Wrapping Up 2024

 Merry Christmas to all and a happy New Year to boot! Another racing season has been completed with 2025 looming on the horizon. It feels like it was just yesterday that we were afraid that when the calendar turned that all our electronics and everything else technical in the world might fail and there would be epic problems. Unbelievably, that is now a quarter century removed in our rear view mirror as time marches on at an increasingly fast pace. Accepting that and adjusting to that is sometimes tough to do. 

2024 was an interesting year and in many ways, a frustrating one also. The changing landscape that finds tracks changing nights of operation, classes being run and the management of the tracks at the drop of a hat is sometimes hard to keep up with. I don't believe we've ever seen a year before when so many tracks changed, dropped or added events at a moment's notice and for that we can thank, or blame, social media. A few years ago we would never have seen last minute changes to track schedules such as has become common place today and while some tracks have had great success using this formula, others have suffered mightily. For sure, things will likely never be like they used to be and old dinosaurs like myself had better learn to adjust on the fly or be left in the dust. 

Many folks would say that I am extremely lucky, or perhaps nuts, to attend one hundred and ninety three racing events during a calendar year. And believe me, I know how fortunate I am to be able to go to that many races if I so choose. If it weren't for an extremely tolerant wife, friends  and many great promoters, track owners and management teams, I wouldn't be able to get to near that many races. 

However, when the total number of races drops as significantly as it did in 2024, I still feel just a bit melancholy about it. Not since 2017 have my total races attended dropped as much as it did in 2024 when I attended sixteen less races than the previous year. Granted, 2023 was a year that I would not likely ever be able to match again when I saw two hundred and nine races. Every opportunity worked out that year, the weather never misbehaved and fortuitous track scheduling allowed me to see races at places I likely wouldn't have had the chance to do so otherwise. 

2024 was more a return to reality and perhaps a little more sensibility that kicked in.  Rain was a big factor in 2024 with more rainouts than perhaps the last few years combined. And somewhere along the line I lost that "magic touch" where I could predict just where and when it was going to rain and point my race chasing in another successful direction. 2024 found me making some bad decisions that cost me races along with futile drives. 

And probably for the first time, I seriously applied a strategy that would cost me a few races too. Using a strategy given to me by my brother the accountant, I applied the "Cost-Benefit Analysis" certain times during the year. I considered what it would cost to attend certain events and whether the entertainment benefits would off set the cost in time and race related expenses and decide whether or not the trip was actually worth what I would see. About a half dozen times in 2024 I ended up not being able to justify the trips and I stayed home instead of heading to certain events. Some of them rained out but some also raced and I missed out. 

Of the one hundred and ninety three races attended, I saw action at sixty different tracks in fourteen states and one Canadian Province. I did not see racing at a single new track for me in 2024 but unlike some race chasers that target certain tracks to attend just to add a new track, I instead go to racing events that interest me and if they happen to be a new track for me, so much the better. 

On the positive side, 2024 marked the forty fourth consecutive year that I have attended at least one hundred nights of racing and I have now been to three hundred and thirty four tracks in twenty nine states and three Canadian Provinces.  

At this point, 2025 does not look like it will be any better unless things change soon. One midweek track that I attended five times for weekly shows last year has dropped their weekly programs in favor of several weekend specials on nights when I have plenty of tracks to choose from. Another track that I attended six times last year for another midweek program has decided to switch nights for 2025 to a weekend night and it will be very hard to replace the lost shows at either track. And poor car counts at a number of the midweek tracks make attending them at all somewhat questionable. 

However, with any kind of luck, while Winter is still being celebrated in these parts, I hope to be seeing racing in three different warm weather states with large car counts and drivers from many different states on hand. The plan is to start out at the Wild West Shootout at Vado Speedway Park in New Mexico for six nights of racing at a truly great facility with Late Models, Modifieds and X Mods all in action. 

Then it will be on to central Arizona where for three straight weeks, Brad Whitfield puts on racing at the Central Arizona Raceway in Casa Grande with IMCA and WISSOTA divisions in action along with Late Models. 

Then, after a short drive to Florida, the hope is to see two weeks of intense racing at Ocala Speedway for the Lucas Oil Late Models following by a week of racing at Volusia Speedway Park where USAC Sprints, UMP and World of Outlaws Late Models and Big Block Modifieds will all be in action. 

Best wishes to all during the off season and with any luck, an early Spring will find me running into a number of familiar faces as we meet somewhere at a dirt track in the Midwest. 

 

Sheppard Repeats at The Dome while Neville Surprising in the Modifieds

 The Gateway Dirt Nationals were completed on Saturday night, December 7th at the Dome at America's Center in St. Louis with a spectacular night of racing with Brandon Sheppard winning the Late Model feature for the second straight year while Trevor Neville surprised a very tough field of Modified drivers by leading from start to finish to win the open wheel main. 

The Saturday finale is a grind with lots of racing and many hours spent butt to butt in the packed spectator seating which this year was opened up even to the 400 section(nose bleed section) because the crowd was so gigantic. Say what you will about some of the draw backs of this event but each year the crowds keep getting bigger and bigger with many wondering just how much bigger can they get?

All drivers in both classes are invited back on Saturday, no matter how poorly they ran earlier in the week with everyone getting once chance to move up and perhaps work their way into a feature starting spot. No hot laps are held on Saturday, the exception being those few cars that were already qualified from earlier action and the racing started right out shortly after 3 pm. 

Starting positions are so critical for success here, perhaps even more so than your average time trial event. I did the calculating and of the forty seven races run off over the three nights, forty two of them were won from the front row with the biggest charger being Thornton Jr. when he won the opening night Modified feature from fifth. 

Non Qualifier races for the Late Models started out the afternoon and with twenty or more cars battling for a pair of finishing positions to move up to the Qualifier races, you should be able to predict just what kind of races these turned out to be. Bombastic was the adjective that came to mind to me. Two of the three races were cut off by the time limit and in both those, not a single green flag lap could be completed before the gong sounded as it was multi car crash after crash in both. The third one did get two laps completed before the gong sounded in that one also. The Late Model qualifiers were not much better to start off but gradually things settled down just a bit although to say that the racing was smooth would be stretching things just a bit. 

Darin Weisinger's record of getting partially out of the ball park was quickly topped by Logan Veloz as the Quad City Modified driver managed to go all the way through the fence and end up wheels up on the pavement outside turn four. He was OK but the whole turn fence had to be rebuilt, one of at least three times during the Saturday show that the fence had to be patched and repaired. I'm sure over the last couple nights there was at least two and a half hours of down time due to fence repairs. I'm not sure what the answer is but something must be done in this regard. 

Two Last Chance races with only the winner moving into the feature completed the qualifying events and finally twenty drivers were determined in each class to run the main events. The driver introductions were interesting although they didn't seem to meet the expectations of some years but another Bloomer/Rico moment is never likely to happen once again. The fireworks and light show are always spectacular and finally we were ready for some Late Model feature racing somewhere past 10 pm.

Despite starting on the pole, Sheppard got beat to the first turn by Gordy Gundaker and he took the early lead. Sheppard would slip into second with Ashton Winger, Ricky Thornton Jr and Nick Hoffman filling out the top five early. 

Sheppard was wasting little time, pushing for the lead on every lap as he tried to slip under Gundaker and take over the top spot. Following a spin by Jonathan Davenport and Steve Sheppard, Brandon put real heat on Gundaker and one lap later slipped under him down the back chute and took over the lead. Sheppard would be scored the leader the rest of the race, during much of which he would maintain a comfortable lead if such a thing is possible in this race inside a barrel. 

Thornton Jr was on the move, taking over second and while pushing hard, not seemingly able to cut into Sheppard's lead. Bobby Pierce was also on the move after starting twelfth and by the halfway point he had moved up to second. He continued to hustle, getting by both Hoffman and Winger into third, after which Winger had motor problems and pulled into the infield

As Sheppard cruised, Pierce was all over Thornton Jr, and finally got to the second spot with twelve laps to go. Bobby was really pushing and soon it was clear he was the fastest on the track and cutting into the lead of Sheppard. Lapped cars loomed ahead of Sheppard but they all moved over so the top two could race. Pierce got within a car length as the final lap started and folks were bracing for a "Hail Mary" slider perhaps on the last corner but just then Pierce slowed with drive shaft problems, Sheppard pulled away for a comfortable win and Pierce barely eased across the line for second. Thornton Jr settled for third with Mike Spatola and Hoffman completing the top five. 

Sheppard is always a popular winner here with his fan base just across the river and they celebrated long and hard in victory lane. And this is certainly the type of track that best fits Brandon's skill set and back round. Fifteen cars would still be running at the conclusion with three a lap down. There were five yellow flags but no big wrecks as this was one of the smoother features for the Late Models in several years. 

Not many people probably had Trevor Neville on the score card for the win in the Modifieds, but he ran very well all week, took advantage of any breaks and never made a mistake, driving to the win. He started on the pole and led the entire race although he was challenged hard a couple of times. 

First it was Carlos Ahumada Jr that pressured him with Trent Young, Ricky Thornton Jr and Jordan Grabouski then following him tightly. Grabouski went out early with problems but Young and Thornton Jr had a dandy battle for second with them swapping the spot several times. Four yellow in the first half of the race kept the field bunched but each time, Neville would pull away. 

Finally things got sorted out and the last fourteen laps of the race would go green to checkers. Young moved into second when Thornton Jr broke and he moved in to challenge the leader. Thornton Jr had the best chance to make a pass and was beside Neville but was saved by the yellow flag. Thornton Jr dropped out and  the advantage shrunk as Young was a challenger right up to the finish. Neville did a good job of moving around on the track and keeping Young guessing as Trent just couldn't muster a full run at the leader. Several times Young went sliding dangerously close to the rear end of Neville but each time he washed up the track and Neville would again pull away. 

Neville never made a slip however, and he would drive home for the win with Young a few car lengths behind. Mike Harrison and Tyler Peterson made nice runs up from the fifth and fourth rows respectively to finish behind those two with Ahumada Jr. completing the top five. The final checkered flag of the night flew just at Midnight. 

Previous to the Saturday night finale, promoter Cody Sommer made some big announcements at the driver's meeting. The purse will receive around an extra $120,000 added to it in 2025 with the winner's share of the Late Model feature being raised to fifty grand but more importantly, more money to start and to the other finishing positions also. 

A Late Model pool will be developed next year and all drivers that enter by the time limit will not necessarily be allowed to run the race as they try to limit the number of entries and establish some sort of pecking order as to who will be allowed to race. In my opinion, this was overdue and shown in this year's event when there simply were some drivers trying to race that just weren't qualified to be racing and didn't even have cars appropriate to try and race. The Modifieds will still be by invitation only with the number apparently similar to this year.

This is certainly quite the unique event with probably nothing quite like it in the work of dirt track racing. There are some parts of it that I like and some not so much. It was very dirt all three nights this year and the air quality got more than bad a few times. The shows do get very long sometimes and there seemed to be more down time than ever this year, possibly because there was so much fence repair to be done. 

When the racing was good, it could be spectacular but it seemed to me that the track overall just wasn't quite up to par this year as it started out so dry and it seemed like it was a struggle to develop two lane racing. However, it must be said that probably the best overall racing of the week was the last two main events with there being more passing, racing and consistent green flag laps than at any other time all week. At its best, this event is about one part racing and an equal measure of Barnum and Bailey sideshow. And it should also be pointed out that with over thirty thousand tickets sold on Saturday night alone, this might be the best attended short track event, dirt or otherwise, in the entire country. Perhaps only Eldora could compare. In any event, this event seems to be continuing on an upward trend and I'm sure that there are literally thousands of folks that watched on tv but have now vowed that they will be there live in 2025. As an example of the crowd size, the 50/50 drawing, with half the total going to the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame, was $91,006!

Putting on this event must be a tremendous under taking so thanks to promoter Cody Sommers, his staff and the staff at America's Dome for their tireless work. And we can't forget the track prep crew that put in endless hours building this track and prepping for the race. Now they get the thankless job of tearing everything back apart and stock piling it for 2025. 

Thornton Jr. Contines to Roll at Gateway; Neville Wins Mods

 The Gateway Dirt Nationals at the Dome at America's Center continued on Friday night, December 6th. A fresh set of faces were on hand to do battle as the second half of the entered drivers in the Modified and Late Model classes would take to the track to try and qualify for the big show on Saturday night. Sixty three Late Model drivers from literally all over the country plus another thirty one Modified drivers were on hand for the Friday night show, making it a round two hundred drivers that raced here this weekend. Consider that all two hundred cars, their crews plus their trailers(not the haulers) are all parked under one roof in the pit area of this facility and that will give you an idea of the immense size of this building, located right in downtown St. Louis. And they are actually just completed an addition to this building, something that I found just a little surprising since they no longer have a prime tenant  any more after the Rams fled the Midwest for California. But the fueling area for the cars, which used to require them to drive out on the street beside the building which, by the way, did make for a real interesting visual for the town, is now done inside in a new bay cargo area just constructed. 

The on camera crew working this race and well as informing the crowd has not changed as they are about the best at what they do. Dustin Jarrett and Ben Shelton are the play by play announcers while Iowa's own Jerry Van Sickel is the expert announcer for the Modified class. Blake Anderson works the infield while Trenton Berry roams the stands and VIP suites looking for people to interview. 

Blake usually manages to bring up "Crazy Martin", the mayor of Ogden Iowa at least once during every broadcast while Berry generally interviews everyone from south Missouri and oh, did that mention of the Heartland Modified Tour slip out, which by the way, Berry owns. But other than that, they do a good job although only Shelton of the announcers doesn't interject a bit of his own agenda into the broadcast if you know what to listen for. 

For the second straight night, racing would get started just a bit late as time trials have not gone smoothly either day so far with quite a large group of the Late Model drivers just not able to keep their cars going the proper direction without spinning a time or two. The down side to having open registration for that class is that a lot of drivers manage to ease their way on to the entry list for this event that quite frankly, have no business being here. Listening to the introductions, I was struck by the number of drivers racing here that aren't even using open Late Models but 602 and 604 cars, Super Stocks and there were even several making their first starts in Late Models. This in not the venue to be making one's debut. 

Thornton Jr and Freddie Carpenter were the quick qualifiers in the Late Model class while the last car to hit the track for the night, Trevor Neville, would top the mark for the Modifieds. 

While managing in large part to avoid the "big" wrecks on Thursday night, Friday would see at least a pair of spectacular events. Unfortunately, here when there is a big wreck, it generally involved getting into and sometimes tearing down the wheel fence surrounding the track. While prepared to make repairs, these things take time and I would estimate that around ninety minutes was needed to fix the two big fence wreckers that occurred on Friday night. 

If he couldn't be fast, at least Darin Weisinger Jr managed to be spectacular as he put his almost totally through the fence in turn three with the front end falling to the pavement floor while the rear end was hung up and hanging from the fence. It was quite a visual and fortunately, no injuries resulted. 

And of course there was the expected blow up after one of the big crashes on the front stretch. After the hit, a good ole boy from Louisiana sprinted the length of the front stretch  to try to remove the helmet and have words with another good ole boy from Mississippi. It was difficult because the helmet was still buckled but he gave it is all, trying to rip off the helmet repeatedly. Track officials eventually meandered on to the scene at their own pace to break things up as while they say that this kind of behavior is frowned on, the truth is that they not only want it to happen but cultivate such activity. This is the "WWE" part of this whole event that I frown on but the reality is that it makes for great tv. Let's face  the facts, this event is one part race and an equal part  circus side show and that balance is needed to put thirty thousand folks into the seats which might happen on Saturday night. 

Highlights of heat race action included the sterling drive of Austin Howes who was able to fight off Hudson O'Neal and make the  feature race and the drive of fourteen year old Carter Schlenk who won a heat race. On the other side of the coin, Rusty Schlenk made a horse's you know what of himself after he repeatedly tried to rough up a seventeen year old female driver who's only apparent injustice was to pass him and make him look slow. 

After six heat races and a pair of B Features, there would be eighteen cars left to run the Late Model main. Thornton Jr, who has been on a roll so far here this weekend, continued his hot streak as he would lead the feature race from start to finish and really not be seriously challenged. Nick Hoffman would quickly move into the second spot and he would ride there throughout the race. Occasionally when the leaders got into lapped traffic, Hoffman would shorten up the lead but Thornton Jr was working good enough that he could move out and pass the slower cars which made him nearly untouchable. 

The track quickly went low groove dominant, despite attempts to water and bring the top side to life but truly, the racing has been dominated through the first two nights by a lot of one groove racing, making the action something less than expected, at least to this point of the weekend. 

One yellow bunched the field with just four laps to go but Thornton Jr got a good restart and he and Hoffman escaped challenge. There was a good battle for the last locked in position but Gordy Gundaker managed to hold off Myles Moos and Carpenter and take that important position. 

Neville, after setting fast time in the Mods, was just as dominant in their main event. He took the lead immediately and built up a sizable  advantage as Trent Young and Jordan Grabouski battled it out for second. Kenny Wallace and the spectacular Dylan Thornton kept the crowd entertained as they tried to hang with the top three. 

A mid race yellow slowed the action when Bone Larson shortened up his front end considerably on the concrete but Neville again pulled away and would drive on unhindered to take the win. The battle for second continued to entertain with several slide jobs breaking out and in the end, it was Grabouski that managed to fight off Young for second. Everyone else will have to race again on Saturday night. 

Saturday night will feature a series of "ladder" events until the field is cut down to feature race size and two champions will be crowned. Racing and tv action start at 3 pm. 

Spotola and Thornton Jr. Top Gateway Opener

Started in 2016, the Gateway Dirt Nationals at the Dome at America's Center in downtown St. Louis kicked off it's three night run on Thursday night, December 5th. As it has been in recent years, this event is a three night spectacular featuring the Late Models and the Modifieds. While not sanctioned by any of the racing bodies, the rules used during this event are generally those of UMP when it comes to tires, spoilers and such. 

As in recent years, the entered drivers drivers are split into two groups with half qualifying on Thursday night and the other half on Friday night. Come Saturday, everyone will be racing in Last Chance events to join those that already qualified and would be in wait for the two main events. 

The Late Model field is made up of open enrollments with racing teams waiting for that moment when the registrations are open to get their entry in. This year, one hundred and thirty two different Late Model teams will take a green flat on either Thursday or Friday with the entry list for this event being filled within mere moments of its being opened. 

This being a Late Model event primarily, the Modified field has to be limited and for the Modifieds, they send in their names and hope that they are rewarded by being accepted as an entry. This year, sixty three Modified teams will be taking a green flag for this event. And while no one is excluded from Late Model entry if they get their names in soon enough, the Modified field does have a stronger entry list from top to bottom as quite frankly, there are some Late Models on hand that just shouldn't be running this event and it is reflected in the relatively smooth racing that takes place in the Modifieds while some of the Late Model events are plagued by yellow flags and some entrants repeatedly getting themselves in trouble. 

Every year that Gateway Nationals seems to get bigger and bigger. Ticket sales are up again this year and there was a notice that unless tickets had been obtained in advance, there is a possibility that the Saturday night finale might be a complete sell out and all the seats in the dome aren't used with the top tier covered and not accessible. Last year they were forced to open up the second tier because there were so many fans and I assume that will be done again this year. 

This really has become the "last hurrah" for a lot of the racing fans and teams throughout the country and both come from a wide distance to be a part of this event. For many drivers this is one race they all want to scratch off their bucket list before they retire from driving. Excess amounts of money are spent on tickets, accommodations, food and beverage and entertainment on this weekend in one last "blowout" for 2024. 

The fifth mile dirt oval was once again laid down on the floor of America's Center and this year they really had it pounded down hard in an effort to eliminate some of the bumps that have been a part of the track in certain years. They had it probably as smooth as it has ever been for this race, particularly the opening night but that did come at a price and that price was dust which was among the worst ever seen here before. Literally everything and everyone body was covered in a thick layer of dust by the end of the evening. This is definitely an event for the hard core race fan as you surely wouldn't have wanted to take a race fan to this event if they had never seen one before. While the excitement level is high and the atmosphere can be electric, most people don't want to leave at the end of the night carrying with them enough dirt to till for crops come Spring. 

Each year more and more of the race teams do special wraps on their cars for this event with some being holiday inspired , some politically motivated and some others in tribute to a person, event or other special thing. There were some real beauties this year and the smart teams often have matching apparel which not surprisingly, is available for sale. The entire arena this year was surrounded by various vendors in the hallways, most of which were selling either team or event apparel and their sales must just be staggering. It appears that many folks come to this race to do their Christmas shopping. This is much more than just a race, it is an event with the promoters happily going along with that thinking. In fact, there is so much going on that sometimes the racing itself becomes almost secondary in importance. 

The format is pretty simple. Both classes qualify with heat races being started straight up. A certain number qualify directly to the main with farther back positions running a B Feature. Not everyone gets to run a B however, as there are too many cars in the Late Model field for everyone to run twice so there are actually some drivers that will run eight laps and then will be done until Saturday when they have one last chance. 

With the smaller field in the Modifieds, everyone in that class does get to run a B Feature but only eighteen in each class get to run the night's main event. 

Brandon Overton made a nice debut as the Longhorn factory driver for 2025 as he was quickest qualifier overall at 12.399 seconds. However, things went downhill for him quickly as he broke a front end while battling for the lead in the first Late Model heat and he failed to finish. Now he will be mired at the back of a Last Chance race on Saturday and we may not even see him race the rest of the weekend. Tyler Carpenter was quickest in the second half of the Late Models as he continues to shine at The Dome. 

While the Late Models get hot laps before they turn around and qualify, the first time the Modifieds see the track is for their time trials as they get no practice so they are really under "the gun" right from the start. Not too surprisingly, it was Ricky Thornton Jr that topped the Mods with a lap of 12.855 seconds. The first time Thornton Jr sees the car in a year, puts his seat in it and then just comes out and tops the field. Amazing. 

The Late Model drivers were a bit "wound up" in the early going of their qualifiers with the first two plagued with multiple yellow flags and they tore up a lot of equipment. However, after the first three Late Model events were done, there was not a single race all night with more than two yellows and that seems much smoother than for many years. Of course, spoilers and quarter panels don't count as they get destroyed at will and often, but there were no roll overs and the fence only had to be patched a couple of times so overall it was a smooth night. 

While not too many people would have had Mike Spatola on their scorecards as the Late Model feature winner, He did indeed lead all twenty five laps to take the win in that division. Spatola took the early lead with Ashton Winger, who many thought might get the win, running second in the early going. Ryan Gustin was another favorite as he battled with Jadon Frame for third. 

Drivers were trying different lines early but eventually settled in for running the high side up against the wall. This action tore off a few spoilers but proved to be the fastest way around the track. Brandon Sheppard appeared to possibly be the fastest car on the track but he was having a tough time getting past Frame for position. 

The only yellow flew with sixteen laps in the book for debris on the track. On the green, Spatola again pulled away from Winger, who had provided drama under the yellow when steam rolled from his engine compartment but he opted to keep running. Sheppard got past Frame and then Gustin as he moved to third but he ran out of laps to move up any farther. 

Spatola would cross the line unchallenged for the win and despite steam again pouring from his engine, Winger was able to hold off Sheppard for third and those three are now locked in for the Saturday finale. Only one car in the starting field failed to finish the race and all were on the lead lap. 

Thornton Jr proved that no matter what kind of car he is driving, he is a tough one to beat as he dominated the Modified feature to get the win in the open wheel class. And he did some passing, starting in the third row but quickly moving to the front. 

Michael Long got the jump on defending champion Drake Troutman to lead the first few laps but Thornton Jr was on the move quickly, using the extreme inside line of the track. Interestingly, the Late Models found that banging the outside wall was the fastest way for them while the Modified drivers that succeeded used just exactly the opposite tactic, instead hugging the inside wall. 

No one could hold the bottom line like Thornton Jr and on lap five he drove past Long to take over the lead and once in front, he calmly pulled away from the field. Carlos Ahumada Jr also made some moves of his own from the third row, driving past Long for second by the halfway point and staying there the rest of the event. 

One yellow for debris set up a two lap sprint to the finish but Thornton Jr was up to the task as he pulled away for the win over Ahumada Jr and Long. Those three are now locked in for Saturday night. Troutman and Mike Harrison completed the top five. Thirteen drivers were around at the finish with the rest in the infield with various issues. And while it was a relatively calm pair of main events, rest assured that things will be more contentious as the week progresses. Everything about this track breeds action and controversy. 

One nice thing about this event is that while they start early, they also complete the racing generally early also with everything done on Thursday well before 10 pm. This allows the local hospitality industry to be ready for hordes of thirsty and hungry race fans to sweep into downtown St. Louis. 

One nice thing about 

Jake

 Now that the 2024 racing season has slowed down to a crawl, I have been having some time to check on speedway face book pages and websites about off season news and schedule announcements for 2025. 

In doing so on the Clay County Fairgrounds Speedway face book page, I made the sad discovery that Jerene "Jake" Long from Spencer had passed away on September 8th and I was totally unaware of it. 

It is ironic that I was in Spencer that following week for the Fair race but did not think anything about the fact that she was not at the pit gate like normal during the season as I recall that she wasn't working the pit gate when I was at the Fair race the previous your. 

For those that did not know her, Jake Long always worked the pit gate at Spencer and Algona every week and previously also worked at places like Alta, Britt, Jackson and Fairmont before promotional changes and her health started to cut down on her travels. 

She was about the most friendly and pleasant person I had ever ran into at the pit booth at almost any track I can ever think of. The first time I met her, I was trying to explain how I had contacted the track promoter and that I should be on the media list and she was so patient and understanding as we worked through that miscommunication issue. After that, she always remembered me and we would spend time, depending on how busy she was, just talking racing and anything in general. I have a penchant for arriving early at race tracks and often times she wasn't too busy then and we would talk about lots of things and I learned from her how deep her roots were in racing and how much she loved the sport. She lived for dirt track racing and she knew everyone at the track, and they knew her. And even though she didn't know me that well, she would go out of her way to be helpful, even offering to save me a parking spot for my vehicle during the Fair so I didn't have to walk so far. That's the kind of person she was. 

One night early this Summer she talked about some of her health issues which were considerable, but she didn't complain about them and continued to work here tracks, even though the last time I saw her at Spencer she needed help just getting from her car to the ticket window. 

Regulars at her tracks will certainly miss seeing her face when the 2025 racing season rolls around and I for one will certainly miss her greeting every time I walked up to the pit booth at Spencer and Algona. Jerene "Jake" Long was sixty one years old. 

McCowan Tops List of Saturday Night Winners at Springfield

 Turkey Bowl eighteen concluded on Saturday night, October 16th at the Springfield Raceway. It was another Sunny day but windy and that wind was blowing right into the main grandstands. This made for a quite miserable night and folks were bundled up against the cold like it was a Winter event. And unlike the first two nights were the crowds were on the light side, there was a full house of folks on hand for the last night of feature racing along with a full show of Late Models that were there on a one night shot. 

Only the Late Models would get hot laps on this night to expedite things, but the track also opted to move back the starting time by an hour(no explanation given) so the first green flag would fly right at 6 pm. Thankfully the Late Models didn't qualify and they went on to prove that they can put on a fine night of racing without qualifying and starting the fast cars right on the pin while for the other class racing on Saturday, the Midwest Modz A, the B Mods and the Mods (Legend Cars also ran), it would be last chance qualifying for them and then feature race action. 

Lots of track prep was done on this night at it was interesting to note that the prime equipment used was the Heavy Hitch made by Dustin Sorensen in Rochester Minnesota. This is the same Dustin Sorensen that raced to World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year in 2024. A number of tracks in my home area also use this same piece of equipment successfully. 

The Late Model field was a good one with forty nine cars signing in to race from several different states. They ran heats, B features plus their main event and it was another night of many, many races. In fact, twenty three races(many more than most tracks run as a full show) were completed before the first feature races hit the track. If you sense another long night than you would be correct. 

The MIdwest Modz A feature would start off the evening's main events. This race dominated by Missouri veteran driver Mike Striegel who would take the Scott Campbell owner car to victory lane after starting on the pole and he would lead all twenty laps. 

Striegel took the early lead with Ben Newell and Mark Simon chasing him. Striegel was running right on the tight inside of the track and with their being plenty of traction, he didn't need to move up the banking as he pulled away from the field. Pete Richardson was making as much progress and anyone as after starting ninth, he was up to fourth by the halfway point. 

One lap past halfway, the only yellow of the race would occur when Simon rolled to a halt and was done. Back on green, Stiegel again pulled away but there was plenty of shuffling behind him as Richardson moved to second and Daniel Anders, not in the top five at halfway, roared all the way up to third. There were no more serious challenges for position after that and Stiegel drove home for the win. 

Over his career, Striegel has raced in just about every class available and even put in a tour of duty as flagman at Lucas Oil Speedway. Ben Newell would finish fourth and after a disqualification, J.C. Newell rounded out the top five. 

No one would bet against Terry Phillips when it comes to racing Modifieds at Springfield but I did on this night and I lost. I saw Kyle Steffens as the winner and in truth, he did the first twenty three laps of the Modified main but Phillips eventually got past him and then pulled away at the end. 

Steffens battled with Zack VanderBeek in the opening laps but then it was Zack and Phillips going at it as they exchanged the second position three times in the first half of the race. Only two minor yellows slowed things in the early going and by the halfway point, Steffens had Phillips and VanderBeek pushing him hard. 

Phillips is a master of this track with probably as many laps around it as anyone and once he got situated on where he wanted to run, he was able to work under Steffens and then drive into the lead, after which there would be no challenging him. 

Steffens held off VanderBeek for second, but perhaps the drive of the race was carried on by Darin Duffy. Duffy took off fast and was challenging for a top five spot early, until he spun on lap six and went to the trail. However, he didn't quit and drove his way  back to the front, getting past Trevor Fitz and Kenny Wallace for finish fourth. All this was accomplished using his IMCA crate motor with just a big spoiler attached. 

Twenty cars started the Late Model feature and only two drivers would hold down the top spot. Daniel Hilsabeck took the early lead from the pole with Dillon McCowan and Tony Jackson Jr doing the early chasing. Two quick yellows slowed the action with the second being the end for Ryan Gustin. He had worked his way up to fourth and looked to be a challenger until he suffered a flat tire and opted to call it a night. 

Hilsabeck continued to lead as Logan Martin moved into third and put heat on McCowan for the second spot. Justin Zeitner and Sawyer Crigler moved into the top five by the halfway point. 

Lap twenty proved to be the downfall for Hilsabeck as he slowed with a flat tire and turned over the lead to McCowan. Dillon was immediately challenged by Martin who very nearly got past him for the lead, only to have the yellow flag wave. 

However, McCowan altered his line following that lap twenty three yellow and he then managed to pull away on the last seven laps and scored a pretty comfortable win over Martin. Clay Stuckey, the short track specialist from Louisiana, really came on strong at the end of the race and he moved up to third as he got past Zeitner with Dustin Hodges completing the top five. McCowan scored the win in a car he had not driven for some time, pulling it out from the back of the shop to race on this November Saturday. 

The biggest passing performance to get the win was executed by Brayton Carter who came from the fourth row to win the B Mod feature. This was also saw the most different leaders as four different drivers would hold the point at some time during the race. 

Ryan Gillmore, the local favorite, took the early lead for the first two laps but Gillmore was just a bit off on this night and he was quickly overtaken by Canadian driver Glenn Styres for the top spot. Meanwhile, the two Iowa drivers, Carter and Logan Anderson, were both hustling toward the front with Carter up to fifth by the first yellow with Anderson close behind. 

Styres could only hold the lead for a single lap before Colson Kirk, who started fourth, passed for the lead.  Talin Willis was also in the mix of the top five with much dicing continuing. Anderson would find his way up to third and then second following a yellow but he then blew the cushion with Carter getting past him and moving into second by the halfway point of the race as Gillmore and Styres trailed them. 

However, just as he did in his heat race on Friday night, Carter would find a line right through the middle of the track that served him well and he was able to stay hard on the gas without sliding up the track and on lap seventeen, he drove under Kirk to take over the lead. 

The last eight laps of the race would go nonstop and Carter just extended his advantage with no one able to provide any challenges. Kirk would hold on for second with Anderson, Gillmore and Logan Hickerson completing the top five. 

Carter has been one of the dominating drivers in the Hawkeye state this year and this open competition win would provide the icing on a great year for him. Some were skeptical whether the IMCA type cars would keep up with the USRA B Mods but the southern Iowa drivers proved that they had what it took to do so. 

A lot of work by the track prep crew kept the racing surface good basically through three nights of racing, despite the huge number of laps put on it by all the various classes. It was another long night of racing with the final checkered once again waving after 1 am. That would be the only down side to the weekend but providing ample opportunities for all the drivers to race just takes time, no matter how fast you try to move the show along. Anyone planning on coming to this event should understand that you will see a large amount of racing but that it will take some time. You will also probably see nearly every open wheel class known to man. 

Thanks to promoter Jerry Hoffman and his staff or workers who are probably the real heroes of this weekend, working some very long hours in a variety of tasks to keep the program rolling and everyone satisfied. As Jerry would say, " Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas!" 

Simon And Ellis Night Two Turkey Bowl Winners

 Night number two of the eighteenth annual Turkey Bowl at the Springfield Raceway was a busy night indeed. Not only were there multiple B Features for both the Pure Stocks and Midwest Modz B prior to their main events, there was also qualifying heats for three more divisions that started out their weekend of racing on Friday. Not only that, but the Modifieds ran double heat races so if it was lots of racing you were hankering for, the Springfield Raceway should have been your "go to" place on Friday night. 

So somewhere in the neighborhood of two hundred and thirty open wheel cars, all looking very similar if not exactly alike, along with the Pure Stocks raced a total of thirty two racing events which lasted until the wee hours of the morning. Some of the open wheel cars even ran their same cars in multiple divisions as apparently they just couldn't get enough racing on this November weekend. 

And not only were the scorers, lineup folks and the flagman busy almost beyond belief, the tech folks kept busy also. Although it was not noted by the announcers, the feature race lineup looked somewhat different than those that apparently qualified out of the B Features as six Midwest Modz B cars got disqualified in those races, many of which had qualified for the mains and then were replaced. Just to keep the Pure Stock drivers on their toes also, three of them got DQ'd in their B mains also. However, not a single driver in the other three classes which ran their heat races on Friday fell victim to the tech axe. 

The gloves seemed to come off on Friday, likely I suppose because there was more on the line on Friday with multiple big wrecks, plenty of drivers mad at their fellow drivers and two drivers that rolled over during the night also. No injuries were reported but plenty of hurt feelings for sure. 

With Midwest Modz A, B Mods and Mods all running their B Features on Saturday, along with a full show of Late Models, some of which have been here since Wednesday to catch all the practice sessions allowed, the Pure Stocks and Midwest Modz B were center stage on Friday night as two more great turkey trophies were handed out. 

And these two main events were as dissimilar as was possible with the Midwest Modz B running a very clean race while the Pure Stocks were wrecking and crashing at an alarming rate with barely enough left running to complete their main. 

The Midwest Modz B feature was dominated by Blake Ellis who started on the pole after a very successful run on Thursday night. He took the lead immediately but was challenged hard by Jordan Bryant. In the early going, they would swap lanes as it seemed like Ellis was moving around on the track so as to break any run that Bryant might produce. 

The only yellow occurred with four laps complete as Jordan Holloway flew off the turn one corner and into the concrete wall. He was able to drive away from the scene but his evening was complete. 

Once the green came back out, Ellis seemed to pick up the pace and he then pulled away from Bryant who now had his hands full with Carter Harrison. While Ellis did a great job of moving through the traffic and maintaining his lead. Bryant and Harrison had a great battle for second, culminated when Harrison made the pass for second with just a couple of laps left. 

Ellis, however, was far in front and there would be no catching him as he drove home for the finish. The axe fell on second place Harrison however, as in tech he was found to be illegal, was DQ'd and Bryant was moved back up to second. Cody Arnett, Jordan Cater and James Lee would then complete the top five. 

The Pure Stock feature was a slam, bang event that saw the yellow wave six times during the twenty lap main. No more than six laps could be strung together at any one time and that was too bad as there were some great battles that just seemed to develop and then the yellow would spoil the fun. 

Chris Tonoli took the early lead from the outside pole and led the first lap but then the first multi car wreck eliminated front runner Bobby Brown. Mark Simon was very fast and he challenged Tonoli for the lead, only to be joined by Michael McKnight in the fight for the lead. Things really started to get heated up front as Tonoli continued to show the way but he was under constant pressure by McKnight who slipped past Simon for second. 

Things really got wild for that second spot as Simon threw a wicked slider on McKnight to take the spot. McKnight was obviously upset and he tried to return the favor in spades but it back fired when after he threw his return slider, he clipped the berm and went spinning across the track, drawing the yellow and sending him to the tail. 

Simon was really getting strong as on the lap nine restart, drove around Tonoli to take over the lead and he then began to put just a little distance on the field before the yellows started to accumulate with a couple more spins and grinders coming soon afterward. 

And while Simon had just a little distance on the field, the battle behind him was great with Tonoli trying to fight off Derek Lampe in his "grocery getter" along with Aaron Gustin and Scotty Carter. Unfortunately, they couldn't keep the race from one more yellow as a grinding crash on  the back chute with just four laps to go eliminated two of those three and really shuffled the running order.

Simon would pull away following the last yellow and drive on unchallenged for the win with Tonoli second and Carter third. James Redus and Blake Billean, back from a first lap crash, completed the top five. 

It was well after 1 am when the final checkers waved but a tough core of fans held on to see the completion of the program which started on a comfortable evening but ended up with it being quite cool and breezy. 

B Features and main events for three classes are on the agenda on Saturday night plus a full show of Late Models as the Turkey Bowl is completed. 

  

Crisler Wins Turkey Bowl Opener

 One of the last outdoor mega night events of the 2024 racing season took off on Thursday night, November 14th as the eighteenth annual Turkey Bowl started at Jerry Hoffman's Springfield Raceway in Springfield Missouri. 

This race has grown by leaps and bounds over the years. I remember being at the first Turkey Bowl which featured open wheel cars, perhaps Sprints or Midgets. I can't say off hand if I have been at all the Turkey Bowls or not but have been to the majority of them and each year, particularly so in the last few years, this race has gotten bigger and bigger. 

This year there would be seven different divisions racing over the three nights of this show, and all seven would have raced at the track at some time over the year. Most would be local divisions but the Late Models are also on the ticket, with them arriving for their one night show on Saturday. 

A large practice night was held on Wednesday for whoever wanted to get some laps, and the first night of actual competition would be on Thursday. The divisions are staggered so that not all seven classes race on each and every night, which is a good thing because with the large number of cars that show up, we would probably be racing until breakfast. 

On Thursday, the Front Wheel Drive cars, new to the event this year, would run a complete program of heats, B Feature and feature race while the Midwest Modz B and Pure Stocks would run heat races only. The Legend Cars are also racing and they would also run just their heats on this night. Interspersed  with the heat races would be more practice laps for those divisions that haven't raced as yet but chose to arrive early to get some extra practice. 

Hoffman has made a number of improvements at this track in the last few years, one of the most noticeable is the large expansion of the pit area which is needed for a race of this magnitude. He even has access to a field beyond the tree line East of the current pit area that borders on Interstate 40 and that will also be filled before the weekend is over. Thursday night saw one hundred and twenty eight cars in the three racing classes on hand plus another forty seven Legend Cars so we are close to the two hundred figure already with the Midwest Mod A, B Mod, Mod and Late Model cars still to arrive. 

One of the big challenges for a race like this being held in mid November is the weather, but this year it looks to be favorable all week with temps pushing sixty and sun although it does cool off quickly once the sun drops below the horizon. Such was the case on this night and Hoffman responded by offering, along with a friend sponsoring the activity, to offer free coffee and hot chocolate for those tough and dedicated fans that turned out for the Thursday night program. 

Even though I'm eleven hours from home, I still manage to run into a few folks that I know. Jerry VanSickel was on hand and I had hoped he would be announcing but the was doing other duties on this night and we didn't get to hear him call any of the action, which was a bit disappointing. I also ran into a Legends Racing Team that is headquartered only twenty miles from where I live yet I had never heard of them or known them before this night. Strange how things happen some times. 

Combination rules are used for this event in the hopes of drawing as many different racers from various sanctioning bodies as possible. The Front Wheel Drive class invited USRA, IMCA and other sanctioned cars to race. The Pure Stock class is made up of mostly regional drivers with some of the cars looking more like Stock Cars than Pure Stocks. Interestingly, Cody Williams, the Kansas racer who runs just about anywhere, was on hand with his IMCA Hobby Stock but "Meatloaf" found the Pure Stocks to be neither Pure nor Stock and he struggled in his heat race. 

The third class on hand was the Midwest Modz B. This class is the lowest of the open wheel classes and was divided up by Hoffman a few years ago with the more experienced and perhaps higher budgeted teams running in the A division while the others run in the B class. The cars are identical and a nightmare for me to try and tell which is which so I usually have to end up bugging every team to ask if they are a B or an A car. And more than a few of the B class cars seem pretty healthy and have been in the B division for quite some time but that is none of my business. Frankly, I'm not even clear who makes the determination of whether a driver is an A or B, but again, not my department. 

The evening began with a series of hot lap sessions for a few of the classes with those classes racing on Thursday going off first. Then there would be heat races for the Pure Stocks with their B and Feature race on Friday night. The Front Wheel Drive cars would be the only ones to run a full show on Thursday and then they would be done for the weekend. The Legend Cars would also run heats on Thursday but their B Features and feature races will be on Saturday night while the Midwest Modz B would run heats on Thursday with their main on Friday night. For the casual fan it must be some what confusing to see all these different Modified classes that look the same and then trying to figure out who goes with which. 

The Pure Stocks feature three station wagons among their entries and they range, as I said, from basic looking race cars to cars that appear just as nice and perhaps as fast as any Stock Car class. The first heat race started with a bang when a couple of cars tangled on the first lap and slid into the infield with one then pulling back on the track and then deliberately parking to trigger a yellow. I thought this is not a good way to start as it will be a long night if they let that kind of nonsense take place. 

Therefore I was pleasantly surprised when the rest of the evening didn't have a lot of yellow flags and they even dismissed a couple cars for triggering two yellow flags in their event. Still, an event of this magnitude begs for the one spin rule. 

They did use passing points to determine who would qualify for the main event, something that some tracks sure could stand to go to for big specials like this. The top sixteen in passing points would make the feature with the rest going into B Features. 

The last event of the night was for the Front Wheel Drive cars as they finished off with a twenty lap feature race. Again I was pleasantly surprised by these drivers. Twenty started the main and there was only a single yellow flag with the first fifteen laps going green. And there were three different leaders during the race also. 

Dustin Akin started on the pole and led the opening three laps before he was overtaken by Blaize Thompson who would hold the top spot for a pair of laps. Then Gavin Crisler, who started on the outside pole but was shuffled back early, came charging to the front and took over the lead. 

While he would pull out to a nice sized lead, there was a great battle for second with Tyrel Jones, who started seventeen, cracking the top five by the halfway point of the race. This charge was made without the help of a single yellow to bunch the field. 

He continued to move forward while Tyler Dawson also picked up the pace, driving from fourth at the halfway point up into the runner up slot. Early leader Akin stalled with just five laps left which set up s shootout and took away Crisler's big lead. 

He did get away good at the start with Jones moving into second but despite Tyrel pushing hard, Crisler was able to hold on and take the win. Dustin Reeves moved up at the end to take third ahead of Justin Day and Grayson McKiney. Only four cars failed to finish the race and all were on the lead lap in what was a very competitive event. 

Racing was completed at 10 pm, after which more cars that had yet to race came to the track for additional practice laps. By this time it was forty one degrees and damp so I decided to call it a night. 

Friday night will see the Midwest Modz A, the B Mods and the Modifieds all take to the track for the first time in an open wheel bonanza. 

Thompson Slides To Turkey Challenge Win at Park Jeff

 Cody Thompson threw a lap nineteen  "slider" on Shane DeMey in turn two to grab a late lead and then held on for the Modified win to wrap up the 2024 racing season at the Park Jefferson International Speedway in Jefferson South Dakota on Saturday afternoon, November 2nd. 

It seems crazy to be talking racing in South Dakota in November but the folks at Park Jeff are having such a good time with their newly reconfigured oval and wanting to show case the new track to as many fans and drivers as possible, decided to schedule one last race after their last special which was supposed to wrap up their season. 

Keeping an eye of the weather this week, when a cold front was supposed to slam into the area on Saturday night, they opted to move up the starting time of the event by two hours in the hopes of beating the rain and they were able to accomplish that. While the temperature was claimed to be almost sixty degrees, a raw and strong wind was blowing and those of us in the stands were wearing our Winter weather gear anyway. But surprisingly, despite the fact it was a Saturday afternoon and none to pleasant out side, a pretty decent sized crowd was on hand to wave good bye to racing until 2025. 

The biggest topic of discussion continues to be the whole sale changes made to Park Jeff since I was last at the track in early August. My goodness, it hardly looks like the same track, and in actuality, it isn't. Only the front chute is in the same place at it was previously but the entire rest of the track has been pulled in, making what was close to a half mile track now somewhere in the neighborhood of a big quarter or perhaps third mile. Both ends of the track have been  drawn and the radius of the corners tightened plus lots of banking was added. The back chute is much closer than it used to be, making the infield smaller and where the back chute used to run, there is now a row of pit parking there as they have gained considerable pit space. 

Boone was used as the guide when the new track was laid in recently, but to my untrained eye, it seems like the straights might be just a tad bit longer than Boone. No matter, you get the idea on what a considerable change they made, and in such a short time that they were back and racing in just a few weeks. Someone not paying attention during the break in their season must have been shocked when they walked into the grandstand and saw a whole new track had been laid out. With the high banking in the corner, it also reminded me a bit of the new Mason City track too. 

I was told that things had not been going good at Park Jeff with lots of complaints about the track and they felt it was either make a drastic change or close the gates forever. Well, I think they made the correct decision as the track now seems like a real keeper for the long run. 

A few more refinements are yet to be completed and the wall in turn four scares me with its blunt end but those are fixable. The scoreboard was moved and I'm just not sure the new location is going to be the best as the odds are now being placed just when the first car goes out of control on the back chute and hits it. I'm hoping they might reconsider its location. A new observation tower has been built on the back chute with a spectacular view of the track for the pit folks but wow, that stairway is steep, steep, steep. I believe a spotted the capital building in Lincoln from there before it started to cloud up!

A lot of rain earlier in the week made the track quite bumpy for practice and while they pounded it hard afterward, there were still a few "character" points on the track and it was also the first afternoon race on the new surface but overall, I thought the racing to be very good later. 

One hundred and twenty four drivers signed in to race in the five division program that was offered on Saturday afternoon. Not a sanctioned event, they made a couple of class decisions to better the event. The Stock Cars from USRA were also allowed to race and I saw a couple cars using American Racer tires for this day. Also, USRA B Mods were allowed to race with the Sport Mods and there were a considerable number of drivers that took advantage of the opportunity as there is quite a large number of B Mod drivers from the Sioux Falls area. The best of them though, Corbin Erickson, finished ninth in the main event. 

Racing would be begin right at the advertised time of 2 pm and there were enough drivers on hand that B Features were needed for both the Hobby Stocks and Sport Mods/B Mods. A short break was taken to get the main events lined up and then it was time for feature racing. Of note, other than for the racers to roll in the high groove a bit before their race, no track prep work was done once the first green flag dropped. 

The Sport Compact feature would be first to run and eighteen drivers started this event. It was bad news for the opposition when Dillon Richards drew the outside pole to start the race as he would grab an immediate lead and then never be seriously challenged as he drove on to victory. 

Nathan Wahlstrom would hold the second spot for just one lap before Gilbert Aldape took over and he then provided the stiffest challenge to Richards. It was tough to get much rhythm to this race early as the yellow waved six times in the first three laps for a multitude of reasons including spins, cars traveling over the end of the banking and several debris yellows. 

However, once everyone got squared away, the last nine laps ran off green to checkers and under a longer green flat period, Richards would pull away from the pack and there were enough cars eliminated by this time that lapped traffic was never an issue. The winner last week at Marshalltown backed up that win with another at Park Jeff with Aldape second and Wahlstrom third. 

Twenty five drivers started the Sport Mod feature and although Justin Klynsna was scored the leader of all eighteen laps, there were a number of times when he was behind as much as he was in the lead. For he was having a great battle with Chris Abelsen who was driving a second car for Rusty Montague. Klynsma took the immediate lead with Abelson quickly into second and they then produced an exiting race as they took turns slide jobbing each other and pulling even with each other as they raced for the lead. 

This race was also broken up by a number of yellows but everything the green would wave, the two front runners would go at it again. However, it was refreshing as while they battled hard, each left the other driver with racing room and all slide jobs were of the "clean" variety with no one taking each other's nose off. All the yellows and restarts seemed to have taken their toll on Abelson's car however, as following restart number five, he didn't fire as good and several drivers were able to get past him as he struggled for traction. Matthew Looft started ninth on the grid and had moved up to third by the halfway point of the race and then took second and he pushed Klynsma to the finish but just couldn't produce a passing effort while settling for runner up honors. Connor VandeWeert started twelfth and would work his way up to third at the finish. 

Twenty five drivers started the Hobby Stock feature but it was Bo Lundquist that they all chased as he started on the outside pole and was the leader for the entire race. Zach Ankrum and Dillon Richards fought back and forth for second, with Richards finally securing the spot on lap six. After that, he chased Lundquist for the duration of the race but Bo neither made a mistake nor let Richards get close. The last half of this race ran off green to checkers and Lundquist maintained a comfortable lead as the top three kept their respective positions throughout the race. 

Jeffrey Larson made one of the most impressive drives of the day, only to have it all end with mechanical failure. While Josh Kelderman would take the early lead in the Stock Car feature, it took only five laps for Larson to move up from his eighth starting spot and challenge as he was picking off drivers with ease as he advanced to the front. 

On lap six, the lead was his as he pulled away from the field. As Larson continued to dominate, Elijah Zevenbergen, also charging hard, moved into second after starting twelfth as yellow flags allowed him to pick off drivers each time the race resumed. Zevenbergen grabbed the second spot but Larson still looked to be the star of the field. 

However, following a yellow on lap eleven for a spinning car, Larson, instead of pulling away from the pack again, went straight off the first turn when he suffered a right front suspension failure and was lucky to have avoided the wall and instead sailed into the shut off area. However, his effort for the day was done and he was removed to the pits by a wrecker and Zevenbergen then inherited the lead. 

Showing the speed that saw him work up to second, he then pulled away from the field to earn the victory. The battle for second was a good one with veteran Hans Houfek holding off Kelderman for the spot. What an unusual situation resulted from this finish. I doubt that anywhere in the country this year in the Stock Car class have two cars finished back to back in front sporting 1968 Chevrolet Chevelle sheet metal but that was the case here on Saturday. 

The Modifieds would wrap up the afternoon race and they ran clean to the checkers, twenty laps without a yellow flag. From the outside pole, it was Shane DeMey that took the lead as he sprinted out to a healthy early advantage. Working their way through the busy field were both Cody Thompson and Chris Abelson, coming from the third and fourth rows respectively. It took some time for them to work their way through but by the halfway point of the race, they had moved into second and third and started shortening up DeMey's lead. 

Shane, however, still looked to be in command until he caught a wad of slower cars and trying to get past them cost him dearly as he lost a considerable amount of time but still couldn't clear the four cars that were in front of him. 

Thompson smelled blood and he quickly closed on DeMey with Abelson close behind. Thompson caught DeMey, set him up perfectly and coming out of turn two with just less than two laps to go, pulled off a slide job to take over the lead. Thompson was then able to navigate through the traffic and pulled away on the final lap. Abelson used the same move to get past DeMey on the final lap and he would finish second with a frustrated DeMey having to settle for third. Fifteen of the seventeen starters will still racing when the checkers flew. 

The final checkers of the day flew right at 6 pm. Thanks to everyone at Park Jeff for a fine way to conclude the Midwestern racing season. Folks at Park Jeff and their fans must be going into the off season feeling mighty good about what 2025 will bring. With time yet this Fall to complete some of the landscaping work and finish off the new pit area etc., everyone must be really excited to see what 2025 holds in store for the track.  

Familiar Winners Top Harvest Hustle

 The 2024 outdoor racing season concluded on Saturday night, October 26th. While a goodly number of drivers were finishing out 2024 in Southeast Iowa at the Shiverfest in Donnellson, a packed pit area of racers from several states were on hand in Marshalltown as the Fast Shafts Harvest Hustle was concluded at the Marshalltown Speedway. 

Drivers in five IMCA divisions along with the Mod Lites ran off a series of heat races and Last Chance events to determine just who of the many competitors would get the opportunity to race in the main events. In the early afternoon, the kids had a chance to do some trick or treating in the expanded pit area that included all the field to the South of the regular pit area before the 4 pm start time for the scheduled heat races. 

It certainly can't be said that the drivers didn't get enough opportunities to make the various feature races. The top ten in each  class were locked in after the double heat races on Friday night with everyone else coming back to try again on Saturday. Heat races, lined up by points earned on Friday, would qualify some more cars for the main events and then everyone else that didn't get in by that method would still have one more chance as everyone could run the Last Chance race. Finally, the twenty four car fields were determined for each of the classes and it was time to do some feature racing. 

Some serious track prep work was done after the heat races were completed, the first time we had seen this all weekend but then, once that was completed, the track was never touched again after that. And as is the norm at Marshalltown, the racing surface would be wide, fast and smooth and as seems to be a trade mark here, drivers are racing three and four wide throughout the fields, no matter the class. 

We were wishing that the Last Chance races would have utilized the one spin rule that had been used for the earlier heats because these were the only races of the weekend that got a bit bogged down, with more yellow flags seen in these few races than the rest of the weekend put together. We kept our patience and eventually it was time to go feature racing. 

The main events would be marked by long periods of green flag racing with few yellow flags and the vast majority of the starters still around at the conclusion of their mains. Big crashes were not seen with the exception being a wild two car flip in the Hobby Stock feature but we'll get to that soon. 

The running order was consistent throughout the weekend and the Sport Mods would be always up first for their events, with their feature following that same pattern. All the feature races were loaded with talent and this race was no exception with some of the hottest drivers in this class starting right in the front two rows after having much success on Friday. In fact, the top three were tied in total points after two rounds of heat races on Friday with their starting order determined by the number that they drew for the heats. 

This put Logan Anderson on the pole and he would take the early lead with Brayton Carter quickly moving into second. The first few laps were very interesting as Carter tested different grooves to likely get Anderson moving around on the track while Carter figured out where his car worked the best. These two drivers have both had exceptional years and "head games" they were playing on each other early was fun to watch if you knew what to look for. 

It is clear that Carter has supreme confidence in his new car right now and he was like a shark, waiting for the proper moment to spring. On lap eleven he spotted his chance and he quickly moved past Anderson, who couldn't block him quick enough, to take over the lead. After that, the pack was left to chase him. He put some distance on Anderson who has having his issues with Tyler Nerud to hold on to second. Carter lapped a series of cars as this race continued under the green, only being stopped once with just four laps left in it. 

Carter got away clean on the one restart and drove away again, as he claimed the victory. The restart benefitted Nerud, who got past Anderson for second and would hold him off to claim that spot at the finish. Only one car in the starting field of twenty four failed to complete the contest. 

The Stock Car feature would see another dominant driver of this year, Dallon Murty, take the win. Murty caught a nice break on the opening lap when as he field pounded into turn one for the first time, pole starter Jim Horejsi pushed very badly up the track, bogging down the whole outside line. Murty, who started on the inside of row tow, said thanks and quickly drove into the lead, taking the point on lap one and never giving it away in the following twenty nine laps. That first lap scramble allowed Jimmy Gustin to quickly move into second after starting seventh and he did his best to track down Murty. 

A lap thirteen yellow when Jay Schmidt, having a good run slowed and triggered the caution. Murty continued to lead with Gustin and Jeff Mueller close behind. Jake McBurnie was up to fourth after starting twelfth and he continued to charge until a flat tire later would end his run. 

Up front though, it continued to be Murty showing the way as Gustin would get close, then lose a bit of ground in his attempt to challenge, but always it was Murty in the lead. The entire field was running fast and close and even though the final eighteen laps would go green, there was not a single car that Murty had to deal with in terms of slower running drivers. 

Dallon would extend the lead late and he would drive home for the win with Gustin and Mueller holding on to their spots the rest of the way. 

Trip Gaylord had a great season at Marshalltown, claiming the point title in the Modified class and after winning a pair of heats on Friday night, he would start on the pole for the forty lap finale. Murty started beside him in the front row as he looked for a double win but it was Gaylord that took the early lead. 

Murty, however, would struggle a bit as his car pushed up the track a few times and other drivers were able to scoot past him. Following a yellow when Austin Kuehl flew off the end of the track, Zach VanderBeek was able to move into second with Cody Laney grabbing third. 

The last twenty seven laps of this race would go green to checkers and for the only time all night, the track started to take some rubber and most of the drivers lined up in the top side lane with passing at a premium. VanderBeek was closing following Gaylord and would stick his nose inside the leader on occasion but each time Gaylord would cover the grove and continue up front. 

Right near the end of the race, just as the last few laps were being completed, Gaylord caught the back of the pack. We were expected perhaps an attempted slide job by VanderBeek with Gaylord trying to fend off the slower cars while staying in the preferred groove. However, VanderBeek chose to respect the leader and while he closely followed Gaylord right to the checkers, he didn't try any wild or crazy last lap moves. Laney, Tom Berry Jr and Murty completed the top five. 

One of two Nebraska feature winners would make a strong statement in the Hobby Stock feature. When Nathan Ballard has the lead, he generally is pretty tough to beat. And after he took the initial lead from the outside pole over Dylan Nelson, he seemed to be in pretty good shape to take the win. 

This race was the lone feature to get a bit bogged down with yellows as three plus a red flag would slow this contest. Adam Wasserman started fifth on the grid but quickly found his way up to third. He would battle through the first few laps with Nelson before claiming the second spot. 

Running in very heavy traffic, which it seemed was the norm for the Hobby Stocks all weekend, Bradly Graham was clipped by another car and as he slid toward the infield, he in turn clipped the car of Brandon Bombardo. Both cars then proceeded to flip wildly down the front chute, with Bombardo's spill particularly violent. Fortunately, both drivers were OK but both cars looked severely damaged but the crowd was just happy to see both drivers up and walking as they were checked out by promoter Jerry VanSickel. 

The restart found Ballard still in the lead but Wasserman was making his presence felt, as he moved right in on the leader. Wasserman tried several times to get under the leader and in fact, on two occasions he actually cleared the leader, only to find the yellow flag waving and his passes nixed. 

But as the laps ran down, he continued to press, nosing ahead out of turn two a few times and when he finally got the whole car past Ballard to take over the lead, he was greeted with the white flag being waved. He pulled away on the last lap to take the win over Ballard with John Watson claiming third. 

The black smooth track made the Sport Compacts lightning fast and they were literally using just about the entire track as they breathtakingly raced around the high banks. Another "Cornhusker" would claim victory as Dillon Richards, running this class this weekend, led the race from start to finish to claim victory. There was a swarm of cars chasing him and they were swapping spots often. This race was stopped only once for the yellow for a stalled car with team car Johnny Thomas running second at that point. 

While Richards continued to lead and pull away from the pack, it was Luke Fraise who put on the move, coming from fourth at the halfway point to pass Thomas and claim second. Thomas, Caine Mahlberg and Devin Jones finished off the top five. Remarkably, all twenty four cars that started the feature were still running at the finish with only a single car a lap behind. That's how competitively the entire field ran. 

It was amazing how hard the fields in all the features ran, with the position and lane swapping almost constant yet they did this without wrecking each other or even triggering yellow flags. Certainly the track conditions at Marshalltown make that just a bit easier to do with the track being very forgiving, that is except for the guard rail in turn three which looks just a bit scary from the grandstands as it appears that there just isn't room for all the cars to squeeze together and get down the back chute without incident but they did it time after time. 

It was a cool night in central Iowa but despite that a very nice sized crowd was on hand for the season finale. They saw a good show that was concluded just about 11 pm. I have been to Marshalltown multiple times this year and always get a great reception from the staff, led by J VAN himself. 

There was quite a bit of interesting talk in the pits before the races as teams were discussing 2025 rules for IMCA that would impact the Sport Mods and Modifieds specifically but not surprisingly, it depended who you were talking to whether or not they liked the proposed changes. Look for announcements on these changes in the coming days. In the meantime, thanks to all the Hawkeye tracks that I visited this year for showing me a good time.  Now if the football team will just lay a dud next Saturday, I would be even happier!

Preliminaries Competed For The Harvest Hustle

 The opening night of the Harvest Hustle at the Marshalltown Speedway produced a big field of race cars on Friday night, October 25th  that qualified for the main events in each class that will be held on Saturday night. 

Previously held earlier in the Fall, this final event of the 2024 racing season was pushed back this year to the last full weekend of October, pushing the racing season in the Hawkeye state just about as far as one would dare. It turned out to be a cool one on Friday night, after a week of very nice temperatures and a Northwesterly breeze that seems to follow me here to Marshalltown every time I'm here, didn't disappoint either, helping make a cool night just a bit more uncomfortable. 

There was a decent sized crowd on hand though, especially considering that there are many other Friday night events going on and it was just qualifying heats on the ticket for Friday. 

However, there were obviously still a lot of race drivers that wanted to get at least one more weekend of racing in the books before calling it a season as the pit area was swelled to the bursting point. Two hundred and ten race cars in the five IMCA classes that I score were in attendance and if so desired, you can add on the twenty four Mod Lites that also raced their heats, thus producing a gigantic field of cars. Drivers were on hand from a number of states as much of the racing activity in the Midwest is now completed for 2024. The largest field of cars was in the Hobby Stocks where fifty eight drivers signed in to race on Friday but there were enough cars on hand in all classes that at least four full heat races were needed for each class. 

Qualifying would be done different that at most events run this year. Each driver ran two heat races and the combination of the points earned in both races would determine where they would be lined up for Saturday. Drivers drew for starting positions in the first round of heats and then for the second round, they would get a totally different starting spot and running against different drivers. Points would be awarded for their finishing positions and they would also be deducted points for losing positions in their heat races, which is the fairest way of doing this, in my opinion. And the double heat races is an even fairer way of doing this, with the lone down side being the time it takes to run double heat races for well over two hundred cars. The one spin rule was also used which is a god send in moving the show along even if some drivers don't necessary like how it plays out for them and the black flag was used several times for over aggressive driving that caused other competitors to spin out. That was also met with mixed feelings on occasion. 

Logan Kelly, who flags at several North Iowa speedways, was brought in to do the flagging for this event and he worked in good accord with the Race Director to keep the show moving which was critical on a night with forty four heat races to be run, all of them packing an equal amount of importance to the drivers. 

The track itself sported a new look for this season ending race. A new triple high guardrail has been installed that starts half way down the back chute and runs through corner three with the drivers exiting the track in front of the guardrail off turn three and then heading to the pits. Apparently the neighbors next door at the construction company were growing tired of race cars visiting their site after flying off the track , so this was done to help them with liability probably as issue also. The blunt end of the wall is a bit of a concern and despite the fact that it was protected with some big ute tires, several times cars hit the tires while racing and then had to be re positioned with wreckers. And there still managed to be at least two cars that hit the big dirt piles next door after flying off turns one and two. 

Solid, consistent finishes were key to establishing a good point total to be used to start tomorrow's events and a bad finish or non finish in a heat would certainly put one behind the eight ball for Saturday. 

And there were some drivers that certainly stood out and with two heat races wins the ultimate prize on Friday, there were ten drivers able to accomplish that feat. In the Sport Compacts, both Dillon Richards and Devin Jones won both their heat races and with the top ten in overall points locked into Saturday night's feature, they should start right up front. 

The Hobby Stocks also had a pair of double heat winners with Nathan Ballard and Dylan Nelson each winning both of their heats. 

The Sport Mods had the most domination as even though they had just four heats per round, there were three drivers that won both their heats. They were Brayton Carter, Tyler Bannister and Logan Anderson. That should be quite the battle on Saturday night. 

The Stock Car heats had only one double winner and that was Minnesota driver Jim Horejsi. The Modifieds also had a pair of double winners in Tripp Gaylord and Dallon Murty. Everyone other than the top ten in points in each class must qualify on Saturday through either heats or B Features. 

Track officials did a great job of moving along the show on Friday  but it takes time to run off that many races. Once they dropped the first green flag, it was nonstop racing and they took no break after the first round but went right into round two. The track held up well and there were no breaks to pamper the surface once they started. It did throw a little dust the second round of racing and did dry out but the drivers still seemed to be able to find passing lines and were moving around on the track right up to the last events. The final checkers waved just at Midnight, after which those of us that stuck it out to the end headed for warmth as Mother Nature reminded us that we are living on borrowed warm weather that will soon turn. 

Doar Tops The List Of Winners At Ogilvie Topless Finale

 The fourteenth annual Topless Nationals concluded on Saturday night, October 19th at the Ogilvie Raceway. The program on Saturday would consist of eleven B Features to be followed by main events for the seven classes that were in competition this weekend. 

A few more entries showed up on Saturday night, most to run at the back of feature races that didn't have full fields of cars but several also that came, only to find themselves at the back of Jeff Broeg sized B Features where only a couple cars would move on to the mains. They had very tough sledding indeed. In total, two hundred and seventy five race cars competed here this weekend. 

Things got off to a surprising start on Saturday when some unexpected rain showers moved into an area where measurable rain hadn't been seen for almost a month. It came as a surprise to just about everyone and while it caused some grief, it wasn't enough to put a kabosh on the racing. 

The track was left hard after the Friday night show as that was easily rolled in but an hour of pretty steady rain made the pit area quite a muddy mess which was somewhat unfortunate that all the trick or treaters that hit the pits in the afternoon had to wade through some pretty mucky places. This has gotten to be quite the tradition at this event as anyone that wants to trick or treat is allowed in the pits for a ninety minute period where they go car to car and collect candy, autographs and pictures. Virtually every car has candy and decorations out for the kids with some of the drivers even in costume. The kids come in costume also and it makes for quite the sight and a grand way to wrap up the racing season. It has become a really big deal and even for yours truly, not in mask anymore than normal, still walks out of the pits about ten pounds heavier from all the chocolate that I eat. I didn't hear who won the contest for best decorated race car but there were a number of really strong entries as I  can't believe the ends some of the teams go to make their cars unique looking. 

While most the teams were participating in the trick or treat, the Late Model team of Josh Zimpel was busy replacing a motor in their car. They had finished a strong second in their heat on Friday night but blew the motor just at the finish line. They refused to give up such a good starting spot however, and changed motors with the other Zimpel entry that had crashed on Friday night. They use 525 crate motors in their cars and report that the motor that blew had one hundred and sixteen shows on it so they felt like they had more than gotten their quota from that motor which was still running very competitively when it blew. 

Unfortunately though, while running in fourth spot in the Late Model main on lap twenty five, Josh would hammer the turn one wall and now they have both a car and a motor to fix. 

The Last Chance races were just that as they were marked by some very hard racing and several wild crashes that saw a Limited Modified up side down and a Street Stock hit the wall so hard that the entire rear stub was launched free from the car. However, no injuries were reported and reflected by the way that many drove, they reasoned that they had all Winter to fix anything they wrecked!

The Super Stock feature would be first to the grid for feature racing and this would be the Dexton Koch show. Soon to be crowned as the WISSOTA National Champion in this class, Koch completed what has been a career best season. He started on the outside pole and led all twenty five laps to take the win. He immediately opened up a nice sized lead and would maintain that pace through the whole race. His win on Saturday would be his twenty eighth feature win of the year. For a number of years, he has been very successful in this class but always seemed to end up second best to Shane Sabraski who has dominated this class for years. Sabraski opted to focus in his Late Model program this year and with only limited appearances in the Super, Koch used this opening to surge through as the best in the class. Dan Nissalke would finish second with Ryan Kostreba third. There would be only two yellows in this event and only a few cars that didn't finish it. 

The Limited Modified feature was a hot mess with more yellows than perhaps the rest of the night combined. Jason VandeKamp would start on the pole and lead all twenty five laps but the race was slowed eight times by yellow flags with many being of the multi car variety. While VandeKamp dominated, there was some good racing for second with Jesse Brekke and Blake Adams trading that position back and forth several times until Adams suddenly pulled off the track. 

Late in the race, David Swearingen, who had started thirteenth on the grid, charged up and took over the second spot. Brekke, the crop duster pilot from North Dakota that only gets to race in the Fall and Winter when his business doesn't have him airborne constantly, came home third. 

There were three different leaders in the Late Model feature but in the end, it was Pat Doar that won once again at Ogilvie. Doar, who has an amazing streak of success at this track, didn't let the fact that he was starting seventh in the race bother him. He gradually worked his way to the front and was up to second by the halfway point. Sabraski had taken the early lead but Shane Edginton, all the way down from Winnipeg and back using his own number for this race, slipped under Sabraski on lap five to take over the lead. 

Doar continued to press and one lap past the halfway point, he moved past Edginton to take over the lead. Near the end of the race, Doar got himself in some heavy traffic and Edginton closed back in on him, but Pat would hang on by a couple car lengths for the win. Blake Boelens, a rookie in this class with less than a half years experience, would drive a hard race up against the outside wall and move up to fifth at the finish behind Ryan Mikkelson with two rookie drivers in the top five finishing positions as WISSOTA currently has an exceptional crop of young drivers moving into the class. 

I don't know what management at Ogilvie has against their Street Stock drivers but for the last two years they have allowed the Stock Cars to  run with the Streets at this event and for the second straight year, Tim Johnson has shown that this is not a fair situation. If you were a Street Stock driver and your home track put you at a disadvantage for a special event, wouldn't you be upset? But they have done this now for two straight years, all in the name apparently for seven Stock Cars that entered the show. 

Andrew Hanson started on the pole and led the first fourteen laps of the main event. In fact, he had built up nearly a full straightaway lead over the pack as Johnson, one of the Stock Car drivers, had a tough time moving forward after he started ninth. Just before the lap fourteen yellow waved, he had finally grabbed second and this yellow was his saving grace. 

When the green flew, he simply gassed his car and with the additional horsepower the Stock Cars have, he simply drove right around Hanson to take the lead with nothing Hanson could do about it. On the final lap, Kaden Woodie, in one of the other Stock Cars, also got past Hanson for second. 

Johnson, who also has a Street Stock and Super Stock as well as his Stock Car, is a very accomplished driver and it is no surprise when he wins a feature race in one of several classes he races in. However, with the choice of having both cars available, he is no fool and selected the Stock Car as his choice for the weekend, which paid off for him. If management wants to run Stock Cars, fine with me but it is totally unfair to run them with the Street Stocks heads up. They are two distinct beasts. 

Clayton Wagamon, of the Wagamon family that owns Ogilvie, led from start to finish to take the Modified feature race. He started on the outside pole and got the early jump on Dave Cain. Cain would not give up though, and after losing some distance, he gradually used the high side to close in on Wagamon who for some reason, had moved down the track. In fact, Cain was just about ready to blow past Clayton on the outside when Wagamon figured out what was what and he moved back to the cushion which shut off Cain's passing lane. 

After that, Wagamon gradually pulled away to build up a comfortable lead which he held to the finish. Joseph Thomas and Sabraski would get past Don Eischens on the last corner when Eischens went for broke with a slider hoping for the win but it cost him two spots in the gamble. 

Perhaps the best drive of the night was put on by Tommy Bawden who made a thrilling last lap pass for the win in the Mod Four class. Blake Hawker led for a lap until Bob Holtquist passed him for the top spot. Bob then battled with his son Dustin before the kid passed him on lap four. 

The two Holtquist's then began to pull away from the field over a long stretch of green flag racing. Bawden moved up right against the outside wall and seemed to be "flat footing" it around the Ogilvie oval and he started to close in on the two leaders. He got past Bob for second and then closed up on Dustin, making up a considerable amount of real estate in the last five laps. 

As they came around the corner for the white flag, Bawden went screaming by on the outside in a very daring pass that probably surprised Holtquist. Dustin tried to fight back on the final lap but Bawden had the momentum and blazed home for the win. 

Justin Schelitzche will soon be crowned the WISSOTA National Champion in the Hornet class for the second straight year. So when he drew the pole, it was no surprise that he would drive on for the win. However, the difficulty he had was a bit surprising as Jenna Hagemann gave him everything he could handle. 

They did start side by side with Justin taking the early lead. However, Jenna was not giving up and caught back up after he had built a small lead. When he slid off the bottom on lap seven, Jenna dove inside of him and took over the lead. They raced in tight formation with Jenna continuing to hold the lead until on lap fourteen, Schelitzche got past here once again and while she remained nailed to his rear bumper, she could not perform the magic once again and would have to settle for second as Justin drove home for the win. Matt Dittman would finish third. 

Unlike the great racing weather that the Midwest has enjoyed for the last few weeks, it felt more like mid October on Saturday with damp conditions, wind in the face and cooler temperatures. There was even a fog scare the last couple races but it held off enough that they were able to complete the show. However, despite the less than perfect night, the grandstands were packed as this event has established an identity of its old in recent years. 

Thanks to the Wagamon family and promoter Nate Fischer for his help this weekend. It was another successful season for "The Big O" and it will be interesting to see what their schedule looks like for 2025. 

Topless Kicks Off at Ogilvie

 The last racing event of the 2024 season in the state of Minnesota  began on Friday night, October 18th at the Wagamon family owned Ogilvie Raceway near Ogilvie Minnesota. 

The fourteenth annual Topless Nationals began on a whim years ago, with the racing season completed in this area but nice  weather still in the offing, It was suggested to have a fun weekend at Ogilvie with one more race, non sanctioned with drivers from the three major bodies that have a presence in Minnesota all allowed to race, and for fun, let's take the roofs off the cars. 

What began as a small event for fun has grown over the years until the present when it is looked upon eagerly by both drivers and fans as a great way to wrap up the racing season. This race now produces probably the eclectic field of cars all year as WISSOTA competitors mix it up with USRA and IMCA drivers plus with it being non sanctioned and no driver's license to purchase, drivers race in classes they normally wouldn't plus a number of drivers make debuts in different classes and a few newly purchased or brand new race cars make their debuts at this race. 

This race has also turned into a gigantic promotion for Breast Cancer awareness month which is in October. A local group runs the 50/50 drawing for this weekend and also has other means of raising both awareness and money for this group. The track goes along with this theme, painting all the walls that surround the race track in pink plus all the infield ute tires and everything else that can be painted, is pink for this weekend. 

Halloween is the other theme for this weekend with Trick or Treating in the pits before the show on Saturday a gigantic attraction. There are also costume contests for kids and adults and prizes for best decorated race cars. You would not believe just how many racers decorate the roll cages(now visible because there are no roofs) and other parts of the race cars with lights, skulls, skeletons and other things that really give the cars and show a once a year type of theme. There are now so many that do this that judging is a monumental task. There is also a live band after the races on Friday night in the pits. 

But let's not forget, there is also plenty of hard racing going on with seven classes in action. The heat races are contested on Friday night with the B Features and main events on Saturday. The reason there is only one show over the two days is the large car count on hand. This year two hundred and sixty seven drivers from four states and two Canadian provinces signed in to race. While that is a huge number, it actually was twenty cars smaller than last year's turnout, a bit surprising given the fantastic racing weather that he have been receiving here in the upper Midwest. 

Basic rules are run this weekend so as to allow drivers from different sanctioning bodies the chance to also race at this WISSOTA sanctioned track. Late Model run under WISSOTA rules, Modifieds under whatever rules the driver declares with Modifieds from all three bodies on hand. The Limited Mod class is a combination of Midwest Mods, B Mods and IMCA Sport Mods, all running together under their home rules. The Super Stocks and Mod Fours run under WISSOTA rules while the Hornets run under home body rules. They, by the way, are the only class required to keep their roofs on due to  the structural effect roofs have on the small cars. All other classes are required to remove their roofs for this race. 

The Street Stocks are probably the class that has the most integration of all seven. Street Stocks run under WISSOTA rules but the Stock Cars of IMCA and USRA are also allowed to race. This year the Stock Cars are required to run a two barrel carb and are maxed out at 6400 rpm on their chip box as it has been found that the Stock Cars are just a bit more powerful than the Streets and it isn't really fair to handicap the class that runs weekly at your track and put the drivers that support you all year at a disadvantage. There were seven Stock Cars that ran with the Street Stocks with three making the show during heat races and one, Kaden Woodie, winning a heat race. Woodie, by the way, has both IMCA and WISSOTA cars that he races at various events. 

The most impressive thing to me about opening night of this event was the huge turnout of Canadian drivers that were in attendance, far more than were ever seen for this event previously. In total, there were twenty seven drivers on hand from the province of Ontario plus another nine from the province of Manitoba. 

Most of the Ontario drivers were from the Thunder Bay area and it is twenty hundred and ninety two miles, mostly on two lane highways, from Thunder Bay to Ogilvie. The fact that many drivers made that trek this weekend is unbelievable. They had drivers all the way from Late Models to Hornets on hand to race this weekend and they took up a large segment of the pit area. 

It is even farther to Winnipeg Manitoba where most of the Manitoba drivers were from, four hundred and three three miles to be exact, yet there were also nine racers from there that pulled down to race. I've always said that Canadian racers and fans were among the most passionate for their sport of any I've ever known and this is just another example of that. Visit Thunder City Speedway in Thunder Bay some time to find the most rapid fans in the sport. 

One odd factor about his program this weekend was that they reverted to using the old draw/redraw form of lining up the races. This is the first draw/redraw program I have been to since Labor Day weekend with passing points being used for all the specials that have been run, a much fairer way of determining who makes the features than using a draw when there are so many race cars on hand. 

Back in the flag stand to work his last weekend was Brian Reidemann. Brian is a veteran flag man in this area, having worked at a number of tracks over the years. He has also worked as a Race Director and done more than his share of track prep over the years. Ogilvie has been breaking in a new flag man over the course of this Summer but since Brian is retiring, he was in the stand for his last weekend. He is retiring from both tracks he works at and he told be that he will joining the WISSOTA organization is some capacity next year. 

The program on Friday night would consist of heat races, set up by the draw, in all seven classes. Twenty nine heat races would be held, with a certain number, depending on class, qualifying for the main events on Saturday night. A number of B Features will then set the rest of the running order for the seven features. 

Racing began just after 7 pm on Friday night with all qualifying complete before 11 pm at which point the music fired up until the wee hours, I would guess since I wasn't there to turn out the lights. For the first time in nearly a month, there was one light shower that blew over the track just as the Street Stocks were ready to begin, but with all cars called to the track to help roll it in when the light rain/mist quit, the delay was no more than fifteen minutes. 

A good crowd was on hand Friday night, despite high school football in the area and the number of campers was large indeed with folks coming from far and near for their last racing adventure of 2024.