Friday, September 27, 2024
Photos by Rob Hinkal, social media specialist
“Accelerated Learning,” the 1959 B-61 Mack drag truck (white vehicle) operated by Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Diesel Performance Club, competes in the Keystone Truckin’ Nationals, held Sept. 21 at Maple Grove Raceway in Berks County. The truck captured first place in the Diesel Big Rig Bracket 1 division and finished second in the “King of the Hill” grand finale.
Racing against the “fastest trucks in the East,” Pennsylvania College of Technology’s 1959 B-61 Model Mack drag truck claimed first place in the Diesel Big Rig Bracket 1 division and finished second in the “King of the Hill” grand finale at the Keystone Truckin’ Nationals, held Sept. 21 at Maple Grove Raceway in Berks County.
This is the first No. 1 finish in a sanctioned competition for the college’s Diesel Performance Club and its truck, aptly named “Accelerated Learning.” The Maple Grove event was just the second sanctioned event the club has entered.
“We entered our truck in the Diesel Big Rig Bracket 1 (17.50 seconds and faster), and after hammering through seven rounds of bracket racing with the fastest trucks in the East, we came out No. 1!” enthused Mark E. Sones, faculty adviser for the Diesel Performance Club. “Accelerated Learning put down a new record pass of 13.30 seconds at 106 mph in the quarter mile!”
Their triumph in the fastest semi-truck division placed the Penn College team in the “King of the Hill” event, featuring the winners of each of the five brackets.
“Our driver, TJ Buck, put up a roaring fight against the fastest pickup truck at Maple Grove, finishing only fractions of a second behind him, scoring us second place overall,” said Giovanni A. Barbarossa, president of the Diesel Performance Club. “Who could have ever imagined that a group of college students, none of whom are professional drivers or racers, would keep up with and even dominate the large group of professional racers that night?”
Earlier in the day, Diesel Performance Club members, alumni and advisers gather at Maple Grove Raceway, south of Reading, for a group photo. The Keystone Truckin’ Nationals was just the second sanctioned competition the club has entered.
Buck, who serves as the club’s vice president and was driving in his first competition, echoed that sentiment: “We made it all the way to the final race, and you couldn’t ask for a better or closer race. It was close from the beginning to the end, but he was just a better and more experienced driver than me, and that’s OK. None of us ever expected to make it as far as we did. Even people from other teams were impressed by what a bunch of college students could do with our free time.”
In the past three years, the Diesel Performance Club has put its vintage Mack road tractor through its paces and pushed its limits.
“The limitless effort by our students in the past three years has finally made our dream come true,” said Sones, instructor of diesel equipment technology. “After a year and a half of development, test and tune sessions at Numidia Dragway and Beaver Springs Dragway, dyno pulls, and hundreds of hours spent this summer, we finally made it! We truly have made it to the big leagues!”
Opened in 1962, the storied Maple Grove Raceway features National Hot Rod Association drag racing, as well as other types of racing and automotive-oriented events.
Sones says it was at another famous raceway where the inspiration arrived for Accelerated Learning, which has served as a rolling lab for Penn College’s diesel technology students for 26 years. The instructor was recruiting for the college’s diesel and heavy construction equipment technology majors at the Cummins Diesel Nationals at the Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey.
“One can only imagine the history, stories and the hundreds of students who have had a hand in what has become our ‘Penn College Proud’ promotional truck,” Sones said.
Even people from other teams were impressed by what a bunch of college students could do with our free time.
TJ Buck
student driver
Barbarossa, of Bridgeville, a building automation engineering technology student and graduate of electric power generation technology: diesel emphasis, added: “After more than 25 years of highs and lows in the club’s history, the ambition from the three previous academic years has propelled the truck and its success to the stage that everyone watches. Decades of students, with honorable alumni including Mike Sormilic, Jake Spinosa and Jake Beatty, are the reason for the truck’s success, building the platform for TJ Buck to run its fastest pass.”
Buck, who hails from Warminster and is enrolled in diesel technology and heavy construction equipment technology: technician emphasis, said he couldn’t have achieved success without the crew.
“It is a great honor to be able to race the drag truck down the strip, but at the end of the day, I am still a small piece of the puzzle for what it takes to race the truck,” Buck shared. “If you want to be the fastest and most consistent team, and win, you need the best pit crew and crew chiefs. That’s what I was given. Without the pit crew, I would have never been able to win our bracket and take home second place overall. It was truly a team effort from all the support I was given.
“It all starts after class in Mr. Sones’ lab, where countless students work to prepare and improve the truck every day. Without that motivation, we wouldn’t be racing. We are also blessed with an excellent administration that allows us to go racing, and most of that is thanks to our assistant dean, Mr. Beishline (Justin W. Beishline, assistant dean of diesel technology and natural resources), who allows us use of the lowboy and college trucks to transport our truck and equipment all over. I am very thankful for all of the club members who show up and support what we do. I’m also thankful for my friends and parents for all the support they give me to be able to drive the drag truck at over 100 mph.”
After removing his helmet, Buck receives congratulations from Barbarossa (at right) and esteemed alumni club members (with backs to camera) Mike Sormilic (left) and Jake Spinosa (center).
Barbarossa reiterated the praise for “our wonderful administration helping us plan and participate in events, our advisers guiding us all along the way, the students supporting and taking pride in our cause, and our sponsors promoting and fueling our drive for success.”
“I firmly believe that Pennsylvania College of Technology has not only made a name for itself, but it has set a reputation of not to be challenged or underestimated by any means,” Barbarossa added. “The Penn College Diesel Performance Club plans to not break its momentum and keep up the competition on the drag strip.”
The next event for Accelerated Learning and its crew will be on Sunday, Oct. 20 at the October Truck Fest at Island Dragway in Great Meadows, New Jersey.
For more information on diesel truck, heavy equipment and power generation degrees and other majors offered by Penn College’s School of Engineering Technologies, call 570-327-4520.
For more about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free at 800-367-9222.
As the daylong competition draws into night, the team celebrates its first No. 1 win at a sanctioned event. At center holding the trophy is Mark E. Sones, the faculty member who set the college's Mack drag truck project into motion more than 26 years ago.
The star of the show!
Barbarossa makes a point. In the background, at center, is Sormilic.
Spinosa (on right) shares his wisdom. Prior to graduating in August, he served as the truck's driver, including at its first sanctioned competition in June.
A wide range of trucks
A festival atmosphere
A truck show is held in conjunction with the races.
The Maple Grove Raceway has been drawing exhibitors, racers and spectators to its grounds since 1962.
To cheer on the Penn College team, Buck's parents, Jim and Christine, drove to the Berks County venue from their home in Bucks County.
Buck settles into the driver's seat.
The current officers of Penn College's Diesel Performance Club are (from left) Buck, vice president; Barbarossa, president; Jacob C. Greenwood, secretary; and Michael D. Poorman, treasurer. Greenwood hails from Westford, Mass., and Poorman is from Lilly. Both are enrolled in heavy construction equipment technology: technician emphasis.
At the club's "encampment," members eat well, grilling from breakfast through dinner.
Ken Bashista, a diesel laboratory technician at the college, rests up under the tent. (It was a very long day!)
Spinosa and Sones banter with the crew.
A few of the alumni supporters who showed up to pitch in (from left): Ben Pennings, Brandy Heron, Barry Decker, Jake Beatty, Sormilic and Spinosa. About 60 students and alumni were in attendance, according to their instructor.
Racing is underway.
"Accelerated Learning" smokes the competition. (Spectators gathered in the stands opposite of the ones shown here.)
Maple Grove features a quarter-mile dragstrip.
Between rounds, the pit crew jumps into action ...
... keeping the engine cool ...
... and brainstorming strategies.
A close-up image of the engine
The Mack bulldog hood ornament on "Accelerated Learning" sports a red "scarf" (crafted from duct tape).
The vehicle's entry number is on the left, accompanied by the number denoting its last pass.
Crew meeting
Barbarossa says Penn College's Diesel Performance Club has established a reputation for itself on the racing scene.
Buck wears a helmet for safety.
Penn College students and alumni gather in the stands for the grand finale "King of the Hill" race.
Getting a closer view along the fence ...
... and capturing footage with a cell phone.
Sormilic adds another number to the truck's windshield.
The crew rests after a long day of racing.
Another view of the driver in his helmet ...
... and an additional photo of Buck in the driver's seat. ("Unkel Mark" is a nod to Sones, a longtime benefactor of the drag truck.)
At the end of the competition, Buck holds a $750 check for the team's first-place bracket win. The club also earned $2,000 for its second place in the "King of the Hill" finale.
The next event for Accelerated Learning will be on Sunday, Oct. 20 at the October TruckFest at Island Dragway in Great Meadows, New Jersey.
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