Ken Walton
By Jeff Tecklenburg
Mason City, Iowa (September 5-6, 1981) – National Outlaw Stock Car Association racing made its debut at the Mason City Speedway this past weekend and it’s hard to say if it was successful.
Although the crowd didn’t respond very positive to the lengthy program, preliminary indications are that NOSCA promoters will bring their show back to Mason City again, perhaps as early as next May.
While an estimated 700 fans turned out for time trials and heat races on Saturday, there were mor than 2,000 enthusiasts in the stands on Sunday to watch a card of winged outlaw late models plus sportsman and street stocks.
NOSCA has been running a regular circuit of races around the Midwest since January. The promoters hype the extra speed and action provided by the winged, open-class cars, and their drivers.
The program started late, much to the disgust of more than a few of the fans. The outlaw late model main event didn’t commence until a few minutes before midnight. Earlier in the evening, the street stocks, and to a lesser extent, the sportsman features were bogged down by numerous spinouts that required multiple restarts.
Finally, Ken Walton of Viola showed his stuff in the 50-lap winged outlaw late model headliner, ripping off basically an unchallenged triumph worth $2,200. He did it in less than 20 minutes as the race went green to checkered.
Walton, who ranks first in NOSCA points this season, also picked up $200 earlier for winning the “outlaw shootout,” a one-on-one elimination pairing off the top eight cars from Saturday night’s time trials. One of his laps took 21.24 seconds around the big half-mile, the best of the weekend, according to NOSCA officials.
Dave Bjorge of Austin, Minn., the local track champion, challenged Walton for a while but gradually faded from contention, still finishing second. Walton and Bjorge were heat winners on Saturday and also finished 1-2 in time trials.
The biggest battle was for third place as Waterloo’s Dick Schiltz slipped past Des Moines’ Don Hoffman on lap 21 and maintained a slim margin for the remainder of the race.
Decorah’s Em Fretheim, normally a late model driver here, didn’t win any heat races while competing in the sportsman division and started at the rear of the field for their 30-lap feature. But, by the 10th lap he was in second place; seven laps farther and he snatched the lead, never to surrender it.
A father-son act took top honors in the street stock feature with Dave Noble of Blooming Prairie, Minn., getting the nod over his son, Mark.
Results –
Winged Outlaw Late Model –
1. Ken Walton, Viola
2. Dave Bjorge, Austin, Minn.
3. Dick Schiltz, Waterloo
4. Don Hoffman, Des Moines
5. Mike Niffenegger, Kalona
6. Billy Moyer Jr., Des Moines
7. Bob Hill, Randall
8. Lynn Idler, Ionia
9. Andy Claiborne, Stanley, Kan.
10.Joe Merryfield, Des Moines
Sportsman –
1. Em Fretheim, Decorah
2. Darrell DeFrance, Marshalltown
3. Mike Mauer, Janesville
4. Fuzzy Liddell, Waterloo
5. Scott Sells, Waverly
6. Rusty Hilderman, Topeka, Kan.
7. Tom Bartholomew, Waterloo
8. Scott Braun, Cedar Falls
Street Stock –
1. Dave Noble, Blooming Prairie, Minn.
2. Mark Noble, Blooming Prairie, Minn.
3. Al Thoms, Fairmont, Minn.
4. Lee DeVries, Hollandale, Minn.
5. Dave Doughty, Fort Dodge
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