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Racesaver Nationals

by Greg Soukup

 

 

COVID-19 has wreaked havoc around the world, affecting the lives of people everywhere. We dirt track fans have felt those effects in a different way than most folks, losing the chance to attend so many of our favorite events. The Knoxville Nationals, the Kings Royal and World 100 at Eldora, the Gold Cup and so many other crown jewel events of the dirt track world were postponed or rescheduled due to the pandemic.

Luckily though, the biggest sprint car race in the world was able to be run without a hitch. The 8^th Annual IMCA Sprint Car Racesaver Nationals, powered by Sunbelt Rentals did suffer in one way, the car count this year was lowered to just 89 teams arriving from across the country; towing in toEagle Raceway to compete on the challenging high-banked bullring..

Although the competitor count was lowered, there were 3 increases over the Labor Day weekend. The temperatures, the crowd in the stands and the excitement all went up throughout the 4-day event.

Teams began arriving early in the week to be sure that their mounts passed the stringent tech required prior to competing, but the first cars didn’t get to hit the track until Thursday. Several hours of hot laps allowed the visitors to become acclimated to the track and familiarize themselves with its intricacies. That was followed by qualifying for the Jake Ita Memorial Race of Champions. 4 heats set up the field for the actual race which was run Saturday after the final feature.

Friday was the first night of racing, and it set up the first three rows of the Big Dance. The fans enjoyed the mid-80’s temperatures and breezy conditions. They saw 11 heats and 6 preliminary features prior to the final competition of the night. Ethan Barrow of Bloomington, Indiana took advantage of starting on the pole and was first back to the flag stand to lead lap #1 of the A Main. Despite heavy challenges from local drivers Tyler Drueke and Joey Danley, Barrow managed to stay out front and take the checkers in a non-stop 25 laps. That put Barrow, Drueke and Danley on the front row for Sunday. Spots in the second and third rows for Sunday were snagged by Olivia Minnesota’s Trevor Serbus, Cody Ledger from Omaha Nebraska, Jake Bubak from Lubbock Texas, Trevor Grossenbacher from Panama Nebraska, Dustin Stroup from Fremont Ohio, and Chad Wilson from North Richland Hills Texas.

Although Barrow has been a regular at the IMCA Sprint Car Racesaver Nationals, this was his first time starting on the pole for the Big Dance on Sunday. “It was AWESOME! The car was good, I was good, and I was really proud of the win. I love coming in here. We won the last two shows at home and we just knew that we were really good. We kept our patience and knew that if we put our heads down that we were going to be pretty tough to handle. It feels great to start on the pole for Sunday. Last year we started second row outside. The way we ran tonight and with how fast we were, I know that we can run with those guys and stay up there and have a good shot to win. Starting up front means great track position and it’s so important especially when the race goes green to checkered like this race. We’re sitting pretty good” he said.

Saturday’s temperatures in the mid-90s kept the track crew very busy making sure that the racing surface was refreshed and racey right up to the last checkered flag.Local racers held the top 3 spots after the first circuit with Jason Danley, Mark Pace and Toby Chapman out front. Chapman hounded Danley until passing him on lap 16. Bradley Sterrett from Bloomington Indiana jumped into third the next time around. The top 3 were nose to tail with 6 to go and flying around the high banks! Danley bobbled on the final lap, allowing Chapman to sneak under him for the lead and hold on to take the victory in yet another green to checkers finish. The top 9 who would take the fourth through sixth rows on Sunday were Chapman, Jason Danley, Sterrett, Claud Estes III from Godley Texas, Pace, Crete Nebraska’s Jason Martin, Chad Koch from Murdock Nebraska, Jay Russell out of Wathena Kansas and Stu Snyder from Lincoln Nebraska.

Chapman said “We were a little snug at the start, but it freed up enough that we started running Jason down. I wasn’t sure if I was going to catch him or not because he had pretty much a straightaway on me when I got to second. We hit lapped traffic and I snuck underneath him one time, then he chopped me off going into turn three. He went to the bottom and I was able to get a good run on him then. He caught a rut and it shoved him up out of his line, so I slid underneath him and got him! That was it and it was over. The track was great tonight. I really have to give it to Roger Hadan and the track prep crew”.

The Jake Ita Memorial Race of Champions was the finale for the evening. Jake Bubak led Vidor Texas’ Jacob Harris and Jason Martin at the outset. Martin passed Harris on lap 7 and began his pursuit of Bubak. Darren Bolac from Moyock North Carolina flipped his sprinter with 8 to go to slow the action. With Martin hot on his tail tank Bubak held off every challenge to hold on for the win. Martin and Papillion Nebraska’s Clint Benson rounded out the podium.

Bubak said “It definitely helped starting on the pole. I think Jason came through there pretty good from a ways back. I start second row outside for the A tomorrow night in 6^th. That’s a decent spot because we’re not in the middle. Last year we started on the pole and had to take off in a greasy spot so that hurt us. I’m hoping that starting on the outside will be beneficial for us”.

Sunday saw a huge crowd show up under sunny skies and temperatures pushing 100 degrees, but nothing was going to stop them from witnessing what everyone knew would be a battle to the finish for the championship belt and $2500 top prize. The best of the best in the Racesaver series were about to take off in a 3-wide start to the 30 lap finale and the excitement which started off at a fever pitch built through the preliminary features as the final 9 drivers made the A Feature. Combine Texas’s Casey Burkham, local Adam Gullion and Doug Lovegrove, Zach Blurton from Quinter Kansas, Neil Nickolite from Bellwood Nebraska, John Ricketts from Burleson Texas, locals Clint Benson and Ryan King and Dusty Ballenger from Harrisburg South Dakota were those 9 and tagged the field after transferring from the B Main.

When you see 27 sprints line up 3-wide on a track that is just begging to be conquered your heart rate increases whether you’re a fan or actually part of that lineup! It was finally time to see who would come out on top.

The Big Dance seemed to be a ‘It looks like’ event. Ethan Barrow jumped out to the lead from the pole position and it looked like he might be able to repeat his Friday win in similar fashion. Joey Danley, Trevor Serbus and Jake Bubak rounded out the top four after lap #1. Tyler Drueke got past Bubak on lap 2 to put the 12 in fourth. The leaders encountered lapped traffic on the 7^th circuit and began to work their way through it. Danley looped it on lap 15, moving Drueke to third and Bubak back into fourth. Drueke dropped back on the restart allowing both Bubak and Grossenbacher to move up to third and fourth. Lap 18 saw the center of Barrow’s right rear wheel break out, sending him into the turns 1 and 2 wall. That allowed Serbus to inherit the lead with Bubak moving to second, Grossenbacher in third and the 21X of Dustin Stroup moving to fourth. Cody Ledger from Omaha Nebraska jumped the cushion on the restart, climbing and then riding along the wall before rolling over in turn 2. The subsequent restart saw Chad Wilson pass Stroup but lose the spot back to him after another circuit. It looked like Serbus was going to get his first Racesaver Nationals win, but Bubak got a great run on him with 6 to go and snagged the lead. Stroup moved up to third 3 laps later. It looked like Bubak had it won, but on the last lap Grossenbacher made a big move to try and get past Bubak. Unfortunately, the effort ended up costing him not just the win but forced him to fall back to the fourth position.

Grossenbacher told me “We were really coming there at the end. We hit lapped traffic and were getting closer and closer. We were coming to the white flag lap. Jake messed up in three and four and jumped the cushion. I thought to myself ‘Here’s my chance’ so I turned down, he got sideways and we bumped into each other. I ended up going through the infield and luckily salvaged a fourth out of the deal. When you’re in that position you have to go for it! We got second lastyear, and I didn’t want to do that again. I’m sure there are no hard feelings between me and Jake; it was just a racing deal. I would have done the same thing. Congratulations to him. We’ll get it one of these years. Every year we come to the Nationals with the intention to win, and we’re going to get it done; hopefully, next year”.

This marked the first ever IMCA Sprint Car Racesaver Nationals win for Bubak and came after winning his second consecutive Jake Ita Memorial Race of Champions victory the night before. His win came from outside the second row of the 3-wide start. When questioned about what it was like to finally win the Nationals he stated “It was a big relief. We’ve been pretty close the last few years, the last 2 years we’ve been pretty decent but before that we just hadn’t had much success. It was nice to come and have a solid weekend again”.

I next asked him about his starting spot on the grid and he said “I didn’t mind starting in the second row, I just didn’t want to start in the middle. But as I told another racer ‘It’s the same for everybody’ so we just go along with it. We had a great weekend for sure. I’m just happy that we were able to capitalize on the opportunity and win the race. We enjoy coming to Eagle Raceway. It’s a track that I feel we do fairly decent at every time. Even if we have to start far back, we always find our way to the front. It’s a fun track!”.

I mentioned that he got some luck when the leaders dropped out. “Joey ended up bouncing and then spinning out and then Ethan breaking that wheel center was really unfortunate for him. Honestly, I’m not sure if we would have had anything for Ethan or for Joey. We were pretty decent in the feature, but I don’t feel like we were quite as quick as those two. Once they dropped out, we were able to get by Serbus in lapped traffic. The way the track was and how deep the cushion was in three and four I kept getting really tight over there. Coming into the last two corners I was getting close to a lapped car. I couldn’t enter as fast as I would have liked to and got really tight. Trevor got next to me and we bounced off of each other there. It was a nerve-wracking last lap for sure, especially going in there and seeing Trevor sliding across but we held on for the win”.

“I want to send out a big thanks to Mike and Melissa Meyer and Ron and Jean Sardeson for everything they do to help us out. Ben Aufill my car owner gives me great equipment and an opportunity to be able to drive for him. His car and his whole program are pretty stout!! It deserves to win every race that it goes to for sure”.

As you can see, the entire weekend was full of action and excitement. Hard fought battles were waged every night because your finishing spot means so much come Sunday. A fantastic time was had by racers and fans alike.

Can Jake Bubak make it 2 in a row, or will Trevor Grossenbacher finally lose his bridesmaid status? To find out, you need to start planning to make the trip to Eagle Raceway next September 3^rd through the 6^th, because if you don’t you’ll be missing one of the best sprint car shows in the world!!!

 

   Contact g_soukup@hotmail.com