BROWN, ABELSON, TADLOCK & BOSTON VICTORIOUS AT EAGLE
eagleraceway.com
(05/24/09)
The first Family Appreciation Night of the season was held Saturday at Americas Home Track Eagle Raceway. The very large crowd in attendance was treated to not only some of the best racing so far this year but got the chance to see the US Air Force Monster Truck, have the colors presented by the Air Force Color Guard and were also treated to the comedic stylings of Porkchop the Clown.
Heat races for all classes were run first, with lap times closely approaching track records for a second straight week. Then the B Features were held to determine the final line-ups for the Main Events.
The first A Main featured the Valentinos IMCA Hobby Stocks. As the field came to the flag stand the first time Jeff Reeds #29 had the lead followed by the 42 of Downtown Robby Brown, Joe Ryan in the 32 and the 9R of Charlie Bartels. The first yellow came out on lap 2 when Keith Dragoo spun his #77D in turn 2. On the restart lap Dan Jacksons #98 lost a tire in turns 3 & 4 to call a restart again. On the lap after the green flew again RJ Macku brought his 1R up to the 4th spot. There was another stoppage the following circuit when the 33 of Eric Hanson came to a stop in 3 & 4. On the restart lap Macku passed Ryan with the 6R of Roy Armstrong following him. With 4 down Macku made a huge move, taking second and then the lead. Lap 5 saw Macku get loose, letting Armstrong take the position. Kevin Anderson was also on the move in his 22K, moving up to 2nd on lap 6 behind Brown who had also advanced. That put Armstrong in third as Macku pulled into the pits with a flat right rear tire. The running order at that time was Brown, Anderson, Armstrong and the 22 of Nick Beckman. With 9 left Anderson grabbed the lead with Beckman grabbing third. It took just 1 lap for Brown to regain the lead. With 4 to go the yellow was displayed again for debris on the track. Under the caution Anderson was penalized for not holding his line. The top 4 positions remained unchanged to the finish with Brown taking home the checkers, Beckman in 2nd, Anderson third and Armstrong finishing fourth.
I had fun!! A good starting spot made it fun racing tonight Brown said. I need to thank everyone who helps me out and keeps me coming back every week he continued. This was my first win at Eagle since 2006, and Im so happy I really dont know what to say. I do wish that my Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Larry could have been here to see it Brown concluded. Robbys sponsors include Barton Racing, RDJ, DJs Lawn Care and his mother and father.
The Monster Energy Drink IMCA Modifieds were next on the program. The first lap saw the 81 of Mike Densberger in first with Dave Trauernichts 45 in second and the 94 of Dan Nelson in third. Trauernicht took only 2 laps to make the first of many, many important passes in the feature as Nelson grabbed second and Dylan Smith advanced to third in his #95. Nelson made the next lead change happen 2 laps later when he got around Trauernicht. Shortly thereafter Densberger spun out on the front stretch. As the green flag flew Trauernicht and Smith battled back and forth, swapping the top 2 positions with Trauernicht holding the advantage as the lap finished. The next circuit saw Sean Burkland flip in turns 3 & 4 causing another caution. With 12 to go Nelson again took second, but Scott Bivens who won the feature last week in his #10 stopped in turn 4; putting Nelson back in third. He moved back around for second on the restart however. Chris Abelson had come all the way up to fourth on that same circuit in the #1XA. Nelson retook the lead with 9 laps left, but was again put back as Lacey Tuttles Z00 car spun in turn 2. Trauernicht, Nelson, Smith and Abelson were the top 4 until Bob Zoubek moved his 5S around both Abelson and Smith with 7 left. Trauernicht regained third the next time around, but was again passed by Zoubek. The 16C of Reese Coffee grabbed fourth with 2 laps left, and Abelson made a spectacular pass on the back stretch of the final lap to take home the win. The top 4 were Abelson, Smith, Zoubek and Coffee.
When asked why he made the trek to Eagle Raceway Abelson stated We got rained out at Park Jefferson, so we needed somewhere to race. I said I wonder whats going on at Eagle, so we found out you were racing and took off. Reese Coffee, Jay Noteboom and I made a quick 2 hour drive down here from Sioux City and got here just before racing started . Eagle is a beautiful facility, and you gave us a good track to run on. Ive never raced here before, but you showed me a real track. And the fans you have in the stands are terrific. At Park Jefferson we only get about 16 modifieds, and nowhere near this crowd. Fans want to be entertained, and you sure do that here he finished. Abelsons sponsors include Maaske Motorsports and Dirt Destroyers.
David Tadlocks #4 was first back to the flag stand as the Auto Trans Matic IMCA Sport Compacts started their A. He had the 66 of Trevor Noonan, Nic Hitzs 11 and the 44 of Jack Prall III close on his rear bumper. Jack Prall IV took fourth from Prall III on lap 3 but was repassed to settle into fifth. On the next lap Hitz got around Noonan, only to give the position back the same lap. That made the running order Tadlock, Trevor Noonan, Hitz and Prall III. The top 4 didnt change until with 3 to go Hitz ran into the turn 4 wall and finished the night by being taken off by the wrecker. That moved Prall III into third with Jeremy Noonans 33 in fourth. On the restart Prall IV ran into Prall IIIs left rear when the 45 got loose, causing Prall IIIs right rear to leave the racecar. Both the 44 and 45 were out of the race, as was John Sedlacheks 93 which came to a stop at the top of turn 4. Jeremy Noonan grabbed second on the restart lap, only to lose the position to Amanda Rhileys 51, but he took the spot back for good before they hit the flag stand again. Tadlock held on for the win as Jeremy Noonan, Rhiley and Trevor Noonan rounded out the top 4.
Tadlock said We had a blast tonight!! I want to say a thank you to everyone who helps us out on the, including my family. And a special thanks to those people in the service; we need to remember them all year long, but especially on Memorial Day. The biggest thanks goes out to our only sponsor, Velocity Indoor Karting because without them, I wouldnt be here racing .
The final contest of the evening saw the Budweiser 360 Sprints take to Eagles high-banked 1/3 mile surface. Rookie driver Ian Eastmans 11E was in the lead at the end of lap #1 with the 9J of Mark Schmidt second and Gage Dorrs 17 in third. The second lap saw Bobby Becker spin his 8B in turn 4. On the restart Ryan Kitchens 21 got past Dorr for third with Adam Gullion bringing the 96KX car up to fourth. Unfortunately Gullions engine shut off the next time around shortly after getting around Kitchen, sending Gullion to the pits. As the green flew again Kitchen was in third followed by Jason Danleys 82. Danley grabbed third the next go-around, but the driver on the move was 2-time defending track champion Mike Boston in the 51 as he leapfrogged both Kitchen and Danley for 2nd on the next lap. Also making a huge charge from his 8th row starting position was Jeff Griffis in the 3. He grabbed the fourth spot with 17 to go, and moved into third with 10 laps in the books with Danley taking fourth as Boston snagged the lead. 2 laps later Stu Snyder rolled the 71S sprinter in turns 3 and 4, having been involved with the 28 of Ken Klabunde and John Klabundes 77 after Schmidts car got very loose. At that time Boston held the point with Eastman, Griffis and Dorr behind him. Griffis got around Eastman the next time around, but Danley made contact with the wall in turn 1, causing another restart. As the field came to complete the next lap Griffis roared around Eastman on the high side. Eastman got extremely loose in the slick portion of turn four. As he attempted to regain control of his racer he made contact with Dorr and a melee ensued. John Klabundes 77, Dorr, the 23R of Tadd Holliman, Tige Jensens 71, Kitchen, the X29 of Roger Sluka and Becker all tried to evade a crash but ended up stopping either on the track or in the infield. The field reformed with Boston in first, Griffis in second, Eric Lutzs 5L in third and the 23 of Terry Holliman in fourth. Josh Riggins got past Holliman for fourth position with 12 down. The top 4 remained unchanged until Ryan Anderson moved around Riggins for fourth with just 3 laps left. At the finish it was Boston, Griffis, Lutz and Anderson.
Weve been chasing a problem for the last 7 races Boston stated. We tried changing almost everything; the engine, fuel pumps, fuel lines, magnetos&everything. But, thanks to Rick and Michelle Bauer, my car owners and my pit crew I think we may have found the problem he said. Mike finished the interview by saying I need to send a holler out to Jimmy and Laverne, our newest sponsors. They just love racing and wanted to be a part of a team. Bostons other sponsors include Moock Trucking, Jay Eckley Racing Engines and Rains Hardwood Floors.
The next event at Eagle Raceway is the Bootleggers Run Race of Champions, presented by Jack Daniels on the 25th. NASCAR drivers Casey Mears, Dave Blaney & Jimmy Spencer will join NASCAR and Indy driver Roger Mears in two 8-lap challenge races with NASCAR star Rusty Wallace acting as commentator. The IMCA Modifieds will be battling for points and will be joined on the card by the GOTRA series. Also in attendance will be local legend Bill Wrich, driver of vintage car #16. Front and pit gates open at 1 P.M. Full details can be found by clicking on this link to Eagle Raceways website: http://www.eagleraceway.com/?page_id=1288
Then, on the 30th Salute to Jerry Night, Show us your tattoo will be sponsored by Sailor Jerrys Spiced Rum. On the card are the Valentinos IMCA Hobby Stocks, Monster Energy Drink IMCA Modifieds, Auto Trans Matic IMCA Sport Compacts and featuring the Budweiser 360 Sprint Cars.
