By BZ
(Macon, IL) Over $11,000 in bonus prize money was up for grabs amongst six racing classes Saturday night at Macon Speedway in the second Diane Bennett Memorial Race sponsored by Dale’s Southlake Pharmacy. Of that $11K, over $5,000 was awarded to the winners of the Pro Late Model and BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds feature winners. Each event paid $2,525 to the winner, a huge climb from the normal weekly payout. The heroics of the event land on the shoulders of the Bennett family who put together the race night with a bevvy of sponsors, race fans and supporters who enjoy Macon Speedway, the drivers and appreciated the track scorer for better than 35 years.
Mike Harrison of Highland already scored a Macon Speedway feature win thanks to the success of the BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds feature event during the Summer Nationals event on Thursday. Two days later, Harrison was again enjoying the moment of victory. Following a successful heat race, Harrison was lined up on the pole position for the feature and led all 25 laps to receive the $2,525 top prize. $500 of that money was his from the 2019 inaugural Diane Bennett Memorial where after he won, donated some of the prize money back to the family who kept it ready for the 2020 installment.
As the race got started, Harrison kept the same idea from Thursday, run the top of the track. He was able to do that and it led to another win. Jeremy Nichols ran the bottom of the track and tried to keep up by Harrison was too much. Nichols looked ready to take second place but spun out and was put to the tail of the field. Ray Bollinger, Brian Diveley and Rodney Standerfer along with Curt Rhodes made for some interesting racing as positions were traded back and forth behind Harrison.
Jose Parga started the Pro Late Model feature in the second row behind teammate and friend Dakota Ewing. Parga and Ewing traded the lead regularly during the race with slide jobs and back and forth before Parga took charge and looked to be solidly ready to close it out. Ewing got ready for a comeback. He nearly got there. With the white flag waving and a lap remaining, Ewing kept to the top of the track and locked up in the first turn after hitting the wall. Jake Little was running third before that moment and got a chance to compete for the lead with a one lap dash to the finish but Parga was too strong on the gas and finished the race and grabbed the big check.
$1,025 was up for the winner of the Archer’s Alley Street Stocks feature winner and Bobby Beiler once again took the checkered flag. Beiler, a regular winner in the division this season, battled through Jeremy Nichols, Guy Taylor and Terry Reed to win the night. Beiler, much like he always does, raced the top of the track and smoothly ran to the 15-lap victory.
Billy Knebel was in for a battle with three other drivers as he scored the win in the Pro Modifieds class. Kyle Helmick, Dalton Ewing and Zack Bunning were making things very close for Knebel but a caution flag re-set the field bumper-to-bumper and took away the momentum of the drivers behind him and Knebel finished off another feature.
Reece Saldana of Pittsboro, Indiana, made his first trip to Macon Speedway for the year a very memorable one as he passed Larry Drake, another Indiana driver, and won in the Micro Sprints, presented by Bailey Chassis. The pass came halfway through the race and Saldana zoomed through the rest of the race to the winner’s circle.
The Hornets finished off another show as Brady Reed took the trophy and the bonus money that his dad donated to the event. His dad, Joe Reed, finished behind him and scored the $100 bonus that he put up for the race results, as well.
Another solid night of racing featured over 100 racecars through the six divisions at Macon Speedway. As the track calms following two big programs, sister track Lincoln Speedway will roar to life with its UMP DIRTcar Summer Nationals program on Sunday. The Super Late Models, Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds and the 305 Winged Sprint Cars will be on the show. Macon Speedway returns next Saturday with the Camfield Memorial race involving the POWRi Midgets & Micro Sprints. BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds, Archer’s Alley Street Stocks and Hornets will be on the slate of action.
Feature Results (Top 10’s)
 BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds
(1) 1 – Mike Harrison Highland, IL 24H (2) 12 +10 Ray Bollinger Kewanee, IL 77R (3) 16 +13 Rodney Standerfer Summerfield, IL 28 (4) 5 +1 Brian Diveley Springfield, IL 11D (5) 6 +1 Jacob Steinkoenig Highland, IL 24S (6) 11 +5 Curt Rhodes Taylorville, IL 10 (7) 14 +7 Robert Lee Sorento, IL 88 (8) 20 +12 Shaun Horstmann Highland, IL 54 (9) 19 +10 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 (10) 15 +5 Clark Robertson Shelbyville, IL 35
DIRTcar Pro Late Models
 (1) 3 +2 Jose Parga New Berlin, IL 6P (2) 5 +3 Jake Little Springfield, IL 38J (3) 1 -2 Chase Osterhoff Kankakee, IL 130 (4) 6 +2 Blake Damery Blue Mound, IL 10 (5) 8 +3 Chuck Mitchell Jacksonville, IL 75 (6) 10 +4 Roben Huffman Midland City, IL 33H (7) 4 -3 Timmy Dick Monticello, IL 12 (8) 11 +3 Cody Maguire Carlinville, IL 32M (9) 16 +7 Chris Dick Deland, IL 22 (10) 9 -1 Jarod Shasteen Macon, IL 21
DIRTcar Pro Mods
(1) 3 +2 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 (2) 2 – Dalton Ewing Decatur, IL 27 (3) 1 -2 Kyle Helmick Smithton, IL 27X (4) 4 – Zack Bunning Decatur, IL Z (5) 10 +5 Cale Hartnagel Pocahontas, IL 29H (6) 11 +5 Ryan Timmons Centralia, IL 23 (7) 8 +1 Evan Lynch Hillsboro, IL 14E (8) 17 +9 Billy Justice Jr Cerro Gordo, IL 43 (9) 6 -3 Kevin Crowder Argenta, IL 15C (10) 15 +5 Brian Burns Bethany, IL 7B
Archers Alley Street Stocks
 (1) 4 +3 Bobby Beiler Blue Mound, IL B26 (2) 2 – Jeremy Nichols Lovington, IL 67R (3) 8 +5 Terry Reed Cerro Gordo, IL T5 (4) 7 +3 Timmy Dick Monticello, IL 122 (5) 6 +1 Andy Zahnd White Heath, IL 2Z (6) 12 +6 Zach Clark Illiopolis, IL 4 (7) 3 -4 Brian Dasenbrock Decatur, IL 08 (8) 11 +3 Jaret Duff Maroa, IL 21 (9) 10 +1 Darrell Dick Monticello, IL 22 (10) 17 +7 Dustin Reed Decatur, IL 21R
DIRTcar Hornets
 (1) 3 Brady Reed Decatur, IL 32B (2) 5 Joe Reed Decatur, IL K9 (3) 4 Erik Vanapeldoorn Clinton, IL E77 (4) 2 Mike Eskew Springfield, IL 21 (4) 9 Danny White, Villa Grove, IL 58W
Micros By Bailey Chassis
 (1) 3 +2 Reece Saldana Pittsboro, IN 17 (2) 4 +2 Tony Clifton Mt Zion, IL 23 (3) 12 +9 Alex Midkiff Belleville, IL 11 (4) 1 -3 Larry Drake Terre Haute, IN 97D (5) 2 -3 Jeff Beasley Urbana, IL 83 (6) 7 +1 Chad Baldwin Lincoln, IL 5B (7) 13 +6 Paul Day Atwood, IL 84 (8) 5 -3 Hayden Harvey Warrensburg, IL 55 (9) 15 +6 Jacob Tipton Decatur, IL 10 (10) 10 – John Barnard Sherman, IL 8B