The Deery Brothers Summer Series for I.M.C.A. Late Models made its annual Independence Day holiday visit to Independence Motor Speedway on Wednesday night as 40 series drivers signed in to compete on the 3/8-mile oval. In addition, 51 I.M.C.A. Stock Cars were on-hand for night number two of the three-race American Stock Car Series.
Fourteen of the top-20 in Late Model series points were on-hand to battle in four heat races and three B-features to earn qualifying positions for the feature event. At the on-set of the 50-lapper, outside front row starter Rob Toland took the early lead. Toland, who has seen much success over the years at Independence in both Deery Series events, the Indee Open Series and various weekly shows, extended his lead early and established himself as the man to beat.
As Toland paced the field, Terry Neal was making his way through traffic from a ninth starting position. Settling into second after only four circuits, Neal began chasing down the leader when the race's only caution flag was displayed on lap seven, removing the distance between Toland and the field.
On the restart, Ray Guss Jr., who started in the sixth position driving Hershel Roberts' car, realigned third ahead of Late Model rookie Chad Lerch and pole-sitter Jon Merfeld. After only two laps following the restart, Neal made his bid for the lead and he remained out front until the 20-lap mark when Toland powered back into the lead.
The leaders encountered heavy lapped traffic at which time Neal changed his groove as he was able to regain the point a few laps later. Neal went on to score the win ahead of Toland and Jason Frankel, who qualfied out of a B-feature and started in the 20th position. Guss and points leader Jeff Aikey completed the top five. Jay Johnson, Lerch, Joe Zrostlik, Merfeld and Curt Martin rounded out the top 10.
Neal's series win came on the heels of two wins in Independence this year in weekly points battles. A former Deery Series winner at the speedway, Neal has also taken victories in a number of weekly shows in recent years, along with multiple Indee Open Series victories during that series' run.
Late Model results - 1. Terry Neal, Ely; 2. Rob Toland, Davenport; 3. Jason Frankel, Quincy, Ill.; 4. Ray Guss Jr., Milan, Ill.; 5. Jeff Aikey, Waterloo; 6. Jay Johnson, West Burlington; 7. Chad Lerch, Arlington; . Joe Zrostlik, Long Grove; 9. Jon Merfeld, Peosta; 10. Curt Martin, Independence; 11. Tyler Bruening, Decorah; 12. Luke Goedert, Holy Cross; 13. Justin Kay, Wheatland; 14. Rick Dralle, Waterloo; 15. Bryan Klein, Cedar Rapids; 16. Boone McLaughlin, Mediapolis; 17. Travis Smock, Independence; 18. Jason Hahne, Webster City; 19. T.J. Criss, Oskaloosa; 20. Darrel DeFrance, Marshalltown; 21. Greg Kastli, Waterloo; 22. Mike Garland, Morrison, Ill.; 23. Darren Ackerman, Readlyn; 24. Jon Passick, Waterloo.
In the Stock Car division, it appeared that the 30-lapper was going to run caution-free until a lap 26 restart added some late drama to the already exciting event. At the drop of the initial green flag, pole-sitter Jarod Weepie assumed command and quickly put a handful of car-lengths on the field.
Former national champion Mike Nichols went to work on the high side of the speedway to chase down the leader and made his bid for the top spot on the 13th circuit. As Nichols made his way to the front, Brian Irvine was navigating the low groove from a third row starting position as he worked his way into a battle for the lead, as well. After a handful of wheel-to-wheel laps with Weepie, Irvine slipped past him for second at the midway point of the event.
Committed to the low groove, Irvine quickly chipped away at Nichols' advantage. He inched ahead on lap 18 and paced the field until the caution flag waved on lap 26. On the restart, Jeff Joldersma, Justin Temeyer and Jesse Colwell entered into a challenge with the leaders. Along with Irvine and Nichols, the multi-car battle made for an exciting finish.
Irvine remained out front for the duration of the event to score the thrilling win as Joldersma held off Temeyer for second. Colwell crossed the line in fourth, ahead of Nichols, who slid back to fifth.
Stock Car results - 1. Brian Irvine, Oelwein; 2. Jeff Joldersma, McClelland; 3. Justin Temeyer, Independence; 4. Jesse Colwell, Wrightstown, Wis.; 5. Mike Nichols, Harlan; 6. John Heinz, Green Bay, Wis.; 7. Jarod Weepie, Dunkerton; 8. Trent Murphy, Jefferson; 9. Chris Ullrich, Kiron; 10. Brian Blessington, Breda; 11. Dustin Smith, Lake City; 12. Doug Adamy, Columbus, Neb.; 13. Dustin Vis, LeGrand; 14. Tom McKenzie, Sioux City; 15. Damon Murty, Chelsea; 16. Shane Manson, Manchester; 17. Josh Steere, New Hartford; 18. Keith Knop, Shelby; 19. John Oliver Jr., Danville; 20. Steve Meyer, Grundy Center; 21. Mark Scheuenemann, Bowler Junction, Wis.; 22. Jamie Colwell, Kaukauna, Wis.; 23. Jason Hocken, Independence; 24. Ken Irvine, Oelwein.
Seven vintage cars were also on-hand to give the crowd an added bonus. In that 12-lap feature, Jim Clayton piloted a 1966 Cyclone to the victory ahead of John Schroyer's 1957 Chevy. Brad Huff, driving a Chevelle replica of Glen Martin's No. 44, came in third.
It was a great night of racing as 98 cars did battle in 19 events in under three hours. It was also nice to see long-time friends Jeff Broeg and Kevin Trittien, fellow writers on positivelyracing.com.
The track was fast, smooth and racy and, while there was some dust during the features, the show went off without a hitch. The two headlining features ran 80 laps with a total of two cautions. From green to checkers in those events, they only took 34 minutes to run.
I hope everyone has safe holiday travels this weekend and, if you're near a race track, take in some great holiday action!
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