Hoseheads Sprint Car Photos & News

The World of Outlaws event at Knoxville Raceway last Saturday was a good show. The A-Main was good as Brian Brown lead the first 14 laps until Sammy Swindell used some lapped traffic to take the point and pull away. Sammy looked really good in the feature, it was like he was lurking for the first half of the race and then turned it up a notch. To begin the night I was a little disappointed the track wasn’t faster in time trials as only three cars time in under 15 seconds, and the luck of the draw was critical as Joey Saldana was quick as he came out ninth, Kerry Madsen was second quick (3rd) and Craig Dollansky was third quick (1st). Sammy went out 12th and qualified 16th which was the last spot in the heat inverts. If Ryan Bunton would have been 0.028 seconds quicker, Sammy would have been 17th and buried in the feature. Bout time Sammy had some luck come his way at Knoxville, and that ultimately is what won the feature for him. Sammy won his heat, went from tenth to seventh in the dash, and was in the top three in the feature in no time.

Qualifying is everything in the World of Outlaws format. The heat races only saw one car outside the top two rows advance to the feature as Dusty Zomer raced his way into the show as he passed Dollansky who guess what timed in the top two and was locked into the Dash regardless. Zomer was rewarded with not having to run the B main and with the 21st starting position in the A main. Good thing he raced his way in from the heat or he would have started… oh yeah in 21st anyway. Zomer went from 21st to seventh in the A main. Jason Sides advanced from 23rd to eighth to take the hard charger award. See how lucky you were Sammy?

I was surprised that Saldana went from third to fourth in the feature, and Schatz went from 15th to sixth. Schatz made it to the front at the Nationals last year from that far back.

I think Craig Dollansky is a good pick to win the Nationals.

Brian Brown was impressive but I think he just over drove the car trying the chase down Sammy and fell back to fourth. Still a good run for the Casey’s/FVP team.

Danny Lasoski quietly went from eleventh to fifth. He’s still good.

Steve Kinser started 12th and finished 11th. He raced a lot with Terry McCarl who started tenth and finished 10th. The King has lost his edge at Knoxville the past few years.

Davey Heskin continues to impress me more and more. I think he has a legit shot to win the 410 track championship.

Trey Starks is a 16 year old kid from Washington who had a great showing in his first trip to Knoxville. He was one of the last cars to time trial and qualified ninth, won his heat, third in the dash, and dropped to 16th in the feature. But a helluva showing, especially timing so well late in the order.

What's the deal with the WoO not weighing cars after heat races? If it smells like BS....

I felt for Josh Higday on Saturday night as he won the 360 feature and was disqualified for a unapproved tire that was legal a few years ago but isn’t any longer. Had to hurt for him as he worked hard to put his own team together this year. Nate VanHaafton inherited the win, and he is looking smoother all the time. Carson McCarl drove from 11th to fourth in his first 360 race. Hopefully these guys can give Clint Garner a run this year for the 360 track championship.

Off the track there was a lot of talk about Cody Darrah. Apparently there is a fan out there with a twitter account mocking Darrah and well, he turned up at the hotel in Knoxville and Darrah ended up in cuffs for assault. The track was able to arrange bail so Darrah could race. I feel sad for Cody Darrah, not sorry, but sad. Be professional and don’t stoop to the level of people who have nothing better to do than to talk trash like that. I’m sure it’s aggravating, but assaulting someone isn’t the way to solve things. Darrah is under unrealistic expectations from fans and the media because he drives for Kasey Kahne. For guys like Saldana, Schatz, and Meyers, it took them five years to be a competitive and winning races consistently. Why is Darrah expected to be any different? It’s a lot of pressure to be Cody Darrah’s shoes I’m sure. Hopefully Cody learns from this and it all works out. And hopefully this race fan learned something too. Don’t tweet words your mouth can’t cash.

Can’t wait for this weekend, it should be warmer!

The 2012 Knoxville Raceway 410 season is looking like another good one this year. 24 full-time teams at last count and we will probably have 5 or 6 part time teams we will see on a regular basis. Average car count in 2011 was 28 for weekly KCCS shows. Gone is the nine time track champion of Danny Lasoski as he chases races in Pennsylvania this summer. That leaves the door open for someone else to win the track championship and the top three contenders have to be six time track champion Terry McCarl, 2011 runner-up Dusty Zomer, and Mark Dobmeier. After that I think it’s a scramble for fourth through tenth. And even below the top ten I think there are a couple of teams that could easily get in there. It is an unknown if Kevin Swindell will be back, but rumor has it Ian Madsen is coming back to run full time, but I do not have them factored into the power rankings. I asked the five member BHG power rankings panel to help me come up with a list for the 410 class. These are five well trained race fans with life-long knowledge of racing and communing in their pews at Knoxville for 30 years or more.

Here are the official BHG 2012 Knoxville 410 power rankings presented by Dingus. 1. Dusty Zomer, 2. Mark Dobmeier, 3. Terry McCarl, 4. Austin McCarl, 5. Davey Heskin, 6. Don Droud Jr., 7. Dustin Selvage, 8. Lynton Jeffrey, 9. Kaley Gharst, 10. Bronson Maeschen.

Dusty Zomer may have won the KCCS most seasons with 4 wins, and 11 top tens in 13 races, but it wasn’t meant to be with Lasoski finishing in the top ten 13 times in 13 races with 3 wins. Take out Lasoski and you have to feel like Zomer in the Ingalls #91 car has a strong chance to win the championship. DZ has 9 career 410 wins at Knoxville.

Mark Dobmeier finished fifth in points last year while missing one night. He has 8 career 410 wins at Knoxville and he did well at the end of last year, highlighted with monster showing at the Nationals where he won the feature on his preliminary night and finishing sixth in the big dance Saturday. Momentum will carry him into contending for the championship.

Terry McCarl finished fifth in points last year in the Vermeer 55 car but T-Mac is now back in his own #24 car and I look for him to contend for sure. You can definitely make a case for him to be the favorite, and for what he may lack in equipment or funds, he can make up a lot of that with talent and experience. No doubt about it, he will be the best driver on the track. But can he find the horsepower to stay up front?

Austin McCarl finished sixth in points last year and the Grand View University student is now in his fourth year in sprint cars and shown improvement each year. He qualified for the 12th starting spot in the A-Main of the Nationals last year which ended up with a crash on the first lap, and he was the only driver to pass Shane Stewart all week. Looking for good things out of this kid, and hopefully he will pick up his first 410 win this year, if not two or three wins.

Davey Heskin finished eighth in points last year but if he would have had an engine for twin features night it would have been higher. He has made the A-Main of the Nationals two years in a row and I think he has blossomed into a good driver. He has one career win at Knoxville in a 410, but I think he can win another this year. Good kid too. Very impressed with his demeanor last year as I followed him for a story the week of the Nationals.

Don Droud Jr. is a talented driver, lots of experience, doesn’t tear up equipment, but hopefully Gil Sonner can find a some more power under the hood to get up front and qualify better.

Dustin Selvage will be in his sophomore season in a 410. Good young talent here and is on the verge of a breakout season I think.

Lynton Jeffrey should rebound after a somewhat disappointing 2011, which still found him winning one feature at Knoxville, but 3 finishes of 20th or worse hurt.

Kaley Gharst is back as a Knoxville regular this season driving the Jeremy Scadden #6 sprinter. He has three career 410 wins at Knoxville. A little uncertain how they will perform and how well their equipment is, but he is a proven veteran and glad to have him back.

Bronson Maeschen left the Jordan #1 and is back in his own #96 car this year. Good driver, usually has decent equipment, always qualifies well.

I also look for good things from Josh Schneiderman, Randy Anderson in the Vander Ecken #10, and it sounds like Rage Phillips is back in his own #9 car. Hoping we see Robby Wolfgang to have that breakout season as well if they can find some power under the hood. Rookie of the year contenders are Austin Johnson, TJ Peterson, and Jarrod Schneiderman. Good strong field of cars and I can’t wait to see everyone on the track for opening night on April 21.

Look for Clint Garner to clean up in the 360 class once again. Hopefully contenders Matt Moro, Russ Hall, Jon Agan, Carson McCarl, Jamie Ball, Nate Van Haafton, Dennis Moore Jr., and others can make for an exciting show there. I’m really looking forward to seeing the growth and improvement of Carson and Jamie this year.

In the 305 class we will have Larry Ball Jr as the favorite there, but look for his toughest competition to be Tasker Phillips, Mitchell Alexander, Matt Stephenson, Matthew Stelzer, and a wide open field including nine rookies.

As of right now, the 305 class has the 360 class outnumbered 25 to 20 this season. If you’re going to race for fun, entry level, and at a lesser cost, 305 is the answer. You don’t race for much money ($400 to win) but I think the 305 is going to become what the Sport Mod division has become for IMCA racing (that is a good thing if you’re not familiar with IMCA). I think this is a sign that more people are realizing that 360 racing isn’t any cheaper than a 410, especially with the 435 LS engine option that has a longer life. I foresee the trend of 360 class dwindling to continue at Knoxville barring some sort of major rules changes.

I can’t wait to walk in on opening night on April 21. I need my fix of tenderloin and chicken bites! And don’t forget that on Sunday the 22nd Knoxville is having a Modified, Sport Mod, Stock Car, Hobby Stock special. See you in the stands!

3/5/12

Over the past year or so I’ve looked into the costs of racing 410 versus 360 sprint cars in depth and from a financial point of view, more and more I can’t understand why so many owners are electing to race 360’s. The costs are basically the same other than a 360 engine will save you some rebuilds throughout the season. Now that the season is underway for the World of Outlaws and ASCS we’ve been able to see how many teams plan to run both series’ full time.

As of my count there are 17 drivers trying to run the full 63 race ASCS schedule. Gary Wright, Jason Johnson, Brady Bacon, Tim Crawley, Jack Dover, Tony Bruce Jr., Brad Loyet, Logan Forler, Seth Bergman, Wayne Johnson, Johnny Herrera, Dustin Morgan, Zach Chappell, Derek Hagar, Matt Covington, Aaron Reutzel, Austen Wheatley. Keep in mind ASCS lost last season’s champion Shane Stewart and Jeff Swindell.

The World of Outlaws has 10 full-time racers. Joey Saldana, Donny Schatz, Steve Kinser, Craig Dollanksy, Kraig Kinser, Kerry Madsen, Chad Kemenah, Cody Darrah, Lucas Wolfe, and Bill Rose. Most races will have 4 or 5 part-time teams. Sammy Swindell, Jason Sides, Stevie Smith, Brad Sweet, Brian Brown, Terry McCarl, Shane Stewart, and you can throw in Tony Stewart as well.

ASCS will run 63 nights for $4,000 to win and $400 to start.
WoO will run 75 races that pay $10,000 to win and $800 to start.

ASCS team based in Tulsa, OK would travel 19,109 miles for the season.
WoO team based in Indianapolis, IN would travel 26,620 miles for the season.
Difference of 7,511 miles, which is approximately $4,000 in diesel fuel.

ASCS lets teams change tires any time you push off (there goes your fuel savings).
WoO makes you run one tire all night.

ASCS charges more money for pit passes and to draw your pill. Do more people think the “draw” format is more fair than qualifying? Suddenly that 6 invert in a dash race with the WoO doesn’t sound so bad. For what a team would save in engine rebuilds with a 360 motor, you could recoup that money racing with the WoO with less travel, cheaper pit passes, and no pill draws. So why are more teams racing with ASCS?

MY CONCLUSION: People race to win.

You want to compete against the TSR and KKR teams of Kinser, Schatz, Saldana, Darrah, and Sweet, and throw in Sammy most nights…. then get your butt handed to you on the PA swings? Most teams would struggle to stay in the top ten. Or would you rather roll the dice on a pill draw and try to win a handful of races a year?

I look at my local track at Knoxville. Why else would there have been 20 cars racing in the 305 class for $400 to win at the end of the 2011 season? It’s not like they were there to race for milk money. I think most people decide what to race (when it comes to traveling a national series) where they think they can WIN within the budget they have. Whether that is a go-kart, hobby stock, modified, late model, or sprint car. But I still don’t understand how you can make a profit from being a full time race car driver. Not without sponsors.

The chances of all 17 ASCS teams making all 63 shows are slim. I don’t want to sound like I’m bashing the ASCS or 360 racing, because I love those races like any race fan. I’ve driven a few hours out of my way to see those shows in my day. But I just don’t see how from the money end of it that many teams can survive.

At some point, the 410 organizations are going to have to find a way to get motor rebuilds from 8 races to 20 plus, because if they don’t 410 racing is going to die a slow death across the country. I think John McCoy and Knoxville Raceway are on to something with this 435 LS engine. Hopefully more people see the benefit of using it soon.

Whatever it is Emmett Hahn and ASCS is doing, it seems to be working. He has more cars racing for less money with just as good of a product on the race track in my eyes. You might not see Steve or Sammy at those shows, but its good racing. I’m just glad there is room for both right now.

Knoxville season preview is coming soon….

Hawkeye Ovals 2/19/2012

Now that football is over and we're past the Chili Bowl and indoor events like the Battle at the Barn, and the World of Outlaws season is under way, it seems like I can focus on racing after a break. I'm excited for the breath of fresh air coming to the Hawkeye Ovals in 2012 with new management and promotors at Knoxville Raceway, Osky, and Iowa Speedway.

I think the message at Knoxville is that nothing is really going to change dramatically other than the Friday of the Nationals format. The purse and point structures are the same basically. But I have this feeling as the season goes we'll see something new in how the track operates. I have no idea what that might be, and no insider info, but it's a gut feeling I have, or maybe I'm hoping for. But I sure hope theMarion County Fairboard considers new rest rooms this year as they are sub par for sure.

The changes at Oskaloosa has me excited. With Mike Van Genderen the new man in charge and bringing back IMCA rules I think it will help car counts, and hopefully in the A-Mod division more than any. After a few years of only seeing a handful of modified's for a weekly show, it can't get much worse. Hopefully the IMCA rules entices some drivers from the Des Moines, Boone, and Marshalltown areas to come compete. The schedule has been expanded and there is a new website up and running at www.oskyspeedway.com. I'm hopeful that the Southern Iowa Fair is ready to step the racing program up a notch and I think they are off to a good start bringing in new energy with MVG. I'm not sure I'm a fan of this new four cylinder sport compact class, but the jury is still out. If they were going to add another class, why not add Late Models weekly similar to Des Moines where they race in the May, June, and July months? Just a thought. The Penn Central Mall is Osky will host their annual car show on March 23-25.

Iowa Speedway has a slightly expanded schedule with two NASCAR Trucks and two Nationwide Series' races and adding a weekend of races in September. I think adding another race in the fall is a bad idea once you're into football season. It didn't work well in the past, and I don't see it working any better now, but I guess we'll see how the crowd turnout is. Hopefully the ongoing legal battles between the Clement's and the Mannatt's over terms of the sale of the track doesn't spill over and affect the racing on the track. You can follow that story at www.newtondailynews.com and www.newtonindependent.com. It's an amazing facility in it's seventh racing season now and hopefully the track is rewarded for their patience in the coming year or two with a NASCAR Cup race.

The World of Outlaws started their season off this weekend in Florida. I'm still amazed that two time defending champion Jason Meyers is stepping back from the sport to be closer to home and family. It's the right thing to do, and I admire him for his decision. I don't know how the traveling circus of racers manage their personal lives being on the road so much. I can't imagine how many activities Steve Kinser must have missed with his three children. But with Meyers out of the points race it narrows it down to a dozen drivers; Donny Schatz, Joey Saldana, Craig Dollanksy, Steve Kinser, Kraig Kinser, Stevie Smith, Kerry Madsen, Chad Kemenah, Cody Darrah, Lucas Wolfe, Bill Rose. It's hard to pick against Schatz or Saldana but I'm really pulling for Joey this year. That guy deserves a few breaks to go his way, but he has the car and team to win it. I think Dollanksy is a serious threat to win as well. And of course it will be interesting to see how many times the true Outlaws (Sammy Swindell, Brian Brown, Terry McCarl, Jason Sides, Brad Sweet, and that guy Tony Stewart) show up to spoil the points race for someone.

ASCS has expanded their schedule this year to over 60 races but they are still racing on the western half of the US as they only venture east of the Mississippi river once for a race in Peoria, IL and do not venture into SOD Region in Michigan or Ohio. It almost seems like the ASCS is content to keep the western half of the US and let USAC, the WoO, All-Stars, IRA, Knoxville, and Pennsylvania have their own regions. But that leaves Knoxville right in the middle of all of them.

I'm so ready to see a race in Iowa on any of these Hawkeye Ovals! I'll be putting together my Knoxville season preview next.

By Dan Zimmermann
BHG Chili Bowl Correspondent
I have been home now for 24 hours and have been able to fully digest my first Chili Bowl experience. It is just that, an experience. Sure, there are races going on but the weeklong festivities are much more than just a race. It is a chance to escape the reality of winter for a few days of being with friends from all over the US and beyond. The trade show is large and diverse. It is a great way to spend any leftover Christmas money. The pits are open for those who buy pit passes and I would highly suggest purchasing one. It is the most unique pit experience in racing.
Our hosts for the weekend were Bob McCutchan and Scott Chilcutt. I know I speak for all in our group, we can’t say enough how much we appreciated their hospitality and transportation back and forth from the Quik Trip center. We were able to run into several friends that we normally only see at the Knoxville Nationals or at other racing events during the year. The event has the feeling of a Knoxville Nationals for midgets. Wherever we went, we saw people wearing their racing shirts. Our hotel was full of Chili Bowl fans. One of the best parts of the trip was seeing friends and making new ones.
We left Iowa on Thursday morning with an Arctic blast sending us down I-35. We have only had one measurable snow in Iowa until last week. Of course the second one had to occur the night before we left. Fortunately the 30 mph winds helped blow the snow off of the interstate so we were able to safely arrive in Tulsa. Excitement was at a fever pitch when we arrived in the parking lot. I had an idea of how large the Quik Trip center was but seeing it in person was much more than I could have imagined. The complex the building sits on is also most enormous with a ¾ mile dirt track, water park, baseball stadium, and other pavilions spread around the facility. Inside the Quik Trip center was eye opening to say the least. The track itself sits on about 1/3rd of the floor space. The stands can hold an impressive amount of people. The news estimated 15,000. I’m not sure how accurate that is but I know there are a lot of people there from all over. I was very impressed with a couple other aspects of the Quik Trip center. The place stays very clean, they are very conscious of cleanliness and it was noticeable how well the maintenance crew took care of the facility. The second was the diverse options for eating and drinking that are available there. Prices are similar to what you would pay at a fair. The food was good and you could pretty much find about anything you would be hungry for. I would also suggest paying for pit passes. No place else can you enjoy a beverage of your choice and be front and center with the cars and race teams. There are a few deals to be had on t shirts in the pits. It is a great feeling to add to the racing shirt collection in January!
The racing is the main attraction of course and the Chili Bowl features wall to wall action. To channel my inner Steve Evans, the Chili Bowl is full contact auto racing. The MMA of motorsports and the race track in the Quik Trip center is the octagon. Bumps, spins, crashes, and flips are part of the action. The weekend’s most spectacular flip was performed by Blake Hahn in his Friday heat race. The track was especially tacky in the heats and Blake launched himself off of turn 2 and ended up coming to a stop in turn 3. At one point he completed two mid air flips without touching. The course workers were there quickly and somehow his team miraculously fixed the car in time for one of the C features. Unfortunately for Blake, he would turn the car over in the C feature as well. Joey Moughan went over a right rear and his car tumbled into the catch fence. His roll cage was bent and we hadn’t heard if he was ok. Hopefully he is as it took a while to get his car into a safe position. Before the A main rolled off on Saturday night, 64 cars had gotten upside down. Levi Jones made that 65 on the first lap of the A main after going over a right rear.
Of course great racing is also present and the best races in my opinion were the A qualifiers. The drivers were going all out for those all important starting positions in the A main. The track crew does a great job keeping the track in racing condition. A tractor pulls a sprayer around between heats to keep the racing groves moist and limit the amount of dust that is flying. Earl Baltes would be proud. Wheel banging and bumper crunching slide jobs are part of the excitement. Like any racing, tv can’t really do justice to the amount of action on the track. The cars can reach some pretty serious speed on the Tulsa bull ring. I was impressed by Rico Abreu who was making his first Chili Bowl A main start. I know he had made quite an impression in Australia and he was certainly a hit in Tulsa. He will certainly have a great career in sprint cars and midgets. Fellow Californian and Chili Bowl rookie Richard Vanderweerd was also impressive winning the first B feature. He was the only rookie to make the A main on Saturday night.
Like most big races, the twin B features on Saturday night would feature serious racing for transfer spots and some ruffled feathers in the pits after the races were over. The first B main, Kevin Ramey was running solidly in 2nd place. Coleman Gullick was in the rear of the pack and looped his car in turn 4. Instead of coming to a stop, he tried to do a 360 which went wrong and he drove right into Ramey’s path. Ramey punted him in the rear bumper which caused him to stall. Because he required a push, Ramey was sent to the rear with only a handful of laps left. Obviously upset, Ramey looked to vent his frustrations on Gullick. However the other Klatt entry of Bobby East was in the race and Ramey whacked him instead of Gullick as they had similar tail tanks. The second B main featured similar revenge tactics that were taken up a notch. Excitement was in the air as Jac Haudenschild was on the outside pole. On the initial start, Daryn Pittman stalled coming to take the green. While we were watching that, Haud scattered Indy Race Parts in turn one. Unfortunately he was unable to make repairs and did not make the call for the restart. Brady Bacon and Zach Daum battled for the lead when contact in turn one and two send Bacon on his lid. Back on 4 wheels, Bacon drove into the rear of Daum’s teammate Mike Hess on the restart which sent the 5h spinning and ultimately tipped over. Hess may not have known at the time of the initial incident but he wasn’t going to go quietly. On the next restart he cross checked Bacon in turn 3 sending the Wilke car backwards. Pressure is high to make the A main and it certainly showed on Saturday night.
The A main was a Swindell battle. Sammy gave it his all but could not make a pass for the lead. With 3 laps to go, Sammy got into a lap car down the front stretch that sent his tail end skyward. He fortunately returned the rear tires to the track but that incident eliminated any chance of a pass for the win. The A main was lengthened to 55 laps to honor Donnie Ray Crawford. News of what happened to Donnie started circulating on social media Saturday morning. A sadness was felt by everyone who was part of the event whether they knew Donnie or the Crawfords. Immediately honorariums were put into place. Brian Brown racing contributed $555 for the leader on lap 55 of the A main. The opening ceremonies held several tributes to Donnie. Donna Hahn read a touching poem about Donnie. We were treated to a video of his victory interview from his 2011 Chili Bowl prelim victory. Matt Ward and Blake Hahn carried a banner in honor of Donnie as the driver’s states were being introduced. Matt Ward also drove Donnie’s car in the parade laps before the feature. I can’t imagine what was going through his mind but I know he was very honorable in driving that car. I think all of us in the building carried emotions of sadness during this part of the event. We are all praying for the Crawfords and offer our sincere condolences.
My first Chili Bowl won’t be my last. I think everyone who is an open wheel dirt racing fan should attend this event at some point. Seeing this quality of racing in January is a great way to make winter less painful. The event staff does a tremendous job and being around racing friends whether you know them or not is one of the great parts of the Chili Bowl.

by Hawkeye Ovals Chili Bowl Correspondent Dan Zimmermann

The Bus House Gang is making its first en masse voyage to the Chili Bowl this year. A few of us have made the trek to Tulsa in the past but this is the first year we have a large group headed south out of Iowa. I’ve been attending sprint car races since 1978 but for some reason, this is the first time I’ve went to the Chili Bowl. I’m sure it won’t be the last and I’ll probably be kicking myself for waiting this long to go. For those of us who are rookies, we have heard about what the Chili Bowl is like. We have seen the pictures and watched the races on tv. However, I don’t think we will be able to grasp the enormity of what the Chili Bowl really is. I’ll attempt to bring my view of the Chili Bowl from a first time fan’s perspective including a few photos from our journey. Our gracious hosts for the weekend are Scott Chilcutt and Bob McCutcheon. Hopefully they take some pity on us after their Sooners gave our Hawkeyes a butt kicking in the Insight Bowl. Football is in the rear view mirror now and the only bowl that really matters starts in a handful of days.

The Chili Bowl is a big melting pot, not only of competitors from many racing disciplines but fans from across the country who are dying for some racing. It is hard for me to fathom a racing event with 260+ competitors. I’ve seen the pictures of the pit area with the haulers all parked indoors. I can’t wait to be able to walk through the pit area and soak in the atmosphere. I only wish all my racing friends could be with us on this trip. We know you all will be with us in spirit. The racing at the Chili Bowl is as intense as any race in the world. Luck plays a huge role in a drivers result. The numerous spins, crashes, and flips can ruin an otherwise perfect evening. There will be top flight drivers mired in D, E, F, mains or worse come Saturday night. There will be surprise drivers making the A main and we’ll ask ourselves, how the hell did so and so make the A feature?? I’m excited to see Kyle Larson, Steve Buckwalter, and Tony Stewart wheel their midgets around the bull ring. I can’t wait to watch 10+ hours of racing come Saturday! I’ll try to capture the spirit of the thing and keep things within the boundaries of good taste (had to get a couple Slap Shot references in here). I have made an attempt to rank the top 50 entries coming into the Chili Bowl. Use this information in your fantasy pool at your own risk. To my facebook buddies, I’ll have regular photo updates so check those out. I can’t wait to get the car headed south, lets go racing!!!

BHG Spicy Hot Power Rankings:
1. Sammy Swindell, 2. Kevin Swindell, 3. Tony Stewart, 4. Bryan Clauson, 5. Kyle Larson, 6. Dave Darland, 7. Jerry Coons Jr, 8. Levi Jones, 9. Michael Pickens, 10. Chris Windom, 11. Steve Buckwalter, 12. Darren Hagen, 13. Brad Sweet, 14. Jon Stanbrough, 15. Cory Kruseman, 16. Tracy Hines, 17. Brady Bacon, 18. Shane Cottle, 19. Brad Loyet, 20. Damion Gardner, 21. Nick Knepper, 22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr, 23. Thomas Meseraull, 24. Donnie Ray Crawford, 25. Jason Leffler

I originally wrote this Sep 29, 2011 and it appeared in the December issue of Flat Out. This came from a converstaion I had with a fan during the week of the nationals, and some notes I handed to John McCoy in August. Sounds like he liked my ideas.... Friday night of the Knoxville Nationals has seen a few format changes over the years. Since the race became a four day show in 1975, the Friday show has always been a event for the “non-qualifiers” who were 51st in qualifying points or worse. The idea was to give the slower cars a chance to compete for a little more money, build the car count, and it gave teams a chance to improve their starting position (somewhat) for the Saturday finale. The winner of the Friday Non-Qualifier A-Main has always been award the eleventh starting position in the Saturday C-Main.

But the fans were not happy to pay to see the slower cars only, so tobring more of the bigger names to compete the idea of the Mystery Feature was born in 1979, and then the Race of States was added in 1981. But when some teams refused to race in the special event races in fear of tearing up a car the night before the high paying race the Mystery and States races were tossed aside and the invention of the “Scrambles” was given to us in 1993. The Scrambles was for the top 10 in points of the A, B, and C Mains and gave those cars a chance to “scramble” or improve their starting position on Saturday night by awarding more points and forcing the bigger names to race on Friday. In 1996 the World Challenge was added. This past year promoter Ralph Capatani changed it up again doing away the Scrambles in favor of a Race of Champions. The Champions race was for past Nationals winners, past Knoxville track champions, and champions of other series’ and events across the country over the past year. This was a good event, but with it being a “reverse draw” where you had to give your number to another driver it worked out to be a fun race to watch, but to think those same drivers would be willing to do this again is absurd.

So many race fans complain that the Friday ticket is expensive for only five races on the night and it really has no effect of the outcome on Saturday night and is meaningless. It’s a sham, and a way for Knoxville to force you to see a race that no one cares about. Those are all comments I hear nearly every year throughout the week of the Nationals. And let’s face it, the car count at the Nationals isn’t going to grow, so we don’t even have that many cars to put in to a Non-Qualifiers show. So what does Knoxville do with the Friday show at this point? I have some ideas. One easy solution is to divide the field up on three nights instead of two. 30-35 cars each night wouldn’t water the field down that much. And you run four heats instead of five each night, we would still see good racing.

A more complicated idea is to lock in a lower number than 50 cars from Wednesday-Thursday in to Saturday. Make Friday night mean something and still reward those who do well on their qualifying night. My idea is to only lock in the top 16 in points for Saturday and reward them with taking Friday night off. Everyone else, roughly 80 cars, come back Friday to re-qualify or maybe race for a new night of points and keeping the best of your two totals. Or you could run a split show. Carry over their qualifying times and sort them into a odd and even program of 4 odd heats, 4 even heats, 2 B-Mains, and 2 A-Mains with the top two in each A-Main transferring to the Saturday A-Main in positions 17-20. This would make good racing as everyone is trying to claw their way into the “big dance” on Saturday night, the carrot is dangling for all who come. And the cars finishing 3rd and on back in the Friday A-Main can determine the B, C, D, E on Saturday by finishing order, or points.

And while we’re at it, let’s make the Saturday C-Main 18 or 20 laps instead of 15 to give some drivers a chance to run the alphabet. The days of Doug Wolfgang passing 20 cars in 15 laps in the C-Main are over.

I personally like the 50 laps for the Saturday championship. I think it would be more interesting if you couldn’t change tires though. Let’s run harder tires that last longer and don’t allow as much horsepower to be transferred to the ground and put more emphasis on the skill of the driver.

The 2011 Knoxville Raceway 360 Recap

Clint Garner won his third consecutive 360 track championship this past year in the Boyd and Glenda Fluth owned number 40 sprint car. He assembled 4 wins, 9 top fives, 12 top tens, 5 quick times, in 14 starts. Garner is one of two men at Knoxville to win a 410, 360, and 305 feature (Rim Ridin’ Randy Smith is the other). Powered by his Al Parker engine Garner seems content to compete in the 360 class, but when you’ve won it all and have won two 410 features in the past, why not move back to the 410 class? Garner is clearly the best driver in the 360 class, you can’t take that away from him… until someone beats him. Chad Humston looked like he was going to be there til the end and kept the points race close until the end of the season. Car owner Mark Burch brought in hired gun Danny Lasoski after the Knoxville season to win some ASCS National Tour races. It’s unclear what the future holds for this team, but Humston has impressed me the past two seasons as one of the best drivers at Knoxville, he has just had horrible luck of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. If a break goes his way in lapped traffic, he probably wins the 2010 360 Nationals as he wrecked while leading. Humston had 12 top tens, the same as Garner, but only one win and 7 top fives, and 2 quick times. Hope this team sticks together as they are the best bet to beat Garner, but will Burch stay with Knoxville 360’s or move to something else? The 2008 360 track champion Matt Moro battled back this year to third in points after finishing a disappointing eighth last season. He accumulated 1 win, 8 top fives, 11 top tens, and made 13 of the 14 features. Moro is now a veteran at the track and owns his own equipment. He has 7 career 360 wins and 2 career wins in a 410 at Knoxville. Underrated as a driver who doesn’t get much hype. Russ Hall was fourth in points, up from eleventh a year ago. He also got his first two career wins this year with 6 top fives, and 9 top tens. Hall’s stock is on the rise, looking forward to see what he can do next season. Jon Agan is a owner/driver and a hometown favorite who finished fifth in points is down one spot from last season. Agan won 2 features, but only managed 3 top fives, 11 top tens in 13 features. He also won 4 heat races which is tied with Larry Ball Jr., and Nate Van Haafton for the most this season. Winning heat races is a indicator of poor qualifying putting you on the front row of heat races and that is where Agan lost the most points, as poor qualifying adds up to starting behind the invert most nights in the feature, and the lack of top fives shows he didn’t quite have the car to make the passes but was strong out front. Part of me wonders how good Agan might be if he wasn’t a owner/driver having to protect his equipment. Nate Van Haafton comes home sixth and also got his first career win. Known as a kid who tore up a lot of equipment in past years, Van Haafton grew up before our own eyes this year and showed tons of improvement. He had 11 top tens in 13 starts and raced his way to the front in features after poor qualifying times. We’ll see if he can back it up next season. Dennis Moore Jr. brought the D12 Doc Sloan car home seventh in points. 1 win, 7 top fives, 11 top tens, 13 starts. DMJ is a veteran driver who has yet to win a track championship, but has two 360 Nationals titles. He was ninth in points last season.

My personal awards: 360 Driver of the Year: Clint Garner 360 Most Improved Driver: Russ Hall (11th to 4nd in points, 2 wins) Goody’s Headache Powder Award: Alan Zoutte. He is a better driver than he can show on the track. Very limited funds and he has been racing for a long time. I don’t know if it’s just horsepower or set-up’s but I think he is a better driver than the results show.

305 Recap Carson McCarl started the season on opening night with a win (also becoming the youngest driver to ever win at Knoxville) and finished it with him on top of a season long point battle with Jamie Ball, Tasker Phillips, and Mitchell Alexander came on late in the season. The 305 class grew again this year with 15 cars qualifying for points as only 12 did a year ago. I’m still not quite sure why this class is growing, it’s still expensive to race a 305 car and it only pays $400 to win a race. But it’s also (hopefully) becoming a spring board for the future racers in the 410 class. The talent that kids like Tasker, Jamie, and Carson bring to the track, gave us some of the best races all season and I wish their features were longer than 12 laps. I’m very impressed with Carson McCarl. Racing is their blood and I sure hope the resources are there down the road to see Terry, Austin, and Carson all competing in the 410 class at some point. Merry Christmas to everyone!

2011 Knoxville Raceway 410 Recap

Danny Lasoski owner/driver dominated the Lucas Oil KCCS (Knoxville Championship Cup Series) by winning three features and had an average finish of 3.5. In 13 regular races The Dude finished in the top ten in every feature, and was in the top five 11 times. Nine track championships is an astonishing number and surely will be a record tough to ever match.
Dusty Zomer in the Derek Ingalls owned 91 finished second in points to Lasoski but racked up four feature wins, more than anyone else. With four wins, 11 top tens, 8 top fives, that would be enough to win a championship some years. After finishing ninth in points a year ago it’s hard not to pick Zomer, Ingalls, and crew chief Jeff Woodruff as the most improved driver/team of the year.
Kevin Swindell in the Big Game Treestands 1s car was a surprise to have at Knoxville this season. After finishing 22nd on opening night and only making three of the first five nights of racing, he completed the rest of the season finishing in the top ten in 8 of his last 9 features including two wins, one of which was against the All-Stars. He didn’t have a strong showing at the Nationals but managed to find his way to win the Friday non-qualifying for a third victory. Although it had been a couple of years since Kevin raced a sprint car with a wing, he quickly reacquainted himself with the machine and showed he could hang with the best in the country as the two time Chili Bowl Midget Nationals winner earned Knoxville Rookie of the Year honors.
Terry McCarl drove the Vermeer 55 to 2 wins, 5 top fives, 10 top tens, and finished fifth in points. The six time track champion had a sub average season by his standards. T-Mac is the Joe Frazier of Knoxville, and Lasoski is Ali. These two men are two of the greatest to ever drive a car at Knoxville and their rivalry dates back to 1985.
Mark Dobmeier in the Lunstra 13 sprinter finished fifth in points, down one spot from a year ago. After two wins last season Mark managed two wins again this year, one of them on his prelim night during the Nationals. He had 11 top ten’s in 12 starts, but the one week he missed cost him valuable points. Definitely one of the fastest cars on the track all season.
Austin McCarl in the family owned 17a car climbed from tenth last year to sixth in points this season. He nearly pulled off the win on twin features night but was passed by his old man in the closing laps. 2 top fives, 8 top ten’s, and he made all 13 features. I’m continually impressed with this young man and he gets better, faster, smoother every week it seems. It’s a matter of time before he wins.
Don Droud Jr. in the Gil Sonner 47 has to be disappointed with his season after finishing second in points in 2010 and winning two races, his 2011 stats are seventh in points, no wins, only 2 top fives, 6 top ten’s, but made all 13 features. Droud is a very underrated driver but they seemed a bit slower this year compared to their competition. Hope they can rebound in 2012.
Davey Heskin in Grandpa Maxwell’s 56 has a rough start to his season. Davey was eleventh in points in 2010 and finishes eight this year, but oh how this season could have been better if the luck came their way. He started all ten features he was at the track for, but with no motor they missed twin features night and the week before to cost them valuable points and probably a top five in points. He finished with 4 top fives, 7 top ten’s, and nearly won his Nationals qualfying night feature but came up short to Sammy due to a late restart. Good season for Heskin and his team and if there is one driver at Knoxville I would buy stock in, it’s this kid.
Lynton Jeffrey owner/driver took his number 12 to victory lane once this year, and made 12 of the 13 features. After finishing sixth in points last season and seemed to have momentum going his way, Jeffrey was only able to come up with 5 top ten’s in 2011, and 3 finishes of 20th or worse. It was a disappointing season over all after a couple of successful seasons previously.
Dustin Selvage owner/driver made the jump from 360’s to 410’s this year and he was able to put together a top ten points finish in his rookie season. Normally this would be plenty to earn rookie of the year honors, but he has nothing to hang his head about. 6 top 10’s and made 12 of the 13 features. Good solid season to build off of.
Bronson Maeschen fell from fifth to 11th in points.
Josh Schneiderman fell from eight to 12th in points.
Rager Phillips 14th to 13th.
Mike Moore 12th to 14th.
Robby Wolfgang 13th to 15th.

My personal awards:
410 Driver of the Year: Dusty Zomer (more wins and more entertaining)

410 Most Improved Driver: Dusty Zomer (9th to 2nd in points, 4 wins)

Goody’s Headache Powder Award: Davey Heskin (no motor for twin features cost him a top five in points)

Race of the Year: Midseason Championship June 18th “Revenge Draw”. Zomer and Lasoski are given the 9th and 10th starting spots. Underdog Ryan Anderson gets the front row and is pulling away early, but a caution allows Wayne Johnson to catch him and as Johnson is pulling away his engine leaks a ton of oil and it had some huge flames. Anderson’s engine fails and he goes pit side as well. Zomer inherits the lead after a fierce battle with Lasoski as they climbed their way up to the front of the field, and Zomer held off Lasoski to the finish line.
I’ll put together my 360 and 305 season recap later…. Go Hawkeyes!

360 Knoxville Nationals
by Eric Arnold
8/7/11
Oklahoma driver Shane Stewart found victory lane for the second year in a row in the Arnold Motor Supply 360 Nationals and his third win in the event overall. Stewart lead all 25 laps but was challenged early by Sammy Swindell in lapped traffic. When a yellow came out for Clint Garner spinning in turn one on lap with 9 laps down and 14 laps remaining it gave Stewart clean air and he was able to pull away at the end. Tim Shaffer made a charge from the ninth starting position to climb to second getting passed third place finisher Sammy Swindell with five laps to go.
Stewart gave all the credit to the hard work of his team owner and crew chief Paul Silva. “We’ve got a great team. Paul Silva gives me great cars to drive and we have gelled well the past few years together,” said Stewart. In an era when teams go through drivers and crew chief changes yearly it’s an advantage for teams like Silva and Stewart to be together for three years running now. Second place driver Tim Shaffer concurred. “We have a great team too and Brian (Kemenah) and I have gelled too the past few years and the results speak for themselves,” said Shaffer. Following Stewart and Shaffer were Sammy Swindell, Billy Alley, and Davey Heskin.
The Thursday night preliminary races were postponed due to rain. The Thursday program was then combined with the Friday night program giving race fans a two for one race. Sammy Swindell and Lee Grosz were the preliminary feature winners on Friday while Stewart and Randy Hannagan were able to earn enough points to them on the front row for the championship feature on Saturday night.
Stewart timed qualified third, finished second in his heat race, and third in the prelim feature behind Sammy and Wayne Johnson. That gave Stewart enough points to earn the pole for Saturday. Stewart extended his ASCS National points lead with the win as he is now 142 points ahead of second place Johnny Herrera who had a dismal weekend finishing ninth in the C-Main. Winning the other 360 features were Clint Garner in the B-Main, Henry Van Dam won the C-Main, Joe Beaver won the D-Main, and Ned Powers won the E-Main.
On Saturday night the All Stars Circuit of Champions 410 series was on hand with 49 cars and it was Kevin Swindell picking up his second win of the season at Knoxville in his Parker Performance engine built by Newton engine builder Al Parker. Tyler Walker finished second for the second Saturday night in a row at Knoxville, followed by Danny Lasoski, Tim Shaffer, and Mark Dobmeier rounding out the top five.
Arnold Motor Supply 360 Knoxville Nationals Finish
1. 57-Shane Stewart (Bixby, OK), 2. 83-Tim Shaffer (Aliquippa, PA), 3. 1s-Sammy Swindell (Bartlett, TN), 4. 22-Billy Alley (Lincoln, NE), 5. 56-Davey Heskin (St. Michael, MN), 6. 22h-Randy Hannagan (San Jose, CA), 7. 14T-Brooke Tatnell (Sans Souci, NSW AUS), 8. 38-Wayne Johnson (Oklahoma City, OK), 9. 27-Daryn Pittman (Owasso, OK), 10. 28-Jeff Swindell (Bartlett, TN), 11. 15h-Sam Hafertepe, Jr. (Sunnyvale, TX), 12. 41-Jason Johnson (Eunice, LA), 13. 4b-Eric Baldaccini (Keller, TX), 14. 55-Terry McCarl (Altoona, IA), 15. 11x-Gregg Bakker (Sioux Falls, SD), 16. 1m-Chad Humston (Giltner, NE), 17. 71r-Ryan Anderson (Deloit, IA), 18. 87j-Justin Carver (Drummonds, TN), 19. 71-R.J. Johnson (Tampa, FL), 20. 40-Clint Garner (Sioux Falls, SD), 21. 4j-Lee Grosz (Harwood, ND), 22. 0-Zach Chappell (Talala, OK), 23. 94-Derek Hagar (Marion, AR), 24. 7x-Dustin Selvage (Indianola, IA).

Knoxville Raceway will kick off the Southern Iowa Sprintweek with the 21st Arnold Motor Supply 360 Nationals on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night.

This is the event that leads up to the 51st Goodyear Knoxville Nationals on Aug. 10-13. The 360 Nationals has become a major event for Knoxville Raceway and the sprint car racing community. Last year more teams entered the 360 Nationals than the 410 Nationals and the crowds followed with approximately 12,000 filling the stands a year ago for the 360 Nationals.

The 360 Nationals (360 cubic inch engines) works the same way as the 410 Nationals, with the teams divided up into two nights of racing and earning points through a traditional race program with time trials, heat races, and features.

The points are tallied and that’s how they line up the championship features on Saturday. The 360 Nationals pays $10,000 to win and it draws some very good competition, including former winners Shane Stewart, Wayne Johnson, Danny Lasoski, Terry McCarl, Jeff Swindell, and past 410 Nationals winner Sammy Swindell.

Accompanying the 360 championship features on Saturday will be a regular 410 racing program, which is also sanctioned by the All Stars Circuit of Champions. The Saturday before the 410 Nationals traditionally has attracted teams across the country for a night of racing under their belt to gain an advantage for the races to come the following week. With this also being an All Stars points race, even more teams are expected to be there with nearly 140 cars total in the pit area on Saturday night.

The All Stars will draw in drivers Dale Blaney, Tyler Walker, Daryn Pittman, Cap Henry, and last year’s upset winner of the 410 Nationals Tim Shaffer from Pennsylvania. To have the defending 410 Nationals champion at Knoxville a week early is something that hasn’t happened in many years. Shaffer will also be performing double duty, competing in the 360 Nationals as well on Friday and Saturday.

This is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated Sprintweeks in history, with all major sprint car sanctioning bodies involved; Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour (360 Nationals), All Stars on Saturday in Knoxville and Monday in Oskaloosa, USAC non-wing races on Sunday at Knoxville and Tuesday in Oskaloosa, and will finish up with the World of Outlaws for the Goodyear Knoxville Nationals.

The favorites coming in to this year’s 360 Nationals will be defending champion Shane Stewart from Bixby, Okla., Sammy Swindell, Jason Johnson from Louisiana, Wayne Johnson from Okla., and Knoxville regulars Brian Brown, Danny Lasoski, and Terry McCarl.

Contenders to keep an eye on will be Johnny Herrera, Daryn Pittman, Jeff Swindell, Gary Wright, Brooke Tatnell, and of course Tim Shaffer. Some of the 360 Knoxville regulars contending will be Clint Garner and Chad Humston. The 360 Nationals is most times better and more competitive racing than the 410 Nationals, so if you’re a sprint car fan this is a must see event.

If you’re a NASCAR fan, make sure you visit the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum in Knoxville this fall as two-time NASCAR Nextel Cup Series champion Tony Stewart has six cars on display of his personal collection. Stewart won championships in each car including his USAC Midget, Sprint Car, and Silver Crown cars, his 1997 IndyCar Series championship car, an IROC car, and one of his Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Cup Series cars.

There is also other Tony Stewart memorabilia on display, such as one of his Brickyard 400 and Cup Series trophies. Stewart grew up racing go-karts and sprint cars and was courted to the NASCAR ranks, but he remains loyal to his roots and supports sprint car racing, including racing with the World of Outlaws when he has time. Just last week on July 27 he won his first World of Outlaws race in Ohsweken Speedway in Ontario, Canada. Stewart owns the cars of current Outlaw champions Steve Kinser and Donny Schatz.

This is the most glorious time of year for sprint car fans. 25,000 are expected to flock to Knoxville by the end of it all on Saturday. Knoxville has a population of roughly 7,000, so the population of Knoxville nearly quadruples for a week.

Each year the BHG comes up with their own Knoxville Nationals power rankings. This is how we think they will finish on Saturday night this year. Last year we had Tim Shaffer ranked 16th and Joey Saldana was the top pick and he finished 24th. So much for what we know, but this how we see it shaping up coming into this year.

2011 BHG Knoxville Nationals Top 24 Power Rankings

1. Sammy Swindell, 2. Donny Schatz, 3. Tim Shaffer, 4. Craig Dollanksy, 5. Jason Meyers,
6. Jason Sides, 7. Shane Stewart, 8. Paul McMahan, 9. Danny Lasoski, 10. Daryn Pittman,
11. Steve Kinser, 12. Brad Sweet, 13. Brooke Tatnell, 14. Stevie Smith, 15. Dusty Zomer,
16. Greg Hodnett, 17. Wayne Johnson, 18. Jason Johnson, 19. Sam Hafertepe Jr., 20. Terry McCarl,
21. Tim Kaeding, 22. Dale Blaney, 23. Brian Brown, 24. Kerry Madsen

Others drivers receiving votes:
Justin Henderson, Tyler Walker, Lynton Jeffrey, Jason Solwold, Chad Kemenah,
Lance DeWease, Kevin Swindell, Austin McCarl, Bronson Maeschen.

"Wild Cards"
Cody Darrah, Brian Montieth, Jac Haudenschild, Dean Jacobs, Kraig Kinser, Randy Hannagan,
Davey Heskin, Josh Schneiderman, Lucas Wolfe, Jonathan Allard, Brandon Wimmer, Fred Rahmer

Good luck to everyone at this years 51st Annual Knoxville Nationals!!!

We would like to send out Get Well Soon wishes to Joey and Skip!!!

7/18/11
It appears after this weekend that Danny Lasoski will win his ninth track championship at Knoxville Raceway. The Dude went on to win his third race of the season and is a perfect 9 for 9 in finishing in the top 5 in regular point nights. The guy is good and he probably doesn’t have the vest equipment underneath him. Terry McCarl and Dusty Zomer will have to duel for second it looks like.
In the 360 class Chad Humston picked up his first win of the season in the 1m Mark Burch motorsports sprinter. Humston still has a lot of ground to make up to catch point leader Clint Garner, but not insurmountable.
Pre entries are rolling in for the 360 Nationals and the 410 Nationals. With the addition of the All-Stars on Aug. 6 (final night of the 360 Nationals) several of those teams are now entered in the 360 Nationals. Notably Tim Shaffer, David Gravel, Daryn Pittman, Bud Kaeding, Randy Hannagan, and then throw in the ASCS tour drivers Shane Stewart, Jason Johnson, Gary Wright, Brady Bacon, and Knoxville regulars Lasoski, Terry McCarl, Wayne Johnson…. It’s shaping up to be one of the best fields ever for the 360 Nationals!
As of today 80 cars are entered in the 410 Goodyear Knoxville Nationals.
Ralph Capatani has called an audible with the Friday night Knoxville Nationals lineup, doing away with the A, B, and C Scrambles in favor of a “Race of Champions” that will allow track champions, former Knoxville track champions, former Knoxville Nationals winners, and winners of premiere events like the King’s Royal, Dirt Cup, etc. It will pay $10,000 to win. The race will also feature a reverse draw, meaning each driver draws a number and then chooses who to give it to. Example, if Allard draws 20 he can give it to Schatz, Sammy, or whoever. You cannot keep the number you draw.
So far drivers eligible are:
Jonathan Allard - 2011 Dirt Cup champ
Sammy Swindell – 1983 Nationals champ, 2010 Williams Grove National Open
Chris Shirek - 2010 NOSA champ
Danny Holtgraver – Lernerville Speedway champ
Kraig Kinser – 2005 Nationals champ
Steve Kinser – 12-time Nationals champ
Lynton Jeffrey – Huset’s Speedway champ
Jason Meyers - WoO champ
Donny Schatz – 4-time Nationals champ
Tyler Walker - King's Royal champ
Bill Balog - IRA champ
Brian Brown – 2-time Knoxville Raceway champ
Brian Montieth – Lincoln Speedway champ
Danny Lasoski - 8-time Knoxville track champ, 4-time Nationals champ
Greg Hodnett - Williams Grove Speedway champ
Johnny Herrera - 2-time Knoxville track champ
Terry McCarl - 6-time Knoxville track champ
Shane Stewart - 2010 Skagit Dirt Cup and Grand Annual Classic champ
Tim Shaffer - Defending Nationals champ and All Stars champ
Kerry Madsen - 2005 Knoxville track champ

Some drivers who have not entered yet that may be eligible are (assist to Bill W):
Byron Reed, Jim Nier, Ken Mackey, Chad Layton, Bob Felmlee, Chris Shirek and Wade Nygaard, AJ Bruns, Jimmy Hurley, Kyle Larson, and maybe Steven Lines who won the Premier Speedway Grand Annual Classic this winter in Australia.
I think this is a great move. The Scrambles was a good idea in the beginning. So many teams didn’t want to risk tearing up their cars in the Mystery Feature or Race of States in the old days, so the only way to force the bigger name drivers to compete on Friday was the Scramble format. Personally I think the Scrambles would have been better with the top 30 cars in points broken out into 3 Scrambles versus the top 10 of each feature, but it did it’s job. But the Scrambles really haven’t provided much drama or drastic changes in the lineups for the finale on Saturday and I think an “All Stars” shootout race like this will work….if the big names are willing to race.

Congrats to Tyler Walker winning the King’s Royal! What a heartbreaker it was for Sammy but hey, he did win the Williams Grove National Open last year. Small consolation. Ironically my story for the Knoxville Nationals program is titled “Heartbreak at Knoxville” and centered around Sammy somewhat. Look for that at the track the week of the Nationals.
For the second year in a row I missed out getting to Indiana for Sprintweek, but I followed along closely with updates on twitter on facebook. It’s amazing with technology today how you can get up to the minute results. I can remember waiting a week for the Speed Sport News to show up in the mail to find out who won races when I was younger. But following the USAC cars sure has me excited for the shows coming up at Knoxville on Aug. 7 and at Oskaloosa Aug. 9 for the Ultimate Challenge.
It’s been scorching hot in Iowa this week. The heat index was 101 at 10:30pm tonight. Pray for cooler temps come August!

7/5/2011

Sunday it was announced that the All Stars will come to Knoxville Raceway on Saturday Aug. 6 in conjunction with the final night of the 360 Nationals. Great move for both Knoxville and the All Stars. It gets the defending Nationals champion Tim Shaffer there a week early to help promote the Nationals for one thing, and beef up what is already a big event. Other than the big Nationals, the Saturday before the Nationals is the highest attended event of the season, approximately 12,000 last year. It will also allow All Star teams to race the 360 Nationals since they don’t have a race scheduled on the 4th or 5th. They will be at Red River Valley in Fargo on the 3rd so a long haul to get to Knoxville on the next day, but they could all qualify their 360 on Friday the 5th. Will be interesting to see how many teams and drivers can run double duty.

This event will also make a tough decision for some local race fans who are on the fence trying to pick between the All Stars and 360 Nationals…. and 30 away is a NASCAR Nationwide race at Iowa Speedway that same night. No way am I missing Knoxville that night. The Nationwide race at Iowa Speedway brought in almost 38,000 fans in May. That is down from the two previous Nationwide races that both brought in approximately 56,000 fans. But there are a lot of fans who already saw one Nationwide race just three months earlier at Iowa Speedway. And another factor is the difference in ticket prices. Knoxville that evening is $25 compared to $55 up to $70 for Nationwide. It will be interesting to see what the turn-out is that night at both facilities.

The Knoxville Raceway 410 points race is a really good one this year with Danny Lasoski leading the way hoping to earn a nonth track championship, but his toughest competitor this year has been Dusty Zomer who has two wins already this season. Zomer finished ninth in points a year ago, but they have found a good combination this year in the Derek Ingalls #91 sprinter with Jeff Woodruff as his crew chief and have looked very fast. Terry McCarl has one win this year and is third in points. Davey Heskin was fourth coming into points this week but lost an engine in his heat race and was unable to get it changed and running in time to go out for the B-Main, tough break for them. Austin McCarl was fourth coming into this week and Don Droud Jr. was fifth. Mark Dobmeier is sixth and has been running well at Huset’s with three wins there. In seventh is rookie 410 driver Dustin Selvage who led some laps this past Saturday early in the A-Main and finished third. Very impressed with Selvage this year so far. I thought he would do well but not this well. Bronson Maeschen is in hanging in there as well in eighth.

In the 360 class Chad Humston and Clint Garner looks like they will have a battle to the end this season for the track championship. Garner has two wins and Humston has one. Humston had the lead coming into this week’s twin features and he passed Garner on the white flag, but a yellow relegated him behind Garner on the restart and Garner held him off for the win. In the second feature Garner and Humston were racing for 12th and 13th when Tasker Phillips and Ryan Anderson crashed in front of them and Humston got caught up in the aftermath getting upside down and finished 19th while Garner squeaked by and finished eighth.

The 305 class is off for a couple of weeks with twin features, but the youngsters Jamie Ball, Carson McCarl, and Tasker Phillips have been putting on a good show. Austin has two wins, Jaymie Ball has one, and Tasker has yet to get a win after winning three features last year.

You can now follow me on Twitter at “KnoxvilleRaces” for live updates of races and other information throughout the week. Brian Stickel, Knoxville Raceway’s Director of Marketing & Sales and myself reach an agreement for yours truly to handle the tracks official Twitter account so I’m excited to help promote the track in the way and please tell your friends to follow for results and commentary as I sit in the stands each night.

It was a year ago in August when Sammy Swindell nearly won the Knoxville Nationals that ended with a blown left rear tire after leading 46 of the first 47 laps, but 55 year-old veteran Swindell found some redemption with his 46th career win at the Knoxville Raceway on Saturday night in the World of Outlaws Mediacom shootout.

After starting seventh in the 6 lap dash race and finishing fourth there it set up Swindell to within striking distance of front row starters Jason Sides and Brooke Tatnell. Swindell had to fight off challenges from Terry McCarl early racing for fifth, but then he settled in and tracked down Jason Meyers and Brooke Tatnell to go from fourth to second on lap eight and leader Jason Sides saw a nearly straightaway lead shrink once he was in lapped traffic. Swindell reeled in Sides and made the pass for the lead on lap 13 and ran away the remaining twelve laps. Swindell made to sure to thank Newton engine builder Al Parker for his power plant under the hood.

The race was slow starting with a couple of crashes. On the initial start it was Kevin Swindell, Kerry Madsen, and Cody Darrah involved in a turn one incident that ended all three drivers night. On the second start Steve Kinser and Craig Dollanksy got upside down and collected mark Dobmeier. Dobmeier was the only car able to continue and made the most of his opportunity coming from the tail of the field to finish 14th. After that the race went non-stop for 25 laps.

Earlier in the night Brad Sweet set fast time with a lap of 15.239. The heat race winners were Brooke Tatnell, Jason Sides, Terry McCarl, and Paul McMahan. Josh Schneiderman won the B-Main. It was a respectable showing for the Knoxville regulars as they grabbed 10 of the top 20 finishing spots with McCarl being best at seventh.

In the 360 races Dennis Moore Jr. of Grinnell won his first feature of the season by passing Matt Moro on the last lap coming off of turn four and winning by half a car length. They were followed to the line by Clint Garner, points leader Chad Humston, and Russ Hall.

This was the only showing for the World of Outlaws at Knoxville this season before the Knoxville Nationals on August 10-13. The favorites will be Sammy Swindell who last won the Nationals in 1983, last year’s Outlaw Champion Jason Meyers, and four time Nationals champ Donny Schatz. The contenders will be Saldana, McMahan, last years winner Tim Shaffer who races with the All-Stars series in Ohio, and ASCS series point leader Shane Stewart who finished third at the Nationals last year.

It will be a busy next 8 weeks in central Iowa for racing with the Iowa Speedway hosting the IndyCar Series on June 25, NASCAR Trucks and ARCA series’ on July 16, and NASCAR Nationwide on Aug. 6. Knoxville Raceway will host the Harris Clash for Modifieds on July 5, Harris Clash for Late Models on July 26, and the 360 Sprint Car Nationals Aug. 4-6.

World of Outlaws A Main Finish: 1. Sammy Swindell, 2. Jason Sides, 3. Jason Meyers, 4. Donny Schatz, 5. Brooke Tatnell, 6. Brad Sweet, 7. Terry McCarl, 8. Chad Kemenah, 9. Kraig Kinser, 10. Joey Saldana, 11. Lynton Jeffrey, 12. Paul McMahan, 13. Danny Lasoski, 14. Mark Dobmeier, 15. Dustin Selvage, 16. Dusty Zomer, 17. Davey Heskin, 18. Brian Brown, 19. Josh Schneiderman, 20. Ryan Anderson, 21. Bill Rose, 22. Kerry Madsen, 23. Kevin Swindell, 24. Cody Darrah, 25. Craig Dollansky, 26. Steve Kinser Lap Leaders: Sides 1-13, S. Swindell 14-25.

On a cool and windy Iowa day Knoxville Raceway opened its pit gate and grandstands for the 2011 season. The track conditions were quickly deteriorating from hot laps and time trials which lead to rubber down track conditions by the B-Mains. Just too much wind and sun the past few days to get any moisture into the racing surface. But the racing still proved to be decent and with opening night, well we’re just thankful to see racing and enjoy our favorite items at the concession stand!

Noticeably two time track champion Skip Jackson was missing from the pit area as his team is without a motor for a few weeks. And Newton driver Bob Weuve from Newton was M.I.A. Kevin Swindell was present in a third Big Game Treestands team car.

410 Results: Brooke Tatnell set quick time as the 20th car out with a 16.154 lap. One lap qualifying was used

Heat one (started): 1. Terry McCarl (6) 2. Robby Wolfgang (4) 3. Lynton Jeffrey (5) 4. Joey Moughan (2) 5. Brooke Tatnell (8) 6. JD Johnson (7) / 7. Rob Kubli (3) 8. Mitchell Mack (9) 9. Mark Johnson (1) DNS - Bronson Maeschen

Maeschen had mechanical problems and pulled into the work area before the race went green. Wolfgang lead the first lap and McCarl took the lead on lap 2 and ran away from the field up on the cushion which was very high.

Heat two (started): 1. Mark Dobmeier (1) 2. Danny Lasoski (7) 3. Don Droud Jr. (5) 4. Rager Phillips (3) 5. Josh Schneider man (6) 6. Brian Brown (8) / 7. Davey Heskin (2) 8. Ryan Anderson (4) 9. Ryan Bunton (9) DNS - Danny Heskin

Dobmeier got out to an early lead and held off Lasoski. Good racing between Droud, Phillips, and Schneiderman.

Heat three (stared): 1. Dustin Selvage (3) 2. Kevin Swindell (8) 3. Dusty Zomer (7) 4. Johnn Cressman (4) 5. Austin McCarl (6) 6. Logan Forler (5) / 7. AJ Moeller (9) 8. Austin Johnson (1) 9. Mike Moore (2)

Mike Moore was out in front but the engine appeared to let go about half way and Selvage went on to win. Swinell made a big move late from 6th to 2nd sneaking by Zomer, Cressman, and Austin McCarl.

A main (started), 20 laps: 1. Danny Lasoski (1) 2. Brian Brown (4) 3. Dusty Zomer (8) 4. Brooke Tatnell (9) 5. Lynton Jeffrey (7) 6. Robby Wolfgang (2) 7. Logan Forler (5) 8. Austin McCarl (6) 9. Terry McCarl (11) 10. Dustin Selvage (15) 11. Davey Heskin (19) 12. Johnn Cressman (13) 13. Mark Dobmeier (17) 14. Ryan Bunton (20) 15. JD Johnson (18) 16. Joey Moughan (16) 17. Rager Phillips (14) 18. Austin Johnson (22) 19. Rob Kubli (23) 20. Mitchell Mack (24) 21. Josh Schneiderman (3) 22. Kevin Swindell (12) 23. Ryan Anderson (21) 24. Don Droud Jr. (10).

Rubber down and the race was down the front stretch on the start as the Dude had lady luck on his side drawing the pole in a new 12 drive re-draw system at intermission instead of the traditional invert draw. Lasoski lead all 20 laps. Brown got by Robby Wolfgang and Zomer was able to use a bit of a middle groove early to go from 8th to 3rd. Tatnell did the same to get from 9th to 4th. Droud appeared to have something in the front end break and made hard contact with the turn 2 fence on lap 7. Kevin Swindell spun out in turn four late. The win was the 94th career feature win at Knoxville for Lasoski.

Heat one (started): 1. Tasker Phillips (3) 2. Josh Higday (2) 3. Wayne Johnson (6) 4. Matt Moro (5) 5. Seth Bergman (4) / 6. Jarrod Schneiderman (1) 7. Tom Lenz (9) 8. Dave Glennon (8) 9. Rod Richards (7)

Wayne Johnson was penalized for jumping the start but quickly moved up to third.

Heat two (started): 1. Russ Hall (2) 2. Randy Martin (4) 3. David Hall (1) 4. Clint Garner (3) 5. Lee Grosz (6) / 6. Tony Shilling (8) 7. Joe Beaver (5) 8. Casey Friedrichsen (7) 9. Dakota Carroll (9)

Heat three (started): 1. Jon Agan (1) 2. Chad Humston (6) 3. Justyn Cox (3) 4. Nate Van Haaften (5) 5. Tony Norem (8) / 6. Tyler Groenendyk (7) 7. Frank Rogers (9) 8. Larry Ball Jr. (2) 9. Chad Heimbaugh (4)

Heimbaugh lost a tire half way. Ball lost an engine. B main winner Chad Heimbaugh.

A main (started), 15 laps: 1. Russ Hall (1) 2. Justyn Cox (3) 3. Josh Higday (2) 4. Tasker Phillips (5) 5. David Hall (13) 6. Lee Grosz (11) 7. Seth Bergman (7) 8. Jon Agan (12) 9. Randy Martin (6) 10. Nate Van Haaften (8) 11. Chad Humston (10) 12. Joe Beaver (17) 13. Jarrod Schneiderman (19) 14. Matt Moro (9) 15. Clint Garner (4) 16. Tyler Groenendyk (20) 17. Tony Shilling (16) 18. Chad Heimbaugh (14) 19. Tony Norem (15) 20. Dave Glennon (18) DNS - Wayne Johnson.

Wayne Johnson pulled before the race started with no power steering. Russ Hall led all 15 laps. It was an emotional win for Hall, the grandson of Bert Sonner who lost his life at Knoxville on May 4, 1974, nearly 37 years to the day.

A main (started), 12 laps: 1. Carson McCarl (3) 2. Jamie Ball (5) 3. Marty Stephenson (4) 4. J Kinder (6) 5. Mitchell Alexander (1) 6. Matt Stephenson (2) 7. Chris Mallicoat (9) 8. Matthew Stelzer (7) 9. Steve Palmer (13) 10. Mike Mayberry (10) 11. Devin "Bart" Friedrichsen (11) 12. Mark Van Haaften (14) 13. Alan Ambers (12) 14. Casie Shilling (8) 15. Keith Carlberg (15) DNS - Cody Ambers.

Carson McCarl won his first race at Knoxville in his first ever start at Knoxville and became the youngest winner of a feature at Knoxville at 16 years and 1 month of age.

The 2011 Knoxville Raceway season opener is this Saturday night and it’s time for my season preview. The best news in a long time is that the car counts look to be rising in the 410 class for 2011, up to 26 full time competitors, which is an improvement of 21 cars a year ago (Only 16 cars qualified for points running 75% of the races). And there are possibly a few more that will be there part time like Wayne Johnson, Brooke Tatnell, and I’m sure we will see Sammy Swindell show up on a few occasions. But the 360 class has dropped from 23 to 20 it appears.

Chad Humston will be missing to seek other racing in ASCS and maybe some 410 shows in the Burch 1m. Ryan Roberts, Johnny Anderson, Bryan Dobesh, and Russ Hall are all missing as well from this year’s full time roster. Dustin Selvage, Danny Heskin, and Josh Higday are moving up from the 360 class to the 410 class (don’t say too loud the Chevy 435 small block class). Selvage and Danny Heskin lead a nice group of six rookies in the 410 class this year that also includes Joey Moughan, AJ Moeller, Rob Kubli, and Austin Johnson piloting the famous Marty Johnson #81.

The 410 class favorites coming into this year will be 8 time track champion Danny Lasoski who returns to race weekly this year in his own #33 car. The Dude has 93 career wins at Knoxville and he will be looking to make that number closer to 100 by the end of the year. But his arch rival since the mid 80’s is back as well, Terry McCarl, a 6 time track champion with 49 career wins. TMac was out most of last year due to injury and lost his ride in the Big Game Treestands car. Terry will be hungry and out to prove he is the better man this year behind the #55 sprinter. And then we have Brian Brown returning who is a 2 time track champion and sat on the pole of the Nationals last August. Another 2 time champion Skip Jackson will be competing as well. Add in Don Droud Jr. in the Gil Sonner 47 and that should be your top five contenders. I however will pick the hungry McCarl to win the title if the Vermeer 55 car has quality equipment. Otherwise it’s hard to bet against the Dude.

Positions 6 thru 15 could be very hard to predict this year but it appears Mark Dobmeier, Bronson Maeschen, Lynton Jeffrey, Josh Schneiderman, Dusty Zomer, Davey Heskin, Austin McCarl, Robby Wolfgang, Selvage, Higday, Moughan, and my hometown driver Bob Weuve will all be in the mix. It should be an interesting season with more competition this year and the explosion of the 435 engines.

The 360 class should see Clint Garner looking to make it three track championships in a row. But don’t count out Dennis Moore Jr., Jon Agan, and Matt Moro to be there to challenge. The 360 rookies are Oskaloosa modified driver Tyler Groenendyk, Casey Friedrichsen or Arthur, and Jarrod Schneiderman from West Burlington. The race for the top ten spots in the 360 class is wide open after Garner, DMJ, Agan, and Moro. Larry Ball Jr. returns after a few years off the track and could be a top five contender, as is Joe Beaver who is another veteran driver to watch. After that it’s hard to pick.

Some other news at the track is that promoter Ralph Capatani has announced he will step down at the end of this season. It will be tough to fill that man’s shoes but the search to find his replacement will be a topic to follow.

Also we’re looking at some changes in the announcer booth. Tony Bokhoven will be present at most shows but will miss about six races as he is working as a pit reporter at some sprint and late model shows this year for the Lucas Oil series shows. And his counterpart Blake Anderson has moved on as the full time voice of the USAC National Series and will be spending the majority of his summer in Indiana, but we’ll see Blake once again in August for the USAC Non-Wing Nationals and at the Ultimate Challenge in Oskaloosa.

Racing season is FINALLY here in Iowa and let’s hope the weather cooperates! Bring on the chicken bites and tenderloins! Don’t forget to try the taco salad too! See you in the stands.

Here is a preview of my season preview at Knoxville Raceway..... The winds of change are upon Knoxville Raceway in 2011. The big news finally hit print this past week in Flat Out Magazine as Bob Jones interviewed Knoxville Director of Racing, Ralph Capatani. "Cappy" has officially given his notice to the Marion County Fairboard that he will step down at the end of the 2011 racing season. What does that mean? Well first of all, that's a lot expertise Knoxville is losing. It's sad to see the guy go, but glad to see him go out on his own terms like this. And maybe it's time for someone new to come in. My short list of replacement candidates are the following names, in no particular order.

Bob Baker, the current Executive Director of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum. He has lots of experience promoting races in Missouri in the past. John McCoy, the current Competition Director at Knoxville. A former racer himself, a fan at heart, and he knows the racers, owners, and how the show runs now. Toby Kruse, a very influential person in Iowa when it comes to promoting dirt track racing and indoor racing in the winter.

I'm sure there are others, maybe a Tommie Estes, Steve Beitler, or Terry McCarl kind of fella. Or someone within the current set of officials at Knoxville.

We also have some turnover behind the microphone at Knoxville as Tony Bokhoven and Blake Anderson have new career opportunities. Tony will be part time with his new responsibilities as a pit reporter for the Lucas Oil Late Models and Sprint Cars on Versus. This has been Tony's dream for a long time, so I'm excited to see him get a break and see what he can accomplish.

Blake Anderson has been chasing his dream of making a career in auto racing since he was in his early teens. The 21 year-old has spent the last two years announcing at the most famous dirt track in the world, Knoxville Raceway, and the three years prior announcing at Boone Speedway. This past February he announced USAC sprint car races in Florida. Now the University of Northern Iowa college student is moving to the Hoosier state this May to be the full time voice of USAC (United States Auto Club). "I'm really pumped to get out to Indiana and travel the mid-west this summer with USAC," said Blake. "I still have two more years at UNI until I graduate. My major is Electronic Media with a minor in Public Relations. I can't thank my friends and family enough that has supported me the last five or six years to help build my career in racing. I owe a lot to Knoxville Raceway for the opportunity they have given me, my announcing colleague Tony Bokhoven, as well as Boone Speedway, Toby Kruse, and so many others." Blake will return to Iowa on June 24 to announce the USAC Midgets and Silver Crown series races held at Iowa Speedway. He will also be at Knoxville Raceway on Aug. 7 for the USAC Knoxville Non-Wing Nationals. "I'm so pumped to come back home and announce at Iowa Speedway," said Anderson. "I'm living the dream."

Now on the track at Knoxville we will have some quality cars competing. Danny Lasoski, Terry McCarl, Kerry Madsen, Brooke Tatnell, Brian Brown, but to my knowledge none of those drivers are competing for the points championship. Then we throw in possibilities of Sammy Swindell, Johnny Herrera, and Jac Haudenschild coming to race once in a while it's hard to say who the top contenders are for the 410 track championship. Lynton Jeffrey, Mark Dobmeier, Don Droud Jr., Davey Heskin, Josh Schneiderman, who? I'll have a more detailed season preview in the coming weeks, but this 2011 season sure looks like an interesting one with lots of stories to follow so far.