OWNER/PUBLISHER
Adam Cornell
EDITOR
Justin Zoch
SUBSCRIPTION COORDINATOR
Abigail Cornell
WEBSITE COORDINATOR
Shaun 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 Kennedy, 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, Josh James, 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, Ron Sloan, Ryan Northcote, Scott Swenson, Seth Stone, Steve Walters, Tanner Dillin, 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
An epic season of wins for Ricky Thornton Jr. Join Ashley Zimmerman as she revisits this historic season by the driver of the 20RT.
Brady Bacon continues to reset what it means to be an open wheel racer as he continues to chase USAC Sprint Car titles and victories while also providing for his family with a side-gig running winged sprint cars well enough to earn World of Outlaws victories. We took all your questions to one of the most honest, and hard-working, racers out there.
Sometimes, when you start doing something, it’s hard to stop. For Ricky Thornton Jr. in 2023, that thing was winning big time late model races. It was an explosive season that propelled RTJ into the conversation for best late model racer on the planet and we go win by win by win through a season we’ll be rehashing for years to come.
If you like watching dirt track race cars parade down Main Street en route to a paved track covered in dirt to watch a generational talent pull off something that no one has ever done before, Super Dirt Week in Oswego, New York, had everything you’ve been looking for and we’ve got the pictures to prove it.
The XR Super Series burst onto the scene a few years back with huge events and live streaming and we checked in with series head Barry Braun to get his thoughts on 2023, what’s ahead for 2024 and what he’d like to see happen in a very competitive industry.
about what we’re doing here at Dirt Empire Magazine, but that’s not the part I enjoy.
BY ADAM CORNELLONCE AGAIN, we find ourselves in the off season, or as I like to call it, trade show season. Was it just my imagination or did this year fly by fast?!
My trade show season started early this year back in late October/early November with the SEMA show out in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was my first experience at SEMA and it was great to see many of our advertisers and even some subscribers at the show.
The rest of the trade show season consists of exhibiting at the PRI show in Indianapolis, Indiana in December as well as the CARS show in Hickory, North Carolina in January. Additionally, I usually try to hit some open houses at a few retailers across the country like Close Racing Supply and Bernheisel Race Components in Eldred and Jonestown, Pennsylvania respectively.
Part of the reason I attend or exhibit at all of these different marketing venues is to let more people learn
I love meeting both those who we have covered throughout the year in our pages, as well as those who have been reading those pages we’ve created! Getting a chance to learn about where our readers are from and what kind of racing is their favorite and what we can do to make Dirt Empire better are some of my favorite moments at these shows. Over the last three years, these conversations have been truly rewarding.
Even as I typed that previous sentence, I found it hard to believe. Three years of Dirt Empire hardly seems real. Yet here we are, continuing the dream. I don’t think I’ve ever had the pleasure of working on a project for this length of time that has brought so much fun and excitement while proving to be so emotionally fulfilling.
Every issue we complete feels like we have contributed to the historical archive of this great sport. The moments captured by our photographers and the stories and interviews penned by our writers provide us with a contemporary account of the racing scene as it unfolds and will provide future generations with a historical snapshot of this era.
When I was younger, I was gifted a huge set of Hot Rod Magazine issues from the 1960s and 1970s. I was so fascinated by the glimpse into the past.
1. Prepare in advance! Before arriving at any trade show, prepare as much in advance as possible. Set appointments with those exhibitors you want to talk to and make sure you plot out your map well so you know where you’re going and don’t have to waste time doubling back. And don’t forget to pack business cards!
2. Bring a bag for the swag. There’s usually an assortment of bags available at any given trade show, but bring along a bag that is comfortable to carry with some amount of weight in it. Nothing is worse than the plastic straps of a trade show bag cutting off the circulation to your fingers ten minutes into your show experience.
3. Bring several pairs of shoes. If you’re planning on attending a show on multiple days, bring several pairs of comfortable shoes and switch them out each day or even morning and afternoon. Trust me your feet will thank you for it!
4. Be sure to check out our PRI directory for our advertisers on page 96.
I hope one day some young person will be gifted these early issues of Dirt Empire Magazine and will gaze with the same wonder at these cars and drivers from the now as I did all those years ago in my room growing up in Binghamton, New York.
I guess this is as good a time as any to remind you dear readers that none of this could happen without the hard work of our editor, Justin Zoch, our writers, especially our senior writer, Ashley Zimmerman, and all of our amazing photographers. Thank you to all the contributors that have helped make each issue of Dirt Empire so satisfying! And we certainly could not do this without the support of you, our readers! Thank you for riding along with us on this creative journey.
As I look ahead to 2024, I am excited about some of the new things we’re going to do. I can’t wait to share them with you.
May each of you have a safe off season. We will see you all very soon in these pages with even more great photos and stories of dirt track racing adventures as well as in person at many of the tracks across the country during the new racing season.
Until then, let’s go trade-showing! (It just doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it?)
Photo: Melissa Tousley
a while. On my three visits, the track was always fast and the racing was not particularly good but I’d have gone back more often for the atmosphere if it wasn’t a 14 hour door-to-door from my house because the three times I was there are all memorable, even if the racing was not.
BY JUSTIN ZOCHTHERE’S AN OLD maxim about the perils of living a long life in that, if you do that, you’ll end up burying a lot of your friends and family along the way. You live too long and you’ve got to say goodbye to everyone. The same could be said for being a race fan. Be a race fan long enough and you’ll have to say goodbye to a lot of great racetracks.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, recently hosted their final race as the Edwards family, who has owned and operated the track for 50 years, have finally given in to the inevitable and sold the valuable land on the east side of the Dallas metroplex to developers. No one was surprised when the news was announced of a final World of Outlaws weekend at the site of their first event in 1978 but it still hits hard for locals and the larger racing community that grew accustomed to having a steady oval to race on near one of America’s largest cities.
Devil’s Bowl was as cool as the name suggests and I hope everyone reading this had a chance to get there at least once to experience its uniqueness. It was a truly D-shaped oval with a big sweeper in one and two that then went into a much tighter three and four. Plus, the back stretch was raised so the cars were literally zooming downhill off a sweeping turn into a tighter turn. It made watching from turn three truly exhilarating.
I only made it to Devil’s Bowl three times and the last time I was there was in March of 2004. So, it’s been
My first trip to Devil’s Bowl still kind of blows my mind. We were in Dallas, Texas, for my cousin Ryan’s wedding in the mid-1990s and I, somehow, convinced my parents that after the wedding and dinner, that my dad and I should totally drive out to Mesquite, which was not close to the venue, and go to this famous speedway. My dirt track obsession was in its infancy and thus very potent and I just had to get to the track that birthed the WoO. It’d be a crucial get for my Tracks Visited list. They agreed and he and I left the wedding after dinner, the toasts and before any dancing. I have vague memories of that night and can’t believe we left a wedding for a weekly show to watch IMCA sprint cars – they of the small wing variety – but we surely did spend a Saturday night there.
My second visit to the track came several years later in October of 2001. My best friend Ehren and I decided to drive down for the weekend in my 1991 Thunderbird to catch a two-day ASCS event. We left Thursday night and drove all night only to get to the track and see night one was rained out already. Two wet. It was a beautiful night in Texas so we did what any 23 year old dudes would do and went to Hooter’s and then watched “Deep Blue Sea”, starring LL Cool J, in the hotel room. We still quote that stupid movie when we hang out together. The next night, they raced on an extremely heavy track, no one passed anyone, Gary Wright beat the Johnsons (Jason and Wayne) and then we got in that crappy car and drove back to Minnesota. There wasn’t budget for two nights in a hotel. When we got to Iowa, with the sun coming out, we heard it announced on the
radio that the US was now at war with Afghanistan. I’ll never forget that either.
My final visit was part of a “work trip” with Tony Bokhoven and Mike Roberts, who I was announcing with at Knoxville at the time, and we all headed to Texas to see the launch of a new series that was going to save 410 racing – the Sprint Bandits. It was to do for 410s what Brodix and ASCS did for 360s but that never really happened although ASCS did transition the Bandits name to their 410 wingless series for a spell. Shane Stewart was the inaugural champion with the Bandits series but I don’t remember who won the first show and Google isn’t being very helpful either. It could have something to do with finding out that Mesquite, Texas, was a dry city but if you joined a private club, you could buy drinks. So, we did. To this day, I, and several other Knoxville Raceway fans, are likely on the membership rolls of some private club in Texas!
Three trips, three great memories. That’s what racing is about, right? Nothing memorable happened on the surface but I wouldn’t give my Devil’s Bowl Speedway stories back for anything.
I’VE GROWN TO appreciate the short lived off season that accompanies dirt track racing. Indoor racing like Gateway Dirt Nationals, the Tulsa Shootout, and the Chili Bowl, paired with the excitement of driver’s headed Down Under to represent the US, and PRI have worked their way into a place of newfound excitement for me as a race fan and as a member of the media. The preparation that goes into the issue of Dirt Empire showcased at PRI is an incredible reminder of how we’ve grown as a magazine and sport throughout the year, all thanks to our subscribers, contributors, and members of racing that allow us to share their story. While PRI offers many opportunities to interact with race fans, and members of the motorsports industry, PRI is also a stark reminder that we have entered silly season.
It truly feels largely as though silly
THIS OFF SEASON IS POISED TO POTENTIALLY BRING VERY EXCITING NEWS TO DIRT TRACK RACING, AND I’M MORE THAN READY TO HEAR TRUTHS OVER RUMORS.
season never quite stopped throughout this year, with drivers like Jacob Allen and Anthony Macri vacating rides to focus on their mental health, or the rumors that continue to circulate surrounding the potential growth of the High Limit Series now that the All Stars purchase is complete. However, I feel the potential of what may be coming has just begun to breech the surface. Personally, in year’s past, silly season has been a moment of excitement, getting to see what up and coming driver might be given a new opportunity or what changes are brought to race schedules and series. As we approach PRI, I’ve found myself contemplating just how deeply some announcements may affect dirt track racing.
I know, I know, what isn’t there to be excited for in the current exponential growth happening in dirt track racing? Well, for every action is a reaction, and while the national touring series are growing in purse payout, it has been pushed for largely in part due to the rising costs being absorbed by race teams, and racetracks. For a team on a national touring series, it is plausible that through sponsorship, wins, and increased purses, they are able to off set operation costs. However, as we’ve seen in recent social media posts, that isn’t always the case, and opportunities to race on the largest stage become more and more difficult to obtain.
As fans, inflation with rising fuel prices has impacted the frequency in which we visit racetracks, pushed for us to choose between Crown Jewel events where we are nearly guaranteed an opportunity to see our favorite driver, all while more and more we find ourselves choosing to attend races through streaming platforms, opposed to a Friday or Saturday night at our local racetrack. The trickledown effect in the ecosystem that is dirt tracking racing is one that is felt from driver, to race fan, to promoter.
In the grassroots levels of dirt tracking racing, this can come with dire consequences. While grassroots racing is the
lifeblood of where we all begin, where dreams are created, they are also where the rising costs are the most difficult to absorb. Most local teams are comprised of blue-collar workers punching a clock working to race, unable to easily find additional sponsorship to absorb the rising costs of parts and fuel. Forcing many to absorb those costs themselves, limiting their racing schedule.
Promoters are also faced with demands of higher purses, but in doing so must face the decision to raise ticket prices, all while facing incremental rises in concession stand costs, insurance, and more. Without car counts, racetracks struggle to draw race fans to the stands, but without a rise in purses, their car count will dwindle, and a rise in ticket prices, will cause a decrease in fan count. Where does this leave grassroots racing? Where does the next Kyle Larson appear from when our local racetracks are unable to offer a place for experience and growth?
As ride opportunities become less available, where do our favorite drivers go when they are left looking? When our local racetrack is unable to operate, where do we go to introduce new fans to the sport we love? This off season is poised to potentially bring very exciting news to dirt track racing, and I’m more than ready to hear truths over rumors. However, I’m left to wonder if these announcements bring solutions for
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.
Photo: Paul Arch
Photo: Paul Arch
Photo: Paul Arch Photo: Paul Arch
Photo: Jeff Bylsma
Some graphics are meant for fans, like funny sponsor decals, and some are meant for drivers, like inspirational cockpit quips, but others are clearly meant to entertain or impress or annoy that person who most wants to stop seeing that message lap after lap - the racer directly behind. Here’s to the followers!
Even though this mudfest took place at East Bay Raceway Park all the way back in February, Photographer Matt Butcosk was only just recently able to extract himself from the mire and submit these photos. How would you describe these track conditions? We’re going with... moist.
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!
BY ASHLEY ZIMMERMANFROM NON-WING sprint cars, winged sprint cars, to midgets, and Silver Crown, whether you’re a diehard fan of them all, or dedicated to just one, there’s a high probability that Brady Bacon has been in competition at your favorite track or series. Brady Bacon raced to victory lane in each and every form of open wheel car he’s put a seat in and has proven to be a stout
competitor no matter the series or venue. Competing state side and even Down Under, Brady Bacon has shared the consistent success of his lengthy racing career with race fans across the world.
In the 2023 race season alone, Bacon claimed his exciting first World of Outlaws win, the Australian title, and found himself climbing to second in all-time USAC sprint car wins, success credited through an immense dedication to seat time and never believing he had achieved a point where he could no longer grow as a driver. Having started racing in Oklahoma, competing with the ASCS Series, then moving to the ranks of non-wing sprint car racing and midget racing with USAC, to eventually the
Silver Crown ranks with a schedule sprinkled with winged 410 races, Bacon has raced as far as one’s imagination could surely stretch, and entered most all open wheel Crown Jewels.
A career as extensive and filled with success as Bacon’s could potentially fill more than pages in a magazine with stories of struggles, wins, and racetracks, however, for this issue, we chose to fill our pages with the most asked questions from subscribers, online submitted questions in Facebook groups like Everything Race Day, and email submissions to get the stories and emotion that accompany the answers from the man himself!
Dirt Empire: This season has allowed you the opportunity to
Photo: David Nearpassaccomplish many firsts, and even set new records. Reflecting back over your career and what you accomplished this season, where does all you accomplished this year rank?
Brady Bacon: This season is definitely at the top. We won a lot of cool races in a lot of different cars, starting with getting to go to Australia again and winning the Australian title. We won at a lot of places that I had raced at earlier in my career and never had a chance to win at, like Belleville and Devil’s Bowl. Obviously my first Outlaws win was pretty special, and one that I’ve had on my bucket list for a long time. Creeping up on the all-time win list with USAC is cool, but you know, it’s not over, we’re just going to keep plugging away and hopefully we can get to the top.
DE: What does it feel like for you to have reached a level of versatility as a driver that allows you to consistently achieve success across so many forms of dirt track racing?
BB: I don’t ever think you’re good enough to get comfortable. You have to keep getting better, and if you do think that you are good enough, that’s about the time that you’re going to get passed up. We keep working hard trying to keep our cars as fast as we can. Our number one focus is obviously the nonwing sprint car and trying to win USAC championships. But our wing program has really strengthened the last couple of years thanks to Kelly and Lora Hinck for giving us the tools to be able to focus on that. It feels good to be able to go be competitive in whatever kind of car we decided to go race.
DE: Is there a moment or race throughout your career that when you look back sticks out the most for you? What makes that moment stand out?
BB: I don’t know if I really just have one. Obviously, the most life changing moment was my first USAC win. I met my wife there, and now I live in Winchester, so it was probably the most influential one I had. Some wins just come along when you feel like you’re struggling, or you struggle with a certain track, and when you get those
wins it kind of boosts your morale and keeps you going. You need those every once and a while, too.
DE: What skills do you feel you’ve had to develop or really hone in on to be able to jump from car to car, sometimes in the very same night, and be able to stay competitive across the board?
BB: I just think I’ve done it for a long time. You know, some people will say, oh you’re running the wing car, but they forget that I ran the ASCS tour for three and a half years. So, we’ve
done it for a long time. I enjoy doing it. I think it keeps you fresh. I think you can see guys sometimes that just do the same thing over and over, they get complacent or burnt out in a wing car, non-wing, or Silver Crown car, you know, I think it just keeps you fresh and you can take things from each discipline and use them in the other disciplines.
DE: If you were offered the opportunity to race only one type of car in a season, is this something you would want to do or focus on? BB: Yeah, I mean, that would be a
possibility. But, currently, financially there’s only one kind of car that you can do that with, and that’s a wing sprint car. Non-wing sprint cars and USAC have a great schedule for us, it’s just not quite enough to do just that and make a good living. You either have to run other USAC divisions, like Justin Grant or Logan Seavey does, or you have to fill in with some other races where you race wing sprint cars or something else. I would if the right opportunity came about; that would be a possibility. I really like the schedule that I’ve got right now because it keeps me home a little bit more with having three kinds at home. It’s not quite as grueling as the Outlaw schedule or something like that.
DE: You’ve been a fierce competitor in the USAC Silver Crown ranks. What was the initial draw for you to want to compete in that division?
BB: Well, when I first started racing and having success in USAC, like in the Hoffman car, I wasn’t considered old enough to run the Silver Crown car. Pretty much everyone that was getting hired to run Silver Crown was probably 40 plus years old. Then finally they started kind of looking at the younger guys and now all of the good sprint car drivers pretty much get good Silver Crown rides. It’s just such a historical series. Unfortunately, we don’t get to race at quite as many of the old miles as we used to when I started, but you still race at places like Terre Haute,
Williams Grove, Eldora, Port Royal, the miles - Springfield and Du Quoin. I didn’t run those this year [the miles], but they’re long storied with the series. Then you know, Belleville was a really cool and exciting race for the fans. I ran well at Belleville in the midgets when the nationals were there, but never got to win it, so it was really cool getting the win there [in Silver Crown].
DE: We’re sure the list isn’t too entirely long but what is a track on your bucket list that you haven’t gotten to run at?
2014, 2016, 2020 & 2021
National Sprint Champion
2014 Eastern Storm Champion
2016 & 2022 Indiana Sprint Week Champion
2016 Super License Champion
2022 Bubby Jones Master of Going Faster Champion
53 National Sprint Car Wins
3 Silver Crown Series Wins
8 National Midget Wins
BB: Man, there’s really not very many left besides kind of out of our circle but I’ve never been to Skagit, so that’s kind of one of the only, what you’d call sprint car tracks that I haven’t been to. Kevin Rudeen and his partners have really done a good job kind of reviving it so that would be a cool place to go.
DE: Is there a track that you’d love to return to more often that you don’t get the chance to, or one that’s been shut down that you’d
Photo: David Nearpass
Photo: Matt Butcosk
Bacon powers the Five Three Motorsports Silver Crown car in Pennsylvania during the 2021 season.
love to be able to go back to?
BB: I wish we could race a little more consistently at Terre Haute. It’s just been kind of plagued with issues. It’s the last half mile in Indiana. We did have quite a few races scheduled there, and they all seem to get rained out. Terre Haute draws rain, it seems like, it doesn’t matter, whenever we try to race there, there’s always a chance of rain. That’s one of my favorite tracks. Scott Ronk and Bernie Steubgen put a lot into that place. They were only there for a year, but the new wall and everything’s really cool. I wish we could race there more. I’d love to go back to all of the older historical places, too.
DE: How humbling has it been for you to get to see your name in the USAC record books, not just once, but to climb the list in the all-time wins category?
BB: It’s really cool, something I try not to dwell on too much, because you’re still kind of doing your job, but from when I started just kind of racing, first as a hobby and then kind of a dream to just make a living racing, USAC wasn’t super prevalent in Oklahoma when I was growing up, so just if it was on a multiple choice question the option of being second in the all time USAC sprint car win list, it probably wouldn’t have been that one I picked as an outcome of my career.
DE: Who among the younger group of drivers do you think have the potential to make the type of impact drivers like yourself and Dave Darland have made on the sport?
BB: I actually think it might be harder for someone to do that now because there’s just so many options for them and they can change disciplines more often. People don’t stay in one series as long as they used to. It might be a little tough, but there’s definitely some younger guys that are coming up that have promise. In Pennsylvania, Briggs Danner, the more he’s going to get to run with USAC, come to Indiana and race, he gets better every time. Trey Osborne’s actually one that’s kind of got a lot of hype, but he’s doing a lot with a little bit, which you don’t see kids necessarily put in the effort that he’s putting in to try to make it happen, so that’s pretty encouraging to see. I think that’s what separates a lot of the previous generation, which I might be one of the last ones of that, we didn’t necessarily have someone to kind of fall back on as a safety net. We had to win or go home and get a job. Not very many kids have that level of risk anymore, but it’s good to see the ones that can grind through that, I think that makes them a better racer.
DE: Do you feel as though there’s a large push now to move through the ranks and divisions very quickly?
BB: Yeah, for sure. Midget racing isn’t what midget racing used to be. When I started racing midgets, I had to race against Jerry Coons, Dave Darland, Tracy Hines, Brad Kuhn, Scott Hatton and people that had been doing it forever. There are maybe two or three guys in the field that are over 30 years old now.
DE: There are a lot of opinions on how this push has changed midget racing to be more aggressive and not as clean. How do you feel the division has changed?
BB: I think it’s a product of, they race on smaller tracks, the cars are better, the cars are faster. Obviously, the kids have a different mentality, I don’t really blame it all on the kids. It’s a product of the cars, too, and the smaller tracks. It’s definitely not what it used to be and it deters guys like me from doing it as much as we used to.
DE: When it comes to non-wing vs. winged sprint car, would you say your preference is the non-wing car? Do you feel that the non-wing car challenges you more or vice versa?
BB: The wing car definitely challenges me the most, since I don’t do it as much, and then you’re racing against guys that do it 80-100 times a year. Whereas in the non-wing, even though we only do it maybe 40 times a year, we do it more than anybody else we’re racing against. That’s kind of our bread and butter and what we’ve worked on the most. So, that obviously provides the most for the team, and while it
doesn’t necessarily come the easiest, it’s the easiest. The wing cars just have so much competition, anytime that we get to go to a race, it’s usually on one of the midweek shows, and that’s when everyone else doesn’t have anything to do either. So, there’s 50-60 cars, and we don’t shy away from the competition, I feel like we’ve done very well but it’s tough to figure stuff out in a hurry on your car and things like that against guys that do it two or three times as many nights as you do.
DE: Is there a win or race that you feel has taught you the most or left the biggest impact on you?
BB: Not necessarily, the wins don’t usually teach you as much as the losses do. There’s been sometimes at a couple of races this year that we were probably expected to do the best, like in a wing spring car, and we just got our butts kicked, but then we would come back to a race that we weren’t expected to do good, took what we learned from getting our butts kicked, applied it, and ran well at a race we weren’t supposed to run well at. Learning from your losses is much more important than learning from your wins.
DE: Across all of the forms of racing you’ve competed in, what ranks as your favorite racetrack and why?
BB: Probably my most favorite overall is Knoxville Raceway. It is probably the most difficult to win, especially since when we run there it’s usually at the Nationals where the most competition is, but we’ve had a lot of success there in a non-wing sprint car. The fans are kind of having a hard time adjusting to the non-wing race there but I think if they gave it a shot, they’d know that the racing is really, really good. Nonwing sprint car racing is the best as far as on track product with how close everyone is to each other. It was kind of my breakout place, my first USAC Midget race was Knoxville, and we ran second both nights and turned a lot of heads. The staff and everyone there is just so welcoming and helpful to the race teams, as well as everyone at the Hall of Fame. It’s just kind of like every racer’s second home.
DE: When there have been times throughout your career that you’ve needed advice or were struggling at a low point, who do you turn to for
Photo: David Nearpass
guidance to keep going?
BB: When I was in my younger career, Josh Wise actually helped me out a lot, when I was still kind of running my own deal. Every once in a while, I talk to my dad a little bit. I always have not been afraid to just talk to people that have success in racing. I try to do that before I necessarily kind of need it, and it kind of prevents that from happening. Most of the people in motorsports, successful people, drivers, crew chiefs, whatever, if they see you’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing and you’re putting in the work, they will share some stuff with you and then obviously we reciprocate that if they need something the other way. I just think it’s been helpful in my career to not be afraid to talk to people that are successful, you know Fred Rahmer, Ricky Warner, Davey Jones, anybody, if you’re able to have an intelligent conversation with them, you can always pick up something.
DE: With the large purse increases seen in late model racing in the last few years, where would you love to see changes like this implemented in open wheel racing?
BB: I think it’s already happening. The High Limit Series has pushed the Outlaws, and wing sprint car racing in general, to the next level. Last year when the Xtreme non wing sprint car series came, I think it forced USAC and the tracks that support USAC to kind of take it to the next level and step it up a little bit. I think probably one of the keys in late model racing is there’s always been competition amongst the series to get the best track, to get the best racers; there’s obviously more cars and they have a wider geographic fan base, but I think the competition is what has helped drive the increase in the purses. Now I think that’s kind of bubbling under the surface in open wheel racing. You know, they can say that’s not why they are doing it, we’re doing it to beat the other guy, but you wouldn’t have done it without the other guy. The World of Outlaws will probably always be the premier series, their name and brand is very strong. But obviously the races are paying more now and High Limit is contributing to that as well as Eldora with the Million, the competition
between the Knoxville Nationals and Kings Royal. There is also an effect that people don’t consider, and that is the races that aren’t the big races, are becoming a little harder to be successful. It’s kind of a balancing act there with the sport in general, local weekly racing is starting to maybe be a thing of the past. Racers or the fans can’t afford now to come every week and make the numbers work for the promoters. I think if you want to make money as a promoter, it has to be something special. I think fans are getting programmed to want to see something spectacular and might not go as much, but they’re willing to pay to go see a spectacular show.
DE: Branching off of this topic a bit, how do you feel that streaming has helped bring awareness to the sport?
BB: Streaming definitely has something to do with that. It’s affordable enough for a casual fan to justify spending the money to keep up with it. Winchester Speedway here only races four times a year, so people wouldn’t have messed with logging on to Hoseheads to see who won back 15 years ago, or they didn’t have a subscription to National Speed Sport News. But pay $150 to see Brady Bacon races, now I can go almost anywhere and hear, “hey, good
job last week” or “man, that was tough luck”, or “that Justin Grant is doing good” from people that normally would be super casual fans or maybe go to one or two races a year and not have a clue what was going on.
DE: Well, we’re down to just one last question, across all the divisions, what are the races left on your bucket list that you want to win the most?
BB: The Chili Bowl is one that I definitely want to win. I grew up going to that race, and obviously there’s some issues right now, whether it needs to keep up with the rest of the sport and things like that, but it does mean a lot to me. That race was pretty crucial to my childhood, I used to get out of school, go to the Chili Bowl, do my homework in the stands, and watch the race since I was a kid. That’s definitely one that I would like to win. Winning an Outlaws race would’ve been on my list, but we finally got that one done and that was really special, too.
Photo: Dave Pratt
As a dirt late model fan, by this point in the race season, it’s nearly impossible to hear about the Lucas Oil late model series and not immediately think of Ricky Thornton Jr. While RTJ is just in his third year competing in a late model with SSI Motorsports, the statistics and thrilling ways in which he has traversed through the 2023 race season even a well-seasoned veteran dreams of one day achieving.
In just the 2023 season, Thornton Jr has amassed 23 Lucas Oil wins (topping the most ever in a single season), 41 top fives in his 51 starts. [Statistics shared by Justin Fielder on Dirtrackr Daily October 19, 2023] RTJ’s earnings for the 2023 season will easily edge over a million dollars. Even more impressive than RTJ’s win statistic, is that in all of his top ten finishes, he has also hovered around the top five, a level of consistency in dirt track racing that is nearly unheard of. As if a fulltime late model schedule has not been challenging enough for Thornton Jr, on the days he has “off” he has filled his down time by competing in micro sprint races. All of this seat time totaling 116 races in 2023, and 36 total wins on the racetrack. Two things are certain where RTJ is concerned, not only is he talented across different forms of racing, he is committed to a life on dirt.
As he closed out his most remarkable season, we felt it fitting to take a look back over his season wins in the dirt late model as the magic unfolded week after week and payday after payday.
Mind you, even these pages aren’t enough to recreate all of his victories last season!
While the initial start of Ricky Thornton Jr’s season saw him on the podium onlooking victory lane, the view did not last long. RTJ recorded his first win of the season in January at Bubba Raceway Park after leading the closing 25 laps in exciting fashion. “It’s pretty
awesome to win here, I love coming to this place. It’s so technical and different compared to all the other places we go to. I got the jump on the start on Devin [Moran]. I felt like I was running as hard as I needed to and then he slid me. He was running way harder than I wanted to go and I
thought let him go and I will just keep pace with him. I don’t know what happened to him on that restart he went down into turn one and it didn’t turn. I got the lead back and just kind of held on, under that red my left front went flat. Luckily it didn’t put me in the fence. Overall, it was a good night. I
had big time flashbacks from the last two nights.”
ALL TECH RACEWAY (FLORIDA)
It would not take long for RTJ to add another win to the list, and with the second series of the season, as he competed with the Hunt the Front
Super Dirt Series at All-Tech, winning the All-Tech Winter Nationals. While the race saw five lead changes amongst three drivers, RTJ grabbed the lead from Max Blair on a restart with just nine laps to go. With just a handful of weeks completed in the 2023 season, RTJ had shown the most consistency of
Photo: Mike Musslin
any driver. This was just the beginning.
While the season trudged on despite multiple rain outs, race fans did not see RTJ return to victory lane in late model competition until the end of March. Thornton started third in the feature event, eventually securing the lead for good on lap 14, and there would be no looking back as he dominated the remaining laps.
Thornton returned to compete with the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series on April 7, where he once more found the path to victory lane and a generous $20,000 payday. While starting 14th, RTJ kept fans on the edge of their seats as he worked through traffic to take the lead. “I thought one lap I
about gave it away; I got the corner in too straight and really hit the right front too hard and got passed by three or four cars. I thought our night was over at that point. I ran out of tear offs and I kind of told myself, you wouldn’t run out of tear offs if you quit following these guys. So, I just kind of moved out on the track. And really, the top was so sketchy in turns three and four, but if you hit it right, I think it was way better than the rest,” shared Ricky Thornton Jr in victory lane shared on Dirt on Dirt’s website in April 2023.
We didn’t have to wait long before RTJ returned to victory lane, this time at Brownstown Speedway for the FloRacing Night in America, paying $23,023 towards RTJ’s 2023 earnings.
While for some the race may have been lackluster, RTJ’s second career tour victory was still another notable mark to what would soon be a quickly growing win column.
The Ralph Latham Memorial marked RTJ’s third Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win of the season, where a pass on Hudson O’Neal on lap 23 would eventually allow RTJ to finish 2.554 seconds ahead of O’Neal. Adding another $15,000 to RTJ’s season earnings. “I told my guys my goal was
Photo: Matt Butcosk
Racing with West Virginia’s Matt Cosner (66C) at Bubba Raceway Park, where RTJ scored the first of his 23 Lucas Oil Late Model Series wins in 2023.
After winning a prelim at Eldora’s Dream, Thornton had to settle for fourth in the finale as Jonathan Davenport drove to victory.
Photo: Paul Arch
Photo: Jeff Bylsma
to come out and win tonight. The car took off after that one restart. I was able to get by Hud [O’Neal] and Brandon [Overton]. I thought it was going to be around the bottom longer than it was. It’s easy to knock the right rear off the car here. You can look at my quarter panel and see that. But, at the end I just wanted to keep it off the wall and hit my marks because I knew those other guys were not going to give up. Overall, I’m excited to get this win,” shared Thornton from victory lane posted in press release by My Race Pass.
It was in Iowa that RTJ saw victory lane, at 300 Raceway, by sweeping the evening earning quick time over all, a heat race win, and the feature. RTJ would lead all of the 50-lap feature minus the first ten laps, putting him within 10 points of the then series points leader Hudson O’Neal. “There for a while I thought I couldn’t qualify anymore. It was real good tonight. I didn’t hot lap very good, but we qualified really well. It makes your night way easier when you start up front in the heat races and in front of the feature. It’s a lot better than starting 20th and driving my tail off to just get to fifth or sixth,” shared Thornton in victory lane later posted in a press release by My Race Pass.
Thornton swept a weekend in the Hawkeye State by winning the following evening at 34 Raceway. (Little did we all know; Thornton wouldn’t be putting the broom down any time soon.) Taking the lead on just lap 18 of the 50-lap feature, Thornton’s $15,000 payday made him the first Lucas Oil series driver to surpass the $100,000 mark in season earnings.
As the momentum continued to build, RTJ rolled into victory lane just one week later at Florence Speedway. RTJ breezed pass race leader Bobby Pierce with just seven laps remaining of the feature event, winning by 1.538 seconds over second place Pierce, and pocketing another Flo
Night in America payday of $23,023. “I feel like it’s kind of redemption from last week. We’re excited. I thought I was going to run third before all of those yellows. They just helped me. The track kept getting trickier and trickier. I had a good shot at him. I threw a bomb. I kept throwing bombs at him. It just worked out for us. Just excited,” Thornton shared in victory
lane later posted by Flo Racing online.
WEST VIRGINA MOTOR SPEEDWAY (WEST VIRGINIA)
June started off with a bang, going from third to first on lap 20 of the feature on the first night at Wast Virgina Motor Speedway with the Lucas Oil series. This marked his sixth Lucas Oil win of the season, and 11th career win with the series over all.
The joy of $61,500? Maybe. The realization of validation? Absolutely. Thornton’s wins in big races, like here at the Prairie Dirt Classic, left no room for doubters.
In the middle of June, he found his way back to victory lane at the Mountain Moonshine Classic and won both his preliminary night feature and grabbed the lead early in the final night of the weekend to secure a massive $50,000 payday. An exciting kick off to what was to come for the remainder of the season.
Lernerville Speedway for the Firecracker 100 introduced what would become a new normal for RTJ, winning the preliminary night feature, and after a hard-fought battle with Hudson O’Neal winning the final night’s feature and another $50,000. This marked RTJ’s tenth Lucas Oil feature win of the season. Thornton left leading the rankings as the #1 dirt late model driver in the nation, a mark that would become rather permanent on his resume for the season.
The winning ways of Ricky Thornton
Jr continued at Muskingum County Speedway, where once more he won his preliminary night and was unstoppable in the feature event, securing a payday of $30,000 in the Freedom 60. In just three weeks of June, RTJ secured $130,000 in earnings.
Starting sixth, RTJ wasted no time working to the lead on lap 19, maneuvering around Jonathan Davenport. This would secure RTJ’s 13th Lucas Oil win of the season. “Man, that was wild there. I don’t know if I was really good right through the middle of one and two. It wasn’t clean, but there was just enough traction where you could really get through it. I feel like this is a really big sprint car place and it’s really cooled to win here. Bobby’s [Pierce] been really good probably the last two or three months. I know JD [Davenport] has been really good lately too. I think I started 12th here last year and got to the lead. I knew I had to get a really good start and not get mired back in the pack,” shared Thornton in victory lane, later posted through press release on RTJ’s website.
At the end of July, RTJ competed with the XR series at Off Road Speedway. RTJ once again bested Bobby Pierce for the top spot, and this time for a cool $100,000. This one provided the necessary momentum needed for rolling into the Crown Jewel week ahead at Fairbury.
While challenged by track conditions, and even a mechanical issue, Thornton was not to be stopped on his way to securing his very first Prairie Dirt Classic win and trip to the bank. The Crown Jewel win added another incredible line to his resume and $61,500 to his earnings. “We broke a crank trigger there in turn three, and I’m freaking flipping switches and everything else. Then it finally came back to me. I didn’t think I was that far back. We just had a little motivation. After that I said screw it, if we aren’t going to win, we’re going to tip it over,” said Thornton Jr in victory lane later shared through press release on his website.
Dyer’s Top Rods
He continued to add to the history books as he took the lead from sixth at his first ever attempt at Georgetown Speedway. This would now mark RTJ at 16 wins on the Lucas Oil series tally for the season.
Breaking out the broom, RTJ won his preliminary night feature and continued the win streak into the Saturday
night portion of the Lucas Oil series weekend, beating out Devin Moran by 1.786 seconds, earning another $15,000 towards his season.
RTJ wouldn’t get much time to put the broom away as he pulled into Knoxville Raceway for the Late Model Nationals, sweeping the entire three-day event. The Saturday night win alone allowed Thornton Jr to pocket $50,000 in earnings. “That was wild. I didn’t know if I was going to get it done or not. We
You can’t look any smoother or race any harder than RTJ did in three nights at Knoxville Raceway. He stood atop the podium every single night and hauled $64,000 out of the Marion County Fairgrounds - and made a ton of new fans in sprint car country.
had a great car. I saw Bronson on top and didn’t know if I had the balls to get up there like he was. I tried to play around on the bottom as long as I could to try and save my stuff. Then I knew I had to get up or get passed. I just drove my heart out after that, and it worked out. I love this place. It’s probably the nicest facility we get to come to. I felt like I was going to do whatever it took to get the job done, and I think that showed. I was hoping we’d have a good
Photo: Jeff Bylsma
A very familiar view for late model racers in 2023. Meanwhile, at right, RTJ celebrates a huge win at Huset’s Speedway.
Photo: Rich Labrier
Photo: Dave Hill
enough car to lead them all, but Mike [Marlar] had a good car too. He was probably a little better on the bottom than I was. It was stressful. You just had to drive as hard as you could and hope the car turned. If you tried to play it safe that was no good,” stated RTJ in victory lane Saturday night, later shared in press release through Knoxville Raceway’s website.
BROWNSTOWN SPEEDWAY (INDIANA)
Without missing a beat, RTJ continued his hot streak and returned to victory lane one week later, earning his first
Jackson 100 victory. Thornton Jr bested second place Hudson O’Neal to the checkers with a 2.167 second lead and added $30,000 to his already record earnings season.
RACEWAY 7 (OHIO)
RTJ’s winning could not be stopped and he drove into victory lane at Raceway 7. The win not only earned him $12,000, but his 18th feature win of the Lucas Oil season, continuing to increase his staggering season record.
With two days of rain plaguing Eldora Speedway and the Dirt Track
World Championships, suspense built and Ricky Thornton Jr took to the track in the final race determining the Lucas Oil Championship. An incident on lap seven of the 100 lap feature sent RTJ to the hot pit with damaged sustained going through large ruts in the track surface, putting him out of the hunt for a championship title he had so beautifully wrapped in a bow throughout the season. Through the tenacity and perseverance of his crew, Thornton Jr was able to rejoin the field, but with laps down, he would never regain the positions needed to lead the Lucas Oil Series Championship.
JAN 1 - NOV 1, 2023 STARTS - 119
WINS - 36
TOP FIVES - 83
TOP TENS - 92
Despite Ricky Thornton Jr’s statistics, and dominating points lead, Hudson O’Neal will go into the books as the 2023 champion. However, in the eyes of race fans across dirt late model racing, there is zero doubt, they will tell the tale with their champion, Ricky Thornton Jr. Nothing can take away the unprecedented success, talent, and consistency RTJ showcased throughout the 2023 season, and undoubtedly, there most certainly will be more to come as 2023 ends, and a new season begins. As race fans, we were certainly able to witness a unique moment in racing history, that will forever belong to Ricky Thornton Jr.
As the dust settled post-race at Eldora Speedway, Ricky Thornton Jr. took to X to share one simple statement with race fans, “Not how I wanted that to go. But nothing beats walking into the RV and Asher [his eldest son] giving me the biggest hug and saying how proud he is.”
He has every reason to be proud. What a season!
1. 1-Hudson O’Neal[2]
2. 49-Jonathan Davenport[5]
3. 17M-Dale McDowell[27]
4. 8S-Brian Shirley[9]
5. 96V-Tanner English[25]
6. 25Z-Mason Zeigler[1]
7. 22-Chris Ferguson[3]
8. 19R-Ryan Gustin[12]
9. 1T-Tyler Erb[16]
10. B5-Brandon Sheppard[18]
AS THE CALENDAR gets ready to flip to 2024, we felt it important to take one last look back at what may have been one of the most emotional nights – in a season full of them - of the 2023 racing season. Hudson O’Neal finally delivered a long sought after World 100 win for two of the most important people in his life – his father, Don, and his owner, Mark Richards. O’Neal used his outside row one spot and held off five-time champion Jonathan Davenport for his first career World 100 crown at just age 23.
O’Neal’s father Don had long chased
his own Globe trophy but never quite sealed the deal and then turned his passion towards helping, and hoping, his son could one day pull it off. “[My dad] came so close so many times, leading and then would break, or had a chance and then cards didn’t play right and so on. He came here, tried and tried and tried and just never could quite get it done. He’s told me for years that he wants me to win it more than he wanted to win it. It was special, the moment that we had up there. I’m just so happy he was here to witness and be a part of it.”
Meanwhile, Hudson’s owner was on his own quest for World glory after five decades of trying. Mark Richards brought some of the fastest cars and best racers in the world to the World without ever getting a win until Hudson delivered one in their first season together. “It just shows the passion that they take in what they do and how long they’ve been coming here, trying to win this race. Mark told me on the podium – it had been 50 years this year, 50 years he’s been coming here trying to win this race. I’m just very blessed to be the one to deliver that to him.”
Photo: Zach Yost
“[My dad has] told me for years that he wants me to win it more than he wanted to win it. It was special, the moment that we had up there.” Hudson O’Neal on winning the World.
It’s all special when we’re talking the World 100 - the four abreast fireworks are brighter, the autograph session is more crowded, the crashes are harder and the heartbreak is deeper. Other events can, and will always, pay more money but they’ll never touch the magic of the World 100. (Photos: Zach Yost)
IF YOU CAN do something for just the fourth time in the history of a storied event and, in the process, do it for the first time ever in a single day, you know you’ve reached a special kind of plateau. At Super DIRT Week, Mat Williamson pulled off a unique double when he scored the Big Block Modified Billy Whitaker 200 and his first ever Salute to the Troops 150 for DIRTcar 358 Modifieds on the same magical Monday afternoon at Oswego Speedway in Oswego, New York. A historic day produced historic moments that deserve a Review in Photos as only Dirt Empire can do.
Whether it was in the 88 on the opposite page or the number 6 with a 358 under the hood, Mat Williams was simply unbeatable as he pulled the double.
The city of Oswego, New York has fully embraced Super Dirt Week since it arrived after the track at the Syracuse Fairgrounds was torn down. Part of the opening festivities of kicking off the week of racing’s biggest party is the parade down the main thoroughfare in towncomplete with police escort. The only time we don’t mind seeing race cars on asphalt.
Weather greatly impacted the 51st running of SuperDirt Week. As cars sat ready to go on Saturday, rain threw out the red flag and stopped the race. Sunday wan’t a viable option to race, so the big event took place on Monday, October 9th.
Our guy in the pits, Quentin Young, was inside, outside and all over the action at Oswego Speedway throughout the weekend and was never shy about digging in to find just the right angle.
AS THE 2023 season nears its conclusion, Hovis Auto & Truck Supply RUSH Racing Series presented by Born2Run Lubricants directors Vicki Emig and Mike Leone are pleased to announce that they will once again substantially increase the RUSH Late Model Flynn’s Tire Touring Series Championship points fund. The 2024 points fund will see more than a 42% increase as the champion will receive a record $20,000 amongst the $68,200 points fund! In addition, a drawing will be held at the season finale where one Touring Series member that competed in at least 75% of the completed events will receive a $5,000 bonus bringing the total to over $73,000!
This marks the third increase for the Flynn’s Tire Touring Series Championship points fund in the past four years! In 2021, the point fund doubled from pre-COVID years with $12,000 to-win the title. Then in 2022, the point fund was increased 24% with
“Just four years ago, our champion received $5,000 now in 2024 that number will increase by four times the amount with $5,000 now going to fourth along with a $5,000 bonus for one lucky driver!” ~ Series Director Vicki Emig
New York first year RUSH Late Model Touring Series regulars Austin Hauser (51) and Mike Wonderling (18) battle at West Virginia’s Tyler County Speedway (Zach Yost photo)
Close, competitive racing is the name of the game in the RUSH Late Models like seen here during the “Jook George Steel City Classic” at Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway (Zach Yost photo)
$15,000 going to the champion. Fast forward two years, and the 2024 points fund will see another dramatic increase making it not only the richest in Series history, but across all Chevrolet Performance Late Model touring series in the nation.
Not only will the champion’s share increase, but all of the guaranteed top 10 positions including $10,000 for second, $7,500 for third and $5,000 for fourth. In addition, positions 1120 in points that compete in 75% of
the events has also increased. (See breakdown below.) All of these drivers will also be eligible for the $5,000 bonus providing they compete in 75% of the completed events. Combining the 2024 Flynn’s Tire Touring Series points fund with both the City Chevrolet National Weekly Series and City Chevrolet Track Pack programs, RUSH Late Model racers will capture over $135,000 in points fund monies for their efforts next season!
“I’ve always told our racers, ‘If you
keep coming, I’ll keep working to make things better,” acknowledged Emig. “Our RUSH Late Model Touring Series events continue to showcase some of the most competitive Late Model racing in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic bringing at times unmatched car counts to our host speedways; so once again it’s time to show our appreciation and dedication to our racers for their tremendous support.”
“To be able to post a $20,000 to-win, $73,000+ total championship Touring
5-time 2023 Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway winner Brandon Burgoon (#60) battles side-by-side with eventual $10,000 “Bill Hendren Memorial” winner Joe Martin (#10s) (Howie Balis photo)
Joe Martin celebrates the biggest win of his career after a last lap pass of Colton Flinner in the $10,000 to-win “Bill Hendren Memorial” at Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway on September 30
point fund for Chevrolet Performance crate engine racing shows just how far RUSH has come and we can’t thank our sanctioned speedways, corporate marketing partners, as well as the fans for their unwavering support throughout the years,” added Emig. “Just four years ago, our champion received $5,000 now in 2024 that number will increase by four times the amount with $5,000 now going to fourth along with a $5,000 bonus for one lucky driver!”
The 2024 RUSH Late Model Flynn’s Tire Touring Series schedule is expected to once again present 22-24 events throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic with Tour officials making every effort as in years past to place events as fluidly as possible throughout the season ever cognizant of racers’ time and travel. This year saw the Series visit 15 different speedways in six states with over 200 racers competing in Tour events alone.
The traditional Crown Jewel events of the RUSH schedule are expected to return such as the $20,000 to-win “Bill Emig Memorial” as part of Lernerville Speedway’s “Firecracker” weekend, the “Bill Hendren Memorial” part of the “Pittsburgher” paying a minimum $10,000 to-win, the “Jook George Steel City Classic” that pays a minimum of $6,010 to-win as well as other signature events. Series officials have already been contacted by speedway officials about possible new stops being added to the 2024 schedule.
SERIES SUPPORTERS
After getting denied the RUSH Late Model Touring Series Championship in 2021 & 2022 by Virginia racers Kyle Hardy & Logan Roberson, Jeremy Wonderling returned to prominence in 2023 & captured his fifth Series title worth $15,000 (Travis Trussell photo)
Hovis Auto & Truck Supply together with Born2Run Lubricants along with the support of Hoosier Tire, Rick Hendrick City
Chevrolet, Sunoco Race Fuels, Bazell Race Fuels, Insinger Performance, Flynn’s Tire, Sunbelt Rentals, MSD Performance, Holley Performance Products, FK Rod Ends, Schoenfeld Headers, Jones Racing Products, TBM Brakes, Bilstein Shocks, Performance Bodies & Parts, Racing Electronics, Wieland Metal Services, Frankland Racing Supply, Landrum Performance Spring, Ontime Body & Graphic, Sherwood Wheels, Precise Racing Products, Velocita-USA, Wedge Motorsports, 3C Graphix, D&V Jewelers, CrateInsider.com, and Terry Bowser Excavating.
Want to Know More? info@rushracingseries.com 724-964-9300. www.rushlatemodels.com www.facebook.com/rushlatemodels X @RUSHLM.
Zack Carley (#2) races alongside fellow Empire State racer Jason Knowles (#4) in the first RUSH Late Model Tour race at New York’s Woodhull Raceway in nine years. (Brian Milne photo)
Checkers are out! It’s a heat race win with a little flair as Dave Wietholder gets there first at Adams County Speedway in Quincy, Illinois.
PHOTO: GREGG TEEL
WHEN DISCUSSING dirt late model racing, much of the focus often goes toward the Lucas Oil or World of Outlaws racing series but as the surge in attention upon the world of late model racing has garnered larger purses and payouts, it has also allowed for new opportunities throughout.
Case in point, in its sophomore season of operation, the XR Super Series owned and operated by Barry Braun, surged to contention with unique racing events sprinkled throughout the week, providing large purses and drawing major headlines. On numerous
I’M A FIRM BELIEVER THERE’S TOO MANY RACES RIGHT NOW, THAT THERE IS FATIGUE AND ITS WATERED THINGS DOWN TO NOTHING BEING SPECIAL. WE’RE GOING TO SIX MAJOR EVENTS NEXT YEAR, ALL SIX WEEKS APART.
occasions the XR series boasted capacity crowds, paired with large car counts, across the United States.
The XR Super Series boasts in house operations, providing not only the racing, but the streaming platform and broadcast of their events as well, allowing the series to give back to drivers and teams in larger sums. A sub-set of the series, the XR Workin’ Man Series, pays homage and gives back to the grassroots racers in late models and in other various underappreciated divisions.
As the XR Series embarks on its third year in 2024, we take a deep dive with Barry Braun on the behind the scenes and review of the series headline 2023 race season.
Dirt Empire: Having completed two years with XR, how would you assess the impact your series had made on the dirt track industry with offering large purses, massive crowds, and even being able to bring back to life tracks that were once staples in the racing world?
Barry Braun: It’s been a challenge from day one, mainly because we’re the new kid on the block. People don’t like change and we’ve driven that by
being what some would call a disruptor. We operate with a different business model. It’s a challenge, we’ve learned a lot of things and applied that to look at the entire scope of the event, the fan experience, the driver payout, the broadcasts, all of those different angles and put on the best show. I think we’ve done okay, but we need to improve. At the root of it all, we’re a very small family-run business, which people don’t really get. I think there’s a lot of mysteriousness to the XR Super Series and our business, but at the end of the day, it’s myself, my wife, and about six employees. We’re learning to adapt, build a schedule that gives us enough time and energy to properly promote and execute events that we’re going to have next year at a very high level. At the same time try to adjust to the market changes; there’s a lot going on right now. There’s no hocus pocus to this by any means, we’re very personable, we’re a phone call away at any time for our competitors. There’s nothing hidden. It’s literally owned by two people and we cut all of the checks, do all of the operation of the entire series and I think that says a lot about our team that it’s so small, yet we’re still able to pull off national level events.
Photo: Michael MoatsHere’s the thing, it’s not just the operations of the event, and just the promotion, it’s also the broadcast of the event that we have. That’s why we’re able to do what we do, that’s why we’re able to offer bigger payouts because we’re extremely disciplined in how we run our business and budgeting making sure that this is a viable entity going in to the future. We’re still learning, we got our butts kicked in July of this year because we rescheduled an event from April and moved it to July. We did way too much in July. The events went off fine, but were they where they needed to be financially? Absolutely not. Was it a product that is deserving of our subscribers?
Probably not. That’s where there’s a lot of humility in our group that we need to do a better job. The best way that we can do that is what we changed for next year. We have six mega events all on Saturdays that we have six weeks in between. We have enough space to breathe in order to execute the best events possible for everybody.
DE: How would you like to see your series impact the rest of dirt tracking racing and other racing series?
BB: I think more so than anything, I’d like to see better cooperation regardless of if we like each other or not personally. That we all have an understanding and are willing to work together. I know that may sound hypocritical from a guy that’s literally pushed to change things, but I don’t think that changes are necessarily bad when it’s necessary. Driver payouts and a number of other things to make the industry more viable for the racers. Long story short, I would like to see some criteria in place overall, and some kind of working relationship; doesn’t have to be a partnership, we don’t have to be friends, we don’t have to hang out or anything, but a mutual respect that we’re doing right by the industry. I believe by having too many events, we’re not doing what’s right by the industry. I think right now that’s what we’re running into on the fan side at the track and even
the broadcast side. There’s fatigue, there’s too much going on. Nobody is really separating themselves from the pack by any means, and I’m not trying to demean anyone’s production or their series or what they are trying to do, but we all have the same racers, we’re all kind of doing the same thing - just go look at the points standings alone. Fans can only take so much. I think we’ve overindulged at a point where there’s a race every weekend in the summer, there’s almost a race every day, and it’s just too much noise now.
DE: Having utilized your own streaming network, allowing your series to benefit wholly from streaming, how has this better supported your series versus choosing to stream through an alternative platform?
BB: Because we own the entire ecosystem, we can pay the most money by far with XR. We’re actually going to release a study on this fairly soon. We’ve injected over $6 million back into the industry in the past three years. Which when it comes to it, there’s no streaming company that could offer us that kind of money, and that’s nothing against any of them. They just can’t because we own the whole ecosystem. We have 100% of the pie and we can pay more because of it. Also on the broadcast side, with our expenses, and running a very disciplined business, our expenses are the least of anyone. The money that we bring in, we give right back to racers, and we give them a bigger piece of the pie, and that’s not debatable, that’s not hocus pocus, that’s the broadcast, the subscribers are the sponsor, they’re the ones that pay to make this go. At
times, we’ve over indulged and paid too much. If the subscription numbers go down, if the fan count goes down, and we haven’t budgeted properly for that, we can find ourselves in trouble now. It’s going to ebb and flow, this is no secret. It’s going to ebb and flow each year based upon what revenue for broadcasting is. Some years might be more than others. This is what we can budget to give back without going over, and it’ll be based on the last year of sales, and what trends or what we see in the data as trends, and what we can offer to our racers. Now it’s on us, and we’ve done a great job. We’ve had huge grandstands this year. We’ve done very well and that was our number one goal going into this year.
DE: With your Workin’ Man Series you have incentivized the grassroots teams with an open
trailer bonus, as well as gearing the series towards teams that don’t have the large sponsorship dollars to invest in their teams. What was the response from drivers and teams? Do you feel this is an avenue that could be utilized in providing more support to the lower levels of racing?
BB: I think it’s a good start, but there’s a lot of work to be done. Again, this goes back to some kind of consistency or criteria, not only on the national level, but the regional level, of what payouts are and having more consistency in that. There’s always going to be that argument about what the purse is throughout and what pay is to start and things like that. It’s easy for a promoter to get enamored with the to-win number and then completely lose touch of what start money is. It’s also a problem to financially do
Photo: Matt Butcosk
Photo: Ryan Roberts
Jonathan Davenport at the XR Series race at All Tech Speedway early in the 2022 season while XR was just making a name for itself in late model circles.
well with a lot of these events, so a lot of promoters will advertise start money, and maybe the to-win money, but nothing in between and possibly change it because of how they’re doing during that weekend. Financially, that’s very scary. Some don’t even advertise the purse. I think that needs to be a minimum requirement that all purses throughout are posted online or on websites. I think that if folks can embrace it and have an understanding that it takes just not first place, but it takes 24th, 22nd, or 20th place, and make a concentrated effort to pay throughout the field, we’ll all be ahead. It all has to be financially sound for both sides, but we can’t get caught up on the gimmick of the to-win because we’re losing sight of the guys that are just making the field.
DE: In April, your race at Volunteer Speedway was packed to capacity and paid $100k to win. It not only drew in race teams but race fans who showed a lot of support for the XR series. What was your initial impression as the fans kept flowing into the racetrack? Was this the event you anticipated would be a series sell out race?
BB: We weren’t overwhelmed with the turnout, we’ve done major events in the past, the year before that we did Bristol and had 50,000 people there, which I believe is unofficially the largest dirt track race of all time, but we really didn’t say anything about that. I don’t really care to hang my hat on that. What I care to hang my hat on is Bulls Gap, because it was fundamentally
sound much more than the year before in a number of ways. Ticket pricing to purse infrastructure, to operations, to everything. Bulls Gap this year was a watershed moment because we proved to ourselves that we could run a better business all around and we weren’t a major NASCAR facility. We proved that we could do this and more so than anything that we could do it in a big way. There’s a lot to be said about running a one-day event, which was because of the weather on Friday. We just did it in one day and were successful in doing it in one day. That also led to how we’re going to build our program in 2024 in a number of ways.
DE: How does this large support play into the planning for next year?
BB: This goes back to us being a small business, we have people that are extremely intelligent, hard workers, and passionate race fans as employees. But they can only do so much, we can only push ourselves to the limit so far. Because of that, and because I’m a firm believer there’s too many races right now, that there is fatigue and its watered things down to nothing being special. We’re going to six major events next year, all six weeks apart. It works for a number of different reasons, but more so than anything it’s for the operations side to be able to plan and execute on a higher level and deliver the best events that we possibly can because we don’t believe that we’ve done that yet. We’ve gotten close, we’ve had some brushes with success, we’ve done some fun things, but we don’t
feel like we have a complete package yet. After doing these major events at a number of NASCAR facilities all around the US, we feel like going into next year we have a way better business model that we can properly execute on.
DE: What has been a highlight moment for you as you’ve worked to grow the series?
BB: I think the highlight of the entire series is that we exist, that we continue to exist despite people not wanting us to be around; despite our radical business model. The highlight is to see what we conceptualize grow into what it is and continue to mature. I’ve said this from day one when we started the XR Super Series that I don’t think it’s going to be worth it until year five. I think it’s extremely important to be humble and understand that not everything’s going to be perfect. I’ve made a lot of mistakes, and I think that understanding that and growing is super important. What we do as an entity has a lot of bearing on the rest of the industry. I think at some point, all of us that run these series don’t really understand that our decisions shape the entire industry, which affects a lot of people; vendors, racers, fans, streaming companies, everything. If we’re making a bunch of bad decisions because we’re trying to be the biggest deal or have the biggest ego, well that’s not the path you want to go down. I’m as guilty as anybody, so I’m not pointing anyone out, we’re pointing ourselves out, these decisions have ramifications in the industry.
Photo: Michael Moats
IN 1996, current Badger Midget Auto Racing Association (BMARA) driver, Brandon Waelti, was just another local kid with a dream. He was 16 years old, and his lone goal was to win a midget feature at his hometown track - Angell Park in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin.
Among today’s ardent midget drivers, only a few have the longevity of Waelti. Beyond Floyd Alvis in the BCRA, Keith Rauch in the RMMA and fellow Badger driver Kurt Mayhew, it’s hard to find anyone who has logged as many laps in a midget and is still driving one regularly today. Waelti’s career spans more than 25 years and he’s had a front row seat to the rise, fall and resurrection of the venerable BMARA. He’s won at famed tracks and unique venues. His racing career is still based on friendships and fun.
During his formative years, he just hoped to make an A-Main with Badger. Their fields were regularly populated with National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Famers Dan Boorse, Kevin Doty
and Kevin Olson. A decade later, you’d consistently find him in the top-five in points versus the likes of Brad Kuhn, Scott Hatton and Danny Stratton. At the 20-year mark, he’d win his lone Badger championship with Bill Balog and the aforementioned Mayhew as two of his prime competitors. Through the years he’s gone up against household names such as Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne and Christopher Bell.
A regular at the annual Chili Bowl, he’s made the A-Main once. The pit area he shares in Tulsa with the fellow Badger teams of Todd Kluever and Bill Ecker is usually the busiest spot in the Expo Hall after hours.
This season he scored several wins with Badger and was called “a washed up, old has-been,” by a competitor he’d just got done beating. He’ll admit he’s getting near the end of the road, as far as piloting a car goes, but he’s not done yet.
In the beginning, Brandon’s dad, LeRoy, was a car guy. The elder Waelti raced regularly at Great Lakes
Dragaway, in Union Grove, Wisconsin. Brandon loved tagging along and being at the drag strip. When LeRoy got a new co-worker named Bill Berg, everything changed. Berg was a rookie on the BMARA trail and raced every Sunday at Angell Park. He encouraged the Waelti clan to come watch him race.
“After that first night at Angell Park, I wanted nothing to do with that straight line stuff,” said Waelti. “I’ve been hooked on Angell Park Speedway ever since.” His mind was made up that he was going to be a midget driver. LeRoy knew it wouldn’t be that simple.
Dad got Brandon a “yard kart” to tool around the family property in. He then graduated to racing dirt karts. Moraine Coulee Speedway near LaCrosse, Wisconsin, and Iowa’s Delaware Speedway were their haunts at the time. Brandon won a championship at the latter in 1995. He credits the Sainsbury family with helping him get up to speed in those dirt kart days and members of that family still help him today.
That summer, at the age of 15, he got his indoctrination into midget racing as a stooge for Mike Fell. Fell had also
“Brandon’s a vet who’s won his share but has kept it all in perspective. He knows where he is, he knows he’s not going to NASCAR. Family, fun and racing are what he’s about. He started as a bottom feeder and went on to running the cushion and winning.”
been a kart racer at Delaware and lived near Waelti. They had a lot of people in common. Fell was embarking on his rookie season with the BMARA and invited Brandon to help out. Waelti often stayed with Mike and his wife Megan that summer. “I washed the car, did the tires, mowed their lawn, whatever needed to be done,” noted Waelti. Fell went on to earn Rookie of the Year honors.
As soon as he turned 16, the age required by Badger to compete, LeRoy purchased a midget from Don and Dan Boorse. The car was all there but unassembled. The Waeltis put it together with a lot of landline calls to the Boorse house for guidance. There was one caveat. LeRoy and Brandon’s mom Deb had expended their disposable income, including LeRoy selling some of his collector cars. “If you destroy it, we’re done,” warned the elder Waelti.
Brandon took this to heart. He was careful on and off the track with his car. It was a time where there were usually 40 cars at a Badger event, which meant there would be a C-Main. As best he can recall, he never made it out of the “B” that season but did win one “C”.
In August ,they ventured with Badger to nearby Beaver Dam Raceway. Here, Waelti took a nasty tumble down the front straight when the kingpin snapped. It destroyed
the car. When the safety crew got to him, he was conscious but had a broken collarbone among other injuries. He couldn’t see for about 15 minutes. The thing he recalls during that momentary blindness was the voice of Fell, assuring him he’d be alright. Immediately after the races, Fell was the first one at the hospital to check on his protege.
Up next was the Pepsi Nationals, the biggest race of the season for both Badger and Angell Park. Two days before
the event, Fell came to the Waeltis and offered his car, which was in pieces. “You have to get back on the horse to see if you really want to do this,” said Fell and his wife Megan. They built it in those two days and ran The Nationals, broken collarbone and all.
“I don’t know if I’d have continued racing if it wasn’t for Mike and Megan. They offered their midget, as Mike was driving for Kevin Fillner by then. I might have been drinking beer in the stands, never having won a race today if it
Photo: Michael Moats
Photo: Casey Bollig
wasn’t for them,” said Waelti.
Early in the 1997 season, a horrific crash on Angell Park’s backstretch took the life of Mike Fell. Waelti and the local racing community were devastated. He did some soul searching, talking things over with his dad. LeRoy told him it was his call and that he would support him either way. In the end, Brandon decided that given the passion Fell had for midget racing and how he’d handled Brandon’s first major wreck, Fell would want him to keep racing and so it was. Waelti runs the number three on his cars in honor of Fell, who ran the same number.
In 1998, he scored his first fast time with Badger. He also tested the waters of pavement racing. Berg, who had been racing trucks on the pavement at Madison International Speedway in Oregon, Wisconsin, talked his owner, Fillner, into giving Waelti a shot. He ran the season as a teammate to Berg, with a best finish of third. 2019 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Rookie of the Year Todd Kluever and Brian Hankins were two of his notable competitors.
Later, he got the chance to run the Pathfinder Chassis house car for Joe Wood on a part-time basis at Madison. This car was also campaigned by local standouts Brian Hoppe and Chad
Wood. Matt Kenseth, well into his NASCAR career, also raced the car. “It was tough with the late models. I didn’t do it enough. It took me half the night to relearn how to drive it,” said Waelti. All the while, his midget was still the priority.
In 2000, he earned his first of three feature wins, all at Angell Park. One came at the Firehouse Nationals. This was a two-day show co-sanctioned between Badger, NAMARS and MARA. He was the overall point winner for that weekend too. Today, of that first win, he insists, “I won at Sun Prairie, that’s all I wanted to do. Anything since then has been icing on the cake.”
He gives a lot of credit for that season (and beyond) to Jim and Mary Schulenburg who helped the team buy a new engine. In 1999, as Waelti explains it, he led a lot of races, but always ended up with engine issues. The 2000 campaign was in question as his parents were tapped out again. The Schulenburgs helped pay for a new engine that year and went on to be part owners of the car for a period. They still support the team today by supplying a shop for Waelti, something they’ve done since 2004.
Between 2000 and 2015, Waelti added a lot of icing. In that span
he’s had a constant string of top-ten finishes in the final Badger standings, with his fair share of top-threes. More checkers were taken at Angell Park and Beaver Dam. In 2008, he scored the inaugural Badger win at the indoor venue named “The Sandbox” in New Richmond, Wisconsin, driving for the Fiscus racing team. During this period, he also drove for John Jones for two seasons and Dwight and Wade Huston (as a teammate to Scott Hatton) for a couple more.
Finally, in 2016, he was crowned the BMARA champ, on the strength of five wins, driving for Harlan Kittleson. He scored out of state victories at LaSalle Speedway and a one-off dirt event at Rockford Speedway, both in Illinois. Rockford, a well known paved track, closed its doors in 2023.
The 2016 season also marked a new era within Badger. After critically declining car counts, something had to be done or the BMARA might have faded away. The main culprit was identified as the mounting cost of engines. So, in 2015, Badger voted to go with a 2.4L engine package. Waelti estimates this reduced the cost of an engine by half. The makeup of this power plant also allowed them to run a year without an expensive freshening. In 2015, “National” engines were still allowed with restrictors. For 2016, only the new
Photo: Ray Ophimeengines were allowed. These are the engines Badger is running today.
And with that championship secured, Waelti did the proverbial mic drop and retired from racing. He was burned out and wanted to focus more time on his daughter Cami. That sabbatical lasted a year and, by 2018, he was running a part-time National schedule with USAC and POWRi, mostly picking tracks he thought were fun to run like Jacksonville Speedway and, of course, Angell Park.
As it ended up, if you asked her, some of Cami’s best father/daughter time was at the track. She is now 15 years old, and seldom misses a race. She’s an integral part of the team. “She is probably at the shop with me more than anyone. Cami mounts tires, does stagger charts, changes gears and helps load,” said Waelti proudly. “She’d also like to race something someday.”
Waelti is pretty sure his first Chili Bowl was 2002. “If I ever make
Saturday’s A-Main, I’m never coming back,” he contended back then. That chance came just three years later. He started the night in the C-Main and won it. From there he raced his way into the “A” from the B-Main. “I got lapped, but when the leader, Tracy Hines, got around me in the A-Main, I was keeping up with him,” recalled Waelti. If you didn’t know he’d been lapped, it looked on TV like they were racing for the lead.
After the race, his tune changed, “Well, we made the “A” this year, we might as well come back next year,” he said. “I’ve only missed, maybe two Chili Bowls since then and we plan to go back in 2024. That tells you how dumb I am,” he laughs. To that point, the Chili Bowl can be logistically difficult and expensive. He’s quick to say it takes all of his sponsors and crew to make it happen, but points out Stan Otis of
Club LaMark in Madison, Wisconsin, as someone who really steps up to help out in January.
The other thing for Waelti is that it’s another fun track to run and a great week in general. Plus, the Chili Bowl truly is a place to meet other racers one might never encounter. It’s like any other trade convention you’d go to.
As an example, he met the married duo of Joey and Stacy Rhone there. During a chance encounter at Tulsa’s famed Town Pump Lounge, the Rhone’s and Waelti started a conversation only to realize they were all from Sun Prairie. From there Waelti earned some crew members and a sponsor.
In another instance, without the Chili Bowl as a conduit, he might have never met Lee Martin, a gentleman farmer from Kansas. Martin, who had CJ Johnson driving at the time, bought out the Waelti/Schulenburg team after seeing it for sale in Tulsa. They ended up hanging out and drinking beer in the ensuing years. Then in 2018 Martin arranged for the National midget program Waelti ran.
Thinking back to when he sold Waelti his first car, Dan Boorse, now a team sponsor, recalled, “He was a nice kid with an awesome dad, just like my dad, Don and I.” Talking about him today, Boorse continued, “Brandon’s a vet who’s won his share but has kept it all in perspective. He knows where he is, he knows he’s not going to NASCAR. Family, fun and racing are what he’s about. He started as a bottom feeder and went on to running the cushion and winning. He respects his equipment and prepares it well. It’s nice to see him doing so well.”
The rigors of racing at a high level, while running a business (he’s partowner with Mark Klang in a radiator, machine and fabrication shop) and being a dad, dictate that Waelti can’t do it all himself. He needs good people around him. Along with the aforementioned, Mike Hughes, Aaron Fiscus, Dawn Huss and others, all bring their talents to the team. This allows
him an amount of life balance.
Back as a regular with Badger, he’s energized by the crop of young, local talent the likes of Parker Jones (the son of his old owner, John), Trey Weishoff and Eric Blumer, all of who cheered for Waelti as youngsters. “They remind me how I was when I started and it gets me excited. Maybe Badger didn’t have that in the past.” Plus, helping his old pal Kluever build a midget and then go wheel to wheel with him has made him sharper and gives him another peer to bench race with.
Last season’s average of 34 cars is also something Badger hadn’t had in a long time. “Quinn McCabe and Amy Schulz work their butts off for Badger. The McKarns Family, who are the promotors of Angell Park, and Erin Yeargin (the park president and primary caretaker of the track) have done a great job too,” said Waelti.
Over the last 27 years, Waelti figures he has won at least 20 A-Mains in a midget, including four this season. Not bad for a washed up, old has-been.
Sometimes racers get impatient in tight spaces. The results can be quite spectacular to say the least. Note: Incredibly, no drivers were injured in the making of these pictures... we’re not purveyors of the macabre.
Salem, Indiana has never been a place to mess around. But when Roger McCluskey (9) went for a spin, A.J. Shepherd (7) thought he could tiptoe by, but Hugh Randall (80) decided full bore was the only option. Shepherd made sure to tighten his shoulder harness the next week. (Lloyd
When Rex Hendrickson (Pete Liekam 49) went into the spin cycle at Lincoln, Nebraska in 1983, Steve Frisell (55) was able to sneak by on the outside, but Steve Grossenbacher (10) took a more direct route. Grossenbacher’s landing was a hard one, but he and Hendrickson walked away. (Bob Mays photo)
NO RACE SEASON is without challenges. However, for Kelby Watt, beginning the season with the biggest challenge of preparing a new car to compete at Knoxville Raceway after a last-minute change in rides, the mere logistics of preparing that entire car would put him behind the eight ball for much of the season.
For a youngster like Watt, overcoming the challenges of rebuilding a team after a year off racing brought a surprising reward in adding Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame member crew chief Jeff Woodruff’s experience that a young driver like Watt would need to find success. “My racing took a complete 180 after adding him. Woody has quickly developed our team overall. Everyone on the team is more confident, we have someone we can rely on, someone who has more knowledge than the rest of us. I don’t know if Woody realizes, but he doesn’t just help set up the car, or share his knowledge, he also helps everyone mentally; he’s very calm, collected, he keeps everyone else in check. It helps a lot, sometimes I get a little worked up when I’m rolling into the pit,
and Woody’s really chill, it helps me to just focus on how the car felt, what mistakes I made, and go from there. Woody’s been really on top of it this year, he’s been an ace all year, which has allowed me to catch up to the car after taking a year off,” said Watt. In addition to Woodruff, the crew on Watt’s car is comprised primarily of his family and his father Sean plays a huge roll with the team.
For race fans looking on from the stands, Watt didn’t appear to be taking much time to play catch up, as he consistently began qualifying in the top five of the 360 field, a level of consistency that veteran drivers often are still working to achieve. “I haven’t mastered it quite yet [qualifying], I’ve still got some work to do. We haven’t gotten any quick times yet, but there were times when I drew a terrible pill and still managed to be in the top five. A lot of it has been just getting my rhythm down, not moving my arms, and really staying calm. Midway through the season, I really started to put emphasis on having more structure to my exercise routine and spending more time on iRacing qualifying at Knoxville,
since I know Knoxville is really heavily weighted in qualifying,” said Watt.
A level of focus that would be needed to not only end the season 10th in 360-point standings at the famed half mile, but to allow Kelby to overcome another stark challenge by transitioning into a 410-sprint car midseason, marking his first race, and first ever entry into the coveted Knoxville Nationals. “My biggest lesson this year has been to stay persistent and stay motivated when plans fall through. Keep looking forward, keep pressing on as hard as possible, you never know what opportunity might come around the corner. Something that you always dreamed of, and never thought would
Photo: Paul Arch
happen, might just be waiting for you. If you don’t put in 100% effort, that opportunity might not ever come for you,” said Watt.
The Knoxville Nationals was not the only challenging new experience Watt conquered throughout the season as he used off weekends to experience new tracks throughout the Midwest both in a 360sprint car and 410, adding a logistical twist once returning to Iowa State University to continue working towards his degree
in Mechanical Engineering, along with competing with the Formula SAE team, a degree and experiences he hopes to one day utilize and contribute to his career in motorsports.
While the race season may have started slowly with a few delays and struggles, Kelby Watt never wavered from creating a season full of highlights. “Starting fifth in the 360 Nationals is a pretty big highlight for me. We had been fast all year in a 360, just not quite pushing for the top spot
enough, and it finally felt like right there at the end of the season everything was starting to come together. Getting the opportunity to step into a 410 has been a dream of mine for the past five years; that’s what I’ve really wanted to do. That was a huge step for me, that really broadened my skill set a bunch. With the 410 we really got to travel more than we have in the past, and I feel like a much more well-rounded driver, and the more I do that, the better.”
IT WAS BACK in 1946 that Bobby Troup composed the popular rhythm and blues song, “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66.” Nat King Cole and the King Cole Trio along with Bing Crosby and the Rolling Stones, among others, helped to popularize the song. The classic tells of a traveler’s journey on the Mother Road seeking enjoyment, adventure, and exploring new horizons. On any given Sunday from late April to the early part of October, the sound of thunder can be heard along that same Route 66 just south of Pontiac, Illinois, which lies between Bloomington and Chicago. It is kart racing at its finest as youngsters and adults alike are looking for excitement, pleasure, and thrills.
In 1990, a group of Pontiac residents were searching for a place where they could take their children out to enjoy their yard karts. The late Paul Rittenhouse owned and farmed the land that was alongside Route 66. He got with his son in law, Rick Washko, to come up with a recreational track that the community could enjoy. Washko contacted area kart racers Paul Zeigler and Bill Kindelberger for help in constructing the track.
“We started working on a track in 1990,” Kindelberger said. “The track was in a wooded area, with a pond on one side and a creek on the other. The city used the land as a place to dispose of used concrete. It took us about a
year to get it all cleared up.”
Kart racing has always been a popular pastime throughout Livingston County, Illinois, as there have been four tracks including pavement and dirt venues. Following the closure of the Wapella kart track, area racers were looking for a place to continue with their racing passion.
“There were a lot of kart racers that lived in Pontiac and Fairbury,” Kindelberger recalled. “They approached us about letting them have an organized race. Paul really enjoyed it and we decided to get in the promoting end of racing. We started having races and it took off from there.”
The track, then known as Pontiac Route 66 Speedway, officially opened for competitive racing during late spring in 1994.
Current track promoter Robby Bohm acquired the lease to the track in 2017 and the first race under his guidance took place in 2018. The Bohm family
has been part of the local racing scene since the 1950s and Robby raced on the kart track during the mid-1990s. Bohm got his three daughters involved in racing karts in 2015. With his work schedule, the Bohm Squad had to travel over two hours just to race on a Friday.
“We had the Pontiac track that was five minutes from the house,” explained Bohm. “I spoke with Rita Washko (current Landowner) about taking over the track and we came to an agreement. It was a big undertaking. We put 21 semi loads of new clay on the track, put in a new fence on the backstretch, and reshaped it.”
Bohm went to work in the county as well, letting people know of the track and seeking marketing partners. These days, 29 billboards from area businesses line the backstretch. “It is really humbling to get the support from the community,” said Bohm. “They are all great to work with. We had one
Landen Miller, cut his teeth at Bohmer’s in 2010. He went on to win the track championship in the Cadet class in 2011 and scored over 150 feature wins before moving into the big cars.
person donate a new sound system. If I am ever in a jam, they are all willing to help out.”
Kart racing is a stepping stone for anyone looking to get a start in racing with the aspiration of advancing into another form of racing. Bohmer’s RT 66 Raceway, as it is called now, has seen its share cut their teeth on the ⅛ mile clay track. Torin Mettille (2020 DIRTcar Pro Late Model National Champion), Wes Steidinger (2008 runner up to Dennis Erb Jr. in the DIRTcar Late Model point race), McKay Wenger (2022 MARS Late Model Series Rookie of the Year), and the Racing Ledfords, (Jay, Jeffrey, and Michael, all track champions at Farmer City and Fairbury) are among the hundreds to begin their racing careers at Pontiac.
Landen Miller, destined for stardom on the area dirt tracks, started racing at Bohmer’s in 2008. Winning the 2010 Cadet track title, Miller soon began to compete on different tracks, winning the Hoosier Tire Junior Three Series Championship and accounted for over 150 feature wins before moving into the big cars. Miller credits Bohmer’s with the proper learning tools he needed.
“Bohmer’s is a small track and it would dust off racing on Sunday afternoons,” Miller said.” Racing there taught me to be patient. You have to know your kart well enough to know throttle and gas. I learned a lot about throttle work there. You get loose or heavy on the gas, you will go off the track. It will teach you quickly. Bohmer’s was one of my favorite tracks to race at.
Throttle control and patience in karting are key, along with turning the wheel the littlest makes your kart the fastest.
With their ideal location off of Interstate 55, the speedway attracts racers from throughout Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Rusty Egan, who competes with the AutoMeter Wisconsin WingLESS Sprint Car series, regularly makes the two plus hour trip from his home in Round Lake Heights, Illinois. Egan’s son, Blake, hopes to follow in his father’s footsteps and is getting his start in the rapidly popular Junior Wing class. Egan has high praise for the facilities and describes it as a driver’s track.
“Bohmer’s is very family oriented,” said Egan. “Robby stresses safety and everyone having a good time. We race at other tracks and there is no ambulance or EMT on site. As far as racing, you have to drive both corners with totally different styles. One turn is more about momentum and the other is how fast you can get out of the corner. Racing on Sunday’s, the track is a lot drier than others we race on. Dry slick is definitely different from a tacky track.”
Bohm cut the season early this year with plans underway for more improvements. The winged sprint karts that are a favorite in Iowa and western Illinois have caught fire with several tracks in the region. Bohm is taking the right steps to ensure the safety of the
drivers, as well as the fans.
“We started having winged karts just two years ago,” Bohm said. “I have seen them at several local tracks and they have tremendous kart counts. We even had Kelly Earnhardt Miller’s son Wyatt along with their friends race with us when we first began having the class. We are going to put up a new seven foot fence on the front stretch. Those karts can get bouncy. We are also adding a new design for the track.”
During the heyday of Bohmer’s, there would be anywhere from 70-90 karts. With the large number of racers on hand, semi features would have to take place. “We are trying to return the track to its glory days,” Bohm closed. “A lot of the drivers that race at Fairbury and other tracks are getting their sons or daughters involved. Mike Spatola, Alan Stipp, Ryan Unzicker, the Shickel and Cleary family are coming full circle and getting into the roots of racing.”
The raceway will celebrate their 30th anniversary next year featuring special events throughout the season. Racing takes place every other Sunday, beginning in late April and runs to the middle of October. Bohmer’s follows the National Karting Association rulebook and there is free admission for spectators and they usually ensure that one of the area’s food trucks is on hand. Grassroots racing at its very finest within a stone’s throw of America’s great highway.
Rydell Bohm, left, is the Baby Champ track titlist at his father Robby’s racetrack.
PHOTOS BY TYLER
CARR
It was spectacular. It was entertaining. It was controversial. In short, it was everything that everyone thought it could be and then some. The Lucas Oil Late Model Series converged on Eldora Speedway with two specifics tasks - 1) award $100,000 to the winner of the prestigious Dirt Track World Championships; 2) crown a series champion for 2023 in a winner take all rumble between the final four in the same race. What could go wrong? A race that featured heavy attrition and plenty of controversy ended with Brandon Sheppard in victory lane as a DWTC winner and Hudson O’Neal a Lucas Oil titlist by virtue of a last corner pass of Devin Moran. What a finish! What a season! What a concept!
While the Lucas Oil Series headlined the event, there was plenty of other late model history on display with vintage cars, tributes to former winners and the Steel Block Division also got a chance to race in front of a big audience and Cody Overton (15K) bested KC Burdette (44) for the $5,000 score.
Four of the best late model racers in the country as Ricky Thornton Jr., Devin Moran, Jonathan Davenport and Hudson O’Neal lead the field. At the end, however, Brandon Sheppard bested all four.
Carson Ferguson brought out a special Freddy Smith wrap in the 00 in tribute to the five-time DTWC winner who passed on October 15. Fans left flowers by his banner in his honor during the week.
The future is now. Hudson O’Neal and Bobby Pierce are both in their prime of their careers and will continue to be forces in the sport of late model racing for years to come. At this DTWC, it was O’Neal’s night to win a title while Pierce ended up in sixth in the main.
The pass for the title exiting turn four and the crowing of champions at the waving checkered flag! It’s not often the winner of the race gets paid less than second but that was the case when Brandon Sheppard won $100,000 for the DTWC and Hudson O’Neal won $200,000 for securing the Lucas Oil title with his second place run.
Genesis Racing Shocks
ONE OF THE FINEST racers in the state of Nebraska, Mike Boston has had a long career on the racetrack and has always been interested in what makes race cars – or motorcycles –tick and has fused his passion into a new venture as the owner of Eagle Motorsports as he becomes the caretaker of a brand – Eagle Chassis - that once ruled open wheel chassis manufacturing.
Mike Boston’s racing career goes back to 1974 when he began racing motorcycles, winning the first race he ever competed in. “I’ve often wondered if things would be different if I hadn’t,” said Boston. He continued racing motorcycles until 1991 when he also started racing micro-sprints. At that time, he was working at Lincoln Cycle Accessories. The owner’s son was into racing micros, so he asked if Mike was interested in racing them. Mike obtained a national number in the singles in 1992 after finishing in the top 10 nationally. Then in 1993, he was awarded the number 4 in the 4-cylinder class and won the national championship in the multis in 1994. “After that there wasn’t anything left to accomplish in the 600s”.
In 1995, John Gerloff got Mike a sprint car ride in Craig Bolte’s car and he’s been racing them ever since.
Among his accomplishments are seven Eagle Raceway track championships in the 360s, including four in a row. Several years ago, he moved to a RaceSaver sprint when Eagle Raceway switched to them.
Over the years, Boston didn’t just race. He was well versed in machine work and tooling so he began building and repairing micros. Over his career, he sold micro chassis under the names of Python and Vision. All of this was just a side job for Mike as he was a full-time union drywall finisher during the day. “I worked from six until three, switched hats and then built and repaired micros until late in the night. I did that for a lot of years, not just because I enjoyed it but it helped offset my racing costs. It was a part-time job that went on until midnight or later at times.” During those years, he also became a dealer for Stallard mini-sprints and Maxim sprint car chassis.
Meanwhile, Eagle Chassis was started in 1998 by Jerry Russell after having spent 10 years working for Maxim. Along with legend Danny Lasoski they devised a new type of chassis that dominated racing in the early 2000s and put the brand at the forefront of the industry. After passing through other owners, the company was eventually taken over and brought to Lincoln, Nebraska, by Speedway Motors in the early 2010s. “I knew then that there wasn’t room here in Lincoln for a little guy and a monster company
like Speedway Motors. So, I decided to get out of the business since they were acquiring companies like Henchcraft and Stallard, buying every company that had anything to do with racing. In 2014 Boston was building, inventorying and delivering a lot of parts for Speedway Motors such as parts for micros and sprint cars, but eventually sold out his business to Speedway.
“I still did a few repairs, and I had my own cars. I had my own jig table, some uprights and a welder to work on my friends’ cars and mine.”
In 2021, Frank Galusha approached Mike about coming to work at Speedway. That eventually led to Boston agreeing to being hired to build EMI (Eagle Motorsports Inc.) chassis at Speedway several months later. “I felt that working for EMI would be a good fit for me. The decision was one of the hardest that I ever had to make. It wasn’t a matter of whether I could do it, or if I’d like it. Who wouldn’t want to take a job doing what you loved to do?
To me it wasn’t a job because I loved being there and loved the work. I was doing something that I was passionate about. Sometimes I worked 36 hours straight when I promised Keith Kunz a car. When I promise somebody something, I stick to my word. Having been a racer myself, I understood the customer’s urgency. Personally, it would suck to have to miss a race”.
Boston had a great team to work with, including Brian Schnee who
worked on his own brand of cars.
“Brian is a great guy. Not just as a racer but also as a fabricator. We hit it off immediately. We worked side by side for nearly three years. We were never late; we never missed a day; all because of our shared passion for what we were doing. It was a team effort, not just Brian and I. There was a group of us that worked together to build them.”
After a little over two years, operations ceased and Boston acquired the company. Boston also got the original equipment that Jerry Russell had used when he started Eagle Chassis. “I got his original tables, including the side table that was used to build the sides on every Eagle Chassis from the beginning. Every one of Rico’s cars and every one of Paul Silva’s cars were built on these tables.”
Since that time, Mike has stopped working in the drywall field and is devoting 100% of his time building and repairing cars under the name Eagle Motorsports LLC. He is one busy fabricator, with a constant flow of repairs to do and cars to build. An Eagle dealer in California has a standing order for six cars a week in fact. He also continues to race his own sprint car weekly at Eagle Raceway.
When asked what his plans for the future were, he said “I’ll keep building the best Eagle Chassis possible and repairing cars and keep racing too. I’ve been racing for 50 years; next year will be my 51st year. I won the first race I ever ran and I want just one more so I can say I went out on top. When that happens, I will retire from racing.”
Mike Boston stands in his shop where the famous Eagle Chassis are now constructed in the state of Nebraska.
FREEDOM RACE LIFTS has worked to innovate one of the most instrumental and necessary items for both your pit stall and shop – your lift. Through many years of research and development working in conjunction with race teams utilizing their lifts on race day and during maintenance, Freedom Race Lifts have developed a lift that allows the clearest span access beneath the car. There are no obstructions to drive train, or pivotal spots on the car in comparison to other lifts on the market. The Freedom Race
Lift is designed to replicate having your car on four jack stands, fully raised. Each lift offers complete adjustability for both width and height for each different chassis manufacturer, including if your chassis has uneven chassis rails, there is adjustability in the lift frame to compensate. A stark difference in competitor car lifts. Releasing in winter 2023, Freedom Race Lift will also be the first line of wireless operated lifts in the industry. (Patent Pending.) While the lifts currently do not require any hoses, cords, or hydraulics, and can be operated with just a cordless drill, with the addition of their wireless module on the lift, the lift will now be operable from an app on your phone or with the wireless key fob that is included with the wireless module.
Through the use of the wireless app race teams will have full adjustability of the speed, including the option of a hot pit button which will raise and lower the car within five seconds, offering back crucial time teams spend getting the car into the air and easy accessibility to all vital parts of the car. Race teams who have already purchased a Freedom Race Lift will have the ability to purchase the wireless module separately to easily upgrade their current lift to wireless capabilities without having to purchase an entirely new lift.
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facebook.com/freedomracelifts
email: freedomracelifts@gmail.com
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ENDERS RACING ENGINES has been building championship powerplants for parts of five decades. Kevin Enders started back in 1985 with some small block aluminum headed 320ci engines.
“That was back when there were a lot of changes going on in racing,” Enders recollected. “They were changing from standard drag rubber to the Hoosier rubber, and they were allowing aluminum heads on the 320s and cast iron 355s.”
Quite a bit has changed over the years in the northeast modified scene, which is the primary market for Enders Racing Engines. These days their customers are calling for Chevy big blocks or 358s to compete in the DIRTcar Series or Short Track Super Series in northeast modified style cars.
In the 90s and early 2000s, Enders engines were running at the Moody Mile, the nickname given to the mile-long track at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, New York.
“There was nothing like that track
in all of dirt track racing,” Enders reminisced. “A mile-long dirt track was something that brought in drivers from all over. We’d have a couple of engines ready to go just for that race. Back then we had the 4th of July, Labor Day and SuperDIRT Week all at Syracuse.”
With the closure of the Fairgrounds track in 2015, SuperDIRT Week moved to Oswego, New York the following year, which changed the nature of the race dramatically.
“This industry can be trendy,”
Enders said. “For a while it was all about having an engine that would carry you on that mile track. Now it’s so much more about the short track. And teams will see someone winning with an engine, and then everybody will want that engine. It can be streaky and trendy when it comes to what’s hot at certain times.”
One of the drivers who found great success running Enders Racing Engines over the years was hall of fame driver, Billy Decker.
Brandon Carvey of Oswego, New York, ran a 358 Enders Racing Engine when he headed to SuperDIRT week this October - sporting a scary-good wrap.
Photo: Quentin Young
A pair of 602s
and ready
“Billy Decker and his team always did a great job showcasing their cars and their team. We won a lot of races with Decker behind the wheel,” Enders said. “Our first victory at SuperDIRT Week was with Decker, and that was pretty special.”
Over the years drivers running Enders Racing Engines have won numerous championships and series.
“We probably should have kept track of all of that,” Enders said with a laugh. “We know it’s a lot of wins and a lot of championships, but I don’t have an exact number. And it really doesn’t matter in the long run. We just like helping people win.”
ship from Enders Racing Engines. components, we have to build-to-order our engines. But one positive is how Jones Racing Products always comes through for us. They are so good at pulling a rabbit out of a hat when we are really up against a short time table. And what we get from them is always 100%. We get what we need and we can always take it out of the box and install it. That’s why we’ve been working with Jones exclusively for at least the
Enders Racing Engines is a small operation, with owner, Kevin and his son Adam doing the majority of the work. Kevin’s wife, Kim, also works in the family business. Additionally, Cody Harris aids with the workload of pushing 40 to 50 engines out the door each year.
“Back during the Syracuse SuperDIRT Week days, we’d purchase components and build engines throughout the year just to have them in stock, knowing we’d sell them during the racing season,” Enders said. “Now, with rising costs and longer wait times for
last ten years.”
As the economy continues to be a factor in the northeast, rebuilds are more common than prior to 2008. But Enders still churns out a good number of new engines every year.
“The rebuild market was always strong in this region,” Enders said. “Now there are some teams that have the means and are willing to make the investments in new equipment as they are hitting all the big races and really in it to win. I’ve found there’s two different kinds of racers, those that are after the wins and those that love the competition. We are able to help both kinds get on the track and compete at a high level.”
There are certainly challenges ahead for the sport of racing and Enders Racing Engines, including trying to attract younger drivers to racing, keeping costs down, and keeping the flow of components going so as to keep up with demand. But as long as there is racing in the northeast, Enders Racing Engines will be powering champions to victory.
In 2022 SuperDIRT Week celebrated its 50th year and posted videos of the top drivers from over the years, including Billy Decker in his Enders Racing Enginespowered number 91. Use the camera in your mobile device with the QR code to the left, click the link it generates to check out the video.
BY BILL HOLLAND
IF IT WEREN’T FOR fasteners, your race car would be little more than a huge pile of parts on the shop floor awaiting assembly. Bolts and studs hold everything together in the engine, chassis, driveline and suspension.
Obviously, it’s important to get the optimum fastener for each application. But even the best fasteners can’t do their job unless they’re properly installed —which brings up the phenomenon of “preload scatter.”
Most fasteners employed in race cars are installed using a torque wrench. You set the desired torque value, apply force to the wrench, and when it goes “click” you’ve achieved the proper clamping force. Or have you?
According to the engineering team at ARP, the bulk of your energy is taken up overcoming friction…be it in the thread (both the fastener and the receiving aperture) and the lubricant—which is the primary culprit. Despite the wrench’s indication more often than not the desired clamping force is not achieved. In a “worst case scenario” adjacent head studs or bolts are unequally preloaded to the extent that they cause a distortion to the cylinder bore and affect piston ring sealing. That’s a classic example of “preload scatter.”
ARP’s engineering team has spent
years testing various lubricants using sophisticated computerized equipment and determined that it will take up to a half-dozen cycles (apply torque, loosen, re-apply torque) to mitigate friction using oil, moly, EPL and other substances. This lead to the development of ARP Ultra-Torque Fastener Lubricant® that facilitates achieving 95-100% of the desired preload on the first —an any subsequent— pull on the torque wrench. It’s that good.
When applying lubricant, it is recommended that you apply it to the fastener threads and the underside of the bolt (or nut) and be careful not to coat the underside of the washer —unless specified otherwise in the instructions.
Lubrication notwithstanding, there are other factors to contend with relative to eliminating preload scatter and obtaining the desired clamping force. First is cleaning the threads in the block, cylinder head, etc. ARP offers special “chaser” taps that are designed to clean the thread and not remove metal.
There are many commercial products that can be employed to clean both the fastener and the receiving aperture — the most commonly used being brake cleaner.
Then there’s the “800 lb. gorilla in the
room” —the torque wrench itself. ARP has conducted field test for many years and found racers using wrenches that were off by 30% or more. Torque wrenches are delicate instruments that should be treated with respect and calibrated periodically.
And as tempting as its leverage may be, NEVER use a torque wrench as a breaker bar. Applying reverse force has disrupted the accuracy of many a torque wrench.
As a general rule of thumb, ARP recommends that fasteners be torqued in three equal increments. For example, a bolt that calls for 75 pound feet of torque should be done in stages of 25 lb. ft. and 50 lb. ft. before the final 75 lb. ft. reading.
Rod bolts are an entirely different matter, as they should be installed using a stretch gauge. By physically measuring the stretched fastener you can determine
its preload, irrespective of any friction factors. For example, a common 3/8” rod bolt that’s stretched .0060” to .0065” will have about 10,000 psi clamping force. All of ARP’s rod bolt instruction sheets contain stretch data.
To best illustrate stretch, consider that a fastener is much like a throttle return spring, as it must be stretched in order to have any rebounding force. And, like a spring, if a bolt is stretched too far it will have lost its elasticity.
The best way to keep tabs on rod bolts is to measure them in a relaxed state prior to installation and again when the engine comes apart for routine servicing. If a rod bolts has stretched by .001” or more it should be replaced. There’s a handy chart in ARP’s catalog that you can use as a guide for properly maintaining records.
There’s a wealth of valuable technical information in ARP’s catalog, which can be viewed online (www.ARP-bolts.com) or a free printed copy sent upon request. For personalized assistance you can call ARP’s tech staff at 800-826-3045.
Most racers can’t wait to get away from their regular job and go play in the dirt. For New Market, Iowa, racer Brad Derry playing in the dirt is what he does for a living. His day job is working for Derry Construction Farm Conservation (his father’s company) doing such things as bull dozing, tiling, terracing, as well as building ponds, working on water ways and tree removal.
Derry’s racing career as a driver started in 2004 when he started racing hobby stocks at the Adams County Speedway in Corning, Iowa. “I was helping another driver with his race car and was doing a lot of the work and thought I might as well start racing myself,” recalled Derry. “I bought my first race car when I was 16 years old with money I was planning on using for college. That first year, my race car was at the frame machine seven times.”
A few seasons later, in 2008, he claimed his first track championship when he won the Hobby Stock Championship at the I-80 Speedway near Greenwood, Nebraska. This was also the year Derry moved up to the Stock Car Division where he has raced ever since.
It wasn’t long and he was a champion in the Stock Car Division as well, winning the I-80 Speedway track
championship in 2010 and making the NASCAR Whelen All American Series Finalist program. To prove that championship was not a one-time thing, Derry backed it up by winning the I-80 track championship again in 2011 as well as once again making the NASCAR Finalist program.
By 2015, Derry took it to a new level winning both the I-80 Speedway Stock Car title as well as the Adams County Speedway track championship. More championships were to follow and in 2020 Derry claimed the Adams County Stock Car championship once again. In 2022, he repeated his 2015 double by winning both the I-80 and Adams County Championships
again. By winning the I-80 Stock Car Championship in 2022 he became the final stock car champion at that now defunct track. “It was kind of sad seeing the track close,” said Deery. “We had a lot of good finishes at I-80 that last year but never won a feature. That was my favorite track. The high banking and walls all the way around the track gave me a good sense of where I was at on the race track. The promoters were always very fair, and you know you were not going to be cheated. They played no favorites.”
This past season, Derry once again won the Adams County Stock Car Championship.
During his career, Derry has posted over 200 career wins and in addition to being a regular at the Adams County Speedway, a NASCAR-sanctioned track, he can be seen racing at the US 36 Speedway in Cameron, Missouri, which is an IMCA sanctioned track and the I-35 Speedway in Winston, Missouri, which is a USRA (United States Racing
Association) sanctioned track.
Along the way, Derry has had some memorable moments in racing. “The race that sticks out the most was in 2021. I was asked to race the hobby stock of the late Jeremy Ribby, who had passed away due to COVID a few months earlier. I had not driven a hobby stock since 2008. This was to be at The Tradition, which is typically the final race of the season at the Adams County Speedway and which I considered my Daytona 500 race. We won that night, and it was a very emotional win.”
Another race that stands out in Derry’s mind was racing at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee in 2021 for the Bristol Dirt Nationals. They put the dirt on the high-banked half mile. In addition to the NASCAR Cup drivers racing on the dirt they had events for weekly racers from all over the county. In the Stock Car Division, with over 150 cars entered, Derry won his heat race and qualified for the main event. “That was a once in a lifetime event,” Derry said. “It was awesome driving into the infield, seeing the high banks and the stands rising up forever.”
Winning the King of the Cage race at the now-defunct 1/5-mile oval at the Atchinson County Speedway in Kansas was also a special night for Derry. “That was an outlaw night show and there were a lot of cars there that had bigger motors and more horsepower than we had but we had the right set up,” Derry said. “That was our biggest win in terms of money as we won $3,800.”
Derry currently has two stock cars carrying his familiar number 37D. Both are B&B Racing Chassis. One is a 2019 and the other is a 2023. At times he
will another driver in his second car just add more cars to the field and give another driver a chance to race.
“I would be remiss if I did not thank Dusty and Mike Whitehead of Clarinda (Iowa). Dusty was like a mentor to me. They took me under their wing way back when I was getting started and they have helped me so much during my racing career,” Derry said.
As with many short-track drivers, Derry’s racing is a family affair. Derry’s crew includes wife Taylor, father-in-law Scott Gruttemeyer, brother Josh Derry and friend Tyler Gray. Additional support is provided by parents Delmar & Lois Derry, mother-in-law Chris Gruttemeyer and Brad & Taylor’s children, Justice, Meredith and Marshall Derry. “This is the one thing we do as a family; it’s our time together, so it has special meaning,” Derry said.
Derry has spent a lot of time at Adams County Speedway and has made quite an impact on the facility. The current Adams County Speedway Race Director and former track
announcer Billy Rock thinks a lot of Derry. “I’ve known Brad (Derry) for a long-time and he is one of those racers that puts a lot of time in the shop preparing for a race,” Rock said. “He has a passion for the sport, and he wants to win. He is a very dedicated racer.”
“Brad is willing to help new drivers get started and help us with our car count which was down a bit at the start of the year,” continued Rock. “He has put another driver in his second car several times just to help with our car count.”
As for his future plans, Derry says “I plan to race as long as I can and take the opportunities as they come. I am hoping to get our children into cage cars and racing in the future.” That kind of goes along with Derry’s thoughts on racing in general. “No matter what happens on the track try to have fun and find the positive in everything.”
One thing is for sure, Derry knows how to get the whole family involved, he knows how to win races and championships and he has fun along the way doing it.
Derry Construction, OneSource Restoration, Victory Powerline Services, Shore Motor Company, Farm Bureau (Jake Gillespie), Sleeps Tile Yard, Creston Motor Supply, DW race Engines, B&B Racing Chassis (Paul Burger)
Derry getting on it at I-80 Speedway during the 2015 season.
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.
Pennsylvania Speedweek emotions created a unique victory lane celebration for Anthony Macri, a few days before the Macri/Macri Motorsports split mid-2023 season.
The most anticipated sight in all of motorsports - a four wide salute to the fans. One of my most favorite moments to photograph throughout the racing season.
Hometown: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Age: 29
Year Started Shooting: Motorsports - 2015; Portraits/High School Sports - 2010
First Publication to Print Your Work: AARN (Area Auto Racing News - 2020 Return
To Racing Event during Covid)
Favorite Track to Shoot: Knoxville Raceway
Favorite Division to Shoot: 410 Winged Sprints
Remaining Bucket List Races: 4 Crown Nationals at Eldora Speedway
Favorite Thing About Racing Photography: My favorite thing about racing photography is seeing the attitude of the car change with each lap and the emotion between drivers and teams when they win a big event or a race they have been waiting to cross off their bucket list. Also, I enjoy the people I have met. They have become a second family.
Outside of race cars, what do you like to photograph: I like to challenge myself with sports and portraits.
Camera Equipment: I shoot with a Sony a7iii (Mirrorless) w/ Sony G Master 70200mm f2.8 / Sony G Master 24-70mm f 2.8 / Sony G Master 35mm f1.4. I originally learned how to shoot photography on a 35mm film camera (In 2012) and had to develop my own film, which gives me a huge appreciation for the technology we have available today.
In 2020, I had been furloughed from my full time job, and got the opportunity to travel and photograph Kyle Larson’s record setting sprint car season after he was sidelined by NASCAR.
Being able to capture Logan Schuchart winning the inaugural Eldora Million, the largest paying race in sprint car history, was one of the most memorable times for me in 2023.
Creating and capturing for Dylan Norris in his final season in the 44 Gobrecht Motorsports was so much fun! It allowed me the ability to truly be creative in every facet of the industry from images to promotional materials for Dylan.
Retired PA Posse driver Brian Leppo’s son, Lawton Leppo, helps keep the family tradition of sprint car racing alive by helping out on Kyle Reinhardt’s team. I always have enjoyed capturing photos of the younger generation helping out in the pits. It’s great to see tradition continued.
ONE OF THE all-time greats in the history of open wheel racing has decided to call it a career after a 52-year career behind the wheel as Indiana’s Dave Darland has officially retired from auto racing. The all-time record holder for USAC starts retires as the record holder in USAC Sprint Car wins and one of just seven racers ever to win the USAC Triple Crown with Midget, Sprint Car and Silver Crown titles.
“Forty-two years of sprint car racing (52 years of being behind the wheel of a race car), that’s a long time,” Darland stated. “One-hundred-plus races per year for many years, thousands and thousands of miles traveled, records set, records broken. Fans who became friends and family, great car owners to
fulfill the need of racing and awesome sponsors who made it happen. Now is the time for my family and my five grand kids; my time. I’m retiring. (There’s) no looking back; the memories have been made. I’ve fulfilled my dreams and plans.”
Darland truly earned the nickname “The People’s Champ” by rising to fame through hard work, great racing, good manners and a focus on the little things that matter in auto racing. Darland managed to show that one can be a gentleman on the track and off the track and still race with intensity and be one of the most successful racers ever. Darland’s versatility was on display through every type of open wheel race car he slithered into and he did it on big tracks, small tracks, dirt tracks and
paved tracks with the best equipment and, at times, in equipment that only he could be successful in. He was enshrined in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2017.
It was an incredible ride and Darland authored a career and, more importantly, a legacy that every grassroots racer should aspire to replicate. “Who would have thought that a straggly kid from Lincoln, Indiana, would have come this far? Thank you to every person who stood beside me, with me and against me,” said Darland. “You made me the person that I am, the career that I’ve had, and for that, I am forever grateful. Thank you for being the best fans, friends and family.”
Photo: Paul Arch
Photo: Paul Arch
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, shoot them a messge and support them.
Bob Mays - catsracin@yahoo.com
Casey Bollig - caseybolligphotography@gmail.com
Dan Demarco - deacon39@icloud.com
Dave Hill - dshill@mchsi.com
Dave Nearpass - dwnearpass@yahoo.com
David Pratt – dspphotoz@aol.com
Greg Soukup - eaglepitshackguy@hotmail.com
Gregg Teel – greggteel@gmail.com
Jeff Bylsma - randrplumbing@mtcnet.net
Joe Moore - jocomoore@mchsi.com
Matt Butcosk – mbutcosk@gmail.com
Michael Moats – mrm4@comcast.net
Mike Musslin - dirtnut777@gmail.com
Nicole Signor - nsignorcreative@gmail.com
Paul Arch - peanumber10@comcast.net
Quentin Young - quentinyoungphoto@yahoo.com
Rich LaBrier – dirtmanphoto@gmail.com
Rocky Ragusa - monksjunk88@yahoo.com
Roy Ophime - royophimephotography@gmail.com
Ryan Roberts - jryanroberts@ymail.com
Todd Boyd - latemodel1967@gmail.com
Tyler Carr - tcarr95vc@gmail.com
Zach Yost - zyost11@yahoo.com
