Night number three of the Gateway Nationals at The Dome at America's Center was the money night and while the Late Models raced for some good change on Friday night's twin feature events, it paled by comparison to what both classes would be racing for in Saturday night's two main events.
Twelve Last Chance races, evenly divided between the two classes would qualify the last cars for the main events and each of these races were like mini features, both in the number of entrants in each race and the quality of the cars that would be knocking heads with only two in each to move on to the mains.
The action started off with the track pretty wet once again, although not as heavy as it was to start things off on Friday night. They were all lined up and ready to race but the first Late Model drivers out nixed the track conditions and several more minutes of hot laps and packing were called for before the "thumbs up" sign from pole sitter Brandon Sheppard signaled that all was ready for a start. This did delay the dropping of the first green flag until about twenty minutes after the posted starting time, the only time all weekend that the first green flag did not drop within a scant few minutes of the advertised time. Overall, the entire show was run under a much tighter leash this year which allowed all three nights to be completed at a much earlier time.
As you might guess, the action in the Last Chance races was wild and woolly with everyone giving it their best shot to make the main. The "chrome horn" became a valuable asset for many of the drivers and the banging and bashing was considerable, even though they warned at the driver's meeting that they were going to be more aggressive against rough driving, although I didn't really see much evidence of that. Interestingly, while all six of the Late Model Last Chance races were won right off the pole, only half the Modified races saw this same thing take place as my observation was that overall the Modifieds raced much better side by side all weekend than the Late Models did for whatever reason.
If there was a perseverance award it should go to Late Model driver Derek Fetter. He took a hard flip on the front chute during Friday night's show yet was back on Saturday after putting in some long hours to get his car race worthy. He started in the back of the first Last Chance and that's where he finished but at least he gave it the "old college try," not wanting to end his season with the distaste of a wreck to fester all Winter.
Some of the best racing of the entire weekend took place in the final Last Chance for the Late Models where Tim Dohm and Mike Spatola carried on a great battle for the last qualifying position in that event. They took turns "dive bombing" each other and swapping lanes on the track throughout much of the event until Dohm prevailed at the end.
There were not a large number of drivers entered in both classes but as qualifying concluded, there were two drivers that made both mains which is quite an accomplishment, given the size and quality of the fields. They were Bobby Pierce(no surprise) and Allen Weisser(at least a mild surprise, particularly in the Late Model).
The only significant break of the entire weekend was then presented between the finish of the Last Chance races and the opening ceremonies. The official opening was scheduled for 8 p.m. and that can probably be moved up by a significant amount next year as they really didn't need as much time as was allocated for the Last Chance races.
The official opening ceremonies produced much "fire and ice" as the pyrotechnics were spectacular, as promised and certainly one of the things that this facility can provide that is unique for this event. The "talking heads" continued to remind us about the extra "buzz" of this race, as if we in the audience couldn't sense this ourselves as there's no question that the "pomp and circumstance" of this race is very cool and one of the things that makes this event different and unique. I wonder if Todd Staley got a kick back from the promoters here as they "stole" his Lee Greenwood song that highlights USMTS events to open up Saturday's show.
The introductions for the Late Model feature drivers are always a highlight of this event and Jason Welshan clearly was the winner as he brought down the house as when he was introduced he held up a sign that said, "Scott Who!" to many hoots from the crowd. Bloomquist tried the "crotch chop" but I'm afraid that it is now old news and he'll have to come up with a new gimmick
There were two significant moments in the Late Model feature race which was run off first. The initial one was when Bobby Pierce drew the outside pole, a perfect spot for him, particularly early in the race when the top side still had some moisture. The other key moment was on lap twenty nine when Brandon Sheppard pulled up lame with a flat tire, triggering a yellow that saved Pierce's hide as he was stuck on the outside and just about to be passed.
Pierce had taken the initial lead and was running the cushion. Billy Moyer looked good early until he spun and it was Tyler Carpenter and Tanner English that were applying the most pressure to Pierce. Pierce caught the lapped car of Gordy Gundaker and that's when things started to get interesting. On a short track like this, much of the action is generated when the leaders have to fight their way through lapped cars, and for perhaps the first time in three nights, a long green flag period between laps twelve and twenty nine allowed this to take place.
Gundaker would not get off the bottom and Pierce was running up his behind on every lap with English nearly sneaking by him on several occasions. Finally Pierce made the decision that he needed to get around Gundaker since Gordy was just not going to move over, no matter how much he was warned by the flagman and bumped in the rear end.
However, once Pierce got up on the high side, he discovered how much it had slowed down and he knew he was in trouble as English again challenged him. In fact, Tanner briefly took the lead one lap before Sheppard showed but Pierce was fortunate to have edged back into the lead barely when the yellow flew.
With lapped traffic now not a problem, Pierce hugged the low groove on the green and pulled away. Shannon Babb was trying to put on a show as he hammered the cushion and worked his way into the top five but he punted English on the restart and sent him to the back. Babb then found the cushion to just be too choppy and after tearing off the right side of his car, he dropped back to the inside and salvaged seventh at the finish.
Carpenter had a great run for second and Darrell Lanigan drove a steady race to come from fourteenth to finish third, although I think he had nothing for the top two cars.
English pulled a real "boo boo" when he came storming out of the pits just as the victory lane celebration was ready to commence and confronted promoter Cody Sommer, who was trying to enjoy the "fruits of his labors" with the winners. English and his drew were rewarded by getting an "escort" back to the pit area. Sure he got "dumped" by Babb, but quite frankly, that same kind of thing had been going on unpunished all weekend and he was mistaken if he thought he was going to get a call against a local hero at that point of the race.
For Pierce and his many fans, it was a great way to wrap up his season before he makes the big move to his new racing home for 2018. And who knows, as unpredictable as this racing game is, I wouldn't be surprised to see somewhere down the line Bobby back in the family ride, if only for some special local races.
The Modified feature saw a good battle between Brent Mullins and Ray Bollinger for a number of laps before Bollinger made the bottom work to his advantage. Mullins came from the second row to take the lead running the high side, but it gradually started to go away and Bollinger, who was "married" to the bottom groove and clearly wasn't going to move off of it, gradually pulled up beside Mullins and then eased past him. Mike Harrison and Kenny Wallace challenged as Harrison tried both high and low in an effort to move up.
Wallace was right in the hunt until he spun out and a couple of late yellows kept the field bunched. On both the late race restarts, both Mullins and Harrison tried to drive around Bollinger but there just wasn't anything to be grabbed on the top and this allowed Bollinger, smooth as silk on the inside, to hold on for the win. I think that the difference between this year's show and that of 2016 was that the outside line was never quite as good this year, no matter what they tried to do to "speed it up." Whether this had to do wit the soil itself or the shape of the track, I can't say but the lack of "rim riders" was somewhat disappointing this year.
Tanner Mullins drove a steady race for fourth and Pierce worked his way up to fifth at the finish. For a few brief seconds it looked like it might be possible for him to pull off a double win, as he was pounding the cushion, but it just didn't have enough speed for him to advance any farther forward.
So, overall it was an interesting three days of racing. The overall program was run off much better than last year with things going off much quicker and smoother. We can always "nit pick" about certain things but quite frankly, overall, the colossal nature of this event is quite mind boggling and the amount or work necessary to pull of this endeavor seems almost impossible to imagine. It would be an achievement of the highest order to be carried out at any track in the country but when you consider that they literally build the track in a couple of weeks, run the event and then tear everything back down again within the space of a few days, it's almost "mind blowing."
It was announced that record crowds attended on both Friday and Saturday nights and the good news was that they already announced dates for 2018. Next year the event will be several weeks earlier as Nov. 29,30 and December 1 will be the dates for the race. And for greedy fans like myself that always used to enjoy going to the Knepper Midget show at DuQuoin that is also held this weekend, perhaps next year I'll be able to attend both. And Sommers has also got open wheel people wondering also after the very successful test run of both Midgets and Sprint Cars earlier here this week. Could there be something to that test as in a "teaser" for next year? We shall see.
Sunday, December 17, 2017
Saturday, December 16, 2017
Hudson O'Neal, Gundaker and Mullins Top Dome Night Two
Friday night, December 15 marked night number two of the VP Racing Fuels Gateway Dirt Nationals at the Dome at America's Center in downtown St. Louis Missouri.
After Thursday qualifying runs set the field for the weekend, Friday night it was time to get serious with Last Chance races for the Modifieds, Heat races and Last Chance races for the Late Models and then, in the evening's finales, double feature races for the Late Models and a Modified feature to wrap up the evening's entertainment. Not only would the feature races pay good money, the top eight in the Modifieds and the top four in each of the Late Model features would "lock in" for the top spots for Saturday night's huge finale and they would redraw for the top starting spots.
There was one more additional driver that showed up for racing on Friday as William Stile of West Newton Pennsylvania, who was pre-entered in the event, finally made it to the Dome. He told me that they were four hundred and fifty miles into their six hundred mile trip when they had transmission trouble with their hauler. After a tow to a transmission shop and an expensive replacement transmission, they made the rest of the trip. He was highly complementary of the staff at the Dome, who allowed him to race even though he was late. They allowed him to tail a Heat race as he had already reconciled himself to the fact that they might just be watching the event. William said it would end up being his most expensive trip ever and that the bills would probably eat into next year's racing budget and perhaps, even the year after that! He did get to race that heat and he did finish it without further troubles so he will have one more crack tomorrow in a Last Chance event.
It wouldn't be a race unless I ran into "Crazy Martin" from Iowa and he was on hand to celebrate his seventieth birthday at the races this weekend. He even had a hat made up that he was wearing to announce the fact to the world.
I also ran into another Iowan in the grandstand and that was promoter and race director Mike Van Genderen. He told me that he would be working at Donnellson and Vinton and as well as running specials in Memphis Missouri. He will not be at Osky in 2018 and since he was the only one that put in a bid for racing there for the coming season that unless something changes in the coming months, there may be no racing at the historic half mile in the coming year. He also said that they might be involved in one more track but that would be a surprise and that's all he would say on that matter.
As far as his own racing program, he does have a new car and hopes to race at Boone and at other special events over the Summer but doesn't plan to race in Florida this year, feeling that the UMP rules are not favorable for him.
With the Modified Last Chance races being so massive with well over twenty cars scheduled for each one, the decision was made before the program started to go with six Last Chance races instead of the four scheduled and take the top two, not three into the main event. With so many cars on hand and the track only capable of taking about twenty cars comfortably for a main, many drivers are left on the sidelines watching the feature races instead of participating.
With lots of laps to be had on the track, they had it considerably wetter for the start of the show on Friday. And it needed to be to help open up a second lane. With Friday devoted to racing only, and not a ton of one groove time trialing, the cars were racing more side by side and eventually they were able to make it a much wider track with increasing numbers of drivers choosing to run the high side and some with much success.
Eighteen preliminary events set up the fields for the three feature events with the first four heats forming the first feature and the back half of the heats the second main. The Modifieds ran a sole feature but the top eight made the Saturday night show.
Billy Moyer just keeps rolling along and he was the leader for the first laps of the first feature until over taken by Rusty Schlenk in the Rayburn house car. Schlenk appeared on his way to victory until he ticked the outside wall and gave himself a flat, right rear tire with only a few laps left in the twenty lap feature. As Schlenk started to slow, David Brazeale tried to pass him for the lead. Brazeale got by down the back chute but then he got sideways and collected Schlenk and both were done. Hudson O'Neal inherited the lead on the restart and he fought off Moyer to get the win. Jason Welshan and Bobby Pierce, from tenth, also locked themselved in for the show on Saturday.
The second Late Model feature had a bit of an unusual look to it with the first three row filled with solid competitors but not ones you would off the top of your head predict to win an event of this magnitude. Gordy Gundaker took the early lead but Myles Moos, a central Illinois crate Late Model star that is just starting to experiment with open Late Model racing, then took to the high side and blew past Gundaker to take over the lead. It looked for a few laps that a major upset was brewing but slowly and surely, the top side started to give up, or perhaps Moos' tires started to give up. In any event, he started to slow and Gundaker, who never moved off the bottom, retook the lead. The rest of this race was somewhat anti climatic and everyone kind of lined up on the bottom and rode. For Gundaker it was obviously a huge victory at the track that his father is largely responsible for constructing for this event. Behind Gordy, it was Tyler Carpenter, Chad Zobrist and Tanner English that locked in for Saturday.
The Modified feature produced a bit of a surprise as Kansas' Tanner Mullins led from start to finish to take the win. Mullins is driving his own equipment again after being one of the many drivers to have a "cup of coffee" as the driver of the Gressell equipment earlier this Summer. Mullins, who does most of his racing with NCRA and USMTS, didn't seem to have any trouble adapting to the UMP tire and lack of spoiler as for the second straight night, he started in front and stayed there. Despite the half dozen yellows that slowed the action, he never wavered from his pole spot and never felt a severe challenge. Mike Harrison was the show as he worked the high side, which for awhile looked like it was going to allow him to drive by for the win until later when he found himself stuck in that same lane when it wasn't working as well and he was driving the wheels off his car just to maintain his spot. At the end, he dove back to the bottom to salvage third behind Mike McKinney at the finish. Brent Mullins, Levi Kissinger, Tommy Sheppard Jr, Kenny Wallace and Ray Bollinger also locked in for Saturday as everyone except Mullins would be considered top runners in the Illinois and Missouri Modified ranks.
There were two rollovers in the Late Model division on Friday night. Both Austin Hubbard and Derek Fetter took hard tumbles as the fact that for such a small track the drivers do get up a lot of speed and they are sideways so much of the time, it doesn't take much of a tap from a fellow competitor or the wall to send them flying. The only surprise is that there have been no Modifieds dumped yet.
There was one year incident in the Modified feature when a "big one" nearly occurred. Tyler Nicely had just had enough when he got slammed by the odd looking "mud bus" of Tim Hancock and knocked halfway up the track. Hancock had been wearing out other drivers for two nights and Nicely finally decided that his surname was not how he was going to respond to Hancock's actions. Going down the back chute, Nicely "dumped" Hancock for which he immediately drew the black flag. If I had been in Nicely's shoes, I'd have done the same thing!
An odd situation occurred before the start of the second Late Model heat when David Payne pulled on to the track and the crew had neglected to remove a empty fuel jug and filler that was still laying on the deck of the car. After a couple of "burn out" sessions to warm the car, the entire contents were deposited in turn one where Kevin Gundaker had to retrieve them.
Myself and friends around me are having trouble determining just what is the criteria on restart lineups as we have seen cars spin on the first lap and get their spot back, other cars do the same and have to go to the rear, cars be a part of multi car pileups and regain their position and others sent to the back for the same thing. Consistency seems to have been lacking to this point and the number of driver's arms out the window waving seems to confirm that.
A huge crowd was on hand for the second night's action and they have been a lively group indeed. The last race for most people in 2017 has produced a party atmosphere and the special effects that the Dome can generate have only enhanced that. And again, for the second straight night the better managed program was reflected in the fact that even though a lot of racing was done and much time was also used to track maintenance, the final checkered flag waved just around 10 p.m.
After Thursday qualifying runs set the field for the weekend, Friday night it was time to get serious with Last Chance races for the Modifieds, Heat races and Last Chance races for the Late Models and then, in the evening's finales, double feature races for the Late Models and a Modified feature to wrap up the evening's entertainment. Not only would the feature races pay good money, the top eight in the Modifieds and the top four in each of the Late Model features would "lock in" for the top spots for Saturday night's huge finale and they would redraw for the top starting spots.
There was one more additional driver that showed up for racing on Friday as William Stile of West Newton Pennsylvania, who was pre-entered in the event, finally made it to the Dome. He told me that they were four hundred and fifty miles into their six hundred mile trip when they had transmission trouble with their hauler. After a tow to a transmission shop and an expensive replacement transmission, they made the rest of the trip. He was highly complementary of the staff at the Dome, who allowed him to race even though he was late. They allowed him to tail a Heat race as he had already reconciled himself to the fact that they might just be watching the event. William said it would end up being his most expensive trip ever and that the bills would probably eat into next year's racing budget and perhaps, even the year after that! He did get to race that heat and he did finish it without further troubles so he will have one more crack tomorrow in a Last Chance event.
It wouldn't be a race unless I ran into "Crazy Martin" from Iowa and he was on hand to celebrate his seventieth birthday at the races this weekend. He even had a hat made up that he was wearing to announce the fact to the world.
I also ran into another Iowan in the grandstand and that was promoter and race director Mike Van Genderen. He told me that he would be working at Donnellson and Vinton and as well as running specials in Memphis Missouri. He will not be at Osky in 2018 and since he was the only one that put in a bid for racing there for the coming season that unless something changes in the coming months, there may be no racing at the historic half mile in the coming year. He also said that they might be involved in one more track but that would be a surprise and that's all he would say on that matter.
As far as his own racing program, he does have a new car and hopes to race at Boone and at other special events over the Summer but doesn't plan to race in Florida this year, feeling that the UMP rules are not favorable for him.
With the Modified Last Chance races being so massive with well over twenty cars scheduled for each one, the decision was made before the program started to go with six Last Chance races instead of the four scheduled and take the top two, not three into the main event. With so many cars on hand and the track only capable of taking about twenty cars comfortably for a main, many drivers are left on the sidelines watching the feature races instead of participating.
With lots of laps to be had on the track, they had it considerably wetter for the start of the show on Friday. And it needed to be to help open up a second lane. With Friday devoted to racing only, and not a ton of one groove time trialing, the cars were racing more side by side and eventually they were able to make it a much wider track with increasing numbers of drivers choosing to run the high side and some with much success.
Eighteen preliminary events set up the fields for the three feature events with the first four heats forming the first feature and the back half of the heats the second main. The Modifieds ran a sole feature but the top eight made the Saturday night show.
Billy Moyer just keeps rolling along and he was the leader for the first laps of the first feature until over taken by Rusty Schlenk in the Rayburn house car. Schlenk appeared on his way to victory until he ticked the outside wall and gave himself a flat, right rear tire with only a few laps left in the twenty lap feature. As Schlenk started to slow, David Brazeale tried to pass him for the lead. Brazeale got by down the back chute but then he got sideways and collected Schlenk and both were done. Hudson O'Neal inherited the lead on the restart and he fought off Moyer to get the win. Jason Welshan and Bobby Pierce, from tenth, also locked themselved in for the show on Saturday.
The second Late Model feature had a bit of an unusual look to it with the first three row filled with solid competitors but not ones you would off the top of your head predict to win an event of this magnitude. Gordy Gundaker took the early lead but Myles Moos, a central Illinois crate Late Model star that is just starting to experiment with open Late Model racing, then took to the high side and blew past Gundaker to take over the lead. It looked for a few laps that a major upset was brewing but slowly and surely, the top side started to give up, or perhaps Moos' tires started to give up. In any event, he started to slow and Gundaker, who never moved off the bottom, retook the lead. The rest of this race was somewhat anti climatic and everyone kind of lined up on the bottom and rode. For Gundaker it was obviously a huge victory at the track that his father is largely responsible for constructing for this event. Behind Gordy, it was Tyler Carpenter, Chad Zobrist and Tanner English that locked in for Saturday.
The Modified feature produced a bit of a surprise as Kansas' Tanner Mullins led from start to finish to take the win. Mullins is driving his own equipment again after being one of the many drivers to have a "cup of coffee" as the driver of the Gressell equipment earlier this Summer. Mullins, who does most of his racing with NCRA and USMTS, didn't seem to have any trouble adapting to the UMP tire and lack of spoiler as for the second straight night, he started in front and stayed there. Despite the half dozen yellows that slowed the action, he never wavered from his pole spot and never felt a severe challenge. Mike Harrison was the show as he worked the high side, which for awhile looked like it was going to allow him to drive by for the win until later when he found himself stuck in that same lane when it wasn't working as well and he was driving the wheels off his car just to maintain his spot. At the end, he dove back to the bottom to salvage third behind Mike McKinney at the finish. Brent Mullins, Levi Kissinger, Tommy Sheppard Jr, Kenny Wallace and Ray Bollinger also locked in for Saturday as everyone except Mullins would be considered top runners in the Illinois and Missouri Modified ranks.
There were two rollovers in the Late Model division on Friday night. Both Austin Hubbard and Derek Fetter took hard tumbles as the fact that for such a small track the drivers do get up a lot of speed and they are sideways so much of the time, it doesn't take much of a tap from a fellow competitor or the wall to send them flying. The only surprise is that there have been no Modifieds dumped yet.
There was one year incident in the Modified feature when a "big one" nearly occurred. Tyler Nicely had just had enough when he got slammed by the odd looking "mud bus" of Tim Hancock and knocked halfway up the track. Hancock had been wearing out other drivers for two nights and Nicely finally decided that his surname was not how he was going to respond to Hancock's actions. Going down the back chute, Nicely "dumped" Hancock for which he immediately drew the black flag. If I had been in Nicely's shoes, I'd have done the same thing!
An odd situation occurred before the start of the second Late Model heat when David Payne pulled on to the track and the crew had neglected to remove a empty fuel jug and filler that was still laying on the deck of the car. After a couple of "burn out" sessions to warm the car, the entire contents were deposited in turn one where Kevin Gundaker had to retrieve them.
Myself and friends around me are having trouble determining just what is the criteria on restart lineups as we have seen cars spin on the first lap and get their spot back, other cars do the same and have to go to the rear, cars be a part of multi car pileups and regain their position and others sent to the back for the same thing. Consistency seems to have been lacking to this point and the number of driver's arms out the window waving seems to confirm that.
A huge crowd was on hand for the second night's action and they have been a lively group indeed. The last race for most people in 2017 has produced a party atmosphere and the special effects that the Dome can generate have only enhanced that. And again, for the second straight night the better managed program was reflected in the fact that even though a lot of racing was done and much time was also used to track maintenance, the final checkered flag waved just around 10 p.m.
Friday, December 15, 2017
Babb Tops Dome Opener
The second annual VP Racing Fuels Gateway Dirt Nationals at The Dome at America's Center kicked off on Thursday night, December 14th with a rousing opening night of racing action.
An even two hundred race cars were positioned in the spacious pit area next to the racing arena with both Modifieds and Late Models set to do battle in opening night action. By my count, there were twenty four states plus a lone entrant from Ontario Canada represented in the pits as the field of cars was surely one of the most eclectic ones gathered all year. Both classes are running under UMP rules this weekend so that means Hoosier tires on both classes and all spoilers are gone in the Modifieds as the rules specify flat rear decks only.
Due to the logistics involved of staging two hundred haulers in downtown St. Louis and then methodically getting them parked, there is no time for a practice session so unlike most major events run in this country, everyone goes into the opening night action "stone cold" with each driver only allowed about a two lap, hot lap session right before qualifying. And with this track so much different than most that drivers will see, some tend to thrive on opening night while other struggle greatly. Area drivers tend to benefit slightly as this track is really not that much different than either Belle Clair Speedway or Highland Speedway just across the Mississippi River in Illinois and the top stars in both classes are good enough that they can adapt to almost any track in just a short time.
Everyone is allowed in the pits at 11 a.m. and then the teams hurriedly unload their race cars and get their cars ready for action. Many of the local teams switch to open trailers for this show as it just is a bit easier to navigate the smaller trailers inside the confines of the building.
At 3 p.m. the cars hit the track in groups of eight or so for a two lap practice session, after which they immediately go into time trials. New this year, all cars will only receive one set of time trial laps instead of two times through the rotation which literally added hours on to the opening night of racing last year and served no purpose since the track got much slower for the second go round anyway and no one was able to match their first laps because of that. Both classes were broken down into two flights for time trials so each driver was only qualifying against half the field. However, as I've maintained almost forever, time trials is really not much different than drawing a pill number as the first cars out for time trials draw the best track and invariably the quickest time comes from the first few cars. And such was the case again on Thursday as Mike McKinney was the thirteenth Modified out for qualifying and he was quick at 12.207 while Jason Welshan was the sixth Late Model out and his time was 11.477, good for the pole in the first heat.
The second half of the field found a track that was pretty well used up by the time they got on it. Still, Mike Harrison was the fifth out for the second half and Hunter Rasdon was the eighth out for the Late Model second flight. With times of 12.719 and 12.259, the track was substantially slower by the time the second half of the field saw the track.
Time trials would be a critical part of the show Thursday since everything is lined straight up and with only the heat race winners making the show out of the heats, a poor time trial would be a significant impediment to running a feature race either Friday or Saturday night.
After time trials, except for the Race of Champions, the Late Models would be done for the night while the Modifieds would have their eight heat races, straight up with thirteen or fourteen cars per heat and only the winner making the show. With seven of the eight heat races won right off the pole, you can see just how important the qualifying was. In the only race not won from the pole, Chris Arnold benefited from that curious UMP rule when he spun by himself on the first lap of his heat and was allowed to regain his spot on the inside of the second row, rather than go to the tail like every other sanctioning body in the world would require. Then, with point man Gary Bentley getting crossed up on the restart, Arnold would muscle his way past, take over the lead and win the race in what most people would say was a travesty of justice and Arnold would say was good racing luck.
In the first four heat races the majority of the drivers drove with some patience and civility and there were only a small number of yellows. The second half of the Modified heats saw impatience and desperation take over and these races were marked by drivers running over and through each other trying to get to the front. Suspension parts, sheet metal and front bumper sales went up immeasurably at this point as eighteen yellow flags were called for in the last four races of the night, sending many to the pits early and fans heading for the gates.
The Late Model Race of Champions started eleven cars with five grand on the line for the winner of the brief, twenty lap race. Shannon Babb is rapidly taking to this tiny oval, which in truth is not a lot different than his home track at Macon. The surface might not be quite as heavy and the banking not as high, but it does race much like the track that he cut his teeth on.
A curious start where pole sitter Don O'Neal got caught with his pants down as the starter surprised the field with a quick green and O'Neal, while rushing to stay with Billy Moyer on the outside of him, pushed up the track on the green. Babb used the opportunity to drive under Don into the lead and he led all twenty laps.
O'Neal, with nothing to lose, became the first driver that moved off the bottom on purpose all night and he nearly was able to catch up to Babb using the high side. Some parts of the high side gave him traction but there was also one corner that was too loose and what he would gain on one end he lost on the other. Still, it gave the drivers and spectators hope that the track would open up more for Friday night's racing when you know that the drivers will be all over the track if they can find some success by moving off the bottom. With just qualifying and the Modifieds on their narrow tires racing, everyone was on the bottom, even though it did start to get rather bumpy but nothing like it was last year.
Kevin Gundaker is again in charge of track prep and the consensus is that the track is slightly longer and wider than last year although it didn't appear to race any different than it did on the opening night last year, despite the two "talking heads" telling us otherwise. However, last year their was no evidence after the first night of racing that the following two nights would be as spectacular as they were so I don't think we really have any idea at this point how the track will race the rest of the weekend until we actually see it in action.
Speaking of the "talking heads", they would again be drawing Jeff Broeg's ire as they continue to announce to the TV audience to the point of ignoring us that are actually there watching the race! This is my "pet peeve" about live broadcasts too.
Another curious thing is that during the opening night of action the security people make everyone move to the back straightaway to watch the races and they close down the front straightaway entirely. Now, you can see just as good on the back chute, but for those fans that bought tickets for all three nights and wanted to sit right at the start-finish line, some did not take the news well at all. And it does seem strange to have a victory lane ceremony in front of a crowd of zero on the front chute, while everyone is sitting on the back chute! Oh, and they put up a victory lane banner behind the winner that completely blocks the view of the victory lane for those sitting on the back chute, which is everyone!
One great thing is that the management took the mistakes of last year to heart and learned their lessons after last year's opening night debacle where the racing program dragged on to the wee hours of the morning. Starting times were followed this year, time trials were cut back and the entire show was much more trim and "on point" than last year's had been. To wit, the final checkered flag waved Thursday at 9:30 p.m. while last year the racing didn't even get started until two and a half hours later than it finished this year! Now that's what I call a great improvement. Hopefully the rest of the weekend will go just as smooth and I have confidence that it will. Now we will all hope that when the racing gets going Friday night that the track widens out and we get the spectacular kind of side by side racing that last year brought us.
An even two hundred race cars were positioned in the spacious pit area next to the racing arena with both Modifieds and Late Models set to do battle in opening night action. By my count, there were twenty four states plus a lone entrant from Ontario Canada represented in the pits as the field of cars was surely one of the most eclectic ones gathered all year. Both classes are running under UMP rules this weekend so that means Hoosier tires on both classes and all spoilers are gone in the Modifieds as the rules specify flat rear decks only.
Due to the logistics involved of staging two hundred haulers in downtown St. Louis and then methodically getting them parked, there is no time for a practice session so unlike most major events run in this country, everyone goes into the opening night action "stone cold" with each driver only allowed about a two lap, hot lap session right before qualifying. And with this track so much different than most that drivers will see, some tend to thrive on opening night while other struggle greatly. Area drivers tend to benefit slightly as this track is really not that much different than either Belle Clair Speedway or Highland Speedway just across the Mississippi River in Illinois and the top stars in both classes are good enough that they can adapt to almost any track in just a short time.
Everyone is allowed in the pits at 11 a.m. and then the teams hurriedly unload their race cars and get their cars ready for action. Many of the local teams switch to open trailers for this show as it just is a bit easier to navigate the smaller trailers inside the confines of the building.
At 3 p.m. the cars hit the track in groups of eight or so for a two lap practice session, after which they immediately go into time trials. New this year, all cars will only receive one set of time trial laps instead of two times through the rotation which literally added hours on to the opening night of racing last year and served no purpose since the track got much slower for the second go round anyway and no one was able to match their first laps because of that. Both classes were broken down into two flights for time trials so each driver was only qualifying against half the field. However, as I've maintained almost forever, time trials is really not much different than drawing a pill number as the first cars out for time trials draw the best track and invariably the quickest time comes from the first few cars. And such was the case again on Thursday as Mike McKinney was the thirteenth Modified out for qualifying and he was quick at 12.207 while Jason Welshan was the sixth Late Model out and his time was 11.477, good for the pole in the first heat.
The second half of the field found a track that was pretty well used up by the time they got on it. Still, Mike Harrison was the fifth out for the second half and Hunter Rasdon was the eighth out for the Late Model second flight. With times of 12.719 and 12.259, the track was substantially slower by the time the second half of the field saw the track.
Time trials would be a critical part of the show Thursday since everything is lined straight up and with only the heat race winners making the show out of the heats, a poor time trial would be a significant impediment to running a feature race either Friday or Saturday night.
After time trials, except for the Race of Champions, the Late Models would be done for the night while the Modifieds would have their eight heat races, straight up with thirteen or fourteen cars per heat and only the winner making the show. With seven of the eight heat races won right off the pole, you can see just how important the qualifying was. In the only race not won from the pole, Chris Arnold benefited from that curious UMP rule when he spun by himself on the first lap of his heat and was allowed to regain his spot on the inside of the second row, rather than go to the tail like every other sanctioning body in the world would require. Then, with point man Gary Bentley getting crossed up on the restart, Arnold would muscle his way past, take over the lead and win the race in what most people would say was a travesty of justice and Arnold would say was good racing luck.
In the first four heat races the majority of the drivers drove with some patience and civility and there were only a small number of yellows. The second half of the Modified heats saw impatience and desperation take over and these races were marked by drivers running over and through each other trying to get to the front. Suspension parts, sheet metal and front bumper sales went up immeasurably at this point as eighteen yellow flags were called for in the last four races of the night, sending many to the pits early and fans heading for the gates.
The Late Model Race of Champions started eleven cars with five grand on the line for the winner of the brief, twenty lap race. Shannon Babb is rapidly taking to this tiny oval, which in truth is not a lot different than his home track at Macon. The surface might not be quite as heavy and the banking not as high, but it does race much like the track that he cut his teeth on.
A curious start where pole sitter Don O'Neal got caught with his pants down as the starter surprised the field with a quick green and O'Neal, while rushing to stay with Billy Moyer on the outside of him, pushed up the track on the green. Babb used the opportunity to drive under Don into the lead and he led all twenty laps.
O'Neal, with nothing to lose, became the first driver that moved off the bottom on purpose all night and he nearly was able to catch up to Babb using the high side. Some parts of the high side gave him traction but there was also one corner that was too loose and what he would gain on one end he lost on the other. Still, it gave the drivers and spectators hope that the track would open up more for Friday night's racing when you know that the drivers will be all over the track if they can find some success by moving off the bottom. With just qualifying and the Modifieds on their narrow tires racing, everyone was on the bottom, even though it did start to get rather bumpy but nothing like it was last year.
Kevin Gundaker is again in charge of track prep and the consensus is that the track is slightly longer and wider than last year although it didn't appear to race any different than it did on the opening night last year, despite the two "talking heads" telling us otherwise. However, last year their was no evidence after the first night of racing that the following two nights would be as spectacular as they were so I don't think we really have any idea at this point how the track will race the rest of the weekend until we actually see it in action.
Speaking of the "talking heads", they would again be drawing Jeff Broeg's ire as they continue to announce to the TV audience to the point of ignoring us that are actually there watching the race! This is my "pet peeve" about live broadcasts too.
Another curious thing is that during the opening night of action the security people make everyone move to the back straightaway to watch the races and they close down the front straightaway entirely. Now, you can see just as good on the back chute, but for those fans that bought tickets for all three nights and wanted to sit right at the start-finish line, some did not take the news well at all. And it does seem strange to have a victory lane ceremony in front of a crowd of zero on the front chute, while everyone is sitting on the back chute! Oh, and they put up a victory lane banner behind the winner that completely blocks the view of the victory lane for those sitting on the back chute, which is everyone!
One great thing is that the management took the mistakes of last year to heart and learned their lessons after last year's opening night debacle where the racing program dragged on to the wee hours of the morning. Starting times were followed this year, time trials were cut back and the entire show was much more trim and "on point" than last year's had been. To wit, the final checkered flag waved Thursday at 9:30 p.m. while last year the racing didn't even get started until two and a half hours later than it finished this year! Now that's what I call a great improvement. Hopefully the rest of the weekend will go just as smooth and I have confidence that it will. Now we will all hope that when the racing gets going Friday night that the track widens out and we get the spectacular kind of side by side racing that last year brought us.
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