Newswire

Ginest, Hager, Watts win at RPM

By Mike Hughes HAYS, Kan. (May 24) – Nate Ginest, Garrett Hager and Tim Watts were first-time winners this season at RPM Speedway Saturday night. The Golden Plains Trucking IMCA Northern Sport Mod 20-lap feature got off to a rough start as Michael Copper and Brandon Belvill crashed into the frontstretch wall on the opening lap. Both drivers were okay but done for the night. Jeremy Couse led the first two laps before a caution waved for a spinning Ryan Gier. On the restart, Ginest shot to the lead and never looked back. Several cautions kept the field close and Tyler Frye stayed on the back bumper but could not make a pass and settled for the runner-up spot. Brady Bencken led the first half of the 20-lap Rebel Tank Service IMCA Hobby Stock feature before Hager took the lead at the halfway mark. Hager was able to hold off a late charge by Ron Wehling to make his first trip to the winner’s circle with Monte Honas second. Watts took the lead on lap [Read More]

Irvine collects IMCA Stock Car checkers at Independence

By Ryan Clark INDEPENDENCE, Iowa (May 24) – Brian Irvine took the lead on the sixth of 18 laps, then pulled away to a dominant win in the Saturday Showcase for IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars at Independence Motor Speedway. In the first o f four installments this season, the Saturday Showcase offers increased prize money once a month to one featured division. It was Irvine’s first win in Independence since May of 2010. Irvine, who started inside row five, raced through traffic and entered a four-car breakaway at the front of the pack with Jarod Weepie, Norman Chesmore and Justin Temeyer. He slipped past Weepie to steal the lead a couple laps before a pair of mid-race cautions. Following the final restart on lap nine, Irvine pulled away from the field to win in convincing fashion and earn the $500 payday. Weepie ran second ahead of Temeyer. Mike Burbridge held the early lead in the 20-lap Performance Bodies IMCA Modified feature. Burbridge ran the low groove of the fast, smooth oval while J.D. Auringer worked [Read More]

Stand Packer Night lives on at Salina

By Dusty Wiegert SALINA, Kan. – With the recent rainout on May 23, the popular Stand Packer Night at Salina Speedway was originally canceled. With the popular demand to still have it, the speedway is happy to announce that plans have changed and the new date for the first Stand Packer Night of 2014 will be Friday, June 27. Race fans are asked to keep their tickets as any Stand Packer Night ticket with the May 23 date on them will be good for admission on June 27. If tickets are lost before then, we will have a limited amount to give away again for the event, but they won’t be through the drivers for their prizes. The following week after Stand Packer Night, which coincidentally is our fourth annual Topless Challenge, we will be giving away some huge prizes to those who got a ticket the week before and returned for the Topless Challenge. Among them are a Traeger Grill and 42” LG flat screen TV plus many more from area merchants. So keep [Read More]

Kroll wins big at Luxemburg

By Greg Aregoni LUXEMBURG, Wis. (May 23) – Charlie Kroll cashed in during the 30-lap IMCA Sunoco Stock Car feature event at Luxemburg Speedway Friday Night. Kroll charged from his third place starting position into the lead after the first lap. Rod Snellenberger made his way to Kroll’s back bumper after the second lap and the duo played a game of cat and mouse in front of the field. Brandon Czarapata moved from seventh to third in a lap and a half as he bolted to the top of the race track. A couple cautions kept the field close with a 10-lap dash for the $550 cash. Kroll fought off both challenges from Czarapata and Snellenberger as they each took turns running second. Kroll picked up the win in front of the field. Czarapata increased his point lead over Snellenberger by beating him to the line for second. Other feature winners included Johnny Whitman in the IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modifieds, Tracy Wassenberg in the Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods, Dan Van Pay in the IMCA [Read More]

Emphasis on safety with new awards from The Joie of Seating

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – Randy LaJoie and The Joie of Seating will help take some of the sting out of race night crashes this season. Drivers in all IMCA divisions submitting photos of their crashed race car to the home office will receive $200 certificates, good toward the purchase of a seat from the Kannapolis, N.C., manufacturer. Each month, one driver will be featured in The Joie of Seating Safety Spotlight and will receive a $750 product certificate. Damage to race cars must have occurred at a sanctioned event; photos can be sent to IMCA Marketing Director Kevin Yoder. “With this new program the goal is to bring additional attention to driver safety and not necessarily glorify a wrecked race car,” Yoder emphasized. “However, by showing what can happen in a racing accident The Joie of Seating wants to educate all IMCA racers about the value of containment seats and the added protection that is necessary and available.” “We know accidents are going to happen and by showing the reality of some of those incidents, we [Read More]

Victory Chassis drivers with top win totals in four IMCA divisions earn post-season awards

BOONE, Iowa – Drivers winning IMCA sanctioned features in a Victory Chassis have new goals to run for this season courtesy of the Boone manufacturer. Modified and Northern SportMod drivers racking up the most feature wins in a Victory ride through the 2014 calendar year both receive a new frame. The top Stock Car and Hobby Stock winners both receive a roll cage and floor pan. The Victory Chassis Challenge is open only to licensed drivers in those divisions. “We are excited to provide racers with a fun and unique challenge,” said Victory Chassis Manager Randy Havlik, the 2009 Super Nationals and 2011 North Central Region champion. “We put our heart and soul into every race car we build and there’s nothing more exciting than seeing a Victory Chassis cross the finish line first.” “We hope this challenge adds an extra incentive for racers to drive their hardest day in and day out,” he added. “There’s a lot on the line.” Drivers who switch from a different brand into a Victory Chassis must do so [Read More]

Heinz is May winner for fendered division voting

GREEN BAY, Wis. – No stranger to victory lane, John Heinz has earned another win, this time as voted on by the fans. The IMCA Sunoco Stock Car driver from Green Bay earned the most votes in the Sybesma Graphics Facebook Fan Favorite Contest for fendered divisions for the month of May. He’ll receive a mini hood from Sybesma. The four-time track champion and defending Allstar Performance Wisconsin State titlist is planning another aggressive schedule in 2014 as he expects to compete weekly at Oshkosh Speedzone on Fridays, 141 Speedway in Francis Creek on Saturdays and Seymour Speedway on Sundays. Heinz hopes his busy weekends this season will lead to a national title. “It’s our second year of chasing national points,” said Heinz. “We chased points for the first time last season and ended up fifth.” Simply changing his approach to weekly racing is what Heinz credits as his recent desire to chase national points. “We just wanted to try it once and see what happened,” he stated. “We ran against defending national champion Brandon [Read More]

Top non-fendered honors go to national point leader

By Ryan Clark PHOENIX, Ariz. – One IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified driver is not only turning heads on the track, but off the track as well. Ryan Roath, the national point leader in the division through mid-May, was also the top vote-getter in the month’s Sybesma Graphics IMCA Facebook Fan Favorite contest. Roath is currently at the top of the standings at Prescott Valley Raceway, sits third at Canyon Speedway Park in Peoria and finished fourth in the Winter Challenge Series. “That’s where we want to be,” stated the Phoenix driver, recipient of a mini-mod door courtesy of Sybesma. “We’re trying to win a track championship this season and the Arizona State championship as well.” While Roath has won a track title in a local stock car division, he is seeking his first in a Modified. “We’ve never really run strong since we won Western Region Rookie of the Year in 2006,” he admitted. “We hope to change that this year.” Being from the West Coast, Roath realizes he’s already put much of his [Read More]

Hogan drives home with top Modified Madness cash

By Mike McGuire DAVENPORT, Iowa (May 23) – A very long green flag run ended with Scott Hogan in victory lane Friday night at Davenport Speedway. Hogan caught race-long leader Darin Duffy with three circuits left in the 50-lapper and held on to the checkers in the $2,000 to win IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified Madness feature. The green light stayed on for the last 34 laps and the main event had the look of its first repeat winner in Duffy. He started on the pole and led the first 47 laps before the third-starting Hogan charged by coming to the flagstand. “Fifty laps is a long time and there were just two yellows. It got really dicey there for a while,” admitted Hogan, already on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. “(Doug) Crampton was right there, too, but we got through the lapped traffic OK and then got spread out again.” Duffy was higher up on the oval when Hogan used the middle line to complete the pass for the lead. He’d go on [Read More]

15 first-time IMCA rookie feature winners receive Speedway Motors award packages

LINCOLN, Neb. – Fifteen IMCA drivers have already won career-first feature events in their respective divisions and have received $100 gift cards and prize packages from Speedway Motors. By division, those drivers include: IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified – Clay Sellard at Dodge City Raceway Park on April 19; and Chris Zogg at Davenport Speedway on May 9. IMCA Late Model – John Emerson at Independence Motor Speedway on May 10. IMCA Eagle Motorsports RaceSaver Sprint Car – Marcus Thomas at Mountain Creek Speedway on April 11; George White at Kennedale Speedway Park on April 12; and Kyle Jones at Kennedale Speedway Park on April 26. IMCA Sunoco Stock Car – Colin Deming at Cardinal Speedway on March 29; Colby Deming at Lubbock Speedway on May 2; and Devin Smith at Buena Vista Raceway on May 7. IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock – J.R. Patman at Lubbock Speedway on April 11; TeJay Mielke at US 30 Speedway on May 8; and Andrew Sebastian at Devil’s Lake Speedway on May 9. Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod – Robert [Read More]