Sunday, June 3, 2018

Bounty on Thornton CLAIMED by Tim Ward

It was another fast paced night of exciting racing at Iowa's Action Track, the Boone Speedway, and another Super Saturday.  The IMCA Modifieds were running for $1,000 to win, extra incentives, and a chance at the $600 bounty money on Ricky Thornton's head, plus the IMCA Stock Cars were the chosen class on this Super Saturday for extra money...$750 to win.  Two first time winners emerged from the night's racing, and four others claimed repeat wins. There were 139 cars checked into the pits.

The Mod Lite division kicked off the feature racing.  Scott Naggatz from Carter Lake led the opening laps and appeared to be on his way to victory lane for the first time.  However bad luck hit him at lap thirteen when he lost the handle and spun out in turn four, bringing out the yellow.  This handed the lead over to Joe Glick for the restart.  Glick would then hold that lead the remaining two laps to the checkers and the win.  Bryan Zehm, last week's winner, started eighth and finished as the runner up.  Third place went to Ogden, Iowa's Kevin Grisham,  Mike Kennedy was fourth, and Troy Reeves made the trip over from Council Bluffs, and finished fifth. This was Glick's second win at Boone in 2018.

Yellow flags plagued the early portion of the 18-lap IMCA Northern SportMod feature, and a warning was given to the drivers at lap four, with 15 minutes already in the books.  When those cautions finally got out of the way, it was Austin Luellen who had escaped the chaos, and found his way to the front.  Luellen started twelfth and had the lead at lap five, never to relinquish it on his run to the checkers and the win.  Jake McBirnie took his spiffy looking new GRT hot rod from eleventh to finish as the runner up, third went to Johnathon Logue, fourth was Shawn Albers, and Dusty Masolini completed the top five.  Luellen won for the third time this season at the speedway, and added to his point lead.

A new face went to victory lane in the IMCA RaceSaver Sprints.  Mike Johnston started sixth and nabbed the lead at lap four.    A caution with just two laps remaining didn't hinder him on his run to the checkers. Tyler Thompson came from ninth starting position to take second.  Third went to Bob Hildreth, fourth to pole sitter Val Urman from Roseville, Minnesota, and C. J. Houseman started tenth, and finished fifth. This was Johnston's first win at Boone.

It was another Super Saturday night and the IMCA Stock Cars were the designated class to have more money on the line....$750 for the win, and a draw/redraw show.  There were fierce battles going on during much of the 18-lap event, with Tyler Pickett leading the opening laps, only to have it snatched away at lap three by Donavon Smith.  Four cars had been running nose to tail in those early laps,  Smith, Pickett, Jay Schmidt and Troy Jerovetz.  Right before the halfway mark of the race, Jerovetz slipped into the lead and was able to hold off the thundering pack behind him, and secured the win.  Donavon Smith was the runner up, Jay Schmidt was third, fourth went to Devin Smith, and early leader Tyler Pickett taking fifth.  Jerovetz matched his win from last week.  The race went caution free.  Jerovetz also earned a provisional starting position in the upcoming Prelude to the  Super Nationals.

There was a lot on the line in the IMCA Modified 20-lap feature.  Not only was the winner going to receive $1,000, plus an additional $100 from Bob Harris Enterprises, a provisional starting position for the Prelude to Super Nationals, a starting spot in the Harris Clash "Dash at the Clash",  but a chance at taking the $600 bounty on Ricky Thornton as well.  This show was also a draw/redraw contest and Joel Bushore and Tim Ward were the lucky front row starters.  Ward immediately took the lead and began to put some distance between himself and the rest of the field.  However, a caution at lap ten bunched up the field and  it was Eric Elliott, Kelly Shryock and now Ricky Thornton lying in wait close behind for the restart.  As the race returned to green, Ward was able to maintain that top spot, and would hold on the remaining distance to the checkers flying.  Veteran racer Kelly Shryock finished second, Ricky Thornton fell short in his quest for his fifth win, and had to settle for third place,  Kyle Brown took fourth and Josh Gilman was fifth.  Ward, who won for the first time this year, went home $1700 richer, taking all of the incentives offered for the race.

The night cap race was the 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature.  This race was also plagued with yellow flags in the first half of the 12-lap event. At five laps in, the drivers were warned that they were under the time limit as over twelve minutes had elapsed. The next yellow, or checkers, whichever came first, would end the race. Those yellows didn't hinder Andrew Burg's charge to the front however.  Burg started eleventh and had worked his way to the top spot with just a handful of laps in the books.  Burg held on to that lead the rest of the way to the finish line and secured his third win at the track this year...and two in a row.  Justin Wacha didn't make it easy for Burg in the closing laps, as he pressured him, but he had to be content with second place.  John Watson finished in third, Solomon Bennett was fourth and Dylan Nelson made it to fifth, after starting in fifteenth place.

Cam Reimers, the local driver from Ogden, brought his Lucas Oil Off Road Pro Light truck for some test laps around the Boone Speedway last evening, and then had it on display on the grandstand side. Reimers, who also runs an IMCA Northern SportMod for the first time this year, got his start in motorsports, running motocross.

On June 30, there will be another Super Saturday event.  The IMCA Modifieds will be running once again for $1,000 to win and a provisional start in the upcoming Prelude to the Super Nationals.  The IMCA Hobby Stocks will be the chosen class for extra pay for the night, as well as the Prelude provisional start.  Also that night, "Whistle Nut" will be in the house.  Jason Dent, the rodeo clown known as Whistle Nut, and who appeared on the reality tv series, Big Brother, will be on hand to entertain.

Racing at the Boone Speedway will continue its early Saturday start times through the month of June.  Hot laps are 5:45, and racing at 6:30.

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