Sunday, June 30, 2013

Lauritzen, Bruening, Weepie among Mid-Season winners at Independence

Mid-Season champions were crowned Saturday at Independence Motor Speedway. A strong field of 111 race teams filled the pits for the eighth night of weekly racing this season.

A new qualifying format was introduced for the mid-season event, which allowed points leaders to battle head-to-head in their qualifiers. Heat lineups were inverted based on season point totals, which put points leaders in the same heat races. How they finished their heat was how they lined up for feature racing.

Ronn Lauritzen continued his recent hot streak in the IMCA Modified division. After starting on the pole following his "fast heat" win, Lauritzen set sail in the 20-lap feature. Lauritzen pulled away from traffic after a number of early race restarts, then dominated the event during a long green flag run. He beat Vern Jackson to the checkers by a near-straightaway margin.

Lauritzen, who also won last Sunday in Vinton and Friday night in Marshalltown, has now won two straight in Independence. He became the 21st Modified driver in track history to win consecutive features.

With five wins for his career in Independence, Lauritzen now ranks tied for 28th on the all-time list with Keith Pittman, Larry Schmidt and Tom Fitzpatrick. It was Lauritzen's third career win during the month of June in Indee and his first Mid-Season title at the speedway.

Tyler Bruening topped the IMCA Late Model headliner for his fifth win of the season. Bruening chased leader Curt Martin and Jon Passick for much of that 25-lapper before a lap 14 caution allowed Bruening to work the high side into the lead. Bruening took the lead on the 16th circuit, then held off a hard-charging Darren Ackerman by less than a car-length to score the win.

Bruening has now won 17 times in weekly racing history in Independence, tying him with Ackerman for ninth on the all-time list. It was Bruening's eighth career win during the month of June and his second straight Mid-Season crown at the speedway.

Jarod Weepie fought off the furious challenges of numerous drivers to take top honors in the IMCA Stock Car division. From his outside front row start, Weepie kept John Emerson, Jason Hocken, Norman Chesmore, Tim Helle and Sean Johnson at bay. Emerson and Hocken challenged late, however Weepie held on by less than a car-length over both of those competitors to take the exciting victory.

It was Weepie's 19th career Stock Car win in Independence, his first since August 28, 2010. He now sits alone in fourth on the division's all-time list in Independence. He has won seven times in his career during the month of June and Saturday's win was his first Mid-Season title.

Brennen Chipp scored his third win of the season in the IMCA Northern SportMods. Front row starters Danny Dvorak and Kip Siems split time at the front of the pack before Chipp worked into contention from a third row start. Chipp made his way into the lead following a lap 12 restart to drive to victory.

The third win in weekly racing history for Chipp, he now sits tied for seventh on the track's all-time list with Chris Luloff and Ray Lundry. It was his first Mid-Season title.

For the seventh straight week, the Hobby Stock winner didn't make his way to the front of the pack until the last half of that 15-lapper. Chris Luloff worked the low side past points leader and race-long leader Benji Irvine with five laps to go on his way to victory.

The win was Luloff's 26th career trip to the winner's circle in a Hobby Stock at the speedway, the most all-time. Luloff has now won 10 times during the month of June in Independence, the only Hobby Stock with double-digit victories in any month in track history. It was his second Mid-Season crown and the first since his first win in Independence on June 19, 2004. Including his SportMod wins from a few years ago, Luloff has won 29 times in his career in Independence. He sits tied with Chris Wessner for 12th on the track's all-time wins list.

Adam Gates earned his sixth straight win in IMCA Sport Compact action. Much like the previous five wins, Gates took the lead early, then drove away in dominant fashion. His six straight wins tied a track record, which was set by Jack Mitchell in the IMCA Modifieds in 1984, then later matched by Stock Car drivers Dan Trimble and Larry Portis. His seven career wins in Independence are the most all-time for the Sport Compacts.

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John Emerson pulled double duty Saturday night. In addition to his Stock Car, Emerson wheeled the #25 IMCA Late Model of Kenny Pint. After failing to start his heat, Emerson started at the tail of the 21-car starting field and drove to an impressive 12th place finish. For those wondering, yes, drivers are allowed to carry Late Model and Stock Car licenses at the same time, per IMCA.

Dating back to June 12, 2010, there have been 16 consecutive weekly programs run in the month of June at the speedway. That's the second longest stretch in track history for that calendar month. The record is 17 straight June programs during a stretch from 1979 to 1983.

The month of June also contained five Saturdays this season, making it the 22nd time in a history that a five-Saturday month was successfully completed without a rainout. The last time? June of 2012, which also had five Saturdays of racing without a rainout.

Ironcially, as we head into July next weekend, which is historically the driest month, we have had at least one rainout each of the last four years during that month.

I'll have more numbers sometime this week during the end-of-the-month Stats Blitz. I'll try to assemble mid-season stats when time allows between the Deery Series this Tuesday at Independence and the Thursday holiday.

Tonight, it's Hawaiian Night/Fuzzy Friends Night/Albert Auto Night at Benton County Speedway. In addition to the Limbo contest (in which, despite rumors, I am NOT a participant), IMCA Late Models will return for their second night of action on the Vinton oval. It's my last night this season filling in for regular track announcer Bucky Doren, who is wrapping up his season as coach for his son's baseball team. I hope to see you there!

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Lauritzen tops IMCA Modifieds again, this time at Marshalltown

IMCA Modified driver Ronn Lauritzen continued his tear through the end of June Friday night at Marshalltown Speedway. Lauritzen races weekly at three tracks - Fridays at Marshalltown, Saturdays at Independence Motor Speedway and Sundays at Benton County Speedway in Vinton. As of Friday night, he has won the last Modified feature held at each of those tracks.

Front row starter Scott Simatovich took the early lead in Friday night's 20-lapper, pulling away from the field while a handful of drivers battled for position behind them. Among those drivers was Lauritzen, who started outside of row five.

Simatovich extended his advantage while Zach Rawlins, Kyle Krampe, Racer Hulin, Kyle Brown, Jon Snyder and Lauritzen battled two and three-wide to keep pace with Simatovich. Running the middle groove, Laurtizen snuck between Rawlins and Krampe to steal second in turns one and two on the fourth circuit, then slipped around the outside of Simatovich at the flag stand to take the lead on lap five.

Following a lap seven caution, Lauritzen pulled away from the pack while Hulin powered to second from his fifth place spot on the restart. Hulin raced into second one lap after the race resumed, however Lauritzen distanced himself from the field by half a straightaway.

Lauritzen maintained his advantage over the final half of the event to score his second win of the season at Marshalltown and his fifth overall this season. Hulin came home second, a straightaway ahead of third-running Rawlins. Brown and Snyder completed the top five.

Derek Reimer raced the high side to the early lead in the 18-lap IMCA Stock Car feature. Reimer built a huge advantage by the time the first of five cautions slowed action on lap seven. On the restart, Jay Schmidt, who restarted second, powered past Reimer to assume command while Steve Meyer worked through traffic from a fourth row start.

Meyer made his way into second following the third stoppage on lap 13, then pestered Schmidt through another pair of stoppages in the final laps. Although Meyer kept it close, Schmidt drove to victory. Reimer held on for third ahead of Tracy Gienger and Eric Knutson.

Bill Hildreth showed the way at the drop of the green in the 18-lap IMCA Northern SportMod main. A pair of early cautions kept the field bunched and allowed Brandon Williams to challenge, then pull away during a long green flag run following a lap two restart.

Williams worked the low side of Hildreth in turns one and two when racing resumed, then exited down the back stretch with the lead. Williams pulled away from traffic to score the victory ahead of Ben Kates and Ryan Ashton. Geoff Olson and Jared Van Deest rounded out the top five. A native of St. Joseph, Mo., the win for newcomer Williams was his first-ever in Marshalltown.

Nick Murty used a last lap pass to score the win in a 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock thriller. Eric Stanton paced the field early after racing from a third row starting spot into the lead by the completion of the first lap.

Murty, Eric Larson and Garrett Eilander swapped positions and racing grooves in their pursuit of the leader. In the waning laps, the leaders ran nose-to-tail on the bottom of the fast, smooth quurter-mile before Murty tried his luck on the top side.

Murty moved a lane higher than Stanton as the leaders took the white flag. He remained in the outside groove as the powered to the outside of the leader in the final set of turns. Murty surged ahead off the corner to take the thrilling win by less than a car-length ahead of Stanton. Eilander ran third ahead of Larson and Austin Luellen.

Andy Hennigar topped a wildly entertaining Mod Lite feature. Hennigar, Mike Morrill, Josh May, Randy Bryan and Dusty Masolini ran three and sometimes four-wide at the front of the back battling for the lead.

Masolini and Morrill shared time out front before Hennigar worked the low side into the lead on the ninth of 15 laps. Hennigar then pulled away to take the win, his second straight, ahead of Morrill and May. Bryan and Mike Kennedy complete the top five.

After swapping the lead early with Merv Chandler, Adam Gates drove away from the pack to score his second straight win in the IMCA Sport Compact division. John Gill ran third ahead of Travis Losenicky and Chad Larson.

It was a great night of racing at Marshalltown. Promoter Toby Kruse and his crew prepared a fantastic race track that provided multi-groove racing all night long in a program that was completed right at 10 p.m.

Although I won the 50/50 at Marshalltown last week, I decided to test the odds and bought more tickets Friday night. I almost won back-to-back as well, missing the jackpot by just one number. I guess that puts me at 50/50 for the 50/50 in Marshalltown...

Be sure to check out the thoughts from Marshalltown regulars Dick and Joyce Eisele. Their recap of the night will be available in the 4dfan Report at Positively Racing. While you visit Positively Racing, be sure to check out the latest edition to the site. A link to Bobby Hansen's Hawkeye Racing Report, which includes audio recaps of events throughout the region, has been added to our home page. A staple of KHAK radio in Cedar Rapids for decades, we're thrilled Bobby's report has moved to our site. Welcome aboard, Bobby!

Saturday is Budweiser Mid-Season Championship night in Independence. We're excited to introduce a new qualifying format for all six divisions for that program. You can read more about it at www.independencemotorspeedway.com.

Sunday, it's back to Benton County Speedway for Hawaiian/Fuzzy Friends/Albert Auto Night. Along with all those special promotions, IMCA Late Models will be returning for their second week of competition on the Vinton quarter-mile!

Both Independence and Vinton promise to be outstanding shows, but if you're unable to make it for either of those programs, be sure to support your local track!

Have a great weekend and, as always, thanks for reading!

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Mills tears it up, scores HDT win at the Beaver

Jeremy Mills took the lead just before the caution flag waved with six laps to go, then raced his way to victory in the Karl Performance Hawkeye Dirt Tour for IMCA Modifieds main event Tuesday night at Buena Vista Raceway. The HDT made an appearance in what was the first of two nights of racing at BVR, billed as Beaverpalooza. (complete results below)

Mike Jergens took the lead at the drop of the green in the 30-lapper. Jergens set the pace from his outside front row starting spot while Chris Abelson gave chase from his second row start.

Abelson worked the high side to challenge Jergens for the lead exiting turn four on the second lap, but Jergens held the point down the straightaway. Abelson then dropped to the inside of Jergens down the back stretch and emerged from turn four with the lead as the field completed lap three.

Abelson quickly pulled away from traffic, building a near-straightaway lead by the time Jeremy Mills, who started fifth, positioned himself to challenge. Mills ran the top groove around Jergens for second on turn four of lap 10, then set his sights on Abelson.

Abelson maintained the same advantage when he encountered lapped traffic on the 15th circuit. Heavier traffic two laps later allowed Mills to quickly gain ground. Mills pulled to within a couple car-lengths at the 21 lap mark as the leaders battled a full straightaway ahead of third-running Jergens.

Mills pulled to the outside of Abelson in turn two on lap 23, but was unsuccessful in his bid to take the lead. He continued to work the top side of the speedway, eventually taking the top spot off turn four on lap 24. Just after the field completed that lap, action was slowed for the first of two cautions when Jesse Sobbing came to a rest on the high side exiting turn four.

On the restart, Mills showed the way with Abelson and Jergens in row two. Mills held serve at the front of the pack while Justin Sackett, who started 21st and restarted fifth, shot to the low side of the second row. He took over second by the time the only other caution slowed action one lap later.

When the green flag waved a final time, Mills extended his advantage while Sackett and Abelson battled for second. Mills took the checkers a few car-lengths ahead of Abelson. Sackett ran third, followed by Jergens and Mark Elliott.

Weekly points racing was on tap for all other weekly divisions at the speedway. In the IMCA Stock Car division, Stefan Sybesma shot into the early lead. He put some distance on the field while Chris Ullrich battled Derek Green for second.

Ullrich worked past Green on the eighth of 15 laps, then attempted to reel in Sybesma. Ullrich was within five car-lengths by the 10-lap mark, then pulled onto the leader's rear bumper with two laps to go.

Ullrich shot to the low side of Sybesma and ran side-by-side with the leader over the final circuit. Sybesma proved to be too strong in the top groove as he held for the win by a car-length ahead of Ullrich.

Doug Smith chased Tony Pogeler for much of the 15-lap IMCA Northern SportMod feature. Smith kept pace with the leader until making his way into a battle for the lead on the top side in turns one and two on lap nine. Smith emerged down the back stretch with the lead and survived two cautions to score the victory. Pogeler ran second at the line.

In the 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature, Justin Nehring assumed the early lead. Nehring paced the field before Brandon Nielsen raced the top side past him exiting turn four on lap three. Devin Smith joined the leaders in a three-car breakaway before caution bunched the field on lap five.

On the restart, Smith quickly made his way past Nehring for second, then raced the low groove by Nielsen on lap eight, just as Nielsen drifted to a stop on the high side of the speedway with a flat tire. Smith drove away from the pack when racing resumed to score the victory ahead of Nehring and a charging Craig Brotherton.

Cory Peters entered a side-by-side battle with Cody Thompson three laps into the IMCA Sport Compact feature. Peters took charge down the back stretch and won the 10-lapper going away. Thompson came home second.

Mike Vondrak kept his perfect record in tact, winning his fourth Bomber feature in as many nights in that divsion's eight-lap finale. Vondrak started in the third row, but took charge by the completion of the first lap to win the event going away ahead of Tanner Bengford.

Racing action resumes tonight at BVR. Although the track normally races on Wednesdays, it was not scheduled to race this Wednesday due to Tuesday's special. A very wet spring led officials to add another points night, calling the back-to-back programs Beaverpalooza.

Special thanks to promoter Jeff Herrig's right-hand man, Eric Blum, for all his help Tuesday night. The crew at BVR provided a perfect racing surface for a great night of racing!

I intended to post this report last night when I returned home, however the latest string of storms settled into the area and knocked out my internet overnight.

Next up for me is likely Independence Motor Speedway this Saturday for Budweiser Mid-Season Championships. The area has seen a tremendous amount of rain in the last day or so and record flooding may be in store for those in Buchanan County. Hopefully, things dry out for us to go racing this weekend, however being able to race is minor compared to the threat of flooded homes and businesses. Please, keep everyone in that area in your thoughts as the chance for more rain is in the forecast.

RESULTS
KARL PERFORMANCE HAWKEYE DIRT TOUR
Feature: 1. 10M Jeremy Mills (Garner); 2. 1X Chris Abelson (Sioux City); 3. 17 Justin Sackett (Pierson); 4. 15 Mark Elliott (Webster City); 5. 37 Mike Jergens (Plover); 6. 23 Jim Thies (Mapleton); 7. 3 Mike Albertsen (Audubon); 8. 85 Dustin Smith (Lake City); 9. 27M Mark Schulte (Delhi); 10. 57V Mike Van Genderen (Newton); 11. 14 Matt Bonine (Onawa); 12. 15M Shane DeMay (Denison); 13. 20L Zach Less (Hopkinton); 14. M80 Jim Mathieson (Sioux City); 15. 61 Brian Schmitt (Wall Lake); 16. 1M Brett Meyer (Lytton); 17. 9X Austin Lucas (Cherokee); 18. 19G Richie Gustin (Gilman); 19. 22BW Brad Williams (Lytton); 20. 22 Jeff Ignaszewski (Wells, Minn.); 21. 87 Joel Bushore (Boone); 22. 99 Jesse Sobbing (Glenwood); 23. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (Jesup); 24. 1CC Clayton Christensen (Sencer); 25. 5R Tad Reutzel (Burt).
First heat: 1. Abelson; 2. Schmitt; 3. Gustin; 4. Ignaszewski; 5. Thies; 6. Less; 7. DeMay; 8. Lauritzen; 9. Reutzel.
Second heat: 1. Smith; 2. Sobbing; 3. Williams; 4. Albertsen; 5. Meyer; 6. Lucas; 7. DeMay; 8. Bushore.
Third heat: 1. Jergens; 2. Mills; 3. Christensen; 4. Elliott; 5. Van Genderen; 6. Schulte; 7. Sackett; 8. Mathieson.

IMCA STOCK CAR
Feature: 1. 5B Stefan Sybesma (Sanborn); 2. 01U Chris Ullrich (Kiron); 3. 92B Brian Blessington (Breda); 4. 8 David Smith (Lake City); 5. 7 Jason Minnehan (Churdan); 6. 32 Derek Green (Granada, Minn.); 7. 16 Josh Suhr (Alta); 8. 11 Jake Masters (Graettinger); 9. 02 Adam Klocke (Carroll); 10. 02X Andy Gage (Whiting); 11. 33M Mathias Lux (Hartley); 12. 27X Allan Schmidt (Holstein); 13. Pat Cross (Nemaha); 14. 66 Matt Mahoney (Pierson); 15. 2 Mark Stanley (Storm Lake); 16. 07B Corey Bosma (Early); 17. 35 Donavon Smith (Lake City).
First heat: 1. Suhr; 2. Ullrich; 3. David Smith; 4. Minnehan; 5. Gage; 6. Stanley; 7. Mahoney; 8. Schmidt; 9. Donavon Smith.
Second heat: 1. Sybesma; 2. Blessington; 3. Masters; 4. Green; 5. Klocke; 6. Cross; 7. Bosma; 8. Lux.

IMCA NORTHERN SPORTMOD
Feature: 1. 12 Doug Smith (Lake City); 2. 9 Tony Pogeler (Cherokee); 3. 42 Matt Fredricksen (Aurelia); 4. 14Z Zach Norgaard (Spencer); 5. 14F Jason Fisher (Lakefield, Minn.); 6. T4 Ryan Topf (Charter Oak); 7. 33 Tim Rupp (Cherokee); 8. 33R Ryan Roder (Marathon); 9. 98 Mike Bailey (Schaller); 10. 44 Dylan Petersen (Harlan); 11. 2 Nick Meyer (Whittemore); 12. 07 Bud Pash (Onawa); 13. 80X Steve Reetz (Arcadia); 14. 49 Cody Knecht (Whittemore); 15. 14K Donovan Kenneback (Lytton).
First heat: 1. Rupp; 2. Reetz; 3. Smith; 4. Roder; 5. Knecht; 6. Meyer; 7. Kenneback; 8. Norgaard.
Second heat: 1. Pogeler; 2. Fredricksen; 3. Fisher; 4. Pash; 5. Petersen; 6. Bailey; 7. Topf.

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
Feature: 1. 81 Devin Smith (Lake City); 2. 20N Justin Nehring (Storm Lake); 3. 45B Craig Brotherton (Wall Lake); 4. 79 Tyler Schubert (Galva); 5. 49 James Johnson (Cherokee); 6. 45 Drew Barglof (Sioux Rapids); 7. 01 Derek Husted (Sioux City); 8. 91A Matthew Anderson (Webb); 9. 37 Gaylen Freese (Galva); 10. 20B Jake Bieret (Wall Lake); 11. T8 Brandon Nielsen (Spencer); 12. 88H Shane Hammen (Newell); 13. 10X Jordan Snaderson (Spencer); 14. M7 Josh Mahler (Paullina); 15. 11K Sean Kuehl (Ida Grove); 16. 7C Andrew Claus (Spencer); 17. 88 Daniel Smith (Lake City); 18. 717 Nick Schilling (Sanborn); 19. 11 Casey Iehl (Rembrandt); 20. 84B Bobby White (Sioux Rapids); 21. 63 Taylor Bengford (Odebolt); 22. 20J Darin Johnson (Dickens); 23. 87 John Briggs (Cherokee); 24. 3D Keith Demey (Newell); 25. 30 Tim Pickel (Holstein); 26. Brad Falline (Spencer).
First heat: 1. Brotherton; 2. Barglof; 3. J. Johnson; 4. Nielsen; 5. D. Johnson; 6. Schilling; 7. Freese; 8. Daniel Smith; 9. Demey.
Second heat: 1. Devin Smith; 2. Nehring; 3. White; 4. Kuehl; 5. Husted; 6. Iehl; 7. Claus; 8. Anderson; 9. Falline.
Third heat: 1. Bieret; 2. Hammen; 3. Bengford; 4. Schubert; 5. Briggs; 6. Sanderson; 7. Pickel; 8. Mahler.

IMCA SPORT COMPACT
Feature:
1. 5C Cory Peters (Spencer); 2. 25 Cody Thompson (Sioux City); 3. 8J Jay DeVries (Spencer); 4. 15 Tyler Thompson (Sioux City); 5. 3RD Randy Cass (Onawa); 6. 84JR Dillon White (Greenville); 7. 52L Mark Lindgren (Aurelia); 8. 78 Wayne Monroe (Ida Grove); 9. 619J Scott Brown (Bellvue, Neb.); 10. JD3 Joe Ladehoff (Early); 11. 37 Levi Verdoorn (Sanborn); 12. 33N Corey Nammany (Schaller); 13. 8K Kaytee DeVries (Spencer).
First heat: 1. T. Thompson; 2. C. Thompson; 3. K. DeVries; 4. White; 5. Monroe; 6. Ladehoff; 7. Nammany.
Second heat: 1. Peters; 2. Cass; 3. J. DeVries; 4. Lindgren; 5. Verdoorn; 6. Brown.

BOMBER
Feature: 1. 66 Mike Vondrak (Galva); 2. 2 Tanner Bengford (Odebolt); 3. 90 Brandon Thomas (Alta); 4. 7 Devon Pierce (Odebolt); 5. 44K Elroy Sybesma (Boyden); 6. 27B Jordan Bieret (Wall Lake); 7. 4 Nathan Ray (Washta); 8. 12R Garret Ray (Washta); 9. 69 Tyler Peterson (Hartley); 10. 11 Dillon Magnussen (Rembrandt).
First heat: 1. Pierce; 2. Vondrak; 3. Peterson; 4. Sybesma; 5. Thomas.
Second heat: 1. N. Ray; 2. Bieret; 3. G. Ray; 4. Bengford; 5. Magnussen.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Pestka scores IMCA Late Model win at Benton County Speedway

After a many year absence, Late Models returned to action Sunday night at Benton County Speedway for a draw/redraw special. Luke Pestka hopes he doesn't have to wait quite that long before they're included again. (complete results follow)

Ten IMCA Late Models signed in to compete on the fast, smooth quarter-mile and outside front row starter Rick Dralle led the field to green. He showed the way while Pestka was working the low side from his second row starting spot.

Pestka battled Dean Wagner for position early while Chad Lerch also positioned himself to challenge. Pestka raced the low side to pull even with Dralle a handful of laps into the event while Lerch and Wagner battled side-by-side for third. Meanwhile, Todd Cooney was getting dialed in on the high groove from his fourth row starting spot.

Pestka cleared Dralle for the lead on lap eight while Cooney made his way into the top five. Cooney chased Wagner into the top three on the 13th circuit by the time Pestka extended his advantage to a near straightaway.

With Pestka down low, Cooney slowly cut into the lead on the top side and made a late surge in the waning laps. Although Cooney closed to within a couple of car-lengths, Pestka held on for victory. Following a lap one caution, the field reeled off 19 green flag laps to complete the race.

All weekly divisions competed for Mid-Season Championship honors Sunday night. A pair of Saturday night's winners in Independence made it two wins in two days Sunday. Ronn Lauritzen topped the IMCA Modified main event for the second straight day while John Emerson did the same in the 15-lap IMCA Stock Car feature.

It was Tony Olson showing the way at the drop of the green in the Modified 20-lapper. He worked the top side while Kyle Brown closed in on him running the low groove. They ran in that formation until caution slowed action twice following the completion of lap four.

On the second restart, Olson slowed to the high side and went to the pit area, which allowed Brown to take over the lead with Lauritzen on his rear bumper. Brown paced the field for two laps until Lauritzen pulled beneath him exiting turn two on lap seven. Lauritzen took over the point and led the remainder of the event to take the win.

It was the second win of the season in Vinton for Lauritzen and the seventh of his career on the quarter-mile. It was his third career win during the month of June. He is now tied for 21st on the track's all-time Modified list with Dave Burrell, Joe Docekal and Rich Krafka.

Lauritzen became the 14th Modified driver in history to sweep Independence and Vinton on the same weekend and the first to do it since Jerry Luloff on August 15-16, 2009. The 14 Modified drivers who have swept both tracks on the same weekend have done it a combined 24 times.

Emerson also doubled-up in the Stock Cars. After his Independence win Saturday night, Emerson worked the low side into contention from his second row start on Sunday, finding himself in second after one lap.

One lap later, Emerson ran the bottom groove to the inside of Mike Galli in turn three. The two came together with Emerson emerging with the lead and Galli in the pit area with a flat left front tire. Emerson went on to hold off Scott Pippert to take the victory.

The win was Emerson's third of the season in Vinton and his fourth career victory at the speedway. He now ranks tied for ninth all-time on the BCS Stock Car wins list with Cliff Gray, Jarod Weepie and Paul Shepherd.

It was the third weekend sweep this season for Emerson at Independence and Vinton and the fourth of his career. He tied Dan Trimble on that list and now sits two weekend sweeps between all-time leader Justin Temeyer.

The script was flipped in the IMCA Northern SportMods compared to Saturday night's finish in Independence. Joel Rust, who won Saturday night's feature, settled into third place just prior to a lap three caution. When the green flag waved again, Rust drove the low side past Mike McDonald for second on lap six. He made the same move on leader Mike Hogencamp one lap later to assume command.

While Rust led, Austin Kaplan was working his way through traffic from an 11th place starting spot. Kaplan settled into third right before the caution flag waved with two laps to go. When racing resumed, Kaplan ran along the outside of Rust, however Rust held the point at the white flag. Kaplan worked the top side exiting turn two on the final lap, then dove beneath Rust down the back stretch to take the lead. Kaplan held on over the final half of a lap to take the exciting victory. He finished second to Rust Saturday night in Indee.

The win was the 25th of Kaplan's weekly racing career in Vinton and his first since the Thursday, July 14 Benton County Fair race in 2011. Since that victory in 2011, Kaplan also won the April 8, 2012, non-points Frostbuster special at the speedway. His 25 career SportMod wins in Vinton rank second all-time.

First-year IMCA Hobby Stock driver Leah Wroten led the field throughout much of that 15-lapper. Wroten, running the high groove, fought off pressure from Brian Happel early before Kyle Parizek gained ground midway through the event.

Exiting turn four on lap 10, contact between Parizek and Wroten sent Wroten into a spin, forcing the caution flag. Wroten restarted at the tail for being stopped when the caution waved and Parizek joined her for his involvement in the incident.

Chris Luloff inherited the point for the restart and he led the remaining five laps to earn his third win of the season. Luloff now has 20 career Hobby Stock wins in weekly racing history at the speedway, which ranks him third on the all-time list.

Event sponsor and IMCA Sport Compact driver Gary Peiffer led that division's 12-lapper at the drop of the green. From his pole position start, Peiffer powered into the lead and paced the field while Brad Chandler worked his way into second from a fourth row starting spot.

Chandler closed the gap to under a car-length when the leaders encountered lapped traffic in the first set of turns on lap seven. Peiffer attempted to work the top side of the backmarkers, but ran out of room and drifted off the track, allowing the field to pass. Chandler took over the lead and held on for the remainder of the race to take the win, his second of the season. For his career, Chandler now has 10 Sport Compact wins in Vinton, tying him for fourth all-time with Steve Miedke.

Next Sunday night is Fuzzy Friends Hawaiian Night and the rescheduled Albert Auto Night. Individuals are asked to bring supplies for the local animal shelter. Bringing supplies will enter you in a drawing to win a gas grill. A limbo contest is also scheduled and everyone is invited to wear their best Hawaiian outfit to the races.

Also, Albert Auto is awarding an extra $25 to each heat race winner next Sunday. In addition, all feature winners will be awarded monster-sized trophies and a T-shirt cannon will launch roughly 200 shirts into the stands for the fans in attendance.

If you haven't been to Vinton lately, the racing has been great, the track has been smooth and fast and Sunday night will almost certainly offer something for everyone. Gates open at 4 p.m., hot laps are at 6 and racing follows!

Next up for me is a trip to western Iowa to Buena Vista Raceway in Alta this Tuesday for the next installment of the 2013 Karl Performance Hawkeye Dirt Tour for IMCA Modifieds.

Have a great week!

RESULTS
IMCA LATE MODEL
Feature: 1. 99 Luke Pestka (Robins); 2. 30 Todd Cooney (Des Moines); 3. 60 Dean Wagner (Evansdale); 4. C4 Chad Lerch (Cedar Rapids); 5. 7 Greg Hunter (Independence); 6. 1 Rick Dralle (Waterloo); 7. 89 Tom Pestka (Maquoketa); 8. 77 Dirk Hamilton (Jesup); 9. 9 Bobby Hansen (Vinton); 10/DNS. 31 Chad Cooney (Des Moines).
Heat one: 1. Lerch; 2. T. Cooney; 3. Hansen; 4. T. Pestka; 5. Hamilton.
Heat two: 1. L. Pestka; 2. Wagner; 3. Hunter; 4. Dralle; 5. C. Cooney.

IMCA MODIFIED
Feature: 1. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (Jesup); 2. 12D Joe Docekal (Dysart); 3. 00J J.D. Auringer (Waterloo); 4. 12T Ty Glass (Cedar Rapids); 5. 21K Kyle Brown (Kellogg); 6. 18 Jerry Luloff (Independence); 7. 80 Jerry Dedrick (Vinton); 8. 71 Troy Cordes (Dunkerton); 9. F7 Patrick Flannagan (Cedar Rapids); 10. 77 Tim McBride (Denver); 11. 7 Todd Jensen (Waterloo); 12. 81 Jesse Belez (Marengo); 13. 11B Mike Burbridge (Delhi); 14. T23 Tony Olson (Cedar Rapids).
Heat one: 1. Dedrick; 2. Lauritzen; 3. Auringer; 4. Cordes; 5. McBride; 6. Belez; 7. Burbridge.
Heat two: 1. Flannagan; 2. Olson; 3. Luloff; 4. Docekal; 5. Brown; 6. Jensen; 7. Glass.

IMCA STOCK CAR
Feature:
1. 87 John Emerson (Waterloo); 2. 47 Scott Pippert (Elberon); 3. 15 Norman Chesmore (Rowley); 4. 8 Curtis Roster (Vinton); 5. 8B Scott Beauregard (Center Point); 6. 76 Mike Galli (Urbana).
Heat: 1. Chesmore; 2. Pippert; 3. Emerson; 4. Galli; 5. Beauregard; 6. Roster.

IMCA NORTHERN SPORTMOD
Feature: 1. 1 Austin Kaplan (Des Moines); 2. 26J Joel Rust (Grundy Center); 3. 95 Mike McDonald (Cedar Rapids); 4. 72L Brett Lowry (Montezuma); 5. 10S John Schaefer (La Porte City); 6. 22H Curt Hilmer (Dysart); 7. 44G Brady Graham (Brooklyn); 8. 00 Jim Buhlman (Cedar Falls); 9. J2 Dave Schulze (Keystone); 10. 57R Ryan King (Montour); 11. 11M Mike Mitchell (Cedar Rapids); 12. 7D Dakoda Sellers (Vinton); 13. 57K Ross Kitner (Dysart); 14. 72 Mike Hogencamp (Waterloo); 15. 3R Danny Dvorak (Vinton); 16. 23JR Nick Roberts (Des Moines); 17/DNS. 3B Brian Anderson (Garrison); 18/DNS. 115 Bob Ebaugh (Raymond).
Heat one: 1. Hogencamp; 2. Schulze; 3. Rust; 4. Sellers; 5. Roberts; 6. Ebaugh.
Heat two: 1. Buhlman; 2. Graham; 3. Mitchell; 4. Lowry; 5. Kitner; 6. King.
Heat three: 1. McDonald; 2. Kaplan; 3. Anderson; 4. Schaefer; 5. Dvorak; 6. Hilmer.

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
Feature: 1. 18 Chris Luloff (Independence); 2. 46 Brian Happel (Vinton); 3. 79 Benji Irvine (Cedar Falls); 4. 67 Justin Stander (Shellsburg); 5. 78 Matt Brown (Dysart); 6. 14C Leah Wroten (Independence); 7. 21 Jonathan Juett (Belle Plaine); 8. 17K Kyle Parizek (Belle Plaine); 9. 07 Jacob Keiser (Marengo); 10. 45 Justin Wacha (Vinton).
Heat one: 1. Brown; 2. Parizek; 3. Irvine; 4. Juett; 5. Wacha.
Heat two: 1. Luloff; 2. Happel; 3. Keiser; 4. Wroten; 5. Stander.

IMCA SPORT COMPACT
Feature: 1. 2ND Brad Chandler (Cedar Rapids); 2. 22 Nathan Chandler (Norway); 3. 2 Merv Chandler (Vinton); 4. 36DD Gary Peiffer (Troy Mills); 5. 111 A.J. Witten (Cedar Rapids); 6. 22T Travis Losenicky (Garrison); 7. 00W Bill Whalen Jr. (Riverside); 8. 07X Joe Goodenbaur (Garrison); 9. 9 Toby Denning (Mt. Auburn); 10/DNS 99J Jeremy LErch (Vinton).
Heat one: 1. Peiffer; 2. M. Chandler; 3. B. Chandler; 4. Witten; 5. Whalen.
Heat two: 1. Losenicky; 2. Goodenbaur; 3. Denning; 4. Lerch; DNS N. Chandler.

Ackerman, Lauritzen get first wins of the season at Independence

A packed grandstand was on-hand to watch a full pit area of cars do battle Saturday night at Independence Motor Speedway. An impressive field of 128 cars, the largest car count at the speedway since May 15, 2010, competed in the last weekend leading up to next Saturday's Budweiser Mid-Season Championships (more on that later).

It was an emotional trip to victory lane for IMCA Late Model driver Darren Ackerman. Ackerman, who missed the 2012 season to fight and beat colon cancer, earned his first win in Independence since June 4, 2011.

Ackerman raced his way from a fourth row starting spot past Greg Hunter for the lead just prior to a lap five caution. He then pulled away from the pack and lost the field in lapped traffic to score the victory.

It was Ackerman's 17th career win in weekly racing history at the speedway, placing him alone in ninth on the division's all-time list at Independence. He sits three wins behind Hunter for eighth. Ackerman has now won at least one Late Model feature in 10 different seasons at the speedway, dating back to his first win in 2001. Seven of his 17 wins have come during the month of June, which is at least two more than any other month.

Ronn Lauritzen made his way to the front just prior to a mid-race caution in the 20-lap IMCA Modified feature. Lauritzen, who chased Vern Jackson for the first nine laps, powered past Jackson, then survived a trio of cautions to earn his first win of the season in Independence. With the win, Lauritzen became the fourth straight different winner in the division.

Lauritzen has won four times in weekly racing history at the speedway in the Modifieds. That ties him with Dan Bohr, Don Erger, Jason Snyder, Jeff Barkdoll, Justin O'Brien and Mike Krall for 31st on the all-time list. Lauritzen has now won features in four of the last five seasons, including one each in the last three years at Independence. It was his second career win during the month of June at the speedway.

The IMCA Stock Cars put on another incredible show in that division's 18-lap feature. A total of six lead changes, including multiple laps of three-wide battles out front, kept fans on their feet.

Jesse Brown, Norman Chesmore, Sean Johnson and John Emerson each spent time at the front of the pack before Emerson worked the low side past Johnson to take the lead as the white flag waved. Emerson went on to score the win, his fifth of the season in Independence and ninth overall this year.

The ninth win of his career in Independence, all within the last 378 days, put Emerson into a tie with Chris Wessner for ninth of the track's all-time Stock Car wins list. It was his fourth career win during the month of June. Also the winner last week, Emerson now has three separate winning streaks of at least two wins at the speedway. His longest winning streak is three races, which he accomplished during the first three weeks of this season.

Three divisions were racing for increased purse money following the rainout of the Entry Level Extravaganza earlier this month. SportMods paid $500-to-win, Hobby Stocks $300 and Sport Compacts $200. The increased purse brought out a a great field of cars in each of those divisions.

Joel Rust dominated much of the 15-lap IMCA Northern SportMod main event. After a lap 10 caution bunched the field and made his straightaway lead disappear, Austin Kaplan applied pressure when racing resumed. Kaplan worked both high and low to get the edge on Rust, however Rust held on to lead the event in its entirety to take the win.

It was Rust's fourth career SportMod win in weekly racing history in Independence. He now ranks sixth on the division's all-time list. The win came in just his second night in a new car after Rust's previous car received heavy damage during a mishap in Webster City a week ago.

Jamie Whitaker won a thriller in the IMCA Hobby Stock division. Points leader Benji Irvine appeared to be the guy to beat when he took control on the third lap. A late caution, however, bunched the field and allowed Whitaker to challenge to the outside. Whitaker cleared Irvine at the line to take his first win in Independence since his season championship victory on August 28, 2010.

Whitaker now owns five Hobby Stock wins in Independence, tying him for 19th on the all-time list with Bret Dage, David Rice, Doug Otto, Jerry Luloff, Justin Temeyer, Kevin Hoehne, Lon Gadow and Rick Suckow.

Adam Gates earned his fifth straight win in the IMCA Sport Compact division. Gates followed Dakota Schroyer for a pair of laps before Gates made his way to the front in the first lead change during feature action in the division this season. Gates led the remainder of the event in dominant fashion to score the victory.

Gates now owns six wins in seven weeks this season. His six wins lead the all-time list for the division in Independence. A win next week would tie Gates with Jack Mitchell, Dan Trimble and Larry Portis for the most conseuctive wins in track history. Mitchell established the record by earning six straight Modified wins in 1984. Trimble and Portis later matched his mark in the Stock Car division.

Next Saturday is Budweiser Mid-Season Championships at the speedway and we're introducing a new qualifying format for the event. For obvious reasons, many people don't like the traditional line-ups based straight-up on point totals, while others dislike a regular night of qualifying.

This year, we are going to run heat races, but we're going to invert them based on point totals and not stagger the line-ups. This means the top points earners through the season so far will be inverted and compete head-to-head in the same heat race. They will line-up in the feature the same way they finish their heat. The "fast" heat drivers will be locked into the front starting spots for their features, the "middle" heat drivers the middle of their features and competitors in the "slow" heat will start at the back of the features. This way, the fans will get their money's worth with the same number of races, but the drivers who feel they've earned the opportunity to start up front will still have that opportunity. The only caveats are that each driver needs to be checked in by the time lineups are made and they also must take the green flag in their respective qualifiers to be locked into their heat's qualifying block for the feature. If a driver is late to the track, there are no guarantees they will make the heat they would otherwise be scheduled to run and they may have to wait for the feature and start at the tail. Likewise, if they miss their heat entirely, they will start from the fail of the feature.

In effect, each of the six divisions will run a pole dash, inverted on point totals, that includes the top drivers in points. I AM STOKED! It promises to be a great night so be sure to join us next Saturday! Then, on Tuesday, July 2, the Deery Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models makes its first of two scheduled visits this year to Independence. Details of that event are available in the flyer at the top of this page. A press release detailing Mid-Season Championships will be sent Monday and the Deery release will be sent later this week.

Prior to all that, however, it's back to Benton County Speedway in Vinton tonight. Not only is it Gary's Auto Mid-Season Championships, but Late Models are scheduled to compete, as well. The skies are looking brighter in Vinton as I type this, so make plans to come to Vinton tonight for another night of great racing! The races, as they say, ARE ON!

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Meyer wins in wild IMCA Stock Car finish at Marshalltown

With three laps to go, the caution flag waved in the IMCA Stock Car feature Friday night at Marshalltown Speedway. Prior to the restart, announcer Jerry Vansickel asked the crowd who they thought would win. I quietly sent a text to Jerry saying "Meyer." With a little bit of luck and perfect timing, I was right for a change.

Jay Schmidt was the leader by a sizable margin and Meyer ran second at the time the yellow flag waved. Damon Murty was third after having made a good run from the fifth row. The separation between the leaders was gone when they regrouped for the Delaware double-file restart. Then, when Schmidt pushed into turns one and two on the restart, it was anyone's guess who would claim the victory.

Once the #19J allowed room beneath him, the race was on as Meyer, Murty, Tracy Gienger and Dusty Vis saw opportunity present itself. Meyer went to the low side, alongside Murty, with Schmidt looking to keep pace from the top side of the fast quarter-mile. The leaders went through turn two in three-wide formation with Meyer taking control down the back stretch. He held off the field over the final circuits to take the exciting victory. Schmidt regrouped to finish second ahead of Murty, Gienger and Eric Knutson.

Eric Larson led the field to green at the start of the 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock main. Larson held the point while Eric Stanton worked the low side into contention on lap three. He pulled even with Larson and inched ahead at the start/finish line to assume command.

Larson, along with Nick Murty and Gary Pfantz, stayed within striking distance during the middle part of the event. Stanton, however, protected the low groove throughout and survived the on-set of backmarkers in the waning laps to secure the win. With the assistance of lapped traffic, Larson was able to hold off Murty for second at the line. Points leader Bill Bonnett and Pfantz completed the top five.

Cayden Carter set sail at the drop of the green to lead the entirety of the 20-lap IMCA Modified feature on his way to victory. Carter built a straightaway advantage over the field by the time Ronn Lauritzen raced the low groove past Kyle Brown for second on lap five.

Lauritzen was able to cut the margin approximately in half over the remaining laps, however Carter cruised to the win. An entertaining battle for third between Jimmy Gustin and Jon Snyder kept the fans' attention throughout the final half of the event. To Snyder's chagrin, Gustin protected the low groove and survived contact from Snyder to take third. Brown crossed the line fourth ahead of Kyle Krampe. Points leader Snyder did his lead in the standings no favors. He pulled to the infield with a flat tire just prior to crossing the finish line and was scored ninth.

A handful of cautions slowed the first six laps of the IMCA Northern SportMod feature. Carter VanDenBerg escaped with the lead following two stoppages prior to the completion of the first lap. He powered beneath Coty Albers to assume command on lap two, then led the field through three more halts in the action before the event's first long green flag run.

Once out front, VanDenBerg worked the top side while Brad Iverson and Eric Elliott advanced through the pack. VanDenBerg was maintaining a few car-lengths over the field when the leaders encountered lapped traffic on the 13th of 18 laps. A final caution one lap later bunched the field and allowed for clear track in front of the leaders.

On the restart, VanDenBerg held off the challenges of his nearest pursuers to take the win. Iverson and Elliott crossed the line in second and third, respectively, ahead of Brett Lowry and Geoff Olson.

After showing the way for the first four laps of the 15-lap Mod Lite feature, Eric Hendrickson gave way on the low side to Mike Morrill. While Morrill led, Josh May was making a run of his own from a fourth row starting spot.

May raced his way into the runner-up spot on lap six, then worked into a battle on the low side of Morrill in turn two as the leaders entered lapped traffic just after the completion of lap 10. The race's only caution, however, negated May's momentum, placing him behind Morrill for the ensuing restart. Andy Hennigar, who started alongside May in row four, restarted third.

When racing resumed, points leader Hennigar swept to the outside of the front-runners and challenged for the lead in turns three and four on the 11th lap. He crossed the line with the lead and remained there for the duration to take the victory. Morrill and May ran second and third. Charlie Brown and Hendrickson rounded out the top five.

From a third row start, Adam Gates made a quick charge to the front in the 10-lap IMCA Sport Compact feature. Gates assumed command and built a huge lead before the caution flag waved just after the midway point. He continued his march when the green flag waved again to take a dominating win ahead of Merv Chandler. David Moorman, John Gill and A.J. Witten ran third through fifth.

The mid-afternoon decision to make the trip to Marshalltown was well worth it. After hearing Farley rained out and Independence Motor Speedway competitor Leah Wroten was making the haul to Marshalltown to compete for the first time, I decided to head that way. As always, Toby Kruse and the crew put on a great show with a strong field of cars. The newly replaced MUSCO lights also provided a noticeable difference on the track when the features rolled out.

My luck didn't end at predicting the Stock Car winner in the final laps. For the first time in Marshalltown, and probably only the fifth or sixth time ever, I bought 50/50 tickets. I didn't quite have my tickets out yet when fellow Positively Racing bloggers Joyce and Dick Eisele of the 4dfan Report told me I better check my numbers. I purchased my tickets right after Joyce bought hers and she was only a few numbers off. To say the least, I was surprised when I found out I was the winner of the $168.50 prize. It was the first time in nearly 10 years that I enjoyed the races in Marshalltown from the grandstands. It's a safe bet it won't be another 10 years before I sit in the stands again.

Saturday, increased purse money awaits drivers in the IMCA Northern SportMod, Hobby Stock and Sport Compact divisions at Independence Motor Speedway. The weather looks great for the final night of racing before the June 29 Budweiser Mid-Season Championships. The new format for Mid-Season Championships will be announced at the races this Saturday. I hope to see everyone in Independence!

Thanks for reading!

Friday, June 21, 2013

Stewart, Agan top series action at Lee County Speedway

A fantastic field of 120-plus cars filled the pits in five divisions Thursday night at Lee County Speedway. Along with a great turnout in the stands, an estimated 1000-plus were in the pit area for the annual Budweiser Customer Appreciation Night.

The program was a unique mix of two premier open wheel series, including the Karl Performance Hawkeye Dirt Tour for IMCA Modifieds and the Brockway Mechanical & Roofing Sprint Invaders. A fine showing of 32 Mods and 29 Sprints signed in to do battle on the fast 3/8-mile oval.

The Modified field was pared down to 24 starters for the 30-lap feature and pole-sitter Hunter Marriott led the field to green. Marriott paced the field while fellow front row starter Steve Stewart pursued.

Stewart closed in on Marriott working the low side of turn three on the second circuit and pulled even with the leader in that set of turns. The front pair ran wheel-to-wheel until Stewart took the lead exiting turn two on the following lap. He quickly left the field behind while the pack battled for position.

Making a good run through traffic was first B feature winner Richie Gustin, who started inside the seventh row. Gustin worked into the top five in just five laps, then took advantage of a miscue by third-running Tyler Cale. Cale checked up and got a little sideways exiting turn four on lap five, with Scott Dickey and Gustin right behind him. Dickey also checked up, but Gustin had enough room to make other plans and shot around the outside of them. Gustin took over third at the flagstand, then went to work on reeling in Marriott.

With the front three continuing to run in that order for a number of laps, Dickey made his way past Cale for fourth and Ronn Lauritzen, who started in the sixth row, found himself in the top five.

At the halfway point, Stewart was enjoying a full straightaway lead when Gustin caught Marriott. Gustin worked the top side of turn two to pull even with Marriott, then switched things up in turn three when he dove to the bottom. Gustin held the second spot at the flagstand, however those drivers continued to battle for position, swapping second numerous times over the ensuing laps.

In the meantime, Stewart encountered lapped traffic on the 17th circuit, but methodically worked his way through the backmarkers to take the convincing win a straightaway head of Gustin. Marriott, Dickey and Lauritzen completed the top five.

Twenty 360 Sprints took the green flag in the 25-lap Sprint Invaders headliner. Heat and dash winner John Agan led the field to the green flag with Russ Hall, a previous series winner at LCS this season, in second. Josh Schneiderman and Dustin Selvage were running third and fourth when the first caution slowed action on lap seven.

On the restart, Agan pulled away from the pack, leaving Hall in no-man's land in second, with Schneiderman and Selvage closing in during a close battle for third. Selvage worked the top side of Selvage for third on lap 14, just as Agan came upon lapped traffic. Selvage took over third three laps later, however he spun his #73 on the front stretch to bring out the final caution. Schneiderman, too, went to the pits during that stoppage.

Agan was briefly challenged by Hall when racing resumed, however he pulled away over the final laps to complete the evening sweep. Knoxville Raceway regular Wayne Johnson made a terrific qualifying run through the B feature, started 18th on the feature grid, then drove to an impressive third place finish ahead of Randy Martin and Ryan Jamison.

In a wildly entertaining IMCA Northern SportMod feature, Bobby Anders assumed the early lead with Tony Dunker in close pursuit. Anders protected the low groove with Dunker on his rear bumper as the lead pair was half of a straightaway ahead of the pack by the time the yellow flag waved on lap four.

Dunker again pressured Anders on the restart as the leaders pulled away to the same advantage near the midway point on lap nine. Dunker worked the low side of Anders in turns three and four on lap 11 and was able to briefly pull alongside the leader before Anders regained control. Dunker attempted the same maneuver on the following lap, but Anders maintained the point as the caution flag waved again with 12 laps scored complete.

Carter VanDenBerg, who started in row six, worked his way into third by the lap 12 caution. When the green flag waved, he worked the low side of Dunker and was able to steal second until the yellow flag waved again three laps later.

Dunker worked past VanDenBerg when racing resumed, then reeled in Anders for the lead. The front pair swapped racing grooves and the lead numerous times over the final laps, which saw a trio of key restarts. Dunker pulled away on the final restart to take the thrilling win. Anders followed ahead of VanDenBerg, Derek St. Clair and Brett Lowry.

The IMCA Stock Cars also provided a thrilling finish in that 18-lapper. In the early going, it was pole-sitter Jeremy Pundt in control before third row starting John Oliver Jr. raced the high side into contention. Oliver worked the top side of turn two into the lead while Jason Cook started making noise.

Cook ran both high and low on the multi-groove surface and made his way into second on the eighth circuit when he worked the high side of Pundt. Once he cleared Pundt, Cook quickly dropped to the low groove to run down Oliver.

Cook pulled alongside Oliver on the 10th lap as the leaders put on a terrific show, running side-by-side for the remainder of the event. Cook proved to be too fast on the bottom as he drove to the exciting victory. Oliver finished second ahead of Nathan Wood, Ryan Cook and Abe Huls.

It was pure domination in the 15-lap IMCA Sport Compact feature. Adam Gates started outside of row two and took command by the completion of the first lap. He won the event going away to take the win by over a straightaway ahead of Chuck Fullenkamp and Josh Barnes. Bill Whalen Jr. and Austen Becerra rounded out the top five.

Thanks to Dave Sapp, Mike Van Genderen and their crew for the great show and racing surface Thursday night. It was one of the largest car counts I've seen anywhere this season and, by far, the largest count I've seen for a special event. Be sure to check out Positively Racing's Jeff Broeg's take on Thursday action in Donnellson. He was on the mic calling Sprint Invaders action with Bill Wright. His thoughts are on the Back Stretch. LCS regular and scoring aficionado Brian Neal was also in attendance. His report will be in Midwest Racing News.

If you live in southeast Iowa and haven't been a regular visitor of Lee County Speedway, make plans to do it. Thursday's show provided some incredible racing and you'll definitely get your money's worth by a spending a night at the races.

It was a unique experience helping out Thursday night. When flagman Kevin Eggleston was unable to make it to the show, Van Genderen shifted some positions, which left nobody tending to the scales for much of the program. I noticed a line of SportMods at a standstill in the infield following the first qualifier, only to look up to see Brett Lowry patiently waiting on the scales for someone to give him the thumbs-up. If nothing else, I figured I could read numbers and send them to tech.

I had a blast hanging out with IMCA's track relations guru Jim Stannard. When I told him I received a text from someone watching last night's show on XSAN and they wondered why I was working the scales, he felt the need to clarify. He said those folks weren't watching for the scales or tech, they were keeping an eye on the three Bud girls in the infield. You mean there were Bud girls last night, Jim? I guess I hadn't noticed...

Tonight, I'm considering a trip to Marshalltown Speedway for the weekly program there. Initially, I was planning on going to Farley Speedway for the first time since the 2002 Yankee Dirt Track Classic. Since Farley canceled due to the storm much of our area endured early this morning, my plans are now in limbo. If I head west to Marshalltown tonight, I hope to see you there!

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Harris ties record with fourth straight Deery win at West Liberty

The streak for Brian Harris rolled on Tuesday night in the Deery Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models at West Liberty Raceway. After a lengthy battle with Andy Eckrich, Harris pulled away following a late caution to drive to his fourth straight win in series action. (complete results follow.)

Pole-sitter Nick Marolf jumped to a huge early lead in the 40-lapper, pulling to a near straightaway advantage by lap seven. While Marolf led, Eckrich battled Jason Utter for second. Ekrich, who started outside of Utter in the third row, worked the low side of the fast half-mile while Utter drove the top line. Eckrich powered to the bottom of turns one and two to pull ahead of Utter by the time Marolf built his huge lead.

Harris, not far behind, started outside of row five, but was already into the top five after just two laps. He pulled onto Utter's rear bumper just as Eckrich made his bid for second.

Out front, Eckrich quickly reeled in Marolf and was assisted when the front-runners encountered lapped traffic on the 11th circuit. Eckrich again powered to the low side of the first set of turns one lap later to take command. Harris ran down the leaders on the 13th lap as the top three ran nose-to-tail down the back stretch.

The trio ran in the same formation and distanced themselves more than half a straightaway ahead of the pack. Lapped traffic then allowed Harris to run the low side past Marolf for second in turns one and two on the 16th lap. Harris used the same maneuver in the same set of turns one lap later to challenge Eckrich for the lead.

Although Harris made his way down the back stretch with the lead, Eckrich fought back on the low side on the following lap to regain control, all while the leaders battled in traffic. Eckrich and Harris swapped the top spot numerous times until Harris worked the high side to the lead when they cleared traffic on lap 21. The lead pair pulled away by a straightaway before the race's only caution slowed action on lap 24.

When racing resumed, Marolf had a strong run to the green flag restarting outside of Eckrich in row two. He took over second, then briefly challenged to the outside of Harris before Harris pulled away. Marolf fell back into a battle for second with Eckrich on lap 30, over half a straightaway behind Harris.

Although he again came upon lapped traffic with five laps to go, Harris sailed to the exciting victory ahead of Eckrich. Justin Kay, who started inside of Harris in row five, took advantage of the caution to come home third. Ray Guss Jr., who started 15th after transferring from a B feature, finished fourth ahead of Marolf.

The win for Harris tied an all-time Deery Series mark of four straight tour wins. That record was set by Gary Webb in 1994 and matched by Rob Toland in 2004. Harris will have the chance to break the series record for consecutive wins when the tour makes its first of two stops this season at Independence Motor Speedway on Tuesday, July 2. Details for that event are in the flyer posted at the top of this page.

Stock Cars joined the Late Models Tuesday night in a draw/redraw event for track points. Sixteen cars signed in for that 20-lapper with Damon Murty leading the way early. Murty, who competed at West Liberty for the first time in around five years, paced the field while a handful of drivers battled for position behind him.

Nathan Wood raced the low side past points leader Tad Payne for second while David Brandies entered the mix from a third row start. Brandies slipped past Payne and Wood on the third circuit, then raced the low line to reel in Murty.

Brandies pulled even with Murty in turn four on lap six, then exited the corner with the lead. He survived the event's only stoppage on lap 16 to drive to the win ahead of Murty, Wood and Payne.

* Jeremiah Hurst saw an early end to his night in the Late Model division. Hurst suffered a broken drive shaft on his #2 during hot laps and scratched for the night. In fact, it was reported he loaded up and headed back home a short time later.
* It was good to see veteran Ron Boyse put together a solid run in the Late Model feature. The 40-plus year veteran had a solid top-five run through most of the feature. He slipped to eighth in the final running order following the late caution, but ran well all evening.
*  As always, it was nice to chat with race announcer Jerry Mackey prior to the show. Jerry is one of the best in the business and always does a great job updating the fans on qualifying procedures and race format. By the way, Jerry, yes, there were two sheep on the highway a few miles north of West Liberty on my way to town. If I hadn't been so lead-footed on my way to the track, you may have stumbled upon them before me!
* It was nice to chat with fellow Positively Racing blogger Barry Johnson throughout the night. Family obligations have kept his travels at a minimum this season, but he stated he intends to pick up a few more events as the busy mid-summer portion of the schedule approaches. Be sure to check out that schedule on our calendar page. Fellow blogger Jeff Broeg was also in attendance. Check out his take from the night on the Back Stretch.

Unless I decide to head south Thursday to Lee County Speedway in Donnellson for the Karl Performance Hawkeye Dirt Tour for IMCA Modifieds / Brockway Mechanical & Roofing Sprint Invaders Series double-header, my next race will be in Independence on Saturday. Remember, SportMods, Hobby Stocks and Sport Compacts will be racing for increased purse money this weekend!

As always, thanks for reading!

RESULTS
DEERY SERIES IMCA LATE MODEL
Feature - 1. 15R Brian Harris; 2. 56 Andy Eckrich; 3. 15K Justin Kay; 4. 58 Ray Guss Jr.; 5. 33 Nick Marolf; 6. 15 Kyle Hinrichs; 7. 40 Joel Callahan; 8. 74 Ron Boyse; 9. 69 Tom Goble; 10. 88 Kevin Kile; 11. 46 Nate Beuseling; 12. 38 Colby Springsteen; 13. 1M Rob Moss; 14. 45 Tommy Elston; 15. 77 Kurt Kile; 16. 99D Darrel DeFrance; 17. 29 Spencer Diercks; 18. 16S Dan Shelliam; 19. 16 Tyler Bruening; 20. 6 Jay Chenoweth; 21. 31 Jason Utter; 22. 50 Denny Eckrich; 23. 93 Jay Johnson; 24. 07 Matt Ryan
First heat (top 3 qualify/redraw) - 1. Utter; 2. A. Eckrich; 3. D. Eckrich; 4. Callahan; 5. 32C Chad Holladay; 6. Elston; 7. S. Diercks; 8. 17 Tim Simpson.
Second heat - 1. Harris; 2. Goble; 3. Marolf; 4. Guss; 5. Springsteen; 6. 4D Marty Diercks; 7. Ryan; 8. C4 Chad Lerch.
Third heat - 1. Hinrichs; 2. Shelliam; 3. Boyse; 4. Johnson; 5. Beuseling; 6. Aikey; 7. Kevin Kile; DNS 2 Jeremiah Hurst.
Fourth heat - 1. Bruening; 2. Kay; 3. DeFrance; 4. 77K Kurt Kile; 5. 22B Jonathan Brauns; 6. Moss; 7. Chenoweth; 8. 99 Luke Pestka.
First B feature (4 transfer) - 1. Callahan; 2. Guss; 3. Elston; 4. Diercks; 5. Springsteen; 6. Holladay; 7. Ryan; 8. M. Diercks; 9. Lerch; 10. Simpson.
Second B feature - 1. Moss; 2. Brauns; 3. Chenoweth; 4. Pestka; DNS Kurt Kile; DNS Hurst.
Provisionals - Hard Charger: Ryan - Points: Springsteen Moss, Chenoweth.

STOCK CAR
Feature - 1. 71 David Brandies; 2. 99D Damon Murty; 3. 52 Nathan Wood; 4. 6J Brandon Jay; 5. 44 Tad Payne; 6. 17C Shane Paris; 7. 2 Travis Finke; 8. 33 Jarrett Franzen; 9. 34 John Hemsted; 10. 4 Jake Wenig; 11. 566 Jim Lynch; 12. 9W Ryan Walker; 13. 31 Josh Woods; 14. Lane Kauffman; 15. 11 Cody Harris; 16. 68 Cole Simmons.
First heat (top 5 redraw) - 1. Brandies; 2. Payne; 3. Jay; 4. Paris; 5. Franzen; 6. Hemsted; 7. Kauffman; 8. Walker.
Second heat - 1. Murty; 2. Finke; 3. Lynch; 4. Wood; 5. Harris; 6. Wenig; 7. Woods; 8. Simmons.

Monday, June 17, 2013

What can Brown do for you? Win and win in Vinton

Not only do Kyle Brown and Matt Brown share the same last name, they shared the same plans Sunday night at Benton County Speedway. Kyle in the IMCA Modifieds and Matt in the IMCA Hobby Stocks drove to feature wins on a great night of racing on the Vinton quarter-mile. (updated stats, a few bonus numbers, a trip back to 1982 and complete results follow below.)

Jerry Dedrick led the charge at the drop of the green in the 20-lap IMCA Modified feature. He paced the field from his outside front row starting spot while Kyle Brown pursued after starting directly behind the leader.

Brown made his way past Dedrick for the lead on lap four, then put a few car-lengths over the field while Ronn Lauritzen and Joe Docekal followed past Dedrick. Brown held the point while Docekal slowly reeled in Lauritzen on the slick, smooth quarter-mile. Docekal pulled even on the low side of Lauritzen and made the pass for second on the white flag lap, but Brown made his way to the checkers for his second win of the season before Docekal had time to mount a challenge.

Matt Brown took advantage of his outside front row starting spot to take the early lead in the 15-lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature. Chris Luloff quickly challenged from his third row start and chased Brown for much of the event. 

Although Luloff was able to stick the nose of his #18 to the inside of Brown's machine in the late stages, Brown held on for the exciting win, his first of the season.

Bob Ahrendsen led a close-knit pack of IMCA Stock Cars for the first four laps of that 15-lapper. Ahrendsen was joined by Norman Chesmore, John Emerson, Curtis Roster and Scott Pippert in a multi-car battle for position at the front of the pack before Chesmore worked the low side into the lead on lap five.

Much like last week, Chesmore protected the low groove of the speedway while Emerson and Pippert battled for second. Pippert, the lone leader running the top side, made his way around Emerson with three laps to go, but Chesmore was too fast down low as he raced to his second straight win in Vinton and his third of the year at BCS

Mike McDonald took the lead from Colby Heishman on the second lap of the IMCA Northern SportMod main event. McDonald raced the low side at the front of the field while Nick Roberts, Joel Rust and Danny Dvorak made their way through traffic from mid-pack starts.

A slew of cautions slowed action during the middle of the event, which bunched the field and allowed Roberts to race the top groove into the lead following a lap nine restart. Roberts led the remainder of the event, which timed out after 14 of 15 scheduled laps, to take his fourth win of the season. 

Rust, who had a rough night Saturday at Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City, was driving a loaner courtesy of Coty Albers. Rust made an impressive run in his short time in that car to cross the line in second.

In IMCA Sport Compact victory lane, Merv Chandler thanked his son, Nathan, for taking the night off. The younger Chandler was on vacation, which brought an end to his four-race winning streak at the speedway. The elder Chandler set sail at the drop of the green and cruised to the win, his first of the season, ahead of Bill Whalen Jr.

It was great to have a perfect night weather-wise for racing. Without a threat of inclement weather, it was nice to enjoy the show without fear of getting rained out. Props again to track prep man Don Burkey for providing a smooth surface for the evening.

In case you weren't in Vinton Sunday evening, you may want to make plans to be there next week. In addition to Gary's Auto Mid-Season Championships on June 23, IMCA Late Models will be making a special appearance at the speedway. A number of drivers have been contacted and there is already quite a bit of interest in the show. Drivers from central Iowa, as well as a number who race weekly in Independence, plan to bring their Late Models for a fun night on the quarter-mile. The show will be sanctioned for State and National points.

By the Numbers
* Kyle Brown - Brown earned his second win of the season in the IMCA Modifieds, the third of his career in Vinton and his first during the month of June. He is now tied for 38th on the division's all-time list at the speedway with Brian Krall, Dave Stricker, Steve Droste and Tom Bartholomew. Through nine nights of weekly racing this season, Brown joined Richie Gustin as the only Modified drivers with multiple wins.

* Norman Chesmore - For the first time in his career, Chesmore won back-to-back IMCA Stock Car features in Vinton. With 17 wins in weekly racing history at the speedway, Chesmore remains fifth on the all-time list, two wins behind Dan Trimble. Chesmore has now won five times during the month of June, more than any other calendar month in Vinton. With three wins overall in 2013, Chesmore matched his personal best at the speedway, which he set in 2008. Coincidentally, all three of Chesmore's wins this season have come after starting inside of row three. Not only have all of his wins come from that starting spot, he is the only Stock Car driver to win from that starting position this season. Chesmore's 17 career wins in Vinton span 4,361 days (11 years, 11 months, 8 days), the longest such span in the division. Chesmore has won at least one feature in 10 of the 13 seasons the Stock Cars have competed weekly at the speedway.

* Nick Roberts - Roberts won for the fourth time in the IMCA Northern SportMod division, bringing his career total to five wins in weekly racing history at the speedway. That puts him in a tie for eighth all-time with Kyle Bentley and Kyle Olson. It was Roberts' first career win past the month of May at the speedway. Roberts, who started eighth Sunday night, continued the streak of SportMod feature winners coming from eighth, ninth and tenth on the starting grid. The last eight winners have come from those three spots and Roberts has won once each time from those starting positions. He also won from the pole during the season points opener on April 14.

* Matt Brown - Brown earned his first win of the season in IMCA Hobby Stock action, giving him at least one feature win in six of the last seven seasons at the speedway. With 10 wins for his career, Brown moved into a tie with Danny Dvorak and Frankie Dulin for 11th on the all-time Hobby Stock wins list at the speedway. Half of his 10 wins have come during the month of June. Aside from his win on June 7, 2009, Sunday night's win was the earliest win during any season for Brown in Vinton.

* Merv Chandler - Chandler earned his first win of the year in the IMCA Sport Compacts, giving him at least one win in each of the last three seasons. He also won three times in 2008. In weekly racing alone, Chandler now has nine career Sport Compact wins at the speedway, which ties him with Bill Whalen Jr. and Brad Chandler for fifth all-time.

Similar to last night while I was working on the stats for Independence, I noticed a few interesting tidbits while updating the BCS stats Sunday night. Below are a few bonus numbers for Vinton through June 16:
* IMCA Modified driver JD Auringer has finished in the top 10 all nine nights so far this season. Of those finishes, six have been in the top five.
* Similar to Auringer, IMCA Stock Car driver John Emerson has collected top-10 finishes all nine nights this season, including five straight top-threes.
* Norman Chesmore has finished in the top four every night for the last eight nights in the IMCA Stock Cars. He'd likely have nine, but he wasn't in attendance on opening night back in April.
* A guy was actually yelling in the stands in Vinton Sunday night when the crew took time to prep the track during a 20-minute intermission, then gave the Sport Compacts the chance to hot lap before giving their feature the green flag. The numbers say you've hit your limit at the beer stand, sir. Slow the pace a little next time, buddy. When the clock says 7:15 p.m. and the weather is nice, enjoy the fact that you're not sitting home in a thunder storm complaining that the races were canceled.
* Joel Rust continues to amaze in the IMCA Northern SportMods. Rust drove to his ninth top-10 finish in as many nights Sunday night (in a borrowed car, no less). He is the only driver in the division to finish in the top-10 every night. In fact, eight of those finishes were top-five finishes. His only finish not in the top five? A sixth place finish on June 2. There should be no wondering why he has a 17-point lead in the standings. Rust is clearly the class of the field in the SportMods this season.
* IMCA Hobby Stock points leader Chris Luloff has driven to six straight top-three feature finishes and a total of seven top-threes in nine weeks. 
* Bill Whalen Jr. has been in the top three all but one night in the IMCA Sport Compact division. His lone finish outside the top three was a fourth place finish April 28.
* The track was very smooth and slick Sunday night and provided for some great racing. For those complaining about that on message boards and facebook, get a clue. Be honest. As much as you bitch, you've never prepped a track, have you? You really have no idea what you're talking about, do you? Statistics indicate you're probably the same guy posting that you're going to the "Derry" Brothers race when the series is in your area and it's likely you've had trouble finding enough "sponcers" to be able to put your car on the track. 
* Four of the last five IMCA Stock Car features have gone caution-free. Over the course of those 75 laps, the caution flag has flown only two times.
* Twelve of 45 feature events this season have been caution-free, including five total in the Stock Car division. There has been at least one caution-free feature every week this season except for week two (April 21). When considering all 45 feature events in the five divisions, each feature averages seven laps of green flag racing prior to the first caution.
* Historically, the number of caution flags and the total number of races run very close to the same. So far this season, there have been 120 caution flags in a total of 126 races, which is slightly fewer the number of cautions than normal.
* Are people still asking questions about track prep? One week it's too rough, the next it's too dry and slick. Statistics show, if you habitually complain, finding a new hobby should be taken into consideration. You're obnoxious and do nothing to positively promote the sport. Tracks have been damn good over the past few weeks at every race I've attended. That includes a handful of tracks for numerous weekly shows and specials. Maybe a trip to Cedar Rapids some Friday night would be right up your alley.

Don't forget, IMCA Late Models are in Vinton next Sunday, June 23, during Gary's Auto Mid-Season Championships. Unless I've missed something the last few years (which is entirely possible, if not probable), I believe Late Models most recently competed in Vinton the last time the Deery (not "Derry") Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models paid a visit July 21, 2005. Twenty-four touring Late Models signed in that night with Rob Toland taking the checkers. I remember that evening quite well because I scored that race and I think I'm just now adjusting to the carpal tunnel. Late Models are fast and fun in Vinton so, if you can, make plans to attend.

The last time Late Models ran for track points as part of the weekly program in Vinton was September 19, 1982. To put it into context, Tim Swope was the Late Model winner that night during the track’s season championship program, Mike Schulte (#99, anyone?) earned his third career Modified win on the Vinton oval, Scott Yerkes won the figure 8 (he and Bruce Ary dominated that fun class) and Merv Chandler (yes, younger readers, the same Merv Chandler) was the Street Stock feature winner.

If that isn’t enough context for you, in 1982, the Commodore 64 was released, Sony released its first CD player, TIME Magazine named The Computer its person of the year, John Belushi died, Prince William was born, the Tylenol scare gripped the country and it was the year of the dedication for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The top music hits were from Michael Jackson (Thriller), Olivia Newton John (Physical), Joan Jett (I Love Rock and Roll), Survivor (Eye of the Tiger), J Geils Band (Centerfold), Toto (Rosanna), Toni Basil (Mickey), Laura Branigan (Gloria), Journey (Open Arms), Hall & Oates (Maneater) and Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes (Up Where We Belong).

You preferred TV to music back in 1982? Then you were probably watching new hits Cheers, Knight Rider, Fame, Family Ties and Cagney & Lacey. Movies more your thing? ET hit theaters, as did Tootsie, An Officer and a Gentleman, Poltergeist, 48 Hours, Conan the Barbarian, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and who can forget Porky’s?

Yeah, it’s been a while. Damn, I love Google.

My next event is tentatively planned for this Tuesday at West Liberty Raceway for the DEERY Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models. As always, it promises to be a great show at West Liberty. I hope to see you there!

JUNE 16 RESULTS
IMCA MODIFIED
Feature:
1. 21K Kyle Brown (Kellogg); 2. 12D Joe Docekal (Dysart); 3. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (Jesup); 4. 00 J.D. Auringer (Waterloo); 5. 71 Troy Cordes (Dunkerton); 6. 18 Jerry Luloff (Independence); 7. F7 Patrick Flannagan (Cedar Rapids); 8. 80 Jerry Dedrick (Vinton); 9. 11B Mike Burbridge (Delhi); 10. 171 Buck Swanson (Waterloo); 11. T23 Tony Olson (Cedar Rapids).
Heat one: 1. Dedrick; 2. Brown; 3. Lauritzen; 4. Auringer; 5. Cordes; 6. Swanson.
Heat two: 1. Docekal; 2. Luloff; 3. Olson; 4. Flannagan; 5. Burbridge.

IMCA STOCK CAR
Feature: 1. 15 Norman Chesmore (Rowley); 2. 47 Scott Pippert (Elberon); 3. 87 John Emerson (Waterloo); 4. 6X Bob Ahrendsen (Cedar Rapids); 5. 8 Curtis Roster (Vinton); 6. 8B Scott Beauregard (Center Point); 7. 76 Mike Galli (Urbana).
Heat: 1. Chesmore; 2. Emerson; 3. Pippert; 4. Ahrendsen; 5. Roster; 6. Beauregard; 7. Galli.

IMCA NORTHERN SPORTMOD
Feature: 1. 23JR Nick Roberts (Des Moines); 2. 26J Joel Rust (Grundy Center); 3. 3R Danny Dvorak (Vinton); 4. T17 Tom Rawlins (Kellogg); 5. 22H Curt Hilmer (Dysart); 6. 4 Ryan Maitland (Waterloo); 7. K3 Kyle Olson (Cedar Rapids); 8. 00 Jim Buhlman (Cedar Falls); 9. 44G Brady Graham (Brooklyn); 10. 72L Brett Lowry (Montezuma); 11. K0 Ken Kositzky (Cedar Rapids); 12. 57R Ryan King (Montour); 13. J2 Dave Schulze (Keystone); 14. CH19 Colby Heishman (Brooklyn); 15. 11 Al Sweerin (Waterloo); 16. 10S John Schaefer (La Porte City); 17. 93 Josh Burrell (Dysart); 18. 95 Mike McDonald (Cedar Rapids); 19. 7D Dakoda Sellers (Vinton); 20. 3B Brian Anderson (Garrison); 21. 72 Mike Hogencamp (Waterloo); 22. 4X Cory Tharp (Waterloo); 23. 57K Ross Kitner (Dysart).
Heat one: 1. Roberts; 2. Rawlins; 3. Heishman; 4. Buhlman; 5. King; 6. Tharp; 7. Sweerin; DNS Kitner.
Heat two: 1. McDonald; 2. Dvorak; 3. Hogencamp; 4. Kositzky; 5. Olson; 6. Graham; 7. Anderson; 8. Schulze.
Heat three: 1. Lowry; 2. Rust; 3. Schaefer; 4. Hilmer; 5. Maitland; 6. Sellers; 7. Burrell.

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
Feature: 1. 78 Matt Brown (Dysart); 2. 79 Benji Irvine (Cedar Falls); 3. 18 Chris Luloff (Independence); 4. 17K Kyle Parizek (Belle Plaine); 5. 46 Brian Happel (Vinton); 6. 45 Justin Wacha (Vinton); 7. 67 Justin Stander (Vinton); 8. 25 Doug Laughridge (Vinton); 9. 12J Jeremy Floyd (Cedar Rapids); 10. 09 Brayden Forbes (Waterloo); 11. 21 Jonathan Juett (Belle Plaine); 12. 14J Jacob Floyd (Cedar Rapids).
Heat one: 1. Luloff; 2. Irvine; 3. Happel; 4. Laughridge; 5. Jeremy Floyd; 6. Parizek.
Heat two: 1. Stander; 2. Wacha; 3. Juett; 4. Forbes; 5. Brown; 6. Jacob Floyd.

IMCA SPORT COMPACT
Feature: 1. 2 Merv Chandler (Urbana); 2. 00W Bill Whalen Jr. (Riverside); 3. 111 A.J. Witten (Cedar Rapids); 4. 8 Jacob McVay (Palo); 5. 22T Travis Losenicky (Garrison); 6. 99J Jeremy Lerch (Vinton); 7. 9 Toby Denning (Mt. Auburn); 8. 1A Jeff Ash (Center Point); 9. 36DD Gary Peiffer (Troy Mills).
Heat: 1. Witten; 2. Chandler; 3. Losenicky; 4. Whalen; 5. Peiffer; 6. McVay; 7. Lerch, 8. Denning; DNS Ash.

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Schulze scores first SportMod win in Independence

Dave Schulze added his name to the list of IMCA Northern SportMod winners at Independence Motor Speedway Saturday night. Schulze, who has won at Benton County Speedway in Vinton, made his first trip to the Independence winner's circle.

Schulze started the 15-lapper from outside of row one and pulled away from the pack before a caution bunched the field late. Curt Hilmer pressured the leader in the waning laps, but Schulze held on to become the 20th different winner in the division's six-year weekly racing history at the speedway.

John Emerson made a last lap pass on Sean Johnson to take the win in the 18-lap IMCA Stock Car feature. Jason Hocken led early before Johnson made his way to the front following a mid-race caution. Emerson, who worked into second a few laps later, restarted on Johnson's rear bumper following a lap 16 caution.

Pressuring the low side of Johnson's #8R, Emerson pulled to the inside of the leader in turns one and two on the final lap. After battling for the lead, Emerson pulled ahead of Johnson exiting turn four to steal the win.

The victory was Emerson's fourth of the season and the eighth of his career in Independence. He remains 10th on the division's all-time list at the speedway, one victory shy of Chris Wessner for ninth. It was Emerson's third career win during the month of June at Indee.

Tyler Bruening reeled in Dain Sires late in the 25-lap IMCA Late Model feature to drive to his fourth win of the season. Bruening worked past Dean Wagner for second with five laps to go, then chased down Sires in lapped traffic to take the lead as the white flag waved.

Bruening's career win mark in weekly racing history in Independence now matches the number on his car - 16. He is tied with Chub Liebe and Darren Ackerman for ninth on the all-time list at the speedway. His seven career wins during the month of June are more than double any other month for Bruening.

J.D. Auringer took the lead from Shawn Ryan mid-way through the 20-lap IMCA Modified feature to take his second win of the season. Auringer held off Tyler Droste throughout a handful of late cautions to drive to the win.

Auringer now owns eight Modified wins in his weekly racing career in Independence. He is tied for 12th on the all-time list with Greg Kastli, Joey Schaefer and Kevin Pittman. It was his second career win during the month of June.

Chris Luloff scored the 25th career Hobby Stock win of his career at the speedway. The all-time wins leader in the division took the lead from Justin Wacha following a mid-race caution to drive to the victory, his third of the season.

Luloff, who also won last week, now has five separate streaks of at least two wins in his career in Independence. It was his ninth win all-time during the month of June.

Adam Gates led wire-to-wire to claim his fifth win of the season in the IMCA Sport Compact division. Gates, whose five wins lead the all-time list at the speedway, has won the last four features in the division.

The ability to get the show in the books was very much up in the air throughout the day Saturday. For the second week in a row, forecasters were calling for upwards of a 90% chance of rain in the area. Independence dodged the weather yet again to complete its sixth night of points racing without interruption. Great job to track prep guru Don Burkey for assembling another stellar track despite Mother Nature's curveballs Saturday.

Coincidentally, the track has not had a Saturday rainout during the month of June since June 12, 2010. That streak of 14 straight successful weekly programs during the month is the third longest all-time. Over a span of 33 events scheduled during the month of June from 1975-1983, the track lost only one weekly racing program - June 9, 1979. There were 15 consecutive programs without a rainout during the month of June prior to that rainout and 17 straight June programs following that cancellation. Those are the only longer June streaks in track history.

We still have a few June race dates to go to set the overall track record, however. From 1993 to 1999, the track didn't see a single rainout during the month of August for 28 consecutive weekly programs.

By the way, Mother Nature allowed us to keep June 15 off the track's all-time cancellation list. Saturday night was the seventh time in track history weekly racing was scheduled for that calendar date and all seven of those programs were successfully completed. For what it's worth, June 22 has never rained out, either...

Speaking of which, next Saturday night, June 22, is another night of weekly racing and includes added purse money for the SportMods, Hobby Stocks and Sport Compacts. Due to the rainout of the Entry Level Extravanganza earlier this month, promoters Darin Burco and Todd Summers opted to pay the special purse during a weekly points night rather than reschedule the entire event.

For those interested, the program for those three divisions will be run the same as a regular points night. Track points will be awarded and the qualifying format will remain the same, based on season point averages. The only thing different is the increase in purse, which will pay $500 to the SportMod winner, $300-to-win Hobby Stocks and $200-to-win Sport Compacts. Points racing will also be held in the other weekly divisions. Pit gate prices and grandstand admission will remain the same.

I know it's still the middle of the month, but I've noticed a few interesting statistical trends that have formed (or continued) in recent weeks. Here's a mid-month Stats Blitz bonus for race fans at Independence Motor Speedway...

Odds and Ends
* Along with his four feature wins, Tyler Bruening has earned a pair of second place finishes in Late Model action this season. All six of his feature finishes have been top-two runs. In fact, dating back to June 16 of last season, Bruening has earned 13 top-three finishes in 14 nights of racing in Independence. His other finish was sixth on August 11 of last year.
* Sean Johnson continued his incredible streak of top-three finishes in the Stock Car class Saturday. Dating back to July 30, 2011, Johnson has earned an incredible 26 straight top-three finishes in weekly racing. During those 26 events, Johnson has earned 14 wins, eight second place finishes and four thirds.
* Modified points leader Tyler Droste has used a string of top-four finishes to carry him to the top of the standings. Droste has finished in each of the top-four finishing spots once in each of the last four weeks, the longest currently active top-five streak in the division.
* The Hobby Stocks have completed 90 laps of feature racing this season, but the feature winners led only 33 laps of the events they won. In fact, no Hobby Stock feature winner has led prior to lap six. To take it a step further, in four of six features, the winner didn't take control until the final five laps.
* On the flip side, the IMCA Sport Compacts have completed 66 laps of feature racing... and there has yet to be a lead change. That's right, every feature winner in the division through six weeks led those events in their entirety.
* A bit of a milestone will be reached next Saturday in the IMCA Modified division - it will be the 450th IMCA Modified feature in weekly racing history in the division in Independence. Dating back to the start of the 1983 season, the IMCA Modified division is now in its 31st season at the speedway. To see how times have progressed, here's a look back at each 50-race milestone winner through the years:
50th - John Light (June 28, 1986) / The fourth of Light's seven career wins in Independence.
100th - Deon Turner (July 1, 1989) / Turner's first of seven Modified win in Independence.
150th - Timm Jensen (August 15, 1992) / The third of Jensen's nine wins in Independence
200th - Steve Droste (July 6, 1996) / Droste's 13th and final Modified win in Independence came the following week.
250th - Darin Duffy (July 19, 1999) / The 12th of Duffy's 42 career wins at the speedway.
300th - Ben Metcalf (August 17, 2002) / Metcalf's only win in Independence.
350th - J.D. Auringer (May 6, 2006) / Auringer's second of eight Independence wins.
400th - Darin Duffy (August 29, 2009) / Career win number 33 of 42 for Duffy in Independence.
For those interested, Jack Mitchell won the first weekly IMCA Modified feature in track history on May 21, 1983.
* The Stock Cars are also approaching a milestone. The division, which was added to the weekly program in 1993 and has been IMCA sanctioned since the start of the 1994 season, is approaching the 300 mark. As of Saturday, 297 Stock Car features have been held in weekly racing history in Independence. Barring any weather-related problems, the 300th Stock Car feature is slated for July 6. As was mentioned earlier this month, a special increased purse for the Stock Cars is also in the works for one Saturday this season. Wouldn't it be perfect to add the prize money on the night the division's 300th feature is held? Stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks.

That's all for now. I'll see you tonight (assuming I ever get to bed) at Benton County Speedway!

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Harris, Duffy victorious in Deery/HDT double-dip in Tipton

Brian Harris picked up his third straight Deery Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models win and Darin Duffy topped the Karl Performance Hawkeye Dirt Tour for IMCA Modifieds Tuesday night at Cedar County Raceway. An excellent field of 38 IMCA Late Models and 44 IMCA Modifieds filled the pits for a fantastic night of racing on the 1/4-mile in Tipton. (complete results below)

Local favorite and pole sitter Justin Kay led the 24-car starting field to green in the 50-lap Late Model headliner. Running the low side, Kay paced the field while Stephan Kammerer challenged on the high side in an early three-wide battle for second with Andy Eckrich and Denny Eckrich.

Kammerer worked past the Eckriches, then pulled to the outside of Kay to assume command on the fourth lap. Kay joined Kammerer on the top side while Denny Eckrich cleared his younger brother for third.

Kammerer pulled a few car-lengths ahead of Kay until lapped traffic impeded his progress 11 laps into the event. Just after crossing the line for what would have been the completion of lap 12, Kammerer drifted off the top of turns one and two and spun to a rest on the high side in the middle of the set of turns to bring out the yellow.

With the leader relegated to the back of the pack, Kay inherited the pole with Denny Eckrich to his outside for the ensuing restart. That pair rain in side-by-side formation for a number of laps before Eckrich broke free on the bottom while Harris was working through traffic from a fourth row starting spot.

Harris, who made his way into third shortly after the lap 11 caution, worked the low side into contention. He pulled ahead of Kay for second as Eckrich encountered lapped traffic on the 24th circuit. Two laps later, Harris pulled to the inside of Eckrich in turn four, then escaped with the lead at the flagstand.

While Harris pulled away to a half-straightaway lead a short time later, Kay and Andy Eckrich reeled in Denny Eckrich and engaged in a terrific three-car battle for the runner-up spot. Ray Guss Jr. also entered the mix while Denny Eckrich and Kay swapped racing grooves and position in the battle for second.

Although Harris appeared to have trouble making his way around the lapped car of Tyler Bruening, his pursuers were too busy battling each other to gain any ground on the leader. Kay was able to pull away in the fight for the runner-up spot running the high side, however Harris was a straightaway ahead of him by the time Kay sat comfortably in second with around 10 laps to go.

Harris was still enjoying a comfortable lead when he encountered heavy traffic with six laps to go, as Andy Eckrich raced the low line into a battle for second with Kay. Harris survived the backmarkers to take the comfortable win ahead of Kay, who held on by inches for second ahead of Andy Eckrich.

Mitch Morris led the HDT Modified main to green in that 30-lapper. Morris held the top spot running the low groove while Darin Duffy was charging hard on the high side from his third row starting spot.

Duffy worked the top side of Ronn Lauritzen for second on the third lap, then pulled even with Morris for the lead exiting turn two on the following circuit. Duffy took command down the back stretch while Lauritzen reeled in Morris for second.

Lauritzen made the pass to the inside of Morris on lap seven, but was a half-straightaway behind Duffy, who continued to run up top. Lapped traffic at the 13 lap mark allowed Lauritzen to stay within striking distance and then the race's only caution bunched the field three laps later.

On the restart, Duffy remained committed to the high groove with Lauritzen down low. Duffy was again able to add a little bit of distance to his advantage until lapped traffic forced him to the low side of the speedway with three laps to go. After clearing the backmarkers, Duffy resumed his run on the high side to hold for the win a few car-lengths ahead of Lauritzen.

DEERY/HDT Notes:
* Stephan Kammerer appeared to have the car to beat in the Late Model division. He was dialed in on both ends of the track before his lap 11 miscue in the feature. After restarting at the tail, Kammerer again took to the top side, getting all the way back to 10th on lap 18, only to slide off the top of the same set of turns. He had trouble navigating that corner once more later in the event before pulling off to a 22nd place finish.
* Jeff Aikey spun in his heat race, then left the event and did not return to the track for his last chance qualifier. It was reported in the pits that a broken torque arm forced his early exit from the event.
* Luke Merfeld, who won Saturday night in Independence, was behind the wheel of his brother Jon's #81 Tuesday night. Merfeld ran well in the loaner to finish eighth in the feature.
* Richie Gustin's third place finish in the Modified feature was more work than many may realize. A flat tire, plus other mechanical issues on his trailer forced him to be late enough to Tipton that he missed his heat race. He started last in his B, took the final qualifying spot from that event and started 20th in the feature on his way to the impressive finish. It was reported that Gustin's problems with his hauler weren't over when he got to the track. While signing in, he apparently noticed an entire wheel was gone from his trailer. His great run Tuesday should have provided at least a little comfort on his drive back home to Marshall county.
* Kyle Brown was also fortunate Tuesday night. Brown, who was scheduled to start in the second last chance qualifier, was late to staging. Luckily for him, that event went to caution prior to the completion of the first lap. He joined the field before the race resumed and made his way into the feature by taking the last qualifying spot of that event. Brown, who started 21st, advanced 14 spots to finish seventh.
* With draw/redraw shows, you never know who will end up in which heat. Some heats appear stacked while others may seem a little on the slim side. Although there wasn't a slouch in the Modified field Tuesday night, the only qualifiers to come out of the fourth heat were the two heat race qualifiers. It was the only heat that didn't produce any transfers from a B feature. On the flip side, all but one of the eight entries in the first heat made the Modified feature, including the aforementioned Gustin. Likewise, in the Late Models, only the three heat race qualifiers from the fourth heat made the feature, while all but one driver from the fifth heat eventually qualified. You just never know!
* Speaking of Modified heats, I think Duffy may have been the early favorite for the 30-lap feature following his heat race performance. While there were some good battles throughout that round of qualifying, Duffy was the only heat race winner to come from deeper than the front row. He won the final Modified heat after starting in row three.
* I thought it would be a test of my patience to take in another race from the grandstands. Normally fidgety and needing to be in motion while at a race track, I was able to avoid those antsy feelings once again by sitting with fellow Positively Racing bloggers Dick and Joyce Eisele. The Eiseles also kept me in check in Webster City last Thursday and I had a blast spending the evening in the stands with them again Tuesday in Tipton. We were joined by our fearless leader, Jeff Broeg, who continues to amaze when it comes to recalling driver information. While Joyce and I were busy jotting notes throughout the program, Jeff, a self-proclaimed "environmentalist," took most of his note taking in his head, without so much as putting his pen to paper. Be sure to check out their takes from Tuesday's action on the Back Stretch and the 4dfan Report. I also have to mention the rest of the fans in our area of the grandstands, those being the dedicated family and friends of Modified driver Ronn Lauritzen. Not only are they a great group of folks, but their passion for racing is second-to-none. Wherever the 10K goes, his faithful fans are sure to follow and cheer him on every step of the way. While a couple of them got pretty feisty with me (okay, maybe it was me), I hope they enjoyed the night as much as I enjoyed it! I also briefly spoke with Late Model driver Darren Ackerman's parents in the stands Tuesday night during intermission. Looking at the clock, Carolyn, it looks like you were right - it's going to be about 2:30 when I get this blog posted!
* Finally, the new management at CCR, Darkside Promotions, admittedly has a tough act to follow in Tipton. Taking over following the very popular and successful run of promoters Al and Kathy Dlouhy, I think it's safe to say Ryan Duhme and Timmy Current are up to the challenge. Their crew did a great job with Tuesday's event, with the final checkered flag waving at 10:15. I know Al and Kathy still help out when and where needed, but the Darkside crew had a heck of a show Tuesday night. CCR is in good hands and I hope to make it back down to Tipton again in the near future. If you have never been to Tipton, I promise you won't be disappointed. I've been there a dozen times over the years and it's been worth the money every time.

Unless I get the urge to head to Eldon Raceway for the IMCA Late Model special there Thursday night, my next race likely won't be until Saturday at Independence. If you're looking to take in a mid-week race during the apparent arrival of summer weather, make plans to head to Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa this Wednesday (well, tonight). Promoter Mike Van Genderen is offering up a free night of racing on the grandstands side for those who wish to take in some half-mile action.

As always, thanks for reading!

RESULTS
DEERY SERIES IMCA LATE MODELS
Feature - 1. 15R Brian Harris (Davenport); 2. 15K Justin Kay (Wheatland); 3. 56 Andy Eckrich (Oxford); 4. 50 Denny Eckrich (Tiffin); 5. 58 Ray Guss Jr. (Milan, Ill.); 6. 46 Nate Beuseling (Silvis, Ill.); 7. X Mike Zeno Jr. (Davenport); 8. 81 Luke Merfeld (Dubuque); 9. 31 Jason Utter (Columbus Junction); 10. 40 Joel Callahan (Dubuque); 11. 75M Todd Malmstrom (Silvis, Ill.); 12. 99D Darrel DeFrance (Marshalltown); 13. 2 Jeremiah Hurst (Dubuque); 14. 16S Dan Shelliam (Hazel Green, Wis.); 15. 15 Kyle Hinrichs (Swisher); 16. 29 Spencer Diercks (Davenport); 17. 47 Andy Nezworski (Buffalo); 18. 16 Tyler Bruening (Decorah); 19. 1M Rob Moss (Iowa City); 20. 12 Ron Klein (Sherrill); 21. 38 Colby Springsteen (Wapello); 22. 77S Stephan Kammerer (Blue Grass); 23. 33 Nick Marolf (Moscow); 24. 390 Rob Toland (Colona, Ill.). 
First heat (3 qualify, 2 redraw) - 1. Utter; 2. Merfeld; 3. Beuseling; 4. Hinrichs; 5. Toland; 6. 24 Jason Bert (Moline, Ill.); 7. 48Z Jon Poll (Delmar); 8. 77 Jeff Aikey (Cedar Falls).
Second heat - 1. Kay; 2. Kammerer; 3. Klein; 4. Marolf; 5. DeFrance; 6. Springsteen; 7. 3 B.J. Bates (Long Grove); 8. 6 Jay Chenoweth (Wapello).
Third heat - 1. Zemo; 2. Hurst; 3. Bruening; 4. Malmstrom; 5. 4D Marty Diercks (Bettendorf); 6. 74 Ron Boyse (Kalona); 7. 85 Duane Christisen (Davenport); DNS 55 Ryan Claeys (Morrison, Ill.).
Fourth heat - 1. A. Eckrich; 2. Guss; 3. Callahan; 4. 45 Curt Martin (Independence); 5. R19 Joe Ross (Thomson, Ill.); 6. 24F Scott Fitzpatrick (Urbandale); 7. 17 Tim Simpson (Iowa City).
Fifth heat - 1. D. Eckrich; 2. Harris; 3. Shelliam; 4. Nezworski; 5. Moss; 6. S. Diercks; 7. C4 Chad Lerch (Cedar Rapids).
First B feature (3 transfer) - 1. Hinrichs; 2. Nezworski; 3. Malmstrom; 4. S. Diercks; 5. DeFrance; 6. Simpson; 7. Boyse; 8. Bates; 9. Claeys; 10. Bert; DNS Ross; DNS Aikey.
Second B feature - 1. Moss; 2. Marolf; 3. Toland; 4. Poll; 5. Springsteen; 6. Lerch; 7. Christisen; 8. Fitzpatrick; 9. Martin; 10. Chenoweth; 11. M. Diercks.
Hard Charger: S. Diercks - Points Provisionals: DeFrance, Springsteen.

HDT IMCA MODIFIEDS
Feature - 19D Darin Duffy (Urbana); 2. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (Jesup); 3. 19G Richie Gustin (Gilman); 4. 48J Jacob Murray (Hartford); 5. 11D Ryan Dolan (Lisbon); 6. 1 Dan Chapman (Clarence); 7. 21KX Kyle Brown (Kellogg); 8. 28X Kelly Meyer (Big Rock); 9. 33D Scott Hogan (Vinton); 10. 18J Jerry Luloff (Independence); 11. 10C Cayden Carter (Oskaloosa); 12. 11 Ray Cox Jr. (Maquoketa); 13. 27M Mark Schulte (Delhi); 14. 21K Dan Klatt (Wheatland); 15. 77 Joel Beal (Milan, Ill.); 16. 71W Jeff Waterman (Quincy, Ill.); 17. 3X Ryan Deshaw (Dyersville); 18. 70 Mitch Morris (Eldridge); 19. 57V Mike Van Genderen (Newton); 20. 88 Tony Vondresky (Long Grove); 21. 20L Zach Less (Hopkinton); 22. F7 Patrick Flannagan (Cedar Rapids); 23. 19 Jimmy Gustin (Marshalltown); 24. Joel Bushore (Boone).
First heat (2 qualify and redraw) - 1. Lauritzen; 2. Klatt; 3. Waterman; 4. Schulte; 5. 34T Derek Thompson (Freeport, Ill.); 6. Luloff; 7. Beal; 8. Murray; DNS. R. Gustin.
Second heat - 1. Dolan; 2. Meyer; 3. Chapman; 4. Hogan; 5. J. Gustin; 6. K. Brown; 7. 18R Terry Renfro (Bettendorf); 8. 111 Justin Rix (Olin); 9. 6 Brian Webb (Davenport).
Third heat - 1. Deshaw; 2. Vondresky; 3. Bushore; 4. Flannagan; 5. 9W Leon Wilson (Hopkinton); 6. 21X David Brown (Kellogg); 7. 21 Jesse Hoeft (Forest City); 8. 10X A.J. Fike (Galesburg, Ill.); 9. 8S Josh Starr (Tipton).
Fourth heat - 1. Cox; 2. Carter; 3. 25X Jake Bowman (Maquoketa); 4. 21M Tyler Madigan (Peosta); 5. 19R Todd Reed (Park View); 6. 89 T.J. Patz (East Moline, Ill.); 7. 17 Todd Dykema (Davenport); 8. 5D Devon Havlik (Iowa Falls).
Fifth heat - 1. Duffy; 2. Morris; 3. C4 Matt Werner (Colona, Ill.); 4. Van Genderen; 5. 15 Mark Elliott (Webster City); 6. 505 Racer Hulin (Laurel); 7. 2 Dusty Kraklio (Durant); 8. Less; DNS 16 George Spence (Orion, Ill.).
First B feature (4 transfer) - 1. Van Genderen; 2. Hogan; 3. Luloff; 4. R. Gustin; 5. Bowman; 6. Kraklio; 7. Waterman; 8. Renfro; 9. Fike; 10. Patz; 11. Wilson; DNS Spence.
Second B feature - 1. Chapman; 2. Murray; 3. Flannagan; 4. K. Brown; 5. Hulin; 6. Werner; 7. Reed; 8. Thompson; 9. Hoeft; 10. Havlik; 11. Webb.
Third B feature - 1. Schulte; 2. Bushore; 3. Beal; 4. J. Gustin; 5. Madigan; 6. Elliott; 7. Starr; 8. D. Brown; 9. Dykema; 10. Rix; 11. Less.
Points Provisionals: Less, Waterman.