IMCA Sport Compacts saw a new car win....but not a new winner. The four car field found John Gill leading the first handful of laps, but Merv Chandler took over the helm at lap six and drove the #57 to victory. Chandler, in a new car this week, scored his ninth win at the speedway this year. John Gill was the runner up, Chad Larson was third and new driver Daniel Webster, was fourth.
The Mod Lites ran their usual 15-lap feature. Charlie Brown got past Mike Kennedy at lap three and Dusty Masolini followed him to take over the runner up spot. Things were looking good for Brown until he went into spin mode in turn one, and Masolini took over the top spot. Josh May hustled through the pack to get into second, while Randy Bryan and Andy Hennigar fought it out for third. May challenged the leader but was unable to make it work, Masolini keeping the top spot and taking the win, May having to settle for second. Third was Andy Hennigar and Randy Bryan was fourth. Mike Kennedy, the early leader, rounded out the top five. This was Masolini's first win at the track this year.
Jennifer Hulin led the first two laps of the 12-lap Hobby Stock feature when a red flag situation halted all the action. The two car incident in turn two between Jonathan Juitt and Keith Miner was the cause of the situation. Miner, the racer who is fighting ALS, was transported via ambulance to be checked out. We wish him the best. As action resumed, it was still Hulin holding off Eric Larson, but not for long. Larson took over the helm, only to have Eric Stanton soon sniffing at his rear bumper. A flat tire a couple of laps later, ended Larson's quest for the win, as Stanton was now at the helm. Stanton had little trouble in keeping the lead to the checkers and scored the win. Second went to John Watson, the driver who is now back in a Hobby Stock after trying a stint in the Stock Car division this year. Bill Bonnett took third over Kevin Fee and Jennifer Hulin who were fourth and fifth. Stanton scored his fourth win at the track this year.
Things got mixed up a bit last night as the Stock Cars took the track for their 18-lap feature next. With a Stock Car King of the Hill contest looming, they ran their main event earlier than usual, giving those qualified for the contest time to get ready. The feature saw more than the normal amount of yellows flying early, while Justin Temeyer maintained his lead. Meanwhile, Damon Murty had worked his way into second after starting tenth on the field, and was looking for more. Murty nosed under Temeyer, taking over the lead at lap eight. Two more yellows would fly before lap nine was scored, Murty still in command. Jay Schmidt in the meantime, had been moving "Black Betty" steadily through the field and took over second place and on the prowl in an attempt to catch Murty. Another yellow flew at lap fifteen, setting up a shoot out for the finish. Murty took flight on the topside in turns three and four diving to the bottom in one and two, while Schmidt dug hard on the bottom to make headway. Murty kept the advantage this time, taking the checkers and the win---Schmidt in his #19J having to settle for second. Third went to Derek Reimer, fourth was Jeff Wollam---two drivers who had run up front all evening. Justin Temeyer worked his way back up after being involved in a yellow earlier, and scored fifth place. Murty won for the fourth time this year, but with a drought since back on May 31.
The SportMod feature winner scored a popular win with the audience. The race found another 19J finding the comfort zone down low. This time it was Jenae Gustin showing the boys how it's done. Gustin took the lead at lap seven, after starting ninth on the field, and took the win going away. Paul Nagle got past Brandon Brinton in the latter portion of the race, scoring second and third respectively. Fourth went to Jayme Duinink, who had hung toward the front all race long, and visitor Matt Lettow from Roland, came from the tail of the starting field, to finish fifth. This was Gustin's first win of the season at Marshalltown, and a popular one it was, as attested to the cheers from the stands. Gustin was in a new ride last night as she stated in her interview with announcer Jerry VanSickle, and "it's about time", was her comment. According to my unofficial records, her last win came on August 24 of last year.
The 20-lap Modified feature was a "no go" on the initial green, with a bad start called back. When things got going, Scott Simatovich led the pack from his pole starting spot. Ronn Lauritzen had started ninth on the field, and by lap five was on the leaders tail. When a yellow flew before another lap could be scored, it was Lauritzen taking advantage on the restart, taking the lead by lap six. As Lauritzen kept his usual spot on the bottom of the track, here came the "Top Side Terror" of Jon Snyder flying on the top. Just past the halfway mark, Snyder took the lead, keeping it to the checkers flying, and scoring another win. Lauritzen and his Angry Bird ride finished as the runner up. Cayden Carter had a good run to finish third, fourth went to Simatovich and Kyle Krampe kept his #K1 toward the front all night and rounded out the top five. Snyder, who had started along side Lauritzen in row five, scored his fifth win at Marshalltown in 2013.
There was still one more event to be run as the top two qualifiers from the four Stock Car heats were set to do battle for title of King of the Hill. Two cars, the 94 of Steve Meyer and the 75 of visitor Curt Hook, were unable to start. Round one saw Damon Murty beating Jeff Wollam, Jay Schmidt defeated Robbie Merkle, and Justin Temeyer besting Derek Reimer. Murty beat Jay Schmidt in round two and the final round pitted Murty against Temeyer. Murty was the winner, and crowned King of the Hill. Murty had a successful night with the feature win and the King title to boot.
It was great to see Chet Christner at the track last night as he spent most of his evening up in the announcer's tower. Christner, who hails from Las Vegas, has been back in Iowa enjoying a racing vacation. He will be returning again in two weeks to help announce the IMCA Super Nationals in Boone, as he has done the last couple of years. He will be joining Jerry VanSickle, and Ryan Clark on the mic. Clark, a partner in crime at PR was also in attendence last night. Check Positively Racing at "In Staging" to see if he shared his views from the infield last night. Perhaps he was only there to plot some upcoming entertainment with Jerry and Chet. Look for them and their "antics" as well as informational announcing at the Super Nationals.
Weekly racing season is quickly winding down....how can that be? It seems it just got started! There's still plenty of racing to be found though. Check out the racing calendar at www.positivelyracing.com and find a race to enjoy. Happy Racing!
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