I didn't realize that it had been ten days since my last Notebook entry as that time period seemed to go by fast, especially for the off season when it seems like days go on forever as I map out my first potential races for the season. A successful business trip to Montana also made the time fly by as it was my first visit to Big Sky country and I hope to go back sometime this summer. Who knows, maybe even catch a dirt track race while enjoying the magnificent beauty of the state!
During my return trip I was tipped off to some news that was very tempting to share, but since it had not yet been confirmed I did not want to put it here on the Back Stretch. I do my best to NOT be a rumor mill, or someone who will put something out there just to be "first" with the news because more often than not that first look at something ends up changing in one form or another and that was the case with this tidbit. In fact, after a full week, it is not even resolved to a point where it can be reported and has even evolved back to a situation where it is not even that newsworthy. So how do you like that for a tease?
Bottom line, if you want rumors or other "gotcha" type scoops there are plenty of outlets around to find them other than the Back Stretch. I believe that the new term for it is "fake news"?
I could have scooped the announcement of the new promoters at the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City as I knew a few days in advance of this well written introduction, but there was no reason to do so. While several will continue to look at this as a war between the USRA and IMCA, I stand by what I wrote here twenty days ago. This is the beginning of a trend where Fair boards are wanting to step back out of the business of promoting races, and the financial risks that go with them, and go back to leasing their facilities to promoters. It was no surprise that hometown boy Todd Staley presented the best proposal including a rules package that will allow each and every car that raced at the track in 2017 the opportunity to compete there again this year with minor changes at most. Of course the argument is that while no changes are needed to the IMCA cars to race, will they actually be competitive with a car running the actual USRA rules, or those rules with the restrictions required in the Modifieds. Well I guess that remains to be seen, but I want to remind those of you who will be paying close attention to this. If another driver beats your driver, it might not be because of the rules, it might be because that guy was a better driver or had a better prepared race car on that night.
I first found out that the Webster City track would be going to Staley while I was sitting in the Denver airport last Thursday. Shortly after that I saw the press release about the Sports Park Raceway in nearby Fort Dodge achieving their goal of becoming IMCA sanctioned. Coincidence? The timing of it, no, but from what I have seen through tracking their results in 2017 and the general buzz about the facility on social media I would say that Fort Dodge deserved to become an IMCA sanctioned facility after making that one of their goals last year. Congratulations to promoters Marty Pringle, Jason VanSickle and Dave Doughty.
Of course with Webster City having been a weekly track for IMCA Late Models, the change in promoter makes a change in rules (Staley will go with the SLMR rules originated by Joe Kosiski at I-80) and perhaps a ripple effect on other tracks that plan to have Late Models on the schedule at least part time in 2018. Fort Dodge ran the class unsanctioned weekly, or close to it, in 2017 but in their announcement last week there was no mention of the Late Model division. Some follow up questions on Facebook have the track answering that Late Models will not run weekly and that they are discussing when and what they will do with them. It will be interesting now to see what tracks like Marshalltown and Vinton will do in regard to the Late Model division as they now become the "western representation" of the IMCA sanctioning for the class with the Saturday night tracks that used to feed them, Independence and Webster City now going to the broader set of rules. Both had Deery Brothers Summer Series events on their schedules, June 5th at Marshalltown and June 28th at Vinton. History shows that the Deery schedule is released during the final days of January so it will be interesting to see if those two events are still included when the full schedule is released.
I guess my uninformed opinion would be this. If you make or keep your Late Model IMCA legal for 2018 it will give you the opportunity to race at all IMCA events plus any of the events that are staged under the SLMR or Farley Race Promotions rules package because after all, the advantage that those rules are touting is that your car will still be competitive with cars that have open motors, steel blocks, crates, etc. You can even run your car with some restrictions at Donnellson against the UMP Crates whereas if you do not make your Late Model where it can be IMCA legal, then you preclude yourself from any IMCA sanctioned races including the Deery Series events.
Anyway, I am sure that this has been a tumultuous off season at IMCA in regard to this division, but I must say that the whole thing intrigues me and, along with more MLRA and World of Outlaws shows in the state this year I am again excited when it comes to Late Model racing. Hope you are too!
Speaking of the World of Outlaws Late Models the tour has added yet another rookie-of-the-year hopeful in Georgia's Tyler Millwood. The 2017 Ultimate Southeast Series champion qualified well against stout competition at the Gateway Dirt Nationals, but then struggled during racing action. He will get a chance to kick things off in his home state on February 9th when the Outlaws open the season at Screven Motor Speedway. One driver that will not return to the tour on a full-time basis is Frank Heckenast Jr. who is still dealing with a concussion that he suffered last October.
Mega promoter Cody Somer made some big news again yesterday when he announced that Midgets would be added to the 2018 Gateway Dirt Nationals at the Dome in St. Louis. The press release stated that both the Midgets and the Modifieds would be on an invitation only basis for 2018 while the Late Model entries would be capped at 150. If I recall, it was about this time last year where it was announced that for the 2017 event Modified drivers would have to qualify through a series of designated events throughout that season. That never happened though as last month's Modified roster looked to be a list of whoever wanted to pay the Entry Fee and compete. It will be interesting to see how the invitation process works for 2018.
Florida/Georgia Speed Weeks action kicked off last night with the Modifieds taking center stage at East Bay Raceway as Wisconsin's Kevin "Buzzy" Adams scored the win over a field of 43 cars. Floridians Bryan Bernhardt and Mark Whitener joined Adams on the podium. If you are headed down that way you can pretty much go racing nearly every night through February 24th. Obviously that kind of schedule is very high on my list for my ten-year retirement plan.
I have noticed that there is one person on the forum boards who always seems to have a reason to be pessimistic about something. The "Debbie Downer of Racing" Is that you?
As I continue to build the Special Events schedule at Positively Racing I am amused by the tracks that will release a "Tentative Race Schedule" and state that a lot of things may change over the next few weeks. Really? It's January, why don't you just wait until all of those potential "changes" are nailed down and then release your schedule? That is why you see the disclaimer at the top because if a track makes a schedule change to their original release that we do not catch, well now whose fault is that?
The Monett Motor Speedway released their 2018 schedule this past week and much to the chagrin of many on Facebook it no longer includes weekly racing for Late Models and A-Modifieds. New owners took over the place in 2017 and obviously they found that the track could no longer support the purses for the two premier divisions so they are making a business decision that they feel will allow them to continue to put on races rather than just closing the place down. And in Missouri, where the tracks are fewer and farther between than they are here in our neck of the woods, I would hope that a real race fan would appreciate that. The new Cash Money Late Model Series will be there on opening night April 15th. Monett will host a showdown between the Southern Outlaw Late Model Series and the ULMA Late Models on May 27th and the MLRA Late Models will headline the 4-State Dirt Track Championships on September 2nd. As my Mother would often say, "Quit your bitching!"
Finally, after meeting many people whose lives were effected by kidney disease during my four year run as the director of the NKF Heartland Tour for a Cure, it really warms my heart to see that racer Chris Luloff was finally able to get a kidney transplant this week. The surgery went well and Chris is now going through the process of getting his new kidney to adapt to his body. You can wish him well on the Facebook page A Kidney for Chris.
Have a great weekend, the month of January is nearly in the books and we can start dreaming about possibly making a road trip or two to an early season special.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Monday, January 15, 2018
Monday Notebook: January 15, 2018
Yes, in the middle of January, it was still a big weekend for dirt track racing as the open wheel fans had the mid-winter mega event, The Chili Bowl, while Late Model fans had the triple header conclusion to the Wild West Shootout.
I had the Tivo set up to record the Chili Bowl as I went to Burlington to watch third-ranked Indian Hills throttle Southeastern Community College (Tony Paris would be proud) and I watched the MavTV coverage once I returned home. It looked as though we were going to be treated to a showdown between two of the brightest stars in the sport, but when the engine on Kyle Larson's car went up in smoke that left Christopher Bell all alone out front to claim his second straight Golden Driller trophy.
It is amazing how the Chili Bowl just keeps on growing and that growth will now make it a six night event in 2019 as announced by promoter Emmett Hahn this week. The Wednesday through Saturday reserved seats are next to impossible to come by now and even Tuesday was nearing a sell out, so if you have never been to the Chili Bowl before now would be a good time to snap up tickets for Monday and Tuesday to get your midget fix. I know that it will be something that Morgan and I will consider for next year.
Of course that trip might get aced out by a return trip to Arizona to catch the 2019 edition of the Wild West Shootout. I have been to the event twice while it was held in Tucson, but after watching highlights from this year's racing at the Arizona Speedway in Queens Creek I am itching to go out west again next January, especially since I have friends who have offered me a place to stay! For some great reporting from all six nights in the desert please visit my Positively Racing colleague Ed Reichert's blog "One Fan's Travels" and he will give you the details while I offer up a few observations here.
Leading up to the mini-series the assumption seemed to be that Bobby Pierce would collect some Keyser Manufacturing bonus money, but the question was how much? Would he win all six nights? Five, four? Surely he would at least earn an extra $10,000 by winning three and so the expectations were high for the young driver from Illinois in his debut with the Dunn Benson team. After finishing twelfth on opening night Pierce was leading late on night number two only to be stunned by the defending WISSOTA National Champion Don Shaw who took advantage of a slight bobble by Pierce in the closing laps to take the win. That all came after a thrilling back and forth battle between Pierce and opening night winner Ricky Weiss where contact between the two sent Weiss sliding through the exit gate going into turn one.
Pierce would finish second to Shaw again on Wednesday night, take third behind Mike Marlar and Weiss on Friday before closing out the weekend with a twelfth place finish on Saturday and a seventh place run in Sunday's finale. While it wasn't the performance that many expected out of Pierce, the six days in Arizona will no doubt payoff as he gained experience with his new team before the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series gets underway in just under three weeks in southeast Georgia.
Nobody would have predicted that the drivers shooting for the Keyser bonus would have been Weiss and Shaw. Weiss too is a former WISSOTA Late Model National Champion and spent last year racing regionally in Tennessee. The young Canadian definitely turned heads with his consistently strong performances in Arizona and if not for the DNF after his scuffle with Pierce he would have likely been the mini-series point champion. It will be interesting to see what kind of schedule that he will now follow for 2018 as a check of his website shows it as blank for now. Shaw is a veteran driver form Minnesota whose trucking company even sponsored the finale and for the past several years he has raced in Arizona both before, and after the regular season back home with building success. Will this week encourage him to venture out on the road more in 2018, or will he be the odds on favorite to repeat his WISSOTA title?
Former USMTS Modified regular Cade Dillard had a solid week as it seemed like he was always in contention. In fact it looked as though he had Wednesday's race well in hand before a skirmish with a lapped car put him into the wall and ended his night. He came back strong though to finish second and fifth in the final two nights to propel him into his first full year of Late Model action. Now we wait to see what his plans are as well, but you can bet that you will see the young driver from Louisiana in victory lane soon.
Another name that caught my attention, mainly because I had never heard of him before was Mike Maresca who pulled all the way down from Potsdam, New York. A twenty-two year old big block Modified driver who, according to his website did not score a win last season, Maresca failed to qualify his first night out on Sunday and then steadily gained speed making the remaining four shows and posting his best finish in the finale where he finished eighth. Just a week or two earlier Maresca had wheeled a micro sprint indoors during the Tulsa Shootout.
Iowa was well represented as Chris Simpson, Justin Kay, Jason Rauen and Ryan Gustin were all in Late Model competition. Simpson had taken the lead from Weiss in the opener only to have Weiss find a better line late to regain the lead leaving Chris with a runner-up finish. Simpson would also finish fourth during the Friday night program. Kay qualified for five of the six main events, but his best finish was a 16th while Rauen made the main event in the finale where he finished 14th. Earl Pearson Jr. drove Jason's #98 during Friday night's program and he finished fifth. Gustin who has had success at this event before winning the big money finale in Tucson a few years back made a solid return to the seat of the Gressel Racing Late Model posting two top-fives in four feature starts.
Again I urge you to visit One Fan's Travels for more details and for news on the Modifieds and X-Mods as well. Dirt track racing will essentially take a two week break now before the Georgia/Florida Speed Weeks action gets underway.
I was disappointed to see this story online last night where essentially the Southern Iowa Fair Board has thrown in the towel on racing in Oskaloosa for 2018. The track has operated the last few seasons with the board taking the financial risk and they have every right to back away and state that they no longer want to do that if they feel that there is "no profit" in it. However, there is one line in the story that I don't understand where fair board member Shawn VanEngelenhoven is quoted as saying "we've not got anything on paper, except from our existing promoter gave us a written bid. Otherwise nobody's come forward with any bids"
So doesn't that mean that you have a written bid? That existing promoter is Mike VanGenderen who has been a paid employee for the past few years, but who has now put in a bid to lease the track and take the financial risk himself. So yes Mr. VanEngelenhoven, you do have a bid, but from what I have been told you have not even responded to that bid. I would think that for the racers and the fans as well as the community itself that benefits from the dollars that comes into Oskaloosa every Wednesday night during racing season, you would want to sit down with VanGenderen and try to negotiate an agreement that both parties would find beneficial.
Mr. VanEngelenhoven, Mr. VanGenderen. Mr. VanGenderen, Mr. VanEgelenhoven. There, I have made the introductions, now get together and discuss. I'll be happy to serve as a mediator if you will will allow somebody with only five letters in his name into the room.
Another track that has been operated by a fair board lately, the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City had a January 15th deadline, today, to receive bids from interested promoters and my source tells me that at last check they only had one. And, since this is Martin Luther King Jr. Day there is no mail service, so......
I haven't mentioned the Open Trailer Nationals in the past few entries on the Back Stretch. Will we get enough of a ground swell to convince a promoter to take a chance? Send in a pic of your car on an Open Trailer today. Okay, well maybe not an actual picture from today, it's too damn cold to be outside, but soon!
Thanks for checking in!
I had the Tivo set up to record the Chili Bowl as I went to Burlington to watch third-ranked Indian Hills throttle Southeastern Community College (Tony Paris would be proud) and I watched the MavTV coverage once I returned home. It looked as though we were going to be treated to a showdown between two of the brightest stars in the sport, but when the engine on Kyle Larson's car went up in smoke that left Christopher Bell all alone out front to claim his second straight Golden Driller trophy.
It is amazing how the Chili Bowl just keeps on growing and that growth will now make it a six night event in 2019 as announced by promoter Emmett Hahn this week. The Wednesday through Saturday reserved seats are next to impossible to come by now and even Tuesday was nearing a sell out, so if you have never been to the Chili Bowl before now would be a good time to snap up tickets for Monday and Tuesday to get your midget fix. I know that it will be something that Morgan and I will consider for next year.
Of course that trip might get aced out by a return trip to Arizona to catch the 2019 edition of the Wild West Shootout. I have been to the event twice while it was held in Tucson, but after watching highlights from this year's racing at the Arizona Speedway in Queens Creek I am itching to go out west again next January, especially since I have friends who have offered me a place to stay! For some great reporting from all six nights in the desert please visit my Positively Racing colleague Ed Reichert's blog "One Fan's Travels" and he will give you the details while I offer up a few observations here.
Leading up to the mini-series the assumption seemed to be that Bobby Pierce would collect some Keyser Manufacturing bonus money, but the question was how much? Would he win all six nights? Five, four? Surely he would at least earn an extra $10,000 by winning three and so the expectations were high for the young driver from Illinois in his debut with the Dunn Benson team. After finishing twelfth on opening night Pierce was leading late on night number two only to be stunned by the defending WISSOTA National Champion Don Shaw who took advantage of a slight bobble by Pierce in the closing laps to take the win. That all came after a thrilling back and forth battle between Pierce and opening night winner Ricky Weiss where contact between the two sent Weiss sliding through the exit gate going into turn one.
Pierce would finish second to Shaw again on Wednesday night, take third behind Mike Marlar and Weiss on Friday before closing out the weekend with a twelfth place finish on Saturday and a seventh place run in Sunday's finale. While it wasn't the performance that many expected out of Pierce, the six days in Arizona will no doubt payoff as he gained experience with his new team before the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series gets underway in just under three weeks in southeast Georgia.
Nobody would have predicted that the drivers shooting for the Keyser bonus would have been Weiss and Shaw. Weiss too is a former WISSOTA Late Model National Champion and spent last year racing regionally in Tennessee. The young Canadian definitely turned heads with his consistently strong performances in Arizona and if not for the DNF after his scuffle with Pierce he would have likely been the mini-series point champion. It will be interesting to see what kind of schedule that he will now follow for 2018 as a check of his website shows it as blank for now. Shaw is a veteran driver form Minnesota whose trucking company even sponsored the finale and for the past several years he has raced in Arizona both before, and after the regular season back home with building success. Will this week encourage him to venture out on the road more in 2018, or will he be the odds on favorite to repeat his WISSOTA title?
Former USMTS Modified regular Cade Dillard had a solid week as it seemed like he was always in contention. In fact it looked as though he had Wednesday's race well in hand before a skirmish with a lapped car put him into the wall and ended his night. He came back strong though to finish second and fifth in the final two nights to propel him into his first full year of Late Model action. Now we wait to see what his plans are as well, but you can bet that you will see the young driver from Louisiana in victory lane soon.
Another name that caught my attention, mainly because I had never heard of him before was Mike Maresca who pulled all the way down from Potsdam, New York. A twenty-two year old big block Modified driver who, according to his website did not score a win last season, Maresca failed to qualify his first night out on Sunday and then steadily gained speed making the remaining four shows and posting his best finish in the finale where he finished eighth. Just a week or two earlier Maresca had wheeled a micro sprint indoors during the Tulsa Shootout.
Iowa was well represented as Chris Simpson, Justin Kay, Jason Rauen and Ryan Gustin were all in Late Model competition. Simpson had taken the lead from Weiss in the opener only to have Weiss find a better line late to regain the lead leaving Chris with a runner-up finish. Simpson would also finish fourth during the Friday night program. Kay qualified for five of the six main events, but his best finish was a 16th while Rauen made the main event in the finale where he finished 14th. Earl Pearson Jr. drove Jason's #98 during Friday night's program and he finished fifth. Gustin who has had success at this event before winning the big money finale in Tucson a few years back made a solid return to the seat of the Gressel Racing Late Model posting two top-fives in four feature starts.
Again I urge you to visit One Fan's Travels for more details and for news on the Modifieds and X-Mods as well. Dirt track racing will essentially take a two week break now before the Georgia/Florida Speed Weeks action gets underway.
I was disappointed to see this story online last night where essentially the Southern Iowa Fair Board has thrown in the towel on racing in Oskaloosa for 2018. The track has operated the last few seasons with the board taking the financial risk and they have every right to back away and state that they no longer want to do that if they feel that there is "no profit" in it. However, there is one line in the story that I don't understand where fair board member Shawn VanEngelenhoven is quoted as saying "we've not got anything on paper, except from our existing promoter gave us a written bid. Otherwise nobody's come forward with any bids"
So doesn't that mean that you have a written bid? That existing promoter is Mike VanGenderen who has been a paid employee for the past few years, but who has now put in a bid to lease the track and take the financial risk himself. So yes Mr. VanEngelenhoven, you do have a bid, but from what I have been told you have not even responded to that bid. I would think that for the racers and the fans as well as the community itself that benefits from the dollars that comes into Oskaloosa every Wednesday night during racing season, you would want to sit down with VanGenderen and try to negotiate an agreement that both parties would find beneficial.
Mr. VanEngelenhoven, Mr. VanGenderen. Mr. VanGenderen, Mr. VanEgelenhoven. There, I have made the introductions, now get together and discuss. I'll be happy to serve as a mediator if you will will allow somebody with only five letters in his name into the room.
Another track that has been operated by a fair board lately, the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City had a January 15th deadline, today, to receive bids from interested promoters and my source tells me that at last check they only had one. And, since this is Martin Luther King Jr. Day there is no mail service, so......
I haven't mentioned the Open Trailer Nationals in the past few entries on the Back Stretch. Will we get enough of a ground swell to convince a promoter to take a chance? Send in a pic of your car on an Open Trailer today. Okay, well maybe not an actual picture from today, it's too damn cold to be outside, but soon!
Thanks for checking in!
Monday, January 8, 2018
Monday Notebook: January 8, 2018
It was an interesting weekend of racing, even with just two events on the schedule as there was enough action to dust off a Monday edition of the Notebook.
Let's start with the Ice Bowl first as, no surprise, the Super Late Model winner Michael Page went flag-to-flag for the win on Sunday evening at the Talladega Short Track. It was the second Ice Bowl win in a row for Page, the first time that anybody has done that since Kenny Merchant nearly two decades ago. Even though he went the distance hugging the bottom of the 1/3-mile oval there a appeared to be a second line to the track allowing for at least one driver to make a big run, but I am getting ahead of myself.
The notebook worthy items actually happened in each of the first two heat races on Saturday. The event uses the classic "time 'em and start the fast guys in front" format with the first heat race winner earning the pole for the feature and the second heat race winner lining up on the outside of row one for the finale so essentially this event is usually "won" during the first two heats on Saturday. In heat one Billy Ogle Jr. raced to the lead from the pole with John Ownbey chasing and on lap two as Ownbey tried to pass on the outside in turn four he hooked the right rear of Ogle and spun him sideways in front of the field. The caution waved, but when they came back for the restart neither driver, Ownbey or Ogle had been penalized. Things that make you go hmmmmm....
Ownbey would come back to complete the pass on the outside late in the race to take the win and sit on the pole for Sunday. In the second heat Michael Page had things well in hand leading from the drop of the green after starting from the pole position, but when a caution waved late in the race that brought the field back to him. On the restart veteran driver Ronnie Johnson got a big run on the high side and took the lead down the back stretch. His advantage was almost a full car length entering turn three where Page kept his foot on the gas, pushed up the race track and made hard contact with the right front of Johnson's car. Had RJ not been there to bank off of, Page likely would have driven over the top of turn four, but he was able to straighten it out, regain the lead and go on to win while Johnson faded to fourth in the final laps due to the damage sending him to a Last Chance race on Sunday.
Oh what might have been! Johnson advanced from his qualifier to start 20th on the feature grid and he would race his way all the way up to fifth at the checkers as Page took the win ahead of Jason Hiett, Ownbey and Ogle Jr. What surprised me was how mellow Johnson was regarding the incident on Saturday even congratulating Page with a smile in victory lane on Sunday. Johnson did get a $3,000 win in the Crate Late Model feature where, of course, he started on the pole and led every lap.
The reaction to a "that's racing" incident was not the same last night (Sunday) at the Wild West Shootout in Arizona where young talent Bobby Pierce and Ricky Weiss had a dust up while racing for the lead. The two were putting on an amazing show for several laps, throwing sliders at each other with no contact, but on lap 23 of the 40-lap main event Pierce stumbled just a bit on the cushion in turn four and that allowed Weiss to race under him coming down the front stretch. After several looks of the video on Dirt On Dirt it appears that Weiss came up the track before he had Pierce cleared and the contact sent Ricky for a spin down the rest of the straightaway and through the exit gate at the top of turn one. Weiss did make contact with an implement tire guarding the entrance ending his night and let's just say that he does not agree with my assessment of the incident vowing to pay back Pierce somewhere down the line.
On the restart Mike Marlar challenged Pierce for a few laps until Don Shaw made his way into second. The defending WISSOTA Late Model National Champion then chased Pierce over the closing laps as the track changed yet again to a line through the middle and when Pierce again stumbled in turn four with four laps remaining Shaw made the pass for the lead and the win. It was the second night in a row that a former WISSOTA National Champion had scored the win as Weiss was victorious in the Saturday opener taking the lead back from Chris Simpson after Simpson had snared it from him earlier.
Saying that a guy who won 34 features in 2017 is a "surprise" is kind of difficult, but Shaw does not yet have the star power that several of the drivers who finished behind him have. Most who are not familiar with the Ham Lake, Minnesota, driver might only remember him as the guy that Shane Clanton took out when this event was still held down in Tucson in 2016 and then blamed it on the passing points method of doing lineups. Sadly, that was the last year that the event used passing points. In Modified action from the desert Ricky Thornton Jr and Stormy Scott are your first two winners while Iowan Justin Kay finished fifth on Saturday night.
Don't forget that you can watch the remaining four events from Arizona, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday on a Pay Per View basis on Dirt On Dirt.
A couple of notes from 34 Raceway where they announced today that the Four Cylinder class will now be IMCA sanctioned Sport Compacts. The division has run non-sanctioned for the past several years. Also, the September 22nd Mod Lite Nationals event is also listed as the "Grand Daddy" where all five divisions that night (Mod Lites, Modifieds, Stock Cars, Sport Mods and Sport Compacts) will be racing for $1,000 or a "Grand" to win.
One week to have your proposal in to the Hamilton County Fair Board, one week remaining! And the Southern Iowa Fair Board in Oskaloosa meets tonight where hopefully they will at least discuss the possibility of racing.
That's all for now, my prediction for tonight: Alabama 21 and Georgia 10 in what for me at least is the most uninspiring National Championship game that I can remember. If it gets out of hand early I will be switching over to watch The Bachelor where twenty-five beautiful women are chasing one race car driver. Enjoy your week!
Let's start with the Ice Bowl first as, no surprise, the Super Late Model winner Michael Page went flag-to-flag for the win on Sunday evening at the Talladega Short Track. It was the second Ice Bowl win in a row for Page, the first time that anybody has done that since Kenny Merchant nearly two decades ago. Even though he went the distance hugging the bottom of the 1/3-mile oval there a appeared to be a second line to the track allowing for at least one driver to make a big run, but I am getting ahead of myself.
The notebook worthy items actually happened in each of the first two heat races on Saturday. The event uses the classic "time 'em and start the fast guys in front" format with the first heat race winner earning the pole for the feature and the second heat race winner lining up on the outside of row one for the finale so essentially this event is usually "won" during the first two heats on Saturday. In heat one Billy Ogle Jr. raced to the lead from the pole with John Ownbey chasing and on lap two as Ownbey tried to pass on the outside in turn four he hooked the right rear of Ogle and spun him sideways in front of the field. The caution waved, but when they came back for the restart neither driver, Ownbey or Ogle had been penalized. Things that make you go hmmmmm....
Ownbey would come back to complete the pass on the outside late in the race to take the win and sit on the pole for Sunday. In the second heat Michael Page had things well in hand leading from the drop of the green after starting from the pole position, but when a caution waved late in the race that brought the field back to him. On the restart veteran driver Ronnie Johnson got a big run on the high side and took the lead down the back stretch. His advantage was almost a full car length entering turn three where Page kept his foot on the gas, pushed up the race track and made hard contact with the right front of Johnson's car. Had RJ not been there to bank off of, Page likely would have driven over the top of turn four, but he was able to straighten it out, regain the lead and go on to win while Johnson faded to fourth in the final laps due to the damage sending him to a Last Chance race on Sunday.
Oh what might have been! Johnson advanced from his qualifier to start 20th on the feature grid and he would race his way all the way up to fifth at the checkers as Page took the win ahead of Jason Hiett, Ownbey and Ogle Jr. What surprised me was how mellow Johnson was regarding the incident on Saturday even congratulating Page with a smile in victory lane on Sunday. Johnson did get a $3,000 win in the Crate Late Model feature where, of course, he started on the pole and led every lap.
The reaction to a "that's racing" incident was not the same last night (Sunday) at the Wild West Shootout in Arizona where young talent Bobby Pierce and Ricky Weiss had a dust up while racing for the lead. The two were putting on an amazing show for several laps, throwing sliders at each other with no contact, but on lap 23 of the 40-lap main event Pierce stumbled just a bit on the cushion in turn four and that allowed Weiss to race under him coming down the front stretch. After several looks of the video on Dirt On Dirt it appears that Weiss came up the track before he had Pierce cleared and the contact sent Ricky for a spin down the rest of the straightaway and through the exit gate at the top of turn one. Weiss did make contact with an implement tire guarding the entrance ending his night and let's just say that he does not agree with my assessment of the incident vowing to pay back Pierce somewhere down the line.
On the restart Mike Marlar challenged Pierce for a few laps until Don Shaw made his way into second. The defending WISSOTA Late Model National Champion then chased Pierce over the closing laps as the track changed yet again to a line through the middle and when Pierce again stumbled in turn four with four laps remaining Shaw made the pass for the lead and the win. It was the second night in a row that a former WISSOTA National Champion had scored the win as Weiss was victorious in the Saturday opener taking the lead back from Chris Simpson after Simpson had snared it from him earlier.
Saying that a guy who won 34 features in 2017 is a "surprise" is kind of difficult, but Shaw does not yet have the star power that several of the drivers who finished behind him have. Most who are not familiar with the Ham Lake, Minnesota, driver might only remember him as the guy that Shane Clanton took out when this event was still held down in Tucson in 2016 and then blamed it on the passing points method of doing lineups. Sadly, that was the last year that the event used passing points. In Modified action from the desert Ricky Thornton Jr and Stormy Scott are your first two winners while Iowan Justin Kay finished fifth on Saturday night.
Don't forget that you can watch the remaining four events from Arizona, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday on a Pay Per View basis on Dirt On Dirt.
A couple of notes from 34 Raceway where they announced today that the Four Cylinder class will now be IMCA sanctioned Sport Compacts. The division has run non-sanctioned for the past several years. Also, the September 22nd Mod Lite Nationals event is also listed as the "Grand Daddy" where all five divisions that night (Mod Lites, Modifieds, Stock Cars, Sport Mods and Sport Compacts) will be racing for $1,000 or a "Grand" to win.
One week to have your proposal in to the Hamilton County Fair Board, one week remaining! And the Southern Iowa Fair Board in Oskaloosa meets tonight where hopefully they will at least discuss the possibility of racing.
That's all for now, my prediction for tonight: Alabama 21 and Georgia 10 in what for me at least is the most uninspiring National Championship game that I can remember. If it gets out of hand early I will be switching over to watch The Bachelor where twenty-five beautiful women are chasing one race car driver. Enjoy your week!
Friday, January 5, 2018
Friday Notebook: January 5, 2018
After two full weeks where the temperature has dipped below zero each day around here it is hard to believe that there will be some outdoor racing coming up this weekend with the Wild West Shootout in Arizona and the annual Ice Bowl at the Talladega Short Track in Alabama. The weather in the desert southwest is looking good with temperatures in the 70's and they should be back to no rain afer fighting the wet stuff and losing a few shows to rain last year. At Talladega it looks like it will be true Ice Bowl weather with highs in the low to mid 40's, but at least the rain should hold off until Monday and, wouldn't you know it, by the middle of next week it is supposed to be in the 60's there.
Both events are being offered on a Pay Per View basis and since you don't have your local track to go to this weekend or next anyway I encourage you to check them out. Dirt on Dirt provides spectacular coverage of the Wild West Shootout and you can even get a free preview tonight as they will show practice beginning at 7 p.m. Central. Chet Christner and his crew at SpeedShiftTv will provide the coverage from the Ice Bowl and while their website shows a time of 7 p.m. each day I am pretty show that both shows are matinees.
It looks like we are going to get in on that warming trend as well this week and a January thaw is what we need as we start to look ahead to the early season special events here in the Midwest. Remember when the IMCA Frostbusters used to be the first shows up in this area? Not anymore! A schedule update has been sent out to the Webmistress and she should have it posted soon on the Calendar page at Positively Racing and even that has changed a bit when it was announced yesterday that the Frostbusters would be pushed back a week beginning on Wednesday April 4th at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson. The show then moves to the Benton County Speedway in Vinton on Thursday before wrapping up at Marshalltown and Boone on Friday and Saturday.
Speaking of IMCA the perceived "war" with the USRA continues and the current battlefield is the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City. Long an IMCA sanctioned weekly facility the track has been operated by the fair board the past few years with a hired promoter, however the plans for the 2018 season have been up in the air. Apparently the fair board has an opportunity to hire former promoter Al Uhrhammer to serve as the race director for the upcoming season and remain IMCA sanction, but they also now have a proposal from USRA's Todd Staley who would lease the facility and promote weekly racing at his hometown track.
Before I continue I want you to know that I have had the honor of working with both gentlemen, Uhrhammer was extremely supportive of the NKF Tour during its four year run within his tenure as promoter at Webster City and I have announced shows for Staley several times over the years, so I respect them both and if either one of them run the track in 2018 I would anticipate success. The way I see this though is not a question of IMCA or USRA, but instead what role the fair board wants to have when it comes to the weekly racing at its facility.
Going back fifteen or twenty years, unless I am mistaken the only facility that I can recall that was being run by a fair board and its race committee with a paid employee running the show was the Knoxville Raceway and, let's face it, they were doing it quite successfully with Ralph Capitani leading the way. Most of the rest of the fairgrounds tracks were being leased by race promoters who were paying the fees that were agreed upon to the fair board and then running the racing at their own risk. The inherent problem with this was that if a promoter was successful when it came time to renew the agreement, the fair board could always ask for more and on the flip side if the promoter was struggling the board would often refuse to settle for less. That is why it amazed me when Lynn Richard was able to secure a thirty year transferable lease when he and Mike Barton brought the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson back to life in the early '90s, hell of a businessman, but I digress.
Over the past ten years or so, following the downturn in 2008, the "offers" from race promoters to fair boards became few and far between so rather than having the racing shut down at their tracks several fair boards stepped up, formed a race committee and then either appointed or hired someone to put on the show and serve as the promoter. This proved to be a successful new way of doing things, but one of the problems with doing this involves that word "committee". If Cappy were alive today I would bet that he would tell you that is not always easy to work with a group of people all with different ideas and theories on the best way to promote a race track. Seldom, if ever, do they all agree on something and that can quickly cause dissension in the ranks leading to even more issues. Plus, I am quite naive on the subject, but I have to wonder just how a fair board handles a financial loss. I have been told that if a fair board loses money in a promotion, whether it is with racing, a concert or something else that they must secure a loan to cover that loss and that a board member or members must personally co-sign the loan? If that is truly the case I have to wonder why anybody would do that.
Fast forward to today and we are now seeing some of these fair board promoted tracks in limbo. Yes, there are still success stories. All you have to do is look at the signage at the Lee County Speedway to see the support that it has from the surrounding community, something that a fair run facility probably has an advantage with over a promoter who would lease the place, and they have a well respected race director in Mike Van Genderen. The same can be said for what is going on fifty miles to the north where Larry Richardson has the C.J. Speedway at the Louisa County fairgrounds on the upswing after his first year at the helm in 2017. The same cannot be said for Oskaloosa though where the fair board, after taking the risk themselves for the past several seasons are now waiting for a proposal from someone else and the direction of the Hamilton County Speedway now depends upon this. Does the fair board want to continue to be in the business of promoting races, or do they want to go back to how this all worked for decades before? The result of last night's meeting was that they will accept proposals until January 15th and then they will decide. Stay tuned.
Things are tough at privately owned tracks as well, especially in Oklahoma where two gorgeous modern facilities, Outlaw Motor Speedway and Longdale Speedway, will be idle in 2018 and now the Flint Creek Speedway is up for sale as well.
The Lake Ozark Speedway has decided to make a change from their original plans in regard to the divisions that will compete on Fridays and Saturdays this coming season. The Friday show will now feature the A Mods, B-Mods, Pure Stocks and Hornets while the Saturday programs will have the "big tires" with the 360 Winged Sprints, the ULMA Late Models, the Racesaver 305 Sprints and the Street Stocks.
Arizona Sport Shirts has signed a five year agreement to produce all of the apparel for Scott Bloomquist so look for some great artwork and color separation from my friends Dusty and Clay Kemp among the other talented folks at Arizona.
Bobby Pierce has announced that he will chase the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Sreies in 2018, no surprise since that is where the Dunn Benson team has been since the beginning while the World of Outlaws added three more names to their roster this week in Rusty Schlenk, Chris Ferguson and Colton Flinner. It will be the first run at a national series for Schlenk who won his second UMP National Championship in 2017 while it will be the second time that Ferguson stated this intention as he abandoned his plans after Speed Weeks in 2016. Flinner has shown improvement, but still had a long way to go to be a contender on the Lucas series the past two years so he will see if that experience now pays off with the Outlaws.
That's it for today, gotta run, heading to the capital city to catch the Prince Experience tonight. We're gonna party like it's 1999......back when everything didn't hurt so much!
Both events are being offered on a Pay Per View basis and since you don't have your local track to go to this weekend or next anyway I encourage you to check them out. Dirt on Dirt provides spectacular coverage of the Wild West Shootout and you can even get a free preview tonight as they will show practice beginning at 7 p.m. Central. Chet Christner and his crew at SpeedShiftTv will provide the coverage from the Ice Bowl and while their website shows a time of 7 p.m. each day I am pretty show that both shows are matinees.
It looks like we are going to get in on that warming trend as well this week and a January thaw is what we need as we start to look ahead to the early season special events here in the Midwest. Remember when the IMCA Frostbusters used to be the first shows up in this area? Not anymore! A schedule update has been sent out to the Webmistress and she should have it posted soon on the Calendar page at Positively Racing and even that has changed a bit when it was announced yesterday that the Frostbusters would be pushed back a week beginning on Wednesday April 4th at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson. The show then moves to the Benton County Speedway in Vinton on Thursday before wrapping up at Marshalltown and Boone on Friday and Saturday.Speaking of IMCA the perceived "war" with the USRA continues and the current battlefield is the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City. Long an IMCA sanctioned weekly facility the track has been operated by the fair board the past few years with a hired promoter, however the plans for the 2018 season have been up in the air. Apparently the fair board has an opportunity to hire former promoter Al Uhrhammer to serve as the race director for the upcoming season and remain IMCA sanction, but they also now have a proposal from USRA's Todd Staley who would lease the facility and promote weekly racing at his hometown track.
Before I continue I want you to know that I have had the honor of working with both gentlemen, Uhrhammer was extremely supportive of the NKF Tour during its four year run within his tenure as promoter at Webster City and I have announced shows for Staley several times over the years, so I respect them both and if either one of them run the track in 2018 I would anticipate success. The way I see this though is not a question of IMCA or USRA, but instead what role the fair board wants to have when it comes to the weekly racing at its facility.
Going back fifteen or twenty years, unless I am mistaken the only facility that I can recall that was being run by a fair board and its race committee with a paid employee running the show was the Knoxville Raceway and, let's face it, they were doing it quite successfully with Ralph Capitani leading the way. Most of the rest of the fairgrounds tracks were being leased by race promoters who were paying the fees that were agreed upon to the fair board and then running the racing at their own risk. The inherent problem with this was that if a promoter was successful when it came time to renew the agreement, the fair board could always ask for more and on the flip side if the promoter was struggling the board would often refuse to settle for less. That is why it amazed me when Lynn Richard was able to secure a thirty year transferable lease when he and Mike Barton brought the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson back to life in the early '90s, hell of a businessman, but I digress.
Over the past ten years or so, following the downturn in 2008, the "offers" from race promoters to fair boards became few and far between so rather than having the racing shut down at their tracks several fair boards stepped up, formed a race committee and then either appointed or hired someone to put on the show and serve as the promoter. This proved to be a successful new way of doing things, but one of the problems with doing this involves that word "committee". If Cappy were alive today I would bet that he would tell you that is not always easy to work with a group of people all with different ideas and theories on the best way to promote a race track. Seldom, if ever, do they all agree on something and that can quickly cause dissension in the ranks leading to even more issues. Plus, I am quite naive on the subject, but I have to wonder just how a fair board handles a financial loss. I have been told that if a fair board loses money in a promotion, whether it is with racing, a concert or something else that they must secure a loan to cover that loss and that a board member or members must personally co-sign the loan? If that is truly the case I have to wonder why anybody would do that.
Fast forward to today and we are now seeing some of these fair board promoted tracks in limbo. Yes, there are still success stories. All you have to do is look at the signage at the Lee County Speedway to see the support that it has from the surrounding community, something that a fair run facility probably has an advantage with over a promoter who would lease the place, and they have a well respected race director in Mike Van Genderen. The same can be said for what is going on fifty miles to the north where Larry Richardson has the C.J. Speedway at the Louisa County fairgrounds on the upswing after his first year at the helm in 2017. The same cannot be said for Oskaloosa though where the fair board, after taking the risk themselves for the past several seasons are now waiting for a proposal from someone else and the direction of the Hamilton County Speedway now depends upon this. Does the fair board want to continue to be in the business of promoting races, or do they want to go back to how this all worked for decades before? The result of last night's meeting was that they will accept proposals until January 15th and then they will decide. Stay tuned.
Things are tough at privately owned tracks as well, especially in Oklahoma where two gorgeous modern facilities, Outlaw Motor Speedway and Longdale Speedway, will be idle in 2018 and now the Flint Creek Speedway is up for sale as well.
The Lake Ozark Speedway has decided to make a change from their original plans in regard to the divisions that will compete on Fridays and Saturdays this coming season. The Friday show will now feature the A Mods, B-Mods, Pure Stocks and Hornets while the Saturday programs will have the "big tires" with the 360 Winged Sprints, the ULMA Late Models, the Racesaver 305 Sprints and the Street Stocks.
Arizona Sport Shirts has signed a five year agreement to produce all of the apparel for Scott Bloomquist so look for some great artwork and color separation from my friends Dusty and Clay Kemp among the other talented folks at Arizona.
Bobby Pierce has announced that he will chase the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Sreies in 2018, no surprise since that is where the Dunn Benson team has been since the beginning while the World of Outlaws added three more names to their roster this week in Rusty Schlenk, Chris Ferguson and Colton Flinner. It will be the first run at a national series for Schlenk who won his second UMP National Championship in 2017 while it will be the second time that Ferguson stated this intention as he abandoned his plans after Speed Weeks in 2016. Flinner has shown improvement, but still had a long way to go to be a contender on the Lucas series the past two years so he will see if that experience now pays off with the Outlaws.
That's it for today, gotta run, heading to the capital city to catch the Prince Experience tonight. We're gonna party like it's 1999......back when everything didn't hurt so much!
Thursday, January 4, 2018
Cumulative All Iowa Points 305 Sprints 2006 Through 2017
The driver who won the first ever All Iowa Points championship for 305 Sprints when the division was picked up in 2006 continues to lead the list in the all-time standings after twelve seasons. Bruce Anderson of Trimont, Minnesota, increased his lead this year as the driver ranked second, Jayson Dittsworth, did not compete this past season while the driver in third, the 2008 champion Donnie Steward only scored two points fewer than Anderson in 2017.
Two-time champion Clint Benson (2014-15) remains in the fourth position while 2007 champion Matt Stephenson rounds out the top five. Two other former champs Casey Friedrichsen (2010) and Bill Boles (2011-12) are also in a top ten while Jason Martin moved from tenth to sixth on the list.
The 2017 All Iowa Points champion Jarrod Schneiderman climbed from 34th to 15th in the standings with his title.
For a summary of how and why the points are tabulated visit the Points Page at Positively Racing. The final standings for 2017 can be found there now and the points are updated there weekly during the racing season.
Two-time champion Clint Benson (2014-15) remains in the fourth position while 2007 champion Matt Stephenson rounds out the top five. Two other former champs Casey Friedrichsen (2010) and Bill Boles (2011-12) are also in a top ten while Jason Martin moved from tenth to sixth on the list.
The 2017 All Iowa Points champion Jarrod Schneiderman climbed from 34th to 15th in the standings with his title.
For a summary of how and why the points are tabulated visit the Points Page at Positively Racing. The final standings for 2017 can be found there now and the points are updated there weekly during the racing season.
| All Iowa Points | 305 Sprints | Total Points | ||
| Pos | Driver | Hometown | 2006 - 2017 | |
| 1 | . | Bruce Anderson | Trimont MN | 324 |
| 2 | . | Jayson Dittsworth | Burlington | 253 |
| 3 | . | Donnie Steward | Burlington | 250 |
| 4 | . | Clint Benson | Papillion NE | 211 |
| 5 | . | Matt Stephenson | Des Moines | 207 |
| 6 | . | Jason Martin | Liberal KS | 185 |
| 7 | . | Casey Friedrichsen | Arthur | 181 |
| 8 | . | Ryan Voss | Okoboji | 181 |
| 9 | . | Bill Boles | Harris | 172 |
| 10 | . | Justin Newberry | Burlington | 159 |
| 11 | . | Kevin Hetrick | Gladstone IL | 154 |
| 12 | . | Ryan Jamison | Mediapolis | 146 |
| 13 | . | Tyler Thompson | Des Moines | 146 |
| 14 | . | Bob Hildreth | Iowa Falls | 144 |
| 15 | . | Jarrod Schneiderman | West Burlington | 138 |
| 16 | . | John Schulz | West Burlington | 134 |
| 17 | . | Bobby Mincer | Burlington | 130 |
| 18 | . | Tyler Drueke | Eagle NE | 130 |
| 19 | . | Marty Stephenson | Mitchellville | 126 |
| 20 | . | Frank Phipps | Everly | 125 |
| 21 | . | Matt Moro | Polk City | 119 |
| 22 | . | Mike Boston | Alvo NE | 116 |
| 23 | . | Adam Gullion | Lincoln NE | 112 |
| 24 | . | Daniel Bergquist | Burlington | 109 |
| 25 | . | Steve Breazeale | Trenton MO | 105 |
| 26 | . | Dusty Ballenger | Harrisburg SD | 100 |
| 27 | . | Matthew Stelzer | Omaha NE | 97 |
| 28 | . | Trevor Grossenbacher | Hickman NE | 96 |
| 29 | . | Tasker Phillips | Knoxville | 92 |
| 30 | . | Chad Huston | Jamesport MO | 91 |
| 31 | . | Mike Blomstrom | Lakeville MN | 91 |
| 32 | . | Doug Lovegrove | Waverly NE | 90 |
| 33 | . | Nate Eakin | Milford | 90 |
| 34 | . | Brian Hetrick | Gladstone IL | 89 |
| 35 | . | Toby Chapman | Panama NE | 88 |
| 36 | . | Robby Wolfgang | Sioux Falls SD | 87 |
| 37 | . | Devin Kline | Knoxville | 83 |
| 38 | . | J Kinder | Linn MO | 80 |
| 39 | . | Austin Johnson | Minneapolis MN | 78 |
| 40 | . | Casey Abbas | Lennox SD | 78 |
| 41 | . | Ben Wagoner | Emden IL | 77 |
| 42 | . | Mark Widmar | Ottumwa | 77 |
| 43 | . | Shayle Bade | Lincoln NE | 75 |
| 44 | . | Chris Walraven | Knoxville | 74 |
| 45 | . | Kalob Johnson | Sioux Falls SD | 74 |
| 46 | . | Dustin Clark | Eldon | 72 |
| 47 | . | Terry Richards | Denton NE | 72 |
| 48 | . | Steve Yarns | Jackson MN | 71 |
| 49 | . | Matt Krieger | Burlington | 69 |
| 50 | . | Colin Smith | Sheldon | 67 |
| 51 | . | Mike Mayberry | Fremont | 65 |
| 52 | . | Dustin Whiting | Burlington | 64 |
| 53 | . | Michael Johnston | Des Moines | 63 |
| 54 | . | Mitchell Alexander | Knoxville | 63 |
| 55 | . | Jack Dover | Springfield NE | 61 |
| 56 | . | Nick Guernsey | Burlington | 60 |
| 57 | . | Dave Getchell | Sperry | 58 |
| 58 | . | Larry Ball Jr. | Knoxville | 58 |
| 59 | . | Christian Bowman | Altoona | 57 |
| 60 | . | Kade Higday | Pleasant Hill | 56 |
| 61 | . | Stacey Alexander | Knoxville | 56 |
| 62 | . | Andy Huston | Roseville IL | 55 |
| 63 | . | Mike Moore | Des Moines | 55 |
| 64 | . | Harold Pohren | New London | 54 |
| 65 | . | Louis Lynch | Glenwood MO | 54 |
| 66 | . | Alan Ambers | Knoxville | 53 |
| 67 | . | Brayden Gaylord | Wever | 53 |
| 68 | . | Jesse Lindberg | Sioux Falls SD | 52 |
| 69 | . | Rob Kubli | Milo | 51 |
| 70 | . | Justin Parrish | Des Moines | 50 |
| 71 | . | Jamie Ball | Knoxville | 49 |
| 72 | . | Joey Danley | Lincoln NE | 48 |
| 73 | . | Shane Quam | Gladstone IL | 47 |
| 74 | . | Ben Woods | Newton | 46 |
| 75 | . | Tony Davis | Monmouth IL | 46 |
| 76 | . | McKenna Haase | Carlisle | 45 |
| 77 | . | Doug Bratrud | Jackson MN | 43 |
| 78 | . | John Draper | Bryant IL | 43 |
| 79 | . | Russell Wiese | Lake Park | 43 |
| 80 | . | Shon Pointer | Grand Island NE | 43 |
| 81 | . | Derrik Lusk | Jackson MN | 42 |
| 82 | . | Jake Nicoson | Ringsted | 41 |
| 83 | . | Elliot Amdahl | Flandreau SD | 40 |
| 84 | . | Mike Houseman Jr. | Des Moines | 39 |
| 85 | . | Mike Van Haaften | Pella | 38 |
| 86 | . | Eric Bridger | Winterset | 36 |
| 87 | . | Mark Hodgins | Spencer | 36 |
| 88 | . | Jake Bubak | Arvada CO | 35 |
| 89 | . | Bob Lamb | Mitchellville | 34 |
| 90 | . | Tanner Gebhardt | Burlington | 33 |
| 91 | . | Travis Lain | Des Moines | 33 |
| 92 | . | Gene Ackland | Martell NE | 32 |
| 93 | . | Stu Snyder | Waverly NE | 32 |
| 94 | . | Corey Kautz | Urbandale | 31 |
| 95 | . | Josh Padellford | Pleasantville | 31 |
| 96 | . | Matt Richards | Lincoln NE | 31 |
| 97 | . | Michael Stien | Ceylon MN | 31 |
| 98 | . | Shadrach Sporaa | Boone | 31 |
| 99 | . | Trevor Smith | Sheldon | 31 |
| 100 | . | John Lambertz | Sioux Falls SD | 31 |
| 101 | . | Devin Friedrichsen | Arthur | 29 |
| 102 | . | Trevor Serbus | Redwood Falls MN | 29 |
| 103 | . | Brandon Allen | Arlington MN | 28 |
| 104 | . | Curt Thurmer | Jackson MN | 28 |
| 105 | . | Clint Garner | Sioux Falls SD | 27 |
| 106 | . | Tommy Barber | Brandon SD | 27 |
| 107 | . | Brady Forbrook | Morgan MN | 26 |
| 108 | . | Dalton Johnson | Sioux Falls SD | 26 |
| 109 | . | Jeff Metli | Mason City | 26 |
| 110 | . | Jordan Nordstrom | Sioux Falls SD | 25 |
| 111 | . | Ryan Yager | Ringsted | 25 |
| 112 | . | Joey Danley | Lincoln NE | 25 |
| 113 | . | Randy Rinehard | Fort Dodge | 24 |
| 114 | . | Jeff Edgington | Sioux Falls SD | 23 |
| 115 | . | Rager Phillips | Pleasantville | 23 |
| 116 | . | Shane Fick | Brandon SD | 23 |
| 117 | . | Andy Krieger | Burlington | 22 |
| 118 | . | Carson McCarl | Altoona | 22 |
| 119 | . | Jason Danley | Lincoln NE | 22 |
| 120 | . | John Carney | Horizon TX | 22 |
| 121 | . | Ryan Leavitt | Knoxville | 22 |
| 122 | . | Jake Erickson | Jackson MN | 21 |
| 123 | . | Tadd Holliman | Murray NE | 20 |
| 124 | . | Brandyn Martin | Eldon | 19 |
| 125 | . | Dillan Roth | Burlington | 19 |
| 126 | . | Justin Gianetto | Cedar Rapids | 19 |
| 127 | . | Brandon Halverson | Jackson MN | 18 |
| 128 | . | Eric Reichwaldt | Plattsmouth NE | 18 |
| 129 | . | Josh Schneiderman | Burlington | 18 |
| 130 | . | Scott Knudson | Elkton SD | 18 |
| 131 | . | Keith Carlberg | Stratford | 17 |
| 132 | . | Matt Ziebarth | Sioux Falls SD | 17 |
| 133 | . | Todd Pankow | Trimont MN | 17 |
| 134 | . | Tyler Glass | Cedar Rapids | 17 |
| 135 | . | Bart Friedrichsen | Arthur | 16 |
| 136 | . | Jeff Luhmann | Jackson MN | 16 |
| 137 | . | Ryan King | Bennet NE | 16 |
| 138 | . | Dakota Hendrickson | Omaha NE | 15 |
| 139 | . | Gordy Vogelaar | Worthington MN | 15 |
| 140 | . | Mike Philbin | Grimes | 15 |
| 141 | . | C.J. Houseman | Des Moines | 15 |
| 142 | . | Gregg Bolte | Fremont NE | 14 |
| 143 | . | Johnny Anderson | Indianola | 14 |
| 144 | . | Travis Cram | Snohomish WA | 14 |
| 145 | . | Troy Schreuers | Baltic SD | 14 |
| 146 | . | Cody Wehrle | Burlington | 13 |
| 147 | . | Dan Jorgenson | Ringsted | 13 |
| 148 | . | John Kearney | Valley Falls KS | 13 |
| 149 | . | Tom Lenz | Strawberry Point | 13 |
| 150 | . | Zach Blurton | Quinter KS | 13 |
| 151 | . | Antony Guiffre | Newton | 12 |
| 152 | . | Brad Comegys | Des Moines | 12 |
| 153 | . | Brandon Geldner | Madison Lake MN | 12 |
| 154 | . | Nathan Murders | Burlington | 12 |
| 155 | . | Dan Satriano | Papillion NE | 11 |
| 156 | . | Jonathan Cornell | Sedalia MO | 11 |
| 157 | . | Kyle Flodman | Hickman NE | 11 |
| 158 | . | Lee Bowes | Lincoln NE | 11 |
| 159 | . | Nick Johansen | Tyler MN | 11 |
| 160 | . | Patrick Moore | Bettendorf | 11 |
| 161 | . | Trevor Mell | Harwood ND | 11 |
| 162 | . | Kelby Watt | Adel | 11 |
| 163 | . | Ben Crees | Jackson MN | 10 |
| 164 | . | Cody Ambers | Knoxville | 10 |
| 165 | . | Dave Anderson | Burlington | 10 |
| 166 | . | Jack Potter | Pleasant Hill MO | 10 |
| 167 | . | Jacob Glasgow | West Burlington | 10 |
| 168 | . | Jake Leighty | Worthington MN | 10 |
| 169 | . | Kody Hildreth | Iowa Falls | 10 |
| 170 | . | Ron Love | Lincoln NE | 10 |
| 171 | . | Bobby Hawks | Jacksonville IL | 9 |
| 172 | . | Chad Wilson | North Richland TX | 9 |
| 173 | . | Isaac Schreuers | Sioux Falls SD | 9 |
| 174 | . | Jeff Mitrisin | Oskaloosa | 9 |
| 175 | . | Logan Trueblood | Memphis MO | 9 |
| 176 | . | Chase Wanner | Agency | 8 |
| 177 | . | Mark Johnson | Des Moines | 8 |
| 178 | . | Ricky Logan | Little Rock AR | 8 |
| 179 | . | Tim St. Arnold | Des Moines | 8 |
| 180 | . | Jared Jansen | Sioux Falls SD | 8 |
| 181 | . | Jeff Wilke | Genoa IL | 7 |
| 182 | . | Monte Hill | Fairfield | 7 |
| 183 | . | Nathan Mills | Bondurant | 7 |
| 184 | . | Ryan Hall | Midlothian TX | 7 |
| 185 | . | Scott Boles | New London | 7 |
| 186 | . | Seth Wilke | Burlington | 7 |
| 187 | . | Shawn Deman | Knoxville | 7 |
| 188 | . | Chase Weiler | Lincoln NE | 7 |
| 189 | . | Colton Fisher | Mediapolis | 7 |
| 190 | . | Bailey Goldesberry | Springfield IL | 6 |
| 191 | . | Ben Waxdahl | Flandreau SD | 6 |
| 192 | . | Derek Anderson | Estherville | 6 |
| 193 | . | Evan Epperson | Muscatine | 6 |
| 194 | . | Keoni Texeira | Honolulu HI | 6 |
| 195 | . | Lacey Tuttle | Omaha NE | 6 |
| 196 | . | Larry Cook | Fort Dodge | 6 |
| 197 | . | Nathan Weiler | LaVista NE | 6 |
| 198 | . | Randy Smith | Mount Ayr | 6 |
| 199 | . | Richard Weers | Lincoln NE | 6 |
| 200 | . | Wayne Redmond | Fort Dodge | 6 |
| 201 | . | Brad Ryun | Higginsville MO | 5 |
| 202 | . | Brandon Wimmer | Fairmount IN | 5 |
| 203 | . | Damian Getchell | Sperry | 5 |
| 204 | . | Eric Todd | Falcon MO | 5 |
| 205 | . | George Crawford | Springfield IL | 5 |
| 206 | . | Jake Strayer | Newton | 5 |
| 207 | . | Jeff Schreuers | Sioux Falls SD | 5 |
| 208 | . | Jim Tiesler | Round Lake MN | 5 |
| 209 | . | John Hillman | Jefferson City MO | 5 |
| 210 | . | Jordan Prehn | Garner | 5 |
| 211 | . | Josh Higday | Des Moines | 5 |
| 212 | . | Kyle McCutcheon | Alamogordo NM | 5 |
| 213 | . | Kyle Peterson | Gladstone IL | 5 |
| 214 | . | Micah Schliemann | Baltic SD | 5 |
| 215 | . | Nate VanHaaften | Otley | 5 |
| 216 | . | Shawn Whiting | West Burlington | 5 |
| 217 | . | Trish Dover | Springfield NE | 5 |
| 218 | . | Wayne Johnson | Knoxville | 5 |
| 219 | . | Chris Duffy | Sioux Falls SD | 5 |
| 220 | . | Devin Wignall | Altoona | 5 |
| 221 | . | Joel Thorpe | Des Moines | 5 |
| 222 | . | Robert Vetter | Wolfe City TX | 5 |
| 223 | . | Adam Thurmer | Jackson MN | 4 |
| 224 | . | Bill Johnson | St. Peter MN | 4 |
| 225 | . | Blaine Jamison | Mediapolis | 4 |
| 226 | . | Blake Robertson | 4 | |
| 227 | . | Brandon Horton | Omaha NE | 4 |
| 228 | . | Brett Allen | Gaylord MN | 4 |
| 229 | . | Cale Hutchings | Bloomfield | 4 |
| 230 | . | Caleb Wankel | Jacksonville IL | 4 |
| 231 | . | Christopher Scank | Cedar Rapids | 4 |
| 232 | . | Clint Leedom | Ottumwa | 4 |
| 233 | . | Corey Timmerman | Carman IL | 4 |
| 234 | . | Dale Furby | Sioux Falls SD | 4 |
| 235 | . | Jeremy Schultz | Stewart MN | 4 |
| 236 | . | Justin Standridge | Athens IL | 4 |
| 237 | . | Kenny Long | Fairmont MN | 4 |
| 238 | . | Kevin Roth | Kansas City MO | 4 |
| 239 | . | Kevin Tanner | Russell | 4 |
| 240 | . | Kris Miller | Woodward OK | 4 |
| 241 | . | Mike Sheridan | 4 | |
| 242 | . | Nick Bryan | Lincoln NE | 4 |
| 243 | . | Nick Ross | Oskaloosa | 4 |
| 244 | . | Patrick Long | Hedrick | 4 |
| 245 | . | Renn Weber | Hartford SD | 4 |
| 246 | . | Steve Palmer | Des Moines | 4 |
| 247 | . | Cody Ledger | Omaha NE | 4 |
| 248 | . | Josh Sterrett | Huron SD | 4 |
| 249 | . | Russ Hall | Pleasant Hill | 4 |
| 250 | . | Andy Shouse | Oklahoma City OK | 3 |
| 251 | . | Blain Petersen | Essex | 3 |
| 252 | . | Brad Ball | Lincoln NE | 3 |
| 253 | . | Brian Herbert | Dodge City KS | 3 |
| 254 | . | Chris Campbell | New Berlin IL | 3 |
| 255 | . | Dustin Selvage | Indianola | 3 |
| 256 | . | Earl Tice | Ames | 3 |
| 257 | . | Eddie Evans | Marysville WA | 3 |
| 258 | . | Gary Bonar | Burlington | 3 |
| 259 | . | Jeremy Vanderplaats | Sibley | 3 |
| 260 | . | Matt Hasara | Lakefield MN | 3 |
| 261 | . | Nick Eastin | Burlington | 3 |
| 262 | . | Nick Lusk | Jackson MN | 3 |
| 263 | . | R.J. Johnson | Tampa FL | 3 |
| 264 | . | Sawyer Phillips | Pleasantville | 3 |
| 265 | . | Brandon Worthington | Indianola | 3 |
| 266 | . | Danny Nekolite | 3 | |
| 267 | . | Joe Simbro | Pleasantville | 3 |
| 268 | . | Kevin Ramey | Fort Worth TX | 3 |
| 269 | . | Brian Ridge | Ottumwa | 2 |
| 270 | . | Doug Roth | Axtell NE | 2 |
| 271 | . | Jason Howell | Azie TX | 2 |
| 272 | . | Jason Rakes | Hastings NE | 2 |
| 273 | . | John Ricketts | Burleson TX | 2 |
| 274 | . | Keith Dragoo | Lincoln NE | 2 |
| 275 | . | Manny Rockhold | Pekin IL | 2 |
| 276 | . | Mark Ellefritz | Carthage IL | 2 |
| 277 | . | Mark Pace | Lincoln NE | 2 |
| 278 | . | Michael Brown | Kingsville MO | 2 |
| 279 | . | Phil Hauge | Burlington | 2 |
| 280 | . | Robbie Standridge | Springfield IL | 2 |
| 281 | . | Tanner Edwards | Van Meter | 2 |
| 282 | . | Zach Clark | Olathe KS | 2 |
| 283 | . | Brian Armitage | Athens IL | 2 |
| 284 | . | Dave Becker | Belle Plaine MN | 2 |
| 285 | . | Dylon Truxhorn | 2 | |
| 286 | . | Lee Goos Jr. | Hartford SD | 2 |
| 287 | . | Rob Pohren | Mt. Pleasant | 2 |
| 288 | . | Billy Brickley | Wataga IL | 1 |
| 289 | . | Claud Estes | Godley TX | 1 |
| 290 | . | Dalton Ryder | Webster City | 1 |
| 291 | . | David Saffell | Pleasantville | 1 |
| 292 | . | Jeff Gieg | Johnstown CO | 1 |
| 293 | . | Jesse Cripe | South Haven MN | 1 |
| 294 | . | Jesse Wagler | West Burlington | 1 |
| 295 | . | Jim Klinghagen | 1 | |
| 296 | . | Jordan Martens | Harrisburg SD | 1 |
| 297 | . | Josh Gesell | Ridgeway | 1 |
| 298 | . | Lorne Wofford | Alamagordo NM | 1 |
| 299 | . | Luke Cranston | Holcomb KS | 1 |
| 300 | . | Michael Fishel | Mason City | 1 |
| 301 | . | Mike Dapra | Knoxville | 1 |
| 302 | . | Steven Russell | Springfield IL | 1 |
| 303 | . | Tony Crank | Sedalia MO | 1 |
| 304 | . | Troy Gochanour | Armstrong | 1 |
| 305 | . | Wayne Sternburgh | 1 | |
| 306 | . | Boyd Peterson | Ithaca NE | 1 |
| 307 | . | Brandon Stevenson | Holstein | 1 |
| 308 | . | Justin Allen | Gaylord MN | 1 |
| 309 | . | Nathan Charron | Hartsburg IL | 1 |
| 310 | . | Taylor Ryan | Flandreau SD | 1 |
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