Feature

Caution opens door for Cordes in XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour at Indee

INDEPENDENCE, Iowa (July 24) – The caution that Troy Cordes was hoping for finally came out with eight laps left in Thursday’s XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour main event at Independence Motor Speedway. Defending IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified series champion Ronn Lauritzen drew the outside pole start and clearly had the fastest ride through the first 22 circuits. Cordes had taken the opening green from 11th and worked his way steadily to second but was still well off the pace before the fateful yellow flew for a car stopped on the track. The two Independence regulars dueled up front before Cordes finally found his way to the front. The final caution, for a car perched on the backside of turn four, set up a green, white, checkered fin­ish. Cordes pulled ahead to take the checkers a couple car lengths ahead of Lauritzen. He earned a spot on the 2015 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot along with his tour career first victory. Vern Jackson, Jeff Waterman and Adam Johnson completed the top five. Point leader Mike [Read More]

Feature

Format is familiar, fine tuning continues for Super Nationals

BOONE, Iowa (July 23) – Much of the upcoming IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s will transpire in a format already familiar to drivers, fans in the grandstand and XSAN viewers around the world. You’ll have to be at Boone Speedway from Sept. 1-6 for the 32nd annual version of America’s Racin’ Vacation to see some of what’s different, however. “There is always a need to fine tune but the format and XSAN coverage will be very similar to last year’s Super Nationals,” IMCA Vice President of Operations Brett Root said. “XSAN is doing some very exciting things to extend the reach of the event.” Nearly 300 drivers from 21 states and Canada have already pre-entered and/or submitted pit stall applications. The entire Deery Brothers Summer Series Late Model program is on Labor Day while Sport Compacts run on Tuesday, Sept. 2. The Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational is Friday, Sept. 5. Race of Champions events and main events for the Modifieds, Stock Cars, Hobby Stocks and Northern SportMods all are set for Saturday, [Read More]

Feature

Voting begins today to determine Fast Shafts All-Star field

BOONE, Iowa (July 21) – Voting begins this evening (Monday) to determine the starting field for Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational. Three drivers from each of the five IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified regions will be elected through round one electronic polling conducted on the IMCA Facebook page through the end of the business day next Monday, July 28. All-Star candidates will be listed by region; one vote can be cast for one driver per region each day. Thirteen more All-Stars will be elected through round two, also via the IMCA Facebook page, between Tuesday, July 29 and Tuesday, Aug. 5. Winners will be notified and their names announced as soon as possible after each round of voting. The initial round of voting was to have been conducted through the IMCA website; one other change made was that all drivers not elected through the first round will be vote eligible in the second. “Race fans vote for the drivers they most want to see in the event and genuine vote totals should reflect that,” IMCA Vice [Read More]

Feature

July fendered honors go to Hoffman’s Hobby Stock

By Ryan Clark SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Racing one night a week has allowed IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock driver Andy Hoffman to focus on a track championship. Currently in the points hunt at Raceway Park in Jefferson, S.D., Hoffman has already come out on top in fan voting this season. He was named the Sybesma Graphics IMCA Facebook Fan Favorite winner for the fendered divisions for the month of July and receives a mini-hood. Hoffman, who was leading the standings at Raceway Park entering the July 6 program, finished the night chasing new point leader Mike Hansen. “I have planned on winning the track championship this year,” Hoffman stated. “The DNF Sunday night put us back in second in points, but we’re still right there.” Hoffman has competed 10 nights this season, all at Raceway Park, and has earned one win and a number of top-five finishes. After a successful first half of the season, he expects to expand his travels as the season progresses. “Park Jefferson is opening its season in July so we [Read More]

Feature

Abelson conquers Harris Clash IMCA Modifieds at Knoxville

KNOXVILLE, Iowa (July 17) – Chris Abelson was plenty fast in winning his Thursday night “B” feature during the Harris Clash at Knoxville. He proved even faster in the evening’s IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified main event, racing from 17th starting to the lead on the 19th of 25 laps. Abelson pulled away in the final circuits to the $2,000 payday. The Clash was also an XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour event and the final race of IMCA’s Hawkeye State Modified Speedweek. Eighty drivers from 11 states and Canada contended. Brett Lowry was the $1,000 Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod winner. That division drew 59 entries from six states. Eric Dailey drew the Modified pole but it was Canadian visitor Aaron Turnbull in the lead when the opening lap was scored. Cautions slowed the early going before a long green flag run that saw Mike Van Genderen race from mid-pack to second. Kurt Kile, Jeff Jodersma and the hard-charging Abelson were running close behind when the yellow came back out on lap 16. The opportunistic Abelson shot [Read More]

Dakota Mod Tour

Schroeder scores XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour checkers with late pass at Osky

OSKALOOSA, Iowa (July 15) – While the list of entries came from eight states and Canada, it was a driver from the Hawkeye State in victory lane following Tuesday’s XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour main event at Southern Iowa Speedway. Andrew Schroeder took advantage when race-long leader Todd Shute got high in traffic with four circuits left in the IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified series 25-lapper, going low coming out of the second turn to take the front spot away. Schroeder pulled away to win by five car lengths, earning $1,000 and a spot on the ballot for the 2014 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. Shute had started on the pole and ended second in the latest Hawkeye Dirt Tour feature to run caution free. Monday night HDT winner and current point leader Mike Van Genderen, Luke Wan­ninger and Jacob Murray completed the top five. After wrestling second away from Van Genderen on lap 11, Schroeder tried to sneak inside Shute, who pulled ahead and looked to have the race in hand until encountering the back [Read More]

Events

Knoxville Raceway hosts IMCA’s July 17 Har­ris Clash special

KNOXVILLE, Iowa (July 14) – IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modifieds and Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods return to Knoxville Raceway for the 23rd annual Harris Clash on Thursday, July 17. Top prize for the Modifieds is $2,000 while Northern SportMods run for $1,000 to win. The Clash is also the fifth event on the XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour schedule. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, home region, Allstar Performance State and special series points will be awarded for the 2014 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational bal­lot qualifier. Twenty-four cars will qualify for the Modified main event; one past champion’s provisional will be given to the most recent winner who is licensed and competing in weekly IMCA events but who does not qualify. The Modified feature will be 25 laps and pay a minimum of $250 to start. The Northern SportMod feature is 20 laps. Pit gates open at 3 p.m., the draw closes and the drivers’ meeting starts at 6 p.m., hot laps are at 6:30 p.m. and racing starts at 7:15 p.m. Grandstand admission is $15 [Read More]

Feature

Van Genderen gets first XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour win at Lee County

DONNELLSON, Iowa (July 14) – Mike Van Genderen was consistent in finishing second in 2013 point standings for the XSAN Hawkeye Dirt Tour. His IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modified series-first victory will go a long way toward winning the 2014 tour championship. Van Genderen emerged as the new point leader Monday night following a back-and-forth battle at Lee County Speedway with Jesse Sobbing. The two swapped the front spot as the 30-lapper wound down and were virtually side-by-side com­ing to the white flag. Sobbing scraped the frontstretch wall before Van Genderen surged ahead to take the $1,000 checkers by a car length. Pole starter Hunter Marriott led the first nine laps before giving way to Sobbing. The only caution of the night waved on lap 18; Van Genderen was scored first across the stripe on lap 20 but Sobbing was back in front the next time around. Richie Gustin, Marriott and Jeff Waterman completed the top five. Hard charger Jeremy Mills ad­vanced nine spots to sixth. Tim Ward went into the night tied with Van [Read More]

Dakota Mod Tour

O’Brien is the best of the best in Jamestown IMCA Modified Dakota Classic Tour finale

JAMESTOWN, N.D. (July 11) – Two first-time feature winners took their turns in victory lane following the sixth and final night for the Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic Tour. With a track record 80 IMCA Xtreme Motor Sports Modifieds at Jamestown Speedway Friday, Justin O’Brien took the lead from Steven Pfeifer late in the 30-lapper and outran Justen Yeager for the $2,000 checkers. “This was absolutely the biggest win of my career,” said O’Brien, newly qualified for the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. “The best of the best in IMCA were here.” Jeff Taylor clinched the series title with his third-place finish, still in a borrowed car. Pfeifer and Ryan Ruter completed the top five. Point runner-up Jordan Grabouski started last in the field of 26 and finished 12th. Perry Misner almost didn’t capitalize on a rare start near the front of the field, falling back to ninth before rallying to win the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car tour feature and $800. “I had a pretty good car so once I got rolling I was able to [Read More]

Deery Bros Late Model Summer Series

Kay wins a wild one in Dubuque Deery

DUBUQUE, Iowa (July 13) – He’s won six straight races at Dubuque Speedway this season and eight in a row dating back to last year. But Justin Kay has never won a race anywhere like he did at Dubuque on Sunday night. Kay inherited the lead in the Deery Brothers Summer Series main event when Mike Murphy Jr. broke with seven circuits left in the IMCA Late Model tour 50-lapper. Brian Harris then came from deep in the field to challenge before getting into the wall with two to go. Five lead changes, eight cautions and plenty of excitement preceded Kay’s $3,000 payday, the third this season and second straight for the top driver in the series point standings. “It was a wild night, that’s for sure. Apparently, being the leader wasn’t the place to be,” Kay said. “Murph had the car to beat and would have won if he hadn’t broke. I was right next to Harris when he hit the wall. He was going for it all.” Murphy, Dan Shelliam and Kay split [Read More]