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Quick Time: Splitting the difference
By Todd Turner
DirtonDirt.com managing editor
Take a quick lap around the proverbial dirt track with managing editor Todd Turner for a roundup of Dirt Late Model racing through the latest weekend of action along with some other quirks of racing (and the occasional ax-grinding). Quick Time appears throughout the regular season every Wednesday at DirtonDirt.com:
Frontstretch: Drivers of the Week
National: Although flat tires hampered him two nights later at Duck River Raceway Park, Shane Clanton of Zebulon, Ga., notched his second World of Outlaws Late Model Series victory of the season April 26 at Smoky Mountain Raceway in Maryville, Tenn., holding off Steve Casebolt and Jimmy Owens.
Regional: Jeep Van Wormer of Pinconning, Mich., made his first two starts of the season successful ones on the Sunoco American Late Model Series with a runner-up finish at Attica (Ohio) Raceway Park and victory at Winston Speedway in Rothbury, Mich.
Weekly: Beating rain that postponed most of the racing program, Mike McConnell of Ball Ground, Ga., notched his third consecutive Limited Late Model victory April 27 at Dixie Speedway in Woodstock, Ga.
Crate: Former track champ Randy Boyd of Marion, Miss., won April 27 at Whynot (Miss.) Motorsports Park to score his third straight victory at the 3/8-mile oval.
Turn 1: Splitting the difference
Kyle Berck won Sunday’s opener on the Super Late Model Racing Series at Butler County Speedway, but it wasn’t without controversy. The Marquette, Neb., driver took the checkered flag at the Rising City, Neb., oval, but he was penalized following the race.
The key incident, according to series reports, came on a lap-17 restart when Justin Gregg of Hastings, Neb., slipped around Berck, who wasn’t ready for the green. Gregg took the lead, but exiting turn two, Berck got into the rear of Gregg’s car and sent him spinning. Officials sent Gregg to the tail with Berck out front, and he led the rest of the way.
After the race, officials reviewed the incident and conferred with both teams. While Berck kept the victory, he was penalized 24 points in the tour’s Malvernbank.com Race for the Safe standings, which put him two points behind Gregg, who ended up 11th in the race. The penalty put race runner-up J.C. Wyman of Griswold, Iowa, into the series points lead after one race.
Turn 2: Fan favorite racetracks
In the 2013 National Speed Sport News Track and Series Guide, fans picked their favorite tracks. While only Williams Grove hosts a regular Late Model division among the dirt tracks, Late Models are part of major events at Eldora and Knoxville while Tri-State and Kokomo hosts occasional races:
10. Road American, Elkhart Lake, Wis.
Backstretch: Facebook Post of the Week
From Spencer Kirkham on the Facebook page of 311 Motor Speedway near Madison, N.C.: “One more recommendation: If (promoter) Mike Fulp is gonna flag the races, could he get his coffee before they start, so we aren't waiting for him to get back up in the flagstand to start?”
Turn 3: All over the map
Names of five Dirt Late Model drivers with a geographic twist:
• Houston Garrison
• Trig Parris
• Reno Markham
• Montana Dudley
• Dakota Heck
Turn 4: Turn back the clock
Five items from this week in Dirt Late Model history:
May 7, 1985: Billy Clanton of Riverdale, Ga., father of current World of Outlaws standout Shane Clanton, won at Anderson (S.C.) Motor Speedway for his first victory on the Southern All Star Dirt Racing Series.
May 3, 1997: Donnie Moran set fast qualifying time, won his heat race then led flag-to-flag in the Hav-A-Tampa Confederate 100 feature for a $15,400 victory at Whynot (Miss.) Speedway. Moran won his third straight race over nine days after sweeping two STARS races the previous weekend. Billy Moyer finished second with Steve Russell, Skip Arp and Wendell Wallace rounding out the top five.
May 7, 2002: Driver Kevin Gundaker of St. Charles, Mo., who suffered a broken leg and other injuries in an April 24 motorcycle accident, was released from the hospital. Gundaker later announced Jack Hewitt would field his car at Eldora Speedway’s $100,000-to-win Dream.
May 1, 2008: Dirt racer Jerry Rice of Verona, Ky., the 2006 Late Model champion at historic Eldora Speedway, underwent successful surgery to implant an artificial pacemaker. Rice, then 41, sought treatment after several blackout episodes.
May 3, 2011: Inspirational East Moline, Ill., dirt racer and car owner Hershel Roberts, who continued to drive and field Dirt Late Models five seasons despite being struck with terminal cancer, died at age 68. Roberts and his son Ken owned the No. 58 that Ray Guss Jr. drove to 2010 weekly and touring IMCA championships.
Checkered flag: Five fearless weekend predictions
• Winners of the World of Outlaws events at Lavonia (Ga.) Speedway and Swainsboro (Ga.) Raceway will earn their first Georgia victories on the national tour.
• Fast qualifiers at the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series events at Tri-City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, Ill., and Paducah (Ky.) International Raceway won’t crack the top five in either feature.
• A former Southern 100 winner will break through for another victory in the $12,000-to-win finale at Southern Ohio Speedway in Wheelersburg, Ohio.
• Chris Wall and David Breazeale will share the top two spots in Saturday’s Mississippi State Championship Challenge Series event at Columbus (Miss.) Speedway, making the fourth time in a month they’ve been the top two finishers.
• Home-state drivers will fill at least four of the top five spots in Saturday's P&W Sales Southern United Professional Racing feature at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas.
(Last week: One of three predictions correct; two rained out)
