August 6 , 1983
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Tuesday, August 4, 2015
Today in Racing History
August 4, 2002
Rick Eckert (24) takes the high side past Dale McDowell (17M) for the lead and the win in the Great Northern Challenge event at the "USA Nationals" at Cedar Lake Speedway on August 4, 2002. The win earned Eckert $141,000, the richest one-day payoff in UDTRA Pro DirtCar Series history. — Neil Eric Miller Photo
Monday, August 3, 2015
Today in Racing History
August 3, 1972
Verlin Eaker, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, won the rich ($2,100) Iowa Challenge Cup at Hawkeye Downs Speedway in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on August 3, 1972. Joining Eakers in victory lane is, left to right: NASCAR star Buddy Baker (serving as grand marshal), Terry Hoover, flagman Engel DeKoch, Jeanie Kula, Eakers, Elaine Marquadt, Charlane Price and NASCAR driver Pete Hamilton. — Morris "Beetle" Bailey Photo
Sunday, August 2, 2015
1972 – Bettenhausen takes USAC midget show at Independence
Gary Bettenhausen
Independence, Iowa (August 2, 1972) – Home state favorite Lee Kunzman of Guttenberg ran into suspension problems on lap 6 and was forced to drop out of the special USAC midget feature at Independence Motor Speedway on Wednesday night, but for Tinley Park, Ill.’s Gary Bettenhausen, the race was just another pearl on a growing string.
Bettenhausen, a leader through much of the 1972 Indianapolis 500 and a popular though not too regular figure on the USAC Midget circuit, passed Larry Rice of Crawfordsville, Ind., on the 29th lap of the 40-lap main event and held off a stellar field of national stars for the Indee checkered flag, his fourth in as many USAC Midget starts this year.
The victory earned him 30 USAC season points, but failed to lift him into the top-10 in the Midget standings. All 10 of the current point’s leaders were in the Independence field, including front-runner Billy Engelhart of Madison, Wis., who managed a sixth place finish in the feature.
Kunzman, also absent from the USAC midget top-10 primarily because of recent successful ventures into other racing divisions including the Championship Indy-type cars, started high in the pack and provided the crowd of about 3,000 with several thrills as he moved up into the third spot early in the race.
Kunzman's success was short lived. After a pair of short delays due to yellow flags, Kunzman dropped behind Bettenhausen into fourth and fell to sixth on the 14th circuit around, the 1/3-mile dirt oval after hitting a hole in the bottom of turn two.
The journey into the hole proved fatal to Kunzman's suspension and two laps later the popular Iowa driver wheeled his No. 96 McClung Advertising Sesco into the infield. Kunzman climbed from the car, walked to the left rear wheel and push on the frame with his foot. The car went down but instead of bouncing back, rose in sickening slow motion and the observing crowd let out a collective moan.
Competitively, Rice was Bettenhausen's biggest problem. The Indiana driver, currently third in the Midget standings behind Engelhart and Duane Carter of Huntington Beach, Calif. started second and nabbed the lead on the first lap. He controlled the race for 29 laps, consistently fighting Bettenhausen off, but made one mistake.
"I played him and played him and finally he got up high and I got around," said Bettenhausen, who started sixth. Rice stayed on Bettenhausen's heels, finishing about three lengths back, while Carter was right behind at the finish. Fourth went to Tom Bigelow of Whitewater, Wis., while Steve Cannon of Danville, Ill., nabbed fifth. Bigelow made the biggest' advance in the race in moving up from a 12th starting slot.
Results –
1. Gary Bettenhausen, Tinley Park, Ill.
2. Larry Rice, Crawfordsville, Ind.
3. Duane Carter, Huntington Beach, Calif.
4. Tom Bigelow, Whitewater, Wis.
5. Steve Cannon, Danville, Ill.
6. Bill Engelhart, Madison, Wis.
7. Tommy Astone, Fresno, Calif.
8. Johnny Toth, Northfield, Ill.
9. Dennis Carrier, Jackson, Mich.
10. Dave Strickland, Englewood, Colo.
Saturday, August 1, 2015
1995 - Donlinger takes the flag at Midwestern Nationals
Donlinger led the final 29 laps to take the
win in the 40-lap Midwestern Nationals for the United State Modified Series at
34 Raceway on Tuesday night.
Donlinger picked up the $2,000 top prize for
his first win in the inaugural season of the series. Donlinger started outside
of polesitter Klint Pursley, and stayed behind Pursley for the first 11 laps.
But he took the lead on the 12th lap and held on for the win.
“I don’t like being in the lead,” said
Donlinger, who is from Rochester ,
Minn.
Donlinger finished second in Monday night’s
feature, which ended about a half hour before strong thunderstorms hit the
track.
“The track was a lot different than (Monday)
night,” Donlinger said. “I was able to run a lot better at the top of the
track.”
Donlinger became the 10th different feature
winner in 12 races in the series. These were the first feature laps he has led
in the series this season. Ron Jones, who started sixth in the race, challenged
Donlinger at the end but finished second. Jamie Wolfe, who started ninth,
finished third. Rich Smith was fourth. Pursley, who won a heat race and then
led all 16 laps of Monday's feature, had mechanical troubles as the cars took
their warm-up laps before the start of the race. He faded after the pass from
Donlinger and finished fifth.
There were six caution-flag periods during
the race, including one following a scary incident involving USMS point’s
leader Kelly Shryock. Shryock, who made the feature after qualifying through
one of the early heat races on the night, had his car burst into a ball of
flame while heading down the backstretch on the ninth lap.
But the flames quickly burned out as Shryock
came to a stop in the third turn. He was unhurt and the car was pushed back to
the pit area. Shryock finished 24th.
Results –
1. Tim Donlinger
2. Ron Jones
3. Jamie Wolfe
4. Rich Smith
5. Klint Pursley
6. Marty Thompson
7. Ken McCarry
8. Bruce Hanford
9. Darrell McGee
10. Jeff Morris
11. Eddie Martin
12. Bob Dominacki
13. Dan Helm
14. Jack Byars
15. Mike Karhoff
16. Bill Roberts
17. John Allen
18. Kelly Meyer
19. George Carroll
20. Kyle Volkers
21. Hank Delonjay
22. Ed Kosiski
23. Tim Folk
24. Kelly Shryock
Friday, July 31, 2015
Thursday, July 30, 2015
1961 – Louisville’s Robbins Bests Field in Iowa Super Modified Go
Knoxville promoter Marion Robinson (right) presents Super Modified National Championship winner Roy Robbins with his trophy.
Robbins, who the night before raced to a new track record of 23 seconds flat, drove a modified version equipped with an air scoop.
The scoop, which operates in reverse of an airplane wing by keeping the rear end of the racer on the ground, must have aided the Kentuckian as he won the 25-lap main event going away.
A turn away crowd of nearly 14,000 watched the eight event program under perfect weather conditions. Seventy-eight super modifieds competed at the Marion County Fairgrounds.
Four of the five heat races were won by drivers who compete weekly at the Knoxville track. Jim Blount of LaPaz, Ind., was the only outside winner in the heat races. Blount won the fifth heat. The other heat winners were Earl Wagner of Pleasantville, Gordon Woolley of Waco, Tex., Thad Dosher of Topeka, Kan., and Gene Hockensmith of Des Moines.
Robbins finished second in the first heat race behind the local favorite, Earl Wagner. Wagner placed third in the feature race just behind another air scoop special driven by Audie Schwartz of Muncie, Ind.
The main event was restarted three times before the field finally settled down. As a result, the feature was delayed, and the checkered flag didn't fall until after 1 AM.
The restarts resulted in one anxious driver became tangled in non-serious accidents in the early laps of the 25-lap feature.
Results –
First Heat: Earl Wagner, Pleasantville, Iowa
Second Heat: Gordon Woolley, Waco, Tex.
Third Heat: Thad Dosher, Topeka, Kan.
Fourth Heat: Gene Hockensmith, Des Moines
Fifth Heat: Jim Blount, LaPaz, Ind.
First Consy: Jerry Weld, Kansas City
Second Consy: Johnny Babb, Ottumwa, Iowa
Feature:
1. Roy Robbins, Louisville, Ky.
2. Audie Schwartz, Muncie, Ind.
3. Earl Wagner
4. Harvey Shane, Coffeyville, Kan.
5. Bill Corwin, Topeka, Kan.
6. Red Andrew, Lawrence, Kan.
7. Gene Hockensmith
8. Johnny Babb
9. Dean Woolheather, Fort Collins, Colo.
10. Jerry Weld, Kansas City
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