Despite a 56-year age difference, Justin Loh was frank whan asked what Williams Grove Speedway owner/promoter Morgan Hughes meant to him.

"Me and him were best friends," Loh said of Hughes, who died in his sleep Saturday at the age of 88. "He put me in great position to manage his business, and it started great things in my life."

The manager at the Grove added that he worked daily with Hughes, who will be honored Friday at the track.

As was his custom, Hughes was at the Grove last Friday before rain canceled the evening's action. Loh said that Hughes was at the track "every day from 1971 till the day he died."

"I called him to tell him we were going to cancel. That was the last I spoke to him," Loh said. "He was like a father to me. I am a little heartbroken."

The passing was noted in racing circles around the nation. In an e-mail statement, World Racing Group, the Parent company of the World of Outlaws, credited Hughes with not only turning Williams Grove into one of the top dirt tracks in the nation, but for being instrumental in the overall growth of the sport.

World Racing said that Hughes created the environment that provided a strong rivalry between the Outlaws and Pennsylvania Posse, adding that the crowds at last season's National Open made the event "one of the top five sprint car events in the world."

"Motor sports lost a true visionary in Morgan Hughes," World Racing Group President Tom Deery said. "For more than 30 years, he strived to make

Williams Grove the best dirt track in the country, and he succeeded in leaving behind a legacy of accomplishment that lives on at perhaps the most competitive speedway in the country. He will be missed by all of us."

Loh wants to make sure that area dirt-track fans know that "Williams Grove will operate business as usual."

It is cliché to say, but certainly true that Hughes would want it no other way.

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Susquehanna opens with Fab 4 racing: Susquehanna Speedway Park kicked off its 2008 season last weekend with four feature races.

Eric Walker got things started by winning the street stocks event, Ray Broderick was victorious in the Xtreme Stock Car feature, and Randy Monroe got the top spot in the ARDC event.

Dover's Bud Witmer won the 25-lap late model feature after taking the lead in the fifth lap and holding on during the caution-filled race. He bested 2007 Susquehanna champ Carl Billet for the win.

Also on Saturday, Joey Hoffer of Annville won the first round of the Clean Technologies Young Guns Shootout series.

Rahmer wins at Lincoln: Fred Rahmer said before the season started that he anticipated much better racing in 2008.

The veteran proved his words to be true Saturday night at Lincoln Speedway when he began in the sixth row, then rallied to capture the checkered flag in the 410 feature race.

The defending champ started the handicapped race next to 2006 track champ Doug Esh and both climbed their way near the top, with Esh finishing third. Jim Siegel was second.

Dale Hammaker earned top honors in the 358 feature.

Not racing weather: Williams Grove canceled Friday's action because of rain. It could have been worse.

The World of Outlaws postponed its Saturday-evening show at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, because of morning sleet, along with a forecasted rain/snow mix and near freezing temperatures in the afternoon.

Now that would have made for a miserable evening.

For a cause: Williams Grove Speedway will dedicate its August 1 racing action for 410 and 358 sprints to finding homes for children as a part of the Diakon Adoption and Foster Care Adoption Night.

Last season individual photos of 63 children were displayed on the cars' top wing boards. Promoters are hoping to increase that number to more than 80 this season.
snavaroli@ydr.com; 771-2060