The USMTS made one of their rare three night stops at a single location , starting Thursday night July 11th at the Ogilvie Raceway near Ogilvie Minnesota. Billed as the "Mod Wars", the three nights of racing here would pit the USMTS Modifieds against the WISSOTA Modifieds that race in this area and regularly here at Ogilvie every Saturday night.
USMTS has run the majority of their shows that last couple of years as three night events at a single location. However, that trend didn't always work out well for the promoters and because of that, most races this year are either single night dates or perhaps two weekend shows with this being just one of three, I believe, where once the trailers park, they will race for three straight nights with an increasing purse on each of the three nights.
The USMTS Modifieds would be joined all three nights in full shows by the WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds and the Mod Fours. This Modified pairing has always been a mismatch, with the USMTS cars holding quite the horsepower advantage over the WISSOTA cars. It's not nearly as big a mismatch as let's say, IMCA cars vs. USMTS, but the travelers still have the advantage. A WISSOTA rule change this year on heads does give them more horsepower but I'm told by the teams that the WISSOTA cars are still fifty or so horse short of the USMTS cars. The WISSOTA cars do get to run on their own Hoosier tires which I'm also told are softer and might offer an advantage in a short race but that the American Racers might be better for longer distance features. Either way, it does give the fans something to talk about but that rivalry doesn't seem near as strong as it used to be with some of the top drivers having both types of cars at the ready including eventual winner Ebert.
A new procedure was used for the USMTS starting on Thursday and that was the "choose cone" was used for the first time. Popular in some other series and long used on tar tracks, a cone is placed in the center of the track following yellow flag slowdowns, the cars are lined up single file and as they reach the cone, they either choose to go to the inside or outside for the restart with each driver deciding which way they will go. It sometimes leads to some different looking lineups for restarts and does make things a bit more interesting as the restart nears.
Also, first and second place start beside each other instead of the first place car having a car length on the second place car who used to be beside the third place car so in essence the top two are side by side for the restart with third and fourth side by side behind them and so on. This is the part that I don't like as I still feel that the leader should have an advantage on the restart, and not have the second place car right beside them, but this is all done to spice up the show and try to make the race closer, and if it is used all the time then everyone has an equal opportunity to either benefit or be hurt by it. The drivers interviewed about it where all non committal so if they aren't too bothered by it, then neither am I.
Thirty four Modifieds signed in to race on Thursday with a dozen running as WISSOTA cars. Some would have raced either way but if some raced only because they didn't have to change their cars over and buy a license, it was a good thing because otherwise the field would have been a bit short with some long time regulars of the USMTS now not traveling near as much as they used to.
Four heats and a a pair of B Features set the twenty six car starting field for the thirty lap main event paying three grand on this night with each of the following two nights seeing both the laps and purse on the rise.
Dan Ebert, a local favorite who races at this track on occasion and runs WISSOTA events when he isn't traveling with the USMTS, took the early lead as he surprisingly got the jump on Jake Timm, the point leader of the series. Ebert would lead the first eleven laps with Timm, Rodney Sanders, Jake O'Neal and Terry Phillips in hot pursuit. With the humid weather, the track was very fast and the drivers were really flying around the three eighth mile oval.
Lapped traffic came into play on two occasions during this race. The first came on lap twelve when a car got crossed up in front of Ebert and when he had to take evasive action, Timm was able to drive past him and take over the lead. Timm was then able to put a bit of a lead on the pack but that would vary as the leaders continued to run through lots of traffic with the first twenty three laps of the race going green. Ebert would still be running second at the halfway point of the race with Sanders, O'Neal and A.J. Hoff in a tight formation behind him.
Timm ran into big trouble just past the halfway point when he just couldn't get past a slower car at the back of the lead lap with him trying for several laps but not being able to get by and the other challengers catching him fast.
Finally he threw a slider at the other car in turn one but didn't clear that car, they tangled and Timm ended up pointing the wrong way on the track, triggering the first yellow of the race. This would be a very tough call and I would have been good with the decision no matter which way they ruled, but USMTS officials made the call that Timm should go to the back and thus he did. This turned the lead back over to Ebert and while he had to withstand one more yellow with just three laps to go, he got the jump on Sanders on that restart and then drove away for the win.
Jim Chisholm was the mover of the race, starting eleventh and still not in the top five by the halfway point but he then really picked up the pace and with a high side blocker on Sanders on the final corner, took the second place away from Rodney. O'Neal and a charging Kyle Brown completed the top five. The best finish for a WISSOTA car was Landon Atkinson who finished eighth. Fifteen cars were still running at the checkers.
The WISSOTA Midwest Modified feature started twenty one cars after three crashed out in a heat race jingle. Jake Smith started on the pole and the former MidMod national champion then led for the first fifteen laps of the race. He was pushed for most of the race by Jason VandeKamp who had started right behind him.
Three yellows during this time kept the field bunched with Lucas Rodin, Ashton Schulte and David Swearingen right in the mix.
Smith continued to hold the top spot but VandeKamp started to close and following a mid race yellow, he picked a new line that saw him move up the track a bit and it seemed to allow him to get a better run off the corners. VandeKamp, who is a really good technical driver, gained that momentum and on lap sixteen he was able to drive past Smith and take over the lead, an advantage he built on over the last few laps to give him the win.
Smith hung on for second with Rodin making a last corner pass on Swearingen for third. Later, however, Swearingen would fail tech inspection and Schulte would be elevated to fourth ahead of Denis Czech.
The Mod Fours are an interesting class. They look like Modifieds that have been pre shrunk and they use four cylinder engines. They are a sanctioned WISSOTA class but don't race at many of the sanctioned tracks as they have pockets of interest that include central and western Minnesota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana. They race every week here at Ogilvie as well as the Ogilvie sister track in Princeton.
Fifteen of them would take the green for their twenty lap main with three different leaders in the race. Blake Hawker led the opening lap before South Dakota veteran Bob Holtquist passed him for the top spot. Holtquist would maintain the lead until the halfway point of the race when defending national champion Tommy Bawden made what would be the wining move.
Holtquist later spun out of second place and triggered the only yellow of the contest. Bawden was on a rail on this night and then pulled away for a relatively easy win. Dustin Holtquist, Bob's son, made a sterling drive up from fifteenth after he had heat race trouble and in the last few laps, roared into second while Tyler Larson, involved with the tangle earlier with Bob Holtquist, hung on to finish third.
It was the first steamy weather we have had in our area this year but the track held up well and the drivers were still racing all over it at the end of the Modified feature which was the last event of the night. Track and USMTS officials kept the show moving along nicely on this week night and the final checkered flag waved right around 10 pm. Thanks to the track and USMTS officials for a nice job. Bryan Kenekas, the voice of the Hamilton County Speedway, was working as the USMTS announcer for this weekend and joined regular track announcer Scott Tiefs to do a good job of calling the action without having to scream at us, unlike a certain announcer for a national Late Model series that will go unnamed.
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