Jul 2, 2009 5 min read

Crate Late Model owner Scott Bidwell and his driver, Bobby Powell, left their racing garage in the Meadville area on Saturday afternoon, and headed directly for the Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex in Markleysburg to compete with the FASTRAK Northeast Touring Series on the dirt oval. They had never traveled to the area before, and didn’t know what to expect. They were totally surprised by Summit Mountain, but managed to make it to the peak after a gruesome tow. Unsure where they were going, they missed the entrance road to the track. After finding a place to turn around near the Yough Dam, they headed back on Route 40.

Finally, after a long four-hour trip, they reached their destination. The long haul was worth the effort, because, at the end of the day, Bobby and Scott celebrated in victory lane on a track they had never seen.

Powell took the lead from past Roaring Knob Champion Garry Sisson after a lap 20 restart and led the final five circuits to pick up his first win in the FASTRAK Series. “I like little tracks that get slick,” said Powell. “The track surface was just the way I like it. Robbie Blair gave me some good tips on setting up the car for Roaring Knob.”

The event drew 30 quick racecars. Powell, who has accumulated approximately 75 feature wins in Pure Stocks, Modifieds, and Late Models in a 13-year career, won his heat race, and had a positive outlook going into the feature. He commented, “It was the luck of the draw. We started fifth, and I had a feeling we were going to have a good finish. When I saw the ‘1C’ of Mike Pegher up there, I knew we had our work cut out for us. But he got into a little tangle. We buckled down and did what we could the rest of the way. The ’88’ (Sisson) was good. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to pass him. But I got a good jump on the restart and passed him clean.”

Youngwood’s Rick Meglaye finished a close second. “I started third, and did better than I thought I was going to do. Our goal was to finish in the top ten. We fell back a little bit during the race, but the car got better as the race went on.”

The 2006 Latrobe Speedway Modified champion was hoping the race was a little longer. Rick said, “Another restart, and I think I might have gotten Bobby. But I was in second place with three laps to go, and didn’t want to push the issue. We had a good night.”

Bidwell is happy he hired Powell as his driver several years ago. He said, “Bobby’s a great driver. And he works on the car like you wouldn’t believe. That’s the type of driver I wanted.”

Scott does his share of the work on the racecar also. A quadriplegic since a tragic football accident at the age of 15, Bidwell, now 38, doesn’t let his situation get him down. His mom, Chris, can vouch for that. “Scott is absolutely amazing. He’s always at the garage working on the racecar. If there is something wrong with it, he can find the problem and tell you how to fix it. He’s very active. He goes archery hunting and gets a deer every year. And he’s a seventh grade math teacher in the Saegertown School District.”

Powell and his crew really like Roaring Knob. “I love that track,” Chris exclaimed. “It’s awesome. It’s clean and has a beautiful setting.”

The winning driver agreed. “It’s a beautiful facility,” remarked Powell. “I wish they could move it closer to where we live. I’d race it every Saturday night.” Regarding Summit Mountain navigation when the snow flies? “I don’t think I’d want to travel it in the winter,” he laughed.

Five-division racing continues at Roaring Knob on July 4th with holiday fireworks.

The Supermodified show scheduled for Friday at Motordrome Speedway has been canceled due to lack of sponsorship. A regular five-division show will be held instead. Adult grandstand admission is only 6 dollars, and fans will be treated to a fireworks display.

Glenda Keffer (Baysinger), the first female driver to race at Motordrome, will be honored during a pre-race ceremony on Friday evening. Glenda lived in Perryopolis when she made track history in 1973. She currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.

Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway will host six classes of racing on Saturday night. All fans living outside of Allegheny, Washington, and Beaver counties will be admitted to the grandstands absolutely free of charge on Saturday, July 4th.

Dave Dragovich can be contacted at somersetdave@comcast.net Crate Late Model owner Scott Bidwell, of Meadville, (left) holds the trophy, and his driver, Bobby Powell, displays the checkered flag after winning the FASTRAK Northeast Touring Series race on the Roaring Knob dirt oval Saturday night. Lisa Gower Photo