By Sam Stoecklin
CMS Announcer/PR
May 15, 2011
(Warrensburg, MO) – Fifty degree weather…unfortunately check, the best drivers…absolutely check, the most loyal fans, no doubt check…incredible racing…double and triple check! For the hearty race fans that came out for a night of racing action at Central Missouri Speedway on Saturday, May 14, it is safe to say they were abuzz about how the night transpired at the track. The track was smooth, multiple-grooved, and very racy and the drivers who made their way to the track provided excitement for the fans all night long. Recently, it seems even the most tried and true weather forecasters are baffled by what Mother Nature has thrown at us this year but somehow, the soaking rains missed the speedway for the most part this past week and we were blessed with an exciting night at the track.
For our modified division, Dustin Boney has quickly reasserted himself as the man to beat. He now has two big wins in a row but this one was by no means an easy victory as he and Terry Schultz, who looked masterful making his way around the CMS high banks, waged a fierce battle for the lead during the 25-lap main event. Boney started the race in fifth position but after taking the green flag it took three turns for the deuces wild machine to find his way to the front of the field. Jim Moody had a great starting spot in the main after claiming his heat race but his car unexpectedly lost power right from the start and he was unable to continue. Travelling drivers Nate Caruth and Rodney Sanders ran near the front early on in the race but the local boys kept them in check the entire race distance as the laps wound down.
Boney led the race three quarters of the way through until Schultz used the high-side to find his way to the front. Schultz and Boney looked like Earnhardt and Wallace doing the cross-over moves back in the 80’s when asphalt racing was actually exciting on tracks such as Darlington. Caruth, who was inside the top five spun on lap 16 to bring out the second caution just as defending champion Jason Thompson made things interesting inside the top three. Meanwhile, point leader Chad Lyle was busy trying to hold off Aaron Marrant and Sanders inside the top five. With 19 laps in the books, Boney held onto the lead with Thompson and Schultz trying to real him in. The battle to the finish saw Boney take his second win ahead of Thompson, Schultz, Marrant, Lyle, and Travis Johnson in a great run sixth. Jason Bodenhamer, Jake Richards, Sanders, and Dean Wille completed the top ten. Moody, Caruth, and Lyle were victorious in preliminary heat races.
ULMA Late Models continue to gain momentum and the CMS posse of drivers proved to be tough as nails throughout the night with Jefferson City driver Bob Test and last week’s feature winner, Bob King, taking the heat race victories. Just like the modifieds, the ULMA gents looked masterful going around the track and using just about every groove imaginable to provide the fans in the stands some exciting moments with the battle for the lead. Test and King both took turns at the front of the field as fourth-starting Bodenhamer made it a three-way battle for the lead. It was great to see drivers such as Zeke Langley, Justin Russell, Trace and Alan Westling as well as James Stafford make their way to CMS for competition against the strong field of CMS regular competitors in the chase for the Crawdad’s Classics Gourmet Hot Sauce 2011 championship.
Behind the throttle-stomping battle for the lead, Brett Wood, Langley, Kevin Coyne, and Brett ‘Woody’ Wood were waging a fierce campaign for positions of their own as they tried to keep the leaders in sight. With just a couple of pauses in the 20-lap race, drivers continued to look for the best line to match their setups as Coyne and now Jon Binning closed in during the late stages of the event. By lap ten, Bodee grabbed the lead and set sail for his second win this season with his brother-in-law Brett Wood giving chase to the line in the runner-up spot. King held on for a strong third-place run with Kevin Coyne continuing to impress in fourth. Bob Test ran his best CMS race of the year in fifth as Jon Binning brought his GRT car home in sixth. The Clancy Brothers, Steve and Chad were seventh and eighth with Trace Westling and Zeke Langley rounding out the top ten.
For the street stocks, Don Dannar and Brian ‘Ziggy’ Ziegler secured the heat race wins to set the stage for the 15-lap feature race. Ziegler secured the pole position for the main event with Jake Conley starting on the front row to his outside. Dannar and Ted Welschmeyer started third and fourth and once the green-flag flew, Ziegler grabbed the lead with Conley and Welschmeyer, who serves in the U.S. Army, and home on leave, quickly settling into the top three. Dannar brought his car to the top three by lap seven as Ziegler held Conley at bay for the lead. On lap ten, Chad Eickleberry’s early season streak of bad luck continued as he was forced to leave the track with problems. Ziegler had his hands full the entire race distance with Conley in second as current point leader Michael Mullins, showed his muscle by moving into the third spot over Dannar late in the race. In the end, Ziggy took the win over Conley and Mullins with Dannar, Jimmy Morris, Welschmeyer, Nate Barnes and Herb Dannar finishing in the top eight.
B-Modified action was a little tricky during the night, especially during the main event after defending champion Brad Smith and current point leader Jacob Ebert secured the heat race victories earlier in the night. The main event got off to an exciting start with Ebert, Smith and former champion Ethan Isaacs battling three-wide for the early lead until a series of caution period forced the race to end under the 20-minute time rule. Ben Kates, Bob Russell and John Brooks all encountered problems early with Brooks eventually leaving the track after receiving the black flag after tangling with Bobby Raybourn. Multiple caution periods cluttered the race with Ethan Isaacs trying to keep Ebert, Smith and Brother Lucas Isaacs in his review mirror. Ebert had a spin in the race and was relegated to the tail of the field for the restart, but in his cool, calm, and collected demeanor, he was able to fight his way back to the front with the help of attrition on the track from numerous drivers encountering a variety of issues. Nic Bennet had a great race and calmly made his way into the hunt from his fifth starting spot as he took a few peeks at Isaacs for the top spot; however, it was Isaacs who went on to claim his first feature win of the season to close up the standings with Ebert. Bennett recorded his best run of the year in the runner-up spot, Ebert came back to third with Lucas Isaacs fourth, Smith fifth and Raybourn sixth.
Each week at CMS, pit gates open at 4:30 p.m. Both the front and back-side grandstand admission gates open at 5, with hot-laps beginning at 7 and racing getting under way at 7:30. The track is located 3.5 miles north of Warrensburg on Highway 13 or 12.5 miles south of the Higginsville I-70 Exit on Highway 13. When visiting Warrensburg, be sure to stop by the Cliff Harris Warrensburg Ford and Warrensburg Chrysler stores at 330 East Young Street. Call the store at (888) 829-7859 or visit www.warrensburgford.dealerconnection.com. Next Saturday night is KOKO AM Radio 1450 Race Night at the speedway.
For same-day CMS race status, race results and schedule updates call the Track Report line at (660) 747-2166. You may also visit us online at www.centralmissourispeedway.net. We hope to see you next Saturday, May 21st.
Top Ten Feature Results from CMS, Saturday, May 21, 2011
B-Modifieds
Feature
1- 66- Ethan Isaacs, Bonner Springs, KS
2- 38- Nic Bennett, Grain Valley
3- 94- Jacob Ebert, Oak Grove
4- 6- Lucas Isaacs, Bonner Springs KS
5- 99- Brad Smith, Belton
6- 57- Bobby Raybourn, Odessa
7- 33j- Jason Billups, Holt
8- c8- Cameron Cooper, Holden
9- 90nn- Steven Neal, Odessa
10- 20- Trent Deadmon, Kansas City
Street Stocks
Feature
1- 65- Brian Ziegler, Bates City
2- 68- Jake Conley, Olathe, KS
3- 01- Michael Mullins, Kingsville
4- 174- Donnie Dannar, Oak Grove
5- 9m- Jimmy Morris, Blue Springs
6- 21w- Ted Welschmeyer, Tibbets
7- 29- Nate Barnes, Kearney
8- 74- Herb Dannar, Holden
9- 9d- Scott Dukes, Odessa
10- 67- Devin Irvin, Cleveland
ULMA Late Models
Feature
1- 88- Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview
2- 7- Brett Wood, Warrensburg
3- 45- Bob King, Independence
4- 22- Kevin Coyne, Kingsville
5- 1- Bob Test, Jefferson City
6- 65- Jon Binning, Warrensburg
7- 12c- Steve Clancy, Odessa
8- 04- Chad Clancy, Smithville
9- 7w- Trace Westling, Fulton
10- 23z- Zeke Langley, Ashland
Modifieds Feature
1- 22- Dustin Boney, Kansas City
2- 20- Jason Thompson, Concordia
3- 90- Terry Schultz, Sedalia
4- 70- Aaron Marrant, Orrick
5- 96- Chad Lyle, Oak Grove
6- 25T- Travis Johnson, Independence
7- 34a- Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview
8- 4j- Jake Richards, Kansas City KS
9- 120- Rodney Sanders, Happy, TX
10- 68- Dean Wille, Warrensburg