ABBOTTSTOWN, Pa. — As quickly as the season concluded, a fresh new season was right around the corner. February couldn't come soon enough with the mild winter Central PA has had this year.
Last year, Lincoln Speedway had 20 different winners in its 29-races but it's always nice to start the season off with Ice Breaker bragging rights.
"Extra excitement. Every week, whenever you roll in here, you have the butterflies but there's something special about the first race. You have a clean slate. You just hope this is going to be the start of something good for the year," said Jordan Givler.
A fresh start to a new season, new decals, new teams, and of course, the sweet music of 900 horsepower.
"It's a central pa tradition,' said Givler. 'Everyone's like, man you're nuts. It's February. How do you race? It's what we do here. It's a little windy, a little cool but it's supposed to be. It's the Ice Breaker. It's just great to be back. The offseason is over and we're ready to get going."
With 2021 in the rearview mirror, the focus turns to a long nine months of racing. Trying to start the season on a positive note.
"We didn't have year we liked. The year we wanted to have. It was easy to flush it down the toilet. We want to come to the races and win," said Danny Dietrich.
Dietrich pulled a good pill, so after the raced push to Sunday afternoon, 34-cars hit the track for the season opener.
Five heats, Kyle Moody won the first. Dietrich went green to checkered in heat two. The Myerstown Mistle does the same in the third. Trouble to start the fourth as Aaron Bollinger's rear connected with Jimmy Siegel's left front. Tim Glatfelter just squeezes through. Bollinger won the heat and Freddie Rahmer, from the sixth starting position, got a run on Givler's outside to take the final heat.
All-star driver Justin Peck doesn't go to the scales after the heat race and gave his transfer spot to Brandon Rahmer and starts dead last in the b-main but would race his way up to transfer in.
Givler pulled the pole position and led the field to green. The track wasn't insolated with snow over the winter and the moisture on the track didn't stand a chance with the constant wind so the track was kicking up a pretty good dust storm.
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Eleven laps in, Rahmer passed Bollinger for the lead.
Marks tried to throw everything he had on a few restarts to get by Rahmer but Rahmer stuck to the highside.
He captured his first ice breaker, first win in new car, and first 410 win for his own Eich Eichelberger.
"I knew the top was going to be dominate once they watered it and I kept getting better and better. I kept rolling my wing forward to keep it turning. It worked out. I was hoping, a track like today, usually it's super heavy. It's the first race of the year and you're tired and you're tensed up so that was probably as perfect as it could get right there," said Rahmer.
Picking up where he left off, Rahmer had the most wins at Lincoln last year with four. This win moves him to 19-career wins at the track.