Weekly Notebook presented by FK Rod Ends
Notes: Dixie youngster gets her first Crate win
By Joshua Joiner
DirtonDirt.com staff writer
Maddie Crane notched an Aug. 3 Crate victory at Dixie, her first in the division. (Mitchell Jenkins)
After five years of racing undersized legends and bandoleros cars on asphalt short tracks, Maddie Crane, 15, of Meansville, Ga., was in completely unfamiliar territory when she first sat in a Crate Late Model at Dixie Speedway in Woodstock, Ga., in April.
“I remember when I first got to the track,” Crane said. “I was like ‘Holy crap. This car is huge, the track is huge and I’ve never done this before.’ You just watch the cars go around the track and you’re like ‘How the heck am I gonna do this?’ ”
While she may have been unsure of herself starting out, Crane, who had only been to a dirt track a couple of times before making her first laps at Dixie, has proven to be a fast learner. She has quickly become a contender at Dixie and nearby Rome (Ga.) Speedway, with her improving performances putting her among the Crate Late Model division’s championship contenders at Dixie.
On Aug. 3, in just her 13th dirt track race, Crane broke through during Dixie’s weekly racing program, winning her first Crate Late Model feature. The victory highlights a solid rookie season that also includes six finishes among the top three.
Crane has even surprised herself with her quick transition to both full-sized race cars and dirt track racing.
“I really didn’t expect to win a race so soon, but I think we’ve done really well transitioning to dirt,” said Crane, who’s already planning to make the jump to the Limited Late Model division later in the season. “To win a race already, that was really cool for me. Hopefully it just keeps getting better and better.”
Even as she looks to continue her development on dirt, Crane’s ultimate racing goals involve a move back to asphalt and the stardom of NASCAR. She knows those aspirations will likely lead her away from dirt track racing eventually, but she’s hoping to soak up all the experience she can during her time on the dirt tracks, much like some current NASCAR stars have done before her.
“Racing on dirt is something that’s definitely going to help in the long run,” Crane said. “I know one day I’ll transition back to asphalt, but I know that this is really going to help me be a better driver when I do that.
“A lot of the people you see in NASCAR that have ran dirt are really successful — like Austin Dillon, Kyle Larson, Tony Stewart. They’re all really, really great drivers and they really inspire me to learn on dirt cause I wanna be just as good as they are.”
While she may have her eyes on an eventual move back to asphalt and a potential NASCAR career, Crane is fully focused on the present. She’s enjoying her time racing on dirt and hopes for plenty more success.
“I would love to move on up in dirt and maybe one day race Supers. I just want to be successful because I know the better I get on dirt the more that’ll help me down the road,” Crane said. “But it’s not like I’m just doing it to help me for asphalt. I’m really enjoying it. I love racing on dirt.”
Weekly highlights
• Pulling off a Toccoa (Ga.) Speedway sweep, David McCoy of Franklin, N.C., grabbed Limited Late Model and Crate victories Aug. 3.
• At Southern Ohio Speedway, Josh McGuire of Grayson, Ky., scored a $3,000 victory Aug. 2 in the Hall of Fame Classic, topping Delmas Conley and Rod Conley.
• Colton Flinner of Allison Park, Pa., scored his biggest victory Aug. 3 at Pittsburgh's Pennsylvania Motor Speedway by capturing the 24th annual Jook George Memorial in the track’s Crate Late Model division.
• Winning his fourth straight, Todd Malmstrom of Silvis, Ill., extended his division points lead in the Late Model division at Quad City Speedway in East Moline, Ill.
• Davey Johnson of Latrobe, Pa., won the rain-postponed Ernie Jones Memorial on Aug. 4, pocketing $2,200 at Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex in Markleysburg, Pa.
• At Beckley (W.Va.) Motorsports Park’s Down and Dirty 30, Mike Benedum of Bristol, W.Va., scored a $3,000 victory.
• IMCA points leader Todd Cooney of Des Moines, Iowa, had a two-victory weekend Aug. 3-4 at home-state tracks with wins at Shelby County Speedway in Harlan and Stuart Speedway.
First things first
First-time occurrences at the dirt track:
• In becoming the first Canadian to win at Stateline Speedway in Busti, N.Y., Luke Carleton of St. Catharines, Ontario, won his first career Crate Late Model feature Aug. 3.
• Winning Aug. 3 at Georgia’s Dixie Speedway, former Crate champion Donald McIntosh of Dawsonville, Ga., notched his first Super Late Model victory.
• In the Super Late Model division on Aug. 3 at Peoria Speedway, Brian Diveley of Springfield, Ill., scored his first victory at the central Illinois oval.
Weekly points chases
UMP DIRTcar (Super Late Models): Summernationals champion Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., leads the way with 2,340 points through July 28. Bobby Pierce (2,143) of Oakwood, Ill., is nearly 200 points back in second, while Rusty Schlenk (2,097) has jumped Shannon Babb (2,085) for third.
UMP DIRTcar (Crate Late Models): Aaron Heck of Mount Vernon, Ill., continues to lead but Jeff Walston of Paducah, Ky., has closed the gap to just nine points after back-to-back victories at Clarksville (Tenn.) Speedway. Nick Bauman of New Berlin, Ill., is third, another 16 points back.
IMCA: Todd Cooney of Des Moines, Iowa, has 789 points through July 28, while Tyler Bruening of Decorah, Iowa, still sits at 769. Justin Kay of Wheatland, Iowa, is third with 767 points.
WISSOTA: Chad Becker of Aberdeen, S.D., leads by 10 points over Dustin Strand of Grand Forks, N.D., through Aug. 4 events, while Steven Grabow of Milbank, S.D., is 30 points out of the lead in third.
WDLMA: Justin Hirt of Tigerton, Wis., has seen his lead cut to just seven points over Tim Buhler, while Russ Scheffler is 14 points behind in third.
AMRA: Ronnie Mayle of Chesterhill, Ohio, leads by 46 points over Andy Bond, while K.C. Burdette is another 11 back.
ULMA: With a pair of victories at Lucas Oil Speedway on Aug. 3, defending champion Jason Russell of Henley, Mo., has stretched his lead to 105 points over Vance Wilson. Rookie contender Payton Looney is another 72 points back in third.
NeSmith Chevrolet Series: Shannon Lee of Lumberton, Miss., has closed to within 16 points of teammate Noah Daspit of Kiln, Miss., for the lead in the Crate Late Model organization’s Old Man’s Garage Weekly points with Mike Palasini Jr. of Leland, Miss., 25 points out of the lead in third.
RUSH: Max Blair of Centerville, Pa., has closed to 12 points behind Mike Pegher Jr. of Wexford, Pa., at the top of the first-year Crate Late Model organization’s weekly points chase while Rick Singleton is third, 43 points behind the leader.
SECA: Trent Ivey of Union, S.C., leads with 490 points on the first-year Crate Late Model organization over Joey Phillips (476) and Nick Dietz (447).
Upcoming weekly specials
Among non-touring and independent special events at dirt tracks around the country for the upcoming weekend:
Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, Pevely, Mo. (Aug. 10): An extra $5,000 is added to the weekly purse for the Laura Jones Jumper Memorial, a five-division program topped by Super Late Models.
171 Speedway, Leesville, La. (Aug. 10): Late Models return for the first time in nearly two years with a $1,500-to-win, $400-to-start event. The unsanctioned event follows SUPR series rules.
Macon (Ill.) Speedway (Aug. 10): The Miller Lite Beer Twin 50s include a 50-lapper for the Midwest Big 10 miniseries. Steve Sheppard Jr. has a two-point lead on the Illinois minitour over Matt Taylor with three races remaining.
Winchester (Va.) Speedway (Aug. 10): Round Hill Auto Services sponsors a Winchester-Potomac Limited Late Model Challenge event along with a $2,000-to-win Super Late Model race.
Midway Speedway, Crooksville, Ohio (Aug. 11): The Jim Dunn Memorial pays $5,000-to-win for Super Late Models.
