Earl Walls of Independence, owner and promoter of Central Missouri Speedway in Warrensburg, found a way to divert some attention Saturday night from his weekly auto-racing program.
Walls – who along with his wife Susan is in the midst of his second stint of 15 years involvement with the three-eighths-mile dirt track – announced that he and his wife will be retiring as promoters at the end of the season and they are putting the track up for sale.
The Saturday program had a total of 93 cars in four divisions checked into the pits.
Scotty Martin of Independence, the points leader in the B-modified division, was the only area feature winner in the program.
Martin rebounded from an 11th-place finish Friday night at Valley Speedway in Grain Valley.
In the meantime, Matt Johnson of Archie, Mo. (A-modifieds), Steve Clancey of Odessa, Mo. (ULMA late models) and John Brooks of Warrensburg, Mo. (street stocks) were the remaining feature winners in the program.
I-70 staged two programs this weekend and Elton Rust Jr. of Independence led area drivers Friday night by winning a 100-lap feature race for late models on the asphalt track.
Area drivers Ron Hartford of Raytown, Caleb Hall of Blue Springs and Billy Crane of Independence finished third, fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 100-lap event.
Veteran driver Gene Claxton of Kansas City highlighted racing on the dirt track by winning his second I-70 feature of the season Friday night.
VALLEY SPEEDWAY: John Miller of Oak Grove paced local drivers Friday night at the three-eighths-mile dirt track by placing second behind Chad Eickleberry of Warrensburg, Mo., in the street stocks feature.
Tim Setzer of Archie, Mo. (A-modifieds) and Brian Ziegler of Bates City, Mo. (B-modifieds) were other feature winners in the program.
David Chapman of Lee’s Summit was seventh, Andy Benedict took ninth and Kyle Westerhold and Paul Knight of Blue Springs were 11th and 14th, respectively, in the A modified feature.
MISSOURI STATE FAIR: The Thursday night program consisting of ULMA late models, modifieds and street stocks in Sedalia, Mo., was rained out and will not be made up.
LAKESIDE SPEEDWAY: Defending race winner Robert Ballou of Rocklin, Calif., won the 30-lap Ron Shuman Classic for non-winged sprint cars Saturday night at the three-eights-mile dirt track in Kansas City, Kan.
He was paid $10,000 for his triumph in what was the final race of the six-race O’Reilly-sponsored Sprint Bandit Tour.
Brady Bacon of Broken Arrow, Okla. – who won the first feature of his career Wednesday night in a winged sprint car with a 410-cubic-inch engine at State Fair Speedway in Oklahoma City, Okla. – claimed the Thursday night feature at Creek County Speedway in Kellyville, Okla., and the Friday night Ron Shuman Classic at Lakeside.
Dave Darland of Walton, Ind., who was third Saturday, finished first in Tour points standings with 864 points and Jesse Hockett of Warsaw, Mo., who finished fourth Saturday, was second with 820.
t AUTO RACING
SATURDAY
CENTRAL MISSOURI SPEEDWAY
At Warrensburg, Mo.
Event winners and area finishers
A-MODIFIEDS
Heat 1: Charlie Ebert, Oak Grove. Heat 2: Kerry Davis, Parkville, Mo. Heat 3: Dean Wille, Warrensburg, Mo. Heat 4: Matt Johnson, Archie, Mo. Consolation feature: Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview, Mo. A feature: 1. Johnson.
ULMA LATE MODELS
Heat 1: Bob King, Independence. Heat 2: Steve Clancy, Odessa, Mo. Heat 3: Allen Perryman, Belton, Mo. Feature: 1. Clancy; 2. King; 13. John Pipes, Oak Grove.
B-MODIFIEDS
Heat 1: Brad Smith, Peculiar, Mo. Heat 2: Rusty Trimble, Kansas City, Kan. Heat 3: Scotty Martin, Independence. Consolation feature: 1. Michael Mullins, Kingsville, Mo.; 5. Chris Stout, Oak Grove. A feature: 1. Scotty Martin, Independence; 2. Bryan Montgomery, Oak Grove; 13. Stout; 19. Jacob Ebert, Oak Grove.
STREET STOCKS
Heat 1: John Brooks, Warrensburg, Mo. Heat 2: Brian Johnson, Warrensburg, Mo. Heat 3: Tammy Korff, Fulton, Mo. Feature: 1. Brooks; 5. Jerry Schmidt, Independence; 7. Anthony Ward, Independence; 10. Nic Bennett, Oak Grove; 12. John Miller, Oak Grove; 17. Bryan Maze, Blue Springs; 19. Brian Johnson, Independence.
I-70 SPEEDWAY
At Odessa, Mo.
Event winners and area finishers
Asphalt track
LATE MODELS
Single-lap qualifying: Thor Anderson, 17.39 seconds. Feature: 1. Elton Rust Jr., Independence; 3. Ron Hartford, Raytown; 5. Billy Crane, Independence; 6. Caleb Hall, Blue Springs; 9. Jim Gochenour, Lee’s Summit; 14. Randy Price, Independence.
SUPER STOCKS
Heat: John Thomson. Feature: Brad Spillman.
DASH CARS
Heat 1: Michael Deschenes. Heat 2: Robert Isabell, Bonner Springs, Kan. Feature: Deschenes.
ENDUROS
Heat 1: Gary Walton. Heat 2: Christian Ewing. Feature: Steve Bailey
Dirt Track feature winners
SMVR: Mickie Cook, Amoret, Mo.; DCRA: Jeff Raffurty; Figure eight: Justin Frost.
FRIDAY
VALLEY SPEEDWAY
At Grain Valley
Event winners and area finishers
A-MODIFIEDS
Heat 1: Chad Status. Heat 2: Jim Moody, Odessa, Mo. Heat 3: Jason Bodenhamer, Centerview, Mo. Feature: 1. Tim Setzer, Archie, Mo.; 7. David Chapman, Lee’s Summit; 9. Andy Benedict, Independence; 11. Kyle Westerhold, Blue Springs; 14. Paul Knight, Blue Springs.
B-MODIFIEDS
Heat 1: Jeremy Johnson. Heat 2: Joshua Jacobs. Heat 3: Brad Smith, Peculiar, Mo. Feature: 1. Brian Ziegler, Bates City, Mo.; 11. Scotty Martin, Independence.
STREET STOCKS
Heat 1: Scott Dukes, Mayview, Mo. Heat 2: Chad Eickleberry, Warrensburg, Mo. Feature: 1. Eickleberry; 2. John Miller, Oak Grove; 9. Brian Johnson, Independence.
I-70 SPEEDWAY
At Odessa, Mo.
Dirt track feature winners
IMCA modifieds: Gene Claxton, Kansas City; IMCA stock cars: Brad Whitney, Trenton, Mo.; IMCA sportsmod: Cody Graham; Sport compact: Dave Cotterman, Belton, Mo.; Farm truck: Tom Corum; Non-winged micros: Cole Melby.
