Williamson Tops Sprint Invaders at Quincy

     The 360 cubic inch Sprint Invaders would close out their  championship weekend Sunday with a second 2022 visit to Adams County Illinois Speedway east of Quincy. Pro Crate Late Models, Street Stocks, and Hart Limited B Mods would also be a part of the action. This season ending race for the track would follow by one week the highly successful two day Chad McCoy Memorial, wrapping up a stellar first season for new track operators Jim and Tammy Lieurence.

   Twenty five sprinters would lead a field of sixty seven cars in the four divisions on a night plagued by yellow (and red) fever. Problems began in the first Invader heat, when Alex VanderVoot had his #5A dig in the racing surface entering turn one and he flipped hard multiple times. He was apparently uninjured, but was done for the night. 

   The track crew worked hard during the night to stay on top of a bit of a dust problem, and after some extra manicuring during intermission, the surface was plenty racy for the features, with a very "tall" cushion.

   Late models would kick off the feature action, going at it for twenty laps. Heat winners Tommy Elston and Braden Bilger sat on row one, which of course made the veteran Elston the odds on favorite. But that's why we race 'em! Bilger jumped to the lead from his outside starting spot, pacing the opening lap. Mark Burgtorf, in the Lynn Richard #15R started fourth and drove around Bilger to lead lap two. But Braden kept his #17B within striking distance, charging back to the front as lap six was scored. The first yellow came with eight in the books, as 2022 Four Cylinder track champion Jeffrey Delonjay slowed before exiting the track. Jeffrey was making his late model debut in a car his team purchased from Spencer Coats earlier in the season and put back together as #32D. One more lap was scored before a second yellow as Jason Oenning and Bill Berghaus got together. The third and final caution came on the restart as Elston slowed, the result of his right rear tire going down. Attempting a restart, Tommy then pulled to the infield, his night over. Through it all, Bilger stayed in command. He was a joyous first time winner in victory lane! Burgtorf went unchallenged in second, while Darin Weisinger Jr. cleared track champ Denny Woodworth for third. James Dickerson was the final car running in fifth.

   Sprint Invaders would then come to the track, twenty strong for twenty five laps. Paul Nienhiser had captured the dash win, but the redraw saw him line up fourth alongside Austin Archdale, while Garet Williamson and Chris Martin inherited row one. The first attempted start was yellow flagged when #99 of Bret Triplett stalled. Williamson grabbed the early lead ahead of Martin, with Nienhiser taking second on lap two. One more lap was scored before the next caution, and Martin retook second following the single file restart. The red flag then waved as Riley Goodno went for a wild upside down ride off turn three. Back to racing, previous Adams County winner Chase Randall entered the conversation in third, rode the cushion to second, then powered to the lead on lap eight. Another caution soon followed, and then Randall and Williamson engaged in a series of slide jobs with Williamson finally completing a decisive pass. After a caution near the halfway mark, Williamson was able to open a bit of breathing room as Nienhiser rebounded to battle side by side with Randall for second. Nienhiser settled in to second and Zach Daum drove the inside line to third as Randall faded to fourth. With five laps remaining, Cameron Martin brought out a final red flag, as he too flipped hard between turns three and four. Two more yellows marred the final laps, but Williamson held on to pick up his second ever win with the Invaders. Daum used a last lap pass to claim runner up honors over Nienhiser, and Chris Martin cleared Randall on that final circuit to finish fourth.

   We could now identify the sprint car faithful with a fair amount of the large, late arriving crowd headed for the gates as the HART Limited B Mods entered the track for twenty laps of racing. All but one of the twenty two signed in made the call. After a false start, pole sitter A. J. Tournear paced lap one ahead of third starting Tanner Klingele. Following a lap two caution, Klingele led by a nose as he raced three wide with Tournear and fifth starting Austen Becerra. Becerra then powered to the front, while Klingele, Tournear, track champion Adam Birck, and Dave Weitholder in the #117 battled for position behind him. The next stoppage came with eleven laps down, and Birck used the high line to claim second. Seven laps remained when the fourth red flag of the night waved as Michael Goodwin went for a roll in turn three. Back under green, Weitholder and Klingele swapped positions behind the front duo. Two more cautions came with five laps remaining, but it only delayed Becerras' appearance in victory lane, as he took the trophy and $600 prize. Birck was runner up, trailed by Klingele, Weitholder, and Tournear.

   Street stocks would wrap up the program, eleven cars for eighteen laps. Robert Cottom sat on the pole, quickly jumping to the lead ahead of Steve Grotz and Rudy Zaragoza. On lap two, Zaragoza moved to second while Beau Taylor raced to third ahead of a lap five caution, which sent him back to fourth. Taylor again took third on the restart, then a stack 'em up in turn two saw Zaragoza charged with the melee, sending him to the tail. A final caution came with six to go, but Cottom was not to be denied as he cruised to the win. Taylor was strong in second as Jake Powers raced home third. Zaragoza rebounded to fourth, while Steve Dieckmann completed the top five.

   This put a wrap on our three night, three state racing weekend as well as the season at Adams County Speedway. Next up, we hope to make the opening night of the Fall Bash at the Cedar County Raceway in Tipton, Iowa on Thursday, so stay tuned for that!

Racing, Racing, and More Racing at Scotland County

     With clearing skies and warmer temps, Scotland County Speedway in Memphis, Missouri would roar to life with the Jim Oliver Sr. Memorial. The five class program, scheduled as two full shows would see the Friday portion moved one month to the late October fall extravaganza at the speedway. A mods, B mods, Stock Cars, Hobby Stocks, and 4 Cylinder racers would fill the pit area which stretches nearly half way around the three eighths mile facility. The final tally showed a whopping 149 cars, led by 45 B Mods, set to do battle.

    With an afternoon practice session in the books, the track was apparently reworked and needed a bit of "run in" time, but soon hot laps clicked off in brisk fashion and the first heat hit the track just before 7:00. It took twenty of them for early qualifications, then we moved into the novelty event of the night.

   With Oliver Heating and Air providing the purse money, four of the five divisions raced First Time Winners mini features. Drivers who had never won a main event in the class in which they were entered were eligible  to compete, with a trophy and $300 going to each victor. Brandon Lambert led things off by topping the twelve lap B Mod challenge. Christian Huffman was the Hobby Stock winner. Seventeen year old Rowdee Van Genderen made Poppa proud with the Stock Car title. Young Fisher Reese capped things off with a decisive victory in the A Mods.

   Four B mains came next to set the starting lineups for feature racing, and we now had twenty eight races in the books as the clock showed 10:06. When intermission was announced and the grader came out, we decided to set a midnight curfew for ourselves, hoping it would not be needed. A troublesome area had developed in turns one and two, resulting in an unusual amount of suspension issues on the cars, and the reworking of the surface seemed to help that, although it also dredged up a surprising bit of dust that fortunately did not affect the grandstands. 

   Unfortunately, the track work took about thirty minutes, with the twenty lap B Mod feature then coming to the track. And as so often happens when time is a factor, a massive crash occurred on lap two in front of the grandstands. The #57 car of Brandt Ames climbed the fence, landing with the front wheels atop the advertising billboards. It took considerable time to get his car down from its perch. Several other cars were eliminated, including top contender Brayton Carter who had been forced to qualify through a B main and was caught up in the melee, suffering front end damage and losing the drivers side sheet metal off his #01. As the front five, led by outside row one starter Dylan VanWyk drove off from the field, a second red flag was displayed when Colton Livezey flipped his #29 in turn four on lap seven. Again, the single wrecker crew along with a rollback on site spent quite a bit of time clearing the racing surface. Only one more stoppage at lap thirteen slowed the action. VanWyk held the top spot throughout, with Maguire Dejong and Logan Anderson locked in a side by side duel for second. At the checkers, it was VanWyk with the flag to flag win, followed by Dejong, Anderson, Tim Plummer, and Curtis VanDerWal. The win was worth $1,500 to VanWyk.

   Fourteen laps of Sport Compact action came next, with two dozen of the twenty nine cars on hand lining up doing battle for $300. Kimberly Abbott has been on a major roll of late, and her streak continued as she drew the pole position for the race. She shot to the lead with Chuck Fullenkamp hounding her early on, diving low in the turns before Abbott drove away down the chutes, lap after lap. A maddening series of yellow flags slowed the action, with the final ones resulting in the field realigning single file. Fullenkamp chased the veteran speedster Abbott for the entire distance to no avail, as Kimberly led all the way for the win. Luke Fraise moved up from row four to grab a podium finish, while Tim Schnathorst and Des Moines racer Kolby Sabin rounded out the top five.

   The Stock Car field had also been whittled down from twenty nine to twenty four, with twenty laps the distance for the $1,500 prize. Trenton Witt sat outside row one and was out front as lap one was scored. But as the leaders worked into turn four on lap two, the #33 of Witt was suddenly up in the air , landing upside down. When finally we got back to racing, it was Nathan Ballard charging to the front with Dallon Murty hot on his heels. Johnny Spaw had pulled an eleven on the redraw, but was swiftly moving forward, taking third on lap four. Murty and Spaw then engaged in an intense battle for second. Spaw worked around the low side while Dallon operated higher on the track, the duo often racing door to door. On lap fourteen, Johnny was able to gain an advantage, then moved up one lane while Murty then took the short way around, hugging the inside tire barrier. With the race staying green, Ballard cruised to the win, while Murty drove back around Spaw for second. John Oliver Jr. was steady in fourth, while Michael Jaennette chased him to finish fifth.

   Hobby Stocks were up next with A Mods headed to staging, but our self imposed curfew had arrived, and while much of the large crowd stuck around, we regretfully headed for the parking lot. Congratulations to Luke Ramsey for his $500 Hobby Stock win, and to Austen Becerra for taking home the $1,500 A Mod check. 

   Thanks to Mike Van Genderen, Haylee, Kevin, Tony and the rest of the crew at Scotland County for an action packed night of racing!

   Early church is over, racewear laundry is next and (hopefully) a nap, then we will be off to Adams County, Illinois Speedway for their season finale of Sprint Invaders, Crate Late Models, Street Stocks and Hart Series B Mods. Hope to see you there!

  

Kay and Murty Take Davenport Wins

    Friday afternoon we journeyed north to Davenport Speedway for night one of the 45th Yankee Dirt Track classic. This late season special has been a staple of the Farley Speedway for many years after originating at the dirt version of Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids in 1978. For unknown (to me) reasons, the Farley track cancelled the 2022 event, which was set to take place over the Labor Day holiday, so Ricky Kay and his team picked up the torch and put together two nights of racing under the Yankee banner. The event would revolve around their previously scheduled Saturday visit by the SLMR late models. The Friday card would be headlined by IMCA late models, a regularly featured class at the track racing for $1,045 to win. Also in action would be a visiting class, IMCA stock cars, also competing for $1,045. The action would wrap up with an Enduro for the 4 cylinder cars.

   As we made our way north, trying to ignore the steady drizzle which occasionally turned to a rain shower, one by one tracks in the region began to post cancellation notices. But Facebook missives kept assuring us all was well in Davenport, so we soldiered on. Even as I made my first pass through the steadily filling pit area, I was silently questioning the wisdom of our excursion. But luck was on our side, as the mist stopped, at least long enough to allow racing to go on as planned! 

   The final tally had an outstanding field of twenty eight IMCA late models signed in along with twenty top notch IMCA stock cars, an excellent total considering the class did not race here in 2022. However, the rumors were later confirmed that IMCA stock cars will be a part of the lineup at the track in 2023. With hot laps under way, the 4 cylinder Enduro cars continued to trickle in, with a final count of twenty two. In addition. five SLMR cars wandered in early and were allowed a hot lap "practice" session ahead of tomorrows' program.

   Stock cars were split into three heat races, with the top four redrawing for the first six rows of the twenty five lap feature. Chase Zaruba, Kaden Reynolds, and triple duty Justin Kay picked up heat race wins. 

   Four seven car ten lap heats set the feature field for the late models. The top three from each redrew for the first six rows, but all twenty eight cars advanced to the thirty five lap money race. When rookie Anthony Guss elected to tag the tail of heat one, that moved Chuck Hanna to the outside pole, and he picked up the win. Fourth starting Andy Nezworski overtook Kay to capture heat two. Tommy Elston, wheeling the Lynn Richard #15R worked around early leader Darrel Defrance for the heat three win, and Matt Ryan charged from row two for the heat four victory.

   Hot laps for the SLMR early arrivals served as intermission, then it was feature time for the stock cars. With the opening night of the Jim Oliver Memorial at Scotland County Speedway rained out, John Oliver Jr. made the trip to Davenport, and lined up on the pole alongside Dallon Murty. Dallon quickly shot to the lead, with Damon Murty driving to second from row two. The son and father team immediately began to put distance on the field, while a pack of seven cars battled side by side and nose to tail behind them. With twelve in the books, the leaders moved up on a pair of slower cars, but that presented no problem as the leaders raced nose to tail around them. Meanwhile, twelfth starting Reynolds was moving forward, advancing to fourth with nine laps to go. But his charge was stalled when he drove over the top of the track out of turn two. By the time the scoreboard showed five laps remaining, the front duo had nearly a half track lead, Two laps from the finish, Damon nosed ahead briefly down the backstretch, but Dallon rode the cushion back to the front out of turn four. At the checkers, it was Dallon on top, followed by Damon. Dustin Vis started and finished third, Jesse Sobbing advanced four positions to fourth, while Kay started and finished fifth. 

   All twenty eight cars took the green flag for the thirty lap late model main event. Nezworski and Kay lined up on the front row, and once again it was Kay grabbing the early lead. Although challenged throughout, he did not give up control this time, scoring a flag to flag win. He opened up a big lead early before encountering heavy slower traffic by lap six. As he and Nezworski wormed their way through, Ryan, who had been lurking in third, cleared Nezworski for the runner up spot. As he began to bear down on Kay, the first yellow flag flew. On the first attempt at a restart, a brake check in the middle of the pack resulted in a five car pileup between turns three and four. Following a lengthy clean up, Kay, with an open track ahead, again took off. By lap twelve, the top three had put distance on the pack, but were once again catching the back of the pack. Unlike his inside line "catfishing" in the stock car, Kay was working high around the quarter mile while Ryan switched lines looking for a way to the front. Nezworski took advantage of that to close in on Ryan, and now Matt was occupied with hanging on to second. As a  result, Kay drove away to the win. Ryan held off Nezworski for runner up honors, while Joel Callahan climbed five spots to fourth. Jacob Waterman was racing the #77 car for the evening, starting eleventh and finishing fifth. Hanna led the second five, topping Anthony Franklin, Fred Remley, Defrance, and Jaden Fryer. 

   As Kay was being interviewed by Shane Davis in victory lane and the Enduro cars waited in staging, the sprinkles fired up once again. Although it was just after 8:30, Fred and I, as well as several others in the rather sparse crowd headed for the exits. Hopefully they were able to complete the 150 laps, as I see Rick Zifko from Aurora, Illinois picked up the win over Brody Rivest from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and Nate Coopman from Mankato, Minnesota. This novelty race paid a whopping $2,645 to win!

   After some quality family time today, we will head for Scotland County Speedway in Memphis, Missouri tonight for Jim Oliver Sr. Memorial action. Check back tomorrow for a report on the five class program. We hope to cap off the weekend with the season finale at Adams County, Illinois Speedway for season championship night for the Sprint Invaders racing along with Crate Late Models, Street Stocks, and HART Limited B Mods.

Clanton Grabs Preliminary Night Win at Knoxville

    Thursday was opening night of the 18th annual Knoxville Late Model Nationals. Forty eight cars took time trials although there was one additional team in the pits. Thirteen year old Kayden Clatt had made the trip from Edina, Missouri to take his first crack at the big half mile and was on the roster to begin the night. While the Lucas Oil late model sanctioning group was okay with his participation, Knoxville Raceway has a minimum age requirement of sixteen, so he was relegated to spectator for the event. Kayden has been racing his #50 late model for a couple of years now, and has steadily improved, vowing to be back at Knoxville in three years!

   The format for this three day weekend allows drivers to compete on one or both preliminary nights, keeping their best points night to earn starting spots in the Saturday lineups, whether in the $40,000 to win finale, a B or C main. Points are awarded during the preliminary events for qualifying, heats, and feature races.

   Qualifying was broken into two groups. Spencer Hughes was tops in group A with a quick lap of 17.557 seconds, but the overall fast time was turned in by Brandon Overton who tripped the clock at 17.494. There would then be a six car invert in each of six twelve lap eight car heat races. Shane Clanton raced from row two to capture heat one, slipping around race long leader Ross Robinson on the final lap. Chris Madden came from the outside pole to top heat two with surprise entrant Justin Zeitner nursing his smoking #62 to a third place finish. Ryan Gustin also lined up outside row one to grab heat three. Group B cars saw Chase Junghans claim heat four from his pole start. Fast timer Overton smacked the turn three wall, then recovered to advance to fourth, narrowly missing a transfer spot.  Richmond, Missouri driver Aaron Marrant started outside row one and won heat five. Behind him, National Dirt Late Model Hall of Famer Billy Moyer and Tad Pospisil were battling back and forth for second when the engine let go in the Moyer #21 on the final lap. Marrant then held off Pospisil and Jimmy Owens on the one lap shootout. Pole sitter Stormy Scott topped the final twelve lapper. 

   With the top three in each heat moving to the feature, a pair of fifteen car fifteen lap B mains would also send the top three in each to the finale. The Saturday night "Big Dance" winner in 2021, Mike Marlar charged from row three to top B main one. Hughes and Bobby Pierce had lined up in row one, but Pierce had issues in turn three to bring out a yellow. He restarted on the tail, but pulled to the infield mid race. Hughes led a good portion of the race until the caution waved for Jesse Sobbing. Marlar lined up fourth for the restart, but charged all the way to first, while Hughes fell to third behind Ricky Thornton Jr. There was plenty of action in the final qualifier. Rookie of the Year contender Daulton Wilson was running in the final transfer spot when he suddenly slowed, ending his chances. With six laps to go, Overton was cruising out front when he had a tire go down, turning him into the turn three fence. With Garrett Alberson now in first for the restart, second and third running Daniel Hilsabeck and Tyler Bruening got together on the front stretch, with Bruening spinning to a stop. At the checkers, it was Alberson, Hilsabeck, and veteran Chris Spieker. 

   It took just a bit of time to get the lineup correct for the twenty five lap, $7,000 to win main event. Clanton and Pospisil would sit on row one. Zeitner had earned a row four starting spot, but would go to the tail after pulling his back up car from his trailer. Clanton would pace lap one, with row two starters Hudson Oneal and Earl Pearson Jr. trailing. Jonathon Davenport is by far the hottest driver in dirt late model racing in 2022 , and on the second circuit he moved to fourth after starting sixth. Davenport then moved to third ahead of a lap three caution for a slowing Madden. Pearson retook third on the restart as Clanton continued to lead. Eight laps in, Oneal was close enough to the leader that he tried to slide him for the front in turns three and four, but could not complete the pass. Two laps later, Hudson suddenly slowed, bringing out the yellow flag, ending his run. Brandon Sheppard now powered from a row five start to fourth, but could not get close enough to Davenport to attempt a move for  third. From that point, Clanton was not challenged, opening up a comfortable lead for a flag to flag win. Pearson Jr., Davenport, Sheppard, and twelfth starting Kyle Strickler turned in top five runs. Lucas Oil Series points leader Tim McCreadie ran sixth ahead of Owens, Gustin, Brian Shirley, and Junghans.

   Action wrapped up shortly after 10:00 P.M. on this first night of what promises to be a great weekend of racing!

  

Sanders, Crawley, and Zevenbergen Tops at Clay County Fair

    On Tuesday night I had the opportunity to visit the Clay County Speedway in Spencer, Iowa. The occasion was the Clay County Fair, obviously held much later than most county fairs in the mid west. This would be my first ever visit to the three eighths mile facility and would be the first of two nights of action at the track. Racing on this night would be Tri State Late Models, the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series, and IMCA Stock Cars. A top prize of $3,000 would be on the line for the late models and sprints, with stock cars chasing $1,000. "Tri State", in this area, would represent Iowa, Minnesota, and South Dakota!

   We were greeted with a healthy and well balanced field of twenty six sprints and stock cars, edged out by twenty seven late models, good numbers for a mid week show. After choosing from the dozens of "fair food" choices, we settled into the massive covered grandstands, complete with stadium style seats, obviously installed since the 1931 erection of the facility. Sprint car heats were set up by three lap group qualifying, with Sapulpa, Oklahoma driver Blake Hahn turning the overall fastest lap at 14.087 seconds. They would then run three heat races with the top sixteen in passing points moving to the feature. Another six drivers would make the lineup through a twelve lap B main. Three heats for the stock cars and four plus a B main for the late models would set the stage for feature racing. Amazingly, all ten heats plus the sprint B were completed with no yellow flags to slow the action!

   Intermission came ahead of the B mains, so with the preliminaries finished, all twenty six stock cars lined up for twenty laps. Three caution periods marred the opening laps, with early leader Jim Horejsi turning the lead over to Mike Albertsen about lap six (another track without a scoreboard!) Two more yellow flags about lap nine saw the field reset single file, with now second running Chance Hollatz moving in to challenge for the lead. Hollatz and Albertsen ran side by side for several laps before catching the back of the pack on lap seventeen. As they negotiated the slower cars down the backstretch, eleventh starting Elijah Zevenbergen found an opening, driving around the two leaders. Those three then ran in tight formation to the checkers, with Zevenbergen taking the win. Hollatz came home second, trailed by Albertsen, Horejsi, and hometown driver Cody Nielsen.

   Sprints would be up next, with twenty five laps the distance for the twenty two starters. Tim Crawley sat on the outside pole and led Hahn through the lone caution on lap three. With the single file restart, the top three of Crawley, Hahn, and Wayne Johnson caught the back of the pack about lap ten. At that point, third starting Matt Covington joined the party, with the leaders running the faster top line around the banked oval. As the laps wound down, Crawley was able to stretch his lead, and with no more cautions, he cruised to the win. Hahn, Johnson, and Covington followed in that order, with Kyler Johnson rounding out the top five. Landon Britt topped the second five in front of Christopher Thram, Chris Martin, Jason Martin, and Riley Goodno.

   Late models would round out the program, and although it was difficult to decipher the P.A. under the tin roof stands, we counted twenty five laps for the twenty three qualified cars plus provisional starter Brad Vogt. Outside row one starter Scott Ward took off at the green flag ahead of Corey Zeitner and Tyler McDonald. McDonald moved to the lead on lap two ahead of a spin by Lane Brenden. Back to racing, a pair of national stars were on the move. Row five starter Rodney Sanders charged to second, and a few laps later Blair Nothdurft joined the party in third. By now McDonald and Sanders had separation from Nothdurft and the rest, but soon the red flag was displayed as the #73 car of Dave Carlson made a sharp right hand turn off the banking at the end of the front stretch, getting upside down. He was uninjured, and after a bit of a delay, we were once again racing. McDonald remained in control, with the caution again waving just as the crossed flags were set to signal the halfway mark. On the restart, Nothdurft appeared to make contact with Sanders, and while Rodney carried on in second, Nothdurft began to fade back in the pack. With just four laps remaining, Sanders made his move, closing the gap and grabbing the lead one lap later out of turn four, with a bit of bumping between the front duo. With the white flag displayed, the flag man replaced it with a final yellow, setting up a green, white, checkers finish. This was only a temporary delay, as Sanders, the modified standout from Happy, Texas, picked up the win. McDonald held on to second, chased by Chad Olsen, Shane DeMay, and fifteenth starting Gary Brown Jr. Nothdurft took sixth, followed by Corey Zeitner, Nate Beyenhof, Trevor Anderson, and David McDonald. Anderson, the series points leader, had issues in his heat race, finishing in fifth, which put him twentieth in the starting lineup.

   The program wrapped up sometime early in the 10:00 hour, with the large crowd filtering to the carnival midway as we headed for the gate. Thanks to the folks at Clay County for offering up an entertaining mid week show. I could certainly recommend a visit to this track, which runs a limited summer schedule, with a series of Monday night races. If only it weren't 380 miles from home!

Elston Collects $5,000 at Donnellson

    Saturday it was back to Lee County Speedway in Donnellson for the IMCA late model Drive for Five finale. Thirteen drivers would be eligible for a $5,000 top prize in the 50 lap headliner, while anyone who did not run the required number of qualifying events would still collect a cool $2,000. Sandwiched around this action, would be four other regular IMCA classes, with modifieds racing for $750 to win, stock cars and sport mods for $600, plus sport compacts. In addition the limited schedule Mini Hauler Trucks would be running their season championship event.

   A couple of things were evident as late afternoon gave way to evening and what was already an earlier than usual planned start time. One was that there would be a first time Drive for Five winner, as Justin Kay, who was two for two since the series began in 2020  was not in attendance. The other was that there may not be a winner at all unless the program moved along quickly, as persistent rain showers were making their way across the state, taking dead aim at Donnellson.

   With the earlier start, racers continued to trickle in even as hot lap time approached, with a final tally of seventy seven teams signed in, led by a strong field of twenty two late models. But to their credit, track personnel got the show started right on time, with warm ups kicking off at 6:15 sharp, and the first race was on the track thirty minutes later. It had already been decided to scrap the scheduled ten minute break at lap twenty five of the late model feature, although there would be a brief fuel stop around lap thirty five. And after conferring with the drivers it was announced that the double passing points heat races would be replaced with one round of draw and go ten lappers, with the top four in each redrawing for their main event starting spot. 

   It took about an hour to complete the dozen qualifying heats, and with no delays, the Mini Haulers came to the track for their twelve lap season championship feature. Brian Tipps and Tucker Richardson lined up in row one and continued their total dominance in this class. Tipps would lead the non stop race flag to flag with Richardson close behind as they ran off from the pack. Tim Wagner, Luke Phillips, and Sheldon Brockett were next in the ten car field.

   Although modifieds had been second in the heat race order, the late models were called next, perhaps with an eye on the radar. All twenty two made the lineup, with heat two runner up C.J. Horn and heat two winner Chris Lawrence sitting in row one. Horn grabbed the early lead and soon began to pull away from the battle for second between Lawrence, and the top two from heat three, winner Darin Weisinger Jr., and Dustin Schram. Track champion Tommy Elston lined up in row three and began his move to the front by charging to fourth on lap four. As Horn continued to lead by a considerable distance, Elston moved to third, then quickly to second about lap nine ( the scoreboard was being cranky!). Horn caught the back of the pack on lap eleven, but one circuit later the first caution came as Schram stopped facing the turn four guardrail. Back under green, we now had a two car battle going on. Horn was pounding the cushion while Elston searched multiple lines for a way to the front. Twenty two laps in, Horn came upon a pair of slower cars racing side by side for position, but he was patient and was able to find a way through, with Elston still in tow. Five laps later, Horn got in the crumbs at the top of turns one and two, with Elston driving under him for the lead, but C.J. fought back and was again in front at the flag stand. With twenty one laps remaining, a second caution came as contact caused Bryan Klein to slow on the backstretch. Although the show was up front, intense battles were going on behind the front two, with cars swapping spots and making runs from third on back. It was decided to have the fuel stop at this time. As racing resumed, Elston took the outside line behind Horn, with Nick Marolf now in the mix in third. Elston quickly raced around Horn for the lead, and two laps later Marolf followed in second. Although Elston was now in control, Marolf stayed within striking distance, even as first heat winner Matt Ryan climbed to third and Horn began to fade back in the pack. Seven laps from the finish, Marolf had his best chance, nearly pulling even with the leader exiting turn four. But Elston survived the challenge, and when he again caught slower traffic two circuits later, he showed off his driving expertise as he set up the lapped cars, passing them in the turns where he was able to put some distance on second place. Tommy then cruised to the checkers, collecting $5,000 for his efforts. Marolf held on to second, while Andy Nezworski showed his strength late to overtake Ryan for third. Denny Woodworth started eighth, fell back a bit early, then charged to fifth at the checkers, nipping Horn and seventeenth starting Chuck Hanna as the trio crossed the stripe side by side. Dalton Simonsen, row ten starter Jay Johnson, and Sam Halstead completed the top ten.

   After the briefest of victory lane festivities, the modifieds lined up, eleven cars for eighteen laps. Jadin Fuller and Skyler Harroun led the field to green, with Fuller grabbing the lead, even as fifth starting Bill Roberts Jr. charged to second. Track champion Austen Becerra loaded up and left rainy Boone, Iowa and found himself starting in row three for the feature. He moved to the runner up spot on lap four, powered to the front on lap five, and proceeded to disappear from the pack by the time Dennis Laveine drove to second with eleven laps to go. With six laps to go showing on the board, the only yellow flag came for rookie Matt Diaz. Fuller retook second following the Delaware style restart, but again Becerra drove away to take the win. Laveine followed Fuller in third, while Wisconsin visitor Lance Arneson ran fourth ahead of ninth starting Jesse Belez.

   Stock cars were quickly ushered to the track, with eleven cars scheduled to run sixteen laps. As sprinkles began to fall, the first start was called back, as Shane Richardson needed time to jump from his modified into his stock car. When the green flag waved, outside pole sitter Johnny Spaw charged to the lead with his row one mate John Oliver Jr. hot on his tail. But with a handful of laps in the books, our luck finally ran out, the sprinkles gained in intensity and the yellow flag waved, effectively bringing the program to an early end. 

   At this time, I do not know the fate of the remainder of the stock car feature nor that of the Sport Mods, or Sport Compacts. But Lee County Speedway still has three race nights on the schedule, with the Harvest Hustle on Friday and Saturday, October 7 and 8, and Shiverfest October 29. so perhaps they will be rescheduled during those shows. 

  In my opinion, there was a decent sized crowd on hand considering the amount of people who may have been in Boone, or at the World 100, and I want to give a big high five to the staff at LCS for presenting a fast paced program allowing for as much racing as possible. 

   Although the nights are getting cool, there is still a lot of racing to be had, and next weekend is chock full of special events. Close to home, Adams County, Illinois Speedway will off er up their two day show Friday and Saturday for A mods, Hornets, and B mods, check the track website for details. Wherever you might see me, stop and say " Hi!"

Tony Jackson Jr. Tops the Weiner Nationals

    After being postponed earlier in the summer due to rain, the second annual Weiner Nationals was held Sunday at the Randolph County Raceway in Moberly, Missouri. Area businessman and super late model driver Reid Millard was the driving force behind the 2021 inaugural event, and with his purchase of the speedway this season, it promised to be bigger and better. This event would be a non profit, with all proceeds going to area first responders in memory of Gary Evans, a longtime worker at the speedway.

   As far as racing was concerned, while being an unsanctioned event last season, Millard was able to secure the MLRA as a sanctioning body this time around. The forty lap headline feature paid a cool $10,000 to win and a healthy $750 to start, while the companion B mods boasted a $2,500 top prize and $200 just to start the twenty five lapper. 

   Other entertainment included a hot dog eating contest paying a $1,000 to the winner, music by up and coming band Murphy's Ford, and much more.

   Whether it was the sanction or the change in dates could be up for debate, but the car count saw a drastic improvement over 2021. The late model count of thirty seven was just more than double that of the previous year, and with a whopping forty B mods signed in, the infield pit area was well stocked. The fact that Millard paid the MLRA entry fee for all late model competitors was also mentioned to me, and that too may have been a contributing factor! Even those large numbers likely paled compared to the huge crowd. With portable bleachers added near turn one, the massive grandstands were still jammed full! 

   Considering the track had sat idle for over a year, it held up quite well. There appeared to be a bit of a sip at the exit of turn two, but otherwise the wide high banks stayed smooth and racy, with three grooves available. The cushion soon traveled up to the edge of the outside concrete wall, while the low line around the inside concrete was equally fast. Millard enlisted the aid of Tri City Speedway owners Kevin and Tammy Gundaker, and Kevins' abilities in track prep shined through. I have heard the track described as being anywhere from a three eighths to a half mile, and my sense is that it lies somewhere in between. With the high rise grandstands, there is no problem viewing the backstretch, even with the stacker trailers in the infield. The only issue on Sunday was a stiff breeze from the north that never let up and kept those of us in the stands well dusted!

   The on going entertainment was sandwiched around the racing activities making for a long night, but most of those in attendance seemed to be having a good time.

    B mods hot lapped and time trialed together, ten in a group, with Trey Harris topping the list at 20.309 seconds. Late model qualifying was two cars at a time, and Tony Jackson Jr. continued his weekend hot streak with a fast lap of 16.820. Each division then ran four eight lap heat races, with the top four in each moving on to the feature. The B mod class had an interesting mix of cars, with USRA, UMP, and IMCA all represented. Curtis VanDerWal topped heat one in his IMCA #1V. Kelly Smith, second generation driver Damian Kiefer, and Clint Young also collected wins, with all coming from row one.

   MLRA heat winners also all came from the front row, with Aaron Marrant, Rickey Frankel, Billy Moyer Jr., and series points leader Chad Simpson taking wins. 

   Each class ran a pair of B mains, with the top four B mods and top three late models moving on to the big dance. Veteran western Iowa hot shoe Josh Most suffered a flat tire in his heat race, then came from row five to grab the first ten lap B main for the mods, while Dawson David started outside row one and grabbed the final qualifier. Another second generation ace, Chris Smyser, who races a very limited schedule, put the Mike Crump #00s in the show by topping the first late model ten lapper, winning from the pole position, while Marysville, Kansas driver Dusty Leonard did the same in B main two. A pair of MLRA points provisional starters would make up row twelve, with Brennon Willard taking one spot. Peoria, Arizona regular Steve Stultz was edged out of the final transfer spot by thirteen year old Kayden Clatt, but was in line for a provisional spot as well. As part of the fundraising effort, former NASCAR star Mike Wallace was added to the field as the twenty fifth starter. Wallace was driving a #6 throwback design from his dirt days, a car from the Millard Racing stable. Millard would then add $100 to the donation bucket for each car Wallace passed in the feature.

   While the hot dog action went on, a change in the program saw the late models line up on the front stretch for driver introductions. It had been announced during the drivers meeting that due to the tire situation the feature length may be reduced, and that would indeed be the case, with thirty laps now the distance. Marrant and Moyer Jr. would pace the field from the front row, and they would be scored that way as lap one went in the books. Marrant was riding the very top of the track while Moyer worked down low, along with fourth starting Simpson. Marrant had opened up a nice advantage before catching the back of the pack on lap nine. Moyer quickly moved in to challenge, and he had a nose in front as that lap was scored. Marrant was able to keep a fender alongside Moyer for another lap before traffic caused him to slow a bit, allowing Simpson to drive into second. Chad was ready to mount a challenge for the lead when the only caution came with fourteen in the books. Clatt spun between turns one and two and was hit in the drivers side door by Logan Martin. After checking on the drivers, the red flag came out briefly as the ambulance workers tended to Clatt. He received a ride back to the trailer as both cars went pitside behind a wrecker. By this point the mover of the race was Jackson Jr., who had lined up in tenth and was now in fourth. On the restart he dropped briefly to fifth, then dove under Daniel Hilsabeck and Marrant down the back chute to claim third. With Moyer taking the high line in turns one and two, then working low in three and four, the front group of Moyer, Simpson, Jackson, and Marrant drove off from the field. About lap twenty one ( Moberly needs a scoreboard!) Jackson powered around Simpson for second. One lap later, slower traffic again became a factor, and Moyer was now moving around the track in search of a fast line and to avoid the heavy traffic. Jackson Jr. was sitting in the catbird seat, closing fast, and on lap twenty eight he pounced, taking the lead and quickly driving off to a big lead. The Lebanon, Missouri hot shoe collected his second win in two nights, while a somewhat disappointed Moyer Jr. settled for runner up honors. Simpson continued his points dominance with a podium finish in third. Marrant came home fourth, while Mason Oberkramer completed the top five. Rookie of the year leader Kolby Vandenbergh started twelfth and finished sixth in front of Dewayne Kiefer, Hilsabeck, sixteenth starting Dylan Hoover, and Trevor Gundaker. 

   The B mods sat patiently in staging during the victory lane festivities, and as they prepared to come to the track, we saw the flagman leave his perch. Minutes later it was announced that there was a medical emergency behind the grandstands that would require the attention of the ambulance. Soon after it was announced that racing would be delayed until another ambulance arrived, and with the clock now on the wrong side of 11:00, we decided to head for the gates. Reports this morning show fourth starting Ava, Illinois driver Clint Young picked up the win, followed by Damian Kiefer, VanDerWal, thirteenth starting Brandon Lennox, and seventeenth starting Most, so it looks like we unfortunately missed a heck of a race.

   Thanks go out to Reid Millard for doing a lot of non profit work for a good cause, to the Gundakers for their efforts and to the very helpful ladies at the pit gate! Also thanks to Brandon Queen for giving this old timer a ride to the infield. Millard announced that the track would have a new name in 2023, I believe he said Moberly Motorsports Park, and I am excited to see what he has in store for this fine facility going forward. ( That scoreboard would be nice!)

   Next up on our racing schedule is the late model Drive for Five finale this SATURDAY night at Lee County Speedway, hope to see you there!

Holladay Grabs SLMR Make Up at West Liberty

   We opened the Labor Day weekend with our second visit of the season to the Kile Motorsports West Liberty Raceway. The occasion was the rescheduled visit by the Hoker Trucking SLMR east division, a race that was rained out early in the program on August 20. The super late model winner would collect $3,000, while IMCA modifieds,  IMCA Sport Mods, and the Midwest Jalopies would fill out the card with the show restarting from the beginning.

   Seventy eight drivers passed by Katie at the pit gate, led by a solid field of thirty one late models, three more than the original date. Following hot laps, late model qualifying went by in a flash, with three, four and even five cars at a time on the clock. Omaha, Nebraska hot shoe Jake Neal paced the leader board with a lap of 18.778 seconds around the big half mile. ( how well I remember fast times in the mid twenty second range what seems not so long ago!)

   Ten heat races and a pair of late model B mains set the feature fields. With the invert and passing points system employed by SLMR, there was plenty of passing in their four heats. Jonathon Brauns topped heat one from the pole position, while Andy Eckrich grabbed the second eight lapper from row two. Popular veteran Jeremiah Hurst climbed in the Joel Callahan #40 for the night and captured heat three from outside row three, then Chris Spieker led the distance from the pole in the final heat. Pole sitters Nick Marolf and Derrick Stewart topped the B mains. A pair of provisionals, Curtis Glover and Ron Boyse filled out the twenty two car lineup.

   There was a brief intermission ahead of the late model B's and after that we went straight to feature racing. Sport Mods were up first, with all but two of the twenty three cars making the call for fifteen laps. Curtis VanDerWal sat outside row two, and charged to the lead as lap one was scored. The first caution came for a pile up in turn two on lap two, and following the Delaware style restart, fifth starting Tim Plummer put his #66 in second. VanDerWal drove off to a sizable lead while Plummer also put distance on the rest of the pack. By lap eight, the leader was in slower traffic, and when he came upon a pack of three racing side by side for position it looked like things might get interesting. But some slick maneuvering gave him a clear track and he was again on the move ahead of a second and final caution with ten in the books. Plummer was able to challenge briefly for the top spot, but although he stayed in range this time, VanDerWal drove on to the win. Shaun Slaughter was steady in third after starting eighth, while Rusty DeShaw and Ryan Walker both advanced from row six to round out the top five. After victory lane ceremonies, VanDerWal needed the wrecker to tow him back to his pit!

   The Midwest Jalopies were the novelty class for the night, but only ten cars were on hand. A well known name at the track, Matt Picray paced the opening circuit, but turned the lead over to tenth starting Matt Fulton on lap two. By lap four, Terry Doud  had moved from row five to second and was closing on the front runner in what became a two car race. Following a caution flag, Doud took over the top spot, and along with Fulton they pulled away from the pack. With two laps remaining, Fulton charged too hard into turn one, spinning and bringing a final caution. Doud then drove his "For Sale" #2 with the sprint car looking front scoop to the win. Tom Honts, Tanner Girard, and Picray were next, while Fulton rebounded to fifth in the ten lap affair.

   IMCA modifieds had an $800 top prize, but only fourteen signed in. Thirteen of those took the green flag for twenty laps. Dakota Simmons powered from outside row one to the lead. The yellow flag waved with two down when Kurt Kile slowed out of turn four. He then quickly ducked to the pits, returning in time to tag the tail. Brandon Banks cleared Derek Walker for second on the restart, with Denny Eckrich following in third. When Eckrich moved to second on lap four, Simmons was well out front. Denny began to close the gap, and by the halfway mark the front duo led the pack by nearly a full straightaway. On lap thirteen, Simmons drifted high in turn one, and Eckrich charged to the front on the inside. The "Flying 50" was pulling away and negotiating slower traffic when a second caution came just ahead of the "two to go" signal. Back under green, seventh starting Chris Zogg used the inside line to take the runner up spot, but the race belonged to Eckrich. Mark Schulte grabbed third ahead of Simmons and Banks.

   Twenty five laps would be the distance for the late model finale. Todd Cooney was the pole sitter alongside Jason Hahne in a system I must confess I have yet to figure out. Cooney paced the opening circuit, with Chad Holladay coming from fourth to second. With three laps scored, an altercation between turns three and four saw Jeff Aikey retire for the night. On the restart, Holladay was able to slide under Cooney for the lead. As he opened a commanding advantage, he caught slower traffic just ahead of the halfway point. He was able to move with seeming ease through the traffic while maintaining his margin. However with about five laps left, whether he slowed up a bit out of caution with the heavy traffic, or he was losing a bit of "mojo," Cooney began to cut into the lead. It was too little, too late, though, as Holladay soon celebrated in victory lane. Cooney came home second, while Hurst used a late pass of Neal to claim third. Hahne faded to fifth at the checkers. Series points leader Justin Kay started third and finished sixth ahead of Andy Eckrich, who started and finished in seventh. Charlie NcKenna was eighth, followed by Dave Eckrich, while Matt Ryan lined up fourteenth and completed the top ten. 

   The final checkers came just after 10:00 in a very efficient and well run show, the last of the season, I believe, at West Liberty.

   Thanks to Katie and all the folks at Kile Motorsports for their hospitality. Tonight we will step away from racing for a little country music courtesy of Clay Jansen, but weather permitting we will have more racing action to report on Monday. So stay tuned, and thanks for reading!