Dirt Empire Magazine - Issue 04 - 2021 by dirtempiremagazine

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L AT E

ME 100

REVIEW

PICTURES

M O D E L

M O D I F I E D S P R I N T S T O C K &

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S N E F F E T S OUR FAR E WE L L TO A L E GE ND

D L I H C S N HAUDE J C AC JA

Issue 04 - 2021

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DORA EEPS EL W S N O T 60 N OVER S PAGE BRANDO E R U T C I U IN P T BALLO REVIEW • ROBER

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COVER PHOTO CONTRIBUTORS: KYLE STEFFENS - JOSH JAMES JAC HAUDENSCHILD - PAUL ARCH

M O D E L

M O D I F I E D S P R I N T S T O C K &

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STEFFENS O UR FA RE WE LL TO A LE G E ND

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DORA EEPS EL TON SW N OVER E 60 BRANDO RES PAG U IN PICTU T BALLO REVIEW • ROBER

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Issue 04 • Volume 01 2021 Advertising Info: email: dirtempiremagazine@gmail.com phone: 912.342.8026 OWNER/PUBLISHER Adam Cornell EDITOR Justin Zoch SUBSCRIPTION COORDINATOR Abigail Cornell WORDS Ashley Allinson, Ashley Zimmerman, Bert Lehman, Bill Blumer Jr., Bob Mays, Brett Swanson, Chad Meyer, Chris Romano, Cyndi Stiffler, Danny Burton, David Sink, Doug Seeger, Elizabeth Madley, Eric Arnold, Gary Costa, Greg Soukup, Jessica Jenkins, Joanne Cram, Joe Duvall, Kelley Carlton, Kevin Oldham, Larry Weeks, Lee Ackerman, Melissa Coker, Mike Spieker, Odell Suttle, Scott Erickson, TJ Buffenbarger, Todd Heintzelman, Vahok Hill PICTURES Adam Mollenkopf, Andy Newsome, Bill Miller, Bill Taylor, Bob Mays, Bob Yurko, Brad Plant, Brandon Anderson, Brendon Bauman, Brian Bouder, Bruce Palla, Buck Monson, Buzz Fisher, Carey Fox, Chad Wells, Chris McDill, Chris Pederson, Conrad Nelson, Dan DeMarco, Danny Howk, David Campbell, David Giles, David Hill, David Pratt, Dennis Krieger, Don Laidlaw, Donna Rosenstengel, Doug Burgess, Doug Vandeventer, Glen Starek, Gordy O’Field, Greg Stanek, Greg Teel, Heath Lawson, Jacy Norgaard, Jason Orth, Jason Spencer, Jason Wells, Jeff Bylsma, Jim Collum Jr., Jim DenHamer, Jim Zimmerline, Jimmy Jones, Joe Orth, Joe Secka, John Dadalt, John Lee, John Rothermel, Jon Holliday, Joseph Swann, Ken Kelly, Lee Greenawalt, Leif Tillotson, Mark Funderburk, Mark Sublett, Matt Butcosk, Michael Diers, Michael Moats, Mike Campbell, Mike Damic, Mike Feltenberger, Mike Howard, Mike Musslin, Mike Ruefer, Millie Tanner, Patrick Miller, Paul Arch, Paul Gould, Quentin Young, Rich LaBrier, Richard Barnes, Rick Neff, Rick Sherer, Robert Wing, Rocky Ragusa, Ron Gilson, Ryan Northcote, Scott Swenson, Seth Stone, Steve Walters, Tara Chavez, Terry Page, Tim Aylwin, Tim Hunt, Todd Boyd, Tom Macht, Tony Hammett, Travis Branch, Troy Junkins, Tyler Carr, Tyler Rinkin, Zach Yost, Zakary Kriener

Dirt Empire Magazine is published 8 times annually. Copyright © 2021 Dirt Empire Magazine. Dirt Empire is a registered trademark of Dirt Empire Magazine and cannot be used without prior written authorization. Any unauthorized use of the Dirt Empire Magazine Logo or related icons is strictly prohibited. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved. Dirt Empire Magazine and its writers and editors are not responsible for typos or clerical errors in advertisements or articles. Postmaster: Send all address changes to: Dirt Empire Magazine, PO Box 919 Brunswick, GA 31521 Subscription rate is $36 US annually. Canadian subscribers add $24 annually. International subscribers add $72 annually.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

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CONTENTS

Photo: Josh James

Issue 04 - 2021

7 Fore Word – Adam Cornell 8 From the Editor – Justin Zoch 10 News and Notes 12 Funny Side of the Track 13 Moving Pics - Dirt Dobber 14 Lighter Side of Dirt 16 Action Capture 18 Holey Shirts 20 In Memorium 22 Top Five 24 Action Capture 26 Ask The Driver 30 Action Capture 32 Short Track Stars - Jason Fusselman 34 Kyle Steffens 40 Jac Haudenschild 48 Beauty of Dirt 50 Review in Pictures – Show-Me 100 54 Chris Ferguson 58 Short Track Stars – Daniel Robinson 60 Review in Photos – The Dream(s) 64 Photographer Focus – Josh James 68 Karting Spotlight 71 Moving Pics - Speedway Car Cams 72 Universal Tech 74 Yesterday’s Dirt 76 The Dirt Chronicles 78 New & Featured Products 80 Advertiser’s Index 81 Guest Mic Drop – Jimmy Jones

Ashley Zimmerman gets Kyle Steffens to pump the brakes a bit and slow down for a chat on page 34.

FEATURES 34 KYLE STEFFENS WILL RACE ANYTHING

A willingness to run anything, anytime has given Kyle Steffens a long career in the sport and he talks about how all of that diverse experience helps him as he now concentrates on Silver Crown cars and dirt modifieds. 40 FAREWELL TO THE WILD CHILD

Jac Haudenschild started pushing boundaries on the racetrack back in 1974 and he is saying farewell with one last tour through the country. We check in on his last season and relive some of his best memories in this sendoff to a legend. 50 SHOW ME A FIRST TIME WINNER

Hudson O’Neal locked down his first Crown Jewel event at the 29th Show-Me 100 and joined his father Don to become the only father-son combo to have scored the big one at Lucas Oil Speedway. 54 THE NATURAL

Chris Ferguson has an easy-going demeanor that makes competing with his family-run team seem a lot easier than it is in reality. We shine a light on a burgeoning star in the late model world. 60 THE $273,000 MAN!

Brandon Overton had himself a week as Eldora officially reopened with a double Dream weekend and the packed grandstands got to watch the same man win all four feature events! DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Salon at Studio B

WE’RE MOVING MY PARENTS used to warn me “don’t bite off more than you can chew; don’t get in over your head.” I have made a career out of biting off way more than I could hope to chew and jumping in at the deep end of the pool. When I launched Dirt Empire Magazine, I knew it was going to be an unbelievable amount of work. I had a fair idea of what it would take to make it a success. And I also knew I was getting in way over my head. I was confident I could do it because I had a great editor in Justin Zoch, and an amazing group of freelance photographers and writers who love this sport as much as I do. I’m wise enough to know I’m going to make mistakes and stumble a bit out of the gate, but I’ve learned over the years that to fail is not to fall. To fail is to fall and then just lay there. Skinned knees or no, we’ll be forging ahead, making changes when necessary and when they make sense to provide a better experience for our readers. That said, we’re already making a major change. We’re moving our headquarters from Watertown, New York, to Brunswick, Georgia. Why? Because launching a new magazine and media company just wasn’t enough excitement. If I was going to stay true to character and bite off more than I could chew, I needed to throw moving across the

a eliss

to: M Pho ey

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country into the mix. The reality is a simple one: I couldn’t take the winters anymore. In an age of mobile devices, internet, overnight delivery and Zoom video conferencing, it really doesn’t matter where you live as long as you have a fast connection speed. How did I get in Northern New York to begin with? Well, a decade ago I was head-hunted to take over the art department for a major US consumer brand whose headquarters were in Watertown, New York. We moved the family there and made a good life, learning how to cope with copious amounts of snowfall. The winters in Watertown are ridiculous. Don’t get me wrong, some people love snow and they love Watertown. That’s great! I’m not slagging you for loving something. But for me, there are too many old injuries that get aggravated by the bitter cold weather and having to shovel feet of snow regularly. When you hear on the news about a place in the US that gets four feet of snow from a single storm, that place is inevitably Watertown, NY. You don’t have to shovel sunshine. I only lasted at that company for a few years. I was not cut out for the skullduggery, back-biting and backstabbing that goes on in the corporate world. I was never interested in climbing the corporate ladder and playing politics. I just wanted to create something that people would enjoy. After leaving that company, I took a few years to pursue a writing career which had modest success. I penned four novels as well as writing and illustrating a children’s book. It was very rewarding. Then my writing took me into the dirt track racing industry and I found myself more and more entrenched in this sport. I’d grown up with Northeast modifieds and pro stocks. Though we always have an affinity for that which we grew up with, I’ve learned to love sprints and late models with just as much vigor as my Northeast mods. When it came time to launch Dirt Empire Magazine, we had to decide where we were going to do it. New York

fore WORD

By Adam Cornell State has started to become less and less hospitable for small businesses. Our research indicated Georgia was more welcoming. But the most important reason we’re moving is because my wife is from Georgia. A much wiser man than me once said “Happy wife, happy life.” She has been a trooper dealing with the cold temperatures for the entirety of our marriage. Nineteen years of wishing you lived in the south is long enough. Year twenty will be celebrated in Georgia. And she deserves it. There is no way possible I would have dared to launch Dirt Empire Magazine without the support and strength of my wife. Fellas pro tip: marry somebody smarter than you. (I can hear my older brother saying “that wasn’t too hard for you, moron.”) Seriously though, without her, you wouldn’t have this magazine. So as you leaf through this issue, say a little thank you to Belinda. One last thing. Your experience should improve with the move. With this printing we’ve switched print vendors. The new one is in Georgia, not far from our new headquarters. This means quality control can improve and production time can decrease, perhaps by weeks. All in all, this is going to be a good thing for Dirt Empire Magazine, for you the reader and for me and my family. I love it when a plan comes together. Wish us safe travels.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

THE TAO OF JAC

from the EDITOR

By Justin Zoch A GOOD TWO DECADES AGO, I took an introductory Philosophy course at Gustavus Adolphus College that did little for my intellect other than convince me that there are a lot of different ways to see the world and that I wouldn’t remember any of them past the final exam. Proust just didn’t stick. I’ve found other thinkers through the years and most of them are geniuses that can turn a meaningful phrase and also put it to melody. Singer/songwriters like Todd Snider, Steve Earle, Greg Brown and Kevn Kinney have been my philosophers. Two others, unfortunately, were lost this year as John Prine and Jerry Jeff Walker passed on in 2020. Another legend isn’t leaving us forever, thankfully, but he is leaving the track. Jac Haudenschild is on his farewell tour and the lack of a Wild Child on the racetrack is yet to be fully felt. It’s not just his hard driving style that we’ll miss, although we certainly will; it’s the whole attitude that Jac has brought to the sport for over four decades that will be missed. Obviously, racing is a competitive sport that demands a sense of dedication and devotion to master. You cannot be successful in racing without a passion to win. Think of the greats – AJ Foyt, Dale Earnhardt, Steve Kinser, Tony Stewart; these are icons who simply refused to lose and struggled to accept any other result. We’ve been preached to that obsession is the only way to success in the sport but I think Haudenschild disproves that maxim. Yes, Haud is

dedicated, wants to win, strives to win and has done everything in his power to win – including ripping apart cushions and race cars with equal abandon to do so. But, Jac also has an innate ability to let it slide, move on and simply race another night. Haud has always been Haud no matter the result of the race. A good decade and a half ago, photographer Dennis Krieger and I were having a beer in a pub just south of Volusia Speedway Park following a Speedweeks show with some racers and friends of ours. One of those racers was Haudenschild. I don’t recall the exact

Jac also has an innate ability to let it slide, move on and simply race another night. Haud has always been Haud no matter the result of the race. circumstances but I believe Jac had lost an engine, or was felled by some other gremlin, while leading the race just hours before. Now, Haud was drinking a beer and shooting pool as cool and calm as could be. He had a shot rim out of a corner and simply said something like “damn, I guess I’ve just been losing all night” and laughed it off. He’d moved on and was ready to chuckle at the night’s earlier misfortune already. Jac’s ability to always be Jac, regardless of win, lose or crash has endeared him to not only multiple generations of fans but to the myriad crew chiefs, car owners and crew members who have raced with him over the years. Sure, he’s ripped through a lot of car owners over the years, but if it wasn’t for the pure, peaceful Tao of Jac, he may have used

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

up his last shot in the hunks of twisted race cars in the late 1970s when he was refining just how high the Haud line could really go. Without his inherent affability and attitude, he may not have lasted four decades as a hired gun. The late Jerry Jeff Walker released a song called “Gettin’ By” in November of 1973, just months before Haud starting his racing career. Can you think of any better way to remember the Wild Child than these sentiments? Just gettin’ by on gettin’ by is my stock-in-trade Living it day to day Pickin’ up the pieces wherever they fall Just letting it roll, letting the high times carry the low I’m just living my life easy come, easy go

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news

NOTES

FIRE DESTROYS KEIZER ALUMINUM WHEELS FACTORY On Wednesday night, May 26, the Keizer Aluminum Wheels factory caught fire and was unable to be extinguished until four hours later. It left the business as a complete loss that may well cost upwards of $4 million to rebuild. The company is based in Orange City, Iowa, and produces aluminum wheels for a wide-range of motor racing disciplines. The cause of the fire was yet to be determined at press time. The company tweeted out a message to their customers in the aftermath of the fire. “We are devastated. We’re heartbroken for all Keizer customers that have taken us here. We don’t know if this is the end, or a new beginning. We’ll have temp office set up on Tuesday to start fielding questions. We appreciate the prayers from our racing family. Luv you all.” Best wishes to the Huisman family and all the folks at Keizer as they determine their next steps and sort out the future of their family business.

Photos: Jeff Bylsma

ANOTHER TRACK REOPENS – MONETT IS BACK! One year after losing their season championships to rain, the Monett Motor Speedway in Missouri has reopened under new management. The season opener was June 19 for the 2021 season. The speedway runs on Saturday nights and features five classes of cars – Midwest Modifieds, B Modifieds, USRA Hornets/Mini Stocks, POWRi Super Stocks and Pure Stocks. The ASCS Sprint Cars will also make a visit to the speedway this summer but the late models have been dropped from the weekly lineup.

OPEN!

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Photo: Paul Arch

CLOSED

OHIO LEGENDS GET SPEEDWEEK SENDOFF stretch when he only missed the top five As you may have noticed from the cover of the magazine you’re holding, in points two times. He narrowly lost the 1999 title to his brother Kenny and was the 2021 season is Jac Haudenschild’s farewell and he has been grabbing an Ohio Speedweek champion during the 2001 season. lots of well-deserved accolades and During an Ohio Speedweek show at attention. However, there is another the Jacobs family home track – Wayne long-time member of Ohio royalty that County – Jac and Dean showed off retro has declared this to be his swan song. Dean Jacobs will retire at the end of the paint schemes and took a pace lap season. together. Famously affable and competitive, Jacobs, younger brother to Hall of Jacobs scored 25 wins with the All Famer Kenny Jacobs, is a member of the Star Sprint series and countless other famous Buckeye State based clan and victories throughout the state of Ohio was a perennial contender for All Star titles from 1996 through 2003 during a during his career.

MILLSTREAM SPEEDWAY CLOSES SUDDENLY; IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED It was suddenly announced that Millstream Speedway in Findlay, Ohio, has closed indefinitely and the rest of the 2021 racing schedule has been canceled immediately. The facility is in need of safety upgrades and the plans are to open as soon as those changes have been made. Promoter Scott Warner made the announcement through a detailed letter on their website. “As we continue to work toward the reopening of Millstream Speedway, we continue to be challenged in almost every aspect. Since May, new additional costs and projects have been identified. The projects and related need to be completed before the safe return of racing. Several of the projects are capital improvements that involve both the promoter and the track ownership, which we are working together to complete.” “We understand the adverse reaction of making this decision. The honest answer to why we are in the position, is the task has been larger than anticipated. We wish it was as opening the ticket gate, the pit gate, and go racing, but the proper operations of a safe and modern racetrack are more than that. It’s also good to remember, we are first time promoters and are learning as we go.” “We also appreciate all the support from fans, drivers, owners, neighbors and people in the racing industry. In an era that has seen more tracks shut down than built, navigating the sustainability of a track is not so easy.”

Photo: Mike Campbell DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

the funny side of THE TRACK

So You wanted to be a track promoter...

By: Adam Cornell

MOWING DOWN CUSHIONS

Have you wondered, while out in the pasture, if your riding lawnmower could handle the high side of a racetrack? If those knobby turf tires could get it done with just the right setup? Well, wonder no more. Turf Cars are gaining popularity throughout the country and here Jacob Lucas goes to the top of Gulf Coast Speedway in Alvin, Texas, with lawnmower tires on his 600 micro sprint. Photo: Carey Akin

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE continues to strive to make the magazine reading experience as alive and exciting as a night at the races. Utilize your smart phone or tablet with the QR codes below to jump right to the videos. Who would have thought you could watch a video in a magazine? We’re kind of awesome like that, but couldn’t do it without the hardwork of the videographers. WHO IS DIRT DOBBER VIDEO? Located in Tallahassee Florida, John Horne is the owner and operator DirtDobber Video, a professional video and promotion service geared towards the Motorsports Industry. Like his Facebook page and be sure to subscribe to his channel on YouTube. Facebook: @DirtDobberVideo • YouTube: Dirt Dobber Video

moving

PICS

DIRT DOBBER - HAMMERDOWN!

POINT YOUR SMART CAMERA PHONE AT THE QR CODE ABOVE TO CHECK OUT THE VIDEO!

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

T&D Machine Products

the lighter side of

DIRT

ASIDE FROM SPONSORSHIPS, racers use their cars to convey everything from politics to jokes and to express their personalities. Here are some of our favorites from the last couple of months.

REMEMBER BACK in early 2020 when all everyone did was watch iRacing on their computers (or on CBS Sports Newtwork!) and watch Tiger King on Netflix. John Reinke, a key fixture in the show, is quite involved in dirt track racing and his son races at Lawton Speedway in the Reinke’s Sardine Oil entry. Meanwhile, Tyler Webb displays the most famous tagline from the show on the back of his modified at Lawton Speedway. If you know, you know. Photo: Ashley Allinson

OKLAHOMA-BASED racer Rodell “Ro” Epps has a nifty wrap that showcases his time as a member of the United States Marine Corp where he was a member and a recruiter from 2001-2010. Photo: Ashley Allinson

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ONE OF THE MANY iterations of the most famous circle in late model history. Photo: Michael Moats

OKLAHOMAN NOAH GASS has a lot of fun with the side of his race car with this angry monkey design – four grips on the wheel! Photo: Paul Arch

THESE DECALS BEGAN popping up when USAC legend Dave Darland suffered a mild stroke in late April and was forced to the sidelines as he recovers. Logan Seavey sported this decal at USAC’s Eldora event. Photo: Paul Arch

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

action

CAPTURE

Can you have fun in a race car all by yourself without a crowd or money on the line or even competitors? Yes, yes, you can! Photo: Dave Pratt Photo: Rick Sherer

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

FOCUS Shock Technologies

HOLEY SHIRTS

the lighter side of

DIRT VINTAGE T-SHIRTS WITH holes, or new designs that are wholly awesome! We don’t care, if it’s a cool looking racing tee, we love ‘em!

JUST BEFORE TAKEOFF Iowa’s Chad Meyer dug this beauty out of storage with the following information on it – “My best guess is that it’s from 1979, his first year with Larry Shaw Race Cars. Billy had 12 feature wins that season and was the Iowa State Fairgrounds Speedway (Des Moines, IA) season champion. By the next year, Billy was a top competitor across the country.”

A SENSATION INDEED Long before he settled into being the Ragin’ Cajun on the World of Outlaws, the late Jason Johnson was the Cajun Sensation and started making a name for himself in Lanny Row’s #41. When Johnson started JJR years later, he kept the 41 number and the team still uses it with current driver Carson Macedo. Submitted by David Giles

HOLEY SHIRTS If you have a favorite vintage t-shirt or a new design that grabs your eye, send it to Dirt Empire Magazine at zoch24@hotmail.com with a quick quip about why you love it.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

WITH A NAME LIKE THAT? How can a place named Fun Valley Speedway close? Come on! The track operated in Hutchinson, Kansas, in the 1980s and also included softball fields, a campground and a waterpark. The track’s heyday was in the early 1980s and was the brainchild of Larry Brown, who morphed Mohawk Speedway into Fun Valley before closing it. Submitted by Chad Meyer

SIGNS SIGNS EVERYWHERE THERE’S SIGNS

the lighter side of

DIRT

Instead of five food groups, the FALS Diner at Fairbury American Legion Speedway only suggests three! Photo: Paul Arch

The folks at Lake Ozark Speedway have a bit of helpful, but likely not oft utilized, advice for every racer. Photo: Dennis Krieger

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Brinn Inc.

in memorium

CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA LEGEND STEVE SMITH PASSES

THE MAN KNOWN forever as the Black Bandit, Steve Smith, passed away in early June after a lengthy illness. Smith leaves behind a legacy of technical virtuosity, kindness, competition and dedication that continues to shine through the industry with his son Stevie Smith. Smith first got behind the wheel during the 1969 season after he moved from Florida to join the burgeoning Central Pennsylvania racing scene. The first of his 266 wins came at BAPS Motor Speedway (then called Susquehanna Speedway). Although his first win didn’t come at Lincoln Speedway, it would quickly become his home track as he dominated the speedway to the tune of nine track titles, including an impressive stretch of consecutive titles from 1973 through 1978. He was also prolific at Williams Grove and he scored a track title there in 1989 and National Open victories in 1974, 1976 and again in 1981. Smith won all over Central Pennsylvania through the 1970s and 1980s and even kicked off his fourth decade of racing by winning the inaugural Pennsylvania Sprint Car Speedweek title in 1991. He raced until 1996 when he garnered his final two wins at Lincoln Speedway with the All Stars and at Hagerstown at the World of Outlaws. Smith was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2000.

Photos: Paul Arch

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

VAUGHN WINTER SR. FOUNDER OF WINTERS PERFORMANCE PASSES THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE Vaughn Winter Sr., founder of Winters Performance, was an innovator in the racing world. Born April 16, 1931, in York, Pennsylvania, Vaughn joined the United States Air Force as soon as age would allow. While stationed outside of Cheyenne, Wyoming, in the early-’50s, he began drag racing a ’49 Olds 98 and building highperformance automatic transmissions for himself and other racers. Before long, his work was in high demand, with dealerships from as far away as Denver, Colorado, calling on him to rebuild transmissions. His informal business was off and running. In 1958 he and his wife Madeline returned to York, Pennsylvania, and formally launched Winters Transmissions, which later became Winters Performance. In the decades that followed, Vaughn worked tirelessly to build Winters’ reputation as a leader in the racing and performance community. His creativity and ingenuity led to the development of countless components, from quick change rear ends to transmissions and other driveline equipment. Today the company Vaughn and Madeline built is known worldwide, providing high performance parts to racers and hot rodders in every corner of the globe. Vaughn passed away on April 27th, 2021—just over a week past his 90th birthday. In a lifetime full of amazing accomplishments, perhaps his finest one is that his hard work allowed his family to take part in the business as well. Through 69 years of marriage, he and Madeline worked side-by-side, continuing to spend time at Winters nearly every day. He passed along his love of hard work and passion for racing to his daughter, Nina, and grandson, Bob, who are continuing his legacy of innovation and creativity at Winters Performance.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

my top

FIVE TOP FIVE INTERESTING SHOTS FROM THE DREAM(S) By Paul Arch

WE TASKED PAUL ARCH WITH TRAWLING THE GROUNDS OF ELDORA FOR FOUR STRAIGHT NIGHTS OF ACTION DURING THE RUNNING OF THE DOUBLE DREAMS AND CAPTURING THE FIVE MOST INTERESTING SIGHTS HE COULD SHARE WITH THOSE OF US UNABLE TO HAVE FULL ACCESS TO ONE OF THE BIGGEST CROWN JEWEL DOUBLEHEADERS IN THE HISTORY OF THE SPORT. FANS - The coolest and greatest thing I saw at the Dreams was truly incredible. After attending all the 2021 surreal events at Eldora, sans fans, it was cool to see a large crowd at The Dreams!

MEMORIAL - The pace lap on June 12 for the Dream No. 26 was cool with the sunset and the “Missing Man” formation in the front row to remember Berneice Baltes, who passed on February 24, 2021. I suspect “the House That Earl Built” would have never happened without Berneice. God bless them both!

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

TECH - It was cool to see a relatively thorough pre-race tech inspection including driver’s helmet, fire suit and HANS, plus body templates. The inspectors included officials from the Dirtcar Late Models, the World of Outlaws Late Models, and the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Models. Many cars failed the body template test or had improper window openings and were pushed aside for revision and then re-inspected. The opening of the rear side window had to be enlarged on many cars. Here Travis Stemler wields the tin snips.

DESIGN - The super late models are showing an offset or twist of the body to the right so as not to be aligned/parallel to the roll cage and frame. The Kevin Rumley No. 6 driven by Kyle Larson shows this trend.

DRAMA - A Dream or other marquee late model race at Eldora would not be complete without some Scott Bloomquist drama. The Bloomquist team arrived last on Wednesday and then had issues getting through tech inspection. President of Team Zero Cody Sommer is seen here leaping onto the hood and front fender in an effort to pass the template while Scott and a large crowd looks on. It is cool to see Bloomquist continue to be a draw even as his win totals have dwindled in recent years.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

action

CAPTURE

Photo: Mark Funderburk

When pigs fly? What about when Bacon launches into orbit? After Brady Bacon left the park at Terre Haute during a heat race, many a promise may have had to pay up. Incredibly, Bacon was able to return to racing in the Hulman Classic running his backup car up to third place in the feature.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Kinsler

ask the

DRIVER

DRIVER: ROBERT BALLOU By Ashley Zimmerman

Dirt Empire is taking questions provided by YOU and will seek out your favorite drivers to get you the answers to your long awaited questions! All you have to do to submit your question is just Like Dirt Empire on any social media and include #DEasks with your question. Then watch for the next issue to see if your question is featured!

CALIFORNIA NATIVE TURNED Indiana resident Robert Ballou is no stranger to victory lane. He’s not only a non-wing sprint car driver but car owner. He’s also no stranger to the struggles of balancing budgets, day jobs, and injuries. Not one to back down from adversity, he’s most known for his grit, determination, and outspoken demeanor. A fan favorite on the USAC tour, Dirt Empire Magazine wrangled a few moments of Ballou’s time to present some of #DEAsks fan’s most pondered questions. Dirt Empire: You originally ran winged sprint cars and then transitioned to running non wing sprint cars. What made you change? Robert Ballou: In 2006, when the economy was starting to tank in California, my dad was a sales guy for

Photo: Paul Arch

a door and window company. He was commission-based sales so when the new construction came to a screeching halt, that left no money. I was 16 or 17 and had only ran about five or six winged races in a 360. We had gone to the Knoxville Nationals and met a guy that was a non-wing sprint car owner. He had just fired his driver. Ultimately, that’s how I ended up in Indiana because he offered me that ride. My dad didn’t have any money to keep going, so as soon as I graduated, I moved here. DE: What was the biggest adjustment from California to Indiana? RB: The biggest adjustment would have been figuring out how to slow down. When you run a wing sprint car and go to a nonwing sprint car, you can’t run a non-wing car even half as hard as you can a winged sprint car. They’ve always said it’s easier to slow a guy down than to speed him up. So, I’d say that was the biggest deal, finding how tight you can get the string before it breaks that first year when you come out here. I really busted my ass a lot; we wrecked a lot of race cars trying to find that fine line of what was over the limit.

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DE: When you started out racing, did you envision you would still be at it this long? RB: With any kid, you go wherever your parents send you. If they’re into hockey or soccer, ultimately that’s where you get shoved. My dad wanted to race as a kid and was just always a huge race fan. So, I grew up going to the races because that’s what he liked to do. It was just one of those deals where you’re led by whatever your parents like. By the time I knew any better, I had been doing it for so long, I didn’t know anything else. We used to race something like 48 weekends a year; we traveled all across the country. We had no downtime; I never went and did anything but race, so I really didn’t know anything else. I know how to go to work, and then cobble a race car back together to get to race it another night. DE: How have you kept racing so long? RB: I can’t afford to quit, I guess that’s the real reason. You’re always chasing the next victory. Being a privately owned team, with no big sponsors, no paid employees, no full-time crew, just the fact that we can show up from night to

Ballou tosses clay at Kokomo, where he was once sidelined for a spell after badly breaking his arm following a crash after the checkered flag on a win. Photo: Mike Campbell night and realistically compete for a win is pretty incredible. If someone was a fly on the wall around here for a week or two, you’d scratch your head and wonder how we even get there. It’s pretty challenging at times. I work a full-time job and just trying to coordinate who is going to the racetrack – there’s some nights it’s just my girlfriend and I. DE: Any other types of cars that would like to race? RB: No, not really. When you’re a kid, everyone dreams about going to NASCAR. But, in reality, I feel NASCAR isn’t what it was when I was a kid. I wish that at some point non-wing racing could get to where winged sprint cars and late models are but I believe that it will never get to that point. I guess, at some point our only option will be to go wing race. DE: How did you get the nickname “The Madman”? RB: At the time, I had the nickname the Rocklin Rocket, I’m not sure who gave me that one. But I was about 14, racing in Hanford, California, with a 360 winged Rebel Cup series. I was racing for the lead and the lap car broke something and I jumped his wheel and it knocked my nose wing off. I went to the work area and they pulled the rest of the wing off. I went to the back, and came back to fifth or something. Sean Buckley, who does

Jackslash, had been announcing there for three or four years and he said I was driving like a madman. Ever since then, he kept pushing it and that’s kind of how that came about. DE: What is your typical week like to get ready to go racing? RB: My work, as of late, really gets into my racing. I don’t really have enough funding to be able to not work. I have to go to work but then the race team sacrifices. On a general week, I’m working 60 hours in about four days, so there’s really no time to be in the shop. Everything suffers because of that, it’s basically a miracle that I can even make it to the racetrack, let alone even have a chance to be in contention to win. I’m trying to rectify this situation; we’ll have to see where it goes. DE: In 2020, you suffered a broken arm, and in the past have suffered a broken back/neck. How have you prepared after injuries and do you feel that you’ve ever come back after an injury with any apprehension or extra caution? RB: I feel I’ve been really lucky to be honest. I broke my neck and back, I have no pain, and my broken arm, I have virtually no pain there either. It’s not as strong as I would like it to be, but I’d have to take about six months off of work and work at improving it every day to even get

it to where it maybe was before the injury at its worst. I’d say it’s probably 70% but it’s better than nothing. I don’t think I’ve ever looked at racing any differently after an injury. I’ve said it for years, I’m here for a good time not a long time, whatever ends up happening, that is the direction that I chose to go. If I die in a race car, it’s better than getting shot walking down the street. DE: What have been some of your most memorable wins? RB: Any of the wins at Eldora. The first year I moved here, we won both races. They had just put new dirt down for the first one and it was really rough and almost undriveable. Then when we came back in the fall it was completely different; back to the normal slick to the wall. We won both of them. Then, obviously, after I broke my neck and back, my first weekend back we won the second night, that kind of gives you a little life that you can still do it. Then after I broke my arm and with COVID also last year, we didn’t’ get to race the whole year but ran the majority, it was the first year I hadn’t gotten a win in years. So, then to come out this year and finally get things headed in the right direction and get my car where I could feel comfortable and finally knock one off at Eldora this year. The place has been pretty good to me over the years. Other than that, maybe the Oval

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since it was already junked, it didn’t really matter. We made a few changes, restarted 16th, and coming to turn four on the last lap, I split Brady Bacon and Jesse Hockett, got by them both, and won the race. It was pretty intense.

Ballou back in a winged car at Williams Grove in 2020. Photo: John Rothermel Nationals, or winning the Indiana Sprint Week championship – it’s a pretty tough grueling week. DE: Do you have a favorite trophy? RB: That’s a tough one. I’m going to have to say, it’s not the biggest win I’ve had, but it’s the most meaningful one that I won two years ago - the Josh Burton Memorial. They give you a real Henry Golden Boy rifle. Josh lost his life in a sprint car at Bloomington [Indiana] and his parents put on this race every year. It’s a really cool trophy. DE: When it comes to racetracks, what are your favorite types of tracks and conditions to race on? RB: Anywhere that has a curb to lean on, it needs to be kind of slick in the middle and have a bottom where you can slow down and catch it to where it’s even. Ten years ago, Kokomo Speedway, that’s how it got its name the Baddest Bullring. You used to be able to run the bottom, Shane Cottle was the king around the bottom there, then you had Dave Darland who had found the top, but then there was Brad Sweet that would run above the cushion and he would either win or wreck. If you could run 25 or 30 laps perfectly in either lane, you would win the race there. That was the ultimate track, ten years ago. The ultimate racetrack would be slick through the middle, something to lean on around the top, and a narrow bottom to where you have to slow down to hit it. That’s the ultimate situation. DE: What would you say is left on your racing bucket list? RB: I’d like to go back to wing racing, not that I’d want to make it a fulltime deal,

but just to get a wing program that’s capable of winning. It’s just difficult when you don’t have a dedicated crew or fulltime people to take care of things. When you start having separate cars, it’s hard to keep track of what’s going on when someone isn’t here during the day. I would like to go get an All Star or World of Outlaws win or something of that nature. I don’t want to say I’ve done everything there is in a non-wing sprint car but pretty close to it. DE: What’s your wildest racing story? RB: In 2010, the ASCS had a non-wing Sprint Bandit series. Brady Bacon, Jesse Hockett and guys like that had been traveling with it. They ran like 15 or 20 races that season. We went to Houston Raceway Park and “Lightning Leon Bacon” came out of retirement because they needed a couple extra cars to finish the feature. He spun out in front of me getting into turn three, and I had nowhere to go, I hit him and it bent the whole front of my car. There was rain in the area, so you weren’t allowed to pull out a backup car, so we started to fix it and had about ten minutes to get back out onto the track. So, we just knocked the torsion bar bushings out, the nose of the front of the car was bent over about eight or ten inches, so we put the thing back on the ground and just kept turning the knobs until it kind of looked halfway decent. I started 19th and then there were two starts with two cars that flipped, so they had an open red to let people loosen their race car up because it was pretty heavy and fast. We had said that we were just going to start and then park the thing, but I said hey if we can get this thing a little better, if I felt I had a car that was worth driving, we’d give it a go,

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DE: Who has been the most influential person in your career? RB: It’s been a few people to be honest. I would say Jimmy Jones taught me what I know, what my base package from when I started doing the deal on my own around 2010 was. He taught me a lot. Obviously, over the years, Flea [Ruzic] has helped me out. He’s too smart for his own good but he’s a good friend of mine. Tom Harris, he lives in England, and races winged sprint cars over here whenever they can get over here. He keeps it in my shop and is a full-time fabricator. He builds these crash em up cars they race over there that look like a modified with a wing on them. It’s a full contact sport, where they can run into you and knock you out of the way and stuff. He’s run sprint cars and builds those frames over in England from scratch so he can make a change, feel the difference and put it into words. We communicate at least weekly. I truly feel that in the last year that he’s probably the best help that I’ve had putting ideas together and actually executing them and making things happen. DE: Best advice for aspiring or struggling drivers? RB: Never give up, never back down. This is a tough game; you just can’t back down. Ballou back in Eldora’s victory lane with USAC in ‘21. Photo: Travis Branch

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Jones Racing Products

action

CAPTURE

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Michael Chilton throwing a pair of epic rooster tails off the cushion at Atomic Speedway. Photo by Ryan Roberts. DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

short track

STARS Photo: Tom Macht

Photo: Carmen Josefson

Avoca, Iowa

JASON FUSSELMAN - PURSUING A LIFELONG HOBBY by Lee Ackerman

IF YOU’RE A MAINSTAY of the local racing scene, odds are that you just love to race. Jason Fusselman is one of those guys. He enjoys racing, he enjoys the fans and he enjoys the other racers. After the races you will usually see a large group of fans gathered around Fusselman’s number 55 Hobby Stock. Pictures are taken, kids sign their name on the trunk lid of his race car and he hands out hero cards. Sometimes a lucky child gets to take home the trophy. Fusselman got started racing when he drove a friend’s car in a mechanics race. He started racing at the Shelby County Speedway in Harlan, Iowa, with his brother in the two-man cruiser class. After that car was claimed by a spectator, they built another two-man cruiser and numbered it 28 after their hero Davey Allison. At the end of the 2000 season, Fusselman’s mother won a two-man cruiser in a raffle at the season ending Tiny Lund Memorial at Shelby County. The car carried Tiny Lund’s number 55. Jason took the #55 cruiser and raced with a friend and his brother kept the #28. 55 has been Fusselman’s number ever since. For the 2003 season, Fusselman

switched to the hobby stock class and was the Rookie of the Year at Shelby County and except for a brief stint in a SportMod that has been his class ever since. In 2010, he switched back to a hobby stock and posted his first career win at the Shelby County Fair race. Since then, Fusselman has continued to race locally in the hobby stocks about 35 races a year. Along the way, he has competed at approximately 25 different tracks in five different states and likes to venture out and add a new track or two every year. About five years ago, some friends told Fusselman that they were going to make him a winner and they started changing things. Every race night they changed something until they found what worked. That become the winning formula for Fusselman, who has now claimed 45 feature wins and five track championships, three at the Shelby County Speedway and two at the Crawford County Speedway in Denison, Iowa. Most of his racing has been at IMCA sanctioned tracks but he has ventured to NASCAR tracks (I-80 Speedway and Adams County) and to some USRA tracks as well.

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When asked what his most memorable night was, Fusselman said, “Well actually I have two. My first feature win in 2010 at the Shelby County Fair stands out because I ran door-to-door with one of the best drivers in the Hobby Stock class in Shannon Anderson. We never traded paint and I was fortunate enough to win by inches.” Another memorable win for Fusselman was in 2017 at the Super Nationals in Boone, Iowa. It was the Race of Champions and Fusselman started tenth in a ten-car field, racing against the best drivers in his class in the nation. Fusselman stormed through the field and on the last lap made the winning move to take the win. “You might say I went from the outhouse to the White House,” said Fusselman. Last summer, Fusselman won the Midwest Madness Tour for Hobby Stocks last year. Over the course of the seven day event, he scored one of the seven nights of racing with a win at Shelby County Speedway in Iowa and bested 96 other drivers who competed during the week. Fusselman has a pretty strong pit crew which in addition to his mom includes Keith Knop, Bill Osbahr, Dave Hulsebus,

Photo: Tom Macht

Tony Attanasio, Tucker Osbahr and Bre Pauley. Several are drivers or have been drivers themselves and have been a big help to Fusselman in getting his game to the top. “Keith (Knop) and Bill (Osbahr) are the ones who told me if you want to win, we have to change some things and that’s when we started making changes and I started winning,” said Fusselman. “I’ve raced against Jason (Fusselman) for about twenty years, going back to the two-man cruiser days,” says Chuck Madden Jr. “We are very close friends,

Photo: Carmen Josefson

have had many good times racing against each other. Jason gets a lot of respect from others. I don’t think you could find a person that would say a bad thing about him. We compete on the track but try and help each other out. If he wrecked, he would be in our shop and we would help him get his car back in shape.” Career hobby stock racers have bucket lists races they’re chasing just like any other racer and Fusselman’s got one hanging out there he’d love to lock down.

“I would like to win the Fall Nationals at RPM Speedway in Hays, Kansas. I haven’t been able to go for the last couple of years but that’s a big race and they have always treated the drivers good down there.” One thing is for sure - Jason Fusselman loves racing at the level he is racing at, he loves the competition, he appreciates his sponsors support as well as his friends and family support and he loves meeting all the fans after the races.

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Dominator Race Products

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MODIFIED

KYLE STEFFENS

MEET THE MAN WHO’LL RACE ANYTHING By Ashley Zimmerman KYLE STEFFENS has strapped into the seat of 20 different styles of race cars, ranging from asphalt to dirt. Not only is he versatile, but he also showed consistency and success throughout his career before settling into UMP modifieds and USAC Silver Crown cars. With a list of accomplishments as long as the Hoosier Mile, it would be an easy assumption that Kyle Steffens’ passion lies in dirt track racing. But the best way to encompass the grit and drive he has comes from Kyle himself when Dirt Empire stole an afternoon to pick the brain of the Missouri native; “I’ve raced everything, even a couple big iRacing races; I’m pretty much addicted to racing. It’s all right though, because when I do die or I’m on my death bed, I’m not going to be worried about the money. I’ll be able to say I had a great time, and I’m ready for wherever I’m going.” Dirt Empire (DE): For those that haven’t followed your racing career, how did you get your start and what has kept you going? Kyle Steffens (KS): I got my start when I was five and racing quarter midgets with my dad [Gordon Steffens]. My dad is my biggest fan. Even though we’ve butt heads over the years, he’s always got my back. My dad is what has kept me going all these years. I’ve always had this weird desire to do well for my dad, or to win races for my dad. I think that always lit a fire in me. DE: Currently, you bounce between

Photo: Josh James modifieds and Silver Crown cars. With the constant back and forth, is it difficult to adjust? KS: Yeah, it is because I don’t get to race the Silver Crown car often. The last couple seasons, I’ve only got to run a few times a year. We don’t get to race that car a lot. This year I hope to get more seat time. You get more comfortable as the races go on. A modified drives really straight on the right front and a Crown car drives really straight on the right rear. It messes you up – you have to throw

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those things out of your mind. You have to have a whole different aspect on it. Silver Crown is also 100 miles so you have to conserve fuel, watch your tires and play those games. There is a lot more mental aspect in it than a 30 lap modified race. DE: Overall, you’ve raced over 20 different forms of race cars. Is there one particular form that best meshes with your style of driving? KS: Yeah, dirt modifieds for sure. This

DE: Has racing things like Silver Crown cars aided you in racing

Photo: Josh James

KYLE STEFFENS

year I’m hoping to race five Silver Crown races and I hope we can get better in that. My long term goal is to be a top five contender in Silver Crown. Eventually, I hope to get an asphalt ride. I’m older now, and have two kids, so my NASCAR dreams are over and staying closer to home is important. Over all, I think the modifieds suit me best, but I have goals to be better in a Silver Crown car.

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Photo: Tyler Rinkin

Photo: Rich Labrier modifieds or vice versa? KS: I think a modified translates over to many different cars because they are partially open wheel. They don’t have as much aerodynamics to them as a late model does so that tails into the Silver Crown deal – to where you don’t have down force. The technology hasn’t changed in 30 years; it’s four tires, four wheels, and shocks, you get in it and gas it. The modified is kind of the same way, even though technology is starting to change them. I do favor the modified side, I feel like they are a driver’s car, and I think you can shine in them with your driving ability over other guys. I think it translates the most. DE: How do you feel competition differs amongst the different forms of racing you’ve competed in? KS: I hate to say it, but from modified to Silver Crown, I think the Silver Crown competition is more professional. I shouldn’t say it, but I think it’s more professional on the open wheel side. I know when I go to a Silver Crown race, I’m going to see guys like Kyle Larson, David Gravel, Brady Bacon, guys who do this for a legit living; it’s what they do to put food on the table. I think it makes the competition factor much harder competing against guys who are

doing this for a living versus my modified stuff. I race guys like Nick Hoffman, Mike McKinney and Tyler Nicely on the modified side, who do it for a living, too, so I’m not saying the competition is harder or easier, it’s just on a more professional level. I know I’m confident in my ability to race against those open wheel guys, but it’s just the fact that they are superstars; they are nationally known people. It can get in your head a little bit. DE: You’ve run on both asphalt and dirt, but you’ve stayed with dirt track racing, what has drawn you to sticking with dirt? KS: I would say that it’s because it’s what I grew up doing. When I was a kid around three or four, we had a track called St. Charles Speedway in St. Charles, Missouri. The track was about a mile from our house and I could hear it from there. My dad would take me there from the time that I was old enough to go. I remember going and having my favorite drivers that I really looked up to. At one point, we actually raced there. I was twelve when I won a race there, and it’s one of my favorite trophies. It’s just what I’ve always done. I know dirt track racing is very appealing right now because of the limelight guys like Kyle Larson bring to the sport and you can

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do so much dirt racing with sprint cars, modifieds, late models. It’s everywhere, you know? I used to be all about asphalt, I love racing on asphalt, I love the precision of it. But I don’t think it’s what it once was, unfortunately. Dirt track racing is accessible and it’s what I know. DE: Having experienced success in a multitude of different race cars, what made you decide that you wanted to stick with just Silver Crown and dirt modifieds? How did you end up balancing a schedule racing these two? KS: The modified deal pretty much happened because I knew that I could afford to do it. The late models require such a higher budget and you need two motors that cost $40-50,000 each and a car and a half all of the time and tires are more expensive and you need a lot of spare parts; I knew modifieds were more my wheelhouse as far as affordability and that’s kind of why we stuck with it. The Silver Crown deal popped up because my dad was a huge Silver Crown fan and a few years ago he was like, “Hey, the business is doing well. What do you think about racing Silver Crown cars again?” So, that’s kind of how that all just popped up; he just kind of gave me the ball and I’m running with it.

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Photo: Rich Labrier DE: Not only have you driven 20 different forms of race cars, but you’ve also experienced a great deal of success in all of them. What would you attribute to your skills of being such a versatile driver? KS: I think that I just love racing so much that I put a lot of passion into it and that shows through my driving. Whether I’m at a local modified race or the Silver Crown deal, or a big event like Bristol, I’m just super passionate about it on all levels. It doesn’t matter where I’m at, I want to win. I think that shines through. There’s a lot of dedication and work, I care a lot about it, racing is who I am, it’s what I am, and I think that shines through. I think that’s why I’m halfway decent at it. DE: Being so versatile and experienced in multiple forms of racing, do you think this gives you an advantage of any sort? KS: Being in so many different cars helps you to understand the car, it helps you read the racetrack, it helps you know where to go where other guys aren’t. It’s finding that extra two tenths of a second a lap that all adds up over thirty laps. I’ve used my skills to do that, and it helps a lot. DE: Is there any car in particular that you’d like to strap back into? If so, why? KS: I want to get back into the late model because of the money. You know there’s $10,000, $20,000, $50,000 races. I feel like modifieds have gotten

more exposure but they’re always kind of like the step child to the late model stuff. You’re always the support class, which is kind of a bummer, especially coming from back in the day racing late models or the Crown stuff that’s the premier division. I feel like my driving capabilities are at that point, so I want to be in the premier class racing with the Kyle Stricklers, Brandon Sheppards, you know those kind of guys. You always want to be at the top of your game and it’s not that the modifieds aren’t, it’s just that you’ve got about eight or nine guys in the modifieds where the late models are filled with 20 or 30 guys that are all really good. DE: How do you prepare for a season with more than one race car? How do you prioritize races and the day to day? KS: That’s a tough one, because I’m a dad, and while my dad owns our business [Performance Plus Global] I help manage and run the business, plus we own a race team with three cars. It’s tough. You have to prioritize your time more than you would ever believe. I have time scheduled out. For example in the summer time, Monday is wash day, Wednesday is maintenance day, Thursday is load day, and we normally race Friday and Saturday. When you mix all that in together, it really wears on you because I’m almost a one man band. I have one guy named Joe that helps me on Wednesday and an older guy named Bill that used to help Kenny

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Schrader who comes when he can, so a lot of this stuff I do on my own. There are a lot of nights that are until 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning because I don’t interfere with my family; I wait until they go to bed and then go to the shop. So, it’s really hard, but this year, my goal and main focus, since I’ve won a bunch of local championships and stuff, I just want to run races that pay more than a thousand to win, and I obviously want to try to hit most of the Silver Crown dirt races. Anything big on the modified side, things that are $10,000 to win, stuff like that, we’re going to hit those. Then locally, I’ll race on Fridays as much as I can to stay in the seat but might take some Saturdays off just to not tear up the equipment and wear it out. DE: What on your 2021 race schedule are you the most excited about and what on your schedule do you feel will challenge you the most? KS: So far, the most challenging was Bristol; I think everything else is going to be a cakewalk compared to that. I’d never really dealt with something like that. The one I’d say I’m looking the most forward to is getting to go to Eldora in a champ car. I’ve never raced Eldora, and I’ve always wanted to, so I’m really looking forward to it. DE: Your children have begun to venture into the racing world, what is your greatest fear and biggest dream for them as they begin racing? KS: I have two boys, Rhys and Riker. My

oldest is five, and my littlest is obviously still too young. But, I would say that my biggest fear with him is actually him not wanting to do it, because I feel like I can teach him so much on and off the track just through racing and I can bond with him that way. I think it’s really nerve wracking for me to think that I would have a child that doesn’t want to do it but I’m also not trying to push it on him. It’s a fine line. My biggest hope and dream for him would be that he gets to do things that I didn’t get to do. At one point in time, I had the opportunity to possibly race in the NASCAR Truck Series and there were opportunities that I didn’t capitalize on. So, hopefully he can do it where he has fun and maybe he can make money at it. You know, that’d be cool and then I can say he made it further than I did. DE: Let’s stay philosophical for the last few questions. If there was one race that you’ve could have a do over to change the outcome, which would it be and why? KS: That’s a hard question; I’ve raced a lot of races. But, I would say, if I could change the outcome of a race, it would be the Dome. It was in 2019 or 2018, I think I finished third, and we could have won that race. I hate that term, we could have won, but we started around 20th, and I ran third. Mike Harrison is one of the best UMP Modified guys around and he won. I got up to him, I was actually

second, then hit a hole, and fell back to third. I wish I could’ve changed the outcome of that one. Before the Dome doesn’t happen anymore, I want to be able to say that I won that because I’m a true St. Louis native. I want that trophy; I feel like I’m from St. Louis and a St. Louis guy needs to win it. DE: If you had to pick one race that winning it would make your career feel “complete,” what would it be? KS: I’ll be honest, I think that if I could win any Silver Crown race that would make my career. I think to say that you’ve won a Silver Crown race is a huge deal. If I could win a DuQuoin, Springfield, or any of the big mile tracks that are left, just because of guys like Mario Andretti, and the history on those tracks, to put your name on a list with those people, I could say, you know what? I’ve had a good run, I’m on that list. I actually won DuQuoin when I was sixteen, I’m still the youngest to ever win there, but it was a modified, it wasn’t a Crown car, so if I could duplicate that in a Crown car, I think I could say, hey it’s been a good run. DE: So, aside from winning, you have mentioned things that racing can teach, what would you say is the biggest lesson racing has taught you? KS: I’m going to say the greatest lesson that I’ve learned is to just know how to take defeat and build from it. In racing, unless you’re Donny Schatz or

This is the one he wants the most - a win in the Dome in his hometown of St. Louis.

somebody like that, you don’t win all of the time. The money and time that you put into it to not win is a hard pill to swallow sometimes. We’re spending thousands and thousands of dollars and time away from our family to be in the shop and go run, and you can’t always win. It teaches you that you’ve got to keep pushing forward. In life, if something bad happens, some people just give up, they fold up, and they’re done. For me, because of racing, when bad things happen to me, I’m always like, “I’ve got this.” It’s like changing a tire or a bar angle on a car, or the set up, it’s the same thing in life, you just have to change what you’re doing, fix it, move on, and try to win. That’s probably my best life lesson.

HOW KYLE STEFFENS GETS AWAY FROM IT ALL

“I ride bikes a lot. I’ve got mountain bikes and road bikes and that’s where I kind of find my peace. Sometimes after work, I’ll ride fifteen or twenty miles somewhere. I’ve got some trails that I like to hit and kind of get some alone time. I get to be who I want to be, think how I want to think, and that helps me get back to ground zero versus being in the shop, at work, or at home with my kids. I’ve got a lot of things on my plate, so if I can get away for a little bit it helps me get grounded.”

Photo: Rich Labrier DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

a main FEATURE

SPRINTS

JAC HAUDENSCHILD A FAREWELL TO A LEGEND By Ashley Zimmerman ONE OF THE GREATEST THINGS about dirt track racing is that the heroes walk among us. In sprint car racing, for decades we have been blessed to hear Johnny Gibson thrill us with the emotion

that comes from the announcement of “The Wild Child” Jac Haudenschild exploding on to the track, blowing fans away with the on the edge of out of control Haud line.

Photo: Paul Arch Sadness and nostalgia linger as the Wild Child embarks on closing the chapter of his story as the hero who walks amongst to the legend that paved roads. There is no proper sendoff that encompasses the moments that earned Jac Haudenschild hero status amongst his fans, but there are many landmark moments in sprint car racing’s beautiful tapestry where the Wild Child was the color and the show. We quizzed him on his career and his farewell and let him share his own thoughts.

JAC HAUD 40

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KNOXVILLE NATIONALS MEMORIES I ran second - the best I did at the Knoxville Nationals. The last few years, you know, we haven’t had the best luck, but that would be the one that everyone wants to win. I definitely would have loved to win the nationals. Winning would mean the world to me. I’ve won a lot of big races everywhere else but, it would mean the world to me. All the great drivers won there, and it would be great to be included in that. My most memorable Nationals would be the year I took second. They had four outlaw races there that year and I won all four races and then I got second at Nationals. That was kind of a bummer. I don’t even know who won that, I’m not sure if it was Danny [Lasoski] or who, but we had close run there. BEST PART OF THE NATIONALS My favorite part of Nationals is all of the good fans there. They always have big crowds there and it’s definitely a highlight. Knoxville is always challenging because most of the races have been

Photo: Paul Arch

Perfecting the Haud line at Limaland! Photo: Mike Campbell

ENSCHILD DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

won on the bottom there. It’s a tough track there to hit the bottom on. It’s a really challenging track because you have to be able to move all around and work really well running the bottom.

Strapped in at the Grove during the 1985 season. Photo: Paul Arch

COMING TO TERMS WITH NOT WINNING NATIONALS There are a lot of emotions in my last year, all of these tracks that I’m going to, it’s my last time being there. It’s pretty emotional. I ran good there for quite a few Nationals, just no excuses, I just didn’t get it done. I feel bad you know, you definitely want to win that race because it’s the biggest race there is. I feel bad that I never got to win. PARTING WORDS TO FANS I’ve been lucky enough to have the best fans in the world and I just want to thank them for being such great fans and coming to all of the races the whole time. ON WATCHING SON SHELDON COMPETE It’ll be fun, even though it’s hard for me to watch him. I never got nervous racing myself or anything, but definitely when I watch him, you just want him to do good, so bad, it’s really nerve wracking watching him. It’s hard for me to watch. Everyone says he’s a little smoother than I was but it definitely makes me nervous.

Cashing $200,000 of Baltes cash at the Mopar Million. Photo: Paul Arch

RACING WITH SHELDON I don’t think much about it when I’m Wheels up on the Jamie Miller 6 at Limaland in 2011. Photo: Paul Arch

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BR Motorsports

racing. I race him like I’d race with anybody else. I pretty much block it out that he’s my boy when we’re racing together. LONG-TIME CAR OWNER JACK ELDEN (#22) Jack was a great car owner. I was with Jack for nine years, and he was like a second dad to me. He always gave me the best equipment I could ask for. The whole family treated me like a son. ON WINNING THE MILLION I’ll never forget that one. It was the biggest non wing race there was; it was a race I’ll never forget. I think Stevie Smith ran second. OLD DAYS WITH THE OUTLAWS You couldn’t ask for racing with a better series all of those years I raced with the World of Outlaws. You know, we raced 80-100 races a year, I raced with all of the best guys in the world. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It was my favorite place to race.

Back in Roth’s Beef Packers ride. Photo: Dennis Krieger

ELDORA Eldora was my favorite race track. I started racing there when I was 18. It’s definitely my favorite place to race. I just always liked the high banks there. LIFE WITH WIFE PATTY ON THE ROAD Life with Patty is great. You know she marketed my t-shirts better than anybody ever did. We traveled for years up and A pair of Outlaws - Sheldon and Jac. Photo: Mike Campbell Looking sporty at Port Royal in 2018. Photo: John Rothermel

Dennis Roth hired the Wild Child many times during his long career. Photo: Mike Campbell

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BR Motorsports

A huge win at lifelong friend Brad Doty’s Classic in 2007. Photo: Mike Campbell

down the road with our kids and raised our kids in the motorhome. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. INDUCTION INTO NATIONAL SPRINT CAR HALL OF FAME That was a big deal but you know you’re getting old when that happens. It was a big honor to get inducted into the whole thing. WHY NOW IS THE RIGHT TIME I’ve been running my own car for the last few years, and I was pretty much over doing that. I didn’t want to do that again this year. I talked to Rico Abreu and he said he would run me some races this year if I wanted to run for him. So, it was a perfect opportunity for me to park my car and run for him whenever he wants to race.

Ohio’s greatest export winning one at his homestate’s Millstream Speedway.

Photo: Mike Campbell

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IS THIS REALLY, REALLY IT? Yeah, it’s definitely my farewell tour. Rico raced with Sheldon, and I can remember Rico just starting out in California when I was out there. He was always a big fan of mine, and then after I got to watch him race, I was a big fan of his. Then he ended up hiring me after that. He’s a great guy and a great driver.

Hanging out at Knoxville with daughter Raquel and future daughter-in-law Zan. Photo: Mike Campbell

King Racing Products

the beauty of

DIRT Dallas Sales gets set to head into the horizon at Springfield Speedway in Missouri. Photo by Mike Musslin

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

review in PICTURES Photos By Mike Musslin

HUDSON O’NEAL CLAIMS FIRST CROWN JEWEL AT SHOW-ME 100 In a dramatic finale of a three night weekend, Hudson O’Neal etched his name in the ledgers as a Show-Me 100 winner that was the first of what could be many Crown Jewel victories. The O’Neals, 20-year old Hudson and his legendary father Don, are now the only father-son combination to both secure ShowMe trophies. The fifth starting O’Neal hung around the top four for much of the first half of the race before racing by Tim McCreadie on the 63rd lap to take his first lead. While he felt pressure throughout, O’Neal never relinquished the lead and collected $30,000.

O’Neal (71) edges past Tim McCreadie (39), on his way to his first Crown Jewel victory at the Lucas Oil Speedway.

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Scott Bloomquist in his Skull and Crossbones number 0 didn’t have the greatest finish at the Show Me 100, but his ride is always a show stopper.

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29TH ANNUAL SHOW-ME 100 PRESENTED BY PROTECTTHEHARVEST.COM

At any big race like the Show Me 100, it’s not just about the race, it’s about the entire event. From heat races and drivers working hard to make the big show to the smiles in the pits to the breath-taking beauty of an outdoor event with friends and family. The Show Me 100 gave everyone in attendance an amazing show at every level.

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series/ Lucas Oil MLRA Lucas Oil Speedway Wheatland, Missouri 1. 71-Hudson O’Neal [5] 2. B5-Brandon Sheppard [3] 3. 14-Josh Richards [1] 4. 39-Tim McCreadie [2] 5. 25-Shane Clanton [4] 6. 157-Mike Marlar [15] 7. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr [9] 8. 20-Jimmy Owens [7] 9. 40B-Kyle Bronson [11] 10. 3S-Brian Shirley [14] 11. 32-Bobby Pierce [10] 12. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr [16] 13. 2S-Stormy Scott [13] 14. 0E-Rick Eckert [20] 15. 49-Jonathan Davenport [19] 16. 1-Earl Pearson Jr [17] 17. 56JR-Tony Jackson Jr [22] 18. 1T-Tyler Erb [25] 19. 59-Garrett Alberson [27] 20. 36-Logan Martin [21] 21. 91P-Jason Papich [28] 22. 0-Scott Bloomquist [6] 23. 18B-Shannon Babb [18] 24. 93-Mason Oberkramer [29] 25. 19R-Ryan Gustin [12] 26. 12C-Scott Crigler [24] 27. 21-Billy Moyer Jr [26] 28. 22F-Chris Ferguson [8] 29. 66C-Matt Cosner [23] 30. 25S-Chad Simpson [31] 31. 15L-Payton Looney [32]

JJ Motorsports

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CHRIS FERGUSON - THE NATURAL By Doug Kennedy

ROBERT REDFORD PORTRAYED Roy Hobbs in the 1984 movie “The Natural” and garnered that nickname with the effortless ease he played the game of baseball. Chris Ferguson displays a similar ease with the way he handles and his race team, on and off the racetrack. “I think the fans kind of relate to me,” said Ferguson, who lives in Mt. Holly, North Carolina, after being born and raised in Charlotte. “I’ve built my race team up over the last 12 years and have come a long way from where I started. Now that I’ve got a lot of experience under my belt, it’s not as challenging to go to new and different tracks as it was when I first started.” Kelley Carlton, the series director for the Ultimate Southeast Series has watched Chris race since he was about ten years old. “He’s a natural talent going back to his karting days,” Carlton said. “I was there for his first crate late model race. Most guys who get into a

late model develop habits from driving another type of car. He made the transition so smoothly. He figured out what the car needed to be fast and how to drive the car almost immediately.” “Chris also interacts extremely well with sponsors and fans,” Carlton, who used to be the Southern All-Stars director from 2000 to 2010, said. “He really engages the fans and his sponsors.” Ferguson is also known as somewhat of an easy-going person. “I take after my mom (Allison),” Ferguson related. “She’s always friendly to whomever she meets. I take after her personality and I’m an easy-going type of guy.” His racing program has also grown over the last few years. “I’ve always tended to take care of my equipment,” said the 31-year-old Ferguson. “For the longest time, I didn’t have a spare car or spare parts. I got a second car in 2019. Now, we also have our spare parts. We can almost rebuild the car at the

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Photo: Heath Lawson

a main FEATURE

LATE MODEL

racetrack if needed. It gives you an ease of mind to have those spare parts and that allows me to maybe take a few more chances. It also affects my driving style because I’m normally a calculating type of driver but now I can be a little more aggressive when needed.” Ferguson is a third generation racer. His grandfather Blair raced in the 1960s and 1970s in a six-cylinder car and his father, Bryan, had more than 100 feature wins in a four-cylinder car and a go-kart. In one season alone, Bryan had 30 wins and also won the World 4 Cylinder Championship. Chris’s younger brother, Brandon Conard, also raced but quit once he rolled his kart after about 10 races. (The reason for the different last names is that when Chris was born, his parents were not married yet so he chose to take the last name of his mother, Ferguson, while Brandon took the family and dad’s name of Conard.) Everything for Chris began in 2002

Photo: Heath Lawson when he competed in a kart. For three and a half years, he raced the kart, winning two state championships. He also won the Daytona Dirt World Championships in year two and three and two WKA National Championships. When he was 16, he began racing the crate late model. He won roughly 20 features including the Big Ten championship, which was a local/ regional series. In 2007, he won the FASTRAK Tour Rookie of the Year. By 2009, he was behind the wheel of a super late model and has been doing

that ever since. In 2011, he won the USLM Series championship. He had a very productive 2012 season driving a crate late model and his family owned super late model. By 2013, he was back, concentrating on the super late model. His 2014 season was very productive following the demise of the NDRL Tour. He scored a handful of very big races including the USA 100 and the Carolina Clash. The next year is when Ferguson reached a new level. In 2015, he won back-to-back World of Outlaw races

at Friendship Motor Speedway in Elkin, North Carolina, and Fayetteville Speedway in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Two years later, he won his first Lucas Oil race, also at Fayetteville Speedway. From 2015 to now, Ferguson has won more than 40 features. “I’ve won races in Mississippi, Illinois, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, West Virginia, and Missouri.” And even though 2020 was shortened by the COVID-19, Ferguson had some big wins and strong performances in Crown Jewel events. He had top ten

Photo: Mike Musslin DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Photos: Heath Lawson

performances at the Firecracker 100 at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pennsylvania, the Prairie Dirt Classic at Fairbury American Legion Speedway in Fairbury, Illinois, the Dirt Track World Championship at Portsmouth Raceway Park in West Portsmouth, Ohio, the Dream 100 at Eldora Speedway, the Silver Dollar Nationals at I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, Nebraska, the World Finals at Charlotte, and the ShowMe 100 at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri. Ferguson went to the 2020 ShowMe having never raced at Lucas Oil Speedway yet finished fourth. “That track really fits my driving style,” Ferguson said. “We have a Bloomquist race car chassis and that kind of chassis has always done very well at that track, so it kind of played into my favor.” Following that top five finish in the Show-Me, Ferguson won the Diamond Nationals at Lucas Oil Speedway on the very next night. “That was just like icing on the cake,” Ferguson said. “I knew we were pretty good after the first night, but I didn’t expect to lead all those laps to win the race (48 out of 50). I guess you could say I dominated that race.” He also won a World of Outlaws prelim

race at the Prairie Dirt Classis and sat on the pole for the Dirt Track championship. He finished fifth at the Stream last summer at Eldora, a track where he keeps improving. “For the longest time, I would go to the track once every couple of years and never got the knack of it, but since 2015, I’ve been going to every Dream 100. The more laps I run there, the better I get. It’s fast and extremely technical. It goes from being the fastest track in the country to slowing down by two seconds. It makes you have to know when to start to change your driving

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style. Eldora gets a 99 out of 100 for me.” Eldora is also a track where Chris set two track records. “I set the track record in 2015 and then broke my own record in 2018 until it was recently broken,” Ferguson said. Ferguson has been running late models nearly a decade and a half and has over 75 wins to show for it. He keeps proving his innate, natural ability to excel in the sport.

works as a property manager for skyrise apartments in the Charlotte area. When they are at the track, Brandon serves as Chris’ car chief. “He makes decisions, but doesn’t oversee the entire operation - that belongs to dad,” Ferguson said. Academic History: Chris enjoyed and was very good at both baseball and basketball. Upon graduation from East Gaston High School, Chris attended UNC-Charlotte for two and half years where he majored in business. Unfortunately, he never completed his degree because of racing opportunities that came along.

Photo: Mike Musslin

GETTING TO KNOW: CHRIS FERGUSON Career Highlight: Winning two back-toback World of Outlaws races in his home state of North Carolina and his victory at the Diamond Nationals. Employment Off the Track: Since 2015, Ferguson has worked in sales

at ButlerBuilt Racing Seats, which is located a mile from Charlotte Motor Speedway. “They are the seats that I use in my race car.” Partners and Crew: The race team is funded by Chris and his dad Bryan. “We are partners in the race team along with my brother, Brandon,” Brandon who is three years younger than Chris,

The Importance of the #22: Ferguson has had that number ever since he started playing sports. Hobbies Off the Track: When he’s not on the racetrack, Chris can be found relaxing on the golf course. “I don’t know if I can call that relaxing,” he laughed. He also likes to spend quite a bit of time on Lake Wylie where he goes out on a boat or jet skis.

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short track

STARS

Photo: Brad Plant

Ewing, Illinois

DANIEL ROBINSON · MORE THAN A MOMENT By Bill Blumer Jr.

IT TOOK A DECADE and a half before Daniel Robinson became a household name in midget racing circles. His method for gaining that status, “The Bird Heard Around the World,” as it’s come to be known, probably wasn’t what he had in mind. When he passed Sammy Swindell during a 2021 Chili Bowl Preliminary Night race, Robinson put his arm out the driver’s right side and showed his elder who was number one. Thousands of people, most watching on TV from their living rooms due to the pandemic, witnessed it live. The moment was big enough to dominate racing conversations for a spell and produce a commemorative T-shirt. However, just using this instance to define Robinson would be selling him short. He’s worked hard to become a respected midget pilot and was busy doing positive things for other racers, prior to his few minutes of fame. He is one of those active racers from a fading era who doesn’t have to buy rides or worry about his image like the kids of today do. For this he is grateful and it’s why he gives back to the sport he loves. Robinson hails from Ewing, Illinois and figures he’s been racing for 30 of his 36 years on earth, including his karting

and micro days. It’s been his dream to work his way up the ranks of open wheel racing. In the micro years, his class often raced in support of the midgets. He admired the skill of drivers like Mike Hess, Steve Knepper and the Camfields, while running MARA and POWRi events in the Midwest. He got his break in 2007 after a championship micro year, when Stephanie and Jerry Meents rewarded him with a couple of nights in their midget late in the season. On his first night, with 50 midgets checked in at Belle-Claire Speedway in Belleville, Illinois, Robinson won the B-Main and worked his way up to eighth in the feature before flipping. He followed that “Little Belleville” run with a twelfth-place finish at Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Illinois. He’s been a hired driver ever since. He’s best known for piloting the black #37s of AJ Felker and the #57 cars of Bill Ecker, who he has with since 2011. “We met at a POWRi race at Jacksonville Speedway in Illinois,” Ecker recalled, “I watched him racing someone else’s car and could tell he’d be good. He was a little out of control, but fast, and I was alright with that.”

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It wasn’t until the next season that Ecker asked Robinson to be his full-time driver. The two campaigned primarily with the Badger Midget Auto Racing Association, winning at Ecker’s hometown track of Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, and nearby Beaver Dam Raceway. It was Ecker’s car that Robinson drove at this year’s Chili Bowl. Due to restrictions and the virus, Ecker didn’t even make the haul to Tulsa - he just told Robinson to come get the car. Ecker lists Robinson as one of his favorite drivers, out of the 20 or more that have piloted his cars over the last 30-plus years. “He doesn’t tear up a lot

“I scrambled my eggs a little bit at Belle-Claire and I didn’t want to drive weekly, plus I don’t have the (guts) to run the fence anymore” – Daniel Robinson on his decision to hire young Aiden Purdue to run his Midget. Photo: David Campbell

of equipment and he’s a fun guy to be around. He can draw a crowd with his stories,” noted Ecker. It’s not just stories about racing Robinson can offer. Today he’s a successful businessman as a subcontractor for a major home improvement chain. He recounts his first meeting for the job, “During the interview, they asked me if I had done many fences. ‘Oh, yes, a bunch,’ I said. Well, they gave me the position and as my partner and I headed out to do our first job, we were on YouTube trying to figure out how to build a chain link fence because I hadn’t built a fence in my life.” Robinson also has a second job. “My wife Dianna and I own The Barn Bar in Wittington, Illinois. I don’t have a 401K so this is kind of it. Besides, if I didn’t put money into the bar I’d just spend it on race car parts,” he said. He goes on to say he chose to be self-employed so he can arrange his schedule around racing and his four children, Wrigley, Granger, Madelyn and his oldest, at age 11, Aiden. The latter of which has started his racing journey, currently running junior sprints. When micro driver, Brian Carber, won the 2020 Keith Kunz Motorsports Giveback Classic at Millbridge Speedway in Salisbury, NC, he had a choice. He could take $10,000 in cash, or a chance to run a KKM car at the 2021 Chili Bowl. He chose the cash. Robinson, hearing the news, felt bad. “In racing, $10,000 isn’t that much. You can lose an engine

Photo: Brad Plant

and that’s $10,000 right there. I’d watched Carber. He was a good clean racer. I’d chased Kunz cars and knew what an opportunity it was to drive one,” he said. And with that, Robinson spearheaded a successful effort to get the cash for Carber so he didn’t have to give up the KKM ride. Robinson has assembled his own midget but he’s relegated himself to owner status. For a handful of races in 2020 and the 2021 Chili Bowl he put Aiden Purdue behind the wheel. “I scrambled my eggs a little bit at BelleClaire and I didn’t want to drive weekly, plus I don’t have the (guts) to run the fence anymore,” he admitted. In March of 2021, they brought the car

to the Midwest Winter Nationals, indoors at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in Illinois. Purdue scored his first national midget win. To simply win one together, was the only goal the duo had. Robinson knows he can only take Purdue so far. “I would not be in a midget at this point if it were not for Daniel,” noted Purdue. “I’ve told Kevin Olson, I’ll take over for him when he’s done,” said Robinson, referring to the comedic and ageless racer. He takes the thought further and makes it clear he is not retiring, “It’s a life altering decision to race, it’s like drugs, really.”

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DOUBLE DREAM

review in PICTURES

COME TRUE

Photos By Josh James

IN 2020 THE 26th Dirt Late Model Dream at Eldora was postponed to 2021 because of the national reaction to COVID-19. This postponement set the stage for an amazing opportunity for one fortunate driver: win back-toback Dreams within three days! Brandon Overton took center stage at Eldora Speedway and finished the week with double dreams coming true, and four feature wins total. Here is our review in pictures of one of the most exciting Late Model events we’ve experienced in quite some time.

THE $273,000 MAN! 60

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Stacked up three wide with Overton on the inside, Kyle Bronson in the middle and Nick Hoffman up top.

Iowa’s Ryan Gustin is out front and trying to get some distance on the field. DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Plenty of racing grooves available as leader Jonathan Davenport finds the low side to his favor.

Bobby Pierce holds a narrow lead over Brandon Sheppard.

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Brandon Overton started his assault by winning one of the Twin 25 qualifier races and scoring a cool $10,000. Overton would keep the dream alive with $127,000 in winnings from the 27th Dirt Late Model Dream which ran on Thursday, June 10th. He’d do it again two nights later when the postponed 2020 26th Dirt Late Model Dream ran on Satruday night, winning $126,000. We’re not exactly math geniuses, but that makes Overton the quarter-million-dollar man.

Pennsylvania native, Gregg Satterlee, had a career first, ending a race in victory lane at Eldora Speedway. Satterlee won the other twin 25 qualifier, his sixth win of the year. It was the biggest payout for Satterlee on the season so far.

Dyers Top Rods

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shooter at

LARGE

JOSH JAMES

MAYBE YOU’VE NOTICED, but we here at Dirt Empire Magazine love us some racing pictures. This is our opportunity to honor the great photographers of our sport who are on the road throughout the season shooting race cars and drivers and chronicalling history. They are our shooters at large. Lone gunslingers who have choosen to wield a camera as their weapon. Ride on, shooters. Ride on.

Chris Madden plants it perfectly into the corner.

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One of Josh’s favorite tracks, Fairbury American Legion Speedway, features fantastic mod racing.

GET TO KNOW JOSH JAMES

Hometown: Owensboro, Kentucky Age: 30 Year Started Shooting: 2011 First Publication to Print Your Work: Dirt Modified Magazine in 2012 Favorite Track to Shoot: Tri-State Speedway (IN) or Fairbury American Legion Speedway, IL Favorite Division to Shoot: Late models, sprint cars, and modifieds Remaining Bucket List Races: Chill Bowl Nationals and the Charlotte World Finals Favorite Thing About Racing Photography: The people are like family. Outside of race cars, what do you like to photograph: Portrait photography and candids Camera Equipment: Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 7D Mark II, 2.8 Canon 300mm, 2.8 Canon 70-200mm, 2.8 Canon 24-70mm, 2.8 Canon 15mm Fisheye

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Spread out fellas! Cole Bodine leads Chris Windom, Dave Darland, Davey Ray and Mario Clouser.

Street stock racing action at Clarksville Speedway in Tennessee.

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shooter at

LARGE

Tanner English churns the clay.

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kart track

SPOTLIGHT

Words by Chris Romano Photos by Dave Higgins

CJ Sweatt runs in the Open Division.

MOUNTAIN CREEK SPEEDWAY A dirt kart track in rural North Carolina and a former midget racer from Long Island. It’s been a long, strange trip. Derek Pernesiglio and his brother Pete raced the family midget in Northeast Midget Association events before Derek moved south to begin a career in television. The family business is still thriving with his nephew Michael now racing a NEMA Lite. Pernesiglio ultimately became a much sought after pit road reporter for NBCSN’s coverage of the Whelen Modified Tour and the K&N Series, along

with many track announcing gigs. He still had the racing bug, however, and on off weekends raced an outlaw kart, which led him to Mountain Creek Speedway in Catawba, North Carolina. “The track is about 43 years old,” said Pernesiglio. “What people don’t realize is that the track sits on a historic family farm. You’ve got to travel through about a mile of cow pasture to get to the track. It is nestled in the beginning of the Catawba Mountains at the base of Mountain Creek, hence the name Mountain Creek Speedway.”

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“The track is owned by Adam and Rebecca Stewart. They are people that just like racing. They made this track on their property to race go-karts and ATVs. That’s really all it was for, but then it started to evolve and more people began coming out to the track. At first, it was just go-karts, but then the Stewarts went to the East Coast Nationals at the Iredell County Fair which is the only outlaw kart race they run there.” It was there they met Kyle Beattie, who owns SKE Chassis, a premier kart builder, and, according to Pernesiglio,

Kyle Busch’s son Brexton is getting some laps early in life at Mountain Creek.

“The next thing you know they are buying outlaw karts to race at their speedway. Their only intention was to do this for fun. They had no intention of getting into running a race track. But as more racers showed up they started getting more advice on what to do.” Pernesiglio, who had already won a winter championship at his home track, Millbridge Speedway in Salisbury, North Carolina, showed up as a competitor and word got around that he was in the pits. “I just wanted to race my kart,” said Pernesiglio, “and I found out that I was surprisingly good at Mountain Creek compared to Millbridge. The two tracks

drive completely different and I guess Mountain Creek just appealed to me. The moment we set foot there we were always fast, always competitive, and I had the track record there for a short time. We did the Clash at the Creek one year and there were 30 karts there. I qualified third ahead of Kyle Larson, Rickie Stenhouse, Jimmy Elledge, Kyle Beattie, Tanner Thorson and Rico Abreu. “Millbridge is just flat out, bounce the kart off the wall all day. Mountain Creek is D-shaped, so you’ve got to back off in the corners. When I got to Mountain Creek I approached it a little more timidly than Millbridge, which is exactly the way

you have to drive it.” It wasn’t long before Adam Stewart and Pernesiglio met. “Adam always saw me at the track, and enjoyed talking with me, and I always enjoyed giving him advice.” Stewart eventually approached Pernesiglio about coming to work for him at the track, but the timing wasn’t right. Then came 2020. With racing on the national stage on hold, and for a time no one knew when it would resume, the TV gigs dried up. Pernesiglio needed to reinvent himself to stay in the sport. “Adam said come take a look at what we’re doing,” said Pernesiglio. “They brought in new dirt, resurfaced the track, added banking, built a tower, a nice competitor observation deck, paved part of the pits and expanded them.” The little ATV track was becoming a highly successful racetrack. Pernesiglio agreed to take the position of Public Relations and Promotional Director. “I saw they were making a serious step in promoting races and wanting to take it to the next level,” said Pernesiglio. “Dirt racing and outlaw kart racing are growing. Kids are going from box stocks into 600cc micro sprints. Open and Intermediate divisions are being skipped over so Mountain Creek and Millbridge are trying to keep those divisions going. All the Box Stock divisions are thriving.” Karts are attracting the next generation of racers. On any given night at Mountain Creek, you can find Dale

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Kerry Earnhardt’s son Wyatt Miller turns some quick laps in his Beginner Box Stock. Earnhardt’s grandson Wyatt Miller, Brexton Bush, son of Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson’s son Owen, Clint Bowyer’s son Cash, and Kevin Harvick’s son Keelan. Talent always seeks the next rung up the ladder, and Mountain Creek is preparing for that next step. “Right now, we’re getting a lot of questions about when we’ll start running micros,” said Pernesiglio. “I tell people we have to build the track strong enough to accommodate those cars. We have strong enough bracing for the walls but we have to steel plate them. Right now, we have wooden walls but the bracing behind them is all heavy duty 6x6 bracing all four feet apart. What we started doing last year was plating turns three and four. The problem now is we were getting steel for $80 a plate and now it’s $200. And we have to erect fencing as well because the last thing you want to do is put a kart in the creek. “We’ve had midgets and micros come and test,” said Pernesiglio. “We know eventually we have to go the micro route because it’s just a natural progression.” “One of the issues we face is Millbridge races Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Mountain Creek also races flat karts on Saturdays and we’ll get anywhere from one hundred to 100125 of those in the pits. But we were also running outlaw karts. We’d have 17 different divisions on a Saturday so we came up with the idea of splitting them over different nights. “We run flat karts on Saturday nights and outlaw karts on Sundays. We open at 1PM on Sundays and we’re finished before the sun goes down.”

Racetracks in general are struggling to emerge from the pandemic. Many pavement tracks were struggling even before the pandemic. Kart racing, on the other hand, is thriving, and especially in the southeast. Why are karts on dirt so popular? “I think it’s the economics of it,” said Pernesiglio. “It’s cheaper to go kart racing than almost anything else out there. You can get a kart for around $5,000, including the budget for entry fees, and go race. People do it because it’s fun. I think another reason they do it is, to take a line from Ayrton Senna, it’s pure driving. It’s a kart, an engine and a

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

driver. It’s the simplicity of it.” “In the Southeast, they do more kart racing on dirt than any other region in the country,” said Pernesiglio. “In other places you’ll see pavement and road courses.” Pernesiglio brings a unique perspective to his role, drawing on his experience as a competitor and a media professional. “I do have some street cred because I’ve competed,” said Pernesiglio. “So, I know what’s like to come in hot after a race. Sometimes I just tell parents that this is like Little League. Let kids be kids.” Mountain Creek stresses its family atmosphere, and in addition to the physical improvements they’ve also invested in spectator amenities. While there is a grandstand at the top of the hill surrounding the speedway, most spectators are content to bring lawn chairs and enjoy the rustic charm. And there is no lack of food. “We don’t have concessions,” said Pernesiglio, “so we decided to go with food trucks and the fans love it. You can get a salad at the racetrack. You can get falafel or a chicken wrap. If you want dessert we have frozen cheesecake dipped in chocolate.” “I tell everyone this is a short track racer’s field of dreams. You’d never believe there is a race track here on the banks of Mountain Creek.”

Carson Kvapil, son of Truck Series champion Travis Kvapil, runs the Open division. This division uses 4 stroke 450cc or 500cc 2 stroke dirt bike engines.

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PICS SPEEDWAY CAR CAMS For nearly ten years, Michael Elliot has been placing cameras into the cars for amazing POV shots of what the drivers experience. We’re pretty big fans. Use the provided YouTube links or the QR codes to access the videos. You can visit dirtempiremagazine.com for easy links as well.

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DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

universal

TECH Photos & Text by Vahok Hill

AIR FILTERS WITH ANY ACTIVITY, there are always aspects of that activity that are deemed less than glamorous. In racing, mounting and dismounting tires and washing air cleaners are the winners in my book for being rather odious tasks. While neither is that difficult, the probability of being first on anyone’s short list of “fun things to do on a Thursday evening” is very low. As with many other things we must accomplish in order to have a good day at the races, a clean air filter is a necessity not a luxury. If the air cleaner is clogged with dirt and grit from the past several race days the engine will not get all of the air it needs to do its job. That means you get less horsepower. Conversely, if the filter is omitted under the pretext that its removal will result in more horsepower, the owner will be treated to a trip to the engine builder to replace all of the moving bits that have worn prematurely. This will be due to the incoming air charge being a good percentage of dirt, grit and other nasty bits. That would be the best case in that particular scenario. What would probably happen is that some hard bit - a rock or other such debris - would invade the rotating internals and do some serious damage. That should read expensive damage. There are two types of air cleaners that are mainstays of the racing industry and this spans from karts to sprint cars.

1) Cloth gauze between a wire mesh 2) Foam in various shapes and sizes. I have not included paper elements that are sometimes required in the various spec classes due to the fact that most opt to replace versus clean. The method for servicing the two is very similar. The need to purchase specialized cleaners and solvents is not always necessary. Yes, you read that right, no special cleaners or solvents are required. In fact, I would be willing to bet that you might have the required cleaner in your home now. If you do not, a trip to the local Supermarket, Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target Lowes or Home Depot, might be in order. You will need some “tools” to accomplish the task at hand. You might like to buy a small soft bristle brush, and I mean that quite literally, you need a very soft brush and you do not want to damage the filter while you are cleaning. You can usually find these in the kitchen department in any of the stores I have mentioned. Nothing fancy, just a very soft bristle brush. Try not to invade the kitchen at home and rob one from there. Unless you enjoy the taste of oil. Additionally, you won’t make any friends on the home front either. We will break this process down into simple steps. Once the air cleaner is removed the process can begin. 1. With the filter removed, place a clean paper towel or rag in the carb, or air box (to be removed later this will prevent any dirt or other abrasive material from invading the engine). Gently remove any large particles of dirt or grit from the filter. Use care to not tear or damage the filter. If you are using an air box remove the filter after you have removed the airbox assembly from the engine. The airbox should be cleaned as with any ducting leading to the filter. Avoid cleaning the air box on the engine. This will help preclude the possibility of loose dirt clumps from finding their way into the engine as you

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

wrestle the air box from its mounting position. 2. Examine the filter for any obvious damage. If the filter element is torn or the areas around the point of attachment are cracked or damaged discard the filter. It is not even worth cleaning. 3. Soak the filter in a solution of a mild detergent and water. There are many varieties of soaps that are suitable for this job. Simple Green works great for cleaning the dirt from filters and it is available at a wide range of automotive outlets and in the cleaning sections of most big box stores and can be obtained in most auto parts stores. Wal-Mart and K-Mart carry similar types of soap. Even regular dish washing soap will work for this purpose. Dawn dish soap works very well. It is called Dawn Ultra or the whole name is Dawn Ultra Platinum Powerwash. This stuff works very well in loosening dirt from the oil in the filter. There is no need to buy special soaps that have only one purpose. DO NOT use gasoline or any other petroleum-based solvents to accomplish this task. There are several reasons to avoid the use of gasoline to clean filters. First, it is very dangerous. The chance of a fire is great. Second, gasoline is a poor solvent. It does a poor job of cleaning filters and it may even damage some filters. You have been warned. The reason for soaking the filter is to loosen any dirt or debris that have been trapped by the filter. Just mix the soap in a clean bucket with water. Just enough water to cover the filter. The five-gallon buckets that all of the major home repair warehouses sell work great as a portable sink for cleaning air filters. I prefer a white bucket as it helps you see just how much dirt you are removing and when dirt is no longer coming out of the filter. 4. If you are cleaning the K&N type of filter, just grab the inlet spigot and swish the filter around in the soap solution. If you are cleaning a foam filter, do the same thing. The foam filter can be gently squeezed to help flush out any particles. This will help dislodge any of the more stubborn particles. Remove the filter from the solution and rinse in clean clear water. 5. Empty out the solution and repeat the process. You will be amazed just how much dirt is in the filters that would otherwise be in your engine. 6. On the second time through the solution, you can use your soft bristle brush. This type of brush is only to be used on the K&N type filter. Gently stroke the brush on the outside of the filter. The goal is to use the soft bristle brush to dislodge any stubborn dirt. The foam filter will not survive a good rub down with

a brush. Just a note on the K&N style of filter. If you want that new look and the gauze to be white and pristine looking, K&N makes a special detergent for washing this type of filters. Formula 409 kitchen cleaner will do the job just as well. If you are the real laid-back type of racer this type of filter (K&N) can be cleaned in the dishwasher on the fine China settings or a very gentle setting once all of the big clumps of dirt are removed. I used to do this when I was a bachelor. If you are married and would not like to be a bachelor again, I would not recommend this method without clearing without other ruling members of the household on board with the use of the dishwasher as a filter cleaning method. This method can cause some tense times in the house if everybody is not in agreement over this method of cleaning filters. However, the filters look like brand new upon removal from the dishwasher. Just place the filters on the glass rack and wash with regular dishwasher soap. I like the kind in a squeeze bottle. Remember; forgiveness is often granted when permission is not, sometimes. You have been warned. 7. How will you know if the filter is clean? You can verify this in two ways - looking in the bucket you are using to

wash the filters and looking at the filter. If the cleaning solution is a different color than when you started, it is still getting dirty and you have not removed all the dirt. Carefully pour out the solution and look for any grit in the bucket. If there is still grit in the bucket you can be pretty sure that there is still dirt in the filter. 8. Rinse the bucket out and repeat the process again. Do this until the water is still clean after you have thoroughly agitated the solution with the filter. 9. Rinse the filter out in clear water. You can just use a garden hose for this activity. Do not use any high pressure or spray nozzles to rinse the filter. The higher water velocities could damage the filter element. 10. After you have rinsed the filter and have removed all the soap residue from the filter it is time to dry the filter. DO NOT use compressed air to blow the filter dry. This could damage the filter in much the same way that spraying high-pressure water through it could damage the filter element. Just place the filter in the sun and let it dry. If it is the dead of winter and it is cold out side just place in the house (ask permission) on some newspapers. It should be dry by the next day. 11. Now it is time to re-oil the filter.

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For this task, I would recommend that you use the oil that the manufacturer recommends. It is not that expensive and a can or bottle of it seems to last for years. You are not gaining anything by using filter oil that is not recommended. DO NOT re-use the filter without oiling the element. The filter was designed to be used with the oil on the filter media. The elimination of the oil reduces the efficiency of the filter. The oil helps in the trapping and holding of dirt in the filter. The care and feeding of your race engine will go much smoother if you feed it a supply of clean air. Keeping the filter clean and oiled per the manufacturer’s instructions will make that a much easier proposition. See you on the podium. Vahok has spent 30 plus years writing technical articles exploring the ins and outs of mechanical processes as applied to race cars. He has traveled the world looking at mechanical and machining processes. He has been actively involved in racing for 40 plus years in off road racing, kart racing a variety of short track racing from cars to motorcycles to sprint cars. He was involved with the introduction of computers to race cars when that form of data acquisition was still something that was not the accepted norm. He lives and breathes all things mechanical.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

yesterday’s

DIRT Words: Lee Ackerman Photos: Tony Hammett

Chub Frank three-wheeled his way to a fifth place run.

A TRULY COLOSSAL EVENT PART I

IN 2000, THE OWNERS of the Charlotte Motor Speedway built a 4/10ths mile dirt track just across Highway 29 from the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The idea was to host special events in conjunction with the two big race weeks at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. In 2006, they decided to add a huge dirt late model event. The inaugural Circle K Colossal 100 came with a winner’s payday of $50,000. The inaugural event held in late April 2006 turned out to be a success, despite the fact that mother nature tried to put a damper on it. Thunderstorms hampered the event on both Friday and Saturday night, but a healthy crowd helped make things a success. When you put up a lot of money on the

table you get a lot of cars and that was true in the case of the Colossal as 119 cars entered the event. When time trials had been concluded it was Moweaqua, Illinois’ Shannon Babb with fast time with a lap of 15.421 seconds. This set the lineup for ten heat races with the top two finishers going to the 100 lap A feature. The top six finishers from each of two B features then made their way to the feature. Spots 33 and 34 went to the two fastest qualifiers who had not yet qualified for the feature with the final two positions in the 36-car starting field going to the two drivers not yet qualified with the earliest postmark entry. 12-lap heat race wins were scored by Babb, West Virginia’s Chuck Harper,

Bloomquist completed a sweep of the first two Colossal events.

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Winfield, Tennessee’s Mike Marlar, Arkansas’ Jared Landers with Georgia’s Shane Clanton and Clint Smith claiming the next two heats with the final four going to West Virginia’s Mike Balzano, Minnesota’s Justin Fegers, Virginia’s Booper Bare and Ohio’s Matt Miller. North Carolina drivers won both of the 20-lap C features with Furman Parton taking the first one and Gary Mabe the second. Wisconsin’s Brady Smith took the first 25 lap B feature and moved to the big race along with Louisiana’s Garrett Durrett, Ohio’s Million Dollar Man Donnie Moran, Mississippi’s Rick Rickman, Parton (from the C) and Georgia’s Ed Basey. West Virginia’s Tim Dohm won the second B and advanced along with Pennsylvania’s Jeremy Miller, Illinois’ Darren Miller, Iowa’s Denny Eckrich, North Carolina’s Ricky weeks and Pennsylvania’s Chub Frank. Alabama’s Ronny Lee Hollingsworth and New York’s Tim McCreadie got in on time with Ed Basey and Virginia’s Ronnie DeHaven making it in with the earliest postmarks and filling out the starting field of 36. Some drivers just seem to rise to the occasion for the big money races and certainly Mooresburg, Tennessee’s Scott Bloomquist has proved that again and again throughout his amazing career. This race was no different. Bloomquist started fourth and patiently drove through the first half of the race where the caution flew ten times (13 in all). Those cautions help to diminish the 36car field as fast as the clouds that dumped a large amount of water about 5 pm had

disappeared. On lap 51, Bloomquist decided it was time to take off and took the lead from Kentucky’s Steve Francis. Francis wasn’t thru and regained the point on lap 68 but Bloomer rode the high side back to the lead on lap 70. From that point Bloomquist went unchallenged to the checkers and a huge $50,000 payday. The man on the move during the second half of the event was Donnie Moran. Moran started 25th (coming out of the B) and charged all the way up to a second-place finish and a $25,000 payday. Francis, started on the front row with fast qualifier Babb, finished third, Georgia’s Dale McDowell finished fourth with Chub Frank fifth. Babb started on the pole but got tangled up with the lapped car of Justin Fegers on lap 67 and made two yellow flag pits tops before battling back to sixth. Rounding out the top ten were Hollingworth, Bare, Parton and Weeks. “I’m worn out,” Bloomquist commented after the race. “I was out of tear offs. The car was super. We built these cars new this year, and Vic Hill is doing our engines now, and we were strong on the restarts. This was one great win for us. We have some pretty special race cars, and we put a lot of tender love and car into it. We worked really hard to win tonight.” After the race, Speedway Director of Events Roger Slack confirmed that the race will be back for a second time the next April and said he was pleased with the way the first one turned out despite thunderstorms that hampered the event. “The thing that makes you mad is that we have made great strides with that race track, and out of nowhere we get rain on Wednesday that screwed us up for the rest of the week,” said Slack. “We thought we had it back in pretty good shape after Friday and then to get hit again just as we were ready on Saturday is frustrating.” If a Bloomquist chassis won the first Colossal 100, they dominated at the Second Annual Colossal 100. Bloomquist, who had proven time and again over the years that he was as good a dirt late model driver as there has ever been made a big statement for being a damn good chassis builder as well. When the smoke cleared and dirt quit flying at Colossal Two, Bloomquist Chassis had finished one, two, three. Starting ninth in the field, the defending Colossal 100 champion started ninth in the field and with his teammate, Gray Court, South Carolina’s Chris “Smokey” Madden swapped the lead five time in the 100- lap feature with the unique “Choose Rule” employed at the Dirt Track at Charlotte playing a major role in the restarts in a race that saw eleven yellow flags.

Bloomquist took the lead from Madden on a lap 85 restart and despite heavy traffic during the closing laps held off Madden for the win. To make matters even sweeter for Team Bloomquist, “The Newport Nightmare” Jimmy Owens of Newport, Tennessee started the night in the C feature and raced his was into the A feature, starting 32nd and driving all the way up to a third-place finish. “I have to take my hat off to Chris and Jimmy,” said Bloomquist. “Jimmy came all the way back and Chris was really strong, and when I slid on that start toward the end, it made my tires give up a bit, and that would have been tough on us if we would have stayed under green” “The starts are really critical,” continued Bloomquist. “All I can say is its pretty nice to have a one-two-three with these boys, and It’s nice to have the order the way I like it.” For his part Chris Madden earned $20,000 for finishing second while Jimmy Owens pocketed $10,000 for his long drive from the C to finish third in the A. Tim McCreadie had a solid run to finish fourth, with Shannon Babb finishing fifth, Ashland, Kentucky’s Steve Francis sixth, West Virginia’s Steve Shaver seventh, “the Hurricane” Jacksonville, Florida’s Earl Pearson eighth, Mike Balzano ninth and Kentucky’s Darrell Lanigan (who led the first three laps of the feature) tenth. 92 cars were on hand for the event with Earl Pearson, Jr. setting fast time at 15.078 seconds. Heat race wins went to Clint Smith, Ricky Weeks, the Wisconsin Wildman Dan Schleiper, Madden, Ohio’s Ben Adkins, South Carolina’s Dennis Franklin, South Carolina’s Jeremy Clements, Babb. Dale McDowell and Chuck Harper. Illinois’ Brian Shirley and Jimmy Owens won the C Features. Georgia legend Jack

Has any dirt late model racer ever looked more appropriate wielding a sword? Pennington and California’s Kellen Chadwick won the B features with Pearson, Shane Clanton, North Carolina’s Ray Cook and Iowa’s Brian Birkhofer getting provisionals. NEXT MONTH THE FINAL TWO COLOSSALS

Furman Parton and Rick Eckert tangled during their heat race. DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

dirt

CHRONICLES

ON THE HIGH PLAINS

By: Bob Mays

The son of a promoter, Shane Carson (Bob Trostle 20) raced supermodifieds, dirt champ cars and sprints with equal talent during a 20-year career that landed him in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame. While still racing sprinters at a high-level, Shane took over his late father, Bud’s promotional arm (Mar-Car) at Oklahoma City for many years. (Bob Mays photo)

Rick Salem (own 22) ran supermodifieds, dirt champ cars, midgets and sprints for many years in western Kansas, Colorado and Oklahoma. In 2006, he started the United Rebel Sprint Series (URSS) for 305 sprints and has been going strong since. Western Kansas has always been a stronghold for open wheel racing but that heritage was in danger until the URSS came along. (Leroy Byers photo)

DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

Tommie Estes Jr. (Lyle Dill 71) was an ace with the NCRA and ASCS sprints for many years before hanging up the helmet to take over the floundering Dodge City Raceway Park in Dodge City, Kansas. After ten years at the helm, Estes had DCRP flying high. He is now overseeing the resurrection of I-70 Speedway in Odessa, Missouri. (Leroy Byers photo)

Craig Dollansky (own 7) won 66 World of Outlaws races and also got into promoting WoO races at the Clay County Fair in Spencer, Iowa. In 2021, The Crowd Pleaser recently took over the reins of Dodge City Raceway Park. (Bob Mays photo) DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

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DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

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DIRT EMPIRE MAGAZINE • ISSUE 04 - 2021

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PHOTOGRAPHERS FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE Ashley Allinson - imerald@gmail.com Bob Mays - catsracin@yahoo.com Brad Plant - bradplantphotography@gmail.com Carey Akin – cmakin@att.net Carmen Josefson - carmie769@gmail.com Dave Higgins - dptvmotorsports@gmail.com David Giles – davidgilesphoto@gmail.com David Campbell – www.seemymind.com Dennis Krieger – dkracepics@q.com Heath Lawson - heathlawson48@gmail.com Jeff Bylsma - www.spot-photos.com

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THE PRICE OF THE WICKED SHOT AS DIRT TRACK PHOTOGRAPHERS, I think we can all agree that we are adrenaline junkies. We love what we do. We can also agree that it is a fact that driving race cars is a dangerous business. We all know someone that has either lost their life or been seriously injured by these cars that we love so much. But, when you think about the sport, most do not consider the danger that we face as motorsports photogs. We put our lives on the line every time we step out there on the track and we do not have the benefit of a roll cage, firesuit and helmet. These are just the accepted dangers of what we do. And, like our brothers and sisters who drive those race cars, it is not something that we think about or dwell on until something happens to you. During my 13 years of shooting racing, I have had some close calls. Cars have slid by me or stopped within feet of me. On Saturday, April 8, I came as close as I ever have to being hit by a race car. I was lucky. The car missed me by inches. Jennifer Leath, the I-30 Speedway Track Photographer, was not as lucky. We both were standing in perhaps the most dangerous spot on the track....to the left of turn 1, out in the open. It is a choice spot because it affords you a great wing-down shot of the cars coming into the corner. During a heat race, two cars were battling coming through 3 and 4, then collided at the flag stand, sending one straight at us. It happened so fast, but my years of experience kicked in with the instinct to run. Jennifer hesitated just slightly, trying to get a good photo. As I was running, I looked over my shoulder and the car was looming large coming at us and not stopping. I was sure I was going to be run over. I leaped at the last

second; still looking back, I saw it hit her. It stopped right where I had jumped. I thought Jennifer was dead. She lay there not moving…unconscious. I freaked out and lost it. She came to and was transported to the local emergency room. My hands were shaking, and I was crying like a baby. Local 360 racer Zach Pringle and my brother, Gabe, helped calm me down. I was a mess. It took me weeks to not think about that moment. I’m still not sure why I didn’t get hit too? By the grace of God, Jennifer only had a concussion and some bumps and bruises. Miraculously, her trusty camera, which sailed 15 feet in the air, was not damaged at all. The driver was shaken up pretty bad and had a hard time with it. He tried everything to stop the damaged car, but the speed and momentum was just too great. He was helpless and watched in horror as he hit her.

I THOUGHT JENNIFER WAS DEAD. SHE LAY THERE NOT MOVING… Thank God she didn’t go under the car. I walked off the track (I didn’t know her condition at the time) and swore I was done. I won’t lie, I’m still very uncertain about it now. But so many people have encouraged me to continue. It’s hard to just walk away from something that I love so much. Jennifer healed up and was back out at the track by May 1st. She’s tough as nails and refuses to let what happened deter her passion for photographing races. Had I been in her shoes, I’m not sure if I could have bounced back so fast. So, the big question is what can we learn from this? We all wear a safety vest so that we can be seen by the infield workers and

By Jimmy Jones by the cars, too. But what if you are Jennifer or myself and the car cannot stop? We are simply left with fate. It is either your time to go or not. Simple as that. But, how about not putting yourself in the situation that we found ourselves in there at I-30? The vast majority of us don’t think twice about putting ourselves in a dangerous position to get a killer photo. We all do it. Although, as I have grown older and now have a family, my perspective has changed, and I am generally more careful these days. So, is that hooked up shot really worth the price you might ultimately pay for it? If you are a thrill-seeker with ice in your veins, you will say absolutely it is. Does it give you a better reputation with the drivers because you are willing to stand out there on the edge and take the chance of getting hit? If peer acceptance is your thing, then sure. The older, wiser me is saying it’s not. After nearly getting run over and seeing a friend get hit, I don’t think it’s wise to live on the edge like I did before. I want to live to talk about the wicked shots I have already taken. Jimmy Jones, 50, is a freelance writer and photographer based in Benton, Arkansas. He has been a contributor as a writer and photographer to Flat Out, Dirt Monthly and Dirt Empire Magazines since 2006. One of his notable features was the Tribute to Jason Johnson in Dirt Monthly Magazine and he also wrote Jack Elam’s biography for the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame. His photography has been featured in Sports Illustrated, ESPN and many other national and local news publications.

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Articles inside

New & Featured Products

The Dirt Chronicles

Yesterday’s Dirt

Universal Tech

Moving Pics - Speedway Car Cams

Karting Spotlight

Photographer Focus – Josh James

Short Track Stars – Daniel Robinson

Chris Ferguson

Review in Pictures – Show-Me 100

Kyle Steffens

Jac Haudenschild

Action Capture

Short Track Stars - Jason Fusselman

Top Five

In Memorium

Holey Shirts

Action Capture

Lighter Side of Dirt

Moving Pics - Dirt Dobber

News and Notes

From the Editor – Justin Zoch

Funny Side of the Track

Fore Word – Adam Cornell