It was round two of the World Nationals at the Marshalltown Speedway on Saturday night. The grandstands were packed with fans eager for the racing action. The pits were full as well with 190 cars. Some drivers did not return but others replaced them from the previous night. My very unoffical count was 8 new in the SportMods, 9 in the Stock Cars and 5 in the Hobby Stocks and all Modifieds returned with no new ones. The Karl Chevrolet Dirt Trucks joined in the fun for the night with a complete show along with the SportMods, Stock Cars, Hobby Stocks and of course, the 50-lap main attraction---the $10,000 Modified show for open motors.
The Karl Chevrolet Dirt Trucks ran their feature first. They went 12-laps for their A main which was also the final race of the season for the series. It would also decide their championship which was a battle between brothers Bret and Brad Moyer. Bret Moyer took the lead from Pat Fagen at lap two and never looked back in this one. Moyer scored the victory over Fagen in second. Third was Rick Clark, fourth went to the #05 (sorry, didn't catch the name) and fifth was veteran racer who turned many laps back in the day in a Hobby Stock, Bryan Nevins, Sr. Bret Moyer with his win, is the series champion for 2013.
IMCA Hobby Stocks came next. They ran 15-laps. Austin Luellen was the class of the field in this feature as he led comfortably from start to finish. Last night's winner Jamie Songer, John Watson and Bill Bonnett put up a good battle behind Luellen and then Eric Stanton joined them, making it even more interesting. Luellen captured the win, taking home $500 but it was anyone's guess on second until they crossed the finish line. Songer won out, taking the runner up spot, Watson finished third ahead of Eric Stanton and Bill Bonnett as they finished fourth and fifth in that order.
The Northern SportMods ran 20-laps. Geoff Olson was the guy at the helm in the early going while he fended off the advances of Matt Lettow and Tony Dunker. At lap thirteen, Dunker nabbed the lead and soon pulled to a comfortable lead. A yellow flew at lap seventeen, bunching the field and again at lap eighteen. This set up a green-white-checkered finish. Dunker was still in command, but now it was the #12 of Doug Smith sitting in the runner up spot, coming from starting eleventh on the field. With that scenario set up, you just knew it was going to be shoot out. Dunker didn't let it bother him however, even after Smith showed him his car as they were under yellow. Dunker drove to the checkers first, Smith having to settle for second. Third place was Roland, Iowa's Matt Lettow, early leader Geoff Olson was fourth and last night's winner Carter VanDenBerg, finished fifth after starting in row seven. Dunker, who hails from Quincy, Illinois has taken a liking to the Marshalltown Speedway as he repeated his win from last year's Havoc on the High Banks.
The always entertaining "Class too Tough to Tame", the IMCA Stock Cars, was next. It was basically a two-car show up front the entire way. Damon Murty, the pole sitter, and the the driver out of Beatrice, Nebraska who sat directly behind him on the start, Kyle Vanover, put a show on for the fans. Another Beatrice, Nebraska driver, Jordan Grabouski (who did double duty, also racing in the Modified division) was running in third, opting for the top of the track as the leaders chose the low line. This race went the entire distance without a caution, making for lots of action on the track back in the field. Vanover gained the advantage over Murty at lap seven and though the two battled closely most of the distance home, Vanover was the victor, taking home the $1,000. Murty took the runner up spot. John Heinz, who made the trip down from Wisconsin finished in third, fourth was the familiar #35 of Donavon Smith who started in row six, and Trent Murphy, rounded out the top five.
The Modifieds had ten drivers qualify by points the previous night....their starting positions decided by a "hat draw" on the front stretch earlier. Ames, Iowa racer Adam Larson was the lucky recipient of the pole. Five last chance heats were run, taking the top two finishers directly to the A main and a "Final Four" race for those finishing 3-5 in the heats completed the last four places at the tail of the feature.
The biggest race in Marshalltown Speedway's racing history (well....as far as I know anyway) was lying ahead....a 50-lap battle for $10,000 to win. A unique situation for the 50-lapper was implemented. Since the race was to go non-stop without a break/mandatory pit stop, each time a caution flew, the cars were halted and realigned to conserve both fuel and tires. Announcer Jerry VanSickle announced that the car's fuel cells varied from 16-gallon up to 32-gallon. Would this play into the outcome of the race? Seldom do you see a race of this length go without a mandatory pit stop for refueling.
Adam Larson enjoyed his pole starting positions in the early laps, but Jake Murray, who calls Hartford, Iowa his home, was pressuring him for the lead. When a yellow flew at lap sixteen, Larson was still leading, Murray running second and Wisconsin's Shawn Kilgore was in third. When the race restarted, it was still the Larson/Murray show up front. Murray snatched the lead at lap 20 and set sail on the topside in his own built Murray chassis car, normally driven by Casey Greubel. As Murray enjoyed his comfortable ride around the rim of the track, a real battle was developing behind him. Larson, Darin Duffy, Jeremy Mills and Brian Mullens were jousting for position. The final yellow flew at lap 24, and on the restart, it was all Murray as he pulled away. Murray, on a rail at the top of the track, flew home to the $10,000 checkers. Jeremy Mills made it up to the runner up, ahead of Duffy, who had started 14th on the field, in third. Fourth went to Brian Mullens and Adam Larson completed the top five. Congratulations to Jake Murray, "The Hartford Hustler", on his great win in a car he had built himself...and with a 16-gallon fuel cell!
Thanks to Toby Kruse and crew at the Marshalltown Speedway for putting on the great show and for keeping things moving along the entire time. There are still some races left for us on the horizon. Check out the calendar at Positively Racing for a race you may want to catch. Happy racing!
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