By Joyce Eisele
BOONE, Iowa (Aug. 10, 2024) – Boone Speedway held another of its weekly racing series events Saturday with only one more week of points racing to go.
Two drivers picked up their first season wins as Tyler Pickett took the checkers in the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars and Dustin Filloon went to victory lane for the first time when he won the IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock feature.
Jake McBirnie won the Friesen Performance IMCA Modified main event, Brayton Carter took the honors in the Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMods and Bryan Zehm was the winner of the Stealth Racing IMCA STARS Mod Lites.
Feature racing kicked off with the 15-lap Mod Lite main.
William Nobles was holding down the lead when the race was red flagged at lap three when Joel Huggins, in just his second night out this year, rolled several times in corner one as he appeared to wheel hop a car trying to avoid another that was sitting still on the track.
It was a relief to have Huggins emerge from the car unhurt, but his car was not as fortunate. When the race returned to action, Noble kept hold of the lead for another lap until Joe Glick took command on lap five, and then it was 10th place starter Zehm taking over at lap six.
Zehm never gave up that top spot as he continued to lead the pack the rest of the race and took the checkers. He finished well ahead of second place Glick and 11th place starter Austin Gray was third.
The Northern SportMod feature was 18 laps.
Carter took immediate advantage of his pole starting spot and shot off into the lead, never to relinquish in his run to the checkers.
Randy Havlik, last week’s winner, chased Carter the entire distance but had to be content with a second place finish this week. Third went to Tyler Inman in a borrowed ride. This was Carter’s first weekly win at the track, after taking the Frostbuster special win.
It was 20 laps of Modified feature racing next.
Joel Bushore started on the outside front row and got the jump on pole sitter Danny Fye as the race went green. Visiting driver Cory Wray of Trenton, Mo., came from fourth to pester leader Bushore and 12th place starter McBirnie had taken to the top of the track and was gaining a lot of ground on the leaders at lap nine as lap traffic was coming into the picture.
Bushore was suddenly off power and drove off the track and at lap 10, it was McBirnie taking the lead.
McBirnie was still easily leading when Wray went for a spin right near the flag stand and came to a rest. Somehow, all cars avoided him in what could have been a real disaster.
When racing picked back up, McBirnie went back to the top shelf and was never seriously challenged on the final circuits to the checkers and the win. Tenth place starter Cory Sauerman came on strong in the latter portion of the race to finish second. Third went to 11th place starter Zachary Madrid.
Stock Cars went 20 laps for their feature.
Doug Smith jumped to the lead from his outside front row starting spot when the race started. He was still leading when the first of two yellows flew at lap eight, with Rod Richards running in second place, and 11th place starter Pickett had flown through the pack to run in third place.
When the race returned to green, Pickett wasted no time in taking command and had the lead at lap nine. Another yellow with just four laps remaining still found Pickett in charge of the pack, and when racing picked back up, he had no issue in maintaining that top spot the rest of the way to the finish to secure his first win of the season.
Austin Bouzek, the Trenton, Mo., racer who makes the trip to Boone weekly, ripped the lip of the track and came from eighth place to finish as the runner-up. Smith took third place.
The 15-lap Hobby Stock feature put a nightcap on the racing.
Filloon grabbed the lead from his outside front row starting spot and from there on, never looked back on his way to the checkers and his first-ever win at the track. He held off some stiff competition from John Watson, who chased the leader for much of the race until falling back at the conclusion, and then having to fend off Eric Knutson and last week’s winner and 12th place starter Mike Smith as the checkers flew.
Filloon was no doubt a happy camper to secure his first time in victory lane at the track. Knutson finished in the runner-up spot and Smith went third.
Dustin Filloon made his first visit to Boone Speedway’s victory lane following Saturday’s IMCA Sunoo Hobby Stock main event. (Photo by Bruce Badgley, Motorsports Photography)
Saturday, Aug. 17 is season championship night when five track champions will be crowned. Pits open at 4:30 p.m., gates at 5:30 p.m., with hot laps at 6 p.m. and racing at 7 p.m.
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