Grabouski Tops Beatrice Spring Nationals Opener

 On March 13th and 14th, the thirty third annual Spring Nationals was held at the Beatrice Speedway at the Gage County Fairgrounds in Beatrice Nebraska. I had been trying to attend this race for at least the last couple years but they have been plagued by bad Spring weather, having to reschedule the race seemingly every year and that has not worked to my benefit. 

However, 2026 would break the mold on that difficulty as relatively great weather would be the case in the weeks and days leading up to the event and there would be no question this year that the race would be held. 

A reverse problem was in effect this year with a "red flag" warning for the entire area as bone dry conditions and of course, the strong Spring winds in Nebraska have left a very serious fire threat to most of the state. In fact, folks arriving from the North on Thursday for practice night had to be detoured because a large grass fire very near Beatrice caused highway 77, the route off the interstate to Beatrice, to be closed. The blackened remnants of the fire could be seen on Friday but no such repeat occurrences happened, even though it was another breezy day with the wind finally abating after sunset. 

One hundred and ninety seven drivers signed in to race on the opening night in the standard five classes that IMCA typically offers. One nice thing for me is that this race brings a mix of familiar names and teams plus many from the Nebraska and Kansas area that I don't regularly get to see in action. Plus there are always some early season drivers anxious to travel with other drivers on hand from North and South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin plus a few other areas also. 

J VAN is the promoter for this race and that provides the comforting feeling that this show will be moved along as fast as humanly possible. This year the Race Committee at Beatrice, along with Jerry, have set up two full shows of racing and while that is the fairest and most attractive way of attracting drivers, it is also a strain to get two big shows completed in a reasonable length of time and not be racing until the wee hours of the morning. 

The format used was a bit different for the area drivers but one that was used by Brad Whitfield at the IMCA TV Winter Nationals in Casa Grande in January and is the most fair way of administering the program with such large fields of drivers in each class. Passing points, a rare commodity for IMCA racing, was used plus all heat winners were guaranteed starting spots in the main. The heat winners redrew for their starting spots with the rest of the sixteen from the heats using passing points to line up their starting spots. B Features filled out the rest of the fields and twenty four drivers started each feature. The one spin rule was used for the heats and it would have helped move things along if it were used for the B Features also as they were the trouble spot all night. Still, the show moved along at a brisk clip all night and there were no complaints in that regard. 

With any event at Beatrice, Jordan Grabouski is always the favorite to win one and perhaps two of the feature races. After having bad luck end his challenging run in the Stock Cars, he came back to make a late race pass and win the Modified feature which was the final event on the program. Other winners included Jesse Sobbing in the Stock Cars, Tyler Nerud in the Sport Mods, Branden Stigge in the Hobby Stocks and Carson Black in the Sport Compacts as local competitors did very well indeed in all divisions. 

The only class that didn't require at least one B Feature was the Sport Compacts with all entering the main event. Other classes saw a pair of B Features to determine the twenty four starters for each main with no provisional starters on this night as everyone had to race their way into the show. 

The Modified feature  was very close to providing the biggest upset of the night in what was the only nonstop main to be run. And even though Grabouski started on the pole, he got beat into the first corner by Kaylin Lopez who then took the early lead. 

Lopez was very fast, pulling away from Grabo and the rest of the field and for the longest time it appeared that he might pull off the win. However, the hot pace that he set might have been his undoing though, as he was running the middle groove and we had not seen that line work much for the features with the majority of the drivers running right on the hub against the inside wall while a few were still pounding the cushion against the outside wall. 

By the halfway point of the race, Grabouski was starting to reel in Lopez, who had built up a nice sized lead. Tyler Inman was having a great run in third with Jeremy Mills and Shawn Harker next in line. Lopez started to visibly slow in the corners as the higher line was likely burning off his tires and Grabo knew how to save his rubber. 

Lopez started to slip higher and higher and on lap twelve, Grabouski drove under him in turn four and took over the lead. After that,  Jordan gradually pulled away as Lopez struggled to stay with him. The icy slick track threw many of the drivers off but not Grabouski who drove home for the win with room to spare. Lopez did wrap up a fine run in second nevertheless and Inman, who I believe is a Modified rookie, drove a smooth race to finish third ahead of Mills and Harker. 

Grabouski was also a favorite to win the Stock Car feature until some late race bad luck ended his run during an event that saw some wild goings on. Jesse Sobbing started on the pole and took the early lead as of course, Sobbing was one of the few pounding the cushion as he likes to do and he was making it work. Grabouski had started fourth and by the halfway point of the race that saw the first yellow for a spin, he had moved up to second. Kyle Vanover had moved into fourth behind Damon Murty with Kolby Stegman rounding out the top five. 

As often happens, the restart proved to have a big effect on the race. Grabouski jumped into the lead as the cushion slowed down Sobbing for the restart and Murty tried to get a run off the top side in turn four and that cost him several positions. Sobbing continued to try the outside but it wasn't working and he had to settle back in line behind Grabo with Dillon Richards, who started ninth, showing much speed as he cracked the top five. 

Sobbing went for broke after a lap twelve yellow for a spinner, pounding off the cushion in turns one and two and then diving to the low side in three and four where there was nothing up top to work off of. He was able to gain some momentum using that line and he got a great run down the back chute on lap sixteen and squeezed inside of Grabouski. They were very tight together in turn three but Sobbing got the edge and moved into the lead. 

One lap later Grabouski had a right front tire go flat and he pulled off. A late yellow set up a two lap sprint to conclude the race and things got mighty physical at this point. While Sobbing was able to slip away as the leader, Vanover, Richards, Murty and others were all over each other for position with lots of banging and squeezing going on. 

Richards was the big loser as he got shuffled to the back with Vanover taking second and Murty climbing back up to third ahead of Johnny Yutterman and Doug Holzmeister  as things really got shuffled up at the end. 

The Sport Mod field was the largest of the five divisions with forty eight of them on hand. Their main event saw Tyler Nerud make the move of the race on the opening lap and then establish that he was indeed the fastest car on this night. 

Nerud started on the outside of row two, but he used the cushion in turns one and two to blow past front row starters Taylor Metz and Steve Swartout and take the lead down the back chute on lap one. And after that, he would lead the final nineteen laps to score the win. 

This race had only one yellow flag and that was just before the halfway point. Brayton Carter, still in the Six car, had worked his way up to second after a good battle with Metz and on the restart, he tried to get a big run on the outside of turn four but his fate was much like that of Murty in the following race as he lost much ground and dropped out of the top five. 

that moved Cam Reimers into second but he had nothing for the leader as Nerud pulled away from him and drove away from the field, not being challenged the rest of the event. Reimers settled for second with Cole Wayman moving up from the fourth row to get third. Carter fought his way back up to fourth and Adam Armstrong came from the seventh row to round out the top five. Only two drivers failed to finish this race and all were still on the lead lap at the checkers. 

The Hobby Stock feature was a tight contest with the top four drivers running in tight formation. Brandon Stigge led from start to finish in the twenty lapper but he was pursued closely the whole event. Stigge started in row two but was able to squeeze past both Anthony Davis and Nick Ronnebaum to take the top spot and he then guarded the inside line for the rest of the race. 

Hobby Stock drivers were not able to make the outside work so they lined up in formation, working the inside line and Stigge was smart in not giving any inside openings. By the halfway point of the race, Austin Jahnz had worked his way up to third as he seemed to be one of the few drivers able to make the second lane work.  Yellow flags, back to back with eleven laps complete, bunched the field and Jahnz tried to steal away the race by moving up the track. He was ever so close to doing so as he raced side by side with Ronnebaum for a couple laps but the second lane just didn't work for him and he got shuffled back in the pack. 

Stigge was very careful at the end, shutting down early in the corners to not give anyone a shot at the inside and to his credit, on a night when many were using the "chrome horn" aggressively, Ronnebaum played it clean. He rode the rear bumper of Stigge but didn't do any banging and at the finish, he was glued to it to finish second with Stigge taking the win. 

Dan Nelson had as much success as anyone using the second lane as late in the race he drove up to third one lane above the pack. Tyler Huss finished fourth with Jahnz salvaging fifth. 

The Sport Compact feature was a patience tester for many, including me. All twenty eight drivers on hand started the feature and that was trouble right from the start. In all, the yellow flew seven times and the race was cut short by one lap after the second flip of the event on the final tour. 

When they were racing, there was an excellent battle for the lead but there was not nearly as much racing as there was circling the track under caution. Brooke Osler started on the outside pole and she took the early lead. She was battling with Brandon Carmichael, Carson and Jackson Black and Gilbert Aldape early. 

The race started crazy with Gage Barton going over the wall in turn three and then returning to the track as if nothing had happened. It occurred so fast that I and many in the crowd totally missed it but the yellow was required. 

While Osler was scored the leader of the first seven laps, she was engaged in a real battle with Carmichael and the Blacks. On lap eight, Carson Black got past Osler, but she returned the favor one lap later. The yellow flew again and on the restart she got too high in turn one and Jackson Black got past her for the lead and after that, things would go downhill for her. 

A hard flip on the front chute by Konnor Moore stopped the action with twelve laps completed with Jackson still in front with Johnny Thomas and Carson trailing as Carmichael had retired to the pit with front end damage. 

The final restart saw another scrum take place as Carson got a very good restart, perhaps a bit too good, but in any case, he was able to pass both Thomas and Jackson Black to take over the lead. On the back chute, Justin Best went for a flip of his own and the race was checkered at this point, rather than backing up to run the final two laps. 

Carson Black was awarded the win over his brother Jackson, Tobey VanLaningham, Thomas and Levi Volkert. Exactly half the starting field was still running at the finish and there will be many with some substantial repair work necessary to return on Saturday. The win was Carson Black's first ever feature win and he picked a big race to accomplish this feat. 

Thirty three races were run off on Friday night in five and a third hours and it would have been even quicker if a little more restraint had been shown by a few of the competitors. With impending weather expected, the start time for Saturday's show has been moved up by an hour with brief hot laps scheduled for 3:20 pm and racing to follow immediately. 

Dillard Wins Revival Series Opener at Boothill

 Our trip to Arizona and Florida ended up with a side bar trip to Louisiana and one more race as we attended the 2026 opener for the Revival  Super Dirt Series for Late Models at historic Boothill Speedway near Shreveport on Friday night, March 6th. Along with the Nutrien Ag sponsored series, all the divisions that race at Boothill would be in action also for their season opener at the track. 

How we got to "The Hill" was a bit of a roundabout journey as our original plan was to head to Texas this week, do some family stuff and, oh by the way, the USMTS was scheduled to begin their 2026 season at the Kennedale Raceway Park this weekend. And while our weather for most of our trip has been good to great, this was a week of rain, storms and threatening weather. 

The USMTS went down the drain early this week with a stormy forecast so an intriguing back up plan was to instead head to Shreveport for the doubleheader weekend scheduled for the Revival Series for the Ronny Adams Memorial opener. However, that plan was also altered by a bad forecast for Shreveport but to the credit of the track promoters and the series, they reduced the weekend to just a one night show on Friday but at the higher purse that they had planned on offering for the Saturday show which was cancelled. 

So, on a hot and steamy Friday night, the fifth annual Adams Memorial was carried out at Boothill featuring the Revival Late Models plus all the classes that race at Boothill weekly. The competitors were late arriving on a Friday night, but when everyone had signed in, there were one hundred and forty drivers ready to race in a packed pit area in the six classes offered. They actually combined two classes into one as the Sportster division normally races as two classes with one for rookies and another for all other drivers but to expedite things on Friday, they all raced as one. We'll get into Sportsters later. 

The Revival Series is going through a bit of a change this year. They recently announced that they would no longer be affiliated with POWRi and would instead be running their own series with both a North and South division with point funds for both plus an overall point fund too.  Tyler and Jacob Magee out of Kansas are still running the series but  their flagman Chris Loberg, who by the way is originally from Wisconsin and used to drive Modifieds at many of my local tracks, told me that their series is expanding into a number of new tracks for 2026. 

They had nineteen drivers sign in for their first show, likely a disappointment but understandable due to the weather that was even a threat on Friday and hard to justify for some to make a very long tow for just one night of racing. However, the combined point fund clearly didn't excite too many as nine of the top ten in points last year, all of them from the Northern Region, failed to appear with just Chris Bragg on hand. Clearly the overall point champion will come from the Southern region. Thirty drivers had made commitments but various reasons kept some home. 

Some interesting rules for Revival include the fact that both Hoosier and American Racer tires are allowed. There were two drivers on AM including winner Cade Dillard but I wouldn't consider his win revealing since I believe he could have easily been the winner here even if he used solid rubber bicycle tires! That's how fast he is and how well he knows this track. Morgan Bagley did make it interesting though. 

Revival Series qualifies their cars just like most traveling series this day but the fastest six then run a dash to set the running order for the first three rows and they don't have to run a heat. All others run a heat and with Friday night's field, no B Feature was necessary. 

Dillard won the dash so he started on the pole for the feature race and he took and immediate lead. Three yellows slowed the action in the first few laps but then they had a long green flag period of racing. Morgan Bagley and Clay Stuckey had a good battle for second with several slide jobs thrown as they crossed each other over. Then the track started taking rubber rather dramatically and everyone lined up as a speed context broke out. 

By the halfway point of the race, Jon Mitchell had moved into third while Dillard had most of a straightaway lead over the field. During that long green flag run however, Dillard started to get hung up badly behind some slower cars and with the rubber situation,, he was afraid to try and pass them . This gave Bagley a big opportunity and he was able to close up right on Dillard and Morgan even tried to pull off a slider or two but he couldn't quite get the job done. 

With only five laps to go, things changed dramatically when Stuckey clobbered the turn one wall and rolled to a halt. This lined the field up single file, there was no traffic to deal with and Dillard pulled away to take the win with room to spare. Bagley finished second and Mitchell third. Eli Ross and Bragg completed the top five. Dillard is a local boy here and his win was well received. 

The other five classes were a mixture of USRA rules classes and local rules classes. The Factory Stocks are a wildly popular class in this area of the country with seemingly every track having lots of cars and the competition keen. For this regular Friday night of racing, forty of them signed in to race. They look much like Stock Cars with the majority of them nice in appearance and they race hard with a number of big money shows for them at tracks throughout the southern states as it seems that every track has a Factory Stock class. 

Four heats and a B Feature set their twenty car starting field for the main as Boothill doesn't run more than twenty cars in their support classes for mains on the quarter mile. Justin Whitehead is a well known figure in this class and after starting on the outside pole, he went on to win the fifteen lap feature race. Most of the support classes were scheduled for twenty lap features but with weather threatening, the distance on the features was reduced. 

As Whitehead continued to lead, Jace Reid and Daulton Faulkner had a dandy battle for second with several slide jobs breaking out. Three yellow flags in the first five laps kept things interesting with the third eliminating Faulkner. 

Neil Kemp, in one of many Twin City Towing cars on hand, started seventh and kept his nose clean and with others eliminating themselves, he found himself in second and putting the pressure on Whitehead for the lead. 

For the vast majority of the race, those team ran in tandem fashion, with Kemp occasionally tapping the rear bumper of Whitehead but nothing malicious, unlike several of the moves seen in other classes. That's the way they raced to the finish, with Kemp glued to the rear bumper of Whitehead, who refused to make a mistake and took the win. 

The B Mods and Limited Mods were running under USRA rules with good fields in both classes. The B Mods needed a B Feature and other than Dillard's win in the Lates, this was the only class that saw the winner lead from start to finish. In the B Mod case, it was Colby Williams who surprisingly got the jump on local legend Jeremy Haddox and then would lead from start to finish in the fifteen lapper. 

The B Mods behaved themselves with only a single yellow flag that stopped the action before the first lap could be completed. After that, it was Williams who led the rest of the way. Haddox and Chance Haddox moved into second and third but had nothing for the leader. The track was very technical and one slip in the corners would have meant disaster with everyone running the inside line but Williams had the field covered. 

The Limited Mods are USRA's version of the Southern Sport Mods and many race both, just changing tires as required.   Conner Mewhorn led the opening lap of the Limited Mod feature but then Derick Grigsby, the biggest winner at the track in recent years, was able to slip under Mewhorn one lap later and he led the rest of the way for the win. 

He had a late scare when on the last lap and the race seemingly over, the yellow flew for a spinner and they had to redo the last two laps. It was, however, no problem for Grigsby who pulled away again for the win. Steven Guidry moved into second on lap five and he chased Grigsby the rest of the way but had to settle for second with Dustin Henigan third. 

There were fireworks during the Tuner feature. Things got off to a shaky start as on the first corner of the first lap, Jonathan Rodriquez, starting on the outside pole, had a wheel shear off, he slammed into the outside wall and flipped on to his roof. He was OK and was actually out of the car before rescue workers could even get to him. 

The race then turned into a two car battle with some questionable tactics used to get the win. Greyson Wooten moved into the lead on the restart with Tyler Ellis chasing him closely. On lap four, Ellis just nailed Wooten in the rear bumper down the back chute, turning Wooten sideways as he drove by for the lead. Actually Wooten did a great job to not spin out and did indeed retain the second spot. 

There were no more yellows during the race which was unfortunate for Wooten as he likely had revenge on his mind. Not being too good at taking other drivers out, he tried twice on the final lap to return the favor to Ellis but he missed both times and Ellis drove on for the win. I'm guessing the post race fun in the pits was spirted. Actually I was surprised all night by the amount of "fire" between drivers as there were numerous post race bumps and threats displayed and this was just the opening night! I can't imagine what things are like come the hot and humid nights of August!

In the wee hours of the morning, the Sportsters rounded out the racing action. The Sportster class is one that runs at a number of tracks in this area and they are basically tanks on wheels. Full frame cars with plenty of pipe in them, asphalt tire "take offs" from Wisconsin tracks and no front ends, they don't hesitate to nerf and bang and the looks of many reflect that. There were even a couple that had co-pilots in the passenger seats!. 

However, their feature was also the most contested of the night and had a great two car battle for the win between John Tuggle and Jarrett Stricklin. By my unofficial count, the lead changed hands at the line six times in their fifteen lap race between the two as they swapped the top spot time and again and while everyone else was using the "crown horn" plenty, I don't believe these two touched once. 

A couple of big pileups took out several cars and ignited feelings with Stricklin last grabbing the lead on lap nine. However, one lap later Tuggle again got past and held on then for the win. Stricklin finished second and   Brentley Smith, who started twentieth and avoided the wrecks, finished third. 

The final checkers waved at 1 a.m. a downside that I have encountered several times before, unfortunately at this track. A five hour racing program is not unreasonable given the number of events and laps to be run but when hot laps take forever and the first race doesn't hit the track until 8 pm, that is too late on a Friday night. 

Thanks to Loberg for introducing me to the Magee Brothers and Ralo Pilkington, half of the promoter ship team with Bubba Jones of Boothill, and for their help on this night. Boothill has a number of special events coming up on their schedule including a thirty thousand dollar to win Limited Mod race while Revival's next race in the last weekend of March when they pair with Comp Cams, something they will do often this year, for a special at Arrowhead Speedway in Oklahoma. 

And now it is time to head back to Wisconsin. However, J VAN please get the gizzards ready at Beatrice  as the plan is to sample them next weekend! 

 

Bike Week Finale All Anthony Macri

 Monday night, March 2nd, the World Of Outlaws completed a rare Sunday and Monday doubleheader prompted by Bike Week activities in Daytona Beach and it was Anthony Macri that took the WoO regulars to task as he dominated the final half of the feature race to claim his second WoO feature race of the season. 

Monday night saw thirty one drivers again sign in to race, in fact the exact same drivers that raced on Sunday night. The track was considerably slower on Monday with the racing groove slicker but also wider which the drivers liked and it made passing a much more manageable thing than on Sunday night. Instead of flirting with the existing track record, Sheldon Haudenschild, as the third driver out for qualifying, turned a lap just about a full second slower than the track record. 

The program would be the exact same as on Sunday with three heats, the dash, B Feature and then another twenty five lap main for the Sprint Cars. Haudenschild won the dash over David Gravel and he would start on the pole for the feature as he looked for his second straight win. 

However, things would not go nearly as well for him as both he and Gravel got passed on the opening lap by Carson Macedo for the lead and things would just go downhill from that point for Haudenschild with him slipping back to eighth at the finish. 

Macedo held off Gravel until lap ten when David passed him, however Macedo didn't give up and showing lots of speed, one lap later he raced past Gravel to retake the lead. Meanwhile, Macri had started fourth, dropped back just a bit but then the track came to him and he started to march to the front. By the halfway point of the race, he had passed Gravel for second and was closing on Macedo for the lead. Ashton Torgerson and Scotty Thiel, having a good run, were also in the top five at the halfway point. 

Macri continued to press and on lap fourteen he drove past Macedo to take over the lead, but the yellow flew just four laps later and bunched the pack with Macedo and Gravel right behind him. 

However, Macri's car seemed to get stronger as the race  went on and after that last yellow he pulled away from both his challengers and remained in the clear for the last seven laps. Gravel tried to move to the outside to gain some speed but in the last five laps or so the track started to take rubber and the inside line was the place to be. 

Torgerson found the changing track conditions to his liking as he got past Macedo for third and when Gravel continued to try the outside, he was also able to drive past him for second. Finally, Gravel dropped to the inside, cut his loses and settled for third ahead of Macedo and Daryn Pittman. 

Both Torgerson and Pittman's car came alive as the track changed with them moving up from  the third and fifth rows respectively. Only four drivers failed to finish the race but with the well timed yellows,WoO regulars. Donny Schatz was leading a heat race when his car quit and he had to run a B Feature. Bill Balog broke in the B Feature after a poor heat race and he had to rely on a provisional to start the feature. But the worst luck was endured by Buddy Kofoid who broke in both a heat and the B Feature and then, after surrendering one of his provisional starts to race the feature, he couldn't get his back up car to run and sat on pit road as the green flag waved. Running the WoO is not a poor man's game as at least four motors were changed by teams in the last two nights at a monumental expense. 

As they did on Sunday night, the Factory Stocks ran as the support class for the WoO. Sunday was a tough night for them mechanically with a number not returning on Monday and they had only twelve cars to race. 

However, that didn't stop them from putting on their second straight entertaining feature race and proving they deserved to be a part of the show. The lead changed hands officially three times during their twenty lap feature race, much of which was highlighted by a four car pack battling for the lead. 

Tanner Thomas started on the outside pole and he got the early jump on his father Patrick to lead lap one. However, Patrick would have none of that and on the next lap he passed his son to take over the top spot. But neither one of them could hold off Rich Pratt who passed both and took the lead on lap four. 

By the halfway point of the race, Pratt continued to lead over Tanner Thomas, Mikey Kopka, Patruck Thomas and Ron Adams. 

Most of the front runners were now hugging the low line in the corners but Tanner Thomas made the decision to try to move up the track and it worked great for him. He was able to keep his momentum up as he climbed high in the corners and on lap eleven he passed Pratt to retake the lead, the first time he had led since lap one. 

He then pulled away from the field, not hindered by the lone yellow of the race that flew with thirteen laps complete. Tanner would continue to charge and he drove on for the win. Father Patrick made a late race charge and got by Pratt for second with Jason Garver and Sunday night winner Dustin Turnage Sr completing the top five. Ten of the twelve starters were still on the track at the finish. 

Because of the Monday night show, the race schedule was flopped for this night with the Sprint feature coming first and about 90% of the crowd was gone by the time the checkers flew for the Factory Stocks. 

With the conclusion of the show on Monday, this will very likely conclude my appearances at Volusia Speedway Park for 2026 and although the "World's Fastest Half Mile" track is not really the fastest and indeed, not a true half mile either for that matter, the World Racing Group has put on some excellent racing in the month's of January and February for fans from throughout the country. Thanks to all the officials from the World Racing Group's many branches and all the employees of Volusia Speedway Park. 

With things quieting down now at the speedway, the gators have returned to their pond with a nice six footer or so seen swimming serenely as the Sprint Cars made their runs. 

Haudenschild Mows Down Bike Week WoO Competitors

 It is "Bike Week" in Daytona Beach and for the last two years that has brought the World Of Outlaws Sprint Cars back to Florida for a quick second appearance before the long grind of their season takes them across the country. 

And their Sunday night, March 1st appearance at Volusia Speedway Park gave Sheldon Haudenschild the opportunity  to shake off some early season stumbles when they last appeared here as he dominated the field, leading from start to finish in the twenty five lap feature race and never being challenged for the top spot. 

Thirty one drivers signed in to race on Sunday night including all the drivers that routinely run the WoO series along with some Pennsylvania stars that made the early season pull down to Florida. Heavy rain on Friday night had thoroughly saturated the track and when I walked it during the afternoon, it looked untouched from when they finished up after the Late Models a couple of weeks ago. They put just a sprinkling of water on it late in the afternoon and then rolled it in and the track turned out to be blinding fast while still remaining smooth. 

Time trials was a speed fest with driver after driver lowering the quick mark with David Gravel, the twenty second driver to take time, settling the standard with a near track record 12.673 and if you are familiar with Volusia, you know that is a mighty fast time for the size of that track. 

The WoO program would consist of three heats, a dash and B Feature and the twenty five lap main. Six drivers would move up out of the three heats, with everyone else running the B Feature which would move up another six. All three heats were won from the front row, but that was not a surprise. 

The redraw and then running of the Dash was key as with passing tough, track position was everything. Haudenschild redrew the outside pole and then beat Carson Macedo for the win in the dash which gave him the pole for the feature race. 

Haudenschild got the jump on the green and led early over Macedo and Gravel. A flip by Kerry Madsen, while he was running fourth stopped the action with ten laps completed and then Haudenschild caught a big break, the kind you sometimes need to win no matter how fast you are. 

On the restart, Macedo got the jump on Haud, squeezed past him in turn one and looked to be the new leader. However, fourth running Logan Schuchart spun before that lap was completed and Haud got a "do over." 

But not only was it significant in that he got the top spot back, because it was a yellow after a yellow and no laps had been completed, under WoO rules the restart was single file and Haud didn't need Macedo beside him again. This time he didn't bobble and he moved back into the lead.

Gravel was on the move and by the halfway point had moved past Macedo for second with Ashton Torgerson and Tanner Holmes in the top five. 

The final laps saw Gravel try to cut into Haud's lead but Sheldon played the slower traffic just right and didn't allow Gravel to close up on him. He crossed the finish line comfortably in front in winning his first feature of 2026. Late rushes by Buddy Kofoid, up from twelfth and Daison Pursley saw them complete the top five. Only two drivers failed to finish the race while Daryn Pittman, scheduled to start sixteenth, scratched out of the event. 

Running with the Outlaws were the local Factory Stocks and twenty Factory Stock drivers signed in to race. They were split into two heats and a twenty lap main event and their feature was actually very good. 

For much of the contest, it was a side by side battle for the top spot. Early on, Willy Cuddy took the lead from the outside pole while Mike Tovet and Dustin Turnage Sr battled for second. There were three yellows in the first six laps which kept the field bunched and while Cuddy continued to lead, Tovet and Turnage Sr went back and forth for second. 

Finally, on lap seven Turnage Sr secured second and he pulled in to challenge Cuddy for the lead. For a number of laps, they put on an entertaining battle with Cuddy riding the cushion while Turnage Sr tried lap after lap to get under him for the lead, even as yellows slowed the action. Once the green flew again, they went right back after it with each other. 

Lap thirteen saw Turnage Sr finally edge under Cuddy for the lead and after that, he pulled away slightly and with no more slow downs, drove on for the win. Tovet settled for third with Justin Reynolds and Bud Chancey completing the top five. The heavy track that pulled hard took its toll on the Factory Stocks with only about half the field finishing as overheating engines and worse struck several of the competitors. 

I was surprised that track officials chose to run the Factory Stock feature first and as the number of yellows began to rise, the Sprint Car fans on hand probably started to get a bit anxious. However, the overall time was quite early so they didn't grumble and mutter too much. Just as the final checkered flag waved at 10:06 pm for the WoO feature, announcer Johnny Gibson alerted us that the rocket launch from The Cape could be seen and as we looked to the Southeast over the grandstands, there it was in full view! What a spectacular conclusion to the evening! I had known but forgot that there was a launch scheduled for Sunday night but thanks to Johnny, we all got to see it. 

I was very surprised to see just how many spectators were on hand Sunday. I seem to remember watching last year's race on tv and not seeing very many people in the stands but Sunday night's crowd would rival any that were on hand for last month's Speed Weeks races. It also seemed the concession planning was a bit underwhelming as there weren't nearly as many stations open on Sunday and the lines for food and drink were long, long, long. 

O'Neal Inherits Lead, Motors On For Twenty Five Grand Victory in Ocala Finale

 After the rainout of Friday night, February 27th for round four of the Winter Nationals at Ocala Speedway, everyone was chomping at the bit to race on Saturday for the finale. However, it proved to not be quite that easy. 

Anywhere from two to third inches of rain had fallen on Friday afternoon and evening, turning the race track and pit area into a sea of mud. There was very little in the way of drying conditions on Saturday either as it remained cloudy and damp most of the day. It was not until after Lunch that the track officials determined that they would be able to get the track in proper racing shape and they gave the "go ahead" to start advertising for the program and start making refunds to those folks that had bought multi day armbands and needed a refund for the non show of Friday. 

In the final analysis, they did a great job getting the track into racing shape. It had just a bit of "character" but nothing unforeseen and it really had no bearing on the racing. What the track was however, was "hammer down" and there was not much they could do about that. It made everybody fast and made it hard to pass but that was certainly better than the alternative and that was to send everyone home disappointed. 

There were several drivers that did bail out after the rainout on Friday though as a mixture of the rain, anticipated racing conditions and poor performance on the part of  some saw seven less drivers on hand for the Saturday night finale and only thirty four on hand, which is quite small given that the Saturday night show paid twenty five grand to win. Car counts have been smaller all week compared to last year and the finale was a full Baker's Dozen less competitors. 

With the number of competitors on hand Saturday, the program was identical to that of the rest of the week with the lone exception that the main event would go fifty laps. Brandon Overton and Drake Troutman were the quickest drivers in their two groups, with Overton quickest overall at 14.338 seconds. As per normal, all six qualifying events saw the winner come off the front row. However, two nasty crashes in the first heat race saw Justin Weaver, Daulton Wilson and Cody Hedgecock all done for the night with major damage. 

With three provisional starters, there would be twenty five drivers to take the green for the start of the fifty lapper. Quite often on Saturday, the inside row has been a bit slower, probably because the moisture bubbling up made the low groove just a big slick. Thus it was that Overton jumped into the early lead from the outside row. O'Neal started fourth but quickly picked off both Brandon Sheppard and Drake Troutman and the battle was on. 

Two spaced out yellow on laps ten and twenty one broke up the race and allowed the number of back markers to be limited, although Overton was having some difficulty that allowed O'Neal to challenge him on two occasions. 

The halfway point saw Troutman still running third with Brandon Sheppard and Devin Moran next in line. Brian Shirley slowed with a flat tire with thirty six laps complete when a shocking development changed the course of the race. Overton developed a flat rear tire and he was forced to pit under yellow, turning the lead over to O'Neal. Sheppard and Moran had worked their way up to second at this point. 

A lap thirty eight yellow for a slowing car bunched the field once again with Moran pushing Sheppard for second as Tim McCreadie slipped into the top five. 

A huge development occurred after just five more green flag laps were completed. Sheppard, still running second, slowed with a flat tire of his own and the running order was shuffled once again. This moved Moran up to second and it was up to O'Neal to hold him off. 

O'Neal was plenty quick and he had no trouble keeping Moran behind him as he led the final fourteen laps to score the victory. McCreadie drove the smoothest of races, taking advantage of the opportunities offered him as he ended up with a podium finish. Jonathan Davenport came from ninth to finish fourth and Troutman completed the top five. The race did take its toll on the equipment and there were nine drivers that dropped out before the finish of the race.  

Continuing a week of very promptly run racing programs, the final checkered once again flew before 9 pm and I believe the fans totally enjoyed the one division program that got done at an early hour. Again, I heard no one that complained that the races got done so early even as they were paying a rather premium price for their tickets. Clearly they came to see Late Models and nothing else, at least this week. 

Despite a really gloomy day and evening, a very large crowd was on hand for the program and with the Ocala fan parking lot shrinking more each year, fans found some very inventive ways of parking their vehicles. 

Thanks to the officials of the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series for all their help as well as Bubba and his crew of employees who put in some long hours working at the track. The LOLMS now moves up to Georgia for four more nights of racing next week before they finally get to take some time off. 

Bronson Can't Hold On, O'Neal Takes Ocala Lucas Run

 Thursday night, February 26th brought the best weather of the week so far to the Ocala Speedway for night number three of the Lucas Oil Late Model Series. On a night when the track surface took a back step in providing the kind of racing that everyone was hoping for, Hudson O'Neal nevertheless was pleased with the outcome as he was able to drive under Kyle Bronson near the halfway point and then hide out amongst the slower cars and take the forty lap feature win worth ten grand. 

The biggest story of the night was no doubt the track conditions that led to the kind of racing that we saw for much of the main event, and while I don't want to make too big a deal about it, it was significant in that it affected the style of racing we saw. 

All week the track prep crew has been working very hard, trying to work with  the new dirt applied to the track while mixing in the variables such as temperature, sunshine, wind and humidity, stirring it all up and trying to create a track that has bite, is fast but is not so fast as to prevent passing and certainly also not rubbering up. 

So far, the first two nights have seen a very fast track that has made it a bit hard for passing, even as they cut down the amount of water applied to the track each night. The track was distinctly drier on Thursday as James Essex reported, "they took the keys out of the water truck." Unfortunately, at least on this night, that didn't prove to be the answer either. 

Forty one drivers signed in to race on Thursday for the first night of Lucas point awarded here this week. Four first time drivers were in the pits while three others decided their "fun meters" were pegged and they headed for home or for the beach. However, the four that were new were clearly stronger than the departing three, so the overall strength of the field just increased. And while the overall racing was pretty staid and uneventful, there were several notable things that happened during the course of the racing. 

The first would be the quick time award which was won by rookie driver Dallon Murty as he turned a lap at 14.232 seconds with the vibrations felt all the way down to Florida from all the Hawkeye fans dancing in the streets over that development. And while the quick time was excellent, ultimately the evening proved to be another learning lesson after he pounded the first turn wall on the opening lap of the main event and went off on the hook. This corner was the focal point of much action during the night and the Bruening Team would have two cars to fix as Tyler Bruening pounded that same wall during the first lap of a heat race and went off on the hook also. In fact, Bruening would later take a trip to a local hospital for a CT scan after complaining of neck pain. No further word on his was available. 

Jonathan Davenport was one of four heat winners from the front row after he turned the quickest time in the second group at 14.448 as the track started to slow down quickly, starting showing some slick but still during the heat races didn't widen out as they had hoped. The true lone outside lane pass attempt was made by Brandon Sheppard on a last lap run at Brandon Overton during the final heat race but it didn't work and he had to pull back in line to salvage second. 

A pair of B Features set the final starters for the main and with the provisional positions starting to kick in for this point race, there were fourteen rows of drivers ready for the forty lap main event. 

And there was much craziness in the first few laps, even if the racing itself was less than scintillating. Things started out with a bang on the opening lap with Kyle Bronson and Davenport barreling into turn one, going for the lead. Davenport knew he had to make his move quick because the drivers felt that the track would soon rubber up and go one lane. Unfortunately, as Davenport tried to race around the high side of Bronson he managed to hook his outside quarter panel, sending Bronson spinning and Davenport slamming into that dog gone turn one wall again. Davenport nearly turned over and he reported after the show that his car would have to go back to Longhorn for repairs. Bronson had some nose damage but would restart the race. It was also reported that both drivers talked out the issue, there were no hard feelings as both understood it to be just a racing incident. 

The race was restarted with Bronson again on the pole but turn one spoke up again with both Murty and Garrett Alberson pounding the wall with both off on the hook. This was a strange start to the race for sure. While under yellow three laps later, both Brian Shirley, running second, and Brandon Sheppard, in the top ten, both pitted for new rubber after getting flat tires and the top ten running order was changing rapidly.

With four yellows in the first five laps, this was not a classic way to start a feature but after that, things settled down with over thirty straight laps of racing. Bronson held the lead over Brandon Overton but Overton couldn't hold his car down in the corners as he put the reversers on and faded back. 

O'Neal, who started ninth, had worked his way forward mostly due to others wrecking and disappearing in front of him and suddenly he found himself in second. He began to pressure Bronson who was having his own issues keeping the front end down and on lap fourteen, O'Neal snuck past on the inside down the back chute to take over the lead.

Hudson then pulled away from the pack with O'Neal soon catching the back of the pack. By the halfway point the rubber was building up, everyone "walled up" into a single lane right on the inside of the track and passing came at a premium. For a number of laps Devin Moran challenged Bronson for second as Kyle tried to make his car was wide as possible. 

In front of that battle, O'Neal had managed to lap Ross Robinson but couldn't get past Cory Hedgecock and rode behind him for many laps but as long as he had Robinson for a blocker, he was in good shape. It is strange to see the leader back off from and not be able to pass the tail end cars but that is what was happening as O'Neal had to frequently slow to keep from running up the back of Hedgecock but there was no way he was going to attempt an outside pass at this point. 

Moran finally got past Bronson for second but he still had Robinson blocking him from a challenging effort. A late yellow set up a three lap dash to the finish with the lapped cars finally moved out of the way, but O'Neal was not about to make a mistake and he kept his car nailed to the inside line and drove home for the win. 

Moran finished second with Bronson holding on for third. It has been a couple of trying days for Bronson after having broke a driveshaft while leading on Wednesday followed by his hair raising opening lap incident tonight. 

Ricky Thornton Jr stayed the course and moved up from tenth to fourth while Tim McCreadie used some early race openings to move up as he came from twenty first to complete the top five. Only four drivers failed to finish the feature and all four used up their cars on the first turn wall. 

Racing will continue on Friday night with round four of this week's series. 

Sheppard Turns The Tables With Wednesday Ocala Victory

 Night number two of the Wieland Winternationals at the Ocala Speedway saw another closely fought Late Model feature, and on this night the slower traffic became a friend, not an enemy for Brandon Sheppard as he held off all challenges from Hudson O'Neal to earn a thirty lap feature win and pocket seven grand for his efforts. 

Wednesday night's show was the second and final race for the Lucas Oil Late Model Series that was not a point paying race but despite that, the field of drivers increased by four to forty. While Jonathan Davenport unloaded his car and polished it up, he eventually loaded it back up and became a spectator. First time drivers that did race included Daniel Hilsabeck and Cory Lawler who both watched on Tuesday along with Ricky Thornton Jr and Eli Johnson. A few more drivers are still expected to arrive when the Lucas points begin on Thursday and the purses start to get larger. 

The program would be exactly the same as on Tuesday with time trials to set the running order of the heats, of which there would be four, and then followed by a pair of B Features and the main event, set again for thirty laps. 

As one of the last cars to qualify, Garrett Alberson turned the quick lap at 14.141. Unfortunately for Alberson, after that things went downhill for him and while he would finish eighth in the main, that was not what he was looking for given his qualifying effort. Brandon Overton topped the first group with a lap at 14.288 seconds and later would get a top five finish in the main. 

Not surprisingly, five of the six qualifying events saw the winner come from the front row with the lone exception being one of the B Features that Thornton Jr won from the second row but just the fact that he had to again run a B feature indicates that his early season struggles were continuing. 

The feature race, which again started twenty four drivers because of no provisional openings granted for the non point race, was not quite as smooth as Tuesday night's nonstop main. The yellow waved four times with the third one being the most significant. 

While the track crew put less water on the track than they had done on Tuesday, the cooling temperatures and building humidity kept the racing surface blinding fast with the inside lane occasionally slicking up. Most of the preliminaries saw the outside row provide an advantage and the feature was no different as Kyle Bronson got the jump on Sheppard to take the early lead. 

Bronson was running strong and was very motivated to earn a win in his home state as he led the opening six laps with Sheppard chasing him. By this time, the yellow had already flown twice including a Tyler Erb hammering of the wall that ended his night. 

The green came back out and Bronson again held the edge over Sheppard with O'Neal moving into third. Suddenly, the race changed dramatically as Bronson slowed on the front chute and as he tried to move out of the way, Sheppard and he came together hard. Sheppard lost several spots but the yellow saved him for the restart while Bronson was done with apparent rear end failure. 

Sheppard again took the lead with O'Neal, Overton, Devin Moran and Clay Harris in the top five at the halfway point. Overton briefly got past O'Neal for second but Hudson was able to return the favor and retake second. 

O'Neal began to move in on Sheppard as he closed the distance on the leader. One last yellow flew, bunching the field with a dozen laps to go. Sheppard again pulled away but before long, he had caught some of the slower traffic and O'Neal began to press him again. The laps were running down and O'Neal was looking for an opening to make a pass but on this night, it was Sheppard that worked the lapped traffic the best.

He was able to find an opening and race around the top side past Ross Robinson while O'Neal got stuck on the bottom and Sheppard was able to lengthen his lead on the final circuit and drive home for the win. Moran finished a close third with Overton and a consistent Harris completing the top five. 

While there was just a single car that was lapped, his presence was key to the outcome and there were seven drivers that did not finish. 

While the program did not proceed quite as smoothly as it had on Tuesday night, it was far from a dragged out event with the final checkered waving about a quarter to 9, local time. 

Perhaps because it was a bit warmer than Tuesday or perhaps at least in part because folks saw how fast the Tuesday night program was clicked off and they decided to chance it, the crowd was significantly larger than it had been for the opening show. With good weather promised the next couple of days, the crowds should be even larger for the higher paying shows just ahead. 

Moran Edges Out Sheppard In Traffic at Ocala Opener

 The final week of racing for the Late Models in Florida during Speed Weeks 2026 opened up on Tuesday night, February 24th at the Ocala Speedway on the Northwest side of Ocala Florida. This entire week will feature the Late Models at Ocala with five straight nights of Late Model racing before the troops head North to Georgia to wrap up what has been a very long Speed Weeks presentation. 

This week's racing is produced by the Lucas Oil Late Model Series officials and FLO TV with the entire staff of the FLO broadcasts on hand for this set of racing. It should be noted that both the Tuesday and Wednesday night events, while LOLMS races, are non point nights toward their championship and because of that, several of the title contenders either did not race on Tuesday or have not yet even arrived on the grounds. Daniel Hilsabeck and Cory Lawler both worked on their cars on Tuesday before loading them back up and Tyler Bruening did not even upload his car while allowing rookie Dallon Murty to race and get more experience. Thornton Jr, Davenport and perhaps several others will arrive before Thursday night when point racing resumes. 

However, the fact that not everyone was on hand didn't diminish the racing as there were still thirty six drivers that signed in to race with still many of the top stars of the Late Model world on hand and ready to test Ocala. 

The track itself looks and races just a bit different than in years past with one hundred loads of new dirt added and the banking seemingly changed in subtle but noticeable ways to the drivers. Track prep experts from Eldora were brought in this week to prepare the track and it it remains like it was for the Tuesday night show, we should be ready for some excellent racing this week. 

This year the decision has been made to make all five nights of racing here just a one class program which should please the Late Model fans no end. It should also make for some quick programs that everyone seems to appreciate. The only danger is that with a one class program, particularly one that starts with qualifying where everyone tends to pound the same groove on the track, that the track is made to be wide enough for passing to take place. That did not seem to be an issue on Tuesday as they spent some extra time packing the outside so I would not expect it to be a problem the rest of the week. 

Everyone associated with Lucas seems devoted to running off a quick program and I think that is appreciated by the fans, especially on a Tuesday night when the temperatures are supposed to dip into the 30's and a fairly strong breeze blows out of the West. 

The two drivers that would settle the score later on who would stand in victory lane were both quick early with Brandon Sheppard turning quick time at 14.040 seconds and Devin Moran topping the second group at 14.227. Eight minutes after the final car took time trials, the opening ceremonies began and racing started. 

The program on Tuesday saw four heat races, a pair of B Features and a thirty lap main to round out the program. Between each set of races, an eight minute break was all that was allowed with a twelve minute break following the final B Feature before the main started. As a non point night, there were no provisional starters and twenty four drivers would take the green for the thirty lap feature. 

Sheppard started on the pole with Moran tucking in behind him and the race was on. Sheppard opened up a slight lead over Moran while Clay Harris, Daulton Wilson and Brian Shirley battled for third. 

With the hot pace, it took Sheppard only eight laps to catch the back of the pack and then the battle heightened. Moran was able to close up on Sheppard while Wilson slipped back and Brandon Overton moved up to battle Harris for third. 

Back of the pack traffic is always an interesting facet of nearly every race and so it was also on Tuesday. Sheppard seemed the fastest driver in the house but he still had to navigate the traffic and any mistake would likely be pounced on by Moran. 

To the dismay of Sheppard, he came up on a couple of slower cars that were running side by side and he had to hesitate for them to clear. This gave all kinds of momentum to Moran and when Brandon opted to try and pass the slower cars on the high side going into turn one, he got just a bit high and out of the groove for a second, killing his momentum and allowing Moran to duck past him into the lead. 

That was all it took with the pass executed just one lap short of the halfway point and while Sheppard then chased Moran, Devin was in his own groove and could not be caught. But that's the way it works with lapped traffic, sometimes it helps and sometimes it punishes. The race for third remained close with Harris and Overton swapping the spot back and forth near the end with Harris holding on for the podium finish. Hudson O'Neal got very fast in the second half of the race, moving up to fifth after starting eleventh and was perhaps the fastest car on the track at the end. 

Four drivers failed to finish the event which ran off thirty laps nonstop to complete a night of quick racing. There were only three yellow flags waved all night, all in the preliminaries with the feature concluding the theme of fast racing. 

Check out this stat. From the time the first green flag was waved in the first heat race until the checkered flag was waved over the winner, the total racing time was one hour and seventeen minutes! Unbelievable! And on this cold Florida night, I heard not a single complaint that the program got over too soon!  Quite frankly, every fan appreciates a fast program so they can move on with their life and those promoters that can figure this out are among those that survive and prosper. 

Another similar program is promised for Wednesday night before the points race kicks back in on Thursday and the purses began to rise also. 

Braaksma Switches Coasts, Results the same-Victory

 Monday night, February 23rd provided an interesting change of pace for us. We have been watching the Late Models almost exclusively of late and Monday gave us the opportunity to see the IMCA group back in action with Modifieds, Stock Cars and Sport Mods all racing at the first night of the Clash on the Coast, an event promoted by Peyton Taylor and family. 

To do so, we had to motor about five hours West and North toward Florida's peninsula, a region of the state that we had not had much contact with. The Clash on the Coast has been struggling to get their series started as the weather has been fighting them, particularly with much new construction ongoing at our destination. Finally however, things dried out enough that they were able to hold practice on Sunday night with the first race scheduled for Monday. 

Just about everything here was new or different, even the name of the track. Long known as Northwest Florida Speedway, we were on hand as the name was officially changed to Blackwater Speedway by new track owner and promoter Ron Wolverton with the start of Monday night's racing action. 

Wolverton just took over ownership of the track and the first upgrades to the track and facility didn't start until January 9th of this year. The amount of change they completed in that short period of time was quite staggering  and while many projects are still to be either completed or done, the changes were quite noticeable. 

Of course, I had never been here before so while I could see that some things were fresh, I had to rely on those familiar with the place to point out some of the other changes, along with a very informative article on Speed Sport written by IMCA's Ben Detherage. 

It was easy to see that both the pits and spectator parking had been increased recently with a lot of dirt moved and some driveways a bit on the soft side. There were new bleachers, new boards on existing bleachers and a major rework of the track itself. The concession stand was in the midst of updating, new bathrooms are to be built with temporary ones used currently and just about everything on the grounds in the process of being spruced up. 

Blackwater is called a quarter mile but it just might be a bit bigger than that with a pronounced D shape to the racing surface. The track had seen the application of a major amount of new dirt and it was soft, making for some bumpy conditions for the drivers to race on with the insides of the corners especially challenging. Finally, to keep the drivers from racing through the holes and making them worse, a number of large ute tires were hauled on to the track and set in the holes, forcing the drivers to race around them. One of the busiest employees of the night was the gentleman in the infield spray painting the tires orange before they were placed on the track. 

Track lighting was good and they had a very nice scoreboard in the infield that was visible to all. The track did have one noticeable inherent flaw and that was a very high concrete wall down the front chute. With the grandstands quite close to the track, the cars were impossible to see as they raced down the front chute as the wall covered them. I call this the "Cedar Lake Syndrome" where it's impossible to see cars race down the front chute if you are sitting on that side of the track and there are several other tracks that have the same issue. 

Despite having a solid announcing team on hand headed by Jerry Van Sickle, we didn't hear them all night as p.a. problems kept there from being any sound in the grandstands. You realize how much you appreciate announcing, and especially good announcing, when it isn't available and you have to "wing it" for yourself, trying to figure out what is going on and who is who. It also hurts the track itself not being able to plug the sponsors and let the fans know just who all the drivers are. 

A practice night had been held so there were no hot laps on Monday night, just as it should be. This way, with such a large field of racers, racing can begin at the advertised time, not an hour's worth of hot laps first as we have been having to deal with from time to time lately. 

A great field of drivers were on hand for the first night of the Clash with seventy Modified drivers along with thirty nine Stock Cars and thirty five Sport Mods. The Sport Mods were added to the program this year and they turned out a solid field for their first chance to be a part of this race. 

While they race IMCA Mods locally and in this area, I don't believe they have either Stock Cars or Sport Mods so virtually the entire field in those two classes were comprised of drivers from the Midwest and Heartland and many fans watching on tv from home must have thought they were at any number of local tracks where these drivers race weekly. Particularly strongly represented were drivers from the Hawkeye State, which is understandable but I felt like I must be at some Iowa track I recognized so many of the teams in action. 

The format was the typical one used by IMCA with a draw/redraw component used. Ten heat races and three B Features were used to set the field for the thirty lap Modified feature race. The action got off to a wild start with Slade Hartwick flipping in the first heat race. He would return to run a B Feature later but didn't qualify for the show. 

Some of the early heats were a bit rugged before the drivers figured out the track and settled in a bit. Some extra packing was used during the early races to pound in the cushion while a bit more water was added but after that, it was racing and non stop right to the finish. With twenty eight races including three extra distance main events, there was plenty of racing for everyone. 

The Modifieds ran first all night with their thirty lap feature the first up. Twenty six drivers took the green with two that had made the event not starting. The opening lap saw Time Ward and Joseph Joiner battle for the lead with Ward scored the leader by inches. One lap later Joiner took over the top spot and he would lead the next eight laps. 

This was the only one of the three features to not run off very smoothly and there were four yellows in the first five laps for spinning and stalling cars. As Joiner continued to lead through the opening part of the race, it took Ethan Braaksma little time to move into second and he challenged Joiner hard for the top spot. 

Driving the same car that he had so much success with in Arizona, he slipped under Joiner on lap ten when Joseph went high in turn one and took over the lead. From that point on, the race was his and while he had to endure five more yellows that brought the field back to him, he never was seriously challenged after that. 

There was much movement behind him though, as each yellow saw some shift in the running order. Probably the strongest challenge to Braaksma came after the final yellow on lap twenty two when Troy Morris III got up on the cushion and stayed close following the yellow. 

However, Braaksma continued to be smooth and run his line and he then eventually opened up some distance as he drove on for the win. Morris III came home second with Jed Freiburger having a strong run to come home third. Joel Rust and Dylan Thornton completed the to five with Iowa drivers controlling the race. In fact, the first non Hawkeye across the line was Chris Spaulding who seems to have a Modified for just about every sanctioning bodies' rules. 

Reed Wolfmeier led from start to finish to win the Sport Mod feature which came next. Twenty four drivers started this race and were much better behaved than the Modifieds, as they had only three yellow flags in their feature and the majority of the drivers finished the race while the Modified feature saw only ten drivers on the track at the end. 

Wolfmeier was dominant from start to finish but there was a good battle for second with Mike Smith, Joe Docekal, Ben Chapman and Cam Reimers dueling for the spot. The battle between Smith and Docekal was especially intense with Joe getting the second spot back following a late yellow and then fighting off Smith for runner up honors. 

Brayton Carter had car problems early and had to run a B Feature but he then raced up from fourteenth to finish fourth with Cole Suckow completing the top five. Again, all familiar names from Hawkeye tracks. 

One "Cheesehead" did do the state proud though, as crafty veteran "Hot" Rod Snellenberger led from start to finish to win the Stock Car feature. Snellenberger, who usually drives a rather "used up" looking car despite the fact that they are fast, had a sparkling looking ride for this show and it was fast as well as he pulled away on the green and drove away from the pack. He only had one yellow flag to deal with as the Stock Cars put on a smooth show and only four drivers didn't finish the race. 

Nathan Ballard and Owen Barnhill ran second and third for much of the early going with Barnhill moving into second by the halfway point but Curt Lund was the driver on the move. He got up to second by the halfway point and then slipped past Barnhill for second. 

In the closing laps, Lund started to put some pressure on Snellenberger, closing the lead down to just a couple car lengths but then Hot Rod adjusted his line and closed up the inside groove where most of the drivers were running after a long night of track pounding. 

Snellenberger would then stabilize his advantage at a few car lengths and drive on for the win over Lund. John Oliver Jr was among the leaders the whole race and he ended up third. Mike Vandermark Jr made a nice move up from twelfth to finish fourth and Mike Albertson completed the top five. 

It was a long night of racing with action wrapping up somewhere around 11:30 pm on what was a very cold night in February with temperatures dipping into the 30's. However, considering the less than ideal weather and the fact it was indeed a Monday night, I thought the crowd to be very good. 

Due to their adjusted race schedule because of the weather issues, Monday night's race will be the only one of the series that we will be able to attend but we thank Peyton Taylor, all his workers and all the track employees for their efforts at both running off this show and putting the Blackwater Speedway in a very good place for the future.  

Hoffman Edges Pierce in Hendry Co. Thriller

 Saturday night, February 21st, the World of Outlaws Late Model Series wrapped up their southern experiment with the Swamp Cabbage finale, a sixty lap race paying a strong twenty grand to the winner. The two drivers that seem destined to battle it out for the World of Outlaws Late Model point championship, Bobby Pierce and Nick Hoffman, went at it for sixty laps on Saturday night and on this occasion, it was Hoffman who got the better of his rival, edging out Pierce by just over a car length to win the main event and earn the big cash. 

And as it had also on Friday night, the track raced very well. allowing plenty of side by side racing, passing and providing good racing action. But on the downside, a few other things didn't change from Friday that took something away from the overall experience. 

It was another beautiful southern Florida day on Saturday, with temperatures in the upper eighties and plenty of sun shining. It actually felt hot to me but my blood still hasn't thinned out totally after escaping the cold temperatures of the North Country. 

In preparation for the Saturday night show, we made a stop at Harbor Freight for some necessary supplies and boy, was I glad that we purchased face shields for the night. They worked slick at deflecting the sand and gravel that was spewed into the grandstands like bullets fired from a machine gun and while we still were dust covered from head to toe, at least we were able to keep our eyes open most of the time as the shields deflected the spray away from out eyes. 

All different manner of protection was used by the crowd from the veteran fans here who wore goggles or sunglasses to cobbled together protection that made some of the fans look more like they were crossing the Nairobi Desert rather than witnessing dirt track racing. It was not a fashion show but nobody cared. 

The same twenty seven drivers that were on hand to race on Friday night returned for round two while the 4.6 Fords had a few more entrants with thirty seven of them showing up to race. I won't say this is a "down home" type of crowd but many in the stands seemed to get just as much entertainment value out of the 4.6 Ford driver that tried to continue racing after his hood came up and instead plowed into a ute tire as those that cheered on the duel between Hoffman and Pierce. 

It appeared there was a concerted effort to get more moisture into the racing surface than on Friday night as a nearly endless amount of packing and hot lapping was necessary which pushed the start time back almost an hour. Still, in the end, the surface still turns bone dry after a few laps on it and with the close proximity of the track to the stands, the machine gun action begins quickly. 

Upsetting the apple cart slightly, Sam Seawright, the first driver out for time, turned in the quickest lap of the night at 13.877 seconds and after winning a heat and having a nice redraw, Seawright would start the sixty lapper from the pole. 

Wisely starting the Late Model feature first again after initially scheduling them last on Friday until a change was made, the eight yellow flag "clown fest" that the 4.6 Fords would later produce as the last race would have set the hair of the Late Model fans in attendance on fire if they had to wait for the Late Models to appear. As it was, they were in line trying to get out the drive way when the 4.6 Fords finally hit the track. 

Seawright led the first five laps of the feature race before Pierce, who started sixth, motored around him on the top side to take over the lead. Most were hugging the inside line early but Pierce immediately went to the cushion with success. Once in front, Pierce pulled away slightly as Hoffman, who started fourth, moved into the runner up slot. He was running the low side as the leaders lines couldn't have been much different. 

Hoffman started to get a great burst on the bottom off turn four and he quickly closed in on Pierce, surprising him as he drove under him to take over the top spot. One lap later, however, Hoffman jumped the cushion in turn one and Pierce regained the lead but the pass was negated because a slowing car triggered the yellow. 

After that, there was a long stretch of green flag racing with the two leaders playing a game of cat and mouse. Hoffman stayed low for the most part but occasionally ran the cushion in turns one and two. Pierce was primarily up against the wall but would try racing lower on the track, particularly if Hoffman moved up in front of him. Several times Pierce got close but not so near as to attempt a passing maneuver. 

With just over ten laps to go, the two leaders finally caught the back of the pack for the first time and this made things even stickier as they tried to decide the best line to both pass slower cars but not open the door to their rival. It was exciting as Piece slipped past on lap fifty three, only to see Hoffman respond and get the lead back one lap later. 

A late yellow set up a six lap dash to the finish and after Ryan Gustin, who ran third for just about the entire race, almost gave Pierce a problem, it again turned into a two car battle. Pierce was pounding the cushion which was still big but was a long way around while Hoffman tip toed around the inside, trying not to break momentum or spin his tires coming off the turns. 

Pierce edged closer as the laps ran down, drawing the rear quarter panel of Hoffman. Bobby gave it his best effort on the final lap, blasting off the final corner cushion but Hoffman was just a bit quicker, holding on by just over a car length. Gustin finished third with Drake Troutman and Ethan Dotson completing the top five. Dustin Sorensen had worked his way up to fourth but the final restart saw him in the wrong lane and he lost a couple spots. Sixteen of the twenty four starters were still on the track at the finish. Early leader Seawright faded to tenth at the finish. Without a doubt it was a good entertaining race. 

Unless you were a fan of one of the 4.6 Ford drivers or perhaps a former owner of a Crown Vic, their feature was not quite so entertaining. They started twenty two cars in their main event but there were very few periods of steady racing as the yellow waved early and often and about five consecutive laps of racing was about the best they could do. 

Dalton Ellis started on the outside of row one and he led the first nine laps which also featured three slow downs. Moving up from the third row, Stephen Bruner, the only driver to move up the track, was able to find traction and speed on his lonely path and he was able to drive around Ellis to take over the lead. 

Through five more yellows and Ellis trying his best to regain the lead, Bruner held on and drove to the win. David Bruner, Friday night winner Blake Ridgdill and Cody Allen completed the top five. 

I found out that both the Friday night and tonight's 4.6 Ford feature paid a grand to win. And here we go, down that slippery slope that leads to problems with these supposedly "entry level" classes. Start paying them much more money for specials than they receive for most events and some teams are going to start "pushing the cushion", trying to earn the big bucks. Others will follow and soon you will have a class out of control, cost wise. We've seen this happen about a million times over the years and paying them too much for what they should have invested in their cars is the first step to the undoing of the class. 

Overall, this weekend of races probably far exceeded most folks expectations. There was a question of how well this track would race for open Late Models and I guess that was answered emphatically. The crowd on Saturday was gigantic and perhaps the largest in track history. The Outlaws staff was all a glow and even the drivers were surprised and pleased with the racing. However, none of them had to sit in the stands and be blasted by sand and gravel like the fans. Will the spectators put up with that again next year after the novelty of the race wears off? I think the only way to cure this problem is with a complete resurfacing of the track with some different material and I don't think that's going to happen. 

Of course no one can know at this time what the schedules for the major series will look like in 2027 but I feel that the Outlaws were pleased enough with this event to have it again next year. Where it will fit on the schedule remains to be seen and will the local fans who formed the majority of those attending be willing to pony up a hundred bucks to see the races again are all questions that right now have no answers. 

Thanks to everyone at the WoO for their help and all the employees of the Hendry County Motorsports Park for their hard work. This race had been a dream of theirs for a long time and in 2026 they brought it to fruition. 

Pierce Tops Hendry County As WoO Visits for First Time

 Extending their visit to Florida after the completion of the DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia County, the World of Outlaws Late Model series traveled over two hundred miles further South to the Hendry County Motorsports Park located in the middle of no where but nearest to the city of Clewiston Florida for a weekend doubleheader of point racing. 

On a track that looked and raced much like any number of Illinois short tracks, Bobby Pierce feasted on the familiarity of such a set up as he drove to any easy win in the forty lap main event and earned twelve grand for his efforts. 

The 4.6 Fords(called Crown Vics in my neck of the woods), also ran a complete program and Blake Ridgdill was the winner of their twenty five lap feature. 

Called the Swamp Cabbage 100 and with a local Swamp Cabbage festival to go along with the races, I did actually see some Cabbage growing in the fields near Clewiston. Billed as the "Southern Most Dirt Track in the USA( I would have thought there might be a track in either California or Texas that might hold this honor, but I will will go along with their claim), the track is somewhere between a quarter and a third mile although the official description lists it as a third, it is a wide track with progressive banking that allows for side by side racing. 

It is also known as the "Fastest Sand Pit" and there will be no argument there, particularly on the sand pit part of the phrase, but more on that later. 

This is the first time that I had been at Hendry County and these days I don't get to a lot of new, to me, tracks so let's take a moment to talk about what I saw. The entrance is a bit of East Bay and the old Stateline Speedway in Tennessee before they cleaned it up. The driveway off a busy highway is a rough and bouncy dirt trail that winds between an abandoned boat yard of some sort with junked cars lining the driveway . It is not impressive.  

The parking lot is very small with many of the spectators actually driving into a field behind the pit area in turns three and four to park. To their credit, management was offering golf cart rides to the ticket gate for spectators that parked far from the gates. 

Interestingly, the tickets to get into the races were "all inclusive" with one price paid to get in which then allowed the spectators to roam the grounds at will, including walking into the pits once they had signed the waiver form. Fifty bucks got you everywhere you wanted to go. 

I was told that some extra bleacher seating had been added recently at the track with their being grandstands down the front chute, in turns one and two and also in turns three and four. They were of various size and construction and offered various levels of both comfort and visibility but there was plenty of seating available. The track lightning was good and the track p.a. system was very good with the announcers easy to hear. There was a small scoreboard behind turn two but it was a little hard to read from the main stands but at least they had something. There were several bathrooms around the grounds and most were of the permanent variety, not the "satellites" type. 

Observations on how the track would race for the Late Models were varied with some folks that had been there feeling that it would be a train around the inside of the track while others said that the racing had improved there over what it used to be. They do race crate Late Models and 360 Sprints here for specials so there must be some kind of passing available , right?

As it turned out, the racing itself was quite good. The heat races especially were excellent with two and three wide racing and the powerful motors in the Late Models allowed them to do what some classes don't and that it to get up to the top side of the track, clean off the track and even establish a cushion for them to race off which even makes the side by side racing easier. 

Then there is the down side to report. There is a reason that they call this track the "Fastest Sand Pit" because that seems to be exactly what they race on, sand. And it is dirty. Very dirty. Almost intolerably dirty. I witnessed fan after fan get up and leave early after they got sand blasted to the point they couldn't see the track. It was easy to spot local weekly fans as they all came equipped with goggles, snorkels and more . 

Without doubt, it was among the top five dirtiest tracks that I have ever been to and that includes a lot of tracks and a lot of race nights. It was miserable and about the only track that I can compare it to that I have been to in recent years is Charlotte for the World Finals and folks know how dirty that track is. But here you sit right on the track and much closer than at Charlotte and it was brutal. Honestly, I would never even consider taking someone here on a "date night" or introducing any new fan to racing here as they would never go to a race again, and I wouldn't blame them. 

It was too bad because the racing was good to the point of even edging into the very good category but it was hard to even see it because of the dirt. Honestly, if I had to put up with what we sat through on Friday on a regular basis, I would find some other activity to be a part of, that's how bad it was. 

Twenty seven drivers signed in to race with WoO on Friday, fortified by about four or five drivers from the region, some with crate cars and some with equipment not likely to make most shows. It would appear that the idea to extend Speed Weeks for the WoO put them on the short end of the stick, car count wise. Drake Troutman was quick qualifier at 13.875 seconds. 

Three excellent heat races and a B Feature would qualify the field with only three drivers left sitting on the sidelines for the main. Only the B Feature was substandard with everyone hugging the low line for that race. Track prep then took place for the main and the groove widened out immediately for that race. No complaints should be issued about the quality of the racing all night. Complaints about he persistent sandstorm blowing into the stands however, should be legitimate and fair. 

The original running order of the event was tossed and the Late Model feature was first up. The drivers put on an excellent show for those able to see it. Troutman redrew the pole and led the first seven laps of the race, running the low line. Pierce, who started third, moved to the cushion immediately, and with the help of a couple of other drivers, cleaned up that line and he then stormed past Troutman to take over the lead. 

Bobby then pulled away, at times opening up nearly a full straightaway lead over the field. However, there was still a good race going on for the second through fifth spot that was entertaining and Pierce had to fight through a bunch of lapped traffic which made his route to victory not easy. 

There was only one yellow in the race and that with just five laps to go when Tyler Erb spun. Ethan Dotson had started seventh and moved up to second, also pounding the cushion and he was Pierce's biggest competition at the end, but Bobby got away good on the lone restart and pulled away again for the win. 

The battle for second came down to the final corner with Dotson holding off Daulton Wilson as Wilson started to make the low groove work well at the end. Amazingly, there were only two drivers that didn't finish the race and all those extra drivers still racing during the contest on the relatively small oval added to the fun. 

4.6 Fords were the support class for this race with they apparently being a very popular class at this track. Thirty four of them signed in to race on Friday, necessitating four heats and a B Feature. Fortunately, they raced OK with not a lot of yellow flag events. They also ran their feature race last which allowed the parking lots to clear and spread out the rush to head home. 

Twenty two of them started the main with pole sitter Blake Ridgdill leading from start to finish with the main stopped three times for yellow flags with most being of the minor variety. 

Late in the race he received a challenge from Billy Evans but he clung to the inside lane with the 4.6 class not having the power to move up the track, and held on for the win. Evans finished second with Codey Allen, Stephen Bruner and Alan Smith trailing. The final checkered flag waved somewhere just after 10 pm in what was a fast moving show. 

The same two classes will race again on Saturday night with the Late Models going an extra twenty laps for an extra eight grand. 

 

Sheppard and Wight Win VSP Finales, Hoffman and Williamson Big Gator Champions

 Saturday night, February 14th the Volusia Speedway Park wrapped up what was a very successful DIRTcar Nationals with one final performance by the World of Outlaw Late Model division and the DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds. 

Saturday night's show would mark the longest races for both classes this week with a pair of fifty lap finales presented and correspondently, the most money to the winners with the Late Models racing for twenty grand and the Big Blocks for seventy five hundred dollars to the winner. 

Strong fields of drivers still remained after a long week of racing with fifty six Late Model drivers signing in as their car counts have held stout all week. The Big Blocks had a bit of an exodus with forty one of them racing, but their numbers have been larger all week than for last year's event and even on Saturday they still fields a half dozen more entrants than in 2025. 

Other than the laps in the main events, the format would remain the same as it has the last few nights and the track prep crew seemed to have found that happy medium that many track prep crews are constantly working to get, a track that is fast but not blindingly so, not muddy but also not to the point of rubbering up and ruining the racing. It is a constant battle, no matter the region and no matter the time of year. This is part of what makes dirt track racing so interesting while also being so maddening from time to time. 

While most spectators sleep through the time trials(not literally), they are just about the most important part of the entire racing program as without a decent starting spot for a qualifying event, you might be advised to just put the car in "the box" and call it a night. Chris Madden was the quick qualifier for the night at 15.227 while Garrett Alberson, who has run just a partial week here, topping the second group about two tenths of a second slower. 

Six heats were again run for the Late Models and for those at home keeping score, the front row provided the winners for all six heats, thus emphasizing the importance of a good qualifying effort. 

The B Features are brutal events, starting twenty or more drivers and only moving up three but it was noted on Saturday that more drivers were scratching out of their B Features and hitting the road home early, cutting their losses and beating traffic. 

For the second straight night, there were a number of drivers that are WoO regulars that struggled to qualify and thus had to rely on one of several different categories for those who failed to make the main but wished to participate. This swelled the field to thirty one drivers that took the green for the Late Model event, a traffic jam for even this large and wide a racing track. 

With Nick Hoffman, the fastest and winningest driver here this week starting from the pole, the odds were heavily in his favor for another big win. But as they say, that is why the race is run and while Hoffman led for a large chunk of the race, when the checkers flew he failed to even earn a podium finish. 

Hoffman led early over Blair Nothdurft, the young South Dakota driver that is rapidly turning into a qualifying wizard and sending the "railbirds" searching their programs to find out who this #76 was. 

Unfortunately, while Nothdurft has gotten the qualifying part of the racing down, he is still learning how to pace a race and still have his car under him at the end as he faded back rapidly in the pack after the first few laps had been completed. 

Nineteen green flag laps started the race after a shocking first lap yellow when Tyler Erb broke before he got the motor oil warm, and by that time Brandon Sheppard had moved up to second. Hudson O'Neal and Ryan Gustin had also worked into the top five. 

As the race moved into its second half, Hoffman seemed to be slowing down while Sheppard was also picking up the pace and on lap thirty three, Brandon moved into the lead. When the yellow waved two laps later, Bobby Pierce, who started nineteenth, first showed in the top five in the running order and he didn't hang back long as when the green flew once again, he made a spectacular move, splitting the drivers in front of him and suddenly finding himself in the runner up slot. 

The last dozen laps saw a battle between the two Illinois drivers with Pierce pushing very hard and able to close the gap to a few car lengths. Several times it looked like he just might sneak under Sheppard and take over the lead but Sheppard fought off all challenges and with a couple nifty moves in the last five laps, put just a bit of distance between himself and Pierce. They would cross the line first and second with both likely happy that they had gotten their programs straightened out after some shaky moments by both this week. 

O'Neal also made some positive advances as after starting tenth, he raced past Hoffman to finish third. Ricky Thornton Jr has also been pretty quiet this week but he did manage to move up from thirteenth to complete the top five. Twenty two drivers were still on the track at  the finish with three of them being a lap behind. 

The Big Blocks also went for fifty laps on Saturday and there were three different leaders in that race. Many were hoping for good luck for "The Aussie", Peter Britten after he redrew the pole but things went South for him quickly when he hooked a rut on the first lap, went shooting up the track and took himself out of serious consideration for the win immediately. 

A different face was up front early as Justin Stone grabbed the lead after Britten's bobbleand he paced he field for the first seventeen laps of the race, a period that was broken up by numerous yellows. The most serious was a lap four red flag when Danny Creeden clobbered the turn three wall and then went for a couple of quick flips. He was rattled just a bit but eventually clambered out of his wrecked car. 

Stewart Friesen and Matt Sheppard were putting the pressure on Stone and when he slipped up the track on lap eighteen, Friesen was right there to motor into the lead. Larry Wight started sixth and it took some time for the track to open up so that he could get to his "sweet spot", which is the cushion. However, when things settled down, he quickly charged forward and by halfway point, was side by side with Friesen for the lead when the yellow flew once again. 

Steward couldn't hold back Wight however when the green again flew and Larry shot into the lead. It was one of the those nights when the Big Blocks just couldn't keep racing without the yellow waving often and while it made the battle for second between Friesen and Sheppard interesting, it was frustrating in that they just couldn't seem to get any consistent racing. A total of nine yellows flew during the race with the last coming with just seven laps remaining in the race. 

Wight was on a roll and there was no one able to keep up with him. Sheppard went for the lead on the last restart but pushed up the track and forfeited positions to both Friesen, who came home second and Mat Williamson who finished third. At the line, Sheppard nipped Felix Roy for fourth. 

Twenty one of twenty nine drivers were still racing at the end and with the frequent yellows, everyone was still on the lead lap. 

And just that quickly, the DIRTcar Nationals are in the books again for another year. Thanks to all the  many folks from DIRTcar and VSP for their help and  for their efforts over the last week plus for me. It is a grueling stretch of racing and all the employees do a great job and still maintain their smiles after night after long night of work. 

The crowds have been great all week and a block buster crowd was on hand for the Saturday night finale. The weather has been good all week, albeit cool but the shining sun always helps improve attendance. 

Things were a little slow at the Gator Pond in 2026 with just one little one spotted a couple of times. On the plus side, there were no reports also of missing children and small dogs!

   

Hoffman and Williamson Both Repeat at VSP

 One would think that with over one hundred of the finest teams in the country in the pits for World of Outlaw Late Model and Super DIRTcar Big Block Modified racing that it would be quite difficult to repeat as a feature winner. However, such was not the case on Friday the 13th of February at Volusia Speedway Park as both Nick Hoffman in the Late Models and Mat Williamson in the Big Block would repeat their Thursday night wins by going to victory lane once again. And in Hoffman's case, it was actually his third straight win, having won one of the three twenty lappers on Wednesday as a part of the final night of the UMP action at the same track. 

And neither would be a close run either as both dominated the final laps of their respective mains, leaving no question as to who was the fastest car on the track. However, the Friday the 13th stigma did play out somewhat as there were some strange goings on over the course of the night, a bit of controversy and certainly some new faces playing a part in the night's action. 

Fifty seven Late Models and forty six Big Blocks signed in to race on Friday on a night when the Florida weather was again sub part, producing some cold wins that found most fans bundled up like they were witnessing racing up North. Nevertheless, a large crowd was on hand for the action as it builds towards its conclusion on Saturday night. 

Both classes would use the format that they ran on Thursday night with the exception that the Late Models would run first with the Big Blocks wrapping up the action. Tyler Erb, who has been showing good speed this week was the quickest overall qualifier at 15.467 seconds with Ricky Thornton Jr topping the second half of the field at 15.493 seconds. 

If you have been keeping track this week, you know how important qualifying is, especially with straight up starts in the heats and only the heat race winners redrawing for feature spots. So it was again that all six heats were won off the front row. However, there were some different faces in heat race victory lane with Michael Leach, Austin Smith and Dan Ebert winning heats, which did give the front rows a different look for the feature. 

With some different drivers up front, at least early, it did leave some of the old steady faces on the outside looking in and as a result there were more point provisional and emergency provisional starters than normal with thirty drivers taking the green for the feature. Some of these same faces have been having nightly emergencies for the past several years! Actually make that twenty nine drivers for the green as Dallon Murty hurt his motor getting qualified and he opted not to start the main, not a good way to get his open motor season started. 

I was at the driver's meeting where series officials gave specific new directions about starts and restarts to avoid some of the jumps and unseemly starts that have been happening. Those directions apparently went in one ear and out the other for the drivers as the Late Model feature started with a big stack up before half the drivers even got to the starting line, something you would more expect to see in Bomber racing. Several cars were damaged and hopes for Brandon Sheppard, Chris Madden and a couple others were flushed. 

Leach redrew the pole and it was interesting to see a new face lead the pack as he was able to fend off the challengers for the first ten laps of the thirty five lapper. However, eventually the masters of the sport were able to track him down with Thornton Jr taking over the lead on lap eleven. 

Hoffman was moving quick after starting fourth and he got by Leach for second and then, two laps later, blew past Thornton Jr for the lead. This was a race marked by fits and spurts as the yellow waved way too often for slowing cars and flat tires with six slowdowns needed. The battle for second was interesting though, as Thornton Jr and Brandon Overton exchanged that position a couple times. 

The last yellow, with twenty six laps down was for Ryan Gustin who had charged up to fourth with a battered up car before the motor let go. The final restart saw Hoffman drive off from the field once again, with Thornton sacrificing second when he plunked the turn two wall, giving Overton that spot for the duration of the race. 

Bobby Pierce made a successful drive, passing a number of cars and also inheriting a number of spots when others dropped out or back and he came home third, his best finish of the week. Tyler Erb and Drake Troutman, both with used up looking cars, completed the top five. There were not a huge number of drivers that didn't finish the race (7), but there were quite a few that looked as if they had lost a war. 

The Big Block feature saw another dominating performance that was also sparked with just a bit of controversy. At least that's how one driver saw it. 

Things started out very strangely when as they were ready to take the green, Matt Caprara lost a rear wheel on the front chute before the race event started. A wrecker quickly whisked him to the work area where the wheel was replaced and the crew man assigned to that task likely sent packing for another job. 

Matt Sheppard, who has not been himself so far in his Florida visits, started on the outside pole and got the jump to take the early lead. Mat Williamson quickly moved to second and the race was on between two of the "king pins" of Big Block racing. They were putting on a good battle for the lead, interspersed among the two yellows that flew early for other drivers parking on the track as the pace in this race was no better than for the Late Models. 

Sheppard was running a line right through the middle of the track that seemed to work for him as he was able to hold off Williamson. However, the yellow flew once again with twelve laps complete and this is when things got spicy.

The side by side restart used by the Big Blocks saw Sheppard and Williamson door to door and when they fired off turn four, Williamson got a great jump and immediately took over the lead. Sheppard believed that he got "jumped" by Williamson I believe, and I was also looking for the yellow to fly and bring back the field because I also thought that Williamson jumped. 

However, no such action was taken and Williamson then pulled away from the field. It appeared the Sheppard let his emotions get away from him at this point as he started driving a bit wild and he lost several positions because of that. 

When the yellow flew again with twenty laps complete, Sheppard drove by the front stretch several times with his arm in the air out his window, either appealing the previous non ruling, or checking to see  if it was raining. It turns out that neither happened and he had to settle back in line. 

Williamson then pulled away once again over the final ten laps to drive away for a relatively easy win, with Alex Payne making a nice drive up to second and Jack Lehner recovering from a smoking car in his heat to race home third. Alex Yankowski and Justin Haers completed the top five but it was too bad that Sheppard didn't finish on the podium as his post race interview might have been quite interesting. 

Only four drivers failed to finish the race but because of the frequent yellow flags, Williamson was not forced to lap a single car. 

Quite frankly, neither class shined on this night with too many yellows for slowing and stopped cars really bogging down both features and not producing much attractive racing for the fans. It was also the longest night of the week with racing getting done much later than it should have. Hopefully everyone gets back on their "A" game and produces a better show for the Saturday night finale.