Friday, September 11, 2020 Archives

Thornton outruns Aikey in epic Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational

BOONE, Iowa (Sept. 12) – The seventh time was a charm as Ricky Thornton Jr. put another check on his IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s bucket list Saturday night. Making his career seventh start in the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational, Thornton chased down Jeff Aikey in traffic, leading the last eight times around the track in taking a fast-paced IMCA Modified feature. The win paid $1,675. Thornton previously posted a race career best third place finish in 2016 and was already a candidate for next year’s Invitational. Nineteenth starting Jason Wolla, 16th starting Tim Ward and Ethan Dotson rounded out the top five. Aikey rocketed from sixth starting to the front on the initial green flag, following the high side of the track and scored ahead of Mitchell Hunt and Thornton, who’d started 10th, following the only caution of the contest on lap two. Much accomplished at Boone Speedway himself, Aikey took off again and led Thornton and defending race winner Joel Rust into traffic by midway. Thornton cut into Aikey’s lead and [Read More]

Multi-tasker DeGroft brings Modified to Super Nationals

BOONE, Iowa – Timothy DeGroft Jr. will multi-task at the 2020 IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s. The IMCA Modified rookie from Elwell, Mich., comes to Boone Speedway looking to get in some more laps on the Pierce-owned 2020 Hoffman H3 ride while promoting suicide awareness. DeGroft owns success in both pro stock and street stock classes in his home state. He’s still looking for his first win in the IMCA division after the unexpected late start to his season. “We’ve been pretty happy with the car,” he said. “Probably the biggest difference what I’d driven before was the handling, You’ve got to ride the brake quite a bit and there were nights I struggled with that, but the car has been pretty since the end of July, early August.” He’ll line up outside row two in the 19th heat for Modifieds Saturday afternoon. “We want to get laps in on the car. Everyone’s goal is to make the show. We’re happy to make a qualifier,” DeGroft said. “They’ve done a great job on [Read More]

Fain brings Stock Car quest to Super Nationals

BOONE, Iowa – He’s been Paw Paw to granddaughter Addison for four years. He’s been The Fan Man since he started selling Super Sucker Fan blades two years ago. What Tommy Fain hopes to be known as next is a first-time qualifier for the Stock Car main event at the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s. The long-time driver of the God is Awesome car and owner of first-year IMCA sponsor Abilene Race Rads has three wins this season, just his second in the division after a distinguished career in the Modifieds. “I’ve raced more than 20 years and had watched the Stock Cars. They looked fun with a lot of side-by-side racing,” said Fain, a frequent runner at Abilene Speedway, Kennedale Speedway Park, Southern Oklahoma Speedway and Boyd Raceway. “They don’t take as much time and that gives me more Paw Paw time with my granddaughter.” Fain’s son Tyler runs a Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMod and the two are regular travel companions. David Ries has helped Fain in the shop and at the [Read More]

Believe it! Hale races from 29th into Modified main event

BOONE, Iowa – When he lined up 29th for the start of Thursday’s second Modified qualifying feature at Boone Speedway, Clay Hale wanted to get in some laps, pass as many cars as he could and get as many of those valuable points as possible. What he did instead was race all the way to third and qualify for his career first IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s main event. “When I rolled out, I wanted to go half the race before deciding if I’d get up on the wheel,” said Hale, from Cameron, Mo. “I started driving harder, the car came in and the next thing I knew we were passing cars.” “When I crossed the finish line there was disbelief at first. I would have never believed that we could start 29th and end up in the tech tent,” he continued. “I was so excited because I knew we got the transfer.” A former Northern SportMod entrant at Super Nationals, Hale had a state championship to his credit in the first JBR Chassis [Read More]

First Super Nationals Modified qualifiers go to Laney, Thornton

BOONE, Iowa (Sept. 10) – A quick Californian and a driver who already has an impressive collection of IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s hardware were qualifying feature winners Thursday at Boone Speedway. Cody Laney of Torrance, Calif., started 12th and led the last half of the first qualifier for IMCA Modifieds, winning ahead of Trent Loverude, Steven Bowers Jr. and Matthew Meinecke. Ricky Thornton Jr. also raced from outside row six, catching Kevin Ramey for the front spot just before midway and taking the checkers ahead of Justin O’Brien, hard charger Clay Hale and James Goodson in the second show. The top four finishers from each qualifier represent six different states and will advance to the inside row for the main event grid. Jesse Skalicky and Trent Loverude led in the opener before Laney took charge. He kept Loverude in check following the final restart with four laps left. Thornton, the 2016 Modified champion two-time and now two-time defending Late Model king, was able to pull ahead as the nightcap ended with nine [Read More]

Vanover, Huls score Super Nationals Stock Car qualifiers

BOONE, Iowa (Sept. 10) – The second-place finishers in Stock Car main events each of the last two years at the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s were first-place finishers in Thursday night qualifying features. 2018 runner-up Kyle Vanover topped the first qualifier at Boone Speedway, ahead of Mitch Meier, Loren Pesicka Jr. and Buck Schafroth. 2019 runner-up Abe Huls took the checkers in the nightcap, with Kelly Shryock in tow and former Super Nationals champions Jeffrey Abbey and Jeremy Christians next across the stripe. Top four finishers in each qualifier advance to the inside row for the main event grid. Meier led the first qualifier before being slowed by contact with a lapped car. Vanover drove by and took the checkers by a margin of just under two seconds. Huls was the fifth and final leader in the second event, tasked with holding Shryock at bay following a caution with three circuits left in the 25-lapper. 2010 champion Christians makes his career 13th main event start, Huls his eighth, Vanover his seventh and [Read More]

ATTENTION FRIDAY UPDATE: 4 P.M.:

ATTENTION FRIDAY UPDATE: 4 P.M.: BOONE, Iowa - We are officially postponing the Thursday nightSuper Nationals qualifying program to Saturday morning at 9 a.m. We will tentatively hot lap at 7:30 a.m. for those drivers interested in doing so. We will race the Friday program on Saturday afternoon/evening. We will move the Saturday nightChampionship program to Sunday at 9 a.m. We will run all race formats in their entirety. The Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational race will be Saturday evening. No events will be canceled and the weather should permit all racing to occur. WE WILL HONOR ALL THURSDAY ONE-DAY WRISTBANDS ON SATURDAY MORNING. After the Thursday program is complete, we will require everyone to vacate the pits and grandstands and re-enter for the next scheduled qualifying program. We will offer all THURSDAY night one-day wristbands a refund from 4-5 p.m. TODAY ONLY if you cannot attend tomorrow. The wristband MUST be on your wrist. No mail-ins and no refunds for wristbands removed before you get to the pit shack. Go to the main pit shack and we will remove the wristband and refund for that one-day wristband only (it’s [Read More]

Attention, Friday update

BOONE, Iowa – The final decision on whether race programs will be held Friday at Boone Speedway will be made at noon today. If racing must be postponed, what was originally the Thursday Modified and Stock Car qualifying program will be moved to a 9 a.m. start time on Saturday. “The track must be raceable to the expectations of our drivers, fans, Boone Speedway and IMCA,” explained IMCA President Brett Root. “That is not possible at this time. We will release any more details at noon and ask everyone to be patient until that time.”

Beckendorf, Larson, Brown named to Fast Shafts All-Star field

BOONE, Iowa – Brandon Beckendorf and Jeff Larson will complete the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational field. They’ll have the top IMCA Modified national point and 40-point win totals, respectively, going into the week of the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s. The $1,000 to win All-Star race is Friday, Sept. 11 at Boone Speedway. Both drivers have made one previous All-Star start, Beckendorf, from Danube, Minn., in 2018 and Larson, from Freeport, Ill., last year. And Kyle Brown of Madrid has been named to the All-Star field replacing Hunter Marriott, now unable to attend Super Nationals. The All-Star start will be the fifth consecutive for Brown, his best finish being fourth in the 2017 race.

Bonuses, lap leader money add $8,000-plus to Super Nationals paydays

BOONE, Iowa – More than $8,000 in bonuses and lap leader money will be paid out at the Sept. 7-12 IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s at Boone Speedway. Quick Performance gives $100 bonuses to the winners of three qualifying features for Hobby Stocks, three qualifying features for Northern SportMods and six Stock Car qualifying features. One hundred dollar bonuses from Aeromotive go to drivers winning the qualifying features for Modifieds. Lap leaders in Friday’s 30-lap Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational for Modifieds earn $25 courtesy of Elmquist Towing each time they’re scored first around the track. Leading each circuit in the 12-car, 12-lap Harris Auto Racing Race of Champions for Modifieds pays $100. From start to finish, companies anteing up C Notes are Dirt Monthly Magazine, Intensitee, Cookie’s Sauce and Seasoning, Walmart, Baymont Inn & Suites, Wheelock’s Service, Joe Busch Ag Repair, Ames Ford Lincoln, Pulse Racing Innovations, Hy-Vee, Top Level Suites and JVan Sports. The Sunoco Race Fuels Race of Champions for Stock Cars, Stephenville Starter Race of Champions for Hobby Stocks and BSB Manufacturing Race [Read More]