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Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, AND The Silver Dollar Nationals
I must have taken a nap during the NASCAR Sprint Cup race from Kentucky last night. I had the craziest dream. Cars were passing other cars on the track. Drivers were racing three wide, even four wide. Jeff Gordon split Bard Keselowski and Kevin Harvick for a brilliant last half of the race pass. Kyle Busch switched racing grooves and tracked down leader Joey Logano, and then passed him as laps ran down. Logano passed him back, but Busch again passed Logano and drove away for another win in his comeback from a major injury. In post-race interviews all the drivers said they loved the new rules package, that it allowed them to really race. What? I wasn’t dreaming? It really happened?
NASCAR came up with rules that allow drivers to race, wonder of wonders. I suppose it is too good to last, that rule makers will want to tinker, and make changes that will take us back to little passing. Well, it was good for one night-I enjoyed the race even with a record number of cautions. Still the Sprint Cup series visits New Hampshire next weekend, and if they can be racy there, they can be racy anywhere.
What’s more, I am starting to like NBC coverage of NASCAR events. Maybe it is just that I hate FOX coverage so much, but NBC is a newcomer that already outdoes the veteran FOX in just about every way you can think of, starting with no “boogety, boogety, boogety.” I am not a fan of races on FS1 or NBCSN, but the coverage is the same whether it is on the network or some obscure cable channel. I think FOX needs to look at making more changes-bringing in Jeff Gordon and moving Larry McReynolds out of the booth is just a start.
One place a change does not need to be made is in the pits of Lucas Oil series driver Jonathan Davenport. For the most part I dislike the various racing nicknames, but with the season he is having, it is impossible not to call him Superman. Davenport won again last night, taking the Diamond Nationals portion of the Wheatland weekend racing. Scott Bloomquist finished second, Jimmy Owens was third, and Brandon Sheppard ended up fourth. It would be no surprise to me if Davenport wins again tonight in the rescheduled Show-Me 100.
I-80 promoter Joe Kosiski is at Wheatland doing what promoters should do-talking up the Silver Dollar Nationals with Lucas Oil and MLRA drivers. Kosiski sent Matt a photo from the pit shack at Lucas Oil Speedway. It showed framed and on the wall a Dirt Late Model article about the track by none other than Ron Meyer. Yeah, I do like that. And I shouldn’t call it a pit “shack.” It is a brick building that houses other track offices, and it is air-conditioned. When Matt and I went there a few years ago it was a hot July day and I remember after a walk through the pits coming back to the pit shack and cooling off until the grandstand area opened. Then I went into the track bar and nursed a beer until it was time for racing. Yeah, on rare occasions I do have a beer.
Anyway, the track is simply the best dirt racing facility in the country-paved parking, paved pits, sidewalks, good concessions, and they have worked to make the racing better too. Race fans talk of a pilgrimage to Eldora, but one should be made to Wheatland too. There is not really much in the way of hotels in tiny Wheatland, but plenty of hotels in the towns on the way to the track. And, we got on a divided highway two miles from my house and drove on divided highways until the last 15 miles to the track. Writing all of this makes me want to head back there again.
It is nice to know that a track in Missouri thinks enough of what I wrote to display it. I can think of a track in Nebraska that would more likely display what I wrote somewhere in the men’s restroom. That is OK though. My thoughts about that place are similar.
Billy Moyer Jr. won the battle, but Bobby Pierce won the war. Moyer won the final race of the UMP Hell Tour last night at Oakshade Raceway in Ohio, but Pierce captured the point title by finishing sixth. Pierce has the Silver Dollar Nationals on his schedule, but Moyer Jr. does not have any races after today’s Show-Me 100 on his site. Jason Feger finished third in the race and in the final point standings.
I know I haven’t said much good about the Thursday portion of the Silver Dollar Nationals. Thursday will be a practice night for SDN late models and USMTS modifieds, but there will be a full racing program as well. SLRM late models and Nebraska 360 sprints will be featured, and of course, no special is complete without having the blanket-blank B-mods race. I won’t be on hand though. Matt and Steph are going to the Kenny Chesney concert in Lincoln, and Henry will be babysitting Jane and me. Yes, I said it right. Watching sprint cars or being with my grandson-what a tough choice I had to make. Not. It should be a good night of racing though.
So, I did mention the sprints Ivan. Not only that, and this may be difficult to believe, but I was rooting for Kyle Busch to pass Joey Logano and win the Sprint Cup race at Kentucky. With all he did to recover from his serious February injuries, he deserves a shot at being in The Chase. Busch is now 87 points out of 30th in points, where he has to finish to qualify for the NASCAR championship. However, Busch picked up 41 points on 30th place driver Cole Whitt last night, and there are still eight races before The Chase.
Thanks for stopping by. AND, it is finally Silver Dollar Nationals week.
A Weekly Show At I-80 Speedway-I Was There
Matt and I followed the long and winding road to I-80 Speedway last night. Long? Well, it is just an hour’s journey, so not too long. Winding? From my house-west, south, west, south, east, south, east, south, east, south, east, west, south-three city streets, four highways, and one county road. I would call that winding.
100 cars were on hand to race-19 “Super” Late Models, 19 Grand National Late Models, 13 A-Mods, 24 B-Mods, 14 Stock Cars, and 11 Compacts. I am not a fan of six classes racing weekly, but if six classes have to race, 100 cars is a good number. Less than that, you have features that aren’t interesting at all. More than that and you have B features, plus the more cars on the track at any given time, the more crashes-the more yellows-there will be.
The show started almost on time, and there was a big crowd-it was union employee night, and more on that later. B-Mods didn’t “disappoint,” they managed six cautions in their feature. Of course that was six yellow flags in the entire race. At Corning a few weeks ago the B-Mods had that many cautions before they were able to complete two laps.
In a rarity, the stock cars did disappoint. Usually they put on a good show at every track, quite often the best feature of the night, but not last night. With half the cars that ran the B-Mod feature, the stock cars had the same amount of cautions, and finally were warned that the next yellow flag would end the race. Funny how the warning seemed to straighten things out.
Both late model races were decent, with Josh Krug and Bill Leighton Jr. racing side by side for much of the last half of the Super Late model feature. Leighton won on a last lap pass.
So, will I go to another weekly show? Sure-in 2016. I will be back at I-80 Speedway next Friday and Saturday though, and I am looking forward to watching the best of the best Modified and Super Late Model drivers in action at Silver Dollar Nationals V. And I am looking forward to another of the track’s famous pork tenderloin sandwiches, simply the best concession stand food at any dirt track in the U.S. Two thumbs up to Mona Kosiski. And the popcorn is great too.
As I said before, last night was union employee night at the track. I am sure that all union members and maybe their families too got in free or at a discount as the crowd was bigger than the crowd for the Alphabet Soup Race. As a son of a staunch union member, I was pleased to see I-80 Speedway honor blue collar labor in this fashion. I am definitely a union supporter and am proud of the efforts my dad made in the 60’s and 70’s in negotiating favorable contracts for union members employed by the Hormel Company. Though unions are not as powerful as they once were, my 90 year old mother is still benefiting from the contracts my dad helped right.
In a move I would call shocking, past champion Darrell Lanigan has dropped off the WoO circuit, leaving after finishing 14th at a race in Hibbing, Minnesota. “I’m not doing myself, my customers or the series any good being out here running the back,” said Lanigan, who has been a full-time WoO LMS competitor since the tour was re-launched under the World Racing Group banner in 2004. “It’s time for me to go back, regroup and refocus. We’re just so far behind on customer stuff that we’ve had to overlook my own stuff and it’s showing in our performance.”
Although Lanigan did have eight Top-Five finishes this season, he did not have a WoO win. In 2014, he won 17 series races.
I have to admit that when I checked results this morning and didn’t see Lanigan’s name with the rest of the Outlaws at Grand Forks, I wondered what had happened, if he had wrecked earlier in one of the qualifying races. Tim McCreadie won the race, which happened to be his first WoO win of the season. Josh Richards finished second, followed by WoO Sprint Car regular Donny Schatz, racing a Late Model at his home track. The WoO is off until a July 14th stop in Gillette, Wyoming.
I speculated that a few drivers heading to Wheatland for the two Lucas Oil races might stop to do the UMP Hell Tour race at Farmers City, Illinois first, and I was correct. Dennis Erb Jr. not only raced, he took a $10,000 check with him as he left the track. Jason Feger finished second, and Brandon Sheppard finished third. Sheppard is also heading to Wheatland. Billy Moyer Jr. finished 4th, but as he has been doing for several races, Bobby Pierce shadowed young Moyer and finished 6th, leaving him with a 30 point lead over the Batesville, Arkansas driver heading into tonight’s race at Oakshade Raceway in Wauseon, Ohio, the last race of the series.
Good luck on finding NBCSN, the cable network that will be showing tonight’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race from Kentucky Speedway. NBC started off with decent ratings covering the Coke Zero 400 from Daytona, despite the late start of the race. I have a feeling the ratings will drop big time tonight. Ah well, Brian and the Daytona Frances have the millions and millions and millions and millions of dollars this TV contract is generating, so what do they care if fans can’t even find where it is being shown?
Thanks for stopping by.
Outlaws Go To Hibbing, UMP Goes To Hell, ‘er Farmer City, Meyer’s Go To I-80 Speedway
It may be difficult to believe, but a late model special actually happened last night-no interference from Mother Nature. Shane Clanton continues to be the dominant force in WoO action as he bested a field of 34 cars at Hibbing Raceway in Minnesota. Josh Richards finished second. Clanton leads the series by 190 points over Richards. The Georgia driver now has eight WoO wins in 2015. The outlaws head to River City Speedway in Grand Forks, North Dakota for a race tonight.
Will the UMP Summernationals race at Farmer City, Illinois tonight or will Mother Nature continue to decimate the remainder of the tour? As of my writing this blog the race is still on, and the forecast shows only a 20% chance for moisture. With the Tri-City Speedway event cancelled because of flooding, I wonder if any Lucas Oil drivers will venture to Farmer City Raceway for a shot at the $10,000 winner’s share of the purse, or if they will simply concentrate on the two races at Lucas Oil Speedway tomorrow and Sunday.
It appears that the Meyer family is making its only trek to a 2015 weekly show tonight. Since the SLMR event at US 30 Speedway was rained out last week, Matt is in desperate need of a racing fix and I will tag along as he heads to I-80 Speedway. Although I am a big fan of six classes of racing that include B-mods and compacts, I am far more excited about going to the track next Friday.
What is next Friday? Simply one of the two best nights of dirt track racing in Nebraska this season, and perhaps the single best preliminary night racing for a multi-night event anywhere. It is night one of Silver Dollar Nationals V and features the dual qualifying heats fans have grown to love. With points combined from a driver’s finish in both of his heats, everyone is going balls to the wall the entire 15 laps of the race. Most heats will have 3-4 big name drivers and all want to qualify well to start Saturday’s 80 lap feature near the front of the grid.
Yes, I said it. Watching Moyer, Bloomquist, Davenport, Owens, O’Neal, Francis, Pearson etal is more exciting than watching B-mods do their thing, whatever that is. Qualifying heats plus a full night of USMTS modified action make next Friday a don’t miss evening of racing.
If you aren’t heading to a local track tonight, you can catch racing at Speed Shift TV or RACEFEEDX.com. Speed Shift will be showing the National Sprint League event at Park Jefferson, while RACEFEEDX.com will have another night of the Dakota Mod tour-last night’s race had a record 98 modifieds in action.
For the second week in a row, a car ended up in the catch fence at a NASCAR event, this time a Camping World Truck Series race at Kentucky Speedway. Ben Kennedy made contact with David Gilliland and John Wes Townley, sending Kennedy into the fence. The crash ripped a hole in the fence and damaged two support poles. And my friend Tony still insists he wants to sit in the front row at these races. I guess seeing a 3,500 pound vehicle flying at you would be exciting.
Thanks for stopping by.
Rain-No Racing, Flooding-No Racing, Maybe Sun And Racing, Money, And Stupidity
More rain has fallen on this year’s tour of Hell, than in any other year the UMP Summernationals has been running. Out of 26 events through tonight, 11 have been rained out, including the last three scheduled. Only two races are left on the tour-tomorrow night at Farmer City, Illinois and Saturday at Oakshade Raceway in Wauseon, Ohio. Bobby Pierce holds a 40 point lead over Billy Moyer Jr. Trailing Moyer by 32 is Jason Feger. Shannon Babb is 20 points behind Feger, and Ryan Unzicker rounds out the top five trailing Babb by 51 points. None of those drivers have been mathematically eliminated from the point championship, but Pierce is going to have to have two horrible nights to not capture the $25,000 check that goes with the UMP Summernationals championship.
While Mother Nature has been rather rude to the UMP tour, she has not been overly friend to the Lucas Oil series either. Last weekend saw two out of three races Lucas Oil races cancelled because of rain, and the race scheduled for Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Illinois tomorrow night has been cancelled-because of flooding after heavy rains in the St. Louis area. That leaves the Diamond Nationals at Lucas Oil Speedway on tap for Saturday, followed by the make-up of the Show-Me 100 on Sunday, also at Lucas Oil Speedway.
The WoO begins its Wild West Tour at Hibbing Raceway in Minnesota tonight. The weather in Hibbing is mostly sunny, so maybe a late model race will avoid Mother Nature’s curse. I am not sure how two races in Minnesota and one in Grand Forks, North Dakota-just across the border from Minnesota, are part of the “Wild West,” but I suppose Rapid City, South Dakota and Gillette, Wyoming could be termed as part of the west. Anyway this portion of the Outlaw schedule has five race in ten days, one conflicting with the Silver Dollar Nationals of course.
Actually, I wouldn’t mind following this tour someday. With a few days off between the North Dakota and Wyoming race, I would visit the Custer Battlefield in Montana and Devils Tower in Wyoming. And I love the Black Hills around Rapid City. No, Devils Tower is not a tall building full of auditors.
The USA Nationals FANSFund has now raised $14,000 in sponsorship and donations to assist 10 drivers who will compete at Cedar Lake Speedway on July 30th, July 31st, and August 1st. So Wisconsin kicks Nebraska’s butt in something other than football. Even I-80 Speedway’s Foul Ball or whatever it is called, raises more money than we were able to for the Silver Dollar Nationals. Yes, that irritates me. A lot. OK, I understand that sprint car fans are willing to forego a dentist visit and contribute to lap money for the Fowl Brawl, but late model fans have no excuse for not adding to the excitement of SDN V. Boo, hiss, two thumbs down.
So, how did you celebrate the 4th of July? Two NFL players celebrated by blowing a finger off their hands, a drunk managed to kill himself trying to set off fireworks from his head, and the Marion County Republicans Independence Day Parade included a float with three Confederate flags on it. Yeah, that is the Marion County in Iowa, not somewhere in the Deep South. The Marion County with the famous dirt track. The reasoning used by the owner of the pick-up truck float is basically what my ancestors used for fertilizer on their Creston, Nebraska farm, but Republican leaders cited freedom of speech in not asking for the flags to be taken down. I wonder if this was one of those rusted out street legal monster trucks with a pick-up bed full of empty Bud Light cans.
Sorry for the political commentary. I was grilling last night when someone a few blocks away set off some loud-read illegal-fireworks. Well, since it was after the 4th, I guess all fireworks are illegal.
I think I need to see some top notch late model racing soon. Or the Dakota Mod tour tonight on RACEFEEDX.com. Thanks for stopping by.
Mother Nature Must Be A Patriot
Mother Nature must be a patriot as she allowed the country to celebrate the 4th of July with plenty of fireworks on and off the track, including the MARS/MLRA Freedom Classic at the Salina Highbanks Speedway in Oklahoma. I was told yesterday that if Jesse Stovall won the race I could not continue to keep him off my www.DirtonDirt.com Top 25 ballot just because I don’t like him. He did win, and I suppose I will have to follow my son’s advice and add him to my ballot tomorrow. I am NOT going to add Chad Simpson to my ballot even though he finished second to Stovall.
Of course Matt actually suggested we go to the July 31st races at I-80 Speedway-with A mods as a support class and featuring the ASCS 360 National Sprint Car Series and the 410 National Sprint League Series. Perhaps he was suffering from fireworks fatigue. Actually, the racing wouldn’t be that bad, but suffering through a night with a throng of open wheeled fans (not including you Ivan, and maybe not Randy either) surrounding me would be as bad as listening to fireworks for hours on end.
Jason Feger gave the UMP Summernationals drivers a little “hell” last night, winning for a third time on the 2015 tour. Billy Moyer followed up a Friday tour victory with a second place finish at Highland Speedway in Illinois. In their series point battle, Billy Moyer Jr. finished ahead of Bobby Pierce, but for the third race in a row, he finished just one spot ahead of Pierce. Pierce entered the race with a 45 point lead over Moyer Jr., and didn’t lose more than five points to the young Moyer on Saturday.
Georgian Shane Clanton continued his winning ways, picking up $4,025 of Southern National Bonus Series money at Senoia Raceway in the Peach State. The race was a tribute to his father Billy Clanton.
Brandon Sheppard seems to like Portsmouth Raceway Park. Several years ago he won the Dirt Track World Championship there, and last night he captured the Lucas Oil Freedom 50 at the Ohio track. Jared Landers finished second, with Dennis Erb Jr., Jimmy Owens, and Earl Pearson Jr. following. Yes, I realize that I may also have to add Landers to my DOD Top 25 ballot. We’ll see how he does tonight at 201 Speedway in Sitka, Kentucky before I make that decision.
Jonathan Davenport finished 19th in Portsmouth and his LOLMDS series lead is down to just 20 points over Pearson. Don O’Neal is 90 points back, and Jimmy Owens is 95 points behind Davenport. And those four drivers along with Scott Bloomquist, Sheppard, Erb, Landers, Steve Francis, and Eddie Carrier Jr. will all be at the Silver Dollar Nationals starting July 16th.
With the SLMR Thursday night rainout and no race we particularly wanted to go to on Friday or Saturday, Matt and I went to Omaha again to watch some of the basketball tournament at Omaha Sports Academy. As we pulled up to my house coming home, I was left with an image that will stay with me forever as to what celebrating July 4th is all about. Obviously it was not a big fireworks display with scenic Mt. Rushmore as the background. And no, it was not fireworks in New York harbor with the Statue of Liberty shining brightly. No, it was a horde of my neighbor’s grandchildren setting off packs of firecrackers in the middle of the street. Truly amazing. What was even more amazing was the man must have turned his garage into an armory as they shot off fireworks for four straight hours. I would like to say thank goodness this holiday is over, but I know some idiot is going to shoot off fireworks tonight, if for no other reason than to show the law limiting burning up money just through July 4th does not apply to him.
Me, I’ll be watching the Coke Zero 400 from Daytona to see if any of the 10 drivers Brad Keselowski wrecked in practice will be seeking retribution. Drivers like Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., and Ryan Newman all had to go to back up cars after the wreck, meaning they will be starting at the tail of the field tonight. In Jimmie Johnson at Talladega fashion, Keselowski caused the wreck, but it did no damage to his race car.
An internet story has “NBC prepared to give NASCAR fans coverage they deserve.” Let it be so. I am thinking that Steve Letarte and Jeff Burton will do a good job as race analysts, but I am more than a little leery about announcer Rick Allen. I do know that Letarte and Burton cannot possibly be worse than Darrel Waltrip and Larry McReynolds of FOX. Anyway, here is a link to an interesting article about the second half of the season NASCAR coverage on NBC:
http://www.sbnation.com/nascar/2015/7/2/8887325/nbc-fox-nascar-television-coverage
Thanks for stopping by.
P.S. Happy Birthday to my friend Rick Bradley.
My Big Bang Theory
With the USMTS off until Silver Dollar Nationals V, Mother Nature has decided to plague other series. Rainy weather forced the postponement of night number one of a three night Lucas Oil show at 201 Speedway in Sitka, Kentucky-it was rescheduled for tomorrow. Night number two at Muskingum County Speedway in Zanesville, Ohio was rained out as well. Tonight’s show at Portsmouth Raceway Park in Portsmouth, Ohio is still on, but it is misting and foggy there as I writing this post.
After finishing 14th in a MARS sanctioned event at Monett Speedway in Missouri, Jesse Stovall won the preliminary night of a MARS/MLRA show at Salina Highbanks Speedway in Oklahoma. Although I do not have him ranked on my www.DirtonDirt.com Top 25 ballot, it seems most other voters do as he is 13th overall. If he wins tonight will I put him on my ballot? Don’t count on it. Again, Stovall belongs to the 25 Club along with charter member Chad Simpson and they will be on my ballot when they win the World 100 and Knoxville Late Model Nationals, i.e. when hell freezes over.
Speaking of Hell, after four straight rain-outs, the UMP Summernationals has managed to get two straight shows in. Chad’s brother Chris Simpson won at LaSalle Speedway, while Billy Moyer-the one who finished 6th in the Liberty 50 at Adams County Speedway-finished first at Fayette County Speedway in Brownstown, Illinois. It was Moyer’s 90th win on the Hell Tour. Jason Feger finished second to Simpson, and Billy Moyer Jr. finished second to his dad.
Bobby Pierce seems to be doing what he needs to do to capture the Summernationals point championship. Moyer Jr. is in second place in the standings and has bettered Pierce the last two races, but by only one spot in each race. That will not move him up in the standings as Pierce has a lead of almost 50 points over the young Moyer. Moyer Jr. has to hope for a win and a bad night for Pierce to tighten up the race for the $25,000 going to the tour champion.
If you remember the first night of Gulf War I, the night of “shock and awe,” you have a good picture of the sights and sounds in my neighborhood last night. I was just reading a book on Sherman’s march through Georgia-and South Carolina and North Carolina, and it was during this time that the Union general coined the phrase “War is hell.” My neighborhood wasn’t hell; it was more like “heck.”
Unbeknownst to me, there is a 4th of July competition to determine “The Biggest Dumbass in Parkview,” the 12 square block area of Fremont I live in. Seven neighbors vied for the title last night-yes, I KNOW it was just July 3rd, apparently they did not. There was a clear cut winner, a neighbor a block south of my house who must have spent hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of dollars on fireworks as his “show” went on for almost two hours. I thought the runner up would be a neighbor a few houses to the east who like clockwork set off an illegal firework every five minutes for an hour. No, I could not say with 100% certainty his fireworks were illegal, but if it sounds like half a stick of dynamite blowing up, I am pretty sure it is illegal. Anyway he was runner-up Dumb Ass until another neighbor about a block southeast started shooting his fireworks off at 11:30 p.m. With no clear cut runner-up I am declaring the other six neighbors as 2nd Place Dumbasses.
That was just July 3rd. What is tonight going to be like? I would like to think everyone shot everything they had last night, but I know that isn’t so. Still, to show you how much I wish it was so, I will state now that if I do not hear a single firecracker go off today I will root for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to win the Coke Zero 400 from Daytona tomorrow night.
After Mother Nature wrecked out SLMR at US 30 Speedway plans on Thursday, Matt was itching to go to a race yet this weekend. So much so that he was talking of weekly shows at Albion or Denison last night, or Norfolk or Harlan tonight. Fortunately he decided we should take Henry to the AAU basketball tournament at the Omaha Sports Academy. It was fun, though unlike his dad who never moved an inch while watching basketball games, Henry gets restless. Grandpa tried to bribe him with Skittles and going for a walk, but we still left earlier than planned. Just as well, we had traveled just a few miles toward home and the youngster had already fallen asleep.
On the way back from Omaha we heard a commercial for John Deere lawn mowers. It started with “my pal Ron likes to give advice, most of it bad.” I swear the person saying that sounded exactly like Tony Anville, and I may have to do my Scott Bloomquist imitation and seek a legal remedy.
Just two weeks until the feature night of what is becoming a dirt late model crown jewel event, the Silver Dollar Nationals at I-80 Speedway. You can purchase tickets online at the track website. Although it comes on late, I am going to watch some of the Irwindale Speedway Independence Day Celebration on RACEFEEDX.com tonight. Yes, it is an asphalt track, but the place has always intrigued me. Tomorrow it will be the NASCAR Sprint Cup race from Daytona, and our first opportunity to see if NBC is better than or as bad as FOX in covering the sport.
Thanks for stopping by.
Clanton And Stovall Are Hot, Pierce Is Not. Neither Are Fireworks And The Confederate Flag
Just a reminder-the Silver Dollar Nationals is a mere three weeks away. Tickets can be purchased online at
http://i-80speedway.com/i80/schedule/special/
The UMP Summernationals visited Clarksville, Tennessee for race 10 of the Hell Tour-14 were scheduled, 4 were rained out. Unless you are Scott McBride or are from the Clarksville area, I doubt if you know who Levi Kissinger is. Well, he’s the driver who earned $5,000 winning the race. Wendell Wallace was second and Dennis Erb Jr. finished third. Point leader Bobby Pierce finished 11th. Kentucky gets a night in Hell as the tour heads to Paducah International Raceway.
Night number one of the Firecracker 100 weekend saw Shane Clanton continue on his hot streak winning a $6,000 preliminary feature. Rick Eckert was second. Scott Bloomquist arrived too late to qualify, and I did not see Jonathan Davenport listed in the time trial results. Night two of the event will also have a $6,000 to win feature.
28 late models made the trip to Park Jefferson last night. I didn’t. Jesse Stovall did his imitation of Shane Clanton, continuing his hot streak, and winning yet again at PJ. Chad Simpson finished second, followed by Terry Phillips, Ryan Gustin, and Jason utter.
After finishing 7th on Wednesday, driver Rodney Sanders got back to his winning ways at the USMTS even at East Texas Speedway in Petty. Yes, I did write this again before I knew race results. And yes, once again I must have jinxed Sanders, because the winner was actually Phillip Houston. Sanders finished second. The series heads to the Sooner State tonight for a race at Southern Oklahoma Speedway in Ardmore.
We’re off to I-80 Speedway tonight to watch late models, GOTRA coupes and sedans-love ‘em, and my favorites, the sprint cups. Spring cars? Splint cars? Anyway, those cars that have wings. I have my fingers and toes crossed that tonight will not be like every other night we went racing this year-cold. I could do for a hot late June night, with the 4th of July only a little more than a week away.
I would like to say that the 4th of July is my favorite holiday. OK, that is a lie. I would not like to say that because it couldn’t be further from the truth. It is one week of my two grand-puppies being frightened by drunk and moronic neighbors blowing up things for reasons God must fathom because I can’t. It is a week of illegal fireworks shot off at 11:00 p.m., midnight, 1:00 a.m. or later. Sorry, I just don’t equate “patriotism” with shooting off hundreds of dollars of firecrackers, and it irritates the hell out of me to have to clean up firework debris in front of my house when I never set off anything.
Yes, I do enjoy major displays, though it has been some time since I last attended such an event. I would much rather watch a ball game or a race or watch my grandson swim.
I usually disagree with what Jeff Owens writes, but not this time. I couldn’t agree more with what he states in this article.
I am going all in on this and joining the Earnhardt family in being anti-Confederate flag. Yes Dale was against it, and so is Dale Jr.
Is displaying the Confederate flag a symbol of free speech? Would it be free speech if I paraded around some race track buck naked, with a Confederate flag tattooed on my butt?
As far as I am concerned, the Confederate flag flying on some pick-up with outsized tires simply states “I am a redneck, and a not very bright redneck at that.” Those with Confederate flag tattoos should also wear a sign around their neck stating “I am a dumbass.” And no, I do not like Johnny Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd prancing around with the Confederate flag-the music doesn’t need a flag, but if the fans do, well, show them the American flag.
My daughter came from Korean and the racism she has endured sickens me. The idiocy of the law enacted by voters in my hometown of Fremont that is nothing but racist in its treatment of Latinos shames me. Maybe you don’t like reading this, but if you don’t, maybe it is something you really need to read. No person is less than another person because his skin may be a different color.
Back in 1965 the Yardbirds recorded a song called “You’re A Better Man Than I.” Here are lyrics from one verse plus the chorus.
Can you condemn a man, If your faith he doesn’t hold? Say the colour of his skin, Is the colour of his soul? Could you say that men, For king and country all must die?
Well, Mr, you’re a better man than I, Yeah, Mr, you’re a better man than I, Oh, Mr, you’re a better man than I, Yeah, Mr, you’re a better man than I.
Martin Luther King once said “There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.” Well, my conscience has been bugging me to say something and now I have.
Thanks for letting me have my say.
From Young To Old Plus All Over The Map
119 drivers have raced at least once in the 2015 UMP Summernationals. Only six drivers have raced all of the Hell Tour events, while two more have raced in all but one event. Bobby Pierce is the current point leader, followed by Billy Moyer Jr., Shannon Babb, Jason Feger, Ryan Unzicker, Timothy Culp, Jim Moon, Billy Moyer, John Hahler, and Mike Spatola. All are currently eligible for point fund money which is broken down:
$25,000-$10,000-$7,000-$5,000-$3,000-$2,000-$1,000-$800-$700-$600
In trying to determine which if any of those drivers will be at the Silver Dollar Nationals-the UMP Hell Tour ends five days before the practice night of the SDN-I am guessing the only two likely to be in Nebraska are the two Batesville, Arkansas drivers with the same last name. Honestly, I wonder if Moyer Jr. will make the trip from Razorback country after being on the road for much of June and July.
I seriously doubt Bobby Pierce will show, and while it would be nice to see Babb and Feger in action at the SDN, I don’t see that happening if they follow the entire Hell Tour.
Speaking of young Mr. Pierce, in Summernational action at Belle-Clair Speedway last night Pierce led all 40 laps of the feature to leave the track with a $5,000 check in hand. Shannon Babb finished second. Pierce, Babb, and all the other little devils in the Hell Tour are headed to Tennessee to race tonight at Clarksville Speedway.
Last night’s USMTS race went to Rodney Sanders, yet again. OK, I typed that up before the race was even run. And I probably jinxed Sanders as he only finished 7th in a race won by Grant Junghans. While it may be a surprise that Sanders did not win, to me the biggest surprise is the series has not had a rain-out in its last five events and four of them have been in Texas.
The USMTS modifieds will visit East Texas Speedway in Petty, Texas tonight. Petty is a town in northeast Texas near the Oklahoma border. No, it is not named after Richard Petty. Googling Petty, Texas, I found it is a “dispersed rural community,” meaning it is mighty small. Unlike Omaha, Nebraska it IS big enough to have its own race track.
I logged on to Speed Shift TV to watch some of the opening night of the Cheesehead Triple Crown. Unfortunately I tuned in during intermission, so can’t tell you much about it. Yes, I could have and should have waited for the intermission to end to see some racing, but I didn’t. Tonight’s feature at 141 Speedway pays a whopping $10,000 to win though.
Last night at Atomic Motor Speedway in Alma, Ohio, Delmas Conley bettered an AMRA field to claim first place prize money of $4,000. No big deal there-Conley has averaged three wins a season for the past six years. What is a big deal, at least to me, is that Conley is 73 years old and has been racing for 53 years. I am a big, big fan of people older than me winning races.
Thinking of racers older than me, has octogenarian Glen Robey finally retired? Perhaps announcer Stan Cisar would know since he is also older than me. I can remember watching Robey race the 8-Ball in the mid-50’s-the decade, not his age, and I also saw his last win about 50 years later. I had him retired in the early 70’s-again the decade, not his age, but Robey had other thoughts. I also remember sitting in the Alpine Inn interviewing him for a Dirt Late Model article. It was like taking a History of Nebraska Racing course.
If reading “Expected entrants: Darrell Lanigan, Josh Richards, Shane Clanton, Tim McCreadie, Rick Eckert, Chub Frank, Morgan Bagley, Rick Eckert, Eric Wells, Frank Heckenast Jr., Chase Junghans, Brandon Overton, Boom Briggs, Jordan Yaggy, Scott Bloomquist, Alex Ferree, Gregg Satterlee, Russ King, John Garvin, Davey Johnson, Dan Stone, Jared Miley and others” does not make you want to order the www.DirtonDirt.com Firecracker 100 PPV from Lernerville Speedway in Pennsylvania, well, I am not sure what could. Subscribers can get all three nights for $59.99 or anyone can purchase single night packages for $21.99 tonight and tomorrow and $24.99 for Saturday. As I mentioned in an earlier post, NO B-mods or other support classes for this show.
Thanks for stopping by.
At I-80 Speedway, ABC-It’s Easy as 1-2-3, As Simple As Do-Re-Mi
Thank you Jackson 5.
Listed below is my www.DirtonDirt.com Top 25 ballot for the week:
| DirtonDirt.com Top 25 Voting Ballot | |
| Name: | Ron Meyer |
| Date: | 6/22/2015 |
| Position | |
| 1 | Jonathan Davenport |
| 2 | Shane Clanton |
| 3 | Scott Bloomquist |
| 4 | Jimmy Owens |
| 5 | Earl Pearson Jr. |
| 6 | Josh Richards |
| 7 | Randy Weaver |
| 8 | Don O’Neal |
| 9 | Darrell Lanigan |
| 10 | Brandon Sheppard |
| 11 | Chris Ferguson |
| 12 | Bobby Pierce |
| 13 | Dale McDowell |
| 14 | Billy Moyer |
| 15 | Dennis Erb Jr. |
| 16 | Jason Feger |
| 17 | Devin Moran |
| 18 | Shannon Babb |
| 19 | Tim McCreadie |
| 20 | Chub Frank |
| 21 | Casey Roberts |
| 22 | Billy Moyer Jr. |
| 23 | Steve Casebolt |
| 24 | Eddie Carrier Jr. |
| 25 | Rick Eckert |
Once again all 26 voters agree that Jonathan Davenport is #1, but I certainly disagree with other voters on many drivers, especially Carrier and Eckert. Can’t be right every time-I am speaking of the non-Nebraska voters.
The UMP Summernationals visited Peoria Speedway in Illinois last night. 48 late models were on hand, and Shannon Babb beat all the rest. Bobby Pierce was second, followed by Ryan Unzicker, Dennis Erb Jr., and Billy Moyer Jr. The Hell Tour heads to Belle-Clair Speedway in Belleville, Illinois tonight. The track is a 1/5th mile oval, and no, that is not a typo.
Yes, there were 48 cars at an UMP Summernationals race. It was in Illinois. There should be that many cars at every Illinois race. I suspect when the tour visits Tennessee and Kentucky later this week that the car count will be down-a lot.
What will the car count be for the Alphabet Soup Race at I-80 Speedway on Friday? It is a tri-sanctioned event, with the Corn Belt Clash, MARS, and MLRA all on hand, plus there is a race the night before at Park Jefferson and the night after at Adams County Speedway. I think at least 40 late models will find their way into the I-80 pits and it will be a strong regional field. Matt says 26 at PJ, 44 at I-80, and 40 at Corning.
I don’t care who wins the three Midwest late model races this weekend-as long as the winner’s last name is not Simpson. Jesse Stovall dominated night two of the Carlson Clash at PJ earlier this month. Terry Phillips seems to do well at I-80 every time he visits. Ryan Gustin gained late model acclaim at the Silver Dollar Nationals two years ago. And of course, who can forget Tony Jackson Jr.? Eastern Iowa drivers are all tough, and not just the brothers with that certain last name. As far as ACS, well you better do well in your heat so you can start up front. I don’t see the winner being anyone outside of the first three rows on the starting grid.
Here is something I bet you never thought you would read at TROTD. I hope there will be enough sprint cars to run a B feature. I said it and I meant it. The only way the sprint car feature runs last is if the car count is enough to have a B feature. The late models will have at least one B feature, so if the sprints don’t, it will mean the late models run their A feature last, and the Meyer family will have to stay until the final checkered flag flies.
Heading toward Pennsylvania and the Firecracker 100, WoO late models made a stop at Weedsport Speedway in New York. Sounds like a track Scott Bloomquist ought to own. And no, I do not know what makes me say these things. Anyway, Bloomquist was not on hand, but Shane Clanton was. Clanton had a good night setting fast time, breaking the track record, winning his heat, and leading all 40 laps of the $8,000 to win feature.
USMTS modifieds began their southwest tour at Heart O’ Texas Speedway in Elm Mott-which is just north of Waco, which is halfway between Dallas and Austin. If you expect to read a name other than Rodney Sanders as the winner, you are going to be disappointed. The Happy, Texas driver won his seventh USMTS feature in a row. Where is Happy, Texas? Right now, any track Sanders races at, though locals would tell you it is south of Amarillo. The USMTS modifieds take to the track at Devils Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas tonight. Yeah, this is a track on my bucket list.
Jeff Gordon tributes continue, seemingly at every track he is visiting. With the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing in Sonoma on Sunday, the track arranged for Gordon and his family to visit the place his racing career began. See the link below:
No, Henry Meyer’s grandpa is NOT going to buy him a car like that, though I think he would do well if I did. He would have a crew full of-well, I could type a certain four letter word here, but the word is knowledge. Everything Matt and I don’t know about go-karts, some of our friends do, or they know someone who does. Ah well, I think it best he sticks with baseball and basketball.
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Social Neighborhoods? Geez, It Is Dirt.
With a solid 33 late models in the pits-including Lucas Oil regulars Brandon Sheppard and Dennis Erb Jr., it looked like a good night for the UMP Summernationals Hell Tour at Quincy Raceway in Illinois. Bobby Pierce was fast qualifier and won a heat. Billy Moyer Jr., Gordy Gundaker, and Jason Feger also won heats. And then? Well, Mother Nature thought the Illinois fans had viewed enough racing action for the night, with rains coming just as the B-feature was lining up. No make-up date has been announced.
I have yet another reason to want to go to Australia. The Australian dollar is worth just .78 American dollars, or $100 U.S. is worth $128.65 Australian dollars. The August Pro Blogger event at a Gold Coast hotel in Queensland cost $399 Australian dollars, or just $311.22 US. Of course a flight to Brisbane from Omaha takes nearly 24 hours, you lose a day going there but gain it coming back, and the cheapest flight is $1700-actually for me that would be $3400 because no way would Jane let me go to Australia on my own. Actually, it would be an adventure to fly there first class-at only $8264 per person. Yeah, on my “if I win the lottery bucket list.” Yeah, go there in August during the Australian winter for the blog event, and then go back in December to watch sprint car and late model racing.
Microsoft is working with NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports to help improve technology in the sport. Apparently this includes adopting Windows 10 and Microsoft Azure computing platforms. I have no idea what that means as high tech for me is getting RACEFEEDX.com or Speedshifttv.com to work right on my computer. Microsoft will be the sponsor of the #88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. car at this week’s Sprint Cup race at Sonoma Raceway.
The new Daytona International Speedway is apparently going high tech and includes 11 “social neighborhoods.” Hey, I-80 Speedway will have social neighborhoods too. There is the Sunday Night Irregulars section, or about 8-10 irreverent race fans sitting around Matt and me. There is a front row “auditors and their ilk” section. There are separate areas for “rednecks,” including Simpson brothers fans rednecks, southwest Iowa rednecks, three six-packs/no problem rednecks, and southeast Nebraska rednecks, There is a “sprint car fans standing in front of the grandstands so we won’t be more than 2’ from the beer stand section.” There is a “Carter Flake” section. There is a “parents with children who can’t sit still and run up and down the steps all night” section. There is the elitist social neighborhood east of the bleachers. And, there is a “share second-hand smoke with the people sitting behind me,” that somehow always seem to sit in front of me. That is 11 social neighborhoods and I-80 promoters most definitely did not spend $400,000,000 to turn the place into a racing stadium ala Daytona.
Of course I-80 Speedway does not have 40 escalators or 17 elevators like the Florida center of the racing universe. Damn, my left knee wishes they had even one escalator-I am glad for the rails in the center of the grandstand aisles. The track does not have 60 luxury suites either. It does have a reasonably priced, tasty pork tenderloin sandwich though. And good popcorn, not that damn Colby Ridge flavorless variety. And Diet Coke, not Diet Pepsi. I would say it makes the tracks about even.
I have been looking over the Firecracker 100 schedule, and nowhere on the itinerary do I see B-mods. Or support classes of any kind. Hallelujah brothers and sisters. You’re preaching to the choir. Late model time trials. Late model heat races. Late model consolations, and the late model feature. That is the schedule for Thursday, that is the schedule for Friday, and that is the schedule for Saturday, with the addition of the Uncle Sam 30, a non-qualifiers race. If you can’t make it to Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pennsylvania, you can order PPV’s from www.DirtonDirt.com for any or all of the nights.
Or, if you prefer IMCA modifieds-there are some who actually do-you can check out Speed Shift TV for the Cheesehead Triple Crown on June 24th-27th. Or tonight you can check out the IMCA Hawkeye Dirt event from Hancock County Speedway in Iowa on RACEFEEDX.com. And, RACEFEEDX.com will be showing seven nights of racing starting July 5th-every night of the Dakota Modified Tour, plus a “Night After” event as well. Check out the sites for details.
It appears I will be watching the Hawkeye Dirt Tour tonight, the Cheesehead race from 141 Speedway on Wednesday, and the Thursday Firecracker 100 preliminary night. On Friday Matt and I will be heading to I-80 Speedway for the Alphabet Soup and 360 sprint race and on Saturday we will head east to Adams County Speedway in Corning, Iowa. Matt has a short memory regarding how many good late model races we have watched at ACS and insists on going.
Unlike Lernerville, I-80 Speedway added two support classes to their late model special-sprint cars and GOTRA. I assume the people blocking the front of the grandstands about 2’ from the I-80 beer stand wouldn’t be willing to call sprint cars a support class. Maybe it isn’t. Maybe the late models are the support class at the new home of open wheeled racing in Nebraska. GOTRA is OK though. I suppose if I vote for running the sprint car feature last just the opposite will happen.
Adams County Speedway will likely have all four support classes racing on Saturday, including B-mods. And will have their usual incredibly long intermission after the heats and run the late model feature last, meaning about a 2:30 a.m. arrival home time.
Finally, some interesting statistics on the SLMR series, courtesy of Matt:
-4 SLMR races to date in 2015
-43 racers have attempted to qualify for a SLMR A-Feature
-4 different winners in 4 races
-Car counts of 29, 20, 27, and 23.
-Top 4 in points consist of 2 open engines (which are restricted by rules) and 2 non-restricted engines
Speaking of the SLMR series, I am very much looking forward to their race at US 30 Speedway west of Columbus on July 2nd, even though there will be four IMCA support classes, including the dreaded Northern Sport Mods. If any Nebraska Dept. of Revenue auditors who live in Auburn are willing to show up that night, I will pay their admission and even buy them a McDonald’s sandwich for the drive home.
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