July 19, 2014; Wilmot, WI – The annual Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprints vs UNOH All-Star Circuit of Champions didn’t disappoint for it’s thrills and spills as there were plenty of each on a the challenging Wilmot Raceway third-mile clay oval.
The rescheduled Salute to the Founders of IRA also took place during the program, honoring Ray Toft, Whitey Harris and the late Junior Dodd, who originally organized and began the IRA back in March of 1968. Special feature trophies sponsored by the Southeastern Wisconsin Short Track Racing Hall of Fame honoring the founders were be presented.
In a match of titans, the all-time leader in All-Star A-main win column, Dale Blaney of Fowler, Ohio came to Wilmot Raceway looking to score his third consecutive win in the showdown event. On the other hand six-time, and defending IRA champ Bill Balog, was looking to extend his current win streak to six straight in IRA competition and elevate the modern era win streak record to six.
Fans were not disappointed as the pair had swapped the lead in effort to extend their respective streaks. In the end it was Blaney who prevailed as Balog efforts for a sixth straight series victory fell short by one position. Early race leader Jac Haudenschild earned the final podium spot with a last lap pass of former Wilmot Raceway champion, and local hero Tommy Sexton.
Blaney greeted the crowed from victory lane after the contest. “We were really good. I struggled a bit early, and just fell in line to ride it out awhile”, noted Blaney about the run. “The track came to us, and we got a little bit better as the race went on. I got under Balog a few times in three and four and once we got out front the car just got better and better”, exclaimed Blaney.
Balog also seemed happy with his run in spite of the second place showing. “I thought we were really good early on. The goove just got higher and higher up”, said Balog. “We were hanging in there, but I knew we were not going to beat the “low rider” ( Blaney’s nickname ) when he was on the bottom. They found the groove and they won it, but this is our best All-Star finish. It was fun racing and I was really happy with it”, said Balog.
The 35 lap main event would prove to be especially challenging for the 24 car-starting field as the drivers never seemed to catch a rhythm. As a result both cautions and red flags flew in abundance, and overall the event played out like a series of short dashes.
Haudenschild, celebrating his 40th year behind the wheel sat on the pole for the start of the A-main event. A preview of things to come, the first red flag flew before the field got out of turn two as the machines of Dennis Spitz, and Rusty Egan made contact with Egan taking a tumble. Both drivers were unscathed but done for the night.
Two laps went in the books with Jac Hudenschild setting the pace over California native and World of Outlaws star Tim Kaeding when the caution flew for Haudenschild’s son, Sheldon, going for a quick spin in turn four.
On the restart Jac Haudenschild opted for the high line while Kaeding hugged the infield tires as the pair dueled for the lead. Balog watched the pair from the third spot while repelling the challenges of Blaney.
The high line was the place to be early on as Balog utilized the momentum to sweep past Kaeding in turn two for the second spot on lap seven. He then began to reel in Haudenschild.
A roar of approval could be head as Balog carried the IRA banner to the front of the field, roaring past Haudenschild down the front stretch on lap nine. Balog had little time to enjoy the lead as the caution flew a second time when Bill Rose spun on the next circuit bunching the field.
The next restart resulted in a multi-car shunt in turn three.
Mike Reinke who had been doing battle for a top five position did a quick flip, landing back on his wheels. The incident also collected rookie of the year contender Ben Schmidt who had been doing battle for the position with Reinke. Remarkably both drivers were able to continue from the tail of the pack after some quick repairs in the work area.
Balog was back to fending off the challenges of Blaney as action resumed. The pair were slowed by a quick caution when Blake Nimee spun in turn two, and after another brief green flag run the pace was halted by the third red flag of the contest. 15 laps were in the books when turn number three claimed a couple more cars. This time, Scotty Neitzel found himself upside down with Jim Moughan also involved in the incident. Neitzel emerged from his upside down machine unhurt but done for the night.
The next green flag stretch saw Balog again set the pace, opting again for the high line. Blaney on the other hand began to work the bottom groove, a decision that would prove fruitful as he worked under Balog on lap 17 grabbing the lead position. Balog continued to try and fight back on the highside but it became apparent that the line was not going to provide the speed to catch Blaney.
Lap 23, slowed the contest with a spin by rookie of the year contender Scotty Thiel in turn four. On the restart Jeremy Schultz encountered mechanical ills and the amber light was on one last time.
There would be no other cautions for the final run to the checker, though a pair of 360 spins among the front running cars kept fans on the edge of their seats. First Kaeding did a complete 360, and continued losing several spots in the process. Moments later Haudenschild performed a similar maneuver, which temporarily cost him the third spot as Sexton claimed the position.
Blaney was able to distance himself from Balog over the final circuits and reached the finish line nearly a straightway ahead of Balog. On the final lap Haudenschild caught Sexton and executed an amazing pass to reach the podium.
Sexton had to settle for the fourth spot. Todd Daun had quietly and patiently worked through the field the entire contest. He had succeeded in advancing the most positions in the race, passing 15 cars to finish in the fifth place.
Reinke turned in an amazing performance as he recorded a remarkable sixth place finish after rebounding from his flip at the mid portion of the contest. Matt Vandervere was seventh right behind Reinke. Kaeding recovered from his late race spin with an eighth place effort. Sheldon Haudenschild earned a ninth place run driving a machine borrowed from Hartnell Motorsports, while Wayne Modjeski avoided the pitfalls which befell many of his fellow competitors and earned the final top ten position.
14 of 24 cars remained on the racing surface at the checkered.
Earlier in the night a star filled 15 lap B-main determined the final starting spots of the 35 lap headliner.
Moughan captured the contest fending off Kelsey for the victory. Rose and Egan were third and fourth respectively making up the final transfer cars. Lance Fassbender with his fifth place finish was the first alternate for the main event.
Four heat races were held this evening with victories being captured by Kaeding, Scott Uttech, Dennis Spitz and Balog.
The Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprints conclude their double header weekend, traveling to the historical Angell Park Speedway. It has been 29 years since the last appearance of the Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw sprints, at Angell Park Speedway located in Sun Prairie, WI. The third mile clay oval is hallowed ground to open-wheeled fans as the track had long been the home to the longest running weekly midget program in the history of the sport.
Fans attending the show at Angell Park Speedway will also witness Badger National Midgets, Badger Micros, and Wisconsin Legends. Front gates open at 4:30pm, Hot Laps at 6:00pm, Racing following Hot Laps.
General Admission is $20 for adults; and $15 for students ages 12 through 18. Children ages 11 and under are admitted FREE.
To reach the track, take the Highway 19 exit East off of Highway 151. Head through the town of Sun Prairie. On the east side of town take County Trunk N (Grove Street) south one block to Miller Drive. Turn onto Miller Drive and you will see the raceway.
Additional information can be found at www.angellparkspeedway.com
The 2014 Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprint Series scheduled season will consist of 30 shows to be held at 15 different area tracks.
IRA proudly moves into 2014 backed by its long time supporting series partners led by title sponsor Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts & Service Centers, and associate series partners Osborn & Son Trucking, TW Metals, Hoosier Tire, Cedar Creek Motorsports, Cummins Onan, and Carriage Auto Body.
The Bumper to Bumper IRA Outlaw Sprints are a featured member of Racetext.net a website dedicated to bringing fans the best possible coverage of local short track racing.
For more information on the IRA Outlaw Sprints check out the tour website at www.irasprints.com or by logging onto the series Facebook page at www.facebook.com/irasprints the series is also on twitter at #IRA_sprints.
IRA Sprint Cars | IRA Interstate Racing Association
Event # 9 – Wilmot Raceway – Wilmot, WI – July 19, 2014
Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts A Feature (35 Laps): 1. 14K-Dale Blaney [3]; 2. 17B-Bill Balog[4]; 3. 9W-Jac Haudenschild[1]; 4. 83-Tommy Sexton[5]; 5. 19-Todd Daun[20]; 6. O2-Mike Reinke[10]; 7. 10V-Matt Vandervere[18]; 8. 59-Tim Kaeding[2]; 9. 48H-Sheldon Haudenschild [16]; 10. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski[19]; 11. 6R-Bill Rose[23]; 12. 35-Ben Schmidt[14]; 13. 64-Scotty Theil[21]; 14. 11K-Rick Kelsey [12]; 15. 79-Blake Nimee[22]; 16. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[13]; 17. 56-Ryan Irwin[6]; 18. 1M-Phillip Mock [15]; 19. 1MM-Jim Moughan[11]; 20. 2W-Scott Neitzel[9]; 21. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[17]; 22. 41-Dennis Spitz[7]; 23. 50-Rusty Egan[24]; 24. 7-Scott Uttech[8]
Hard Charger: 19-Todd Daun[+15]
B-Main – Behling Racing Equipment (15 Laps - Top 4 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
- 1MM-Jim Moughan[1] ; 2. 11K-Rick Kelsey [2] ; 3. 6R-Bill Rose[4] ; 4. 50-Rusty Egan[6] ; 5. 7F-Lance Fassbender[3] ; 6. 53W-Bill Wirth[7] ; 7. 23-Russel Borland[5] ; 8. 94-Brandon Thone[8] ; 9. 4K-Kris Spitz[13] ; 10. 43-Jereme Schroeder[11] ; 11. 68-Dave Uttech[14] ; 12. 5H-Patrick Haynes[9] ; 13. 23D-Trey Datweiler[10] ; 14. 71-Chad Tessman [16] ; 15. 5W-Brian Walters[12] ; 16. 25-Steve Muth[15] ; 17. 16-Don Durham[17] ; 18. 72-Dave Maynard[18]
Dash - Howard Johnson Hotel - Lima, OH (6 Laps, finishing order determined first 6 starting positions of A-feature
- 9W-Jac Haudenschild[2] ; 2. 59-Tim Kaeding[1] ; 3. 14K-Dale Blaney [4] ; 4. 17B-Bill Balog[6] ; 5. 83-Tommy Sexton[5] ; 6. 56-Ryan Irwin[3]
Weld Racing Products Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 59-Tim Kaeding[4] ; 2. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[1] ; 3. 14K-Dale Blaney [6] ; 4. 1M-Phillip Mock [2] ; 5. 2W-Scott Neitzel[3] ; 6. 11K-Rick Kelsey [5] ; 7. 5H-Patrick Haynes[8] ; 8. 4K-Kris Spitz[9] ; 9. 53W-Bill Wirth[7] ; 10. 16-Don Durham[10]
DMI Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 7-Scott Uttech[2] ; 2. 83-Tommy Sexton[4] ; 3. 5J-Jeremy Schultz[3] ; 4. 9W-Jac Haudenschild[6] ; 5. 10V-Matt Vandervere[1] ; 6. 7F-Lance Fassbender[5] ; 7. 23D-Trey Datweiler[8] ; 8. 94-Brandon Thone[7] ; 9. 68-Dave Uttech[9] ; 10. 72-Dave Maynard[10]
All-Star Performance Parts Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 41-Dennis Spitz[2] ; 2. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski[1] ; 3. 35-Ben Schmidt[3] ; 4. 64-Scotty Theil[7] ; 5. 56-Ryan Irwin[4] ; 6. 6R-Bill Rose[5] ; 7. 1MM-Jim Moughan[6] ; 8. 43-Jereme Schroeder[8] ; 9. 25-Steve Muth[9]
King Racing Products Heat 4 (10 Laps): 1. 17B-Bill Balog[6] ; 2. 19-Todd Daun[1] ; 3. 48H-Sheldon Haudenschild [2] ; 4. O2-Mike Reinke[4] ; 5. 79-Blake Nimee[7] ; 6. 23-Russel Borland[5] ; 7. 50-Rusty Egan[3] ; 8. 5W-Brian Walters[8] ; 9. 71-Chad Tessman [9]
Osborne & Son Qualifying: 1. 14K-Dale Blaney , 13.340; 2. 9W-Jac Haudenschild; 13.408; 3. 1MM-Jim Moughan, 13.434; 4. 17B-Bill Balog, 13.507; 5. 11K-Rick Kelsey , 13.630; 6. 7F-Lance Fassbender, 13.772; 7. 6R-Bill Rose, 13.780; 8. 23-Russel Borland, 13.865; 9. 59-Tim Kaeding, 13.886; 10. 83-Tommy Sexton, 13.888; 11. 56-Ryan Irwin, 13.912; 12. O2-Mike Reinke, 13.915; 13. 2W-Scott Neitzel, 13.949; 14. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, 13.958; 15. 35-Ben Schmidt, 14.030; 16. 50-Rusty Egan, 14.068; 17. 1M-Phillip Mock , 14.071; 18. 7-Scott Uttech, 14.118; 19. 41-Dennis Spitz, 14.179; 20. 48H-Sheldon Haudenschild , 14.190; 21. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 14.190; 22. 10V-Matt Vandervere, 14.350; 23. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski, 14.357; 24. 19-Todd Daun, 14.476; 25. 53W-Bill Wirth, 14.535; 26. 94-Brandon Thone, 14.581; 27. 64-Scotty Theil, 14.584; 28. 79-Blake Nimee, 14.612; 29. 5H-Patrick Haynes, 14.727; 30. 23D-Trey Datweiler, 14.749; 31. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 14.915; 32. 5W-Brian Walters, 14.921; 33. 4K-Kris Spitz, 14.946; 34. 68-Dave Uttech, 15.110; 35. 25-Steve Muth, 15.517; 36. 71-Chad Tessman , 16.183; 37. 16-Don Durham, 99.998; 38. 72-Dave Maynard, 99.998
- Jeffrey Sachse on Jul 20, 2014
- Article Date: 7/20/2014