Shryock Doubles Up At Spencer

Except for a rare few tracks, Monday night races are not a thing frequently seen. Especially so in May when school is still in session and I would assume that farmers are still in the fields completing the 2023 planting season. However, the Clay County Fair Speedway would look at those possible negatives and spit in their eye, as on Monday night, May 22nd they presented the second half of The Clay County Classic, a five division program with the featured event being the Stock Car thirty five lap feature that was paying a whopping five grand to win as a part of the DIRT CROWN EAST series. Along with the Stock Cars, the Modifieds, Sport Mods, Hobby Stocks and Sport Compacts would all be in action for a full program and as a bonus treat, two feature races from the rain shortened May 8th program would also be held so we were looking at a full night of racing. 

And not only was this a Monday night race in May, it was actually part of a doubleheader program with racing also on Sunday night, an event I could not attend. However, on Sunday night they ran a full program for Hobby Stocks and Sport Mods as well as double qualifying heat races for the Stock Cars and two other make up features from that May 8th program that was stopped by lightning and then a surprise rain shower. 

One hundred and eight drivers signed in to race on Monday night in the five classes including a high count of forty two Stock Cars, minus three from Sunday night that did not return likely due to mechanical issues. 

Monday night's program would include a full show of heats and features for four classes, plus a series of Last Chance and B Features for the Stock Cars to fill out their twenty four car field. But first we had to make up two last feature races from May 8th. 

The Sport Compact feature saw a small group of cars return but they had plenty of excitement in their short, ten lap main. Logan Kelly, who doubles as a Sport Compact drivers while also being the flagman at a couple of northern Iowa speedways, took the early lead. However, he was soon challenged by Kaytee DeVries for the lead. They had a close side by side duel until they rubbed together, Kelly got a flat tire and flying off the first turn while DeVries would go on to win the main over Riley Paysen and Levi Volkert. 

The other make up was for the Modifieds and eighteen drivers would return to race that event. Here is where the nights biggest winner, Kelly Shryock, would pick up the first of two feature wins on the night. He would start on the outside pole and lead all laps but it would get tight at the finish. Tim Ward, looking to fatten up on his feature win totals of the year to date, would charge up from tenth to challenge Shryock for the lead and they would have a great battle, racing side by side and exchanging slide jobs on the two lane track. It would come right down to the wire but Shryock would hold off Ward and go on for the win with Brandon Beckendorf finishing third in what was an exciting way to start off the evening. 

Tossing the normal running order, perhaps because of the Monday night and the large number of races on the schedule, after all the qualifying was done, the Modifieds would be first up for their main event. And what a show Beckendorf would put on! 

He would start thirteenth on the grid but would immediately charge toward the front, clearly being the fastest driver on the track as he would be able to drive several car lengths deeper into the corners than others and yet still be able to carry his speed through the turns. The groove was high by this time and h was right up against the concrete but he continued to move forward. 

Jesse Dennis had taken the early lead and while their was much infighting going on behind him, he was able to put quite a bit of distance between himself and the field as the race remained under the green. When Beckendorf finally moved into second, he was nearly a full straightaway behind Dennis and the lead seemed impossible to make up, especially if the race remained under green. 

However, that is just what it did but no matter for Beckendorf as he reeled in Dennis at a rapid pace and on lap eleven he blew past Dennis on the high side and never looked back as he pulled to his own half straightaway lead as the race remained under green and he drove to a most impressive win. Dennis would settle for second and Paul Nagle would complete the top five. 

Then it would be feature time and time for Shryock to harvest more Clay County cash. He would start on the inside of row two in the twenty four car field that was going thirty five laps but he was able to drop to the extreme inside lane on lap one and beat both Jim Horejci and Jeremy Thornton back to the line and lead lap one. The records will show that he would then lead all laps but it wasn't quite as simple as that may sound.

At one point he was under heavy pressure as while Shryock was hugging the inside line, Thornton went to the cushion for momentum and closed in on Kelly. Thornton was one of the few to make that line work but he found himself in a great battle with Shryock at the halfway point of the race and the leaders raced nearly the whole lap side by side. However, Thornton would break traction and spin sideways and nearly come to a stop before getting going again. The yellow flag flew at this point and it seemed like a quick yellow would send Thornton to the back but the ruling(puzzling to some including me), was that there was debris on the track at the same time and Thornton would retain second so he and Horejci would continue their chase of the leader. 

However, Thornton could never again find that magic that he briefly had and he would struggle to hold second. In fact, a later yellow saw both Thornton and Horejci fall back in the pack after bad restarts and Dusty Vis would move into second. 

The last half of the race would go nonstop and while Vis would follow fairly closely to the leader, He was never able to offer a challenge and Shryock would drive on for the win, completing a nice six grand Monday night exercise. Jesse Sobbing would come from tenth to get third while Devin Snellenberger was on fire the second half of the race as he drove from nineteenth to finish right behind Sobbing. 

A great three car battle would highlight the Hobby Stock feature. Travis VandenTop would be the early leader until he was overtaken by Brandon Nielsen for the point. Quickly moving in behind him, after starting eleventh was Mike Smith and by the halfway point of the race, it was Nielsen, Smith and Cory Probst running nose to tail, hugging the inside and waited for a mistake by the other. 

Nielsen was pushing in the turns but Smith just couldn't get quite a big enough run at him to take over the top spot. Finally, on lap thirteen he nosed under Nielsen and took over the lead which he would hold to the checkers. Probst would also pass on the final lap to take second. 

The team cars of Justin Klynsma and John Foreman would lead the early laps of the Sport Mod feature before Matthew Looft would move up from tenth to move into third and bring Colby Fett with him as the two would challenge the OK 1 Stop team. 

Just past the halfway point, Looft and Fett would move into second and third and put the heat on Klynsma who was now in defensive mode, trying to hold off the duo of strong runners. He was able to hold on until turn one on the final lap when he went way high and both Looft, who never seems to lose here, and Fett would both go past him for the top spots and Klynsma, in an effort to charge back and take the lead, would again go high with his other team mate, John Klynsma, also passing him at the line for third. 

Tyler Thompson would move up from the second row on the opening lap to grab the lead in the Sport Compact feature and he would then cruise home for the win from that point, never being challenged. Paysen would again get second and Kelly would manage third in this race. 

All racing was complete just before the 11 pm hour, a bit late for a Monday night in May but there was much racing done in the three and a half hours of the show. They must have done something with the sound system as I was able to hear J VAN much better than ever before so that was appreciated. It was an all star crowd on hand for this race as "Super Dave" from Minnesota was in attendance, along with DJ from Ohio and the mayou of Ogden Iowa, "Crazy Martin." 

Thanks to Trent Chinn of Trent Chinn Promotions along with all the staff and employees of the Clay County Fair Speedway for a nice night of racing on what was one of the most pleasant weather nights of 2023 to date.