Sunday, February 22, 2015

Clanton Dominant In Late Model Action; Mark Smith King of the 360's At East Bay

My original plan for today was to get up early, write the story from my first attended race in 2015 and then make the nine hour drive home to then watch the Daytona 500 on the DVR. That was how I was going to wrap up a week long business trip that saw me log more than 1,700 miles going from Indiana to Ohio to Kentucky and I was then going to go to Winterfest at the Winchester Speedway in Tennessee on Saturday. But obviously Mother Nature wiped out those plans well in advance with some of the coldest and snowiest conditions ever for that area.

Instead I got caught up with the Friday ice and snow storm trying to get back home early and when the conditions became just too treacherous I wound up in a motel in rural Missouri that was definitely a step back in time. But I was safe and warm for the night which was all that mattered. Now that first race of 2015 will likely be the weekend of March 20th and hopefully fairly close to home in Memphis, Missouri. Check out the Calendar page at Positively Racing to plan you racing trips for 2105.

There was actually a thread on the iowastockcars.com forum where people were saying where their first race of 2015 was going to be, however it looks like that forum is down for the second time in the past four months. Hopefully it will bounce back again soon!

Who would have predicted the resurgence of Shane Clanton?? The veteran driver from Georgia had not won a World of Outlaws Late Model race since the summer of 2013 before breaking that string at Screven and he then dominated the WoO events at Volusia County winning all three points-paying races. Clanton emerges from Speedweeks solidly on top of our National Late Model point standings that you will find at the bottom of this entry.

The annual King of the 360's Ronald Laney Memorial event at East Bay Raceway was definitely bolstered by making it an ASCS National Series event this year with around seventy drivers taking aim at the $10,000 top prize. Pennsylvania's Mark Smith was a bit of a surprise winner over a much improved Aaron Reutzel. Johnny Herrera finished third, Brad Loyet was fourth and Terry McCarl took fifth. The ASCS will spend the week in Florida before next weekend's doubleheader at Bubba Raceway Park that can be seen on a pay-per-view basis with The Racin' Boys.

Open wheel ace Christopher Bell won the 100-lap Super Late Model feature on the pavement at New Smyrna Speedway Saturday night. Rico Abreu finished tenth in the 27-car field. Bobby Pierce ran the asphalt on Thursday night finishing 16th in the 50-lap feature that was won by Dave Garbo Jr. Bell finished second and Abreu was 14th in that one.

Okay, the Daytona 500 should be about an hour ahead now on the DVR, time to start watching!

The "Back Stretch"
Dirt Late Model Points Through 2/21
Pos. Driver Hometown Points
1 . Shane Clanton Locust Grove GA 42
2 . Billy Moyer Batesville AR 29
3 . Darrell Lanigan Union KY 27
4 . Josh Richards Shinnston WV 24
5 . Jimmy Owens Newport TN 22
6 . Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg TN 20
7 . Earl Pearson Jr. Jacksonville FL 16
8 . Jonathan Davenport Blairsville GA 16
9 . Steve Casebolt Richmond IN 15
10 . Frank Heckenast Jr. Orland Park IL 13
11 . Brandon Sheppard New Berlin IL 12
12 . Dale McDowell Chickamauga GA 11
13 . Don O'Neal Martinsville IN 11
14 . Jared Landers Batesville AR 11
15 . Brandon Overton Appling GA 10
16 . Eddie Carrier Jr. Salt Rock WV 10
17 . Morgan Bagley Longview TX 10
18 . Donald McIntosh Dawsonville GA 9
19 . Mark Whitener Middleburg FL 9
20 . Chub Frank Sugar Grove PA 8
21 . Tim McCreadie Watertown NY 8
22 . Stormy Scott Las Cruces NM 7
23 . Jimmy Mars Elk Mound WI 6
24 . Rodney Sanders Happy TX 6
25 . Tony Jackson Jr. Lebanon MO 6
26 . Dennis Erb Jr. Carpentersville IL 5
27 . Devin Moran Dresden OH 5
28 . Riley Hickman Ooletwah TN 5
29 . Steve Francis Ashland KY 5
30 . Casey Roberts Toccoa GA 4
31 . Chris Simpson Marion IA 4
32 . Jason Papich Santa Maria CA 4
33 . Mike Benedum Bristol WV 4
34 . Tim Roszell Coldwater AL 4
35 . Adam Hensel Barron WI 3
36 . Jason Fitzgerald Jacksonville FL 3
37 . Kent Robinson Bloomington IN 3
38 . Russell Brown Jr. Valdosta GA 3
39 . William Thomas Phenix City AL 3
40 . Billy Moyer Jr. Batesville AR 2
41 . Jeremy Faircloth Swainsboro GA 2
42 . Ross Bailes Clover SC 2
43 . Walker Arthur Forest VA 2
44 . Aaron Ridley Chatsworth GA 1
45 . Billy Ogle Jr. Knoxville TN 1
46 . Bo Allen Jacksonville FL 1
47 . Bobby Pierce Oakwood IL 1
48 . Chase Junghans Manhattan KS 1
49 . Chris Madden Gray Court SC 1
50 . Gregg Satterlee Rochester Mills PA 1
51 . Joe Kump Hollywood FL 1
52 . Kyle Bronson Brandon FL 1
53 . Larry Damitz Vallejo CA 1
54 . Pierce McCarter Gatlinburg TN 1
55 . Richard Papenhausen Chico CA 1
56 . Scott Johnson Brunswick GA 1
57 . Stephen Breeding Isom KY 1

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