I just finished reading fellow blogger Ryan Clarks' account of the rain at Independence, Ia. last night, and he was exactly right. Earlier in the week, we made plans to take in the MARS vs UMP $5,000 to win late model show at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo. Checking the weather forecast on Thursday and Friday, it showed a 30% chance of rain, certainly not a deal breaker. Again on Saturday morning that was the case, as I checked before my wife and myself took our weekly shopping trip. Arriving home around 1:00, things had changed completely, and there was now a 100% chance of rain at 6:00, with hot laps set for 6:30! But Lane Evans was already headed down from Mt Pleasant to meet Darryl, Fred and I in Taylor, Mo., so after off I went for our 2:15 meet up. My wife said the radar looked a bit more promising away from Pevely, but we decided to head that way, knowing we could also check in at Montgomery, Co. if I-55 pulled the plug. About 15 miles from the track, around 4.:45, the skies opened up. We stopped for a bite to eat to wait out the rain, which continued to stop and restart. Arriving at the speedway about 5:45, we were greeted with a mostly empty grandstand, a whole bunch of folks waiting outside the gate,a packed pit area, and no rain. When the drivers meeting was called, we decided to go on in. The track was pretty much ready to go, and hot laps began about 6:38 with the AARA sportsman cars. 26 sportsman, 27 UMP modifieds, 21 Pro 4's signed in to compliment the 36 super late models. Late model hot laps came second, and late model time trials - one lap per car - began about 7:00. Group qualifying was used, with Brian Shirley, Bobby Pierce, and Shannon Babb paced the first three groups before Billy Moyer scorched the 1/3 mile high banks in group four with an overall fast lap of 12.409 seconds. The 6:00 hour had passed with dry skies, and racing began with three sportsman heats at 7:30. The four late model heats came next, and the lightning fast track boasted a top side that was the place to be. Unfortunately, the small cushion also wanted to suck the high flyers into the turn two concrete wall. Tim Manville was the first victim on lap four of heat one, and on the restart, defending track champion Jeff Johns took advantage of the Delaware restart to slip by Jason Feger for the fourth and final qualifying spot behind Shirly, Jack Sullivan, and Billy Moyer Jr. In the second heat, it was polesitter Pierce who tagged the wall while running third, although he was able to recover to finish fourth behind Jason McBride, Randy Korte, and Dane Dacus. Terry Phillips lost a third place run in heat three thanks to the same issue, and he collected Ed Dixon and Dewayne Kiefer in the process. While Phillips recovered in time to take a MARS feature provisional, Dixon was done for the night. Kiefer had a damaged machine, and slammed the turn four wall coming to the white flag. Outside polesitter Michael Kloos took the win over Babb, Michael Long in the Frankel # 33F, and Mark Voigt, in a race that featured a ton of back and forth racing, slide jobs included!
In comparison, the final heat was a mostly uneventful, with Moyer outlasting Brandon Sheppard in his own # B5, MARS points leader Jesse Stovall, and second generation driver Tanner English.
Three modified heats ran next, and the sprinkles began, on and off. There were three 4 cylinders heats up next, and when three cars piled up in turn four of heat one, I thought our night might be coming to an end. After a lengthy cleanup, however, the sprinkles eased up and the heats came to an end. The late model B mains came next, with the first ten lapper showing only six of the ten starters on the track. It potentially could have been a whale of a race, but Kiefer, Phillips, Manville, and Dixon all missed the call. The two transfer spots went to Feger and Adam Tischhauser. The final qualifier was ten cars strong, with Tony Jackson Jr. taking an easy win, while local racer Ron McQueery slipped by MARS regualr Justin Asplin for the runnerup spot. Asplin, however, was awarded the second
provisional.
The off and on sprinkles would not give up, and track officials made the sparse crowd happy by calling the late model feature to staging as the modifieds ran their B -main. They then drew another round of applause, when a backstretch accident pared the eight car field down the five after one lap, with the top six eligible to transfer. After one false start, the checkers waved, and the late models hustled to the track.
The green flag waved for the 40 lapper at just before 10:00 - no intermission! - and Shirley shot to the front from the pole, with Moyer in pursuit. On lap five, Sullivan moved to fourth, and Korte to fifth as the top two began to put distance on the field. The first caution waved on lap eleven, as Long spun in turn three while running tenth. He collected Sheppard, who showed displeasure with being sent to the tail with Long. On the restart, Korte took third, as Feger advanced into the top ten.. Moyer Jr entered the top five now as Shirly on the top and Moyer in the middle raced side by side. On lap 20, the younger Moyer took the fourth spot, and five laps later, as the leaders split the lapped car of Tischauser, Moyer gained the lead but Shirly contacted Tischauser with the # T4 coming to a stop in turn one, bringing out the caution and giving the point back to the # 3s. After the restart, Moyer led lap 26, with Shirley the leader with 27 down. One lap later, Moyer Jr grabbed third, challenging his father for second. With 29 in the books, Long was back to eleventh, but came to a stop to bring out the final caution. On the final restart, Babb moved to fourth, and Moyer charged to the lead out of turn four on lap32. With three circuits remaining, Moyer Jr found his way around Shirley, giving the Arkansas family a one, two finish. In his victory lane interview, daddy Bill said Jr may hay had a better car, and might have one, but chastised Shirley, for what he thought were blocking maneuvers. " Squirrel " came home third, with Babb and Korte completing the top five. Six through ten went to Pierce, who started fourteenth, Stovall, Sullivan, Feger, who started seventeenth, and 22nd starting Phillips. The final checkers waved about 10:15, and as the sportsman cars came to the track, we headed to the car. So even with a 100% chance of rain at hot lap time, the powers that be not only refused to cancel, but had the track ready to go, and ran the program as quickly and efficiently as possible, doing all they could to get the premier class feature completed. In short, it was a clinic on how to manage a special show with threatening weather. Thanks, I-55!
There is rain in LaGrange as I type this morning, if it passes quickly, there will hopefully be racing tonight at Quincy Raceways. Check back later for news and notes from the Broadway Bullring.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
Eight Features Fill the Card at Quincy Raceways
Last Sunday family matters took me out of town, my first missed night at Quincy Raceways this season. As it turned out, I did not even miss an entire show, as rain washed out the final nine laps of the hobby stock main event as well as the 12 lap IMCA sport compact finale. So the night began with the nine remaining hobby stocks lined up for the final nine laps. Tanner Klingele led the Delaware style restart, andheld the lead until turn four of the final lap, when Brian Hoener gathered momentum on the high side and edged Klingele at the stripe. The top two in points, Jake Powers and Brandon Symmonds trailed the top two.
Next up was the 4 cylinder make up, with Eleven returning starters. The fast track created some carnage, and a hard crash in turn two took out our two lady racers, as Kimberly Abbott got sideways and was hit hard by Kelsey Paisley. When things finally settled down, Brandon Lambert turned in a dominant performance for the win over Pat Dunker, Austin Becerra and points leader Seth Woodruff. As the regular race program began, the Abbott crew, assisted by uncle Jeff Waterman tried to make repairs on the # 71, as Kim was a close second in the points chase. When it became obvious that the damage was too severe, Pat Dunker turned over his # 5 to Kimberly for the rest of the night. Kudos to " Skippy. "
The stock cars started out the regular show, and Beau Taylor, who Keagan accompanied on Saturday night for his first ever visit to Bloomfield Speedway, picked up the heat race win. Unforunately, Beaus' feature run ended early. The 15 lapper belonged to Michael Larsen who survived a couple early cautions, and dominated the field for his first feature win of the season. Abe Huls suffered a flat in the heat, then worked his way through the feature pack to nose out Gabe Harrison at the checkers for second. Jerry Jansen ran fourth.
There were a couple new cars in the IMCA sport mod class, but the end result stayed the same. After a false start, Charles VanZandt led lap one, Bobby Anders took over on lap two, but by lap five, it was Tony Dunker out front. The ten car field ran caution free until the final lap. With Dunker coming through turns three and four, a slower car spun in turn four. Incredibly, the yellow came out instead of the checkers, and the field was reset for a green, white, checkers finish. I kept thinking how unhappy I would be if I were in Dunkers spot, but he simply pulled away to pick up his eleventh win in 16 nights. Anders took runner up honors, while Tanner Klingele edged past Joe Bliven for third.
The UMP late model field was 17 strong, with Michigan driver Brandon Thirlby making his first visit of 2012, and national points runner up Kevin Weaver back for the second time. The first heat had been a true battle, with Mark Burgtorf taking the win, while seventh starting Weaver and ninth starting Michael Long charging side by side through the pack to finish third and fourth behind Kevin Tomlinson. With the # 56J down for a bit, Long has taken over the driving chores of the # 33F car normally driven by his brother in law, Rickey Frankel. Michael was coming off a feature win Saturday at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo. Thirlby nabbed the second heat win, and started in the front row with Long in the dash, as Michael gained enough passing points in his heat to gain the dash pole. Long then charged to the six lap win, with Burgtorf in second. With the track slicked up by feature time, it seemed the race to turn one might decide the race, and Long won that battle. However, Burgtorf took over on lap two, and quickly opened a straightaway lead. By lap twelve he was in lapped traffic, but no one is better in traffic at QR than Burgtorf. On lap 14, one lap short of the halfway point, fourth starting Weaver took over the second spot. Although he tried to run down the
# 15R, the caution flag never waved, and Burgtorf remained in control. Weaver, who took the checkers in his other visit to Quincy, held second ahead of Long. Justin Reed advanced from row four to take fourth late from Clint Kirkham. Robby Warner led the second five ahead of Matt Bailey and point leader Jason Perry. Dustin Griffin broke a fifth arm in the first heat, started 16th and finished ninth, the final car on the lead lap.
The UMP modifieds broke the streak of quick main events. All but one of the 18 cars signed in started the 25 lapper, which surely came close to the time limit. The open wheelers just could not seem to get ahold of the slick surface. Several newcomers from the St Louis area made for some interesting battles, as Rob and Joe Pendergrass and Mark Enk ventured north. QR is a tough track to tame if you have never been there, and the battle up front was dominated by familiar faces. Jared Schlipman led the first nine circuits, with points leader Steven Delonjay taking over after one of the many restarts. A lap 19 restart helped Dave Weitholder get around Schlipman for second, and another caution two laps later saw Jake Griffin grab the third spot. Shawn Deering found himself at the tail after the lap nine mixup, but took advantage of the cautions to charge back to fifth.
In the regular hobby stock 15 lapper, Klingele took off from the pole, and this time was not to be denied. The racing was intense behind him, with Hoener, Symmonds, and Powers pushing hard. However, it was Nathan Hayes who found the fast line, and moved up to third. Symmonds bobbled late, dropping to sixth, but on the final lap, Powers and Jeff Delonjay got together in turn one. Powers was scored ninth, and Delonjay was penalized to tenth. Symmonds benefitted with a fourth place finish.
The survivors of the 14 car sport compact field took the green falg in the evenings finale. A lap one collision sent second half sensation Austin Becerra to the tail. bucky Gallaher led the first two circuits before Josh Barnes took over. the two dueled until a lap eleven caution set up a green, white checkers finish. On the restart, Becerra powered to third, then charged past Barnes out of turn four at the
checkers for the win. Barnes held second, while Tony Becerra picked up third in his first visit to the track. Abbott moved to fourth late in the borrowed car, ahead of point leader Woodruff.
Despite the 21 race card, the final checkers waved just before 10:00. And much to my delight, the start time has been moved up one hour starting next week until seasons end. Hot laps begin at 4:45, and racing at 5:30. Also, the family of PhotoBilly is scheduled to be on hand with his QR photos this Sunday.
Next up was the 4 cylinder make up, with Eleven returning starters. The fast track created some carnage, and a hard crash in turn two took out our two lady racers, as Kimberly Abbott got sideways and was hit hard by Kelsey Paisley. When things finally settled down, Brandon Lambert turned in a dominant performance for the win over Pat Dunker, Austin Becerra and points leader Seth Woodruff. As the regular race program began, the Abbott crew, assisted by uncle Jeff Waterman tried to make repairs on the # 71, as Kim was a close second in the points chase. When it became obvious that the damage was too severe, Pat Dunker turned over his # 5 to Kimberly for the rest of the night. Kudos to " Skippy. "
The stock cars started out the regular show, and Beau Taylor, who Keagan accompanied on Saturday night for his first ever visit to Bloomfield Speedway, picked up the heat race win. Unforunately, Beaus' feature run ended early. The 15 lapper belonged to Michael Larsen who survived a couple early cautions, and dominated the field for his first feature win of the season. Abe Huls suffered a flat in the heat, then worked his way through the feature pack to nose out Gabe Harrison at the checkers for second. Jerry Jansen ran fourth.
There were a couple new cars in the IMCA sport mod class, but the end result stayed the same. After a false start, Charles VanZandt led lap one, Bobby Anders took over on lap two, but by lap five, it was Tony Dunker out front. The ten car field ran caution free until the final lap. With Dunker coming through turns three and four, a slower car spun in turn four. Incredibly, the yellow came out instead of the checkers, and the field was reset for a green, white, checkers finish. I kept thinking how unhappy I would be if I were in Dunkers spot, but he simply pulled away to pick up his eleventh win in 16 nights. Anders took runner up honors, while Tanner Klingele edged past Joe Bliven for third.
The UMP late model field was 17 strong, with Michigan driver Brandon Thirlby making his first visit of 2012, and national points runner up Kevin Weaver back for the second time. The first heat had been a true battle, with Mark Burgtorf taking the win, while seventh starting Weaver and ninth starting Michael Long charging side by side through the pack to finish third and fourth behind Kevin Tomlinson. With the # 56J down for a bit, Long has taken over the driving chores of the # 33F car normally driven by his brother in law, Rickey Frankel. Michael was coming off a feature win Saturday at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo. Thirlby nabbed the second heat win, and started in the front row with Long in the dash, as Michael gained enough passing points in his heat to gain the dash pole. Long then charged to the six lap win, with Burgtorf in second. With the track slicked up by feature time, it seemed the race to turn one might decide the race, and Long won that battle. However, Burgtorf took over on lap two, and quickly opened a straightaway lead. By lap twelve he was in lapped traffic, but no one is better in traffic at QR than Burgtorf. On lap 14, one lap short of the halfway point, fourth starting Weaver took over the second spot. Although he tried to run down the
# 15R, the caution flag never waved, and Burgtorf remained in control. Weaver, who took the checkers in his other visit to Quincy, held second ahead of Long. Justin Reed advanced from row four to take fourth late from Clint Kirkham. Robby Warner led the second five ahead of Matt Bailey and point leader Jason Perry. Dustin Griffin broke a fifth arm in the first heat, started 16th and finished ninth, the final car on the lead lap.
The UMP modifieds broke the streak of quick main events. All but one of the 18 cars signed in started the 25 lapper, which surely came close to the time limit. The open wheelers just could not seem to get ahold of the slick surface. Several newcomers from the St Louis area made for some interesting battles, as Rob and Joe Pendergrass and Mark Enk ventured north. QR is a tough track to tame if you have never been there, and the battle up front was dominated by familiar faces. Jared Schlipman led the first nine circuits, with points leader Steven Delonjay taking over after one of the many restarts. A lap 19 restart helped Dave Weitholder get around Schlipman for second, and another caution two laps later saw Jake Griffin grab the third spot. Shawn Deering found himself at the tail after the lap nine mixup, but took advantage of the cautions to charge back to fifth.
In the regular hobby stock 15 lapper, Klingele took off from the pole, and this time was not to be denied. The racing was intense behind him, with Hoener, Symmonds, and Powers pushing hard. However, it was Nathan Hayes who found the fast line, and moved up to third. Symmonds bobbled late, dropping to sixth, but on the final lap, Powers and Jeff Delonjay got together in turn one. Powers was scored ninth, and Delonjay was penalized to tenth. Symmonds benefitted with a fourth place finish.
The survivors of the 14 car sport compact field took the green falg in the evenings finale. A lap one collision sent second half sensation Austin Becerra to the tail. bucky Gallaher led the first two circuits before Josh Barnes took over. the two dueled until a lap eleven caution set up a green, white checkers finish. On the restart, Becerra powered to third, then charged past Barnes out of turn four at the
checkers for the win. Barnes held second, while Tony Becerra picked up third in his first visit to the track. Abbott moved to fourth late in the borrowed car, ahead of point leader Woodruff.
Despite the 21 race card, the final checkers waved just before 10:00. And much to my delight, the start time has been moved up one hour starting next week until seasons end. Hot laps begin at 4:45, and racing at 5:30. Also, the family of PhotoBilly is scheduled to be on hand with his QR photos this Sunday.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Familiar Faces in Victory Lane at MMSP
While many racing friends headed to Knoxville on Saturday, Darryl and I headed south to the Montgomery,Mo. Motorsports Park. Having suffered a partial rainout the week before, the night was to begin with the final 13 laps of the A modified feature as well as the late model main event, followed by a complete show for the five regular classes. Steve Stotler looked like the man to beat as the mods took off on a still somewhat slick track. " Big Block " Tim Hancock was lurking in the second spot when his # 44 ride went up in smoke on lap16. Dave Weitholder, and Kelly Smith, driving Bill Bakers # 03 tagged Hancock, but both got their spots back. Following a green, white, checkers finish two laps later, Stotler took the win, with Weitholder second and 13 year old Jake Griffin in third. As Stotler picked up his trophy, young Griffin climbed in his # 08 late model, part of the 13 cars that returned from the prior weeks 15 car field. As the high powered UMP cars took off, the caution flew on lap two for Reid Millard. On the restart, Jerry Lierly grabbed the lead over Jason Perry. On lap four, the top two made contact, sending them both to the pits. After another false start, the race was red flagged as the EMS crew was summoned to the pit area. It was several hours later that we learned the reason - Lierly had suffered a broken arm in the collision. He eventually went by private vehicle to the hospital in Hermann, Mo., returning with the diagnosis of needed surgery. Dave Jumper then assumed the lead. After a lap twelve caution, Dustin Griffin moved to second, and proceeded to run side by side with Jumper. On lap 23 the two made contact, ending Jumpers run. D Griffin led the final two circuits to take the win over Jim Moon, while cousin Jake Griffin recorded anothe third place finish. Mike Hammerle and Robby Warner completed the first five, as only seven cars finished.
The action then rolled over to the regular show, and with late arrivals, the field swelled to 91 total cars, led by 33 UMP modifieds, 20 UMP late models, and 20 B- mods. As the night got off to a bit of a late start - 7:45 - it was decided to cut the support class heats to six laps, and the late models I believe, ran eight. The Griffin boys stayed hot, with Jake winning his mod heat and scoring a second to Perry in his late model heat. Dustin grab late model heat three, while Keith Pratt made a successful return to the track by grabbing heat one. KP missed about three months with engine issues.
The feature races in the support divisions also had laps shaved off, with the 4 cylinders scheduled for eight laps. As it turned out, that may have been plenty for Rodney George, who ran the last couple laps with his right rear wheel throwing sparks as it wobbled precariously. Buddy Lowery scored the ten lap sportsman main, with the B'mods also set for ten circuits. Unfortunately, on the ever slickening track, the B's looked like the proverbial hogs on ice. After too many cautions to count, the time limit hit with only three laps scored, and the race went to green, white checkers. The final two laps went caution free, and Hallsville, Mo. driver Larry Winn, a nearly 40 year veteran, nabbed the win.
A 22 car starting field of A-mods were next for 15 laps. By virtue of his heat win, Jake Griffin had the pole, but during the parade laps, veteran Steve Grotz noticed a problem in the rear suspension of Jakes ride. Grotz, who is from Quincy, competes against Jake at MMSP, then often helps him in the pits at Quincy Raceways. Track officials took a look at the # 08, and sent Jake pitside. It took four tries to get the mods started, and by then Jake was able to rejoin the back of the pack for the now single file start. Visiting Brian Beilong took the early lead, running the low groove, while Grotz, who started in the sixth slot, decided to try the cushion. Grotz grabbed the lead briefly, but a lap five caution relegated him to second. On the restart, " Mack Daddy " again went upstairs and retook the point. Although he had a couple of close calls on the top in three and four, Grotz held on for an emotional victory. It was the first for the 63 year old since his rollover accident a couple years back in an IMCA late model left him on a halo for the summer with the prediction that his racing career was over. Mike Vanderiet Jr. slipped past Beilong for second in the closing laps.
Last on the tack was the regular feature for the late models. Although it was announced the race would be cut to 20 laps, I am preety sure it went the full 25.
Pratt and Perry shared the front row, with Perry grabbing the lead. The caution waved twice on lap three, and when we got back to racing, third starting Dustin Griffin powered around Perry. Bearing down Jason looped his # 27, forcing him to the tail. As he headed back forward, he again lost the handle, bringing out the yellow, and ending an unusually bad night for him. Although D Griffin looked to be in control, cousin Jake took Grotz' line on the restart, pounding the cushion, and pulling alongside his cousin. By lap 13, Jake had the top spot, and although Dustin got close a couple of times, Jake held on for his first late model win of 2012 in what his dad Danny said was race # 116! The 13 year old did a NASCAR style burnout on the front stretch, to the delight of the crowd, and was an incredibly excited young man in the post race interview, and in his pit afterwards. Grotz, crew chief Tony Warner, and dad Danny were nearly as excited as the youngster.
Dustin held the second spot, as the cousins took home a big share of the nights payout. Pratt was pleased with a third place run in his return, Hammerle recorded another fourth, and Moon rolled home fifth. Warner, Jumper, Rich Lawson, Vance Wilson, and Lance Getz completed the top ten.
The final checkers waved just before midnight, due in no small part to the outstanding efforts of the flagman. He almost refused to waste time and laps with the silly raised flag, " next time we will start" signal. The restarts lined up in turn four, and the next trip by, the green was out. Why every track does not do this is a complete mystery to me!
My second trip to Montgomery Motorsports Park was another good experience, as the reopened facility has their act together, although there was that 20 mnute intermission...
Family matters took me out of town on Sunday, and I missed my first night of racing this season at Quincy Raceways. According to reports, several nice tributes were held in memory of the track photographer, " PhotoBilly " Haffer, who lost his life last week in a car accident while returning from a race in Oskaloosa, Iowa. He was a friend of everyone who knew him, and will be sorely missed.
Four features were contested before rain washed out the final nine laps of the hobby stock main, and the IMCA sport compact 12 lapper, which will start the program next Sunday. Congratulations to Dustin Griffin, Steven Delonjay, Terry Houston, and Tony Dunker on their wins.
Also congrats to Ray Guss Jr. following his induction Saturday into the National Dirt Racing Hall of Fame!
The action then rolled over to the regular show, and with late arrivals, the field swelled to 91 total cars, led by 33 UMP modifieds, 20 UMP late models, and 20 B- mods. As the night got off to a bit of a late start - 7:45 - it was decided to cut the support class heats to six laps, and the late models I believe, ran eight. The Griffin boys stayed hot, with Jake winning his mod heat and scoring a second to Perry in his late model heat. Dustin grab late model heat three, while Keith Pratt made a successful return to the track by grabbing heat one. KP missed about three months with engine issues.
The feature races in the support divisions also had laps shaved off, with the 4 cylinders scheduled for eight laps. As it turned out, that may have been plenty for Rodney George, who ran the last couple laps with his right rear wheel throwing sparks as it wobbled precariously. Buddy Lowery scored the ten lap sportsman main, with the B'mods also set for ten circuits. Unfortunately, on the ever slickening track, the B's looked like the proverbial hogs on ice. After too many cautions to count, the time limit hit with only three laps scored, and the race went to green, white checkers. The final two laps went caution free, and Hallsville, Mo. driver Larry Winn, a nearly 40 year veteran, nabbed the win.
A 22 car starting field of A-mods were next for 15 laps. By virtue of his heat win, Jake Griffin had the pole, but during the parade laps, veteran Steve Grotz noticed a problem in the rear suspension of Jakes ride. Grotz, who is from Quincy, competes against Jake at MMSP, then often helps him in the pits at Quincy Raceways. Track officials took a look at the # 08, and sent Jake pitside. It took four tries to get the mods started, and by then Jake was able to rejoin the back of the pack for the now single file start. Visiting Brian Beilong took the early lead, running the low groove, while Grotz, who started in the sixth slot, decided to try the cushion. Grotz grabbed the lead briefly, but a lap five caution relegated him to second. On the restart, " Mack Daddy " again went upstairs and retook the point. Although he had a couple of close calls on the top in three and four, Grotz held on for an emotional victory. It was the first for the 63 year old since his rollover accident a couple years back in an IMCA late model left him on a halo for the summer with the prediction that his racing career was over. Mike Vanderiet Jr. slipped past Beilong for second in the closing laps.
Last on the tack was the regular feature for the late models. Although it was announced the race would be cut to 20 laps, I am preety sure it went the full 25.
Pratt and Perry shared the front row, with Perry grabbing the lead. The caution waved twice on lap three, and when we got back to racing, third starting Dustin Griffin powered around Perry. Bearing down Jason looped his # 27, forcing him to the tail. As he headed back forward, he again lost the handle, bringing out the yellow, and ending an unusually bad night for him. Although D Griffin looked to be in control, cousin Jake took Grotz' line on the restart, pounding the cushion, and pulling alongside his cousin. By lap 13, Jake had the top spot, and although Dustin got close a couple of times, Jake held on for his first late model win of 2012 in what his dad Danny said was race # 116! The 13 year old did a NASCAR style burnout on the front stretch, to the delight of the crowd, and was an incredibly excited young man in the post race interview, and in his pit afterwards. Grotz, crew chief Tony Warner, and dad Danny were nearly as excited as the youngster.
Dustin held the second spot, as the cousins took home a big share of the nights payout. Pratt was pleased with a third place run in his return, Hammerle recorded another fourth, and Moon rolled home fifth. Warner, Jumper, Rich Lawson, Vance Wilson, and Lance Getz completed the top ten.
The final checkers waved just before midnight, due in no small part to the outstanding efforts of the flagman. He almost refused to waste time and laps with the silly raised flag, " next time we will start" signal. The restarts lined up in turn four, and the next trip by, the green was out. Why every track does not do this is a complete mystery to me!
My second trip to Montgomery Motorsports Park was another good experience, as the reopened facility has their act together, although there was that 20 mnute intermission...
Family matters took me out of town on Sunday, and I missed my first night of racing this season at Quincy Raceways. According to reports, several nice tributes were held in memory of the track photographer, " PhotoBilly " Haffer, who lost his life last week in a car accident while returning from a race in Oskaloosa, Iowa. He was a friend of everyone who knew him, and will be sorely missed.
Four features were contested before rain washed out the final nine laps of the hobby stock main, and the IMCA sport compact 12 lapper, which will start the program next Sunday. Congratulations to Dustin Griffin, Steven Delonjay, Terry Houston, and Tony Dunker on their wins.
Also congrats to Ray Guss Jr. following his induction Saturday into the National Dirt Racing Hall of Fame!
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Dirt Track Racing Loses a Great Friend
Sad news received today that racing photographer " Billy " Haffer, also known as " Photo Billy " lost his life early Tuesday morning in an automobile accident. Billy was riding in a car with two friends when they experienced mechanical issues near Ottumwa, Iowa and there car was rearended by a semi tractor. Billy and another man were killed, and the driver was taken to the hospital. Although from the St Louis area, they were apparently headed back to Quincy after Billy had taken photos at the sprint car race at Oskaloosa. Billy took photos at several UMP tracks, and this was his first season as photographer at Quincy Raceways. He was a genuine nice guy, a dedicated race fan, and someone who never met a stranger. Quincy Raceways will honor him Sunday night, and Griffin Motorsports will have memorial stickers for sale, with the proceeds going to the families. Billy was only 44 years young. RIP, my friend.
Monday, August 6, 2012
UMP Points Leaders Focus on Quincy
When Quincy Raceways made the decision during the off season to switch to UMP late models, one topic of discussion was the difference in how points are awarded compared with IMCA. With IMCA , track points are crucial, and track championships play a key roll in national championships. It is a formula established to help build track loyalty. UMP takes more of a " every man for himself " approach, and points earned at any sanctioned track can be added to a drivers total. I apologize that I do not know exactly how many starts are counted towards a drivers total, but I think there is a maximum amount, at which time you can begin to toss out poor finishes and count better ones, a practice IMCA also uses. But track loyalty is more of an afterthought in UMP, and when you are the only Sunday night late model track in Illinois, you wait... until now. Sunday nifght, as Keagan and I walked down pit road, it was impossible to miss the bright green hauler already in the pits. Yes, it was national points leader Brian Shirley. Before making our first pass, we checked in at the pit shack, and learned that the third place driver in points, Kevin Weaver, was also on hand for the first time this season. This is exactly what we had anticipated as we talked on a cold January Saturday night! The two big guns, along with sometimes visitor Brian Dively gave us a solid car count of 18, even as several of our track regulars were missing.
After two IMCA stock car heats, the late models ripped off three ten lappers, with Dustin Griffin, Mark Burgtorf, and Weaver collecting wins., Burgtorf taking the checkers with a flat rear tire.Two IMCA sport mod heats ran before track officials decided to bring out the maintainer to try and improve the rough conditions in turns one and two. A lengthy delay followed, but when racing resumed, the surface was much improved. Heat races were completed in the remaining three classes, and it was time for the six car, six lap late model dash. Burgtorf and Weaver shared the front row, as the six spots are determined by heat race passing points. Although Burgtorf had the pole, Weaver blasted to the lead, and put on a clinic around the .29 mile oval to gain the pole for the 30 lap finale.
Intermission was skipped, and the IMCA stock cars hit the speedway for 15 laps. Nine time winner Abe Huls took only four laps to advance from row four to the lead, then held off a persistent point leader, Terry Houston, to chalk up win number ten. Only a missed week has kept Abe from making a shambles of the points chase. Michael Larsen followed up his ninth heat win of the season with a third in the feature.
Sixteen late models then took the green flag, as Dively was already on the road home after heat race issues, and Bill Genebacher kept his smoking ride pitside. This time, Weaver blasted off from the pole, with Burgtorf in tow. The race stayed green for 19 laps, as the " Flatland Flash " diced his way through lapped cars. The caution bunched the field, but also gave Weaver a clear track. By now, ninth starting Shirley had muscled his way into the top five. The only other stoppage came two laps later, and Jason Perry now took up the chase from second. Shirly powered his way to third, but this night belonged to Weaver, who lapped up to the seventh place car. Perry held off Shirley for second, while Griffin eased by the # 7B of Burgtorf for fourth. As we enter the final weeks of points racing, it is likely these two and possibly other top points chasers will make the Sunday pull to QR.
Bobby Anders slowed the juggernaut that is Tony Dunker by winning his second IMCA sport mod feature of the season. When the checkers waved, Dunker was 1/2 a car length from his tenth win of the year. At last report, Tony was third in IMCA sport mod national points, and the second place run may have helped his standing. Joe Bliven came home third.
The UMP modifieds were up next, and again had a bit of trouble with caution flags and heavy attrition. Dave Weitholder took the initial lead, but went to the infield on lap two with drive train problems. Steven Delonjay shadowed Jared Schlipman until midway through the 25 lapper, when he grabbed the lead. On lap 14, Schlipman and third running 13 year old Jake Griffin made contact. Jake held on to take second, with Jared slipping to fourth, behind Shawn Deering, who had restarted at the back on lap eight. Delonjay then ran the low groove, while young Griffin slammed the cushion. Griffin was faster out of turn four, but Delonjay held the edge in one and two. On the final lap, Jake aired it out up top, but Steven held on for a .058 second margin of victory. Schlipman, Deering and Craig Spegal completed the top five. Aura Griffith saw his night end early as he took a nasty roll on the front stretch in heat one, a mishap that also sent Kevin Blackburn to the trailer with damage.
Tanner Klingele and Jake Powers ran side by side for most of the 15 lap hobby stock main event, with Tanner taking the top prize.
After having his four race win streak snapped last Sunday, Austin Becerra was back in victory lane in the IMCA sport compact finale, topping Brandon Lambert and Kim Abbott.
Congratulations to former track regular Justin Jennings. Justin drove his first NASCAR Nationwide race on Saturday night at Iowa Speedway, coming home 26th in the Jimmy Means # 52. More importantly, JJ ran the entire race, and brought his mount home in one piece! Way to go, Justin!
After two IMCA stock car heats, the late models ripped off three ten lappers, with Dustin Griffin, Mark Burgtorf, and Weaver collecting wins., Burgtorf taking the checkers with a flat rear tire.Two IMCA sport mod heats ran before track officials decided to bring out the maintainer to try and improve the rough conditions in turns one and two. A lengthy delay followed, but when racing resumed, the surface was much improved. Heat races were completed in the remaining three classes, and it was time for the six car, six lap late model dash. Burgtorf and Weaver shared the front row, as the six spots are determined by heat race passing points. Although Burgtorf had the pole, Weaver blasted to the lead, and put on a clinic around the .29 mile oval to gain the pole for the 30 lap finale.
Intermission was skipped, and the IMCA stock cars hit the speedway for 15 laps. Nine time winner Abe Huls took only four laps to advance from row four to the lead, then held off a persistent point leader, Terry Houston, to chalk up win number ten. Only a missed week has kept Abe from making a shambles of the points chase. Michael Larsen followed up his ninth heat win of the season with a third in the feature.
Sixteen late models then took the green flag, as Dively was already on the road home after heat race issues, and Bill Genebacher kept his smoking ride pitside. This time, Weaver blasted off from the pole, with Burgtorf in tow. The race stayed green for 19 laps, as the " Flatland Flash " diced his way through lapped cars. The caution bunched the field, but also gave Weaver a clear track. By now, ninth starting Shirley had muscled his way into the top five. The only other stoppage came two laps later, and Jason Perry now took up the chase from second. Shirly powered his way to third, but this night belonged to Weaver, who lapped up to the seventh place car. Perry held off Shirley for second, while Griffin eased by the # 7B of Burgtorf for fourth. As we enter the final weeks of points racing, it is likely these two and possibly other top points chasers will make the Sunday pull to QR.
Bobby Anders slowed the juggernaut that is Tony Dunker by winning his second IMCA sport mod feature of the season. When the checkers waved, Dunker was 1/2 a car length from his tenth win of the year. At last report, Tony was third in IMCA sport mod national points, and the second place run may have helped his standing. Joe Bliven came home third.
The UMP modifieds were up next, and again had a bit of trouble with caution flags and heavy attrition. Dave Weitholder took the initial lead, but went to the infield on lap two with drive train problems. Steven Delonjay shadowed Jared Schlipman until midway through the 25 lapper, when he grabbed the lead. On lap 14, Schlipman and third running 13 year old Jake Griffin made contact. Jake held on to take second, with Jared slipping to fourth, behind Shawn Deering, who had restarted at the back on lap eight. Delonjay then ran the low groove, while young Griffin slammed the cushion. Griffin was faster out of turn four, but Delonjay held the edge in one and two. On the final lap, Jake aired it out up top, but Steven held on for a .058 second margin of victory. Schlipman, Deering and Craig Spegal completed the top five. Aura Griffith saw his night end early as he took a nasty roll on the front stretch in heat one, a mishap that also sent Kevin Blackburn to the trailer with damage.
Tanner Klingele and Jake Powers ran side by side for most of the 15 lap hobby stock main event, with Tanner taking the top prize.
After having his four race win streak snapped last Sunday, Austin Becerra was back in victory lane in the IMCA sport compact finale, topping Brandon Lambert and Kim Abbott.
Congratulations to former track regular Justin Jennings. Justin drove his first NASCAR Nationwide race on Saturday night at Iowa Speedway, coming home 26th in the Jimmy Means # 52. More importantly, JJ ran the entire race, and brought his mount home in one piece! Way to go, Justin!
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Springsteen Runs the Table at CJ
The stars lined up well on Friday night, as I was able to get out of work on time, so I picked up Keagan and Fred, and we hot footed it up the road to CJ Speedway in Columbus Junction, arriving just as the late models wound up the hot lap sessions. It was my second trip this season to the 1/10 mile Louisa County Fairgrounds facility, and for Keagan it was another " new " track, his 25th.
It was also the last of four visits by the IMCA rules late models. When Darryl and I visited in May, Colby Springsteen led every lap of the late model feature. On Friday, the young man duplicated the feat. This time around, the # 38 came home third in the lone heat race, but redrew the outside pole for the finale. Muscatine driver Chad Holladay, who only recently made his return to late model racing, took off from the pole, but Colby took the lead down the backstretch, and was never headed. One of the race co sponsors, Tommy Elston, challenged early from his row two starting slot, but could not make a pass. The only caution came on lap 12 for a slowing Jonathon Brauns. At the same time, Tom Bowling Jr. retired to the pits, while Brauns rejoined the field as the green waved again. On the restart, local ace Jason Utter, who had been running fourth, did a slingshot move around Holladay. Five laps later, Utter, who had won the heat, powered around Elston in turn four for second. He closed the gap a bit on the # 38, but with no further cautions, Springsteen cruised the win. Utter, Elston,Holladay, Matt Strassheim, Sam Halstead, and Ron Boyse came across in that order, with Brauns pulling out in the closing laps.
The features had kicked off with the stock cars running what was the best race of the night. All twelve cars took the green for the 15 laps, with Travis Finke taking the early lead. Kirk Kinsley climbed the bank on the backstretch, but recovered, and moved to the runnerup spot. Nathan Wood had advanced to third when he suddenly veered off the track in turn four. Restarting on the tail, Wood was back to seventh when he again left the racing surface in turn two on lap seven with apparent steering issues ending his night. A four car battle insued up front with Finke and Kinsley hotly pursued by Brandon Jay and Sky Griffith. As the laps would down, Griffith used the inside groove to make his move, and he powered by Finke at the flagstand as the white flag waved.. He then held on for his second win in a row. He was very complimentary towards Finke in his post race interview. Kinsley held on for third ahead of Jay.
Eight of the nine modifieds on hand started the twelve lap finale, with Dustin Fenton a scratch in both the heat and feature. I don't know if he broke before we arrived, as we never caught a glimpse of the # 3D. Rod Statts led lap one, but Steve Stewart cam from row two to take over on lap two, and began to open a comfortable lead. Wade Leee took over second on lap four, but could not run down the # 17. The yellow waved on lap nine when Clayton Jensen slowed, but on the restart, Stewart again opened a big lead. Lee held on to second , followed by Dave Imming and Mitch Morris.
The mod lites had nine cars take the green, with Paul Hallet a no show. The first yellow came on lap two, with Rob Conklin out front. On the restart, heat two winner Evan Epperson took the point, with heat one winner Troy Philpott quickly moving to second. On lap six, Philpott put his # 11 out front. the yellow waved for a second and final time on lap eight, but " Stinky " was not to be denied. He led Epperson to the checkers, with Jonathon Huston and Rob Guss in tow.
Seven of the eight registered 4 cylinders ran a caution free main event, with Tyler Whalen taking the win over Bill Whalen Jr., Corey Sheetz, and Kody Bass.
The final checkers waved about 9:45, making for a quick, well run program.
Although I had experinced the same thing on my first visit, I was still amazed at the low turn out of late models for the $1,000 top prize. The payout down was not bad, and with Davenport not running on Friday, it just seems more cars should have come to CJ for a draw, redraw show. Most racers like to say they prefer purse over points, but their actions do not show it. The track on Friday was smooth and fast, with 2 grooves in turns one and two, and three in three and four, and the folks at the speedway are as nice as you will find. I hope they find a way to run the late models again in 2012 and that a few more drivers will support the program.
It was fun to visit with former racers Brian Hetzler, now the flagman at CJ, and John Richardson, who was a fan in the stands. Also a thank you to the track announcer, whose name I do not know, for the plug for this blog, and Thanks to Dianna Winkel for tipping him off!
Tonight it is back to Quincy Raceways for UMP late models. Check back tomorrow for more on that.
It was also the last of four visits by the IMCA rules late models. When Darryl and I visited in May, Colby Springsteen led every lap of the late model feature. On Friday, the young man duplicated the feat. This time around, the # 38 came home third in the lone heat race, but redrew the outside pole for the finale. Muscatine driver Chad Holladay, who only recently made his return to late model racing, took off from the pole, but Colby took the lead down the backstretch, and was never headed. One of the race co sponsors, Tommy Elston, challenged early from his row two starting slot, but could not make a pass. The only caution came on lap 12 for a slowing Jonathon Brauns. At the same time, Tom Bowling Jr. retired to the pits, while Brauns rejoined the field as the green waved again. On the restart, local ace Jason Utter, who had been running fourth, did a slingshot move around Holladay. Five laps later, Utter, who had won the heat, powered around Elston in turn four for second. He closed the gap a bit on the # 38, but with no further cautions, Springsteen cruised the win. Utter, Elston,Holladay, Matt Strassheim, Sam Halstead, and Ron Boyse came across in that order, with Brauns pulling out in the closing laps.
The features had kicked off with the stock cars running what was the best race of the night. All twelve cars took the green for the 15 laps, with Travis Finke taking the early lead. Kirk Kinsley climbed the bank on the backstretch, but recovered, and moved to the runnerup spot. Nathan Wood had advanced to third when he suddenly veered off the track in turn four. Restarting on the tail, Wood was back to seventh when he again left the racing surface in turn two on lap seven with apparent steering issues ending his night. A four car battle insued up front with Finke and Kinsley hotly pursued by Brandon Jay and Sky Griffith. As the laps would down, Griffith used the inside groove to make his move, and he powered by Finke at the flagstand as the white flag waved.. He then held on for his second win in a row. He was very complimentary towards Finke in his post race interview. Kinsley held on for third ahead of Jay.
Eight of the nine modifieds on hand started the twelve lap finale, with Dustin Fenton a scratch in both the heat and feature. I don't know if he broke before we arrived, as we never caught a glimpse of the # 3D. Rod Statts led lap one, but Steve Stewart cam from row two to take over on lap two, and began to open a comfortable lead. Wade Leee took over second on lap four, but could not run down the # 17. The yellow waved on lap nine when Clayton Jensen slowed, but on the restart, Stewart again opened a big lead. Lee held on to second , followed by Dave Imming and Mitch Morris.
The mod lites had nine cars take the green, with Paul Hallet a no show. The first yellow came on lap two, with Rob Conklin out front. On the restart, heat two winner Evan Epperson took the point, with heat one winner Troy Philpott quickly moving to second. On lap six, Philpott put his # 11 out front. the yellow waved for a second and final time on lap eight, but " Stinky " was not to be denied. He led Epperson to the checkers, with Jonathon Huston and Rob Guss in tow.
Seven of the eight registered 4 cylinders ran a caution free main event, with Tyler Whalen taking the win over Bill Whalen Jr., Corey Sheetz, and Kody Bass.
The final checkers waved about 9:45, making for a quick, well run program.
Although I had experinced the same thing on my first visit, I was still amazed at the low turn out of late models for the $1,000 top prize. The payout down was not bad, and with Davenport not running on Friday, it just seems more cars should have come to CJ for a draw, redraw show. Most racers like to say they prefer purse over points, but their actions do not show it. The track on Friday was smooth and fast, with 2 grooves in turns one and two, and three in three and four, and the folks at the speedway are as nice as you will find. I hope they find a way to run the late models again in 2012 and that a few more drivers will support the program.
It was fun to visit with former racers Brian Hetzler, now the flagman at CJ, and John Richardson, who was a fan in the stands. Also a thank you to the track announcer, whose name I do not know, for the plug for this blog, and Thanks to Dianna Winkel for tipping him off!
Tonight it is back to Quincy Raceways for UMP late models. Check back tomorrow for more on that.
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