Knoxville Knights: Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Winning Streak

After winning two races in a row at Knoxville car owner Steve Bennett and driver Andy Zook were riding high. Since Bennett’s old friend Marion Graham came along with some sponsorship money, Steve had been able to get some new equipment. He was also taking advantage of the opportunity to tinker around with some things at Marion’s steel fabrication factory to make some specialized parts, specifically new shocks he designed. Steve’s sons Tony and Todd had picked up a new chassis the day before, and a new engine had arrived a few days prior to that.

An interview with Russ Hall

Like most racers, Russ Hall comes from a racing family. His grandfather was Bert Sonner, brother of Knoxville Raceway Hall of Famer Gil Sonner. Bert was killed in a racing accident at Knoxville in 1974. Russ is 33 years old, a husband, and a father of three children. He has been racing a sprint car for seven seasons now, but growing up he raced go-karts and was the kid listening in the corner while the old guys talked in the race shop. He has won two 360 features at Knoxville and has three career wins with the Sprint Invaders, and this year they won the Sprint Invaders series championship. It was time to catch up with this guy after a successful 2013 season.

EA: When did you first start racing?
RH: I began racing in go-karts when I was 8 years old in Des Moines at the fairgrounds in the dome. I raced go-karts all the way through high school.

Iowa Speedway SOLD!

NASCAR buys Iowa Speedway. I have several thoughts on that. This is a good thing for the city of Newton. This brings financial stability, confidence, hope for the future, and plenty of money to support the track on its own without more help from the taxpayers. NASCAR is the second largest professional sport franchise in America after all. They have money, political power, and will know how to use the Iowa Speedway best. But this doesn’t mean its all good news. Newton and Jasper County should be prepared for political issues with ISC.

Since the track opened in 2006 the track saw growth the first few years with IndyCar, the NASCAR Nationwide, and Camping World Track series races. But then the new shiny facility lost its momentum and seen attendance slipping in recent years. Having five race weekends was too much, especially with one competing against the college football season and another against the 360 Knoxville Nationals (where 10,000 race fans and prospective ticket buyers are already at) made terrible business sense. They were smart to cut down to three weekends for 2014.

Knoxville Knights: Chapter 1

For about 3 years now I’ve been tinkering with a fictional story about sprint car racing. I thought I would throw out a sampling of the story and see what kind of reaction I get. Feel free to e-mail your comments to me at arniebhg@yahoo.com and let me know if you like it, if you think it needs work, or if you want to read more. I appreciate the Knoxville Raceway for giving me this platform to experiment a bit.

Knoxville Knights by Eric Arnold
Chapter 1: The County Fair

It was a hot and humid summer day in the middle of July. There is no wind, the grass is brown, so hot that you still sweat trying to cool off sitting under a shade tree. But it was race day and Steve Bennett and his crew made up of his two sons Tony and Todd were at Knoxville on the fairgrounds lot behind turn three, working on their number 42 sprint car in preparation for tonight’s race.

Interview with Keoni Texeira

On July 20th this past season Knoxville Raceway had its first driver entrant from the state of Hawaii, 30 year-old Keoni Texeira. A native of Honolulu, he ended up moving to Moulton, Iowa this past year for work but he had a dream of racing himself. Iowa is known as the “Field of Dreams” after all. A chance meeting and making contacts with the right person one night and a deal fell into place for him to race a 305 sprint car a few times this season. He raced three nights in 2013 where he qualified well each night, never worse than fourth, and finished eighth and 11th in his two features. Night three on August 3rd he crashed in his heat race and was done for the season. After a successful dirt racing career with over 20 wins back home in Hawaii, his local track closed, but he was determined to stay in racing somehow.

WoO Season in Review

The World of Outlaws season has come to an end.  It was good to see some of our Knoxville Regulars make the trip to Charlotte for the World Finals.  Brian Brown had a good showing with a couple of top ten’s, Ian Madsen, Mark Dobmeier, Justin Henderson, and Wayne Johnson also made the trip.  The World Finals has turned into a big three day event where the dirt track racing world comes together in the center of the racing business industry.  I would even consider it the fifth “major” in sprint car racing with the four majors being the Knoxville Nationals, Eldora Kings Royal, Williams Grove National Open, and the Chico Gold Cup.  I ponied up to watch the DirtVision broadcast which I hadn’t done before and I was impressed with their live PPV coverage.

WoO Point System

The World of Outlaws season is coming to a close now with only 3 nights of racing left.  Daryn Pittman has essentially wrapped up the title.  Mathematically Donny Schatz is still alive, but unless he wins the last 3 races and Pittman has a couple of 20th place finishes, it’s over.  Schatz has won 21 features and Pittman has won 8.  This has stirred up some controversy about the WoO point system, but I feel the point system is fine as is.  The season long battle is just that.  It should reward consistency over the long haul of 70 plus nights of racing.  Pittman has not won a feature event since July 23 at Rolling Wheels.  That is nearly 3 months and 22 races ago.  Ironically the WoO goes back to Rolling Wheels this Saturday night before the season ends at Charlotte.

Late Model Knoxville Nationals

The Late Model Knoxville Nationals (LMKN) was once again a successful event for us here at Knoxville Raceway.  We celebrated our tenth anniversary of the event and it seems to grow in popularity and prestige each year within the Late Model community.  To hear how grateful and honored all these teams and drivers are to get the opportunity to race at Knoxville Raceway is very humbling.  The Late Model crowd loves Knoxville.

The format for the qualifying nights was interesting with the field being split into two groups for qualifying and heat races (Group A and Group B).  72 cars entered and the first 36 cars in the pill draw were put into group A, and the second  36 cars slated for group B.  This made it more fair for time trials with the car drawing 50 or 60 not having to compete for points with the cars drawing 10 or less. The same amount of points were awarded for each set (winner received 200 points, 198, 196, etc.)  The teams in Group A were put into their own set of heats, Group B in their own set of heats.  Group A was then set for the inside row of the features, and Group B given the outside row.  I thought this format worked well and was fair for everyone.

Marshalltown World Nationals

For nearly a year now the thought of a $10,000 to win Modified race at Marshalltown Speedway has had a lot of buzz. I’ve always thought that Marshalltown would be the perfect spot for a big race like that (other than Knoxville).

The highest paying races of the season typically pay $1,000 or $2,000 to win, so $10,000 is huge! The twist for this event was that it was for built (open) engines, no crate engines were allowed. The event itself went well as I expected, Toby Kruse is one of the best promoters in the business so I had no doubts about the event. There were 60 Modifieds entered, which is a great car count considering the rules. The crowd drew well and the stands were filled nearly to capacity with what I estimated was 1,500 fans, and probably a few hundred more in the pits to get close to 2,000 total combined.

The race itself was 50 laps in length and it was slowed by only two cautions. Adam Larson was on the pole and led the first few laps but was soon challenged by second row starter Jacob Murray. They exchanged the lead a few times before Murray eventually took the lead for good and led the last 30 or so laps of the race. The track was nice and wide and at first the race was around the tires on the bottom at both ends of the track. As the race progressed Murray found a middle groove working for him and pulled away from the field winning easily. Jeremy Mills drove from the fifth row up to a second place finish and Darrin Duffey charged up from row seven to finish third. Jay Noteboom drove from dead last to a sixth place finish.

The teams that had the chassis set up for the last half of the race shined at the end. I think a lot of teams out-guessed themselves and thought it would be a race around the bottom, but the track changed during the race and opened up multiple grooves. Cars that drove the thin cushion the long way around the rim were able to keep up with the cars on the bottom. It was a good race within the top ten spots the last half of the race, but no one challenged Murray. “This is the biggest win of my career, what else can I say!” said an excited Jacob Murray in victory lane. Murray was driving a car he had built himself and is normally driven by Casey Greubel.

World Nationals Finish (started) : 1. 64 Jacob Murray (3); 2. 10M Jeremy Mills (10); 3. 19D Darin Duffy (14); 4. 72M Brian Mullen (7); 5. 2L Adam Larson (1); 6. 7N Jay Noteboom (24); 7. 90K Shawn Kilgore (6); 8. 1X Chris Abelson (13); 9. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (13); 10. 62 Hunter Marriott (5); 11. 99M Mike Mullen (2); 12. 00J JD Auringer (16); 13. 19G Richie Gustin (9); 14. 21K Kyle Brown (8); 15. 30 Jordan Grabouski (11); 16. 83G Josh Gilman (17); 18. 12J Justin O’Brien (18); 19. 21X Brandon Rothzen (12); 20. 10C Cayden Carter (21); 21. 20 Luke Wanninger (20); 22. J41 Ryan Ruter (4); 23. 77B Joe Beal (23); 24. 3Z Randy Havlik (19).

The format was good. There were ten cars locked in from Friday night where teams raced two sets of heats and accumulated points. Everyone else was then divided up into five last chance races that took the top two to the A-Main, and then a B-Main (called the Final Four) that took the top four that would start at the tail.

The payout was outstanding down through the field, $5,000 for second, $2,500 for third, $2,000 for fourth, $1,750 for fifth, $1,000 for tenth, 13-24 paid $500 for a total of $34,700 in the championship feature alone. Congrats to Toby Kruse and his marketing partners to pull that off!

Engine Debate:
IMCA normally tries to police costs along with the purses. They want to promote that this is the “working man’s” sport and a hobby, but when you have teams that race 2, 3, or more nights a week in central Iowa I don’t know how you can consider this sport a hobby. It’s an obsession, or addiction for these people. The crate engine has certainly created some debate the last couple of years and for good reason. There is a split within the premier IMCA division, and at some point it could become a full blown SPLIT unless someone can come up with a solution. With events like the World Nationals and the Farley Aftermarket Nationals sprouting up, this just adds fuel to the fire (debate).

The crate engine is a cheaper option for race teams, so I can see why IMCA, promoters, and some competitors are in favor of that. On some tracks the crate has a clear advantage because they don’t turn as many RPM’s and the driver can keep his foot down without lifting in the corners. It basically has a built in traction control and has made some “average” drivers look better than they really are. But those teams are doing what they need to do to win races with the budget they have, and I don’t think there is anything wrong with that.

With the open engine you have to have a little more skill and know how to work the throttle. It puts more of the race back into the driver’s hands and feet. I’m not sure what the solution is, but I’m pretty sure IMCA gets kick back’s on the sales of crate engines so if you follow the dollars I think we know what direction they are going. It always comes down to money.

Now we have engine shops who are working together trying to protect their business and are willing to put up money for an event like the World Nationals. Oh the politics of racing. I’m not sure how we come up with a solution to unify the Modified division and that will make everyone happy. IMCA has already opened the door for crates, so they can’t close it now.

I think what happens is that IMCA sticks with the current rules and allows both types of engines in the Modified division. If you want to race you can pick the type of engine you want with the budget you have. If you want to spend more money on a more expensive engine, you can. And some teams will have both types of engines and will swap them out depending on what track they are racing at to give them the best chance to win. No one is forcing anyone to do that, but the teams that have the money at their disposal and want to win at all costs will do this. (Note: swapping engines will also cost more in the gears an ignition boxes it sounds like.)

Another solution is that IMCA could go with two separate divisions but I think that is a horrible idea. If you really want to race with an open engine, you can move to USMTS. The problem is there isn’t a local track sanctioning under USMTS.

Although I think it’s great that these no-crate shows are popping up, I don’t see more of these types of shows coming in the future. Who has the money to put up the purse? What promoter is willing to chance risking the loss in car count? Marshalltown had a great show with lots of money up for grabs, and yes a solid car count of 60 cars were there but that is a far cry from the 240 Modifieds at the Boone Super Nationals that pays way less money. Either way as a race fan, I just enjoy the racing from my point of view in the stands. I know this engine debate is going to keep going, but it’s a shame that the debate takes away from things on the track at times.

Congratulations to Jacob Murray on the big win! And congrats to Marshalltown Speedway and Toby Kruse for putting on a great event for the fans!

Knoxville 305 Season Review & Stats

305 ReviewLarry Ball Jr. dominated this class with 6 wins and 3 quick times.  J Kinder was his closest competitor with 2 wins.  Matt Stephenson gets most improved with +4 positions in the point standings.  The interesting thing about this class is that only 3 cars competed in 75% of the races this season AND last season, which is Kinder, Stephenson, and Lee Patterson.  All the other teams this year were either new teams, or drivers that didn’t compete in enough races last season to qualify for points.  I’m glad we have the 305 class competing most nights.  These guys seem to have the most fun of anyone racing when you see them in the pit area.  A lot of smiles on that back pit row.  It’s an entry level “hobby” class for those wanting to learn the ropes of a sprint car, or for the guy who wants to race on a lower budget.  The costs are a concern in this class and I know John McCoy is trying to keep an eye on that.  Car counts have not varied much looking back on the past five years ranging from 19 to 22 (19.8 this season) so I can’t say it’s a growing class, but it’s holding its own.

Knoxville 360 Season Review & Stats

The Knoxville Raceway 360 class always displays some good racing. Clint Garner won the championship for the fifth consecutive year. His stats are impressive with 5 wins, 4 second place finishes, 12 top five’s, 13 top ten’s (out of 14 features), 2 heat wins, and 1 quick time.  Most of the season Joe Beaver and Nate Van Haaften were there challenging but the breaks didn’t go their way to overcome one of the most successful 360 drivers in Knoxville Raceway history.

Feature winners in chronological order:  Clint Garner, Tony Shilling, Brian Brown, Jon Agan, Joe Beaver, Garner, Garner, Nate Van Haaften, Dustin Selvage, Garner, Garner, Brown, Randy Martin, Agan.  Note: the two nights Brownie won, Garner finished second in those two features.

Garner was the man all season.  I have more about him as you read.

Knoxville 410 Season Review & Stats

The 2013 season started off with a rain out unfortunately for the fourth time in six years.  Those damn April showers.  May wasn’t much better with two rain outs, but we dodged the rain a few nights to get the shows in.  My faith in the swirling vortex of winged sprint cars thwarting off rain was restored this season.  Many nights I looked at the radar thinking it looked bad for Knoxville, only to see storms break up as they approached and miss us.  

Maeschen Champion & 100 for Lasoski

Danny Lasoski got his 100th career win at Knoxville.  Unbelievable.  I was ten years old in 1984 when he won his first race in the Derry 22 car, and I think I’ve seen all but one or two of his 100 wins in person.  I used to hate it in the middle 90’s when he would win four, five, and six weeks in a row on a couple of occasions.  But I look back now and have to respect and appreciate The Dude as one the best that I have seen drive a sprint car.  He is a WoO champion, won the 2006 NST title, and four Knoxville Nationals. 100 wins is the cherry on top, and a record that will never be touched.

Interviews with Maeschen and Madsen

I thought it would be appropriate to do an interview with the top two contenders leading up to the Knoxville Championship Cup Series Finals this Saturday night, Bronson Maeschen and Ian Madsen.  These two men are ironically both 29 years old, but have taken two different roads to get to where they are today, and both are seeking history to etch their name in stone as a Knoxville Raceway Track Champion and the $20,000 check that comes with it.

Season Championship Preview

This Saturday night is the end of the season for our weekly Lucas Oil – Knoxville Championship Cup Series (KCCS) sprint cars!  To celebrate the end of the season and the crowning of our track champions, Knoxville Raceway will have a cookout in the infield after the races, which means FREE food for everyone!!!  So be sure to come to the pit area at the end of the night! (Sounds like there are a little over 2,000 burgers to be made, so food available until that runs out.)

Super Schatz Wins Seventh Nationals

Donny Schatz… wow.  From fourth in the B-Main, you win that, then start 21st in the A-Main and are leading by lap 40.  Are you kidding me?  The legend of Donny Schatz just grew even more.  To win seven of the last eight Knoxville Nationals is mind blowing.  Just call him Donny Knoxville, Super Schatz, or Sheriff Schatz.  He should have a Superman logo on the front of his uniform.

Friday Hard Knox Format Works Again!

Friday “Hard Knox” show was once again a success giving teams one last chance to come to Knoxville and do that they came here hoping to do, start the Saturday A-Main.  Kyle Larson took advantage by dominating the feature and giving him the 17th starting spot, close enough to get to a top five possibly.  Ohio drivers took spots two, three, four.  Mopar engine man, Cap Henry was lucky to even get to the Nationals with not many funds to bring his car, find an engine, and needed help to tow their hauler back west, so big reward for his team.  Chad Kemenah and Jac Haudenschild raced their way in as well.  This new format sure beats the heck out of the old one.

KXV Night 2: Saldana Wins Quals & Pole, Brown Feature

Night two of the 53rd FVP Knoxville Nationals was a rollercoaster of a night for some, and a great performance from Brian Brown. It started off with the excitement of Robert Bell with new sticker tires on all four wheels, some extra cash from fans, he drew the number one pill, and he blew the engine in hot laps.  I was bummed that we didn’t get to hear Robert Bell is “quick time” at the Nationals, because the crowd would have went crazy!  Toug break for Sheldon Haudenschild as well as he was done for the night after contact with a car during hot laps.

Gravel & McMahan Win, Stewart & Henderson Lead Points

Night one of the 53rd FVP Knoxville Nationals was a good one.  Everyone wants to see someone besides Donny Schatz win on Saturday night, and we just might get that after his performance on Wednesday night

Qualifying:
Paul McMahan won the qualifying portion on Wednesday, setting quick time going out 27th in the qualifying order with a lap 15.218.  Knoxville Regular driver (from Australia) Lynton Jeffrey was second quick, he must have a fresh engine as he was fast this past Sunday night as well, Justin Henderson third in what is a shoe-in for best appearing car with his Sundby #1D, Shane Stewart fourth, and another Knoxville Regular Davey Heskin rounding out the top five.  The race track held up well in qualifying.  Kraig Kinser barely completed one lap before his engine let go as he timed 30th.  It was no surprise to see McMahan at the top of the qualifying finish, this was his third career Knoxville Nationals quick time, and it earns 200 points, the same as the feature, just not as much glory or money, but equal in points.

Heat Races:
The eight invert in the heat races is what makes the Nationals format so great.  Drivers take chances to get into the top four to transfer into the A-Main.  The heats are ten laps instead of the typical eight laps to give the teams a little more time to get to the front.  Some do, some don’t.

Don Droud Jr. drove the wheels off the Gil Sonner 47 to win the first heat race.  Paul McMahan had to work for it, but he made it to fourth in the first heat and transferred. Jason Sides who was sixth quick and started seventh in the heat did not make it and finished seventh.  David Gravel would slow on the final lap while running second, and he coasted to a third place finished with a blown motor. They would get the engine changed in time for the feature.  Unlucky to blow an engine, but you make your own luck being in position to coast to a third place finish as well.

In heat two Brandon Wimmer won handily, meanwhile Brad Sweet came from the seventh to third and looked really fast.  Lynton Jeffrey started eight and finished sixth, but looked like he might make the top four early with a good start, but he got over the cushion and lost his momentum.  Sammy Swindell  started fifth and finished seventh.  It wasn’t a good night for the 1983 champion.

Randy Hannagan looked impressive coming from fourth to win heat three, as did Justin Henderson driving from eighth to second.  Brady Bacon started on the front row and held on for third, while Ian Madsen came from sixth to fourth by half a car length to hold off Donny Schatz at the checkers.  The crowd went wild as Schatz was forced to run the B-Main after his fifth place finish.

Tim Kaeding timed 24th but drove straight to the front of the fourth heat to win it.  Shane Stewart started eighth and made his way to second with no issues. Knoxville Regular Josh Schneiderman looked the best he has all year when he timed 14th, started sixth in the heat, and finished fourth.  Skylar Prochaska had to be smiling finishing third and making the feature.  Daryn Pittman started seventh and finished fifth.  Chad Kemenah struggled to ninth and went to the C-Main.

In heat five Johnny Herrera started on the front row and walked away with the win.  Kraig Kinser was able to get a new engine in and he finished second.  Kyle Larson and Davey Heskin were top ten qualifiers and started in the fourth row, but neither driver was able to get to the top four and were sent to the B-Main.

Chad Kemenah won the C-Main.

B-Main:
As usual at Knoxville preliminary shows, the B-Main was stacked!  Jason Sides would win after pasing leader Lynton Jeffery in lapped traffic.  Donny Schatz finished third, Daryn Pittman fourth as those drivers would advance and tag the tail of the A-Main.  Drivers not advancing were Heskin, Larson, Sammy, Selvage, Allard.

A-Main:
The race was slowed by four cautions. Herrera lost his engine with only one lap complete to bring out the first caution.  Greg Hodnett would lead early and David Gravel would make the pass for the lead on lap three and lead the rest of the way making it look easy.

Don Droud Jr. started ninth and looked like the fastest car on the track coming up to fifth, but something broke and he got into the turn fence to bring out a caution.

On lap nine the caution came out again when Ian Madsen had to pit with a front wing down, he started third and was running fourth, tough break for Madsen.

Another Knoxville Regular Josh Schneiderman was running third and slowed with problems to bring out another caution.  It was a heartbreaking night for several of the Regulars who had qood qualifying times and feature finishes going, but they were snake-bitten.

Gravel continued to drive away from the field with his “third best engine” in the trailer he would say in the press conference. I said this in my Nationals Preview blog. “This is the coming out party for Gravel I have a feeling.”  I like it when my predictions pan out from my crystal ball!  First pump!!!

Brad Sweet looked impressive coming up to second.

Tim Kaeding started twelfth and finished third in a good race for him. I love watching TK on the high side.

Greg Hodnett fourth, and Pittman came from twenty-fourth to fifth to save a good night.

Shane Stewart was up to fourth at one time, but his car went away at the end, something clearly went wrong and the car wasn’t as fast the last ten laps, but he held on to finish sixth and is the overall point leader after night one.

Paul McMahan went from eighth, back to eleventh at one point, and finished eighth. McMahan just hasn’t been able to figure out Knoxville come feature time.

Jason Sides came from 21st to ninth, and Donny Schatz 23rd to tenth.

Kraig Kinser looked really fast, making it up to fifth by lap twenty, but pulled in at the end with problems.

Preliminary nights are the two best nights of racing all season, it’s a shame more people don’t understand that and come see it in person.  The fast guys always have to work hard to race their way to the front and that’s what makes Knoxville so exciting.  Thank You once again to Ray and Naomi Grimes for creating the Nationals scoring system back in 1977!

Shane Stewart and Justin Henderson are on top of the points after night one with 481 with Shane having the tie-breaker with a better feature finish.  Sweet, McMahan, Gravel, Pittman, Hodnett, Jeffery are the top eight, as I project the cut to make make the top sixteen and be locked in for the Saturday championship feature.  The next five are projected to be locked into the Saturday B-Main, Sides, Schatz, Kaeding, Ian Madsen, and Don Droud Jr.  The rest of the field will have to come back to race in the “Friday Hard Knox” program.

481 is a little low however for points, so we will see how they stack up after the two nights are combined.  Wouldn’t surprise me if only six cars from Wednesday are locked in for Saturday, and ten come from Thursday.

Thursday night doesn’t have as many WoO teams, but it’s a larger field with a more well rounded group of cars in my opinion.  Should be a great night!

*Be sure to use the official hash tag, #KXVNATS13

*Eric can be contacted at arniebhg@yahoo.com and follow him on Twitter @_EricArnold.

*The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the author and not necessarily those of Knoxville Raceway.

Knoxville Nationals Preview

The Knoxville Nationals is one of the hardest races to win, the most prestigious, and pays the most money, $150,000 to the winner!  I study a lot of stats, data, prior year finishes, and try to account how their current season is progressing to come up with my power rankings and predictions.  As I look into my crystal ball, this is how I break down the field.

Shane Stewart wins 5th 360 Title

Shane Stewart won his fifth 360 Nationals title, as expected.  He and Paul Silva have the right combination for this event, and should be close next week for Knoxville Nationals.  Hope they can get up front then as well.

Henderson Wins Night Two of 360 Nationals

The feature for night two of the 360 Nationals was dominated by Justin Henderson who went from his second row starting spot to the lead and drove away from the field in the non-stop 20 lapper.  Henderson is no stranger to victory lane at Knoxville, winning a 410 feature earlier this season in his first night driving the Bryan Sundby #1, and winning the Friday Nationals “Hard Knox” feature a year ago in the LaHaise 82 car.

The Dude Wins 360 Nationals Opener

Night one of the Arnold Motor Supply 360 Nationals is in the books and what a show Danny Lasoski and Kyle Larson put on for us!  On the start of the feature front row starters Danny Dietrich and Larson went low racing each other to the bottom, leaving the top open and Lasoski took advantage and raced by them both and came away with the lead.  Larson would catch Lasoski in traffic and attempted a last lap slider going into turn three, but the veteran Lasoski stuck his 1m on the bottom coming off of turn four to win by a car length.

Knoxville Nationals 101

The Knoxville Nationals qualifying scoring system is something I get questions about frequently.  I thought it would be nice to have an explanation in the blog to reference to.  The Knoxville Nationals Points System was created by promoter Ray Grimes and his wife Naomi.

Harris Clash to Strickler

The 2013 edition of the Harris Clash was dominated by North Carolina driver Kyle Strickler ,who becomes the events first repeat winner in its 22 year history. Strickler led all 25 laps after drawing a front row starting position and was out to a seven second lead before the races only caution came on lap nineteen. On the restart Strickler pulled away again to win comfortably. The race behind Strickler was action packed as Richie Gustin drove from seventeenth to second, passing Jesse Sobbing with two laps remaining, and Mike Van Genderen came from twenty-second to sixth. Eric Dailey was given the promoter’s provisional twenty-fifth starting spot being a former champion (2011) of the event and drove up to an eleventh place finish. Last years runner-up Jeremy Mills had just made the pass for the fourth position when he broke and came to a stop in turn four to bring out the race’s only caution, and finished twentieth.

My Iowa Speedweek

I’m extremely fortunate to have a wife that likes racing, and this week she decided we should go to Marshalltown Tuesday, Osky Wednesday, Farley Thursday, Columbus Junction on Friday. Farley and CJ makes it 14 ovals I’ve seen races at in Iowa, out of 45 total by my count in the state. My goal is to see a race at them all, but it’s going to take some time. If you follow me on twitter and Instagram I have pictures and some video of each night.

Marshalltown on Tuesday was a short show for the stock shootout, which was fine for a week night and work night. The best race of the week was here in the SportMod feature with Travis Peterson getting the win on the last lap with a pass over Jared Van Deest. Donavan Smith won the Stock Car race as he stalked Jay Schmidt before finally making the pass stick. Devin Smith walked away from the field in Hobby Stocks. Marshalltown was the best racing I saw all week, not a surprise really.

Wednesday night at Oskaloosa Todd Shute won Modifieds, Zack VanderBeek won stock cars, Curtis VanDerWal won SportMod, and the big upset of the night was Danny Thrasher holding off Mike Hughes to win Hobby. Joyce and Dick Eisele have the full report of Osky and Marshalltown in the 4D Fan Report.

Thursday we made the nearly 3 hour trek to Farley Speedway for the $10,000 to win Modifieds, $5,000 to win SportMod, Aftermarket Nationals. This was a declaration of independence of sorts for the non crate motor side of Modified racing. I’m smelling a split in the Modified division long term if more of these events keep coming, like the Marshalltown World Nationals coming this fall. This was a lot of money to race for, and they had a good crowd of more than 2,000 in the stands. But the racing was awful and as the race track was not prepared well at all. With only four races on the schedule for the night, it was disappointing. After hot laps the track was basically gone. The track crew attempted to rework it after the SportMod B main and in one lap it was bone dry again. Both races turned into asphalt races with rubber down conditions. I am spoiled going to nice facilities like Knoxville, but this was a small half-mile track and it has been reconfigured to a 3/8. The light poles are still set of the old configuration, so no lighting in turns three and four was a little strange. If you are going to go to all the trouble of reconfiguring the track, why would you not move the plush Musco lighting with it? Otherwise the stands and concession facilities are decent.

Eric Pollard started on the pole of the SportMOd feature and won, Shawn Kilgore started outside row one, and won the Modified feature leading the whole 50 lap parade. Kyle Strickler was fun to watch coming from 26th to 7th, but half the cars he passed spun out or broke. Andy Eckrich was impressive passing cars as well finishing third. Good to see big names like Strickler and Kelly Shryock there. The track also didn’t use radios to communicate with drivers and had to lineup them up on restarts the old fashioned way, which was a pain for fans to have sit and wait, and wait, and wait. We drove home disappointed, but since I had driven to Farley twice in the past, and was rained out both times, I felt like I conquered the track to finally see a race there.

Friday started with a meet and greet with Big Daddy Don Garlits at Musco headquarters in Oskaloosa, where he fired up an old swamp rat dragster, which was just simply awesome. The old man is 81 years old, and proud of it. He will be making an appearance at Eddyville Raceway Park on Saturday.

Friday night we made the drive to CJ Speedway in Columbus Junction. This again was an old half mile reconfigured to a 4/10, or big 3/8. I hate to complain about seeing a race once again, but this facility was filled with mosquito’s, bees, and spiders. And the pit area sits about four feet higher than the racing surface while the stands are not elevated and we couldn’t see the cars most of the way down the backstretch or entering turn three. There was a truck division, and when I say truck, I mean that in a singular way, one truck. The Mod LItes were entertaining, Mods were fast but couldn’t pass on a narrow track. Thankfully Nathan Wood made a good race out of the $750 stock car special and won after clawing his way from third at one point. This track was narrow and difficult to pass until the top slowed down enough to make the bottom groove about equal. Another disappointing night in general, but it’s another dirt track in my log.

I can’t wait to get back to Knoxville on Saturday night!!!

Catching Up with Osky & Marshalltown

It’s been a while since I’ve written about IMCA racing. My time has been occupied with getting married, moving to Oskaloosa, and writing a book about the Knoxville Nationals since January. Come July you will hear more about this book when it’s printed and ready for sale. But now that it’s done, I’ve been able to catch some races at Oskaloosa and Marshalltown and as I write this on Saturday with a rain out at Knoxville, I finally found time! You will notice that Hawkeye Ovals is now for IMCA type racing and my blog for sprint cars is now under the Knoxville Raceway banner at the following link, http://blog.knoxvilleraceway.com/ I had to separate the two as being the Blogger for Knoxville has been a good opportunity and since they actually pay me money, I had to segregate the two blogs and give them as much traffic as possible.

Osky has been lucky avoiding weather more than some tracks as of late. With the first three weeks were cancelled due to weather (and new dirt not getting worked in) they have been on a run with five weeks in row now. But mother nature hasn’t cooperated even the nights they we have raced with it being cold and windy. June is almost here so it has to start warming up soon…. right?
The Osky Modified class has been healthy with car counts staying in the 11-12 range. Winners this season so far Cayden Carter, Jesse Sobbing, Jacob Murray, and Tyler Groenenyk. It appears the points will come down to Carter, Groenendyk, Bill Gibson, and Murray. Sobbing is not racing for points but the weeks has been to Osky he looks fast and will likely win the IMCA Modified rookie of the year honors after moving up from SportMod last season. Adam Larson and Todd Shute have been frequent visitors and looked stong as well. I’m just so happy that this class is growing. This past week Tyler Groenendyk made slide job on Brandon Banks with two laps to go to get the win.

Sport Mods at Osky has seen Curtis Van Der Wal win twice, Jason McDaniel, Ryan Fullenkamp, and Brett Lowry win features. Van Der Wal appears to be the class of the field but has had some bad luck come his way. Otherwise this class is wide open with a handful of drivers able to win the track championship. Brayton Carter almost won last week, leading the entire distance and holding off Lowry for several laps, he drove it a little too hard into turn one after taking the white flag and brushed the fence, losing his momentum and Lawry went by to steal the win. Brayton came home to second.

Stock Cars have been competitive as ever at Osky. Zack VabderBeek probably has the fastest car but isn’t competing every week. Nathan Wood is my pick to win the track championship at this point. He hasn’t won a feature but been close. Feature winners are VanderBeek, Damon Murty, Jason Minnehan, and Jeff Joldersma who won in his furst appearance at Osky last week. Murty has been fast, and so was Joldersma last week.

Hobby Stock has been all Mike Hughes so far this season. Hughes missed week one with the car not ready but won his first three at Osky, plus the Knoxville Shootout. This past week the track was tacky and fast and Hughes finished sixth, but when the track dries out he is unbeatable. Dale Porter got the win this past week, and Dustin Griffiths won in week one. Bill Bonnett has looked so far this season as well contending for wins.

Sport Compact class is still a 5-6 car field. Merv Chandler, Bill and John Whalen are the usual suspects. This class needs to grow to be more entertaining for me.

It’s been great to see Late Models on the schedule once a month this season. Spencer Diercks has won both features so far this season. Man I love to watch these cars race. The car count was fifteen the first week and last week dropped to ten. Ten is about what I expected to see each week they raced. Really wish we still had a Deery Bros show at Osky and Knoxville. They put on great shows.

I’ve only been to Marshalltown once this season. They have four weeks in and almost got the fifth week in this Friday before rains came after the heat races. Glad to see Kyle Brown get a couple of Modified wins already this season. Jimmy Gustin and Cayden Carter have won features as well. Still early in the season but Carter was the point leader coming into this past Friday and he wasn’t there in the heat races. Look for Gustin, Jon Snyder, Adam Larson, Racer Hulin, Luke Wanninger, Ronn Lauritzen and Brown to be the top contenders. Marshalltown is one of my favorite race tracks, and it’s a shame more race fans don’t’ make their way there on Friday nights.

I can’t believe how many races Joyse & Dick Eisele attend each week. And the work they do in their blog is impressive. I hear they are going to be in the upcoming Speedway Illustrated. Should be a great story! See you around the Hawkeye Ovals….

Knoxville-WoO Preview

If you have the racing blues due to the bad weather like I do, at least this coming Saturday, May 11 the World of Outlaws will be at Knoxville Raceway! The Outlaws are headlined by five time series champion Donny Schatz and twenty time champion Steve Kinser.

Schatz is off to a slow start by his standards currently sitting third in the series point standings, but has two wins. His first ten races he had an average finish of 9.3, and his last nine that has lowered to 6.7. Once Schatz and crew chief Ricky Warner dial-in the new Hoosier tires they will tough to beat as usual. Schatz is the defending and five time champion of the Knoxville Nationals and will be the favorite on May 11. Season Stats: Wins-2, Top five-7, Top ten-13, Avg, finish-8.7.

Over the winter Daryn Pittman was hired to race the Kasey Kahne Racing #9 and is off to a strong start leading the points and has a series leading four wins. Through nineteen races Pittman has an impressive sixteen top ten finishes, the most of anyone on the WoO tour. Stats: Wins-4, Top five-13, Top ten-16, Avg, finish-5.5.

Schatz’s and Pittman’s best competition at Knoxville on May 11 will likely be the 2012 Nationals runner-up Brian Brown, who nearly won the Outlaws race Saturday at Eldora before Daryn Pittman passed him with only a handful of laps remaining. Brown has competed with the WoO on twelve occasions this season and has recorded five top ten’s. Look for Brown to make a strong showing on his home track at Knoxville!

Paul McMahan is driving the #51 this season and sits second in the point standings with one win. The Pennsylvania based CJB Motorsports team is looking to make their mark in their debut season with the Outlaws, and McMahan is in the prime of his career. Stats: Wins-1, Top five-9, Top ten-12, Avg, finish-8.6.

Joey Saldana has changed rides and now wheels the 71m Motter Motorsports machine. It’s been about a decade since the Motter team has fielded a sprinter. The resurrected 71m is off to a good start sitting fourth in points, but still looking for their first win. Stats: Wins-0, Top five-5, Top ten-12, Avg, finish-9.4.

Sammy Swindell is fifth in points and has collected one win so far. Look for Sammy to be on top of his game at Knoxville. Stats: Wins-1, Top five-4, Top ten-11, Avg, finish-9.7.

David Gravel started the season racing in Florida in his family owned #89G sprint car. When Bill Rose was injured in the third race of the season, Gravel was hired to fill in and he has put himself sixth in the point standings and is now on the full time tour. Stats: Wins-0, Top five-4, Top ten-10, Avg, finish-10.1.

Craig Dollansky (former Knoxville Regular) has two wins this season, but sits seventh in the Outlaws points. I would look for Dollansky and his #7 team to make big strides in the coming weeks and improve that position. The wins are there, and the consistency will follow. The Minnesota native always performs well at Knoxville. Stats: Wins-2, Top five-4, Top ten-10, Avg, finish-10.4.

Cody Darrah is currently in eighth in the WoO points. In his third full season with the Outlaws, Darrah has struggled this season, but has been close to winning on a couple of occasions. With his teammate Pittman leading the points, you have to think that Darrah will improve soon. Stats: Wins-0, Top five-2, Top ten-7, Avg, finish-12.3.


Steve Kinser finds himself ninth in the point standings with one feature win. In nineteen races he has one top five finish. The 58 year old “King of the Outlaws” is not off to a good start. It was only three years ago that he was competing for the win at the Nationals when his engine let go while running third. But he failed to qualify for the Nationals A main last season. Is the King’s age finally catching up with him? I wouldn’t ever count him out of winning more races. Stats: Wins-1, Top five-1, Top ten-7, Avg, finish-13.1.

2005 Knoxville track champion Kerry Madsen has been struggling this season, sitting eleventh in the points is not where I expected him to be. The team missed three features earlier in the season and has recently made a change at crew chief. Madsen won his first race of the season last Friday at Eldora, but followed that up with a finish of twenty-fourth the following night. The Keneric #29 team is based out of Knoxville and they won the June Outlaws event in 2012 at Knoxville, so I am sure they are excited to be back racing on their home turf. Stats: Wins-1, Top five-3, Top ten-8, Avg, finish-14.3.

2005 Knoxville Nationals champion Kraig Kinser isn’t off to the start he hoped for with only eight top ten finishes, and not making the feature at Merced, CA. After improving each of the last three seasons in the points by finishing tenth, eighth, and sixth from 2010-2012 respectively, it appeared that the 11K team was gaining momentum. It is still early in the season, but hopefully Kraig can win some races and rebound. Stats: Wins-0, Top five-3, Top ten-8, Avg, finish-13.5.
Jason Sides started the season strong with five straight top ten finishes, but has since struggled and missed the feature on a few nights. Sides is a talented driver with not as much funding as most teams on the tour. He hasn’t had the best of luck at Knoxville historically, but hopefully he can turn that around this weekend. Stats: Wins-0, Top five-2, Top ten-7, Avg, finish-15.3.

Although Tim Kaeding isn’t considered a full-time driver with the Outlaws, he has been the most impressive of anyone on the tour. In fourteen starts TK has three wins, nine top five’s, and eleven top ten’s. His average feature finish was 4.6 before last weekend, best of anyone on the tour, but he didn’t have a good weekend at Eldora with a twenty-sixth, and sixteenth place finishes. Look for Kaeding to be tough at Knoxville.

I would also keep a lookout for Lucas Wolfe in the Todd and Susan LaHaise #82. Wolfe is off the full-time Outlaws tour this season, but has found a solid ride. This car has performed well at Knoxville in the past, including winning the Knoxville Nationals Friday “Hard Knox” feature with Justin Henderson in the seat. Wolfe finished eighth and twelfth last weekend with the Outlaws at Eldora.

The “Knoxville Regulars” will be on hand to try to defend their home track, which hasn’t been an easy task over the years. There have been 132 World of Outlaws features (not including the Knoxville Nationals) at Knoxville Raceway since the series started racing here in 1979, and only twice has a “Regular” weekly competitor came away with a victory (Lasoski 1993, McCarl 2009).

Terry McCarl won an Outlaws race earlier this season in Florida, so he will be in contention for a win and looked good at the season opener. Brian Brown clearly has a chance to get the win. Bronson Maeschen won the Capitani Classic last August with several of the Outlaws competitors in that field. Mark Dobmeier won an Outlaws feature last year at Huset’s Speedway. Brooke Tatnell is a “Regular” this year and won an Outlaws feature in the 2010 season at Knoxville. Davey Heskin has finished in the top ten twice within the past three years at the Nationals, and he always qualifies well. Ian Madsen was really fast in the Nehring #18 at the season opener, as was Dusty Zomer. The chances of one of the “Regulars” beating the Outlaws, is higher than ever!

The Knoxville 360 class will be racing as well on May 11. See you in the stands!
Knoxville Raceway World of Outlaws career feature wins (not including Knoxville Nationals): 26-Steve Kinser, 24-Sammy Swindell, 14-Danny Lasoski, 14-Mark Kinser, 11-Doug Wolfgang, 9-Jac Haudenschild, 5-Donny Schatz, 5-Stevie Smith, 3-Craig Dollansky, 3-Joey Saldana, Tied with 2; Brad Doty, Dave Blaney, Johnny Herrera, Terry McCarl. Tied with 1 win; Bobby Davis Jr., Brooke Tatnell, Danny Smith, Jason Meyers, Jeff Swindell, Keith Kauffman, Kerry Madsen, Kraig Kinser, Shane Stewart, Tim Green.

Knoxville Raceway Season Opener Notes

The 60th Knoxville Raceway season opener saw 33-410’s, 28-360’s, and 21-305’s for a total of 82 cars drive through the pit gate, a healthy car count to start the season.

410 Class:
Brian Brown went out thirteenth in the qualifying order and established quick time with a lap of 15.039. Ian Madsen was second quick despite going out thirtieth in the order. Dustin Selvage won the first heat with Mark Dobmeier on his tail. Brian Brown had moved from sixth to second when his car seemed to have come out of gear and he stopped in turn two. Brown was towed to the pit and would start the B main. Heat two saw the start get called back with Garrett Dollanksy not in line on the front row. He moved to the third row which moved up Terry McCarl and Ian Madsen. Madsen had a great start and was around McCarl on the first corner. Madsen looked impressive and pulled away to an easy win. Heat three was all Shane Stewart coming from the third row. Stewart picked off cars easily after the field sorted itself out. Davey Heskin took a little longer to get by some cars but looked impressive the last few laps and finished third. In the B main Brian Brown pulled away to win easily. I had clocked him at 15.9, 15.4, 15.8 most laps he was in clean air so the track was still fast around the cushion. The Dunkin track preparation was spot on with a low groove, a high groove, and the middle came in as the moisture in the low groove was kicked up the track.

With Droud and McCarl starting on the front row of the feature it looked like they would duel it out for the win, but Shane Stewart drove his #71 around both of them on lap two and threaded his way through lapped traffic with no problems making it look easy on his way to victory. The race behind Stewart for second was heated with Droud, McCarl, and Zomer for several laps until a lap nine caution for Austin McCarl who had a fire under his car. The safety workers were there right away to extinguish it, but it wasn’t the night A-Mac had hoped for. Stewart again pulled away on the restart and was never challenged. McCarl would take runner-up honors with Ian Madsen getting by Droud and Zomer late for third place. Brian Brown came from nineteenth to fifth.

410 Thoughts:
Shane Stewart is fast in any car he drives. How this guy hasn’t landed a full-time WoO ride is mind boggling to me. But it was great to see him come join us for a weekly show in the Indy Race Parts 71.

Terry McCarl is the man to beat for the championship. No one is better at “racing” in the features than he is. His experience makes up for whatever his car might be lacking.

I’m impressed with Ian Madsen and his new Nehring 18 team. They were very fast off the trailer and I think he will be McCarl’s toughest competition.

I was glad to see Dusty Zomer qualify well (fourth) which is what he was lacking last season. If he continues to qualify well and start up front in the features, he will win some races.

Davey Heskin qualified third, looked good in his heat race, but he didn’t go forward in the feature starting seventh and finishing eighth. I will be watching him closely next week to see if this was a one night deal where they struggled with the set-up, or maybe the competition has got better around him.

I was disappointed with the 55 of Brooke Tatnell. Tatnell qualified fifth, went from fifth to fourth in his heat race, and fifth to eleventh in the feature. I was expecting more but I think they will improve as the season goes.

Bronson Maeschen started ninth and finished ninth in the feature. Like Heskin I will keep an eye on Bronson to see if he improves next week.

Mark Dobmeier qualified thirteenth and drove from twelfth to seventh. Qualifying has hurt them in years past, and that is something they need to improve upon to win a track championship and win races.

Good to have Brian Brown in attendance. What a tough break for him, losing the rear end in his heat race. It would have been interesting to see him and Stewart battle for the win. But he looked faster than anyone else all night.

The return of David Hesmer will have to wait one more week as his team burnt a piston in their engine on practice night.


360 Class:
Jamie Ball was fastest in group qualifying with a 16.305. Randy Martin, Thomas Kennedy, and Tony Schilling were the heat race winners. Tyler Groenendyk appeared to have the feature in hand, leading by half a straightaway at one point. As Groenendyk entered lapped traffic he switched his line from the cushion to the middle and lower grooves and lost his momentum. This allowed veteran Clint Garner to pounce on the opportunity and get by for the win. Groenendyk still had an impressive run in second as he held off a charging Nate Van Haaften the last few laps for the position.

360 Thoughts:
Clint Garner is still the driver to beat in this class. It was good to see Groenendyk have a good showing after struggling last season. I hope that Tyler keeps progressing throughout the season. Although the track was perfect for passing and slide jobs, I didn’t see much of that with most of field finishing close to where they started, which left me scratching my head. Was it just the first night and teams adjusting to new rules and tires? Are the cars are more equal this year?

305 Class:
Matt Stephenson set a new 305 track record in qualifying with a lap of 16.846. Matthew Stelzer won the first heat race on the last corner by passing Mike Mayberry on the outside. Larry Ball Jr. destroyed the field in heat two. In the feature J Kinder had the early lead with rookie Jake Strayer keeping pace, but Larry Ball Jr. worked his way from eighth to the front as they raced through lapped traffic and picked up the win. Kinder and Strayer would finish second and third respectively. Last year’s 305 track champion Stelzer finished fourth while Matt Stephenson rounded out the top five.

Wrap-up:
I’m looking forward to next Saturday night already. Had the chicken bites this week, now I have to decide on tenderloin or nachos for next week... decisions. The #4 of Dakota Hendrickson is my early season vote for best appearing car, although Ian Madsen’s #18 is a close second. It was nice to see the return of a weekly program of sorts with the Full Throttle program being sold for $1 under the stands. It has a scorecard inside, and people keeping score in the stands is a lost art. When I was a kid, half the people in the stands would write down lineups and finishes. I guess we are spoiled today with lineups on our smart phones with Twitter and the Mobile App. I’m pleased to see the return of my friend Rustin Nelson writing a column in that program as well, he is always colorful. And what a great crowd on opening night!!! I hope that continues. See you in the stands.

2013 Knoxville Raceway Season Preview

The 2013 Knoxville Championship Cup Series season is shaping up to be one of the most competitive I can remember, especially in the 410 class. Many teams are coming into the season with experience. Some are brand new teams. And most of them have won races and have excellent equipment. With teams changing from Goodyear to Hoosier tires and harder-narrower tires than they have used before, it will be interesting to see who adapts the quickest to the new tire rules. Twin Features night is always a pivotal night in the points season, and this year it will pay full winnings for both features. Kudos to Brian Stickel and the Fair Board for that decision! The Capitani Classic event is just as important as twin features night and a lot can be gained or lost by making the A main as we saw last season. 2012 saw eight different winners in thirteen weekly shows in the 410 class, and it is hard to believe the competition is tougher in 2013, but it is.

410 Class:
The Favorite:
Seven time track champion Terry McCarl is the man to beat. Although McCarl didn’t have a stellar 2012 season in qualifying, he was the only driver to have an average finish of five or better (4.9) in 2012. T-Mac is the clear favorite to win in my eyes and he already has one World of Outlaws feature win in 2013 in Florida.

The Contenders:
Davey Heskin was the point leader most of the season last year and showed maturity behind the wheel. He won two features and his equipment held up all season. Losing the point battle late in the season was tough to swallow as McCarl outperformed Heskin at the Capitani Classic. I look for Heskin, with one more of year experience under his belts, to be right there again in 2013.

Dusty Zomer was second in points in 2011 but is coming off of a disappointing fourth place finish in 2012 with no feature wins. I look for the Ingalls #91 team to come back strong this season, win some races, and challenge for the title.

Bronson Maeschen won two races in 2012, including the Capitani Classic, and finished third in points. Something seemed to click last year for Maeschen and he proved he has the ability to compete for feature wins, not just great qualifying times. It will be interesting to see if Maeschen can sustain that type of effort in 2013.

Mark Dobmeier is another driver to keep your eyes on. He also struggled in qualifying in 2012, and then raced his way up front consistently as he was third in average feature finishes with an average of 7.3. Dobmeier won a World of Outlaws feature in 2012 at Huset’s and has the ability to win at any time. The Lunstra 13 team races racing three nights a week, which helps in a lot of ways, but I also wonder if that hinders them at times with not having fresh equipment at the big Knoxville half-mile. Dobmeier is due for a great points season, and this might be his year.

Australian Brooke Tatnell announced he will be making a run at the Knoxville track championship in 2013 driving the #11AU Barry Lewis owned car. Although Tatnell is a veteran with eleven World of Outlaws career feature wins and four career wins at Knoxville, this is his first real attempt to race for a championship at Knoxville. His only other season competing full time at Knoxville was 1994. Tatnell will be a force in the 410 class as a Knoxville Regular.

Another Aussie, Ian Madsen is coming off of an impressive 2012 season where he showed a lot of improvement at Knoxville winning one feature and finishing sixth in points. He also won the Sydney Speedway $50,000 challenge this winter in Australia after starting at the back of the field. Ian will be driving for a new team this season, the #18 Bret Nehring owned sprint car.

Wild Cards:
Don Droud Jr. will be back in the familiar Gil Sonner 47. Droud has finished seventh in points the past two seasons after finishing second in 2010. They could rebound and be a contender to the championship if they can qualify better. Droud is one of the best drivers in the pit area with a lot of experience.

Lynton Jeffrey was eighth in points in 2012. He didn’t win a feature last season, but if he has the funding and the power under the hood, he can drive his #12 Vortex Wings car to the front.

David Hesmer is coming back after an eight year layoff in the new #1 Bryan Sundby team. This team is focused on winning some races and competing solely at Knoxville. They will have a fast car and I look for them to be tougher in the second half of the season as long as their equipment holds up.

Dustin Selvage is entering his third season in the 410 class. He has performed well at times the past two seasons, and is still looking for his first feature win. Consistency has been his downfall, but I see a lot of potential in this driver. He will change from his family owned team to drive the Williams 7K.

The Field: Josh Schneiderman, Ryan Bunton, Rob Kubli, AJ Moeller, Mike Moore, Dennis Moore Jr., Rager Phillips, Tasker Phillips, Glen Saville, Jarrod Schneiderman.

All of these drivers have experience and most have shown improvement. Ryan Bunton and AJ Moeller both had good qualifying efforts in 2012 but their lack of experience showed in features. Dennis Moore Jr. is moving back into the 410 class after racing in the 360 division the past few seasons. Rager Phillips has moved back into the #10 VaderEcken car and were fast at times two years ago when they combined their efforts, especially at the Nationals. Josh Schneiderman was tenth in points a year ago, but that was down from previous seasons. It will be interesting to see if he can rebound in 2013.

Sentimental Favorite: Robert Bell. Let’s hope we see the #71 back on the track in 2013.

Rookies: Dakota Hendrickson of Omaha, Nebraska, Jordan Goldesberry and Joey Moughan both of Springfield, IL.

Maybe: If Austin McCarl can pull some sponsorship dollars together we could see his #17a back on the track. He is a talented driver who could compete for some wins. I’ve also heard that the #19 of Bob Weuve from Newton might be coming back after taking last season off.

The Part-Timers: No doubt we will see heavyweights Brian Brown, Wayne Johnson, and Danny Lasoski at Knoxville a handful of times this year.

Invaders: It’s already been documented that some teams are planning to visit Knoxville Raceway more often this year to be more prepared for the Knoxville Nationals in August. Listening to recent Winged Nation broadcasts on MRN Radio, Dale Blaney said that he intends to show up on June 1 during the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame induction weekend as his father Lou Blaney will be enshrined. Greg Hodnett also alluded to making a couple of extra trips from Pennsylvania this year to make some laps after being disappointed with his Nationals results missing the Saturday A main the past two years. California driver Rico Abreu has also mentioned that he intends to race a few times in his bid to win Rookie of the Nationals. IRA champion Bill Balog has also mentioned that he will be at Knoxville more frequently this season.

360 Class:
The favorite is four time track champion Clint Garner, who absolutely dominated the points battle in 2012 with four wins. Ganrer will attempt to win his fifth consecutive championship in 2013, which would break the tie of him and David Hesmer with four track championships each. Garner alluded to trying the 410 division in 2013 at the end of last season but his team has since decided to stay with the same program this season.

The drivers hoping to end the rein of Garner are Nate Van Haaften who won two features last season, Jon Agan, Matt Moro, Josh Higday, and Joe Beaver. Agan and Moro both won one feature in 2012 and Beaver was consistently in the top ten. Higday and Moro are both experienced enough, and if they have the equipment and a little luck to stay up front they could do very well. I also think we will see Carson McCarl improve this year in his sophomore season in the 360 class and if he can get a feature win early in the season, that confidence boost might propel him to more wins and be someone to challenge for a top five point finish.

My Wild Cards are Russ Hall, Jamie Ball, RJ Johnson, and Casey Friedrichsen. All of these drivers have the capability to win features on any given night, but consistency is something they need to work on. Thankfully Jamie Ball is healthy and back racing after a serious crash a year ago. Alan Ambers will move up from the 305 class to 360 this year.

Part-Timers: While Randy Martin only runs a part-time schedule, when he is at Knoxville he is consistently in the top five. And with the field opened up to allow 410 competitors to race every week in both classes, I think we could see some teams trying their 360 equipment more frequently to gear up for the 360 Nationals. Brian Brown and Jason Johnson both entered the 360 class twice last season but might do it more often this year when they do show up since they are able to race both classes.

305 Class:
This class is hard to predict but Matthew Stelzer is the defending champion and is likely to be the driver to beat again. Mike Van Haaften and Mitchell Alexander were his top competition a year ago. Cody Ambers and J Kinder will likely show improvement. Matt Stephenson has always been competitive in his #55 and with some rookies coming in I think it will be a tough field of cars. This class is growing, and I have a hunch we will see car counts in this class continue to grow. The one rookie I have my eye on is Newton teenager Jake Strayer, who has had a successful career in SportMods in recent years at Marshalltown Speedway and he started the last race of the season at Knoxville in the 305’s in 2012.


The best part of a new season is that we really don’t know how it will all turn out. From week to week we see teams evolve. Some get better and some get worse as they struggle to keep up with the wear and tear throughout the season. It is the best reality show in my opinion. My favorite part of opening night though is walking through the ticket entrance tunnel and walking up the ramp to my seat, soaking in the environment with some chicken bites, and then watching the push trucks drop the hammer to help fire off the cars. The smell of the methanol is intoxicating as the cars idle by slowly. The anticipation of that first Doug Clark green flag builds. And then the track is packed down tight and the command is given to turn em’ loose! Ahhh it is heaven. As I have grown older a lot of things in life change, but the feeling I still get with that first green flag stays the same and it takes me back to sitting with my father in the stands as a child. Those are some of the best memories of my life, and I hope you make great memories as well this season with your friends at family at Knoxville Raceway in 2013. Good luck to all the competitors and I hope it’s a safe season for all involved.

2013 WoO Preview

It looks like we have a good field of cars this in the World of Outlaws with twelve full time teams traveling. I don’t see anyone competing with the clear favorite Donny Schatz, especially now that the series is back to Hoosier tires this season. The five time champion will likely make it six in 2013. But the race behind the #15 car should be an interesting one as I see no clear cut team who is above the others.

With Craig Dollansky putting together a solid 2012 campaign and leading the points after 2/3 of the season before Schatz went on a run the last 1/3 of the season, I think the Crowd Pleaser (Remember when he was the “Slingshot”) might be the one guy to give him a run for his money. The other contender is Daryn Pittman in the KKR #9 car this year. Pittman is in his prime, eager to be back on the full time WoO tour, and motivated for sure. But will he gel with Kale Kahne and KKR is the question. They were fast last week in Florida, but it’s a 90 race schedule.

I have this feeling 2013 is a pivotal season in the WoO. I think we will see Steve and Sammy start sliding down the point standings, and we will see Kraig Kinser, Jason Sides, and Kerry Madsen jump in the standings. Steve is in the twilight of his career. I sincerely hope the King can muster up one more championship, but I don’t see it happening. Sammy is still the most technically sound (mad scientist) in the pit area and his cars are fast, he will win races and set a lot of quick times, but consistency is his downfall. I really think Kraig and Sides will have breakout seasons. I look for Madsen to steadily improve as well.

I’m not sold on Cody Darrah. He drives hard, but his job is likely on the line this year. He has to win races and try to get into the top five in points or he will be replaced. KKR has too much invested to keep a driver who isn’t winning races. And there are plenty of other talented drivers out there to replace him (Tim Kaeding, Shane Stewart, Paul McMahan).

Joey Saldana is a wildcard this year in the rebirth of the Motter 71m team. Although Joey knows the cars and engines well, it’s hard to believe a new team can just come out and compete for a championship in its first year on the road. They will likely win a few races, but I think this is a 2-3 year building process.

I hope Schatz doesn’t run away and hide from the rest of the field, but that’s my gut feeling. It should be a good season, and I’m thankful for all the media coverage today on Twitter and the Race Monitor app.

My WoO pre-season power rankings: 1. Schatz, 2. Dollansky, 3. Pittman, 4. K. Kinser, 5. Sides, 6. Madsen, 7. Sammy, 8. Darrah, 9. S. Kinser, 10. Saldana, 11. Kemenah, 12. Rose