Where Does the Time Go?

The weekend is almost here again, and I have yet to offer my thoughts on last weekends racing. As it has become somewhat old news, I will be brief.
Last Friday night, I drove through something between a steady rain and a downpour in hopes of seeing some racing at Lee County Speedway in Donnellson. I was flying solo, coming straight from work in Quincy, and tow of my racing buddies were about 25 miles ahead of me offering updates via cell phone. They arrived at the track and reported wet grounds but no rain falling, so I forged on. It took the track crew about 30 extra minutes to roll in the heavy track, but it was well worth it when the action got started. The heat races in the six divisions went off quickly, and the features began without delay. Al Johnson captured an entertaining Sport Mod race which saw only one yellow flag, while Jake Wenig came out first in a caution marred hobby stock event. The skies were beginning to darken and some sprinkles fell before the IMCA late models rolled to the speedway, the third feature on the card. The track was still heavy, and the best guess was that the winner would come from the first couple of rows. Gary Russell jumped to the lead, and looked to be in control of the 23 car field in the early laps. However Jeff Guengerich had other ideas, and the veteran driver from Washington powered his way to the front and picked up his first main event win in the Lynn Richard # 15. Pole sitter Tom Goble ran a solid race to come home second, with Tony Fraise third. Colby Springsteen came from ninth to nab fourth ahead of TJ Criss. Points leader Mark Burgtorf started 15th and advanced to eighth. With Davenport rained out, hotshoes Ray Guss Jr. and Nate Beuseling made the trip south, but could not crack the top ten on the tacky track. Before Guengerich could exit his car in victory lane, the rain began in earnest, and the final three features were potponed until this Friday night.
Saturday was pretty much a washout racing wise, so sunny skies on sunday was a welcome sight. It took a tremendous amount of work for the track crew to get Quincy Raceways ready for racing, and the graders were still hard at work in the pits when i arrived. 66 cars in four classes signed in, including 18 IMCA late models and 24 UMP modifieds. Unfortunately, the wet conditions made for a rough racing surface for the heat races and dashes. The grader took to the track again at intermission, and the IMCA stock cars had the best racing conditions of the night, with former late model pilot Kevin Tomlinson grabbing his first main event win of 2010. The hobby stocks were up second, and the smaller tires undid much of the good work done at intermission. Still the trio of Nathan Anders, Bobby Anders, and Steve Carlin waged a good battle, with Bobby Anders taking the win. All 18 cars started the IMCA late model main, although pole sitter Justin Jennings went to the tail after his crew could not make full repairs to his # 56 after a heat race accident. Justin had been dueling with Dustin Griffin for the win coming to the checkers when contact sent Jennings into the concrete wall. Justin was coming off his first ever feature win on the Hawkeye Downs asphalt on Friday night, but his big weekend ended on a sour note. Although several drivers wrestled with track conditions, Justin Reed had little trouble, as he came from the sixth row and did a power move on the top side around second place Lonnie Bailey and leader Nick Ingalls as the field came to the crossed flags on lap 15. Reed then held off Bailey for his first win of the year. Denny Woodworth came on late to take third ahead of Ingalls and point leader Jason Perry. The UMP mods ran the final feature of the night, and after a couple of early cautions and a red flag for an upside down Joe Kindhart, they were able to click off some laps. Michael Long used a heat race and dash win to secure the pole position, and he cruised to the 25 lap win. Jared Schlipman, who was looking for a third straight feature win stayed close, but settled for second ahead of points leader Dave Weitholder, double duty Justin Reed, and visiting Terry Cox. The final checkers flew about 9:30.
This weekend is shaping up as a one race weekend for yours truly, with a homemade ice cream social at my church the top priority on Saturday night. Sunday night the Derry Brothers IMCA late model Summer Series makes stop number two of the year at Quincy Raceways as the feature attraction of the Titan Wheel classic. The main event has an inflated payoff of $ 3,000 to win and $300 to start. The April visit by the series drew a track record 50 cars, so expectations are high for Sunday. Although this race has been on the scheduled for several seasons, this is the first time it will be a Summer Series race. Also, no other IMCA late model tracks will be racing for points this Sunday, so the car count should be strong. The UMP mods, IMCA stock cars and hobby stocks will also be in action. Now if the sun will just shine...