We weren't fully recovered from our week at the Super Nationals, but managed to get in three nights of racing at the Marshalltown Speedway this past week. Here are some of the highlights of those three nights.
The 500th and final Summer Series for the IMCA Late Models kicked off the first of three straight nights of racing at the Marshalltown Speedway on Thursday night, September 17. One hundred seventy-seven cars packed the pits for what was also the 3rd Annual Dale DeFrance Memorial race, honoring the late local racer. Both races had been rescheduled several times, and on this September night, it was success for both.
Feature racing started with the Mod Lites that saw Dillon Raffurty, Kansas City, Missouri take a trip to victory lane at the end of the 15 lap feature. Ninth place starter Cory Sonner chased him from a distance to finish in the runner up position. Mike Kennedy, Randy Bryan, and Johnathan Braathun completed the top five. Raffurty also won the Dale DeFrance Memorial race held back in July of 2019.
The IMCA Northern SportMod feature saw "Speedy Bray", Brayton Carter lead the 20 lap main event from start to finish to take the checkers. Johnathon Logue, fresh off of winning the Super National's title, reeled in the winner, but had to be content with second on this night. Carter VanDenBerg crossed the line in third, but would be docked two spots for jumping, relegating him to a fifth place finish. That put Dylan VanWyk in the third spot, and Ryan King in fourth. However, a post race tech deemed King with a rules infraction and getting him a disqualification for the night, and VanDenBerg was then fourth. Pole sitter Austin Kaplan was awarded the fifth place finish.
The IMCA Hobby Stock 18 lap feature found Marengo, Iowa's Nathan Ballard, who had just won the IMCA Super Nationals, standing in the winner's circle at Marshalltown Speedway. Ballard caught and passed early race leader Luke Schluetter, New Hampton to secure the win. Marcus Wayne, Carter Koop, and Jeremiah Andrews were third through fifth.
The first few laps of the 20 lap IMCA Stock Car race saw drivers swapping the top spot. Pole sitter and veteran racer Jerry Schipper led the first lap. By lap two, it was The Game Changer, Dallon Murty crossing the line in first place. Lap three, Chance Hollatz had claimed the number one spot, and just a lap later, it was Jeff Mueller digging his way around the bottom of the corners to take over the lead. That was all that Mueller needed, as he kept close to the "huggy poles", and made his way to victory lane. Dallon Murty was second, dad Damon Murty took third place, Shawn Ritter was fourth, and Steve Meyer was hard charger, coming from twenty-first starting spot, to finish fifth.
Two Gustins sat on the pole for the start of the 20 lapper for the IMCA Modifieds. Richie Gustin had the pole with Jimmy setting along side him to the outside. Richie Gustin jumped to the immediate lead but by lap nine, sixth place starter, Cody Laney had taken over. It was all Laney's race from there on out as he motored his #5L to victory. Tim Ward was second, Tom Berry, Jr. started fourteenth and finished third, Jeff Aikey came from twelfth to take fourth, and early leader Richie Gustin fell back to finish in fifth. This was also a Fast Shafts All-Star ballot qualifier for the 2021 Super Nationals.
Darrel DeFrance, known as the Ironman, was honored earlier in the evening before the racing program began. Hometown boy DeFrance was about to start his 500th straight IMCA Late Model Deery Brothers Summer Series race. This would be the series final event for the drivers known as the "Boys of Summer".
It was quite a turnout for the final Summer Series race that was also the third annual Dale DeFrance Memorial honoring Darrel DeFrance's father, also a longtime racer. There were presentations by IMCA officials, including a door panel commemorating his 500th start. It all began back on April 11, 1987 at the 34 Raceway in Burlington, Iowa.
The Late Model 44 lap event....44 being the car number raced by the late Dale DeFrance, saw the 24 car starting field do their emotional 4-wide salute to the fans for the 500th, and very last time for the IMCA Deery Brothers Summer Series race.
Dave Wada led the opening laps of the race, but it was veteran racer Jeff Aikey taking command on lap three. From there on, he was gone! No one had anything for Aikey as he motored to his 71st Deery Brothers win. Matt Ryan took the runner spot, Justin Kay worked his way from seventeenth starting position to finish third, another veteran, Gary Webb finished fourth, and Ironman Darrel DeFrance was fifth in a strong run from starting twelfth.
Day 1 of the fourteenth annual World Nationals was held on Friday, September 18, with four classes of IMCA cars....Modifieds, Stock Cars, Northern SportMods and Hobby Stocks. The drivers were hungry for more racing with 167 cars in the pits in the four classes.
Northern SportMod racing kicked off the feature events of the evening. Forty-seven cars had competed and after heat and B main qualifying, the 24 car field was set. Brayton Carter picked up where he left off the night before, leading all 20 laps on his way to the checkers. The Olson cousins chased him across the line...Tony Olson in second, and Kyle Olson in third place. Travis Petersen and Johnathon Logue competed the top five. Carter matched his win from the previous night's Dale DeFrance Memorial.
The IMCA Hobby Stocks had 32 cars check into the pits, and through qualifying heats and a B main, their 20 lap feature was ready with a 24 car starting field. Rookie Braden Richards led much of the race as another rookie to the class, Carter Koop reeled him in. Koop started sixteenth and hustled through the pack of cars and took the lead briefly, only to have Richards snatch it back. While that was going on, Eric Knutson had weaved his way through traffic and caught them both. On the final lap, it was a three-wide contest down the back chute. In the mad dash to the finish line, Knutson would take the win at the line, Richards going second, and Koop third. Aaron Rudolph and Matt Brown went fourth and fifth respectively. Knutson won the hard charger for the night, coming from twenty-first starting spot, to step into victory lane.
In the IMCA Stock Cars Shawn Ritter was looking to put his hotrod in the Shawn's Hay Grinding victory lane, but young Dallon Murty had other ideas. Ritter led from the drop of the green, only to have young Murty set sail on the topside of the High Banks, and take the lead with five laps remaining in the 20 lap event. Murty took the win, and Ritter had to settle for the runner up spot on this night. Chance Hollatz was third, fourth went to dad, Damon Murty, and in his IMCA Stock Car debut, Tom Berry, Jr. drove it from twenty-first to fifth, in the Jeff Wollam car. Dallon Murty, this year's track champion came from tenth starting spot, to take the checkers.
Forty-seven cars vied for a starting spot in the IMCA Modified main event and the $2,000 pay off. When qualifying was complete, it was Jeff Aikey who drew the pole for the 25 lap feature. It was as good as over when the green flag dropped. Aikey had no problem even with the three yellow flag restarts, leading the entire race to take the win. Cayden Carter and Ethan Dotson challenged Aikey several times, but he fended them off and took the flying checkers. Carter finished in second, Dotson took third, followed by Todd Shute in fourth, and eighteenth place starter Tim Ward, was fifth. Aikey took his second win of the three day show, having won the IMCA Summer Series race on Thursday night.
Saturday was day #2 of the World Nationals with 160 cars checked into the pits in the four classes.
Kyle Olson went home with a World Nationals title under his belt after winning the IMCA Northern SportMod 20 lap feature. Olson started fifth and snatched the lead away from Austin Kaplan just before the halfway mark of the race. From there on, held that top spot the rest of the way to the checkers. Tony Olson started eighteenth and chased his cousin across the line in second. Third went Austin Kaplan, Devyn Peterson, Milford, Nebraska started twenty-first and took fourth place, and Ryan Shilling from Graf, Iowa was fifth. The previous night, Olson had been caught up in an incident that sent him to restart at the tail, and still finished in third. All in all, a very successful, two night run.
Following up next was 20 laps of IMCA Hobby Stock feature racing and a driver who had much success at the track during the season, winning five features, put it back in the winner's circle. Kaden Reynolds fought past Carter Koop on lap eleven, and then never looked back on his way to victory. Following a distant runner up was Eric Knutson. It was a three-wide battle to the finish for third place, with Carter Koop taking third, Miciah Hidlebaugh going fourth, and Braden Richards in fifth.
The Game Changer, Dallon Murty appeared to be headed back to victory lane in the IMCA Stock Car 20 lap feature event, in an attempt to match his win from the previous night. That all ended when contact was made in a fierce close battle among several cars, and Murty was sent spinning, bringing out a yellow. Two of those drivers locked in an intense battle were Tom Berry, Jr., driving the Jeff Wollam "rent a ride" and Jeff Mueller. On the restart, with just two laps to go, it was Berry to the point for the restart, and a green-white-checkered dash to the finish line. Berry held the lead when the white flag flew, but Mueller timed the winning move out of corner four to perfection, and took the checkers at the finish line. Berry took second, still looking for his first IMCA Stock Car win, Steve Meyer finished third, Scott Rice charged from fifteenth starting spot to finish fourth, and hard charger of the event was Shawn Ritter finishing fifth after starting in twenty-second spot.
The final event of the evening was the 25 lap A main for the IMCA Modifieds. Another $2,000 pay day awaited the winner.
JD Auringer, piloting the #12x "Simon Sez" car led the opening laps, but Cayden Carter quickly moved from his fifth starting position and into the lead with just a handful of laps in the books. Carter never relinquished that lead, though Tom Berry, Jr. reeled in the leader and attempted a challenge only to be denied, as Carter swept across the finish line under the flying checkers. Berry took his second runner up position of the evening, matching his finish in the Stock Cars. JD Auringer took third place, Ethan Dotson came all the way from twenty-first starting spot to take fourth, and Cody Laney rounded out the top five.
This concluded the 2020 racing season at the Marshalltown Speedway. Time will tell if our racing season continues as there are still races to be found on the Positively Racing calendar. Please keep supporting the sport we all love, dirt track racing!
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