win was not going to come easy for the Rookie.  On the restarts, Austin was on his game and held it together like a veteran while getting hit numerous times on the back bumper.  There was a final restart with two laps to go and Austin had the restart that he needed to get his first "W" in the modified.  His win was one that will go down in the history books. Austin was the youngest driver to win a Modified race at Mountain Speedway formerly Evergreen Speedway which opened in the 1950's.  One of Austin's goals for this year was to win a modified race-I'd say mission accomplished!  Moving on to goal #2......

 

 

Austin had the fastest car going into the night (heats and practice) however poor sportsmanship by a fellow competitor ruined his chance to sweep the weekend at Mountain Speedway

June 23, 2012
Austin once again was the fastest car in practice.  He started the heat race in the second position and quickly jumped out in front.  Austin breezed to his 5th heat win of the season in his Frogg Toggs, Chevy Impala.  The heat win placed him on the outside pole for the feature.  Austin raced on the outside for a number of laps but the leader ran him so high that Austin had to back off the gas which caused him to loose momentum so he had to settle into third position.

Austin was able to make the pass on the second place car and reeled in the leader within 2 laps.  The car was dialed in and ready for victory.  On lap 22, Austin got a run on the leader coming down the front stretch and the leader spun out in turn 1. No contact made by Austin-it was a clean pass. The driver that spun Austin was put to the rear and under the yellow-he plowed into Austin and broke his front right radius rod, damaged the rim and caused a flat tire.  It was a shame since Austin had the car to beat. Unfortunately some people can't take getting beat by a 16 year old. Austin has dealt with people that act like this for the past 11 years so this is nothing new to him but still disheartening.   We will give it a try again next week.

 

 

First modified win is right around the corner for Kochenash at Mountain Speedway
June 16, 2012

The night started out just as it had the previous two weeks with Kochenash being the fastest car in practice and in the qualifying heats.  Austin outclassed the field and won his second heat of the season. In the feature, he started the Frogg Toggs sponsored #66 in the fourth position. Austin quickly maneuvered into third place and was working on second place when the yellow flag waved.  With the green flag waving, Austin powered his way to the point position. Kochenash broke away from the field and put quite a bit of distance between himself and the rest of the cars. Austin was getting into his groove lapping the field when a caution waved for fluid on the track.  On the restart just as he had done on the previous restarts, Austin retained the lead. Again, he started opening up the gap and lapping the field until a car spun on lap 28. A combination of debris on his tires and a partial flat caused Austin to get a bad start. A couple of cars got together which led to Austin getting towed off the track.  He was able to get the major damage fixed and made it back out on the track to continue racing.  He rallied and finished in the fifth position.  One of Austin's greatest attributes is that he doesn't give up and that was evident when he came back out on the track.  He was on a mission to get his way back up to the front.  Although Austin did not come home with the win, he did have his best finish of the year in the modified, and more importantly made a statement the "W" is right around the corner!

After taking the car apart the damage was much more extensive than was originally believed but the AKR Team will be ready for next Sunday to give it another try! 

Austin wants to thank everyone that helped him out in the pits when he came off the track. He said that he wouldn't have made it back out if it weren't for everyone leading a hand.  

 

  

The #6 (Austin's back up car) was driven by Randell Burnett-Jamie McMurray's Car Chief.  Randall along with Vince Valeriano (VRP Shocks) were in the house to support Austin since Pocono Speedway was a short distance away.  Vince is a long time friend and mentor to Austin.  Austin was thrilled to race against Randall! 

 

Domination at Mountain this weekend in the latemodel although a late race flat took Austin out of contention for the win.

June 9, 2012

Austin was the fastest car during practice and the Indy style batch timing on Saturday night at Mountain Speedway. Scoring the fastest time of the day placed Austin on the pole for the the Late Model race.   The green flag waived and Austin quickly took the lead and stretched the lead to 8 car lengths.  On lap 22, the caution waived and on the restart the car in the second position punted Austin into the wall in Turn 1.  The driver was put to the rear for rough riding and Austin had to visit the pits to repair his flat tire.  Austin was able to get back on the track with 8 laps to go but multiple cautions and lapped cars got in the way of his 4th win.  

AK is looking forward to racing the LM in 2 weeks!

 

Austin K was the "man to beat" at Mountain Speedway on Saturday but due to mechanical issues his race day came to a disappointing halt

June 2, 2012

The day was going great! Austin K posted fast time during practice and the car was dialed in.  Austin started 2nd in the heat and blasted by the pole sitter on the start to go ahead and win his first heat race of the season in the modified.  Winning the heat race put him into the redraw for the feature. He redrew 3rd place which put him exactly where he wanted to be for the start of the feature.  On the start of the feature, Austin moved into second place and on lap two there was a caution.  Austin powered by the first place car to take the lead on Lap 2 and never looked back.  He was checked out-lapping the field as if he was veteran and not a rookie in the class.  Austin was getting ready to lap Matt Hirschman (who went on to win the race) when his car came to a halt on lap 32.   Mechanical issues would halt his day but Austin displayed great character and showed everyone that he is a contender.  He will be in victory lane soon!   

 

 

 

Austin Kochenash dominates at Mountain Speedway extending his point lead and going 3 for 4 in heat and feature wins

May 28, 2012

"Awesome Austin" as he was previously nicknamed in his Quarter Midget years did not disappoint on Sunday at Mountain Speedway.  Austin had the car to beat out of the gate. He made a last lap pass on the outside to solidify his 3rd heat win of the season.  In the feature, he started from the 4th starting position and took command of the race on lap 3 and never looked back. He weaved through lapped traffic and had stellar restarts to get his third "W" out of 4 starts this season.  The 9 Time QMA champion and MVS LM Champion has a 75% win-start rate at Mountain Speedway this season. 

 

Austin in Victory Lane on May 28, 2012

 

 

 

Mahoning Valley Speedway falls victim to mother nature Memorial Day Weekend

May 27, 2012

Due to looming rain, MVS had to cancel racing on Saturday night.  Austin was disappointed since he is chomping at the bit to get back to MVS. There was finally an opporutnity to do so but mother nature got in the way. He will give it another try in the next few weeks.

 

AK Racing changed plans for the Memorial Day weekend due to the expectation of inclement weather. Although Ausin was scheduled to race in Ohio, the threat of rain detered the traveling plans.  The revised racing schedule for this weeekend is to race Mahoning Valley Speedway on Saturday and Mountain Speedway on Sunday.

 

 

Late race flat ruins chance for three peat at Mountain Speedway for point leader Austin K.

May 13, 2012

Austin started off the night right by dominating his heat race to take his 2nd heat win of the season at Mountain Speedway.  Winning the heat seeded Kochenash in the fourth starting spot for the feature.  The third generation driver manuevered through traffic and dodged repeated efforts by his competitors to slow his progression.  He worked his way up to the second position and was in the process of making the pass on the outside of Fisher when the yellow flag waived with three laps to go.  Under the caution flag, Austin picked up debris on his right rear which called for a pit stop and dampened his chance for a three peat. Kochenash returned to the track with three laps to go starting last and wheeled his Performance Driveline, Chey Impala into the third position, on the tail of the leaders.  A few more laps and this story would have had a different ending. 

 

Austin Kochenash makes his debut in the Asphalt Modified Class at Mountain Speedway

May 6, 2012

Austin Kochenash debuted in the Asphalt Modified Class in the season opener at Mountain Speedway.  Timing into the feature in the eighth starting spot was a huge accomplishment for the 16 year old.  Ausin's goal for the day was to "bring the car home in piece, gain the respect of his competitors and finish in the top ten." Although the race was riddled with cautions, Kochenash managed to finesse his way through the mishaps. He brought home the Performance Driveline, VRP, M&T Repair, Troyer Chassis back to the stable damage free, received accolades from his competitors and finished in the 9th spot.  Goal obtained!

 

Austin being interviewed by Gene Ostrowski.

 

 

 

  Austin in action with the modified #66.

 

Upcoming plans

-Austin will be racing in the Late Model Class at Mountain Speedway on May 13, 2012.

-Memorial Day weekend the AK Racing Team will travel to DeGraff, Ohio to participate in the CRA Shootout at Shady Bowl Speedway.

 -Austin will be on Racer Roundtable in the next few weeks-more info to follow.

 

Austin Kochenash is on a roll starting out the season 2 for 2 at Mountain Speedway

April 29, 2012

In his second outing at the track this season, Austin Kochenash of Danielsville picked up his second straight Late Model victory.  Lorin Arthofer started from the pole position and led the first circuit of the 30-lap Late Model feature over Larry Fisher, Kyle Harvell, Austin Kochenash and Brad Brown. 

Harvell worked into the race lead on the second lap and on Fisher worked into the third spot on the next go-around. One lap later, Kochenash grabbed third from Arthofer.

 

With five laps complete, Harvell led over Fisher, Kochenash, Arthofer and Brown, but that began to change when Kochenash took second from Fisher on lap eight.

 

Kochenash lined up second following a lap nine yellow when Mark Tyson pulled off track. Kochenash powered by the leader on the outside  on the restart and took the race lead.

 

Kochenash was uncatchable and dominated over the remaining laps to took his second victory in as many starts this season.