Pushin' The Cushion - April 2016

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It's been a nearly a decade since I sat down at the computer to write about dirt racing. A lot has changed in that time frame. If you do not believe me, take a decade off and see how lost you can become. When I left the racing world, most of the tracks in my area ran IMCA late models. Now, the closest IMCA weekly show is more than a 2 hour drive (and I actually have moved closer to that track). There was a bevy of options with IMCA in my area, NASCAR to my north and UMP to my south. Most of those NASCAR tracks are now IMCA and many IMCA tracks (and UMP) are being replaced by crate late model tracks (at least late models are returning). Throughout this season, look for various nostalgia as I look both back and ahead and tell the tale of one columnist's (I guess we are bloggers now) return to racing.

My season began on April 16 with the 8th Annual Slocum 50. For those that are newer to the sport, Brent Slocum was a late model driver killed in the pits during a race night back in 2005. The race was started several years later by friends and family who wanted to give back. They created the Slocum Foundation (http://brentslocumfoundation.com) as a way of helping to keep that legacy alive, raising funds for scholarships to help kids get started after high school.

Typically the Slocum 50 is a star studded cast, featuring great racing and an excellent atmosphere. The weather could not have been better with just the occasional puffy cloud and temps in the 70s. The field again did not disappoint, with a wide variety of stars taking part in the MARS/ALMS/Cornbelt combo event. The track was a work in progress as heat races saw little movement, but the preparation paid off come feature time. 

Early on, it appeared defending race champion Ryan Unzicker was well on his way to back-to-back wins (a feat never accomplished in the Slocum 50), but 2014 winner Bobby Pierce had other plans. Pierce used a stellar three wide move off turn four to rocket himself into contention. Pierce took the lead on lap 7 and virtually never looked back. Meanwhile, the remainder of the field was like a NBA game, where everybody makes a run. Among those bolting toward the front at times were Brian Shirley, previous night's winner Jimmy Mars, and B-main winner Jason Feger. However, in the end, it was Pierce pulling down the top prize, making him the first repeat winner in the race's eight year history.

Energized by a great night of racing, the Pushin' The Cushion crew decided to keep the fun going by returning to the friendly confines of Quincy Raceways. For those new to this column, yours truly was the track announcer and off and on "media guy" for QR for over a decade, and it is always nice to return to the first race track I ever worked at.

A strong field of 17 UMP late models were on hand for what turned out to be a fantastic night of racing action. The feature saw a race-long battle between eventual winner McKay Wenger, Denny Woodworth, Justin Reed, Rickey Frankel, and Mark Burgtorf. Early on, it was Wenger, Woodworth, and Frankel locked into a heated three car battle. Frankel appeared to have the fastest car, but found himself a bit too aggressive, working through traffic. In the end, Frankel tangled with a slower car, ending his bid as he got sandwiched in with between Bo Brockway and Burgtorf. Burgtorf was able to continue and mounted a charge back up to 7th, while Frankel's night ended in disappointment.

The culmination of the event came down to a last lap pass in which Wenger made a hard charge to the top of the track, riding the cushion around Woodworth for his first win of the year at QR. After the event, Wenger went on to encourage fans to stop by the trailer and visit after the races. This may not seem like much, until you realize he is hauling between 4-5 hours each Sunday to compete at QR and even an early night won't see him home until 2-3 AM! Nice job and what a great gesture McKay!

Up next for the PTC crew, if the weather allows, we hope to be back for the Scottie 42 at Quincy Raceways on May 1st. Following that, its the first of two scheduled appearances for the MLRA late models along with the crate late models at the Lee County Speedway on May 5th. We are also looking at our first appearance of the year at the Scotland County Speedway on Saturday, May 7th as the MLRA crew finishes a swing through the area.

As I always ended columns before...

Drivers, Promoters, Fans, let me know what's going on in our area...  email news@latemodelracing.com or look for latemodelracing.com on Facebook and Twitter!

/catch ya on the cushion!