I had a great time Saturday night attending the IRA vs. Knoxville show at the Knoxville Raceway. A late arrival time kept me from reaching the infield, so I headed to the press box and watched from the top. I always have a good time in the press box when I make the visit. Seated next to track historian Bob Wilson, I get to the spend the night chatting with Bob and Stacy Ervin as they update the Knoxville website in real time, keeping those who can’t make it to the track up to speed.
We are also in the same room with Race Director Ralph Capitani as he keeps an eye on the evening and keeps the show moving. In the booth to our right is the announce team of Tony Bokhoven and Blake Anderson. So as you can see, sitting in the press box at Knoxville gives you an insight to all of the behind the scenes action as well as one of the best views of the track you will find at any facility.
There was a lot to view Saturday night as 42 360 sprint and 41 410 sprints filled the pit area. I always like attending in IRA sprint night as you can check out a few drivers that you normally don’t get to watch, plus, you can a look at how the 2009 IRA season is going to progress. Granted, the IRA guys tend to be the fish out of water at Knoxville on the big, fast half-mile compared to the smaller tracks they usually race for their title on; however, when the series brings 19 cars with it like it did Saturday night, you definitely get a feel for what they are about, and their drivers do play a key role in the show.
And here’s a helpful hint – if you want to see a great IRA show, and one of my favorites, go to Cedar Lake in June when the run the double-header with the late models. This year’s 11th annual Masters runs June 19 and 20 and pairs the WDRL late models with the IRA sprints. A good ticket at a premier facility.
Back at Knoxville Saturday night, the track was in good shape. By feature time it allowed for plenty of racing room as there were solid low and high grooves and lots of room in the middle. The low groove looked to have a little more grab in turns three and four than it did in one and two, but it still provided a solid option.
One of the drivers that made the low groove work in turns one and two was Randy Martin in his 360. Though feature winner Ricky Logan was pretty much untouchable in taking the win, eighth-starting Martin mounted the best challenge for the lead in the course of the feature. Martin gained positions on the low side in turns one and two and was soon trying to track down Logan. Martin’s stiffest competition for second was Clint Garner. Garner and Martin turned several laps before the position was decided.
Johnny Anderson held a strong second for several laps, until the close of the race neared and the performance of his number 2A machine dropped significantly and he faded to fourth.
My pick for a potential 360 winner was Nebraska’s Chad Humston. Humston put on a show in winning the first heat race, running his car in, up, down and around everyone else from his sixth starting spot. He started the feature sixth, but the car didn’t seem to have the fire it did at heat race time. Based on what I saw Saturday, though, I won’t be surprised when Humston is in victory lane with a 360 win.
Bob Weuve held quick time for much of qualifying as the track ran cars in group qualifying, five at a time. Skip Jackson would ruin Weuve’s speed party as he would grab quick time late. Jackson would also look to ruin 410 feature winner Johnny Herrera’s night early, applying pressure in the opening laps of the 20-lap feature.
Starting on the pole, Herrera would lead all 20 laps, but he wasn’t alone up front, and it took a skilled drive through traffic to gain a comfortable lead in a smoking car as the laps wound down. Don Droud, Jr., started fifth and looked to have the best answer for Herrera as he had the #47 Casey’s machine running hard. He would get close to Herrera and that was about it. Brian Brown finished third after starting eighth and also had a couple glimpses at a possible lead.
Putting on the big show for the night was Billy Alley, who started 20th and finished fifth. Alley was dealing with mechanical issues early, and posted a fourth-place finish in his heat to qualify for his starting feature spot. Whatever bugs had bitten the team early seemed to be fading as Alley made steady progress to the front.
I had a bit of the blues after missing the World of Outlaws opener at the track the week before, but Saturday night’s show cured me of that. I had a great time and watched a lot of good racing. From up in the press box I was able to watch a lot of the close calls that I miss when I’m working down in the infield. There is a lot of “calculating” that goes on with sprint car racing, and drivers give each other a minimum of clearance with a lot of horsepower all around the race track.
Standing at one spot in the infield I see a minimum of that. Sitting where I did Saturday night, I got to see a lot of amazing moves and close calls. Though the lead may not change, in the pack of a feature race at Knoxville, there is a lot that happens over the course of 15 or 20 laps and the fans in the stands get to see it all. That was the case Saturday. Logan and Herrera were too tough to beat, but behind them, I challenge anybody to say they didn’t get their money’s worth with the IRA vs. Knoxville show. I’m sorry to see this one go by so soon.
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