2004bob
These are the 2004
archives from BoB and NARA
2003 archives
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note....there are several stories from
the past weekend....please scroll down
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Eckert Takes Home The DTWC Title With a Flag to Flag Dominating Effort
Jeffrey A. Bayless
Bardstown, KY (Oct 15 & 16) Rick Eckert of York, Pennsylvania had come close to bagging the prestigious Dirt Track World Championship a couple of times in the past, but had never been able to seal the deal. That was until the 24th running of the event had been completed and he took home the title of one of the dirt track racing’s crown jewel events with a dominating flag to flag win in his Raye Vest owned Raye Vest Excavating, J & J Steel, Hoosier Tire, AFCO Shocks sponsored Cornett Race Engines powered #24 Rocket Chassis entry.
The first night of the 2 day affair at Bluegrass Speedway began with 93 late models taking to the ˝ mile clay oval for time trials. Dale McDowell blistered the track with a lap of 15.846 to take fast time followed by Timmy Yeager with a lap of 16.211, Chub Frank with his lap of 16.217, Dan Schlieper at 16.234, and Wendell Wallace at 16.247.
The field was divided into 8 separate heat races that would race for 15 laps each with the top 2 finishers advancing to the 100 lap main event and the rest of the competitors being relegated to one of three 20 lap consolation races that would kick off the 2nd day of festivities of the WDTC. Scott Bloomquist shot to the front of the first heat from the outside of the front row and never looked back as he went on to a dominating win in the heat race. Pole sitter Jimmy Owens battled off Brad Hall for the second spot early in the heat and went on to a comfortable runner up slot with Dale McDowell grabbing the third spot from Hall before the races conclusion. Hall held on to 4th with Jackie Boggs grabbing the 5th spot.
In the second heat Mike Balzano dragged raced fellow front row starter Chris Madden down the back stretch to grab the early lead. Second row starters Brandon Kinzer and Timmy Yeager soon joined Madden in a three way duel for the runner up slot with Yeager dropping into the slot followed by Kinzer then Madden. At the half way point, Yeager and Kinzer had reached the bumper of Balzano and Kinzer dropped to the hub of the track and worked his way around both to grab the point and went onto victory. Balzano held onto the runner up spot ahead of a determined Yeager with Madden and Joey Daniel wrapping up the top 5.
The third heat saw the first cautions of the event, three in fact before the race even started forcing the track to use it’s 3 strikes and it’s a single file start policy. Bart Hartman made quick work of front starting Mark Banal to take the early lead but he was unable to hold off Chub Frank who quickly worked his way to the front and went onto a convincing win. Hartman held onto 2nd with Tim McCreadie coming home 3rd followed by Jesse James Lay and Johnny Wheeler.
The fourth heat began with pole sitting Josh Williams spinning into the path of another car ending his bid to make the DTWC on a hook and moving Brad Neat to the pole of the 4th heat. Neat converted the pole into a victory in the 4th heat with John Blankenship coming home second ahead of a race long battle between Brian Ruhlman and Dan Schlieper with Ruhlman holding the edge at the stripe. Steve Landrum came home 5th.
The 5th heat race, the best of the evening, began with John Gill grabbing the point ahead of Steve Francis and Shannon Babb. Gill pulled away to a straight away lead as Francis and Babb put on a show for the runner up slot with Babb running the diamond shaped laps that had served him well in the past at this ˝ mile oval. Francis was able to close the door on Babb several times before the Illinois based hot shoe got by and set sail for Gill and the lead. Babb reached Gill in the waning laps and the duo raced side by side for 2 laps before Babb was able to wrestle the lead away with 2 laps remaining and went onto victory with Gill coming home second. Francis had his hands full with Wendell Wallace as the race concluded but was able to fend of the challenges to hold the third spot with Jeff Smith coming home 5th.
The 6th heat saw Billy Moyer grab the early lead and pull away from the field as Rick Corbin and Aaron Hatton battled for the runner up slot. Hatton eventually got by as Corbin was joined by Whitney McQueary and Tim Tungate. As this trio battled some contact was made sending Corbin into a spin collecting up McQueary in a turn three incident. Corbin was able to continue, albeit at the rear, while McQueary was finished for the evening. Moyer came home comfortably ahead of Hatton with Tungate holding off Jeff Watson for third. Raymond Nichols grabbed the 5th spot.
The 7th heat was another hotly contested race with Darrell Lanigan jumping to the early lead followed closely by Mike Jewell. Jewell was putting plenty of pressure on the leader and slipped by in turns one and two on the 4th circuit only to have Lanigan pull a slide job and reclaim the lead in 3 and 4. While the lead duo danced for the point there was a three partner tango going on for third with Jeff Smith, Rick Eckert, and Josh Richards all going for the spot. A lap 8 spin by Tim Senic changed the whole complexion of the race however as this put Eckert on the tail of the lead pair and the race was on. Jewell resumed trying to wrestle the lead from Lanigan but left the door open for Eckert who went to the hub and grabbed the runner up spot and then the lead on lap 12. At the checkers it was Eckert, Lanigan, Jewell, Richards, and Smith.
The 8th and final heat saw RJ Conley wrestle the lead from pole sitter Victor Lee down the back stretch only to have Mike Marlar blow by on the 4th lap and set sail for the checkers. Clint Smith would take the second spot from Conley with Rick Aukland and Bryan Barber finishing out the top 5.
The first of 3 concis would see Brian Ruhlman and Dale McDowell battle back and forth for the win and only transfer spot for much of the race with Ruhlman holding the spot when the checkers flew. Wendell Wallace made a late charge to grab 3rd with Mike Jewell and Chris Madden rounding out the top 5.
Steve Francis grabbed the point in the second conci and lead flag to flag coming home ahead of Jeff Smith, Jackie Boggs, Anthony Rushings, and Jimmy Wheeler in a race that saw a 7 car pile-up early in the festivities.
The third and final conci was led by Jesse James Lay at the start as Tim Tungate and Brad Hall battled for second. Tungate would begin sliding back before making contact with Bryan Barber sending the duo spinning in turns 3 and 4 brining out the caution on the 8th lap. Hall used the restart to grab the lead from Lay bringing Dan Schlieper with him and at the stripe it was Hall followed by Schlieper, Lay, Josh Richards, and 14th starting Chris Carlson.
The start of the 100 lap main event saw Aaron Hatton and Clint Smith tangle in one collecting Freddie Smith and ending Hatton’s quest for the WDTC title. The second attempt at starting the race saw pole sitting Mike Marlar spin in one collecting Brandon Kinzer and Darrell Lanigan. The third time is the charm as Rick Eckert led the field out of 2 followed by Marlar, Shannon Babb, Billy Moyer, and Chub Frank.. Eckert quickly separated from the pack as Babb worked on getting by Marlar with Marlar slowing with a flat left rear on the 5th lap bringing out the races 1st caution. On the restart Frank slid past Moyer for 3rd as Eckert once again set a blistering pace pulling away from the field. The track began locking down making passing at a premium as Eckert and Babb were clearly the class of the field with Eckert pulling out to a straight away lead followed by Babb who would pull away from the Frank, Moyer battle for 3rd . Once the leaders would reach traffic Babb would close in on the leader but would never get a shot at trying to wrestle the lead from Eckert as once the race passed the ˝ way point attrition would work to bring out enough cautions for stalled machines to keep the track clear in front of Eckert who was untouchable with a clean track in front of him. Babb would do his best to get position on the restarts, but Eckert would have none of it as he would, without fail, reestablish the lead and pull away from the field. When the checkers flew for Eckert he was $60,000 richer and was able to add the DTWC to his all ready impressive resume. Babb came home a solid runner-up followed by Frank, and Moyer who were within a car length of each other for most of the 100 laps of the feature event. Brad Neat, Scott Bloomquist, 25th starting Wendell Wallace, 22nd starting Dan Schlieper, John Blankenship, and Brad Hall rounded out the top 10.
In victory lane an excited Eckert exclaimed “I’ve led this thing a couple of times and was beginning to hate this race. I was beginning to have deja vu when I saw Jimmy (Owens, who had slowed on the 99th circuit with a flat tire, coasting to a stop at the top of turn 4 as the field took the checkers) with a flat. I was thinking man, Jimmy stay up there. Wow!” He then continued “I qualified bad, I mean real bad. People were asking me if I was sandbagging. Man I wish I was. I about junked this car after hot laps.” He concluded with a smile which every one could easily interpret as an “I’m glad I didn’t do that” as his car was definitely the class of the field come feature time.
RESULTS
NARA LATE MODELS
93 cars
Fast Time: 17M Dale McDowell 15.846
Heat 1 (top 2 transfer)
Heat 2
Heat 3
Heat 4
Heat 5
Heat 6
Heat 7
Heat 8
Conci 1 (winner advances)
Conci 2
Conci 3
Provisional Starting Spots
Track: 77 Joey Daniel
NARA: 71C RJ Conley, 00 Freddie Smith
WoO: 9 Dan Schlieper, 39 Tim McCreadie
Past Champions: 88 Wendell Wallace
Fastest Qualifier Not in the Race: 17M Dale McDowell
World Dirt Track Championship 100 laps $60,000 to win
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Sept 30, 2004
For Immediate Release:
James Essex – NARA PR
O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Takes on "The Taz" in 2004 Season Finale
LEXINGTON, KY--The third season of the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series presented by Arizona Sport Shirts will wrap its 2004 campaign this Saturday Night, October 2 at the Tazewell Speedway in Tazewell, TN.
Citizen Bank of Tazewell will present the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series for the first time ever at the 1/3 mile high banked clay oval with a top prize of $5000 to win for the Lucas Oil A-Main. There will be a complete show for the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series with Racing Optics Time Trials, Crown Spray Power Heat Races and O'Reilly Auto Parts B-Mains preceding the 75 lap Lucas Oil A-Main.
This race was originally scheduled for July 31, but was rained out. The 22nd and final point’s race of the year for the O'Reilly Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series will conclude a successful season for the series which thus far boasts of 15 different Lucas Oil A-Main event winners in the 21 events contested this year.
Aaron Hatton of Mt. Sterling, KY heads into the season finale for the series at Tazewell looking to become the third different champion of the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series in its first three years. If Hatton seals the deal he will join previous O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series Champions, Eddie Carrier, Jr. and Mike Marlar as champions of the series that will conduct its 67th race ever on Saturday Night.
Pit gates at Tazewell will open at 3 pm on Saturday with grandstand gates opening at 5 pm. Tazewell Speedway is located just 15 minutes from the Kentucky/Tennessee border, 1.8 miles off of U.S. Highway 25E. For more information on directions and other Tazewell Speedway information please log on to their website at www.tazspeedway.com or call (423) 626-2222.
Citizen Bank of Tazewell-Lucas Oil 75
Tazewell Speedway
Tazewell, Tennessee
Saturday Night, October 2, 2004
O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series Payoff
1. $5000.00
2. 3000.00
3. 2000.00
4. 1500.00
5. 1000.00
6. 800.00
7. 750.00
8. 700.00
9. 650.00
10. 600.00
11. 550.00
12. 500.00
13. 450.00
14. 450.00
15. 400.00
16. 400.00
17. 350.00
18. 350.00
19. 300.00
20. 300.00
21. 300.00
22. 300.00
Series Tire Rules:
Hoosier LM20, D20, D21, LM40, D55
American Racer SD44, MD56
Goodyear X300, X400
For more information please call the NARA office at (859) 271-4501 or go to www.naradirtcar.com and click on the Battle of the Bluegrass icon.
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Sept 30, 2004
For Immediate Release:
James Essex – NARA PR
NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series Wraps Up Season with “Battle at the Bottom VI”
LEXINGTON, KY--The NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series concludes its inaugural season with the “Battle at the Bottom VI” this Saturday Night, October 2 at the Soggy Bottom Speedway in Morgantown, KY.
The Mack and Lesa Gabbard promoted facility will host a complete show for the NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Open Wheel Modified Series with Racing Optics Time Trials, Crown Spray Power Heat Races, O'Reilly Auto Parts B-Mains and the 40 Lap Lucas Oil A-Main paying $2500 to win and $200 to start.
The first season of the NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Modifieds will crown a champion at Soggy Bottom with Leonard Pierce of Columbia, KY leading the series points heading into the season finale at Soggy Bottom this weekend. Pierce holds a 75 point advantage over two drivers who are currently tied for second place in points. Kelly Warren of Columbia, KY and Jimmy Payne of Glasgow, KY are the two drivers tied for second in points with one race remaining. Brandon Green of Walton, KY and Ricky Arms of Moss, TN are the other drivers in the top five of the points heading to Soggy Bottom.
Russell Childress, Anthony Reams, Chris Riehle, Hank Bradley and Jerry Rutherford will try to lock down a spot in the top ten after this weekend as they currently stand sixth through tenth heading into this weekend.
Soggy Bottom Speedway is located on State Road 70, two and a half miles west of the Natcher Parkway at exit 27. For more information visit www.soggybottom.net or call (270) 526-9356 or (270) 999-1578.
Gates will open at 2 p.m. (Central Time) with racing at 7 p.m. For more information on NARA please call the office at (859) 271-4501 or visit the series website at www.naradirtcar.com and click on the Battle of the Bluegrass Modified icon.
NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Modifieds
“Battle at the Bottom VI”
Saturday Night, October 2, 2004
Soggy Bottom Speedway
Morgantown, KY
Lucas Oil A-Main Payoff
1. $2500.00
2. 1000.00
3. 825.00
4. 725.00
5. 575.00
6. 525.00
7. 475.00
8. 425.00
9. 400.00
10. 375.00
11. 325.00
12. 300.00
13. 275.00
14. 250.00
15. 225.00
16. 200.00
17. 200.00
18. 200.00
19. 200.00
20. 200.00
21. 200.00
22. 200.00
23. 200.00
24. 200.00
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Sept 25, 2004
For Immediate Release
Michael Despain
Brad Neat Nails 6th
Annual Bluegrass 50 at Bluegrass Speedway
Bardstown, KY-September 25- Brad Neat of Dunnville, KY scored the biggest win
of his career by capturing the 6th Annual Bluegrass 50 worth $5,000 sanctioned
by the O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series presented by
Arizona Sport Shirts. It was Neat's first win with the O'Reilly NARA Battle
of the Bluegrass DirtCar Series and made him the 15th different winner in 21
BOB events in the 2004 season.
The 50 lap Lucas Oil A-Main 6th Annual Bluegrass 50 would see Brad Neat take
the initial lead, with Scott James, Steve Barnett, and Mike Marlar going three
wide for second. The caution would show quickly as Whitney McQueary would
spin in mount in turn two on lap 2. The restart would have Neat still at the
point, with Mike Marlar taking second from Scott James on lap 3, as Dustin
Neat taking fourth from Barnett. Marlar would close in Brad Neat and the pair
would race door to door for the lead, with Marlar grabbing the top spot on lap
10. Bryan Barber would ease his way into the top five at this point and would
slip by Barnett for fourth on lap 15, after Barnett had passed Dustin Neat
back for fourth two circuits earlier. Marlar would begin to stretch his lead
to almost a full straightaway only to that advantage erased as a slowed Tim
Tungate in turn three would bring out the caution flag on lap 23. As the
field was being realigned under caution, race leader Marlar would experience a
deflating right rear tire that would see the leader duck in and make a change
for fresh rubber. This would put Neat back at the point on the restart, but
the restart would be voided when Joey Daniel, Rick Corbin, Jesse James Lay,
and Johnny Wheeler all tangled in turn four.
Once the race resumed, Barber would take advantage of the double file restarts and would take second from James on lap 24, only to see James retake the spot on lap 26 with a turn four slide job, while Jerry Rice was quietly charging to the front as well, as he would slip past Barnett for fourth on lap 26 as well. As James attempted to run down Brad Neat, he would get the help of what would be the final caution flag as Aaron Hatton got crossed up in turn one and the rides on Victor Lee and Tyrel Todd would crash hard in turn one attempting to avoid the spinning Hatton with 31 lap completed. Brad Neat would still be on the point as Barnett would work under Barber and take third on lap 33. Neat and James would distance themselves from the rest of the pack as Rice would slip by Barber for fourth on lap 39, with Mike Jewell going to fifth past Barber one lap later.
The final 10 circuits would see James peak beneath Neat on several occasions, with James making one last stab at Neat for the point in turn three on the final lap, with Neat holding off James to take the win in the Greg Neat owned NWN Distributing, Neat, Wilson, and Roberts, Inc., Neat's Service Center, Tarter Gate Company, Stephens Pipe and Steel, Harvey Ellis Motors, Hoosier Tire sponsored #41 MasterSbilt Race Cars, Cornett Race Engines powered entry. James would finish second, with Barnett nipping Rice for third, with 19th starting Jewell completing the top five. The remainder of the top ten would be Barber, 14th starting Timmy Yeager, 13th starting Tim Tungate, 20th starting Corbin, and Hatton.
Fifty-seven entries would
see James be the Racing Optics/Russell Baker Race Engines fast qualifier at
15.301 seconds. The five Crown Spray Power heat wins went to James, McQueary,
Marlar, Barnett, and Neat. Three O'Reilly Auto Parts/ Skillsaw Designs
B-Mains were scored by Brandon Kinzer, Jesse James Lay, and Josh Williams.
Series provisionals were taken by Tyrel Todd and Johnny Wheeler, while Joey
Daniel and Jeff Watson were track provisionals.
RealPower Race Summary -Bluegrass Speedway-Bardstown, KY-September 25, 2004
O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCars (57 entries)
Racing Optics Fast Qualifier- Scott James 15.301
Crown Spray Power 1st Heat- James, Dustin Neat, Shannon Thornsberry, Joey
Kramer
Crown Spray Power 2nd Heat- Whitney McQueary, Patrick Sheltra, Lee Devasier,
Chris Carlson
Crown Spray Power 3rd Heat- Mike Marlar, Bryan Barber, Timmy Yeager, Josh
Williams
Crown Spray Power 4th Heat- Steve Barnett, Aaron Hatton, Tim Tungate, Brandon
Kinzer
Crown Spray Power 5th Heat- Brad Neat, Jerry Rice, Victor Lee, Jesse James Lay
O'Reilly Auto Parts 1st B-Main: Kinzer, Mike Jewell, Kramer, Bobby Wolter,
Jr., Tyrel Todd
O'Reilly Auto Parts 2nd B-Main: Lay, Rick Corbin, Tony Traficant, Carlson,
Frankie Coomer
O'Reilly Auto Parts 3rd B-Main: Williams, Michael England, James Huff, Bobby
Carrier, Jr., Brad Erwin
Series Provisionals- Tyrel Todd, Johnny Wheeler
Track Provisionals- Joey Daniel, Jeff Watson
Lucas Oil A-Main (6th Annual Bluegrass 50)- Brad Neat, James, Barnett, Rice,
Jewell, Barber, Yeager, Tungate, Corbin, Hatton, Kinzer, Sheltra, Daniel,
Devasier, Watson, Lay, Wheeler, Thornsberry, Williams, Marlar, Lee, Todd,
England, McQueary, Dustin Neat
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Sept 25, 2004
For Immediate Release:
James Essex – NARA PR
K-C Raceway
Chillicothe (Alma), OH
Saturday Night, September 25, 2004
Eddie Carrier, Jr Corrals Biggest Career Win in Taking K-C 100
ALMA, OH--Eddie Carrier, Jr. officially scored the biggest win of his racing career as he captured the $10,000 to win 7th Annual K-C 100 on Saturday Night at the K-C Raceway. Before the cameras of ESPN2 the 33 year old Kentucky native, now residing in Salt Rock, WV took the lead on lap 43 of the 100 lap race and led the rest of the way to take the win. Carrier, Jr. drove the Carl Grover Motorsports Entry out of Ona, WV to an emotional victory celebration afterwards as the 2002 O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass Series Champion piloted the Engines, Inc, Simpson Race Products, American Racer Tires, Grover Racing Engines, Rocket Ford Taurus. Finishing in second was Earl Pearson, Jr of Jacksonville, FL in the Carlton Lamm owned, Lucas Oil Products/Larry Wallace Race Engines/Rocket Ford Taurus. Third was 13th starting Donnie Moran of Dresden, OH in the PBM Performance Products/SMS Engines/MasterSbilt Monte Carlo. Robbie Blair of Titusville, PA came from the 19th starting slot to finish fourth in the Bossard's GM Store/Draime Engines/Rocket Monte Carlo with 17th starter Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, IL rounding out the top five in the Arkansas Motors/Jay Dickens Engines/C.J. Rayburn Grand Prix. The event was co-sanctioned by the North American Racing Association (NARA) and the Mid-Atlantic Championship Series (MACS) and drew 48 cars to Jim Nier's facility
Polesitter, Jackie Boggs who earned that spot by winning the eight lap dash for the top two finishers in each of the four heat races that were contested took the lead at the start of the Lucas Oil main event with Steve Shaver going to second place followed by Hall of Famer, Delmas Conley, Eddie Carrier, Jr. and Earl Pearson, Jr. The initial start of the race almost caused a big melee as outside polesitter, Delmas Conley did not go at the start and jammed up several drivers behind him. With Boggs out in front he would set sail around the high banked 3/8ths mile track stretching his lead out over Shaver. A flurry of cautions in the first 12 laps of the race would however keep Shaver close to Boggs and the restarts would be double file behind the leader, Boggs. Carrier, Jr. who started fourth would get by Conley on lap three setting up a side by side restart with Shaver. A multi car wreck on lap 12 would see at least five drivers involved. With 12 laps officially scored it was Boggs on top with Shaver, Carrier, Jr., Pearson, Jr. now fourth and Conley running in fifth. Again through a maze of cautions just when Boggs would get his momentum back up again a yellow flag would stop him. On every restart Boggs had the best car as he would fire better than the rest of the drivers who were chasing him. An excellent race for position was going on behind Boggs with Shaver and Carrier Jr going at it door to door for a few laps. Carrier, Jr. would gain the spot on the 18th circuit, but two circuits later Shaver was back around for the runner-up spot. Meanwhile there were several cars coming up through the field and making progress, one was current MACS series points leader, Robbie Blair and the other was the current NARA points leader, Shannon Babb showing that is why they are championship material this year as they would break into the top ten after starting 19th and 17th respectfully.
The top positions were still Boggs, Shaver, Carrier, Jr., Pearson, Jr. and Conley after each restart after a caution flag. They remained in that same running order for several green flag laps until Carrier, Jr. was able to make a pass again on Shaver for second on the 40th lap coming off of turn two and down the backstretch. At this point Boggs had the race under control and nobody looked like they were going to challenge him. Just when Boggs would start to enter traffic a caution would fly for a spin and that would allow now Carrier Jr. to have a shot at him. Up until this point no one had anything for Boggs, but Carrier, Jr. did this time because when Boggs ran up against a car he was trying to lap on the 42nd lap that might have done some damage to the handling of his race car. The yellow came out for the car that Boggs had made contact with, Sean Cosgrove. Going back to the last scored lap Boggs was still on the point with Carrier, Jr. and Pearson, Jr. behind him on the restart. It only took Carrier, Jr. until halfway down the backshute to wrestle the lead from Boggs and for the first time all race Boggs was the chaser now. Carrier, Jr. once in front would start to distance himself from Boggs and the rest of the field. Second place would really satrt to get interesting with Boggs, Pearson, Jr, Conley and 13th starting Donnie Moran now all in the hunt. Pearson, Jr. would take second from Boggs on the 53rd lap. With 55 laps scored it was Carrier, Jr, Pearson, Jr., Boggs, Conley and Moran still the top five. Boggs night however would get worse as handling problems from the contact with the car he trying to lap would force him pitside for good on lap 59. With Boggs out, Moran would start to really crank it up climbing from fifth to third, replacing Boggs and passing Conley for third place. Blair would go to fourth with Conley hanging on for fifth.
Conley's fifth place stay would not be for much longer as Babb made the move on him to go into the top five running order. Up front it was all Carrier, Jr. at this point with Pearson, Jr. trying his best to catch him. With 25 laps remaining Carrier, Jr. had a seven car length leader over Pearson, Jr. The final yellow would wave for a spin on the 82nd lap and would set up an 18 lap shootout to the finish. Carrier, Jr. would pull out again from Pearson, Jr and build his lead after the last restart. If he didn't make any mistakes it looked like Carrier, Jr. would not be challenged by Pearson, Jr. the rest of the way, but with traffic looming ahead Carrier, Jr. would have to be careful getting by them. There were two cars in front Carrier, Jr. now with less than 10 laps to go. That would be a break for Pearson, Jr. has Carrier's seven to eight car length lead he had had shrunk to four lengths. With Carrier, Jr. battling traffic issues Pearson, Jr. would slice the lead to just two car lengths heading into the final five laps of the race. With the end in sight Carrier, Jr. did what he had to do and slid by the lapped traffic which proved to be to his utmost benefit as Pearson, Jr. would try one last time as the two took the white flag as Pearson, Jr. closed right behind Carrier, Jr. in the dash for the finish and when the checkers dropped it was Carrier, Jr. crossing first followed right on his heels by Pearson, Jr. Moran would tighten things up at the end as he crossed in third place with Blair and Babb completing the top five drivers.
Afterwards an emotional Carrier, Jr. in victory circle thanked several people for their help in getting him this much deserved win. "I want to thank the good Lord for a safe race, Carl Grover for giving me this chance to drive this car, my wife, Jamie, my father, Eddie Sr. and all my pit crew, sponsors and everybody back at the shop, this is just unreal." said Carrier, Jr. afterwards. The $10,000 first place money was officially the most that Carrier, Jr. had won in one night of racing. "I won a $15,000 to win race at Clay City, KY years ago and it turned out to be a 100 lap trophy dash, because all I got was the trophy and no money." Well Carrier, Jr. walked out of K-C Raceway with not only a trophy, but $10,000 for real as he would pick up his first career NARA win and his first win ever at K-C Raceway.
Completing the top ten in the K-C 100 lapper was Steve Shaver, Keith Barbara, Delmas Conley, Keith Berner and Rod Conley.
In preliminary action Donnie Moran was the Racing Optics Fast Timer with a quick lap of 13.592 seconds. Moran also picked up an extra $200 courtesy of Tim Wilson from Circleville Oil in Circleville, OH. The four Crown Spray Power Heat Race winners were Freddy Smith, Jason Montgomery, Eddie Carrier, Jr. and Steve Casebolt, Jr. The O'Reilly Auto Parts B-Mains were taken by Shannon Babb and Ty Myers.
RealPower Race Summary
K-C Raceway
Chillicothe (Alma), OH
Saturday Night, September 25, 2004
NARA DirtCar Series
Racing Optics Fast Time: Donnie Moran 13.592
Crown Spray Power Heat #1: Freddy Smith, Steve Shaver, R.J. Conley, Donnie Moran
Crown Spray Power Heat #2: Jason Montgomery, Earl Pearson,Jr., Sean Cosgrove, Rod Conley
Crown Spray Power Heat #3: Eddie Carrier, Jr., Delmas Conley, John Gill, Keith Berner
Crown Spray Power Heat #4: Steve Casebolt, Jr., Jackie Boggs, Keith Barbara, Aaron Bapst
O'Reilly Auto Parts B-Main #1: Shannon Babb, Robbie Blair, Denny Chamberlain, Greg Johnson
O'Reilly Auto Parts B-Main #2: Ty Myers, Scott Edmisten, Chuck Harper, Skip Watterman
7th Annual K-C 100 Feature Finish: Eddie Carrier, Jr., Earl Pearson, Jr., Donnie Moran, Robbie Blair, Shannon Babb, Steve Shaver, Keith Barbara, Delmas Conley, Keith Berner, Rod Conley, Scott Edmisten, Ty Myers, R.J. Conley, John Gill, Jackie Boggs, Chuck Harper, Sean Cosgrove, Aaron Bapst, Jason Flory, Jason Montgomery, Freddy Smith, Denny Chamberlain, Steve Casebolt, Jr., Greg Johnson
PPM Racing Products Hard Charger – Robbie Blair
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Sept 24, 2004
For Immediate Release
Michael Despain
"The Silver Shark"
Snares Thriller at Barren County Speedway
Glasgow, KY-September 24- The O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCar
Series presented by Arizona Sport Shirts invaded Barren County Speedway on
Friday night and Scott James of Lawrenceburg, IN scored his third career BoB win
and became the 14th different winner in the 20 O'Reilly NARA BoB events so far
in 2004 in a dandy of a race that saw three different leaders and three and four
wide action.
Randle Sweeney and Brad Neat would bring the field to the green flag, with Neat
taking the initial lead, with Terry English taking second, with Sweeney, Bryan
Barber, and Scott James in pursuit, with James taking second on lap. Jay
Brinkley would roll up between cars and battle English for third, with the first
caution waving on lap 5 and Johnny Wheeler would get spun in turn one to slow
the pace.
The double file restart would see Neat out in front, with English and Brinkley working past James to go second and third. English and Brinkley would battle for second until English would loop his mount in turn three with six laps completed. Neat would still command the field on this double file restart, with James now pressuring Brinkley for second, with Steve Barnett rolling past Aaron Hatton four fourth on lap 8, with James taking second from Brinkley on lap 9. Barnett would roll past Brinkley one lap later and then take second from James on lap 12. Meanwhile, first B-main winner Patrick Sheltra would start 13th and would roll to fourth and second B-main winner Mike Marlar would start 14th and would go to fifth on lap 15, with Marlar taking fourth one round later. Barnett would now pressure Neat for the lead and would take the top spot off of turn two on lap 21 as the field got into heavy slower traffic. James would roll up on the outside of the lead pair to make it a three way battle for the lead on lap 24, with Sheltra passing Marlar and Sheltra would join the mix and the quartet of James, Barnett, Neat, and Sheltra would go four-wide for the lead off of turn two on lap 25, with Marlar just a couple car lengths off of this battle. The caution would wave on lap 27 as Wheeler had rolled to a stop in turn four.
The restart would see Barnett on the point with James second, followed by Neat, Sheltra, and Marlar as Victor Lee and Jeff Watson would spin on the restart in turn two. The restart would see James step to the outside of Barnett and James would take lead from Barnett on lap 29. Sheltra would take third on lap 32 and then roll up on Barnett and take second from Barnett on lap 36. Sheltra would charge on James but would come up short by about three car lengths as James would take the win in his Powell Motorsports, Baylor Trucking, Franks Industries, Welsh Excavating, James Art Design, Hoosier Tire, Stealth Carbs, AFCO sponsored #83. The rest of the top five would be Sheltra, Barnett, Marlar, and Neat. Completing the top ten would be Mike Jewell, Aaron Hatton, Brinkley, Dion Deason, and 24th starting Victor Lee.
Thirty-seven entries saw
James set Racing Optics/Russell Baker Race Engines fast time at 13.47 seconds.
Crown Spray Power heat wins went to English, Barber, Neat, and Sweeney. Sheltra
and Marlar won the O'Reilly Auto Parts B-mains. Tyrel Todd and Doug Smith were
series provisionals, with Jeff Watson and Billy Dever taking track provisionals.
RealPower Race Summary -Barren County Speedway-Glasgow, KY-September 24, 2004
O'Reilly NARA Battle of the Bluegrass DirtCars (37 entries)
Racing Optics/Russell Baker Race Engines Fast Time- Scott James 13.47
Crown Spray Power 1st Heat- Terry English, James, Johnny Wheeler, Tommy Carlton
Crown Spray Power 2nd Heat- Bryan Barber, Aaron Hatton, Jay Brinkley, Patrick
Sheltra
Crown Spray Power 3rd Heat- Brad Neat, Victor Lee, Mike Jewell, Spencer Watson
Crown Spray Power 4th Heat- Randle Sweeney, Steve Barnett, Michael England, Mike
Marlar
O'Reilly Auto Parts 1st B-Main: Sheltra, Carlton, Dion Deason, Chris Carlson,
Joey Kramer
O'Reilly Auto Parts 2nd B-Main: Marlar, Dennis Selby, Tim Tungate, Tony Morris,
Frankie Coomer
Series Provisionals- Tyrel Todd and Doug Smith
Track Provisionals- Jeff Watson and Billy Dever
Lucas Oil A-Main: James, Sheltra, Barnett, Marlar, Neat, Jewell, Hatton,
Brinkley, Deason, Lee, Todd, Tungate, Carlson, England, Carlton, Morris, Watson,
Dever, Smith, Selby, Sweeney, Wheeler, English, Barber
PPM Racing Products Hard Charger - Patrick Sheltra
-------------------------------------------------------
Sept 22, 2004
For Immediate Release:
James Essex – NARA PR
7th Annual K-C 100 Paying $10,000 to win with NARA/MACS/ESPN2 on September 25
LEXINGTON, KY--The North American Racing Association (NARA) and the Mid-Atlantic Championship Series (MACS) combine forces this Saturday Night, September 25 for the 7th Annual Running of the K-C 100 at Jim Nier's K-C Raceway in Chillicothe, OH. The Circleville Oil Challenge will pay $10,000 to the winner of the 100 lap feature event.
There will be a complete show for the NARA DirtCar Series/MACS Late Models with Racing Optics Time Trials, Crown Spray Power Heat Races, O'Reilly Auto Parts B-Mains and NARA DirtCar Series Lucas Oil A-Main. The NARA $10,000 to win purse structure will be in effect for the event with a payoff totaling over $40,000. Also up for grabs will be $200 bonus to the fast qualifier courtesy of Circleville Oil's Tim Wilson.
A special added bonus to all the excitement at K-C this Saturday will be that the cameras of ESPN2 in attendance to tape the event for a broadcast at a date to be announced. This is all part of the NARA DirtCar Series television package for 2004 which includes ESPN2 production of events at Florence, KY, Bardstown, KY and Woodstock, GA in October. The NARA on ESPN2 is brought to you by: Lucas Oil Products, Crown Spray Power, O'Reilly Auto Parts, Arizona Sport Shirts, Columbus Classic and RealPower.
Pit gates will open at 3 p.m. with grandstand gates at 3:30 p.m. K-C Raceway is located 12 miles south of Chillicothe, OH on U.S Route 23 to Alma, OH, the west two miles on Blain Highway. For more information on K-C Raceway please visit their website at www.kc-raceway.com or call (740) 289-4114. For more information on the two sanctioning bodies for this event go to www.naradirtcar.com or www.macsracing.com.
7th Annual K-C 100 Circleville Oil Challenge Event Payoff:
1. $10,000.00
2. 5,000.00
3. 3,000.00
4. 2,500.00
5. 2,000.00
6. 1,500.00
7. 1,400.00
8. 1,300.00
9. 1,200.00
10. 1,100.00
11. 1,000.00
12. 950.00
13. 900.00
14. 875.00
15. 850.00
16. 825.00
17. 800.00
18. 775.00
19. 750.00
20. 725.00
21. 700.00
22. 700.00
23. 700.00
24. 700.00
NARA DirtCar Series
Current Points (Top 10)
|
1 |
Shannon Babb |
1035 |
|
2 |
RJ Conley |
945 |
|
3 |
Greg Johnson |
905 |
|
4 |
John Gill |
875 |
|
5 |
Mike Marlar |
870 |
|
6 |
Freddy Smith |
860 |
|
7 |
Brad Neat |
725 |
|
8 |
Don O'Neal |
650 |
|
9 |
Scott James |
635 |
|
10 |
Steve Barnett |
585 |
MACS
Current Points (Top 10)
|
1 |
Robbie Blair |
2781 |
|
2 |
Keith Barbara |
2628 |
|
3 |
Rod Conley |
2603 |