Knoxville Raceway-Can you stand the excitement?
Sunday, April 29, 2007
In LappedTraffic by Kathy Bell - How fortunate have we been this season as two weekends in a row we have seen two awesome 410 features at Knoxville. In our season opener we saw a 410 A-Main battle between eventual winner Brian Brown, Skip Jackson and Ricky Logan with Kaley Gharst coming on in a tight battle to the checkered. Before Skip fell out of the race with two laps to go, there were times when the racing was three-wide. Who knew that race was only a testimonial for what was going to happen the following weekend.
One week later, the same thing happened. We had another night of great competition as we hosted the one and only World of Outlaws. Donnie Schatz did pull off the win but he didn’t walk away with it as Joey Saldana and Jason Meyers kept the pressure on to the end. Ralph Capitani and the Marion County Fair Board have got to be proud since the “greatest shows on dirt” have been happening at Knoxville. Do I sound a little prejudice?
Two weeks and two awesome weekends of racing have made it a sprint car racing fan heaven around here and we’re just barely into the season. If you haven’t been to Knoxville yet, you’re certainly missing out on a lot.
There are many stories to share with you already this season. Due to some technical difficulty, my column didn’t make it in last week so I’m going to try to cram in as much as possible this week and save the rest for later. Let’s start out with a fact. One more really talented driver just lost his ride. There is definitely still a lot more talent in the pits than there is money to support that talent out on the road. Tim Kaeding lost his ride Saturday night.
Tim’s night ended earlier than some due to his being involved in a nasty accident coming around turn one in the B-Main. Fortunately he walked away from the crash with the help of two Knoxville Raceway ambulance staff. Tim told me his right knee was bothering him otherwise he is ok. Sounds like a racer doesn’t it? Tim, a talented driver who hails from San Jose, Calif. doesn’t know what he’s going to do for a ride at this time so if you have some extra cash and want to help get him back out on the road, cha-ching. He’s one of hundreds of racers around the country who could use some cash.
Did you know that’s how Ed Gifford got started in the business? He was a fan in the stands one week then a sponsor and the car owner of the #17g sprinter soon after. The notorious Dennis Moore Jr. sits in the cockpit of Gifford’s racing machine in what they are calling the “I’m Back” season. If a businessman like Gifford can walk out of the stands and become involved in this sport that easily, so can you.
Speaking of DMJ, Dennis has been racing in California for the past four seasons for Morrie Williams in the #0 car. He’s gained plenty of experience on short tracks. “Short track racing makes you more aggressive,” he said. “You’re constantly in traffic and I’ve gained a lot of experience racing close to other race cars. I saw some success in California. I was the winningest driver my first season out there, I had several wins and I was second in points to Brent Kaeding. Now, I’m back here and I’m ready to win some races at Knoxville.”
DMJ will be working once again with Jeff Woodruff. He and Woody worked together back when Dennis had a short stint in the former #55 Rasmussen sprinter. Woody was the chief mechanic last year for Gifford and former driver and Knoxville 2006 410 champ, Billy Alley. In case you’ve been out of the country with no access to the outside racing world, Alley is driving that same #55 sprinter now owned by Tony Vermeer, this season.
If you’ve been watching the World of Outlaws stats you’ll see that our WoO show mimicked the WoO season, thus far. In 16 events, our top two finishers in Saturday night’s battle, Schatz and Saldana have collectedly won more than half of the WoO events this year. Joey has won five, Donny four. I’ve watched both of these guys from the beginning of their careers and I’m happy to say to the Donny doubters, told you so. At the end of last season I had a debate with a couple of Knoxville weekly fans who told me Donny was “lucky” to win the WoO championship because the two series split made it “easy” for him to accomplish more since he didn’t have the complete group of drivers to compete with. Well, look at him this year. He’s still holding his own. I believe that tells you Donny has matured into one of this generation’s driver to contend with and so has Saldana.
It’s always fun to watch Saturday night’s 360-winner Chuck Swenson in victory lane after a win. I think pit reporter, Mike Roberts summed it up pretty well. “Chuck looks like he’s preaching to the fans as animated as he is when he wins. He talks fast and his hands move all over the place. It’s pretty entertaining,” Roberts said.
Speaking of 360 racing, if I were a 360 racer at Knoxville, I’d be concerned about having to compete against one of the new race teams formed this season with former racer Dwight Snodgrass and Josh Higday. I think that twosome is going to turn some heads. I told Dwight after last Saturday night’s win that I knew they’d do well this season I just didn’t expect it their first night out.
Dwight was one of our top racers at Knoxville in a career that spanned more than ten years, 1987-2000. He is a two-time Knoxville Raceway 360 track champion (1991-92) and a prestigious member of the Knoxville Raceway Hall of Fame (2002). Dwight is ninth in all-time 360 feature wins at Knoxville with 10 wins and he is one of less than a handful of competitors to win two, on twin features night.
Josh Higday, who is now driving for Dwight, began his career in 1999, the year before Dwight retired. Higday now has 13 Knoxville feature wins in his 8th season. He said he’s very happy to be teamed up with Dwight Snodgrass. Josh and Dwight bumped into each other at the Ostrich Racing Engines shop, started talking and ended up putting something together as the #2x sprint car team.
I was a young reporter at the beginning of Dwight’s career so we talked about some of the changes we’ve seen come about over the last 20 years. Dwight said the biggest changes are the amount of technology and aerodynamics surrounding the cars and the astronomical price of equipment, especially engines.
“When I started out I had hand me down equipment. You can’t do that anymore and be competitive,” he said. “My first motor probably cost $6,000. Now, a good competitive motor (360 division) will cost you $30,000. A three week tire bill is the same amount I paid for an entire season and we used to be able to build equipment in the garage now you have to buy everything professionally made due to the aerodynamics of the cars. Our tires used to be as hard as a brick and that kept the cost of an engine down. Now, the tires are softer and a lot more expensive. But, I’m glad to be back out here anyway. We’re here to win some races.”
Do you remember who some of the top 360 racers were during Dwight’s era? Try Dave Hesmer, Mike Twedt and Lee Nelson, to name a few.
While I was back in the 360-pit area I ran into, as I call him, Jake “Three-Peat” Peters. Jake is back to defend his three (in a row) 360 Knoxville track titles. He was sporting two raccoon looking circles around his eyes as he recovered from a nasty crash he had two weekends ago in Nebraska so he really didn’t want me taking his picture.
Jake reminds me of Terry McCarl and the road Terry took to accomplish winning his multiple 410 Knoxville track titles through consistency. Jake said the way to win a championship is to stay out of crashes, bring your best car to the race track and attempt to finish each race. That’s exactly how McCarl did it. He didn’t win the most races but he was pretty consistent at finishing races. “You don’t have to have the most wins,” Peters said. “You just have to be consistent. Fortunately, we have been able to do that, most of the time.”
Jake has seven feature wins at Knoxville, two in his first title year, two in the following year and three last season.
One of the rookies racing this season in the 410 ranks has an interesting story. Jack Potter is the 21 year-old son of former racer, Jerry Potter. Jack’s first season in a sprint car happens to be in the #47 car owned by Gil and Donnie Sonner and once driven by Jack’s dad. A college student at the University of Missouri- KC, Jack is majoring in Marketing.
A note of interest, Jerry Potter not only drove the #47 sprinter for Gil and Donnie; he also gave them their first sprint car feature win at Knoxville in 1979. Jerry’s racing career spanned from 1977-96. Now, he is helping son Jack who is in a racing developmental program sponsored by Don Lamberti. Jack is definitely a lucky kid to have all those veteran racers in his corner.
Be careful if you’re drinking the water in the pits at Knoxville. Racer, Jerrel Slinkard and his wife Michelle are the proud parents of a 10-pound baby boy, Jerren who was born on April 11. Jerrel isn’t racing this season as he just opened a machine shop in town, Slinkard Machine, where he does fabrication and manufacturing of parts. Congratulations Jerrel and Michelle.
Speaking of babies, 360- racer Johnny and Jenny Anderson are due, any time, with their first baby this season. From what I hear it’s a boy and they’re going to name him Jack after Johnny’s dad. Do you think the Anderson-Heimbaugh families can take on one more racer in the family? I bet they can. For those of you who don’t know, Johnny’s mom Nicky is former racer, Mackie Heimbaugh’s sister. Mackie is the dad of 360 driver Frankie Heimbaugh. Are you confused yet?
There are several more racing couples having babies (I told you to be weary of the Knoxville water) and much more racing news to share but it will have to wait. My little racer, Kinser, my nine month old puppy is getting restless and I’m the one suffering as he keeps nipping at my ankles wanting me to be done already, so we can play.
On a humorous note, when I take Kinser to Pet Haven for his six-week haircuts, he’s put in the appointment book as Kinser Bell. Why, because Knoxville has several people with pets named Kinser, Lasoski, Racer, etc. You can tell this is a racing town can’t you?
Speaking of my puppy’s namesake, Steve Kinser had an accident Saturday night with 19 laps down when he and Paul McMahan collided. With six laps to go, Steve hightailed it back towards the front and finished the feature in the 12th position. Steve is definitely exciting to watch when he’s trying to make it back up to the front towards the end of a race.
I didn’t make it to the Friday night show because after working at my day job at the Knoxville Hospital, then heading out to the Country Club to cover the Knoxville and Pella boy’s golf meet, I needed a break. Photographer Palmer Berger was here from North Dakota so I talked him into taking my place at the race track for the Knoxville Journal-Express and I took the rest of the night off.
I went to a bar-be-cue at Mike and Nancy Kelderman’s where I enjoyed talking racing with Mike, Nancy, Jac Haudenschild, Dean “Bonzai” Bruns, Rodney Tiner, Kevin Loveys who is the crew chief for Jeremy Campbell, Jen Meinders and Glen and Jill from Sioux Falls, to name a few. I had a great time until my celiac disease kicked in. I snuck out the back door making it home, lets say, just in time.
My plan is to talk to a couple of 410 and 360 drivers each week for this website. At some point I should be around your pit area and I’m open for suggestions because I know everyone has a story. I have already had an e-mail asking me to look into the Heskin family. So, Heskin brothers, be ready because you’re on the short list.
Until next time, be safe and keep on turning left. I can be reached for comments at kbel@iowatelecom.net.
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