A packed house enjoyed cool temperatures and a hot night of racing during the Dick Frye Memorial as part of the Buchanan County Fair at Independence Motor Speedway. One hundred twenty race teams signed in to compete on a night honoring the memory of the well-known community member and long-time fair board president.
The 20-lapper for the I.M.C.A. Stock Cars opened feature action. Front row starter Tony Schimmels set the early pace until the second lap when third row starter Justin Temeyer made his way around the race leader to steal the top spot. Temeyer held the point while Dan Trimble made his way up from the third row to settle into second place one lap later. Trimble attempted to reel in Temeyer when the leaders encountered lapped traffic just past the midway point.
A restart with only five laps to go eliminated the gap altogether setting up a shootout to the finish. Temeyer picked up where he left off prior to the caution period as he drove to the win, his second of the season. Trimble ran second. First-year driver Phil Holtz crossed the line in third, moving him into the points lead. Shane Manson and Tony Schimmels completed the top five.
First year I.M.C.A. SportMod driver Lucas Lundry took command on the second lap of that 15-lap feature to drive to his first win in the division. Lundry held off the late challenges from Joel Rust to score the win. Russell Hesse and Duane Van Deest ran third and fourth, respectively. Kyle Bentley, who finished fifth, took over sole possession of the division's points lead, breaking a three way tie entering the night with Drew Fish and Chris Luloff.
All 26 SportMods signed in were subject to a post-race inspection, resulting in the disqualification of four drivers, including Fish, John Van Wechel, Jason Doyle and Jeremy Wheeler. All four of those drivers received no points on the night for their DQs.
Josh Irvine continued his dominance in the I.M.C.A. Hobby Stock division. From a sixth row start, Irvine blasted through the field using the low groove of the speedway and into the top six after just three laps. He motored into second just past the midway point of the 15-lapper.
On the 9th circuit, Irvine shot under leader Matt Burmeister on his way to his fourth straight win in the division and fifth overall. Wes Stanek made a strong run late in the event, but came up short at the line finishing second. Justin Hanson, Jeremiah Wilson and Burmeister completed the top five.
Much like Irvine, Darin Duffy continued to amaze in the I.M.C.A. Modified division. From a 12th starting spot, Duffy found the low groove to his liking as he maneuvered through the field and into fourth place just prior to a lap three caution. Three laps later, Duffy worked past Johnathan Thimmesch for the lead and never looked back on the way to his fourth win of the season. J.D. Auringer worked through the field to score runner-up honors ahead of Thimmesch, Jason Snyder and Cory Bauer.
The 25-lap I.M.C.A. Late model feature closed the evening. Following a pair of cautions on the second lap, Darren Ackerman drove under Scott Welsh on the third lap to take command. Ackerman left the field in his wake as he blasted to a huge early lead. Backmarkers couldn't slow the points leader as he masterfully weaved his way through lapped traffic starting at the midway point of the event. Ackerman eventually took the checkers by over a straightaway ahead of Travis Smock and Darin Burco. John Passick ran fourth and Tysus Pattee crossed the line in fifth.
It was a great night to celebrate the memory of Dick Frye. In addition to all cars being parked on the track prior to racing action, all of the drivers and crew members lined the high side of turns three and four as Frye's six-year-old grandson Carson amazed the crowd with the national anthem. It was truly a touching tribute and incredible way to start the festivities.
The Buchanan County Fair concludes Sunday with a combine demolition derby in the afternoon. Six more Saturdays remain on the schedule for the 2009 racing season.
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