Sedalia, Mo. (May 31, 1971) - Ray Lee Goodwin, Kansas City, made it look like an easy Sunday afternoon drive as he breezed to the checkered flag ahead of the 20-car field in the annual Sedalia Jaycees Memorial Classic, Sunday afternoon at the Missouri State Fairgrounds.
In pocketing the $600 first place check, Goodwin leaped ahead of the pack from his outside pole position and built up an eight and one-half second lead by the race’s conclusion.
It marked the second time in the past three days that Goodwin had won a feature event. Friday night the veteran super-sprint campaigner won the feature race at Knoxville, Iowa, Saturday night was almost as profitable as h finished second in the main event on the same Marion County Fairgrounds’ track in Knoxville, Iowa.
Although Goodwin had little competition for the lead Sunday after the third lap, the real battle was raging for second place between Steve Shultz, Wib Spalding and Roy Hibbard.
Spalding was able to grab the second spot at the finish line ahead of Shultz and Hibbard, who finished third and fourth in that order. Flea Atkin copped fifth in the race, while Tom Corbin, Dale Moore, Junior Dietzel, Roy Cary and Russell Hibbard rounded out the top 10.
For the first time in the past three years, the predicted afternoon rains did not materialize, and the entire Jaycee program was worked in.
Bob Williams, who was the last to pull into the pits in an attempt to qualify for a position in the feature event, took the lead from Sedalia’s Ernie Buso in the consolation feature on the third lap and led the field across the finish line for first place in that event.
The old one-lap record on the half-mile oval was bettered four times during the time trials. Russell Hibbard, Slater, Mo., was the first to top Joe Saldana’s old mark of 22.67 seconds; Hibbard turned the distance in a new record clocking of 22.66 seconds. However, Goodwin turned successive laps of 22.57 and 22.59 seconds, to drop Hibbard’s newly established mark from the books.
But it was Steve Shultz, Chillicothe, Mo., who turned in the fastest time of the day with a one-lap clocking of 22.45 seconds. Shultz set the standard in the same car that Saldana used last year to set the previous record. Shultz recently purchased the car from Saldana.
Absent from the field was last year’s defending champion Bill Utz, Sedalia. Utz received severe burns on his left hand, back and neck in Saturday night’s racing card at Capital Speedway, near Jefferson City. Utz was in the pits to witness the race but may not see any racing activity behind the wheel until July.
Wib Spalding won the trophy dash over Steve Shultz and Junior Dietzel, who were second and third in that order.
Heat winners in the super-sprint division included Frank Makings, Wib Spalding, Bob Williams, Jim Jenkins and Flea Atkin.
Results –
Time trials – Steve Schultz (22.45)
Trophy dash – Wib Spalding
Heat #1 – Frank Makings
Heat #2 – Wib Spalding
Heat #3 – Bob Williams
Heat #4 – Jim Jenkins
Heat #5 - Flea Atkin
Consolation – Bob Williams
Feature –
1. Ray Lee Goodwin
2. Wib Spalding
3. Steve Schultz
4. Roy Hibbard
5. Flea Atkin
6. Tom Corbin
7. Dale Moore
8. Junior Dietzel
9. Roy Cary
10.Russell Hibbard
11.Jerry Johnson
12.Jay Lyle
13.Ralph Parkinson Jr.
14.Bob Thoman
15.Steve Lewis
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