Kay Is Tough To Beat At Dubuque

Perhaps the nicest weather  weekend of the racing season to date wrapped up on Sunday night for me with a road trip to the Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway on Sunday night. Along with it being the season opener at Dubuque, the Deery Brothers Late Model series was also making an appearance at the track. The Deery cars and drivers were looked a little on the tired side, after racing on both Friday and Saturday, and were getting ready to complete a grueling weekend of competition caused by previous rain outs along the way which caused rescheduled events.

Along with the Late Models, IMCA sanctioned Modifieds and Sport Mods were in action as well as the Outlaw Four Cylinder division. The car count was low, bordering on shockingly low for the Late Models. After drawing low to mid thirties at every venue so far this year, only twenty one Late Models signed in to race on Sunday at a track where the surface was in excellent condition and the cars would not be taking the beating that they have so far at a number of Spring induced bumpy race tracks.

There was news that defending Deery Brothers champion Tyler Breuning had been disqualified after the race on Saturday night in Independence and that a number of other drivers had passed on the Sunday show because they had the same issue with their cars that Breuning had been disqualified for. I was not able to confirm that with anyone associated with the Deery Series so that belief could have been a load of "horse feathers" but I must admit it did seem strange to have such a poor turnout at the track that normally carries a strong Late Model car count. I know that it was the last of three straight nights of racing and it was a Sunday but it still struck a note as being peculiar that less than two dozen cars were on hand. However, it should be noted that nine of the top ten in points and eleven of the top twelve in points were in attendance.

And by the way, has anyone ever heard of a Late Model being disqualified  for having an illegal rear axle housing before? I heard of lots of things that could get a Late Model DQ''d before but never that.

I know better than to try and match a race report filed by "The Boss" here with his computer mind, so I'll leave Mr. Broeg to give you the blow by blow results and I'll instead concentrate on a few of the things I saw and heard during the night. I should add that while Jeff beat me to the punch on his report, I'll bet he didn't have a five hour ride home followed by work a very brief number of hours later!

It is always a pleasure to visit Dubuque for a number of reasons. Large among those is the cast of characters that help run the show there. For many years, people like Jerry Mackey, Kevin Feller and Doug Haack have  been mainstays there and the natural order of things would be thrown out of wack is someone from that trio was not there.

There was much talk in the pits before the races that centered on the huge Modified show upcoming at Farley in just a few weeks. Many are still mind boggled by the fifty grand to win top prize as well as the twenty G's to win the Sport Mods. It was reported that about one hundred and twenty Mods had registered to this point with likely more yet to follow. At least a couple of gigantic names from the world of Late Model racing are expected to be on hand and many people have been speculating, likely correctly I might add, on just who they might be. Expect an announcement soon that confirms this as track management would like to take advantage of their presence to help sell more tickets. The latest Late Model driver to add a Modified to their arsenal was Joel Callahan who was racing it on Sunday.

Also this week, I heard some interesting news for those people that travel to Arizona for their January Late Model and Modified series or have considered going. 2018 might be the year to do that as I heard that come next year, immediately following the races at Queen Creek, a well known track owner from the Southwest will be putting on a four race series for Late Models and Modifieds at the track in Tucson where the series had prospered in recent years. If this comes to fruition, it could be a further incentive for race teams to head to the Southwest in January.

Former promoter Keith Simmons was on hand to handle at least some of the track prep for Sunday's show. It seemed apparent that with a lot of the pressure of being a promoter lifted  from his shoulders, Simmons was a much more relaxed and approachable figure on Sunday. He seemed to be spending a considerable amount of time trading stories with many of the drivers and friendships that didn't have time to rekindle when he was far too busy were renewed on Sunday. I might add there were some dandy stories flying around too.

Speaking of the track, it proved to be in dandy shape for the opener on Sunday and for a number of the drivers that had been riding a bucking bronco at the tracks so far, it was far earlier to keep the tires on the ground on Sunday. The groove was wide with plenty of lanes of racing available and it reminded of "days of old" at the Dubuque track. There was a considerable amount of dust flying but most would say it was more than a fair trade off.

Pioneer Rest Area was the sponsor of the evening's activities and located as handy as they are to the track and seeming to offer some of the cheapest gas prices in the area, I always make a point of stopping there on my way to the track, just as I did Sunday.

Still waiting for the promised new scoreboard to be set up, but soon they say, this year the 50/50 as sponsored by the Fairboard will be for new bleacher seating at the track.

I finally caught up with Gary Webb to see him actually race his Late Model. I was ready to castigate him after I went to East Moline last Sunday to see him and he wasn't racing after having run the opener. I backed off though when I found out that while his friends were racing at East Moline last Sunday, Webb was in the hospital and on oxygen! It seems that while he was on the road hauling trailers, he started to feel ill and made it back home in time to go directly to the emergency room where he was discovered to have a blood clot on his lung. Gary said he got off lucky as he was a prime candidate for a heart attack with the symptoms he had, but he escaped that. Now on meds for it, he must remember to get out of his vehicle and get some exercise while on his long trips.

He ran well in his heat and made the Casey's redraw and his welcome by the crowd was the loudest of the night. It is incredible that he is now in his forty sixth year of racing and seemingly enjoys it just as much as ever, particularly when he is running good. He was fast at the start of the feature but the car went away as the laps ran off. He still needs to do some "dialing" on his Kryptonite chassis.

Kay was the driver to beat in the Late Model feature but he had to do some work to win. Young drivers Cayden Carter and Jake Neal both show much promise but Kay is able to use the whole track at Dubuque like no other driver. This is particularly handy when running in traffic and that seemed to be the big difference Sunday.

The Modifieds had a good run on Sunday and Kenny Kostenbader was strong on the high side and never once faltered as he held off a strong challenge from Bryce Garnhart. The Sport Mods seemed on the cusp of a good feature race several times, but each time it looked like a race might break out, the yellow flew for another spin. It was frustrating for everyone and caused a few laps to be eaten out of the race by the scoreboard. The Four Cylinder feature proved to be a good time to go for popcorn and hit the "head" as they started out with only three and the eventual second place finisher was a lap and two cylinders down to the winner!

It was comforting to see that even with the change of promoters the sense of urgency to keep the show moving, something particularly vital to successful Sunday night racing, hadn't been lost in the transition and I was in my car and heading out the gate by 9:30 pm. It was a good job by everyone and I hope to be back later this year.

Thornton's Late Race Charge Gives Him The Top Rung at "The Cage"

On Thursday, April 20th I added another first time track to my list with my first ever visit to the Atchison County Raceway just North of Atchison Kansas. On the card for this night was a return trip by the USMTS Modified series after a successful first time visit in 2016. Along with the Modifieds, the track's own E Mods were also in action.

Atchison is quite a historic town and while I have driven through the town a few times, just driving by on the highway doesn't quite do it justice. Atchison is famous as a railroad town (the Atchison and Topeka Railroad was one that helped settle the West), and flying ace Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison. Atchison is also a river town, nestled right on the banks of the Missouri River, and a drive through the heart of Atchison with its historic homes is like a trip back in time.

But we were not in Atchison for a history lesson, but instead to catch the racing action at the tiny Atchison County Raceway, also known as "The Cage." As I rode through town and headed North on a town road that was up and down hills, I just wasn't sure what to expect out of this track. But that's part of the fun visiting a track for the first time. You may have heard things about the track, but until you see it for yourself, you just don't know for sure how things will play out.

I can now say that I was very impressed with the track and it met or exceeded my expectations straight across the board in whatever criteria one might use to judge a speedway seen for the first time.

Oh, it is small all right. My thinking was that it was even smaller than the "Mighty" Macon Speedway which is widely heralded as one of the smallest and most action packed tracks on the planet. That assessment seems to be in some dispute as my viewing partner felt Macon to be smaller. They are shaped differently for sure and Atchison is both wider and higher banked. For such a small track, there was absolutely no problem for cars to race side by side as the track may be almost as wide as it is long. The speeds were high and the action nonstop and everything happened very quickly. It very well be the smallest track I've ever seen that full size cars raced on.

The physical layout of the track was much better than I had assumed it would be for some reason. There are plenty of bleacher seats, broken down into three sections and the view from just about anywhere in them is first class. The sound system was excellent and one that many tracks would kill for. Track lighting was good and the concessions building was also well maintained as were the other out buildings on the grounds as everything was neat and well done looking. The only thing they are lacking is a parking lot of any size as the main lot is quite tiny and two auxiliary lots are often used but they are up the road quite a ways and some walking is required to reach them. Lots of concrete and blacktop have been laid down around the main buildings and the entire facility is very functionally laid out. They even have a catwalk in the number one corner for pit personal to use and one for the fans behind the grandstands in turn four. Overall, just a very well laid out place.

I had a chance to talk to track owner Phil Birkinsha who told me this is the sixth year for the track which was a former asphalt plant before it was converted to a race track. The maintenance building was added on to with a tower and concession area and he said they just started digging a hole and then filling it in with clay to form the track. He has been trying to acquire additional land for parking etc. both to the West and East of the track but so far has not succeeded in getting any. Perhaps the most glaring problem(literally) is that the track faces West and the setting sun creates the same blinding effect that 34 Raceway fans know only too well.

Thursday's show was Todd Staley's show with him controlling the front and back gate and Phil taking the concessions. Staley does this on a regular basis with some of the tracks that he puts shows on at.

Twenty five of the USMTS cars signed in to race on Thursday, the exact number that also ran in last year's inaugural event here. Unfortunately, before racing began two were eliminated when R.C. Whitwell had motor issues and Lance Town also scratched out for the night. Most of the "name" drivers were on hand with the glaring exception of the Jason Hughes team along with Ryan Gustin. Rodney Sanders was not expected to be in attendance but with the weather looking shaky for his planned Late Model runs this weekend, he caught a ride in Town's second car. With that car being an MB Custom, it suited him to a "t" as that is what he is used to running.

Four heats and a B feature set the field for the fifty lap finale with all cars starting the main event. For most of the race, the Scott brothers were the stars of the show but at the end, neither ended up in victory lane. Starting in the front row side by side, it was Stormy that led the first thirteen laps. Unfortunately for him, as he caught up to lapped traffic, there was a scramble in front of him and he got clipped hard by another car with the result being some major suspension damage that put him in the pits.

Brother Johnny then inherited the lead but he was receiving heavy pressure from Cade Dillard, Sanders and then Thornton Jr. Things got very interesting at about the three quarter mark with Thornton Jr making a strong bid for the lead. They took turns sliding jobbing each other and Ricky ended up taking over the top spot. Chase Junghans, who had turned in a good run, hammered the wall with just two laps to go, which set up a sprint to the finish.

Zack VanderBeek, who was one of the few drivers that worked the low side of the track exclusively, suddenly found himself in second and in a typical VanderBeek effort, managed to get from row five into a challenging position while hardly being noticed. He gave it his best effort but Thornton Jr held on for the win. Sixteen of the twenty three starters were still on the track at the race's conclusion.

The E Mods had a small field of cars with two heats and a twenty lap main rounding out their program. Josh Munson came from the third row to win the main event. Interestingly, he was driving the "house car" of the track which is numbered $130 which apparently is the amount required to rent a ride in the car. The car is housed right at the track and anyone who wants to can rent the car and race it. Clearly, the car in not the "dog" that some of these rental cars can be and Munson, while I am not familiar with him, has obviously raced something in the past.

With just the two classes racing, the program moved along at good speed and despite the challenges of the track, there were few yellows. The surface, by the way, rolled in very nicely even though this was the first race of the year at the track, and provided a wide and smooth track to race on all night with a considerable berm for those that liked to bang off of it. The final checkered waved shortly after 9:30 pm. on what was an entertaining program. I liked the track and would definitely attend another event there if given the opportunity. 

Sanders Edges Timms in Lucas Oil Speedway Dandy

Saturday night, April 15th, found me back at Lucas Oil Speedway for night number two of the MLRA Spring Nationals. The same three classes would be racing again on Saturday, the Late Models sanctioned by MLRA, the USRA Modifieds and the Street Stocks. Extra money was on the line and more laps would be run in the main events on Saturday.

Even though extra money was being offered in the Late Model class, the car count dropped from forty one to thirty four for Saturday night's finale. Missing for various reasons were Mike Stadel, Jacob Magee, Reid Millard, Gary Gorby, Corey Zeitner, Andrew Kosiski, Brad Looney and Tammy Mitchell while St. Louis area drivers Jim Shereck and Tim Manville were added to the field after racing elsewhere on Friday night.

Street Stock and Modified fields remained about the same as on Friday night although there were several additions in the open wheel class, including the driver that would take Saturday night's main.

Several Late Model drivers had to make a decision whether to remain at Lucas or head up the highway to West Burlington Iowa where the MARS Series, whom some of the drivers chase, was to have run the Slocum Memorial on Saturday night. MARS made it easy for them though, by dropping their sanctioning of the Slocum event and thus the two Roth Racing cars, along with Tony Jackson and Raymond Merrill, remained in the pits at Wheatland.

The biggest news for Saturday's show was that Billy Moyer was rolling out a different car for Saturday racing after being a nonfactor on Friday night. Unfortunately, it didn't get any better for Moyer on Saturday as he qualified poorly, didn't race any better in his heat and had to scramble to make the show through a B Feature. He then took the green for the main and headed for the pits, taking starting money and parking his #21.

The other driver that big things were expected of and failed to deliver was Ricky Thornton Jr. His car developed a bad engine miss during his hot lap session directly before qualifying and he pulled off and missed getting a lap. That put him in the back of a heat race and that' where he finished and starting in the back of a ten car B Feature, he was never close to qualifying for the main and loaded up early.

I talked to Arizona's Joey Moriarty before the show Saturday. He flew in to do the racing weekend while sending his crew ahead for the twenty hour ride to Wheatland. Late Model racing is not in a good place right now in the Southwest, and events are far and few in nature. He would prefer to race at bigger races so will run a hit and miss schedule built around his business at Total Seal High Performance Piston Rings. His next race will likely be Memorial Day weekend right back at Wheatland.

Right next to the pit area at Lucas Oil Speedway, the off road course is rapidly taking shape with walls and fencing currently being worked on. They were in fact working all day Friday on that project as racers prepared for the night's events right next door to them. The amount of concrete they have poured for the walls in staggering.

The tire rule new to MLRA that was mentioned on Friday night is that no right rear tires may be grooved or siped so they must be left pretty much as they come off the tire truck. Tires, unfortunately, play a huge part in the modern day racing in virtually every division, but about all I know about them is that they are expensive and teams use way too many of them for racing to ever be profitable.

Another new rule at Lucas Oil Speedway that is a benefit to the majority of fans is that no smoking is allowed in the grandstand areas and fans must step outside the facility proper if they wish to light something on fire and then stick it in their mouths. I wish Wisconsin would get into the twenty first century and enact such a law also.

The highlight of the evening and surely one of the best Late Model races seen so far this year was the forty lap MLRA weekend finale. With only one yellow flag, that for a fairly spectacular fire suffered by Josh Hughes, to slow the action on lap twelve, the main event was a great show with at least a half dozen drivers racing in the lead pack. Rodney Sanders, who eventually took the win, also took the early lead but then he was overtaken by T.P. and it looked for awhile that Andy's Frozen Custard victory lane would be visited by their sponsored driver for the first time in nearly ten years at Lucas Oil Speedway.

Then  the pack started to bunch up and in a wild scramble, Randy Timms drove into the lead. While Timms then started to set a torrid pace and pulled away, Sanders, Will Vaught, Chase Junghans, Jesse Stovall and Phillips all battled back and forth, trading positions and grooves in what was a highly entertaining race.

Timms looked really great for the longest time and it certainly appeared that his first big victory was coming. However, he then got into some really heavy traffic and got no relief from a yellow flag. While he steered through the back markers, he did have to alter his groove and it started to cost him time and space.

Meanwhile, Sanders had went to the cushion and was really slamming his car hard to the high side. It started to work as he disposed of Vaught and started to close on Timms. With just over two laps to go, Sanders was able to edge by on the outside and stretch his lead on the final lap to score an outstanding win. It was a highly entertaining race with only three of the starters not on the track at the end.

Sanders is definitely starting to figure out Late Model racing and with the resources he has available, the sky is the limit for him. Timms was very strong also as another former Modified driver has worked his way into the ranks of those that must be accounted for at every event. Stovall abused the high side like he always does and he made it work, driving from ninth to third at the finish. Vaught and Junghans completed the top five with Phillips really sinking back at the end and Jackson coming from seventeenth to sixth.

The Street Stock and Modified racing was perhaps not quite as good on Saturday as it was the previous night. Stormy Scott, who arrived at the track on Saturday, started on the outside pole and after a brief battle with Jeff Cutshaw, moved into the lead and lead the rest of the way for a fairly easy victory. It was his first win ever at Lucas Oil Speedway, which was somewhat a surprise when revealed. Junghans is starting to get his new Modified ride sorted out and he ran much better on Saturday, finishing a strong second ahead of the racing Principal, Jason Pursley.

The Street Stocks ran last on the program and on the black, slick track they didn't seem to have the power to go up and use the cushion so they pretty much lined up on the inside groove, running in formation and trying to "bogger" each other off the bottom.

Toby Ott led for much of the race, often with a comfortable margin. However, near the end of the race it appeared that he started having some difficulties and James Flood closed to his rear bumper. All Ott had to do was hug the low side and it appeared that there was no one that could drive around him but he just couldn't hold his car down in the corners.

Giving Flood an opening with just a couple of laps left, James drove cleanly under him and took over the lead and drove on from there for the win. Ott did hold on for second ahead of Brian Schutt, Kenny Carroll and Darrin Chrisler.

With not as many preliminary events for the support classes on Saturday, the program moved along at a very crisp pace and even though they started about twenty minutes late, they were done well before 10:30 pm. The crowd looked better than Friday night but still perhaps what I would have expected for such a weekend, particularly with the spectacular weather. I'm thinking that the fact that it was Easter weekend did not help.

Again, thanks to everyone at Lucas Oil Speedway for a great weekend of racing. I'm so impressed with the working staff at Wheatland. From everyone that works the back gate, to the concession people and the security workers, I can't think of a race track anywhere that has so many nice, pleasant people on their staff that actually seem to enjoy doing their jobs. Once a year is about all that I can make it to Lucas Oil Speedway, but it remains one of the highlights of the racing season without question. 

Vaught's Opening Night a Winner

Will Vaught, who will run a hit and miss schedule in 2017, based on when he is available to race and the venue where the racing is taking place, made his opening night a success as he topped the MLRA Late Model feature Friday night, April 14th at the Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland Missouri.

I was supposed to be covering two opening race nights back up in Wisconsin but the weather was dreadful there all week, and when the first was canceled and odds of the second one taking place seemed remote, I threw myself and a few clothes in the Camry and off we went in search of some sunshine. Where that was found was the Lucas Oil Speedway in Missouri and on top of the sunshine being present, it didn't hunt much that I was also able to get to one of the best facilities on this planet  for some great Late Model racing.

I don't care how many times I have the privilege of attending races at Lucas Oil Speedway, every time I walk into the place it still takes my breath away. It is truly an amazing place and any race fan who has not yet been there absolutely must put it on their "to do" list to get there at least once. Of course, it doesn't matter who fancy the facility is if the racing isn't good and while that might have been a problem when the track first opened, it no longer is the case. More banking has been added in turn two to the area where it kind of washed out before, and I noticed that cars were able to work the high side of the track on both ends and still be able to carry that momentum down the chutes. The track started out a little heavy early Friday, but it quickly slicked off and provided for multiple groove racing with hardly a hint of dust. It was smooth and made for a fine night of racing.

Along with the MLRA Late Models, the USRA Modifieds and Street Stocks were also in action, with a three class program that was just right in length as they were not guilty of trying to run too many support classes to "beef" up the back gate.

Forty one Late Models signed in to race along with twenty Streets and nineteen Modifieds. I was a little surprised that there weren't more Modifieds on hand but perhaps the Friday night racing made it a little difficult for some of the cars to get there. Also, there are a couple of other Friday night tracks that were in action and their cars will likely add to the field on Saturday. However, one can not complain about the quality of the open wheel cars on hand and it was a bit of a surprise to see Ken Schrader join the field on Friday. And for the first time in quite some time, He would prove to be a worthy challenger in the Modified division.

A late arriving Jeff Roth and Joe Godsey missed qualifying and had to start tail back in their heats, a tough thing to do. Unfortunately, neither was able to make the show after they were either on their way to Davenport for the MARS race or already there, and had to turn around. Now they must decide whether to stay or take a shot at driving back to West Burlington Saturday night.

A "yeah" and a "boo" both must go out to MLRA as they start their new season. The first thing all Late Models had to do when they arrived on the grounds was head for the inspection building. However, the "yeah" part was that a big part of that inspection was of safety gear and all their personal gear(helmets, shoes, uniform, safety devises and even undies) were checked to make sure they were up to par and not outdated. It is remarkable in this day and age how drivers will spend thousands on speed stuff but not bother to keep their helmets and seat belts up to date so good for officials to check them.

The "boo" part is a change of the format for MLRA for 2017 and to verify this, I went right to their portable office to make sure I was correct. For 2017, drivers will draw for their heat races but will then group qualify out of hot laps, with the cars starting straight up out in their heats, fastest in front. They will then redraw for the feature, finishing position by finishing position so if you will a heat, you are guaranteed to start in the first two rows, assuming there are four heat races. No more will you see the interesting lineups for the heat and drivers making big charges from the back to gain many passing points. Passing points are a thing of the past. The only exception to this change will be if the local promoter of the event strongly insists against it but MLRA will pressure them to not mess with their format.

So, if you are a fan of the "Summer Nationals", you will like this. If, you like myself, find the "Summer Nationals" format to be an albatross that makes for boring and predictable racing, you won't be pleased with MLRA for 2017. One disgruntled fan sitting near me, when he found out about the change was heard to mutter, "Guess I'll have to go to more Deery races now." This is one area where my Late Model series, the WISSOTA Shaw Trucking Challenge Series and the Deery Brothers, have it all over the others with passing points and no time trials. But I digress.

Mike Stadel was on hand all the way from Rapid City South Dakota. He is a top notch Late Model driver in that region but racing opportunities for Late Models are somewhat limited  and he is far away from a lot of the other action. Even to go to eastern South Dakota where WISSOTA Late Models are strong is an all day trip. So, he likes to run open motor shows when he can and has showed up for this event at Wheatland several times over the years but always seems to have horrible luck. Well, it continued Friday night when he got put into the wall on the first lap of his heat race in an accident not of his fault. "Full Throttle" Stadel, a nick name inherited from his father Les, was done for the night without even completing a lap.

Chase Junghans was a bit of a surprise with his appearance. Even more surprising was the fact that he brought a Modified as well as a Late Model to race. He unloaded a new MB Modified to get laps on this weekend as he joins the list of drivers "eyeballing" the upcoming events paying huge money for the Modifieds this Summer.

Bad luck struck area driver Josh Poe as he appeared to blow a motor in hot laps and he was done for the night without getting a lap of competition in.

Andrew Kosiski unloaded a brand new Rocket Late Model and he was quick right out of the box. In fact, he was the overall quick qualifier of the night, but MLRA does not give any awards for such an honor. He raced well in the heat, not so well in the feature but shows great promise with the car.

Another driver that surprised with his entry was Jeremy Grady from Story City Iowa. Grady, who has ran both IMCA and open motor events in recent years, showed with a new Black Diamond chassis and announced he is running for Rookie of the Year.

The premier event of the night was the twenty five lap Late Model feature. Twenty four cars started and only one yellow flag slowed the pace but , my oh my, how significant that yellow was. Tony Jackson Jr. was taking no prisoners in the early going as he got up on the cushion and boldly charged from the third row to take the lead. Vaught set off after him while Terry Phillips was also making a big advance.

Payton Looney had started on the pole and he was racing well in third for most of the event, with Phillips trying to get past him while racing with Rodney Sanders. As the race moved into its second half, Jackson started to slow just a bit as he struggled with lapped traffic and Vaught caught right up to him. Will was ready to pass I believe for the lead when Jackson got into the back of Kosiski and the scramble allowed Tony to gain a few car lengths.

All that went away with only five laps to go when the lone yellow flew for a spin. On the green, Jackson completely "overcooked" turn one, slid high on the track and allowed both Vaught and Phillips to get past him. Will was the pleased recipient of the opening and then drove on for the win while Phillips gave him some stiff challenges in the last couple of laps. Jackson settled for third but he was very disappointed while Sanders held of Jesse Stovall for a top five finish. It was a very surprising turn of events as several drivers commented on the new tire rule for the right rear which will apparently take some adjusting to.

The Modifieds ran last on the card and they did a fine job too, with only one yellow flag in their twenty lap main event. Ken Schrader, looking mighty racy on this night, won a heat race and then drew the pole for the main event. Jon Sheets, would start outside of him but completely jump the first corner, losing several spots. Jeff Cutshaw and Terry Schultz would challenge Schrader but Kenny was in the groove and would maintain his lead.

However, the yellow for a spin bunched things up and suddenly, Sheets became a factor again as he used the high side to move into second and then began to work on Schrader. With only about five laps to go, he found and opening and made a clean inside pass to take over the top spot. From there, he pulled away by several car lengths as he drove on to victory. Cutshaw, Matt Dotson and Schultz completed the  top five.

The Street Stock class at Lucas Oil Speedway is a very good one, with quality looking cars that race well also. Nineteen of them took the green flag for their main event. Marc Carter started on the pole and he led the majority of the race. For whatever reason Friday, the Streets didn't have much success using the high side so they pretty much lined up on the low side of the track.

One driver who has some success on top, gaining several positions that way was Burl Woods. After starting sixth, he eventually would work his way into second and began to pressure Carter for the lead. The Streets had a few more yellows, all for minor spins, and the last few with seven laps to go.

On the green, Woods was putting heavy pressure on, and when Carter slid up the track just a bit, Burl was right there to blast past him, take the lead and then open up some distance to the finish. Carter had to settle for second ahead of Brian Schutt, Kenny Carroll and Toby Ott.

Racing got started just a bit late with the first green not waving until almost 8 pm, but after that it was nearly nonstop racing with the final checkered waving about 10:30 pm. It seemed like kind of a small crowd but how to you size the crowd at such a huge facility where fans can be found in the grandstands, VIP areas and even watching from their cars?

Dan Robinson was the RPM Promoter of the Year in 2016 and there is a reason why. Because of my late schedule change due to the weather, I didn't request credentials until the day before the race. No matter, I was treated first class when I arrived and had no problems at all getting in. Fans and competitors that live in this area and are able to either watch or compete here on a regular basis are extremely lucky. It truly is "The Diamond" of a dirt track. 

Johnny Scott Tops Feisty Vinton "Buster"

Racing action is always close up and personal at the Benton County Speedway in Vinton and seldom if ever fails to entertain. Sunday, April 9th, racing action certainly held up to that tradition with plenty of action packed, full contact racing in all divisions.

This was supposed to be the third of the IMCA Frostbuster Series of races in Iowa that I would have caught this week, but as everyone knows by now, with all the rain the schedule was modified considerably and Vinton would turn out to be the only race in the series that I would catch.

It was a spectacularly nice early Spring day on Sunday with only a gale force wind to temper things. Of course, this would just prove to be another challenge for Don Burkey and the track prep crew at Vinton, but they did their level best to lay down a good surface for the racers, and for the most part the track did hold up.

With the abbreviated schedule of races in the series this week, and by Sunday some of the far reaching competitors had to hit the road home, but there were still around twenty travelers that hung around for the concluding event, mostly from Wisconsin and North Dakota. About eighty cars were on hand in the four IMCA divisions to race for the extra money and point fund money that was available.

Touring the pits before the event, one of the last arrivals and quite a surprising one was the entry of Late Model standout Jeff Aikey. Aikey was in a MasterSbilt chassis by JMR in Fargo North Dakota. Over the weekend, at another track, I had heard that a goodly number of Iowa's best Late Model drivers are getting Modifieds this year as all the huge money races for that class have caught their eye. Many of these cars are coming from North Dakota's Jay McDonald who builds both Modifieds and Late Models that are run with much success by many of the best drivers in the northern regions. Most of these cars are also running with the claim motor option which is a little surprising in this crate dominated division. However, the success of people like Justin Kay in the Modified class has caught the attention of many of the other Late Model drivers.

One of the many great selling points of Vinton is that once they start racing, they run a very fast show and get people on the road home at a decent hour. Even with extra cars to sign in and hot lap, they were ready to start racing just a few minutes after 5 pm and the first feature took to the track by 6:15 pm. They were on track to get done really early but several time consuming pileups in the mains saw them run just a little longer than expected.

The track was heavy, especially in turns one and two but it stayed quite smooth for most of the show. Later, the first turn did start to dig up some, and special attention was paid to that early a few times during brief breaks the rest of the night. Still, given how uncooperative the weather has been recently in this area, it could have been a lot worse. It is ironic that under normal circumstances, I would head South early in the racing season to see smooth tracks while my local area would struggle for a few weeks solving the problems wrought by another brutal Winter. This year it is just the opposite. Challenging tracks have been the norm in Iowa so far while in my home area, the tracks have been nice and smooth, making the local drivers smile.

The pattern for the night was set early when in only the second race of the night on the track, Josh McBurnie and Tony Olson participated in a very entertaining, lane swapping and slide job delivering heat race that had the crowd hooting. Feature racing action would just enhance that theme.

The Modified feature, the last event on the schedule, would leave the fans talking as they exited the grandstand, always something appreciated by the promoter when fans decide whether they will return again next week. The main saw at least three different leaders while there was also plenty of position passing farther back in the pack. Patrick Flannagan was the early leader and he battled mightily before Kyle Brown took over the top spot.

Meanwhile, Johnny Scott, winner of one of the previous events this week and a somewhat surprising entry, was working his way forward. Scott started twelfth but he stuck to the low groove and gradually worked his way into contention . Once he got to second, things got very interesting as he and Brown battled for the top spot. A late race yellow set up a four lap sprint to the finish and when Brown gave Scott the slightest of opening, Johnny jumped on it. There was plenty of contact as the two battled it out with Scott taking the decision. Brown was not pleased about the outcome and said so but Scott was the one posing in victory lane. Johnny had an interesting night as after a heat race encounter with Flannagan, they were seen "discussing" things in the infield after that event.

The Stock Car feature was shaping up as a dandy too with Angel Munoz taking the early lead until he was caught by Damon Murty. The two premier drivers battled it out for the lead with a whole host of other good drivers racing just behind them. Unfortunately, while battling in heavy traffic in turn one following a restart, Murty got sideways and much of the field being collected behind him. Top drivers like Munoz, Jr. Karcz, Norman Chesmore, Devin Snellenberger, Scooter Dulin, Tyler Muirhead and John Oliver were all involved. Some were knocked out of the race while others had to go to the back of the pack.

Jay Schmidt inherited the lead and held off a charge from Brown for the win. Schmidt admitted that he caught a break in victory lane while Brown came all the way from seventeenth to second after being DQ'd following his heat race.

The Sport Mod feature was the only one that didn't go right down to the wire as Tyler Soppe started on the pole and drove away from the field. There was only a first lap yellow followed by nineteen green flag laps and no one had anything for Soppe.

There was plenty of drama in the Hobby Stock feature. I was happy to see August Bach return after his vicious flip at Memphis in March and after starting on the pole, it looked like he might pull off the win. Nathan Ballard would have something to say about this though, as he moved to the high side of the track and came screaming to the front. However, just as he was ready to make a move to take the lead, he rolled a tire off the rim which ended his shot.

Bach was back in front and again, it looked like he might take the win. This time it was Eric Stanton that put on the pressure after starting sixth and just as the battle for the lead heated up, this time it was Bach that rolled a tire off the rim. Stanton inherited the lead and he then drove home for the win.

Other than the few typical glitches on opening night like a pa system that made the tower sound like they were speaking from a submarine to us, it was a smoothly run program. The final checkered waved before 8 pm, a godsend for people like me that were looking at a long drive home. Thanks to Mick Trier for his hospitality and Mike VG for running off a tight show. The timing was just right also as it wasn't far North of Waterloo before I ran into thunderstorms with wild lightning which I then had to deal with the rest of the trip.

Matt Ryan Earns 5 K at Davenport

The Rebel 5K was held on Friday night, April 7th at the Davenport Speedway located on the grounds of the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds on Locust Street in West Davenport. Friday night's racing action was also the first race of the 2017 racing season at Davenport and a gutsy way to begin a new season with a special event such as this.

Racing on the quarter mile, along with a forty lap, five thousand to win Late Model event, they were also running their Street Stocks, Sport Mods and Modifieds. While the races were not sanctioned on this night, IMCA rules were in effect for all but the Street Stocks who run their own rules at several tracks in eastern Iowa.

Rain much of the week had made the race's happening questionable, but with the skies finally drying out near the end of the week, and with some sun and wind to help, they were even able to get in a badly needed practice session on Thursday night to give both drivers a chance to shake down their new equipment plus the laps generated on the track would have nothing but helpful results come Friday.

I was able to spend a few minutes with Carrie Rouse, who runs the back gate at Davenport as well as maintaining many other responsibilities. Even she was a little surprised that the program was coming off as planned, given the amount of rain and cool weather of the week. She related that the track was choppy for practice but that they had spend many hours working the surface as soon as they could get on it late in the week and she, along with everyone else, was hopeful that it would be better on Friday. Before I go any further, I want to thank Carrie for her help on Friday on what turned out to be a very interesting night of racing.

Before the races, I took the chance to talk to a couple of drivers in the pits. First on hand was Jesse Sobbing, who was on hand to run some practice laps on Thursday, mostly to try and check out his gears to make sure that he had the right ones in. He did say that the track was very choppy on Thursday and he wasn't able to learn much because it didn't stay on the track more than a couple laps, due to its condition.

Jesse will be focusing on his Late Model program in 2017, running the Deery Series, the Malvern Bank Series and other special events. He does still have access to a Modified, actually one that he sold last Fall but the new owner is amenable to him driving it. He will run this car in a few of the huge money Modified races that are upcoming in this area i n2017.

A surprise entrant in the Late Model class was Decorah's Troy Hovey. Hovey, who has been a very accomplished Stock Car and B Mod driver in USRA in recent years, is going to try Late Model racing in 2017. He has a MasterSbilt chassis and he plans to run weekly at Farley and Independence, the two tracks that are closest to his far Northeastern Iowa home where there is little or no Late Model racing taking place. Hovey had a pretty successful opening night, making the main event and due to the high attrition rate, he even scored a top ten finish.

Former Modified driver Kyle Krampe was a new Late Model driver for me along with former local Street Stock racer Phil Anderson from Orion Illinois.  An interesting swap saw Joe Beal and Stephen Kammerer switch cars for 2017. Beal is now running the #77 Late Model while Kammerer runs the former Beal Modified. Kammerer had the better of the two Friday as he managed a top five finish in the Modified main.

Friday night racing is always a mad scramble for every track with many arriving late and all at the same time and things are usually wild and hectic trying to get everyone signed in. For the longest time, it looked like the field of racers was going to be a stinker with no cars coming in. However, they all arrived at the last minute and when the first green flag dropped, there were thirty one Late Models, nineteen Modifieds, thirty three Sport Mods and eighteen Street Stocks. And amazingly, even with opening night issues that usually happen, along with hot lapping all the cars, they still got the first heat race started at 6:16 pm.

let's call a spade, a spade here. Yes, the track was choppy. It many have even been bumpier than 34 Raceway was last week. While that track seemed to be smooth on the chutes with just the corners rolling up, Davenport was humpy all over the track. Some drivers found a line right down on the inside and some rolled the outside and did well. It seemed that the worst line was right through the middle of the track. But, none of these issues were created just to make life miserable for the drivers and why it turned out the way it did was understandable.

But for me, the most amazing thing of the night was how the drivers adapted to the conditions and put on a great racing program. All four feature races were excellent, with last lap passes settling two of them, three of the winners had less than a car length winning margin, and despite what you might assume, there were not a lot of yellow flags during the show. Only the Street Stock feature got bogged down a little with yellows but both the Modified and Late Model features went green to checkered. Folks, that's sixty laps of green flag racing without a yellow and who'd expect that to happen on the best of nights! I think the drivers did a marvelous job and even better than just racing without yellows, there was a huge amount of passing and back and forth racing all night. Of course, the one spin rule was used Friday night and that helps without a doubt keeping the show moving along promptly.

The Late Model feature put a cap on the great racing with an outstanding battle for the lead. Nick Marolf was the early leader and it looked like he might back up last Saturday's big win with another triumph but when he started to fade, Sobbing and Ryan were right there to get by him and start their own wild battle. They swapped the lead back and forth with both making hair raising moves in the corners as they searched the track, looking for a fast and hopefully, smoother line . Sobbing made a "hair on fire" move in turn one to take the lead with just a couple of laps left but Ryan came right back and got under him for the lead. It boiled right down to the final lap, with Sobbing's last lap effort coming up a car length short.

Many of the drivers deep in the pack had planned on pulling off early and the first lap was like rush hour at the exit ramp as there was almost a backup of cars trying to get off the turn one exit. Later, as cars got lapped,they to dropped out frequently and by the end of the race, there were only nine on the track. However, that didn't effect the quality of the race whatsoever which was one of the best seen so far this year.

Justin Kay, who I thought might have a chance at a double win, ran consistent but never really challenged in the Late Models. However, in the Modifieds, he fought off an early challenge from Rob Toland, who was making a rare Modified start, and then built up a big lead. Toland was another who I thought might score a double but after being fast early in the Late Model feature, he faded back and was just riding around at the end. Toland had drawn the pole in heat race action in both classes but couldn't use that break to translate it into a feature win.

Kay built up a sizable lead in the Modified feature as this race also stayed under the green. However, he slowed as the race progressed and Cayden Carter found a fast line right on the inside mud berm and he closed up on Kay at a fast pace. What was a comfortable lead dissolved to nothing in the last couple of laps, and while Carter was on the bumper of Kay, he didn't try some kind of wild, last lap banzai run. Instead, he played it clean, tried to drive under Kay off the last corner and came up a half car length in what turned out to be a wild finish.

The Street Stock feature saw so many different leaders that it was hard to keep up. Duane Smith Jr and Randy Lamar battled for the lead with challenges from Brandon Setzer, Joe Bonney and others. They took turns running in front with several yellows slowing down the action.

Suddenly, Jeff Struck came up from tenth starting position to take over the lead and it looked like he might be able to pull away. Just when it looked like things had settled down, Struck suddenly slowed with mechanical issues and gave the lead back to Setzer.

Bonney, who had been working the high side all during the race and had come close but wasn't able to take the top spot, tried one last time on the final lap and he was able to pull off the pass and take a thrilling win. Lamar got third and Rob Henry, who missed his heat and had to start sixteenth, came up to fourth one, spun and went to the back and then worked his way back up to fourth once again.

One of last years biggest winners in the Sport Mods, Tyler Soppe, started the year out with another win in what was a hard fought battle. Brandt Cole led for much of the race but Soppe gradually worked his way up after starting tenth and took over the top spot. However, he wasn't home free as Gage Neal made a late charge and came up just short at the finish. The Sport Mods did a great job also with only two yellows in their twenty lap main event.

I can't remember the last time I was at a race where tough track conditions were overcome so well by the drivers in all divisions as all four feature races were good ones, and under the conditions, actually great is no understatement. It was a highly entertaining night of racing and even the hard core fans were driven to comment on the  great battle between Ryan and Sobbing that they had seen.

It is always tough to gauge the size of the crowd is such a massive grandstand like the one at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds and it was a late arriving crowd, as I'm guessing it is on almost every Friday night, given the early starting time they must use to beat the curfew. For sure, everyone that was on hand had to have felt that they got their money's worth on this night.

Marolf Dominates Deery Late Models; McCarl Perseveres for "Invaders" Victory

After two days of all most nonstop work, the staff at 34 Raceway plus all their friends, associates and everyone else they could marshal to drive a tractor or other piece of heavy equipment were able to subdue Mother Nature enough that the season opener for both the Deery Brothers Late Model series and the Sprint Invaders series were able to be held on Saturday, April 1st. I'm sure they didn't consider it an April Fool's Day prank that rain fell by the inches at the track most of the week, but everyone involved put in yeoman work to get the track and grounds in good enough shape that racing could take place. Other than those directly involved, no one else will ever know for sure just how much work was involved in getting the track in shape so racing could be held, but hopefully at least a few people took the time to thank the Laue's for their effort.

A doubleheader of the Deery Series and the Sprint Invaders was a very interesting combination to start the season and caught the interest of both the Late Model and open wheel fans with what I would guess was about a fifty fifty representation of fans following their action.

As much work as was put in on the race track, truly the most difficult part of the entire grounds was getting the pits in shape so that the big haulers could get to their parking spots. The pits were incredibly soft and the ruts left by some of the big rigs, a few of which had to be pulled into the pits by large tractors, were almost unbelievable. After the first few smaller rigs drove in, the first big rig got stuck right in the driveway and it took a large effort just to get it freed. At this point, I was worried that they might just throw in the towel  and call it a night but the stubborn effort they had put in to this point continued, and the race crews also remained surprisingly determined to race while not letting the less than ideal conditions rule their thinking. I would guess that if the same thing happens again in July, the decision will be much different, but with this being the first race of the year for just about everyone,  opening night enthusiasm by racers, pit crews, track officials and prep people along with the spectators themselves trumped everything else. Let the green flag fly!

Let's look at the Late Model division first. Thirty one Late Models signed in to race, a number that was slightly disappointing to me. While it is indeed very early and certainly many drivers are still not ready to go at this point, if anyone was seriously considering a run at the Deery points, they would have to be on hand for the opener.

I did have a side bet going on with a couple of the other "rail birds" before the gates opened and I can tell you that  the cunning observer of racing for many years, Ryan Clark was the winner of our little contest.

Strong pockets of Late Models came from the Quad Cities, Dubuque and the Waterloo areas while there were virtually no local Late Models any more from right around Burlington. What a difference years have made as at one time, both the numbers and quality of the local cars was second to none. However, with no local tracks running Late Models weekly any more and the closest ones like Donnellson now running the Pro Late Models with crate motors, there just aren't many local cars to add to the mix. I was told that inquiries were made by some of the PLM group as far as running this show, but unfortunately, the rules between the two just didn't mesh to the point where there could be sharing of cars.

I thought the Late Model portion of the program was very entertaining and the drivers really were running hard for it being opening night. Nick Marolf was the star of the show as he was noticeably faster than anyone else and once he got past Jay Johnson for the lead, he pulled comfortably away from the field with only the lapped cars to cause him problems.

It was a night when the veteran drivers shone, even though not all of them had the finishes to match how they performed. Leading the list was the "Iron Man" of IMCA, Darrel DeFrance. Old DD looked like a "Spring Chicken" on this night as he got a strong second place finish in the main event. Not a fan of heavy tracks and challenging conditions, he nevertheless persevered  for a strong opening night finish. A couple of other long time racers also looked good but couldn't finish out the night. Both Curt Martin and Johnson had plenty of zip to challenge the field but neither could keep their cars running for the distance. Johnson also got on his lid and Martin got tattooed enough that he finally had to call it a night. Lasting through the thirty five lapper was a challenge as fifty per cent of the field never saw the checkered.

Jesse Sobbing, making his first foray into Deery Brothers racing, looked fast and will be a good addition to the series. Two flat tires in the main eventually led him to parking his car after he was a challenger early.

What a terrible start for the season for Andy Eckrich. Once shutters to see any kind of bad wreck so early in the season but to ride the wall and spectacularly flip like he did is even worse.

One thing about the Deery series that I don't particularly care for is the way they determine the starting lineup. By taking only three cars out of each heat, they force the majority of the field to race three times in order to earn a check. It just seems to me that they artificially make the B features bigger by taking so few cars, and while that might make the B's marginally more exciting for the fans, it also forces a lot of the racers to put more laps on their cars and increase their chances of either wrecking or breaking equipment. I'd like to see a difference balance on how many are taken and reward a few more of the drivers for their heat race efforts by not having to run the always dangerous B features.

On the Sprint side of things, a  strong field of thirty three cars signed in to race. The regulars on the Invaders Series were joined by many Knoxville regulars who have yet to turn wheels in competition and were also joined by a number of new drivers looking to move up in the open wheel ranks. The Sprint racing is always wild on any night but add in the tacky fast and somewhat bumpy conditions that developed and it is a formula for some wild racing action. Four flips occurred during the night with fortunately no injuries to report.

The three Phillips brothers are a show of their own and they garnered much attention Saturday. Tasker was the early leader until he stood his car on its nose in turn four, yet kept going and only lost two spots! Then Rager took over the top spot, only to get tangled with a lapped car and take a wild ride off turn four, fortunately without tipping over.

Carson McCarl then inherited the lead and held on for the win. Jon Agan was closing at the end, and if not for a bad restart with two laps to go, he just might have stolen the win. Despite the rugged conditions that developed as the evening progressed, the Sprint feature saw only two yellow flags and the majority were still running at the end.

There are clearly a lot of Sprint Car fans in this region as when the open wheel feature was completed, approximately 30-40 per cent of the fans got up and left, not staying for the Late Model show. Perhaps the late hour had something to do with this also, but I was surprised at the number who walked out early.

The track stayed very good for the early part of the show but as you might expect, as the evening wore on the track started to rut up and it was a pretty bumpy ride by feature time. The heavy Late Models seemed to ride the roughest with the Sprints seeming to be able to skim over the top of the ruts better. However, the number of drivers that took it easy and pulled off early was minimal.

Jeff Broeg and Bill Wright called the action on Saturday and they did an excellent job of entertaining us as well as giving us the information that we needed.

I can only hope that the Laue's were rewarded for all the work they put in and not overly criticized for the bumpy track conditions that finished off the evening  as they had every reason possible for not racing but still opted to do all the work they did to get a race completed.