Burgtorf Back On Top at Quincy

When setting up my preseason race schedule, I had decided that May 17 would be a rare night missed at Quincy Raceways, as that afternoon would be oldest grandson  Keagans high school graduation. But then promoter Kenny Dobson pulled a fast one, scheduling the Scotty 41 Big 10 late model race for that evening.  Knowing that between awards on Friday and an early graduation party on Saturday, he had probably had his fill of me anyway, when ceremonies ended, I headed for the car, arriving at the track only to then find out that the start time had been pushed back one hour. This was due to an excess of mud and water, the result of several days of rain. Of course, that left more time for bench racing before activities began.
 By the time the stragglers wandered in, we had a nice 75 car field in the five divisions, highlighted by 21 UMP late models. When the track was finally worked in, the surface was smooth ans super fast, and remarkably stayed smooth all night!
 Late model qualifying was lead by first time visitor Daryn Klein, a St Louis area racer who turned a quick lap of 13.445 seconds. Michael Long paced UMP modified qualifiers with a fast lap of 14.742 ticks around the .29 mile oval. Late model heat wins went to Klein, Clint Kirkham in his first night out of the season, and Brian Dively, fresh off leg surgery. Klein then rolled a " two " for the feature invert, putting himself on the outside front row fore the 41 lap $2,000 to win headliner.
  First up though, was the 18 lap IMCA sport mod feature. Watching this class evolve over the two plus seasons has been like watching a child mature. The culmination of this came with a 17 car, 18 lap non stop feature. Adam Birck and Tanner Klingele put on a clinic, slicing and dicing through lapped traffic while swapping the lead. Birck lead early, Klingele moved ahead in traffic on lap seven, Adam regained the spot again in heavy traffic on lap 14. The completion of lap 16 saw the two side by side at the flag stand before Tanner pulled ahead on the white flag circuit. It was win number two for Klingele. Birck was followed by Nathan Bringer, point leader Joey Gower, and Tony Dunker.
 The IMCA stock cars ran next, 13 strong for 18 laps. Michael Larsen, in his second night out, jumped to the lead. A first lap yellow brought a restart, but again Larsen got the jump. While Michael hugged the low groove, Dodge pilot Troy Brierton challenged on the high side until a lap 11 yellow.. By the time, Abe Huls and Jim Lynch had joined the fray while Beau Taylor looked for an opening. A rash of yellows slowed the action on laps 14,15, and 16, with contact between Huls and Lynch sending Lynch into a spin. The race finally went green, with Larsen holding off Huls for the win. Taylor ran a strong third, Jeremy Buss took fourth, and Lynch came back to finish fifth.
 Kirkham was scheduled for a pole start in the late model main, but he fell to the back on the parade lap with mechanical issues. And Matt Santel, who ran second in heat three was a no show for the lineup, along with John Hahler. Klein shot to the lead at the drop of the green, and on lap two, row two starter Mark Burgtorf took over the second spot. From there, it was a two car race as the youngster and the veteran ran away from the field, navigating lapped traffic to perfection by lap seven. Klein made contact with the wall around lap 15, damaging his rear spoiler, with part of it landing on the track and bringing out the only caution of the race on lap 16. It looked as though the loss of aerodynamics would slow Klein, but on the restart, he again took off like a rocket. Justin Reed, meanwhile, had missed qualifying after troubles in hot laps, the pulled off in his heat, starting near the tail of the main event. He had worked his way to fifth before exiting the track on lap 31 ending a frustrating night for him. Burgtorf continued to hound the leader, and with clear track in front, he made his move on lap 35 as Klein pushed up the track ever so slightly. Klein made a late charge in the closing laps, but Burgtorf was now in command, rolling to the win in the epic battle. Dively ran a solid third, while Jim Moon came from row six to grab fourth ahead of Jamie Wilson. Keith Pratt paced the second five ahead of Denny Woodworth, Chuck Mitchell, visitor Greg Kimmons, and Trace Westling.
 the UMP modified car count was down this wee, with a dozen entries, but the outcome was more of the same. After setting quick time, Michael Long won his heat, and rolled a " one " to start on the pole of the 25 lapper. All he did from there was lead every lap for his fourth win in four nights of action at QR. Only a trio of cautions scattered throughout the race allowed the field a glimpse of the # 18L, as he settled into a nearly half lap lead by lap 15. Dave Weitholder was able to slip past visitor Brandon Roberts early for second. Steven Delonjay captured third, followed by Robbie Reed and Roberts.
 As the hour was now pushing 10:00 and I had an early Monday morning following a long weekend, I headed to the car before the IMCA sport compact feature came trackside to wrap up the night. Congrats to Keokuk, Iowa driver Michael Grossman, who ended Kimberly Abbotts three race winning streak at QR for 2015. Kim still came back from a weekend vacation watching racing to finish in the runner up spot.
 Next up for Quincy Raceways is an appearance for the MOWA 410 sprint cars on Sunday, May 24 for the Memorial Day weekend special. The late models will take the night off, giving the stage to the sprinters.
 Take advantage of the holiday weekend to enjoy some racing action!