By Greg Soukup
As I was driving home last Saturday, I felt the pain of knowing that I had just witnessed the final points night of the season at Eagle Raceway. Now, when I walked through the pit gate Thursday I felt my heart leap. I saw the pits full of cars for the practice night of the 2023 IMCA Racesaver Sprint Car Nationals. I got my first whiff of racing fuel when the drivers took to the track. Most of them were flying around the high banks of America’s Home Track for the first time since last year’s Nationals, trying to familiarize themselves with the high banks again.
The practice went well with only 3 serious incidents. Early in the practice, Owen Dimms did a slow rollover in turn 1. Later on, Ken Duke ran headlong into the armco barrier in turn 1. At the same time Clint Benson rode the wall in turn 2. Both of those cars were sufficiently damaged that they were unable to return.
When practice concluded, 5 heats were run to set the lineup for tonight’s Race Jugs Race of Champions. The top 4 from each heat will be the field for the event.
After the Race of Champions, I stopped and spoke to 3 of the drivers to see what they were thinking about the actual racing.
My first stop was at the pits of #67, Ken Duke Jr. who traveled to Eagle from Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, 1163 miles to compete. They were still working on repairing his race car, and the mood was solemn. I asked him what had happened to cause him to hit the wall. He said “I’m not sure honestly. I went into turn 1 and the car just went straight into the wall because it wouldn’t turn. We ended up on the guard rail upside down. This is a really big setback to our weekend. We’re going to look at the car. It tweaked the frame a little bit, so I’m not sure what we’re going to do. We’ll see what we can do”.
Next, I spoke to the driver of the #12, Tyler Drueke, from nearby Eagle, Nebraska. Needless to say, he was smiling thanks to a good night of practice and winning his heat in the Race of Champions. Tyler won the whole shebang 2 years ago and is hoping for a repeat this year. I inquired if he was ready for the weekend ahead, to which he replied “I feel a lot better going into tomorrow than I did coming into tonight. We made some good changes tonight, and I think I have my feeling for the car back. I think we’ll be in the hunt, and that’s all that you can ask for. We’ll have to see what kind of pill draw we get and what heat race we get tomorrow.
That’s the key; getting out of your heat race in a good position. But, if you’re good, you’ll figure it out. Some of the fastest cars aren’t here this weekend, but there’s some new guys that showed really good speed. Jeremy Huish showed really good speed earlier in the year here. I think he and others will be in the hunt if they play their cards right and things go good for them”.
Lastly, I stopped by the #20 car of Chad Wilson from Fort Worth, Texas who won the very first Racesaver Nationals. Chad is pretty much a regular each year for the Nationals. He stated “I think this is our eighth year to come back to Eagle. We love the track and love coming to race with everybody here. It’s always fun. We’re ready and we’re looking forward to the show. It’s one of the races on our list and we make it every year. It’s an awesome race and I wish we could do this more often”. I told him that the track doesn’t move and he’s more than welcome any time. He said “No doubt about that, but diesel fuel isn’t cheap these days, making it hard to travel that far down the road. We were a little free tonight, but we’ll get it better for tomorrow and hopefully keep the momentum going the rest of the weekend”.
Tonight’s action begins when the pit gates open at 3:00. Pit admission is $35. Then, at 4:30 the front gates will swing open. Adult admission is $18, youths 6-12 are just $5 and children 5 and under are free.
Hot laps will kick off at 5:00 and racing begins at 6:00. Heat races and features will set the lineup for Sunday’s A Main event which will determine the front 3 rows of the Big Dance where one driver will take home the top prize of $3000!!
See you out there.
RACE OF CHAMPIONS RESULTS:
ROC Sprint Heat 1
1. Lee Goos Jr Hartford, Sd. 2. Corby Scherb Decatur, Tx. 3. Daniel Nekolite O`neill, Ne. 4. Bill Johnson St. Peter, Mn. 5. Kevin Rutherford Flowermound, Tx. 6. Andrew Sullivan Milford, Ia. 7. Trevor Serbus Olivia, Mn. DNS. Ken Duke Jr Selinsgrove, Pa. DNS. Ethan Barrow Bloomington, In.
ROC Sprint Heat 2
1. Tyler Drueke Eagle, Ne. 2. Adam Gullion Lincoln, Ne. 3. Jeb Sessums Cleburne, Tx. 4. Mike Moore Des Moines, Ia. 5. Chris Graf Glencoe, Mn. 6. Jacob Harris Vidor, Tx. 7. Michael Oliver San Antonio, Tx. 8. Bruce Allen Mankato, Mn. DNS. Mike Houseman Jr Des Moines, Ia.
ROC Sprint Heat 3
1. Claud Estes Godley, Tx. 2. Chad Wilson North Richland Hills, Tx. 3. Jason Danley Lincoln, Ne. 4. Koby Werkmeister Armour, Sd. 5. Breckton Crouch Lubbock, Tx. 6. Jacob Gomola Guy Mills, Pa. 7. Brandon Allen St Peter, Mn. 8. Matt Johnson Saint Peter, Mn.
ROC Sprint Heat 4
1. Joey Danley Martell, Ne. 2. Colby Stubblefield Seagoville, Tx. 3. Cole Vanderheiden Papillion, Ne. 4. Chase Brewer Waxahachie, Tx. 5. Tyler Harris Vidor, Tx. 6. Gunnar Pike South Bend, Ne. 7. Daren Bolac Moyock, Nc. 8. Heath Nestrick Caddo Mills, Tx.
ROC Sprint Heat 5
1. Jeremy Huish Ness City, Ks. 2. Stuart Snyder Lincoln, Ne. 3. Zach Blurton Quinter, Ks. 4. Brandon Bosma Rock Rapids, Ia. 5. Dusty Ballenger Harrisburg, Sd. 6. Kayla Martin Brownsburg, In. 7. John Paynter Jr Bloomington, In. DNS. Clint Benson Papillion, Ne.