The night opened up with the E-Mod Heat races. The #30 of Rob Bauman, Sr. got out to an early lead, with a good race for 2nd between the Schnarr brothers, Bobby in the #94 and Phil in the #25. Right behind them, the #85E of Oscar Everett and the #42 of Tim Bishop. With all the racing for position going on behind him, Bauman open up a pretty good lead and easily scores the win. Phil Schnarr finishes 2nd, followed by Bobby Schnarr in 3rd, and Bishop in 4th.

The #4 of John Winters started on the pole in E-Mod Heat 43, and stayed out front all the way until the last turn on the last lap. The #1 of Floyd Jordan, Jr. started putting pressure on Winters around lap #4, and was able to get under Winters when he got loose coming out of turn #4 to take the checkered flag. Floyd Jordan, Jr. scores the win by a bumper, followed by John Winters, the #7W of Mark Branch, and the #30 of Robbie Bauman.

The driver of the #M21 Modified, Justin Munson, was one of the drivers we were able to talk to tonight. Justin might be a rookie in the Modified Division, but he's no stranger to Spoon River Speedway. Justin finished a strong 2nd in last year's E-Mod Points Championship, and decided to move into Modified this season. Justin races with us from Fairview, Illinois, and his car is sponsored by Car Quest. His crew chief is Scott, and his crewmembers include Joe, Dale (his Dad), and Brent (his brother). Justin says his biggest fans are his girlfriend, his Mom, and his friends. When we asked him how his car was running, he replied "It's gettin' better!" It sure looked better than "better" in the heat race! Justin's goal for the season is to finish in the Top 5 in the Features. When we asked Justin what driver he looks up to the most, his answer was his father, Dale Munson, because Dale always drives a good, clean race. What does Justin like the most about Spoon River Speedway? It's FAST! The least? It takes so much time to clean up the track after the wrecks. Justin would also like to see the "Two spins and you're out" rule more strictly enforced. Our thanks to Justin for taking the time to talk with us tonight. We're happy to welcome Justin to the Modified Division, and we wish him & his racing team mush success throughout the season.

The #69 of Randy Stuber, the #28 of Phil Schnarr, and the #25 of Butch Weisser may have started in the back of the pack in Modified Heat #2, but they all up front and fighting for the lead early in the race. There was a lot of bumper to bumper racing for the lead, but Butch Weisser makes a GREAT move coming out of turn #4 on the last lap and moves under Stuber for the win. Randy Stuber finished 2nd, followed by Phil Schnarr in 3rd, and the #88 of Steve David in 4th.

We saw a lot of great racing for the lead in Modified Heat #4 between the #192 of Brian Allen and the #97P of Phil Johns. Allen had the lead until John was finally able to get around him on lap #5. Right behind the race leaders, the #26 of JD Beal, the #28 of Jim Hibser, and the #17W of Jacki Willis had their own battle going on for the 2nd position. Phil Johns was able to open up his lead on Allen, and he brought home another checkered flag. Brian Allen finished 2nd, followed by JD Beal and "Jammin" Jimmy Hibser.

The #5 of Danny Glover started on the pole in Hobo Heat #2, but he had LOTS of company by lap #3 when the #77 of Cliff Howard moved up to challenge him for the lead. The #8 of Clay Wisher and the #35 of Josh Smith were right behind the race leaders in a battle for 3rd. Howard was all over the back bumper of Glover, but Danny Glover was able to hold on the lead and was the race winner. Cliff Howard finished 2nd, followed by Clay Wisher in 3rd, and Josh Smith in 4th.

The driver of the #27 Hobo, Lonnie Stone, was another one of the driver we had the chance to talk to tonight. Lonnie and his team race with us from Cuba, Illinois. The crewmembers on the #27 car include Chris Cozad, and Bobby Stone, and the car is sponsor's include Quality Blacktop and Taylor Construction. When we asked Lonnie how his car was running, his answer was "pretty good"! I think he made have underestimated that a little bit, because his car looked sure looked AWESOME in the heat race. Lonnie's goal for the rest of the season is to stay in the top 5 in the points race. When we asked Lonnie what driver he looks up to the most, his answer was Phil Schnarr, because he & Phil help each other with their cars. What does Lonnie like the most about Spoon River Speedway? The high banks. The least? Like a lot of other drivers, Lonnie hates the dust! Thanks to Lonnie for taking time out of his busy evening to talk with us. We sure hope to see Lonnie and the #27 Hobo in the Top Five every Saturday!

Here's a surprise - the #M40 of Scott "Scooter" May jumps out front early in Late Model Heat #2, and stretches out to a HUGE lead all by himself, and wins the race. (Anybody but me noticing a definite pattern here?) The field spread out pretty quickly, with no real challenges for position, but the #10M of Chad Pratt was without a doubt the most fun to watch. Pratt's left front tire was WAY off the ground through every turn, and halfway down the straightaway! What a ride! Scott May was the race winner, Chad Pratt finished 2nd, the #M1 of Dale Munson finished 3rd, and the #29J of Lindell Jewel was 4th.

The #51 of Don Colley started on the pole in Pro Street Heat #1, but he had all kinds of company from the #C90 of John Farris and the #18 of Terry Pratt on lap #1. Pratt was able to get around Colley and moved into the lead on lap #2, and Farris was able to move into the 2nd spot a lap later, The field got pretty spread out from there, and Terry Pratt scored the win. John Farris finished 2nd, Don Colley came in 3rd, and the #10K of Kevin Lane finished 4th.

The driver of the #51 Pro Street, Don Cooley, also took some time out of his busy night to talk to us. Dan and his racing team come from East Peoria, Illinois to race with us at Spoon River Speedway. Dan's pit crewmembers include George, Coy, Brian, Steven, & Oscar, and the car is sponsored by Lakeside Custom Builders, Inc. Dan says his biggest fans include Kim, Dad, Mom, Coy, Gary, Brian, Papa, Dawn, & James Mennel. When we asked hoe his car was running, Don answered "Not as good as I wished it was!" It looked REALLY GOOD to us, Don! Don's personal goals for the season include a Heat Race win, and to finish the Feature. What does Don like the most about Spoon River Speedway? It's a big track and the Pro Street Class is full of good, clean drivers. The least? They don't sell beer! Don wanted to send out a very special "Thank You" to all his friends, family and sponsors - he couldn't do this without all your help. Our thanks to Don for spending some time with us this evening. We certainly hope to see Don and the #51 car finishing up front a lot this season!

Pro Street Heat #2 started with the #81K of Mark Ross on the pole, and Ross stayed out front for the lead until the last turn of the race. The #C27 of Jim Carter, who ran 2nd most of the race, got a GREAT run going on the last lap, and dove under Ross in turns #3 & #4 and made the pass just in time to claim the checkered flag. Mark Ross finishes 2nd, followed by the #12T of Tom Turnbull in 3rd, and the #31K of Ken Gresham, Jr. in 4th.

The driver of the #88 Thunder Truck, Dave Collins, was another one of the drivers that we had a chance to get to know better tonight. Dave has a short trip to the Speedway, racing with us from just down the road in Dunfermline, Illinois. Dave's pit crewmembers include Greg Wells, Dick Brown, and Dave Collins, and his truck is sponsored by Oatman Construction and Betty's Right Bank. When we asked Dave how his truck was running tonight, he answered "Good, and fast!" After watching him in the heat race, everyone agreed he was exactly right. Dave's personal goal this season is to finish in the Top 5 in the Truck Division. When we asked Dave what driver he admired the most, his answer was "Dave the first", because he's a good driver and he doesn't cheat. What does Dave like the most about Spoon River Speedway? It's BIG! The least? They don't always enforce the rules. Dave also wanted to wish his brother good luck, and he would like to see him finish the 15 lap feature, even if it means his brother beats him! Our thanks to Dave for taking time out of his busy night to talk to. We certainly wish him and his entire racing team a very successful season.

The #30 of Gerald Carter started on the pole in Thunder Truck Heat #2, and Carter easily stayed out front all the way to the checkered flag. The #28 of Ron Wilson, who started deep in the pack, quickly moved in to the 2nd spot, with the #8 of Dave Collins right behind him in 3rd. With a lot of door-to-door racing going on for the 4th spot between the #55 of Roger Nelson, the #26 of Ryan Wilson, and the #31 of Harry Fourdyce, the front three were able to pull away from the rest of the field. Gerald Carted scored another victory, followed by Ron Wilson in 2nd, Dave Collins in 3rd, and Harry Fourdyce in 4th.

The #96 of Kirk Anderson was able to get underneath the #94 of Bobby Schnarr and move into the lead on the first turn of the E-Mod Feature, with the #25 of Phil Schnarr right behind him for 2nd. The #1 of Floyd Jordan, Jr. the #30 of Rob Bauman, Sr. and the #4 of John Winters are racing side by side, coming out of turn #4 three wide, fighting for the 3rd position. The #M17 of Brent Munson moves up through traffic quickly and is also into the battle for 3rd by lap #4. With all the racing going on behind them, Anderson and Schnarr open up a pretty good lead, but caution comes out on lap #5 for debris on the racetrack, and bunches the field all up again. Bauman Sr. gets a great start on the restart, and is able to catch Anderson and get around him for the lead on lap #8. Munson also has a great start after the next caution, and is able to get around Anderson and move up into the 2nd position. Jordan, Anderson, and the #29 of Chad Terwillger have a very heated battle going on behind the leaders for the 3rd spot. Contact is made between Jordan and Anderson, and Anderson suffers a flat tire and looses several positions. Rob Bauman, Sr. stays out front for the win, followed by Brent Munson in 2nd, Floyd Jordan, Jr. in 3rd, and Chad Terwillger in 4th. Anderson is obviously upset with Jordan for the contact between the two cars on the last lap, and pulls the #96 alongside and in front of Jordan on the front stretch. Jordan floors his car and drives up and over the front of Anderson, and the only word to describe the scene from there was "mayhem". Security and track officials were finally able to get everyone off the track, and then they got both cars off the track and back into their pits.

My apologies to all the drivers, crewmembers, and fans in the Hobo Division and the Late Model Division. I had some technical difficulties with the tape recorder (like not hitting the "record" button), and missed recording all the action for these two features. The results for these two classes were as follows:
Hobo Division #77 - Cliff Howard #8 - Clay Wisher #5 - Danny Glover #35 - Josh Smith #27 - Lonnie Stone	Late Model Division #M40 - Scott May #11 - Brad Denney #19 - Tim Morris #30 - Rob Bauman #10M - Chad Pratt
Once again, my apologies to everyone in these two classes. We'll be sure to get ALL the action on tape next week!

The #55 of Roger Nelson started on the pole in the Thunder Truck Feature, and stayed out front for the first 4 laps. The #30 of Gerald Carter, who started way back in the 9th spot, was up with Nelson by lap #4 and challenging for the lead. The #28 of Ron Wilson, who also started deep in the field, moved up and was on Carter's back bumper in a hurry, but Wilson got into the back bumper of Carter, and they both spin on lap #9. Wilson gets sent to the rear for causing the spin, but he doesn't stay back there for long. By lap #13, Wilson is all the way back into a 2nd place battle with the #31 of Harry Fourdyce and the #8 of Dave Collins. Gerald Carter holds onto a good lead and brings home another checkered flag. Ron Wilson finishes 2nd, followed by the #8 of Dave Collins in 3rd, Roger Nelson in 4th, and Harry Fourdyce in 5th.