BULLS GAP, Tenn. (June 29) — Dale McDowell didn’t feel comfortable starting on the pole and jumping out to set the pace in Saturday night’s Volunteer 50 at Volunteer Speedway.

“We were worried,” McDowell said of his mindset. “Brandon (Overton) was awful good last night, and obviously you got Mikey (Marlar) and Ricky (Thornton Jr.), and just all them guys behind you, so leading sucks.”

But the 58-year-old veteran from Chickamauga, Ga., didn’t need to show so much concern. He knows his way around the high-banked, third-mile oval like few other drivers, and he showed his Volunteer expertise by dominating the 50-lap feature from flag-to-flag to secure a whopping paycheck of $50,050.

Evans, Ga.’s Overton chased McDowell for the first 36 circuits and Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., was the closest pursuer for the final 14 laps, but neither standout was able to mount a serious challenge. McDowell was simply indomitable in the unsanctioned event that celebrated 50 years of racing at the East Tennessee facility.

Marlar, who registered a $42,000 sweep of April’s XR Super Series-sanctioned Spring Thaw at Volunteer, overtook Overton for second on a lap-36 restart and finished there, 2.991 seconds behind the runaway victor.

Overton settled for a third-place finish after starting outside McDowell on the front row. Donald McIntosh of Dawsonville, Ga., brought Billy Hicks’s No. 79 home in fourth place — the same place he started — and eighth-starter Ricky Weiss of Headingley, Manitoba, completed the top five.

McDowell thanked God after the checkered flag for blessing him “to be able to still do this” and acknowledged the outsized success he’s enjoyed at Volunteer over much of his distinguished career.

“We go to some places that we get our tails handed to us, but (brother and car owner) Shane (McDowell) really worked hard at this place so this place has been awfully good to us,” McDowell said. “And these Team Zero cars are pretty good here. I’m just the lucky one who gets to hold the wheel.”

McDowell’s triumph was his second big-money score in as many years at Volunteer, where he earned a $100,000 check for winning the XRSS Spring Thaw in April 2023. It was also his 10th five-figure victory at the track since 2009, a list that includes Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Ultimate Southeast Series, Schaeffer’s Spring and Southern Nationals tours and unsanctioned events.

This win rarely appeared to be in doubt for McDowell, who clinched the pole starting spot for the finale after recording a $5,000 victory in Friday’s first 25-lap semifeature to kick off the weekend. Aside from one brief moment on lap 26 when a lapped car slid sideways in front of him and dulled his momentum, he never really experienced a scare.

McDowell refused to admit any overconfidence, however, in his march to the checkered flag.

“I think we were pretty decent in open runs, but those guys (chasing) were awesome,” McDowell said. “When I’m not racing against ‘em, I’m watching ‘em and trying to learn. It’s my 43rd year but I still learn from them guys, so I knew when I got to lapped traffic I was gonna be a sitting duck. Wherever I went, they were gonna go somewhere different. It just worked out for us.”

Three caution flags dotted the race. The first came on lap 17 when Kaede Loudy spun off turn two. Shane Clanton triggered the next caution on lap 31 when he relinquished third place to terminal trouble. The final caution flew on lap 36 for Wil Herrington, who pulled up lame in the Joe Denby No. 27 that he was driving.

Notes: McDowell tallied his third overall victory of 2024. Prior to sweeping his weekend action at Volunteer, his only previous triumph was a $21,000 Schaeffer’s Spring National checkered at Tazewell (Tenn.) Speedway. … Chris Madden capped the weekend with a sixth-place finish in his return to action after health issues sidelined him for a week and forced him to abandon chasing a World of Outlaws Case Late Model Series championship. … No. 1-ranked driver Ricky Thornton was never a factor as he started ninth and finished seventh. … Scott Bloomquist, making his first start since flipping wildly on June 8 at Eldora Speedway and suffering an allergic reaction to a wasp sting several days later, advanced from the 16th starting spot to eighth before mechanical problems forced him to retire on lap 36. … Event promoter Vic Hill, the veteran engine builder and racer, qualified for the feature and finished 15th. … The traditional four-wide parade lap was replaced by the entire 24-car A-main field assembling in a single-file formation. … The feature ended at 10:08 p.m. ... Chris Ferguson’s recent struggles continued when his car’s engine expired as he led the second B-main with three laps remaining, sending him home with a DNQ.

Feature lineup

(50 laps)
Row 1: Dale McDowell, Brandon Overton
Row 2: Shane Clanton, Donald McIntosh
Row 3: Mike Marlar, Cory Hedgecock
Row 4: Chris Madden, Ricky Weiss
Row 5: Ricky Thornton Jr., Ross Bailes
Row 6: Zack Dohm, Zack Mitchell
Row 7: Tyler Millwood, Wil Herrington
Row 8: Pierce McCarter, Scott Bloomquist
Row 9: Forrest Trent, Daulton Wilson
Row 10: Haiden Cowan, Jimmy Owens
Row 11: Jonathan Rowan, Vic Hill
Row 12: Kaede Loudy, Christian Hanger

Consolation results

(10 laps; top four transfer)

First consolation finish: Forrest Trent, Haiden Cowan, Jonathan Rowan, Kaede Loudy, Noah Phillips, Joe Denny, Joshua Sneed, Mike Bargo, Larry Grube, Will Roland, Steve Smith (DNS) Rusty Ballenger, Chris Chandler.

Second consolation finish: Daulton Wilson, Jimmy Owens, Vic Hill, Christian Hanger, Benji Hicks, Jensen Ford, Allen Styck, Jordon Horton, Chris Ferguson, Dakota James Smith (DNS) Brad Dyer, Josh Henry, John Tweed.

Consolation lineups

First consolation
Row 1: Will Roland, Jonathan Rowan
Row 2: Forrest Trent, Haiden Cowan
Row 3: Kaede Loudy, Noah Phillips
Row 4: Joe Denby, Josh Sneed
Row 5: Mike Bargo, Rusty Ballenger
Row 6: Steve Smith, Larry Grube
Row 7: Chris Chandler
Second consolation
Row 1: Chris Ferguson, Daulton Wilson
Row 2: Jimmy Owens, Vic Hill
Row 3: Allen Styck, Christian Hanger
Row 4: Jensen Ford, Brad Dyer
Row 5: Josh Henry, Benji Hicks
Row 6: John Tweed, Jordon Horton
Row 7: Dakota Smith

Saturday’s schedule

(All times local)
2 p.m. - Pits and grandstands open
5-6:15 p.m. - Drivers’ registration
6:30 p.m. - Drivers’ meeting
7 p.m. - On-tack activity
- Late Model non-transfer hot laps
- 604 Crate non-transfer hot laps

Opening ceremonies
- Late Model consolations (10 laps)
- 604 Crate locked-in hot laps
- Late Model locked-in hot laps
- 604 Crate consolations (10 laps)
Intermission/track prep
- Volunteer 50 feature
- 604 Crate feature (40 laps)