It was another fast paced night of racing at the Boone Speedway Saturday evening, with 137 cars packing the pits. Two drivers would come away with their first wins at the track, while three others would repeat from earlier. There was also an added bonus in a TiLUBE sponsored Modified challenge race, with one driver walking away with $1,200.
Josh May started eighth in the 15-lap Mod Lite feature and had the lead by lap four. He never looked back from there on, stretching his lead and taking the comfortable win. Pole sitter Kevin Grisham finished in the runner up spot, Randy Bryan was third, Joe Glick finished fourth, and last week's winner Bryan Zehm, was fifth. The race went flag to flag.
TiLUBE/TiLUBE Motorsports sponsored a "Last Man Standing" Modified challenge next. It pitted the twelve drivers with the fastest lap times on the transponder program from the heats. The drivers qualifying were Dustin Smith, Russ Dickerson, Chris Webb, Al Wolfgram, Jon Snyder, Bob Daniels, John Logue, Josh Truman, Eric Elliott, Joel Bushore, Tony Cox, and Gatlin Leytham. The drivers drew for starting positions. The race went 15 laps and the last place runner had to drop out each lap after the third lap. First time visitor to the track this season, Dustin Smith from Lake City, Iowa went home with the victory, out running Russ Dickerson in second place. The winner received $1,000 and got an extra $200 bonus if running a non-crate. Smith went home with $1,200.
The IMCA Northern SportMods ran their usual 18-lap feature. Jake McBirnie took command of the race after getting by Jonathon Logue at lap five and keeping it to the checkers and the win. Logue held down second place, just barely beating tenth place starter Adam Armstrong in third. Fourth went to Daniel Tasler and Randy Roberts came from twentieth starting spot, after having to qualify through a B main, to finish fifth. McBirnie has won for the last three consecutive Saturday nights, and made it his sixth over all for the season.
The Class too Tough to Tame, the IMCA Stock Cars were up next for their 18-lap A Main. It was led from start to finish by Indianola, Iowa racer, Steve Byers. Matt West chased Byers the entire distance, but could only muster a second place finish. Josh Daniels took third, Devin Smith started twenty-second and surged by Wayne Gifford in the waning moments, as they went fourth and fifth respectively. This was Byers' first career win in the Stock Car class in his rookie year.
The 20-lap IMCA Modified feature had some strange turns of event before it was all said and done. Joel Bushore and Jon Snyder were running first and second through the halfway mark of the race when the ailing car of Darren Huntley was trying to exit from the track on the front stretch...right in front of the two leaders that were running the high side. The collision was unavoidable, and it took both Bushore and Snyder out of the game. This handed the lead on the restart over to Gatlin Leytham with Al Wolfgram, Eric Elliott and point leader Mike VanGenderen, close at hand. Just a lap later, Elliott made contact with Laythem and Wolfgram on the front stretch, sending them spinning into the infield, and he found himself black flagged for the incident. With just three laps remaining, VanGenderen was now in the lead with Russ Dickerson breathing down his neck. VanGenderen was able to hold the lead at the finish line, by mere inches, and took the win. The transponders told the tale and VanGenderen won by a tick of the timer. Dickerson had to be content with second place. Third was Chris Webb, John Logue, sporting a new white with red Harris car, started twenty-third, and finished fourth, and Tony Cox completed the top five. This was VanGenderen's fifth win of the season.
Racing concluding with the running of the 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature. The cars did not complete the first lap before the race was halted. Brian Derry started on the front row, and spun around facing traffic on the top of turn three before a lap was scored. He was hit head on by Korbin Nourse and then Steven Doss, trying to avoid them, rolled his car off the top of the corner, bringing out the red flag. He was okay. When racing action got back underway, Dustin Lynch quickly got to the lead and held firmly to that coveted spot the remainder of the race to take the win. Chad Legere finished in the runner up spot, third went to Shaun Wirtz, fourth to point leader Eric Stanton, and Tyson Overton was fifth. This was Lynch's first win at Boone this year.
There seemed to be a lot of incidents all over the track last night. We noted everyone was taking a pretty bumpy ride in corner one, until they learned to avoid the hole/dip. There were a lot of visiting drivers last night...some due to Webster City's season being over, and some perhaps just to get in a little testing prior to Super Nationals. There were 33 Hobby Stocks, 30 Modifieds and Stock Cars, 26 Northern SportMods and 18 Mod Lites, making for a great field of competitors.
Things are beginning to gear up for the 34th running of the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals coming up September 5-10. It will be here before you know it. For more information you can go to www.raceboone.com and click on the Super Nationals button at the top of the page. We hear that pre-registration of cars is up from last year. This year, an extra class has been added---the IMCA Southern SportMods will join the line up and their entire program will be run on Monday, September 5. But...prior to the Super Nationals, on Saturday night, September 3, it will be a draw-redraw "open" night deemed the "Prelude to the Super Nationals. Last year's Inaugural Prelude had close to 300 cars...expect more this year.
Get out to a race somewhere, and support the sport we all love.
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