Saturday was free admission night at Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, courtesy of Kohlmorgan Hauling. In addition, it was season points championship night for the six regular divisions. The top points earner in four of those classes was already decided before feature racing began, with the Stock Car and Modified champions still to be determined.
With heat race action clicking off quickly and following a brief intermission, the large crowd settled in for main event action.
First up would be the 4 cylinder Sport Compact division, with eleven of the dozen cars on hand lining up for fifteen laps. Michael Grossman would charge to the early lead with Barry Taft on his heels. Taft would jump to the front on lap two and one circuit later point champ Brandon Reu would move up to challenge Grossman for second. Reu would secure the position on lap four. But by this point Taft had a nice lead and as Reu and Grossman slugged it out, Luke Fraise arrived to make it a three car scrum. The only yellow flag of the event came at lap seven as Kimberly Abbott lost power near the turn three guardrail, her run over. Back to racing Taft continued to lead as Ethan Prim joined Grossman, Reu and Fraise in a tight battle for second. Reu would hold the spot by inches as lap eleven was scored and he quickly reeled in the leader. Lap thirteen saw the front pair racing side by side, with Taft ahead by a nose at the white flag. But it was Reu powering to the top spot on the final lap to collect the feature win to go alongside his track championship. Taft would take second followed closely by Fraise, Grossman and Prim.
The Hobby Stock division was super short, with only five cars checking in. Dustin Griffiths came into the night undefeated in feature racing at the track in 2024. Although he started on the pole position, it was his row one mate Darin DeZwarte who jumped out front, holding the lead until lap five. Up to that point, Griffiths had been trying to sneak to the front on the inside, but then switched to a higher line and drove around DeZwarte. With no yellow flags to slow his march, Griffiths powered to a full straightaway victory, keeping his unbeaten streak alive while claiming the track championship. Jason Schutterle ran third until the final set of turns when he sneaked around DeZwarte to claim second. Jeremy Dooley and James Pilkington would round out the field.
Brandon Dale had already secured the track title as the fourteen Sport Mods came to the track for fifteen laps of racing. Dylan VanWyk shot from the pole, opening a sizable early advantage as Cole Gillenwater and Adam Birck battled for second. The caution flag waved with three laps in the books, and back under green Birck charged to second. But just one more lap was scored before Birck rolled to a stop with an unknown mechanical issue. As the field reset, fourth running Jim Gillenwater also retired to the pits. As racing resumed eighth starting Dale now found the runner up position even as VanWyk again pulled well out front. Slower traffic became a challenge for the leader with about five circuits remaining, but VanWyk was up to the task, cruising to a full straightaway plus win. Dale came next in front of Cole Gillenwater, Lenexa, Kansas visitor Will Wolf and Moberly, Missouri racer Charlie Rindom.
The UMP Pro Crate Late Model class was also a bit light, with nine competitors taking the green flag. Outside row one starter Tommy Elston was already the declared champion, and he would work behind and alongside pole sitter Darin Weisinger Jr. before grabbing the lead on lap three. As Elston built his lead, the lone stoppage came at lap twelve for debris. Jeremy Pundt had been rolling around in the fifth position, but when racing resumed he charged quickly to third around the top side of the three eighths mile oval. Elston once again opened a comfortable lead while Weisinger Jr., Pundt, Denny Woodworth and Spencer Havermale raced behind in tight formation. Gradually Weisinger Jr. and Pundt separated themselves from the pack as they dueled for second. With only a pair of laps remaining Pundt again used a high side move to take the runner up slot. The final rundown would see Elston collect his ninth Lee County feature win of the season trailed by Pundt, Weisinger Jr., Woodworth and Havermale. Jackson Frankel, Vance Wilson and Ron Boyse would round out the cars running at the end, with Jason Oenning a victim of a mechanical breakdown around mid race after getting a late start due to a flat tire as the drivers were recognized ahead of the green flag.
Stock Cars took the prize for largest turnout, with twenty signed in. And all made the twenty lap feature call. Unfortunately a pile up in turn two of the opening lap eliminated Leremy Jackson and visiting hot shoe Damon Murty who was curiously in an unfamiliar car with his #99D taped over a #8. Austin Schrage paced the field on the restart ahead of points leader Nicholas Profeta and David Brandies, who was wheeling a second #23 out of the Keegan Wells stable. Those three raced side by side, soon joined by Dustin Griffiths in a four car scrum. Brandies had the front on lap four, but two more trips past the flag stand and it was Griffiths in the lead. Those two began to pull away as five cars worked tightly bunched for the next positions. Slower traffic came into play at the half way point, but Griffiths disposed of them with no issues. Only five laps remained on the scoreboard when the caution flag waved for a spinning car. At the same time, Profeta stopped backwards in turn three. Although the spinner was able to continue, Nicholas needed the wrecker, rear end issues ending his shot at the track title with a sixteenth place finish. Coming in to the event just seven points behind, at this point Griffiths really only needed to finish the race to secure a second championship. But he obviously had more in mind. While the #23 team cars ran nose to tail and side by side behind him, Dustin raced home with both the feature win and the track title. Brandies outgunned Wells for second while Beau Taylor topped Schrage for fourth.
The nightcap would feature all but one of twelve Modifieds going at it for twenty trips around the oval. Jadin Fuller won the race to turn one ahead of pole sitter Daniel Fellows followed closely by points leader Kurt Kile. Soon the front runners spread out, with Blaine Webster and Dakota Simmons filling out the top five. Again it was the leaders catching the back of the pack at the mid point, and as the race stayed green Fellows and Kile began to close on Fuller. With lapped traffic cleared, Fuller again showed his strength, pulling well ahead. With only five laps to go, Fellows began his charge around the top of the track, running high on the narrow cushion as he closed in on the leader. Pushing just a bit too hard, he contacted the turn one guardrail, but recovered to hold on to the runner up spot. As Fellows fought to keep his momentum off turn two with the laps winding down, Fuller was able to maintain his advantage all the way to the flying double checkers of Kevin Eggleston. Kile made a late charge, nipping Fellows at the line for second while also securing the class championship. Webster and Simmons were steady in completing the top five.
Racing action wound up around 10:00 P,M. Next Saturday night, August 31 will be the Drive for Five finale for Late Models. Qualified drivers - those who participated in the required amount of the $1,000 to win preliminary events throughout the season - will battle for a $5,000 top prize. A winner not meeting the requirements would still take home a cool $2,000. The rain date for this special event will be Saturday, September 7. Check the track website or Facebook page for more details. Non racing happenings will fill the month of September, with the oval roaring back to life with three big nights of racing in October!
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