Dailey Inherits Harris Clash Crown at Knoxville

With eight cautions, including a "planned" one with a five minute mid-race break, and a disqualification of the apparent winner, the 2011 version of the Harris Clash will not go down as one of the best that I have seen from this event. But as always, the entire night of racing featuring just the IMCA Modifieds, was both interesting and entertaining making this one of the few events that I circle on the calendar each year.

Defending Clash champ Richie Gustin created the first caution of the thirty-lap feature when he smacked the guardrail in turn three on the opening lap and on the second try at a start Michael Long dove past front row starters Ken Schrader and Randy Havlik to take the lead. Nobody could stay with Long as he would pull away on each and every restart, but there was plenty of shuffling going on behind him on a perfectly prepped track where drivers could run the top, bottom and pretty much everywhere in between. Josh Foster was running a strong second when he broke on lap ten and then it looked like Jordan Grabouski might be able to make a run at Long after starting eleventh. Following the mid-race break it was Eric Dailey who  established himself as a contender coming up to fourth from his ninth row start. On a restart with eight laps remaining Dailey drove under Schrader and Grabouski into turn one to take over second only to have another caution wipe that move out. The same scenario played out on the next restart with Dailey going to second and a caution before the lap could be completed sent him back to fourth again.

Schrader didn't enjoy the career that he has had without using his noggin so on the third try at a lap 22 restart he stayed glued to the bottom and kept Dailey behind him. That lasted for two laps as the driver from Armstrong, Iowa, was definitely the second fastest car on the track tonight and he chased Long the remaining six laps to the checkers. Grabouski crossed the line in third, Schrader fourth and Mike VanGenderen edged out Todd Shute for an apparent fifth-place finish. But after passing over the scale three times, Long was disqualified for not making the minimum weight and Eric Dailey was elevated to the victory. It is never pleasant to watch a race and then have the apparent winner disqualified, but at least on this night the guy next in line definitely earned the right to step up the podium one more tier by passing fifteen top notch cars to get there.

The six heat races and three B-Mains definitely had their share of drama with almost every one of them having a driver come from deep in the pack to snare a qualifying spot. In heat one Wisconsin driver Dan Ratajczak started thirteenth and was up into the top three transfer positions only to drop back to fourth at the checkers when Bill Davis Jr. powered by him. Ratajczak would come back to win the first B-Main. Josh Foster started ninth and Jeremy Mills twelfth in heat two and they finished second and third behind pole-sitter Jay Noteboom. Long raced from row four to blow past Richie Gustin and win the third heat, obviously making weight on this one, while Jake Durbin took third after starting twelfth. In the fourth heat Grabouski came from twelfth to second behind winner Mark Elliott. Kansas driver John Allen won the fifth heat from the pole while Schrader and Dailey came from ninth and eighth respectively to get qualified and in heat six it was Todd Shute who came from deep in the pack to transfer in third.

Luke Wanninger had to earn the "Hard Luck Award" of the night as he was caught up in an incident in his heat race and then started sixteenth in the first B-Main. He moved quickly to the front and was up to second before contact from another car put him sideways in turn two and he executed a sharp snap roll landing on all four wheels. The damage was too much for him to continue though and perhaps one of the fastest cars of the night was eliminated. In the second B former event winner Clayton Christensen started at the back after not running his heat race and he had worked his way up to third before his motor let go coming to the white flag. And in the final laps of the third and final B it was veteran driver Tom Charles getting by Dan Mueller for the final transfer position.

It was a beautiful sunset in Knoxville tonight

It was a rough and tumble night and many of the 73 cars will need to have some body parts straightened out before their next race night, but as always the Harris Clash for IMCA Modifieds delivered an entertaining program at the world's premier dirt track. Don't forget that the second night of the Harris Clash featuring the Deery Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models plus the Sport Mods will be on Tuesday night July 26th. Hope to see you there!