SARVER, Pa. — In a world dominated by Jonathan Davenport and Ricky Thornton Jr. of late, Chub Frank gave Lernerville Speedway spectators and Dirt Late Model onlookers something they haven’t seen in a long time on Thursday’s Firecracker 100 opening night.

The 62-year-old’s runner-up to Davenport in the second semifeature had been his best finish of any kind at the Firecracker in 16 years when he finished second to Josh Richards on 2009’s prelim night. It was also his first Firecracker prelim podium since 2017.

So, while Davenport and Thornton continued their stardom on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series — winning 10 of the tour’s last 12 events with Thursday’s respective $5,000 semifeature victories — Frank emerged as the brightest star of the night. 

“I love this racetrack,” Frank said, his first words upon climbing out of his race car at Lucas Oil Series postrace tech inspection area. “This racetrack is great. The competition level is definitely up. Everything went good tonight. The car was good. The car was tight early in the heat, but I figured to leave it alone, put a right-rear tire on it and the car was good in the feature.”

Granted, Frank’s runner-up came during a less-challenging second semifeature where only two of DirtonDirt.com's Top 25 drivers — Davenport and Daulton Wilson — were in the lineup whereas nine power-ranked drivers stiffened the first semifeature.

But Frank was impressive because last Friday at Freedom Motorsports Park in Delevan, N.Y., a pileup at the finish line sent him on a barrel roll. He came away from the wreck unhurt, but now is down to one functional car this week at the Lernerville crown jewel he circles on his limited racing schedule each year.

For that reason Frank erred on the side of caution Thursday, mainly sticking to the bottom part of the 4/10-mile oval while many others gassed their cars up around the top. 

Frank took note how treacherous the top side had been, like watching Devin Moran blow a right-rear and fall out of second in the first semifeature. Gregg Satterlee also dropped out of second in Frank’s semifeature because of a mud-packed right-rear wheel. On top of that, Frank remembered his flip on Thursday’s prelim night in 2022.

“It’s just … I already flipped down here two years ago. So, I’d rather not chance it,” Frank said. “I don’t think about it as far as being worried or getting hurt. I just don’t have time to fix the car that’s destroyed. I already have one that’s destroyed. I don’t have a big crew where we can strip a car and fix it. It’s better to take what you can get and hopefully it works out.

“So, I really didn’t want to take that chance. The bottom was pretty good. It got bad the last four laps down there. It cleaned up too much and got too shiny. Before, it had dirt and you could get good traction in it and make good runs. That’s how I got by Daulton (Wilson) because he kept taking the bottom and that middle was actually pretty good. Once you got off the corner, the straightaway had a ton of traction up there. I could make up a bunch of time right there.”

Frank showed his nose a few times to Davenport throughout the 25-lap semifeature, but only felt like he had enough to pass him “if he could’ve made a mistake.”

“He probably wasn’t going to make a mistake,” said Frank, who didn’t know that Davenport didn’t feel his best aboard the Double L Motorsports No. 49 machine. 

“I’m usually good early and, like, really, really late here,” Davenport started. “It’s that middle transition here where it blows grit across the racetrack that I’m not good. I’m not good in that anywhere. I don’t know if that’s my driving style or my cars. I’m not sure.”

Even if Davenport slipped up, Frank “would’ve left him a lane anyway” because “I already wrinkled his quarterpanel on the restarts.”

“That was an accident,” Frank added. “I timed it wrong and (Wilson) took off, and he went off late. And I was like, ‘Gosh dang.’ Got into him a little bit and I already apologized to him.”

In Frank’s defense, it’d been some time since he felt that sporty at the front of a national touring field at Lernerville. In 2016, he started the Firecracker prelim from the pole but faded to finish fourth. In 2016, he started second and finished fourth as well. And in 2014, he started third and finished fifth. 

On Thursday, Frank started sixth and passed Carson Ferguson, Drake Troutman and Wilson under green while benefitting from Satterlee’s misfortune. 

“Now, I probably wouldn’t have liked it in the first feature,” Frank said. “The track had slowed down enough. It was still racy. But it’s slippery enough and I’d rather race in that condition than running that wide-open stuff the whole time. There’s a lot of guys who are fast in that wide-open stuff.”

Though Frank races sparingly these days, the one race car he does have this weekend at the Firecracker is a solid piece of equipment. The car — a 2023 Longhorn he purchased from Devin Moran last fall — has a handful of races on it but fits him well.

“Yeah, I think so,” Frank said. “No, I feel great. That was pretty intense for a little while there. I’m old. Just, you had to be up on the wheel to try and make the right moves.”

The car he bought from Moran toward the end of last year had actually been the frame he wrecked at the World 100. Frank claims that Moran only raced the car at last year’s World 100 before deciding to sell it because it needed a new clip. Fortunately for Frank, that’s what his business, Chub Frank Racing, specializes in. 

Frank reclips roughly 25 Dirt Late Models a year, mostly Longhorns and Black Diamond Race Cars because Shinnston, W.Va.’s Rocket Chassis, needless to say, neighbors Pennsylvania.

“I’ll work on Rockets because Boom has them, but they’re close,” Frank said. “Guys don’t have to come to see me. Black Diamond is in Louisiana and Longhorn is in North Carolina. So, if guys up here need a car fixed, I can fix it.”

Frank will likely go with the same, reserved mentality for Friday’s second and final prelim night. But should he find himself within arm’s reach of victory on Saturday night, will he not play it as safe? 

“For $50,000? Yeah. We’d have time to fix it then,” Frank said. “This is early. We don’t have a backup car here. … Look, the fans here are great. I’ve always liked this place and have liked the fans.”