The Racing Report is a five-part photo essay shot at short tracks in Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania that will run in Farm and Dairy through the summer. Each month we will bring you a different theme to ponder from a different track. For the fourth installment, photojournalist Matthew Chasney visited Lernerville Speedway, in Butler County, Pennsylvania, on July 12 to learn about justice at the track.
Smokey Schempp runs a tight ship. As the head pit steward at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pennsylvania. It’s his job to make sure that everyone is playing by the rules. He describes himself as judge, jury and executioner — although his calm demeanor and easy smile might say otherwise.
He’s been involved in motorsports since 1960 when he started racing late-models and modifieds. In fact, he raced against the grandfathers and fathers of some of the drivers racing here today. After his racing days ended, he moved on to officiating. You name it, he’s seen it. “There isn’t much you can do that hasn’t already been tried.” A driver who runs afoul of the rules at Lernerville can expect to receive a certified letter from Smokey informing them of their fine.
What does justice mean on a race track? For Smokey, justice is not a punitive measure, it’s a tool to make things work. Lernerville has a strict no fighting policy. When drivers get into a dispute, it’s his job to mediate. He gives them space to cool off and then brings them into his office to talk it out. Cooler heads usually prevail and drivers come to some kind of understanding. Mistakes happen and Smokey has been in the game long enough to know that nobody wants to throw a $100,000 race car into the trash on purpose.
Anthony Mariani is a long time friend of the track and a recently retired Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge. Prior to that he worked as an assistant U.S. Attorney, and as a public defender. There is probably nobody more qualified to opine about justice than he is. He stresses that there is an expectation of conduct that keeps the drivers safe and the playing field level — that the scales of justice must never be out of balance. However, he acknowledges that in the real world, this isn’t always the case.
What keeps drivers from cheating? What keeps them in line? As Smokey estimates, it’s not so much the fear of punishment as much as it is mutual respect. “They respect me and I respect them.”
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