Saturday, July 19, 2002

Tonight was the annual Quick Draw 45 at Spoon River Speedway. For those of you not familiar with this format, it goes something like this ………………

The #M17 of Brent Munson started way back in the 8th spot in E-Mod Segment #1, but he didn't stay back there for very long. By lap #2, Munson was up to 5th, by lap #4 he was up to 4th, by lap #5 he was in 3rd, and by lap #8, he had caught the race leader, the #4 of John Winters. Also on the move was the #29 of Chad Terwillger. Terwillger, who started the race in 9th, had raced his way up to the top 5 by a lap #5 caution. Caution came out for a MAJOR fire underneath the hood of the #21J of Joe Wagner. Wagner did have to leave the track on a hook, but they were able to make repairs to the car and get it ready for Segment #2. Winters led the next few laps on the restart, but he got into turns #1 & #2 a little too hot, had to back out of the gas, and Munson was right there waiting for the opportunity to take over the lead. Once out front, he stayed out front, and Brent Munson scored the Segment #1 win for the #M17 racing team. The #4 of John Winters finished the segment in 2nd, followed by the #M3 of Chuck McDonald in 3rd, the #96 of Kirk Anderson in 4th, and the #29 of Chad Terwillger in 5th.

The #192 of Brian Allen started on the pole in Modified Segment #1, and he led the first 3 laps. Something went away in the rear end of Allen's car on lap #3, forcing his to coast into the pits, but they were able to make repairs and get the #192 back out for Segment #2. The #22B of Richie Biswell, who started in 5th, and the #M1 of Dale Munson, who lined up back in 7th, were on Allen's back bumper when his car broke, and Munson and Biswell moved into the top 2 spots by lap #4. Just behind the race leaders were the #28 of "Jammin'" Jimmy Hibser and the #28 of Phil Schnarr. Both #28 cars were "hooked up" and movin' up! Schnarr was carrying his left front wheel SO FAR off the ground, that it looked like he was about to turn his car over! Also moving up were the #31 of Mark Anderson and the #C40 of Mike Chasteen. By a lap #6 restart, Anderson and Chasteen were right behind Hibser and Schnarr and battling for the 5th spot, with the #98 of Andy Riggins and the #48 of Casey Lappin right behind them. Caution came out again on lap #12 for several cars getting together in turns #1 & #2. Hibser had been ALL OVER Munson's back bumper on the restart, trying to take the lead spot away, and on lap #13, Hibser was finally able to complete the pass on the high side and move into the top spot. Chasteen was also passing cars, making his way up to 3rd on lap #13, but Chasteen wasn't done moving up yet. Munson, Hibser and Chasteen were all racing THREE WIDE on the last lap, in a three way battle for the lead, but in the end, it was the #C40 of Mike Chasteen up front. The #M1 of Dale Munson finished in 2nd place, followed by the #28 of Jim Hibser in 3rd, the #22B of Richie Biswell in 4th, and the #48 of Casey Lappin in 5th.

Chaos erupted early in Late Model Segment #1. Nearly half of the field was involved in a first turn caution, and it left many of the cars "aerodynamically challenged" for the rest of the race. The #10M of Chad Pratt started the race on the pole, but he soon had LOTS of company. The #11 of "Bad" Brad Denney, who started in 5th, and the #M40 of Scott "Scooter" May, who lined up way back in 9th, were both through ALL the traffic, and ALL OVER Pratt's back bumper on the very first lap! Denney was able to get around Pratt and take over the lead on lap #2, bringing May along with him into 2nd. A couple of other cars were also moving up fast. The #B12 of Roger Nelson started the race in 6th, the #30 of Rob Bauman started the race in 7th, and the #29J of Lindell Jewel started WAY back in 12th, but by lap #3, all three of them had closed in on Pratt's back bumper and were challenging for the 3rd spot. Caution came out again on lap #5, with several of the front runners getting together, sending Pratt, Nelson, and others to the pits with either flat tires or damage to their cars. Fourteen Late Models started the race, and by lap #5, only nine were left (I told you attrition was high in this race!) The race leader, Brad Denney, broke a front spring on his car on lap #10, and had to take it to the pits, handing the lead over to Scott May. After an excessively long caution, they finally got the cars lined up again, only for the yellow to come out again for the #59 of Morey Denney spinning in turns #3 & #4. By the time they got everything straightened out, Brad Denney had made repairs to his car and was back on the track, but it only lasted for a short while, and he was back in the pits with something going away on the left front again. Once out front, Scott May stayed out front, and he easily scored the Late Model Segment #1 win in his #M40 car. The #29J of Lindell Jewel races his way up front for a strong 2nd place finish, followed by the #30 of Rob Bauman in 3rd place, the #4C of Rob Colson in 4th, and the #59 of Morey Denney in 5th.

After a brief intermission, we started Segment #2 for each class, and first on the agenda were the E-Mods. They inverted the finish of the first race for the start of the second race, which meant the top runners in the first race, the #M17 of Brent Munson, the #4 of John Winters, and the #96 of Kirk Anderson all started in the very back of the field - but NONE of them stayed there for long!!! There were several cautions early in the race, but Munson, Winters, and Anderson, along with the #29 of Chad Terwillger and the #27W of Greg Ward, kept picking off the spots lap after lap, and by lap #3, they were all up front and in the top 6 with the #21J of Joe Wagner. Without a doubt, Munson had the fastest car on the track, making his way from 13th to 3rd in less than four laps! One by one he picked off the top 5, and by lap #7 he was able to get around Wagner on the high side, and Munson took over the lead. Once out front, there was no catching him, and Brent Munson scored the Segment #2 win in his #M17 E-Mod. My apologies to the rest of the E-Mod drivers for not listing the top five - I ran out of tape! Sorry guys!!!!!

With a lot of the faster cars starting in the back, a total of twenty-three cars on the track, and everyone trying to get up front on the first lap, the motto for Modified Segment #2 had to be "Bumpin' and Bangin'". There was plenty of paint-swappin' and door-rubbin' going on from 1st place to 23rd place, and as you would expect, it also meant there were several cautions. The #192 of Brian Allen started on the pole, and with all the chaos going on behind him, up front was exactly the place he wanted to stay. Several cars were moving through traffic in a hurry. The #7 of Floyd Jordan, who started 7th, was up to 2nd by lap #7. The #17 of Rick Scott, Jr., who started in 9th, closed in on Jordan's back bumper in the 3rd spot by lap #7. The real "mover and shaker" thought was the #C40 of Mike Chasteen. Chasteen won the first segment, which meant he started dead last in this race, and twenty-two cars is A LOT to pass in only 15 laps. In the first ten laps, Chasteen had already picked off twelve cars, and in the last five laps, he picked off six more to move up into the top five! Brian Allen kept his #192 Modified out front from flag to flag, and scored the Modified Segment #2 win. The #7 of Floyd Jordan finished in 2nd place, followed by the #17 of Rick Scott, Jr. in 3rd, the #C40 of Mike Chasteen in 4th, and the #42 of Marr Smith in 5th.

The #11 of Brad Denney lined up in 5th to start Late Model Segment #2, but by lap #1, Denney had gotten around all four cars in front of him, and he was out front and in the lead. The #M40 of Scott May had to start the race WAY back in the 12th spot, but May was also moving up in a hurry. By lap #5, May was already up to the 5th spot, and only two laps later, he had closed in on the back bumper of the #B12 of Roger Nelson and was challenging for the 2nd spot. With everyone racing for position behind him, Denney was able to open up a HUGE lead over the rest of the field. A couple of other cars that had to come from deep in the field were the #29J of Lindell Jewel and the #10M of Chad Pratt. Pratt started the race in 7th, and Jewel started in 11th, but by the time they reached the end of the race, both cars had made their way to the front of the pack and into the top five. By lap #14, "Bad" Brad had a half-a-lap lead over 2nd place Scott May, but caution came out for several cars getting together on the front-stretch, and they lined up for the restart with only tow laps left to go in the race. May cleared the lap traffic in a hurry on the restart, and closed in on Denney's back bumper, but Denney wasn't giving an inch. Brad Denney kept his #11 Late Model out front and scored the Segment #2 win. The #M40 of Scott May finished the segment in 2nd, followed by the #10M of Chad Pratt in 3rd, and the #29J of Lindell Jewel in 4th.

After another brief intermission, we were ready to start Segment #3 races for all classes. To start the E-Mod race, the #96 of Kirk Anderson lined up 7th, and the #M17 of Brent Munson was way back in 11th, but both cars were using the high side of the track, and both cars were coming on IN A HURRY! By the time they scored lap #1, Anderson and Munson were 3rd and 4th respectively, and neither one was done moving up yet! Anderson took the lead on lap #5, but got too high in turns #1 & #2, and he and Munson were side-by-side down the backstretch, battling for the lead going into turn #3. Just like the first two segments, Munson had the better car tonight, and the #M17 took over the lead on lap #6, and was out front to stay. A couple of other cars were also racing towards the front from deep in the field. The #27W of Greg Ward and the #4 of John Winters started the race in the 8th and 9th spots, but they made their way through traffic and closed in on the #29 of Chad Terwilliger, and the top five, by lap #7. Just like in Segments #1 & #2, once out front, Brent Munson seemed "untouchable", and he took home the Segment #3 win in his #M17 E-Mod. The #96 of Kirk Anderson finished the Segment in 2nd place, followed by the #4 of John Winters in 3rd, the #27W of Greg Ward in 4th, and the #29 of Chad Terwilliger in 5th.

The #29 of David Boyer started on the pole in Thunder Truck Segment #3, and Boyer stayed out front from start to finish. The #8 of Dave Collins started the race back in the 5th spot, but by the time they scored lap #2, Collins was around three trucks and up into the 2nd position. The #88 of Dave Collins didn't make it out for Segment #3, and the #D9 of Jimmy Pratt and the #31 of Harry Fourdyce both pulled into the pits early in the race, leaving only three trucks on the track to finish the race. The #29 of David Boyer was out front from green flag to checkered flag, and scored the win for Segment #3. The #8 of Dave Collins finished the segments in 2nd place, and the #14 of George Collins finished in 3rd.

The #28 of Phil Schnarr started on the pole in Modified Segment #3, but Schnarr was not up front alone! The #22B of Richie Biswell started the race on Schnarr's back bumper, and he was soon joined by the #M1 of Dale Munson, the #28 of "Jammin'" Jimmy Hibser, the #31 of Mark Anderson, and the #C40 of Mike Chasteen. Munson took over the 2nd spot on lap #8, bringing Anderson with him into 3rd, and leaving Hibser, Biswell, and Chasteen battling THREE WIDE behind them for the 4th spot. Caution came out on lap #10 when the #1P of Jack Ferguson got into the side of the #48 of Casey Lappin, sending Lappin to the pits with front-end damage. Munson got a GREAT jump on the restart, got around Schnarr, and took over the lead to score lap #11, but he had several cars right behind him, all wanting to join in the battle for the lead. Caution came out again on lap #12; this time for a bad crash in turns #1 & #2. The #42 of Matt Smith got turned sideways in the middle of the turn, and drove hard into the mine tires at the bottom of the track. The #88 of Steve David, who was in the gas on the bottom of the track, had nowhere to go, and drove into Smith's driver's side door. Both drivers took a HARD, HARD hit, and both drivers were knocked out when the track officials got to the cars. The red flag came out, and we had a few very scary minutes as the ambulance was called to the track. Both drivers were finally helped out of their cars and appeared to be OK, unfortunately, their cars were NOT OK, and they both left the track on a hook. Once they finally got the track cleared, they lined the field up for the restart with 2 laps to go. Chasteen got a GREAT jump on the restart, and was able to get around Munson for the lead with one lap to go. Mike Chasteen kept his #C40 out front for the last lap, and scored the win in Segment #3. The #M1 of Dale Munson finished the segment in 2nd place, followed by the #28 of Jimmy Hibser in 3rd, the #31 of Mark Anderson in 4th, and the #22B of Richie Biswell in 5th.

Terry Pratt seemed to have his hands full with his #18 Pro Street in Segment #3. Pratt had done well in the first two segments, but that was not the case in this race. Pratt spun twice, brought out the caution, and finally had to take his car to the pits before they even scored lap #1. The #27 of Greg Arnett, however, was NOT having any problems with his car. Arnett started the race in the 2nd spot, but he was in the lead before they hit the very first turn, and he was in the lead to stay. The #81K of Mark Ross tried high and low to get around Arnett, allowing the #12T of Tom Turnbull to close in on his back bumper in the 3rd spot. Pratt did make it back onto the track before the end of the race, but by the time they made some adjustments to the car, he was no longer on the lead lap. Greg Arnett kept his #27 Pro Street out front from the very first corner to the checkered flag, and scored the Segment #3 win. The #81K of Mark Ross finished the segment in 2nd, followed by the #12T if Tom Turnbull in 3rd, the #00 of Steve Harper in 4th, and the #18 of Terry Pratt in 5th.

The #30 of Rob Bauman started in 7th in Late Model Segment #3, but Bauman was slicin' and dicin' his way to the front of the field in a hurry. Bauman was up to 2nd on the very first lap, behind the race leader, the #B12 of Roger Nelson. Traffic was ALL bottlenecked up behind the race leaders, allowing Nelson to open up a half-a-straightaway lead on the rest of the field. Caution came out on lap #1 for several cars getting together in turns #1 & #2, sending both the #25K of Bill Kettering and the #45 of Dwayne Walters to the pits with damage to their cars. A couple of other cars had quickly made their way to the front of the field, and were lining up for the restart in the top five. The #4C of Rob Colson, who started the race in 6th, and the #M40 of Scott "Scooter" May, who started way back in 9th, had made their way through the field and were up to 2nd and 4th on the very first lap. The #11 of Brad Denney was also driving through traffic in a hurry. After taking his car to the pits, Denney lined up for the restart back in the 9th spot, but in just one lap, he had closed in on the back bumpers of Colson and Bauman, and was challenging them for the 5th spot. Things were also heating up in the front. May got a GREAT run in turns #3 & #4 and took the lead spot away from Nelson on lap #5. Once out front, May "checked out" on the rest of the field, with an entire backstretch lead by the time the white flag came out. The #M40 of Scott May scored a VERY convincing Segment #3 win, followed by the #30 of Rob Bauman in 2nd place, the #11 of Brad Denney in 3rd, the #B12 of Roger Nelson in 4th, and the #4C of Rob Colson in 5th.

The #68 of Lance Alcorn lined up way back in the 7th spot to start Hobo Segment #3, but I don't think he liked being in 7th! Alcorn got a GREAT jump on the start, and before they reached turn #1, he was alongside the #11 of Scott Denney in a battle for the 2nd position! Caution came out on lap #1 for the #35 of Josh Smith needing a push to the pits, something going away on his car, and they lined the field back up behind the race leader, the #06 of John Nash, Jr. Nash was low, Alcorn was in the middle, and Denney went high, and they were THREE WIDE battling for the lead coming out of turn #2 on the restart. Alcorn got the better run, and took over the lead to score lap #2, bringing Denney with him into 2nd. A couple of other cars on the move were the #42 of Tim Bishop and the #91 of Nick Christian. Christian, who started the race in 5th, and Bishop, who lined up in 6th, were both around Nash and into the top four by lap #5. Denney was ALL Over Alcorn's back bumper challenging for the lead, and even thought he could catch him, he couldn't get around him, and Lance Alcorn scored the win in Hobo Segment #3 for the #68 team. The #11 of Scott Denney finished the segment in 2nd place, followed by the #91 of Nick Christian in 3rd, the #42 of Tim Bishop in 4th, and the #06 of John Nash, Jr. in 5th.