Friday we geared up for what will hopefully be a busy April with our first 2025 visit to Davenport Speedway. It was the season opener in year number two for promoter and part time racer Jeff Struck. A full six division card of IMCA Late Models, IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sport Mods, Outlaw Street Stocks, IMCA Hobby Stocks, and 4 Cylinder cars made for an entertaining night of racing under cool conditions. Even though a double line of trucks and trailers stretched on to Locust Street when we arrived an hour before hot laps, the ladies at the pit shack somehow managed to get all 109 race teams checked in in time for hot laps to fire off right as scheduled at 6:30. And other than a couple of small glitches including a cranky scoreboard, opening night clicked off in mid season form.
With a top of twenty five entries in both Modified classes, no B mains were run, and the fourteen heat races clicked off in ninety minutes. The track packer made a couple passes between some of the qualifiers to help widen out the surface, but following a brief fifteen minute break there were no delays between the main events.
IMCA Sport Mods came to the track first, dueling for fifteen laps. There was some attrition in this division, with only twenty cars taking the green flag. Heat two winner Tony Olson redrew the pole position and immediately shot to a sizable lead ahead of Ryan Reed and Levi Laymon. About six laps in (during a scoreboard malfunction!), a pair of yellow flags were followed by Laymon using the Delaware style restart to move to second while Reed was shuffled back in the pack. Olson was cruising coming to the white flag when a final yellow flag set up a green, white checkers shootout. Another shuffle up front saw first heat winner Cole Suckow take over the runner up slot, but Olson stayed in control for the win. Laymon, Josh Starr, and Kyle Hoffman completed the first five.
IMCA Hobby Stocks turned out an impressive seventeen cars, with all lining up for a dozen laps around the quick quarter mile. A lap one spin sent front runners Carson Butt and Daniel Wauters to the tail for the restart. Second heat victor Matt Bennett then assumed the lead ahead of another caution one lap in. Back under green, Bennett saw his good run end as he suddenly slowed and exited the track on lap five. Randy LaMar, who had lined up in row eight now grabbed the top spot with Nick Proehl in hot pursuit. Although he continued to apply pressure, Proehl would settle for second behind the hard charging LaMar. Wauters climbed back through the field to finish third ahead of heat one winner Jason Schutterle and Sheldon Hunter.
Only eleven of the fourteen Outlaw Street Stocks made the call for fifteen laps. Cary Brown led the pack early battling side by side with Landen Chrestensen. Following a lap six caution Rob Nylin took up the chase as Brown, Nylin and Blake Woodruff pulled away from the field. With eleven laps scored, Woodruff used a successful slide job in turn four to grab the lead, and a final caution came one lap later. Nylin drove to second on the restart, but the checkers would be for Woodruff. Heat two winner Jesse Owen gained five positions to finish third in front of Brown and Andrew Burk.
Twenty laps would be the distance for the IMCA Modifieds, and all twenty five came to the track. A turn one collision on the opening lap created the longest delay of the night, and again the yellow flag waved on the next try. Finally getting started, Kyle Montgomery and Kaity Sample, Winnemucca, Nevada paced the field, with Sample leading laps two through five before slowing and pulling to the infield on lap six. At the same time the caution came out for Spencer Diercks, who suffered heavy body damage in an altercation. Back under green, Kurt Kile took up the chase, battling for second with Logan Veloz in a three car breakaway. Veloz moved around Kile and began a tight duel with Montgomery before a pair of cautions at laps thirteen and fifteen. Back to racing, Veloz attempted a slider on the leader out of turn four, but Montgomery was able to cross him over to hold the lead. Veloz suddenly left the track in turn one while twelfth starting Charlie Mohr shot to the runner up position. But Montgomery would hold serve the rest of the way, with heat winners Derek Thompson and Matt Werner edging Kile to round out the top five.
4 Cylinders turned out the smallest car count at eleven, with only nine left come feature time. Travis Hawkins jumped out front, with heat two winner Shawn McDermott moving in to challenge as the race passed the halfway mark. Approaching the final circuit, Hawkins got out of shape, the caution flag waved, and Hawkins went to the tail of the field. Dustin Munn challenged McDermott briefly, but at the line it was McDermott, Dustin Forbes, Munn, and first heat winner Jason Rhoads. Michael Grossman crossed the line in fifth, but failed post race tech, turning fifth over to Nolan Morrow.
For the night cap, it was fifteen IMCA Late Models doing battle. Dave Wadsager had smacked a ute tire in turn three during hot laps to end his night. Travis Denning finished third in the first heat, but redrew the outside pole position. But when the cars came to the track, the #56D would not fire off, and Denning needed a push back to the pits, taking out a top contender. The field was crisscrossed and Bryce Garnhart took advantage to power to the early lead. As the field shuffled behind him, Garnhart, the heat two winner, opened a sizable advantage over second running Jake Morris, Andy Nezworski, Evan Miller, and first heat victor Matt Ryan. Three times the yellow flag would wave with four laps scored, the final one eliminating Mitch Morris and Scott Strauss. When Nezworski cleared Jake Morris on lap seven Garnhart was again well out front, and he continued to build his lead. With no more stoppages, the #3 had about a half track advantage when the checkers fell. And he was doing his post race interview as we headed for the parking lot just after 10:30. But checking official results as we made our Kwik Star coffee stop just south of town, the leader board showed Nezworski with the win! A check this morning found Bryce had been fifteen pounds light at the scales after the victory lane festivities. So the final rundown became Nezworski with the win followed by Ryan, Morris, Miller, and Cruz Birkhofer. Joel Callahan advance nine spots to run sixth ahead of Jesse Bodin, Ryan Claeys, Broderick Prescott, and Anthony Guss.
Thanks go out to Jeff Struck and the helpful ladies at the pit shack for an entertaining night at the track! Racing is finally in full swing and things are warming up, so get to the track and maybe we will see you there!
