(Bill W) Seventeen-year-old Jordan Goldesberry picked a good night to bring home his first career sprint car victory. The youngster picked up a win in the 24th Annual Tom Knowles Memorial at the Spoon River Speedway on Sunday night, September 28. The 2007 Ideal Ready Mix Sprint Invaders Rookie of the Year from Springfield, Illinois earned $1,500 for his feature efforts.
Goldesberry won the Shottenkirk Toyota of Quincy Shake-Up Dash earlier in the night, and started the 25-lap main event on the pole after rolling a “one” on the dice. Fellow Springfield resident Joey Moughan lined up on the outside of the front row and set sail on the extreme high-banked 3/8 mile oval when the green flag fell on the feature.
John Schulz, who led the series’ point race entering the night, brought out a caution when he spun in turns one and two on lap three. Moughan took off after the restart and started entering lapped traffic around lap eight. Matt Rogerson moved into second at the outset, with Goldesberry applying steady pressure in third.
With the track taking rubber, Rogerson slipped on lap twelve, allowing Goldesberry by him into second. “I missed the rubber just a little bit,” said Rogerson. “I was really tight if I didn’t get the car sideways. I didn’t think the track would lock down so soon. We had minimal stagger, so I needed to kick it in sideways. I just missed it a bit there and he drove by.”
On lap later, Moughan found trouble, as he tangled with the lapped car of Andy Huston. The two cars skidded to a stop on the frontstretch. That handed the lead to Goldesberry, who talked about his pass of Rogerson earlier. “Matt blew by me originally, because he found the rubber before I did. He just slid high and we were able to get by him.”
The race would endure two more caution periods. Mark Shirshekan rolled to a stop on lap 17, and Brett Triplett, Matt Harms and Moughan tangled on that restart. Goldesberry held up through it all, and even though his tire was close to giving out on the abrasive surface, he pulled away from the field in the final laps. “I’m glad the race ended when it did,” he said. “I don’t know if we could have gotten any farther on that tire.”
Rogerson followed in second, and sprint rookie Ben Wagoner was a strong third. “We ran good,” said Wagoner. “This is only my fifth (sprint) race, so taking third tonight was a really good accomplishment. We did have some motor problems. It was loading up with fuel and wouldn’t go on restarts, otherwise, maybe we could have had something for the first two.”
Ryan Jamison came from row five to fourth, ahead of Josh Schneiderman, Mike Trent, Korey Weyant, hard-charger Jimmy Davies and Tommy Rockwell, who rounded out the top ten. Wagoner, Jerrod Hull and Goldesberry claimed heat races.
Goldesberry’s win over the 22-car field was special. “It means a lot, it’s been a lot of hard work,” he says of his first triumph. “It took us two years to get the first one…I hope we can get the second one a lot quicker. My Mom and Dad make it all possible, along with our sponsors.”
The Ideal Ready Mix Sprint Invaders wind up their season with a doubleheader the weekend of October 3 and 4. On Friday, they’ll travel to the Morgan County Speedway in Jacksonville, Illinois to battle for the $1,500 to win Herb Barlow Memorial. On Saturday, it will be on to 34 Raceway near West Burlington, Iowa for the season finale paying $1,500 to the winner.
Results
Ideal Ready Mix 25-lap A main Finish (started): 1. 65, Jordan Goldesberry, Springfield, IL (1) 2. 29, Matt Rogerson, Burlington, IA (4) 3. 84, Ben Wagoner, Emden, IL (6) 4. 51J, Ryan Jamison, Mediapolis, IA (9) 5. 49, Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA (11) 6. 10, Mike Trent, Rocheport, MO (8) 7. 15, Bobby Mincer, Burlington, IA (14) 8. 99w, Korey Weyant, Springfield, IL (7) 9. 99, Jimmy Davies, Oquawka, IL (18) 10. 95, Tommy Rockwell, Towanda, IL (13) 11. 2, John Schulz, West Burlington, IA (15) 12. 44, John Draper, Bryant, IL (21) 13. 17, Austin McCarl, Altoona, IA (10) 14. 2s, Justin Springer, East Peoria, IL (20) 15. 18A, Dan Avery, Burlington, IA (19) 16. 22, Bret Tripplett, Middletown, IL (16) 17. 53H, Matt Harms, Morton, IL (5) 18. 8H, Joey Moughan, Springfield, IL (2) 19. 3, Mark Shirshekan, Farmington, MO (17) 20. 4m, Mark Tischer, Hannibal, MO (22) 21. 40, Andy Huston, Roseville, IL (12) 22. 12, Jerrod Hull, Sikeston, MO (3). Lap Leaders: Moughan 1-13, Goldesberry 14-25.
E. G. Staats & Company Awards Heat Race #1 (8 laps, top two to Dash): 1. Ben Wagoner (1) 2. Matt Rogerson (5) 3. Korey Weyant (6) 4. Austin McCarl (2) 5. Tommy Rockwell (3) 6. Bret Tripplett (7) 7. Dan Avery (4) 8. Mark Tischer (8)
Golden Eagle Distributors/Budweiser Heat Race #2 (8 laps, top two to Dash): 1. Jerrod Hull (2) 2. Joey Moughan (5) 3. Mike Trent (1) 4. Josh Schneiderman (3) 5. Bobby Mincer (6) 6. Mark Shirshekan (4) 7. Justin Springer (7)
Beechbuilt Heat Race #3 (8 laps, top four to A main, top two to Dash): 1. Jordan Goldesberry (4) 2. Matt Harms (2) 3. Ryan Jamison (7) 4. Andy Huston (1) 5. John Schulz (6) 6. Jimmy Davies (3) 7. John Draper (5)
Shottenkirk Toyota of Quincy Shake-Up Dash (6 laps): 1. Jordan Goldesberry (2) 2. Joey Moughan (4) 3. Jerrod Hull (6) 4. Matt Rogerson (1) 5. Matt Harms (3) 6. Ben Wagoner (5)
Contingency Awards:
Hard Charger – Jimmy Davies
The Brake Man – Andy Huston
Diversified Machine – Jerrod Hull
M&W Aluminum Products – Jimmy Davies
Ultra Shield – Mark Shirshekan
Saldana Racing Products – John Schulz
Rod End Supply – Korey Weyant, Bobby Mincer
Hepfner Racing Products – Matt Harms
Velocity Wings – Dan Avery
Kinser Air Filters – Austin McCarl