Racing has always been more than just a sport for the Shaffer family — it's a legacy that binds them together.

"Racing to me has always been a family sport," Jerry Shaffer, a passionate racing enthusiast, said. "It is more of a family sport than golf, football or basketball. Racing has kept my family a tight-knit one. There are five brothers and sisters in my family, and even though we are all in our 60s, we are all best friends. I say racing is a sport that pretty much kept us together as a family, and now I want to give back to the sport that gave back so much to me."

Jerry’s dedication to racing is evident in his ownership of five Crate Modified race cars. His fleet includes the No. 14 driven by his brother Jeff at Mercer Raceway and the No. 4 car piloted by Eric Gabany at Mercer; and in the Rush Series, the No. 10 car operated by Garrett Krummert, the No. 1 racer driven by Jim Bryce and the No. 23 Big Block Modified, which Darin Gallagher races at both Mercer and Lernerville.

Although Jerry’s older sister, Cindy Thompson, never raced, she has a cookout in the pits each week.

“She still brings my mom to the races every weekm” Jerry said. “My mom, Darlene Shaffer is 86 years old. Her maiden name is Magill and her cousin is Jimmy Magill, long time (Hall of Fame) Big Block Modified driver and former Lernerville pit steward.”

Jerry said his younger sister, Sandy, drove Micro-Sprints for a while. His nephew, Brian, won three straight Crate Modified Championships and competes. And other brother, Jeff, has won five Crate Modified features at Mercer this season.

Right after graduating from high school in 1978, Jerry started racing.

“I’ve won 17 features in my career, all in four different Modified series at Mercer,” Jerry said. “My older brother Jeff has won a gazillion main events. I won the Mercer track championship in 2003.

“When I put my son, William, on a plane to go to fight the war in Iraq, I said, ‘What do you want me to do, win track features or the track championship?, He said, ‘Win the track championship.’ So, while he was off fighting, I was here racing to get the title for him.”

William’s photo shaving out of his helmet in Kuwait appeared in an Associated Press story, and KDKA spoke with Jerry about him and his car.

Three years ago, Jerry and his late dad, Alvin, were both inducted Twin State Auto Hall of Fame.

“I do all kinds of other things for the sport,” Jerry said. “Like for the Sharon Lou Blaney Memorial race, I bought two printed replica checkered flags for souvenirs — one will be given to the winner and the other for a fan to take home. I did the same for the Rick Ryder Memorial at Tri-City recently.”

Though Jerry hasn’t raced in three years due to the challenges he faces after contracting COVID-19, which has made it harder for him to breathe, his passion remains undiminished.

"I have to admit, though, that I am really close to trying it again,“ he said. ”I may do it this weekend at Sharon’s Applefest or maybe wait until Lernerville’s Stampede in October."

For the Shaffer family, racing is the glue that holds them together, a sport that has given them countless memories.

Jimmy Hawley made his first Sprint start since 2008 at Mercer Raceway. Rod Jones and friends put together a near perfect replica of the old CIII 410 Sprint that Jimmy drove to 30 Lernerville wins for car owner Doc Crawford. This car has a 305 motor, and Jimmy paced the Sprint feature with this car, along with an old Gary Edwards replica 305 sprint owned by the Kornbau family. Hawley also raced it with the 305 Sprints.

Lernerville’s 2024 track champions have garnered many features at various tracks this season. Sprint driver AJ Flick has 10 — one brought him $8,000 in winnings — but his biggest payoff was $12,000 in 2019 at Port Royal. Mike Norris won nine features at Lernerville. Garrett Krummert has also won a 358s Mercer title in 2006. His biggest win brought in $3,000. This season he earned one 358 feature, four Big Block main events and two Crate Modified features.

Racing returns to the “Action Track” Sept. 13 when the two-day “Commonwealth Clash” will begin. This features the High Limit Sprint Car Series presented by Brad Sweet and Kyle Larson. The weekend includes a $10,000-to-win preliminary night program Sept. 13 and a $50,000-to-win show the next night.

Carol Gamble is a racing columnist for the Butler Eagle