Upon the news on Friday that the Fall Challenge in Oskaloosa was postponed til next Sunday, I made the quick decision to pack my bags and head south for warmer and dryer weather. My travels took me to the Outlaw Motor Speedway, located about 10 miles south of Muskogee, Oklahoma. The Fall Brawl special includes modifieds, 360 modifieds, pure stocks, and grand nationals (which are also called hobby stocks). Friday night saw heat races along with qualifying features for all four classes, with the top eight in modifieds and top six in the other classes locking themselves into the feature for Saturday night.
First up for feature action would be the 360 modifieds. Shannon Reheard would grab the lead from the pole and looked to hide from the rest of the competition. Track points champion Patrick Goodnight finished third in his heat, but apparently was disqualified for something as he started shotgun on the field. Goodnight put the pedal to the metal and immediately made his way towards the front as he found himself up to ninth by the completion of lap four. Goodnight continued to move forward a couple spots before the caution flag waved on lap ten. Goodnight used the low line to climb into second late in the race, but Reheard had built up an insurmountable lead in which he would not give up. The top six locked themselves into Saturday's feature.
1. 72 Shannon Reheard
2. 2G Patrick Goodnight
3. 38F Jeran Frailey
4. 327 Dale Richardson
5. 18 Casey Lindell ??
6. 57 ??
Eighteen pure stocks hit the track next for their twenty-lap feature. Pole sitter Matt Burnett took the lead early on, but Mike Bantaa would take over the top spot by using the low line on lap five. Bantaa would bobbled in turn four, allowing last week's feature winner Russell McLain to take the point. Burnett and Bantaa would make contact, resulting in a caution flag with both drivers suffering flat tires. Burnett went to the pits and would not return, while Bantaa went to the work area (known as "hot pit" down south) and returned. McLain would open up a straight away lead as the laps clicked off and would go on to the win. Once again, the top six locked themselves into the feature for Saturday night.
1. 6 Russell McLain
2. 19 Kyle Slader
3. 10x ??
4. 33 ??
5. 66 Mike Bantaa
6. 83M ??
Only nine grand nationals were on hand for their feature event. Colton Dunlap took over the lead on lap five and was able to take home the easy win. I believe the top six are in Saturday's feature.
1. 47 Colton Dunlap
2. 327 ??
3. 12K Billy Kelley
4. 73 Jay Arnold
5. 56D ??
The final event of the night would be the twenty-lap modified feature. Jason Hughes and Terry Phillips sat on the front row while Brian Bolin and Kelly Shryock made up row two. Hughes got the early jump with Shryock close behind. Phillips would push high on lap three, allowing Greg Skaggs to make the inside pass for third. Hughes would open up a straight-away lead on Shryock by lap five, but a caution flag bunched the field back up on lap ten. Tim Karrick and Randy Timms were two of the drivers involved, with Karrick ending up on his side. Both drivers were okay, but did not return. On the restart, Jeremy Payne maneuvered his machine from fifth to third in one lap before falling back a spot to his teammate Phillips. Shryock was able to keep pace with Hughes after the restart, but couldn't find a way around him. Phillips would close in on both front runners with three laps to go and get by Shryock on the top side after taking the white flag. Hughes continued using his low groove, allowing Phillips to drive his car deep into turn three on the top side. Phillips was able to make it stick and made the last corner pass on Hughes to take the win!! Shryock finished third, Payne fourth, and Skaggs fifth. The ironic thing about Phillips' last-lap pass, is that he was the victim of the same situation last month at the Deer Creek Speedway when Hughes made the low groove work on him on the final night.
1. 75 Terry Phillips
2. 12 Jason Hughes
3. 3 Kelly Shryock
4. 74 Jeremy Payne
5. 27 Greg Skaggs
6. 12x Johnny Bone Jr
7. 26 Brian Williams
8. 10c ??
9. 88 Chad Wheeler
10. F5 Fausten Whilhite
Racing action concluded before the 10:00 hour, with racing starting at 7:30. While there weren't a bunch of cars in the pits (I counted 70 total, 23 modifieds), the racing was pretty good throughout the night.
The Outlaw Motor Speedway is a wonderful facility with a high concrete wall and tall catch fence surrounding the track surface. The tall wall makes it difficult for spectators to see the numbers on the cars as they drive down the front stretch. The lighting is top-notch and the VIP/scorer's tower also appears to be nice. The grandstand seats plenty of people, although the crowd did not support the show as well as anticipated Friday night. The PA system is awesome, but a little unusual as the bigger speakers are actually on top of the VIP tower behind the fans in the stands. The announcer was very energetic throughout the night, but unfortunately there were times when he talked a little too fast when I tried jotting down driver names.
Night two is scheduled to get kicked on Saturday afternoon with hot laps at 4:00 and racing slated for 5:00. For more information, check out www.outlawmotorspeedway.com.
- Racing may be a hobby, but it's DEFINITELY addictive!!
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