Mark Dobmeier 5/18/09.)
It was off to Knoxville Raceway following another cancellation of Friday’s River Cities Speedway Opener and to start out the night, Grand Forks, North Dakota native Mark Dobmeier of Lunstra/Dobmeier Motorsports put the Senske & Son, Delta Oil sponsored machine 12th quick, just 3.5 tenths off the leader. Dynamite Dobmeier started on the inside of the third row in the heat race and at the drop of the flag Mark dropped the throttle and drove through the field and up to second behind the number 18 of Tony Bruce Jr. In the main event, Dobmeier started on the inside of the second row and with only a couple laps down he passed Australian native Lynton Jeffery for the lead. Mark had a very comfortable lead throughout the next ten laps until he began noticing some severe vibrations coming from underneath his seat. The driveline was beginning to fail and Dobmeier knew that it was not going to last. He started nursing the car along the bottom of the racetrack attempting to make it to the end and pull out a top five, but the car did not agree and the Lunstra/Dobmeier #13 was forced to call it night. “That was pretty frustrating,” explains Mark, “Our car was perfect all night and we had an awesome lead throughout the first half of the race and then once the vibrations started I thought I could make it and still pull out a decent finish, but it just didn’t happen. Tonight was a great confidence booster, though, because we know we are there and that first win of the season here at Knoxville should be just around the corner!”
Following the disappointment at the legendary Knoxville Raceway, it was off to Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, SD. Dobmeier qualified 8th quick just four tenths off the 10.690 time set by World of Outlaw driver Terry McCarl which set the team up for a very respectable evening. Starting 5th in the heat race, Mark quickly jumped to the number 2 spot behind Rock Rapids native, Jody Rosenboom and then followed him to the end of the ten lap contest on the dry surface of Huset’s Speedway. Mark started on the pole and knowing the potential for the rubber to come down, he knew that he had to grab the lead early to have a chance for the win at the end. Unfortunately, the number 40 of Clint Garner took the lead early in the main and Dobmeier fell back to third behind McCarl. With many cautions along with the flip of Lynton Jeffery in the first four laps of the event, Tony Bruce Jr. managed a pass on the #13 of Mark Dobmeier which put the Senske & Son J&J back to the number four position with about 19 laps to go. As the rubber began to lay on the racetrack creating a non-passing one line event, Mark took advantage of the number 18’s drift coming out of turn two to put him back in the third spot. Garner took the main followed by Terry McCarl and Mark Dobmeier. “A third place finish is not bad at all,” says Dobmeier, “I knew I had to be all over the lead early in the race because of the fear of the track taking rubber. We didn’t get there unfortunately, but I am very happy with the team and even though we didn’t get the win, the car was perfect all night and these consistent top finishes is what it takes to win the championship.”
Next up for the Lunstra/Dobmeier #13 will be the hopeful season opener at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks followed by Knoxville Raceway on the 23rd and capping off the weekend with a double-header with the NOSA Outlaw Sprints at Huset’s Speedway. Follow Mark and the team through his website, www.markdobmeier.com Special thanks to Senske & Son Transfer, Delta Oil, Dekalb Seed, Dahlstrom Motors, Big Trucks by Jimco, Forx Radiator, Dammer Brothers Livestock Transportation, Anderson Brothers Body Shop, K & N Air Filters, Forks Mobile Wash, Awesome Racewear, Rite Spot Liquor, X-treme Polishing, the Disabled American Veterans and Driver Websites.com.
- Josh Holt on May 18, 2009
- Article Date: 5/18/2009