Tri City Speedway in Pontoon Beach,Illinois offered up a rare Thursday night program featuring the Summit Racing Equipment American Modified Series cars in the first of a four night holiday weekend swing throughout Illinois. A whooping field of 43 entrants were joined by 19 UMP super late models, 16 UMP Pro Crate late models and 33 B-mods. The AMS drivers and the super lates were competing for a $2,000 winners check while the crates and B mods battled for a $1,000 payday. Unfortunately, Mother Nature played a major role in the action, as the heavy and persistent rains during the week resulted in a less than desirable racing surface, with several drivers heading to the trailer after only a handful of completed laps in their main events.
Group qualifying for the super late models and AMS cars started the program. Gordy Gundaker paced the late models with a lap of 14.515 seconds while local hot shoe Kyle Steffens topped the mods.
As a sign of things to come, the first heat race was a crate late eight lapper, and Dakota Ewing jumped to a big early lead before his car seemed to dig in the track going through turns three and four sending him into a series of violent flips. He eventually emerged apparently shaken but uninjured with a badly damaged race car.
The remainder of the fourteen heat races and three B-mains ran off mostly incident free with some track prep included to try and smooth out what was a very fast surface that refused to take rubber.
The first feature to hit the track was the fifteen lap Pro Crate event. Heat winners Kyle McMahon and Cody Maguire lined up in row one with heat three winner A J May and Trvor Gundaker in row two. Maguire charged to the lead and Gundaker had pulled alongside before the caution waved at the end of lap two for the stalled car of Devin McLean. Following the Delaware restart, May moved to second on lap five, then grabbed the lead one lap later. Just past the halfway mark, the cars of Steven Reinacher and Brady Rudd got together in turn one, with Rudd rolling his #28. As racing resumed, Jason Riggs moved to second, but May stayed in command to the checkers. Gundaker came home third, followed by Blaze Burwell, and MaGuire. Dustin Golden and Scott Geaschel rounded out the seven cars running at the checkers.
All but two of the nineteen supers lined up for thirty laps. Jose Parga was out of action following qualifying and Rickey Frankel lost a rear end in his heat race. The straight up start from the heats had Gordy Gundaker and Brian Shirley in the front row trailed by Daryn Klein and Tony Jackson Jr. Shirley won the dash to turn one, but as the leaders crossed the stripe for lap one, Matt Santel rolled his car coming off turn four. As his #17x was being attended to, seven of the remaining cars headed to the trailer, including top contenders Klein, Jackson Jr., Billy Moyer Sr., Tim Manville, and Mason Oberkramer, presumably because of the challenging track conditions. The decision was made to go to single file restarts for the remainder of the race. Shirley held the top spot, but smoke began to trail from his car, and he dove to the infield on lap seven, turning the lead over to Gundaker. As the laps clicked off, Michael Kloos found his way around Gordy at the halfway mark. Gundaker refused to go away, and the duo ran nose to tail the rest of the way. Kloos stayed in front to pick up the win. Gundaker ran second, while Billy Laycock won a battle with Rusty Griffaw for third. Dan Jacober, Derek Fetter, and Mike Hammerle rounded out the running cars.
The AMS mod feature had been scheduled for thirty laps, but it was decided to cut it to twenty, with twenty three cars taking the green. Heat winner Lucas Lee took command ahead of a lap two caution. At that point, six cars headed to the trailer, including David Stremme and Allan Weisser, who had elected to give up their starting spots to tag the tail. The modifieds were able to negotiate the 3/8 mile in reasonable fashion, with Lee and Michael Harrison soon turning things into a two car battle. With the race staying green, the duo caught slower traffic about lap ten, and one circuit later Harrison was able to pick his way to the front. Lee was not going away, but on lap fourteen, the final caution of the race set up a single file restart and gave Harrison a clear track. He then cruised to the win, followed by Lee, Steffens, Kenny Wallace, and Steve Meyer Jr.
With the B mod feature rolling to the track, we headed to the pits. Tommie Seets Jr. picked up the $1,000 check with Trey Harris in second.
The AMS series moves to Farmer City,Il. on Friday, Fairbury,Il. on Saturday, and finishing up Sunday in Brownstown,Il. The Event at Fairbury highlights the weekend with a $10,000 check going to the winner. Trent Young, who finished eighth at Tri City holds the series points lead.
Thanks to Kevin and Tammy Gundaker for taking a chance on a Thursday night race, and special thanks to the Summit Racing Products AMS point man Barry Barnes for his hospitality (and the goody bag!) Also a shout out to modified driver Michael Long for paying closer attention to my Facebook messages than I apparently do!
As I make this entry, I am hoping that the gloomy conditions make way for the MLRA late model special tonight, Friday, at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa. Check back tomorrow for details!
Friday, August 31, 2018
Monday, August 27, 2018
Repeat Winners, More Controversy at Quincy Raceways
Temperatures cooled Sunday night at Quincy Raceways, but apparently tempers did not. The night started off in reasonable fashion, except for a southerly breeze which caused a bit of a dust storm in the grandstand area, particularly in the turn one neighborhood, and unfortunately the problem did not entirely go away as the night wore on.
UMP modified qualifying came first, with Ray Bollinger returning to the speedway for the first time in a while to set quick time. First time visitor Casey Lappin, from Bartonville, Il. blew his engine during his time trial run, paring the modified field down to eleven cars.
Following heat race action and a 15 minute intermission, it was feature time for the six divisions in action.
Track officials have been changing up the running order a bit so as to give all classes different track conditions for their features, and on Sunday it was the IMCA stock cars leading things off. Brandon Lambert is a rookie driver in the stock car class, and he took off from row one to lead the first of 18 laps. Beau Taylor has been the hottest of the stock car group, and by the end of lap two, he had come from row two to nose ahead of Lambert, using the high line around the track. He began to open a sizable lead while Brandon Savage worked his way to the runner up position on lap seven following which Michael Larsen looped his #48. Back under green, the pack ran in a top side formation, different from their usual low groove line, and Taylor and Savage began to gain separation from the rest of the field. With the race staying green the rest of the way, Taylor soon began to pull away, and he scored his fifth win in the last seven nights of racing. Savage came home second, followed by Lambert, point leader Jake Powers, and Larsen. Both Taylor and Abe Huls, who have dominated the stock car division have missed nights of racing, making a run at the track title mostly impossible under the IMCA points system.
Nine UMP Pro Crate late models lined up next for twenty laps of racing action. Vance Wilson took off from the pole position to lead lap one as Tommy Elston came from outside row two to second. Elston took over the lead one lap later. On lap six, Wilson slid high off the banking in turn three, turning over the spot to Denny Woodworth, with the caution flag waving. On the restart, Wilson stalled out between turns one and two, retiring to the pits under the caution with apparent front end damage. Another stoppage came just before the crossed flags to signal the halfway mark, as Melvin Linder spun in what was becoming a treacherous turn two. Woodworth had been using the low line in pursuit of Elston, with third running Sam Halstead working the bottom, and back to racing the pair of veterans swapped lines. As a result, Clint Kirkham slipped around Halstead before "Superman" reclaimed the spot. Once more the yellow came out for Linder on lap 14, and now Halstead used his inside line to briefly move around Woodworth. As those two battled for second, Elston cruised to his second win of the season at QR. Woodworth increased his points lead with the runner up finish ahead of Halstead, Kirkham, and Laine Vanzandt in the #80V, having switched rides with his father, Charles.
The IMCA sport compacts were next to the grid, eight cars for twelve laps. Alyssa Steele paced the opening circuit from outside row one, but point leader Barry Taft charged from row three to the lead one lap later. The only caution of the race came on the third lap when second running Jeffrey Delonjay slowed on the backstretch and was hit from behind by Dylan Schantz, ending the night for both drivers. As racing resumed, Taft stretched his lead while Steele was also able to put distance over the remainder of the field. Taft cruised to his 30th overall victory of 2018. Darin Weisinger Jr. made a run at Steele late, but settled for third, with Jaden Delonjay and Kimberly Abbott turning in top five finishes.
Bollinger and point leader Dave Weitholder paced the twenty lap UMP modified field to green, with Weitholder holding a narrow advantage as the duo ran side by side for the first three circuits. Weitholder was in command as the caution came out for a Ben Huff spin on lap six. Shawn Deering came up to battle Bollinger, taking the spot just ahead of a lap eleven caution for Josh Newman. Bollinger reclaimed second ahead of one more caution for debris at the lap 15 mark. Weitholder was not to be denied, however, scoring I believe his tenth QR feature win of the season. Bollinger saw his last lap charge come up short and settled for second. Kevin Blackburn used a final lap pass to claim third ahead of Deering and birthday boy Michael Vanderiet Jr.
With the drama from the week before hopefully in the rear view mirror, the 13 IMCA sport mods lined up for 18 laps. Tyler Burton jumped to the lead, but a pile up as the pack crossed the stripe to complete the first lap resulted in a complete restart, with Adam Niekamp and last weeks winner A J Tournear headed to the trailer. Burton also led the pack for the opening circuits before Austin Howes came from the third row to take second on lap two and the lead on lap three. Burton brought out the caution with a lap four spin in turn two. As racing resumed, a three car battle developed between Howes, point leader Adam Birck, and Tanner Klingele, who had worked his way to third after starting last. Another multi car pile up slowed the action on lap five. Klingele now used the Delaware restart to take second ahead of a lap eleven spin by Justin Bartz. The field was now restarted single file, with Birck retaking second as he found the top groove to his liking. He rode the rim to close in on the leader, taking the top spot on lap 16. But Howes was up to the task as he moved back ahead, holding on to claim his second win of the season. Birck, Klingele, Brandyn Ryan back in his own #99B, and Brandon Symmonds completed the first five. As Howes celebrated in victory lane, he was "greeted" by some folks apparently still upset by his skirmish last week with Austen Becerra. Order was restored after a while, but it has since been announced by track owner/promoter that the sport mod division will be given next week off at the track to hopefully allow a cooling off period. With the IMCA Super Nationals starting next week, this may be a welcome distraction for both drivers and fans. As a side note, both Becerra and Howes apparently received a reprimand from IMCA, with I believe Becerra getting a two week suspension and Howes on probation. Until this point, the night was going smoothly, with the clock still ahead of 9:30 and only the two person cruiser feature to go.
The Delonjay team was out front of the Foster team, with only two of three cars remaining on the track as I headed to the car.
The final holiday of the season is now upon us, and there is plenty of racing to be had. Weather permitting, our weekend will begin on Thursday with a visit to Kevin and Tammy Gundakers Tri City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Il. In action will be UMP late models and the American Modified Series, both paying $2,000 to win, along with B mods and UMP Crate late models racing for a $1,000 top prize each. Friday night the MLRA late models will invade the Lee County Speedway for their make up event, joined by 305 sprint cars, IMCA sport mods, and IMCA sport compacts. And if all goes well, I hope to make the trip to Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. on Saturday for more MLRA racing supported by the B modifieds. And then ???
Thanks for reading.
UMP modified qualifying came first, with Ray Bollinger returning to the speedway for the first time in a while to set quick time. First time visitor Casey Lappin, from Bartonville, Il. blew his engine during his time trial run, paring the modified field down to eleven cars.
Following heat race action and a 15 minute intermission, it was feature time for the six divisions in action.
Track officials have been changing up the running order a bit so as to give all classes different track conditions for their features, and on Sunday it was the IMCA stock cars leading things off. Brandon Lambert is a rookie driver in the stock car class, and he took off from row one to lead the first of 18 laps. Beau Taylor has been the hottest of the stock car group, and by the end of lap two, he had come from row two to nose ahead of Lambert, using the high line around the track. He began to open a sizable lead while Brandon Savage worked his way to the runner up position on lap seven following which Michael Larsen looped his #48. Back under green, the pack ran in a top side formation, different from their usual low groove line, and Taylor and Savage began to gain separation from the rest of the field. With the race staying green the rest of the way, Taylor soon began to pull away, and he scored his fifth win in the last seven nights of racing. Savage came home second, followed by Lambert, point leader Jake Powers, and Larsen. Both Taylor and Abe Huls, who have dominated the stock car division have missed nights of racing, making a run at the track title mostly impossible under the IMCA points system.
Nine UMP Pro Crate late models lined up next for twenty laps of racing action. Vance Wilson took off from the pole position to lead lap one as Tommy Elston came from outside row two to second. Elston took over the lead one lap later. On lap six, Wilson slid high off the banking in turn three, turning over the spot to Denny Woodworth, with the caution flag waving. On the restart, Wilson stalled out between turns one and two, retiring to the pits under the caution with apparent front end damage. Another stoppage came just before the crossed flags to signal the halfway mark, as Melvin Linder spun in what was becoming a treacherous turn two. Woodworth had been using the low line in pursuit of Elston, with third running Sam Halstead working the bottom, and back to racing the pair of veterans swapped lines. As a result, Clint Kirkham slipped around Halstead before "Superman" reclaimed the spot. Once more the yellow came out for Linder on lap 14, and now Halstead used his inside line to briefly move around Woodworth. As those two battled for second, Elston cruised to his second win of the season at QR. Woodworth increased his points lead with the runner up finish ahead of Halstead, Kirkham, and Laine Vanzandt in the #80V, having switched rides with his father, Charles.
The IMCA sport compacts were next to the grid, eight cars for twelve laps. Alyssa Steele paced the opening circuit from outside row one, but point leader Barry Taft charged from row three to the lead one lap later. The only caution of the race came on the third lap when second running Jeffrey Delonjay slowed on the backstretch and was hit from behind by Dylan Schantz, ending the night for both drivers. As racing resumed, Taft stretched his lead while Steele was also able to put distance over the remainder of the field. Taft cruised to his 30th overall victory of 2018. Darin Weisinger Jr. made a run at Steele late, but settled for third, with Jaden Delonjay and Kimberly Abbott turning in top five finishes.
Bollinger and point leader Dave Weitholder paced the twenty lap UMP modified field to green, with Weitholder holding a narrow advantage as the duo ran side by side for the first three circuits. Weitholder was in command as the caution came out for a Ben Huff spin on lap six. Shawn Deering came up to battle Bollinger, taking the spot just ahead of a lap eleven caution for Josh Newman. Bollinger reclaimed second ahead of one more caution for debris at the lap 15 mark. Weitholder was not to be denied, however, scoring I believe his tenth QR feature win of the season. Bollinger saw his last lap charge come up short and settled for second. Kevin Blackburn used a final lap pass to claim third ahead of Deering and birthday boy Michael Vanderiet Jr.
With the drama from the week before hopefully in the rear view mirror, the 13 IMCA sport mods lined up for 18 laps. Tyler Burton jumped to the lead, but a pile up as the pack crossed the stripe to complete the first lap resulted in a complete restart, with Adam Niekamp and last weeks winner A J Tournear headed to the trailer. Burton also led the pack for the opening circuits before Austin Howes came from the third row to take second on lap two and the lead on lap three. Burton brought out the caution with a lap four spin in turn two. As racing resumed, a three car battle developed between Howes, point leader Adam Birck, and Tanner Klingele, who had worked his way to third after starting last. Another multi car pile up slowed the action on lap five. Klingele now used the Delaware restart to take second ahead of a lap eleven spin by Justin Bartz. The field was now restarted single file, with Birck retaking second as he found the top groove to his liking. He rode the rim to close in on the leader, taking the top spot on lap 16. But Howes was up to the task as he moved back ahead, holding on to claim his second win of the season. Birck, Klingele, Brandyn Ryan back in his own #99B, and Brandon Symmonds completed the first five. As Howes celebrated in victory lane, he was "greeted" by some folks apparently still upset by his skirmish last week with Austen Becerra. Order was restored after a while, but it has since been announced by track owner/promoter that the sport mod division will be given next week off at the track to hopefully allow a cooling off period. With the IMCA Super Nationals starting next week, this may be a welcome distraction for both drivers and fans. As a side note, both Becerra and Howes apparently received a reprimand from IMCA, with I believe Becerra getting a two week suspension and Howes on probation. Until this point, the night was going smoothly, with the clock still ahead of 9:30 and only the two person cruiser feature to go.
The Delonjay team was out front of the Foster team, with only two of three cars remaining on the track as I headed to the car.
The final holiday of the season is now upon us, and there is plenty of racing to be had. Weather permitting, our weekend will begin on Thursday with a visit to Kevin and Tammy Gundakers Tri City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Il. In action will be UMP late models and the American Modified Series, both paying $2,000 to win, along with B mods and UMP Crate late models racing for a $1,000 top prize each. Friday night the MLRA late models will invade the Lee County Speedway for their make up event, joined by 305 sprint cars, IMCA sport mods, and IMCA sport compacts. And if all goes well, I hope to make the trip to Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. on Saturday for more MLRA racing supported by the B modifieds. And then ???
Thanks for reading.
Monday, August 20, 2018
Fireworks and Controversy at Quincy Raceways
Sunday night started as just a normal race night at Quincy Raceways, but took a dramatic turn early on. Following nine heat races and a brief intermission it was time to go feature racing.
First up was the 18 lap finale for the 14 IMCA sport mods. When the green flag dropped, point leader Adam Birck "made the move of my life," charging from outside row three, splitting several cars and crossing the line second at the end of lap one. Birck then powered around Brandon Niekamp, as the lead pack crossed the start finish line for lap two and the red light came on for a medical emergency. While the situation on the spectator side was brought under control, it was announced that there would be a complete restart to the race, with no explanation given. Now it was outside row two starter Austin Howes leading Niekamp on lap one, with Birck rolling to the runner up spot on the next circuit. It quickly became a two car race until Austen Becerra worked his way up from a row five start to join the leaders on lap seven. One lap later Birck clipped one of the boundary tires, spinning to bring out the yellow flag. Birck rejoined the race at the tail, but front end damage sent him to the pits a couple laps later. Another caution period on lap twelve bunched the pack, and on the restart, Becerra muscled his way under Howes to take the lead. Quickly recovering, Howes powered out of turn four and showed his displeasure by slamming into Becerra, bouncing off him and into innocent bystander A J Tournear. Both Howes and Becerra were sent to the pits, with Becerra scored as a DQ in the final results. The melee saw Tournear now out front, with heavy body damage apparently his only handicap. It was then announced that the race time limit had expired and the race would end at 18 laps or the next caution. One circuit later, lap 13, the yellow flag was displayed for a spin, and Tournear found himself in victory circle for the first time in 2018. Tanner Klingele started seventh and took runner up honors, while Brandon Symmonds made the trip down from Keokuk to grab third. Brandyn Ryan wheeled Darin Peters #28DP to fourth ahead of Brandon Niekamp.
Things calmed down as the UMP Pro Crate late models lined up for twenty laps. Tommy Elston had picked up the heat race win coming from row three, and he took off from the pole to lead lap one. Point leader Denny Woodworth followed Elston across the stripe, and the pair of veterans went nose to tail on the inside of the oval. Vance Wilson slipped around Clint Kirkham on lap two, and he worked the top side as he tried to run down the front duo. As Elston and Woodworth searched the low and middle grooves for the fast line, Wilson closed in with the help of slower traffic at the halfway mark. As lap 14 was scored, Elston suddenly slowed in turns one and two, with Woodworth and Wilson moving around before Elston came back up to speed. With no caution periods before or after, Woodworth picked up the win. Wilson held off Elston for second, with Kirkham and Laine Vanzandt completing the top five. Melvin Linder in the second Woodworth car and Cliff Powell rounded out the field.
Twelve laps of IMCA sport compact racing was up next. Jake Dietrich had picked up the win Friday night at Lee County Speedway, and he charged to the lead from the pole position. Jeffrey Delonjay drove past the leader on lap two, and the front pair gained separation from the pack. Lap seven saw point leader Barry Taft grab the third spot, and he closed in on the leaders with two laps to go. As the white flag waved, Taft made his move around Dietrich down the backstretch. Delonjay picked up the win, with Taft, Dietrich, Kimberly Abbott, and Darin Weisinger Jr. trailing.
Eleven UMP modifieds saw the first caution on the opening circuit. Fast timer Shaun Deering and Steve Grotz made contact down the backstretch, but the yellow was for a Ronnie Yelton spin in turn one. Grotz grabbed the lead on the complete restart with Deering and point leader Dave Weitholder in tow. As those three pulled away from the pack, Weitholder used the high line around Grotz to nab the top spot on lap six while Deering faded a bit. Lap eight saw fifth running Michael Vanderiet Jr. spin after being clipped from behind. Three more laps saw another yellow flag, and Mark Enk worked his way to third while Vanderiet was already back to fifth. The second place run for Grotz ended with a spin on lap 13, as he became a victim of broken steering. The field was now realigned single file, and Weitholder was cruising out front ahead of one final caution with three laps to go. As the checkers finally waved, Weitholder had another win. Enk, the St Ann, Mo. driver turned in by far his best ever performance at QR, besting Deering, Vanderiet, and Josh Newman at the line.
Michael Larsen had suffered heavy damage to his ride the week before, but was able to make repairs and survive a four wide group to top the first of the 18 lap IMCA stock car main event. However it was Brandon Savage taking over following a lap two caution. A second stoppage came at lap four involving three cars, with Steve Mast charged with the yellow. Beau Taylor had not been penalized after stopping to avoid the caution, and he now vaulted to the runner up spot. Two more circuits, and Taylor used his preferred inside line to grab the lead from Savage. One final caution came at lap seven, and back under green, Taylor, Savage and Larsen ran nose to tail. As Taylor began to pull away, Larsen suffered mechanical woes, dropping out with four laps left. Taylor cruised to his fifth win of the season ahead of Savage, Dean Kratzer, point leader Jake Powers, and Jerry Jansen. The win had been an especially satisfying one for Taylor, who was forced to scratch from the heat race with engine problems. However with an assist from Kratzer, he was able to start at the back of the nine car field and come through for the victory.
The two person cruisers main event wrapped things up with the Delonjay team taking the win over three other cars.
Racing action again started right on time, and even with the delays still wrapped up before 9:30. An intermission of only about 15 minutes helped the night along. It was good to have IMCA official (and currently inactive) fellow Positively Racing blogger Ryan Clark on hand on Sunday to view the action and share in some "bench racing."
Although the season is winding down at many tracks, QR will be racing through September and possibly even into October. They will be taking at least one Sunday off in September to host Monster Truck action, so check the schedule and make plans for some "postseason" racing.
First up was the 18 lap finale for the 14 IMCA sport mods. When the green flag dropped, point leader Adam Birck "made the move of my life," charging from outside row three, splitting several cars and crossing the line second at the end of lap one. Birck then powered around Brandon Niekamp, as the lead pack crossed the start finish line for lap two and the red light came on for a medical emergency. While the situation on the spectator side was brought under control, it was announced that there would be a complete restart to the race, with no explanation given. Now it was outside row two starter Austin Howes leading Niekamp on lap one, with Birck rolling to the runner up spot on the next circuit. It quickly became a two car race until Austen Becerra worked his way up from a row five start to join the leaders on lap seven. One lap later Birck clipped one of the boundary tires, spinning to bring out the yellow flag. Birck rejoined the race at the tail, but front end damage sent him to the pits a couple laps later. Another caution period on lap twelve bunched the pack, and on the restart, Becerra muscled his way under Howes to take the lead. Quickly recovering, Howes powered out of turn four and showed his displeasure by slamming into Becerra, bouncing off him and into innocent bystander A J Tournear. Both Howes and Becerra were sent to the pits, with Becerra scored as a DQ in the final results. The melee saw Tournear now out front, with heavy body damage apparently his only handicap. It was then announced that the race time limit had expired and the race would end at 18 laps or the next caution. One circuit later, lap 13, the yellow flag was displayed for a spin, and Tournear found himself in victory circle for the first time in 2018. Tanner Klingele started seventh and took runner up honors, while Brandon Symmonds made the trip down from Keokuk to grab third. Brandyn Ryan wheeled Darin Peters #28DP to fourth ahead of Brandon Niekamp.
Things calmed down as the UMP Pro Crate late models lined up for twenty laps. Tommy Elston had picked up the heat race win coming from row three, and he took off from the pole to lead lap one. Point leader Denny Woodworth followed Elston across the stripe, and the pair of veterans went nose to tail on the inside of the oval. Vance Wilson slipped around Clint Kirkham on lap two, and he worked the top side as he tried to run down the front duo. As Elston and Woodworth searched the low and middle grooves for the fast line, Wilson closed in with the help of slower traffic at the halfway mark. As lap 14 was scored, Elston suddenly slowed in turns one and two, with Woodworth and Wilson moving around before Elston came back up to speed. With no caution periods before or after, Woodworth picked up the win. Wilson held off Elston for second, with Kirkham and Laine Vanzandt completing the top five. Melvin Linder in the second Woodworth car and Cliff Powell rounded out the field.
Twelve laps of IMCA sport compact racing was up next. Jake Dietrich had picked up the win Friday night at Lee County Speedway, and he charged to the lead from the pole position. Jeffrey Delonjay drove past the leader on lap two, and the front pair gained separation from the pack. Lap seven saw point leader Barry Taft grab the third spot, and he closed in on the leaders with two laps to go. As the white flag waved, Taft made his move around Dietrich down the backstretch. Delonjay picked up the win, with Taft, Dietrich, Kimberly Abbott, and Darin Weisinger Jr. trailing.
Eleven UMP modifieds saw the first caution on the opening circuit. Fast timer Shaun Deering and Steve Grotz made contact down the backstretch, but the yellow was for a Ronnie Yelton spin in turn one. Grotz grabbed the lead on the complete restart with Deering and point leader Dave Weitholder in tow. As those three pulled away from the pack, Weitholder used the high line around Grotz to nab the top spot on lap six while Deering faded a bit. Lap eight saw fifth running Michael Vanderiet Jr. spin after being clipped from behind. Three more laps saw another yellow flag, and Mark Enk worked his way to third while Vanderiet was already back to fifth. The second place run for Grotz ended with a spin on lap 13, as he became a victim of broken steering. The field was now realigned single file, and Weitholder was cruising out front ahead of one final caution with three laps to go. As the checkers finally waved, Weitholder had another win. Enk, the St Ann, Mo. driver turned in by far his best ever performance at QR, besting Deering, Vanderiet, and Josh Newman at the line.
Michael Larsen had suffered heavy damage to his ride the week before, but was able to make repairs and survive a four wide group to top the first of the 18 lap IMCA stock car main event. However it was Brandon Savage taking over following a lap two caution. A second stoppage came at lap four involving three cars, with Steve Mast charged with the yellow. Beau Taylor had not been penalized after stopping to avoid the caution, and he now vaulted to the runner up spot. Two more circuits, and Taylor used his preferred inside line to grab the lead from Savage. One final caution came at lap seven, and back under green, Taylor, Savage and Larsen ran nose to tail. As Taylor began to pull away, Larsen suffered mechanical woes, dropping out with four laps left. Taylor cruised to his fifth win of the season ahead of Savage, Dean Kratzer, point leader Jake Powers, and Jerry Jansen. The win had been an especially satisfying one for Taylor, who was forced to scratch from the heat race with engine problems. However with an assist from Kratzer, he was able to start at the back of the nine car field and come through for the victory.
The two person cruisers main event wrapped things up with the Delonjay team taking the win over three other cars.
Racing action again started right on time, and even with the delays still wrapped up before 9:30. An intermission of only about 15 minutes helped the night along. It was good to have IMCA official (and currently inactive) fellow Positively Racing blogger Ryan Clark on hand on Sunday to view the action and share in some "bench racing."
Although the season is winding down at many tracks, QR will be racing through September and possibly even into October. They will be taking at least one Sunday off in September to host Monster Truck action, so check the schedule and make plans for some "postseason" racing.
Saturday, August 18, 2018
Randy Martin Takes Invader Win at LCS
One sure way to assure a big Friday night crowd at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson is to schedule sprint cars. Last night was no exception, as one of the larger gatherings of 2018 witnessed a solid field of 27 Sprint Invaders highlight the six division show. It took three heat races, a B main and Shake Up dash to set the twenty car field for 25 laps around the D shaped 3/8 mile oval. The track was super fast all night, with a couple of dips in the surface, just enough to add an element of "character."
Jon Agan picked up the win in the six lap dash, then picked the number two can to set the front three rows of the feature, putting himself outside of Dustin Clark in row one. Randy Martin jumped from inside row two to lead the opening laps over Agan, as Paul Nienhiser charged to the third spot on lap two after starting in row four. The first yellow flag then waved for first heat winner Damien Getchell, as smoke poured from his ride. Back under green, Nienhiser powered to second, and on lap five, series points leader Cody Wehrle cleared Agan for third. Lap seven saw Agan spin, making contact with hard charging McKenna Haase, who had worked her way into the top five after starting ninth. As racing resumed, Haase powered to third, but bicycled her car in turn four, possibly damaging the suspension in the #55. Wehrle then retook the third position as Martin stretched his advantage. As the leaders caught slower traffic on lap ten, Nienhiser closed the gap on Martin. Nienhiser shot to the lead about lap 13, just ahead of another caution with eleven laps to go as Haase rolled to a stop. It was all Nienhiser and Martin as the laps clicked off, with the next yellow coming with six laps remaining. One more stoppage came, setting up a four lap dash, and now the veteran Martin found a line around Nienhiser. He stayed in command to the checkers, picking up the $1500 top prize. Nienhiser finished in the runner up spot, while Wehrle held third. Jared Schneiderman and Clark completed the top five.
Feature racing had kicked off with 14 IMCA sport compacts lining up for 14 laps. The 4 cylinder machines may be best known for their ability to run non stop events, but it was not to be on Friday, as the caution waved on three occasions. Jacob Houston and Jake Dietrich ran side by side for the first pair of laps ahead of a lap three yellow. With Dietrich lining up out front on the Delaware restart, Brandon Reu took over the runner up spot. Dietrich and Reu ran side by side before Dietrich edged ahead as another caution came at lap six. Kimberly Abbott and point leader Barry Taft entered the top four as racing resumed, with Houston heading to the pits with a smoking car. As Abbott moved up to challenge Reu, the yellow waved again as the fire crew was needed in the pits for Houstons #14D. One more restart saw Taft move from fifth to third, and as flagman Kevin Eggleston displayed the two to go sign, Reu took one more run at the leader. Dietrich was up to the task, however, crossing the line about 1/2 car length ahead of Reu for his first feature win. Taft came home third ahead of Abbott and Mike Reu.
Most nights at LCS the IMCA sport mods offer up really good racing, but Friday night it was not to be. Fourth starting Daniel Fellows led fifth starting Austen Becerra as racing began, but a yellow flag meant an original restart. A multi car pile up in turn four saw Brandon Dale , Steven Berry, Brandon Symmonds, and Adam Birck all receive damage. Birck changed a tire and rejoined the field, but could never get up to speed with obvious suspension damage. Fellows again grabbed the top spot on the restart, with Jeff Frana and Sean Wyett trailing. The laps clicked off until lap seven, and Becerra took over second on the restart. Two more yellows slowed slowed the action, the final one coming as the leaders came to the white flag. Fellows held on for a flag to flag victory, topping Becerra and Wyett. Bob Cowman slipped around Frana for fourth.
Following the sprint car finale, the IMCA stock cars were on tap. John Oliver Jr. came from outside row two to lead lap one of twenty. As he opened a sizable advantage, fifth starting Abe Huls grabbed second on lap five. Huls began to make up ground, and soon it was a two car duel up front. The pair swapped the lead on lap eleven before Huls took over for good one lap later. Oliver stayed glued to the #30C as four cars staged an entertaining battle for third. The race went non stop, with Huls taking the checkers for his 100th IMCA sanctioned feature win. Oliver settled for second, while Jeremy Pundt won the race for third, nipping Beau Taylor and Chad Krogmeier.
The IMCA modifieds were up next, also for twenty laps. Ageless Dean McGee jumped from the pole to lead lap one. Bill Roberts Jr. had struggled in the heat race, but he took over the top spot one lap later. However the only caution of the race negated the pass. Not to be denied, Roberts again took the lead on the restart, with Dennis Laveine also sneaking past McGee for second. Laveine was the leader as lap six was scored, but Roberts was back in front at lap seven. Jeff Waterman had fallen back a bit at the start, but he found his way to third on the eighth circuit. Roberts opened a comfortable lead as the pair of #71s, Laveine and Waterman battled for second. At the checkers, it was Roberts with the win, while Laveine held off Waterman for second. McGee ran fourth, as Larry Herring nipped Dakota Simmons by an eyelash for fifth.
The crowd had thinned considerably, the clock passed 11:00, and the late models lined up for the twenty lap finale. The invert lineup found Darin Weisinger Jr. and Brandon Queen in row one, but it was third starting Jeff Guengerich who shot to the early lead. Sam Halstead was said to be nursing a bee sting near his eye, and it obviously hampered his performance. Although he followed Guengerich in second, he quickly gave way to Tommy Elston and Ron Boyse. Car owner Lynn Richard had taken his #15R machine to Nebraska last weekend while LCS had the night off, where super late model driver Tad Pospisil had turned in I believe a second place finish. Not to be outdone, Guengerich opened a commanding lead, and Elston was unable to run him down in another non stop event. For Guengerich, it was his first feature win of 2018. Elston took runner up honors, while Boyse ran third. Halstead held off Queen for fourth, while Weisinger was sixth in what was the smallest late model count of the season.
Special thanks to Midwest Performance and Wilson Brothers BBQ for helping to bring the Spring Invaders to the track, and thanks to the Lee County Fairboard for their hospitality. The Invaders will headline the show, tonight, Saturday, at 34 Raceway in West Burlington. Next up at LCS will be season championship night next Friday for the regular five classes, with $3.00 adult admission for throwback night! Then on Friday, August 31, the much anticipated rescheduled visit of the MLRA super late models highlights the action, with other classes competing to be announced. With non racing plans for tonight, my next racing action will be weekly racing Sunday at Quincy Raceways.
As always, thanks for reading.
Jon Agan picked up the win in the six lap dash, then picked the number two can to set the front three rows of the feature, putting himself outside of Dustin Clark in row one. Randy Martin jumped from inside row two to lead the opening laps over Agan, as Paul Nienhiser charged to the third spot on lap two after starting in row four. The first yellow flag then waved for first heat winner Damien Getchell, as smoke poured from his ride. Back under green, Nienhiser powered to second, and on lap five, series points leader Cody Wehrle cleared Agan for third. Lap seven saw Agan spin, making contact with hard charging McKenna Haase, who had worked her way into the top five after starting ninth. As racing resumed, Haase powered to third, but bicycled her car in turn four, possibly damaging the suspension in the #55. Wehrle then retook the third position as Martin stretched his advantage. As the leaders caught slower traffic on lap ten, Nienhiser closed the gap on Martin. Nienhiser shot to the lead about lap 13, just ahead of another caution with eleven laps to go as Haase rolled to a stop. It was all Nienhiser and Martin as the laps clicked off, with the next yellow coming with six laps remaining. One more stoppage came, setting up a four lap dash, and now the veteran Martin found a line around Nienhiser. He stayed in command to the checkers, picking up the $1500 top prize. Nienhiser finished in the runner up spot, while Wehrle held third. Jared Schneiderman and Clark completed the top five.
Feature racing had kicked off with 14 IMCA sport compacts lining up for 14 laps. The 4 cylinder machines may be best known for their ability to run non stop events, but it was not to be on Friday, as the caution waved on three occasions. Jacob Houston and Jake Dietrich ran side by side for the first pair of laps ahead of a lap three yellow. With Dietrich lining up out front on the Delaware restart, Brandon Reu took over the runner up spot. Dietrich and Reu ran side by side before Dietrich edged ahead as another caution came at lap six. Kimberly Abbott and point leader Barry Taft entered the top four as racing resumed, with Houston heading to the pits with a smoking car. As Abbott moved up to challenge Reu, the yellow waved again as the fire crew was needed in the pits for Houstons #14D. One more restart saw Taft move from fifth to third, and as flagman Kevin Eggleston displayed the two to go sign, Reu took one more run at the leader. Dietrich was up to the task, however, crossing the line about 1/2 car length ahead of Reu for his first feature win. Taft came home third ahead of Abbott and Mike Reu.
Most nights at LCS the IMCA sport mods offer up really good racing, but Friday night it was not to be. Fourth starting Daniel Fellows led fifth starting Austen Becerra as racing began, but a yellow flag meant an original restart. A multi car pile up in turn four saw Brandon Dale , Steven Berry, Brandon Symmonds, and Adam Birck all receive damage. Birck changed a tire and rejoined the field, but could never get up to speed with obvious suspension damage. Fellows again grabbed the top spot on the restart, with Jeff Frana and Sean Wyett trailing. The laps clicked off until lap seven, and Becerra took over second on the restart. Two more yellows slowed slowed the action, the final one coming as the leaders came to the white flag. Fellows held on for a flag to flag victory, topping Becerra and Wyett. Bob Cowman slipped around Frana for fourth.
Following the sprint car finale, the IMCA stock cars were on tap. John Oliver Jr. came from outside row two to lead lap one of twenty. As he opened a sizable advantage, fifth starting Abe Huls grabbed second on lap five. Huls began to make up ground, and soon it was a two car duel up front. The pair swapped the lead on lap eleven before Huls took over for good one lap later. Oliver stayed glued to the #30C as four cars staged an entertaining battle for third. The race went non stop, with Huls taking the checkers for his 100th IMCA sanctioned feature win. Oliver settled for second, while Jeremy Pundt won the race for third, nipping Beau Taylor and Chad Krogmeier.
The IMCA modifieds were up next, also for twenty laps. Ageless Dean McGee jumped from the pole to lead lap one. Bill Roberts Jr. had struggled in the heat race, but he took over the top spot one lap later. However the only caution of the race negated the pass. Not to be denied, Roberts again took the lead on the restart, with Dennis Laveine also sneaking past McGee for second. Laveine was the leader as lap six was scored, but Roberts was back in front at lap seven. Jeff Waterman had fallen back a bit at the start, but he found his way to third on the eighth circuit. Roberts opened a comfortable lead as the pair of #71s, Laveine and Waterman battled for second. At the checkers, it was Roberts with the win, while Laveine held off Waterman for second. McGee ran fourth, as Larry Herring nipped Dakota Simmons by an eyelash for fifth.
The crowd had thinned considerably, the clock passed 11:00, and the late models lined up for the twenty lap finale. The invert lineup found Darin Weisinger Jr. and Brandon Queen in row one, but it was third starting Jeff Guengerich who shot to the early lead. Sam Halstead was said to be nursing a bee sting near his eye, and it obviously hampered his performance. Although he followed Guengerich in second, he quickly gave way to Tommy Elston and Ron Boyse. Car owner Lynn Richard had taken his #15R machine to Nebraska last weekend while LCS had the night off, where super late model driver Tad Pospisil had turned in I believe a second place finish. Not to be outdone, Guengerich opened a commanding lead, and Elston was unable to run him down in another non stop event. For Guengerich, it was his first feature win of 2018. Elston took runner up honors, while Boyse ran third. Halstead held off Queen for fourth, while Weisinger was sixth in what was the smallest late model count of the season.
Special thanks to Midwest Performance and Wilson Brothers BBQ for helping to bring the Spring Invaders to the track, and thanks to the Lee County Fairboard for their hospitality. The Invaders will headline the show, tonight, Saturday, at 34 Raceway in West Burlington. Next up at LCS will be season championship night next Friday for the regular five classes, with $3.00 adult admission for throwback night! Then on Friday, August 31, the much anticipated rescheduled visit of the MLRA super late models highlights the action, with other classes competing to be announced. With non racing plans for tonight, my next racing action will be weekly racing Sunday at Quincy Raceways.
As always, thanks for reading.
Monday, August 13, 2018
Crowd Favorite Sheppard Tops Jacksonville
It was a warm Tuesday night in mid June when the UMP Summernationals and Summit modified series visited Jacksonville, Illinois Speedway during the second week of the touring series. The race was billed as the " Wild Man Kelly Classic, honoring the late legendary west central Illnois racer. Although the evening started on a positive note with 27 of the high powered late models signed in as well as a nice field of modifieds and UMP street stocks, it was no secret that strong storms were moving in from the west and south. Promoter Ken Dobson went in to hurry up mode to try and complete the show, but before the consolation events could be run, a heavy downpour brought the action to a close. Dobson was now saddled with a grandstand ( and pit ) full of rain checks, and no workable rain date during the month long points chase to complete the show. Still, Dobson was committed to staging the features, with a $5,000 late model prize along with $1,000 for the mods and $500 for street stocks. After considerable thought, the decision was made to basically scrap the prior results and offer up a complete show from scratch with the same payout and of course no series points. Knowing that there would likely be some of the original competitors upset, having earned advantageous starting positions back in June, Dobson devised a plan to hopefully help sooth a few ruffled feathers. It was announced ahead of race day that all returning drivers that had qualified through heat races at the original show would be eligible for an eight lap dash paying five positions highlighted by a $1,000 to win for the late models and $500 for the mods. An outside donation added $100 to the winners share of each dash. In addition, should any of the original 15 drivers fail to qualify during the make up action, they would make the feature line up as provisional starters.
With all that in mind, and having made it back from a family outing in southeastern Missouri, I joined Darryl Sunday evening for the make up show.
A solid group of 18 super late models, including five that were not at the June race, signed in, along with 15 modifieds and an even dozen street stocks.
Time trial qualifying for the mods and late models opened the program, with Ray Bollinger pacing the modifieds, and Bobby Pierce topping the late models. The racing surface was fast around the top, and local driver Cody Maguire paid the price. Maguire contacted the turn four wall on his first pass , and on his second lap smacked the turn one concrete, ending his night.
The modified dash came next, with Rick Conoyer, driving a #12 machine, leading flag to flag for the $600 payday. Seven of the returning 13 drivers elected to start the late model dash, and Frank Heckenast Jr. outlasted Pierce to pick up the $1,100 prize. Prior to the dash events, defending World of Outlaw late model champion Brandon Sheppard was invited to the front stretch, where Dobson presented him with a sign honoring this accomplishment to hang in his race shop, much to the delight of the large crowd. He alluded to the fact that Brandon had cut his racing teeth at the Sheppard family owned 1/4 mile bullring just down the road known as Shepps Speedway. The facility has since closed, but Dobson acknowledged the tracks brief history by naming the dashes after the track.
With all preliminaries out of the way, it was now time for regular racing. A pair of eight lap modified heats saw Bollinger and Mike Harrison take wins from the pole position. The first of two ten lap late model qualifiers saw polesitter Pierce get the jump on Heckenast and hang on for the win. Shannon Babb ran third ahead of Bob Gardner. Jose Parga was running fifth on the final circuit when he smacked the wall between turns three and four so hard that he knocked the right rear end suspension from the car. After a bit of a delay while the wrecker crew and Pargas crew worked to get the car to the pits, it was time for heat race two. Sheppard shot from the pole, battling Brian Shirley before taking the win. Jason Feger and Michael Kloos completed the top four. Kloos returned to the scene of the accident in June which resulted in him spending a few hours in the Jacksonville hospital. Following a pair of street strock heats and an intermission during which the track crew worked on the slickened surface, it was feature time.
All but one of the 15 cars took the green for 25 laps of modified racing. Bollinger grabbed the lead from the pole to pace lap one ahead of a five car pile up on lap two. With all cars remaining in competition, Harrison powered to the front as racing resumed. Michael Long jumped to the top side of the 1/4 mile oval, slipping around Conoyer for third. Following another quick caution, Long took advantage of the Delaware restart to move in front of Bollinger for second. On a restart following a lap seven yellow, Bollinger retook the runner up spot. One more caution for a multi car scrum saw fourth running Donovan Lodge headed to the tail. Long once again grabbed second back under green, but he could not run down Harrison, and settled for second. Bollinger, Conoyer, and Brian Lynn completed the top five.
The 16 late models still in action lined up for 40 laps. Pierce and Sheppard sat in row one, and it was Sheppard out front as lap one was scored, followed by Shirley, Pierce, Heckenast, Feger, and Babb. The top six quickly broke away from the pack, with Feger moving to fourth on lap four. The leaders quickly caught slower traffic, and by the half way point, Sheppard, Shirley, and Pierce had pulled away in a three car pack. Pierce worked hard on Shirley, taking over second on lap 24. Three laps later, he was knocking on the door of the #B5. Sheppard was masterful in traffic, by lap 30 he was out front by several car lengths. Three more circuits and Pierce was ready to pounce after dueling with a lapped car. With the leaders now nose to tail and Pierce ready to make his move, the only caution of the race came on lap 37, as Daniel Flesner looped his #9D. With a clear track on the restart, Sheppard made it a flag to flag win in front of the roaring crowd. Pierce came home second in front of Shirley. Heckenast was fourth, and after that things were a bit muddled. Babb crossed the line fifth, but I believe he was lapped, giving the spot to Feger. I have not yet seen an official rundown, however I had Kloos in seventh, followed by Rusty Griffaw, Gardner, and Brian Diveley. Again, spots five through ten are unofficial.
During the post race interview, we headed for the car ahead of the street stock feature. If there were no long delays in the final race, the action should have been over about 9:00.
Thanks to Dobson and the Jacksonville staff for their hospitality.
Next on the schedule for this race chaser is this Friday night at the Lee County Speedway, where the Sprint Invaders will join the regular five classes. Hope to see you there!
With all that in mind, and having made it back from a family outing in southeastern Missouri, I joined Darryl Sunday evening for the make up show.
A solid group of 18 super late models, including five that were not at the June race, signed in, along with 15 modifieds and an even dozen street stocks.
Time trial qualifying for the mods and late models opened the program, with Ray Bollinger pacing the modifieds, and Bobby Pierce topping the late models. The racing surface was fast around the top, and local driver Cody Maguire paid the price. Maguire contacted the turn four wall on his first pass , and on his second lap smacked the turn one concrete, ending his night.
The modified dash came next, with Rick Conoyer, driving a #12 machine, leading flag to flag for the $600 payday. Seven of the returning 13 drivers elected to start the late model dash, and Frank Heckenast Jr. outlasted Pierce to pick up the $1,100 prize. Prior to the dash events, defending World of Outlaw late model champion Brandon Sheppard was invited to the front stretch, where Dobson presented him with a sign honoring this accomplishment to hang in his race shop, much to the delight of the large crowd. He alluded to the fact that Brandon had cut his racing teeth at the Sheppard family owned 1/4 mile bullring just down the road known as Shepps Speedway. The facility has since closed, but Dobson acknowledged the tracks brief history by naming the dashes after the track.
With all preliminaries out of the way, it was now time for regular racing. A pair of eight lap modified heats saw Bollinger and Mike Harrison take wins from the pole position. The first of two ten lap late model qualifiers saw polesitter Pierce get the jump on Heckenast and hang on for the win. Shannon Babb ran third ahead of Bob Gardner. Jose Parga was running fifth on the final circuit when he smacked the wall between turns three and four so hard that he knocked the right rear end suspension from the car. After a bit of a delay while the wrecker crew and Pargas crew worked to get the car to the pits, it was time for heat race two. Sheppard shot from the pole, battling Brian Shirley before taking the win. Jason Feger and Michael Kloos completed the top four. Kloos returned to the scene of the accident in June which resulted in him spending a few hours in the Jacksonville hospital. Following a pair of street strock heats and an intermission during which the track crew worked on the slickened surface, it was feature time.
All but one of the 15 cars took the green for 25 laps of modified racing. Bollinger grabbed the lead from the pole to pace lap one ahead of a five car pile up on lap two. With all cars remaining in competition, Harrison powered to the front as racing resumed. Michael Long jumped to the top side of the 1/4 mile oval, slipping around Conoyer for third. Following another quick caution, Long took advantage of the Delaware restart to move in front of Bollinger for second. On a restart following a lap seven yellow, Bollinger retook the runner up spot. One more caution for a multi car scrum saw fourth running Donovan Lodge headed to the tail. Long once again grabbed second back under green, but he could not run down Harrison, and settled for second. Bollinger, Conoyer, and Brian Lynn completed the top five.
The 16 late models still in action lined up for 40 laps. Pierce and Sheppard sat in row one, and it was Sheppard out front as lap one was scored, followed by Shirley, Pierce, Heckenast, Feger, and Babb. The top six quickly broke away from the pack, with Feger moving to fourth on lap four. The leaders quickly caught slower traffic, and by the half way point, Sheppard, Shirley, and Pierce had pulled away in a three car pack. Pierce worked hard on Shirley, taking over second on lap 24. Three laps later, he was knocking on the door of the #B5. Sheppard was masterful in traffic, by lap 30 he was out front by several car lengths. Three more circuits and Pierce was ready to pounce after dueling with a lapped car. With the leaders now nose to tail and Pierce ready to make his move, the only caution of the race came on lap 37, as Daniel Flesner looped his #9D. With a clear track on the restart, Sheppard made it a flag to flag win in front of the roaring crowd. Pierce came home second in front of Shirley. Heckenast was fourth, and after that things were a bit muddled. Babb crossed the line fifth, but I believe he was lapped, giving the spot to Feger. I have not yet seen an official rundown, however I had Kloos in seventh, followed by Rusty Griffaw, Gardner, and Brian Diveley. Again, spots five through ten are unofficial.
During the post race interview, we headed for the car ahead of the street stock feature. If there were no long delays in the final race, the action should have been over about 9:00.
Thanks to Dobson and the Jacksonville staff for their hospitality.
Next on the schedule for this race chaser is this Friday night at the Lee County Speedway, where the Sprint Invaders will join the regular five classes. Hope to see you there!
Monday, August 6, 2018
Familiar Faces in Quincy Victory Lane
Race night number 35 found me at Quincy Raceways, where a handful of first time visitors watched a host of previous winners take the feature checkers.
Once again things started right on time with 6:15 hot laps, and with the computer issues fixed, the UMP modifieds went to hot laps/group qualifying, with Shaun Deering setting quick time at 14.6 seconds. Heat races for the 54 cars clicked off in about 40 minutes followed by intermission, and then it was feature time for the six classes on the card.
Thanks to a pair of donations, the UMP crate late models were racing for $850.00 to win, and their 25 lap feature was run first. Vance Wilson and Tommy Elston lined up on row one, but it was heat winner Denny Woodworth charging from row two to lead the opening circuit, trailed by Elston and Wilson. Clint Kirkham started in the second row, but quickly headed to the pits as racing began. The first yellow flag came at lap four. First time visitor Roben Huffman slowed and was trying to exit the track when he was tagged by Cliff Powell, who spun and stopped on the backstretch. Back under green, Woodworth jumped back out to a commanding lead. Laine Vanzandt was out for the first time in 2018 driving his fathers #80V, and he was battling for third with Wilson when he contacted the front stretch wall, coming to a stop on lap 14. The caution only slowed the dominate win for the point leader Woodworth. Elston came home in second, while Wilson wrestled his way to third having lost his power steering about halfway through the event. Powell, Vanzandt, and Melvin Linder completed the top six, with Huffman and Kirkham scored in seventh and eighth respectively.
Next up was the 18 lap IMCA stock car finale. The always competitive stock cars came to the stripe four wide to complete lap one, while Michael Larsen edged ahead of the pack as lap two was scored. A four car scrum brought out the yellow on lap three, with Abe Huls grabbing the lead when racing resumed. Larsen and Dean Kratzer came together while fighting for the inside line in turn four on lap four ending the night for Larsen. Back under green, Beau Taylor lined up third in the Delaware restart. Winner of three of the last four main events, Taylor had dropped out of the heat race and started ninth on the feature grid. It was Huls pulling out to a big lead, however and Taylor soon had to defend his runner up spot from Brandon Savage. At the same time, there developed a five car side by side and nose to tail battle for fourth even as everyone tried to get to the inside groove, clearly the fastest way around the .29 mile oval. The second and final caution came for a Jake Powers spin on lap 14. The restart proved no problem for Huls, who cruised to his second win of the weekend. Taylor hugged the low line in second, while Savage saw his high side charge fall short as he settled for third. Steve Mast drove a steady race to finish fourth, and Kratzer rebounded to fifth.
Heat winners Dave Weitholder and Kevin Blackburn brought the 14 UMP modifieds to green for 25 scheduled laps of feature racing. It would be as painful to read about as it was to watch as seven caution periods slowed what had to at that point been a snappy program. By lap six the field was realligning single file, but it was still a Tilt-a-Whirl event. Weitholder stayed patient, leading flag to flag for the win. Just as Blackburn looked as though he would challenge the point leader, he ducked to the pits just past the halfway mark. Deering was involved in a pair of early cautions, but picked his way back to the front, completing a late pass of Joey Gower to take second. Michael Vandereit took fourth in his first 2018 visit to QR, and Mark Enk scored a top five. Eight cars were still running at the checkers.
A.J. Tournear powered from row two to lead by a nose as the first lap of the IMCA sport mod 18 lapper was scored. Point leader Adam Birck had started in row four, but was out front at the end of the second circuit. His row four partner, Austen Becerra had required a push start after his car died during parade laps, but he motored to third on lap three.. Becerra then claimed second one lap later ahead of a lap five caution. The second of four yellow flags came on lap eight, and on the restart Becerra began to drive the high line around the track in pursuit of Birck. Two more cautions came at lap 14 and 16, which then set up a green, white, checkers finish. Birck held on for the win, while Becerra settled for the runner up finish. Brandyn Ryan got around Tournear for third, and John Renier scored a fifth place finish. A front straightaway caution at the checkers resulted in heavy damage to the #155 of Terry Wilson.
Ten IMCA sport compacts were up next for twelve laps. Point leader Barry Taft came from the second row to edge Alyssa Steele as lap one was scored. Brandon Ruffcorn slipped past Steele, then charged around Taft on lap three. Two circuits later, Ruffcorn was momentarily caught behind a slower car in turn three, and Taft drove back to the lead. Ruffcorn retook the lead on lap seven. As the white flag waved, Steele suddenly slowed, losing two spots before regaining her momentum even as Ruffcorn pulled to the pits. Taft then scored the win. Darin Weisinger Jr. crossed the line second ahead of Kimberly Abbott, Steele, and first timer Mason Edwards.
The #32 Delonjay car topped the two person cruiser feature.
QR notes: In response to my question as to why the extra $350.00 late model money was not distributed throughout the purse to perhaps draw more cars, I was told that the folks who put up the money wanted it all to go to the winner. That combined with Jacksonville Speedway having a Sunday night race scheduled held down hoped for car count increases. The late models also lost one regular when Brandon Savage sold his crate late and moved back to the stock car class. Brandon says he simply did not have the time required to keep his late model program going. Interestingly, he is married to Beau Taylors' sister, adding an extra element to their competition in the competitive division. Weitholder and wife Tonya celebrated their 23rd wedding anniversary as Dave picked up another win. With the race program under new direction, action has started at the advertised time for the last two nights of racing. Other improvements include the previously mentioned the qualifying procedure for the modifieds and reinstatement of the "spin rule." A driver involved in one solo caution in heat racing or two in the feature are sent to the pits. Although that did not play a big role on Sunday, all of the changes combined resulted in the final checkers waving just before 9:30. Track owner Jason Goble addressed the crowd during intermission to state that despite any rumors to the contrary, he would be operating the track again in 2019.
While not on the original schedule, the sport compacts have been added to the program for next Sunday, August 12.
Family activities will take a big bite out of next weekend for me, so I am not sure when or where my next race night will be.
Thanks for reading, and say "Hi" when you see me Racin' Down the Road.
Once again things started right on time with 6:15 hot laps, and with the computer issues fixed, the UMP modifieds went to hot laps/group qualifying, with Shaun Deering setting quick time at 14.6 seconds. Heat races for the 54 cars clicked off in about 40 minutes followed by intermission, and then it was feature time for the six classes on the card.
Thanks to a pair of donations, the UMP crate late models were racing for $850.00 to win, and their 25 lap feature was run first. Vance Wilson and Tommy Elston lined up on row one, but it was heat winner Denny Woodworth charging from row two to lead the opening circuit, trailed by Elston and Wilson. Clint Kirkham started in the second row, but quickly headed to the pits as racing began. The first yellow flag came at lap four. First time visitor Roben Huffman slowed and was trying to exit the track when he was tagged by Cliff Powell, who spun and stopped on the backstretch. Back under green, Woodworth jumped back out to a commanding lead. Laine Vanzandt was out for the first time in 2018 driving his fathers #80V, and he was battling for third with Wilson when he contacted the front stretch wall, coming to a stop on lap 14. The caution only slowed the dominate win for the point leader Woodworth. Elston came home in second, while Wilson wrestled his way to third having lost his power steering about halfway through the event. Powell, Vanzandt, and Melvin Linder completed the top six, with Huffman and Kirkham scored in seventh and eighth respectively.
Next up was the 18 lap IMCA stock car finale. The always competitive stock cars came to the stripe four wide to complete lap one, while Michael Larsen edged ahead of the pack as lap two was scored. A four car scrum brought out the yellow on lap three, with Abe Huls grabbing the lead when racing resumed. Larsen and Dean Kratzer came together while fighting for the inside line in turn four on lap four ending the night for Larsen. Back under green, Beau Taylor lined up third in the Delaware restart. Winner of three of the last four main events, Taylor had dropped out of the heat race and started ninth on the feature grid. It was Huls pulling out to a big lead, however and Taylor soon had to defend his runner up spot from Brandon Savage. At the same time, there developed a five car side by side and nose to tail battle for fourth even as everyone tried to get to the inside groove, clearly the fastest way around the .29 mile oval. The second and final caution came for a Jake Powers spin on lap 14. The restart proved no problem for Huls, who cruised to his second win of the weekend. Taylor hugged the low line in second, while Savage saw his high side charge fall short as he settled for third. Steve Mast drove a steady race to finish fourth, and Kratzer rebounded to fifth.
Heat winners Dave Weitholder and Kevin Blackburn brought the 14 UMP modifieds to green for 25 scheduled laps of feature racing. It would be as painful to read about as it was to watch as seven caution periods slowed what had to at that point been a snappy program. By lap six the field was realligning single file, but it was still a Tilt-a-Whirl event. Weitholder stayed patient, leading flag to flag for the win. Just as Blackburn looked as though he would challenge the point leader, he ducked to the pits just past the halfway mark. Deering was involved in a pair of early cautions, but picked his way back to the front, completing a late pass of Joey Gower to take second. Michael Vandereit took fourth in his first 2018 visit to QR, and Mark Enk scored a top five. Eight cars were still running at the checkers.
A.J. Tournear powered from row two to lead by a nose as the first lap of the IMCA sport mod 18 lapper was scored. Point leader Adam Birck had started in row four, but was out front at the end of the second circuit. His row four partner, Austen Becerra had required a push start after his car died during parade laps, but he motored to third on lap three.. Becerra then claimed second one lap later ahead of a lap five caution. The second of four yellow flags came on lap eight, and on the restart Becerra began to drive the high line around the track in pursuit of Birck. Two more cautions came at lap 14 and 16, which then set up a green, white, checkers finish. Birck held on for the win, while Becerra settled for the runner up finish. Brandyn Ryan got around Tournear for third, and John Renier scored a fifth place finish. A front straightaway caution at the checkers resulted in heavy damage to the #155 of Terry Wilson.
Ten IMCA sport compacts were up next for twelve laps. Point leader Barry Taft came from the second row to edge Alyssa Steele as lap one was scored. Brandon Ruffcorn slipped past Steele, then charged around Taft on lap three. Two circuits later, Ruffcorn was momentarily caught behind a slower car in turn three, and Taft drove back to the lead. Ruffcorn retook the lead on lap seven. As the white flag waved, Steele suddenly slowed, losing two spots before regaining her momentum even as Ruffcorn pulled to the pits. Taft then scored the win. Darin Weisinger Jr. crossed the line second ahead of Kimberly Abbott, Steele, and first timer Mason Edwards.
The #32 Delonjay car topped the two person cruiser feature.
QR notes: In response to my question as to why the extra $350.00 late model money was not distributed throughout the purse to perhaps draw more cars, I was told that the folks who put up the money wanted it all to go to the winner. That combined with Jacksonville Speedway having a Sunday night race scheduled held down hoped for car count increases. The late models also lost one regular when Brandon Savage sold his crate late and moved back to the stock car class. Brandon says he simply did not have the time required to keep his late model program going. Interestingly, he is married to Beau Taylors' sister, adding an extra element to their competition in the competitive division. Weitholder and wife Tonya celebrated their 23rd wedding anniversary as Dave picked up another win. With the race program under new direction, action has started at the advertised time for the last two nights of racing. Other improvements include the previously mentioned the qualifying procedure for the modifieds and reinstatement of the "spin rule." A driver involved in one solo caution in heat racing or two in the feature are sent to the pits. Although that did not play a big role on Sunday, all of the changes combined resulted in the final checkers waving just before 9:30. Track owner Jason Goble addressed the crowd during intermission to state that despite any rumors to the contrary, he would be operating the track again in 2019.
While not on the original schedule, the sport compacts have been added to the program for next Sunday, August 12.
Family activities will take a big bite out of next weekend for me, so I am not sure when or where my next race night will be.
Thanks for reading, and say "Hi" when you see me Racin' Down the Road.
Saturday, August 4, 2018
Anderson and Birck First Time Winners at LCS
Logan Anderson ( IMCA modifieds ), and Adam Birck ( IMCA sport mods ) picked up their first wins of 2018 at the Donnellson, Iowa fairgrounds speedway, while Sam Halstead made it two in a row in the crate late model division. Abe Huls returned from various racing road trips to top the IMCA stock cars, while Josh Barnes avoided his season long mechanical bugs to claim the IMCA sport compact main event.
The Friday night program began with ten heat races starting at 7:30 as advertised and completed in just over 50 minutes! After a not too long intermission where several bikes were given away, as well as a watermelon smash event followed by free watermelon samples, it was feature time.
The 14 lap sport compact feature was up first. Only Mike Reu was absent as the ten cars came to starter Kevin Egglestons green flag. Josh Barnes shot from row two to run side by side with outside polesitter Jake Dietrich before claiming the lead on lap three. By now point leader Barry Taft had come from row five to the third position, and one lap later he charged to second, bringing along Kimberly Abbott as Dietrich retired to the infield. Taft then moved in to battle Barnes for the lead, with Abbott and Brandon Reu hovering close behind. As the laps clicked off in the non stop event on the hammer down 3/8 mile, Barnes stretched his lead. Probably holding his breath a bit, Barnes had none of his all too frequent mechanical gremlins arise, and he took the checkers ahead of Taft. Abbott held off Brandon Reu for third, and Kenny Smith bested David Prim for fifth.
It was sport modifieds up next, 13 cars for 18 laps. Austin Howes, with a sharp new wrap on his #17A, powered to the lap one lead from outside row two, edging polesitter Jeff Walker at the line. Daniel Fellows started seventh, but moved to third on lap three, then took over the runner up spot on the next circuit. Howes had about a five car length lead, while Fellows was well in front of third running Austen Becerra. One lap from the halfway mark, Becerra spun in turn two, bringing out what I think was the first caution of the night. Howes continued to lead on the restart, trailed by Fellows, Adam Birck, and Brandyn Ryan. As the scoreboard moved to seven laps to go, Bob Cowman brought out the yellow, spinning his machine. Back under green, Becerra had recovered to sixth, and he entered the top five the next time by the flagstand, even as Howes pulled out to a sizable advantage. As the two laps to go flag was displayed, we went yellow again as the recently out of
" retirement " Jim Powell contacted the turn three guard rail. Still it was Howes out front but the yellow waved again with one lap left setting up a green, white, checkers finish. Becerra had by now moved to second, but the leaders jammed up in turn two, with Howes spinning and being hit in the front end by Powell, who had nowhere to go. Howes run now ended on the hook, and after some deliberation, Fellows was sent to the back for his part in the melee. After circling the oval, Fellows then headed to the pits. Another green white checkers saw Becerra complete his charge back through the pack, as he lined up out front in the Delaware restart. But as the green flag waved, Adam Birck got the jump on the leader, flying by on the inside followed by Brandon Dale. A jubilant Birck led the final two laps to pick up his first win of 2018 at LCS. Dale, the class points leader settled for second, while Becerras eventful night saw him come home third. Ryan and Cowman completed the first five.
All eleven IMCA stock cars came next to the oval for 20 laps. Row two starter Darin Thye, another out of " retirement " veteran battled alongside row one starter Dean Kratzer before claiming the lead on lap two. Meanwhile eighth starting Abe Huls crossed the line side by side with Kratzer before taking over the lead on lap three. From there, attention shifted behind the #30C , as row three starter Jeremy Pundt grabbed second on lap six before the only caution of the race for a Cody McClure spin. Huls continued to dominate following the restart, while John Oliver Jr. slipped past Pundt on lap nine. An entertaining battle for fifth developed between Thye, Kratzer, Kevin Koontz, and Brandon Savage. Savage has recently sold his late model and returned to the stock car class. Fourth running Beau Taylor had been steadily closing in on Pundt, and as the " two to go " signal was given, he moved to third. The final order was Huls with the win followed by Oliver Jr., Taylor, Pundt, and Savage.
The late models were moved up in the order, most likely because Oliver Jr. was also set to compete in the modified feature in the Bill Baker #03B normally driven by Craig Spegal.
So it was Cliff Powell and rookie late model pilot Darin Weisinger Jr. leading the field to green for 20 laps of action. Powell paced the opening circuit, with fifth starting Jeff Guengerich in second. Jeff had retired early in his heat race after suffering front end damage, but he was out front as lap two was scored. Meanwhile, contact between Brandon Queen and 2017 regular Derek Liles, out for the
first time this season after moving to Cedar Rapids, ended the night for both cars. Last weeks winner, " Superman " Sam Halstead was on the move, charging from inside row four to first on lap five. As Sam stretched his lead, ninth starting Chuck Hanna brought his IMCA spec engine #65 to third on lap eight, then second two laps later. Todd Frank and point leader Tommy Elston entered the top four one circuit later, and it was Elston third the twelfth time by the flag stand. The front four began to get strung out, though Hanna began to close the gap between himself and Halstead as the laps wound down. With zero cautions, Halstead was able to notch his second win in a row. Hanna had scored the win when the Lee County cars competed at 34 Raceway on March 31, but settled for second on Friday. Elston had looked to be on the move at the drop of the green, but may have had contact that slowed his run to the front, and he came home third. Frank and Ron Boyse rounded out the top five followed by Guengerich, Weisinger, and Powell. Queen was scored ninth and Liles tenth.
Ten modifieds racing 20 laps completed the card. Logan Anderson advanced five positions to top the first circuit with polesitter Levi Smith in tow. Point leader Jeff Waterman lined up seventh and rolled to the runner up spot on lap two, soon shadowed by Bill Roberts Jr. and Dennis Laveine. Anderson, the former sport mod hot shoe, ran the inside line to open a five car length lead while the front four became a bit strung out by the time the crossed flags signaled the halfway mark of the race. With seven laps left, the only caution of the race came for Kelly Buckalew. It proved to be only a momentary distraction for Anderson, who resumed his charge to victory. Waterman tried to put together a run in the closing laps, following Anderson through the low line in turns one and two, the motoring up top in three and four. He could not make the pass, and a happy Anderson scored his first LCS win of 2018. Waterman, Roberts, and Laveine came next, while Oliver used a late race charge to finish fifth after starting ninth.
Aided by, according to my count, seven yellow flags ( five for the sport mods ), the final checkers waved about 9:52! Fifteen total races in less than 2 1/2 hours with an intermission thrown in. That definitely added to the $5.00 Fan Appreciation Night program. While the car counts at Lee County are not the best, they almost always offer up a well prepared racing surface, and an efficiently run show. The track will be silent next week, with the 360 cubic inch Sprint Invaders joining the card in two weeks on August 17.
Season championships are set for the following week. Then on August 31, the open engine MLRA late models will be in town to make up their rained out show from earlier this season.
You should be able to find me at Quincy Raceways on Sunday. Outside additions to the UMP crate late model purse have the winners share up to $850.00 to win. ( Yes, I did ask, and yes, the folks donating the extra money wanted it all added to the winners share. ) Even so, it sounds as though there will be a few extra late models on hand. UMP modifieds, IMCA stock cars, IMCA sport mods, IMCA sport compacts, and two person cruisers will fill out the card, with hot laps at 6:30.
Thanks for reading.
The Friday night program began with ten heat races starting at 7:30 as advertised and completed in just over 50 minutes! After a not too long intermission where several bikes were given away, as well as a watermelon smash event followed by free watermelon samples, it was feature time.
The 14 lap sport compact feature was up first. Only Mike Reu was absent as the ten cars came to starter Kevin Egglestons green flag. Josh Barnes shot from row two to run side by side with outside polesitter Jake Dietrich before claiming the lead on lap three. By now point leader Barry Taft had come from row five to the third position, and one lap later he charged to second, bringing along Kimberly Abbott as Dietrich retired to the infield. Taft then moved in to battle Barnes for the lead, with Abbott and Brandon Reu hovering close behind. As the laps clicked off in the non stop event on the hammer down 3/8 mile, Barnes stretched his lead. Probably holding his breath a bit, Barnes had none of his all too frequent mechanical gremlins arise, and he took the checkers ahead of Taft. Abbott held off Brandon Reu for third, and Kenny Smith bested David Prim for fifth.
It was sport modifieds up next, 13 cars for 18 laps. Austin Howes, with a sharp new wrap on his #17A, powered to the lap one lead from outside row two, edging polesitter Jeff Walker at the line. Daniel Fellows started seventh, but moved to third on lap three, then took over the runner up spot on the next circuit. Howes had about a five car length lead, while Fellows was well in front of third running Austen Becerra. One lap from the halfway mark, Becerra spun in turn two, bringing out what I think was the first caution of the night. Howes continued to lead on the restart, trailed by Fellows, Adam Birck, and Brandyn Ryan. As the scoreboard moved to seven laps to go, Bob Cowman brought out the yellow, spinning his machine. Back under green, Becerra had recovered to sixth, and he entered the top five the next time by the flagstand, even as Howes pulled out to a sizable advantage. As the two laps to go flag was displayed, we went yellow again as the recently out of
" retirement " Jim Powell contacted the turn three guard rail. Still it was Howes out front but the yellow waved again with one lap left setting up a green, white, checkers finish. Becerra had by now moved to second, but the leaders jammed up in turn two, with Howes spinning and being hit in the front end by Powell, who had nowhere to go. Howes run now ended on the hook, and after some deliberation, Fellows was sent to the back for his part in the melee. After circling the oval, Fellows then headed to the pits. Another green white checkers saw Becerra complete his charge back through the pack, as he lined up out front in the Delaware restart. But as the green flag waved, Adam Birck got the jump on the leader, flying by on the inside followed by Brandon Dale. A jubilant Birck led the final two laps to pick up his first win of 2018 at LCS. Dale, the class points leader settled for second, while Becerras eventful night saw him come home third. Ryan and Cowman completed the first five.
All eleven IMCA stock cars came next to the oval for 20 laps. Row two starter Darin Thye, another out of " retirement " veteran battled alongside row one starter Dean Kratzer before claiming the lead on lap two. Meanwhile eighth starting Abe Huls crossed the line side by side with Kratzer before taking over the lead on lap three. From there, attention shifted behind the #30C , as row three starter Jeremy Pundt grabbed second on lap six before the only caution of the race for a Cody McClure spin. Huls continued to dominate following the restart, while John Oliver Jr. slipped past Pundt on lap nine. An entertaining battle for fifth developed between Thye, Kratzer, Kevin Koontz, and Brandon Savage. Savage has recently sold his late model and returned to the stock car class. Fourth running Beau Taylor had been steadily closing in on Pundt, and as the " two to go " signal was given, he moved to third. The final order was Huls with the win followed by Oliver Jr., Taylor, Pundt, and Savage.
The late models were moved up in the order, most likely because Oliver Jr. was also set to compete in the modified feature in the Bill Baker #03B normally driven by Craig Spegal.
So it was Cliff Powell and rookie late model pilot Darin Weisinger Jr. leading the field to green for 20 laps of action. Powell paced the opening circuit, with fifth starting Jeff Guengerich in second. Jeff had retired early in his heat race after suffering front end damage, but he was out front as lap two was scored. Meanwhile, contact between Brandon Queen and 2017 regular Derek Liles, out for the
first time this season after moving to Cedar Rapids, ended the night for both cars. Last weeks winner, " Superman " Sam Halstead was on the move, charging from inside row four to first on lap five. As Sam stretched his lead, ninth starting Chuck Hanna brought his IMCA spec engine #65 to third on lap eight, then second two laps later. Todd Frank and point leader Tommy Elston entered the top four one circuit later, and it was Elston third the twelfth time by the flag stand. The front four began to get strung out, though Hanna began to close the gap between himself and Halstead as the laps wound down. With zero cautions, Halstead was able to notch his second win in a row. Hanna had scored the win when the Lee County cars competed at 34 Raceway on March 31, but settled for second on Friday. Elston had looked to be on the move at the drop of the green, but may have had contact that slowed his run to the front, and he came home third. Frank and Ron Boyse rounded out the top five followed by Guengerich, Weisinger, and Powell. Queen was scored ninth and Liles tenth.
Ten modifieds racing 20 laps completed the card. Logan Anderson advanced five positions to top the first circuit with polesitter Levi Smith in tow. Point leader Jeff Waterman lined up seventh and rolled to the runner up spot on lap two, soon shadowed by Bill Roberts Jr. and Dennis Laveine. Anderson, the former sport mod hot shoe, ran the inside line to open a five car length lead while the front four became a bit strung out by the time the crossed flags signaled the halfway mark of the race. With seven laps left, the only caution of the race came for Kelly Buckalew. It proved to be only a momentary distraction for Anderson, who resumed his charge to victory. Waterman tried to put together a run in the closing laps, following Anderson through the low line in turns one and two, the motoring up top in three and four. He could not make the pass, and a happy Anderson scored his first LCS win of 2018. Waterman, Roberts, and Laveine came next, while Oliver used a late race charge to finish fifth after starting ninth.
Aided by, according to my count, seven yellow flags ( five for the sport mods ), the final checkers waved about 9:52! Fifteen total races in less than 2 1/2 hours with an intermission thrown in. That definitely added to the $5.00 Fan Appreciation Night program. While the car counts at Lee County are not the best, they almost always offer up a well prepared racing surface, and an efficiently run show. The track will be silent next week, with the 360 cubic inch Sprint Invaders joining the card in two weeks on August 17.
Season championships are set for the following week. Then on August 31, the open engine MLRA late models will be in town to make up their rained out show from earlier this season.
You should be able to find me at Quincy Raceways on Sunday. Outside additions to the UMP crate late model purse have the winners share up to $850.00 to win. ( Yes, I did ask, and yes, the folks donating the extra money wanted it all added to the winners share. ) Even so, it sounds as though there will be a few extra late models on hand. UMP modifieds, IMCA stock cars, IMCA sport mods, IMCA sport compacts, and two person cruisers will fill out the card, with hot laps at 6:30.
Thanks for reading.
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