Wrapping Up The 2025 Racing Season

 The 2025 racing season is now complete for me so it is time to do a quick wrap on the season as we now get ready to turn the calendar to 2026 and see what new fun, disappointment, joy and sadness await us in the new year. 

In 2025 I attended one hundred and ninety one race events. That marked the third highest number of yearly races that I have attended but continued the slow but steady drop from 2023 when I reached my highest number of two hundred and nine. 

In 2025 my total was affected considerably by rainouts, a few poor decisions and by a slightly less amount of enthusiasm to drive many hours to a race that just might not be worth the effort. 

With all the rain of April, May and June, I was actually surprised to see that my total was as close to 2024 was it was, only dipping by a pair of shows. The early part of this year was very difficult  with all the rainouts, both for weekly shows and special events. It didn't help matters that about a half dozen times I opted to go in one direction, thinking that I had out foxed the weather, only to have that decision bite me later in the back side when I got rained out and the other planned event raced on. 

There were also about a  half dozen shows when I just frankly decided not to attend, using the "cost-benefit" analysis to determine that what I was going to see just couldn't be justified by the time and expense it was going to cost me. 

July and August were much better months with very few weather issues as I saw twenty eight and twenty seven races respectively during those two months. I did see racing in all twelve months, starting in New Mexico in in January and wrapping up the season indoors in Missouri in December. 

Of the one hundred and ninety one races, ninety one were under the WISSOTA sanction as that is the predominant body in my area and the group that just about all the tracks belong to. The other one hundred plus shows were under a variety of different sanctioning bodies. 

2025 marked the forty fifth year in a row that I have attended at least one hundred nights of racing and forty eight out of the last fifty years that I have been doing this insanity. 

I attended races at sixty two tracks in twelve different states and one Canadian Province and for the first time in a couple years, actually got to a track for the first time ever, with three new ones recorded this year. One was in Wisconsin, one in Arizona and one in Texas. 

Interestingly, I actually attended races at more tracks in Minnesota than I did in my home state and also nearly as many so as in Iowa. Marshalltown and Spencer were the run away leaders in the Hawkeye State but I also got to nine other tracks in that state. 

I am now at three hundred and thirty seven attended in twenty nine states and three Canadian Provinces. 

Unfortunately, for the first time in a long time, I was witness to a fatality at a track when a track official got hit by a speeding car on the track. I also saw two photographers get hit in the infield by out of control race cars and both are lucky to still be with us. It had been many years since I had last seen this in person and it still leaves a sickening feeling in my gut when I think about those three instances. We all know there is a degree of danger involved in this sport but when something bad happens, it provides a real slap across the face of reality striking, especially when you know all three individuals involved. 

I also made the initial entry in a new category for me. I have been rained out, sleeted out, hailed out, stormed out, froze out, winded out, tornadoed out, fogged out, overheated out, no powered out, waterlines broke out and just about every other kind of "out" that you can imagine, but for the first time in 2025 I was "fired" out!

I was in Thunder Bay Ontario and Thunder City Speedway when it happened. Some wild fires were triggered by a passing train and with the tinder dry conditions the fires  built, threatened houses, businesses and unfortunately, the Thunder City Speedway which was in their path. 

When the decision was made by Provincial officials that they would fight the fire using large planes dropping water on the flames, we had to evacuate the area and the races were cancelled, despite it being a beautiful June night. They came back the next night to race on their "rain date" but I didn't stick around. 

The 2026 racing season is scheduled to begin for me in just a few short weeks in Arizona with a hoped for trip following that to Florida for some Speed Week action. While my enthusiasm for the start of a new season is not what it might have been in the past, I will still be excited to see the cars hit the track for the first time and see what is new for 2026. I will take you along as best I can to see as much of that journey as I can. 

Pierce and Thornton Jr Dominate In Dome Finale

 There was no doubt in either class that competed in the Gateway Dirt Nationals finale on Saturday night, December 6th as to who had the best car. Both Bobby Pierce in the Late Models and Ricky Thornton Jr in the Modified left absolutely no doubt that they were the best team in each division and the results showed just that. 

Both Pierce and Thornton Jr led from start to finish in their respective feature races, eliminating any drama while also showing that they were the best by far, no matter how strong and talented the competition. 

The three night extravaganza was capped off on Saturday night with Last Chance racing that filled the feature fields with many of the sports best runners left sitting on the sidelines come feature time. Probably some of the best racing of the weekend saw the majority of the field fight it out to become one of the few drivers still standing when feature race time came. 

A huge crowd, announced as the largest ever to attend a night of this ninth annual event, packed the arena and hallways and produced a fantastically profitable weekend for the race promoters and all those vendors selling everything from shirts and hoodies to headache curing potions. 

Right at 3 pm the first of a series of Last Chance races  rolled off with both the Late Models and Modified working to cut their entry lists down to about twenty cars per class that would race the feature race event. The track had the most moisture in it of any of the three nights which made for some very fast racing. Just showing how finicky this track is though was the fact that as soon as more moisture was worked into the track, it started to get bouncy and we also saw more bouncing around by the cars on Saturday than for any of the preceding nights. 

When the fifteen qualifying events were completed about four hours later, twenty drivers had made their way into the main events. There was one provisional entry in both classes with the top drivers drawing for their starting positions in the main event and no tire changing competition. 

When all was set, the only drivers that qualified for both feature races were Thornton Jr and Mike Harrison and both would earn first and second row starting spots in the two features, thus showing that not only were they good enough to get in both features, they were especially good to start right up front. 

Opening ceremonies are always special and spectacular for this race and the indoor fireworks are always stunning. Driver introductions were above average this year with several especially clever ones including Kyle Bronson's body slam on a table of Ashton Winger and Brian Shirley's Evel Knievel motor cycle antics after which "Superman" Davenport retook his cape. Still, my highlight of the weekend was Tanner English's fast laps with a Christmas tree strapped on the roof. 

I was thinking that we might get through the weekend without a single flip but that thought was dashed in the second Modified qualifier when Dave Hess took a wild ride down the back chute. Fortunately he was OK.

The 50/50 drawing, benefitting the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame, was record breaking also. The split was $135,000 and change and the lucky winner was from Iowa. 

Twenty one drivers would start the Late Model forty lap feature race with the provisional being Dylan Thornton as promoter Cody Sommer put his own car in as is his prerogative.

The race got off to a shaky start when outside pole starter Brenden Smith got sideways on the first lap and stacked up a bunch of drivers. Mark Whitener got eliminated in that one. Then Davenport got a piece of Shirley, sending him spinning into the infield where he saw for a couple laps before he was finally spotted and the yellow came out. Davenport, with a flat, and Shirley were both done. 

Meanwhile, Bobby Pierce had gotten the jump on the field and immediately put distance on the pack with no one seemingly able to stay with him. The battle for second was good as Thornton Jr and Jason Feger battled hard for that spot. Feger would get past and would hold that spot for the first half of the race. 

However, shortly after that, Thornton Jr made a move and took over second but they still remained far behind Pierce and no matter that the yellow flew several times, each time the green again waved, Pierce would pull away. 

The last yellow, with thirty two laps complete, packed up the field once again but Pierce again pulled away and Thornton Jr never could get close enough to attend some kind of move. Late in the contest, Feger nosed into the wall enough that Brandon Sheppard was able to get past and claim the third spot with Feger and Nick Hoffman rounding out the top five. Only ten drivers were still on the track at the finish as attrition was high. 

The win was Pierce's thirty second of 2025 and he became the first three time winner of this race. On a fun, no pressure weekend he still managed to drive home with a cool $80,000 in winnings and probably twice that in t-shirt sales.

Thornton Jr managed to shake off the disappointment of the Late Model race nicely by leading from start to finish to win the Modified feature and the twenty grand that went to that winner. Just like Pierce, despite a few yellows that packed the field, every time the green flew Ricky just drove away from the field. 

Harrison tried his hardest but just like Ricky in the previous race, he was no match for the winner. Carlos Ahumada Jr had a nice run to take third and the driver on the move at the end was Tyler Peterson as the former winner of this event passed Ryan Ayers on the last lap to grab fourth after starting tenth. 

It was quite the event and the enormity of this entire weekend is quite astounding. I won't ever say that the Dome is my favorite event of the year and some of the goings on are not what I think our sport should be all about but there can be no doubt that it is a race that can not be duplicated anywhere for its unique aspects. For many folks it is their most memorable race of the year and as long as they keep coming back each year, I see no reason why this race doesn't just get bigger and bigger for the foreseeable future. How all the moving parts of this event come together in such a smooth manner is a tribute to Sommer and both his crew and the folks that work at the Dome.  

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The Circus Arrives at the Dome, Thornton Jr. and Harrison Ride the Biggest Elephants

 While some will try to tell you that the Gateway Dirt Nationals is just a race, albeit inside in a dome, the truth is that this event is more spectacle than anything and the racing itself is more of a sideshow attraction than the main focus. 

This race is much more entertainment and illusion than it is real racing and that was highlighted once again on Friday night, December 5th when round two of the ninth annual event here at the Dome at America's Center was held. 

The second group of both Late Models and Modifieds were racing for position in Saturday night's main event that pays seventy grand to the winner but the events of the evening, primarily in the Late Model class, would have one checking to see if by accident they  purchased a ticket for the WWE Smackdown rather than the dirt track races. 

Of course, even though they won't say so, this is exactly the atmosphere that Cody Sommer and the rest of the promotional group for this event want to happen and indeed they pray for it. The end result is just what they want, spectators foaming at the mouth in their indignation, more alcohol purchased while they "discuss" the situation with other fans in the stands and the drivers swearing revenge on each other while the announcing team prods on the participants with a mic jammed into their faces almost before they can get unbuckled from their race cars. It is much more farce than reality and those few drivers on hand just to race learn to understand that this is just part of the show and if they want to be remembered they should consider driving over a few other drivers or at least doing something spectacular to sell an extra shirt or two. 

Getting back to reality for a moment, some things were much better on Friday than they had been on Thursday. The track had some moisture in it, raced much better and didn't produce near as much dust as had been the case on Thursday night.  The air quality was much better too as the whole team putting on the show seemed to have rediscovered their focus from last year with the delays being shorter and less frequent. 

Sixty one Late Models and thirty two Modifieds comprised the second half of the entries and they would be performing exactly the same show as was presented on Thursday night with the top three in each class at the end of the night locking themselves into Saturday night's main event. 

Tanner English was the highlight of the early evening's entertainment. We've seen just about everything in the form of race car graphics design, colors etc. but when English pulled on to the track with his Late Model and had a Christmas tree strapped to the roof of the car in his tribute to Clark Griswald, it about brought down the house. It was so darn clever even I had to laugh. I guess in the name of safety he was not allowed to run in competition with the tree still on board, but he still recorded quick time in his group  minus the evergreen.  Josh Rice also dazzled as he recorded the quickest time overall even though he was one of the last out in his group at 11.523 seconds, showing that a little more moisture in the track would be a good thing. Ryan Ayers was quickest of the Modifieds at 12.631 seconds. 

The time trial sessions were quite damaging for a number of teams as drivers, recognizing just how important qualifying was, were pushing very hard. Both Garrett Alberson and Mike Marlar badly damaged their cars in time trials with two of the most unique cars being wrecked early. Alberson's team managed to put their car back together, only to see it torn apart once again later. 

Marlar hit the fence so hard that he knocked the fuel cell right out of the car but they also managed to get that car going again, even as Mike had to borrow his brother's car to run a heat race before switching back over to his car to run a B Feature as there are no rules about such things at this event. 

The weekend was done in qualifying for both Hunt the Front's Joseph Joiner and Myles Moos with a motor blowing for Joiner and a driveshaft spitting out for Moos. 

A few drivers managed to put themselves on the "watch list" after their slam bam antics in the heat races but it was the main events, particularly the Late Models, that had the drivers, crews and fans frothing from the mouth. But just before that, we saw what the priorities were when the Modified B Feature was cut to three laps so more time could be used for something much more important, the tire changing contest to determine the front row starting positions for the Late Model feature!

There was much action and drama in the Late Model feature when the slide jobs broke out in full force and some of them proved to be ruthless, setting off the other drivers and the crowd like dropping a match in a can of gasoline. 

Mark Whitener got the jump on Hudson O'Neal to take the early lead but O'Neal was soon throwing nasty sliders at the Florida driver as he tried to take the lead. After one particularly aggressive exchange. O'Neal slowed on the back chute with a flat tire triggering a yellow flag. 

O'Neal was upset but in my view he dished out as much at he took but again, everyone's perception is different. Later during a break he took to the mic to express his displeasure but it appeared to be more theatrics than anything. 

However, I'm not so sure about Kyle Bronson. He and Brenden Smith were really working each other over for second and after Bronson moved over Smith, Brenden responded by "parking" Bronson on a fence post in turn one where Bronson came to an abrupt halt and was then clipped by another driver. Bronson stomped the whole length of the straightaway while under red to fix the fence to poke his head in Smith's car and exchange holiday greetings. Meanwhile, track officials walked with him but made no attempt to stop him as this was all part of the "script." As Sommer would want, if you're going to fight, do it on the front chute where the crowd can see it, not in the pits. 

Meanwhile, a couple fights broke out in the stands near us, but no punches were thrown because most importantly, the combatants didn't want to set down their beer cans, which was their top priority. Let's be honest here, this is no event to bring your kid to. 

Drake Troutman, also in the top five, dropped out at this point too as he had a flat tire as he may have been the one that clipped Bronson. 

While all this activity was going on, Ricky Thornton Jr, who had started in the fifth row, was ready to spring. He had been sitting back watching all the wild goings on in front of him but like a cobra, when he saw his opening, he sprung into action. Making a couple passes, he was up to second by lap sixteen and then following another slowdown, he slid past Whitener on the restart to grab the lead and then he was gone. 

He led the rest of the way while Whitener held on for second and Smith brought a third place finish home in his first ride with his new team for 2026. A dozen drivers finished the race but nearly all looked like they had been in a war, even though they still were running. 

Compared to the Late Models, the Modified feature was like a gathering of the Tuesday afternoon Canasta club. There was only one yellow flag in the race, only two drivers failed to finish and there were zero fights, either on the track or in the stands!

Tim Ward, driving the Eckrich ride as he has been for the later part of the outdoor season, led the first ten laps of the feature and was comfortably out front. Local favorite Mike Harrison moved into second and tried to track down the leader but Ward appeared to be unstoppable. 

That is, until his car started to smoke which got heavier and heavier until suddenly, on lap eleven, he dived into the infield. Afterward, it was said that the car got hot but to me it looked much worse like the motor blew but I guess we will have to see on that Saturday. 

Harrison was the beneficiary, taking over the lead and without a single yellow to bunch the field, driving away for the win. An excellent and clean battle for second saw Ayers hold off Carlos Ahmuda Jr and Alex Williamson, the driver who gets more of out what he has than any driver I know off. 

Racing wrapped up around 10 pm after which literally thousands of folks headed for the pits to rubber neck and buy stuff. The crowd was again gigantic and most everyone expects a record crowd to be on hand for Saturday's finale. God only knows what will happen to highlight that show.  

Pierce and Thorton Jr. top Thursday night opener at Gateway

 The ninth annual Kubota Gateway Dirt Nationals rolled off on Thursday night, December 4th at the Dome at America's Center in downtown St. Louis Missouri. For the first time ever I believe, there was snow on the ground all the way from northern Wisconsin right up and into St. Louis, an indicator of the early Winter that we have had so far. And not only was there snow, but the temperatures were bitterly cold, even for those of us that have to endure that kind of weather for months. You can imagine how the folks from the southern regions were taking things. Much whining took place about this. 

The years have flown by and this event(I can't really call it a race anymore because much of what goes on doesn't qualify as a race), continues to grow by leaps and bounds. It seemed that there was much hype before this years event, much of that created by the teams that would be racing in the Dome. You see, many have now figured out that their main source of income from this race, and what allows them to continue to attend on what is a very expensive week for them, depends on how many t-shirts and hoodies they sell while there are down here. 

So many of the teams, both Mods and Late Models, put different wraps on their cars to make them distinctive and eye catching, with the hopes that will help them sell more shirts. Tribute cars to events and drivers of the past, holiday festive wraps and unfortunately, there are even a few political type wraps as some dolts just can't keep their political views to themselves and allow us to have a quiet and peaceful weekend of racing, minus the political crap that is swallowing us all up these days. 

In any event, so far it seems to be working as when the concourse was opened up to the fans, they charged in mass toward the many vendors selling items with fire in their eyes and cash and plastic in their hands. It is really quite amazing the number of folks that have to buy, buy, buy at this race, perhaps for themselves or maybe Christmas presents for others. Either way, the goose that laid the golden egg is alive and well. One does wonder, however, that when the reality sets in at some point that it really isn't necessary to spend down the national debt at the t-shirt stand and sales start to dwindle, how many of these race teams will decide that their time is better spent at home rather than in St. Louis right before Christmas. 

Two classes were again in action on Thursday as the format that sees both Late Models and Modifieds teams split in half with two qualifying sessions the first two nights and then everyone racing on Saturday. The Modifieds continue to be an invitation only affair with must over thirty racing each night. This was mostly done because there simply wasn't the room and time to run everyone that would like to attend this event and this format provides a qualify field of drivers with numbers easier to work with. 

The Late Models saw a change in their entry procedure this year. Previously, it was "first come, first served" with the Late Models and when they reached their limit in terms of cars that could race, it was cut off. However, that left a number of good teams off the entry list and also saw a considerable number of teams that quite frankly, weren't of the level that should have been racing at this event for either experience or talent reasons. 

This year, everyone that wanted to race submitted their name of the cut off point, and then event officials did a "draft", selecting those teams they felt worthy of racing in the Dome. There are always going to be a few that race that you wonder how in the world they talked or paid their way into the race, but for the most part, those that raced were of top caliber, thus offering 2025 as perhaps the strongest top to bottom field of Late Model teams. 

Each year the track ends up being just a bit different than previous years, just by the engineering done to get the dirt into the dome and the track built. This year an aerial view reveled that the track is more like a "D", than an oval with the area off turn two the tight spot on the track. It was claimed that the track had more banking this year but that was hard to see from the  stands. It was also claimed that the fence was put in at a different angle to try and keep cars from getting up into the fence. 

What we did learn early was that the wall wasn't high enough and with most of the drivers clipping the outside wall as they negotiated the track, they kept getting their right side spoilers into the fence, tearing the spoilers either loose or off entirely and during the early going, yellows were very frequent to pick up spoiler pieces or signs foolishly attached to the walls. More cars than not tore spoilers off during qualifying. 

As for the track itself, it was smooth but it was also perhaps the driest that I have ever seen it with it getting black and super slippery very early into the proceedings. The air quality was very bad with numerous breaks needed to clear the air and I think the dust was also the worst ever with at several points being so heavy that it was hard to see the back chute from the front stretch grandstands. The announcers were lauding the track for being so racy, which frankly I didn't see but not much mention of the other issues and folks walked out of the races looking much the worst for wear. It would be nice to be able to watch the show but not have to wear the whole track home at the end of the night. 

The track gave out quickly when time trials started and with qualifying positions being so important, the draw for time trial order was probably the most important element of the entire night. The Late Model field was divided into two groups with Michael Leach, the fifth driver out, topping the first group and turning the fastest lap of the night at 11.794 seconds. Bobby Pierce, sixth out in the second group, topped that group with a 12.010 seconds as the track slowed down even more. 

Tyler Erb, always one that can be counted on for entertainment value at this race, disappointed his fans when after turning a quick lap, he blew the motor in his car on the second trip around the fifth mile oval and was done for the weekend. 

Six Late Model heat races and three B Features were held to set the, as it turned out, nineteen car field for the main event. Due to some kind of clerical error, Scott Bell wasn't in the lineup for a B Feature when he should have been to so appease him, he was allowed to start the feature as a provisional starter. Not all drivers were guaranteed two races so if you didn't finish near the front of a heat race, you were done for the night. Imagine towing all the way across the country only to get to run eight laps!

In another wrinkle, the six heat winners, instead of redrawing for their starting positions, participated in a tire changing contest to determine who would start where in the first three rows of the feature. With starting position being so important, it seemed like an odd way to to set the field but one must remember that this event is short on actual race and long on spectacle and race organizers apparently felt that this would provide even more entertainment value. The announcers were all over this and seemed to be having a jolly old time with it, but many in the crowd where just anxious to get the race going. Pierce's team, by the way, won the contest which gave him the pole. 

The only surprise in the feature was that Pierce didn't lead from start to finish. Mike Harrison actually got the jump on him and led the opening four laps until Bobby built up some speed and then slid Harrison in turn one for the lead. 

The race was then over, with Pierce leading the rest of the way and never being challenged. Only two yellows slowed the event, both for debris(spoiler parts) on the track with Harrison doing a good job and holding on to second. The best race was watching Brandon Sheppard move forward and late in the race he passed Brian Shirley for third, that being important as only the top three are guaranteed starting spots on Saturday. Only two drivers failed to finish and Pierce was just catching the tail of the field when the checkers waved. 

The Modifieds were much the same. Four heats and a B Feature set their order for their twenty lap main event. The difference was that the Modified winners redrew for their starting positions instead of a tire changing, or motor changing or some other form of contest. 

Thornton Jr. led from start to finish in the Modified main with Dallon Murty slipping into second by the halfway point and staying fairly close to the leader. Tanner Mullens ran second early but slipped back a bit as Trent Young came from the sixth row to move into the third spot. 

The only yellow occurred with just a lap completed but it was a big one right on the front stretch that eliminated several cars and put others to the back. Tyler Nicely, outside pole starter was the big loser while Young saw the ocean open in front of him as he gained a number of spots. 

The crowd was believed to be the biggest Thursday night crowd yet and I'm sure the tv crowd was humongous also. Plan for a whole day in the dome if you're going to this race as the first green flag for competition flew sometime after 5 pm and it was about 5 hours later when the last checkers flew.