News Archives

Funeral services are Thursday for Greg Hunter

INDEPENDENCE, Iowa – Funeral services for long-time IMCA Late Model driver Greg Hunter are at 11 a.m. Thursday, July 14 at the White Funeral Home in Independence. Hunter, 64, died Saturday, July 9 at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. The 1988 and 1992 track champion at hometown Independence Motor Speedway, he was a 20-time feature winner at Indee and still ranks in the top 10 in career wins for the division there. He and his father Leonard Hunter Sr. were both inducted into the Independence Motor Speedway Hall of Fame in 2018. Hunter was born on June 21, 1958, in Independence, the son of Leonard Romaine and Margaret Ellen (Coons) Hunter Sr. He graduated from high school in Independence with the Class of 1976. He and the former Jenny Lynn Rechkemmer were married on May 30, 1998 in Winthrop. They later divorced. He worked as an assemblyman for John Deere in Waterloo for many years. He was a member of the U.A.W. Local #838. Survivors are two daughters, Tonya Hunter of Cumberland, Md., and Madelyn Hunter of Independence; two [Read More]

Berry three-peats, Speckman tops Stocks in IMCA Dakota Classic Tour at Williston Basin

By Becca Pelkey WILLISTON, N.D. (July 11, 2022) – Tom Berry Jr. went back-to-back-to-back and Matt Speckman went back to the winner’s circle for the first time since 2019 when the Corral Sales IMCA Dakota Classic Tour traveled to Williston Basin Speedway on Monday night. Berry raced to a third $2,000 Friesen Performance IMCA Modified feature win in as many tour starts. Speckman’s $1,000 IMCA Sunoco Stock Car checkers were his career 89th in the division and earned him B & B Racing Chassis All-Star Invitational qualifying eligibility as well. Entries again topped 90 with 13 states and Canada represented in the Modified main event. Veterans Ed Turnbull and Hank Berry started on the front row in the Modified feature. Turnbull led from the initial green flag as Lucas Lambreries, Ricky Alvarado and Berry tussled three-wide close behind him. Using the high line around the speedway, Berry grabbed the second position and quickly caught Turnbull. He took over the top spot on lap nine and pulled away from the field, dominating from that point to win [Read More]

IMCA Modifieds chase $2,000 checks on July 15-17 Gunslinger Tour

RAPID CITY, S.D. (July 12, 2022) – Friesen Performance IMCA Modified drivers take aim at $2,000 top prizes each night of the July 15-17 Gunslinger Tour. Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational qualifying eligibility is also at stake Friday, July 15 at Black Hills Speedway in Rapid City, S.D.; Saturday, July 16 at Gillette, Wy., Thunder Speedway; and Sunday, July 17 at Casper, Wy., Speedway. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Shaw Race Cars Western Region, KMJ Performance State and track points will be awarded each night and the top driver in overall Gunslinger points receives a championship revolver. IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks are also on the card at Black Hills and Gillette. Information about race programs each night is available on Facebook or the track websites.

Webb notches win no. 523 with East Moline checkers

By Rob Hinckley EAST MOLINE, Ill. (July 10, 2022) – The infectious smile in the winners’ circle told another story as Gary Webb climbed from his mount Sunday evening at East Moline Speedway. The 73-year old hall of famer moved quickly from his P6 start to the front of the IMCA Sunoco Late Model pack. He cruised to the 25-lap win in front of a very appreciative crowd. “This never gets old, but I’m getting old,” Webb said and laughed. “This was win 523 and they’re coming a lot more slowly nowadays, but this was a good run.” The 17-time track champion was really never challenged even after an early caution. His Kryptonite Chassis showed great acceleration off the turns as he extended the advantage. “We had great forward bite in that feature,” Webb said. “(Track Promoter Jeff Peterson) had the track nicely done. We had the engine rebuilt a couple weeks ago so we had great power and I thank the fans here for watching.” The 523 wins have come at 65 different tracks, [Read More]

Billy Maynard Memorial checkers are 4th of NY-Penn Series season for Eddie Sites

By Evan Canfield MONROETON, Pa. (July 8, 2022) – The up and down season for Eddie Sites took another high as the Towanda driver scored his fourth victory of the season in dominating fashion as the Close Racing Supply NY-Penn IMCA Modified Series presented by Precision Hydraulic & Oil made its return to The Hill Speedway for the Billy Maynard Memorial. Sites’ latest Friesen Performance IMCA Modified victory was good for $1,069. Ray McClure and Gary Lamphere completed the top three at Monroeton. Two-time tour winner Rodney Morgan started the 25-lap feature on the front row with series rookie Jason Sullivan alongside. Morgan jumped out to the initial lead with Brad Sites looking to challenge before his lap five spin brought out the first of what became back-to-back cautions. Seventh starting Eddie Sites then worked his way around the outside of Morgan to take the top spot away. A series of yellows followed but the final five laps ran out with Sites, already Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational qualifying eligible, taking the dominant victory. The next [Read More]

Jaennette cashes in big with Tanner Pelster Memorial checkers

By Anthony Ainslie ALBION, Neb. (July 10, 2022) – Michael Jaennette hit all his marks following a late restart and cashed in big in the headline event at Sunday night’s Tanner Pelster Memorial. Jaennette led the distance of the 30-lap IMCA Sunoco Stock Car feature at Boone County Raceway, earning $5,211 and an automatic starting berth in the B & B Racing Chassis All-Star Invitational. Fifty-seven Stock Cars representing five states vied at the second annual event. “This was career biggest payday, by far, in a Stock Car,” said Jaennette, running more than adrenaline than sleep after finishing second Saturday night at Boone Speedway and getting up early to get the car ready and on the road to Albion. “Our goal for this season was to make Paul Burger’s All-Star race and now we’ve done that.” “We started sixth and finished second in our heat,” added Jaennette, fourth in the inaugural memorial last year. “We were scrambling right before we went back out for the feature, scratching our heads looking for more speed. We changed [Read More]

Berry, Klein repeat IMCA Dakota Classic Tour wins at Nodak

By Becca Pelkey MINOT, N.D. (July 10, 2022) – Same story, different track. Tom Berry Jr. and Randy Klein were Sunday night Corral Sales IMCA Dakota Classic Tour winners at Nodak Speedway, duplicating their checkered flag runs from Saturday’s opener at Jamestown. Berry, the 2019 tour and Minot track champion, collected his second $2,000 Friesen Performance IMCA Modified paycheck in as many nights while Klein scored another $1,000 IMCA Sunoco Stock Car victory in his first Nodak visit. Fifty-nine Modifieds and 34 Stock Cars saw tour action at The Playground of Power. “Minot has been good to me in the past,” Berry said. “A lot of people can get through (turns) one and two really well. Three and four are real hair pinny. I felt really comfortable there and was able to get grip off four and get super good runs.” Shawn Strand led the Modified field to the green flag and led early before Kollin Hibdon slipped by on lap four, bringing the fifth starting Berry with him. Berry stayed on Hibdon’s rear bumper and [Read More]

VanWyk victorious in Urbana 5 Memorial at Benton County Speedway

VINTON, Iowa (July 10, 2022) – Dylan VanWyk won the battle in lapped traffic and then survived a late restart to top the Urbana 5 Memorial Sunday night at Benton County Speedway. The eighth annual event, held to honor the memory of five area youth who lost their lives in a traffic accident in 2015, boasted increased prize money in all divisions and was headlined by the $2,300-to-win Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMods. Braden Richards held the early lead in the SportMod 20-lapper while Logan Anderson gave chase on the top side of the fast quarter-mile. From his third row start, Anderson pressured the race leader and assumed command prior to the midway point. As Anderson built a one second advantage, VanWyk was racing the low side from the sixth row. He worked his way into second just past midway, then started reeling in Anderson. Lapped traffic assisted VanWyk as he closed in on Anderson. He reeled in the leader as they battled side-by-side behind lapped traffic that ran three-wide in front of them. VanWyk [Read More]

Devin Smith, Fett, Toppenberg win first of season at Boone

By Joyce Eisele BOONE, Iowa (July 9, 2022) – Nick Roberts returned to victory lane when he snagged the Friesen Performance IMCA Modified win Saturday evening at Boone Speedway. Devin Smith got his first local win of the season in the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars and Alec Fett won the Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMod main event. Mike Smith repeated in the IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks and Jason Toppenberg got a first win in the IMCA STARS Mod Lite division. The STARS Mod Lites ran their 15-lap feature flag to flag. Early leader was Joel Huggins before Toppenberg snatched the top spot away on lap three. The two swapped the lead back and forth for several laps until Toppenberg was able to finally establish the top spot for good and then went home to take the flying checkers and the win. Huggins held down the runner-up spot and following a distance behind in third was Randy Bryan. Joe Glick and Jeff Stensland rounded out the top five. Toppenberg just returned to racing this season after several years hiatus. Fett started [Read More]

It’s another special night at Antioch as Hogge races to 100th IMCA Modified win

ANTIOCH, Calif. (July 9, 2022) – Antioch Speedway had a special place in Bobby Hogge IV’s heart as the site of his first-ever Modified feature win. On Saturday night, it became the site of his Friesen Performance IMCA Modified career 100th victory. The Salinas speedster took the inside line from fifth starting to the front early in the 30-lap Hetrick Memorial main event, outrunning Troy Foulger to the $1,500 checkers. “It was a good night. It came at a special event with a good field of cars and at the track where I got my first Modified win, back when they ran NASCAR, in 1994,” said Hogge, the all-time wins leader at Antioch. “That first win also came at a big event and I got to race against my dad that night.” “We have a lot of time in at Antioch,” he added, “so it’s special to get my 100th IMCA win there.” The Saturday night victory was the sixth of the season for Hogge, who’d been runner-up to Foulger at the previous weekend’s $7,300 to win [Read More]