Happy St. Patrick's Day! I had hoped to be seeing my first green flag of the season tonight in either Memphis or Springfield, Missouri, but obviously that is not happening unless I want to drive to Tulsa so instead I decided to dust off the old notebook. Actually it has been so long since I filed a Notebook entry here on the Back Stretch that I had to go looking for it and found it under another inch of fresh snow this morning out in the back yard. So let's dive in.
Since I wrote "Spring Weather Has Sucked For A Decade Now" just about a year ago, there is no need to rehash that as the trend continues, however my Weather Channel app showed me a video today that above average temperatures are in the forecast for April through June. Let's hope they are correct as I will be happy to sacrifice my March targets to be able to enjoy the broader schedule of special events coming up in April.
For now though my focus is on next weekend where my two closest options are the Thaw Brawl at Davenport and the rescheduled Spring Nationals in Memphis and while the extended forecast is still shaky, I am going to have faith that one, or both will be able to race on March 24th and 25th. Yes, it still might be on the chilly side, but I will be ready to bundle up to get this season started.
I am actually more influenced by the wind when it comes to race night weather and that is true during the Spring, Summer and Fall. Not only does a stiff wind cause fits when it comes to track prep, it can also make for a miserable night as a fan depending upon the wind direction and the actual temperature. One advantage that the Davenport Speedway has is its big covered grandstand that faces south. So even if the temps might be in the 40's next weekend with a wind blowing from the north, I know that I will be nice and comfortable for the races.
I could have started my season back on March 5th when the Late Model portion of the 2022 Turkey Bowl was presented at the Springfield Raceway, but the forecast for temps starting in the 60's along with wind gusts of over 30 mph made me scrap my five hour trip on a Sunday. Bobby Pierce passed Logan Martin with seven laps to go to win the $10,075 and while I would have liked to have been there, I was satisfied with my decision.
The question now is where do I target next if both Davenport and Memphis are unable to go next week? Again I am going to have faith and not even research those possibilities unless it is needed.
A couple of former All Iowa Points Modified champions picked up some big wins recently. After picking up a victory and a runner-up finish at the Northwest Florida Speedway in Baker on February 27th and 28th, Austen Becerra then won both nights of the Clash on the Coast at the Southern Raceway in Milton, Florida, the first weekend in March. And in that finale, Austen had to come from sixth to second in a B-Main just to get qualified before charging from the outside of row twelve to take the win.
The driver from Carthage, Illinois, was the All Iowa Points Four Cylinder champion in 2014. From there he moved on to the Sport Mods where he was a perennial top ten finisher in the state point standings and, during his first full season in the Modifieds, Becerra captured the All Iowa Point title in 2022. He is the only AIP champion in the Four Cylinders to "graduate" and also win an AIP title in another division.
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| Austen Becerra clinched the 2022 AIP Modified title at Memphis in October - Barry Johnson photo |
The 2020 All Iowa Points Modified champ Tom Berry Jr. picked up the season opener for the USMTS at Rocket Raceway Park in Texas on March 4th. The event attracted a stellar field of more than eighty cars and it will be interesting to see how the Oregon native, who now lists Des Moines as his home base, fares in his quest for the Rookie-of-the-Year title with the premier Modified series in the country.
One of my favorite race tracks, when it has been properly prepared, is in Moberly, Missouri, and after first announcing a schedule of four special events, the Moberly Motorsports Park followed that up with a bold announcement on March 6th. Titled the "Trophy Tuesday Summer Series" the track will have racing on ten Tuesday nights starting on May 23rd and running through August 8th with Late Models running on eight of those nights. A-Mods will also be featured on eight nights as well and you can see the full class lineup on the track's Facebook page.
Why is that bold? Up here in Iowa it is not uncommon to have mid-week racing including both weekly shows and special events, but down in Missouri a mid-week race is a novelty item so scheduling ten of them right off the bat is a big step. I'm sure that officials know how important it will be to be efficient, from checking in cars that aren't arriving until a driver can make the trip after a day of work, to putting on a quick show so that everybody can be on their way home at a reasonable time. It is a two hour and twenty minute trip for me to get to Moberly so I am going to hope for a final checkered flag of 9:30 for me to keep coming back on a Tuesday night, and you can bet that I will give them at least one mulligan in order to catch racing on the wide, fast track on a weeknight! Here's hoping that you mid-Missouri readers of the Back Stretch will give them your support.
We had our preseason Officials Meeting for the Sprint Invaders two nights ago and I want to give credit to Race Director Jerry Glasgow who does such a fantastic job in this role. Former driver Nick Eastin has also stepped up his leadership skills and a as team we are excited about what the 2023 season has to offer for the Sprint Invaders. We will need the weather to straighten out soon for the season opener at 34 Raceway on April 1st, otherwise it will be like last year when we had to lift the lid at 34 Raceway on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend instead. A return to the fair in Eldon, where we have been promised a better track prep process after the daytime harness racing comes up next followed by a Friday Saturday twinbill in Davenport and Spoon River. It will be the first time back to the fast little track south of Canton, Illinois, for the Invaders in several years and we are all excited about that.
The next week we head down to the Jacksonville Speedway for Friday fun after a few years absence from the quick quarter and then on Sunday July 2nd the Invaders return to the Benton County Speedway in Vinton. The Dubuque County Fair welcomes the winged sprints back on July 26th and then on the weekend after the Knoxville Nationals the Invaders will be in Peoria on Saturday and at the Adams County Speedway in Quincy on Sunday. I can't wait to see the Invaders attack the half-mile at the West Liberty Raceway on Saturday September 2nd and the following night Rick and Corey Dripps bring the series back to Vinton for an encore appearance. The 2023 schedule closes out on the weekend of September 22nd and 23rd with a Friday night show at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson before Saturday's 360 Fall Haul at 34 Raceway west of Burlington.
The series had an interesting mix of seasoned veterans and young challengers in 2022 and it should be another impressive roster of regulars along with unexpected drop-ins at each event, so we hope to see you somewhere along the way.
You have to look close, because it is still a very full schedule of special events, but the Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Illinois, will not be running races weekly on Friday nights in 2023 as they have for so many years in the past. It will be interesting to see if a trend develops where tracks that offer up numerous special events eventually decide to drop their weekly program. It can't be easy to be successful at both these days.
The I-44 Speedway in Lebanon, Missouri, will spring back to life for two big events in 2023 featuring the California based SRL National Super Late Model Tour. The first will be on Tuesday June 29th with a return engagement on Thursday August 24th. I do like to get in at least one pavement show a season and the high-banked 3/8-mile oval in Lebanon always produces two and three-wide action, no "bump and run" moves needed here to make a pass so I hope to fit at least one of these into my schedule.
Another one of my childhood heroes recently passed away. Pokey West had the opportunity to hot lap a Four Cylinder car at Columbus Junction a couple of years ago and that had to be a thrill for a driver who had so many fans as he raced around southeast Iowa.
That's it for today's Notebook, time to get back to work and, or watching some more tournament basketball. Here's hoping that we can all get out to our favorite tracks soon and we'll see you on the Back Stretch!
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