2016 Season Wrap at Shiverfest

My 2016 racing season likely came to an end Saturday with night number 49 at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa. It was the annual Shiverfest extravaganza, as 169 cars in seven divisions competed in what is billed as the final race in Iowa for the season. The format has been expanded to include some festivities on Friday night, but for us things kicked off on a breezy and unusually warm Saturday evening. Following hay rack rides, on track trick or treating with over 100 cars and drivers coming to the track apron and box car races for the youngsters, hot laps kicked off somewhere around 5:30. 21 heat races, a C main for the sport mods and three B mains set the field for the seven feature events, with the hobby stock headliner sandwiched between the B mains. Four of the 17 hobby stockers were out of commission come feature time, but the 15 lapper was nonetheless hotly contested. Nathan Ballard journeyed from Marengo, Iowa to pick up the win over Brandon Hare, fall series champion Dustin Griffiths, and Quinton Miller. The field included Brian Bries from Norway, Iowa, who spends his Friday nights racing on the asphalt at Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids. The late model feature was up next, with a dozen cars signed in to do battle for 25 laps. Heat winners Todd Frank and Sam Halstead in the Lynn Richard # 26 sat on row one. Frank jumped to the early lead, with IMCA competitor Chuck Hanna in tow. Track champion Tommy Elston started in row three and advanced to third on the fifth circuit. Elston ran his familiar low line, taking over second one lap later as Frank pounded the cushion. By lap eight Tommy had closed the gap, and he took the lead out of turn two on lap twelve only to see the caution wave for young Gunner Frank. Back under green Elston moved again to the lead, but Todd Frank stayed close as the two separated themselves from the pack. Frank was gaining ground when Tegan Evans brought out the final caution on lap 16. Over the final ten laps Elston stretched his lead, picking up his eleventh win of 2016. Frank ran a strong second ahead of Jeff Guengerich, Halstead and Hanna. Derek Liles led the second five ahead of Peoria,Il steel block racer Brian Crebo in his first visit to LCS, late model rookies Pat Gordin and Blake Woodruff,Gunner Frank, and first time rookie Chad Coyne from Orion,Il. The 13 years young female racer Evans was the only car to not complete the 25 laps. The huge 41 car sport mod field needed five heat races and a C and B main to set their 24 car feature field. Track regular Tony Dunker found himself in the unenviable position of having to come all the way from the C to make the main event, but he managed to do so despite a couple of eventful races. Early on the feature became a three car battle between Brandon Lennox, John Oliver Jr. and Brayton Carter. But with eight laps remaining, Carter had his fan puncture the radiator, dropping fluid on the track and ending his run. At this point, B main winner Austin Powell was up to fourth, while Logan Anderson held down third. A solid three car battle developed with Lennox and Oliver r4unning the high line while Anderson searched the low groove. On the final lap Oliver slowed a bit out of turn two and as watched his progress Anderson powered around Lennox to lead only one lap of the race, the one that counted. Lennox, Oliver and Powell crossed the stripe in the next three positions. The mini mod/mod lite division turned out only nine cars, with Chad Dugan of Waukon,Iowa and Don Erger swapping paint a couple of times before Dugan claimed the win. Next came the stock cars for 22 laps, with all but one of the 27 entrants taking the green. Track champion Jeff Mueller and John Oliver Jr sat in row one, and Mueller opened an early lead. With one lap scored, the yellow came out, and row three starter Mike Hughes was already up to second, followed by Todd Reitzler and Oliver. Reitzler shot to second under green, but again the caution waved. Racing once again, Johnny Spaw entered the fray in fourth, Cayden Carter took fifth and Oliver fell to sixth. Mueller and Hughes continued to battle and as the race approached the ten lap mark, Carter and a resurgent Oliver now battled side by side for third. Just past half way, Hughes grabbed the lead and Oliver followed on the high line to second as Mueller ran his usual low line. Meanwhile Carter searched around the oval, running high in turns three and four, low in one and two in the four car battle. Mueller reclaimed the lead with six to go, one lap later it was Hughes again on top. The lead was a toss up on the final circuit, but it was Hughes edging Carter for the win. Oliver Jr., Mueller, Spaw and Reitzler followed, all with solid runs. A record ( for me) 33 sport compacts checked in, I can't remember ever witnessing a 4 cylinder B-main! 24 cars took the feature green for 15 laps. The caution waved on the opening lap, with Levi Heath grabbing the lead as we went back to racing. As second running Josh Barnes fell back, Barry Taft and Brandon Reu took up the chase for the lead.On the fifth trip around, Reu grabbed the lead, and Nathan Chandler followed him, nabbing the runner up spot. Following two more quick cautions, Reu and Chandler battled until the yellow waved with three laps remaining. On the restart, a three wide battle developed for the second spot between Chandler, Heath, and Matt Macey from Delavan,Il. But on the white flag lap, Reu left an opening on the inside line and Chandler sneaked by for the lead and the win. Macey crossed in second but was DQ for an illegal part, turning the runner up slot over to Heath, followed by Reu and Taft. The final race of the night and the season was the 24 car A main for the modifieds. The field had been whittled down for 30 race teams for the 25 lapper. Eric Barnes set the early pace with Milo Veloz in second. The first caution came on lap four, three laps later Dakota Hayden moved to second . One more lap and caution waved again and when racing resumed, Cayden Carter blasted to the lead, with Hayden fading to fifth. Meanwhile Kyle Brown charged from sixth to second before another stoppage on lap ten. Now it was veteran Bruce Hanford on the move, taking over second on lap tweleve. Cater hugged the inside groove while Hanford ran the cushion, with caution again at lap 16. A final caution at lap 20 saw Brown jump to second, but Hanford rebounded quickly to grab the spot again. But there was no catching Carter, as he claimed the final checkers of the year over Hanford, Brown, Hayden, and Donavan Lodge, who hung around the top five all night. The final checkers waved just past 11:00 and considering the high number of caution periods, some rather lengthy, it was a superb job by the track officials, staging a 32 race program in just over five hours before a very large crowd, many of whom stayed around on a gorgeous fall evening. As I stated, this is likely my final race of 2016, but I will try to report the news and some of the gossip as the off season begins, and I know Jeff and my fellow bloggers will as well, so thanks for reading, check back often, and heres hoping we can spend time together on line and at the track in 2017!

132 Cars at Memphis Finale

Saturday night a big crowd and 132 race cars came through the gate at the Scotland County Speedway in Memphis,Mo., as night two of the Fall Nationals wrapped up the abbreviated 2016 race schedule at the fairgrounds facility. Although temps dipped below 50 degrees as the final checkers waved just past 11:00, the action stayed hot on the track. A total of 17 heat races and four B mains set the starting field for the six feature events, which began after a brief intermission. First up, 16 of the 17 hobby stocks took the green for 15 laps. One of several double duty drivers, Mike Hughes took off from the outside pole position. He was never seriously challenged in leading the distance. Meanwhile, Dustin Griffiths won a spirited battle for the runner up spot over Clint Nelson. The sport mods turned out a whopping 40 cars, and 24 of them came to the track for their 20 lap finale. Local favorite Brandon Dale grabbed the lead on the opening lap, but soon had Curtis Vanderwal applying pressure. On lap seven, Curtis grabbed the top spot, and began to stretch his advantage. Two laps later Tim Plummer pulled ahead after a duel with Austin Powell and began to stalk Dale. As the laps wound down, Dale began to fade, with Plummer and Powell taking up the chase of Vanderwal. The lone caution period came as the white flag waved, setting up a green, white, checkers finish. Although it wiped out a commanding lead, Vanderwal picked up the win, with Plummer, Powell, and Jim Gillenwater rounding out the top four. Although Curt Marks of Dubuque, Iowa Moving and Storage came on mid week as a sponsor to bump the late model winners check to $1,000, a disappointing total of nine Lee County and IMCA late models signed in, including Marks himself. Marks and Tommy Elston started in row one for the 25 lapper, but third starting Todd Frank looped his # 21 in the first set of turns. Sam Halstead was piloting the Lynn Richard # 26, and he was forced to take evasive action, smacking the guardrail. Although he was able to drive away, he retired to the pits while Frank restarted on the tail. Back under green, Elston jumped to a big lead and was soon lapping cars. Soon his lead was 1/2 lap, and with the race now going green to the checkers, Elston lapped all but the second place finisher, Derek Liles! Gunner Frank turned in a third place finish, with Pat Gordin and Charles Vanzandt completing the top five. All 23 stock cars lined up for 20 laps, with Kurt Kinsley leading the first circuit. The caution waved as lap two was completing, as Jeff Mueller had mechanical problems in turn four, spinning his ride, then retiring to the pits. As racing resumed, Cayden Carter took over the lead, with Johnny Spaw powering to third. Lap four saw Spaw in second, with John Oliver Jr began a charge to the front from a mid pack starting spot. Oliver nabbed second on lap six, and double duty Hughes took over fourth. The yellow waved on lap seven, and following the restart, Spaw spun out of turn two sparking a five car pile up. Going green again, Hughes took second, setting up a three car scrum along with Cater and Oliver. All three leaders ran the high line until the 14th circuit, when Hughes moved to the low side as he looked for the lead. Meanwhile, Carter began entering the turns on the low side, then sliding up to the middle line on exit. One more yellow cam on lap 16, but Carter was up to the challenge. He took the win over Hughes, while Nathan Wood slipped past Oliver for third. Tom Bowling Jr. completed the top five. A dozen sport compacts checked in, and it was Kimberly Abbott with the hot hand. She jumped to the first lap lead from row two. Soon it was Brandon Reu moving to her rear bumper, and lap after lap the two ran inches apart. But Abbott never gave up the top spot, taking the 15 lap win. Reu settled for second, with Darin Smith in third. The final race of the night, weekend, and season saw the 30 modifieds whittled down to 24 starters for 25 laps. It was Cayden Carter pacing the opening circuit before a lap two caution. Michael Long had taken the green in row nine after a rare spinout in his heat relegated him to the second B main, which he won handily. With racing back underway, Long shot to fourth on lap two. It was lap seven when Long won a hard fought duel with Zack Vanderbeek to take over third. Three more trips past the flagstand saw the 18L in second, and now the leaders were in slower traffic. On lap 16, Carter and Long swapped slide jobs in turn four, but as the two entered turn one on the 17th go around, Long took over the lead. From there he stretched his lead, and with no more caution periods, Michael farly cruised to the win. Carter completed a good night in second, with Vanderbeek in third. Dakota Hayden stayed in the mix to take fourth, and veteran Bruce Hanford edged out Kurt Kile and Kelly Shryock for fifth. Promoter Mike Vangenderen and crew do an outstanding job of creating a great racing surface on a track that is used only a handful of times during the season, and Saturday night was a perfect example. With the season quickly winding down, I am hoping for one more race night, next Saturdays Shiverfest event at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa. If you have never attended Shiverfest, I do recommend it, and if you are coming, do so early, as many of the well over 100 cars come to the front stretch about 4:30 for trick or treating for the kids, and it is a good opportunity to see many of the cars and drivers up close before the night of racing. See you there?!?

Gustin Doubles Up at Donnellson

Although I was on hand for both nights of action at the Fall Extravaganza at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, I must confess that I spent too much time visiting and not enough time note taking, so this column will be too short on details. But I will say that it was two amazing nights of racing even though other commitments caused me to leave early both nights. On Friday night, grandson Peyton joined me, as nearly 160 cars signed in for the action. With the added completion of the IMCA sport mod feature which was rained out with four laps in the books on August 19, 32 races were on the docket for Friday. Jim Gillenwater was the leader when that race was halted, and when action resumed, he was basically unchallenged in picking up the win. Following that, 19 heat races and four B mains events set the field for the seven regular feature races, with a micro mod/mod lite combo class a late addition to the program. Josh May was a runaway winner in the 12 car division to start off feature racing. Next up was the Lee County late model 25 lap finale. In an attempt to boost the car count, and in a continuing pledge to even the playing field, IMCA late model legal cars were allowed to run with no restrictions other than running their approved IMCA tire. Earlier attempts to blend in the spec engine cars with various restrictions had shown the IMCA guys to be at a disadvantage, however the cars were much more even this time around. A nice group of 17 cars checked in to challenge for the $1,000 top prize, and with the " silly season " in full swing," there were some driver changes throughout the weekend. Richie Gustin, who was on hand for the first night of late models in his own #19G, was behind the wheel of the Justin Kay # 15K. In a preview if 2017, Jeremiah Hurst abandoned his familiar #41 to pilot the Roberts Racing #58, replacing the now retired Ray Guss Jr. And Jay Chenoweth was driving the # 6D Doug Nigh machine. Luke Merfeld made the trip down from Dubuque, Iowa to capture the first heat win in his IMCA #21M, and he jumped to the lead over heat two winner Chad Holladay in his IMCA #32C. On the fifth lap, Merfeld suddenly veered into the turn three guardrail, ending his run with an obviously broken race car. On the Delaware restart, third running Gustin shot to the lead ahead of Holliday, track champion Tommy Elston, and Hurst. The next caution came on lap 13, as rookie late model driver Blake Woodruff # W30 nailed the turn one guardrail. But nothing would deter Gustion, who used strong speed off the corners to pick up the win. Holladay ran second ahead of Elston, Hurst, and LCS regular Todd Frank. The second five saw Sam Halstead leading the pack over second generation driver, the vastly improved Gunner Frank, Chenoweth, Charles Vanzandt and Lynn Richard in his second night back from retirement. IMCA stock car racing is always second to none at Lee County, and Friday did not disappoint. 24 cars took the green flag, and although young Cayden Carter took the win from row one, it was far from a cake walk. Mike Hughes is one of the top stock car pilots in the state of Iowa, smooth and fast, and he stalked Carter for 20 laps. The win came down to a drag race off turn four, with Hughes coming up just short at the checkers. Track champion Jeff Mueller was setting in third looking for an opening that never came. John Oliver Jr and Kirk Kinsley completed the top five. Although the show moved along nicely with only a few breaks for track prep as the crew tried to keep the tacky surface as wide as possible, it was now on the wrong side of 11:00, and Peyton and I had an early morning commitment at church, so we regretfully packed up and head for the car. We had seen 27 races, with four features still to go! Justin Lichty topped the hobby stocks, Josh Barnes edged Kimberly Abbott in the sport compacts, Michael Long topped Gustin, who competed in three classes, in the modifieds, and Jared Boumeester captured the sport mod finale. For more on these features, check out Jeff Broegs Backstretch column. For those who are wondering, my unofficial report was that the UMP modifieds of Long and David Weitholder had to add a chip to their engines to run with the mods, as UMP and USRA cars were invited to participate. Saturday nigh the action started two hours earlier, with hot laps at 5:00. I counted something close to 139 cars for night two, with temperatures about 20 degrees warmer than Friday! Only eleven micro mod\mod lites checked in, with their 15 lap main event running ahead of the IMCA mod B-mains. Again it was May with the easy win, as he swept the weekend. The late models were up next, with the car count down to 13. The only newcomer was Quad City racer Chuck Hanna in his sharp red #65. After damaging his ride on Friday, Blake Woodruff climbed in Brian Woodruffs # 1, and Brain Harris came out of retirement to pilot the #26 Richard machine. This car was one the Harris had driven for Richard, and apparently had been sold then bought back by Lynn. Richie Gustin had picked up the second hit win, drew the outside pole position for the feature, and took off from there. While Gunner Frank ducked to the infield on the parade lap, the first caution came on lap five. Harris had been challenging for the lead when he spun off of turn two, collecting Holladay. The night was over for Chad, while Harris rejoined the field at the tail. On the restart, Elston grabbed the runner up spot, and it quickly became a two car race. Elston on several occasions grabbed the lead coming off turn two, but Gustin had too much speed down the straightaway. The race stayed green for the rest of the 25 laps, with Gustin completing the weekend sweep. Elston added a second place run to his third on Friday, with Halstead out racing Hurst for third. Jeff Guengerich recovered for a DNF on Friday to take fifth. Hanna finished sixth in his first visit to LCS ahead of Harris, Todd Frank, Chenoweth, Woodruff, and rookie Pat Gordin. It would not be an overstatement to say that the IMCA stock car feature was the best race I have seen in 47 nights of racing in 2016. John Oliver Jr and Mike Hughes had been locked in a ferocious battle two weeks prior at Memphis,Mo. that ended with the tow drivers bringing out a caution sending both to the back. But on this night, no such bad luck occurred. The two veteran battled back and forth, swapping the lead, swapping grooves when needed, and trading paint more than once. Oliver preferred the low line, as did Hughes, but both used the high side as needed. As those two battled it out, there were at least four other cars within striking distance looking for racing room. With the crowd roaring, Oliver took the win, and he was more than excited to say the least. Hughes settled for second for the second night in a row. Johnny Spaw picked his way to third, while Cayden Carter, who actually had the lead briefly, came home fourth ahead of David Brandies and Jeff Mueller. Dustin Griffiths captured the hobby stock main event, besting an eight car field. Logan Anderson was more than excited with his win in the sport mod class, nosing up against the front stretch guardrail to treat the crowd to a dirt track burnout after holding off Oliver Jr. and Brayton Carter. Barry Taft powered his way to the win in the sport compact division. With four laps remaining, during a caution period, sprinkles began to fall. Even though it was only a little past nine, the combination of possible rain and a short night on Friday sent me towards the car. Checking the results, I see Kyle Brown topped Long for the modified win, wrapping up a great two days of racing. Next weekend, action resumes with tow complete shows at the Scotland County Fairgrounds in Memphis,Mo. Five classes will do battle on Friday, with the late models added on Saturday. Then in two weeks, the final race in Iowa for 2016 will be Shiverfest back at the Lee County Speedway on Saturday, October 29. I hope to make both Saturday shows, and I hope to see you there!

Elston Leads the Way at Memphis

Lets try this again, since last nights entry apparently wandered off in cyberspace. Saturday night I joined son Brent and his family for night number two of the Heavy Bottom Nationals at the Scotland County Speedway in Memphis,Mo. Although a light mist fell early in the evening, promoter Mike VanGenderen kept wheels on the track, and the delay, if any, was minimal. Then the 115 cars in the six classes proceeded to stage 14 heat races without one caution flag on the smooth, fast, well prepared surface. The passing points format made for plenty of action in the heats, although using a pill draw to set an invert for the features seemed a bit counter productive. The sport mods were the only class needing to eliminate cars from the feature grid with 31 entrants. So a pair of B-mains saw the yellow flag displayed only one time! A brief ten minute intermission followed, and then it was time to go feature racing. The sport compacts were up first, 13 cars for 14 laps, as Josh Barnes was unable to take his front row spot after losing an engine at the end of his heat race. Second half sensation Barry Taft jumped to the lead as the green flag waved, and it soon became a two car race as Brandon Reu stayed glued to Tafts bumper. Darin Smith joined the leaders as the laps clicked off quickly. The only caution of the race came as Taft got into the slower car of Jeffrey Delonjay as the white flag was displayed. But Taft stayed on the gas, and retained his spot at the front as the pack lined up Delaware style for a green, white, checkers restart. But no one had anything for Taft, as he led flag to flag for the win. Reu crossed the line in second, while Ron Kibbe got around Smith for third. Next up was the 20 lap stock car main event, with all but one of the 23 race teams taking the green. The caution waved for a four car pileup in turns one and two on the opening lap. When racing resumed, John Oliver Jr shot to the lead with row two starter Mike Hughes in second, and Jason Cook, Jim Mueller, and David Brandies in the top five. On the third lap, Cook moved to second, and Cayden Carter entered the top five. Oliver and Cook ran the inside line, while Hughes worked the high side. The caution waved on lap seven for Brandies, who restarted at the tail. On the restart, Hughes retook second, and went to the lower groove. Carter took third on the high side, but quickly fell back to fourth. The leaders all ran low until Hughes again jumped up top on lap 12. Lap 15 saw Hughes and Cook side by side, and when Hughes fended off the # 27, he again went to the low side. On lap 17, Hughes was able to get under Oliver and take the lead, and when Oliver tried to return the favor in turns three in four on the 18th circuit, contact between the two sent Hughes spinning. Both cars were sent to the tail, turning the lead over to Cook. With time running out, Carter took to the high side , and as the leaders came to the checkers, Cook moved up to block. Running on the bottom, Mueller nearly stole the win, but it was Cook at the line, edging Mueller and Carter. A nice field of 14 Lee County late models signed in, with heat winners Tommy Elston and Jeff Guengerich on the front row. Elston jumped to a big lead before the yellow waved on lap three, when Brandon Ruffcorn spun his #11R, collecting the teenage lady racer Tegan Evans, ending her run. Back under green, Sam Halstead grabbed second on the Delaware restart, but Elston again opened a commanding lead. About lap nine, Elston was attempting to lap the damaged Ruffcorn machine, and he made contact with the nose of his #45 machine. Fortunately for Tommy, he sustained no visible damage and kept his ride going forward. Elston then cruised to his ninth win of 2016, followed by Halstead, Guengerich, Derek Liles, and newcomer John Vandenberg in a sharp looking # 7M. The modified feature was up next, but with three races to go, my ride was heading for home. It had been too long since my last visit to Memphis, and despite the few shortcomings such as not being able to see the flagman, it is always a fun time at the historic fairgrounds. There is still plenty of racing in this month of October, so take advantage and head to the track while the good weather holds. I will be at Quincy Raceways this Sunday for their season finale. Where else, I am not sure.

Racing Home and Away

Saturday afternoon, Darryl, Fred and I loaded up and headed for night number three of Mod Mania at Tri City Speedway in Granite City,Il. Over the past twelve years, this has become a premier event in the Midwest, and the Saturday  finale drew a whopping 74 UMP modifieds and 38 UMP late models, with the mods racing for a $5,000 top prize and the late models vying for a $3,000 check. Amazingly Saturday was not even the highest car counts, as the mods had 80 cars sign in on Friday, while the late models saw 43 teams on Thursday, with all three nights stand alone shows with increasing purses.
 Bobby Pierce was looking for a three night sweep as he paced qualifying for the lates with a lap of 15.094 seconds around the 3/8 mile, while Chad Kinder led the mods with a lap of 16.312. Following eight mod  heats, only the winners were qualified for the position dash and the 40 lap feature. A pair of C-mains and two B- mains rounded out the A- main lineup. For the late models, it was four ten lap heats and two twelve lap B-mains, plus a pair of provisionals setting the 22 car 30 lap finale.
 The mod heat winners drew for their starting spots in the dash, with Trent Young and Mike Harrison setting on row one. On the opening lap, UMP national point leader Michael Long made it three wide in turn three, and he came out on the short end with a flat tire. Young took the win followed by Harrison. 
 In the first mod B-main, Jeremy Payne spun while running in a transfer position, and Shannon Babb claimed the final spot in B-main two coming out of turn four to the checkers.
 In the first late model B. Jeff Herzog was shuffled out of a transfer spot following a caution, and in the second twelve lapper, Kolby Vandenbergh had the same problem, however he was able to rebound to claim a spot.
  As the modified main took the green, Harrison pounded the turn two wall, falling back several spots. However, the caution waved for debris, and the 24H was able to restart outside row one. Back to racing, Young paced the opening lap with Lucas Lee in second. After babying his ride for a few laps, Harrison jumped to the high line, overtaking Lee on lap six, and Young one lap later. As he stretched his lead, Long entered the top five before a lap eight caution. on the Delaware restart, Long moved to fourth, but all eyes were on Babb, who was flying through the field. By the mid point, Long began to fade, and traffic became an issue on lap 25. The caution waved again on lap 28, and Babb, now seventh after starting 21st, looped his ride, and retired to the pits. On lap 30, fifth running Nick Hoffman smacked the turn four wall., ending his charge. It was now local favorite Josh Russell on the move. He had started alongside Babb, and was flirting with the top five following a lap 36 restart.  But the race belonged to Harrison, who celebrated his birthday with his second win of the three night show, closing within three points of Long in the national title chase. Lee took the second spot, followed by Young, who is third in national points, Kenny Wallace, Brent Mullins, and Russell.
 The modifieds move on to Eldora next weekend to settle the championship, with a $20,000 top prize on the line.
  Next up was a  ten lap non qualifiers event won by Steve Mulenberg, leaving only the late model feature to go.
  The late models started straight up, with heat winners Jason Feger and Tanner English in row one, with double duty Babb and Pierce in row two. Feger paced the opening lap, but Babb was making a move when the yellow waved. Shannon elected for the outside line on the restart, but Pierce used the low line to grab the second position. Pierce stayed on the inside line, with Feger one groove higher. Pierce was ahead slightly as lap four was scored, but the front pair continued to run side by side lap after lap. Feger was out front at lap seven, and it was Pierce again on lap eight. With slower traffic coming into play on lap ten, Pierce began to build a lead. Meanwhile Feger worked the barlet there cushion, making contact with the concrete wall, damaging his rear spoiler. By the 16th circuit, Frank Heckenast Jr. was putting pressure on Feger for second. By now, the leaders were all running the low line, and after Heckenast took second, Babb found a way around Feger on lap 27. At the checkers, it was Pierce sweeping the weekend, followed by Heckenast, Babb, Feger, and Jim Shereck.
 Although the show moved right along, it was past the midnight hour when the checkers waved, and this old head hit the pillow just after 03:00!
 A bit more than twelve hours later, I was pulling into Quincy Raceways for championship night. Abe Huls had already wrapped up the IMCA stock car title, and Denny Woodworth was well on his way to the UMP late model title despite not winning a feature all season. With Michael Long absent, Dave Weitholder had his first UMP modified title in hand, and when only five IMCA sport mods checked in, Kimberly Abbott had another championship. But the IMCA sport mod title was wide open, however it would be the final race of the night before that would be decided.
  The night began with qualifying, and McKay Wenger with a now smaller cast on his broken arm, set quick time for the late models at 13.543 seconds. Weitholder paced the mods at 15.132 ticks of the clock. Following heat race action, Rudy Zaragoza jumped to a big lead, with Dean Kratzer grabbing second on lap two. Soon a three car battle for second developed , with Huls taking the spot on lap six. A lap eleven yellow saw Huls challenge for the lead before looping his ride. Back under green, Brian Hoener and Michael Larsen took up the chase, but no one could catch Zaragoza, who picked up his first win of 2016. Larsen took the runnerup honors ahead of Hoener, Kratzer and Huls.
 First heat winner Wenger sat on the pole for the late model 25 lapper. To his outside was Michigan driver Eric Spangler making his first ever visit to QR , as he looked for national points in his # 27.
McKay jumped to the lead running the low line. On lap nine, Wenger made contact with a slower car, bringing out the caution, however he kept going and was restarted out front. As the green waved, Mark Burgtorf jumped to the high line, moving to second. Meanwhile, Alan Westling in the Jim Moon backup car charged from his row four starting spot to third on lap twelve, and even edged ahead of Burgtorf on lap 14 running the low line. Lap 20 saw Burgtorf regain second and he was closing on the leader when the caution came out just as the white flag was about to be displayed. It was now a green, white checkers finish, and again it was Wenger and Westling running the low line and Burgtorf up top. As the leaders came to the checkers, Wenger moved to block the on coming Burgtorf, earning his third win of 2016 at QR, gaining enough points to move into second in the national title chase. Burgtorf crossed the line in second, with Westling in a QR career best third. Spangler came home fourth, with Clint Kirkham fifth in the Vanzandt # 21V. Woodworth wrapped up the track title in sixth ahead of Trace Westling, Terry Wilson, Trent Grotz, and Charles Vanzandt.
 Darin Weisinger Jr. led the early laps in the sport compact 15 lapper, but Brandon Lambert took over the top spot, racing to the win. But he fell short in the title chase to Abbott, who took the checkers in second ahead of Weisinger Jr. and Darin Weisinger Sr.
 Weitholder sat on the pole of the modified main, and he soon opened a commanding lead. Shaun Deering and Frankie Wellman staged an entertaining duel for second as Weitholder  soon led by a straightaway. The race ran caution free, with Wellman winning the battle for second over Deering, Gary Bentley, Joey Gower, and first time visitor Dugan Thye.
  A solid field of 17 sport mods took the green flag for 18 laps of action. Nathan Bringer held a slim point lead over second half sensation Brandon Lennox. Justin Bartz led lap one, with a caution waving on lap two. Justin Ebbing grabbed the lead following the restart, with Austen Becerra taking second on the fifth circuit. Bringer nabbed fourth on lap 8 as traffic came in to play. Lennox entered the top five on lap eleven. One circuit later, Lennox moved to fourth and Bringer fell to sixth. Following another restart, Lennox took third, but Tony Dunker was on the move on the high side. Lennox lost one spot, as Bringer was shuffled back mid pack. Again the caution flew as the white was ready to be shown, creating another green, with checkers finish. It was Dunker moving to the front and picking up the win, with Ebbing in the runnerup position. Todd Reed scored a third, Becerra ran fourth, and the fifth place run for Lennox secured the track title for Bringer.
  Promoter Ken Dobson has announced one more race night at Quincy, Sunday, October 9, running in conjunction with a Saturday night show at Jacksonville,Il Speedway. as of now, classes running are late models, modifieds, sport mods and stock cars. There is still plenty of racing to be had, and the weather forecast will help us decide where we will land this weekend.

Schlenk On Top at Quincy

 Quincy Raceways enjoyed a near perfect night weather wise on Sunday, the next to final night of weekly racing. A solid field of 65 race teams signed in, led by 21 UMP modifieds and 15 UMP late models, with both classes seeing some out of town drivers in search of national points. Noticeably absent was modified national point leader Michael Long, who suffered extensive damage to his # 18L on Saturday night in Peoria,Il.
 Modified qualifying was paced by Kevin Blackburn with a lap of 15.235 seconds, while Rickey Frankel topped the late models at 14.365 ticks of the clock.
  Following heat race action, the first feature was for the ten IMCA stock cars. Rudy Zaragoza jumped out to a big lead before a lap eight caution. On the restart, point leader Abe Huls grabbed the lead ahead of a lap nine yellow for heat one winner and fourth running Jerry Jansen. On the restart, Huls was deemed to have tried to decoy the field with a " jack rabbit " start, and he was penalized one position, putting Zaragoza back out front. Back to racing, Michael Larsen used the high line to move to third. Five laps from the end of the 18 lapper, Zaragoza pushed just a bit up from his low line, and Huls was able to regain the lead. It was now a four car battle, with Abe and Brian Hoener running the bottom, Zaragoza and Larsen up top. Rudy switched lines, looking to find a way by Huls, but to no avail. At the checkers, it was Huls, Zaragoza, Larsen, and Hoener.
  The late model 25 lapper was up next. The four car invert put point leader Denny Woodworth and Justin Reed on row one, with heat winners Rusty Schlenk and Frankel in row two. Reed jumped to the lead, followed by Woodworth, Frankel, Schlenk, and Mark Burgtorf. On lap eleven, Schlenk cleared Frankel for third, now Reed and Schlenk ran the high line, with Woodworth hugging the bottom groove. Denny then found his way to the lead in traffic on lap 19, and the first yellow waved one lap later for Jamie Wilson. By now, McKay Wenger, who failed to qualify when he broke a break caliper  and started in row seven, had charged to fifth. At the same time, Dewayne Kiefer, who cracked an oil cooler in hot laps and also started last, had advanced to seventh. On the Delaware restart, Reed elected the outside line , forcing Schlenk to the inside. However the caution waved for Terry Wilson before a lap was scored, and this time, Reed took the inside line. Still Schlenk grabbed the second spot on the restart, and on lap 21 the Jackson, Michigan traveler grabbed the lead. At the same time, Reed headed to the trailer, and Wenger moved to third. Schlenk kept his # 91 out front for his first QR win of the season, with Woodworth in second. Frankel got back around Wenger for third. and Kiefer finished off his strong run in fifth. Clint Kirkham wowed everyone by running sixth with the Lee County rules crate engine Vanzandt # 21V, ahead of Burgtorf, Jamie Wilson, Trace Westling, and Terry Wilson.
  The IMCA sport compact class turned out only six cars. Darin Weisinger Jr paced lap one, giving way to Brandon Lambert. along with point leader Kimberly Abbott, and Craig Bangert, a four car battle soon developed. Abbott moved to second on lap four, and grabbed the top spot one lap later. As the sixth lap was scored, Bangert was second, and the front two pulled away, running side by side. At the checkers, Kimberly prevailed for the win over Bangert. Lambert edged Weisinger by a bumper for third.
  Robards, Kentucky pilot David Mitchell was unable to make the feature call, leaving 20 UMP modifieds to take the green. Wentzville,Mo. ace Rick Conoyer jumped to the front from his pole position start, with Dave Weitholder in second. The first yellow came on lap two. Back to racing, the front two were joined by Blackburn in a three car battle, with Weitholder putting pressure on the leader on lap six. Conoyer was riding the middle and high lines, while Weitholder moved between the low and middle lines looking for a way to the front. Traffic came into play by lap ten, when the caution waved. Back to racing, action on the backstretch saw Weitholder spinning and Blackburn into his rear quarter. I cannot say for sure what happened, but both cars were sent to the tail. Ray Bollinger also stopped to avoid Weitholder, but he was able to keep his spot, and he was now fourth, with Shaun Deering and Crofton,Kentucky hot dog Trent Young restarting behind Conoyer. It was now a three wide battle for second behind Conoyer, with two more cautions on laps 13 and 14. Following the lap 14 restart, a pile up slowed the action, with Blackburn heading to the trailer. Back under green, Deering secured the runnerup spot, as Conoyer opened up a lead. As  the checkers flew, Conoyer had his second QR win of the season, followed by Deering, Bollinger, and Young. Weitholder recovered to take fifth, and unofficially took over the point lead with one night of racing remaining.
  It was now time to head to the car, and I had to miss Tony Dunker grabbing a win in the 18 lap IMCA sport mod finale, over Austin Howes, Kevin Tomlinson, and Brandon Lennox.
  There is still plenty of racing ahead as the season winds down, so get to the track somewhere and maybe the Positively Racing crew will see you there!

Marlar Dominates at Knoxville

 Saturday Keagan and I headed for Knoxville, Iowa for the final night of the Lucas Oil Late Model Nationals. A total of 69 race teams had participated in one or both of the two qualifying nights, taking their best nights finish to determine their starting spot for the big show. Time trial qualifying plays a big part in the preliminary nights, which are a part of full shows culminating with $7,000 to win feature races. Nine drivers were absent for the final night, leaving us with 60 cars to compete in a C main, B main, and the 100 lap finale.
 The evening began with a 19 car 15 lap C main on the big fairgrounds half mile oval, with national hot shoe Morgan Bagley and Iowa standout Joel Callahan on row one. Five cars were set to transfer to the B-main event. Bagley took the early lead on the tacky fast surface, taking row two starter Rob Toland along. Just after the half way mark, Toland slowed, with heavy smoke pouring from his # 39, ending his second place run. During the caution, another local Iowa racer, Nick Marolf, also forfeited a transfer spot as he headed to the trailer. With Bagley firmly in control, the caution came out once more for a slowing Justin Duty, setting up a one lap dash to the finish. Bagley held on for the win over former Iowan Matt Furman, Mason Ziegler, Ray Guss Jr., and Rich Bell in the transfer positions. Lucas Oil rookie of the year contender Colten Flinner tagged the tail of the race, taking a few laps, as he was locked into the A main with a series provisional.
 Next came the 20 lap B main, with six cars headed to the tail of the A main along with Flinner and a highest point not in the show provisional. Gregg Satterlee took off from the pole, fairly cruising to the win. The real battle came for the final transfer spot. with Jason Rauen edging Frank Heckenast Jr and R C Whitwell for sixth. In between, Chad Simpson took second followed by Chad Mahder, Tim Lance, and Kent Robinson. Spencer Diercks received the second provisional spot.
  I am sure the folks at home watching the live telecast of this event gleaned some interesting info from the talking heads, but it just feels like unnecessary down time sitting in the grandstands. Interestingly, series officials did decide to run all 32 A main cars through a pre race check of rear deck height, and apparently several cars did not pass. They were allowed to return to the trailer to make adjustments.
 Finally it was race time, with Josh Richards, who scored a Friday night sweep, and Jimmy Owens on row one. Owens took the early lead ahead of Richards and third starting Dale McDowell. The leaders hit slower traffic by lap eight, and three circuits later, Richards grabbed the top spot. Following a lap 14 caution, McDowell moved to second on the Delaware restart, with Owens falling back a bit. About lap 18, Tennessee driver Mike Marlar, who started fourth, wheeled his yellow # 157 to third using the high line around the speedway. On the next trip around, Marlar grabbed the second position. Lap 23 saw traffic come into play again, and with Marlar closing, Richards was forced to move up the track to negotiate the lapped cars. The move benefitted Richards, as he increased his lead running the higher line. Two more yellow periods came before lap 30. with Marlar briefly taking the lead down the backstretch. With 70 laps to go, sixth running Shannon Babb came to a stop with a flat tire. Back to green, McDowell retook third, and Billy Moyer, in his final night at Knoxville ahead of retirement, advanced to fifth. Five laps later, Moyer grabbed fourth, and Texas teenager Tyler Erb, who started in row nine, powered to sixth. Lap 38 saw Richards trapped behind a pair of lapped cars running for position, and Marlar blasted to the lead. Chase Junghans brought outa caution on lap 45 as he lost a wheel in turn four, and Chris Simpson went to the work area giving up a top ten spot. A three car battle for second developed back under green, with McDowell slipping around Richards, as Owens rejoined the fray. But just as he moved into contention, the engine appeared to let go on his # 20. Richards powered back to second, and now Scott Bloomquist, advanced to fourth, running around the bottom of the track. Just past the halfway mark, Richards was challenging Marlar, but Tyler erb slowed in turn two, with the yellow flying. Back under green, Bloomquist moved to second, and eighth running Brandon Sheppard entered the top five. Marlar continued to drive the high line, with Bloomquist on the bottom, as McDowell faded to tenth. on a lap 59 yellow, McDowell retired to his pit. The restart saw Bloomer move in to challenge for the lead. Meanwhile, tenth starting Bobby Pierce, who had been lurking outside the top five before falling to 13th, reentered the top five. Following a lap 63 caution, Pierce, the World 100 winner, took fourth. But he smacked the turn four wall on lap 67, damaging his spoiler, losing several positions. Marlar had built a nice lead before Bloomquist started his push with 25 to go. A caution at this point was followed by Sheppard moving to fourth, soon losing to spot to a now surging Pierce. On lap 84, Sheppards top five run ended, and back under green, the two leaders ran side by side. But four circuits later, Richards powered around Bloomer to second, with Marlar well out front. With four laps to go, Richards bad Knoxville luck reared its ugly head, as he ducked to the pits. But there was no catching Marlar, who added his name to the list of prestigious Knoxville winners on this 13 edition of the late model nats. Bloomquist, apparently running with no power steering, came up one spot short of his third nationals win. Pierce crossed the line in third. Moyer suddenly slowed with less than two laps to go, holding on for fifth as Shane Clanton took fourth as the pair exited turn four coming to the checkers. Jimmy Mars came home sixth, ahead of Tim McCreadie, Florida driver Kyle Bronson, Dennis Erb Jr., and Darrell Lanigan. By my count, 13 cars were still running at the checkers. with Don Oneal, Mahder, and Lance rounding out the finishers.
  The final checkers fell around 10:00 on what turned out to be a nearly perfect evening, weather wise. Although it was a relatively large margin of victory for Marlar, there was plenty of great racing, as this show never disaapoints, and has been on my " can't miss " list for 13 years.
  Tonight, it will be back to Quincy Raceways for the next to last night of weekly racing for 2016. I am expecting some extra cars in the UMP late model and modified classes, as the points season winds down. Hope to see you there!

Burgtorf Bags the Big Check at Quincy

 A solid field of 75 cars came through the pit gate Sunday night at Quincy Raceways, led by 22 UMP modifieds and 20 UMP late models. With the IMCA Super Nationals wrapping up on Saturday, points in the three IMCA classes cannot be awarded, so track promoters opened up the rules to allow URSA B-mods to run with the sport mods and UMP street stocks to compete with the stock cars. Several of the regular sport mod drivers took the night off, and the count in the three support classes was eleven in each.
 Heavy rains during the latter portion of the week created a somewhat rough racing surface for the heat races, but grading during intermission left us with a lightning fast .29 mile oval come feature time.
  All but one of the stock cars took the feature green flag, With Michael Larsen winning the drag race into turn one. With no points being given, Brian Hoener turned over driving duties in his # 66 to former track champion Aaron Brocksieck. Even though Aaron has not been a regular competitor for several seasons, he picked up where he had left off, winning his heat race and starting alongside Larsen in the front row. Brocksieck grabbed the top spot before lap one was scored, and before Jake Powers brought out the caution on lap two. Back under green, Brocksieck was hugging the inside line, although Larsen was looking for racing room inside the # 66. As the leaders dueled, Rudy Zaragoza joined the hunt running a higher line. On lap eight, first time visitor Mike Hardwick in one of the three Jacksonville, Il team 67 cars wound up on his side with Dean Kratzer pointing skyward atop the Hardwick car. An engine fire in Kratzers car added to the drama, but both drivers were uninjured, and soon we were back under green. Zaragoza took over the runner up spot, and laps 11 - 13 saw the leaders running side by side. On lap 14 Brocksieck opened a bit of a cushion, and Larsen tried to get underneath Zaragoza, who slid sideways trying to hold the spot. Point leader Abe Huls took advantage of the mix up to move into the runnerup spot, but this night belonged to Brocksieck. Zaragoza recovered to take third, followed by Brandon Savage and Jerry Jansen.
  The UMP Big Ten late model $2,000 to win headliner was up next. Dewayne Kiefer was unable to make the call after running third in his heat, so 19 cars came to the track. Dustin Griffin had set quick time at 13.513 seconds, and outdueled Rickey Frankel in heat one. For Frankel it was his third race and first at Quincy since the hauler crash early in the year that had sidelined him with a shoulder injury. Mark Burgtorf had bested track point leader Denny Woodworth in heat two, while traveler Kevin Weaver, chasing UMP points, topped Jason Perry in the third ten lapper. The top six were then inverted for the 25 lap feature, putting Perry and Woodworth on the front row. It took three tries to get one lap in, as first Bo Brockway, the two time winner McKay Wenger had issues that brought out the caution and sent them to the back of the grid. When racing finally got under way, Perry jumped to the lead taking Weaver along as Woodworth was shuffled back. By lap six Perry was encountering slower traffic, and appeared to make contact with Mike Hammerle, sending the veteran spinning, and bringing out the caution. Back to racing, Burgtorf advanced to fourth, and two laps later he moved to third. The 14th circuit saw Brockway slow as his ride bellowed smoke bringing out another yellow. Under green, Frankel lost several spots, and the yellow flew again on lap 17 for debris. On each Delaware restart, Wever had chosen the inside, leaving the top line to Burgtorf, and on the lap 17 restart, the 16 time track champion took over the second spot. However Griffin lost the handle, in turn three, collecting Chuck Mitchell before the lap was scored. Back under green, Burgtorf again had the runner up spot. Lap 18 saw another caution, as Vance Wilson, subbing in brother Terrys car in the feature, made contact with the front stretch wall. Woodworth was forced to the hot pit with a flat, rejoining the back of the pack. As the green waved, Weaver retook second, and on lap 21 Frankel headed to the infield with rear end problems. Lap 22 saw Shaun Deering, making his late model debut subbing for injured Cliff Powell, slow on the front stretch as the caution waved again. With three circuits to go, a melee occurred on the backstretch as Perry got out of shape, contacting Weaver as he tried to make the pass. Burgtorf was able to fly by, but Weaver did a pair of 360 degree spins in front of the pack. Brian Diveley was actually the only car stopping on the track, and with the caution out, track officials were obviously befuddled with what to do. The cars circled the oval for several alps, and a couple drivers stopped I presume to offer " suggestions." Finally it was decided that all cars would get there spot back as they were scored on the previous lap. Honestly, I am not sure what my call would have been, so I will give officials a pass on this one. With three laps remaining, Burgtorf charged around Perry, to pick up his second win of the season. Perry held off Weaver for second, Wenger came back to score a fourth place finish ahead of Justin Reed. Diveley led the second five, topping Derek Fetter, Woodworth, Wilson, and Clint Kirkham, who caught a ride in the Laine Vanzandt # 21V.
  Next up was the sport compact feature, with eleven starters. Jeffrey Delonjay and point leader Kimberly Abbott sat on row one, with Delonjay taking the early lead. On lap four, as Alyssa Steele entered turn one, the throttle stuck on her # 55s, causing a multi car scrum. Brandon Lambert took a roll in his # 14L, while Steele hammered the guard rail separating the track from the turn two pit area. With a long delay in the works and the clock nearing 9:30, I regretfully took my leave to head across the river. Congrats to Abbott on her win over Craig Bangert and Brandon Herron.
  Another driver chasing UMP points, Ray Bollinger already had one UMP modified feature win under his belt at QR this season, and he knocked Michael Long off his streak of quick qualifying time. But feature time was a different story, as Michael picked up another win followed by Bollinger, and another prior winner, Rick Conoyer.
 The hottest driver at the track not named Long is Brandon Lennox, and he scored another sport mod win ahead of Tony Dunker and Joey Gower.
 QR has two more race nights on the schedule, and following a trip to the Knoxville, Iowa late model nationals, I will hopefully be on hand next Sunday as we count down the 2016 season.

Quincy Raceways Dodges the Rain

 Friday night, a deluge of over two inches of rain caused the creek bordering Quincy Raceways to flood, putting Sunday racing in doubt. But while more showers were in the area Sunday, they missed the race track, and with a lot of hard work, the track and pit area were ready to go.
  A total of 64 race teams signed in, including 16 UMP late models and 17 UMP modifieds.
  Jason Perry paced late model qualifying at 13.609 seconds, while Michael Long led the mods with a fast lap of 14.832 ticks of the clock. Jim Moon was late arriving at the track, missing late model qualifying, while Mark Burgtorf never did get to the track, although  his # 7B was there ready to go.
  The IMCA stock car feature ran first, with nine of the eleven cars taking the green flag. Jerry Jansen paced the first two laps before Dean Kratzer and Jake Powers got hooked together in turn four, ending the night for Kratzer.  Back under green, a blanket would have covered the top four cars, but on lap four first time visitor Travis Johnson, from Springfield,Il. grabbed the lead. Three circuits later, point leader Abe Huls advanced to second, but with no more yellow flags, he could not close the gap to the leader. The best battle on the track was for third, with Brandon Savage and Michael Larsen crossing the line in that order, and Jansen took fifth.
   Clint Kirkham had come from row two to blast past Perry to win the first late model heat on the final lap, but he then needed a push to the pit area and was done for the night. Heat two winner Chuck Mitchell then rolled a four for the 25 lap feature invert, putting visiting Rusty Schlenk from Jackson, Michigan on the pole alongside Perry. Schlenk shot to the lead at the green, Perry got too high on the cushion in turn three, and Mitchell crossed the line in second behind Schlenk. On lap two, Perry cleared Mitchell, and set sail for Schlenk. Slower traffic became a factor on lap seven, with Perry closing on the leader. The first caution came on lap 14 for another first time visitor, Mark Rose, from Dorchester,Wisconsin. On the Delaware restart Mitchell moved back to the runner up spot, but three laps later, it was again Perry in second. Five laps from the checkers disaster struck for Schlenks # 91, as he slowed on the track with possible suspension damage. Dewayne Kiefer and Moon were running in the top six, but contact on the restart brought out the yellow and both cars were sent to the tail. With Perry now out front, one more yellow waved on lap 22, and point leader Denny Woodworth cleared Mitchell for second on the restart. At the checkers it was Perry with his third win of the season followed by Woodworth, Mitchell, Terry Wilson, and Rose. Moon rebounded to sixth ahead of Kiefer, Alan Westling, Trace Westling, and yet another first timer, Bill Kettering Jr. from Pekin,Il.
  The IMCA sort mod feature began with a false start, but they then ran until lap 12 without a caution. Austin Howes jumped to the lead at the green, followed by Tanner Klingele and Mike Goodwin. On lap two, rookie Justin Ebbing grabbed third, with Brandon Lennox moving to fourth. Howes opened a commanding lead over Klingele, who also had a wide margin over Ebbing. Howes entered slower traffic on lap ten before the lap twelve caution. On the restart, Lennox powered to second, with Ebbing shuffled back to sixth. Another caution waved on lap 15, and for the final three circuits, Lennox was on the rear bumper of the leader. But when the checkers flew, it was Howes picking up his second win in a row, followed by Lennox, Joey Gower, Klingele, and Kevin Tomlinson.
  The IMCA sport compact class was short on cars but the action was intense. Second half sensation Craig Bangert, with a new wrap on his # 99B, jumped to the front at the green. Darin Weisinger Jr. set sail in second, but on lap four point leader Kimberly Abbott grabbed the second spot. She then ran down Bangert, and by lap nine they were side by side. Abbott was scored the leader on lap 13, but it was Bangert leading at the white flag. He then held on for the victory, with Abbott, and Weisinger trailing.
  The final race of the night was the UMP modified 20 lapper. Long had pulled a straight up start, setting on the pole with last weeks winner Kevin Blackburn along side. Michael was already building a commanding lead when Spencer Havermale rolled to a stop out of turn two. Back to racing, Blackburn and Dave Weitholder battled for the second spot as Longpulled away. Weitholder claimed the spot on lap five, but the caution waved one lap later. At the half way mark, Long was on cruise control, and he began lapping cars on the eleventh trip around. Blackburn began to fade, as Long picked up the checkers. Weitholder ran second, followed by Shaun Deering, visiting veteran Brian Wolfmeier, and Blackburn. For Long, it was his fourth consecutive night of racing, and he totaled a third and three wins. The victory was his 32nd of the season, 28 counting as full wins, and four coming with a reduced car count, as he continues his march toward a possible national championship.
 Next Sunday the late models will have the night off as the Sprint Invaders will headline the program. Check the track website for support classes.

Pierce and Long Stay Hot at Pevely

 Saturday night was night number two for the UMP/Mars late model challenge weekend, with the action moving to I-55 Raceway in Pevely,Mo. The open late models were running for $5,000 to win, with the UMP modifieds competing for a $1,000 top prize. It was actually the third night in a row for these classes, as the long weekend opened on Thursday with the make up UMP Summernationals event at the Lincoln,Il 1/4 mile facility, followed by Friday Racing at Tri City Speedway in Granite City,Il.
 A solid field of 29 late models and 26 mods checked in at Pevely, supported by 21 B-mods and 17 sportsman cars. Group qualifying saw UMP national point leader Michael Long, the last modified to time set the pace at 14.127 seconds on the high banked 1/3 mile oval, while veteran Billy Moyer turned a lap of 12.731 to best the late models.
  Three heat races for the late models saw Moyer edge Bobby Pierce in heat one, Tony Jackson Jr top Hunter Rasdon in the second ten lapper, and local favorite Jeff Herzog come from row three to fly past Kolby Vandenbergh out of turn four on the final lap of heat three.
 Modified heats went to Mike Harrison, Dean Hoffman, and Long.
 With intermission for a bit of track prep out of the way, the 15 lap sportsman feature was first on the grid. Mark Schafer crossed the line first, but despite repeated attempts, he was light at the scale, giving the win to Patrick Hawkins.
 It was now time for the 40 lap late model headliner. The heat winners in both the late model and modified classes redrew on the front stretch for there starting spot, and the late models lined up with Jackson and Herzog in row one. 20 qualifiers and five provisionals took the green. Bob Gardner, who needed a push to the pits after hot laps, had missed time trials, but came back to qualify through his heat race. He then dropped to the tail of the starting lineup, but wound up running all 40 laps, finishing 13th. Jackson jumped to the lead at the green, taking Moyer along in second. On  the third trip around, Pierce cleared Herzog for third, but it was Shannon Babb on the move, from row four to fourth on lap five. The first caution came on lap six for a spinning Kenny Rumble, and back under green, Pierce used the Delaware restart to claim second. As lap eight was scored, Bobby had taken over the lead, running side by side with Jackson. One lap later, Moyer slipped around Jackson for the runner up spot. Pierce was hooked up on the high line, and Moyer was also running the top, while Jackson chose the low groove. As Pierce stretched his lead, slower traffic came into play on lap 15. Pierce continued to hold a comfortable advantage, with the second yellow coming with 20 laps in the books. Jesse Stovall had advance ten spots to sixth at the halfway point, but he pulled to the pit area during the caution. Back to racing, Babb took over the third spot behind Pierce and Moyer, with Jackson fading outside the top five, and Brandon McCormick roaring from ninth to fourth. The front two began to distance themselves from the pack before Jackson rolled to a stop on lap 24, ending his night. As the green waved, Pierce began to pull away, again catching lapped traffic on lap 32. About this time, Moyer got too high in turn two, bouncing off the concrete wall, and one circuit later under yellow, the veteran retired to the pits. This put Babb now in the runner up spot, but he could not mount a serious challenge, as Pierce added his second win of the weekend, sandwiching a second place finish to Moyer at Tri City. Babb held on to second ahead of seventh starting Wendell Wallace and Will Vaught. Local standout Rusty Griffaw put together an amazing run in the second half of the race, passing car after car to finish fifth after starting 21st as a provisional. McCormick led the second five ahead of Jack Sullivan, Tanner English, Rasdon and Mississippi driver Ashley Newman.
 The track was plenty racey during the late model feature, but it was beginning to look as though it would be a high side track the rest of the night, making the modified redraw more important than one might imagine. Harrison picked up the first Frisbee with a three on the bottom, Hoffman drew the two, putting Long on the pole. Knowing he needed to get to the top of the track, Michael charged to the front at the green, going to the high side, and setting his # 18L inches from the concrete in the turns. Time after time he built a lead, but numerous cautions brought him back to the pack. The mods did not use the Delaware restart, and Hoffman continued to hold off Harrison for second as Long would again build his lead. Around lap 15 of the 25 lapper, Harrison was able to make his low side dive work to secure the second spot, and he kept Long in sight following a lap 21 caution, but Michael was not to be denied his second win of the weekend. Long continued to stretch his advantage over Harrison in the chase for the national point title. On Thursday, it was Kenny Wallace edging Harrison on the final lap at Lincoln, with Long running third. Friday was a win for Long, with Harrison retiring early, credited with 22nd. Michael will try to add another win tonight, Sunday, at Quincy Raceways. Heavy downpours at Quincy on Friday resulted in a flooded pit area from the nearby creek, but as of 10:00 Sunday morning it looks like conditions are good for racing. However it might be a good idea to check the website after the noon update if you are heading this way. Hope to see you there!

Longs Streak Ends, Huls Rolls On

 Some first time winners grabbed the checkers Sunday night at Quincy Raceways, but in the IMCA stock car class, it was a familiar face.
 The night began with qualifying, and Denny Woodworth paced the UMP late models with a lap of 13.974 seconds. And it was no surprise when Michael Long turned a lap of 15:300 seconds to top the UMP modifieds. Woodworth then captured the late model heat, and pulled the zero chip to set the feature field straight up. Long looked to be in command in the first mod heat, but Dave Weitholder stayed close, and he shocked the crowd by flying past Michael for the win coming out of turn four to the checkers. Dave also pulled the zero chip, and we were ready to go feature racing.
  The stock cars were up first, and Jerry Jansen led the first two trips around the oval, with Andrew Hustead taking over on lap three, taking last weeks winner Michael Larsen along in second. With Abe Huls advancing to third, those three and Jansen formed a four car pull away. Following a lap five caution, Larsen got shuffled back to sixth, and Huls took over second. Lap seven saw Abe on top, but Hustead was not giving up, and the two raced side by side, Huls on the low line, Hustead one groove higher. Andrew was scored the leader at the half way point, and the yellow waved on lap eleven. On the restart, Larsen took to the cushion that produced his win the week before, moving to third. By lap 15, it was Huls in front of Hustead with Larsen closing. Andrew led lap 16, then Abe on the 17th circuit as the caution flew. Coming to the green, Larsen got sideways, collection Jake Powers, who retired with a broken front end. As the field came to the checkers, Larsen again got sideways, but it was Huls stretching his points lead with another win. Hustead was second followed by Jansen, Rudy Zaragoza, and Larsen.
  The late models were up next, and row three starter and two time winner Justin Reed was a no show with mechanical woes. Woodworth grab the lead at the green, with third starting Mark Burgtorf running the high line in second. Lap three saw the 16 time track champion take the lead, and one lap later Jason Perry grabbed second also running the cushion. The caution came on lap five, and back to racing, Burgtorf, Perry, and Woodworth ran three wide through turn two, with Denny back to second. Another stoppage came on lap seven, and back under green it was now Burgtorf, Dustin Griffin, and Perry running three wide. With Burgtorf staying on the cushion, Griffin challenged on the inside line, showing Mark his fender before the final caution on lap 21. Burgtorf was not to be denied, and he led the final four circuits to pick up his first win of 2016. Griffin rode home in the runner up slot ahead of Woodworth and Perry. Terry Wilson took home fifth ahead of Charles Vanzandt, late model rookie Trent Grotz, and Cliff Powell.
 The IMCA sport compacts came to the track next for 15 laps. Jeffrey Delonjay jumped to the lead ahead of Allyssa Steele. On lap three, Craig Bangert charged to second with Kimberly Abbott in tow. Following a restart, Abbott nabbed second, and a three car scrum developed. Soon Delonjay and Abbott pulled away, Jeffrey running on the bottom and Kim a line higher as she searched for a way around the # 32. Delonjay continued to hit his marks, holding off the point leader for the win. Bangert took third, Darin Weisinger Jr was fourth, and Brandon Lambert nosed past Steele at the checkers for fifth.
  It was now UMP modified time. Weitholder and heat two winner Frankie Wellman sat in row one, with Long and Russ Coultas in row two. Weitholder jumped to the lead, with Long trailing. Staying green, the front two ran this way, Weitholder on the inside and Long running low in turns one and two and pounding the cushion in three and four. Long closed the gap by lap nine, and 15 trips in, slower traffic got heavy. As the leaders cam past the flag stand, a slower car forced Weitholder to move up to the middle groove as Long tried to move to the front on the high side. There was not enough real estate, and contact occurred between the leaders, leaving both with flat tires. Weitholder quickly went to the hot pit, while Long stayed out, but he would not be allowed to restart with a flat, so he also went to the hot pit. Weitholder made it back to the tail in the two lap grace period, but Long came out late, spinning in turn two to bring himself back to the pack. It was now Kevin Blackburn out front in the Mike Begley # B4. Blackburn has held the ride for about a month, and has been fast, but mechanical issues have ended some strong runs. No such issues would stop Kevin this night, however, and he picked up his first main event win. Trying to make up ground, Weitholder looped his ride, but stayed on the gas and kept going on the final lap 15 restart. Coultas had a strong run in second, Long came back from eleventh to third, Darin Weisinger nabbed fourth, and Spencer Havermale completed the top five. Michael had been going for his third win of the weekend, as he continues to lead the UMP national points.
  The final race on the card was the 15 car IMCA sport mod feature. Tanner Klingele led through a lap four caution,  ahead of Justin Bartz, Kevin Tomlinson, point leader Nathan Bringer, and Austin Howes. By lap seven, Howes had powered his way to second, and was challenging for the lead, while Brandon Lennox rim rode his way to third. It was now Klingele on the bottom, Howes in the middle, and Lennox on top, as the track may have been the raciest it has been all season. Howes grabbed the leadon lap ten and began to pull away. Meanwhile, Klingele and Lennox staged a side by side battle for second. As Lennox grabbed second on lap 14 the yellow waved, giving the spot back to Klingele, although it was of little consequence with the Delaware restart. But as racing resumed, Lennox did not get the start he hoped for, and Bringer moved to third. Howes again pulled away, picking up I think, his first QR win of 2016. The battle raged on for second, with Klingele prevailing. Lennox recovered for third, with Bringer and Tomlinson turning in top five runs.
  Today I learned the sad news that long time area racer and engine builder Jack Evans passed away Sunday night. Jack was  a regular in the stands at both Quincy and Donnellson, and I had my final conversation with him Friday at Lee County Speedway. Thoughts and prayers go out to Jacks family and friends.
  See you at the races.

Donnellson Beats the Rain - Almost

 The Lee County Speedway added the Sprint Invaders to the regular five division program on Friday night, and despite threatening skies all night, they almost got through the 20 race program unscathed. But the rain finally came early in the IMCA sport mod feature, which will apparently resume next Friday on season championship night. Kudos to promoter Mike Van Genderen for recognizing the threat of impending weather and cutting out some of the post race hoopla and moving the show along.
 The IMCA sport compacts ran the first feature. Barry Taft jumped out to an early sizable lead before a caution on lap three for Ron Kibbe. Back to racing, Brandon Reu stayed with Taft as Josh Barnes, who dropped out of his heat race, advanced to third. By lap nine, Taft again held a commanding lead as Barnes challenged for second, taking the spot one lap later. But the race belonged to Taft, with Barnes, Reu and Mike Reu trailing.
  All 13 IMCA modifieds took the feature green, with Jardin Fuller leading through a lap two yellow. Fuller, Dean McGee, and Jerad Fuller putting some distance on the field. After a lap four caution, Dennis Laveine joined the lead pack. On the sixth circuit, Jeff Waterman took over fourth. while Bill Roberts Jr. came from ninth to fifth. As the group entered turn four, there was contact between Roberts and Waterman, with Scott Dickey having no where to go. Dickey hit the Roberts car, and ending Scotts run, and sending the other two to the back. Back under green, Jardin pushed up the track in turn four. While McGee was able to clear the leader, the rest of the field temporarily bunched up, giving McGee a chance to put some distance on the now second place Levi Smith. By lap 13, Laveine had taken over second, with Roberts in third, and three laps later, Roberts muscled around Laveine in turns one and two. With no more stoppages, McGee fairly cruised to the win. Roberts took second with the #71s, Laveine and Waterman completing the top four.
  A nice turnout of 27 Sprint Invaders needed three heat races, a Shake Up dash of the top two from the heats, and a B-main to set the 20 car starting field. I will admit, the dash seems a bit meaningless, as the winner then draws for a feature invert. Seems to me, that winning the dash would give the winner the pole for the main event, otherwise the first two in the heats could just redraw for the front three rows, but, anyway... The yellow came out on the opening lap as Harold Pohren put his ride on its side, and Damian Getchell, having nowhere to go, also got upside down. After a lengthy delay, Pole sitter John Schulz led the first scored lap ahead of Chris Martin. Another caution flew on lap two for the starting cone on the track. When racing resumed, it was Schulz running the high line Martin on the bottom, Wayne Johnson moving to third, and Jon Agan fourth. Danny Lososki sthad started in row six, and quickly advanced to sixth. Agan suddenly exited the track on lap 19 of the 25 lapper. With Schulz in command, having taken the white flag, the yellow came out for a collision in turn four setting up a one lap dash to the checkers. Schulz was not to be denied, however, putting his # 99 in victory lane. Martin came home second, with Lasoski slipping past Johnson for third.
  The IMCA stock car class had only ten cars sign in, and point leader Jeff Mueller pulled out of the heat race, apparently with a cranky clutch. As some light sprinkles fell, Jeremy Pundt grabbed the lead from Andrew Hustead on lap one. Hustead remained glued to the back bumper of the #52J. John Oliver Jr moved quickly to third, with Mueller coming from row five to challenge Oliver. On lap eight of the 20 lap event, Mueller rolled past Oliver and began to challenge for second. As the crossed flags signaled the half way mark, Mueller took over the runner up spot, closing on the leader by lap 13. The leader all hugged the inside line, and Pundt continued to hit his marks, picking up his second win of 2016. Mueller unofficially secured the track point title with his second place finish, Oliver ran third, and Hustead took fourth.
  With more sprinkles falling, the Lee County late models came to the 3/8 mile oval for 25 laps. Tommy Elston and Sam Halstead entered the night tied for the points lead, And heat one winner Elston drew the outside front row slot, while Halstead started sixth. Pole sitter Tyler Cale led the first two trips past the flagstand, with Elston driving to the front on lap three. Halstead advanced to third on the same lap.. As Elston stretched his lead, Derek Liles and Todd Frank staged an entertaining side by side battle for fifth. On the 11th circuit, Laine Vanzandt backed his ride into the turn three guardrail, although he was able to rejoin the race. With the help of the Delaware restart, Halstead took command of the second spot. Todd Frank also charged to fourth on the restart. With seven laps to go, Frank took over third. In the closing laps, Cale faded with a flat tire. Elston was unchallenged, picking up the win, and taking a one point lead over runner up Halstead. Frank and Jeff Guengerich turned in top four performances, with Liles overtaking Cale for fifth. Newcomer Blake Woodruff brought his # 30 home seventh, followed by Gunner Frank, Charles Vanzandt, and Trent Grotz.
 With the final feature, the IMCA sport mods on the track, the rains came, putting an end to a full night of racing.
 Next Friday will be the end of regular season racing at Donnellson, although there are a couple of October specials on the schedule. Sunday night you can find me at Quincy Raceways for weekly racing. Maybe I will see you there!

Long Marches On

  Michael Long continued his march to a possible UMP modified national title Sunday night at Quincy Raceways. Entering the week with a slight lead over chief rival Mike Harrison, Long saw his regular tracks rained out Friday and Saturday, so he journeyed to Spoon River Speedway on Saturday and picked up a win, then headed home for Sunday night action. He paced qualifying with a lap of 14.829 seconds, and picked up his heat race win, following which he rolled the die for a straight up start in the 20 lap feature. 15 cars took the green flag, including Kenny Bringer, who competed in both the IMCA sport mod class and the UMP mod feature. After one false start in the main event, Long jumped to the lead before a lap three caution saw the night end early for Spencer Havermale. On the restart, Dave Weitholder moved past row two starter Rick Conoyer for second. Long and Weitholder quickly distanced themselves from the pack, and as the race reached its mid point, Michael rode the cushion to a commanding lead. Weitholder tried to stay close using the bottom of the speedway. but with no more cautions, Long cruised to the win. Weitholder came home in second followed by Conoyer, Kevin Blackburn, and Shaun Deering.
  IMCA stock cars started off the feature parade, with ten starters. Jerry Jansen was an early casualty last week with still unknown engine woes, so he brought last years # 06 to the track on Sunday. Starting on the pole, he led lap one, but by the second time around, he was shuffled behind Abe Huls, Jake Powers, and Michael Larsen. The caution flew on lap three, and on the restart it was Huls and Powers running the bottom line while Larsen tried to bri8ng in the cushion. AQnother yellow on lap six was followed by a false start, and back to green Larsen found what he was searching for, blasting around Huls on the high side. Abe eventually took to the top groove as well, and the two ran nose to tail until a caution on the white flag lap set up a green, white, checkers finish. The stoppage came for third and fourth place Powers and Shane Paris, as Paris went hot into turn three, sending both cars to the back. Neither driver stopped, but there was debris on the track, and both drivers were charged with the caution. Huls pushed ahead briefly in the closing pair of laps, but Larsen kept his # 48 on the top side, and came first to the checkers. Huls took second ahead of Brian Hoener. Andrew Hustead recovered from the lap six yellow to take fourth ahead of visiting Tyler Gilmour from Peoria,Il.
  Ten UMP late models made the feature call. Jason Perry had posted quick time of 13.677 seconds, but it was Denny Woodworth capturing the first heat. The late model lawyer rolled a four, putting Dustin Griffin on the pole with Perry alongside. Perry shot to the early lead, holding on as a battle raged behind him. Woodworth slipped past Griffin for second on lap six, and the front two pulled away from the pack. But by lap nine, Griffin was again on the move, and lap 13 saw a three wide battle for the top spot. Perry held on, with Griffin claiming second. Three circuits later, Justin Reed cleared Woodworth for third. In the closing laps, Perry stretched his lead, and with race caution free, he cruised to his second win of the season. He joined the list of two time winners at QR this season, with no one having more than two. Griffin took runner up honors over Reed, Woodworth, and Mark Burgtorf. Alan Westling piloted Jim Moons back up car to sixth, passing seventh finishing Moon to do so. Trent Grotz, Cliff Powell and Trace Westling, who retired early, rounded out the action.
  Brenden Ryan was the early leader in the IMCA sport mod 18 lapper before a caution for Justin Ebbing and Tanner Klingele, who became hooked together. Back to racing, Nathan Bringer charged in to second, and on the fourth trip around, he took the lead, with Austen Becerra following in second. After another yellow, row six starter Brandon Lennox advanced to fifth, and then quickly to third. Yet another caution saw Becerra bobble a bit, and Lennox used the opening to climb to second, with Joey Gower moving to third. The lead pack was hugging the inside line while Becerra tried to make up ground on the top of the track. When the checkers waved, it was Bringer with his second win of the season, followed by Lennox, Gower, Ebbing, and Becerra.
  A dozen IMCA sport compacts signed in bolstered  by a trio of Lee County regulars. One of those, Barry Taft, completed only one lap of his heat race before pulling to the infield, done for the evening. Craig Bangert jumped out front to pace lap one, and things got dicey when Brandon Herron spun in front of the field on lap two. Everyone avoided the # 88 and the race stayed green. Perennial front runner Josh Barnes pulled to the infield on lap two, his night over. Bangert continued to stretch his lead, and second running Brandon Lambert also opened an advantage on the rest of the pack. With no yellows, Bangert cruised to a straightaway lead and win. Lambert ran second, while Austen Becerra, shaking out a new # 04 car, finished ahead of Kimberly Abbott and Brandon Reu.
  The quickly run program saw the final checkers wave well before the 9:00 hour.
  Friday night, I hope to be back in my regular spot at Lee County Speedway, as they begin to wind down their regular season, then Sunday it will be regular racing again at Quincy Raceways. Until next time, enjoy racing at your favorite track!

Long Completes the Hat Trick at Quincy

 The weatherman finally gave Quincy Raceways a break on Sunday, with cooler temps, although there were a couple of stray sprinkles early in the evening. Still it was good place to spend my last night of vacation, a busy time even though I managed to squeeze in a night of racing in Donnellson and in Tipton, Iowa. Unfortunately, by the time I could have reported on them, it would have been very old news!
 Sixty one cars signed in at QR, but things got off to a bit of a late start with a medical call in the grandstands following time trials. Jason Perry had paced the UMP late models at 13.303 seconds, and Michael Long was the final UMP modified to qualify, leading the 14 car pack with a lap of 14.609 ticks of the clock.
 Once under way, the nine heat races ran off quickly, but the heavy rains on Thursday night created some bumps in the track which crews ironed out during intermission.
  The IMCA stock car feature ran first, with all but one of the ten cars signed in taking the green. Jake Powers crossed the line first on lap one, and on lap three, a charging Abe Huls got tangled up with Rudy Zaragoza, bringing out the yellow. Back under green, however, it was Brian Hoener out front as Abe moved to fourth in one lap, and was third on lap five before the second and final caution waved. Huls took over second on the restart, and set sail for Hoener. Brian was hugging the low line while Abe chose a higher groove. On lap ten of the 18 lap affair, Huls powered to the front. Four circuits later, Andrew Hustead used that same top groove to claim second, chasing Huls to the checkers. Hoener finished third followed by Michael Larsen and Powers.
  Fast qualifier Perry had captured the first late model heat, and he rolled a zero to set the 25 lap feature lineup straight up. Perry then grabbed the lead at the green, quickly moving to the high line ahead of Griffin. A battle quickly developed for third between Clint Kirkham, Mark Burgtorf, and Denny Woodworth. By the eighth lap, Denny had charged to third, and the leaders hit slower traffic around lap eleven. Point leader Justin Reed joined the fray, moving to fourth on lap 14. Three circuits later, Griffin was bearing down on the leader, and he pulled a slide job in turns one and two for the lead on lap 20. Perry stayed close, but could not return the favor, as Griffin picked up his second checkers of 2016. Perry ran second ahead of Woodworth, Reed, and Burgtorf. Kirkham led the second five followed by Vance Wilson again wheeling the # 6M, Trace Westling, McKay Wenger, and Chuck Mitchell. All 14 starters took the checkers in the non stop event. It was good to see Wenger back at the track, although racing with a cast on his wrist certainly posed a problem. Also, Alan Westling made his first appearance of the season in the Jim Moon back up car. Moon is also reportedly dealing with some injury issues.
 The IMCA sport compacts only showed eight cars, seven started the 15 lap feature which also went non stop. Jeffrey Delonjay jumped to the early lead in his new ride, plain black with a duct taped # 32  on the side. On lap four, Kimberly Abbott took the runner up spot from Allyssa Steele as the two lady drivers tried to run down Delonjay. Darin Weisinger Jr. joined the front group, moving to third just before the half way mark. Three circuits later, Weisinger slipped around Abbott for second. As the leaders charged out of turn two for the final time, Abbott slowed and pulled to the infield with a rare mechanical failure. Delonjay cruised to his second win of 2016, chased by Weisinger, Steele, Brandon Lambert, and Adam Scott.
 Under the " what's new" category, Michael Long also won his heat race, and was set to roll the die for the 20 lap feature invert. Oddly, there was an " eight" on the die, which Michael rolled, and for the first time that I know of, four rows were inverted for the main event. All but one of the 14 cars signed in took the green flag, with Shaun Deering leading Donovan Lodge as lap one was scored. Long crossed the line sixth, as lap two was scored, he was third, and he was going for the lead when the caution waved on lap three. The Delaware restart put him outside of Lodge, and he shot to the lead going down the backstretch. As he began to build a lead, third running Deering spun in turn one, but fortunately for him, the yellow had just come out for Keven Tomlinson in turn four. It was now Kevin Blackburn, driving the Mike Begley # B4 now in second, and while Long checked out, Blackburn, Deering, and Dave Weitholder waged a battle for second. When Blackburn suddenly exited the speedway on lap eleven, Long had a nearly 1/2 track advantage on the second place Deering. With no further cautions, Michael picked up his third feature win of the weekend as he chases the UMP nation points title, currently running second to Michael Harrison. Deering and Weitholder ran second and third, followed by Spencer Havermale and Frankie Wellman.
  The IMCA sport mod finale was in staging as I headed for the car, with the 9:00 hour fast approaching and a long "catch up" Monday on my mind. Congratulations to Brandon Lennox, who has had an up and down season, as he topped defending champion and new point leader Joey Gower for the win.
  Although I would very much like to be in West Liberty, Iowa for the MLRA/IMCA double late model show on Tuesday, it " ain't gonna " happen, so we will see what next weekend brings. Until then, enjoy the races!

Race, Work, Repeat

 Driving from Canton, Mo. to work in Quincy, Il on Thursday morning, I was both surprised and dismayed to hear on the radio that Quincy had received more than 1.5 inches of rain overnight. The rain gauge report comes from the airport, which is close to Quincy Raceways, so I knew it would take a major effort to get the grounds ready for the World of Outlaw, MOWA 410 sprint car doubleheader scheduled for that evening. And when a brief but heavy shower fell about 3:30 that afternoon, it seemed like that would finish things off. But my workplace is about five miles from the speedway, and fortunately the track did not get that deluge. It had been decided to not open the pit area, which is generally the biggest problem as far as wet grounds, until 4:00 PM, and promoter Ken Dobson had his crew hard at work making the expanded area accessible to the big haulers. So when I arrived after the 5:00 hour, both the pit and spectator parking areas were plenty wet, but open for business. And once again the fans turned out, a bit later for the mid week show, but in numbers large enough that cars were parking well down the shoulder of highway 104.
 24 Sprint cars and 26 late models checked in to do battle, with an $8,000 top prize on the line in the Workforce 40 lapper for the late models, and $2,000 to the winner of the 25 lap sprint finale.
 Brian Shirley has turned quite a few laps at QR, but none since the track was reconfigured a few weeks ago, but he still turned the fastest qualifying lap of 13.562 seconds.
  Three heat races in each class plus a B-main for the late models set the feature lineups, with Quincy point leader Justin Reed and local racer Vance Wilson in the David Miller #6M added as provisionals, giving us 24 starters for each feature.
   All but one sprinter took the feature green, with Parker Price-Miller jumping to the early lead. Nationally known hot shoe Brady Bacon started in row three, but got crossed up in turns one and two on lap two, spinning around and doing a wheelstand in front of the field. Amazingly everyone avoided his car, but he was now stuck at the tail of the pack. Back under green Bacon began to pick off cars as the leader encountered slower traffic on lap six. Joey Moughan was chasing the leader when Paul Nienhauser, popular with the QR faithful powered to the runnerup spot on the 15th circuit. Yellow flags slowed the action on lap 18, then again on lap 20, when Steve Russell flipped his # 20 in turn three. Moughan was caught up in the accident, ending his run. On the restart, Nienhauser worked the high line, while Price-Miller held the inside line. The two ran side by side on lap 20, with the two trading racing lines lap after lap, and indeed from corner to corner. Nienhauser took a shot with a pair of laps to go, but could not clear the leader, then made one final charger in the last set of turns, but with everyone on their feet, Price-Miller was first to the checkers. Jake Blackhurst had the best seat in the place to finish third, with Joe B Miller and AJ Bruns completing the top five.
  Shane Clanton was four laps from winning the inaugural Workforce 40 last season before suffering mechanical woes, and the veteran proved that was no fluke by finishing second to Bobby Pierce in the second heat, then drawing the pole position for the main event, with Shirley on his outside. It was Shirley jumping to the early lead, and the caution waved on lap two for a stopped Michael Kloos at the end of the front straight, the first car out of the event. On the restart it was Shirley, Clanton, series point leader Josh Richards, and sixth starting Pierce driving past veteran Chub Frank for fourth. Shirley was dealing with the rather treacherous cushion while Clanton ran the low line, dealing with the treacherous hole coming out of turn two. The front two put distance on the pack before entering traffic on lap ten. Clanton took the opportunity to pull alongside Shirley, then claimed the lead on lap twelve. Clanton then took off, and Richards moved in to challenge Shirley. The caution waved on lap 18 for a stalled Eric Wells, and on the Delaware restart, Richards powered to second. Two laps later the yellow waved again for Vance Wilson, and back to racing, there was drama on lap 22. Richards was moving around the track, and was using the same line as Shirley in turn one, when contact sent Richards spinning. Although he did not stop, the caution came out, and he was restarted where he was on the track when he recovered. On the final restart, fifth starting Rick Eckert grabbed the second spot, but Clanton was checking out. He again hit lapped traffic on lap 32, but he was up to the challenge, picking up the win. Eckert held second, followed by Shirley, Pierce, and Steve Casebolt in a photo finish for fourth. Frank topped the second five ahead of the teenager from Texas, Tyler Erb,
Richards, Frank Heckenast Jr, and Chase Junghans.
  The final checkers flew about 11:00, ending a long but fun night of racing. On a personal note, my son Brent had a medical episode during hot laps requiring a check over by the ambulance crew, but he is on the mend. Also tragedy hit the QR family on Monday, when Gary Wilson, a long time racer and father of current racers Vance and Terry, lost his life in an accident at home. Gary was a popular fixture in the pits at QR, and will be missed.
  Quincy Raceways will take this Sunday off, with racing resuming on Sunday, August 7.
  Friday morning it was back to work with far too little sleep. But by afternoon, I had convinced myself to head for Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa for their weekly show. Stopping to pick up grandson Peyton, we arrived in time to take the Air One bus ride around the 3/8 mile oval and through the pit area.
  86 cars in six classes signed in, including 22 legends cars visiting the track and racing in support of law enforcement. Following hot laps and a candy dash for the youngsters, it was feature time.
  The 15 IMCA sport compacts ran first, with Mike Reu pacing the first go around. Josh Barnes apparently ran out of fuel in his heat race, but still finished fifth, starting where he would have in the invert even if he had won that race. With a full tank, Barnes powered to second on lap two. Five circuits in, Barnes took the lead, with Brandon Reu and Barry Taft running side by side for third. Taft took the spot on lap seven. With a pair of laps left in the 14 lapper, the first caution came out, setting up a green, white, checkers finish. Taft charged to second at the green, with Mike Reu shuffled back, but suddenly Taft saw his night end with a plume of smoke from his engine. Ron Kibbe now sat in second, crossing the line behind Barnes. Kimberly Abbott drove a steady race to take third, and Mike Reu recovered to grab fourth.
 The Legends were up next for 25 laps. Former late model driver Marty Dierks picked up the win.
  All but one of the 14 IMCA sport mods took the feature green. Austen Becerra paced the opening lap, but is was John Oliver Jr on the move, advancing from a row four start to third on lap two. When Becerra spun on lap three, it was Oliver in front, with Jim Gillenwater glued to his back bumper. Jim was running his usual low line, while John took the high road. Tony Dunker worked his way through traffic to fourth on the sixth trip past the flagstand. Tony moved to third on the ninth circuit as Oliver stretched his margin. With no more stoppages, Oliver cruised to the win. Gillenwater settled for second ahead of Dunker, Kyle Hill, and Joey Gower.
  The Lee County late model turnout was a season low eight on this night. Tommy Elston finished third in the heat race, but drew the number one pill for the 25 lap finale. Tommy jumped to the lead as the green waved, with heat winner a row two starter Sam Halstead on his tail. As Elston opened a lead, Tyler Cale shadowed Halstead for several circuits before falling back slightly. As the race went caution free, Elston opened a more than 1/2 lap lead, picking up the win. Halstead, Cale, Jeff Guengerich, Derek Liles turned in top fives, followed by the Van Zandts, Laine and Charles. Gunner Frank was unable to complete the 25 laps.
 IMCA stock cars were up next, with all but one of the 14 cars on track. Andrew Hustead  was the early leader over Mike See, Jeremy Pundt, and Oliver Jr. Donnellson native Pundt slipped around See on lap two, and one lap later, he grabbed the lead. Lap five saw Oliver move to third, and five circuits later, he took second as the crossed flags signaled the halfway mark and point leader Jeff Mueller advanced to fourth. The first caution came one lap later for a spinning third place Hustead. Back under green, it became a three car duel, with Pundt and Mueller hugging the inside line, and Oliver pounding the cushion as he looked to double up on feature wins. Mueller changed lines more than once, searching for a way around the front duo, but Pundt stayed true to the low line, hitting his marks every corner of every lap. As the checkers waved, a jubilant Jeremy Pundt had picked up his first feature win of the year. Mueller scored a runnerup finish ahead of Oliver and Ryan Cook in the # 27.
  IMCA modifieds rounded out the evening, 14 strong. Jardin Fuller paced lap one ahead of Levi Smith, with a lap two caution. Bill Roberts Jr nabbed third on the restart, and second on lap four, with defending track champion Jeff Waterman moving to fourth. The sixth time around, Smith smacked the turn two guardrail, falling off the pace. It was now Waterman in third, and visiting Colt Mather in fourth, and the top four put distance on the field. Roberts used the high line to grab the lead on lap nine, three circuits later Waterman took second. Mather grabbed the third spot and was battling for second. Roberts had a nice lead when the yellow flew on lap 14. Mather used the Delaware restart to grab second , and two laps later he overtook Roberts for the lead. When the final checkers of the night waved, it was for Mather. Roberts held second and Waterman settled for third.
 The clock read just past 10:00 as we headed to the car after another fun night at LCS.
  With Quincy off Sunday, my next action will be back in Donnellson Monday for night one of the back to back $1,000 to win late model specials. This is a schedule change from the preseason, when a single pay two day show was the original plan. We are just about to August, so enjoy racing every chance you get.

First Time Winners Beat the Heat at Quincy

 Three of the five weekly classes at Quincy Raceways saw new winners in victory lane, while the other two had drivers there for the second time in 2016. Once again the program was moved back one hour to try and deal with what was still hot and humid conditions.
  The fans at Quincy have been a hearty and loyal bunch, but both car counts and fan count were down a bit this week. Of course, with the World of Outlaw late models and MOWA 410 sprint cars rolling in to town on Thursday, some folks may have decided to save their pennies for the big mid week show.
  Justin Reed paced UMP late model qualifying at 13.371 seconds, and Michael Long once again topped the UMP modifieds with a lap of 14.626 ticks of the clock.
  Following heat race action, the IMCA stock cars started off the feature action. After a pair of false starts, the front row was moved back one row, but Chester Peek headed for the pits. Brian Hoener then grabbed the lap one lead with Beau Taylor in hot pursuit ahead of Abe Huls. When lap two was scored, it was Huls out front, and the point leader hugged the low line with second running Hoener in the middle groove and Taylor also on the bottom. The sixth time around, Hoener bobbled and fell to third, but two laps later things changed in a big way. Huls hooked the inside tire between turns three and four,getting sideways and rolling his # 30C two times, ending his night. Taylor assumed the lead on the restart, but Hoener muscled to the front on lap eleven, holding on for his first ever IMCA stock car win. Taylor held on for second ahead of Jake Powers, Rodolfo Zaragoza, and Michael Larsen.
  The UMP late models were moved to second on the card. Heat winner Dustin Griffin had pulled a zero draw, giving us a straight up start. Griffin jumped to the early lead, followed closely by Reed, Denny Woodworth, Mark Burgtorf, and Jason Perry. As Terry Wilson retired early, Perry and Burgto9rf swapped positions back and forth, and Woodworth pushed Reed for second. With everyone running a low line, Griffin began lapping slower cars by lap 13. Reed was able to get a lapped car between himself and Woodworth, but by lap 21, the late model lawyer was again glued to Reeds back bumper. As the 25 laps went caution free, Griffin cruised to his first win of 2016. Reed stretched his points lead with a runner up finish ahead of Woodworth, Burgtorf, Perry, and Cliff Powell.
  The IMCA sport compacts ran next. Allyssa Steele held the pole after winning her first ever heat race earlier in the evening, and she tucked into second in the 15 lap finale behind Craig Bangert. Defending champion Kimberly Abbott advanced to9 fourth on lap two, but Bangert opened a nice lead as Steele and Darin Weisinger Jr. dueled for second. Weisinger took the spot on lap four, and Bangert continued to stretch his lead as Abbott entered the top three on lap six. On the ninth circuit, Kimberly was shadowing Weisinger, and she used a high side pass to grab second three lap later. With no cautions, Bangert stayed in control for all 15 laps to score win number two. Abbott, Weisinger, and Steele followed in that order.
  Michael Long had captured the first UMP mod heat, and pulled a second row start for the 25 lap feature. That put Darin Weisinger and visiting Kelly Kovski in row one ahead of Dave Weitholder and Long. Kovski, in only his second ever visit to QR, took the early lead with Weitholder in tow. The caution waved on lap two for a spinning Kevin Tomlinson, and on the restart, Long moved to second using the middle line. The second a nd final yellow came out for a spinning Ronnie Yelton on lap five. Back to action, Kovski, from Springfield,Il., hugged the inside line along with third running Weitholder while Long tried a higher line. Michael changed his angle of pursuit several times, and the leaders hit slower traffic about lap 14. Long got close on the 19th lap, but Kovski, a former late model pilot, held his line, and picked up his first ever checkers at Quincy, becoming only the second driver to beat Long in 2016. Weitholder took third, with Weisinger and another visitor, Kenny Shaw from Brighton,Il. completing the top five.
  The IMCA sport compacts would round out the card. Nathan Anders was set to start on the pole, but elected to tag the tail of the 18 lapper. One false start for a spinout and we were under way. Mike Goodwin paced the opening lap ahead of Austen Becerra, Tanner Klingele, and Joey Gower. On lap four, Becerra mounted a challenge for the lead, taking over one lap later, taking Gower along in second. Following a lap six caution, Goodwin was shuffled back, and Justin Ebbing powered to third and point leader Nathan Bringer entered the top five. With lightning flashing in the east, Bringer took fourth at the half way mark. On the 15th circuit, a lapped car spun in front of second and third running Gower and Ebbing. Both cars were headed to the tail, and Gower had to visit the hot pit with a flat tire. Becerra led the restart, now trailed by Bringer, Klingele, and Brandon Lennox. Lennox was behind the wheel of the Wesley Mayfield # 21M after blowing an engine the night before at Moberly,Mo., aqnd he fell off the pace on the restart, rolling to a stop on the backstretch. One more restart saw Klingele and Bringer hook bumpers in turns one and two setting up a green, white, checkers finish. Becerra was unfazed, picking up his second win of 2016. Goodwin recovered for second, Ebbing charged back to third, and Spencer Coats stayed out of trouble to record a solid fourth.
  With the big special on Thursday, QR will be idle next Sunday. Even with some reserved seats presold, there will be plenty of good spots on Thursday, and Quincy fans will get one more chance to see Billy Moyer in action in what is supposed to be his final season. Hoping the weatherman cooperates for this big show!