By Sam Stoecklin
CMS Announcer/PR
October 2, 2011
(Warrensburg, MO) For the last 18 years, drivers have pulled through the pit gates at Central Missouri Speedway (CMS) in search of big-money wins and bragging rights to say they claimed a feature win at the speedway against the best competition with high stakes on the line. So, it was fitting the last night of operations at the speedway with Earl and Susan Walls as owners and operators featured increased purse money and as expected, a talent-filled pool of drivers a cut above the rest to gun for the wins. The states of Missouri, Illinois, Kansas, Tennessee, and Texas were represented among the 68 competitors on hand in three classes. In case you weren’t able to join us, a review of the night’s action follows in this release. Additional results may be found on the CMS website at www.centralmissourispeedway.net.
There were 28 modified drivers present for the night, capped off by the 50-lap main. Four heat races and a b-main settle the starting lineup. Jamie Ragland, Rodney Sanders of Happy, Texas, Lucas Lee from Tennessee, and Craig Wood of Eldorado Springs, Missouri captured heat race wins while Brian Troxel claimed the b-main. The top 16 in passing points were locked into the main event with 8 additional drivers joining the lineup from the b-main. In weeks leading up to the Hog Roast Nationals, the question around the pits was what would modified drivers do to their cars for the ‘run what ya brung’ $3,500-to-win race? While there certainly were some interesting looking cars, the majority of competitors visibly stuck with what had worked for them all year long, which worked out well, that is for those that finished fourth on back!
Craig Wood, who was one of a handful of drivers that made modifications to his car with Lexan sideboards, earned the pole position by virtue of his passing points and the four-car inversion. Wood looked virtually untouchable as he powered his way into the lead, leaving the rest of the field to settle for second. Sanders looked strong early in Ron Keith’s number 25 machine and ran in the runner-up position with Jamie Ragland, Curt Rackers, and Lucas Lee all fighting it out. Intense racing was the order of the night with lane swapping and a changing track surface through the duration of the race. A caution flag flew with nine laps in the books when Josh Poe spun in between turns one and two. The race went right back to green with Wood again creating his own zip code out front. David McVey and Troxel were the next two cars to leave the race just as fifteenth-starting Terry Schultz made his way to the top five.
Jason Bodenhamer, who started in seventh position, began clicking off some quick laps and found himself in the top five by lap 15 and then into the lead before lap the lap 20 mark. The second half of the race saw a dramatic turn of events with the leading cars and the intense battle from fourth to tenth. With Bodenhamer now leading the way, Wood’s car appeared to be losing the grip it had early on as Schultz pulled alongside of Wood for second place. All the while Bodenhamer’s unique Lexan sideboard and sprint-car winged modified stayed glued to the track, especially down the back straightaway off of turn two as he left the rest of the field again battling for second best. By lap 30, Schultz reeled in the leader and made things interesting as the leaders began maneuvering the lapped traffic with the winner eventually lapping up to eighth position by race end.
For the final 20 laps, it was anyone’s guess which car would come away the winner. Bodenhamer, Schultz, and Wood had to fight their way through lapped cars that were still very fast and battling for positions of their own. The drivers did a great job of maintaining their composure, just the way everyone is used to at CMS in the modified division. The modified modifieds now sat in the top three positions with ten laps to go as Jamie Ragland, Sanders, Aaron Marrant, Tim Karrick, Rackers, Lee, and Chad Lyle ran inside the top ten. Drivers from fourth on back had to be looking ahead with the Lexan sideboard contingent leading the way and wondering why they didn’t make some down force changes to their cars. Bodenhamer rand multiple lines through lapped traffic with Schultz pulling close and then fading, only to make it interesting again over the final few circuits for the win. Track champion Schultz came up a few car lengths short at the end of 50 laps as Bodenhamer grabbed the big money for the victory. Behind the winner were Schultz, Wood, Ragland, Sanders, and Karrick inside the top six. Marrant, Lyle, Feeback and second-generation driver Jacob Ebert rounded out the top ten finishers.
Twelve-year old Jake Griffin of Quincy, Illinois made his first-ever appearance at CMS Saturday night in the ULMA late model division in hopes of maintaining his overall ULMA points leads. With the modifieds and street stock divisions running outlaw style, the late models were still involved in their season-long point’s championship and competed under normal rules. The always tough field of late models came out in full force with 22 cars on hand; however, the pressure of increased purse money coupled with the chance of climbing the standings got the best of some drivers throughout the night with aggressive moves behind the wheel not paying off for anyone’s benefit.
Three heat races determined the late model lineup for the $800-to-win race as Lane Ehlert edged Jake Griffin by less than a half foot for the victory in heat one. Bob Test outran Brett Wood for the win in heat number two with Bodenhamer claiming the third heat race over Alan Westling, who at fifteen years of age and a few days away from major surgery on his busted up leg looked like a seasoned veteran behind the wheel. The three drivers still alive in the ULMA title chase were all on hand in what could have been a classic duel down to the wire. Lane Ehlert earned the most passing points from the heat races and sat on the pole alongside Test at the drop of the green flag for the 20-lap main event. Unfortunately, for a very patient and reserved Gage Wineland, his night came to an end before laps were even turned as a result of extensive damaged to his car after contact in an incident involving Wood and Jeremy Watts. On the restart, Ehlert then spun, ending his chances for his first-ever win at CMS as he was relegated to the tail of the field.
Alan Westling then became the race leader in the race of his young life as he led Test, Griffin, Bodenhamer and thirteenth starting Todd McCoin. Test spun at the exit of turn four and collected Griffin in the process, ultimately ending Griffin’s shot at a victory with his car receiving right-side damage. R.D. Peterson spun with seven laps complete with new leader Bodenhamer showing the way over Westling, McCoin, Watts, Kevin Coyne, and ULMA title contender Rylan Long. Griffin pulled off the field by lap nine as Long began climbing the standing order in an aggressive battle with Coyne.
Rylan Long made his way to second by lap 15 with Westling and Coyne close behind just as Test and Ehlert were involved in their second caution incidents of the night, ending their race. Jason Perry of Illinois also pulled off the track at this time setting up another restart on the field. With four laps to go Alan Westling’s run of a lifetime was diminished when unprovoked contact from behind sent him spinning off of turn four to setup one final restart. Coyne’s night ended when his car was too heavily damaged from earlier contact to continue. At the end of the race, Bodenhamer took the victory with Long second, Wood third, McCoin fourth in his best-ever CMS showing, Trace Westling fifth, Father and Son duo Ron and Jon Binning in sixth and seventh, Harlen Kennedy eighth, Alan Westling with a brilliant drive back to ninth, and Sterling Perkins rounding out the top ten.
The third class of the night and second to run ‘outlaw’ style was the street stock division. There were 18 competitors on hand for a pair of heat races that saw Ray Smith, Devin Irvin, and Tim Cressley cross the line in the first race. John Clancy, Jr., double-duty driver Jon Binning, and Justin Seifert finished one-two-three in the second preliminary heat race. Street Stocks were also running for extra purse money with $500-to-win and $300 added to the field by race longtime CMS and street stock race fans Chuck and Brenda Withrow.
Irvin set the pace early with Binning and Cressley running nose to tail to find a way to take command. The three drivers had a memorable battle for the lead just as Smith made his presence known near the front. On a lap-three restart, Binning looked to have the upper hand on Smith with Irvin, Smith, Cressley, and Clancy closing in to keep things interesting. Smith assumed command by lap five but on the exit of turn four his car appeared to experience a mechanical push as he tapped the wall, losing the lead in the process. With Binning now leading the way the race resumed. On lap nine, the bad luck trend for the leader of the race continued as Binning went for a spin to draw another caution flag. All the while, fourteenth starting Sundance Keeper of Everton, Missouri was methodically making his way through the field to take the lead on the ensuing restart. Keeper led Irvin, Cressley, Clancy, Conley and Binning by lap ten.
A fierce battle played out behind Keeper in the lead between Irvin and Clancy with Cressley in the mix as well. Binning’s night came to an end when he had to exit the track, actually bringing out a caution due to his stalled car in the hot pit lane. For the final restart Keeper was well in command leaving the rest of the field to settle for second on back. Jake Conley made his way towards the front of the field to battle for a run inside the top five along with the other front-runners. As the race came to the final lap it was Keeper who crossed the line first for his first-ever CMS win over Clancy in second, Cressley third, Conley fourth, Irvin fifth, and Seifert sixth. Late-arriving Ted Welschmeyer, veteran driver Victor Sims, Brett Heeter, and Herb Dannar completed the top ten at the finish.
Tickets to the annual Central Auto Racing Boosters (C.A.R.B.) banquet are now on sale. All drivers finishing in the top ten in the four CMS division are eligible for points-fund monies and awards, which will be handed out during the CMS awards portion of the C.A.R.B. banquet. All monies and awards must be claimed at the banquet. To order your tickets call Susan Walls at 816-229-1338 or Karen Darling at 660-229-0952 or 660-886-3989, no calls after 9 p.m. please. The banquet takes place Saturday, December 3rd at the KCI Expo.
Doors will open at 4:30 P.M. with dinner at 5:30 P.M., the Award Ceremonies will start at 6:30 P.M. and dancing and music is scheduled immediately after the completion of the awards. Tickets are on sale through November 14. Point champions are asked to contact Bob Reber by October 15, 2011 at 816-358-4299 to finalize their awards.
Stay tuned to the CMS website at www.centralmissourispeedway.net or future CMS press releases regarding the future of the track, which is for sale by owners Earl Susan Walls, who may be reached by calling 816-229-1338 for serious inquiries about the facility. Business partners at Central Missouri Speedway for the 2011 season included, Cliff Harris Warrensburg Ford and Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Waterloo Storage Products, KOKO AM 1450 Radio, 98.5 FM The Bar, Comfort Inn Warrensburg Station, KMMO Radio, LJS Graphics, Army National Guard, RSC Equipment Rental, Heartland Waste, Pepsi, Bad Boy Mowers, and Midwest Coating.
THANK YOU DRIVERS AND FANS FOR MAKING CMS SUCH A SPECIAL PLACE OVER THE YEARS!
CMS Results
10/1/2011
STREET STOCKS
Heat Race # 1
1st- 16j- Ray Smith, Centertown
2nd- 67- Devin Irvin, Cleveland
3rd- 00- Tim Cressley, Tipton
Heat Race # 2
1st- 8- John Clancy Jr., California
2nd- 9d- Jon Binning, Warrensburg
3rd- 37- Justin Seifert, Kansas City, KS
Feature
1- 6- Sundance Keeper, Everton
2- 8- John Clancy Jr., California
3- 00- Tim Cressley, Tipton
4- 68- Jake Conley, Olathe, KS
5- 67- Devin Irvin, Cleveland
6- 37- Justin Seifert, Kansas City, KS
7- 21w- Ted Welschmeyer, Tebbets
8- 66x- Victor Sims, Peculiar
9- 05- Brett Heeter, Kansas City
10- 174- Herb Dannar, Holden
11- 11- Mike McGilvray, Wheatland
12- 85- Bret Cox, Warrensburg
13- 9d- Jon Binning, Warrensburg
14- 16j- Ray Smith, Centertown
15- 14f- Larry Ferris, II, Kansas City, KS
16- 12x- Mike Doney, Independence
17- 44L- Warren Hawthorne, Mayview
DNS- 49- Dan Vannier, Knob Noster
ULMA
Heat Race # 1
1st- 42- Lane Ehlert, Foristell
2nd- 08- Jake Griffin, Quincy, IL
3rd- 27- Jason Perry, Payson, IL
Heat Race # 2
1st- 1- Bob Test, Jefferson City
2nd- 7- Brett Wood, Warrensburg
3rd- 53- Jeremy Watts, Bates City
Heat Race # 3
1st- 88- Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview
2nd- 20- Alan Westling, Fulton
3rd- 2p- R. D. Peterson, Springfield
Feature
1- 88- Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview
2- 18- Rylan Long, Greenfield
3- 7- Brett Wood, Warrensburg
4- 7x- Todd McCoin, Barnett
5- 71- Trace Westling, Fulton
6- 65- Ronnie Binning, Grand River, IA
7- 65b- Jon Binning, Warrensburg
8- 101- Harlen Kennedy, Wheatland
9- 20- Alan Westling, Fulton
10- 8- Sterling Perkins, Lamoni, IA
11- 10- Dave Mosley, Sedalia
12- 53- Jeremy Watts, Bates City
13- 22- Kevin Coyne, Kingsville
14- 27- Jason Perry, Payson, IL
15- 1- Bob Test, Jefferson City
16- 42- Lane Ehlert, Foristell
17- 08- Jake Griffin, Quincy, IL
ULMA
18- 2p- R. D. Peterson, Springfield
19- 12- Gage Wineland, Syracuise
20- 2- Dustin Vance, Cleveland
DNS- 45- Bob King, Independence
DNS- 12c- Steve Clancy, Odessa
M O D I F I E D S
Heat Race # 1
1st- 15r- Jamie Ragland, Lebanon
2nd- 34- Mark Schafman,
3rd- 70- Aaron Marrant, Orrick
Heat Race # 2
1st- 25- Rodney Sanders, Happy, TX
2nd- 22- Curt Rackers, Holts Summit
3rd- 34a- Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview
Heat Race # 3
1st- 43- Craig Wood, El Dorado Springs
2nd- 4- Josh Poe, Drexel
3rd- 1K- Tim Karrick, Bashor, KS
Heat Race # 4
1st- 12- Lucas Lee, Paris, TN
2nd- 05- Dave Wietholder, Liberty, IL
3rd- 08- Jake Griffin, Quincy, IL
B” Feature
1- 38t- Brian Troxel, Centrailia
2- 94k- Jacob Ebert, Oak Grove
3- 9i- Dave McVey, Greenwood
4- 39- Luke Driskell, Stilwell, Ks
5- 11B- Dennis Bunger, Harrisonville
6- 68- Dean Wille, Warrensburg
7- L75- Eddie Whitney, Sturgeon
8- 23- Steve Twenter, Sedalia
9- 88D- Tim Dotson, Strugeon
10- 7x- Travis Schipper, Peculiar
11- 55- Sean Foster, Smithville
12- 111- Chase Austin, Eudora, KS
M O D I F I E D S
Feature
1- 34a- Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview
2- 90- Terry Schultz, Sedalia
3- 43- Craig Wood, El Dorado Springs
4- 15r- Jamie Ragland, Lebanon
5- 25- Rodney Sanders, Happy, TX
6- 1K- Tim Karrick, Bashor, KS
7- 70- Aaron Marrant, Orrick
8- 96- Chad Lyle, Lone Jack
9- 22x- Luke Feeback, Harrisonville
10- 94k- Jacob Ebert, Oak Grove
11- 12- Lucas Lee, Paris, TN
12- 39- Luke Driskell, Stilwell, Ks
13- 08- Jake Griffin, Quincy, IL
14- 34- Mark Schafman, Edwardsville, KS
15- L75- Eddie Whitney, Sturgeon
16- 23- Steve Twenter, Sedalia
17- 00- Jim Moody, Odessa
18- 05- Dave Wietholder, Liberty, IL
19- 22- Curt Rackers, Holts Summit
20- 38t- Brian Troxel, Centrailia
21- 68- Dean Wille, Warrensburg
22- 9i- Dave McVey, Greenwood
23- 4- Josh Poe, Drexel
24- 11B- Dennis Bunger, Harrisonville