It began in 1991 as a five-race series at three different tracks, but over the years, Pennsylvania Sprint Car Speedweek has grown immensely.
Now, it’s one of the most anticipated events on the racing calendar. Eight nights of racing at seven tracks provide plenty of sprint-car racing for Pa. fans around the Fourth of July holiday. This year is the 18th edition of the series.
Big crowds and good car counts have been the norm for the Speedweek races over the past several years. Speedweek promoters and organizers have noted that most of the speedways involved have their biggest crowds of the season. And Williams Grove Speedway, for instance, packs the house without any sanctioning body involved.

You could nickname the week “Rahmerweek” instead of Speedweek because Fred Rahmer has dominated the series. He has 10 Speedweek titles in 17 seasons for car owners, including Bob Stewart, Al Hamilton, Joe Harz and Jim Kline.

Fans plan their vacations around Speedweek, and more and more campers travel right along with the series.
You could nickname the week “Rahmerweek” instead of Speedweek because Fred Rahmer has dominated the series. He has 10 Speedweek titles in 17 seasons for cars owners including Bob Stewart, Al Hamilton, Joe Harz and Jim Kline.
Rahmer was dethroned last season by current World of Outlaws rookie Lucas Wolfe. Last year’s Speedweek title came down to the final laps of the Selinsgrove finale, with Wolfe holding off Greg Hodnett by only eight points in one of the closest finishes in the history of the series.
Rahmer has the most Speedweek victories with 28, followed by Lance Dewease with 17 and Hodnett with 16. Dewease has scored three Speedweek titles and Hodnett has one. Steve Smith, Keith Kauffman and Wolfe are the only other drivers to win the title.
Fast Freddie was shut out of victory lane last year. That’s unlikely to happen again, as Rahmer is on a roll with seven Pa. wins and nine overall.
Brian Leppo and Jeff Shepard are looking for some redemption after the Keystone Cup series. Shepard led the points, but got a flat tire during the final feature. This handed the point lead to Leppo, but he crashed after his top wing collapsed.
Rising star Cody Darrah, 18, could make some noise, too. He qualifies well and is learning to race better every time out under the guidance of ace mechanic Lee Stauffer.
Other drivers like Mark Smith, Chad Layton and Hodnett could be up to the challenge as well.
There’s plenty of money to be won, with at least $5,000 going to the winner each night. The Mitch Smith Memorial at Williams Grove pays $10,000, The Kevin Gobrecht Memorial at Lincoln and Port Royal’s second event each pay $7,000. Plus, there is a payoff at the end of the series. The amounts are based on the number of events completed.
There have been 112 races completed at 11 different speedways during Speedweek. There have been 19 winners in those races. The only non-Posse members to score wins over the years were Jerry Stone at Path Valley, Tyler Walker at Big Diamond in 2000 and Brett Mann at Susquehanna in 2002. None of these tracks are on the current schedule.
The series gets started with the Gobrecht Memorial at Lincoln Speedway June 28 and ends with the Jan Opperman Memorial at Selinsgrove Speedway July 6.