Exciting racing action continued at the Boone Speedway on Saturday night and this time with warmer and more pleasant conditions for the fans.  All five divisions had new winners on the season and one driver scored his first ever win.

The Mod Lite division found Dusty Masolini taking the lead as lap one was scored.  By lap four, Randy Bryan had worked his way from starting in row four, to run in second, and Cory Dennis and Joel Huggins tagged along in third and fourth.  Much of the race would continue in that running order until Bryan was finally able to make the pass with just a couple of laps remaining to take the lead.  Bryan then held off Masolini, a close second at the checkers, to score the win.  Third place went to Joel Huggins, who made a late race pass on Cory Dennis who was fourth and Bryan Zehm came from starting twelfth, to finish fifth.

Bruce Egeland  earned his first career victory in the IMCA SportMod feature, but nearly gave it away with a last lap bobble—due in part no doubt from an adrenaline rush!  He was able to gather it back in from near disaster and take the checkers for the first time ever.  Eric Elliott made a last

Bruce Egeland earned his first career victory in his IMCA Northern SportMod on Saturday, May 18, 2013, at Boone Speedway.

lap pass on Anthony Onstot as they finished second and third.  Tim Love and Rick Ringgenberg took the checkers in fourth and fifth.  Egeland makes the trip weekly all the way from Marshall, Minnesota to race at the Boone Speedway.

A King of the Hill race for the SportMods was held earlier in the evening, pitting the top two from the heats against each other in elimination rounds.  Brandon Williams beat out Cole Ferguson in the final round to take the win.  The race was sponsored by Harris Auto Racing.

The Modified feature was led start to finish by Joel Bushore.  Bushore pulled away from his competition, scoring his first win of the season at Boone in easy fashion.   Jake Durbin finished second, Jimmy Gustin was a close third after making a late race charge after starting in row five, and Randy Havlik took flight on the topside from starting fifteenth, to score a fourth place finish.  Cale Sponsler completed the top five.

Next was the always action packed IMCA Stock Car 18-lap feature, as cars ran three and four wide in the corners.  Eric Brown took the lead from rookie to the class, John Watson with a handful of laps in the books.  By lap seven, it was Donavon Smith making his way into second after starting in row six, and applying pressure to the leader.  Smith soon made the pass for the lead and pulled away in the closing laps, scoring his first win of the season by a comfortable distance.  The Murphy Brothers followed up in second and third.  Trent Murphy started twelfth on the grid and captured second, brother Michael took third.  Fourth went to veteran racer Robert Stofer and Eric Brown rounded out the top five.

The 12-lap Hobby Stock feature saw many interesting twists before it was completed.  Corey Adams fended off Curt Reed through lap nine, with Shannon Anderson wanting more while running third.  As the cars fought for position, contact was made between Adams and Anderson, sending them both spinning and bringing out a caution with just two laps remaining.  The restart found Curt Reed at the helm, which he was able to maintain to score his first victory at Boone this year.  Second went to Eric Stanton, third was Garrett Eilander, fourth was Tyler Pickett and Tim Barber was fifth.

Next Saturday, May 25 will once again be regular points racing in all five divisions.  Hot laps are 6:45 with racing at 7:30.  Then mark your calendars for Monday, May 27, when the IMCA Late Models come to town.  The annual running of the Deery Late Model Summer Series takes place.  Also on the docket are the IMCA Stock Cars, Hobby Stocks, SportMods as well as the Mod Lites.  Grandstands open at 2, hot laps at 4 p.m. and racing at 5.

Click HERE for photos from Saturday, May 18, 2013.

The chilly weather continued on Saturday night, but the racing action was hot at the Boone Speedway.  Close racing and exciting finishes have become the norm week after week at the track.  Only one repeat winner from 2013 was entered into the record books on Saturday, while all other classes had drivers visiting victory lane for the first time this season.

The MADCRA Mod Lite feature went to Andy Hennigar who scored his second win of the 2013 season.  On the opening lap, the field got bogged down entering turn one, causing many cars to check up, but Mike Morrill avoided the confusion and got to the lead by lap one.  Randy Bryan followed suite and grabbed the runner up spot while Andy Hennigar flew through the field from starting tenth, to grab third.  Morrill, Hennigar and Bryan would run in that order through lap eight, but by lap eleven, Josh May had worked his way from 20th starting spot, to take over third from Bryan.  As the cars approached the white flag flying, Hennigar made the pass to the lead, and cinched his second win at the track in 2013.  Morrill held on to take second over Josh May in third.  Fourth went to Randy Bryan and Mike Kennedy rounded out the top five.

The Northern SportMod feature was nearly a done deal from the drop of the green as Daniel Tasler led the first lap and all remaining seventeen laps to the checkers.  Brandon Brinton followed the leader most of those laps as well, as he took the runner up spot.  Cory Rose,  took third and Tim Love came from starting in the seventh row to take fourth.  Cody Hennings completed the top five.

The  IMCA Modifieds saw some dandy close racing up front.  Kyle Brown led from the front row the first handful of laps, but he was being dogged by Jake Durbin incessantly.  Cale Sponsler joined the fun, getting into third.  Durbin made the pass on Brown at lap six to

Jake Durbin passed for the lead on lap 6 and led his IMCA Modified to the line at Boone Speedway on Saturday, May 11, 2013.

take the lead and soon put some breathing room between himself and his competitors, motoring home to the win.  Brown and Sponsler continued to battle for position, Brown keeping the advantage until they saw the white flag waving as they approached the flagstand.  Sponsler passed Brown and held on to second at the checkers, Brown finishing a very close third.  Fourth went to Jon Snyder and  fifth to Matthew Meinecke.

Mike Goldsberry put himself into victory lane at the Boone Speedway by winning the eighteen lap IMCA Stock Car feature.  Goldsberry, who calls Runnells, Iowa home, took the lead on lap one and never relinquished it.   Bryan Trogdon bothered Goldsberry for much of the race, but was never able to make the pass.  Meanwhile, Donavon Smith had made his way into third after starting back in the sixth row, and was now pressuring Trogdon.  With a lap to go, the drivers showed the crowd it was going to be a toss up as to who crossed the finish line first!  Goldsberry was able to hang on for the win, and Smith made a nifty pass at the end to get around Trogdon, as they finished second and third.  Craig Carlson hung around the front of the field all race, and finished fourth over Jerry Gifford in fifth.

The evenings racing ended with the twelve lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature.  Paul Nagle fought off Andrew Burg for most of this one.  Brandon Pruitt had worked himself up to run third as the laps wound down.  Nagle would hold on to take his first win at the track in 2013 but it was a real squeaker at the checkers as Pruitt made the surge past Burg as they finished second and third in that order.  Curt Reed ran toward the front of the pack all race long to take fourth and Shannon Anderson came from starting tenth, to take fifth place.

Next week, May 18 at the Boone Speedway will be regular points racing again in all five divisions and as an added attraction, it will be Halloween costume night for the fans. There will be a costume contest, with prizes for the best costume, games, and trick or treat stations for the kids on the grandstand side.  Hot laps are 6:45 with racing at 7:30.

Click HERE for photos from May 11, 2013.

There was some great racing action on Saturday night at the Boone Speedway on a night that finally felt like Spring had arrived.  The Modified feature was determined at the finish line and first time winners were entered  in the record books in the SportMod and Stock Car classes. In the Hobby and Mod Lite classes, there were repeat winners from last week.

The Mod Lite feature went flag to flag.  Joel Keenan passed early race leader Eric Hendrickson by lap six. It was soon to be last week’s winner making a bid for the top spot however, when Bryan Zehm got to second and put the pressure on the leader. Zehm was able to grab the lead with a couple of laps remaining, and would motor home to a repeat win.  Keenan held on to second place ahead of Tim Hennigar, who followed the winner up through the pack from both starting back in row six.  Travis Stensland finished fourth ahead of Eric Hendrickson in fifth.

The IMCA Northern SportMods ran their usual 18-lap feature.  Des Moines driver, Brandon Williams took command of this one from the drop of the green flag.  However, a red flag would fly at lap two when Bradlee Clark put his ride upside down in corner two.  Thankfully, Clark was not hurt.  When racing resumed, Williams continued his lead even through two more cautions.  It wasn’t until late in the race, that Tim Rupp, Cherokee, Iowa, made a strong challenge at the leader, but would fall short, and have to settle for second place over winner Williams.  Third place went to rookie Jonathan Logue, Cory Rose was fourth and Eric Elliiott, fifth.

The IMCA Modifieds put on a show for the fans in their 20-lap main event.  Beau Kaplan led the opening laps, but Cale Sponsler was soon

Cale Sponsler took the win by a nose in the IMCA Modifieds at Boone Speedway on Saturday, April 20, 2013.

on the hunt, running in second.  The two battled for the lead until lap eleven when Sponsler made the pass into first, and put distance between himself and Kaplan.  But now, Kaplan had company as sixth row starters, Jimmy Gustin and Todd Shute were battling it out for position.  Both Gustin and Shute were able to make the pass on Kaplan as they took over second and third respectively.  With just a couple of laps to go, Gustin was quickly making up ground and running down the leader, but a last ditch effort just came up short at the checkers, with Sponsler taking the win by a nose.  Todd Shute was third, Beau Kaplan took fourth and Randy Havlik was fifth.

The IMCA Stock Cars ran 18-laps for their feature event.  Lonnie Hodges and Craig Carlson led the troupes up front early, while the rest of the field was going three, four and even sometimes five wide behind them.  A red flag at lap six halted the action, when Wayne Gifford rolled in turn two, and part of his car landed on that of Eric Brown.  There were no injuries to either driver.  As racing got back under way, it was still Hodges and Carlson upfront and they were looking to go the distance in that order.  However, at lap fifteen, Carlson would loose the handle on his machine, dropping him back in the field and allowing several drivers to gain positions.  Bob Daniels, who had been in third until Carlson’s bobble now put the heat on leader Hodges, made the pass to the lead with a lap to go,  and sealed the win.  Hodges held on to second, the winner’s son, Josh Daniels finished third and Trent Murphy and Jay Schmidt made big late race strides to finish fourth and fifth.

Closing out the night’s racing was the 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature.  Richard Yaw, II led the race through lap nine, but was being tormented by last week’s winner, Shannon Anderson and Eric Stanton.  Anderson nabbed the lead on lap ten, and pulled away to a comfortable final two laps and repeating his win from last week.  Stanton was also able to slip by Yaw, as they went second and third.  Fourth was Tyler Pickett and fifth went to Matt McDonald.

Next Saturday, May 4, the Speedway will return to it’s regular race times.  Grandstands open at 6, hot laps 6:45, and racing at 7:30.

Complete results are available HERE.

Click HERE for photos from Saturday, April 20, 2013.

The cold weather continues, but so does the racing action at the Boone Speedway.  Saturday was  night two of regular points racing, and 162 cars came to do battle in the five classes.  One class saw a repeat winner from last week, while the others saw all new faces in victory lane.

The Mod Lite feature was first up on the track. It was Mike Morrill and Bryan Zehm, who had both seen their share of wins in the 2012 season, battling it out for the lead as the laps wound down.  Just a slight bobble by Morrill on the last lap allowed Zehm to snatch the win and leave Morrill to chalk up a second place finish.  Early leader Mike Kennedy came home in third, fourth went to last week’s winner Andy Hennigar and Randy Bryan finished in fifth.

The IMCA SportMod 18-lap feature went to Randy Roberts.  Roberts chased down Brian Miller to take the lead at lap eight, and Tim Love also slipped by Miller to soon take over second.  With just a  few laps remaining, Miller swung to the topside in a valiant effort to over take the leader, getting back past Love, and falling just short at the finish line.  Roberts claimed the victory, Miller taking the runner up spot, and Love was third.  Rounding out the top five were Daniel Tasler and Cory Rose.

In the IMCA Modified 20-lap main, it was setting up to be a possible one-two finish for a father-son duo.  David Brown got the jump on Shay Woods at the drop of the green but by lap three, son Kyle Brown was in second and chasing down his dad.  Things went askew when Kyle found himself spun out at the bottom of turn one, putting an end to that scenario.  David Brown would then maintain his lead to the checkers, scoring the win.  Shay Woods finished in second, ahead of veteran racer Denny Pittman in third, Randy Havlik in fourth and Frostbuster winner Jimmy Gustin was fifth.

There was once again intense racing in the 18-lap IMCA Stock Car feature.  Jay Schmidt led the early laps with cars behind him

Damon Murty drove his way from a 12th place start to the top spot in the IMCA Stock Cars at Boone Speedway on Saturday, April 20, 2013.

vying for position as they ran three and four wide.  Schmidt was no doubt content to have the pack behind him battle it out while he had clear sailing ahead.  However, a caution at lap eleven would bunch the field on the restart, putting Frostbuster winner Wayne Gifford on his tail.  Gifford saw his chance and took over the lead on the ensuing lap but all eyes were now on the familiar #99D of Damon Murty taking flight on the topside and coming fast.  Murty made the topside work, picking off car after car and overtaking leader Gifford with two laps remaining.  Murty, who had started in twelfth place, took the win, his second in as many weeks, leaving Gifford having to settle for second. Jay Schmidt held on to third over Kevin Balmer in fourth and Rod Richards in fifth.

The final for the evening was the 12-lap IMCA Hobby Stock A main.  This one was red flagged at lap two when Danny Watson rolled in turn one, and the car caught fire.  After some frantic moments, everyone was happy to see the driver walk away.  The restart was a contest between Curt Reed and Andrew Burg who had started on the front row.  Sixth row starter, Shannon Anderson, soon entered the picture, running in third by lap five.  It didn’t take much longer until Anderson, shot to the lead and he then motored home to another victory.  Burg finished in second, third went to Austin Luellen who had also started back in row six, fourth was Tyler Pickett and Curt Reed was fifth.

Next Saturday night, April 27, regular points racing continues with the early starting times.  Hot laps are 4, racing at 5.

Click HERE for complete results.

Click HERE for photos from Saturday, April 20, 2013.

Boone Speedway held it’s 2013 regular season opener on Saturday night despite this Spring’s continuing cold and wet weather.  All five classes participated with the Mod Lite’s joining the IMCA classes of Modified, Stock Car, SportMod and Hobby Stocks.  Familiar faces graced Victory Lane, all having scored wins at the track in previous years.

The Mod Lite’s were called to the track for the first feature of the evening. This one was led the entire way by winner Andy Hennigar.  Josh May came from row six to finish a strong second.  Third place was Travis Stensland, and Bryan Zehm and Randy Bryan rounded out the top five.

The IMCA SportMods had a strong field of  43 cars, requiring two B mains to whittle the class to a 24-car starting field for their A Main.  Those wins went to Clint Luellen and Brandon Brinton.  The 18-lap feature was led through lap eleven by Whittemore, Iowa driver Cody Knecht.  That’s when Boone’s Eric Elliott made the pass for the lead and never looked back in scoring the win.  Knecht held on to score second over pole sitter Joel Rust in third.  Fourth place was Geoff Olson and  Ty Luellen scored fifth place from starting in the sixth row.

Up next was the IMCA Modified and their 20-lap feature.  This one was a done deal from the drop of the green flag, as pole sitter Todd Shute claimed another victory, leading all laps.  Last week’s Frostbuster winner, Jimmy Gustin tried a late race rally, but could only garner second, after getting around third place Jon Snyder with three laps remaining.  Fourth was Russ Dickerson who made the biggest advancement, having started back in row eight.  Audubon driver Mike Albertsen completed the top five.

Todd Shute was the winner in the IMCA Modifieds on Saturday, April 13, 2013, at Boone Speedway.

The IMCA Stock Cars made it another exciting 18-lap feature with Cory Bushnell, Wayne Gifford and Donavon Smith fighting for position at the front of the pack the first few circuits.  Ninth place starter Damon Murty however, came through quickly to take over second by lap four, and then took the lead at lap seven.  Murty claimed the win, Bushnell finished a distance behind in second. Trent Murphy, Donavon Smith and Wayne Gifford were third through fifth respectively.

The night ended with twelve laps of IMCA Hobby Stock feature racing and this one was one not to be missed.  Austin Luellen and Havlock, Iowa racer Austin Hauswirth went at it for most of the race, swapping the lead numerous times.  Coming to the flag,  Austin Luellen made the charge ahead of Hauswirth to claim victory.  Following second place Hauswirth for third, was last year’s IMCA National Hobby Stock Champion, Shannon Anderson, Mike Pruitt was fourth and Matt Sorenson was fifth.

A decision was made this past week to begin the racing program earlier for the remainder of April, due to the unusual weather pattern.  The pit gates will open at 2, grandstands at 3, hot laps at 4, and racing at 5.  Next, Saturday, April 20 continues the season’s weekly points racing.

Click HERE for results from Saturday, April 13, 2013.

Click HERE for photos from Saturday, April 13, 2013.

The Boone Speedway sprang back to life for the first time in 2013 with the running of their annual Frostbuster special on Saturday night.  The IMCA Modifieds, SportMods, Stock Cars and Hobby Stocks were on the program. The fans witnessed 3-4 wide racing most of the night, and with over 190 cars checked in, there was plenty of exciting racing action to be seen.

The SportMods kicked off the feature racing with a 20-lap main event.  Audubon, Iowa driver Jared Hansen fought off the challenges of Madrid’s Andy Tiernan until lap thirteen when Tiernan took the lead.  It was clear sailing for Tiernan then as he drove to the victory.  Hansen held on to score a second place finish ahead of Ty Luellen in third.  Rockie Caudle came from row five to score fourth and Cory Rose came from row six to capture  fifth place.

The IMCA Modifieds ran a 25-lap feature.  With sixty-one cars on hand, it took three B mains to whittle the starting grid to 24-cars. The drivers were not only racing for $1,000 to win, but the event was also a qualifier for the 2013 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot.  Cale Sponsler quickly jumped to the point with Jimmy Gustin in tow.  The two drivers put on a show for the fans with Jimmy Gustin finally making the pass on Sponsler at lap fifteen.  Gustin would maintain the lead and drive to the victory; Sponsler keeping second place.  Third place went to Wisconsin driver, Jeremy Christians, Mike VanGenderen came from row five to finish in fourth, and rounding out the top five was Luke Wanninger.

The IMCA Stock Cars put on a thrilling 20-lap race.  Craig Carlson, Madrid, Iowa led the opening laps of the event, only to have his machine come to a halt in turn four at lap ten.  The lead was then handed over to Dusty Vis on the restart, as cars then scrambled 3-wide all over the track for position.  Wayne Gifford, who started twelfth, came through the fray to gain the lead with four laps remaining, holding it to the checkers and the win.  Mike Goldsberry took the second spot, while third place went to Jerry Gifford.  Fourth place finisher was Michael Murphy and earlier leader Dusty Vis, finished in fifth.

The 15-lap feature for the Hobby Stocks finished off the evening’s racing action.  Edgerton, Minnesota driver, Trevor Holm took the lead on lap one and never looked back, as he scored himself an Iowa victory.  Shane Slezak, Lincoln, Nebraska took second.  Tyler Pickett came from row five to take third place, fourth went to Shawn Slezak from Milligan, Nebraska and Richard Yaw II finished in fifth.

Next Saturday, April 13, will be the first night of regular weekly season point racing at the Boone Speedway.  Hot laps at 6:45 pm and racing at 7:30.

Click HERE for complete results.

Click HERE for photos from the 2013 Frostbuster.

The Boone Speedway closed out its regular season racing on Saturday night, crowning track champions in all five divisions.  The top twenty in points were locked in to start the features. Those drivers on hand that had raced at least once, but were outside of the top twenty, could run a B main to qualify for the A main in their class.

Driver introductions were made on the front stretch for each class. The first up for feature racing was the Mod Lites. They ran an 18-lap main event, all of them led by winner Mike Kennedy. Josh May, who was crowned the track champion, fought past Bryan Zehm late in the race, as they finished second and third. Fourth went to Joel Keenan and fifth was Jeff Stensland.

Hobby Stocks ran an extended 15 laps for season championship night.  The winner, who was also the track champion, was John Watson. Watson led the race flag to flag on his way to his twelfth victory of the season. Aaron Rudolph finished in the runner up spot, just ahead of third place Curt Reed. Fourth and fifth went to Tyler Pickett and Dustin Lynch.

It was a 20-lapper for the IMCA Northern SportMods. Earlier, a B main was run to complete the feature starting line up. Taylor Musselman took that win. Scott Davis took the victory in the A main as he out lasted Nick Roberts, the runner up. Tim Love finished third, fourth went to Randy Roberts and Cory Rose came from well back in the starting field, to grab fifth place.  Scott Davis is the track champion for 2012.

A B main for the Stock Cars was the only other consolation race run, with Josh Daniels taking the win.  The feature went 20-laps. Point leader Donavon Smith led the first handful of laps until Trent Murphy took over the lead.  Murphy would then eventually stretch out his lead, taking the comfortable win.  A good distance behind him in second place was veteran Robert Stofer, third was Michael Murphy, and Cory Bushnell was fourth. Fifth went to track champion, Donavon Smith who recovered from an incident earlier on the track that cost him several positions.

The IMCA Modifieds closed out the season with a 25-lap event. Jimmy Gustin jumped to the immediate lead but before ten laps were in the books, Todd Shute flew around Gustin on the topside, taking the point position away.  Gustin had to be content to chase Shute the rest of the way to the checkers.  Shute took the win, Gustin, the track champion was second.  Third went to Mike VanGenderen and fourth was Russ Dickerson.  The two were tied for second place in track points going into the night, ending with VanGenderen taking the runner up points.  Kelly Lyons rounded out the top five.

The 30th Annual Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals starts this Monday, September 3 and runs through September 8,  and the pits are already filling fast.  A record 709 pre-entries have been received.  Don’t miss America’s Racin’ Vacation!

August 25 Stock Car Winner Jay Schmidt

August 25, 2012

Mother Nature couldn’t pull one over on the Boone Speedway Saturday.  Light rain fell until the late afternoon,  but a few passes with the jet dryer and then farming and repacking, and the track was good to go. Racing was less than a half hour late starting and completed in less than three hours.

The Mod Lite feature went to Jeff Stensland who led the entire race which went caution free. The race for second was close with Joel Keenan holding off Josh May as they finished second and third respectively. Fourth place went to Mike Kennedy and fifth to Dusty Masolini.  This was Stensland second win at the track in 2012.

Three yellows flew in the first few laps of the SportMod feature before they were able to gain their racing rhythm. Taylor Musselman led until lap eight when Nick Roberts, who started in row five, made the pass for the lead. Eric Elliott soon tucked in behind him in second from starting twelfth. That would be the way they would finish–Roberts taking his third victory of the season, Elliott taking second. Musselman stuck around the front to finish third, fourth was Jerry Hinton and Tom Burke completed the top five.

The IMCA Modified 20-lap main was led by David Brown in the opening laps until Cale Sponsler took over at lap five.  Contact at lap eleven sent Brown out of contention and into the pits, and Kelly Lyons and Chad Louk now in hot pursuit of the leader.  Sponsler, however, stretched out a lengthy lead never to be closely challenged, taking his second feature of tbe season. Kelly Lyons took the runner up spot, Jay Noteboom had an impressive run, taking third after starting in twelfth, and Russ Dickerson and Chad Louk finished fourth and fifth.

The IMCA Stock Cars put on their always exciting main event.  Jay Schmidt raced his way quickly to the lead by lap three but had lots of company just behind him.  Trent Murphy, last week’s winner, came to second place with Wayne Gifford tagging right behind in third.  At lap eight, Murphy was able to make the pass around Schmidt for the lead.  It was looking as if Murphy was going to find himself back in victory lane for the second week in a row—until lap traffic came into play on the final lap.  Schmidt seized the opportunity, took the highroad out around the lap traffic, beating Murphy to the checkers as they came out of turn four.  Schmidt scored his third win of the year, Murphy having to settle for second on this night.  Third went to Wayne Gifford, Donavon Smith took fourth over Todd Fisher in fifth.  The race went flag to flag.

Only one IMCA Hobby Stock feature was run this week after two B mains were run to complete the starting feature.  Those wins went to Andrew Burg and Craig Graham.   The twelve lap feature was led from start to finish by winner Kyle Dirks.  One yellow flew at lap four but it didn’t hinder Dirks lead as he pulled away at the finish.   Matt Hudspeth and Matt McDonald battled it to the wire as they finished second and third in that order.  Fourth went to John Watson who started in row six and Aaron Rudolph came from row five, to finish fifth.

Next Saturday night, September 1, will be Season Championship night, ending the regular season of racing at the Boone Speedway. Then on Monday, September 3, begins the first of six straight nights of racing,  “America’s Racin’ Vacation”, the 30th Annual IMCA Super Nationals.

Jake Durbin visiting Victory Lane during Casey's General Store Night on August 18, 2012.

August 18, 2012

Sprinkles fell at the Boone Speedway shortly before race time, but with diligent and constant packing of the track, racing began only a few minutes past the scheduled start time. A  field of 176 cars competed on a night that found close races, some being determined only as they crossed beneath the checkers.

Bryan Zehm took the win in the Mod Lite class. Zehm fought past early leader Joel Keenan and Tim Hennigar to take the lead at lap twelve of the 15-lap feature.  Keenan held second, Hennigar third. Jeff Stensland and Randy Bryan rounded out the top five.

The IMCA Northern SportMod A main went to Randy Roberts in nearly a photo finish. The final few laps saw three different leaders—Joe McBirnie, to be passed by Jason Mallicoat and Randy Roberts followed into second with a lap to go.  The final few feet in the race to the checkers saw Roberts surge ahead and get the win. Mallicoat was second after starting fourteenth, McBirnie finished third coming from twelfth. Ty Luellen started mid-pack to take fourth and Rocky Caudle was fifth.

Rookie Kyle Brown led most of the 20-lap feature of the IMCA Modified event.  Brown held off challenges early by Cale Sponsler and Jake Durbin, but pulled away.  Brown’s lengthy lead vanished at lap twelve when a caution flew, putting  Durbin,  Sponsler, Gustin and Jay Noteboom right behind him.  Durbin would then make the pass for the lead with two laps to go, and take  the victory.  This left  Brown yet to see his first feature win at Boone,  having to settle for the runner up spot.  Jay Noteboom took third place over Jimmy Gustin and Cale Sponsler who finished fourth and fifth.  This was Durbin’s fourth win this year.

The IMCA Stock Car feature followed up with another exciting finish. Jay Schmidt took the lead away from Cody Clark by lap six.  Trent Murphy, who had started alongside Schmidt in row five, made the pass on Clark to take over second.  Meanwhile, Donavon Smith, who had started back in eighteenth place, was on the move and made the pass to take third.  Those three drivers were digging hard when Schmidt’s car would suddenly appear to shut down, bringing out a caution, and ending his night.  The restart had Smith as the leader, Murphy running second with four laps remaining.  Smith pulled to the lead but Murphy was not going away.  The final sprint to the checkers determined the winner–Murphy pulling off the pass in the final few feet and taking his second win of the season.  Smith finished second, third went to Travis Shipman, Mason City driver, Cody Clark finished fourth and Alan VanGorp was fifth.

Two A mains were run for the IMCA Hobby Stocks for the third week in a row.  The first A main found John Watson back in victory circle after a few week’s absence. Watson flew through the field from starting tenth, to take over the lead at lap three.  Watson pulled away from the field and took the checkers for the tenth time on the regular season; eleventh counting the Frostbuster.  Randy Embrey came from fourteenth to take second, third was Aaron Rudolph and Craig Graham and Ray Stock, Jr. finished fourth and fifth.

The final A main saw a new face in victory lane.  Bill Atcheson took the lead at the halfway mark of the twelve lap feature and took the win.  He stayed just ahead of second place finisher Curt Reed at the checkers.  Veteran racer Chris Jensen made his first appearance of the season, started twelfth and finished third.  Fourth went to Matt Hudspeth and Dustin Filloon was fifth.

Two more regular night’s of racing remain.  Next Saturday night, August 25 is “Back to School Night”  with a bike giveaway, and September 1 will be season championship night.  Hot laps are 6:45, racing at 7:30.

Jimmy Gustin claimed his third IMCA Modified Win of 2012 Saturday, August 11.

August 11, 2012

The count down to Super Nationals brought 186 cars to Boone Speedway on Saturday night. There was fast and furious racing all night long, winners sometimes being decided as the cars came out of turn four. Only one of two hobby features saw a new winner; all other features saw drivers repeat.

The Mod Lite feature went to Bryan Zehm who out distanced Josh May to snag his third win of the year. Try as he may, May could not make the pass on Zehm, and had to settle for second. Jason Whitehead finished in third ahead of Andy Hennigar in fourth and Mike Kennedy in fifth.

Forty-nine IMCA SportMods required three B mains to whittle their starting A feature to twenty-four cars. Randy Roberts, Jason Mallicoat and visiting driver from Ida Grove, Tim Wilcox won those consolation races. The feature found Chad Ryerson and Cole Ferguson do battle for the top spot through much of the 18-lap race.  In the waning laps, Scott Davis took over second and then was able to make the pass on leader Ferguson, and make it to the checkers first. Third went to Ryerson, Racer Hulin came from starting eleventh to take fourth, and Nick Roberts was fifth.

Thirty-one IMCA modifieds required a B main to get their starting field to twenty-four cars. Kyle Krampe won it.  Joel Bushore took the lead before the halfway mark of the 20-lapper, but the car hot on his tail was Jimmy Gustin—coming from tenth to the runner up spot, and wanting more. Gustin accomplished just that, took the lead and stretched it out at the finish. The fight for position behind him was intense, but in the end it was the driver from Hinton, Iowa, Jay Noteboom taking second, just ahead of Jon Snyder in third. Bushore hung on to take fourth, and Kelly Lyons was fifth.  Gustin won for the third time at Boone this season.

Earlier, the top two finishers in the modified heats ran a King of the Hill race sponsored by Harris Auto Racing.  Two rounds eliminated all but the final two drivers.  Those two remaining were Jon Snyder and rookie to the division, Kyle Brown from Kellogg, Iowa.  The rookie Brown took the win.

The Class too Tough to Tame, the IMCA Stock Cars ran their 18-lap event next after two B mains were required for their 24-car starting field. Those were won by Jason VanSickle and Nathan Wood, both making their first appearance at the track. In the feature, Donavon Smith had made his way around Cory Bushnell by lap four to take the lead.  Smith, who had started eleventh, then pulled away from the field in the final laps, taking the easy win, his second of the regular season, plus having also won the pre-season Frostbuster.  Josh Daniels took the runner up spot, Jared Dirks from Rowan, Iowa, Alan VanGorp, and Cory Bushnell finished third through fifth in that order in a tight pack.

With forty-five IMCA Hobby Stocks, two feature events were run.  Feature number one saw a driver repeat his win from last week when Aaron Rudolph took the checkers.  Rudolph inherited the lead when leader Tony Cox blew his motor, spewing oil all over the track with but a handful of laps in the book.  Scott Lograsso chased Rudolph in the final laps, almost making it an interesting finish when a lap car played into it as they came to the checkers.  However, there was no change in positions, Lograsso settling for second. Third was visitor Josh Peters from Dickens, Iowa, fourth was Garrett Eilander and fifth was Matt McDonald.

The night was polished off with the second feature for the IMCA Hobby Stocks.  This one came right down to the wire between Webster City driver Craig Graham and David Rieks from Eldora.  The two battled closely in the final two laps, Rieks gaining the advantage briefly with one lap to go, only to lose it coming to the checkers out of turn four.  Graham nabbed his first win at Boone, Rieks taking second.  Third went to Curt Reed, Noah Ludwig from Logan, Iowa was fourth and Matt Hudspeth was fifth.

Three weeks of regular season racing remains.  Hot laps are 6:45 and racing at 7:30.