So just how blessed are you feeling today if you hold a season ticket in this section of Assembly Hall at the University of Indiana? And I read this morning that this eight foot long, fourteen inch wide, fifty pound piece of aluminum was "ornamental", not essential to the structure of the building. Hey thanks architects for including some decorations of death in the design of the place!
This is the second instance in the past few years where a University of Iowa athletic team was, in a way, involved with heavy objects falling from above. Remember the Insight Bowl when ESPN's overhead camera crashed to the turf just a couple of feet behind Marvin McNutt? And it was just last May when ten race fans were injured at the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte when a cable snapped on the overhead camera sending debris into the stands and onto the track.
I must admit that I a am a bit of a worrier to begin with, so when things like this happen I definitely take notice. When I was in high school we played one basketball game on a court that had an overhead scoreboard and I swear that I thought about it coming down on me with each transition. My coach told me afterward that he had never seen me get up and down the court so quick before and of course I did not let him know of my motivation. When you see me at the race track you will notice that more often than not you will find me sitting toward the turn one end of the bleachers or grandstands. It is all about the physics of what direction something will fly if it happens to come off of a car at certain points on the track.
Even if I were the biggest Hoosier fan around and all decked out in crimson and cream, there is no way that I would step foot in Assembly Hall again, at least until they took down the decorations!
There have definitely been some interesting winners so far down in Florida. First off I think that it is fantastic that Steve Kinser scored a victory very early on during his final season with the World of Outlaws. It just would not have been right to have "The King" go winless this year and hopefully he will be found in victory lane another time or two as the farewell tour rolls on.
In the Late Models we have seen names such as Eddie Carrier Jr. and Bobby Pierce as perhaps being unexpected winners at East Bay while with a win at Ocala, plus several other top five finishes Wisconsin's Brady Smith just might be having the best Speed Weeks of any Late Model competitor. But the surprise factor has definitely gone up a notch on the first two nights at Volusia as first local driver Ivedent Lloyd Jr. raced to the win on Monday night and then last night it was Delaware racer Kenny Pettyjohn in victory lane. For fans who have watched these two race locally over the past several years, their wins on a national stage were likely not that big of a surprise as both have been dominant at times over their regular competition.
The key to a Late Model victory at Speed Weeks this year? Earning a front row starting spot. Twelve of the fifteen Super Late Model feature events contested thus far have been won from a front row starting spot. Not that the racing has been bad, it just hasn't seen many stirring charges from deep in the pack. Billy Moyer won from fourth on Tuesday at East Bay, Brandon Sheppard came from fifth to win on Saturday in Ocala and Darrell Lanigan started third on his way to collecting $12,000 from Bubba The Love Sponge on Sunday night. I still believe that a change in format would improve the situation.
We are enjoying our second straight day of sunshine and temperatures in the mid to high 40's with rain and potential thunderstorms in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow. Unfortunately the temps are supposed to drop again and run twenty degrees below normal for all of next week putting many of the early season specials on the schedule in jeopardy. Hopefully things straighten out soon and the Scotland County Speedway in Memphis can be put together in time for their show on March 21st and 22nd and that both 34 Raceway near Burlington and the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson can run their events scheduled for the final weekend in March. If not, you can bet that many of us will be looking to the south and west where the snow cover is already gone (at least as of today) to get that early season fix. Keep an eye on the Calendar page at Positively Racing as we continue to add events to the Specials schedule and we hope to see you somewhere on the Back Stretch!
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Saturday, February 15, 2014
National Dirt Late Model Points Through 2/14
The following standings also include East Bay's 2/15 day race won by seventeen-year-old Bobby Pierce....
Saturday, February 8, 2014
So Who Pays For This?
Yes, it is snowing again in southeast Iowa adding another inch or two to the snow pack that is now about ten inches alongside my driveway. In the past I would have been in, or headed to Speedweeks down in Georgia and Florida right now, but with weather plaguing the early action down there, while it would have been warmer, I am sure that it has to be very frustrating for both the drivers and fans.
Over the past few years I have noticed that when there is a rainout of one of the earlier events that it will often be rescheduled as a day race for either a Saturday or a Sunday resulting in a day/night doubleheader for the track. I have always wondered who is making that call. Is it the series that is dictating that, or does the track promoter make that decision? This question really came to mind yesterday when I saw that the $5,000-to-win Lucas Oil Late Model Series event that had been rained out on Thursday night at Golden Isles Speedway in southeastern Georgia was now being run as a day race with hot laps taking the green around 10:30 a.m. And then later that evening the track would still host the regularly scheduled Friday night $10,000-to-win program.
From the pictures on DirtOnDirt it didn't look like very many fans got the message and, or perhaps the locals might have had to be at work on a Friday as I have seen more people in the stands at a practice night at one of our local tracks. It is too bad that there were not more people to see it as, for a day race, the action was actually two and three-wide behind the leader as Jonathan Davenport cruised to the flag-to-flag victory. Now not only was there the $5,000 Lucas Oil purse structure to pay out, but there was also a $2,500-to-win NeSmith Crate Late Model event running in support with Ray Cook taking the top dollars there so it makes me wonder just who is paying for this decision to run a race on a Friday afternoon? I understand that the drivers need to have some assurance that all of the scheduled shows will be run if at all possible since they are making the investment to travel to Speedweeks, but at what cost to the promoter? Is it the decision of the promoter or the series to run this event? Does the sponsorship of Georgia Boots allow them to take a bigger risk? The Friday night crowd was better, but the stands were far from full so I would assume that it was not a good Friday financially for the track and with scattered rain today and temperatures to dip down into the 40's tonight the hopes for a big Saturday night to make up the difference is slim.
Further south near Tampa the East Bay Raceway fought the weather to get in the opening event of the track's 38th Annual Winternationals schedule as the Open Wheel Modified Nationals that were scheduled to run on Thursday, Friday and Saturday of last weekend ended up being run on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Actually on Sunday the weather was nice and sunny but the track was a wet and rutted up mess so they had to push things to Monday and Tuesday. On Monday night the feature event was checkered flagged after seventeen laps as the fog rolled in with local driver Kyle Bronson taking the win and then on Tuesday night Dale Mathison and Kyle Strickler scored wins in the twin features. In this case there was no series to make demands so it was obvious that the track made the decision to stick it out and put on the show under less than ideal conditions and from some of the video clips that have been shared out on Facebook it is hard to spot even one or two fans sitting in the blue bleachers of East Bay. Besides the winning drivers the only entity that made money on this event was XSAN.
East Bay's Winternationals have continued this week with Crate Late Models and Mod Lites being featured and on Thursday night the 2013 All Iowa Points Mod Lite Champion Josh May from DeSoto was the best of around fifty entries. Jimmy May finished eighth and other Iowa/Illinois drivers in the feature field included Greg Rossell, Ed Zehm, Bryan Zehm and Chase Flatt. The night before on Wednesday, Rossell who is from Knoxville, Illinois, finished second to Ohio's Jeff Teeters while Josh May finished in the fourth position and Chase Flatt (Monmouth IL) was eighth. The Mod Lites run again tonight (Saturday) for their finale at East Bay.
Things aren't much better down in Texas where the USMTS Modifieds have had their opening events postponed on both Thursday and Friday. Todd Staley and crew will try it again tonight in Corpus Christi and then run a show on Sunday as well.
Yes, I will be jealous but I do hope that the weather turns around and allows all of the remaining Speedweeks events to run under dry and warm conditions! And no more rescheduled day races.....
Over the past few years I have noticed that when there is a rainout of one of the earlier events that it will often be rescheduled as a day race for either a Saturday or a Sunday resulting in a day/night doubleheader for the track. I have always wondered who is making that call. Is it the series that is dictating that, or does the track promoter make that decision? This question really came to mind yesterday when I saw that the $5,000-to-win Lucas Oil Late Model Series event that had been rained out on Thursday night at Golden Isles Speedway in southeastern Georgia was now being run as a day race with hot laps taking the green around 10:30 a.m. And then later that evening the track would still host the regularly scheduled Friday night $10,000-to-win program.
From the pictures on DirtOnDirt it didn't look like very many fans got the message and, or perhaps the locals might have had to be at work on a Friday as I have seen more people in the stands at a practice night at one of our local tracks. It is too bad that there were not more people to see it as, for a day race, the action was actually two and three-wide behind the leader as Jonathan Davenport cruised to the flag-to-flag victory. Now not only was there the $5,000 Lucas Oil purse structure to pay out, but there was also a $2,500-to-win NeSmith Crate Late Model event running in support with Ray Cook taking the top dollars there so it makes me wonder just who is paying for this decision to run a race on a Friday afternoon? I understand that the drivers need to have some assurance that all of the scheduled shows will be run if at all possible since they are making the investment to travel to Speedweeks, but at what cost to the promoter? Is it the decision of the promoter or the series to run this event? Does the sponsorship of Georgia Boots allow them to take a bigger risk? The Friday night crowd was better, but the stands were far from full so I would assume that it was not a good Friday financially for the track and with scattered rain today and temperatures to dip down into the 40's tonight the hopes for a big Saturday night to make up the difference is slim.
Further south near Tampa the East Bay Raceway fought the weather to get in the opening event of the track's 38th Annual Winternationals schedule as the Open Wheel Modified Nationals that were scheduled to run on Thursday, Friday and Saturday of last weekend ended up being run on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Actually on Sunday the weather was nice and sunny but the track was a wet and rutted up mess so they had to push things to Monday and Tuesday. On Monday night the feature event was checkered flagged after seventeen laps as the fog rolled in with local driver Kyle Bronson taking the win and then on Tuesday night Dale Mathison and Kyle Strickler scored wins in the twin features. In this case there was no series to make demands so it was obvious that the track made the decision to stick it out and put on the show under less than ideal conditions and from some of the video clips that have been shared out on Facebook it is hard to spot even one or two fans sitting in the blue bleachers of East Bay. Besides the winning drivers the only entity that made money on this event was XSAN.
East Bay's Winternationals have continued this week with Crate Late Models and Mod Lites being featured and on Thursday night the 2013 All Iowa Points Mod Lite Champion Josh May from DeSoto was the best of around fifty entries. Jimmy May finished eighth and other Iowa/Illinois drivers in the feature field included Greg Rossell, Ed Zehm, Bryan Zehm and Chase Flatt. The night before on Wednesday, Rossell who is from Knoxville, Illinois, finished second to Ohio's Jeff Teeters while Josh May finished in the fourth position and Chase Flatt (Monmouth IL) was eighth. The Mod Lites run again tonight (Saturday) for their finale at East Bay.
Things aren't much better down in Texas where the USMTS Modifieds have had their opening events postponed on both Thursday and Friday. Todd Staley and crew will try it again tonight in Corpus Christi and then run a show on Sunday as well.
Yes, I will be jealous but I do hope that the weather turns around and allows all of the remaining Speedweeks events to run under dry and warm conditions! And no more rescheduled day races.....
|
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Cumulative All Iowa Points for 410 Sprint Cars 2000 through 2013
| All Iowa Points | 410 Sprint Cars | Total Points | ||
| Pos | Driver | Hometown | 2000 - 2013 | |
| 1 | . | Terry McCarl | Altoona | 877 |
| 2 | . | Mark Dobmeier | Grand Forks ND | 627 |
| 3 | . | Danny Lasoski | Dover MO | 429 |
| 4 | . | Gregg Bakker | Sioux Falls SD | 356 |
| 5 | . | Brian Brown | Grain Valley MO | 352 |
| 6 | . | Donny Schatz | Fargo ND | 297 |
| 7 | . | Chad Meyer | Sioux Falls SD | 253 |
| 8 | . | Dusty Zomer | Sioux Falls SD | 251 |
| 9 | . | Jake Peters | Sioux Falls SD | 247 |
| 10 | . | Steve Kinser | Bloomington IN | 240 |
| 11 | . | Kerry Madsen | Sydney AUS | 226 |
| 12 | . | Lynton Jeffrey | Sydney AUS | 225 |
| 13 | . | Don Droud Jr. | Lincoln NE | 220 |
| 14 | . | Justin Henderson | Sioux Falls SD | 207 |
| 15 | . | Craig Dollansky | Elk River MN | 184 |
| 16 | . | Skip Jackson | Sydney AUS | 184 |
| 17 | . | Joey Saldana | Brownsburg IN | 175 |
| 18 | . | Wayne Johnson | Oklahoma City OK | 174 |
| 19 | . | Sammy Swindell | Bartlett TN | 172 |
| 20 | . | Billy Alley | Lincoln NE | 162 |
| 21 | . | Gary DeWall | Jackson MN | 130 |
| 22 | . | Jason Meyers | Clovis CA | 124 |
| 23 | . | Brooke Tatnell | Sans Souci AUS | 120 |
| 24 | . | Tim Shaffer | Aliquippa PA | 118 |
| 25 | . | Ricky Logan | Little Rock AR | 115 |
| 26 | . | Micah Schliemann | Sioux Falls SD | 109 |
| 27 | . | Scott Winters | Butterfield MN | 109 |
| 28 | . | Mark Kinser | Bloomington IN | 108 |
| 29 | . | Shane Stewart | Bixby OK | 101 |
| 30 | . | Jody Rosenboom | Rock Rapids | 99 |
| 31 | . | Davey Heskin | St. Michael MN | 96 |
| 32 | . | Clint Garner | Sioux Falls SD | 92 |
| 33 | . | Johnny Herrera | Albuquerque NM | 92 |
| 34 | . | Daryn Pittman | Owasso OK | 91 |
| 35 | . | Tim Kaeding | San Jose CA | 82 |
| 36 | . | Jeff Mitrisin | Oskaloosa | 80 |
| 37 | . | Travis Cram | Snohomish WA | 79 |
| 38 | . | Jac Haudenschild | Wooster OH | 78 |
| 39 | . | Bronson Maeschen | Knoxville | 77 |
| 40 | . | Dennis Moore Jr. | Grinnell | 77 |
| 41 | . | Paul McMahan | Nashville TN | 77 |
| 42 | . | Calvin Landis | Phoenix AZ | 74 |
| 43 | . | Ian Madsen | St. Marys NSW | 74 |
| 44 | . | Austin McCarl | Altoona | 60 |
| 45 | . | Kaley Gharst | Decatur IL | 55 |
| 46 | . | Travis Whitney | Fridley MN | 55 |
| 47 | . | Jason Johnson | Eunice LA | 54 |
| 48 | . | Stevie Smith | New Oxford PA | 54 |
| 49 | . | Wade Nygaard | Fargo ND | 50 |
| 50 | . | Brent Antill | Huxley | 49 |
| 51 | . | Kraig Kinser | Bloomington IN | 47 |
| 52 | . | Randy Hannagan | Sacramento CA | 44 |
| 53 | . | Tyler Walker | Los Angeles CA | 44 |
| 54 | . | Mike Reinke | Howards Grove WI | 43 |
| 55 | . | Kenny Hansen | Nunda SD | 41 |
| 56 | . | Jeff Shepard | Upperco MD | 40 |
| 57 | . | Matt Moro | Des Moines | 40 |
| 58 | . | Chad Kemenah | Findlay OH | 39 |
| 59 | . | Kevin Swindell | Bartlett TN | 39 |
| 60 | . | Lucas Wolfe | Mechanicsburg PA | 38 |
| 61 | . | Chad Radel | Sioux Falls SD | 37 |
| 62 | . | Jason Sides | Bartlett TN | 37 |
| 63 | . | Lance Dewease | Mechanicsburg PA | 37 |
| 64 | . | John Lambertz | Sioux Falls SD | 36 |
| 65 | . | Randy Anderson | Clarion | 36 |
| 66 | . | Chuck McGillivray | Madison SD | 35 |
| 67 | . | Jason Solwold | Mt. Vernon WA | 34 |
| 68 | . | Dale Blaney | Hartford OH | 30 |
| 69 | . | Jaymie Moyle | Bridgewater AUS | 30 |
| 70 | . | Blake Feese | Saybrook IL | 29 |
| 71 | . | Brad Sweet | Grass Valley CA | 28 |
| 72 | . | Scott Neitzel | Beaver Dam WI | 27 |
| 73 | . | Leonard Lee | Milo | 26 |
| 74 | . | Robby Wolfgang | Sioux Falls SD | 25 |
| 75 | . | Sam Hafertepe Jr. | Sunnyvale TX | 24 |
| 76 | . | Dusty Ballenger | Harrisburg SD | 23 |
| 77 | . | Jerrod Hull | Sikeston MO | 23 |
| 78 | . | Jim Moughan | Springfield IL | 22 |
| 79 | . | Kenny Jacobs | Holmesville OH | 22 |
| 80 | . | Larry Pinegar | Des Moines | 22 |
| 81 | . | Manny Rockhold | Pekin IL | 22 |
| 82 | . | Danny Smith | Danville IN | 21 |
| 83 | . | David Gravel | Waterford CT | 21 |
| 84 | . | Josh Schneiderman | West Burlington | 21 |
| 85 | . | A.J. Bruns | Lincoln IL | 20 |
| 86 | . | Peter Murphy | Sydney AUS | 20 |
| 87 | . | Tony Bruce Jr. | Liberal KS | 20 |
| 88 | . | Andy Hillenburg | Broken Arrow OK | 19 |
| 89 | . | Kyle Larson | Elk Grove CA | 19 |
| 90 | . | Billy Balog | Cameron WI | 17 |
| 91 | . | Colin Northway | Cedar Rapids | 17 |
| 92 | . | Joe Roe | Kenosha WI | 17 |
| 93 | . | John Haeni | Brownsville WI | 17 |
| 94 | . | Terry Reilly | Watertown SD | 17 |
| 95 | . | Bill Boles | Harris | 16 |
| 96 | . | Brian Paulus | Mechanicsburg PA | 16 |
| 97 | . | Jesse Gianetto | Cedar Rapids | 16 |
| 98 | . | Cody Darrah | Red Lion PA | 15 |
| 99 | . | Dustin Selvage | Indianola | 15 |
| 100 | . | Kim Mock | Pleasant Prairie WI | 15 |
| 101 | . | Larry Ball Jr. | Knoxville | 15 |
| 102 | . | Tim St. Arnold | Des Moines | 15 |
| 103 | . | Johnn Cressman | Hartford SD | 14 |
| 104 | . | Brad Furr | 13 | |
| 105 | . | Casey Mack | East Grand Forks MN | 13 |
| 106 | . | Jeremy Campbell | Monroe MI | 13 |
| 107 | . | Cap Henry | Bellevue OH | 12 |
| 108 | . | Marlon Jones | Sioux Falls SD | 12 |
| 109 | . | Randy Nygaard | Hartford SD | 12 |
| 110 | . | Scott Young | Union Grove WI | 12 |
| 111 | . | Steve Ballenger | Harrisburg SD | 12 |
| 112 | . | Steve Meyer | Sheboygan WI | 12 |
| 113 | . | Donny Goeden | 11 | |
| 114 | . | Rob Tvedte | Spirit Lake | 11 |
| 115 | . | Dion Hindi | Albuquerque NM | 10 |
| 116 | . | Fred Rahmer | Salfordsville PA | 10 |
| 117 | . | Gary Wright | Hooks TX | 10 |
| 118 | . | Greg Hodnett | Memphis TN | 10 |
| 119 | . | Jimmy Hurley | Springfield IL | 10 |
| 120 | . | Joey Moughan | Springfield IL | 10 |
| 121 | . | John Sernett | Shakopee MN | 10 |
| 122 | . | Kasey Kahne | Enumclaw WA | 10 |
| 123 | . | Danny Wood | Norman OK | 9 |
| 124 | . | Jesse Hockett | Warsaw MO | 9 |
| 125 | . | Jonathan Allard | Chico CA | 9 |
| 126 | . | Rager Phillips | Pleasantville | 9 |
| 127 | . | Chris Walraven | Knoxville | 8 |
| 128 | . | Dean Jacobs | Wooster OH | 8 |
| 129 | . | Ryan Bunton | Mackinaw IL | 8 |
| 130 | . | Dylan Peterson | Sioux Falls SD | 7 |
| 131 | . | John VanDenBerg | Oskaloosa | 7 |
| 132 | . | Mark Toews | Spirit Lake | 7 |
| 133 | . | Matt Wasmund | Burnsville MN | 7 |
| 134 | . | Scott Biertzer | West Bend WI | 7 |
| 135 | . | Troy Meyer | Worthing SD | 7 |
| 136 | . | Dustin Lindquist | Floodwood MN | 6 |
| 137 | . | Zach Zimmerley | Tigard OR | 6 |
| 138 | . | Ben Wagoner | Emden IL | 5 |
| 139 | . | Donovan Petersen | Brookings SD | 5 |
| 140 | . | Jack Dover | Springfield NE | 5 |
| 141 | . | John Miller | Plankington SD | 5 |
| 142 | . | Keith Kauffman | 5 | |
| 143 | . | Loren Langerud | Harwood ND | 5 |
| 144 | . | Mike Kertschner | Fredona WI | 5 |
| 145 | . | Mike Stefka | Racine WI | 5 |
| 146 | . | P.J. Chesson | 5 | |
| 147 | . | Rob Chaney | 5 | |
| 148 | . | Todd Hepfner | Sussex WI | 5 |
| 149 | . | Paul Nienheiser | Chapin IL | 5 |
| 150 | . | Aaron Berryhill | Broken Arrow OK | 4 |
| 151 | . | Bob Weuve | Newton | 4 |
| 152 | . | Brad Pake | Felton MN | 4 |
| 153 | . | Brandon Wimmer | Fairmount IN | 4 |
| 154 | . | Brian Kristan | 4 | |
| 155 | . | Jimmy Carr | 4 | |
| 156 | . | Jon Agan | Knoxville | 4 |
| 157 | . | Jordan Goldesberry | Springfield IL | 4 |
| 158 | . | Justin Zimmerman | Royse City TX | 4 |
| 159 | . | Logan Forler | Eatonville WA | 4 |
| 160 | . | Mike Goodman | 4 | |
| 161 | . | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Olive Branch MS | 4 |
| 162 | . | Roger Crockett | Medford OR | 4 |
| 163 | . | Ronald Laney | 4 | |
| 164 | . | Ryan Jamison | Mediapolis | 4 |
| 165 | . | Tom Dickerman | Cedar Hill MO | 4 |
| 166 | . | Travis Rilat | Texas City TX | 4 |
| 167 | . | Rico Abreu | St. Helena CA | 4 |
| 168 | . | Ryan Bickett | Ramona SD | 4 |
| 169 | . | Aaron Wendt | Rapid City SD | 3 |
| 170 | . | Bill Rose | Plainfield IN | 3 |
| 171 | . | Brian Ellenberger | Butler PA | 3 |
| 172 | . | Brock Mayes | Bucyrus OH | 3 |
| 173 | . | Butch Hanssen | Rapid City SD | 3 |
| 174 | . | Chuck Swenson | Watertown SD | 3 |
| 175 | . | Dave Uttech | 3 | |
| 176 | . | Jamie Veal | Warnambool AUS | 3 |
| 177 | . | Kody Kinser | Bloomington IN | 3 |
| 178 | . | Matt Folstad | Harwood SD | 3 |
| 179 | . | Seth Brahmer | Wisner NE | 3 |
| 180 | . | Tim Monson | Lakefield MN | 3 |
| 181 | . | Tony Norem | 3 | |
| 182 | . | Cole Wood | Auburn CA | 3 |
| 183 | . | Alex Shanks | Marion IL | 2 |
| 184 | . | Brandon Martin | 2 | |
| 185 | . | Ed Lynch Jr. | Apollo PA | 2 |
| 186 | . | John Pate | Angelton TX | 2 |
| 187 | . | Jon Corbin | Carrollton MO | 2 |
| 188 | . | Jordan Martens | Harrisburg SD | 2 |
| 189 | . | Kelly Kinser | Bloomington IN | 2 |
| 190 | . | Kory Rawstern | Wentworth SD | 2 |
| 191 | . | Lance Blevins | Oklahoma City OK | 2 |
| 192 | . | Len Thompson | 2 | |
| 193 | . | Mark Shirshekan | Farmington MO | 2 |
| 194 | . | Mitch Runge | Sioux Falls SD | 2 |
| 195 | . | Robbie Standridge | Springfield IL | 2 |
| 196 | . | Ryan Anderson | Charter Oak | 2 |
| 197 | . | Ryan Farrell | 2 | |
| 198 | . | Steve Gennetten | Versailles MO | 2 |
| 199 | . | Terry Babb | Decatur IL | 2 |
| 200 | . | Tommy Tarlton | Fresno CA | 2 |
| 201 | . | Trevor Green | Two Wells AUS | 2 |
| 202 | . | Caleb Helms | Findlay OH | 2 |
| 203 | . | Chad Blonde | 1 | |
| 204 | . | Chad Hillier | 1 | |
| 205 | . | Cody Hansen | Nunda SD | 1 |
| 206 | . | D.J. Brink | Brandon SD | 1 |
| 207 | . | Dustin Barks | Farmington MO | 1 |
| 208 | . | Jacob Ossenfort | Rapid City SD | 1 |
| 209 | . | Jason Martin | Liberal KS | 1 |
| 210 | . | Jeremy Standridge | Springfield IL | 1 |
| 211 | . | Joe Beaver | Knoxville | 1 |
| 212 | . | Kurt Davis | Milwaukee WI | 1 |
| 213 | . | Lou Kennedy | Winnipeg MAN | 1 |
| 214 | . | Mike Hess | Springfield IL | 1 |
| 215 | . | Mike Moore | Des Moines | 1 |
| 216 | . | Randy Rosenboom | Rock Rapids | 1 |
| 217 | . | Roger Rager | Pequot Lakes MN | 1 |
| 218 | . | Todd Wanless | Sydney AUS | 1 |
| 219 | . | Toni Lutar | White Rock BC | 1 |
| 220 | . | Chris Martin | Ankeny | 1 |
| 221 | . | Danny Holtgraver | Pittsburgh PA | 1 |
| 222 | . | Dave Glennon | Casselton ND | 1 |
Saturday, February 1, 2014
The New "Chase" Format.....
When I first heard about NASCAR's new format for "The Chase" I was less than enthused. But after taking a closer look I must say that I find it very interesting.......up until the last race. You have to love how the new format rewards winning races and it will definitely add a considerable amount of new drama to the earlier events in the chase, but frankly the opportunity for shenanigans during that final event at Homestead will be well beyond what we saw at Richmond last year.
To have four drivers running in one race with the best finisher to take the championship is definitely intriguing, but keep in mind that there will be thirty-nine other drivers out there running around as well. And a significant number of those, as teammates of the chasers, will have a vested interest in the outcome. It would be like the Bruins and Blackhawks playing in game seven for the Stanley Cup and having eighteen other teams on the ice at the same time, playing defense, body checking the contenders and trying to score their own goals. I have always said that golf would be more interesting if you could play defense and this Homestead event will come as close to an equivalent to that ridiculous notion as you can get.
Kudos to the folks at CJ Raceway in Columbus Junction for making an attempt to give the Late Model division an opportunity to run on a semi-regular basis in 2014. The purse has been panned by some of the posters on the internet but at $500-to-win and $100 for tenth it is what this small town Iowa track feels that it can afford. Will it draw a bunch of cars? No, but neither did it when they paid $1,000-to-win at a few specials the past two years. They may have a few less cars, but the bottom line for the speedway will be better at the end of the night, and the fans will get to see some late model racing.
More and more I am seeing people call attention to how forty years ago the Late Models were racing for $500-to-win and while the costs to race have skyrocketed since then, the purses have stayed the same. Well first of all, no the purses have not stayed the same. While the money on top is similar, drivers who finished at the back or failed to qualify took home a $20 or $30 check while today the tow money is twice that or more. And second, just how much more would be able to be paid to two or three classes if we weren't spreading the money out over five, six or seven classes. I am still waiting for the area track (besides Knoxville) that will be bold enough to break away from the "back gate" way of thinking and go to three classes: a premier division, a support division and a true beginner's division for their weekly show. Whoever does it will lose fewer drivers than most would expect from their five or six division days and the more compact show, likely with heat races that matter again, will eventually draw in more fans.
Who will it be? I just hope that I am still around to see it.....
Due to the fact that I have been asked to cast my ballot each week for DirtOnDirt's Top 25 Late Model Rankings this season I am no longer going to track the dirt late model points on a state by state basis this season. (Other than in Iowa and Missouri) Instead I will use a point system that will put more emphasis on higher paying races and I will then use those point standings as my guide to how I will cast my ballot each week. In other words, tabulating the points will force me to look at all of the results, but the actual standings will not necessarily be how I submit my rankings each week. The current standings following the events held in January are below and this is nothing close to what I submitted for the pre-season poll that will be released next week. Enjoy your Super Bowl weekend!
To have four drivers running in one race with the best finisher to take the championship is definitely intriguing, but keep in mind that there will be thirty-nine other drivers out there running around as well. And a significant number of those, as teammates of the chasers, will have a vested interest in the outcome. It would be like the Bruins and Blackhawks playing in game seven for the Stanley Cup and having eighteen other teams on the ice at the same time, playing defense, body checking the contenders and trying to score their own goals. I have always said that golf would be more interesting if you could play defense and this Homestead event will come as close to an equivalent to that ridiculous notion as you can get.
Kudos to the folks at CJ Raceway in Columbus Junction for making an attempt to give the Late Model division an opportunity to run on a semi-regular basis in 2014. The purse has been panned by some of the posters on the internet but at $500-to-win and $100 for tenth it is what this small town Iowa track feels that it can afford. Will it draw a bunch of cars? No, but neither did it when they paid $1,000-to-win at a few specials the past two years. They may have a few less cars, but the bottom line for the speedway will be better at the end of the night, and the fans will get to see some late model racing.
More and more I am seeing people call attention to how forty years ago the Late Models were racing for $500-to-win and while the costs to race have skyrocketed since then, the purses have stayed the same. Well first of all, no the purses have not stayed the same. While the money on top is similar, drivers who finished at the back or failed to qualify took home a $20 or $30 check while today the tow money is twice that or more. And second, just how much more would be able to be paid to two or three classes if we weren't spreading the money out over five, six or seven classes. I am still waiting for the area track (besides Knoxville) that will be bold enough to break away from the "back gate" way of thinking and go to three classes: a premier division, a support division and a true beginner's division for their weekly show. Whoever does it will lose fewer drivers than most would expect from their five or six division days and the more compact show, likely with heat races that matter again, will eventually draw in more fans.
Who will it be? I just hope that I am still around to see it.....
Due to the fact that I have been asked to cast my ballot each week for DirtOnDirt's Top 25 Late Model Rankings this season I am no longer going to track the dirt late model points on a state by state basis this season. (Other than in Iowa and Missouri) Instead I will use a point system that will put more emphasis on higher paying races and I will then use those point standings as my guide to how I will cast my ballot each week. In other words, tabulating the points will force me to look at all of the results, but the actual standings will not necessarily be how I submit my rankings each week. The current standings following the events held in January are below and this is nothing close to what I submitted for the pre-season poll that will be released next week. Enjoy your Super Bowl weekend!
| National | ||||
| Dirt Late Model | ||||
| Pos. | Driver | Hometown | Points | |
| 1 | . | John Blankenship | Williamson WV | 15 |
| 2 | . | Billy Moyer | Batesville AR | 10 |
| 3 | . | Ryan Gustin | Marshalltown IA | 10 |
| 4 | . | Billy Moyer Jr. | Batesville AR | 8 |
| 5 | . | Kent Robinson | Bloomington IN | 8 |
| 6 | . | Jimmy Mars | Elk Mound WI | 6 |
| 7 | . | Shane Clanton | Locust Grove GA | 5 |
| 8 | . | William Thomas | Phenix City AL | 5 |
| 9 | . | Eric Cooley | Fulton MS | 4 |
| 10 | . | R.C. Whitwell | Tucson AZ | 4 |
| 11 | . | Terry Phillips | Springfield MO | 4 |
| 12 | . | A.J. Diemel | Navarino WI | 3 |
| 13 | . | Mark Whitener | Middleburg FL | 3 |
| 14 | . | Ross Martin | Talladega | 3 |
| 15 | . | Tim Fuller | Watertown NY | 3 |
| 16 | . | Tony Toste | Arroyo Grande CA | 3 |
| 17 | . | Brandon Sheppard | New Berlin IL | 2 |
| 18 | . | Lavon Sparks | Phenix City | 2 |
| 19 | . | Travis Carter | Valdosta GA | 2 |
| 20 | . | Chase Junghans | Manhattan KS | 1 |
| 21 | . | Clay Daly | Watsonville CA | 1 |
| 22 | . | Mason Ziegler | Chalk Hill PA | 1 |
| 23 | . | Rhett Carter | Blackshear GA | 1 |
| 24 | . | Todd Morrow | East Ridge TN | 1 |
| 25 | . | Will Vaught | Crane MO | 1 |
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