The regular season drew to a close at the Southern Iowa Speedway on Wednesday night with the crowning of this year's track champions. Heats were run as usual and all classes lined up via the invert as they had done weekly.
The IMCA Sport Compacts had a nice field of 11 cars which included several new faces. One of those new faces, the #00 of Shaun Slaughter made his trip from Iowa City pay off, winning the feature in convincing fashion. Slaughter started sixth, had the lead by lap one, and was never threatened on his way to victory. Another new driver, the 11H of Brad Havel, also of Iowa City was second and Ryan Havel made it a top three for drivers from Iowa City. Bob Lake made his first appearance at Osky this season, and the Lone Tree driver finished in fourth, and Matt Moore finished fifth. Bill Whalen, Jr. is the track champion for 2015.
The IMCA Northern SportMods ran next and this one did not get off to a good start. When the initial start went green, fifth place starter Jason McDaniel didn't make it far as his car went into the turn one wall and his night was done. When things once again returned to the green flag flying, this time it was the 352 of Charlie Weber spinning out in front of the entire pack of cars in turn two....several getting caught up in the melee and ending their night as well. One of those was point leader Curtis VanDerWal who appeared to be hit head on and also involving Austin Paul, Corey VanZante, Casey Lancaster and visitor of the night, Ed Hamilton from Atlantic. The third try to get things under way was the charm and the field would go flag-to-flag. Brayton Carter took the win after getting to the lead at lap two; stretching his lead to more than a straight away at the finish line. Logan Anderson was the runner up, Charlie Weber recouped to finish third, fourth went to Trent Brink and Colton Livezey was fifth. "Speedy Bray", Brayton Carter, who started eighth on the grid, won for the first time at the Southern Iowa Speedway, and did it in convincing fashion! Curtis VanDerWal is the 2015 track champion...putting together a string of at least a handful of consecutive titles.
The IMCA Modified feature was dominated by Scott Dickey who led all laps on his way to standing in the the winner's circle. Some drivers rode a fine line in the corners, some slapping their rear quarter panels against the unforgiving wall. Second place finisher Cayden Carter got his right rear quarter panel tucked under by kissing that wall. Third place finisher Andrew Schroeder had even more evidence show when he got a little too high in that corner as well....his rear deck was doubled up. Fourth place went to Carter VandenBerg, and surprise visitor from Keokuk, Tommy Elston finished fifth. Elston is known more recently for piloting a late model. The track champion in the Modified division for 2015 is Cayden Carter.
A new winner emerged from the IMCA Hobby Stock ranks when Brandon Lee Potts got his very first win at Osky. Potts led from lap one and steadily held his course to the finish and the win. Craig Brown finished in second place, third was Steve Allen, Danny Thrasher was fourth and Dale Porter was fifth. Point leader going into the night, Dustin Griffiths suffered a flat tire and did not finish, but had plenty of cushion in his lead. Griffiths is the track champion, repeating from last year.
The IMCA Stock Cars ran last.....and with two drivers TIED in points, and knowing how the Stock Cars always produce great racing, the crowd was really anticipating this one. The two drivers that were vying for a track title were Cayden Carter and Mike Hughes...two crowd favorites at the track, and both sitting on 480 points each. Those two drivers would start eighth and ninth on the starting field.
Zack VanderBeek quickly took the lead from his fourth starting position and just a couple of laps later, it was the "Orange Crush" machine #10cc driven by Carter settling into second place. VanderBeek never faltered with his lead, though Carter threw everything at him....high, low, and in between---nothing worked. VanderBeek took the checkers and his fourth win of the year. Carter finished as the runner up, and at the flag, Mike Hughes slipped around Jerry Pilcher as they finished third and fourth in that order. Nathan Wood rounded out the top five. By finishing just one spot in front of Hughes, Cayden Carter won the track championship for the second time in a row, and secured his second track championship of the year at Osky after his earlier Modified title.
I mentioned earlier some new drivers showing up to race last night. Some others were Tony Johnson, long time racer from the area, who raced his SportMod for the first time this season. In the Stock Car class, Tony Oliver, Des Moines, and Anthony Cassat from Bloomfield ran for the first time at the track.
Knoxville Raceway is holding it's annual Lucas Oil Late Model Nationals starting tonight (Thursday) and running through Saturday. Last night, we saw five of those participants hot lapping on the Monster Half Mile. They were Billy Moyer, Ryan Gustin, Matt Furman, Paul Glendenning and later, Billy Moyer, Jr. Furman suffered what may be significant damage when his ride appeared to break, and was unable to turn, and he went head on into the turn one wall.
Be sure and check the racing calendar at Positively Racing as there are many racing events going on not only this coming weekend, but for several weekends yet. We are hoping the area racing season continues for a while! It could be a long, cold winter!
Thursday, September 24, 2015
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Southern Iowa Speedway - Osky Season Championships
Unofficial results:
Modified
1. 40 Scott Dickey
2. 10C Cayden Carter
3. 02 Andrew Schroeder
4. 7V Carter VandenBerg
5. 45 Tommy Elston
6. 22 Brandon Banks
DNF: 9X Tyler Groenendyk
Track Champion - 10C Cayden Carter
Stock Car
1. 33Z Zack VanderBeek
2. 10CC Cayden Carter
3. 11 Mike Hughes
4. 72 Jerry Pilcher
5. Nathan Wood
6. 22R Todd Reitzler
7. 18 Kris Walker
8. 12 Doug Sylvester
9. 54 Mike Brown
10. 22X Troy Oliver
11. 15A Anthony Passat
DNF: 17 Brock Welch
DNS: 10R Ryan Fullenkamp
Track Champion - 10CC Cayden Carter
SportMod
1. 01 Brayton Carter
2. 9A Logan Anderson
3. 352 Charlie Weber
4. 84B Trent Brink
5. 29 Colton Livezey
6. A5 Austin Paul
7. 53 Greg Strohman
8. 20 Danny Brau
9. 26 Scott Brau
DNF: 27L Casey Lancaster
1V Curtis VanDerWal
272 Ed Hamilton, Atlantic, Iowa
34Z Corey VanZante
85 Jason McDaniel
Track Champion - 1V Curtis VanDerWal
Hobby Stock
1. 2 Brandon Lee Potts - 1st time winning at Osky
2. 69 Craig Brown
3. 3s Steve Allen
4. 84 Danny Thrasher
5. 10 Dale Porter
6. 3 Travis Bunnell
7. 55 Brad Stephens
8. 14 Christian Huffman
DNF: 224 Casey Greubel
10G Dustin Griffiths
9 Jared Stephens
DNS: 73 Aaron Martin
Track Champion - 10G Dustin Griffiths
Sport Compact
1. Shaun Slaughter
2. 11H Brad Havel
3. 0 Ryan Havel
4. B0 Bob Lake
5. 2M Matt Moore
6. 33J Jon Girdley
7. 07 Bill Whalen
8. 04 Trent Orwig
9. 18 Renny McCartey
10. 22M Curt Myers
DNF: 33G Matt Girdley
Track Champion - 07 Bill Whalen
Modified
1. 40 Scott Dickey
2. 10C Cayden Carter
3. 02 Andrew Schroeder
4. 7V Carter VandenBerg
5. 45 Tommy Elston
6. 22 Brandon Banks
DNF: 9X Tyler Groenendyk
Track Champion - 10C Cayden Carter
Stock Car
1. 33Z Zack VanderBeek
2. 10CC Cayden Carter
3. 11 Mike Hughes
4. 72 Jerry Pilcher
5. Nathan Wood
6. 22R Todd Reitzler
7. 18 Kris Walker
8. 12 Doug Sylvester
9. 54 Mike Brown
10. 22X Troy Oliver
11. 15A Anthony Passat
DNF: 17 Brock Welch
DNS: 10R Ryan Fullenkamp
Track Champion - 10CC Cayden Carter
SportMod
1. 01 Brayton Carter
2. 9A Logan Anderson
3. 352 Charlie Weber
4. 84B Trent Brink
5. 29 Colton Livezey
6. A5 Austin Paul
7. 53 Greg Strohman
8. 20 Danny Brau
9. 26 Scott Brau
DNF: 27L Casey Lancaster
1V Curtis VanDerWal
272 Ed Hamilton, Atlantic, Iowa
34Z Corey VanZante
85 Jason McDaniel
Track Champion - 1V Curtis VanDerWal
Hobby Stock
1. 2 Brandon Lee Potts - 1st time winning at Osky
2. 69 Craig Brown
3. 3s Steve Allen
4. 84 Danny Thrasher
5. 10 Dale Porter
6. 3 Travis Bunnell
7. 55 Brad Stephens
8. 14 Christian Huffman
DNF: 224 Casey Greubel
10G Dustin Griffiths
9 Jared Stephens
DNS: 73 Aaron Martin
Track Champion - 10G Dustin Griffiths
Sport Compact
1. Shaun Slaughter
2. 11H Brad Havel
3. 0 Ryan Havel
4. B0 Bob Lake
5. 2M Matt Moore
6. 33J Jon Girdley
7. 07 Bill Whalen
8. 04 Trent Orwig
9. 18 Renny McCartey
10. 22M Curt Myers
DNF: 33G Matt Girdley
Track Champion - 07 Bill Whalen
Sunday, September 20, 2015
A 2-for-1 Saturday at Marshalltown World Nationals
The rain all day on Friday made it necessary to scrap the first of the 2 day show at the Marshalltown Speedway for their World Nationals. With drivers from all over the US, it was determined that Saturday would be a 2-for-1 day with show #1 beginning at 1 p.m. and the day 2 show beginning after points were calculated for the Modifieds and the track had been re-worked.
Yes, we all know how afternoon racing goes in our neck of the woods....and with the wind blowing toward the grandstands, that first segment of racing had everyone just covered in dirt. It wasn't our first time, and it won't be the last.
Segment #1, or what should have been run on Friday, had heats and features for the Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks. In the non-crate Modifieds, there were seven heats...twice. The first go around and then the second was lined up in reverse of the first heat's lineup. Passing points were awarded for the Modifieds and the top ten in points, were locked into the big $10,000 to win show.
The Hobby Stock's had a 20-lap feature. Benji Irvine and Shannon Anderson were the front runners early in the race, and Anderson's persistent pestering of Irvine gained him the front spot by lap ten. Then, with about a dozen laps in the books, the two would go into a "tandem" spin in turns three and four, and somehow, Anderson hardly faltered! He kept it going and never relinquished his top spot. Irvine, wasn't as lucky, and lost many positions. Anderson had a brief challenge by Adam Armstrong, who was piloting the brightly colored #224 usually raced by female competitor Gina Greubel, but Anderson would pull away at the end, and take the easy win. Armstrong, who had nearly destroyed his own car at the recent Super Nationals, looked good with his second place finish in the borrowed car. Third was Weston Koop, fourth went to Jamie Songer and Bill Bonnett piloting the second car of Songer, was fifth. The win was worth $500 to Anderson.
The SportMod feature was led from start to finish by Jake McBirnie. McBirnie started on the pole on his way to the 20-lap feature and $1,000 pay off. Tracy Wassenberg dogged McBirnie at times, but in the end had to be content with the runner up spot. Third went to Travis Peterson, fourth to Kansas driver Tyler Frye and Jared VanDeest completed the top five.
Greg Wichman from Bondul, Wisconsin started the 25-lap feature for the Stock Cars from the pole. On lap eleven, it was the Chelsea Charger, Damon Murty taking over the point spot, only to have Hortonville, Wisconsin's Travis VanStraten follow him around Wichman to take over the runner up spot. VanStraten, who is tied for IMCA National points with Mike Nichols, took a peek under Murty with about a handful of laps remaining, contact was made and third running Wichman seized the moment, and flew around both and into the lead. Murty regained control, keeping second place, but VanStraten suffered a flat and retired from the race. Murty tried his darnedest to catch leader Wichman but twas all in vain. Wichman took the $1,000 victory and Murty finished in second place. Third was Johnny Spaw, a veteran in racing who has done his fair share of racing asphalt as well as dirt track racing. fourth was Randy Brands, and Shawano, Wisconsin's Mike Schmidt rounded out the top five.
With the three features completed, as well as the two rounds of Modified heats, the first show of the day was completed at 4:45 p.m.
The second race program of the day began around 6:15 p.m. when the top ten in points of the Modifieds were calculated and those ten drivers brought to the front stretch to determine the starting order for a later 10-lap dash. That dash would then determine the starting order for the $10,000 to win World Nationals. Top in points was North Carolina's Kyle "The High Side Tickler" Strickler and when he picked up the #10 under the bottle of oil, he made it a complete reverse for starting order....giving the point spot for the dash to Ricky Thornton, Jr. from Arizona. Thornton would later win that dash, putting him on the pole for the feature.
The first feature of the night was again the Hobby Stocks for 20-laps. Weston Koop led lap one but Adam Armstrong put his "rent a ride" #224 car to the top spot by lap two. When the second of three yellows flew at lap nine, there was the familiar #78 of Shannon Anderson lurking in third place behind Koop. It took but a couple of laps until Anderson was able to make his move into first place. From there on out, he went untouched on his way to his second win of the day and another $500 in his pocket. Benji Irvine took his #79 from thirteenth starting spot, to finish as the runner up, Adam Armstrong went third, fourth was Dustin Elliott and ninth place starter Nick Ulin finished in fifth. Anderson, who had started twelfth, said in victory lane that he has had a hard time in the past getting a win at Marshalltown...having only had two previously. Then there he was in the winner's circle twice on the same day!
Another $1,000 awaited the winner of the 20-lap SportMod feature. Another driver in a "rent a ride" car, Joel Rust, who raced a Modified during the season, was piloting the SportMod usually raced by Marty Rouse. Rust led the early portion of the A feature. He was challenged almost immediately by Clint Luellen, the recent Super Nationals winner. Luellen swung to the topside and rode a fine line trying to reel in Rust. He got the job done by lap twelve and from there on kept it to the front, taking the win. Rust would finish as the runner up, third went to Belleville, Kansas racer Tyler Frye, who had started twelfth, Wisconsin's Tracy Wassenberg finished fourth after starting deep in the field in fifteenth. Another Wisconsinite, Vince Engebregtsen raced from ninth starting spot to finish fifth.
Twenty-five laps was up next for the Stock Cars and it was also another $1,000 for the winner. It was Damon Murty and Donavon Smith sitting on the front row for the start. and directly behind was the winner of the first feature, Greg Wichman, and the 2T of Travis VanStraten. This was looking to be a good one!
The Stock Cars never disappoint. Murty and Smith duked it out in the opening laps, and then VanStraten slipped by for the runner up spot, setting his sights on front running Murty. A car that had spun into the infield and then pulled out onto the track in front of leader Murty, may or may not have been a factor in allowing VanStraten to close in and then at lap ten, get under Murty to take over the lead. In the closing laps, VanStraten put distance between himself and the field and secured the win. Murty finished second for the second time of the day, Smith was third, Randy Brands came from fourteenth starting spot to finish fourth and Wayne Gifford was fifth. VanStraten said in his victory lane interview that he had watched last year's World Nationals and liked the looks of the track. He said it didn't disappoint as there were multiple grooves and he loved it.
The field of 24 was set for the 50-lap World National Modified feature. The top ten in points from the first program were already locked into the feature and their starting spots were set by the 10-lap dash earlier. Then five heats qualified two each that went directly to the feature for a total of 20 cars. A "Final Four" last chance Qualifier pitted 3-6 place finishers from the earlier heats. Those final four were Jordan Grabouski, Jacob Murray, and Wisconsin racers Jake Hartung and Jerry Wilinski, and the 24-car field was set.
The feature went 50-lap with only one caution. That came at lap two when the 33 of Gladstone, Illinois driver, Brandon Rothzen was pushed into the front stretch wall, ending his race early. Ricky Thornton, Jr. was happy for his pole starting position as the Chandler, Arizona racer led all 50 laps on his way to the $10,000 check. At one point in the second half of the race, last year's World winner, Benji LaCrosse was poised to reel in leader Thornton, but had that run come up short. LaCrosse, who started seventeenth, had to be content with second place this year. Veteran race Terry Phillips, from Springfield, Missouri, and who has a stellar list of racing accomplishments in both Late Models and Modifieds, took his #75 from thirteenth starting position, to a third place finish. Fourth went to North Carolina's Kyle Strickler, recent Super Nationals winner, and Todd Shute took fifth place.
We were much more comfortable in the grandstand area with the second day's racing as the track quieted down from the earlier dust flying. The track rubbered over and the bit of dust we saw rising was not a bother as the wind died down. The racing was completed at 10:10 p.m. This race closed the doors on the Marshalltown Speedway for 2015. Quite an end to the year's racing at the track. Over 150 cars competed yesterday, from a dozen or more states.
There are still races to be found in our area before the racing season calls it quits. Check the racing calendar at www.positivelyracing.com for several specials coming up in the surrounding area. We hope to catch a few of them.
Yes, we all know how afternoon racing goes in our neck of the woods....and with the wind blowing toward the grandstands, that first segment of racing had everyone just covered in dirt. It wasn't our first time, and it won't be the last.
Segment #1, or what should have been run on Friday, had heats and features for the Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks. In the non-crate Modifieds, there were seven heats...twice. The first go around and then the second was lined up in reverse of the first heat's lineup. Passing points were awarded for the Modifieds and the top ten in points, were locked into the big $10,000 to win show.
The Hobby Stock's had a 20-lap feature. Benji Irvine and Shannon Anderson were the front runners early in the race, and Anderson's persistent pestering of Irvine gained him the front spot by lap ten. Then, with about a dozen laps in the books, the two would go into a "tandem" spin in turns three and four, and somehow, Anderson hardly faltered! He kept it going and never relinquished his top spot. Irvine, wasn't as lucky, and lost many positions. Anderson had a brief challenge by Adam Armstrong, who was piloting the brightly colored #224 usually raced by female competitor Gina Greubel, but Anderson would pull away at the end, and take the easy win. Armstrong, who had nearly destroyed his own car at the recent Super Nationals, looked good with his second place finish in the borrowed car. Third was Weston Koop, fourth went to Jamie Songer and Bill Bonnett piloting the second car of Songer, was fifth. The win was worth $500 to Anderson.
The SportMod feature was led from start to finish by Jake McBirnie. McBirnie started on the pole on his way to the 20-lap feature and $1,000 pay off. Tracy Wassenberg dogged McBirnie at times, but in the end had to be content with the runner up spot. Third went to Travis Peterson, fourth to Kansas driver Tyler Frye and Jared VanDeest completed the top five.
Greg Wichman from Bondul, Wisconsin started the 25-lap feature for the Stock Cars from the pole. On lap eleven, it was the Chelsea Charger, Damon Murty taking over the point spot, only to have Hortonville, Wisconsin's Travis VanStraten follow him around Wichman to take over the runner up spot. VanStraten, who is tied for IMCA National points with Mike Nichols, took a peek under Murty with about a handful of laps remaining, contact was made and third running Wichman seized the moment, and flew around both and into the lead. Murty regained control, keeping second place, but VanStraten suffered a flat and retired from the race. Murty tried his darnedest to catch leader Wichman but twas all in vain. Wichman took the $1,000 victory and Murty finished in second place. Third was Johnny Spaw, a veteran in racing who has done his fair share of racing asphalt as well as dirt track racing. fourth was Randy Brands, and Shawano, Wisconsin's Mike Schmidt rounded out the top five.
With the three features completed, as well as the two rounds of Modified heats, the first show of the day was completed at 4:45 p.m.
The second race program of the day began around 6:15 p.m. when the top ten in points of the Modifieds were calculated and those ten drivers brought to the front stretch to determine the starting order for a later 10-lap dash. That dash would then determine the starting order for the $10,000 to win World Nationals. Top in points was North Carolina's Kyle "The High Side Tickler" Strickler and when he picked up the #10 under the bottle of oil, he made it a complete reverse for starting order....giving the point spot for the dash to Ricky Thornton, Jr. from Arizona. Thornton would later win that dash, putting him on the pole for the feature.
The first feature of the night was again the Hobby Stocks for 20-laps. Weston Koop led lap one but Adam Armstrong put his "rent a ride" #224 car to the top spot by lap two. When the second of three yellows flew at lap nine, there was the familiar #78 of Shannon Anderson lurking in third place behind Koop. It took but a couple of laps until Anderson was able to make his move into first place. From there on out, he went untouched on his way to his second win of the day and another $500 in his pocket. Benji Irvine took his #79 from thirteenth starting spot, to finish as the runner up, Adam Armstrong went third, fourth was Dustin Elliott and ninth place starter Nick Ulin finished in fifth. Anderson, who had started twelfth, said in victory lane that he has had a hard time in the past getting a win at Marshalltown...having only had two previously. Then there he was in the winner's circle twice on the same day!
Another $1,000 awaited the winner of the 20-lap SportMod feature. Another driver in a "rent a ride" car, Joel Rust, who raced a Modified during the season, was piloting the SportMod usually raced by Marty Rouse. Rust led the early portion of the A feature. He was challenged almost immediately by Clint Luellen, the recent Super Nationals winner. Luellen swung to the topside and rode a fine line trying to reel in Rust. He got the job done by lap twelve and from there on kept it to the front, taking the win. Rust would finish as the runner up, third went to Belleville, Kansas racer Tyler Frye, who had started twelfth, Wisconsin's Tracy Wassenberg finished fourth after starting deep in the field in fifteenth. Another Wisconsinite, Vince Engebregtsen raced from ninth starting spot to finish fifth.
Twenty-five laps was up next for the Stock Cars and it was also another $1,000 for the winner. It was Damon Murty and Donavon Smith sitting on the front row for the start. and directly behind was the winner of the first feature, Greg Wichman, and the 2T of Travis VanStraten. This was looking to be a good one!
The Stock Cars never disappoint. Murty and Smith duked it out in the opening laps, and then VanStraten slipped by for the runner up spot, setting his sights on front running Murty. A car that had spun into the infield and then pulled out onto the track in front of leader Murty, may or may not have been a factor in allowing VanStraten to close in and then at lap ten, get under Murty to take over the lead. In the closing laps, VanStraten put distance between himself and the field and secured the win. Murty finished second for the second time of the day, Smith was third, Randy Brands came from fourteenth starting spot to finish fourth and Wayne Gifford was fifth. VanStraten said in his victory lane interview that he had watched last year's World Nationals and liked the looks of the track. He said it didn't disappoint as there were multiple grooves and he loved it.
The field of 24 was set for the 50-lap World National Modified feature. The top ten in points from the first program were already locked into the feature and their starting spots were set by the 10-lap dash earlier. Then five heats qualified two each that went directly to the feature for a total of 20 cars. A "Final Four" last chance Qualifier pitted 3-6 place finishers from the earlier heats. Those final four were Jordan Grabouski, Jacob Murray, and Wisconsin racers Jake Hartung and Jerry Wilinski, and the 24-car field was set.
The feature went 50-lap with only one caution. That came at lap two when the 33 of Gladstone, Illinois driver, Brandon Rothzen was pushed into the front stretch wall, ending his race early. Ricky Thornton, Jr. was happy for his pole starting position as the Chandler, Arizona racer led all 50 laps on his way to the $10,000 check. At one point in the second half of the race, last year's World winner, Benji LaCrosse was poised to reel in leader Thornton, but had that run come up short. LaCrosse, who started seventeenth, had to be content with second place this year. Veteran race Terry Phillips, from Springfield, Missouri, and who has a stellar list of racing accomplishments in both Late Models and Modifieds, took his #75 from thirteenth starting position, to a third place finish. Fourth went to North Carolina's Kyle Strickler, recent Super Nationals winner, and Todd Shute took fifth place.
We were much more comfortable in the grandstand area with the second day's racing as the track quieted down from the earlier dust flying. The track rubbered over and the bit of dust we saw rising was not a bother as the wind died down. The racing was completed at 10:10 p.m. This race closed the doors on the Marshalltown Speedway for 2015. Quite an end to the year's racing at the track. Over 150 cars competed yesterday, from a dozen or more states.
There are still races to be found in our area before the racing season calls it quits. Check the racing calendar at www.positivelyracing.com for several specials coming up in the surrounding area. We hope to catch a few of them.
Thursday, September 17, 2015
2015 Super Nationals Notes
Another IMCA Super Nationals has come and gone. To look back and recall the first time we attended the event at Boone Speedway back in 1988, it's absolutely amazing how it has grown. Back then, it was a four day event, and you could arrive at the track each night just like a regular race night at the track. Now, the south side of Hwy. 30 is "Boone South".
Of course, Mother Nature had to rear her ugly head with a deluge of rain on Sunday night before the first day of Super Nationals on Labor Day. This brought about a change in Monday's format before things even began. The Deery Brothers Late Models were pushed back to Thursday night's program with the hopes of the grounds being more fit for their arrival. Some of the pit areas were mud bogs, and though it didn't rain again to cause any major problems, (it did sprinkle just enough on Thursday night to delay the racing for maybe an hour and a half) there were areas in the pits as well as camping and parking areas that never were usable.
Monday's show still had to be delayed due to the rain. The track crew worked the track continuously from the time it stopped raining in the wee hours of the morning, until the first heats were on the track at 3:35 p.m. The corners were rough, especially turns one and two, and even with the constant attention to the track surface, those ruts were there for two or three days. Finally, they got ironed out. Monday's show qualified inside and middle 8 rows for the IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks and the inside row of 8 for the Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods. The two Hobby Stock features were won by Mike Pruitt from Redfield who came from starting twelfth, and Des Moines' John Watson who started sixth. The Northern SportMod winner was Nebraskan Kyle Prauner who started on the outside front row and led the entire 20-laps. Racing was done at 11 something. Yeah...I forgot to write it down.
Tuesday, the track was again worked continuously until race time which began shortly after 2 p.m. On this day, the first of the Super National's winners was crowned, that being in the Mach-1 Sport Compact class. Qualifying for the big dance continued in the Hobby Stocks and Northern SportMods as well. The outside row of 8 for the Hobby Stocks was completed and the middle and outside rows for the Northern SportMods was set.
In the IMCA Sport Compact Big Dance, Nate Coopman from Mankato, Minnesota started on the outside of row four in the 3-wide format and claimed his first Super National's championship after four years of trying. Second was Josh Barnes from Keokuk, Iowa who started deep in the field in 17th starting spot, Matt Brehmer from Sobieski, Wisconsin finished in third coming from the middle of row six, fourth was Wilton, Iowa's Ryan Walker who started sixth, and rounding out the top five was Ramsey Meyer from Pierce, Nebraska who, started in the middle of row nine.
Tuesday's winner in the Hobby Stock qualifying feature was Andrew Burg. The two qualifying feature winners in the Northern SportMod class were Clint Luellen, Minburn, Iowa and 16 year old Lucas Lamberies from Clintonville, Wisconsin. Racing was completed at 12:33 a.m.
Wednesday's program had the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars as well as the Xtreme Motor Sports Modifieds racing for the first time. There were 192 Stock Cars and 277 Modifieds checked in. This was a record for the Stock Cars. The IMCA Hobby Stocks and the Northern SportMods saw their final six starting spots for Saturday's main event stamped into the books. They would be tagging the tail of the starting feature. Adam Armstrong from Beatrice, Nebraska rallied back after suffering a roll over accident on Monday that left him with a very damaged race car, to win the final Qualifier. In the SportMods it was Boone driver Jake McBirnie with the win.
There were 20 heats of IMCA Stock Cars and 30 heats of IMCA Modifieds on Wednesday night. Two features were run for each class, qualifying only 4 cars each for Saturday's "Big Dance". The two Stock Car features went to Sioux City's Chris Mills and Harlan, Iowa's Mike Nichols. Kody Scholpp from Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada won the first of the two Modified features. He has quite the story after suffering severe injuries less than two years ago in a vehicle accident that left him wondering if he would ever walk again, let alone race. The second of the features went to Williston, North Dakota driver, Mike Hagen.
Racing was completed on Wednesday night just a few minutes after midnight. Thankfully the threatening skies parted....as they often do at Boone, and the rain went around the track.
Thursday was the longest day of racing. There were also pesky sprinkles that interrupted the racing a couple of times...though nothing heavy. The cars had to be pulled from the track twice, but the tractors immediately took to the surface and the track was never lost. The IMCA Deery Brothers Late Models had their rescheduled full show that was pushed back from Monday's original date. Qualifying also continued for the IMCA Modifieds, Stock Cars and SportMods.
The Deery Brothers Late Model 50-lap feature was the BEST we have every witnessed! There was more "sliders than at White Castle" as announcer Jerry Vansickel put it! More swapping back and forth than we could have ever imagined took place in this feature. But in the end....it was Jeff Aikey from Waterloo stepping on the podium as the Champion for the fifth time at the Super Nationals. Aikey had to work his way from starting fifteenth and did not take the lead until lap 38. Prior to that it was Justin Kay, Richie Gustin and Todd Cooney swapping sliders for the lead. This continued through most of the race and had the crowd enthralled! Following Aikey across to finish as the runner up was Deery point leader Justin Kay, third was rookie to the division and a guy who has justly proven himself a real contender in this class, Richie Gustin. Fourth went to another young participant who is already proving himself as well, Tyler Droste, and fifth was Dubuque's Joel Callahan.
The qualifying for Saturday's feature continued for the IMCA Modifieds and Stock Cars...with eight going to the middle row. Two more A's were run for each of the classes with four going from each. The Modified winners were last year's Super Nationals champion, Kyle Strickler from North Carolina and Beatrice, Nebraska's Jordan Grabouski. In the Stock Cars, the winners were Britt, Iowa's Heath Tulp and Lynn Panos from Calmar, Iowa. Racing was completed at 1:51 a.m.
On Friday, the outside row of eight qualified for the IMCA Modifieds and the IMCA Stock Cars. It was also the prestigious Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational. The two features for the Modifieds were won by Walnut, Iowa's Nick Deal and "Gasman" Cayden Carter from Oskaloosa. Stock features went to a pair of Minnesota brothers, Dustin Larson and Jeff Larson. The All-Star Invitational was led the entire 30 laps by Marshalltown, Iowa's Jammin' Jimmy Gustin. Gustin started on the inside of row three and grabbed the lead immediately, and was never threatened on his way to the checkers. Racing was completed at 1:05 am.
Saturday was the dawn of the "Big Dance". The day's racing would include the final nine qualifying spots for the IMCA Modifieds and the final six for the IMCA Stock Cars. There was also the Race of Champions for Modifieds, Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks. The Race of Champions for the IMCA Hobby Stocks was won by Fort Dodge racer Myles Michehl who led all ten laps. The SportMod Race of Champions went to 16 year old Lucas Lamberies from Clintonville, Wisconsin who also led the entire ten lap race. The IMCA Stock Cars saw Beatrice, Nebraska driver Kyle Vanover lead the entire race EXCEPT for the final run to the checkers when veteran racer Kevin Opeheim from Mason City nipped him at the finish line for the win. Dustin Smith was the victor in the Modified Race of Champions. He led the entire ten laps as well.
Now it was time for the Super National championship events...what we had all been waiting to see come to fruition the whole week. The first up was the 30 lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature. Jason Wilkinson from Neligh, Nebraska took home his second Super Nationals championship in this one. Andrew Burg, a regular at the speedway was second. Third went to Brandon Nielsen from Spencer, Iowa who started in the middle of the fifth row, fourth was John Watson, another Boone Speedway Saturday night regular and Corey Madden from Avoca, Iowa was fifth.
After 30-lap of the IMCA Northern SportMod "Big Dance", it was Clint Luellen standing tall on the winner's podium. It was a three-car battle between him, Jonathon Logue and Mike Meyer in the latter portion of the race. Luellen won the battle for the win over second place Logue and Meyer in third. Fourth went to Lucas Lamberies, the 16 year old from Wisconsin, and Ellis, Kansas driver Daniel Gottschalk was fifth.
The 30-lap Dance for the IMCA Stock Cars turned out to be mostly a race between the two Larson brothers from Minnesota. Dustin Larson was the man in charge as the race went green and brother Jeff Larson tucked in right behind. The two raced in that order until going down the backstretch on the final lap....contact was made, leader Dustin Larson escaping unscathed but Jeff Larson suffering a tire deflating. Mike Nichols seized the opportunity and got around the slowing Larson to finish as the runner up, as did Sioux City's Chris Mills who finished third. Jeff Larson made it across the finish line to garner fourth place. Lynn Panos rounded out the top five.
The grand finale, the IMCA Modified feature completed the night's racing. After driver introductions, and a bit of well deserved pomp and circumstance for the 33 drivers about to "dance", the green flag fell. Mike Hagen, Williston, North Dakota and the pole sitter and Josh Most, the driver from Red Oak, Iowa who races just about anything, battled back and forth for the lead in the early portion of the 30-lap race. But, at lap eight, it was the 8K of Kyle Strickler, from Mooresville, North Carolina leading. From there on out, he never relinquished the lead and secured his second Super National's championship in as many years. He started in the middle of row two. Second place was a former Super Nationals champion from 2013, Osceola, Nebraska racer Dylan Smith who had started tenth. Third place finisher Ricky Thornton from Chandler, Arizona came from the inside of row seven. Fourth place was Beatrice, Nebraskan, Jordon Grabouski and Ankeny, Iowa's Adam Larson started on the outside of row six and made it to fifth place.
There were 876 cars at this year's Super Nationals, a record, representing 25 different states plus Canada and Australia. We thank each and every one of them who came. There were some scary moments throughout the week, but none more so than when Jamie Johnson shot....I mean SHOT off of corner three in his modified last chance heat on the final night. Johnson, from Waterloo, Iowa rolled violently after leaving one side of his car danging in a tree and his car ending up nearly out of the race track grounds near the west side road. He does have injuries we've heard, which include a broken leg or ankle, a concussion and some compression fractures of his spine. This is all second hand. As he left the grounds in the ambulance, we understood that he gave a "thumbs up" and we wish him a speedy recovery.
It's been tradition that we stick around for the engine auctions after the races, and we did so again this year. The winning Hobby Stock of Jason Wilkinson went for $2,100, Clint Luellen's SportMod brought $2,300, Dustin Larson's Stock Car was $5,400 and Kyle Strickler's Modified went for $5,500.
We also celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary on September 11, at the Super Nationals this year. Quite appropriate for us two race fans who grew up going to the dirt tracks in the area. No better place to do so.
There are still a few specials left around our area to help satisfy the drivers and fans. Check the calendar at www.positivelyracing.com for a race you may wish to attend.
Of course, Mother Nature had to rear her ugly head with a deluge of rain on Sunday night before the first day of Super Nationals on Labor Day. This brought about a change in Monday's format before things even began. The Deery Brothers Late Models were pushed back to Thursday night's program with the hopes of the grounds being more fit for their arrival. Some of the pit areas were mud bogs, and though it didn't rain again to cause any major problems, (it did sprinkle just enough on Thursday night to delay the racing for maybe an hour and a half) there were areas in the pits as well as camping and parking areas that never were usable.
Monday's show still had to be delayed due to the rain. The track crew worked the track continuously from the time it stopped raining in the wee hours of the morning, until the first heats were on the track at 3:35 p.m. The corners were rough, especially turns one and two, and even with the constant attention to the track surface, those ruts were there for two or three days. Finally, they got ironed out. Monday's show qualified inside and middle 8 rows for the IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks and the inside row of 8 for the Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods. The two Hobby Stock features were won by Mike Pruitt from Redfield who came from starting twelfth, and Des Moines' John Watson who started sixth. The Northern SportMod winner was Nebraskan Kyle Prauner who started on the outside front row and led the entire 20-laps. Racing was done at 11 something. Yeah...I forgot to write it down.
Tuesday, the track was again worked continuously until race time which began shortly after 2 p.m. On this day, the first of the Super National's winners was crowned, that being in the Mach-1 Sport Compact class. Qualifying for the big dance continued in the Hobby Stocks and Northern SportMods as well. The outside row of 8 for the Hobby Stocks was completed and the middle and outside rows for the Northern SportMods was set.
In the IMCA Sport Compact Big Dance, Nate Coopman from Mankato, Minnesota started on the outside of row four in the 3-wide format and claimed his first Super National's championship after four years of trying. Second was Josh Barnes from Keokuk, Iowa who started deep in the field in 17th starting spot, Matt Brehmer from Sobieski, Wisconsin finished in third coming from the middle of row six, fourth was Wilton, Iowa's Ryan Walker who started sixth, and rounding out the top five was Ramsey Meyer from Pierce, Nebraska who, started in the middle of row nine.
Tuesday's winner in the Hobby Stock qualifying feature was Andrew Burg. The two qualifying feature winners in the Northern SportMod class were Clint Luellen, Minburn, Iowa and 16 year old Lucas Lamberies from Clintonville, Wisconsin. Racing was completed at 12:33 a.m.
Wednesday's program had the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars as well as the Xtreme Motor Sports Modifieds racing for the first time. There were 192 Stock Cars and 277 Modifieds checked in. This was a record for the Stock Cars. The IMCA Hobby Stocks and the Northern SportMods saw their final six starting spots for Saturday's main event stamped into the books. They would be tagging the tail of the starting feature. Adam Armstrong from Beatrice, Nebraska rallied back after suffering a roll over accident on Monday that left him with a very damaged race car, to win the final Qualifier. In the SportMods it was Boone driver Jake McBirnie with the win.
There were 20 heats of IMCA Stock Cars and 30 heats of IMCA Modifieds on Wednesday night. Two features were run for each class, qualifying only 4 cars each for Saturday's "Big Dance". The two Stock Car features went to Sioux City's Chris Mills and Harlan, Iowa's Mike Nichols. Kody Scholpp from Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada won the first of the two Modified features. He has quite the story after suffering severe injuries less than two years ago in a vehicle accident that left him wondering if he would ever walk again, let alone race. The second of the features went to Williston, North Dakota driver, Mike Hagen.
Racing was completed on Wednesday night just a few minutes after midnight. Thankfully the threatening skies parted....as they often do at Boone, and the rain went around the track.
Thursday was the longest day of racing. There were also pesky sprinkles that interrupted the racing a couple of times...though nothing heavy. The cars had to be pulled from the track twice, but the tractors immediately took to the surface and the track was never lost. The IMCA Deery Brothers Late Models had their rescheduled full show that was pushed back from Monday's original date. Qualifying also continued for the IMCA Modifieds, Stock Cars and SportMods.
The Deery Brothers Late Model 50-lap feature was the BEST we have every witnessed! There was more "sliders than at White Castle" as announcer Jerry Vansickel put it! More swapping back and forth than we could have ever imagined took place in this feature. But in the end....it was Jeff Aikey from Waterloo stepping on the podium as the Champion for the fifth time at the Super Nationals. Aikey had to work his way from starting fifteenth and did not take the lead until lap 38. Prior to that it was Justin Kay, Richie Gustin and Todd Cooney swapping sliders for the lead. This continued through most of the race and had the crowd enthralled! Following Aikey across to finish as the runner up was Deery point leader Justin Kay, third was rookie to the division and a guy who has justly proven himself a real contender in this class, Richie Gustin. Fourth went to another young participant who is already proving himself as well, Tyler Droste, and fifth was Dubuque's Joel Callahan.
The qualifying for Saturday's feature continued for the IMCA Modifieds and Stock Cars...with eight going to the middle row. Two more A's were run for each of the classes with four going from each. The Modified winners were last year's Super Nationals champion, Kyle Strickler from North Carolina and Beatrice, Nebraska's Jordan Grabouski. In the Stock Cars, the winners were Britt, Iowa's Heath Tulp and Lynn Panos from Calmar, Iowa. Racing was completed at 1:51 a.m.
On Friday, the outside row of eight qualified for the IMCA Modifieds and the IMCA Stock Cars. It was also the prestigious Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational. The two features for the Modifieds were won by Walnut, Iowa's Nick Deal and "Gasman" Cayden Carter from Oskaloosa. Stock features went to a pair of Minnesota brothers, Dustin Larson and Jeff Larson. The All-Star Invitational was led the entire 30 laps by Marshalltown, Iowa's Jammin' Jimmy Gustin. Gustin started on the inside of row three and grabbed the lead immediately, and was never threatened on his way to the checkers. Racing was completed at 1:05 am.
Saturday was the dawn of the "Big Dance". The day's racing would include the final nine qualifying spots for the IMCA Modifieds and the final six for the IMCA Stock Cars. There was also the Race of Champions for Modifieds, Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks. The Race of Champions for the IMCA Hobby Stocks was won by Fort Dodge racer Myles Michehl who led all ten laps. The SportMod Race of Champions went to 16 year old Lucas Lamberies from Clintonville, Wisconsin who also led the entire ten lap race. The IMCA Stock Cars saw Beatrice, Nebraska driver Kyle Vanover lead the entire race EXCEPT for the final run to the checkers when veteran racer Kevin Opeheim from Mason City nipped him at the finish line for the win. Dustin Smith was the victor in the Modified Race of Champions. He led the entire ten laps as well.
Now it was time for the Super National championship events...what we had all been waiting to see come to fruition the whole week. The first up was the 30 lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature. Jason Wilkinson from Neligh, Nebraska took home his second Super Nationals championship in this one. Andrew Burg, a regular at the speedway was second. Third went to Brandon Nielsen from Spencer, Iowa who started in the middle of the fifth row, fourth was John Watson, another Boone Speedway Saturday night regular and Corey Madden from Avoca, Iowa was fifth.
After 30-lap of the IMCA Northern SportMod "Big Dance", it was Clint Luellen standing tall on the winner's podium. It was a three-car battle between him, Jonathon Logue and Mike Meyer in the latter portion of the race. Luellen won the battle for the win over second place Logue and Meyer in third. Fourth went to Lucas Lamberies, the 16 year old from Wisconsin, and Ellis, Kansas driver Daniel Gottschalk was fifth.
The 30-lap Dance for the IMCA Stock Cars turned out to be mostly a race between the two Larson brothers from Minnesota. Dustin Larson was the man in charge as the race went green and brother Jeff Larson tucked in right behind. The two raced in that order until going down the backstretch on the final lap....contact was made, leader Dustin Larson escaping unscathed but Jeff Larson suffering a tire deflating. Mike Nichols seized the opportunity and got around the slowing Larson to finish as the runner up, as did Sioux City's Chris Mills who finished third. Jeff Larson made it across the finish line to garner fourth place. Lynn Panos rounded out the top five.
The grand finale, the IMCA Modified feature completed the night's racing. After driver introductions, and a bit of well deserved pomp and circumstance for the 33 drivers about to "dance", the green flag fell. Mike Hagen, Williston, North Dakota and the pole sitter and Josh Most, the driver from Red Oak, Iowa who races just about anything, battled back and forth for the lead in the early portion of the 30-lap race. But, at lap eight, it was the 8K of Kyle Strickler, from Mooresville, North Carolina leading. From there on out, he never relinquished the lead and secured his second Super National's championship in as many years. He started in the middle of row two. Second place was a former Super Nationals champion from 2013, Osceola, Nebraska racer Dylan Smith who had started tenth. Third place finisher Ricky Thornton from Chandler, Arizona came from the inside of row seven. Fourth place was Beatrice, Nebraskan, Jordon Grabouski and Ankeny, Iowa's Adam Larson started on the outside of row six and made it to fifth place.
There were 876 cars at this year's Super Nationals, a record, representing 25 different states plus Canada and Australia. We thank each and every one of them who came. There were some scary moments throughout the week, but none more so than when Jamie Johnson shot....I mean SHOT off of corner three in his modified last chance heat on the final night. Johnson, from Waterloo, Iowa rolled violently after leaving one side of his car danging in a tree and his car ending up nearly out of the race track grounds near the west side road. He does have injuries we've heard, which include a broken leg or ankle, a concussion and some compression fractures of his spine. This is all second hand. As he left the grounds in the ambulance, we understood that he gave a "thumbs up" and we wish him a speedy recovery.
It's been tradition that we stick around for the engine auctions after the races, and we did so again this year. The winning Hobby Stock of Jason Wilkinson went for $2,100, Clint Luellen's SportMod brought $2,300, Dustin Larson's Stock Car was $5,400 and Kyle Strickler's Modified went for $5,500.
We also celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary on September 11, at the Super Nationals this year. Quite appropriate for us two race fans who grew up going to the dirt tracks in the area. No better place to do so.
There are still a few specials left around our area to help satisfy the drivers and fans. Check the calendar at www.positivelyracing.com for a race you may wish to attend.
Sunday, September 6, 2015
Kyle Brown posts Inaugural Prelude win at Boone
The craziness had already begun when we arrived at the Boone Speedway on Saturday. The pits were filled, more kept arriving, and the camping area was filling up. Boone South, as it's called this time of year, was springing up.
This was the first year for "The Prelude to the Super Nationals". It's been a yearly thing for drivers to arrive by the Saturday prior to Super Nationals, that always begins on Labor Day. Usually, that Saturday is season championship night, and those drivers without having points during the season at Boone, could not run, but only hot lap. This year, season championships had wound up back on August 29, and the Prelude was flung wide open. The IMCA Modifieds, Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks were all on tap. When all was said and done, it was Iowa drivers taking all the wins.
Sixty-four IMCA Hobby Stocks ran. Six heats and three B mains later and it was time to roll out the 20-lap feature. Ironically, the track champion Eric Stanton drew the outside front row to start and from there on, he would be the guy at the helm the entire distance, and took the win. Adam Armstrong out of Beatrice, Nebraska tailed Stanton all those 20-laps and finished second. Two more Boone regulars, John Watson and Tyson Overton were third and fourth. Jeremy Wegner from Graettinger was fifth. The race went flag-to-flag.
Seventy-five IMCA Northern SportMods vied for a spot to run their 20-lap A main. Ten heats and four B mains determined its starting line up. Sam Wieben led the early portion with Danny Dvorak giving him fits. Dvorak took over after a slip up by Wieben and Doug Smith then made his way up to make a charge on the leader. Smith got the job done with a few laps remaining and sailed home to the win. Wieben made a recovery to take a shot at Smith on the final lap, but had to be content with the runner up spot. Nick Meyer came home in third, fourth went to Minot, North Dakota driver Erik Laudenschlager and Sherill, Iowa's Tyler Soppe was fifth.
The 48 IMCA Stock Cars were weeded down to a 24 car starting field for their main event, through six heats and three B mains. This one turned into a three-car race for the most part. Jason Minnehan grabbed the immediate lead from his outside front row starting position and looked strong. By lap nine, eleventh place starter Trent Murphy was riding his bumper and the Chelsea Charger, Damon Murty had been picking off cars left and right, running high on the track. He had moved to third from starting deep in the field in eighteenth. The 25-lap race would end with Murphy pulling away to take the comfortable win. Minnehan finished second, Murty in third. Fourth went to Rod Richards and fifth to Brandon Pruitt.
Many IMCA Modified drivers chose to begin their Racin' Vacation by running the $1,000 to win 25-lap feature. Some also chose to just watch.Vinton's Scott Hogan was one we observed sitting in the grandstands. Ninety Modifieds ran, which took ten heats and seven B mains to ready the feature.
Scott Davis took command from his pole starting spot when the race went green. With a handful of laps in the books, Davis had Kyle Brown hot on his tail. Brown set his ride high on the track and kept digging and digging, finally make the pass at lap sixteen. The final few circuits, Brown had Todd Shute making every attempt to get around him, but Brown slammed the door. The double checkers went to Brown and Shute finished a close second. Mike VanGenderen had been an early contender for a top spot, but a spin in turn four set him back many positions. He made a remarkable recovery to finish third. Fourth was Scott Davis and Arizona driver, Tim Ward rounded out the top five.
Let the party begin! As I write, the pre tech is already going on at the Boone Speedway. Tomorrow is the start of the 7 day IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals....the 33rd annual. This is a must on our calendar every year, having made all 28 years it has been held at Boone. We tell people who have never experienced the Super Nationals, they should at least see it once. The cars, the drivers, the fans! Expect at least 800 cars from far and wide. Can't wait! Gotta go pack!
This was the first year for "The Prelude to the Super Nationals". It's been a yearly thing for drivers to arrive by the Saturday prior to Super Nationals, that always begins on Labor Day. Usually, that Saturday is season championship night, and those drivers without having points during the season at Boone, could not run, but only hot lap. This year, season championships had wound up back on August 29, and the Prelude was flung wide open. The IMCA Modifieds, Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks were all on tap. When all was said and done, it was Iowa drivers taking all the wins.
Sixty-four IMCA Hobby Stocks ran. Six heats and three B mains later and it was time to roll out the 20-lap feature. Ironically, the track champion Eric Stanton drew the outside front row to start and from there on, he would be the guy at the helm the entire distance, and took the win. Adam Armstrong out of Beatrice, Nebraska tailed Stanton all those 20-laps and finished second. Two more Boone regulars, John Watson and Tyson Overton were third and fourth. Jeremy Wegner from Graettinger was fifth. The race went flag-to-flag.
Seventy-five IMCA Northern SportMods vied for a spot to run their 20-lap A main. Ten heats and four B mains determined its starting line up. Sam Wieben led the early portion with Danny Dvorak giving him fits. Dvorak took over after a slip up by Wieben and Doug Smith then made his way up to make a charge on the leader. Smith got the job done with a few laps remaining and sailed home to the win. Wieben made a recovery to take a shot at Smith on the final lap, but had to be content with the runner up spot. Nick Meyer came home in third, fourth went to Minot, North Dakota driver Erik Laudenschlager and Sherill, Iowa's Tyler Soppe was fifth.
The 48 IMCA Stock Cars were weeded down to a 24 car starting field for their main event, through six heats and three B mains. This one turned into a three-car race for the most part. Jason Minnehan grabbed the immediate lead from his outside front row starting position and looked strong. By lap nine, eleventh place starter Trent Murphy was riding his bumper and the Chelsea Charger, Damon Murty had been picking off cars left and right, running high on the track. He had moved to third from starting deep in the field in eighteenth. The 25-lap race would end with Murphy pulling away to take the comfortable win. Minnehan finished second, Murty in third. Fourth went to Rod Richards and fifth to Brandon Pruitt.
Many IMCA Modified drivers chose to begin their Racin' Vacation by running the $1,000 to win 25-lap feature. Some also chose to just watch.Vinton's Scott Hogan was one we observed sitting in the grandstands. Ninety Modifieds ran, which took ten heats and seven B mains to ready the feature.
Scott Davis took command from his pole starting spot when the race went green. With a handful of laps in the books, Davis had Kyle Brown hot on his tail. Brown set his ride high on the track and kept digging and digging, finally make the pass at lap sixteen. The final few circuits, Brown had Todd Shute making every attempt to get around him, but Brown slammed the door. The double checkers went to Brown and Shute finished a close second. Mike VanGenderen had been an early contender for a top spot, but a spin in turn four set him back many positions. He made a remarkable recovery to finish third. Fourth was Scott Davis and Arizona driver, Tim Ward rounded out the top five.
Let the party begin! As I write, the pre tech is already going on at the Boone Speedway. Tomorrow is the start of the 7 day IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals....the 33rd annual. This is a must on our calendar every year, having made all 28 years it has been held at Boone. We tell people who have never experienced the Super Nationals, they should at least see it once. The cars, the drivers, the fans! Expect at least 800 cars from far and wide. Can't wait! Gotta go pack!
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Track title in Modifieds comes right down to the wire!
It was Larry Wollam Season Championship night Friday at the Marshalltown Speedway. The Modified feature winner, Chris Abelson, showed once again why he is leading national IMCA points....taking his third consecutive win and doing it again in dominating fashion. The domination didn't stop with that class as Josh May in the Mod Lite class won his fifth in a row, and after winning his first ever Late Model feature just a few weeks ago, Richie Gustin has stamped his name on the track, winning for the third time in as many weeks.
The top ten in points in the five regular classes were locked into their feature events and would start straight up. Qualifying heats for all others, determined their starting positions.
The Mod Lite feature and track championship went to Josh May. May has had a great season, winning ten times at the high banks this year. He led the 15-lap feature from start to finish without a threat. Second went to Travis Stensland, Mike Morrill was third and Joe Glick and Jason Whitehead rounded the top five. Interestingly, three Micro Mods (they run weekly at the Benton County Speedway) were allowed to tag the field, but were not scored. We noticed the 6E of Don Erger actually crossed the finish line in fourth position. Erger is a veteran racer, formerly racing in the Modified class.
The IMCA Northern SportMod point leader, Jared VanDeest, had no problem in racing his way to another feature win, leading the 18-lapper flag-to-flag. Second place was Jayme Duinink and just after the finish line, was spun to the infield. Third place finisher, Brandon Williams was the official cause of that incident, and was soon penalized for the incident, sending him to finish last of the running cars. This handed third over to Travis Peterson, fourth to Sam Wieben and DJ Robinson was fifth. VanDeest thanked...well, just about everyone...in victory lane for supporting him on his way to the track championship. It's nice to know that a driver appreciates not only those that physically and monetarily help out, but also the fans who cheer them on each week.
The two drivers who had often stepped into the winner's circle at Marshalltown in the IMCA Hobby Stocks, duked it out last night for the win. Austin Luellen, who has been absent for a few weeks, ( I believe he pretty much destroyed his car at Harlan a while back) ran down point leader Eric Stanton, passed him and pulled away for an easy win. Stanton finished in the runner up spot, but took the track championship. He went into the night with such a huge point lead, he wouldn't have even had to show up. Between the two drivers, Stanton had been the victor five times, and Luellen, nine times in the 2015 season. Third place finisher in the feature was Gary Pfantz, fourth was Gene Nicklas, and Garrett Eilander was fifth.
The Class too Tough to Tame, the IMCA Stock Cars, saw point leader Donavon Smith take the win untouched. Steve Meyer trailed him in the distance to take the runner up spot. Close on Meyer's tail in third, was Michael Jaennette. Fourth was Larry Wollam, who had a good run last night in a race that honors his late father, and Damon Murty, the Chelsea Charger completed the top five. Smith ended the season with eight wins at the track and his second straight track title.
There was all sorts of scenarios in the IMCA Modified feature last night....flipping the point lead back and forth between THREE drivers. Going into the night, Jimmy Gustin led the points by five over Ronn Lauritzen and seven points over Josh Gilman. With the three drivers starting the feature 1-2-3...you knew it was going to get interesting. Then throw the driver who has been making an appearance the last three weeks, IMCA National point leader Chris Abelson from Sioux City, into the mix, and you just knew it was going to be hot and heavy up front! That it was!
When the race went green, Ronn Lauritzen powered his "Frozen" ride into the lead and Gustin and Gilman settled into second and third. Lauritzen was holding a good lead when at lap seven.....Gustin slipped off of turn one! This brought out the yellow, Gustin had to tag the field and at the moment, this put Lauritzen with the point lead. Abelson had already moved from starting tenth, to run in third behind Gilman. When the race restarted, there was a bit of pushing and shoving (rubbin' is racin' you know) and by the time lap eight was scored, Gilman was leading, Abelson was second, Jake Strayer had moved to third, and Lauritzen had gotten shuffled back into fourth. Now.....Gilman was the point leader!
There was a final yellow flag at lap fourteen, and Gilman still led, Abelson was second and Lauritzen had moved back into third place. Now....Lauritzen and Gilman were tied for the point lead. Oh wait....hold on! Who was that lurking in sixth place? Oh gosh....it was Jimmy Gustin! He only needed to get back to fifth, and he would again be the point leader. Was there any doubt?
When things went green again, Abelson made his move around Gilman, taking the point spot. Lauritzen powered his way past Gilman and took back second place. The race went green the rest of the distance and Abelson won for the third time in as many visits to the track. Lauritzen finished in second place, visiting Canadian driver Kody Scholpp started tenth and looked good in his run to finish in third, and there was that Jammin' Jimmy Gustin in fourth place....good enough to regain his points lead and take the track championship, and Jake Strayer finished in fifth.
Abelson claimed his 30th feature win of 2015 , and now time will only tell (track titles, etc. will be determining factors) to see if he will win the National title over Arizona driver Ricky Thornton, Jr. who is only a couple of points behind. The ending track points, gave Jimmy Gustin the track title, Ronn Lauritzen ending in second place by three points. Gilman ended up third by nine points.
The IMCA Late Models came back to the high banks of Marshalltown Speedway for the third time. Richie Gustin had won his first ever Late Model feature back on August 14, doing it in a dominating way and following up again on August 21 in the same fashion. This brought about a "$500 bounty" on his head....going to anyone who could beat him. Nope....didn't happen last night. Gustin started sixth and by lap five, was leading. Gustin went on to win the feature untouched. Todd Cooney came from eighth starting spot, to finish second. Third place was Jeremy Grady, fourth went to Robert See and veteran racer Greg Kastli was fifth.
So comes the end to another season of racing at the Marshalltown Speedway. That's not the end of racing on the high banks this year though. Mark your calendars for September 17-19 for the World Nationals. The 17th will be practice only. The Modifieds will be running for $10,000 to win. The Stock Cars, SportMods and Hobby Stocks will have full shows on each of the days. For more information check www.marshalltownspeedway.com.
Thursday, September 3, 2015
Sobbing for the win at Webster City USMTS
We don't often get the chance to see the United States Modified Touring Series (USMTS) in our neck of the woods, so when we found out the "Mighty Mods" were running at the historic 1/2 mile at the the Hamilton County Speedway on September 2, off we went. The United States Racing Association (USRA) Stock Cars and B Mods also ran. Both associations are headed by Todd and Janet Staley, who call Webster City home when they are not on the racing trail. The USMTS is into their "Hunt for the Casey's Cup" and the Stock Cars and B Mods are racing in their "Iron Man" Series.
The USRA B Mods ran their 20-lap feature first. Andy Bryant from Fort Scott, Kansas and Dakota Foster out of Gardner, Kansas sat on the front row for the start of the A main event. The race went yellow with just a couple of laps in when Hawkeye, Iowa's Brett Bumgardner experienced mechanical issues. We had noted that he was throwing sparks almost immediately and then the smoke appeared. This would be the only yellow of the race, and pole starter Andy Bryant never relinquished his top spot, taking the win. Foster gave chase to the leader the entire distance, but settled for second place. Third was Ben Moudry from Cottage Grove, Minnesota, fourth went to Allison, Iowa's Trevor Fecht, and hometown driver, Brandon Toftee rounded out the top five.
The USRA Stock Cars also ran a 20-lap main event. We enjoyed watching two veteran drivers race last night and they sat on the front row, side-by-side---Steve Jackson and Tom Schmitt. Schmitt got the drop on Jackson at the drop of the green and this would be how they would remain the entire flag-to-flag race. Schmitt took the comfortable win, Jackson going second. Third was another successful driver as of late, Elijah Zevenbergen from Ocheyedan. Fourth went to sixth place starter Kyle Falck from Decorah, and a driver we see often in our area, Nathan Wood, drove his hot rod from eighth starting spot, to finish fifth.
It's always a beautiful sight to see the USMTS cars go 4-wide in their salute to the fans before the start of their feature---along with the stirring rendition of Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA". Twenty-two of the "Mighty Mods" took the green flag for the start of their 30-lap A main, paying $3,000 to the winner.
Jesse Sobbing, the driver that now calls Malvern, Iowa home, located in the southwestern part of the state, started pole position, with Manhattan, Kansas driver Grant Junghans beside him. Junghans snatched the coveted #1 spot, with Sobbing tucking into second. With about ten laps in the books, a jump of the cushion by Junghans sent him back some positions, and Sobbing took command with Johnny Scott (Las Cruces, NM) slipping into second place. The cement barriers which circle the track and the berm were nemeses for many last evening. Point leader Rodney Sanders from Happy, Texas had been running in third place, when he too jumped the cushion in turns one and two, and found himself in spin mode, resulting in a call for the wrecker. Sanders wasn't done yet however, as after a bit of inspection on the track, drove off and tagged the field.
More quality drivers also had to call it a night. Ryan Gustin had made a return to the USMTS, jumping back in a modified for the evening. His night ended when he had smoke roll from his machine, and about the same time, Jason Krohn (Slayton, MN) also had to exit the race with mechanical woes.
Mechanical issued continued when at lap twenty-four, Casey Arneson, Fargo ND also puffed a motor. This brought out the fifth and final yellow flag of the 30-lap feature. Sobbing was still solidly holding down the lead, with Johnny Scott running in second. Riding in third was seventh place starting and rookie to the USMTS this season, Dan Ebert from Lake Shore, MN. Jason Hughes, from Watts, Oklahoma and who appeared to be a crowd favorite, at least in our area of the grandstand, was sitting in fourth.
The final six laps, Sobbing kept a tight hold on his #1 spot, and took the win. Johnny Scott followed him across the line to score the runner up spot. Third went to Dan Ebert with an impressive showing for a rookie. Fifteenth place starter, Cory Crapser from Chippewa Falls, WI (sporting a spiffy newly wrapped car touting Sour Patch Kids candy....ironically, I was eating some last night) finished in fourth and Jason Hughes was fifth. Rodney Sanders made a nice recovery after his incident in turn two and tagging the field, and made a sixth place come back.
The USMTS has four of their five-race swing in the area remaining. Tonight they head to Fairmont, Minnesota, Friday it will be Chateau Speedway in Lansing, Minnesota, Saturday finds them at Deer Creek Speedway just across the Iowa border in Spring Valley, Minnesota and Sunday it winds up in Cresco, Iowa. For more information on the both series of racing check out www.usmts.com and www.usraracing.com.
The USRA B Mods ran their 20-lap feature first. Andy Bryant from Fort Scott, Kansas and Dakota Foster out of Gardner, Kansas sat on the front row for the start of the A main event. The race went yellow with just a couple of laps in when Hawkeye, Iowa's Brett Bumgardner experienced mechanical issues. We had noted that he was throwing sparks almost immediately and then the smoke appeared. This would be the only yellow of the race, and pole starter Andy Bryant never relinquished his top spot, taking the win. Foster gave chase to the leader the entire distance, but settled for second place. Third was Ben Moudry from Cottage Grove, Minnesota, fourth went to Allison, Iowa's Trevor Fecht, and hometown driver, Brandon Toftee rounded out the top five.
The USRA Stock Cars also ran a 20-lap main event. We enjoyed watching two veteran drivers race last night and they sat on the front row, side-by-side---Steve Jackson and Tom Schmitt. Schmitt got the drop on Jackson at the drop of the green and this would be how they would remain the entire flag-to-flag race. Schmitt took the comfortable win, Jackson going second. Third was another successful driver as of late, Elijah Zevenbergen from Ocheyedan. Fourth went to sixth place starter Kyle Falck from Decorah, and a driver we see often in our area, Nathan Wood, drove his hot rod from eighth starting spot, to finish fifth.
It's always a beautiful sight to see the USMTS cars go 4-wide in their salute to the fans before the start of their feature---along with the stirring rendition of Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA". Twenty-two of the "Mighty Mods" took the green flag for the start of their 30-lap A main, paying $3,000 to the winner.
Jesse Sobbing, the driver that now calls Malvern, Iowa home, located in the southwestern part of the state, started pole position, with Manhattan, Kansas driver Grant Junghans beside him. Junghans snatched the coveted #1 spot, with Sobbing tucking into second. With about ten laps in the books, a jump of the cushion by Junghans sent him back some positions, and Sobbing took command with Johnny Scott (Las Cruces, NM) slipping into second place. The cement barriers which circle the track and the berm were nemeses for many last evening. Point leader Rodney Sanders from Happy, Texas had been running in third place, when he too jumped the cushion in turns one and two, and found himself in spin mode, resulting in a call for the wrecker. Sanders wasn't done yet however, as after a bit of inspection on the track, drove off and tagged the field.
More quality drivers also had to call it a night. Ryan Gustin had made a return to the USMTS, jumping back in a modified for the evening. His night ended when he had smoke roll from his machine, and about the same time, Jason Krohn (Slayton, MN) also had to exit the race with mechanical woes.
Mechanical issued continued when at lap twenty-four, Casey Arneson, Fargo ND also puffed a motor. This brought out the fifth and final yellow flag of the 30-lap feature. Sobbing was still solidly holding down the lead, with Johnny Scott running in second. Riding in third was seventh place starting and rookie to the USMTS this season, Dan Ebert from Lake Shore, MN. Jason Hughes, from Watts, Oklahoma and who appeared to be a crowd favorite, at least in our area of the grandstand, was sitting in fourth.
The final six laps, Sobbing kept a tight hold on his #1 spot, and took the win. Johnny Scott followed him across the line to score the runner up spot. Third went to Dan Ebert with an impressive showing for a rookie. Fifteenth place starter, Cory Crapser from Chippewa Falls, WI (sporting a spiffy newly wrapped car touting Sour Patch Kids candy....ironically, I was eating some last night) finished in fourth and Jason Hughes was fifth. Rodney Sanders made a nice recovery after his incident in turn two and tagging the field, and made a sixth place come back.
The USMTS has four of their five-race swing in the area remaining. Tonight they head to Fairmont, Minnesota, Friday it will be Chateau Speedway in Lansing, Minnesota, Saturday finds them at Deer Creek Speedway just across the Iowa border in Spring Valley, Minnesota and Sunday it winds up in Cresco, Iowa. For more information on the both series of racing check out www.usmts.com and www.usraracing.com.
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