April 23, 2026

Noteboom matches wins record at PJ

JEFFERSON, S.D. (Aug. 11) – On a beautiful night in the Siouxland, it was the beautiful white number seven IMCA Modified of Jay Noteboom rolling into victory lane at Park Jefferson Speedway.

With his win, Noteboom tied Joe Kosiski at the top of the all-time win list at the Park Jefferson Speedway with 73 total checkers.

There was no denying Noteboom, who started sixth, but in just two laps flew by front row starters Jason Schneiders and Harvey Vande Weerd to fly to a lead he would never relinquish. Noteboom opened a huge lead that was up to 8.5 seconds at one point.

Greg Taylor was the J&J Fitting IMCA Stock Car winner and Andy Hoffman posted a convincing victory in the Z98 IMCA Hobby Stock main.

Cody Thompson outran hard charger Karl Brewer for the Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod checkers. Andrew Harris and Kaytee DeVries had a spirited battle to wrap up the Sport Compact point season at Park Jeff. Andrew Harris, who was dominant all year, got past DeVries to pick up his sixth Mach-1 Sport Compact win of 2018.

On Park Jefferson Intern night, a huge shoutout went to 2018 intern Aaron Van Voorst, who coordinated the entire program of candy toss, car ride alongs for kids, bike giveaways and school supplies to thrill the crowd on season championship night.

parkjeffersonspeedway

Mills tunes up with IMCA Modified checkers at Park Jeff

JEFFERSON, S.D. (Aug. 1) – A beautiful blue sky greeted drivers and fans as Park Jefferson driver warmed up for Aug. 7-8 and the Iron Cup with a great fast night of racing at Park Jefferson Speedway on Turner Plumbing Night. In the IMCA Modifieds, it was Chris Mills who took the top spot after a handful of cautions slowed the 20-lap affair. Mills was able to come from mid-pack to run away with the checkers. 2019 champion Bob Moore showed well as he was a strong second and Sean Barragan rushed in straight from a wedding to take third. In the IMCA RaceSaver Sprints, it was Colin Smith returning to the site of two track championships to whip the rest of the field. Smith has ventured around the area this year and took a comfortable win with Danny Nekoite second and Jesse Lindberg third. Veterans Travis Barker and Ryan Harris put on a show for the fans in the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car main. The two longtime Siouxland combatants raced nose to tail with [Read More]

South Dakota events still on, without grandstand spectators

JEFFERSON, S.D. – Both Saturday’s Open Wheel Nationals at Park Jefferson Speedway and Sunday’s event at The New Raceway Park will still be held as scheduled, but without spectators in grandstands at either facility. No IMCA points of any kind will be given at either event. The Saturday show features IMCA Modifieds and will be broadcast by Speed Shift TV. IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sunoco Stock Car, IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks, Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods and Mach-1 Sport Compacts are on the Sunday card, to be broadcast by Advantage Racing TV. Advance ticket holders for the Open Wheel Nationals will be notified by email about refunds. Information about grandstand refunds for the Sunday event is to be announced.

Barker Banks $5,000 RTI Nationals Win at Park Jefferson

By Ben Deatherage JEFFERSON, S.D. (Jun. 15, 2025) — The Sunday night RTI Nationals brought a packed house to Park Jefferson International Speedway with a whopping $5,000 payday on the line for the Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars. And it was two-time South Dakota State champion Travis Barker who cashed in. Barker, who started seventh, muscled his way through a hard-fought 35-lap main event. Early on, Brady Wenzlaff controlled the race while three-time Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s Karl Chevrolet IMCA Northern SportMod winner, Johnathon Logue, and Devin Tripp waged a three-wide battle for the top spot. Tripp edged ahead on lap four and began to stretch his lead, but Barker closed fast. A lap 13 caution reset the field, and on lap 16, Barker nipped Tripp at the line to take over the top spot. Tripp countered by moving to the high side, only for another yellow to wave. That opened the door for 2015 IMCA Hobby Stock national champion Justin Luinenburg, who slotted into second. Luinenburg and Tripp fought hard to the [Read More]

Feature

Oliver Wins Thrilling Stock Car Race at Independence

By Christine Rublack INDEPENDENCE, Iowa (Apr. 21, 2026) — A Tuesday night full of exciting racing at Independence Motor Speedway saw John Oliver Jr. take home the victory by the smallest margin of the night in the Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars, edging Kodey Miles by just 0.051 seconds. Kodey Miles took the lead early, with Tanner Allen and Tom Schmitt in pursuit. Oliver began working the low groove as the duo in front of him battled for second. Schmitt moved into second while Oliver continued to work underneath him. With a couple laps to go, Oliver closed in on Miles for the top position and, as the checkers waved, took the win. It was the first win of 2026 for the West Burlington veteran in the EQ Cylinder Heads Northern Region after starting fourth. Miles and Schmitt finished second and third, while Gage Neal and Tanner Allen completed the top five. Kolin Hibdon dominated the Karl Kustoms IMCA Modifieds. Hibdon quickly pulled away as Joel Rust moved into second, and the pair began to distance themselves [Read More]

Feature

Christina and Matt Ratzlaff: From Separate Paths to the Same Track

By Ben Deatherage MONTE VISTA, Colo. (Apr. 21, 2026) — Out in southern Colorado, where the land stretches wide beneath towering mountain ranges and the air sits thin at more than 7,500 feet above sea level, racing isn’t just something you do—it’s something you carry with you. The San Luis Valley is one of the most unique places in the country—an expansive, high-altitude basin carved by the Rio Grande and surrounded by peaks. Agriculture drives life here, from cattle to potatoes to barley fields, and the distances between towns are measured in miles, not minutes. Monte Vista sits at the heart of it all, a town established in 1884 along the railroad, its Spanish name meaning simply “mountain view.” It’s here where Christina and Matt Ratzlaff have built both a life—and a race team. Two Drivers, One Team On any given night, the Ratzlaffs roll into the pit area as a two-car operation in the Karl Kustoms IMCA Modifieds with Christina in the No. 15 and Matt in the No. 16. Their journeys to this point [Read More]

Feature

Jim ‘Cowboy’ Kennedy: A Life Remembered

By Ben Deatherage EVERETT, Pa. (Apr. 21, 2026) — RaceSaver IMCA Sprint Car racer Jim “Cowboy” Kennedy never needed much to go racing — just a car, a wrench, and a reason to keep going. For nearly seven decades, the Pennsylvania native carved out a place in sprint car racing that few could ever match, continuing to compete well into his 90s before his passing on April 2 at the age of 91. But long before the tributes, the Hall of Famer had already told his story — in conversations with reporters, at racetracks, and in the quiet, in-between moments that defined a life spent chasing the next green flag. A Life That Spanned Generations Kennedy was born on August 7, 1934, into a world far different than the one he would come to know behind the wheel of a Sprint Car. The United States was deep in the Great Depression, with President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the early years of his first term, working to steady a nation searching for its footing as parts of [Read More]

Related Articles