It was a beautiful day to start the 2017 season at Route 66 Raceway. Unfortunately, the day was cut short by an unforeseen force of nature. Let's get the bad out of the way before we can discuss the great racing that occurred. The racing started around 9:45 a.m. and just after 1:00 p.m. it came to a screeching halt when water was discovered in the shut down area at the top of the track. It was determined that with all the rain the past week, combined with the warm weather, it caused water to percolate up through the track. The Track Staff worked for over an hour to stem the flow of water, however all attempts failed. So, for safety reasons, the event had to be stopped. In the nineteen previous years the track has been in operation, this had never happened. Track President Scott Paddock advised all tickets from today's event will be honored at any future 2017 Test & Tune or Race Your Ride. He also ordered Staff to put on a full court press to fix the issue ASAP so this type of thing would not happen again. Now onto the racing. The first cars down the track were two Ford Mustang GT's driven by Pete Buzane and Joe Cesario. Early on, Joe Zehnder was helping his brother Herman with his car. Over the off-season, Herman upgraded the motor from a 406 c.i. to a 427 c.i. engine. That is Joe in the Blackhawks jersey! Herman wasn't sure where the car would run. In two runs it was a very consistent 10.01. Soon thereafter, Joe jumped in his car and cut the first perfect .000 light of the season. It didn't seem like anyone was holding back because wheelies were in abundance. Also racing today, was two-time NHRA Competition Eliminator Champion Bruno Massel. Bruno is also a NHRA TV commentator and stars on the Velocity Channel's Garage Squad. Speaking of Garage Squad, Joe Zolper, wife Jennifer and daughter Ruby were also present. Ruby along with Ryan Brockman started the process of obtaining their NHRA Jr. Licenses. Along with the the Jr. licensing, there were some other Jr's testing. Here is Bobby Churchill and Cooper Hamelen. Like all first testing days, there will be car glitches and once in a while a crash caused by a mechanical problem. Mike Brauer driving his 1948 Austin had a motor problem at the 1000 foot mark. As he attempted to slow, he lost control and hit the wall. The car was damaged, but Mike was okay. For the time we had racing today, it was exciting. It was good to get the 20th season underway. Here are some more images of the action.
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Today, I paid a visit to the Dirt Oval 66 on the Chicagoland Speedway/Route 66 Raceway complex. Beginning with the 2015 season, Sherri Heckenast became the promoter of the Dirt Oval. Sherri had purchased the Team Demolition Association in 2008 and that series had been calling the Dirt Oval its home. The Dirt Oval was originally designed as a 1/2 mile dirt track and in its early years was the home to some exciting open wheel racing put on by USAC and the World of Outlaws. The last time the WOO ran was in 2005 and since then, other than a few specialty events, the TDA was the only tenant. This brings us to 2017, Sherri has initiated a complete revamp of the racing surface and shrinking it to a 3/8 mile oval. Beginning on April 27th, the POWRI Sprint Cars, POWRI Midget’s, POWRI DII Midgets, and UMP Modifieds race on opening night. The 2017 schedule includes a total of four days of WOO racing (both Sprints and Late Models) in June and October, The TORC series (off-road trucks) in May, in August its Monster Truck Mayhem and in September prior to the arrival of NASCAR, the Chicagoland’s Dirty 30 Late Models, Modifieds, Winged Sprints racing will be held. These are all in addition to Team Demolition Derby. To see the full schedule please click here. In conversation with Sherri, I learned the biggest hurdle to bringing dirt racing back to the complex was the racing surface itself. It had been reported that the cause of WOO not returning to the Chicagoland complex was that debris from the demolition derby racing cars had caused numerous tire failures. As they started to recondition the track, it was discovered that the track had become imbedded with rocks and stones. It took a massive cleanup to clear the dirt racing surface of the rocks and stones. Sherri believes this was the cause of the WOO tire failures. I took a photo tour of the track and here are some photos: Tomorrow, there was to be an open practice, however the track is still a little soft, so that was cancelled. The first practice is scheduled for April 20th. By then it is hoped all the exterior walls would be replaced. I am really looking forward to racing coming back to the dirt oval and encourage everyone to come out and support the efforts of Sherri and her staff!
With the 2017 Midwest racing season fast approaching, it was time to have some fun before the racing gets serious. Wait a minute, I'm talking about racers, THIS WAS SERIOUS! With competition and bragging rights on the line, there was a lot of good-natured smack talk going around! The third annual Ingalls Park Practice Tree Nationals was on! This event is to benefit the Route 66 Raceway Junior Dragster Program. Bob and Becky Churchill are the primary organizers with help from a lot of people. I would be remiss not to thank the sponsors: Good Vibrations Motorsports, Crybabies Tap, Shep's Tavern, Ingalls Park A.C. and Route 66 Raceway. Thank you! The event began with an hour of good food and socializing. At 2:00 p.m., practice and qualifying began in the three classes: Pro, Sportsman and Junior Sportsman. Route 66 Raceway announcer, Sportsman ET Bracket racer and a 2016 Practice Tree Nationals Champion Bill Larson accepted the role as the Practice Tree Nationals Announcer. During the Qualifying, Joe Zolper (Velocity Channel's Garage Squad and Prison City Choppers) went head to head against his wife Jenny. To say there is a family racing rivalry would be an understatement! This day belonged to Joe as he out-qualified Jenny. As Joe was walking away, he was heard to say, "It's going to be a long ride home!" All in fun!! The qualifying was hot and heavy with family members and friends going up against each other for bragging rights. The top qualifiers were: Pro - Terry Stapleton - .001 Sportsman - Bill Larson - .016 Jr. Sportsman - David Kovar Jr. - .015 Terry is the crew chief on Rocky Ausec's Solid Rock nostalgic funny car. Bill Larson drives a red Mustang in the Sportsman Class and David drives a Jr. Dragster in the JDRL. After the qualifying, the racing began in earnest. There was good racing, good sportsmanship and the typical racing banter! In the Finals, in the Pro Class it was Terry Stapleton taking the win over Don Edelstein. In Sportsman, it was Miranda Lawson over Ryan Campbell. In the Jr. Sportsman, it was Jack Nolan over Jesse Lasik. Congratulations to our Finalists and Champions! After the official racing was completed, there were a couple of grudge races: Joe Zolper vs Dave Harris and Terry Stapleton vs Jeff Stapleton. Joe took Dave and Dad (Terry) beat Son (Jeff).
This was a great event and fun for all for a good cause. The Junior Dragsters are the future of the sport. Anything that can be done to support them is a good thing. Thanks go out to Churchill Motorsports (Bob, Becky and Bobby), Rocky Ausec, Bill Larson, Leslie Harris-Kranz, and everyone that contributed and helped to support the kids. To see all the images from the event, please click here. Before I start talking about Sunday at the Race & Performance Expo, I was remiss in not relating a conversation I had with Dave and Maria Kocher. I just happened to run into them as I was leaving the Expo on Saturday. The last time I had seen them was on September 23, 2016 at the last Race Your Ride of the season at Route 66 Raceway. Maria was driving their car, the "Plane Insane", when at the 1000 foot mark she lost control swerving to the right , careening off the wall going across the track and hitting the opposite wall nearly head-on. The car came back across the track and came to rest against the right side wall. Maria was transported to the hospital with some significant injuries. It was good to see her fully recovered and anxious to get back to the track in their new car, a green Mercury Cougar, aptly name "Plane Insane II". Dave who used to be an aircraft crash investigator estimated that a force of 60 g's caused the cracking of Maria's carbon fiber helmet. They both credit her head and neck restraint system with saving her life. Safety was a priority for Dave and Maria. Below is the last launch of the "Plane Insane". Because of the severity of the crash I purposely did not photograph the car, but chose a shot of the tire laying on the track. Back to Sunday. I only had a short time in the morning due to a family tradition of watching the Daytona 500. My son cooked all day on Saturday in preparation of our annual family day of watching racing. After the 500 (congratulations to Kurt Busch), we watched the NHRA Arizona Nationals. I want to give my congratulations to Leah Pritchett, Matt Hagan and Greg Anderson in their wins in the top classes. To see the rest of the winners please click here. After talking with a lot drivers and teams on Saturday, I decided to focus on some of the race tracks that attended the show. First up was the Great Lakes Dragaway in Union Grove, Wi. I spoke with Randy Henning and Marcel Kuper, owners of the track for the last 24 years. I used to go Union Grove with my cousin, who raced his Malibu there back in the 60's. They tout Great Lakes as the Biggest Little Track and being the friendliest to fans and drivers. They are open 200 days a year and are an IHRA sanctioned track. Next up, is Cordova International Raceway in Cordova, Il. Cordova is the oldest continuous operating independent drag racing track in the world (1954). They are the oldest purpose built drag racing track east of the Mississippi River. Cordova was the long time home of the World Series of Drag Racing. In 2016 the parent company of Cordova, moved the World Series to Memphis, Tn. The event did not have the anticipated support and draw in Memphis, so, the event has been brought back to Cordova for 2017. Next was Byron Dragway, "The Playground of Power". Byron prides itself with the widest variety of drag racing in the Midwest. The Meltdown Drags is not only a race with period correct cars, but fans and participants dress accordingly in period correct clothes. In October, they have the World Power Wheel Standing Championships, an event that shouldn't be missed. The pride themselves in their friendliness and bringing fun back to drag racing. Grundy County Speedway in Morris, Il. is another track where I have photographed racing. It's a 1/3 mile high banked paved oval. This year they will be introducing a new class called the 6 Shooters which are the six-cylinder stock cars. The Illini Racing Series Midgets will be running also. On July 15th the ARCA Midwest Tour along with the Mid Am Series and Illini Midgets will be running. Grundy County prides itself for its great racing with great car counts at a great entertainment value. Speaking of the Illini Racing Series, on Saturday I spoke with Jon Fenske. I had photographed the series at Rockford Speedway last season, but I didn't remember their car. He stated his daughter is the driver and they didn't run Rockford last season, however, this season, their intention is to run the entire schedule. On Sunday, I met Taylor and she was kind enough to pose with her car. Good luck this season to Taylor. The last track(s) to discuss are my home tracks, the Chicagoland Speedway, Route 66 Raceway and The Dirt Oval @ 66. Our race complex is a world class racing venue. The Chicagoland Speedway in September hosts the first race in the playoffs for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the ARCA Racing Series Presented by Menards. During the rest of the year, the Speedway hosts driving schools, special events and fan events.
In July, the Route 66 Raceway hosts the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. In June its the NHRA Lucas Oil Series Division 5 racing. In conjunction with the Lucas Oil Series, Route 66 holds the Burndown at Sundown with specialty racers and jet cars. In August, the Route 66 Classic is held, bringing back the Classic racers and cars of yesteryear for a blast down memory lane. Late July brings the NMRA/NMCA World Series of Street Legal Drag Racing. It's four days of the world's fastest street cars going head to head. In addition, the Rockett Brand Racing Fuel ET Bracket Series runs 8 races during the Spring and Summer. The Midwest Top Sportsman Series and the Midwest Super Comp Series also visit during the season. The future of drag racing is the NHRA Junior Drag Racing League and will be running five races this season. It will be a very busy race season at Route 66. The Dirt Oval @ 66 is undergoing a makeover. The Dirt Oval Promoter Sherri Heckenast is reconfiguring and rebuilding the dirt track from 1/2 dirt oval to a 3/8 mile oval. In addition to the Team Demolition Association races, the World of Outlaws will have four dates, along with the Monster Truck Mayhem event and other racing. The racing complex will be a very busy place this season. I want to thank the Race and Performance staff for their assistance in covering another successful Expo. This is an event that is always on my schedule and I would recommend it be on yours. I attended the 10th Annual Race & Performance Expo at the Schaumburg Convention Center. As I wandered around the show I spoke with many friends to get updates on their off season and upcoming 2017 season. Here are some of the bits of information: Joe Malfeo will again be driving his orange Chevrolet Nova. Joe built and installed new exhaust headers for the Nova along with a few other upgrades. He is also in discussions about possibly driving a Nostalgic Funny Car for part or all of the season. Mark and Nick Cryer took off most of the 2016 season to completely go through Nick's dragster and do some repairs/upgrades to Mark's 2009 Smart Car. Both cars will be back on the track this year. If you haven't seen the Smart Car, I would suggest that either come to the show and/or come out Route 66 Raceway when its running. It boasts a 555 cu. in. engine with750 hp. Its a treat to see it run. I spoke with Tom Motry, owner of the World Record Holder "Drastic Plastic" fuel altered car. This year Tim Cullinan returns to the seat of the Drastic Plastic. Joe Zolper, with his wife Jenny and daughter Ruby were in attendance. Joe is the lead mechanic on the Velocity Network's "Garage Squad". Joe is also the owner of Prison City Choppers in Minooka. He was at the show to partake in an autograph session. Joe is allegedly building a car to try to beat Jenny, however she says, "No way will he beat her!" Along with Joe at the autograph session was NHRA Top Fuel driver TJ Zizzo. I didn't get a chance to talk with TJ, but I did learn he will be back on the track for a few races this season including Route 66 Raceway. I spent some time with Rocky Ausec and his "Solid Rock" Nostalgic Funny Car team. The car is ready to go for another season. Rocky also participated in the autograph session. Another participant in the session was John Lawson. John will run both his Nostalgic Funny Cars, Runaway and Quick Draw. Joe Haas will again this season drive Quick Draw with John in the seat of the Runaway. The Car Chix folks are at the show. They are doing live streaming, a marketing seminar and an autograph session. Participating in the autograph session is Ms. August, Morgan Hixon. Morgan is negotiating with her dad, John, to get some passes in his Buick. Also at the show was the Beat the Heat dragsters. I spoke with Romeoville Police Officer Jim Luckett and they are trying to fill out their season schedule. Here are a few more images from Saturday's show. I am looking forward to a quick trip back to the show Sunday morning to visit with some more friends at the Race & Performance Expo.
ET Bracket Series and addressing the issues that were brought forth in a recent survey. This was followed by presenting the awards to all the top finishers in attendance in points in the seven classes. This years Spirit Award winner was Mike Lawson. Mike has been a long time drag racer who climbed out of his car and became crew chief for his four children; Miranda, Autumn, Connor and Tyler. To say that his weekends were very busy was an understatement! After the Spirit Award it was time to award the Family of the Year. This year it was the Bowden Family, commonly known as Team Bowden. Dad- Dominic drives a Super Pro dragster and finished second in the points. Son, Braden, won the Junior Sportsman Class. The Bowden family is always there to help anyone in need. Congratulations. Daughter, Quinn, was not available for the above family picture. Another award recognized tonight was the winner of the Run Tuff Eliminator race which was run at the Route 66 Classic. Jerry Hayes won the race that night. Jerry has been racing at Route 66 since the very first year of 1998. There was a Special Recognition Award given out Saturday night. For his outstanding efforts in promoting all the events and activities throughout the past year using social media. Brandon Brown was the surprised recipient of this award. It's not often that Brandon is speechless! If you have followed the Route 66 Raceway/Chicagoland Speedway through any form of social media, internet website, Twitter, Instagram, etc., then you have seen Brandon's work. He has done a fantastic job, Well Deserved! The Rookie of the Year Award went to a special young lady, Nichole Medeisis. This past season Nichole graduated from the Junior Modified Class to the Super Pro Class. Not only did she finish 9th in the Class, but took a win! Congratulations to Nichole!! The last award of the evening was for Driver of the year. Driving in the Sportsman Class with three wins, was Paul O'Keefe. Paul gathered more points than any driver in any class by a wide margin. Congratulations to Paul! After all the awards, you thought that would have been the end of the excitement for the evening, WRONG! There was a major announcement when Super Pro Driver, Ryan Alley proposed to his long time girlfriend, Super Pro Driver Miranda Lawson! Everyone was happy and excited for Ryan and Miranda This night was full of surprises, friendship, racing and just having a great time. Congratulations to all the racers and their families! Here are just a few more images from the evening. And finally! On Friday, I drove down to the PRI 2016 Trade Show in Indianapolis. For those not familar, the PRI (Performance Racing Industry) Trade Show is a gathering of all facets of the racing industry. In its 28th year, the show started as an outgrowth of the western SEMA show. As that show expanded and changed, it became apparent that the racing community needed its own show. The first PRI Trade Show was held in Louisville in 1988. The show moved around the country until it was purchased in 2012 by SEMA. In 2013, the show was moved to Indianapolis, where it remains today. Other than visiting the show for the first time, my purpose for attending was to hook up with as many of the many Chicagoland racers as possible. The first racer I met with was Camden Murphy from Itasca. For 2017, Cam will be driving in the Monster Jam Triple Threat Series. He attended the Monster Jam University starting in March. It started with around 50 drivers and was whittled down to 10. The Show is two and half hours of non-stop Monster Jam mayhem! Monster Jam has encouraged Cam to continue his NASCAR career, and he is currently looking at some cross promotion. Cam is working on some NASCAR Xfinity rides for the 2017 season. At the show, Cam is working with Sim Gear to promote their line of race simulators. Sim Gear's simulators, designed by Zach Davis, are the most mobile of all race simulators on the market. I next met with Route 66 ET Bracket racer Don Yonkers Don is on the right and with his co-worker Ramon Aguilar. Don works for Palmgren, a CH Hanson Company specializing in machine tools. He has been a machininst nearly all his working career and went to work for Plamgren about six months ago. In 2017, Don wants to compete in some Division 3 races in the Super Street class. In 2016, he had some inconsistent runs and has been chasing down the cause of that problem. He thinks he has it narrowed down. Good luck this upcoming season, Don. Above is Zachary Tinkle and family with CRA powered by JEGS car owner Mike Lorz (from left to right: Brad Tinkle, Zachary Tinkle, Mike Lorz and Laurren Darr). Zachary drives the #53 in the Central States Region Super Cup Series. In 2017, in addition to driving full time in Super Cup, he will be testing a CRA JEGS late model car at Grundy County Speedway with the plan to enter a few races later in the season. They came to PRI to view and purchase new safety equipment for Zachary. They also came for the network capabilities of this show. This is ET Bracket Super Pro Driver Nichole Medeisis and her family (from left to right: Mike, Nichole, Julia and Denise). This year, Nichole graduated from the NHRA Junior Modified Division into the Super Pro Class at Route 66 Raceway. In Race 8, Nichole took her first win in the "big" car! As seen in her Victory Lane photo, it was a very popular win. Over the winter, the car is being overhauled and re-painted to match her former junior dragster. Nichole is studying medicine at the University of Iowa. Above is Miranda Lawson (from the Lawson family of racers) and her longtime boyfriend Ryan Alley, both ET Bracket Pro Drivers. Unfortunately, Miranda may not be driving this year as she turns over the reins of her car to her sister Audi. Their brother will take over the white Camaro that Audi drove last season. There is a rumor that Dad (Mike) may be driving this coming season. Maybe Miranda can figure out a way to get in that car! Both Ryan and Miranda qualified for Indy this year. It's always interesting when Ryan and Miranda go head to head at the track!! I went to meet Rocky Ausec, driver/owner of the Solid Rock "One Evil Mach 1". As we started talking, who walks up? That would be Tom Motry, owner of the world record holding AA/FA Drastic Plastic (5.286/275.06 mph, set at Route 66 Raceway), with his friend and fellow racer Bob John (left to right: Rocky , Bob, Skeeter Hidy of Hidy Fuel Systems and Tom). Rocky was at the show helping to promote the Great Lakes Nostalgic Funny Car Circuit. Last season, Rocky had some engine problems early, but got the back on the track mid-season. Over the off-season, he will be doing some minor work on the car. Tom is searching for a driver for Drastic Plastic for 2017. The 2016 driver, Buddy Hull, will be driving his own car this upcoming season. Tom expects to make an announcement soon. As I was walking around the show, I heard my name called. As I turned around, I saw Kevin Hamelen and Greg Bartlett from the Sevik Family of racers. The Sevik family has been racing in the Chicagoland area for many years. Kevin is the grandfather of seven-year-old Cooper Hamelen, NHRA Junior Sportsman driver. In Cooper's first year of competition at Route 66 Raceway, he finished second in the points standings. Kevin told me they rented the car last year but now have purchased it, and Cooper will be driving full time again this season. I went to the media center and ran into Animal Jim Feuer! Animal Jim is a longtime drag racer, 6-time world champion and longtime Route 66 Raceway official. Animal Jim used some of my photos for an article he wrote on ET Bracket racing engines for Engine Builder Magazine. Thanks Jim! In 2012, Animal Jim was honored at the Route 66 Classic as one of the "Legends". Animal Jim has attended every PRI Show since the inception (except the ones held in Florida). Above is Jesse Lasik, a NHRA Junior Dragster driver, his family, and fellow Junior Dragster driver Colby Frazier with Mom from Owensboro, Ky (left to right: Colby Frazier, Barbara Frazier, Jesse Lasik, Lisa Lasik and John Lasik). Besides racing at Route 66, Jesse raced in 36 races at about 10 race tracks with a track championship at Byron Dragway. Friday was Jesse's 12th Birthday, so happy birthday! When I caught up with the group, they were shopping for a new uniform for Jesse. It seems he grew out of last season's!
There were a lot more Chicagoland area racers at the PRI Show but I ran out of time. This was my first but not last PRI! I want to thank all those who took time out of their day to share their stories and experiences at PRI. See you back at the track in 2017! Sunday at Rockford Speedway is known as "Championship Day" for the Bahama Brackets. The racing starts with the Last Chance Races. These races allow the first three finishers in each race to transfer to the Feature races later in the day. Here are the four Last Chance Winners. The above car won the "Best Themed" Award. A quick update on my friend and fellow photographer, Mark Melchiori. Mark was in the third "A" bracket and was running in second going for the lead when he got loose coming out of turn 4. He was able to hang on, recover and finish third allowing him to transfer to the Feature. Prior to the start of the Features, there is a novelty Foo Foo race for any drivers who have not already qualified. For the winner there is a unique trophy, a bidet. This race was won by an excited Christy Penrod! The Feature races today, consisted of six bracket races, four for the "A" larger cars and two for the "B" smaller cars. Each of the "A" Brackets were 50 lap races. The first was slowed by several cautions. The race was won by Chris Woodall #52 when the #99 broke out on the last lap. The second "A" bracket went a little smoother, but hotly contested... ...and was won by Chris Saszwicz #67 in the Bob Dotter tribute car. In the third "A" Feature it, was a battle between #39 Alex Papini and #16 Matthew Clossey. They ran 1-2 for many laps. However just past halfway, Alex "broke out" by going too fast and was blackflagged from the event. In the end it was Matt taking home the trophy. In the last "A" Bracket race, it was another hotly contested race slowed by several cautions. Vaughn Lesko, driving the #08, came through the pack to claim the win. Next up, was the first of the "B" bracket races. The first was a 35 lap event. While there was good racing in the pack, the race was dominated by Mark English #20. The last race of the day, was, again, a hotly contested thirty lap event. In the end it was the #199 of Destiny Genore taking the checkered flag to cap the 25th Annual Bahama Brackets.
If you have never been to the Rockford Speedway Bahama Brackets weekend, you don't know what you are missing. There were 183 cars entered to run. They qualify, not by class, but by speed. There are late models racing against dirt modifieds, etc. During your race, if you go faster than your stated speed, aka "bracket", you lose. It is just a fun event. Saturday is all about qualifying the cars followed by the heat races and the Bermuda Bashes. To qualify and group all 183 cars took most of the afternoon. Starting at 6 PM, the Heat Races and Bashes started. It was non-stop racing for over four hours. It was side-by-side racing, all over the racetrack. Many races were not decided until the final lap. It was just plain fun racing! Here are the night's winners. I apologize for not having the winner's names, however with 183 entries and duplicate car numbers, it was impossible at this point to obtain the names. The Rockford Speedway website will probably post all the winners later today. A special shout-out to Jefferson Speedway Track Photographer Mark Melchiori and his son Matthew for their effort Saturday. Matt worked hard to prepare this car for his Dad to run. They thought there was an oil pressure issue and were going to have to call it quits, however they were able to resolve the issue and Mark went racing. He finished third in his heat, one position out of the transfer position. He will try to get into the features on Sunday's Last Chance races. Go Mark!! Here are some more images from Saturday night's races. Today's weather is going to clear from the overnight thunderstorms, so there is no excuse not to head out to the Rockford Speedway for Sunday's events. So if you want to have a good time, come out for some fun. The racing starts at Noon.
To see all the images from the day, please click here. After the late night Saturday, I got to the Rockford Speedway around 11:00 a.m., just as the Mid-American Stock Car Series cars were hitting the track for practice. This was followed by Super Cup practice. If you don't know what Super Cup is, they are 1/2 scale race cars that resemble full size NASCAR Sprint Cup cars powered by 13 hp Honda engines. To get more on Super Cup racing, please click here. Following Super Cup practice, the schedule continued with some hot laps with the NASON's LANDSCAPING 'Faster Than a Speeding Bullet' qualifying for the Mid-American Series. After a short break the Opening Ceremonies commenced. First up for the Sunday's racing was the rain delayed 25 lap Hornet/Bandit Challenge. These cars are the 4-cylinder sub-compact cars. Nick Schmidt in the #09 outlasted the field to take the checkered flag. Following the Hornet/Bandit Challenge was a series of Heat Races for the Mid-America series won respectively by #47 Kenny Joosten, #88 Rick Corso and #66 Marty McKinney After the Heat races, we had one of the more entertaining races of the day, the Super Cup cars. There were only ten cars in the field, but what a show they put on. They were led to the green by #16 Maggie Struthers. It was fun to watch Trevor Addams #2 and Zachary Tinkle #53, last year's NSTC Super Cup winner, come through the pack and to the front. In the final laps Trevor and Zachary put on a show of side by side racing with Trevor and Zachary swapping the lead. On the last lap it was Trevor edging Zachary. After the Super Cup, it was another of the rain delayed races, the Roadrunner "25". There were thirteen Roadrunner's in the field. Adam Cartwright #42 started on the outside pole and quickly took the lead. He led the whole race but was challenged on nearly every lap. There were several dust-ups, but nothing serious. In the end Adam brought it home in first. After an exciting Roadrunner race, the Mid-American Stock Car Series was up with their Gary Vercauteren Memorial 50 lap feature event. In this event it was Kevin Gentile with the fast lap and getting his "Bullet". With his win in his Heat race, #47 Kenny Joosten led the field to the green. The race was somewhat calm until lap 11 and then lap 13, when their were wrecks in turn one and between turns 3 &4. When the race resumed, all was calm until lap 19 when a major crash occurred on the main straightaway. I couldn't see what started it, but I did see #23 Cody Clubb get turned and roll over onto its roof. As the crash continued the other #23 Dan Gilster also rolled over coming to rest in the infield on its wheels. However, there was an engine fire which emergency personnel were able to extinguish. After the clean-up, Ron Vandermeir took the lead closely followed by Kevin Gentile. Kevin pressured Ron, but could not pass him. Ron took the checker with Kevin second and Ryan Gutknecht coming in third. The Finale for the 51st National Short Track Championships was the 200 lap feature for the Super Late Models. During time trials, it was Edgerton, Wisconsin's Casey Johnson running the fastest lap and getting his "Bullet". At the start of the race, Driver X, Jon Reynolds Jr. shot to the lead. Jon stretched his lead until the caution fell at Lap 40 for a minor incident. At the restart, Jon again shot out to a lead. He maintained that lead through the half time break and a rolling red flag caused by a brief misty rain. At a restart at lap 140, Jon could not get going, in what was described as a motor problem. After having the dominant car all day, it was a disappointing finish for Jon. Shortly, after the restart and Jon's retirement from the race, Steve Apel and Austin Nason got together causing a spin. Steve recovered and continued and Austin was sent to the back of the field. At the restart, Casey Johnson took the lead. Once he got the lead, he wasn't about to relinquish it, taking the checkers. Casey had a double for the weekend winning not only this one, but the Saturday night Big 8 race. He is only the second driver in the history of the National Short Track Championship to do the double. The other was the legendary Joe Shear. Finishing second was Austin Nason and third went to Steve Apel. This was a great end to a super weekend of racing.
To see all the images from Sunday, please click here. |
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