Spring Fling this weekend at Cottage Grove

By Ben Deatherage  COTTAGE GROVE, Ore. (April 26) – Collen Winebarger and Jorddon Braaten took opening night IMCA checkers Friday at Cottage Grove Speedway.  Despite early stoppages, Curtis Towns put his machine out in front of the IMCA Modified pack.  Towns stayed there before eventually losing the coveted top spot on lap seven, shortly after a restart, to Winebarger.  It was no stroll through the park for Winebarger as he had to deal with several lapped cars as well a number of restarts.  When it was all said and done, Winebarger crossed the wire in first for his first win of 2019. Towns held on to be the runner-up while Aaron Sheelar was third.   The Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods had a good race as Braaten returned to his prime form after winning the track and state titles last season. Braaten obtained the lead on the opening lap.  But just like Winebarger, Braaten had to deal with similar factors including restarts, traffic, and a couple of challengers but all in all he managed to maintain his position and win [Read More]

COTTAGE GROVE, Ore. – IMCA Mach-Sport Compacts have their first weekly home in the Pa­cific Northwest with the new sanction at Cottage Grove Speedway.  The 4-cylinder class will run on 15 nights during the IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing point sea­son, beginning on opening night March 21 and running through Sept. 6.  “We like everything about the Sport Compacts as an entry level class, especially the rules,” said promoter and new track owner Heather Boyce. “This is a class that is very affordable for young drivers or for fans who may not have family experience racing but want to get a car and have fun on a Saturday night.” The division replaces a local hornet class. “Sport Compacts work both ends of the spectrum for us,” Boyce noted. “They’ll be a great step­ping stone for drivers who want to move up to IMCA Modifieds or Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods. It’s also a class that veteran drivers who want to race less often can get into.”  The division headlines the July 11 program at Cottage Grove, [Read More]

By Ben Deatherage COTTAGE GROVE, Ore. (July 16) – Curtis Towns raced to IMCA Modified win number two of the season at Cottage Grove Speedway Friday night.  Paul Rea was the early race leader in the main event.  The veteran chauffeur set a fast pace until his driveline spat out, on lap five, sidelining him for the rest of the race. Inheriting the lead position was Towns.  Towns stayed in the coveted position for the balance of the distance despite feeling brief periods of pressure. Towns scored his second win of 2021 in Cottage Grove competition. Eston Whisler was a strong second, followed by Ryan Baker. The rest of the top five was made up of Steven Sturdevant and Paul Culp.  For the Mach-1 Sport Compacts, young Madilyn Ashley set the tone in the early goings of that feature. The young lady from Jasper maintained first place until being overtaken on lap 10. Burnie Bryant was the one to claim the top spot for his own.  Bryant dominated the rest of the main event to [Read More]