The Trophy Hunter fills his tag at Benton County Speedway

(Thanks to Dana Benning for the headline!) 

After five runner-up finishes through the first 14 nights, IMCA Modified driver Joe Docekal earned his first win of the season Sunday night at Benton County Speedway. (complete results follow)

Known as the Trophy Hunter, Docekal earned top honors after taking the lead five laps into the 20-lap feature and then surviving a pair of late-race stoppages on his way to victory. Ronn Lauritzen raced from the fifth row to finish second ahead of Jerry Luloff.

The win was Docekal's first in Vinton since August 14, 2011. In the last two seasons alone, Docekal earned 19 top-five finishes in 31 events prior to Sunday's victory. It's about damn time, Joe. Now I can finally write about something else. You must admit, though, JoeDoNoNo was kinda catchy. Maybe NoMoJoeDoNoNo?

For his career, Docekal has eight Modified wins to his credit in Vinton. He is now tied for 18th on the all-time list with Joey Schaefer, Kevin Pittman and Mike Sampson. Entering the night, he was tied in career BCS Modified wins with fellow Dysart drivers Rich Krafka and Dave Burrell. Docekal is now the top Dysart driver in Modified wins in Vinton history unless, of course, Burrell gets the crazy notion to come out of retirement and attempt to challenge Docekal...

Three of Docekal's eight wins have come during the month of August, his most successful calendar month. Apparently, hunting season is officially open.

Just a week after rolling his car off turn three, Jacob Keiser protected the low groove and fought off heavy pressure from multiple drivers to earn his second win of the season in the IMCA Hobby Stock division.

Keiser raced the low side into the lead on the first lap as a handful of drivers were battling two and three-wide shortly after the drop of the green. He emerged with the lead at the flagstand and quickly went to work protecting the bottom groove.

Justin Stander was the first to challenge the leader while Chris Luloff and Brian Happel raced into contention. Keiser remained committed to the low side while his pursuers jockeyed for position and swapped racing grooves in attempt to get a run on the leader.

Happel proved to be the most successful as he moved to the top side in the waning laps while Keiser ran down low. Happel pulled alongside the leader and took away the top spot when the white flag waved, however Keiser powered to the low side in both sets of turns on the final circuit to edge Happel by inches for the win.

His second win of the season, Keiser has now won multiple features in two consecutive years in Vinton. In his weekly racing career, Keiser has seven Hobby Stock wins at the speedway, which ties him with Happel, Brad Anders, Kyle Parizek and Steve Kesl for 16th on the all-time list.

Keiser's win Sunday night came two days after the four year anniversary of his first Hobby Stock win in Vinton - August 2, 2009. Those two victories are his only August wins at the speedway.

Danny Dvorak took advantage of a late caution to drive to his sixth IMCA Northern SportMod win of the season. Colby Heishman held the early advantage in that 15-lapper before Jim Buhlman made the pass for the lead on lap four.

Buhlman pulled away from the field while Dvorak was making his way through traffic from a fifth row start. Dvorak settled into the runner-up position just before the caution flag waved with four laps to go.

Buhlman pushed coming off turn four when the green flag waved, allowing Dvorak to pull even at the flagstand. Buhlman pushed again in the first set of turns as Dvorak squeezed by and drove away to victory.

The win was Dvorak's 52nd in weekly racing history in SportMod racing in Vinton. Only five of those wins have come during the month of August - the fewest of any calendar month for the track's all-time leading SportMod winner.

After Kevin Rose and Scott Pippert shared time at the front of the 15-lap IMCA Stock Car feature, Norman Chesmore worked the low side into the lead off turn two on lap four. Just like his previous wins in Vinton this season, Chesmore protected the low groove while Pippert and John Emerson pursued.

Both of his followers attempted to make a run in the middle and high grooves, however Chesmore held on for the victory. Emerson slipped past Pippert late to take second.

With five wins on the season, Chesmore now has 19 Stock Car wins in weekly racing history in Vinton. He has moved into a tie for fourth on the all-time list with Dan Trimble. He has eight wins to go before catching Curtis Roster in third.

Merv Chandler won an entertaining IMCA Sport Compact main event. From his outside front row starting spot, Chandler battled Steve Miedke for the lead. Miedke held the point for the first three circuits before Chandler took command.

Miedke remained within striking distance while Nathan Chandler, who survived mid-race contact from another driver, was making his way to the front. Nathan reeled in the leaders in the late stages of the 12-lapper and was able to make his way past Miedke with a lap to go. His efforts to reel in his father came up a couple car-lengths short as Merv raced to his second win of the year.

Merv has now won multiple features for the third year in a row in Vinton. His 10 career wins on the quarter-mile tie him with Miedke for sixth on the all-time list.

One interesting note (or maybe not), Sunday was the first night this season that every feature winner had at least six career wins in Vinton in their respective divisions entering the racing program.

That's all for the weekend, but Monday will be huge at Independence Motor Speedway. World of Outlaws Late Models and Hawkeye Dirt Tour Modifieds will be appearing together for the first time in history. It promises to be an electric night on the 3/8-mile oval. Join us for history in the making! Gates open at 4, hot laps at 6:45 and qualifying to follow!

RESULTS
IMCA MODIFIED
Feature: 1. 12D Joe Docekal (Dysart); 2. 10K Ronn Lauritzen (Jesup); 3. 18 Jerry Luloff (Independence); 4. 33D Scott Hogan (Vinton); 5. 81 Jesse Belez (Marengo); 6. 80 Jerry Dedrick (Vinton); 7. F7 Patrick Flannagan (Cedar Rapids); 8. 71 Troy Cordes (Dunkerton); 9. 00 J.D. Auringer (Waterloo); 10. 7 Todd Jensen (Waterloo); 11. 14B Shane Burbridge (Manchester); 12. D27 Dave Pries (Medaryville, Ind.); 13. T23 Tony Olson (Cedar Rapids); 14. 77 Tim McBride (Denver).
Heat one: 1. Auringer; 2. Flannagan; 3. Hogan; 4. Cordes; 5. Olson; 6. Burbridge; 7. Pries.
Heat two: 1. Docekal; 2. Lauritzen; 3. Luloff; 4. Belez; 5. Dedrick; 6. Jensen; 7. McBride.

IMCA STOCK CAR
Feature: 1. 15 Norman Chesmore (Rowley); 2. 87 John Emerson (Waterloo); 3. 47 Scott Pippert (Elberon); 4. 7H Phil Holtz (Manchester); 5. 56T Justin Temeyer (Independence); 6. 22K Kevin Rose (Waterloo); 7. 8 Curtis Roster (Vinton); 8. 4JR Russell Damme (Waterloo); 9. 8B Scott Beauregard (Center Point); 10. 76 Mike Galli (Urbana); 11. 77X Tim Schneider (Muscoda, Wis.); 12. 4X Cory Tharp (Waterloo).
Heat one: 1. Emerson; 2. Rose; 3. Damme; 4. Roster; 5. Tharp; 6. Holtz.
Heat two: 1. Temeyer; 2. Chesmore; 3. Pippert; 4. Galli; 5. Beauregard; 6. Schneider.

IMCA NORTHERN SPORTMOD
Feature: 1. 3R Danny Dvorak (Vinton); 2. 00 Jim Buhlman (Cedar Falls); 3. 26J Joel Rust (Grundy Center); 4. 3T Tyler Soppe (Sherrill); 5. 21 Brennen Chipp (Waterloo); 6. CH19 Colby Heishman (Brooklyn); 7. 44G Brady Graham (Brooklyn); 8. 10S John Schaefer (La Porte City); 9. J2 Dave Schulze (Keystone); 10. 3 Dave McCalla (Cedar Rapids); 11. 7D Dakoda Sellers (Vinton); 12. 22H Curt Hilmer (Dysart); 13. T17 Tom Rawlins (Kellogg); 14. 72 Mike Hogencamp (Waterloo); 15. 11M Mike Mitchell (Cedar Rapids); 16. 57R Ryan King (Montour); 17. 4 Ryan Maitland (Waterloo); 18. K3 Kyle Olson (Cedar Rapids); 19. 3B Brian Anderson (Garrison); 20. 35C Casey Heil (Cedar Rapids); 21. 28P Rick Paulson (Tripoli); 22. 35 Josh Miller (Lisbon); 23. 95 Mike McDonald (Cedar Rapids); 24. 49 Brandon Smith (Waterloo).
Heat one: 1. Chipp; 2. Anderson; 3. Maitland; 4. Hilmer; 5. Hogencamp; 6. Rawlins; 7. Mitchell; 8. Miller.
Heat two: 1. Dvorak; 2. King; 3. McDonald; 4. Soppe; 5. Schulze; 6. Schaefer; 7. Paulson; 8. Heil.
Heat three: 1. Sellers; 2. Heishman; 3. Rust; 4. Buhlman; 5. Olson; 6. McCalla; 7. Smith; 8. Graham.

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
Feature: 1. 07 Jacob Keiser (Marengo); 2. 46 Brian Happel (Vinton); 3. 67 Justin Stander (Shellsburg); 4. 23 Andrew Torkelson (Lisbon); 5. 18 Chris Luloff (Independence); 6. 45 Justin Wacha (Vinton); 7. 78 Matt Brown (Dysart); 8. 17K Kyle Parizek (Belle Plaine); 9. 14J Jacob Floyd (Cedar Rapids); 10. 21J Jason Williams (Belle Plaine); 11. 14C Leah Wroten (Independence); 12. 58B Randy Byerly (Tipton); 13. 12J Jeremy Floyd (Cedar Rapids); 14. 75D Dale Kite (Keystone).
Heat one: 1. Wacha; 2. Happel; 3. Parizek; 4. Wroten; 5. Jacob Floyd; 6. Jeremy Floyd; 7. Kite.
Heat two: 1. Brown; 2. Keiser; 3. Torkelson; 4. Stander; 5. Williams; 6. Luloff; 7. Byerly.

IMCA SPORT COMPACT
Feature: 1. 2 Merv Chandler (Urbana); 2. 22 Nathan Chandler (Norway); 3. 11 Steve Miedke (Shellsburg); 4. 00W Bill Whalen Jr. (Riverside); 5. 3S Craig Streeter (Vinton); 6. 9 Toby Denning (Mt. Auburn); 7. 99J Jeremy Lerch (Vinton).