The USMTS series made their first visit of the year to the Cresco Speedway on Thursday, May 21st. Thirty-four cars were in attendance and ready to try their luck at the 3/8 mile high banked track. Also on the card would be USRA hobby stocks, USRA stock cars, and USRA bmods.
The racing program was moved along in swift fashion as a few sprinkles fell from the skies off and on throughout the night. The first feature of the night would be the bmods. Only ten cars were on hand, but the top spot was far from a done deal as Brian Schrage jumped out to the early lead from his third row start. Matt Jones ventured his way to the outside of Schrage to snare the lead away. Curtis Engen followed the top two cars and quickly made it a three car battle. Jones opened up a more comfortable lead when Engen pulled to the inside of Schrage for second, but Schrage prevailed at the line. Jimmy Broszeit took home fourth and Andy Kelly rounded out the top five.
Nineteen USRA hobby stocks made their way to the track for their feature event. Troy Hovey took the lead on lap two and appeared to have things well in hand until yellow flags slowed things down. Unfortunately his luck would run out as he pulled to the inside of the track just before a restart, ending his night. This handed the lead over to Steve Holthaus, but Holthaus would find himself under fire from Chris Hovden. Hovden motored his car to the outside of the track and made the pass for the lead. Holthaus would also suffer some bad luck as he had a flat tire on the last lap. Hovden went on to the win. A #6 car was second, Brandon Hare came home third, Scott Spilde was fourth, and Kyle Anderson rounded out the top five. I apologize for not knowing the #6 car. The announcer was a little difficult to understand at times.
Kevin Donlan grabbed the lead at the drop of the green flag in the USRA stock car feature while Brian Gjere was glued to his rear bumper. Gjere made several runs going into the corners, but nothing worked as Donlan continued to set the pace. Kurt Krauskopf made his way to the third spot as he tried to reel in the front two cars, but nobody had enough to get by Donlan as he led every lap on his way to victory lane. Gjere came home second, Krauskopf third, Jake Ludeking was fourth, and Lyn Panos rounded out the top five. Perenial contender Tom Schmitt finished a distant sixth.
Thirty-five laps would be the distance for the USMTS feature to cap off the night. That distance proved to be about four laps longer then Steve Wetstein wanted. Westein took command of the race from the pole and jumped out to a sizeable lead. A few car lengths back, Zach VanderBeek was charging his way and motored to the outside to try to get by Wetstein. The bottom groove was the place to be, however, as VanderBeek would settle in behind the leader. On a midrace caution, Tim Donlinger got by VanderBeek, and he too would venture to the outside to try his luck at getting by Wetstein. His attempt also failed as VanderBeek got back by on the low groove and set his sights on the leader once again. The patience paid off as Wetstein pushed up the track in turn four that allowed VanderBeek to scoot past underneath with four laps to go. Wetstein never recovered as he settled for a disappointing second place finish. Tim Donlinger came home third while local drivers Ron Konkel and Dan Bohr rounded out the top five. Marshalltown feature winner Jon Tesch finished sixth while Oskaloosa winner Jason Hughes suffered problems early in the race and dropped out.
A few notes from tonight's action: Tonight was the "season opener" for the Cresco Speedway. Weather forced the cancellation last Sunday night. The track had a few bumps, but overall I thought it held up pretty nicely. NASCAR driver Kenny Schrader was in attendance tonight for his final modified race of the week(end). He started in the sixth spot, but drifted back to finish 13th. Multi-time series champion Kelly Shryock struggled all night as he finished towards the back of his heat race and advanced through a bmain. His winless streak is now up to 33 races. In the hobby stock race, Chris Hovden added another "season opener" win as he also claimed opening wins at Highway 3 Raceway in Allison, Echo Valley Speedway in West Union, Upper Iowa Speedway in Decorah, and at the Fayette County Speedway in West Union. Hovden has always been a tough competitor wherever he goes, so this is no shock to hear.
A good crowd was on hand for the midweek action as the track will not be racing on it's normal night on Sunday. The Cresco Speedway will have their next night of racing on May 31 while the USMTS will continue driving north as they head to the Chateau Raceway in Lansing, Minnesota Friday night. Weather permitting, check back Friday night for coverage of the event.
- Racing may be a hobby, but it's DEFINITELY addictive!!
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