REVIEW IN PICTURES – CHILI BOWL

review in

PICTURES

2022 CHILI BOWL

THORSON TASTES FIRST CHILI SUCCESS

FIRST TIME WINNERS are fun. It is a rare experience when one of the Crown Jewel races in any discipline is scored by a new winner and the emotion and the enthusiasm is unmatched. No matter how dramatic a finish or special an accomplishment, the excitement never matches the first time a racer fulfills his dream.

Tanner Thorson joined the elite club of Chili Bowl winners with a lap 37 pass of race long leader Christopher Bell and it is getting harder and harder for new winners to emerge as drivers like Bell, Kyle Larson and Rico Abreu are all at the height of their powers with very powerful race teams. Thorson, meanwhile, came in with the Reinbold/Underwood team and gave them their first Chili Bowl victory, too.

The lights have never been brighter and the field and the crowds (online and in the building) have never been bigger and Thorson put it all together to complete a life-changing week in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Photo: David Campbell

Tanner Thorson has come with a lot of powerful teams and fast race cars but he put it all together with Reinbold/Underwood to get his first taste of Chili Bowl glory.

The Race of Champions kicked the week off in fine fashion as Justin Grant wheeled his NOS Energy Drink midget to a win over Kyle Larson’s Flo Racing 01 on Monday night.

Photo: David Campbell

Photo: Patrick Grant

Carson Sousa stopped the action for fence repairs after a big tumble in turn one of the Chili Bowl.

If you’re a big-time fan (or a regular reader of this magazine), you’ve known Buddy Kofoid for years. If you’re a casual Chili Bowl fan, you know him now. Kofoid outraced Kyle Larson to win his preliminary night feature and ran fourth in the finale.

Photo: David Campbell

Photo: David Campbell

The buzz never really left Tulsa, even during 2021’s COVID tainted version, but it was definitely back this year in a big way every night.

In what could be a cautionary tale for racers from other disciplines, former NASCAR champion Chase Elliott took a high-flyer that our David Campbell rated as his hardest crash of the Bowl on page 58. Use your smart phone to check out a fan-recorded view of the flip.

Much like Chase Elliott on the previous page, Indy Car racer Santino Ferruci took his own wild flight into turn three after getting over a wheel.

For most people, Christopher Bell’s Chili Bowl would have been a dream. He ran third in the Race of Champions, won his seventh straight prelim and ran second in the finale. For Bell and his lofty standards, it was the third straight year he left without a Driller trophy after winning three straight.

Photo: Mike Howard

For the fifth time in six years, it was a NOS explosion courtesy of Justin Grant in victory lane on Friday night.

Photo: Ashley Allinson

A couple of Show-Me State residents get together in heat race action on Monday night as Danny Frye Jr. (5F) tangles with Xavier Doney.

36TH ANNUAL CHILI BOWL MIDGET NATIONALS 55-LAP FEATURE FINISH

Driver Home 1. 19T-Tanner Thorson[2] Nevada 2. 71W-Christopher Bell[1] Oklahoma 3. 97-Rico Abreu[3] California 4. 67-Michael Kofoid[5] California 5. 98-Tanner Carrick[6] California 6. 01-Kyle Larson[7] California 7. 55V-CJ Leary[16] Indiana 8. 5T-Kevin Thomas Jr[8] Alabama 9. 47S-Ricky Stenhouse Jr[10] Mississippi 10. 7X-Thomas Meseraull[13] California 11. 7C-Tyler Courtney[9] Indiana 12. 52-Blake Hahn[14] Oklahoma 13. 17W-Shane Golobic[18] California 14. 89-Chris Windom[17] Illinois 15. 97W-Zeb Wise[11] Indiana 16. 2J-Justin Grant[4] California 17. 47Z-Corey Day[20] California 18. 71K-Kaylee Bryson[12] Oklahoma 19. 29-Tim Buckwalter[21] Pennsylvania 20. 8J-Jonathan Beason[24] Oklahoma 21. 27W-Colby Copeland[15] California 22. 81X-Dillon Welch[22] North Carolina 23. 87-Chase Johnson[19] California 24. 21H-Brady Bacon[23] Oklahoma

my top

FIVE

By Patrick Grant

ONCE AGAIN IT’S TIME to attempt pinpointing the top 5 best looking cars at the 2022 Chili Bowl Midget Nationals. When I first started doing this years ago, the task was much easier with car counts under 300 and many teams not putting as much emphasis on fashion over function. The times have changed since I photographed my last Chili Bowl in 2017 with just under 400 entries and car owners really putting in an effort to grab your attention, making this job very tough.

BEST OF THE BOWL

TOP FIVE CARS AT THE CHILI BOWL

I have been to a lot of Chili Bowls and I don’t recall a Hawaiian entry, but I am old and I will leave it to the historians to correct me! The 8S owned and driven by Kala Kellinoi is a perfect example of stepping outside the box when it comes to fielding a gorgeous ride. If you’re going to travel 3,833 miles to race, why not turn some heads? The sparkle green carbon fiber is over the top. Mix in the matching driver’s suit, gloves, helmet and a seat painted to match really shows Kala’s attention to detail, not to mention the lei at the top of the cage to top it off. Well done!

Jim Neuman always fields some of the best looking cars and the 28 driven by Ace McCarthy is no exception. The classic candy apple red grabs your eye with a nice mix of contrasting white and black which really sets off this color combination. Throw in the matching driver’s seat, shock covers, chrome and polished aluminum and this car stands apart from the crowd.

Jim Neuman goes back to back with the 3N driven by Jake Neuman. Once again I got pulled in by the classic candy apple red (I’m showing my age), but this is a color that never gets old on race cars, especially with the bright yellow “accent” down the side and even on the valve cover. A chrome header accented wheel covers and red shock covers show that no stone was left unturned in the design of this scheme.

I could have picked any of the three Alex Bowman entries for the #4 slot, but I like this shot of Jake Swanson powering into turn one. I will be honest, early in the week, I wasn’t sure what to think about this scheme. But it grew on me big time! The design is fresh and clean with a great use of their sponsor’s corporate colors. Add in the gray chassis and the car just grabs your attention.

Anyone who has been around open wheel racing for any time at all knows that Rudeen Racing always fields beautiful cars in their trademark blue metallic. The design isn’t too busy, and when the car is on the track, your eyes (and my camera) gravitate to it. Though Rudeen Racing brought three of these gorgeous cars, the car pictured is Chili Bowl rookie Kevin Rudeen as he hit the track during Monday practice.

IMPRESSIONS FROM

THE CHILI BOWL

BY DAVID CAMPBELL

WE ASKED DAVID CAMPBELL to give us a few answers to questions we had for someone who basically lived inside the Expo Center for an entire week. He answered ours and provided a few of his own viewpoints, impressions and general “Davisms” from the 36th Chili Bowl.

BEST RACE OF THE CHILI BOWL?

I really had to think about this one but I’m going to have to go with the Race of Champions on Monday. It felt like a Saturday main type of ending. If you haven’t seen it, check out FloRacing and watch it.

WHAT WAS THE BEST PART OF THE CHILI BOWL?

The best part is seeing the crowd back and they completely showed up also! That might have been the best Monday night crowd ever in the Tulsa Expo.

DRIVER WHO SURPRISED YOU THE MOST?

This is a no-brainer. Oklahoma native Kaylee Bryson showed the world she’s here and has a ton of talent. We all know she’s the first female to ever make the final 24 but if you didn’t see how, then you missed out. This young lady came out and was in full send mode on the biggest stage on her preliminary night and then came Saturday. Kaylee decided to seal her name into history, with a massive crowd on their feet cheering, with a dominating run in the B starting 10th and ran through a talented field to win it and make the show. It’s a “I was there when…” moment for everyone in the building for sure.

DRIVER MOST LIKELY TO WIN HIS FIRST CHILI BOWL NEXT?

I’m going with Michael “Buddy” Kofoid. If you’re living under a rock as a sprint car/midget fan and you don’t know that name, well, better get used to it. The kid goes out Tuesday and goes 4th to 1st in the heat, 6th to 2nd in the Qualifier and then wins his prelim night, 5th in the pole shuffle on Saturday and finished 4th after a strong beginning of the A-main. He’s a wheeler and not afraid to keep his foot in the throttle.

HARDEST CRASH?

With 67 being the official flip count, there were some hard tumbles but I have to go with Chase Elliott’s attempt to touch the roof of the building. It was a Hang Time Spectacle.

BEST INTERVIEW?

Tanner Thorson had the best interview after winning his first Driller. Great raw emotion with a sincere apology to his fiancé. A must watch interview.

Photo: David Campbell

BEST NEW DRIVER NICKNAME?

“Monopoly Man” for Kyle Jones. His mustache was in top form and he had a really good run around the game board picking up property wins in his heat and qualifier on Tuesday with a C to B transfer on Saturday before a motor started go sour on the team. Unfortunately for Kyle, but there wasn’t a get out of B-main jail free card in this deck at the Chili Bowl.

ANY FINAL THOUGHTS?

2022 will be known as the Welcome Back to the Chili Bowl. The crowds were fantastic including the turn two partiers, vendors were great, awesome podcasts going on - like the most listened to podcast in the pits - Passing Points Podcast. Overall, the Bowl of Chili was great and I can’t wait for another serving in 2023! I APPROVE THIS COLUMN!

short track

STARS

Plattsmouth, Nebraska

JAKE HOBSCHEIDT

BORN TO RACE

By Lee Ackerman

SOMETIMES A PERSON’S destiny is predetermined for them based on their surroundings and that holds true for Jake Hobscheidt. First, consider that Jake’s dad Jason was a pretty good late model and grand national driver that raced for years at Sunset and I-80 Speedway. Then consider his mother Sandy’s side of the family. Her maiden name was Kosiski. Her dad and brothers Joe and Steve have all been inducted into the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame. Are you getting the picture?

So, it didn’t take long before young Jake was behind the wheel of a race car. In 2006, at the age of five, Jake started racing go-karts. It was a career that lasted seven years with Jake winning 65+ races and the Junior 2 track championship at the age of nine.

At 12, Jake started running B-mods (SportMods) part-time. Part-time because at the age of 12 you are too young to race full-bodied cars at many tracks. So, he raced non-sanctioned events at I-80 Speedway and USRA events at Lakeside Speedway & Valley Speedway (both in the Kansas City area). In 2014, he was starting to post heat race wins in the USRA.

In 2015, because Jake had turned 14, he could start racing in NASCAR sanctioned events and so raced in the B-mod division at both Junction Motor Speedway near McCool Junction, Nebraska and I-80 Speedway between Omaha and Lincoln. It was a successful year as he was named the Rookie of the Year in the B-mod division at Junction, finishing third in points and second in Bragging Rights points (a Grand Nationaltype division). He also finished ninth in B-mod points at I-80 Speedway.

One of his most impressive runs being his charge from ninth to second in the B-mod feature of the Charlie Clark Memorial race at I-80. In 2016, Jake won the SportMod feature at I-80 Speedway’s Silver Dollar Nationals. He also won the prestigious UNOH Achievement Award from NASCAR.

Moving up to the modified division in 2017, Jake captured the Rookie of the Year Award at I-80 Speedway. In 2018, he continued to improve and won the Dirt Dominator Championship at nearby Eagle Raceway. In 2019, Jake was the runner-up at I-80 Speedway in the modified division to long-time rival and friend Ryan Jenkins. Jake was getting close.

The 2020 season was a breakout year for Jake. He won five races in a row at I-80 Speedway and that propelled him to the track championship in the modified division. He won nine races that year including a $5,000 to win special event, the Bill Bowers Memorial at Antioch Speedway in California. “My good friend Sean Wilson had just had surgery on his elbow and couldn’t drive in the Bill Bowers Memorial.” says Hobscheidt. “So, he asked if I would like to come out and race it. It was a no brainer for me because it was my old car that I had been racing and I felt pretty confident going out there.”

If 2020 was the year Jake started to shine, 2021 was the one that caught people’s attention even though it really didn’t start out all that well. “2021 was our best season, yet it started out as one of the worst.” says Hobscheidt. “We started the season with the car I won a bunch of races with the year before and it was horrible. We had a brand-new car on order and a brand-new car in my shop that needed to be assembled for Sean Wilson.”

“We ended up building Sean’s car from the ground up in a day and half. I won seven straight features with it before our new car got here,” continued Hobscheidt. “I need to thank Sean for allowing me to drive his car the first quarter of the season and gaining the momentum we need for the remainder of the season.”

And momentum Jake had. He was on a roll and when the dust settled on his 2021 racing season, he had posted 21 wins in five different states. Not only did they include his second straight Modified class championship at I-80 Speedway that included seven wins and 16 top fives. They also included a number of very impressive special event wins.

In May, he added a win and the overall championship in the prestigious Charlie

Clark Memorial at I-80 Speedway. Later he posted a $5,000 to win in the Iron Man Cup at the Park Jefferson Speedway in South Dakota. Crossing into Western Iowa he won the Swanson Memorial at the Shelby County Speedway in Harlan, Iowa. Then he took a trip to Oregon where he won the Charles Snyder Memorial at the Medford Speedway worth $7,000. Finally, he finished up in early October by winning the Fall Nationals at the RPM Speedway in Hays, Kansas for another $5,000.

Jake has a lot of help with his #01 GRT Chassis that is owned by his parents Jason and Sandra Hobscheidt. Crew support is provided by dad Jason, Shane Armendariz, Tony Fritz, Phillip Brown and Pat Ellis.

So, what does Jake do when he is not racing? He is a truck driver and trailer mechanic at N&W Transfer, the family business.

For the near future, Jake wants to continue racing modifieds. He still has a lot more prestigious races that he would like to win. Down the road, he would love to travel with the USMTS Series.

So, when you are brought up around racing, you kind of get hooked and with Jake’s family background how could you not get hooked? One of Jake’s disappointments in that area is that he never got to see his grandfather Bob race. “I really wish I could have seen him race.” says Hobscheidt. “I remember and old timers race at I-80 Speedway years ago. He was supposed to race a hornet (compact) but the car wouldn’t run. I was so mad. But I also loved growing up and watching my dad and my uncles (the Kosiskis) race and my dad telling me stories about racing.” Ironically, there are a number of individuals close to the situation that see a lot of Bob Kosiski when they watch Jake race.

Shane Armendariz is Jake’s crew chief, just as he was with Jake’s dad Jason. Armendariz has been around the Kosiski Family since going to work for Kosiski Racing Products back in 1993. “Jake is very attentive and pays great attention to detail. He wants to understand how different adjustments make the car drive differently so that he can adjust his driving style accordingly.” says Armendariz. “He is very methodical on the racetrack and does not try to force the issue unless he has to do it.”

His father Jason has obviously enjoyed Jake’s success and remembers when they decided to move Jake from go-karts to big cars. “Jake was racing go-karts and we were starting a new business and we decided to put him in a B-mod when he was 14.” says Jason. “He was a quick learner. His accomplishments have be so gratifying that I have no desire to race anymore.”

“Jake was kind of tentative and careful and then 3 or 4 years ago Ricky Thornton, Jr. told him ‘You need to get out of the box and get a little morepushy’. Jake is still a clean racer, but he is more likely to take chances and he usually makes it work,” continued Jason. “Jake is also hands on and makes all the decisions on the car set-up and learns from his mistakes.”

Photo: Todd Boyd

When asked what race he would like to win the most, Hobscheidt responded, “I would like to win the Duel in the Desert at Las Vegas. We ran well in qualifying races this year and won a qualifying feature - our 21st win of the season - but we were a little tight in the big race but still finished 14th.”

As you can see Jake Hobscheidt has already accomplished a lot in his young career and believes he’s just getting started. He has proven he has the talent. He has the desire. He has the support and racing is certainly in his genes.

Photo: Todd Boyd

guest

MIC DROP

By Kelley Carlton

IS IT THE BEGINNING OF THE END?

GENERALLY SPEAKING, I am a glass half full kind of guy. I follow the example of my good friend Dave Dusick in finding the positive of every situation. Well, most of the time anyway. I would be lying to myself and to you if I didn’t say that I am truly worried that we could look back a few years from now and say that 2022 was the beginning of the end of dirt late model racing. While most racers are sitting back and licking their chops over the huge purses that have been announced for the new season, I am in a dark place about where this could lead us.

I am absolutely ecstatic that racers will be getting a lot more money thrown their way. What I am not happy about is what it does to local and regional tracks and racers in the wake of the big money events. My concern is what becomes of the regional $4,000-$5,000 to win shows? Have these big money shows now diluted these events and made them seem lesser in the eyes of fans who may think that in order for a race to be good it has to pay $20,000 or more to win. Having worked at the regional level for over 20 years now I can tell you with great honesty that most racetracks are not making a lot of money on these events. There are some exceptions but for the most part racetracks do these regional events with a minimal profit margin. Some even use them as loss leaders to try to draw in new fans to their facilities.

But if our fanbase starts to slip away in favor of only the big money shows, we are headed for disaster. If you don’t believe it just take a look at what has happened to weekly Super Late Model racing around the country. There are very few tracks left that can run them weekly. Most tracks just cannot afford the purses that are needed to keep those late models coming back each week. So, the racers start to travel around in search of those purses. It is very cyclical in nature and I am afraid that is where we are headed with regional late model racing also.

The other aspect that concerns me is the sustainability of these purses for the racetracks. Obviously, there are some venues in the country that can maintain at this level. But I know that there are many more that cannot. And without the influx of real corporate sponsorship even some of those stronger venues may find themselves in a bind at times. I know what the profit margins are on a national tour event for many tracks when they were doing 2021 level purses. Will they get that many additional fans in the gate to cover the increases? Will the ticket prices have to go up to make it work? My belief is it will be the latter. Then fans are likely to become even more selective about races they attend. If those tracks start losing money on these shows, they will stop having them. Less events available means less racers get a piece of the pie and aren’t able to race as often or even at all. It would be one huge trickledown effect.

It does mean that a regional promoter like me is going to have to work even harder to get people in the gates. It also means that our sport needs to bring in new sponsors to help keep the wheels turning. It means that tracks have to promote like they have never done before and think outside of the box to keep people coming through the gates. It also means that fans have to do their part if they want to continue to have this sport readily available to them. They have to support their local tracks. Don’t fall into the mindset that only big money events are worthy of attending. And, for goodness sake, bring someone new with you. This is going to take every one of us at every aspect of the sport to maintain. Is it the begging of the end? I definitely hope not and I am going to do my part to try to make sure it isn’t. I challenge you all to do the same.

engine builder

SPOTLIGHT

Tyler Carpenter dominated the Dome and punched his ticket to a NASCAR Truck ride with his Mullins Race Engine under the hood.

MULLINS ENGINES

CHAMPIONSHIP BUILDS

CHAD MULLINS GOT his start in engine building by attending UTI in Glendale Heights, IL, graduating in 1995. He had worked on engines and performed machine work while still in high school, but in the spring of 1995 upon graduation, Chad helped to expand Mullins Auto Parts & Salvage by adding Mullins Machine Shop.

By the end of 1998, Chad was building racing engines and his brother, Brent, was racing UMP modifieds. This afforded Chad the opportunity to grow his knowledge base and experience with racing engines actively used in competition. The first-hand experience helped bolster his knowledge with fine tuning the engine combinations, gearing and different setups for different cars and drivers. With this race-track earned expertise now in his tool box, chad was able to craft his engines and setups for different drivers and their styles. He had quickly come to realize that one setup does not fit all. Working with each driver, Chad was able to utilize different cubic inch, cylinder head and cam combinations so as to suit each individual driver and track configuration.

Mullins Race Engines has continued to grow and grow. There was an initial expansion around 2005, when a new dyno facility was added. Later CNC router machines were added to expand their building capabilities. In 2022 more expansion plans are being completed as over twice the floor space is getting added. The expansion will include additional dyno facilities and more room to facilitate the growing LS program.

“We pretty much won just about everything in the modified world that we could,” Mullins said. “We set out to be the flagship engine builder for the modified world. That was one of our goals

with my brother’s racing program, and we did it. For a while we were just doing machining for other late model engine builders. Then we decided to take on the challenge of building our Gen 1 LS late model engine.”

This was no small task. Creating an LS racing engine program from scratch meant building all new inventory, as the modified engine program was a different animal than what Mullins would undertake with the LS program. The success of the Gen 1 LS led Mullins to start an even larger challenge of their reengineered Gen 2 LS power plant.

“We had to engineer so much of this program from nothing. We ended up crating up the engine and shipping it up to Jones Racing Products to have them help us with the pulley and belt setup. This was during their busiest time, yet they still came through for us. I’d get calls from them on Sunday when they were in the shop working on this project for us. We wouldn’t have gotten this project done without Jones’ knowledge. They really went the extra mile for us.”

The Gen 1 LS engine was a success, partly because of its performance, partly because of its accessible price.

“We were able to produce a new engine that the Saturday night driver could afford,” Mullins said. “It basically came in at the same price they had been paying for a well-used engine from another team. This project was a serious endeavor for us. We really feel like we’re a pioneer in the LS program and we think it’s good for racing. With the success we were having in late models, we started

MULLINS GEN 1 LS Late Model utilizes Jones components: 1020-LS-DLM MULLINS GEN 1 LS Northeast Mod utilizes Jones components: 2483-LS-ALL

getting calls from the Northeast mod guys. That was unexpected, but we were able to deliver an engine that excels in that field as well. We’re proving that we’re innovators not followers.”

With the new facility expansion nearing completion and the Gen 2 LS coming together, Mullins will continue to innovate and be a top name for engine builders in the modified, late model and Northeast mod scene for years to come.

Mullins Race Engines is located in Mount Olive, Illinois, has ten employees and produces over 250 engines annually.

For more information you can visit: mullinsraceengines.com or visit them on facebook: facebook.com/ mullinsraceengines

shooter at

LARGE QUENTIN YOUNG

Brent Marks displays perfect placement on the cushion.

Alex Yankowski leads the field into turn 1 during heat race action for the 2021 running of the Short Track Super Series ‘Richie Evans Remembered 61’ at the Utica-Rome Speedway.

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.

Bobby Pierce bounces off the wall trying to run down race leader Kyle Larson late in the 2021 running of the ‘Prairie Dirt Classic’ at the Fairbury American Legion Speedway.

GET TO KNOW QUENTIN YOUNG

Age: 23 Year Started Shooting: 2018 First Publication to Print Your Work: Dirt Track Digest Favorite Track to Shoot: Brewerton Speedway Favorite Division to Shoot: Big Block Modifieds Remaining Bucket List Races: Knoxville Nationals and Chili Bowl Favorite Thing About Racing Photography: Being able to be involved in a different side of racing than just being a fan and being able to capture those special moments that occur.

Outside of race cars, what do you like to photograph:

Animals and a little bit of nature stuff. Camera Equipment: Canon 5D Mk IV, Canon R5, 500 f4, 300 f2.8, 70-200 f2.8, 24-70 f2.8 Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/ QuentinYoungPhotography Website: https://quentinyoungphoto.com/

Larry Wight powers into turn 3 during the 2021 ‘Massive Malta Weekend’ event for the Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds at the Albany-Saratoga Speedway.

Jac Haudenshchild drops the right rear over the edge of the back straightaway during his final appearance at the Wayne County Speedway with the All Star Circuit of Champions.

Billy Decker’s car sits on jacks as the team prepares for the Super DIRTcar Series event at the Orange County Fair Speedway

Garet Williamson launches off the top of the race track during heat race action the All Star Circuit of Champions Ohio Speedweek stop at the Waynesfield Raceway Park. He landed back on all four wheels and continued with only a flat left rear tire.

dirt

CHRONICLES

By: Bob Mays

Billy Cantrell rides the Pop Miller Ace through turn four at Ascot Park in 1963. Cantrell and Miller were both veterans of the dirt wars on the west coast. Billy’s career goes back to the 1940s. (Bob Mays collection)

Bob East glides the Bob Coulter Deuce in turn three at El Centro in 1976. When was the last time you saw a guard rail made of straw? It was a regular thing at the California Mid-Winter Fair. (Bob Mays collection)

WEST COAST FLYERS

Richard Griffin slides the Ron Chaffin 50 into turn three at Eagle Raceway. Griffin piloted the Bruce Bromme-wrenched “Little Red Sucker,” to five SCRA titles in six years, from 1998 through 2003. (Bob Mays photo)

“The Ripper,” Rip Williams learned his technique at Ascot and applies it here at the Perris Auto Speedway in 2012, guiding the John Jory Tre. Williams’ three sons have followed their father into the sprint car wars. (Bob Mays photo)

yesterday’s DIRT

Bob’s first win at Fairmont in 1968.

By Chad Meyer

Photo: Shryock Collection

A LONG LOOK AT HALL OF FAMER BOB SHRYOCK

THE LATE BOB SHRYOCK’S path to becoming a late model racing legend from the modest Iowa town of Estherville wasn’t linear. Shryock started racing at the age of 21 but quickly met a detour. During that first season he was involved in a serious accident that destroyed his first car. It took him three more years before he had the money to race again.

When 1968 rolled around, Shryock didn’t have to go far for a car to build, he literally transitioned the family car, a 1957 Ford, pictured above, into his next race car. Shryock’s first full year racing was successful, earning his first career feature win at the Fairmont Raceway in Minnesota on June 21.

Shryock was a winner six times at Fairmont throughout 1969 and 1970, but it wasn’t just Fairmont Raceway where he collected trophies. He was a regular at the Jackson Speedway in Minnesota, earning the Sportsman class point’s championship each of those two years.

In 1973, Shryock started his campaign traveling to Florida in February, representing Iowa well in the Winter Nationals, finishing sixth on the first night out of 65 cars. On the third night he scored a tenth-place finish just behind Ed Sanger, Stan Stover, Red Dralle and Don Hester.

That season also launched two things Shryock became known for - being a dominating competitor and the start of his rivalry with Denny Hovinga. At the Kossuth County Speedway season opener in Algona, Denny Hovinga posted wins in the heat, trophy dash and main event. Shryock again played second fiddle to Hovinga in the annual “Race Days” feature at Algona, in front of a packed grandstand that witnessed 38 Super Stocks battle.

By the time July of ‘73 rolled around, Shryock turned the tables. During the annual Midwest Super Stock Car Championships, he held off the challenges of chief rival Hovinga and Dan Rurup to become the seventh different winner of the event. It was Shryock’s first big win. He kept the momentum going into August as the crowd at the Kossuth County Fair Championship race witnessed Shryock nipping Denny Hovinga at the checkered flag. It would not be the last side-by-side battle between Shryock and Hovinga. In Alta, Shryock was crowned the season point champ at the conclusion of ’73.

Shryock then captured the first of an incredible five wins in the Black Hills Nationals at Rapid City, SD. Over the threeday event, Shryock pocketed $2070.

Early in Shryock’s career, he understood the value of a good pit crew and constantly praised his own. In a 1975 interview he said “If I win tonight, there will be some celebrations. But if something goes wrong with the car, they will head right back to Estherville and start tearing the car apart yet tonight.”

In the same interview he was asked about being nervous. He pointed to a couple packs of cigarettes on his dashboard. “I’ll smoke both of those before the night is over,” said Shryock. “But once the flag is dropped, I won’t be nervous anymore.”

One might conclude that the ‘74 and ’75 seasons weren’t that big for Shryock. He won races, including the second feature during the Ole Brua Memorial at Cresco in ’74, but it seemed that Dave Bjorge stopped his progress in Minnesota and Denny Hovinga was getting the better of him in his home state. Still, he was crowned the point champ at Alta and earned his first Viking Invitational at Alexandria, MN in ’74. Any thoughts of Shryock not being dominant again were erased at the end of ’75. He defended his Viking Invitational title, winning over Bjorge. In September Shryock became the first driver to repeat as champion of the Black Hills Nationals.

In 1976 he campaigned two ’76 Camaro late models, his own #83 and a #3 owned by Cleghorn, Iowa’s Roger “Duke” Duccommun at Fairmont, Webster City and Alta. By August 20th, Shryock won his 20th feature of the season. It was also his fourth in a row at Webster City. It was an incredible week,

Shryock in turns three and four at the Buena Vista Raceway located in Alta, Iowa.

Photo: Meyer Collection

the night before at Fairmont he finished second in the make-up and regular features. Early Sunday, Shryock won his heat race at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines and finished fourth out of sixty cars in the feature behind Stan Stover, Curt Hansen, and Ed Sanger. The team hurried to Alta and won the feature that night.

At season’s end, he was the point champion at Webster City and Alta. At Fairmont, he did something he had tried to do for a long time; he finally had a point title there. In an interview with the Estherville Daily News, he said “I have been trying to win the point championship at the Fairmont racetrack for eight years and finally won it.” Even though Bob Weber won the championship feature, Shryock’s third place finish sewed up his title.

In September, he beat Dennis Sherrill from Sioux City to earn his third Black Hills Nationals crown. Grinning ear-to-ear, he shouted to the large crowd around his winning car, “Hey, I really like this track!” He finished the 40-lap affair with a straightaway lead. A young Willy Kraft finished sixth in Shryock’s back-up car, only the fourth time Kraft had driven a late model. A week later he passed Dave Bjorge and Bob Kosiski to win the 50-lap Fall Futurity at Webster City.

Shryock was ready early for 1977. “We’re going to Florida to vacation, to race and to see if there’s anything wrong with the car,” Shryock said in a February 14th interview. “Then, if we find something wrong, we’ve got six weeks to work on it and we’ll be ready for the coming season.”

They got the ’77 Camaro in November and built it from the ground up, including the 454 cubic-inch engine. According to the interview, they raced three nights at Lake City, FL and three more nights at Ocala. “Then, when we get through racing Friday night, we go for the big thrill and watch the Daytona 500,” Shryock said. “But make sure the people know we’re just goin’ to watch!”

In the same article, he previewed the season by explaining how he gets the fans involved at the track, especially Alta. “I like to irritate the crowd, I really do. In a nice way, not a dirty way,” he said. “If that’s what it takes to get the people there, then that’s what we do. We’re looking for one of the best years ever for car attendance at the races.”

What a season it was for Shryock in ’77. In Florida, he finished 8th, 4th and 3rd at Ocala. Back home in mid-April, Joe Kosiski and he won the Twin 50s in the Spring Invitational at Sunset Speedway at Omaha. Memorial Day weekend Shryock had clean sweeps at Fairmont, Webster City and Alta. It was on after that. After winning the first three mains at Fairmont a bounty was placed on the #3. Shryock never finished worse than second all year at Fairmont. Ted Zeiman beat him twice and Dave Bjorge once, the only drivers collecting bounties.

Shryock dominated Mid-Season Championships at Fairmont and Webster City. He also won the season championship races at Fairmont and Alta, before collecting season point titles

Photo: Shryock Collection Bob Shryock shares victory lane with his son Kelly. Kelly earned his 500th career win in 2021.

at those two tracks plus Webster City. By Alta’s season championship race, Shryock was the winner of 32 main events. His success continued into the fall, posting a clean sweep of the late model fall special at Hartford, South Dakota, and winning one-half of the Twin 50s at the North Central State Classic at Des Moines. Curt Hansen won the other feature.

The 1978 campaign was nearly as successful, grabbing the season opener at Eldon, Iowa. Between that and winning the Black Hills Nationals at Rapid City, SD for the fourth time, Shryock amassed multiple weekly wins at Hartford, SD, the Alta Race Days special and Alta, Webster City and Fairmont mid-season championships. He also claimed night one of the Fairmont All-Star 12,000 and the Alta Labor Day special over Bob Hill. Year-end accolades included three point titles at Alta, Webster City and Fairmont. Shryock was voted Iowa Racing Yearbook Driver of the Year.

Another trip to start the season in Florida began Shryock’s 1979 campaign. He won the season opener at Alta but a hot Denny Hovinga and Bob Hill thwarted his win total at Fairmont. By mid-July though, he earned four wins in a row at St. Cloud, MN and several wins at Grove Creek, MN. His perseverance on the season paid off with a win at the Sioux Empire Fair in Sioux Falls and a thirdplace finish in the Black Hills Nationals after earning the point titles at Fairmont and Alta.

The early 1980s brought rapid change though. Shryock’s name doesn’t show nearly as much in the win column during this period. The cost to compete in the late model division was skyrocketing. Car counts were rapidly dropping.

In 1980, he finally won at Alta on June 8th before winning the mid-season championships at Webster City and Fairmont. He then finished second in points on the North Dakota Late Model Tour. In 1981, drivers like Jerry Holtkamp, Dave Bjorge and Dick Schiltz were dominating. Shryock squeezed out the fair race win at Alta, the last night they raced late models. A bright spot in ’81 was earning the Black Hills Nationals crown for an unprecedented fifth time, the only driver to win it more than once.

Tom Lathen, then track announcer at Alta recalls a great memory of sitting in Shryock’s living room in Estherville, Iowa, with he and his wife conducting an Shryock’s first “big” career win was the Midwest Super Stock Car Championship held at the Kossuth County Speedway in Algona, Iowa.

Photo: Shryock Collection

interview on KICD Radio in Spencer. “He and his wife were absolutely incredible hosts, and he was such a tremendous interview. Articulate and knowledgeable and with so many great stories. He was a “racing prophet,” as he told me that day that late model racing was heading for deep trouble if something wasn’t done to curtail spending. He told me that it had gotten to the point where he could race three nights a week, win every night, and still lose money at it.”

It was a crazy time in the Midwest as the ’82 season started. Outlaw late models, late models and limited late models rules sprang up but did little to

Shyrock shakes hands following another victory in Alta, Iowa.

Photo: Meyer Collection

In 1983, Shryock was the inaugural American Outlaw Stock Car Association champion. Here he is at speed at I-70 Speedway near Odessa, Missouri, during the NDRA Invitational.

contain costs or build car counts. On the second night of the late model nationals at Knoxville, Iowa, Shryock finished third in the limited late model feature behind Larry Moore and Kevin Gundaker. ’82 was lean for Shryock. The opener at Fairmont had less than 10 cars in every division. He did, though win the Fairmont fair race and finished second in the All-Star Invitational at Fairmont and the Black Hills Nationals.

His son Kelly remembers that “It was a tough time racing in the early 80s. You have to remember he had five mouths to feed and racing got really expensive. It was hard to compete and the results suffered.”

Shryock was able to secure sponsorship going into 1983 that allowed him to compete in the Outlaw Late Model division. He won the inaugural American Outlaw Stock Car Association (AOSCA) point title over Joe Kosiski and Willy Kraft, earning wins at Harlan plus an outlaw win at Fairmont.

He started winning multiple outlaw late model events at Webster City, including a second place run at the NDRA qualifier win there. He went on to win the NDRA point championship at Webster City, but it was getting tough to keep the finances together to keep racing. In fact, he didn’t race in 1985 until after mid-season when Shryock began a successful association with Keith Smith, driving the Smith Trucking late model out of Round Lake, MN. In their five nights of racing together that year, they accumulated two feature wins, two seconds and a third-place finish. Bob had also driven his son Kelly’s IMCA modified to wins at both Webster City and Mason City, IA.

Prior to the ’85 season, Shryock switched jobs so he could work four 10hour days so he had more time to race. It was at that new job where Bob passed away in a construction accident while saving the life of a co-worker on August 19, 1985. He was just 41 years old.

Three days before his tragic passing, Bob stood in victory lane at Fairmont Raceway, celebrating Kelly’s first ever win in the IMCA modified feature. The next night, at the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City, Bob Shryock won in his final late model feature race over Bob Hill. The following Monday, Bob was gone. I can still remember exactly where I was when I heard the terrible news.

Kelly told me several times he would have been content being crew chief for his dad and not driving himself. They had ideas of going racing fulltime. “With the Smith Trucking deal, we really felt like he got what he needed in order to be competitive with anyone again. It’s hard not to think about what might have been.”

Kelly ultimately has lived the dream of his dad, compiling an incredible resume of his own. He has the most United States Modified Touring Series (USMTS) wins in its history with 182, plus nine national championships. In July 2021, Kelly notched his 500th career win. He races and wins in IMCA Modifieds and has become a force in IMCA’s Stock Car division.

The late Bob Shryock is a Kossuth County Racing Hall of Fame in Algona, IA and Iowa Racing Hall of Fame inductee. In 2021, Shryock was rightfully inducted into the National Late Model Hall of Fame located at Florence Speedway in Walton, Kentucky.

Shryock before his last race at Webster City, Iowa. Photo: Meyer Collection

new & featured

PRODUCTS

EDITION

Although we’re now solidly into the new season, we didn’t want to move on without thanking everyone who came by the Dirt Empire booth at the Performance Racing Industry trade show to subscribe, to a grab a copy or to just chat or pitch a story. We had a great show and reached so many new readers with our presence at the PRI show. While we were there, we also found a few new products, and a few old ones, that were featured in the hall.

PRI FIRST IMPRESSIONS

By Ashley Zimmerman HAVING GROWN UP around racing, it may be surprising to some that my trip to PRI in December 2021 was not just my first experience as a member of the media but my first ever experience at the show, period. I’ve always been an all-in or not-at-all person so of course I went to my first PRI participating in everything I could! I genuinely went into the weekend with zero expectations and even a bit of anxiety. The better part of my Thursday was spent in confusion staring at the PRI app on my phone and praying I could navigate to where I intended but also manage to find my way back to the Dirt Empire booth once I left. To be entirely honest, I didn’t get as much time to wander around the convention center and explore the exhibits at PRI, though it wasn’t for a lack of curiosity, but because of the number of attendees that stopped by the booth to talk about how much they enjoyed the magazine or to sign up for a subscription or just to talk about racing was a line that just never quit!

PRO 20 CARBON TOP AIR HELMET

THE RACEQUIP PRO20 CARBON TOP AIR Helmet is a Snell SA2020 rated full face auto racing helmet that incorporates contemporary styling with advanced composite production techniques. The shell is built using pre-preg Carbon Fiber and Kevlar(R) materials placed into pressurized steel molds to achieve the best combination of light weight and strength.

These helmets are also sometimes called forced air, blower, or pumper helmets because they have a provision on the helmet to attach a fresh air hose. The unique manifold design gives this helmet a super low profile that will fit in any car and utilizes an inlet barb that works with standard 1.250” round hose. The forced air is channeled from the manifold all the way to the forehead area where it blows downward across the faceshield though molded vents above the eyebrows. The forced air cools your face and airways and also keeps the faceshield fog free.

Reinforced M6 threaded HANS/ HNR inserts are mated to the Carbon Fiber shell along with an expanded polystyrene (EPS) liner. HANS or other Head and Neck Restraint device anchor posts (not included) can be easily attached to the outside of the helmet using the installed M6 threaded inserts. The distortion free 3mm polycarbonate faceshield features a red anodized aluminum pivot kit, hand ratcheting TearOff posts, and a silicone eyeport gasket to seal out dust and dirt. A wide eyeport provides good peripheral vision and allows the use of personal eyewear. The fire retardant clear coat produces a deep gloss finish to highlight the tight weave of the Carbon Fiber. The Snell SA rating means that the interior, clear coat, and kevlar chin strap are all fire retardant, so the RaceQuip PRO20 CARBON TOP AIR Helmet is suitable for use in all forms of motorsports. The comfort fit blended Nomex® interior helps keep your scalp cool.

All these features are wrapped in a stylish aero design lightweight Carbon composite shell with a medium sized chin spoiler. The result is the outstanding value delivered by the RaceQuip PRO20 CARBON Top Air helmet. Available in sizes Small – 2XL Racer Net $599.95

http://racequip.com 813-642-6644

DOMINATOR RACING PRODUCTS

The folks from Dominator were at the PRI again this year showing off a bevy of new products but the PRI trade show is also a great place to showcase old favorites on display for new customers. This was the case with their very popular late model nose kit – the Dominator. Contact Dominator for more information on the Dominator nose kit and other products.

Dominator Race Products 419-923-6970 www.dominatorraceproducts.com

WITH DIMINISHING AVAILABILITY

of OEM chassis available for Street Stock racecars, Bernheisel Race Components has developed a Street Stock Metric Chassis built 100% to specs, but utilizing modern tube steel racing chassis construction. This chassis has proven to be stronger than an original recovered chassis, with all of the same attachment locations so that all stock components will fit perfectly. • Safer and stronger • Includes Jack Bolt Nuts and Spring Buckets. • All stock components guaranteed to fit properly. • Available with or without upper control arm mounts. • Available in full perimeter or offset (shown). • Checking gauges available for tracks/series.

Call for more details 717.865.3119 1 Bordnersville Rd. Jonestown, PA 17038 www.bernheiselracecars.com

the race fan’s

BOOKSHELF

By Justin Zoch

5•10•32 BY JOE VERDEGAN

IF YOU’RE A FAN of dirt track racing, Wisconsin-based author Joe Verdegan has certainly published plenty of works worthy of your attention during his career covering motorsports and his latest labor of love introduces three of the finest racers from his homebase of Northeast Wisconsin to a national audience. 5-10-32: McBride, Parker, Anvelink was recently released and covers the entire careers of M.J. McBride, Pete Parker and Terry Anvelink, who were a talented of late model drivers with three distinct personalities.

Throughout a 20-year period from 1980 through the turn of the century, they were dominant at tracks like Shawano Speedway to the tune of 18 combined track titles in that period while scoring hundreds of feature wins.

Verdegan relies heavily on interviews with the trio but also uses extensive interviews and opinions from their contemporaries and family members. It’s not only an excellent look at a prominent racing scene and how it evolved over the decades but Verdegan also delves deeply into the driver’s lives off the racetrack with their families and photos and anecdotes, including a classic shot of McBride in his band The Ravens before he turned from guitars to race cars.

McBride passed away back in 2001 while Parker and Anvelink have since retired from the sport but are still heavily involved with their families. Of the trio, Parker is the only member to have thus far been enshrined in the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame.

EXCERPT FROM 5•10•32

The following passage comes from Chapter 23: Terry Anvelink – In His Own Words and helps to describe the intensity of the on track relationship the trio had during their prime.

“We developed a pretty good rivalry with M.J. (McBride) over the years. M.J. always had those big sponsors and a huge pit crew and was sort of like the mayor of Shawano. We won the 1984 track championship with our Howe car and M.J. won five straight titles after that. M.J. was always an aggressive driver who was never afraid to drop the plow on you once-in-a-while. One time, M.J. and I mixed it up at little bit on the track. It was a heat race. We got into the pits, but we talked it over and cooled down. But over in the grandstands, we heard this ruckus. M.J.’s dad, Charlie McBride, and some other M.J. fans got into a fight with a couple of my friends. You could hear all of this yelling and the fight broke out, and the cops had to come in and break it up. I turned to M.J. and said ‘Is this really happening?’ We both just shook our heads. We did get along off the track and we’d often have some beers after the races were done. For some reason myself, Pete [Parker] and M.J. all seemed to be on our A game during the ‘80s and ‘90s, and truthfully, off the track we were all the best of friends but when we’d race, it was all out. Neither of us seemed to give an inch on the track.”

5•10•32 is 160 pages and soft cover featuring lots of archival color and black and white photos. The cost is $25 and is available with all of Verdegan’s other titles at www.joeverdegan.com.

PRI FIRST IMPRESSIONS

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 78

Getting to see the emotion in response pieces we’ve published and the excitement of what was to come from the magazine was the motivation I lacked to get excited for 2022. The atmosphere inside of dirt track racing has always been on the top of my list for reasons why I fell in love with this sport, and getting to spend time engaging with readers at PRI was nothing short of defining the feelings behind that atmosphere. Being able to finally put names to faces from social media or getting to shake the hands of the people I’ve interviewed over the last two years is something that I’ve looked forward to and getting to attend PRI allowed me to check many people off of those lists. I was able to finally meet drivers like Thomas Meseraull, Kyle Steffens, Jackie Rumley and legends like Flea Ruzic who, through their time and successes in racing, have allowed me the opportunity to write some truly special pieces. The racetrack has always felt like home for me, and friendships like these remind me that in finding my home, I also found my people.

Experiencing the three days of PRI with race fans and subscribers was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had to date. It may have taken me the week to recover from all of the walking, I may have still had to ask for directions leaving the convention center on Saturday but I’m already preparing for what PRI 2022 has in store on December 8-10. After all, who wouldn’t want to go back and do it all again when you’re with this kind of company?

Flea Ruzic and Ashley in the Dirt Empire booth.

support these FOLKS

ADVERTISER PAGE Allstar ................................................................2 Bernheisel Race Components ...........................17 Braswell...........................................................81 Brinn Inc. .....................................................4, 81 Close Racing Supply..........................................82 Dominator.........................................................21 Dyers Top Rods .................................................31 e3 Lithium Battery............................................29 Eibach...............................................................84 HoseHeads........................................................81 Jones Racing Products .....................................63 K-B Carbs .........................................................81 Longacre Racing.................................................3 PPlus Global Logistics.................................49, 81 RacingJunk.com......................................5, 43, 79 RUSH Racing Series......................................6, 80 Summit Racing Equipment...................................9 T&D Machine Products .....................................47 Wehrs Machine & Racing Products...................37 White Knuckle Clothing.....................................15 Winters ............................................................83

Want a helmet decal? Send us a self-addressed stamped envelope with a decal request to: Dirt Empire Magazine PO Box 919 Brunswick, GA 31521

SUPPORT OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Dirt Empire Magazine is proud to have assembled a crack staff of freelance photographers and writers who blend their passion for the sport with their talent and artistry to make these pages pop. If you see an image that you’d like to own or need a great image for your shop, drop them a line and support them.

PHOTOGRAPHERS FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE

Ashley Allinson – imerald@gmail.com Black Hat Photography – djwebs1969@aol.com Bob Mays – catsracin@yahoo.com Brendon Bauman – brendonbauman30@gmail.com Chad Meyer – cmeyer@newcoop.com David Campbell – www.seemymind.com David Giles – davidgilesphoto@gmail.com Jacy Norgaard – jacy@jacynorgaardphotography.com John Lee - highfly-n@comcast.net Josh James – joshjamesphotos@gmail.com Mike Campbell – mikecampbellphotos@gmail.com Mike Howard – acer19@cox.net Mike Ruefer – mikerueferphotos@gmail.com Patrick Grant – patrickgrant1313@gmail.com Paul Arch - peanumber10@comcast.net Quentin Young – quentinyoungphoto@yahoo.com Rick Sherer – ricksherer@outlook.com Ron Sloan – facebook.com/RonSloanPhotography/ Todd Boyd – latemodel1967@gmail.com Tyler Rinkin – rinkty01@luther.edu Zach Yost – zyost11@yahoo.com

HoseHeads PPlus Global Logistics Braswell K-B Carbs Brinn Inc.

pit

STOP