Ryan Clark

Memorial Day season debut for IMCA Modifieds at Sheyenne Speedway

LISBON, N.D. – IMCA Modifieds make their appropriate season debut at Sheyenne Speedway on Memorial Day. The race program at Lisbon gets underway at 6 p.m. Monday, May 27. The VFW Color Guard will present and then raise the flag before the National Anthem, there will be a four-wide salute on the track and the National Guard will be on hand with a Hummer as the pace vehicle. “Memorial Day has and always will be a very special day as we remember those we have lost and thank those who serve to keep us safe in this great country,” said promoter Benjie Froemke. “Lisbon is also home to the North Dakota Veterans Home and we pay tribute to those who have served by recognizing them and thanking them for their service while remembering those who have lost their lives in preserving the many freedoms we enjoy.” Remaining IMCA Modified dates at Sheyenne are June 30, Aug. 4 and Aug. 11.

Second chance precedes Walp’s first PASS win

YORK HAVEN, Pa. (May 18) – Second chances don’t always happen, so when John Walp got one Saturday night at BAPS Motor Speedway, he took full advantage, leading from start to finish and winning the 20-lap PA Sprint Series feature. It was Walp’s first feature win. Walp had spun out while leading Friday night’s IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car feature at Clinton County Speedway, so getting another chance at a front-row starting spot was too good to pass up. Walp grabbed the lead from fellow front-row starter Jaremi Hanson and held Hanson at bay to score a 2.319-second victory. “The car was awesome,” an emotional Walp said in victory lane. “The track held moisture all night. We were spot on. I couldn’t ask for anything better.” BAPS was a likely place for Walp’s breakthrough in his no. 5 Sprinter. His best previous PASS finish was a runner-up showing at this track last August, and he finished third in the feature on April 20 Hanson stalked Walp throughout the event but never able to complete a challenge. [Read More]

Ventura victory to Lauer

VENTURA, Calif. (May 18) – Ventura Raceway beat the rain and Ryan Lauer beat the rest of the IMCA Modified field to the finish line Saturday night. The 20-lap main event proved fast and furious with Lauer passing Dennis Eckert on lap four and leading to the checkered flag for his second win of the season. Following Lauer to the line were 2018 track champion Trevor Fitz-Gibbon, Austin Grabowski, Terry Hershberger and Jack Parker.

IMCA Modified national champion gets transmission from 10-year sponsor Bert

ST. CONSTANT, Quebec. – Bert Transmission reaches another IMCA sponsorship milestone in 2019, its 10th season as a marketing partner with the sanctioning body. The Saint Constant, Quebec, manufacturer again gives a Bert Second Generation transmission to the national Modified champion. That award will be presented during the IMCA banquet in November. Bert also gives an aluminum bumper jack to the top Modified non-qualifier at the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s. Information about Bert-manufactured transmissions and dealers, among them Speedway Motors and Performance Bodies, is available by calling 450 638-2960, on Facebook and at the www.berttransmission.com website. “We presented Jordan Grabouski with a new Bert transmission at last year’s national awards banquet and we are well on our way to seeing who will win it this year,” commented IMCA Marketing Director Kevin Yoder. “We’ve enjoyed working with Bert for a decade now and endorsing his transmission as one of only a few approved for IMCA competition.”

Triple crown chase starts Saturday at Park Jefferson Speedway’s Memorial Clash

JEFFERSON, S.D. – This Saturday, May 25, Park Jefferson Speedway will host one of the fans’ favorite nights of racing at the Park. A full night of IMCA racing will be on hand as the Artworks Graphics-sponsored IMCA Modifieds compete in the fourth annual Memorial Clash. A healthy purse of $1,000 to win and $150 to start will greet entrants racing for a Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational berth. Joining them will be a full program of IMCA racing for the J&J Fitting Stock Cars, Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods, IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks and the Fox 620 IMCA Sport Compacts. There will be no entry fee or number fees charged this weekend at Park Jefferson as many drivers will be in the area for racing. Siouxland’s top drivers in the Artworks Graphics Modifieds will have circled this event as the first race in the prestigious triple crown of IMCA Modified events hosted by the track. The Memorial Clash will see a draw/redraw format for drivers who will take to the black gumbo of Park Jefferson. The [Read More]

2019 IMCA Red River Modified Tour set to start this weekend, May 25-31

By Jackson Braun KENNEDALE, Texas – Pre-registration has officially closed for the 2019 edition of the IMCA Red River Modified Tour. If the quality of racing from last year is any indication, everyone is in for a treat during the tour’s second running. Eighty-one IMCA Modifieds have registered, along with 62 Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMods and 19 IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars. Inaugural champion Chris Elliott from Abilene looks to defend his Modified crown as the stacked field of racers will try to figure out how to put together a championship run. IMCA Modifieds will compete for a $1,500 prize every night, with an entry into the feature worth a $100 payday. Winners of these events will all be qualifiers for the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMods vie for a $1,000 prize with a $50 starting pay, while IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars will battle for $500 to win and $50 to start. All events are draw/redraw and will be broadcast by IMCA.TV. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, regional, E3 Spark [Read More]

Maquoketa Speedway to host June 1 Stead Family Children’s Hospital Night

MAQUOKETA, Iowa – On Saturday, June 1, Trackside Promotions will hold a special night of racing at Maquoketa Speedway. It is to be declared UIHC Stead Family Children’s Hospital Night with special guest Ken Schrader. Mr. Jerre Stead was born and raised in Maquoketa. This will be the first major fundraiser since the opening of the Stead Family Children’s Hospital in 2017. Funds will be raised in Maquoketa, Trackside Promotion will be donating a portion of the front gate ticket sales, the Jackson County Fair Board will be donating percentage of the profit for the concessions and there will be a 50/50 raffle, along with a helmet collection by the drivers and their crews during intermission. All former patients and their immediate family members will be admitted and seated in the reserved seating free of charge. Before the races start, the crowd will present the children with an in-person wave to honor them. T-shirts will be sold for this special event. Schrader will be racing an IMCA Modified that evening and at Dubuque Speedway on [Read More]

Deery Series is Quad City Speedway bound for Memorial Weekend show

EAST MOLINE, Ill. – A Memorial Weekend date takes the Deery Brothers Summer Series to Quad City Speedway. IMCA Late Models run for $2,000 to win and a minimum of $300 to start their Sunday, May 26 main event at East Moline. Pit gates open at 3 p.m. and the grandstand opens at 3:30 p.m. Hot laps are at 5:15 with racing to follow. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, $8 for seniors and students ages 6-12, and free for five and under. Pit passes are $35. Sunday’s event will be the 492nd in series history, with 21 of those previous races held at East Moline. Ray Guss Jr. of Milan leads all drivers with three local tour victories; defending champion Justin Kay of Wheatland, Iowa, winner of the opening night event this spring, topped the Quad City show last May. Also on the Sunday card are IMCA Modifieds and Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods racing for national, regional, state and track points. More information about that show is available by calling 309 792-5030. Two rescheduled races [Read More]

Rebels team with Sprint Series of Oklahoma for Memorial Weekend doubleheader

By David Smith, Jr., OKTidbits OBERLIN, Kan. – Two of the premier IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car groups in the nation face off during the Memorial Weekend as the POWRi United Rebel Sprint Series presented by Mel Hambelton Ford Racing and the Sprint Series of Oklahoma presented by Smiley’s Racing Products are geared for a weekend double-header. It all starts on Saturday night, May 25 at Longdale Speedway in Longdale, Okla., before heading to 81 Speedway in Wichita, Kan., for a special Sunday night event. Saturday will be the only 2019 appearance between the two series at Longdale, where the track has hosted two previous events. Both tours got rained out in 2018 but it was 2017 when the URSS and SSO met and it was three-time and defending SSO champion Andy Shouse of Oklahoma City getting the best of a 20-car field. In 2016, 26 cars were pit side and it was Ness City, Kan., driver Luke Cranston picking up the victory. This will be the first time the two series have come together for a doubleheader weekend with Longdale Speedway involved so a solid car count [Read More]

Santa Maria Spring Nationals set during Memorial Weekend

SANTA MARIA, Calif. – IMCA Modifieds race for $1,200 to win in Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot-qualifying features both nights of Santa Maria Raceway’s Saturday and Sunday, May 25 and 26 Spring Nationals. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Larry Shaw Race Cars Western Region, E3 Spark Plugs State and track points will be awarded each night of the Memorial Weekend special. Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods race for $1,000 to win, plus national, state and track points on Sunday. Entry fee each night for the Modifieds is $50 and pit passes are $45. Non-qualifiers get their entry fee refunded. Pit gates open at 9 a.m., the pit booth opens at noon, grandstand gates open at 4 p.m. and racing starts at 5 p.m. both days. Adult grandstand admission is $20, $18 for seniors, military and students, $6 for kids ages 6-12 and free for five and under both days. An open practice runs from 5-9 p.m. on Friday, May 24. Pit passes are $35. Camping, but no hookups, is available for $50 for the weekend. [Read More]