Stats Blitz! Numbers through July for Independence and Vinton

It's hard to believe, but the weekly racing season is entering its stretch run in the Midwest. Only four nights of weekly points racing remain in 2013 at Independence Motor Speedway and there are just six nights to go at Benton County Speedway. Below are the numbers for both tracks through the month of July. Independence numbers are listed first and Vinton stats follow below.

For photos from both tracks, visit track photographer Jim Wittke's site - www.speedwaysouvenir.com.

INDEPENDENCE MOTOR SPEEDWAY
The statistics included here are through the first 12 nights of weekly points racing and do not include any non-track points specials.

Car Count

Division - Average - High - Low

Late Model - 21.8 - 26 - 17

Modified – 23.2 - 27 - 18

Stock Car – 13.6 - 21 - 10

SportMod – 23.3 - 28 - 20

Hobby Stock – 20.3 - 26 - 14

Sport Compact – 8.8 - 15 - 6

TOTAL – 110.9 - 128 - 96

Points

* 238 drivers have earned points this season.

* Among those 238 drivers, 87 different hometowns have been represented.

* Tyler Bruening (Late Model) and Benji Irvine (Hobby Stock) have led the standings following each night this season. Tyler Droste (Modified) has led since week five and Sean Johnson (Stock Car) has led following weeks four through seven and following weeks 10 and 12. Alex Zwanziger (SportMod) has led following weeks six through nine and since week 11 and Merv Chandler (Sport Compact) has led since week two.

IN THE HUNT

* 35 drivers have remained in the top-10 in the points every week of the season. Those drivers include:

Late Model (7): Darren Ackerman, Tyler Bruening, Dale Hackwell Jr., Greg Kastli, Curt Martin, Jon Passick, Dean Wagner;

Modified (4): Patrick Flannagan, Vern Jackson, Adam Johnson, Ronn Lauritzen;

Stock Car (8): Jesse Brown, Norman Chesmore, John Emerson, Tim Helle, Jason Hocken, Jerome Jacoby, Sean Johnson, Jarod Weepie;

SportMod (5): Jim Buhlman, Danny Dvorak, Shane Ebaugh, Lucas Lundry, Dakoda Sellers;

Hobby Stock (5): Jim Ball, Benji Irvine, Chris Luloff, Justin Stander, Jamie Whitaker;
Sport Compact (6): Merv Chandler, Adam Gates, Mike Tedesco, Justin Vargason, Jeffrey Vislisel, A.J. Witten.

* 11 drivers have remained in the top-5 in the points every week of the season. Those drivers include:

Late Model (1): Tyler Bruening;

Modified (0): None;

Stock Car (4): Norman Chesmore, John Emerson, Sean Johnson, Jarod Weepie;

SportMod (1): Lucas Lundry;

Hobby Stock (2): Benji Irvine, Chris Luloff;
Sport Compact (3): Merv Chandler, Adam Gates, A.J. Witten.

Feature Winners

* There have been 35 different feature winners in 72 feature events this season.

* The points leaders account for only 13 of the 72 total feature wins.
* Current points leaders accounted for only four of 24 feature wins in the month of July.
* There have already been nine different winners in the IMCA SportMods. That mark eclipsed the old record of eight different winners for an entire season, which was set in 2012.
* In the 24 features in July, there were 21 different winners. Only Chris Luloff (Hobby Stock) and Adam Gates (Sport Compact) won multiple times. Luloff won twice while Gates won three times.
* Entering August, there have been seven straight different winners in the SportMods, six straight different Late Model winners, five straight different winners in the Modifieds, four different winners in-a-row in the Stock Cars and three straight different Hobby Stock winners.

Top-10s

* 155 drivers have earned at least one top-10 finish this season. The number of top-10 finishes per driver in each division are as follows:

Late Model (24 drivers with at least one top 10): Tyler Bruening (12); Darren Ackerman (11); Curt Martin, Jon Passick (10 each); Greg Kastli, Dale Hackwell Jr. (9 each); Dean Wagner, Jeff Aikey, Drew Johnson, Dirk Hamilton (7 each); Rick Dralle (5); Luke Pestka, Rory Metcalf (4 each); Dain Sires, Luke Merfeld, Chad Lerch (3 each); Greg Hunter (2); Jason Rauen, Travis Smock, Luke Goedert, Kelly Pestka, Keith Kiernan, Stephan Kammerer, Russell Hesse (1 each);

Modified (22): Tyler Droste, Ronn Lauritzen (11 each); Mark Schulte, Patrick Flannagan (10 each); J.D. Auringer, Troy Cordes (9 each); Shawn Ryan, Vern Jackson (8 each); Scott Hogan, Darin Duffy, Keith Pittman, Adam Johnson (5 each); Jason Snyder, Ed Thomas, Keith Pittman (4 each); Racer Hulin, Mike Burbridge (3 each); Jeff Kriz (2); Chris Snyder, Justin O'Brien, Joe Docekal, Jerry King (1 each);

Stock Car (29): Sean Johnson, Jarod Weepie (12 each); John Emerson, Norman Chesmore (11 each); Tim Helle, Jesse Brown (9 each); Jason Hocken, Jerome Jacoby (7 each); Phil Holtz, Tony Schimmels (5 each); Justin Temeyer, Austin Evens, Ken Taylor, Scotty Anderson (3 each); Blake Cole, Cole Mather, Chris Wiltse, Aaron Matthias, Russell Damme (2 each); Damon Murty, Scott Pippert, Stefan Klym, Jason Niedert, Mitchell Evens, Reggie Rema, Travis Shipman, Roger Ciesielski, Jim Lynch, Kevin Rose (1 each);

SportMod (29): Brennen Chipp, Alex Zwanziger (10 each); Lucas Lundry, Danny Dvorak, Shane Ebaugh, Matt McCahen (8 each); Curt Hilmer, Dave Schulze, Jim Buhlman (7 each); Kip Siems, Kevin Hurst (6 each); Rod McDonald, Dakoda Sellers, Ryan Maitland, Sean Vogt (4 each); Brandon Smith, Scott Thomas (3 each); Austin Kaplan (2); Sam Wieben, Joel Rust, Colby Heishman, Steven Streeter, Lee Kinsella, Sean Wyett, Synjun Bauer, Mike Hogencamp, Troy Bauer, Creston Williams, Jonny Williams (1 each);

Hobby Stock (26): Benji Irvine (12); Jamie Whitaker (11); Chris Luloff, Justin Stander, Shawn Kuennen, Jim Ball (10 each); Justin Wacha (9); Nathan Ballard (8); Quinton Miller (7); Vince Buchholz (6); T.J. Mortenson, Justin Lichty, Matt Lundry (4 each); Brad Forbes, Matt Burmeister (2 each); Jeremiah Wilson, Josh Irvine, Curt Graham, Milo Matthias, Justin Hanson, Brian Happel, Jacob Keiser, Dave Wheeler, Brett Vanous, Jerome Wilson, Ryan Bochmann (1 each);

Sport Compact (25): Merv Chandler (12); Adam Gates, A.J. Witten (10 each); Derek Ihde (8); Travis Ross, Mike Tedesco (7 each); Zach Marmann (6); Mitchell Balik, Jeffrey Vislisel (3 each); Reggie Rema, Steve Miedke, Dylan Clinton, Justin Vargason, Travis Losenicky, Dakota Schroyer (2 each); Brad Chander, Will Schott, Bryan Klein, Jeff Dvorak, Brannon Bechen, Nick West, Arthur Schott, Jeremy Lerch, Ryan Bryant, Jim Hoth (1 each).

Top-5s 

* 94 drivers have earned at least one top-5 finish this season. The number of top-5 finishes per driver in each division are as follows:

Late Model (17): Tyler Bruening (8); Curt Martin (7); Darren Ackerman (6); Greg Kastli (5); Jon Passick, Dean Wagner, Jeff Aikey, Luke Pestka (4 each); Drew Johnson, Rory Metcalf (3 each); Dale Hackwell Jr., Dirk Hamilton, Rick Dralle, Dain Sires, Luke Merfeld (2 each); Jason Rauen, Travis Smock (1 each);

Modified (15): Tyler Droste (9); J.D. Auringer (7); Ronn Lauritzen (6); Troy Cordes, Shawn Ryan, Vern Jackson (5 each); Mark Schulte, Patrick Flannagan, Scott Hogan (4 each); Darin Duffy (3); Kevin Pittman, Adam Johnson, Jason Snyder (2 each); Ed Thomas, Chris Snyder (1 each);

Stock Car (13): Sean Johnson (11); Jarod Weepie (10); John Emerson (9); Norman Chesmore (8); Tim Helle (6); Jason Hocken (5); Justin Temeyer (3); Jesse Brown, Phil Holtz (2 each); Tony Schimmels, Austin Evens, Damon Murty, Scott Pippert (1 each);

SportMod (18): Brennen Chipp (8); Lucas Lundry (7); Alex Zwanziger (6); Kip Siems (5); Danny Dvorak, Curt Hilmer, Dave Schulze, Jim Buhlman, Kevin Hurst (4 each); Shane Ebaugh (3); Matt McCahen, Rod McDonald, Austin Kaplan (2 each); Dakoda Sellers, Ryan Maitland, Brandon Smith, Sam Wieben, Joel Rust (1 each);

Hobby Stock (14): Benji Irvine (12); Chris Luloff (10); Justin Stander (8); Nathan Ballard (6); Jamie Whitaker, Quinton Miller, Vince Buchholz (4 each); Shawn Kuennen, Justin Wacha (3 each); T.J. Mortenson (2); Jim Ball, Justin Lichty, Matt Lundry, Brad Forbes (1 each);

Sport Compact (17): Merv Chandler (12); Adam Gates (10); A.J. Witten (6); Travis Ross (5); Mike Tedesco, Zach Marmann (4 each); Derek Ihde, Mitchell Balik (3 each); Reggie Rema, Steve Miedke, Dylan Clinton (2 each); Justin Vargason, Brad Chandler, Will Schott, Bryan Klein, Jeff Dvorak, Brannon Bechen (1 each).

Top-3s 

* 71 drivers have earned at least one top-3 finish this season. The number of top-3 finishes per driver in each division are as follows:

Late Model (15): Tyler Bruening (8); Darren Ackerman, Greg Kastli (4 each); Jon Passick, Dean Wagner, Jeff Aikey, Rick Dralle, Luke Pestka, Rory Metcalf, Dain Sires, Luke Merfeld (2 each); Curt Martin, Dale Hackwell Jr., Drew Johnson, Jason Rauen (1 each);

Modified (11): Tyler Droste, Ronn Lauritzen (6 each); J.D. Auringer (5); Shawn Ryan (4); Troy Cordes, Scott Hogan (3 each); Mark Schulte, Vern Jackson, Darin Duffy, Kevin Pittman (2 each); Patrick Flannagan (1);

Stock Car (10): Sean Johnson, John Emerson (9 each); Jarod Weepie (5); Jason Hocken (4); Norman Chesmore (3); Justin Temeyer (2); Tim Helle, Jesse Brown, Tony Schimmels, Damon Murty (1 each);

SportMod (14): Lucas Lundry (6); Brennen Chipp (5); Curt Hilmer, Kip Siems (4 each); Dave Schulze, Kevin Hurst (3 each); Danny Dvorak, Shane Ebaugh, Austin Kaplan (2 each); Alex Zwanziger, Jim Buhlman, Brandon Smith, Sam Wieben, Joel Rust (1 each);

Hobby Stock (9): Benji Irvine (11); Chris Luloff (10); Nathan Ballard (5); Justin Stander (4); Quinton Miller (2); Jamie Whitaker, Justin Wacha, Vince Buchholz, Justin Lichty (1 each);

Sport Compact (12): Merv Chandler, Adam Gates (10 each); Travis Ross, Zach Marmann (3 each); Reggie Rema, Steve Miedke (2 each); A.J. Witten, Mike Tedesco, Mitchell Balik, Dylan Clinton, Justin Vargason, Brad Chandler (1 each).

Feature Lap Leaders

* 72 drivers have led at least one lap of feature competition.

* Division lap leaders include:

Late Model (14 total different lap leaders): Tyler Bruening, Rick Dralle (50 laps led each); Luke Pestka (34); Luke Merfeld, Rory Metcalf (25 each); Darren Ackerman (21); Greg Kastli (18); Dain Sires, Jon Passick (17 each); Curt Martin (16); Jeff Aikey (15); Kelly Pestka (6); Greg Hunter (4); Joel Brasch (2);

Modified (17): Ronn Lauritzen (58 laps led); Shawn Ryan (33); J.D. Auringer (30); Troy Cordes (29); Scott Hogan, Tyler Droste (16 each); Mark Schulte (15); Darin Duffy, Vern Jackson (12 each); Kevin Pittman (6); J.J. Scott, Mike Burbridge (4 each); Adam Johnson, Josh Sherbon (2 each); Patrick Flannagan, Mike Manson, Tony Snyder (1 each);

Stock Car (9): John Emerson (50 laps led); Sean Johnson (44); Jarod Weepie (34); Damon Murty (25); Jesse Brown (21); Norman Chesmore, Jason Hocken (19 each); Tim Helle (6); Austin Evens (3);

SportMod (12): Brennen Chipp (30 laps led); Kip Siems (24); Dave Schulze (23); Kevin Hurst (18); Sam Wieben, Joel Rust, Curt Hilmer (15 each); Lucas Lundry, Brandon Smith (9 each); Shane Ebaugh (6); Danny Dvorak (4); Scott Thomas (1);

Hobby Stock (14): Benji Irvine (46 laps led); Chris Luloff (37); Vince Buchholz (28); Quinton Miller (20); Nathan Ballard (15); Matt Lundry (8); Justin Wacha (7); Brett Vanous (6); Jeremiah Wilson (4); Justin Stander (3); Shawn Kuennen, Brad Forbes (2 each); Jamie Whitaker, Ryan Bochmann (1 each);

Sport Compact (6): Adam Gates (105 laps led), Dylan Clinton (12), Travis Ross (11), Merv Chandler (5), Steve Miedke (3), Dakota Schroyer (2).

Heat Races

* There have been 79 different heat race winners in 174 heat races.

* The heat race winners in each division are as follows:

Late Model (20 winners in 35 heats): Luke Pestka (5 heat wins); Jon Passick, Curt Martin, Tyler Bruening, Rory Metcalf (3 each); Dean Wagner, Jeff Aikey, Darren Ackerman (2 each); Dirk Hamilton, Greg Kastli, Luke Merfeld, Joel Brasch, Travis Smock, Dain Sires, Greg Hunter, Kelly Pestka, Chad Lerch, Rick Wendling, Rick Dralle, Jason Rauen (1 each);

Modified (16 winners in 35 heats): Ronn Lauritzen (7 heat wins); Vern Jackson (5); Tyler Droste, Mark Schulte, Josh Sherbon (3 each); Shawn Ryan, Troy Cordes, Mike Burbridge (2 each); J.D. Auringer, Ed Thomas, Scott Hogan, Adam Johnson, Darin Duffy, J.J. Scott, Buck Swanson, Tony Snyder (1 each);

Stock Car (10 winners in 22 heats): John Emerson (5 heat wins); Tim Helle (4); Jason Hocken (3); Norman Chesmore, Sean Johnson, Scotty Anderson (2); Tony Schimmels, Phil Holtz, Justin Temeyer Damon Murty (1 each);

SportMod (14 winners in 35 heats): Kevin Hurst (7 heat wins); Danny Dvorak (6); Brennen Chipp (5); Kip Siems (4); Curt Hilmer, Alex Zwanziger, Brian Hilbert (2); Jim Buhlman, Dave Schulze, Brandon Smith, Joel Rust, Sam Wieben, Josh Burrell, Shane Ebaugh (1 each);

Hobby Stock (12 winners in 32 heats): Benji Irvine (8 heat wins); Chris Luloff, Nathan Ballard (5 each); Quinton Miller (3); Justin Wacha, Shawn Kuennen, Matt Lundry (2 each); Jamie Whitaker, Jim Ball, Vince Buchholz, Brad Forbes, Jacob Keiser (1 each);

Sport Compact (7 winners in 15 heats): Adam Gates (6 heat wins); A.J. Witten (3); Dylan Clinton (2); Zach Marmann, Mitchell Balik, Travis Ross, Justin Vargason (1 each).

Efficiency Stats

* A total of 248 races have been run this season.

* A total of 2,612 laps have been completed.

* A total of 227 caution flags have been thrown (an overall average of 0.92 per race)

Cautions Per Race Ratio

Sport Compact: 10 cautions in 27 races (0.37 cautions per race)

Hobby Stock: 31 / 44 (0.70)

Late Model: 38 / 47 (0.81)
SportMod: 48 / 49 (0.98)
Stock Car: 40 / 34 (1.18)

Modified: 60 / 47 (1.28)

Race Laps Per Caution Ratio

Sport Compact: 224 laps with 10 cautions (average of 22.40 green flag laps between cautions)

Late Model: 574 / 38 (15.11) 
Hobby Stock: 433 / 31 (13.97) 
Stock Car: 392 / 40 (9.80)

SportMod: 468 / 48 (9.75)
Modified: 521 / 60 (8.68)

Races with No Caution Flags

Sport Compact: 18 of 27 races have gone flag-to-flag without a caution (66.67%) 
Late Model: 31 / 47 (65.96%)
SportMod: 30 / 49 (61.22%) 
Modified: 27 / 47 (57.45%)  
Hobby Stock: 24 / 44 (54.55%)

Stock Car: 17 / 34 (50.00%) 
147 of 248 races have gone green to checkers without a caution.

Feature Cautions 
Late Model: 31 of 38 total cautions have been thrown in feature races (81.58%) 

Stock Car: 32 / 40 (80.00%) 
Modified: 48 / 60 (80.00%) 
SportMod: 37 / 48 (77.08%) 
Hobby Stock: 22 / 31 (70.97%) 
Sport Compact: 7 / 10 (70.00%)

177 of 227 total cautions have been thrown during feature racing.

Average Lap of First Feature Caution 
Sport Compact: 8.00 
Late Model: 5.67 
Stock Car: 5.08 

Hobby Stock: 4.75 
SportMod: 3.75
Modified: 2.25

Since the year 1967...

* 685 Late Model feature events have been completed in weekly competition with 98 different winners. On average, a new Late Model winner visits victory lane every 6.9 events.

* 455 Modified feature events have been completed in weekly competition with 81 different winners. On average, a new Modified winner visits victory lane every 5.6 events.

* 303 Stock Car feature events have been completed in weekly competition with 43 different winners. On average, a new Stock Car winner visits victory lane every 7.0 events.

* 78 SportMod feature events have been completed in weekly competition with 23 different winners. On average, a new SportMod winner visits victory lane every 3.3 events.

* 364 Hobby Stock feature events have been completed in weekly competition with 90 different winners. On average, a new Hobby Stock winner visits victory lane every 4.0 events.

* 18 Sport Compact feature events have been complete in weekly competition with 5 different winners. On average, a new Sport Compact winner visits victory lane every 3.6 events.

* Overall, in the last 47 seasons, 1,903 features have been completed in the six divisions that currently compete at the speedway.

Qualifying Streaks

* The longest currently active feature qualifying streaks for weekly competition in each division include:

Late Model: Drew Johnson has qualified for 61 consecutive features. His last miss was July 11, 2009.

Modified: Patrick Flannagan has qualified for 58 consecutive features. His last miss was August 8, 2009.

Stock Car: Norman Chesmore has qualified for 114 consecutive features. His last miss was July 9, 2005.

Hobby Stock: Benji Irvine and Justin Stander have qualified for 27 consecutive features. Their last miss was Season Championship night of the 2011 season.

SportMod: Jim Buhlman has qualified for all 78 features dating back to the first one at the speedway on June 21, 2008.

Sport Compact: Merv Chandler and A.J. Witten have qualified for all 18 features dating back to the first one at the speedway on July 7, 2012. 

Stuff Nobody Should Know…

* Of the 72 feature winners this season, 39 came from inside starting spots and 33 from the outside.

* Every starting position throughout the first six rows has produced at least one feature winner this season and no winner has started deeper than the sixth row.

* Nine of 12 feature winners in the Hobby Stock division have come from the fourth and fifth rows. Five winners have come from inside of row five.
* Six (half) of the Sport Compact winners started inside of row two.
* No single starting position has produced more than two Late Model winners.
* The only starting position to produce more than two Modified winners is outside row five. Four winners have started in that position.

* 87 different drivers have cracked the top-10 in his division’s points for at least one week this season.

* 15 different drivers have held or shared their division's points lead at some point during the season.

* 11 feature events have gone flag-to-flag without a single caution. Only nine features have seen their first caution prior to the completion of the first lap.
* The last five Sport Compact features have gone green-to-checkers without a caution. In fact, there were no cautions flags in a Sport Compact race throughout the final three weeks in July.
* Through eight nights and 180 laps of Hobby Stock feature racing, the feature winners have led only a combined 74 laps of the races they won. The average lap when Hobby Stock feature winners have taken the lead is lap 10.0.

Weather trends...
* Independence has held nine straight nights of points racing without a weather-related cancellation, matching the 18th longest stretch of weekly racing in track history. If we can get through the end of the season without a rainout, we will match the fourth longest stretch in track history (13 weeks).
* The month of July was completed without a single rainout for the 26th time in track history, the most of any month, however it was the first rain-free July since 2008. July of 2013 was the 79th full calendar month since 1967 to be completed without a cancellation.
* We have seen two months this season (June and July) without a rainout. If we have a dry August, three months will be completed without a cancellation for the first time since 1999.
* Looking ahead, August is the second driest month on record at the speedway. The month accounts for only 31 of 178 rainouts in weekly racing, dating back to 1967. Two of the August dates scheduled for racing this year (17th and 24th) have never been rained out in Independence. August 3 and August 10 have each rained out once in six attempts. Both of those rainouts occurred in 1974.
* Four of the last five seasons, we have completed the month of August without a rainout. The only year with an August rainout in the last five years? Last year when two programs were canceled due to the weather.

And finally...
* Of the last 61 track champions, 41 held the points lead entering the final month of points racing (67.2%). Odds are four of the current points leaders will go on to win a championship this season, but two will not... Who ya got? Can you feel the excitement?


BENTON COUNTY SPEEDWAY
Below are the weekly points racing numbers through July in Vinton. These numbers do not include the Frostbuster special that was held prior to the April 14 track points opener, the Hawkeye Dirt Tour special in May or the Modifieds during the Hogan Memorial. None of the information below includes the Late Models, which have run during three weekly programs. This information includes the Thursday night Benton County Fair race when SportMods, Hobby Stocks and Sport Compacts competed for track points.

Car Count
Division - Average - High - Low
Modified – 15.1 - 19 - 11
Stock Car – 9.6 - 16 - 6
SportMod – 21.8 - 29 - 17
Hobby Stock – 12.5 - 18 - 9
Sport Compact – 8.3 - 11 - 5
TOTAL – 66.3 - 82 - 54

Points
* 192 drivers have earned points this season.
* No driver has led the points of his division after every night of racing. J.D. Auringer (Modified) has led the standings every week since week two, John Emerson (Stock Cars) led following week three and every week since night five and Danny Dvorak led following nights two and three and has held the lead the last two nights of points racing in the SportMods. Chris Luloff (Hobby Stock) led following opening night and every week since night six and Bill Whalen Jr. led following nights three through 10, plus the last five nights - 12 through 16 - in the Sport Compacts.

IN THE HUNT
* 31 drivers have remained in the top-10 in the points every night of the season. Those drivers include:
Modified (6): J.D. Auringer, Troy Cordes, Joe Docekal, Patrick Flannagan, Ronn Lauritzen, Jerry Luloff;
Stock Car (7): Bob Ahrendsen, Scott Beauregard, John Emerson, Mike Galli, Jerry Miles, Damon Murty, Scott Pippert;
SportMod (7): Jim Buhlman, Danny Dvorak, Curt Hilmer, Nick Roberts, Joel Rust, John Schaefer, Dave Schulze;
Hobby Stock (6): Matt Brown, Jacob Keiser, Chris Luloff, Kyle Parizek, Justin Stander, Justin Wacha;
Sport Compact (5): Merv Chandler, Nathan Chandler, Shawn Cooney, Jeremy Lerch, Bill Whalen Jr.

* 7 drivers have remained in the top-5 in the points every night of the season. Those drivers include:
Modified (1): J.D. Auringer;
Stock Car (2): John Emerson, Scott Pippert;
SportMod (1): Joel Rust;
Hobby Stock (1): Kyle Parizek; 
Sport Compact (2): Nathan Chandler, Bill Whalen Jr.

Feature Winners

* There have been 31 different feature winners in 77 feature events this season.
* Current points leaders account for only 18 of the 77 feature wins.
* Points leaders accounted for only six of the 22 feature wins in July.
* Entering August, there have been five straight different Modified winners. There were six straight different winners to start the season. The longest streak of different winners in the division? Ten, during the middle of the 2011 season. Well, we're halfway there and have just enough nights left (six) to set a new record. For those wondering, the last five Modified winners were Ronn Lauritzen, Troy Cordes, Kyle Brown, Mike Burbridge and Jerry Luloff.
* The month of July ended with four straight different winners each in the Stock Car, SportMod and Hobby Stock divisions. Among all five divisions, there were 17 different winners in 22 feature events.

Top-10s
* 146 drivers have earned at least one top-10 finish this season. The top-10 leaders in each division are as follows:

Modified (27 drivers with at least one top-10): J.D. Auringer (14); Ronn Lauritzen, Troy Cordes, Jerry Luloff, Patrick Flannagan (12 each); Joe Docekal, Kyle Brown (11 each); Mike Burbridge (9); Scott Hogan, Jerry Dedrick (8 each); Tony Olson (5); Vern Jackson, Brandon Banks (4 each); Richie Gustin (3); Tyler Droste, Buck Swanson (2 each); Racer Hulin, Ty Glass, Mike Krall, Mark Schulte, Todd Jensen, Tim McBride, Darin Duffy, Andy Eckrich, Ed Thomas, Shane Burbridge, Jesse Belez (1 each);

Stock Car (29): John Emerson, Scott Pippert, Mike Galli (15 each); Norman Chesmore (14); Curtis Roster, Scott Beauregard (13 each); Bob Ahrendsen (9); Damon Murty (8); Jay Schmidt (4); Jerry Miles, Rick Kriegel, Justin Temeyer, Chad Siems, Mitchell Evens, Russell Damme (2 each); Nathan Wood, John Watson, Jarod Weepie, Bob Daniels, Shane Richardson, Brock Young, Cory Tharp, Trent Jeanes, Thomas Thompson, Ben Walding, Jared Daggett, Dalton Simonsen, Aaron Matthias, Kevin Rose (1 each);

SportMod (31): Joel Rust (15); Jim Buhlman (14); Danny Dvorak, Curt Hilmer (13 each); Dave Schulze (12); Nick Roberts (10); John Schaefer (8); Kyle Olson, Mike Hogencamp, Ryan King (6 each); Mike McDonald, Tom Rawlins, Ryan Maitland (5 each); Brennen Chipp, Shane Ebaugh, Brady Graham (4 each); Brett Lowry, Jenae Gustin, Colby Heishman, Brian Anderson, Dakoda Sellers, Dave McCalla (3 each); Kurt Moeding, Ross Neal, Troy Burkhart (2 each); Austin Kaplan, Brad Iverson, Kip Siems, Josh Burrell, Brett Moffitt, Dustin Crear (1 each);

Hobby Stock (36): Kyle Parizek (16); Justin Wacha (15); Chris Luloff, Brian Happel, Matt Brown, Just Stander (14 each); Jacob Keiser (12); Benji Irvine (7); Leah Wroten (6); Andrew Torkelson (5); Jeremy Floyd (4); Paul Nagle, Brett Vanous, Brad Forbes (3 each); Garrett Eilander, Nick Murty, Jim Ball, Brayden Forbes, Doug Laughridge, Jason Williams, Jacob Floyd (2 each); Shannon Anderson, Andy Coffman, Andrew Burg, Jamie Songer, Gabe Phelps, Jerome Wilson, David Rieks, David Castellano Jr., Jonathon Juett, Paul Shepherd, Dale Kite, Malena Betzer, Chris Moore, Nathan Ballard, Greg Sweerin (1 each);

Sport Compact (23): Merv Chandler, Bill Whalen Jr. (15 each); Nathan Chandler (14); Travis Losenicky, Jeremy Lerch, Toby Denning (13 each); A.J. Witten (10); Gary Peiffer (6); Brad Chandler, Shawn Cooney, Craig Streeter (5 each); Steve Miedke (3); Mike Barten, Jacob McVay, Buster Pate (2 each); Tyler Whalen, Mike Tedesco, Nathan Lerch, Corbin McCombs, Matthew Moore, Jeff Ash, Joe Goodenbaur, Duayne Herb (1 each).

Top-5s
* 86 drivers have earned at least one top-5 finish this season. The top-5 leaders in each division are as follows:

Modified (16): Ronn Lauritzen (10); J.D. Auringer, Troy Cordes (9 each); Joe Docekal (7); Kyle Brown (6); Jerry Luloff, Mike Burbridge (5 each); Patrick Flannagan, Scott Hogan (4 each); Richie Gustin (3); Vern Jackson, Tyler Droste (2 each); Jerry Dedrick, Brandon Banks, Racer Hulin, Ty Glass (1 each);

Stock Car (20): Norman Chesmore (14); Scott Pippert (12); John Emerson (11); Damon Murty (8); Curtis Roster (7); Bob Ahrendsen (4); Mike Galli (3); Scott Beauregard, Jay Schmidt, Jerry Miles (2 each); Rick Kriegel, Justin Temeyer, Chad Siems, Nathan Wood, John Watson, Jarod Weepie, Bob Daniels, Shane Richardson, Brock Young, Cory Tharp (1 each);

SportMod (19): Joel Rust (14); Danny Dvorak (11); Nick Roberts (9); Curt Hilmer (6); Jim Buhlman (5); John Schaefer, Kyle Olson, Mike McDonald (4 each); Dave Schulze, Tom Rawlins, Brennen Chipp, Shane Ebaugh (3 each); Mike Hogencamp, Brett Lowry, Jenae Gustin, Kurt Moeding (2 each); Ryan Maitland, Austin Kaplan, Brad Iverson (1 each);

Hobby Stock (14): Chris Luloff (14); Brian Happel (13); Matt Brown (11); Kyle Parizek (10); Justin Wacha, Justin Stander (9 each); Benji Irvine (5); Jacob Keiser (3); Paul Nagle, Garrett Eilander, Nick Murty, Shannon Anderson, Andy Coffman, Andrew Burg (1 each);

Sport Compact (17): Bill Whalen Jr. (14); Merv Chandler, Nathan Chandler (12 each); Travis Losenicky (10); A.J. Witten (7); Jeremy Lerch (6); Gary Peiffer, Brad Chandler, Steve Miedke (3 each); Toby Denning, Shawn Cooney (2 each); Craig Streeter, Mike Barten, Jacob McVay, Tyler Whalen, Mike Tedesco, Nathan Lerch (1 each).

Top-3s
* 60 drivers have earned at least one top-3 finish this season. The top-3 leaders in each division are as follows:

Modified (13): Ronn Lauritzen (6); J.D. Auringer, Troy Cordes, Joe Docekal, Kyle Brown (5 each); Mike Burbridge, Scott Hogan, Richie Gustin; (3 each); Jerry Luloff, Patrick Flannagan (2 each); Brandon Banks, Tyler Droste, Racer Hulin (1 each);

Stock Car (9): Norman Chesmore (14); John Emerson (11); Scott Pippert, Damon Murty (8); Curtis Roster (2); Jay Schmidt, Jerry Miles, Rick Kriegel, Nathan Wood (1 each);

SportMod (15): Joel Rust (11); Danny Dvorak (10); Nick Roberts (8); Mike McDonald (3); Jim Buhlman, Kyle Olson, Brennen Chipp, Shane Ebaugh, Kurt Moeding (2 each); Curt Hilmer, Dave Schulze, John Schaefer, Brett Lowry, Jenae Gustin, Austin Kaplan (1 each);

Hobby Stock (12): Chris Luloff (11); Brian Happel (10); Kyle Parizek (6); Matt Brown (5); Justin Wacha (4); Justin Stander, Benji Irvine (3 each); Jacob Keiser (2); Paul Nagle, Garrett Eilander, Shannon Anderson, Andy Coffman (1 each);

Sport Compact (11): Bill Whalen Jr. Nathan Chandler (12 each); Merv Chandler (11); Travis Losenicky, Brad Chandler (3 each); A.J. Witten (2); Jeremy Lerch, Toby Denning, Steve Miedke, Mike Barten, Tyler Whalen (1 each).

Feature Lap Leaders
* 63 drivers have led at least one lap of feature competition.
* Division lap leaders include:
 
Modified (14 different lap leaders): Kyle Brown (54 laps led); Mike Burbridge (44); Troy Cordes (29); Tony Olson (27); Ronn Lauritzen, Jerry Luloff (26 each); Joe Docekal (25); Richie Gustin (24); Brandon Banks (11); Scott Hogan (6); Jerry Dedrick (5); Tyler Droste (2); J.D. Auringer, Racer Hulin (1 each);

Stock Car (9): John Emerson (68 laps led); Damon Murty (47); Norman Chesmore (42); Scott Pippert (41); Curtis Roster (15); Bob Ahrendsen, Mike Galli (5 each); Jarod Weepie, Jay Schmidt (1 each);

SportMod (17): Danny Dvorak (55 laps led); Nick Roberts (38); Mike McDonald (33); Joel Rust (27); Jenae Gustin (18); Tom Rawlins (17); Colby Heishman (10); Mike Hogencamp (9); Jim Buhlman (8); Brady Graham, Ryan King (5 each); Shane Ebaugh, Kyle Olson (3 each); Kurt Moeding (2); Curt Hilmer, Austin Kaplan, Brian Anderson (1 each);

Hobby Stock (14): Brian Happel (44 laps led), Jacob Keiser (36), Justin Wacha (27), Kyle Parizek (26), Matt Brown (25), Chris Luloff (19), Paul Nagle (15), Shannon Anderson (13), Andy Coffman (12), Leah Wroten (9), Garrett Eilander (7), Justin Stander (5), Jacob Floyd (2), Brad Forbes (1);

Sport Compact (9): Nathan Chandler (80 laps led); Bill Whalen Jr. (35); Brad Chandler, Merv Chandler (19 each); Travis Losenicky (15); A.J. Witten (9); Steve Miedke (7); Gary Peiffer (6); Mike Barten (3).

Heat Races

* There have been 59 different heat race winners in 145 heat races.
* The heat race wins leaders in each division are as follows:

Modified (13 winners in 30 heats): Joe Docekal, Tony Olson, Jerry Dedrick (4 each); Troy Cordes, Patrick Flannagan, Mike Burbridge (3 each); Scott Hogan, Kyle Brown (2 each); J.D. Auringer, Ronn Lauritzen, Jerry Luloff, Richie Gustin, Racer Hulin (1 each);

Stock Car (8 winners in 20 heats): Scott Pippert (6); Norman Chesmore, Damon Murty (4); Curtis Roster (2); Mike Galli, Jerry Miles, Scott Beauregard, Jay Schmidt (1 each);

SportMod (22 winners in 48 heats): Joel Rust, Nick Roberts (6 each); Mike McDonald (5); Dakoda Sellers (4); Danny Dvorak, Jim Buhlman, Mike Hogencamp (3 each); Kyle Olson, Curt Hilmer, Ryan King (2 each); Brian Anderson, Dave Schulze, Colby Heishman, John Schaefer, Jenae Gustin, Tom Rawlins, Brett Lowry, Brennen Chipp, Troy Burkhart, Brandon Morris, Shad May, Kurt Moeding (1 each);

Hobby Stock (10 winners in 29 heats): Brian Happel, Matt Brown (6 each); Chris Luloff (5); Kyle Parizek (3); Justin Wacha, Jacob Keiser, Justin Stander (2 each); Brian Irvine, Paul Nagle, Shannon Anderson (1 each);

Sport Compact (6 winners in 18 heats): Merv Chandler (8); Nathan Chandler, A.J. Witten (3 each); Brad Chandler (2); Travis Losenicky, Gary Peiffer (1 each).

Efficiency Stats
* 231 races have been run this season.
* 2,338 green flag laps have been completed.
* 215 caution flags have been thrown (an overall average of 0.94 per race).

Cautions Per Race Ratio
Sport Compact: 12 cautions in 35 races (0.34 cautions per race)
Stock Car: 30 / 35 (0.86)
Hobby Stock: 38 / 44 (0.86)
Modified: 51 / 52 (0.98)
SportMod: 84 / 65 (1.29)

Race Laps Per Caution Ratio
Sport Compact: 299 laps with 12 cautions (average of 24.92 green flag laps between cautions)
Stock Car: 373 / 30 (12.43)
Hobby Stock: 462 / 38 (12.16)
Modified: 600 / 51 (11.76)
SportMod: 604 / 84 (7.19)

Races with No Caution Flags
Sport Compact: 25 of 35 races have run green to checkers without a caution (71.43%)
Hobby Stock: 24 / 44 (54.55%)
Modified: 28 / 52 (53.85%)
SportMod: 34 / 65 (52.31%)
Stock Car: 17 / 35 (48.47%) 
118 of 231 (51.08%) races have gone green to checkers without a caution

Feature Cautions
Sport Compact: 10 of 12 total cautions have been thrown in feature races (83.33%)
SportMod: 62 / 84 (73.81%)
Hobby Stock: 28 / 38 (73.68%)
Stock Car: 20 / 30 (66.67%)
Modified: 34 / 51 (66.67%) 
154 of 215 (71.62%) total cautions have been thrown during feature racing

Average Lap of First Feature Caution
Hobby Stock: 7.81
Modified: 7.53
Sport Compact: 7.50
Stock Car: 7.20
SportMod: 4.31

Stuff Nobody Should Know…
* Of the 77 feature winners, 35 have come from inside starting spots and 42 from the outside.
* Each of the first 11 starting positions has produced at least two feature winners.
* Danny Dvorak came from the 15th starting spot to win the SportMod feature on July 7. That is the deepest starting position to produce a feature winner this season.
* The starting position to produce the most feature winners is inside row three (12 times).
* No driver has won from the pole in the Modifieds, Stock Cars or Sport Compacts. Only one pole-sitter has won a SportMod feature, but three times the Hobby Stock winner has started on the pole.
* 72 different drivers have cracked the top-10 in his/her division’s points for at least one week this season.
* 15 different drivers have held or shared their division's points lead at some point during the season (exactly three different drivers in each of the five divisions).
* J.D. Auringer (Modified), John Emerson (Stock Car), Joel Rust (SportMod) and Bill Whalen Jr. (Sport Compact) have remained in the top three in points all year.
* Of the 77 feature winners, only 12 led those races in their entirety.
* 11 of 16 SportMod feature winners have started eighth or deeper in the lineup, however two of the last three winners (Mike McDonald on July 21 and Kurt Moeding on July 25) started inside of row three.
* 21 of the 77 feature events have gone caution-free this season, including the last three Sport compact features. In eight features the caution flag has flown before the completion of the first lap. The Hobby Stocks are the only division without a caution prior to the completion of the first lap of feature racing. Every feature during the month of July completed at least one lap before the yellow flag waved.

And finally...
* In 77 features this season, 24 winners passed for the lead with five laps or fewer remaining. Of those, 11 took the lead on the white or checkered flag lap.

That's it for the month of July. I'll be back at the end of the season with the final numbers for both tracks. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Kay, Luloff close out Benton County Fair in victory lane

There's an old saying that goes something along the line, "If you didn't like the races tonight, you aren't a real race fan." That definitely applies to this past Sunday night at Benton County Speedway. Not only did an impressive 93 drivers sign in to compete in the six divisions, but every feature was competitive and entertaining.

Sunday's program brought down the curtain on the 2013 Benton County Fair and those in attendance were provided a perfect surface on a beautiful night for stock car racing. The track was smooth, slick and provided multiple grooves all night long which, by the way, was no small task for track prep man Don Burkey. He was forced to rework the surface after the carnage from Friday's trailer races and Saturday's demolition derby. I think it's safe to say he did a spectacular job.

In the third appearance of the IMCA Late Models this season, Jeff Aikey looked to be dialed in on his second straight win in Vinton as he worked the top side around Bobby Hansen in turn two on the second lap to assume command. While Aikey pulled away from the pack, first time visitor Justin Kay raced the low side past Hansen just prior to a lap three caution.

Kay pursued Aikey for a handful of laps and through another stoppage on lap eight before he challenged for the lead. Running the low side of turns one and two, Kay slipped beneath Aikey to assume command down the back stretch on the 11th circuit. He then ran the top side to victory in the 20-lapper. Kay joined Aikey and Luke Pestka as Late Model winners so far this season on the quarter-mile.

Jerry Luloff topped a thriller in the IMCA Modifieds. He started in the sixth row and worked his way into the top four on the first lap while pole-sitter Tony Olson paced the field.

Olson held a few car-lengths over the field while Luloff challenged Jerry Dedrick and Patrick Flannagan for second. Luloff raced past Flannagan just prior to the midway point, then worked the outside lane past Olson down the back stretch on lap 12 just before the caution flag waved.

On the restart, Luloff held the point while Kyle Brown and Troy Cordes made their way into second and third. Another caution on lap 18 set up a two-lap dash to the finish.

When racing resumed a final time, Cordes went to work on the top groove and made his way around Brown. Luloff, however, was able to withstand the challenge from Cordes to post the win by a few feet.

With his second win of the year, Luloff has now earned multiple victories in four of the last seven seasons in Vinton. His career total is 16 wins in weekly racing history in Vinton, placing him in a tie with Vern Jackson for sixth on the all-time list. His five career wins during the month of July matches his August total - the most of any month for Luloff.

Scott Pippert raced the low groove past Mike Galli on a lap two restart to drive to his third win of the season in the IMCA Stock Car division. Pippert survived the battle of ping pong balls behind him to take the checkers ahead of an extremely hard-charging Norman Chesmore. In his first appearance in Vinton this season, Nathan Wood made a smooth run from the fifth row to an impressive third place finish.

Pippert's three wins in his rookie campaign tie him for 13th on the track's Stock Car wins list with Doug Otto, Richard Quail, Sean Johnson, Steve Meyer and Tom Schmitt. Pippert now owns one win each during the months of May, June and July.

A handful of cautions slowed action over the first two laps of the 15-lap IMCA Northern SportMod feature. Joel Rust's patience allowed him to advance from 10th to fourth when the first multi-lap green flag run came on the final lap two restart.

Kyle Olson held the point until Jenae Gustin raced the top side into the lead at the flagstand on the following circuit. Meanwhile, Rust worked his way into second and was challenging for the lead in turns one and two just after the completion of lap six when Gustin got sideways to bring out the caution.

Rust pulled away from the field when the green flag waved to score the win, his second of the season, ahead of Danny Dvorak. The win was Rust's 11th top-three finish in 15 appearances... seven of those have been top-twos... and Vinton averages 21.8 SportMods weekly this season.

I'm gonna say it again and then I'm gonna keep sayin' it - Rust can flat out drive and he is on his toes every moment he's on the track. If you saw him change lanes Sunday night entering turn three to avoid what turned out to be a multi-car spin in his heat race, you know what I mean. Not only that, but he takes care of his equipment. For a teenager who pays his own way in racing, Rust is fully aware of what it takes to have a successful racing program and he knows the cost if something goes wrong. If you don't know him, stop down and say hello to Joel in the pits some night. He's soft-spoken, humble and has the focus to carry him far in this sport. Oh, and I'm going to keep writing about him, so take notice when you see the 26J on the track.

His third career SportMod win in weekly racing history in Vinton, Rust is now tied with Chris Luloff, Damon Murty and Ken Kositzky for 14th on the all-time list. It was his first career win in Vinton past the month of May.

Pole-sitter Jacob Floyd held the lead in the early stages of the 15-lap IMCA Hobby Stock feature. A pair of cautions on lap two allowed Justin Stander to work the low side into the lead when racing resumed.

Stander held the top spot while Brian Happel worked the top groove into a challenge for the lead after starting in the fourth row. Happel slowly reeled in Stander as the leaders ran in tight formation before Happel took charge just past the midway point. Stander remained close, however Happel drove to victory, his fourth (count 'em, four, Wes White) win of the season.

Luloff is also a four-time Hobby Stock winner this season. In 23 previous years of weekly Hobby Stock racing in Vinton, only five times have there been multiple winners of four or more features in the division - 1997, 2001, 2003, 2006 and 2009. The 2009 season is the only one in history to produce three four-time Hobby Stock winners - Scott Pippert (9 wins in 2009), Brad Forbes (5) and Bill Bonnett (4). If you're wondering, Kyle Parizek and Matt Brown are next on the list with two wins each this season. With six weeks to go, it's possible they could match history, or maybe even exceed it with four four-time winners in a season.

With seven career Hobby Stock wins in Vinton, Happel is now tied with Brad Anders, Kyle Parizek and Steve Kesl for 16th on the all-time list.

A.J. Witten held the early lead in the 12-lap IMCA Sport Compact main event. He showed the way while Steve Miedke and Nathan Chandler pursued from second row starting spots.

Miedke took the lead on lap four when Witten slipped off the top of turn two and Chandler followed into second. With Miedke running the top side and Chandler down low, Chandler slowly cut into Miedke's advantage before taking the lead as the white flag waved. Chandler went on to win by a slim margin.

The win was Chandler's third straight in Vinton. He now possesses five separate winning streaks of at least three races and two of those stretches have come this season. In his career, Chandler has 43 Sport Compact wins in weekly racing on the Vinton oval. His eight wins this season are second only to last year's 11-win season.

There were a couple of rollovers in Hobby Stock action Sunday night. Jacob Keiser was leading his heat when he got too high in turn three. He got sideways at the top of the track and rolled a couple of times, however he walked away uninjured. In fact, Keiser looked over the car, started 16th in the feature and raced to an impressive seventh place finish.

First-time visitor C.J. Dall also got upside down. Dall went over and came to a stop on his side off of turns three and four in the feature. Although he was not hurt, his night ended with a 16th place finish.

My travels will probably be limited this week, however I plan to work on Stats Blitzes for both Independence Motor Speedway and Benton County Speedway. Only four nights of weekly racing await in Independence and six nights in Vinton. It's hard to believe, but we are entering the final month of weekly racing for the season so be sure to get out and support a track in your area.

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

RESULTS
IMCA LATE MODEL
Feature: 1. 15K Justin Kay (Wheatland); 2. 77A Jeff Aikey (Cedar Falls); 3. 53 Darren Ackerman (Readlyn); 4. 19G Richie Gustin (Gilman); 5. 60 Dean Wagner (Evansdale); 6. 9 Bobby Hansen (Center Point); 7. 24 Scott Fitzpatrcik (Urbandale); 8. 1 Rick Dralle (Waterloo); 9. 45 Curt Martin (Independence); 10. 68 Tysus Pattee (Vinton); 11. C41 Jim Aschenbrenner (Aplington); 12. 2 Rory Metcalf (West Union); 13. 77 Dirk Hamilton (Jesup).
Heat one: 1. Kay; 2. Ackerman; 3. Fitzpatrick; 4. Martin; 5. Dralle; 6. Pattee; 7. Aschenbrenner.
Heat two: 1. Gustin; 2. Aikey; 3. Hansen; 4. Wagner; 5. Metcalf; 6. Hamilton.

IMCA MODIFIED
Feature: 1. 18 Jerry Luloff (Independence); 2. 71 Troy Cordes (Dunkerton); 3. 21K Kyle Brown (Kellogg); 4. F7 Patrick Flannagan (Cedar Rapids); 5. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (Jesup); 6. 00 J.D. Auringer (Waterloo); 7. 12D Joe Docekal (Dysart); 8. T23 Tony Olson (Cedar Rapids); 9. 33D Scott Hogan (Vinton); 10. 11B Mike Burbridge (Delhi); 11. 80 Jerry Dedrick (Vinton); 12. 57B Dennis Betzer (Central City); 13. 7 Todd Jensen (Waterloo); 14. 77 Tim McBride (Denver); 15. 14B Shane Burbridge (Manchester); 16. 7S Robbie Schmuecker (Vinton); 17. 98 Jason Snyder (Dunkerton); 18. D27 Dave Pries (Medaryville, Ind.); 19. 81 Jesse Belez (Marengo).
Heat one: 1. Docekal;2. Lauritzen; 3. Dedrick; 4. Schmuecker; 5. Betzer; 6. S. Burbridge; 7. Belez.
Heat two: 1. Flannagan; 2. Auringer; 3. Cordes; 4. Brown; 5. Jensen; 6. McBride.
Heat three: 1. Olson; 2. Luloff; 3. M. Burbridge; 4. Hogan; 5. Snyder; 6. Pries.

IMCA STOCK CAR
Feature: 1. 47 Scott Pippert (Elberon); 2. 15 Norman Chesmore (Rowley); 3. 52 Nathan Wood (Sigourney); 4. 8 Curtis Roster (Vinton); 5. 4X Cory Tharp (Waterloo); 6. 87 John Emerson (Waterloo); 7. 8B Scott Beauregard (Center Point); 8. 76X Chad Siems (Cedar Rapids); 9. 4JR Russell Damme (Waterloo); 10. 76 Mike Galli (Urbana); 11. 22K Kevin Rose (Waterloo).
Heat one: 1. Pippert; 2. Tharp; 3. Damme; 4. Beauregard; 5. Siems.
Heat two: 1. Chesmore; 2. Roster; 3. Emerson; 4. Galli; 5. Wood; 6. Rose.

IMCA NORTHERN SPORTMOD
Feature: 1. 26J Joel Rust (Grundy Center); 2. 3R Danny Dvorak (Vinton); 3. 14 Shane Ebaugh (Evansdale); 4. 22H Curt Hilmer (Dysart); 5. 21 Brennen Chipp (Waterloo); 6. 72 Mike Hogencamp (Waterloo); 7. 00 Jim Buhlman (Cedar Falls); 8. 19J Jenae Gustin (Marshalltown); 9. T17 Tom Rawlins (Kellogg); 10. 3 Dave McCalla (Cedar Rapids); 11. J2 Dave Schulze (Keystone); 12. K3 Kyle Olson (Cedar Rapids); 13. 15B Troy Burkhart (Urbana); 14. CH19 Colby Heishman (Brooklyn); 15. 28P Rick Paulson (Tripoli); 16. 3B Brian Anderson (Garrison); 17. 7D Dakoda Sellers (Vinton); 18. 114 Mike Nielsen (Evansdale); 19. 57G Rich Gerhold (Central City); 20. 11M Mike Mitchell (Cedar Rapids); 21. 10S John Schaefer (La Porte City); 22. 57K Ross Kitner (Dysart); 23. 95 Mike McDonald (Cedar Rapids); 24. 57R Ryan King (Montour).
Heat one: 1. Rust; 2. Olson; 3. Gustin; 4. Paulson; 5. Schulze; 6. Mitchell; 7. Gerhold; 8. Sellers.
Heat two: 1. Hogencamp; 2. Ebaugh; 3. McCalla; 4. Hilmer; 5. Burkhart; 6. Nielsen; 7. Kitner; 8. Rawlins.
Heat three: 1. Anderson; 2. Dvorak; 3. Chipp; 4. Schaefer; 5. Buhlman; 6. McDonald; 7. Heishman; 8. King.

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
Feature: 1. 46 Brian Happel (Vinton); 2. 67 Justin Stander (Shellsburg); 3. 79 Benji Irvine (Cedar Falls); 4. 18 Chris Luloff (Independence); 5. 45 Justin Wacha (Vinton); 6. 17K Kyle Parizek (Belle Plaine); 7. 07 Jacob Keiser (Marengo); 8. 23 Andrew Torkelson (Lisbon); 9. 14J Jacob Floyd (Cedar Rapids); 10. 12J Jeremy Floyd (Cedar Rapids); 11. 09X Brad Forbes (Waterloo); 12. 51D Dustin Filloon (Toledo); 13. 90 Chris Moore (Fairfax); 14. 75D Dale Kite (Keystone); 15. 19B Jim Sheldon (Marion); 16. 88 C.J. Dall (Marshalltown); 17. 78 Matt Brown (Dysart); 18. 21J Jason Williams (Belle Plaine).
Heat one: 1. Luloff; 2. Filloon; 3. Brown; 4. Sheldon; 5. Williams; 6. Keiser.
Heat two: 1. Irvine; 2. Wacha; 3. Jacob Floyd; 4. Parizek; 5. Torkelson; 6. Jeremy Floyd.
Heat three: 1. Stander; 2. Happel; 3. Moore; 4. Forbes; 5. Kite; 6. Dall.

IMCA SPORT COMPACT
Feature: 1. 22 Nathan Chandler (Norway); 2. 11 Steve Miedke (Shellsburg); 3. 00W Bill Whalen Jr. (Riverside); 4. 111 A.J. Witten (Cedar Rapids); 5. 3S Craig Streeter (Vinton); 6. 22T Travis Losenicky (Garrison); 7. 99J Jeremy Lerch (Vinton); 8. 9 Toby Denning (Mt. Auburn); 9. 2 Merv Chandler (Urbana).
Heat: 1. Witten; 2. Miedke; 3. N. Chandler; 4. Losenicky; 5. Lerch; 6. Whalen; 7. Streeter; 8. M. Chandler; DNS Denning.

Droste tops IMCA Modifieds on Dan Snyder Night at Independence

Dan Snyder was reminded Saturday night how racing family comes together during times of need. The area engine builder and friend to many racers was honored during the weekly racing program at Independence Motor Speedway as Snyder continues to fight Metastatic Esophageal cancer.

A number of special activities were included during the program, plus bonus money was offered to drivers in the IMCA Modified and IMCA Northern SportMod divisions. A complete sponsor list follows below.

Tyler Droste earned his second win of the season in the IMCA Modified division to extend his points lead. Tony Snyder, Mike Burbridge and Shawn Ryan spent time at the front of the 27-car field before Droste made his way beneath Ryan for the lead at the midway point.

Droste led the final 10 laps to secure the win ahead of Ryan and Ronn Lauritzen, who started 26th. Darin Duffy raced from a 20th place start to come home fourth. Chris Snyder was the top-finishing Snyder on the night as he raced to a season-best fifth place finish.

It was Droste's second career Modified win in Independence for the first-year division driver. He is one of 53 Modified drivers with multiple wins in Independence and was the fourth straight different Modified winner at the speedway.

Curt Hilmer took the most bonus money in the IMCA Northern SportMod division. Hilmer led all 15 laps of that event and held off Kevin Hurst in traffic to collect his first career win on the Independence oval. Hilmer is the 23rd different SportMod winner in track history.

Hilmer's win established three new records for the division at the speedway. He became the sixth different first-time winner in the SportMods this season, eclipsing the old mark of five first-timers, which was set in 2008 and matched in 2009. He also became the ninth different SportMod feature winner in Independence this year. The previous record of eight different winners was set last year.

With the victory, Hilmer also became the seventh straight different winner in the division at the speedway. That broke the old record of six straight different winners which was established in August of 2009.

Rory Metcalf not only earned his first Independence win, but the first win of his career in the IMCA Late Model division. The 20-year old took the lead at the drop of the green, then held off Greg Kastli in lapped traffic to take the victory. Metcalf became the sixth straight different Late Model winner in Indee.

With the victory, Metcalf became the 98th different Late Model winner in weekly racing in Independence since the start of the 1967 season. He is the most recent first-time winner since Jon Passick on July 16, 2011. That span of 742 days is the longest between new Late Model winners since first-time victories by Randy Wheeler (July 26, 2003) and Josh McGowan (August 13, 2005) spanned 749 days.

Jarod Weepie took control with four laps to go to drive to his second win of the year in the IMCA Stock Car division. Weepie made his way around Jesse Brown to drive to his 20th career win in the division at the speedway.

All-time, Weepie's 20 wins rank fourth in the Stock Car division in Independence. Remarkably, it was his first win during the month of July. Weepie also became the fourth straight different winner in the division.

Chris Luloff drove to his sixth win of the year in a thriller of an IMCA Hobby Stock feature. Luloff entered a four-car breakaway with Vince Buchholz, Justin Stander and Benji Irvine. Luloff powered to the low side to sneak by his competitors to drive to the win a short distance ahead of Stander.

The all-time leading Hobby Stock feature winner in Independence, Luloff now owns 28 trips to the winner's circle. His six wins this season are a personal best for Luloff, who topped the five wins he earned in 2004. The last driver to have more Hobby Stock wins in a season was Josh Irvine - he had seven wins in 2009.

Adam Gates marched to his 10th win of the year in the IMCA Sport Compact division. Gates took charge on lap one, then beat Steve Miedke to the checkers in that 12-lapper.

Gates' 10-win season ties Jack Mitchell (IMCA Modifieds, 1983) and Larry Portis (IMCA Stock Cars, 1995) for the most wins in a season at the speedway.

From beginning to end, it was a great evening to pay tribute to Dan Snyder for all he's meant to area racers. During the national anthem, Snyder's four sons - Andy, Chris, Jason and Tony - followed Dan in the pace car while he presented the nation's colors. Without being prompted, all of the Modified drivers in attendance made their way to the top of turn four to honor Snyder as the pace car made its way around the track.

Signed Frisbees from the Modified and SportMod drivers were also thrown into the stands for the kids during intermission. Those catching the Frisbees of the winners of those features were awarded $25 gift cards to Toys-R-Us.

Chris, Jason and Tony, who compete in the IMCA Modified division, and their brother Andy, who borrowed the car of family friend Troy Cordes, took part in an All-Snyder Shootout during intermission. Jason won the five-lapper as the four raised $1,000 simply by starting the event. A family photo with all four race cars was taken in victory lane following the event.

Performance Bodies and Waterloo Auto Parts offered $500 in prize money for the dash, which will go to the Dan Snyder Benefit on August 9 in the 4-H Building on the Bremer County Fairgrounds in Waverly.

Along with the dash money, a number of folks stepped up to offer additional prize money for Saturday night's show. Those donations included:

IMCA Modified
$150 - Feature Winner - Andy Snyder & Family, Happel Farms
$100 - Highest Finishing Non-Crate - Chris Snyder / Snyder Auto Glass
$100 - Hard Charger - Tony Snyder Masonry
$50 - 2nd Place - Joe Docekal
$50 each - 2nd thru 5th Place - Rage Chassis
$50 each - Random finishing positions (drawn by Dan Snyder) - Jason Snyder (2), Keith Pittman (2), Ed Thomas Racing, Grant & Amanda Harkrader, Kazzbuilt Chassis
$50 - 17th Place Finisher - Buck & Chris Swanson
$50 - 10th Place Finisher - Tommy Belmer
Hoosier Tire - Top Finishing Non-Crate - Troy Cordes
$25 - Driver Running 3rd on Lap 3 - Jason Hocken
$25 - 3rd Place Finisher - Jason Hocken

IMCA Northern SportMod
$100 - Hard Charger - Chris Snyder / Snyder Auto Glass
$50 - Feature Winner - Verne Card
$25 - Feature Winner - Joe Wright
$25 - Feature Winner - Casey Albright
$25 - Feature Winner - Cory Tharp
$25 - 15th Place Finisher - Troy Burkhart
$2 - Driver causing first feature caution - Joe Wright (this award was not presented because the SportMods went flag-to-flag following an initial no-start!)

Thanks to everyone who made their way to the races Saturday night to pay tribute to a great friend of racing. Dan was smiling all night long, however was very short on words throughout the evening. He's as genuine a man as he is humble and was deserving of the support Saturday night. If you haven't already, make plans to attend his benefit in Waverly on August 9. It promises to be a fantastic event.

As I close out this blog, I realize it's the end of July. That means a monthly Stats Blitz for the speedway will be coming this week. Check back for all the numbers through July as we enter our final month of the season.

Tonight, IMCA Late Models return to Benton County Speedway as they join the weekly racing program during the final night of the 2013 Benton County Fair. I've heard a couple of new names will be making their way to the Vinton quarter-mile to compete tonight. It should be another great night of racing. I hope to see you there!

Luloff, Chandler, Moeding open Benton County Fair in victory lane

The 2013 Benton County Fair opened with Stock Car racing and a spectacular lightning show which cut the evening seven laps short. Prior to the rain, three feature winners were crowned in the mid-week draw/redraw, track points event. (complete results follow)

Just like this past Sunday, Jacob Keiser and Chris Luloff showed the way in the IMCA Hobby Stock feature, but when the checkers waved Thursday night the roles were reversed as Luloff drove to the thrilling win in the 15-lapper.

After redrawing the outside front row starting spot, Keiser raced into the lead at the drop of the green. He ran the middle and top side while Luloff pursued. From a third row start, Luloff raced the low side into contention, placing his #18 in second after just two laps.

Luloff reeled in Keiser as the leaders waged a terrific battle for the top spot throughout much of the event. Luloff chased Kesier for a handful of laps before pulling even with the front-runner at the midway point. The two ran wheel-to-wheel until Luloff pulled ahead on the low side with four laps to go. He held off Keiser to take the win, his fourth of the year.

All-time, Luloff remains third on the Hobby Stock wins list in Vinton with 21 trips to the winner's circle in weekly points racing. Luloff is a model of consistency as he now owns four wins each during the months of May, June, July and August at the speedway. His five other wins have come during the month of April.

Nathan Chandler earned his second straight win and his seventh of the season in the IMCA Sport Compact division. After redrawing the second starting spot, Chandler pulled away at the drop of the green to win the event in dominant fashion.

The all-time IMCA Sport Compact wins leader in Vinton, Chandler now has 42 wins in weekly points racing. In addition, Chandler has nine separate streaks of at least two consecutive wins in his career at the speedway. Much like Luloff, Chandler has evenly spread out his victories. He has 10 wins each during the months of May, June and July. He also has seven in August, three in April and two in September.

Following the dramatic lightning show, the rain came just after the IMCA Northern SportMods had run eight laps of their scheduled 15-lap feature. The race was declared official since over half of the event was scored complete.

Tom Rawlins led the early stages of that event while Kyle Olson and Kurt Moeding gave chase. Moeding worked past his competitors to take command following a lap seven caution. One more lap was completed before the next caution, during which time rain brought a halt to the event.

Moeding's second career SportMod win in Vinton came two days after the four year anniversary of his first (July 23, 2009). That span of 1,463 calendar days between wins is the longest span between SportMod wins in track history.

With his second weekly points victory, Moeding is now tied for 17th on the speedway's SportMod wins list with Bob Ebaugh, Brett Root, Joe Docekal, Joel Rust, Kyle Wahlert, Mike Krall, Rod McDonald and Shane Ebaugh. 

The points leader entering Thursday night, Joel Rust opted to race at the Hamilton County Fair special in Webster City rather than make the tow to Vinton. Although he is one night short of the rest of the points leaders in the standings, Rust unofficially finished the night trailing Danny Dvorak atop the standings by three points.

RESULTS
IMCA NORTHERN SPORTMOD
Feature: 1. 7M Kurt Moeding (Mason City); 2. 21 Brennen Chipp (Waterloo); 3. 3R Danny Dvorak (Vinton); 4. T17 Tom Rawlins (Kellogg); 5. 00 Jim Buhlman (Cedar Falls); 6. J2 Dave Schulze (Keystone); 7. 7D Dakoda Sellers (Vinton); 8. 72 Mike Hogencamp (Waterloo); 9. 3B Brian Anderson (Garrison); 10. 15B Troy Burkhart (Urbana); 11. 4 Ryan Maitland (Waterloo); 12. 57R Ryan King (Montour); 13. 22H Curt Hilmer (Dysart); 14. 10S John Schaefer (La Porte City); 15. 626 Shad May (Trenton, N.D.); 16. CH19 Colby Heishman (Brooklyn); 17. 44X John Sieg (Williston, N.D.); 18. 11M Mike Mitchell (Cedar Rapids); 19. 57K Ross Kitner (Dysart); 20. K3 Kyle Olson (Cedar Rapids); 21. 57G Rich Gerhold (Central City); 22/DNS. 11 Al Sweerin (Waterloo); 23/DNS. 115 Bob Ebaugh (Raymond).
First heat (4 redraw): 1. May; 2. Kitner; 3. Dvorak; 4. Hogencamp; 5. Burkhart; 6. Mitchell; 7. Sieg; DNS Sweerin.
Second heat: 1. Moeding; 2. Olson; 3. Anderson; 4. Rawlins; 5. Hilmer; 6. Schaefer; 7. Heishman; 8. King.
Third heat: 1. Chipp; 2. Buhlman; 3. Maitland; 4. Schulze; 5. Gerhold; 6. Sellers; DNS Ebaugh. 

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
Feature: 1. 18 Chris Luloff (Independence); 2. 07 Jacob Keiser (Marengo); 3. 78 Matt Brown (Dysart); 4. 46 Brian Happel (Vinton); 5. 17K Kyle Parizek (Belle Plaine); 6. 67 Justin Stander (Shellsburg); 7. 45 Justin Wacha (Vinton); 8. 79 Benji Irvine (Cedar Falls); 9. 23 Andrew Torkelson (Lisbon); 10. 1S Greg Sweerin (Evansdale); 11. 21J Jason Williams (Belle Plaine); 12. 6 Randy Vandevegte (Manchester); 13. 14C Leah Wroten (Independence).
First heat (5 redraw): 1. Luloff; 2. Irvine; 3. Happel; 4. Stander; 5. Williams; 6. Wacha; 7. Wroten.
Second heat: 1. Brown; 2. Keiser; 3. Parizek; 4. Sweerin; 5. Vandevegte; 6. Torkelson. 

IMCA SPORT COMPACT
Feature: 1. 22 Nathan Chandler (Norway); 2. 111 A.J. Witten (Cedar Rapids); 3. 9 Toby Denning (Mt. Auburn); 4. 99 Nathan Lerch (Vinton); 5/DNS. 22T Travis Losenicky (Garrison).
Heat (5 redraw): 1. Chandler; 2. Witten; 3. Losenicky; 4. Denning; 5. Lerch.