At the Track

We'll note happenings at the national and local levels of racing.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Starting off the next 50 with a bang, and a crash...



The 50th season of Ona Speedway got underway Saturday with a bang. And a crash, some engine revving and general Saturday night short track mayhem.

Just in case you missed it, the Classic division was out first and the 25-lap race took nearly an hour to run, thanks to two drivers, Chumpy Brumfield and Jeremy Williams.

How someone didn’t get black-flagged is beyond me. A spin, a bump, then a bigger bump and a swing through the infield for a face-off. After a brief cooling off where officials were running between the two cars and disqualifying them both, the two drivers were allowed back into the race to the back of the field.

What the what? Hey, NASCAR changes the rules in the middle of a race, why can’t Ona?

Almost 40 minutes and three caution flags later, the race was over with Terry Brumfield taking the win, followed by John Morton and Chumpy Brumfield who had been disqualified and let back in.

So the tone is apparently set in that series. I have a feeling this feud isn’t over.

In the 6 Cylinder any car class, the 4 cars entered finished like this: Bryce Keyser, Doug Harvey, Gary Cassidy and Shawn Perry (DNF).

The huge U-car class runs two heats before the main frame. Now, by the time the Main Frame was ready to run, it was well after 10 p.m., and frankly, I missed it.The weather was cold and I got tired. Sorry, fans, I'm not as young as I seem.

But top finishers in the two heats were Joe Workman, Chris Deskins and Kevin Gillespie in the first and the second, Glen Foster, Kenny Fletcher and Frankie Osborn.

The Late Model feature was a runaway with local driver Jake Keaton returning to Ona Speedway in the familiar #10. Keaton took the early lead and kept it throughout the race. Several restarts gave the #12 of Grey Harvey a good chance to overtake Keaton, but that didn’t materialize.

Next up at Ona Speedway is June 8 when the Clayton Homes 100 night will feature U-cars, 6cyl Any Car, Street Stock, Hobby Stock, Classics.

Gates open at 5 p.m.; racing starts at 7 p.m. Cost $10 for adults, $7 for ages 11-17 and free for ages 10 and under. Free parking. Concessions are available. Visit www.hughes-motorsports.com. Rockabilly Hall of Famer, Sleepy LaBeef will be the pre-race concert that night.Wow, wonder how that would happen? It's not like Ona Speedway manager Dave Hughes played guitar for LaBeef. Hmmm.




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