The upgrades to the restrooms were great. The concessions changed from fountain pop to bottles which made the lines move faster. The nachos were packaged a little different to make that line faster. The only thing that slows the lines down is the taco salad which is one of my favorites, but it takes 3-4 minutes sometimes to prepare. The only other complaint I have (for the fifth year in a row) is the sound system. Several high school football stadiums and other race tracks (Iowa Speedway) have a much clearer sound, music actually sounds good, and it's not as loud. Knoxville is loud, but it's so loud you can't understand the announcers at times. It's like a fast car that can't turn a corner.
Toby Kruse came and went, but he certainly injected a new energy and attitude with employees being more courteous and friendlier than in the past. And I think he handled the situation well with not trying to do too much and reinvent the wheel, but he made a difference at the same time. Sad to see him leave after one year.
There were eight different feature winners this year in thirteen features. Winning two races were Terry McCarl, Davey Heskin, Bronson Maeschen, Brian Brown, and Danny Lasoski. Winning one feature was Ian Madsen, Justin Henderson, and Wayne Johnson. Drivers with wins in previous seasons and not winning any features this year were Dusty Zomer, Mark Dobmeier, Don Droud Jr., and Lynton Jeffrey.
I keep track of stats of each driver throughout the season at Knoxville.
Top Ten in Qualifying Average: Maeschen 5.7, Heskin 8.4, Selvage 9.4. McCarl 9.5, Madsen 11.3, Bunton 12.2, Dobmeier 12.6, Wolfgang 12.9, Zomer 13.3, Rager Phillips 13.8.
Top Ten in Average Feature Finish: McCarl 4.9, Heskin 6.8, Maeschen 7.3, Dobmeier 7.8, Zomer 8.2, Madsen 9.9, Droud 11.9, Wolfgang 12.3, Jeffrey 12.9, Selvage 13.0.
One stat that is always interesting is the Qualifying Average to Feature Average finish ratio (Q/F as you will see below) where you can use that as an indicator who is passing the most cars in the features.
Looking at each driver in the top ten of points in finishing order:
1.) Terry McCarl
Stats: 2 wins, 9 top fives, 12 top tens, 4 heat wins, and 1 quick time. Qualifying average 9.5, Average Feature finish 4.9, Q/F +4.6, Nationals B-Main 14th, +3 improvement in points position.
T-Mac was the most consistent driver all season for sure, and one of only two drivers that started all 13 regular season shows. Despite being out qualified all season by Heskin, he stayed within striking distance in the points chase and at the Capitani Classic event T-Mac took the points lead after he made a daring pass around James McFadden in his heat race to get a feature transfer position. That pass was the defining moment in the championship and what put him over the top. He might not have had the fastest car every week, or the most funding, but he was up in the seat each night to drive and he proved he is the best driver in 2012. His Nationals effort of only making it up through the B-Main could be considered disappointing, but not terrible for trying to rebuild his own 24 team this year. He was fourth in points in 2011 in the Vermeer 55 so things are looking up for McCarl.
2.) Davey Heskin
Stats: 2 wins, 9 top fives, 11 top tens, 1 heat win, and 2 quick times. Qualifying average 8.4, Average Feature finish 6.8, Q/F +1.6, Nationals A-Main 10th, +6 improvement in points position.
Heskin had a chance to win the championship but fell just short. The team has to be proud of their season however after finishing fifth in 2011. They had a clear advantage in qualifying timing in the top five on eight nights. Only Bronson Maeschen had a better qualifying average. The Garrett Engines were killers this year. Heskin showed maturity by being patient at times, he found the rubber early on a couple of nights, and the nights he started further back with a ten or twelve invert draw he always made his way to the front. And his Nationals this year was a good one getting his third consecutive A-Main start and his second top ten finish. Heskin was eighth in points in 2011 so a big jump for him to second. He is young, popular with fans and kids as well. I look for Davey to only get better.
3.) Bronson Maeschen
Stats: 2 wins, 6 top fives, 11 top tens, 1 heat win, and 1 quick time. Qualifying average 5.7, Average Feature finish 7.3, Q/F -1.6, Nationals B-Main 11th, +8 improvement in points position.
Maeschen was a great underdog story this year. He left the Jordan 1 team at the end of 2011 after finishing eleventh in points last year and he restarted his own 96 team. That move paid off as he picked up his first two career feature wins, including the Capitani Classic over a stacked field of 67 cars. He had the best qualifying average this year and third in feature average finish. A really good season for Bronson and he answered the critics about not being able to race his way through the field as he was more aggressive this season. Hopefully Bronson can keep the momentum for 2013.
4.) Dusty Zomer
Stats: 0 wins, 6 top fives, 11 top tens, 5 heat wins, and 0 quick times. Qualifying average 13.3, Average Feature finish 8.2, Q/F +5.1, Nationals B-Main 24th, -2 spots in points position.
Zomer had a disappointing 2012 season. After winning four features and finishing second in points in 2011, most had Zomer picked to win the championship before the season started (including me). The Ingalls 91 car just didn’t have a good qualifying year and that never seemed to improve all season and it caused them to miss the feature invert a lot of nights. When you win five heat races that is an indicator that the car races well, but can’t qualify well. I wish I would have kept track of who the hard charger was each week because this guy won it several times I’m sure. And then they wrecked at the start of the Nationals B-Main to cap off the year. I hope they can turn it around in 2013.
5.) Mark Dobmeier
Stats: 0 wins, 7 top fives, 10 top tens, 2 heat wins, and 0 quick times. Qualifying average 12.6, Average Feature finish 7.8, Q/F +4.8, Nationals A-Main 12th, +0 improvement in points position.
The Lunstra/Dobmeier 13 team had a year that was good overall, winning a World of Outlaws feature at Huset’s, making the Nationals A-Main after winning the B-Main and advancing to twelfth, but their season at Knoxville other than the Nationals had no wins, poor qualifying, and they were much like Zomer always racing their way up from the back. They were fifth in points last year as well. It’s a head scratcher to make any sense out of, but this is a good team and a good driver. I look for them to improve in 2013 and be more consistent. But they do run a lot of races throughout the season and maybe they were running thin on engines or equipment compared to a lot of other teams.
6.) Ian Madsen
Stats: 1 win, 3 top fives, 8 top tens, 0 heat wins, and 2 quick times. Qualifying average 11.3, Average Feature finish 9.9, Q/F +1.4, +1 improvement in points position from 2010.
Madsen showed a lot of improvement this year compared to a couple of years ago when he was racing weekly at Knoxville. He is my vote for most improved driver although his points improvement doesn’t show as big of a number as Heskin or Maeschen. With a trained eye you can tell how much smoother he is on the track and he races in a much more controlled way. It’s difficult to explain, you had to be there. Hopefully the Vermeer/Barry Lewis 55 team can stay together for 2013. I’m excited to see how they can do with another year together.
7.) Don Droud Jr.
Stats: 0 wins, 2 top fives, 7 top tens, 2 heat wins, and 0 quick times. Qualifying average 14.3, Average Feature finish 11.9. Q/F +2.4, Nationals C-Main 12th, +0 improvement in points position.
Seventh in points again this year. Droud is getting the most out of the Gil Sonner 47 and he brings the car back to the trailer in one piece. They were second in points in 2010 to Brian Brown and they didn’t rebound after a disappointing 2011. Good driver, down on horsepower for sure.
8.) Lynton Jeffrey
Stats: 0 wins, 2 top fives, 6 top tens, 3 heat wins, and 0 quick times. Qualifying average 16.6, Average Feature finish 12.9, Q/F +3.7, Nationals C-Main 17th, +1 improvement in points position.
Jeffrey is getting the most out of the equipment he has. Hope he can get the #12 back into victory lane in 2013.
9.) Dustin Selvage
Stats: 0 wins, 1 top fives, 7 top tens, 0 heat wins, and 1 quick time. Qualifying average 9.4, Average Feature finish 15.6, Q/F -6.2, Nationals B-Main 22nd, +1 improvement in points position.
Selvage’s sophomore season in the 410 class was up and down. He qualified well in the heat of the summer months and on the nights he had mechanical problems he was running in the top ten usually. I think this kid has a lot of talent and his team will figure out how to be more consistent in 2013 and probably win a feature. He has the most potential of anyone for improvement next season.
10.) Josh Schneiderman
Stats: 0 wins, 4 top fives, 2 top tens, 7 heat wins, and 0 quick times. Qualifying average 17.3, Average Feature finish 14.2, Q/F +3.1, Nationals C-Main 14th, +2 improvement in points position.
The Deuce Motorsports team expanded to two teams in 2012 with brother Jarrod moving up to the 410 class. Schneiderman was eighth in points in 2010, dropped to twelfth in 2011, so tenth in 2012 is a slight improvement but not where this team probably wants to be. After making the 2010 Nationals A-Main and finishing thirteenth I was expecting this team to jump up the standings similar to Heskin but it hasn’t happened. The potential is there, and with being able to afford two teams they should have good equipment, maybe they have the wrong combination right now. I can’t quite put my finger on it but I hope we see improvement from Josh in 2013.
Brian Brown won two features in his seven appearances at Knoxville weekly shows. So proud of this guy for starting his own team and building it up to what he has. He is a good driver and I think he has the right attitude and business model to continue his success. If you’re looking to start a race team, this guy has set the benchmark in my opinion.
Danny Lasoski was at Knoxville for three of the first five races and won twice. He ran ninth at the Capitani Classic and now has a streak at Nationals of missing the A-Main three years in a row. If he would have stayed to run at Knoxville all year he likely would have won another track championship. He has 98 career wins and although some people are already celebrating 100 wins, he isn’t there yet and I think it’s wrong to even talk about it until he gets there. If he wins 100 great, I hope he does. But what if he doesn’t get to 100 for some reason? It’s bad karma.
Robby Wolfgang had a decent season going, but stepped away from the 7K. That car just doesn’t have the funding to be competitive, and I think Robby has become a good driver, but he needs a sponsor and funding like a lot of other teams out there. I would like to see what Robby can do in better equipment.
Ryan Bunton found a good bullet for under the hood of the 6R and was able to qualify well all season with a average of 12.2, but his feature finish average was 15.7. Another year of experience and I think he could be a contender.
Austin Johnson tore up a lot of equipment this year in the Marty Johnson 81 car, including one car over the turn three fence. He made it to six weekly shows and half of those he didn’t finish. And he tore up another car at the Nationals. He had some bad luck for sure, but he never qualified worse than ninth so the car is fast. Fast car, young driver, we will see if the 81 can improve in 2013, but I’m cheering for them.
The Knoxville Knockouts: Did anyone see them this year? I barely noticed them. Not sure that ambassador program worked well or not, but my vote is no.
My personal awards:
410 Driver of the Year: Davey Heskin. His Nationals performance and 2 wins did it for me.
410 Most Improved Driver: Ian Madsen
Goody’s Headache Powder Award: Austin Johnson
Race of the Year: Friday Night of Nationals. Hope you were there!
Mr. Congeniality: Davey Heskin. My kid’s vote has more weight than mine here, but Davey always has fist bumps for the kids.
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