Saturday, June 6, 2020

Meyer takes Stock Car season opener at Marshalltown

Marshalltown Speedway held its long awaited season opener and Oldtimer's Lounge Night on Friday, with 143 hungry race drivers on hand for some racing action. Not only were the drivers hungry for racing, but so were the fans who finally got to set in the stands and see the racing live.

Logan Duffy claimed the IMCA Late Model feature, and Tom Berry, Jr. snagged a win in the IMCA Modified division.  It was Steve Meyer taking home the trophy in the Class too Tough to Tame, the IMCA Stock Cars, Kaden Reynolds took the checkers in the IMCA Hobby Stocks, and Bryan Zehm won in the Mod Lites.

Feature racing kicked off with the Mod Lites with twenty-three cars vying for the checkers. This one was quickly red flagged just after the first lap when Travis Messamer from Redfield took a tumble in corner four.  Messamer was okay, and soon the field was back to green flag racing.

Bryan Zehm would take the early race lead and never look back on his way to that checkered flag.  Joe Glick took the runner up spot, Charlie Brown came from thirteenth starting spot to take third place, Randy Bryan was fourth, and Jonathan Braathun rounded out the top five. After the lap one incident, the race went caution free.

The IMCA Northern SportMods went eighteen laps for their main event with twenty-five entrants checked in.  Austin Kaplan would lead all laps in the race that went flag to flag to take the checkers.  He finished comfortably ahead of second place Brayton Carter.  Johnathon Logue started tenth, and finished third, Jenae Gustin, sporting a new look and a new #44....her mom Judy Gustin's number back in her racing days, was fourth, and Maquire DeJong came home in fifth.

Up next was the fifteen lap IMCA Hobby Stock A feature. There were twenty-eight cars checked into the pits, and a B main was run.  It was really not needed, as only six cars came out for the consy race, leaving just two cars that did not make the feature. Jeremiah Andrews won that.

Kaden Reynolds went home with the season opener win for the Hobby Stocks. Tom Killen finished a distant runner up.  Solomon Bennett was third, Aaron Rudolph came from thirteenth starting spot to capture fourth place, and Dustin Filloon completed the top five. Early race leader Dylan Nelson was looking strong, but abruptly left the track and drove to the pits.   

The IMCA Stock Car twenty lap feature, with all twenty-seven cars starting, had a hard time getting the first lap in the books.  When they found their rhythm and did get going, it was Damon Murty at the front of the field.  Jeff Mueller was up to challenge quickly, and then the two swapped the top spot back and forth several times.  Meanwhile, Steve Meyer had set his ride on the topside and was coming fast.  The final circuits would have all eyes on Meyers as he worked the rim, inching closer to leader Murty.  His timing was perfect, gaining the upper hand with a lap to go.... and keeping it to the flying checkers and the win.  Murty had to be content with second, Mueller, who started eleventh, finished third, fourth went to Jay Schmidt, and pole sitter Dallon Murty was fifth.

Logan Duffy found himself in the winner's circle at the conclusion of the fifteen lap IMCA Late Model main event.  Duffy led all laps on his way to victory in the caution free race.  Curtis Glover took the runner up spot, Luke Pestka went third, hometown boy Darrel DeFrance took fourth, and Dalton Simonsen was fifth. There was short field of eight Late Models last evening.

The night cap was twenty laps of IMCA Modified ground pounders going at it. A thirty-two car field called for a B main in this one too to set the twenty-four car starting field.  Justin McCreadie from Phoenix, Oregon won it. More on the contingency from out of state later.

Tom Berry, Jr. made it look easy in the Modified feature, taking command early, and pulling away from the field to take the checkered flag.  Jeff Aikey and rookie Jake McBirnie battled it out for position, but it was Aikey making it a runner up finish, McBirnie going third.  Fourth went to Joel Rust, and Tim Ward came from eleventh starting spot, to finish fifth.

There was a contingency of out of state drivers last night.  Most coming from the IMCA Western Region.  Some of those drivers were seeking a place to just race I believe, as some of their hometown states still have more of a Covid 19 lock down.  They always seem to love coming to the Midwest at other times as well, so some of them just might have packed their bags a bit fuller and plan to hang around for an extended time.  Some of those out of state drivers were Justin McCreadie, Phoenix, Arizona, Dylan Thornton, Santa Maria, California, Jeremy Richey, Phoenix, Arizona, Casey Delp, Rock Springs, Wyoming, and Justen and son Braxton Yeager from Green River, Wyoming.  Throw a couple of other regulars for the summer into it, Tim Ward who lists Chandler, Arizona as home, and young Kolin Hibdon, Pahrump, Nevada, and the Modified class was packed with west coast drivers.  Even the Mod Lites had a west coaster in the mix with Kaden Cochrun from Bakersfield, California.  Winner Tom Berry, Jr. use to hail from Oregon, then moved to Newburg, North Dakota, but word from announcer Jerry Vansickel last evening, is that he is now calling Des Moines home. 

Next up at Marshalltown Speedway will be this Tuesday, June 9, for the Dale DeFrance Memorial and 500th IMCA Deery Brothers Late Model Summer Series race.  Also on tap is the Dirt Knight IMCA Modified Tour Series opener.  The IMCA Stock Cars, Northern SportMods, and Hobby Stocks will also be competition.  The green flag drops at 7:30.  




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