While the Tri State area race tracks that I have called home, some for sixty years or more, represent my "happy place," every so often it is fun to search out new to me venues. So once or twice per season - often early spring or fall - we take a look at the bucket list and plan an adventure. And when Jeff Broeg offers to do the driving duties, how can I refuse! This spring the road took us to Park Jefferson Speedway, just across the Iowa border into South Dakota, where we were lucky to find a few remaining seats out of the wind in the viewing tower. So after careful consideration the decision was made to head further south this time.
With a handful of options available, we decided to make our first stop at Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Missouri for Heartland Modified Tour action supported by just one class, E Mods. The plan then was to move further south to Tri State Speedway in Pocola, Ok. for night number four of their annual "Spooker" event. While none of these three tracks, would be new ones for Jeff, they still represent a chance to see a variety of drivers and facilities.
Valley Speedway might generously be described as "rustic," but what happens on the track is what is most important, and the racing on what appears to be something close to a one third mile surface was top notch. Jeff has a detailed recap on the Backstretch, but the A Mod main event made the lengthy evening on a chilly night worth the trip. After a mostly uneventful Valley E Mod thirteen car feature won by Brian Meyer, twenty three of the thirty two USRA Modifieds on hand lined up for thirty laps. Paden Phillips shot from the outside pole to lead the first eighteen laps before fourth starting Tyler Hibner took control ahead of the second and final caution of the race. Hibner appeared to be in charge, but sixth starting Gunner Martin methodically moved to the front, and to the delight of the half dozen or so folks sitting around us, the Sugar Creek, Mo. driver squeezed past Hibner as they passed under the white flag. Martin then pulled away down the backstretch for the surprise win. Hibner, Minnesota visitor Keith Foss, Fulton, Mo. ace Ryan Middaugh, and tenth starting Kansas racer Tad Davis completed the first five. Nice visits with super fan Gary Lee and Heartland promoter Trenton Berry helped fill in the dead time, and we were still headed for our hotel before 10:00 P.M.
Four hours down the road from Grain Valley I scored my first track in the state of Oklahoma. Tri State Speedway was very different from our Friday venue, a facility spread over many acres, all of which was needed for the two hundred seventeen race teams and thousands of spectators on hand for the final night of the four night 45th annual Spooker. Four of the six classes running on Saturday would race complete shows, while Factory Stocks and Stock Cars would contest only last chance races and features. Six B Modified heats and three heats each for twenty nine A Mods and twenty seven Late Models would click off with few cautions on the fast red dirt three eighths mile oval. Unfortunately we were not so lucky come B Main/LCQ time. By the time the qualifiers were complete, the clock had ticked past 11:00, and my joking comment of "intermission time" became a marathon. Front stretch redraws, a costume contest for the remaining youngsters, and track rework caused us to throw in the towel after thirty minutes or so. So unfortunately we were not around for the six main events, none of which had a lap scored before the bewitching hour. Still it was overall a fun time, even if a bit of time management would have definitely improved the experience on both nights!
We still have a couple of shows on our 2024 schedule, starting this coming Saturday as the legendary Shiverfest event at Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa takes center stage. As of now, the forecast looks great, but pro tip, it chills off fast when the sun goes down, so bring extra layers and say "Hi!" if you see us there!
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