Shutter Speed Racing

Byron Dragway - Juniors, Midwest Index, Two Wheel Speed and Test/Tune

5/23/2022

On Sunday, we finally got a good day to go racing! Not too hot, not too cold and most importantly no rain! After last Sunday's rain shortened event and Saturday's rainout, it was time to do some racing. Sunday had the Junior Dragsters, Midwest Index Shootout, Two Wheel Speed and a Test & Tune. The day's action was started by the Juniors running their two-time trials/qualification runs to set the field for both Novice and Elite classes.

The Novice class ran two rounds of eliminations to reach their final. In the final it was Wyatt Bacon, Kingston, Il. against Leighton Kreyer, Beloit, Wi. It should be noted that Wyatt had to defeat his sister, Ellie, in the second round to make it to the finals. As the lights flashed on the Tree, Leighton had a great reaction time of .009 to Wyatt's .155. At the stripe, it was a double breakout with Wyatt running closer to his dial-in, DI 8.95/8.935 to Leighton's DI 13.90/13.784 to take the win. This was Wyatt's second win in a row.

Wyatt Bacon

In the Elite class, they ran three rounds of eliminations to reach the finals. In the second round, Danny Ellis, Burbank, Il. had a perfect light, .000, in defeating Brindy Jo Covell, Dixon, Il. After a third round win, Danny earned his spot in the Final. Molly Lane, New Lenox, Il. ran her Dial-In on the first round of eliminations, giving her a bye into the third round where she defeated Madyson Goike. In the Final, Danny had a better reaction, .034, to Molly's .101. At the stripe, Molly broke out, 8.71/8.699, giving the win to Danny.

Danny Ellis

After the Finals, it was decided to have a Junior Fun Run. All the cars would run and the best two drivers with the best package in both classes would run for the Fun Run Win.

In Novice, it was Ellie Bacon against Leighton Kreyer. Ellie had a .070 RT to Leighton's .174 and at the stripe Leighton broke out giving the win to Ellie.

In Elite, it was Tanner Listen against Wyatt Bacon. Wyatt could not pull off the second win of the day by redlighting and handing the win to Tanner.

The Bacon family had a good day with two family wins.

Motorcycles

I'm going to apologize to our motorcyle riders as there was some confusion, probably on my part, as to who was doing what. There were some great races, I just don't have all the information. Saying that, in Bike 9.50, it was Byron's Frank Criscione against Dekalb's Andy Bailey in the final. Andy was better on the tree with a .094 to Frank's, .196. However, at the stripe it was Frank running close to the 9.50 index, 9.745/9.871.

Frank Criscione

In Bike 8.90, it was Bill Baker vs Andy Bailey. Both riders had very good Reaction Times, Bill .045 to Andy's .033. At the stripe, Bill ran closer to the index than Andy 9.053/9.151.

Bill Baker

In the ET Bike Final of Drag bike vs Street bike it was again Bill Baker against Andy Bailey. This time, Bill had a much better light, .032/.104, and ran closer to the Dial-in. Andy went to three finals, but couldn't seal the deal. That deserves something!

Andy Bailey

Midwest Index Shootout

This was the second race of the 2022 race season for the Midwest Index Shootout. Last Sunday's race was rain shortened. The MIS runs six classes of racers. The first up this Sunday was the slower cars of the Street Brawler class. There were two rounds of eliminations to reach the Final. In the Final, it was Anythony Parks, Franklin Grove, Il., against Streamwood, Illinois' Travis Beer. Anthony was a little slower on the reaction time to Travis, .236/.130. At the stripe, Travis broke out and Anthony ran 15.672 on a 15.60 DI to take the win.

Anthony Parks

In Street Intimidator, there were four entrants. In the Final, it was Trevor Beer, Elgin, Il., against Brett Michael, Byron, Il. Both drivers had identical .043 reaction times, both racing hard to the finish with both breaking out. Trevor ran closer to his 12.25 DI to win.

Trevor Beer

Next up was Street Heat, with cars no faster than eleven seconds. There were two rounds of eliminations with Martin Rosendahl of Sandwich getting the bye into the Final alongside Greg Darm. Greg was a staple in motorcycle racing and now is on four wheels. This was a great race with Martin running closer of their both 11.50 Di's, but Greg had a significant better reaction time, .047-150 to take a holeshot win.

Greg Darm

Up Next, was the Steet Limited 10.80 Index. There was one round of elimination before the Final. The Final was between Mark Brannick, Shorewood, and Michael Chucky Olson, Stoughton, Wi. While Chucky had a great .028 light, Mark was better with a .006. They both raced hard to the stripe causing both to breakout, however Mark was closer to the index to take the win.

Mark Brannick

In the Pro Avenger 10.20 class, there were three rounds of eliminations to reach the Final. In the Final it was " Gentleman" Jim Laughlin vs James Holder. James had a better light, .067-.110, but Jim ran close to the Index with a 10.202 to James' 10.246 to take the win.

Jim Laughlin

In Pro Dominator, 9.50, the fastest class, there was two rounds of eliminations prior to the Final. It was Rockford's Kelly Spears versus McHenry's Derek Moser. Kelly was the number one qualifier. Kelly had the better light, .039-.107. They both raced each hard all the way to line and both broke out, however Kelly ran closer to the Index with a 9.471 to Derek's 9.364 to take the win.

Kelly Spears

With all the competition there was also a large contingent of Test & Tune cars getting ready for next weekend's Memorial Day Triple $10K's Bracket Race.

Track Bites

There was a new racer licensing at Byron this weekend. Zev Riley, 10, from Dakota, Il., was being assisted by his grandfather to obtain his NHRA Junior Dragster License. He did a great job. Congratulations Zev!

I saw Junior Driver Katie Dolbeer and family with Katie driving a different car. I spoke with Katie and learned it was her new car purchased from an Antron Brown team member.

With the weather cooperating, finally, it was a great day of racing. Next weekend is the Memorial Weekend Triple 10K bracket race. Three days of non-stop action. Make your plans to come!

To see all of Sunday's action please click here.

If you are interested in purchasing any images from the day's action, please click here.

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Byron Dragway - 2022 Opening Day

5/16/2022

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Saturday, was the 2022 season opener for Byron Dragway. For the opener, Midwest Super Comp Race #1, Junior Dragsters, High School Bracket Races #1 & #2, Junior Street along with a Test & Tune ran. The weather was a little warm, but it was a beautiful day to kick off the season.

In Super Comp, it was four-time champion Chad Lamont taking the victory by defeating his Dad, Pat in the finals. Chad had a fairly easy route to the finals. In the first round his competitor, Jim Glosson, redlighted giving the win to Chad. Unfortunately, all day the Super Comp cars were experiencing issues reducing the field. In the second and third rounds, Chad had single passes on his way to the Final against Pat. Pat's route was little more difficult, although for being the #1 qualifier, he had a first round bye. In the second round, he beat Ed Cook in a double breakout by running closer to his dial-in. In the third round, he beat Mark Meier with a good run R/T .079, DI 5.70, ET 5.712 @ 134.23 MPH. Mark had a R/T .120, DI 5.70, ET 5.957 @ 114.91 MPH.

The finals was a great race between Chad, son, and Pat, father. It was Chad taking a holeshot win! Check these numbers:
Chad .015,5.70, 5.722, 137.78
Pat .026, 5.70, 5.719, 131.05

In a way, Chad got very lucky. About halfway through the 1/8th mile, his motor starting shedding parts off the front of the block. All told, it was a very happy Winner's Circle!

.Junior Dragsters

The Juniors run two classes, the Novice class for the younger kids and the Elite for the older. The Junior Novices had eight cars that ran three rounds before the finals. In keeping with the family racing theme, in the third round it was Wyatt Bacon racing against his sister Ellie to reach the finals. Ellie was just a little fast and broke out handing the win to Wyatt.

In the finals, it was Wyatt Bacon against James Pfohl. James had won his first two rounds and earned a bye in the third round to get to the finals. Wyatt cut a .003 light to James' .018. Both had 8.90 D/I's. At the stripe, James broke out by .001 (8.899) giving the win to Wyatt

Wyatt Bacon

In the Junior Elite class, there were thirteen cars competing. In the first round it was Lucas Bright with the #1 qualifier bye.

Lucas Bright

From there, in the second round, he was up against Madalyn Highland when she redlighted and in the third round his opponent Ben Acker's car broke. This put him in the final. His opponent in the final was Tom Konen. Tom had wins in the first two rounds which earned him a bye in the third to go to the finals. In the final, Tom cut a .014 light while Lucas was a little slow off the start, .113. Tom took the win.

Tom Konen

In the Fun Run, the Novice Class was won by Jack Lang and the Elite Class was won by Wyatt Bacon, his second win of the day.

High School

High School ran two races Saturday with six competitors. In the first race final, it was Mykala Highland vs Evan Folk. Mykala was driving the slower car and started first. When Evan went red by .016, it gave the win to Mykala.

Mykala Highland

In the second race, it was Grace Haas against Kaden Mulligan. Grace had a better reaction time and ran closer to her dial-in to take the win.

Grace Haas

Junior Street

In Junior Steet there were six cars competing. In the finals, it was Mykala Highland against Ben Acker. Mykala earned a bye into the finals and Ben had been having very good lights all day. At the start Ben was just a little quick redlighting,* giving the win to Mikayla. This was Mikayla's second win of the day.

Mykala Highland

That concluded all the series and classes of racing. Throughout the day, we also had a Test & Tune. Most of these cars were testing for Sunday's Index races. Here are some of those cars.

Track Bite

Before the racing began the Junior Dragster drivers and families held a meeting to discuss the upcoming season. Coordinator Dana Highland asked all for a moment of silence for long time Junior supporter, Rick Rucker and family. Over the off-season, Rick lost his life to Covid. During the season, they are planning a Memorial Race.

It was great to finally get the 2022 Byron Dragway racing underway. Like others, I am looking forward to more of the racing this season.

To see all Saturday's photos, please click here.

If you see something you like and want to purchase, please click here.

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Rockford's 45th Spring Classic-Kahler Takes the Big 8 Win

4/26/2022

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Max Kahler

On Saturday, at the Rockford Speedway, Max Kahler displayed a dominate performance to take the win in the 88-lap Big 8 Spring Classic feature race. The race had a halting start with two accidents before lap 2. Max was able to avoid the mayhem to take the lead on lap 8. From there, Max put on a show of consistency maneuvering through lapped traffic and several race cautions to extend his lead, for the win. All Day Max was the fastest car taking the win in his Heat race and the fastest time in Time Trials. Finishing second was 2021 Spring Classic winner Dale Nottestad and third Dennis Smith Jr.

L to R,Dennis Smith Jr., Dale Nottestad, Max Kahler

In the Mid Am Late Model Series Magnuson Memorial 44 race, it was four time Mid Am Series champion Ron Vandermeir Jr. showing the rest how it is done by winning. It wasn't an easy race by any means. In the middle of the race Ron was battling with Kenny Benson Jr. and the battle was heating up. Kenny was warned by race control but on a subsequent lap, he got into Ron's quarter panel causing him to spin. Race Control parked Kenny and the lead was given back to Ron. From there, Ron continued in the lead to take the win.

This race was dedicated to Rockford Speedway's announcer John Magnuson Jr., who passed away in November 2021 from the complications of Covid 19.

In the first race of the 2022 season and the Spring Classic, it was the 4-cylinder Bandits in the Bandit Blast, a 25-lap race. It was the 26x of Cody Armato taking the win.

Saturday was a great start to the 2022 race season with some very good racing. Congratulations to all the winners. At Rockford Speedway next week will be the WXRX Iron Man 250 4-cyl Enduro.
To see the entire Rockford Speedway schedule please click here.

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Byron Dragway - Diesel Drags w/ Test & Tune and World Record!

10/31/2021

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Brett Deutsch

Saturday, at Byron Dragway was a day of firsts! This was my first Byron Diesel Drags Presented by Superior Automotive. Back in the day, I had covered an earlier iteration of this event at Route 66 Raceway. This was also my first witnessing of a World Record.

Brett Deutsch, from Elburn, Il., brought his 1969 C10 Duramax to attempt to break the world record for a non-dragster Duramax vehicle. The time to beat was 7.44 in the quarter mile. On Brett's first attempt, at about the 300 foot mark, the truck broke traction and got a severe tire shake. Brett backed out of it and re-gained control.

On the second attempt, the truck launched well but something wasn't quite right and Brett had to get out of it, again.

On the third attempt, the truck launched really well witnessed by the title photo. It wasn't an easy run as the truck started to drift left. Brett was able to keep control and hit the stripe with a 7.289 at 175.41 mph to break the world record!

Here are more images of the world record breaking day. Congratulations Brett!

Brett's wasn't the only diesel vehicle at Byron Saturday. There was a large contingent diesels putting on a great show.

There were several awards for the diesel vehicles. One of which was for overall fastest. That was won by Adam Twarowski from Warren Mi.

There was also a small Gamblers Race. In the final, it was Robert Hill, Beloit, Wi., vs Gil Odjick, Byron, Il. Both broke out at the stripe, however Robert ran closer to his dial-in to take the win.

Besides the racing trucks, there were several display diesel trucks. This is Austin Ingram's, Bristol Wi., 2016 Super Duty. It had a unique tranmission cover. Austin has two other trucks, an 05 and 08 and is looking for a 97.

And there was Preston Lewis's, Gilberts, Il., 2014 F250.

In addition to the on-track diesel trucks there was a Test & Tune happening.

During the Test & Tune, I saw the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air of Don Dumdie, driven by Brian Dumdie, approach the starting line. I though it was unusual that a normal bracket car would be testing this late in the season. I found Don and he explained that at the Indy Brackets, they broke the crankshaft in the motor. They were ready to replace that motor in the off-season. To get a jump on next season, they installed the motor and came to test. They are trying to work out some of the bugs in the total car.

There was also a dragster licensing this Saturday. I saw Rob and Dana Highland with the car and assumed their daughter Mikayla was licensing as she is leaving the Junior ranks. Then I saw Jim Schubbe with the car. Now, I didn't know who was in the car because Jim's daughter Kamryn is also graduating to the "big" car from juniors. I caught up with the families and learned that Kamryn was in the car. Her dad, Jim, stated they have a dragster for her to drive in Super Pro bracket racing next season.

All told this was a great race day, with all kinds of action and surprises. Several diesel trucks had catastrophic failures, a world record and a great show put on by the diesels.

This is my last on-track event for 2021. While it was a trying season, at the end I was sad to call it over. Almost every year, by the time you get to October, you are looking for some down time. You've been at a race track almost every weekend from April through October. You are tired mentally, physically and your equipment is tired. However, this season I was forced to the sidelines until July. During the dog days of summer, I was just trying to get back on my game. Saturday was the best I have felt all season. I am looking forward to 2022. I want to thank everyone for their support this year and hope to see many at PRI in December. If not, we will see you next season.

To see all of Saturday's photos please click here.

If you see something interesting and wish to order, please click on the "Ordering" tab at the top of the page or here.

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Byron Dragway - Fall Bracket Nationals Race Weekend

10/11/2021

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This past weekend, Byron Dragway hosted the Fall Bracket Nationals. This was the last bracket race for the 2021 season. Saturday was the Super Pro Box/No Box race. There was one Time Trial pass for all cars, followed by the first round of eliminations. Here is some of the action.

The No-Box cars ran seven rounds before reaching the finals. In the final it was Steve Roehrs, Federic Wi., against Cross Plains, Wi.' Taylor Schlueter. Steve was killing the tree all day with his worst light being a .036 on his bye run. Before that his worse light was a .014. That continued in the final with a .011 to Taylor's .066. Taylor tried to lead at the stripe, however in so doing he broke out, 7.042 on a 7.05 DI. Steve ran a 6.443 on a 6.40 to take the No-Box win a spot in the $4,000 Super Pro final.

Steve Roehrs foreground, Taylor Schlueter background

After seven rounds of eliminations, the Box final came down to Tim Vincent, St. Charles, Il., against Stephen Liss, West Bend Wi. In a very close race, it was Tim Vincent taking the win light. Tim was slightly better on the tree .042 to Stephen's .047. However, it was Stephen running closer to his dial-in 5.095 on a 5.09 DI to Tim Vincent's 5.080/5.07. Tim won by .0001. It doesn't get much closer than that!

As darkness closed in on the track, Tim Vincent and Steve Roehrs turned their cars around quickly to run for the winner's $4,000 Big Check! At the tree Tim was slightly quicker with a .018 RT to Steve's .024. At the stripe, Tim took the win light with a 5.069 on a 5.06 DI. Steve broke out slightly with a 6.423 on a 6.43 DI.

It was a long day of racing, but the racing was quite spectacular. It appeared, everyone was pushing everything to the limit.

Sunday

The day broke with a lot of rain clouds stretching as far as the eye could see. The forecast was not looking particularly good. Because of the threat of rain and the addition of classes to the schedule, Staff decided to start earlier than announced. They were in the "Hurry-up Mode". About half way through Pro Eliminator time trials, it started to rain. The action was stopped, but the rain didn't. After several hours, the rain let up and track drying started. The sun was out briefly and as the track was nearly dry, the clouds rolled in and it started raining with lightning and thunder this time. After a period of time, it was clear that there weren't enough daylight hours left in the day to get the track dry to start racing again. The decision was made to call a rainout that would not be made up. The Byron Staff did everything humanly possibe to get this race in, but Mother Nature had a different thought. This concluded the Bracket racing season.

Here are a few images from the racing prior to the rain.

I want to thank the entire Byron Staff for allowing me to cover the Big Bucks Bracket 2021 season. Due to my early season health issues, I wasn't able to get out until around mid-season. I hope I was able to capture some of the racer's memories. I will probably be out for the Diesel Drags in late October so I hope to see everyone there.

There are two albums covering this weekend and here are the links:

For Saturday click here.

For Sunday click here.

If you see something that interests you, it can be ordered by clicking here or on the Ordering tab at the top of the page.

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Rockford Speedway - National Short Track Championship-Day 2

10/4/2021

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Rich Bickle

On Saturday evening I arrived at the Rockford Speedway a little later than normal due to working a race at the Byron Dragway. The Heat races were nearing the end. When I was allowed into the infield, I needed to reconfigure my equipment from drag racing to stock car racing.

The first of six feature races was the Midwest Dash Series. This was a 50 lap race starting 20 cars. The race was slowed on Lap 1 when the #50 car crashed between turns 3 and 4. The cars were put under caution on Lap 5 for light rain and restarted after a short delay. The attrition rated was high for this race as there were only seven cars running at the end. Loves Park's George Sparkman #5 won the race.

Next up was the Sportsmen Class with 15 cars racing in the 30 lap feature. There were several cautions as the racing was quick and furious. On Lap 28, Robert Hansberry of Beloit, Wi. took the lead and brought home the checkers.

In the third feature of the night was a new class for me that I had not seen run. This was the 602 Late Model Series. This Series is a late model chassis with outlaw style body and a crate engine. Tonight, there were only 7 cars starting the 35 lap race. On Lap 3, four cars were involved in a dust-up between turns 1-2. All the cars were able to continue. At the end of the race, it was Onslow, Iowa's Dennis Miller taking the win. Dennis hadn't raced at Rockford in 21 years. Welcome back, Dennis.

The fourth feature was the first of the two Rich Bickle Invitation 45's for the Super Late Models. There were 16 cars taking the green with Ricky Bilderback #2 leading the pack. On Lap 11, Bilderback unexpectedly spun. It was suspected something broke. This gave the lead to Austin Nason who cruised to the victory.

Next up were the Hobby Stocks with a 20 lap feature and 14 cars starting. On Lap 6, an unusual thing happened when a car drove straight off the track, down the ramp to the pits without slowing down! I never found out who the driver was. The racing was tight throughout the race and in turn 4 the #52 got into the #33 of Jimmy Robinson causing a spin. The #52 took the checkered flag, however the win was awarded to Jimmy Robinson from Beloit, Wi.

In the final feature of the night, it was the second of the 45 lap Super Late Model races. Due to the Bilderback retirement in the first, 15 cars started this second race. On Lap 3, Rich Bickle drove to the lead followed by Austin Nason #14. Austin continually pressured Bickle #45, however Rich was able to hold him off and take the win and the combined overall win.

Rich Bickle has become a midwest racing legend and this was a very popular win!

This night's racing had it all! A lot of good racing and a fitting way for a Champion to end his career at Rockford.

This concludes my reports from the NSTC as I have another assignment on Sunday. It had been nearly two years since I had been to Rockford Speedway and it was fun to be back.

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Byron Dragway - Power Wheel Standing Championship Sunday

10/4/2021

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Chris Pearce

Sunday morning was a very wet one. Overnight there was a downpour, twice. The Byron staff was out drying the track and again very early in the morning. They did yeoman's work to get the track prepped for racing. Finally, Mother Nature helped as the sun popped out and the track was finally dried and prepped to race.

Midwest Index Shootout was the first out for their first round of eliminations.

This was quickly followed with first round eliminations for Midwest Top Sportsman.

At this point, Mother Nature took back what it had given us earlier and the clouds rolled in and the rain fell. Byron staff immediately got to work trying not to lose the track, too badly. After several hours, as the rain tapered off, they gained ground. When the rain stopped, they were on the way to a dry track.

Due to the lateness of the day, it was decided to call the support series races complete and move forward with the main event, The Wheel Standers! There would be two rounds with two runs per round

The field of fifteen cars lined up and Jeff Wild came out first. He set the benchmark for the rest of the field at approximately 270 feet.

Here is some of the action:

In the first round, 7-time Champion Brian Ambrosini, in the orange Gremlin had a nitrous problem. In the pits, they scrambled to get ready for the second round. As it approached the line, the crew noticed something leaking from underneath the car and they immediately had to shut the car down. It turned out to be a bad oil fitting. They had to retire from the event.

This left the door wide open for Chris Pearce in the "Chinto". In 2020, in this same event, Chris ended up on his roof. Before this event, he announced this would be his last go around for the Wheel Standing Championship. At the tree, he gave it his all and put the "Chinto" on its back bumper and traveled 410 feet to win the the event and his second championship!

Second place was taken by Jeff Wild and third went to Jason Schubert.

Here are the full results of the event.

wheel_stand_results_2021__1_.pdf

Track Bites

When Dave Pearce announced this was his last go around, he invited all the fans to sign the hood of the "Chinto" so he could take them along on the ride.

Launching Larry with the Bad Fish Barracuda had been practicing all month for this event. Apparently, he decided since he was at the track he might as well run with the Midwest Index Shootout. He obviously had to tone it down a little.

For a day that threatened a rain out, the fans showed their support and came out in droves!

This was a day that Mother Nature tried to stop, but with the hard work of the Byron staff, they won the day! Byron 1 Mother Nature 0!! It was a great day.

To see all the images of Sunday's action, please click here.

If you see something of interest, it may be ordered by clicking here or on the "Ordering" tab at the top of the page.

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Byron Dragway - World Power Wheel Standing Championship Weekend-Saturday

10/4/2021

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Launching Larry Jeleniewski

This past weekend was the World Power Wheel Standing Championship Presented by Don's Auto Parts & Machine Shop . The Saturday portion of the event consisted of Midwest Index Shootout and Midwest Top Sportsman qualifying for Sunday and some of the entered wheel standers testing. With the anticipated bad weather not making it's appearance, the Series decided to run Gamblers races. The Midwest Index Shootout would run two race classes and the Top Sportsman, one.

Here are some pics of the qualifying and the gamblers races.

In the Midwest Index Shootout Gamblers Race it was Rob Moore and Ed Frost winning their classes (at least that was what I was told).

In Top Sportsman, it was Troy Finner racing in the final against Bob Romano in Rick Zirk's car. Troy took home the $1200 prize with the win!

Track Bites

Steve Malek was on property with his Plymouth Xtreme Bird Pro Mod.

Steve made several passes, setting his best time a Byron Dragway!

In the grandstand, Chauncey was celebrating his bachelor party with friends at the racetrack. Congratulations on his upcoming nuptials and to his beautiful Bride!

On Saturday, the weather report was full of doom and gloom for a rainy day. What actually happened? Hardly a drop of rain fell. Byron was able to complete the program with the addition of Gamblers races. It only proves that you must come out to the track!

To see the rest of the day's action action, please click here.

If you see something of interest it can be ordered here or by clicking on the Ordering tab a the top of the page.

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Rockford Speedway - 56th National Short Track Championships - Friday

10/4/2021

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Friday night was the opening race sessions for the 56th annual National Short Track Championships. This year there was a format change. In the past the Sunday main event was a 200 lap super late model race. This year as a salute to Rich Bickle retiring, there will be twin 45 lap features Saturday night. This is the Rich Bickle Super Late Model Invitational with sixteen drivers competing. Friday night had five Feature races. Before the Features could run, there had to be the Heat races to decide the final starting order. These are the winners of those races.

The first of the feature races were the Bandits. This was a 25 lap race with 20 cars starting. The race ended the way it started with Machesney Park's #2 John Riggs leading all the laps and taking the checkers.

After the Bandits, it was the American Short Trackers turn. This was a 30 lap Feature with 17 cars taking the green. Kyle Stark, #19, from Marshall, Wi. took the lead on the first lap and led the rest of the way to take the checker flag.

Next up were the Late Models. This feature was 40 laps with 18 cars starting. On the pace laps, long time Rockford competitor, Jon Reynolds Jr., had an oil line come loose and went to the pits. Fortunately, with some fast work, they were able to get it fixed and Jon re-joined the field before the start. He did have to start at the rear. On lap 28, Roscoe's Austin Nason, #14, took the lead and won a hard fought battle with second place Josh Thiering.

Following the Late Models, it was the Roadrunners turn. This was a 25 lap Feature with 13 cars taking the green. Turn 2 seemed to be giving a couple drivers problems with two cautions there. In the end it was Loves Park's Austin Fowler taking the victory.

The last race of the evening was a 20 lap race for the Season Championship for the Sixers. Twenty-four cars started and at the finish it was Matt Moore from Tomah, Wi., taking the race win.

And it was Kody Parks taking the season Championship.

On the first night of the Rockford Speedway's 56th National Short Track Championships, I want to congratulate all the winners.

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Byron Dragway - Big Bucks Bracket Racing

8/25/2021

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Because of the Saturday rain delay it was a late night followed by an early Sunday morning at Byron Dragway. The weather forecast called for zero rain. With four classes and two sub-classes of one, there was a large contingent of race cars. After the time trials, the Street Eliminator class was the first out for eliminations.

In Street Eliminator there were sixteen cars entered and not saying it was easy, however Rob(ert) France, in his '07 Trailblazer, marched through three elimination rounds in workmanlike fashion to secure a place in the finals against Ted Thompson in his '12 Mustang. In the second and third rounds, Ted had reaction times of .002 and .003, respectively. In the Final, Ted with the slower car, launched first with a respectable R/T of .057 however that was beaten slightly by Rob with a .051. Starting almost a second and a half behind, Rob chased Ted down beating him to the stripe running closer to his dial-in of 12.57 with a 12.662 to Ted's 14.25/14.386.

Both were entered in Sportsman, but were eliminated in that class' third round.

Rob France

In Sportsman, with twenty-five cars entered, there was stiff competition by a large group of experienced, winning drivers. Through four rounds of competition, Jeff Toepper stood out with consistent reaction times (.049, .052, .077,.057) to make the Finals against Tom Higgins. Tom was not as consistent with the tree and this continued in the Finals when he went red by -.091. This handed the win to Jeff.

Jeff Toepper

In Pro Eliminator, like Sportsman, there many past champions and experienced drivers waiting to take on all. Through five rounds of eliminations, the competition was fierce. Two cars stood out as they consistently cut down the tree. Both cars were green Camaros, Gary Biela and Troy Bogner. These two last met in a final at Route 66. It has been Gary's only win. Today, was slightly different when Troy cut a .018 and Gary redlighted (-.025).

Troy Bogner

In Super Pro No Box, there was a large contingent of race cars all vying for the right to challenge the Super Pro Box cars in the Final, Final for the big check. After six rounds of eliminations it came down to Shane Pope, Mt. Morris, Il., in his '74 Ford Pinto against Chad Cannon, Winnebago, Il., in his '00 Camaro. Shane had the slightly slower car so he left first. With a .011 light to Chad's .036, he led all the way in a close race running closer to his dial-in, 6.86/6.867 to Chad's 6.39/6.402.

In Super Pro Box, there was a mix of "door" cars vs dragsters. Throughout the seven elimination rounds, there was a consistent match up of the two. In the final, Collin Estes in his '14 Miller was matched against Ed Niemiec in his '00 Corvette. Ed, in the Corvette, left first and was pushed by Collin to the stripe. Ed broke out slightly handing the win to Collin, 5.38/5.378.

In the Final, Final, again, it was a dragster vs a door car. Shane Pope in his 74 Ford Pinto was the slower car and left first by a second and a half. Collin Estes in his '14 Miller dragster, after a reaction time of .005, chased down Shane, who then broke out, 6.85/6.832. Collin took the "Big" check!

Track Bites

In the Pro Elimination class, prior to the final, the two drivers, Gary Biela and Troy Bogner agreed to split the purse and then went racing. At the Winner's Circle, Gary was not going to intrude on his friend Troy's celebration. After the initial Winner's Circle, both cars were maneuvered into the Circle and both crews joined together.

Troy Bogner had a long two days. On Saturday, he raced at Cordova International Raceway getting down to three cars. Then drove home, got up early driving to Byron and winning!

During the event, I saw long time motorcycle race Greg Darm racing a 2018 Mustang. I spoke with him and he stated that he saw the motorcycle racing class shrinking and decided to switch to four wheels selling his motorcycle equipment.

Here is a little of Sunday's action.

I want to congratulate all of Sunday's winners for putting on a great show!

To see all Sunday's images, please click here.

If you see something interesting and wish to order please click here or on the Ordering tab at the top of the page.

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