Photos Added....

If you check down the list here you will find that photos have been added to the stories from Sedalia, Donnellson and Dubuque.

And for more photos, including archives from the past, check out our new PositivelyRacing.com page on Facebook.

Rain Wins Friday; Heather Tesch and Other Forecasters Already Claiming Saturday Events

It's official, all but one of the Friday night tracks in the PR.com coverage area has been rained out this evening. The only one that is still on is Chateau Raceway in Lansing, Minnesota, but a check of the radar at 2:40 p.m. shows the rain is on the doorstep at the speedway promoted by Darin Toot.

A rainout where it actually rains on your race track is one thing, but the weather forecast for this weekend has been so ominous that some tracks have or had already cancelled based solely on that forecast. Tony Bruce Jr. pulled the plug on his two-day ASCS Sprint Car show at Riverside Speedway in West Memphis, Arkansas, on Thursday due to what the weather folks were saying would happen there on Friday and Saturday. Looks like a good call at this point as the area is under a tornado watch until 8 p.m. tonight and a flash flood watch through the weekend. As a driver himself TBJ was looking out for his own as the ASCS National Tour pulls drivers in from far and wide.

The promoter at Outlaw Motor Speedway in Muskogee, Oklahoma, made an interesting call based upon the weather forecast for tonight. The track was to host the MARS Late Models this evening, but the following has been posted on their website. "With all the Late Models traveling in from a good distance and the uncertain weather we just made a business decision to reschedule," said track co-owner Danny Womack. "We are still going to have great racing tonight with our third NASCAR points night at Oklahoma's only NASCAR track." The MARS event has been rescheduled for May 14th and a check of the radar at 3 p.m. shows all of the rain to the east of Muskogee so it looks like the weekly show will be able to be run. Do you suppose a few of the Late Model guys will be scratching their heads on this one? But again, with drivers following the series having to make the trip to town, perhaps they like the call.

Okay, I can see canceling an event a day or two in advance when drivers might be coming in from long distances, but what about a weekly show? On the Mid-South Racing Scene forum it appears that the track in Moulton, Alabama, has already canceled their weekly show for tomorrow. Why? Because the Weather Channel forecasts a near 100% chance of rain there for Saturday with the possibility of large hail, tornadoes, flying farmhouses and little dogs, that's why! Heather Tesch has never been so confident!

Heather Tesch of the Weather Channel

Here's hoping that the rain that is predicted for the rest of the weekend is nowhere near as bad as expected and we can get some racing in!

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that Dave Swale of West Union stopped by to say hi to me after the races at Vinton and I introduced him to Kyle Ealy who compiles the Midwest Racing Archives on the Speed Blitz. During the conversation we challenged Kyle to go back into his archives and pull up some old pics of Dave in action, but instead we have somebody who has beaten Kyle to the punch! Another former Hawkeye Racing News columnist Les Houser sent a set of five photos down to Barry Johnson who then scanned them in and sent them here. Isn't it great how all of us former columnists can come together for a common cause :)

Thanks a lot Les, it is great to know that you, Dave and many others (perhaps fourteen or fifteen now) are regular readers of the "Back Stretch" online!

From 1987 a Hobby Stock that Les thinks was owned by Larry Nefzger

From 1990, a Modified Street Stock that Dave drove to second in the final point standings at West Union

If you are rained out and bored, check out the latest entry by one of my favorites Mark "The Shark" Titus at http://clubtrillion.blogspot.com/2010/04/welcome-to-future.html Just so you know, it's a basketball blog (sort of), not racing.......but I think it will bring a smile to your face.

A Change In Drivers for "Team 15"; Updated State Points

I learned today that changes are being made at “Team 15”, the Richard Realty & Auction Late Model based in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. Tommy Elston of Keokuk handled the driving duties throughout the 2009 season and had a solid year highlighted by a feature win at Knoxville last July in the Late Model portion of the “Harris Clash”. The team started the 2010 campaign with the intention of following the full Deery Brothers Summer Series schedule as well as running weekly events at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson and at 34 Raceway near Burlington, but after making the feature field in just one of the first three Deery events, team owner Lynn Richard and driver Tommy Elston have decided to go in different directions.

“A lot of effort has been put in by both sides of this combination,” Richard told me over the phone this afternoon, “but we just weren’t clicking. Tommy is one of the best, if not the best driver that has ever sat in one of my cars and I wish him nothing but the best.”

Team 15 will be back in action this Friday night April 23rd as the Trump Trucks/Ideal Ready Mix “Drive for Five” series for the IMCA Late Models kicks off at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson with Jeff Guengerich of Washington behind the wheel. Guengerich and his father Willie have been an important part of the Team 15 crew and as a former feature winner in the Late Model division around the area, putting Jeff in the car looks like a pretty good fit for now. I have not yet talked to Elston, but here’s hoping that this talented shoe is not away from the tracks for long.

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Our Webmaster, or “Webmistress” as we so inappropriately refer to her, is usually pretty good at updating both the All Iowa Points and the All Missouri Points on a timely basis each week. But since she is in the final few weeks of a grueling semester for her Masters degree, you may notice that the points updates on the “Points” tab at http://www.positivelyracing.com/ might be a bit behind for the next few weeks or so. Keep checking in though as she assures me that she will get to them whenever she has an extra few minutes to spare. It’s bad enough that she was already smarter than Barry and I to begin with, but soon she will be able to officially wave that fact in front of our faces!

Until the full rundown through events of April 18th get posted, following you will find the top ten.

All Iowa Points

Late Models
1 Mark Burgtorf Quincy IL 18
2 Craig Preble Yutan NE 15
3 Ray Guss Jr. Milan IL 14
4 Billy Leighton Omaha NE 8
5 Doug Herrick West Concord MN 8
6 Jeff Aikey Cedar Falls 8
7 Dennis Woodworth Mendon IL 6
8 Jacob Brown Omaha NE 6
9 Josh Krug Omaha NE 6
10 Andy Eckrich Cosgrove 5
11 Chad Simpson Mount Vernon 5
12 John Anderson Omaha NE 5
13 Justin Reed Quincy IL 5
14 Keith Pratt Quincy IL 5
15 Kurt Kile West Liberty 5
16 Leon Zeitner Omaha NE 5
17 Nick Herrick West Concord MN 5

Modifieds
1 Jay Noteboom Hinton 21
2 Ryan Ruter Forest City 19
3 Jeremy Mills Garner 17
4 Michael Long Quincy IL 15
5 Richie Gustin Marshalltown 15
6 Pat Graham Ames 13
7 Brad Diercks Clarence 11
8 Dylan Smith Osceola NE 11
9 Jason Cummins New Richland MN 11
10 Jay Ihrke Dover MN 10
11 Jon Snyder Ames 10
12 Mark Elliott Webster City 10
13 Mike Sorenson Rochester MN 10
14 Milo Veloz Jr. Colona IL 10
15 Scott Hogan Vinton 10

Stock Cars
1 Travis Shipman Mason City 22
2 Jeff Mueller New London 17
3 Chad Palmer Renwick 15
4 Larry Portis Nora Springs 15
5 Jeffrey Larson Rushmore MN 14
6 Kevin Opheim Mason City 14
7 Nathan Wood Sigourney 14
8 Damon Murty Chelsea 13
9 Dustin Smith Lake City 13
10 Elijah Zevenbergen Ocheydan 13
11 Trent Murphy Jefferson 13

Limited Modifieds
1 Austin Kaplan Ankeny 18
2 Jesse Sobbing Glenwood 18
3 Tad Reutzel Burt 18
4 Beau Kaplan Ankeny 16
5 Geoff Olson Ames 16
6 Karl Brewer Vermillion SD 15
7 Danny Dvorak Vinton 14
8 Brett Meyer Lytton 13
9 Dan Tenold Northwood 11
10 Adam Ackerman Mason City 10
11 Brett Moffitt Grimes 10
12 Dusty Kraklio Durant 10
13 Eric Elliott Boone 10
14 Matthew Looft Swea City 10

Hobby Stocks
1 Dustin Wanarka Northrop MN 16
2 Dustin Larson Rushmore MN 15
3 Chad Gentz Forest City 14
4 Devin Smith Lake City 14
5 Nick Murty Chelsea 14
6 John Watson Des Moines 13
7 Justin Yarolem Monmouth 13
8 Chris Hupp Boone 12
9 Cory Gansen Clear Lake 11
10 Josh Neal Monmouth 11

Four Cylinders
1 Jay DeVries Spencer 19
2 Kelly Miller Greene 13
3 Patrick Barrett Floyd 12
4 Brannon Bechen Bernard 10
5 Mick Rykhus Eagle Lake MN 10
6 Nate Coopman Mankato MN 10
7 Cody Thompson Sioux City 9
8 Gary Peiffer Troy Mills 8
9 Gary Stahl Kasson MN 8
10 Jacob Ellithorpe Delmar 8
11 Merv Chandler Cedar Rapids 8
12 Scott Powell Polo IL 8
13 Scott Schlichting Britt 8

360 Sprints
1 Gregg Bakker Sioux Falls SD 9
2 Jack Dover Springfield NE 9
3 Eric Lutz Sioux Falls SD 5
4 Jerrod Hull Sikeston MO 5
5 Mike Boston Crete NE 5
6 Dustin Morgan Tulsa OK 5
7 Chad Humston Giltner NE 4
8 Ryan Jamison Mediapolis 4
9 Clint Garner Sioux Falls SD 3
10 Jim Moughan Springfield IL 3
11 Lee Grosz Harwood ND 3
12 Robby Wolfgang Sioux Falls SD 3
13 Ryan Roberts Aurora NE 3
14 Terry Holliman Hamburg 3

All Missouri Points

Late Models
1 Jack Simmons Erie KS 10
2 Jeremy Payne Springfield 9
3 Mark Voigt Marine IL 9
4 Donnie Timmerman Eldorado Springs 7
5 Bryan Collins Elsberry 6
6 Larry Jones Eldorado Springs 6
7 Tim Manville Highland IL 6
8 Al Purkey Coffeyville KS 5
9 Billy Faust Highland IL 5
10 Eric Turner Hermitage 5
11 Justin Wells Aurora 5
12 Rusty Schlenk Jackson MI 5

Modifieds
1 Erik Maggard Springfield 14
2 Jesse Stovall Galena 13
3 Tim Hancock Mt. Olive IL 12
4 Johnny Bone Jr. Pea Ridge AR 11
5 Billy Smith Park Hills 10
6 Bobby Bittle Smithton IL 10
7 Mark Miner St. Louis 10
8 Terry Schultz Sedalia 10
9 Austin Matthews Dexter 9
10 Lucas Dobbs Eldorado Springs 9
11 Rusty Griffaw Festus 9
12 Scott Burge Puxico 9

Limited Modifieds
1 Colt Cheevers Macks Creek 23
2 Roy Maynard Alba 16
3 Adam Hemby 14
4 Justin McBroom 13
5 Steve Muilenberg Sparta 11
6 Tyler Fowler 10
7 Josh Woody Buckhorn 8
8 Wayne Graybeal Springfield 8
9 Lance Cox Mexico 7
10 Chad Tilley 6
11 Clay Hale Cameron 6
12 Michael Stake Lebanon 6

Sprints
1 Randy Martin California 10
2 Jonathan Cornell Sedalia 8
3 Jesse Hockett Warsaw 5
4 Joey Saldana Brownsburg IN 5
5 Marshall Skinner West Memphis AR 5
6 Steve Short Farmington 5
7 Brady Bacon Broken Arrow OK 4
8 Brian Brown Grain Valley 4
9 Craig Dollansky Elk River MN 4
10 Derek Hager Marion AR 4
11 Eric Todd Falcon 4
12 Jerrod Hull Sikeston 4
13 Josh Fisher Smithton 4

Limited Late Models
1 Trey Harris 13
2 Doug Moore Dexter 9
3 Joe McCain 8
4 Kyle Berry Poplar Bluff 8
5 Darin Walker Bowling Green 7
6 Jamie Robards Broseley 7
7 Jeff Herzog 6
8 Billy James Sikeston 5
9 Brandon Imhoff Lake Ozark 5
10 Danny Ems 5
11 Justin Wells Aurora 5
12 Tanner English Benton KY 5
13 Vance Wilson Bowling Green 5

If you are a Late Model fan I hope that you enjoy the tabs that I have been keeping on the others states outside of Iowa and Missouri. As the season gets into full swing I will likely not be able to keep up with the standings from the other states and I will have to catch up with them in November and December like I did last season. But for now, here are the top five Late Model standings from a few other states that have held more than a handful of events so far in 2010:

Alabama
1 Mark Mears Decatur 24
2 Stacy Holmes Munford 24
3 Tim Busha Boaz 22
4 Ronnie Johnson Chattanooga TN 13
5 Bradley Price Hamilton 12

Georgia
1 Austin Hubbard Seaford DE 13
2 Derek Ellis Chatsworth 13
3 Jonathan Davenport Blairsville 12
4 Josh Richards Shinnston WV 12
5 Ronnie Johnson Chattanooga TN 12
6 Scott Bloomquist Mooresburg TN 12

Illinois
1 Jason Feger Bloomington 18
2 Chad Zobrist Highland 13
3 Jeremy Nichols 12
4 Michael Kloos Trenton 12
5 Mark Voigt Marine 11

Kentucky
1 Kevin Cole Christopher IL 12
2 Todd Coffman 12
3 Dustin Neat Dunville 10
4 John Whitney 10
5 Dillan White 9
6 Don O'Neal Martinsville IN 9
7 Josh Williams 9

Mississippi
1 Chad Thrash Meridian 13
2 Chris Wall Holden LA 10
3 Rick Rickman Columbus 10
4 Jimmy Cliburn Star 9
5 Dane Dacus Lakeland TN 8

Ohio
1 Rusty Schlenk Jackson MI 15
2 Jeep VanWormer Pinconning MI 13
3 Ryan Markham Ashland 12
4 Doug Drown Wooster 10
5 R.J. Conley Wheelersburg WV 10
6 Ryan Missler Bellevue 10

South Carolina
1 Johnny Pursley Clover 14
2 Furman Parton Union Mills 11
3 Mike Ashley Greenwood 9
4 Zach Mitchell 9
5 Danny Howell 8

Tennessee
1 Jeff Walston Paducah KY 23
2 Jason McBride Carbondale IL 17
3 Anthony Burroughs Muscle Shoals AL 14
4 Mark Haddon Estill Springs 12
5 Randy Weaver Crossville 12
6 Riley Hickman Ooltewah 12
7 Todd Morrow Oldfort 12

This past weekend I had several people tell me that they saw here that my column would no longer be found in Hawkeye Racing News and each person had something nice to say as well. I cannot tell you how much that means to me, not only the kind comments that were made, but the fact that you found this bit of news right here online. For the thirty-one years that I wrote the "Back Stretch" for HRN I often joked that I had six or seven regular readers. This past weekend I discovered that I have at least doubled that number here online!

Thanks for checking in and remember, Support The Sport.....Be Positive!

Burgtorf Takes A Thriller At Dubuque

It took twenty-three years for the Deery Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models to finally make an appearance at the Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway. After the show that they put on Sunday night I am pretty confident that the “Boys of Summer” will be back again next year, and hopefully more than once! Keith Simmons and his crew provided a perfectly manicured track and the forty-four Late Model drivers used just about every inch of the wide high-banked 3/8-mile in five entertaining heat races, two frantic B-Mains and a fifty-lap feature that saw the final forty-one laps run under green flag conditions. This was just one fantastic night of racing on beautiful mid-April evening.

Hometown hero Jeremiah Hurst brought the field to green in the main event and cars were racing five-wide in turn two on the second lap before the red flag flew for an incident involving defending IMCA National Champ Kevin Blum. Blum who rode the cushion from mid-pack to win the second B-Main just a few moments earlier had it jump up to bite him in turn one as he climbed the wall and rolled over once. “The Wild Man” escaped uninjured, but his #54 required two wreckers to head back to the pits. Once back to green it was another rim-rider, Jason Rauen, who blew by Hurst for the lead on lap four while Ray Guss Jr. used the bottom line to work his way into contention. Earlier in the evening Guss looked dominant coming from eighth to first in just four laps before walking away with the win in heat race number five and his quick move forward from the fourth row in the feature was not a surprise.

A caution on lap nine slowed the field and on the restart Guss stormed to the front and quickly opened up a lead over the rest of the pack. Mark Burgtorf was also working the low groove and he moved past Rauen a few laps later to try to pick up the chase on Guss, but Rauen was not about to give in as he kept the pressure on Burgtorf rocketing off the topside of turns two and four lap after lap. Around the mid-point of the race with Guss still far ahead and with Rauen still making runs at him from the top, Burgtorf changed his preferred groove and moved up to the cushion as well. With the change of lines the lead started to shrink, and especially when Guss encountered some lapped traffic Burgtorf closed the gap. While that chase continued the battle for third took center stage as Dan Shelliam and Mike Murphy Jr. challenged Rauen. With about fifteen laps remaining, and two lapped cars also in the mix, Murphy made a brilliant move diving to the bottom in turns three and four passing all four cars to move into the third spot and, with Murphy now leading that trio, they quickly closed in on Burgtorf as well.

With ten laps remaining the lead had been cut to about five car lengths and with Burgtorf, Murphy, Rauen and Shelliam all flying around the cushion it looked as though five drivers would have a shot at the win. But when Murphy got a little sideways exiting turn four a lap later, both Rauen and Shelliam had to check up a bit to let him save it and the momentum had been broken for those three. This race would now be decided between Guss and Burgtorf. Ray was still using the same groove that had carried him to the front about three car-widths off the rail and he would then drift up enough on the straightaways to make it real tight for anybody coming off the high side to get between him and the concrete wall. Burgtorf had a couple of opportunities to show him his nose, but instead hit the binders choosing to wait until he had the run that he needed to take the lead. That opportunity came with just six laps remaining as Mark nailed the cushion perfectly in turns one and two and pulled even with Guss as they hit the backstretch. The momentum off the topside was too much for Guss to fight off and the race had a new leader in Burgtorf. Down on power a bit from a broken header, Guss could not fight back and Burgtorf cruised through the final laps to his third Deery series victory in five events this season and the $2,000 top prize. Guss would have to settle for runner-up honors while Shelliam disposed of Rauen over the final laps to finish third. Defending track champion Andy Eckrich made a late move past Murphy to complete the top five while Saturday night’s feature winner in Maquoketa, Jeff Aikey came home seventh in this thriller that sent a nice crowd home abuzz. Mark Burgtorf (7) makes the winning move to pass Ray Guss Jr. in the closing laps for another victory lane celebration with his crew at Dubuque - Barry Johnson photo

The B-Mods were a bit short on numbers as the only support class for the evening, but the nine-car field staged an entertaining fifteen-lap main event that would have been even better if not for a three-car pileup with five laps remaining. Kyle Eberle established the early pace before both Jed Freiburger and Timmy Current stormed past him in turn three on lap five. Those two would swap the lead a lap later with Current taking over until the caution waved with nine laps in the books for Eberle who had stalled on the backstretch. On the restart Freiburger and Current would pass the flagstand side-by-side and when Freiburger got a bit sideways on the bottom groove entering turn one it forced the third-place car of Dustin Wilwert to check up and spin. Jarrett Franzen and Matt Gansen had no place to go and they piled into Wilwert as well with only Gansen being able to make some quick repairs and continue.

Once back to green the battle upfront continued until Freiburger muscled his way past Current with three laps to go and held that lead until the end for the victory. Gansen was able to make his way back up to third behind Current at the checkers while Randy Leehan and Jason Seegmiller completed the top five. Jed Freiburger was the feature winner in the B-Modified portion of Sunday's show - Barry Johnson photo

DBQ Deery Notes…..Rob Toland had to feel snake-bitten tonight. He was running a strong third in the first Late Model heat race when his air cleaner popped off. He then started near the back of the first B-Main only to have that end for him before it even started when Todd Malmstrom’s left rear wheel come off as the field was coming to the green. Jay Johnson and Toland collided with Malmstrom as he spun sideways exiting turn four and, while Johnson was able to restart, the front end damage on Toland’s car forced him to the pits. On the pace lap just before the start I noticed Johnson pull up alongside Malmstrom so I wonder if Jay saw signs of the pending issue just before it happened. As it worked out Toland later had an opportunity to use a points provisional to start the main event but since he would not be able to make full repairs to his car before the start, and the fact that it would have been his third and final series provisional, he instead turned it down to allow somebody to use it who could actually “race” with it rather than just making a lap or two. How ironic that the next driver in line for that provisional was Todd Malmstrom…..SPI drivers swept the three transfer spots in heat race number two, but only after a thrilling last lap move that saw Jason Rauen and Andy Eckrich power by Shawn Mulvaney for second and third at the finish. Dan Shelliam was the winner…..I’d just like to toss this in here. Watching Jason Rauen run the cushion anywhere is more than worth the price of admission. They don’t call him “Hammer Down” for nothing!…..The third heat race saw T.J. Criss make a great move off turn four to steal away the final transfer spot from Rick Wendling. For Criss it was a great way to make his first feature race in the first five events of the series and for Wendling it was a disappointing ending after making a great run forward after starting ninth…..Defending series champion Jeff Aikey came from ninth to finish third in heat race number four and I already mentioned above that Ray Guss Jr. stormed through the field in the fifth heat taking the lead on lap four after starting eighth. The action was intense in all five Late Model heats…..While Mike Murphy Jr. drove off with the win in the first B-Main the third and final transfer position was determined coming off of turn four to the checkers when Nate Beuseling threw a nasty slider, including a bit of contact, on Justin Kay…..The second B-Main saw veteran driver Greg Kastli make his first Deery show of 2010 by holding off Mark Preston for the final transfer…..Tyler Bruening earned the Hard Charger provisional while Jason Frankel and Malmstrom started based upon series points…..Tom Darbyshire was scheduled to start the A-Main in row five, but when the oil light came on as he fired up the engine to head to staging it revealed problems that would force him to jump into Mark Preston’s #57 at the last moment. During the early red-flag for Blum’s accident Preston told one of Darbyshire’s crewmen to go tell him to strap in and race it, but Tom chose to pull in after another lap or two rather than risking damage to the equipment of the generous driver who loaned him the ride…..Guss started seventh and Burgtorf started sixth following the redraw fro the main event. With Darbyshire dropping to the back for the start, Murphy started his impressive run to the front from the outside of row seven. Eckrich started tenth and Aikey started twelfth…..Burgtorf recalled at least two previous trips to Dubuque. One for a Busch All Star Tour race back in the last '80s and another he thought in 2001, "but that was before they had this wall all the way around it.".....Justin Reed was listed in eighth on the series point list coming into the evening, but chose to race both his Late Model and the Dunker racing Modified at his hometown track in Quincy Sunday night. He ran second to Denny Woodworth in the Late Model and finished fourth in the Modified…..Thirty-one drivers have the J&J Steel Ironman perfect attendance record so far through five events…..The only negative on the night for me at least was the fact that the speaker system was not functioning well which meant that I could not hear the work of Eric Huenefeld, one of the top announcers in the area…..Simmons Promotions has a couple of big Open Late Model shows paying $10,000-to-win coming up on April 30th at Farley and on May 1st at West Liberty.

Long Puts The "Smackdown" On IMCA Mod Field At Lee County

The Discount Tire and Service IMCA Modified “Smackdown” kicked off the 2010 season at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson Saturday night with Michael Long in the Discount Tire and Service #18 taking home the big money.

Track announcer Dewain Hulett had me handle most of the booth duties on the night while he picked up some interviews during caution and talked with the winners in victory lane. So, with just over one hundred cars in action and with the show moving right along at good clip like it always does at Donnellson, I did not have any time to take detailed notes on the night so what follows are some general observations as I review the results.

A solid field of thirty-seven IMCA Modifieds were on hand for what I hope will become an annual event with $2,000 plus lap money going to the winner. Sean Jerovetz of Sobieski, Wisconsin, made the longest pull in for the event and he finished thirteenth in the main event. Other long distance travelers included Nate Caruth from Ames, Mark Elliott from Webster City, Troy Cordes from Raymond, Mark Schulte from Delhi, Scott Hogan from Vinton, Jeff Morris from Long Grove and Max Corporan from Marion.

As the final event of the night, the Modified feature looked like it might be a parade around the bottom line as a nice strip of moisture down there made it the preferred groove. But when Michael Long, Josh Foster and several more drivers stepped out of line early the track widened out nicely and Long eventually made his pass of leader Rich Smith using that higher line around the speedway. Smith, who picked up quite a bit of lap money himself, held off Foster to finish second while Scott Hogan and Mark Elliott rounded out the top five.

Michael Long makes the winning move around Rich Smith - Barry Johnson photo

Corey Dripps was leading the first heat of the night before smoke billowed out of his #31 car. He then stepped into the #25T of teammate Duane Peterson and finished third in the B-Main after starting fifteenth. Dripps then came from 22nd to finish 11th in the feature.

Jacob Waterman of Milan, Illinois, made his first trip to Donnellson after winning the IMCA Modified feature the night before in Davenport. As a testament to the highs and lows of this sport, Waterman broke in his heat race and was finished for the night.

Twenty-eight SportMods were on hand and while they struggled a bit with cautions come feature time, the racing action that they provided was pretty good. Phillip Cossel picked up the victory holding off a late charge from Jim Gillenwater, however Gillenwater would later be disqualified during post-race tech. Michael Bliven, Kurt Hogan, Cayden Carter and Thad Gaylord would complete the official top five. The car count was bolstered by several drivers who will be racing every Wednesday night at Oskaloosa and you may see them at Donnellson on the Friday nights when Bloomfield is not racing as that track is running a limited schedule in 2010.

Three-wide action at Donnellson with eventual winner Phillip Cossel working the inside against Michael Bliven (20) and Bob Lynch (41) - Barry Johnson photo

Derek Kirkland of Centerville topped the field of twenty-one Hobby Stocks proving that a 9:1 compression motor can win here. Kirkland had the father and son duo of Dan and Jake Wenig working on him late in the feature race only to have both of them falter at the same time with two laps remaining. Jim Lynch would bring his sharp looking #66 in for second followed by Andy Coleman, Dale Porter and Jake Wenig. I’m pretty sure that Coleman and Porter, plus the sixth and seventh place finishers of Donovan Nunnikhoven and T.J. Henderson were also running 9:1 motors. Derek Kirkland (2K) races with early challenger Jeremy Pundt - Barry Johnson photo

Fifteen of the four cylinder “Wild Things” were also in action and it was James Oliver III who walked away from the field in his #10 car that is currently sporting a “For Sale” sign. Jerry Ostby and John Helenthal finished second and third while Kimberly Abbott was fourth. The Wild Things were a late addition to the schedule thanks to some purse sponsorship by Abbott’s 71 Racing Team and others. This division has a definite “family” feel to it as Ostby’s daughter Dani Kimball and her uncle Bill Michel were also in competition. What better way to market a car than to put it in victory lane like James Oliver III did at Donnellson - Barry Johnson photo

The Lee County Speedway returns to “Friday Night Thunder in the Heartland” on April 23rd with the first night for track points featuring the Ideal Ready Mix and Trump Trucks “Drive for Five” for the IMCA Late Models with $1,000 going to the feature winner. Details can be found at www.leecountyspeedway.com