Eagle Raceway: Scout night wins go to Beckman, Grabouski, Danley and Boston

by Greg Soukup

August 9th, 2009 - The hottest temperatures this year kept a few fans from
attending Scout Night, presented by Speedway Motors Saturday night at
"America's Home Track" Eagle Raceway. But the racing was even hotter on a
track that was racy throughout the evening's events. Several cars from the
GOTRA (Good Old Time Racing Association) were on display and also ran some
hot laps as a demonstration of part of what the fans will see next weekend.

All heat races were run with only a minor incident in the 2nd Budweiser 360
Sprint Heat. Terry Holliman's #23 slid up the track as he attempted to pass
the 33 of Terry Cadwallader. The two cars made contact, sending
Cadwallader's sprint into the turn 4 wall ending his night.

At intermission any youngster 12 and under who wanted was given a ride
around the track in the very race cars that were competing at Eagle. The
line was quite long, but the smiles on the kids' faces showed that they
thought it was well worth the wait.

Mark McKinney's #23 was first back to the flag stand on lap 1 of the
Valentino's IMCA Hobby Stock A Feature and had Earl Schmitt's 70, the 32 of
Joe Ryan and Chad Fegley in the 77F close behind. The second lap saw Fegley
and Nick Beckman in the 22 pass Ryan for third and fourth. Fegley took only
2 laps to grab second from Schmitt and then 1 more to grab the lead from
McKinney. On lap 6 Beckman moved up to third past Schmitt only to have the
53 of Don Kross spin out in turn 2. Kross retired to the pits and Beckman
moved back to fourth. Beckman wasn't going to be satisfied with fourth
however and grabbed third on the restart lap and then got around McKinney
for second the next time around. With 6 laps left Fegley slipped in turn 2,
allowing Beckman to take over 1st. That same lap RJ Macku vaulted all the
way into the third position. Fegley made a valiant effort to retake the lead
on the last lap, even coming alongside Beckman but he had to settle for the
runner-up spot. The top four were Beckman, Fegley, Macku and McKinney.

"It's been so long since I won here, and it feels so good to finally win
again. I really didn't think it was going to happen again this year, but I
somehow managed to do it. We've really been having a rough last few weeks"
Beckman said. Nick's sponsors are Kevin & Brie Mosier, Athey Painting,
Centerfield Construction, Miller Custom Cabinets, Terry's Body Shop & Sales,
Scott's Auto Detailing, Ramos Pizza & Buster's BBQ, Kadavy Restoration,
Dicky & Burham, Shepard Motorsports and Speedy Steve's.

Next up for their A Main were the Monster Energy Drink IMCA Modifieds. Tim
Pickens held first after lap 1 in his 00 with the 4T of Jerry Trejo, Jan
Korth's 42K and the 81 of Mike Densberger rounding out the top 4. Lap 2 saw
Densberger take third from Korth with Doug Deterding also passing Korth the
next lap. Densberger spun in turns 3 & 4 on lap 5, collecting Ed Raines'
11AA and the 3W of Stacey Wilhelm. Also stopping were the 95 of Dylan Smith
and the S56 of Scott Bivens who were forced to start at the rear as Raines'
racer was hauled to the pits with severe damage to the right front. The
running order at the time was Pickens, Trejo, Deterding and the 21H of Shane
Hiatt. Trejo went extremely high on the restart falling back to the fourth
position as Deterding and Hiatt both advanced. Bob Zoubek brought his #5S to
fourth behind Jordan Grabouski's 30 who grabbed third with 10 to go and the
next lap he moved to second past Grabouski and Deterding and then to the
lead past Pickens, only to have Densberger and the 8J of Joe Borer both spin
in turn 4. At that point Pickens, Deterding, Jordan Grabouski and Zoubek
were the top 4. Grabouski and Zoubek used the restart lap to move to 2nd and
3rd. Grabouski got around Pickens with 7 laps left and Zoubek took second
from Pickens the next time around. Trejo spun out with 5 laps remaining to
bring out the final caution flag of the race. Dylan Smith, who held the
National IMCA Modified point lead going into the evening slid to a stop at
the entrance to the pits with 3 to go and was towed to the pits with
steering damage. The last lap saw John Saathoff's 96J moved all the way to
third. Grabouski held on for the win followed by Zoubek, Saathoff and
Pickens.

"It's always great to win here at Eagle with the tough competition. I want
to thank Bob Zoubek for racing me clean, because that's what makes racing
fun. Hopefully we can stay in the top four in points the rest of the year"
Jordan stated. He concluded by saying "I want to thank my car owners, Ben &
Melissa Novotny and also Darcy". Grabouski's sponsors are Belleville
Motorsports,Twin Rivers Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge, Reedy Machine & Fab, Beatrice
Motor Mart, Redline Grafix, Sasse Farms, Vision Sports, Friend Freightways,
Novotny Construction, Booth Feed & Supply, Schmidt Machine, Side Trek Bar &
Grill, Filley Customer Powder Coating and FX Suspension.

The Auto Trans Matic IMCA Sport Compacts then ran their A Feature. Melissa
Cronin's 5M, the 4X of Chad Bassinger, Larry Cronin's 5 and the 29 of Matt
Moyer were the first four to complete a lap. The 5 got loose on lap 2,
allowing both Moyer and the 7V of Adam Vrbka to pass him. Moyer grabbed the
second spot on lap 4 with the 16T of Tyler Saathoff taking over third and
Joey Danley taking fourth in his #14. Moyer took the lead from Melissa
Cronin with 9 laps remaining, but lost a tire in turn 3 and rolled in turn
4. Melissa also had suffered a flat tire and went to the pits for repairs.
After Saathoff had stopped short of the incident Adam Vrbka made extremely
hard contact with him and both cars went to the pits. As the field took the
green flag again it was Danley, the 55 of Garrett Rech, Jack Prall IV's 45
and the 93 of John Sedlachek in the top four. Rech snared the lead from
Danley with a pass to the inside with 2 to go, but Danley returned the favor
on the last lap to preserve the win. Rech, Prall IV and Sedlachek were the
other racers going to the tech area.

"The track was really smooth tonight, and after the first four cars dropped
out it made it easy to win" Joey stated. He finished the interview by saying
"I want to thank my Dad and Tim Horsham and of course my crew Kyle, Andrew
and Dane".

The Budweiser 360 Sprints concluded the A Mains for the evening's racing.
Ryan Kitchen's 21 held the first circuit lead followed by Mark Schmidt's 9j,
Bobby Becker's 8B and the X29 of Roger Sluka. Becker and Sluka both passed
Schmidt on lap 2 and Gage Dorr's 17 also got past Schmidt on lap 3 to take
fourth. Becker's night came to a premature halt as he lost his right rear
wheel in turns 1 & 2 when the center broke out of it. Rocky Klabunde spun
the #28 out in turn 3 on the restart to cause the caution lights to come on
again. When the green flag waved Adam Gullion moved his #96KX up to the
third spot, only to have his motor let go with 19 laps left, sending him to
the infield. That put Mike Boston's 88 in third. Boston moved up to 2nd with
16 to go. 11 laps remained when Trevor Grossenbacher advanced his #35AB to
fourth. Boston took over the lead with 9 laps to go and held on for the win.
The only other position change in the top 4 came on the last lap as John
Klabunde garnered a front stretch inspection by taking fourth.

Mike related "Roger and the track prep crew need to be applauded for doing
such a great job with the track tonight. Whenever you are still throwing mud
at the end of the last A and there's lots of passing lanes on a windy day
over 100 degrees, it makes for a great race for the fans". "I want to thank
everyone who makes it possible for me to race here every week; Rick and
Michelle Bowers my car owners, the Zoz family for these great motors and of
course my sponsors" he finished. Mike's sponsors include Trackside Bar and
Grill, E & K Drywall and Eckley Racing Engines.

Next week's event will be "Mod Madness" on August 15th. The Budweiser 360
sprints will take a week off to allow the teams and their fans the
opportunity to attend racing elsewhere, but there will still be plenty of
racing and excitement to see. The Monster Energy Drink IMCA Modifieds will
be joined by the IMCA Sport Modifieds, the Valentino's IMCA Hobby Stocks and
the Auto Trans Matic IMCA Sport Compacts. The Good Old Time Racing
Association (GOTRA) will return to Eagle to race also, and local racing
legend Bill Wrich will have his vintage #16 race car on hand. Kids, don't
forget to bring your water guns so that you can take part in "Water Wars"
against the racers.

August 22nd will be McDonalds Junior Fan Club Night, with a money grab for
the youngsters at intermission.

August 29th will be the season points finale, sponsored by Jack Daniels.

Don't forget to mark Saturday September 12th on your calendar as Eagle
Raceway "America's Home Track" presents The Nebraska Cup featuring the 360
Sprints vying for $5000 to win, the A Modifieds compete for $1000 to win and
the Auto Trans Matic IMCA Sport Compacts as the support class. For details,
go to http://www.eagleraceway.com/?page_id=1559

October 3rd is the rescheduled date for the Bootleggers Run Race of
Champions. Racing celebrities Roger & Kasey Mears, Jimmy Spencer and Michael
Waltrip will be racing along with an unnamed NASCAR driver to be announced
later.

Eagle Results

Scout Night (360 Sprint 8/8/2009)

A Feature:1. MIKE BOSTON (Crete, NE), 2. Ryan Kitchen (Weston, NE), 3. Mark
Schmidt (Lincoln, NE), 4. John Klabunde (Fort Calhoun, NE), 5. Trevor
Grossenbacher (Holland, NE), 6. Doug Lovegrove Racing Inc (Waverly, NE), 7.
Terry Holliman (Hamburg, IA), 8. Mitchell Moore (Edgerton, KS), 9. Gage Dorr
(Elmwood, NE), 10. Tige Jensen (Lincoln, NE), 11. Rocky Klabunde (Omaha,
NE), 12. Roger Sluka (Lincoln, NE), 13. Mikey Gablehouse (Lincoln, NE), 14.
Chad Fegley (Eagle, NE), 15. Nicholas Bryan (Lincoln, NE), 16. Adam Gullion
(Beatrice, NE), 17. Bobby Jr Becker (Denton, NE), 18. Nick Clifford
(Elkhorn, NE), 19. Josh Riggins (Lincoln, NE), 20. Terry Cadwallader
(Lincoln, NE), 21. Michael Beckerman (Wichita, KS)

IMCA Hobby Stock 8/8/2009

A Feature:1. Nick Beckman (Lincoln, NE), 2. Chad Fegley (Eagle, NE), 3.
Randall Macku (Lincoln, NE), 4. Mark McKinney (Omaha, NE), 5. EARL SCHMITT
(Omaha, NE), 6. Kevin Anderson (Lincoln, NE), 7. Rob Brown (Nebraska City,
NE), 8. Roy Armstrong (Beatirce, NE), 9. Kevin Jochum (Roca, NE), 10. Justin
Busboom (Lincoln, NE), 11. Ben Becher (Lincoln, NE), 12. Dan Noonan
(Lincoln, NE), 13. Joe Ryan (Lincoln, NE), 14. Mike Hansen (Weeping Water,
NE), 15. Josh Kennell (Bennet, NE), 16. Keith Dragoo (Lincoln, NE), 17.
Scott Santee (Omaha, NE), 18. Joe Schidler (Lincoln, NE), 19. Derick Noonan
(Lincoln, NE), 20. Don Kros (Weston, NE)

B Feature:1. Roy Armstrong (Beatirce, NE), 2. Josh Kennell (Bennet, NE), 3.
Keith Dragoo (Lincoln, NE), 4. Derick Noonan (Lincoln, NE), 5. Joe Schidler
(Lincoln, NE), 6. Chris LaChapelle (Omaha, NE), 7. Greg Post (Blue Springs,
NE), 8. Matt Draeger (Dunbar, NE), 9. Jason Edwards (Lincoln, NE), 10. Orion
Stransky (Lincoln, NE)

IMCA Modified 8/8/2009

A Feature:1. Jordan Grabouski (Beatrice, NE), 2. Bob Zoubek (Dorchester,
NE), 3. Johnny Saathoff (Beatrice, NE), 4. Tim Pickens (Omaha, NE), 5. Dan
Nelson (Beatrice, NE), 6. Doug Deterding (Lincoln, NE), 7. Matt Richards
(Lincoln, NE), 8. Shane Hiatt (Rising City, NE), 9. Lance Borgman (Beatrice,
NE), 10. Rik Gropp (Lincoln, NE), 11. Lacey Tuttle (Elmwood, NE), 12. Stacey
Wilhelm (Martell, NE), 13. Jan Korth (Lincoln, NE), 14. Jerry Trejo
(Lincoln, NE), 15. Dylan Smith (Osceola, NE), 16. Joe Borer (Lincoln, ne),
17. Nathan Landauer (Lincoln, NE), 18. Mike Densberger (Malcolm, NE), 19.
Scott Bivens (Ceresco, NE), 20. ED RAINES (Lincoln, NE)

B Feature:1. Lance Borgman (Beatrice, NE), 2. Bob Zoubek (Dorchester, NE),
3. Matt Richards (Lincoln, NE), 4. Johnny Saathoff (Beatrice, NE), 5. Lacey
Tuttle (Elmwood, NE), 6. George Haney (Fremont, NE), 7. Brian Cudly
(Lincoln, NE), 8. James Oaks (Lincoln, NE), 9. Lowell Holland (Omaha, NE),
10. Patrick Donovan (Sterling, NE), 11. Andrew Hille (Hickman, NE), 12.
Cliff Turner (Ashland, NE), 13. Bob Ruisinger (Bennet, NE), 14. Justin Wulf
(Arlington, NE)

IMCA Sport Compact 8/8/2009

A Feature:1. Joey Danley (Lincoln, NE), 2. Garrett Rech (Davey, NE), 3. Jack
Prall IV (Union, NE), 4. John Sedlachek (Eagle, NE), 5. Brandon Thornton
(Nebraska City, NE), 6. Amanda Rhiley (Bennington, NE), 7. Larry Cronin
(Lincoln, NE), 8. Scott Freeman (Fremont, NE), 9. Jeremy Noonan (Lincoln,
NE), 10. Chad Bassinger (Nebraska City, NE), 11. Melissa Cronin (Lincoln,
NE), 12. KYLE GANNON (Lincoln, NE), 13. Justin Davis (Lincoln, NE), 14.
Brett Saathoff (Lincoln, NE), 15. Ray Harrington (Eagle, NE), 16. Elliott
Halvorsen (Eagle, NE), 17. John Irvine (Omaha, NE), 18. Matt Moyer (Gretna,
NE), 19. Tyler Saathoff (Lincoln, NE), 20. Adam Vrbka (Eagle, NE)

B Feature:1. Scott Freeman (Fremont, NE), 2. Amanda Rhiley (Bennington, NE),
3. Jeremy Noonan (Lincoln, NE), 4. John Irvine (Omaha, NE), 5. Ray
Harrington (Eagle, NE), 6. Jeff Davis (Lincoln, NE), 7. Mike Simpson
(Ashland, NE), 8. Jack Prall III (Union, NE), 9. Nick Focken (Douglas, NE),
10. Jeff Dodd (Lincoln, NE), 11. Bob Cigelman (Lincoln, NE)