Category: archived

We want to take this time to thank Jeff Probus for his dedication over the last several years, working with us at Macon Speedway and Track Enterprises. Jeff moved up from working as race night staff to a position involving the day-to-day operations in 2017.

Best wishes and good luck with your new career move and we will see you at the track in the spring!

Bob Sargent
Track Enterprises

Batavia, OH (October 14, 2020) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is proud to announce the 2021 schedule, with a lineup that hosts 62 feature events, at 32 different venues, across 21 states. The news all race fans have been waiting for, all 62 events will be live streamed in conjunction with four live on the MAVTV Motorsports Network. There will be 37 original events televised on MAVTV, three events televised on CBS Sports Network, one event televised on CBS, and 14 events televised on NBC Sports Network.

Next year’s schedule is highlighted by a generous number of increased purses throughout the season. The richest Crown Jewel events of the tour’s schedule includes: Lucas Oil Speedway’s Show-Me 100 ($30,000 to win); Smoky Mountain Speedway’s Mountain Moonshine Classic ($20,000); I-80 Speedway’s Silver Dollar Nationals ($53,000); Florence Speedway’s North/South 100 ($50,000); Batesville Motor Speedway’s Topless 100 ($40,000); Port Royal Speedway’s The Rumble by the River #3 ($30,000); Tyler County Speedway’s Hillbilly Hundred ($30,000); Knoxville Raceway’s Late Model Nationals ($40,000); Brownstown Speedway’s Jackson 100 ($20,000); Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway’s Pittsburgher 100 ($20,000); and Portsmouth Raceway Park’s Dirt Track World Championship ($100,000).

2020 was a challenging year for many, including all of us in the racing industry. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series would like to thank all of our team owners, drivers and crew members, our event promoters, our loyal fans, and our tremendous marketing partners for your continued support. It is because of each of you, along with the hard work and determination of series officials and the unwavering support of Lucas Oil Products, the series will be able to complete 46 feature events, during the 2020 season, after this weekend’s $100,000 to win Dirt Track World Championship at Portsmouth Raceway Park in Portsmouth, OH.

2021 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Schedule:

By BZ

(Macon, IL) The 2020 Macon Speedway was shorter than usual due to the pandemic but was still filled with incredible moments and exciting nights of racing. Not many looked at September 26th from the start date of June 13th and thought of the possibilities that there could be for the final night of racing. Championships were still being decided in many of the classes as the final night of the 75th anniversary season got underway and it took the checkered flag lap of many divisions to sum up the best of the best.

Tommy Sheppard, Jr. was trailing Billy Knebel by four points, a matter of two feature positions, entering the evening in the BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds class and thanks to a solid night of qualifying and heat racing, Sheppard drew the number two starting position for the 20-lap feature and led all 20 of the laps to win his fourth feature in a row. No matter if Sheppard won, if Knebel stayed within a finishing spot of Sheppard, he would remain the champion by virtue of the points lead. But unfortunate for Knebel, who started eighth, ran out of time for the race and the season and took a fourth place finish in the feature. The final points standings will show Sheppard taking the championship and Knebel finishing two points behind. For Sheppard, it is his third-straight BillingsleyRewards.com Modified championship and fourth overall after championship as he won the Pro Late Model track championship in 2017.

The night was not a total letdown for Knebel as he entered the evening with an insurmountable lead in the Pro Modified division. Leading Dalton Ewing by 56 points coming into the evening and Knebel making it to the track and starting in the feature, Billy Knebel would be crowned the champion. He wasn’t willing to just enjoy that moment. He also won the final feature of the season, his eighth win of the year in 12 races. Ewing, while racing in the BillingsleyRewards.com Modified feature, blew his engine and could not compete in the Pro Modified feature. That would cost him as Kyle Helmick moved into second place in the points standings with his second place finish in the 15-lap feature.

The closest points race of the season was in the Micro Sprints presented by Bailey Chassis. John Barnard led Jacob Tipton by four points entering the night’s 15-lap feature. Tipton started front row outside and Barnard started third row outside and chased down Tipton for the race. The final lap would see Tipton finish the race two positions ahead of Barnard and create a tie for the points championship. The tiebreaker would be determined by the amount of feature races won between the drivers. Barnard scored one feature win while Tipton did not win a feature race. Barnard’s lone feature win of the 2020 season secured him as the Micro Sprint track champion at Macon Speedway.

The race was won by Jeremy Camp, who flew through the race and placed first. Trevin Littleton was fast and took second then Tipton in third with Kyle Barker taking fourth ahead of Barnard.

In the Archer’s Alley Street Stock class, Bobby Beiler entered the night 36 points ahead of Jaret Duff for the division title and thanks to a front row starting spot, Beiler would grab hold of the checkered flag and win the race and the championship. Rudy Zaragoza and Darrell Dick would be in contention of the lead but Beiler, just as he has been most of the season, was just too fast to overcome.

Gene Reed would finish fourth and receive the trophy for the five-race end of season Top Gun Championship where the final five races between Lincoln Speedway & Macon Speedway would produce a special point fund and award. Reed ran all five shows and came away with the top honors.

Tommy Sheppard, Jr. also would lay claim to the Top Gun trophy and bonus money for leading the five-race point series in the Top Gun Championship in the Modified class.

The Pro Late Models also were involved in the Top Gun Championship Series and Cody Maguire of Carlinville would win that honor finishing 48 points ahead of Jake Little to earn the bonus prize money. However, Jake Little got the biggest laugh of the night as he took hold of his first Macon Speedway Pro Late Model track championship. Little has earned wins in the Midwest Big Ten Series over the course of the last few years but not been able to win the division championship at Macon Speedway…until 2020. Little ran behind racing teammates Dakota Ewing and Jose Parga for the 20-lap A-Main as Ewing kept ahead of Parga for the lead and win.

The final division of the night was already a wrapped-up deal as the Hornets points champion Brady Reed came into the night with an 80-point lead and had clinched the title after last week’s race. Reed came from the third row to get behind race leader Mike Eskew and on a caution lap restart allowed Reed to overcome Eskew for the lead and finish the night with the checkered flag.

The 2020 racing season at Macon Speedway is complete. The 75th Anniversary season is certainly one that might be remembered and thought of for years to come. Preparations are already prepared for the 2021 racing season at Macon Speedway with hopes that racing engines will roar once again in the spring.

The 2020 finale was sponsored by Caterpillar, Phoenix Tile and Brandt Professional Agriculture. A great thanks goes to the many sponsors of the 2020 season and the great racing fans who piloted their way to the track for the weeks in which the track was able to run. Another appreciation goes to the drivers who made it to the track week in and week out for the season, an average well over 100 racecars. 

Feature Results (Top 10’s)

DIRTcar Pro Late Models

1) 2 +1 Dakota Ewing Warrensburg, IL 25 2) 4 +2 Jose Parga New Berlin, IL 6P 3) 1 -2 Jake Little Springfield, IL 38J 4) 6 +2 Cody Maguire Carlinville, IL 32M 5) 7 +2 Blake Damery Blue Mound, IL 66 6) 13 +7 Josh Heuiser St. Jacob, IL 1H 7) 3 -4 Donny Koehler Macon, IL 64 8) 8 – Tony Harter Sherman, IL 54 9) 11 +2 Colton Billington Mclean, IL 2C 10) 5 -5 Storm Beiler Decatur, IL 33B

BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds

1) 2 +1 Tommy Sheppard Jr New Berlin, IL T6 2) 3 +1 Cody Stillwell Godfrey, IL 00S 3) 9 +6 Guy Taylor Springfield, IL 77 4) 8 +4 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 5) 6 +1 Alan Crowder Elwin, IL 87C 6) 4 -2 Danny Smith Argenta, IL 98 7) 5 -2 Curt Rhodes Taylorville, IL 10 8) 7 -1 Tim Luttrell Riverton, IL 6 9) 10 +1 Steve Phillips Neoga, IL 33 10) 17 +7 Maxx Emerson Taylorville, IL 11

DIRTcar Pro Mods

1) 5 +4 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 2) 2 – Kyle Helmick Smithton, IL 27X 3) 7 +4 Zack Bunning Decatur, IL Z 4) 4 – Adam Rhoades Clinton, IL 10 5) 1 -4 Justin Reynolds Hillsboro, IL 3X 6) 11 +5 Jeff Wallace Decatur, IL 25 7) 9 +2 Matt Milner Chatham, IL 24M 8) 10 +2 Roy Magee Springfield, IL 11 9) 12 +3 Billy Justice Jr Cerro Gordo, IL 43 10) 8 -2 Kevin Rench Hillsboro, IL 116

Archers Alley Street Stocks

1) 1 – Bobby Beiler Blue Mound, IL B26 2) 3 +1 Rudy Zaragoza Jacksonville, IL 67 3) 2 -1 Darrell Dick Monticello, IL 22 4) 5 +1 Gene Reed Hammond, IL X5 5) 6 +1 Jeff Reed, Jr Blue Mound, IL 53R 6) 7 +1 Zach Taylor Springfield, IL Z24 7) 16 +9 Jaret Duff Maroa, IL 21 8) 8 – Guy Taylor Springfield, IL X7 9) 14 +5 Tommy Pickering Cerro Gordo, IL 199 10) 18 +8 Zach Clark Illiopolis, IL 4

DIRTcar Hornets 

1) 5 +4 Brady Reed Decatur, IL 32B 2) 3 +1 Mike Eskew Springfield, IL 21 3) 1 -2 Erik Vanapeldoorn Clinton, IL T82 4) 8 +4 Billy Mason Brownstown, IL 357 5) 4 -1 Cook Crawford Lincoln, IL 1 6) 9 +3 Allan Harris Chatham, IL 3H 7) 6 -1 Marty Sullivan Decatur, IL 39M 8) 2 -6 Bill Basso Athens, IL 44 9) 7 -2 Jason Hunter Centralia, IL 24H 10) 10 – william Kidman Edwardsville, IL 45W

Micros By Bailey Chassis 

1) 1 – Jeremy Camp Sullivan, IL 23 2) 4 +2 Trevin Littleton Jacksonville, IL 44 3) 2 -1 Jacob Tipton Decatur, IL 10 4) 3 -1 Kyle Barker Cooksville, IL 27 5) 6 +1 John Barnard Sherman, IL 8B 6) 5 -1 Daryn Stark Springfield, IL 55S 7) 7 – Joe Taft Dawson, IL 00 8) 11 +3 Cliff Powell Hannibal, MO 401 9) 9 – Aarik Andruskevitch Riverton, IL 21 10) 8 -2 Mike Frantz 2F

(Macon, IL) The final night of the 75^th season of racing is set for this Saturday, September 26 at Macon Speedway, in Macon, IL. Six divisions of racing will be on track with drivers racing for the BRANDT Season Championship Cup trophies in addition to the final night bragging rights. The event is also presented by Caterpillar and Phoenix Tile.

The top battle to watch will be in the BillingsleyRewards.com Modified class. Pocahontas, IL driver Billy Knebel leads the standings by just four points over New Berlin, IL’s Tommy Sheppard. Sheppard is looking for his third straight Modified championship at the track, while Knebel is trying to pull off the double with both the Modified and Pro Mod championships. Sheppard will need to finish ahead of Knebel by two spots or more in the feature to take the top spot away.

The next closest battle is in the Micros By Bailey Chassis division, where Sherman, IL’s John Barnard leads by four points over Jacob Tipton. Much like the Modifieds, the difference is a matter of two feature positions. Barnard has claimed one feature win this year, while Tipton is still looking for his first.

36 points currently separate Archers Alley Street Stock point leader Bobby Beiler, of Blue Mound, IL, and Maroa, IL’s Jaret Duff. Beiler has won five features this season, while Duff has claimed one. The class has had outstanding car counts and racing all year long.

The DIRTcar Pro Mod championship is all but wrapped up for Billy Knebel. All the Pocahontas, IL driver will have to do is be on property with his car and enter the event, as he has a 56 point lead on Dalton Ewing. Knebel has claimed seven feature wins, while Ewing has taken a feature win and nine top fives in his impressive rookie season.

Another driver just needing to show up and enter car is Springfield, IL driver Jake Little. With six feature wins in the Pro Late Model class, Little has a 58 point lead on Brady Lynch. The Pro Late Models are coming off of one of their better races of the year, with 14 cars racing 30-laps in last week’s KerbyStrong event.

Rounding out Saturday’s action, Brady Reed of Decatur, IL already has the Hornet championship locked up. Reed leads by 80 points, which is insurmountable for the rest of the field. Athens, IL’s Bill Basso is second, while Billy Mason is third.

Pits to the Macon Speedway 75^th season finale will open at 3:00, grandstands at 5:00, hotlaps start at 6:00, and racing will take the green at 7:00. Grandstand admission is $15, while kids 11 and under are free.

About Macon Speedway:

For more information, follow Macon Speedway online at www.maconracing.com, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/maconracing) and Twitter (@maconspeedway). It’s easy to join the Macon Speedway text service. Fans can text MSFANS to 74574 to receive fan information. Drivers text MSDRIVERS to 74574 to receive driver information. Message and data rates apply. Updates are also available by calling Macon Speedway at 217-764-3000.

Macon Speedway is located nine miles south of Decatur on U.S. 51, then 0.6 miles west on Andrews Street and south to 205 N. Wiles. Macon Speedway hosts racing every Saturday night, plus many weeknight specials. Macon Speedway is a proud member of the Contingency Connection’s $150,000 Racer Rewards Program.

CURRENT STANDINGS (Top 10’s)

BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds

Micros By Bailey Chassis

Archers Alley Street Stocks

DIRTcar Pro Mods

DIRTcar Pro Lates

DIRTcar Hornets

By BZ

(Macon, IL) The 6th Annual KerbyStrong event was a successful one despite the fact that COVID-19 and the Coronavirus pandemic nearly ruined it. Kerby Damery once said, “Don’t worry about the things you can’t change.” One thing the KerbyStrong Foundation couldn’t change was the financial support from the dozens of sponsors who have been with the program for the previous five years. Instead of worrying about it, they agreed to put on the best show and have the best support they could. Kerby Damery would have been proud that the foundation followed along with one of his quotes on this night and during this 2020 racing season.

The big race of the night was the Pro Late Model division where Springfield’s Jake Little led wire-to-wire in the 30-lap feature event and pocketed the $1,000-to-win prize. Little’s race was won from the front row, opposite to the pole sitter and last year’s winner of the race Chris Dick. The race was solidly ran by the 14-car field with only two yellow flags involved, laps 11 and 27. During those green flag runs, Little dominated the race and used the top groove to pull away from Dick and Guy Taylor.

Kerby Damery’s son Blake Damery ran the race from the sixth starting position. A lengthy back-and-forth battle with Cody Maguire resulted in Damery making the pass and eventually moving to fourth on a pass of Donny Koehler. Damery changed up his numbers for the night. Usually sporting the #10 on his car, the same number of his dad, he went with the #66, which was the number of Kerby’s favorite racer growing up.

One of the Macon Speedway divisions featured its final night at the track for 2020 as the Sportsman division ran its final 15-lap event of the year. Dennis Vandermeersch was clinching the championship with his appearance on the track as Scott Landers was not able to run his car on the final night. With Vandermeersch already winning the championship, he had one more goal in mind, take the checkered flag in the KerbyStrong Sportsman feature. Starting behind Jim Farley III from the second row, Vandermeersch needed a lap to catch Farley and sprint out to the lead. Ethan Schnapp and Wes O’Dell battled for second place as the race continued along. Vandermeersch was practically unstoppable and won all by one feature at Macon Speedway for the 2020 season. For Vandermeersch, he has won four of the six Sportsman races during the KerbyStrong events including three-straight wins.

Another solid night of racing for Tommy Sheppard, Jr. in the BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds. From playing from behind in the points standings, Sheppard has made strides over the last few weeks to cut into the lead by Pro Modified driver Billy Knebel. Each week Sheppard continues to come and race and win, the points deficit shrinks. It shrunk again Saturday night as Sheppard took another checkered flag and finished four spots ahead of Knebel who moved into fifth place at the finish line due to a fourth turn collision between two cars.

With the leader and second place car running away from the group, the excitement was going for third. Danny Smith, who started ninth, moved into the third place spot with Curt Rhodes and Jacob Steinkoenig also in pursuit. Knebel was on the outside looking in. Rhodes and Steinkoenig connected off the final turn and jarred together to allow Knebel into the fifth spot ahead behind Rhodes and ahead of Steinkoenig.

Archer’s Alley Street Stock feature race winner was one happy man. Guy Taylor has been a friend and supporter of the KerbyStrong Foundation and the team since its inception and has been racing the X7 car in memory of Larry “Bub” Russell, Jr., who passed away just before the start of the season. The car has been a work in progress all season as it finally got dialed in and ran as Taylor and team has wanted it to all season. Running at the top, Taylor dashed around the 1/5th mile dirt oval and looked good doing it. Second place car Jaret Duff and Terry Reed had nothing on him. Duff would fall victim to his car slowing down and pulled off the track just six laps into the 15-lapper. The race was on for Taylor and Reed to finish and it ended in that order.

Knebel made a comeback in the Pro Modified feature and outlasted Kyle Helmick and Dalton Ewing for the win. The leader in the standings stayed ahead the group of cars chasing him down from the bottom of the track. Ewing was the only driver to really test the top of the track during that feature race. It worked enough to take him from a fifth place starting spot to a second place finish.

The night was capped off with Brady Reed taking another Hornets feature win. Reed won the 15-lap event from the pole position. Billy Mason started front row outside and took second place while Mike Eskew finished in third after starting tenth place.

One night of racing remains at Macon Speedway for its 75th Anniversary Season. An exciiting division night of racing will close out one of the oddest and most unique seasons in track history. The Pro Late Models, BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds, Archer’s Alley Street Stocks, Pro Modifieds, Micro Sprints Presented by Bailey Chassis and the Hornets will crown their champions next week in the season finale. Macon Speedway thanks the KerbyStrong Foundation for agreeing to put on the 6th Annual KerbyStrong event and thanks to Cromwell Media Group radio station 98.1 GRIZ-FM for sponsoring the night’s racing action. 

Feature Results (Top 10’s) 

DIRTcar Pro Late Models 

1) 2 +1 Jake Little Springfield, IL 38J 2) 1 -1 Chris Dick Deland, IL 22 3) 3 – Guy Taylor Springfield, IL X 4) 6 +2 Blake Damery Blue Mound, IL 66 5) 5 – Donny Koehler Macon, IL 64 6) 4 -2 Cody Maguire Carlinville, IL 32M 7) 10 +3 Tony Harter Sherman, IL 54 8) 12 +4 Colton Billington Mclean, IL 2C 9) 13 +4 Brady Lynch Hillsboro, IL 14B 10) 11 +1 Storm Beiler Decatur, IL 33B

BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds 

1) 2 +1 Tommy Sheppard Jr New Berlin, IL T6 2) 7 +5 Brian Diveley Springfield, IL 11D 3) 9 +6 Danny Smith Argenta, IL 98 4) 4 – Curt Rhodes Taylorville, IL 10 5) 12 +7 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 6) 3 -3 Jacob Steinkoenig Highland, IL 24S 7) 6 -1 Alan Crowder Elwin, IL 87C 8) 5 -3 Chad Sellers Breese, IL E55 9) 15 +6 Clint Martin Ramsey, IL 54 10) 11 +1 Kyle Helmick Smithton, IL 27X

DIRTcar Pro Mods 

1) 2 +1 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 2) 5 +3 Dalton Ewing Decatur, IL 27 3) 4 +1 Kyle Helmick Smithton, IL 27X 4) 1 -3 Maxx Emerson Taylorville, IL 78 5) 6 +1 Ryan Timmons Centralia, IL 23 6) 8 +2 Adam Rhoades Clinton, IL 10 7) 12 +5 Andrew Depper 9 8) 11 +3 Kevin Rench Hillsboro, IL 116 9) 14 +5 Brian Burns Bethany, IL 7B 10) 9 -1 Justin Reynolds Hillsboro, IL 3X

DIRTcar Sportsman 

1) 3 +2 Dennis Vander Meersch Springfield, IL 25 2) 5 +3 Ethan Schnapp Springfield, IL 2S 3) 2 -1 Wes O’Dell Springfield, IL 87 4) 1 -3 Jim Farley III Springfield, IL 84L 5) 6 +1 Danny O’Dell Springfield, IL 17 6) 4 -2 Tim Riech Petersburg, IL 55 7) 8 +1 Matt Reed Decatur, IL 4 8) (DNF) 9 +1 Ryan Blankenship Harristown, IL 13 DNS) – -2 Tony Reed Blue Mound, IL 21R DNS) – – Scott Landers Taylorville, IL 41

Archers Alley Street Stocks 

1) 3 +2 Guy Taylor Springfield, IL X7 2) 5 +3 Terry Reed Cerro Gordo, IL T5 3) 2 -1 Gene Reed Hammond, IL X5 4) 4 – Zach Clark Illiopolis, IL 4 5) 12 +7 Brian Dasenbrock Jr Decatur, IL 80 6) 15 +9 Jerry Huffman Maroa, IL 36 7) 9 +2 Ryan Blankenship Harristown, IL 13 8) 14 +6 Brian Dasenbrock Decatur, IL 08 9) 13 +4 Zach Taylor Springfield, IL Z24 10) 6 -4 Tommy Pickering Cerro Gordo, IL 199

DIRTcar Hornets

1) 1 – Brady Reed Decatur, IL 32B 2) 2 – Billy Mason Brownstown, IL 357 3) 10 +7 Mike Eskew Springfield, IL 21 4) 3 -1 Jacob Shanks Decatur, IL 31 5) 5 – Allan Harris Chatham, IL 3H 6) 7 +1 Cook Crawford Lincoln, IL 1 7) 4 -3 Bill Basso Athens, IL 44 8) 9 +1 Paul Merriman Decatur, IL 39P 9) 6 -3 Chris Hill Springfield, IL 18H 10) 8 -2 Jordan Reed Decatur, IL 98

(Macon, IL) One week after a night that produced 152 car entries, Macon Speedway is back at it this coming Saturday, September 19 with the 6^th Annual KerbyStrong race. The event is run in honor of the late Kerby Damery, a former champion at the track. It also benefits the KerbyStrong Foundation, which has been helping cancer patients and raise awareness since its inception.

The headline event of the night will be the 30-lap Pro Late Model feature, paying $1,000 to the winner. Over the first four years of the event, Super Late Models were run as the main event for the KerbyStrong race. Last year, the event was switched to Pro Late Models with great success and an exciting event which saw Chris Dick claim the victory. Additional prize money has been added throughout the finishing positions.

The BillingsleyRewards DIRTcar Modifieds will be running for the $750 top prize tomorrow night. Last week, 23 drivers took the green in an exciting Modified feature that saw Tommy Sheppard claim the victory. Sheppard and Billy Knebel are racing for the championship honors, with Knebel holding the point advantage all season long. Sheppard has been on a hot streak as of late, though, closing the gap week-after-week.

Kerby Damery was also a competitor in the Sportsman division, during his successful career. For the Sportsman Saturday, they will be running for $500 to win with additional money added to the top three spots. It will mark the final event of the season at Macon for the class, which will start preparing for their Springfield Mile event on Sunday, October 4.

The DIRTcar Pro Mods, Archers Alley Street Stocks, and DIRTcar Hornets will also be in action.

Pits open at 3:00, grandstands at 5:00, driver pill draw ends at 5:50, hotlaps start at 6:00, and racing will take the green at 7:00. Grandstand admission is $15, while kids 11 and under are free.

About Macon Speedway:

For more information, follow Macon Speedway online at www.maconracing.com, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/maconracing) and Twitter (@maconspeedway). It’s easy to join the Macon Speedway text service. Fans can text MSFANS to 74574 to receive fan information. Drivers text MSDRIVERS to 74574 to receive driver information. Message and data rates apply. Updates are also available by calling Macon Speedway at 217-764-3000.

Macon Speedway is located nine miles south of Decatur on U.S. 51, then 0.6 miles west on Andrews Street and south to 205 N. Wiles. Macon Speedway hosts racing every Saturday night, plus many weeknight specials. Macon Speedway is a proud member of the Contingency Connection’s $150,000 Racer Rewards Program.

CURRENT STANDINGS (Top 10’s)

DIRTcar Pro Late Models

BillingsleyRewards.com DIRTcar Modifieds

DIRTcar Pro Mods

DIRTcar Sportsman

Archers Alley DIRTcar Street Stocks

DIRTcar Hornets

By BZ

(Macon, IL) Jeremy Nichols has done plenty in his career as a stock car racing driver. He’s won races; he’s won championships. He’s raced in nearly every division the track has offered. In a Sunday night special at Macon Speedway, Nichols won two races with the same car on the same night.

In the recent of years, Macon Speedway fans have seen drivers like Mike Pickering grace victory lane in the Street Stocks and the Sportsman on the same night. However, “Jimbo” had a racecar for each division. Nichols raced and won in the Archer’s Alley Street Stock feature with a car that’s engine was popping and making a variety of noises. Holding off Terry Reed, Bobby Beiler and Guy Taylor was quite difficult but Nichols managed to make it happen. After making sure the engine was corrected as good as it was going to be, Nichols took the track in the special Tim Bedinger Classic Sportsman division feature and won from the pole position.

Winning from the pole position is a common attraction to racing but when a Street Stock can outrun and stay ahead of a Sportsman car knowing the Sportsman car has more horsepower and engine power, that’s the big surprise. Most fans are aware of the speed and skills of drivers such as Dennis Vandermeersch and Wes O’Dell so for Nichols to stay ahead of them and truly dominate the 15-lap race was quite amazing. However, the night ended early for Vandermeersch. After racing on the top, the car locked towards the turn three wall and blasted into the concrete. That hit was only the beginning as two other cars came barreling towards him and smashed into his car. After taking the first five features and a consecutive streak that continued through the 2019 season, the winning ways ended for the Vandermeersch racing team on a night when the feature was dedicated to his friend and racer, Tim Bedinger–who passed away early in the 2020 calendar year.

The Hornet division was promoted as the special race of the week as the Ed Cain Trucking Hornet World Championship was featured. The race lived up to expectations as the 25-car field featured top Hornet drivers such as Mike Eskew, Brady Reed, Jeremy Reed, Joe Reed and Billy Mason. With the race starting with accidents and cautions and Hornets falling off to the pits or on the back of tow trucks, the field shrunk and that helped keep the action moving as Mike Eskew and Brady Reed battled for the full 15 laps. Reed bumped on the back bumper of Eskew for many laps trying to loosen up the Springfield native but to no avail and Eskew would be the winner of the race.

Jake Little used the top side of the 1/5th mile dirt oval to win the Pro Late Model feature race. The track was quite fast on the top and that’s where Little felt comfortable for the 20-lap race.

Tommy Sheppard, Jr. once again found victory lane in the BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds. Two straight weeks of feature wins and closing in on the points leader Billy Knebel has allowed Sheppard to inch closer to a chance at a third straight Modified division title. Knebel was involved in a last lap incident with the car trailing him. The points standings could have a much tighter look to them in the final weeks to come.

Devin Feger blasted away to win in the Micro Sprint feature Presented by Bailey Chassis. Trevin Littleton and Molly Day were close but not at the same speed on the night as Feger as he took his first feature win at Macon Speedway for 2020.

The Pro Modified feature can be described as a nightmare. Cautions for accidents and wrecks and spinouts slowed the 15-lap event down to a snail’s pace as the drivers couldn’t get together to complete green flag laps. But when they were able to get it going, Billy Knebel outran Kevin Crowder, Ryan Hamilton and Maxx Emerson for the checkered flag. The division’s heat races were also plagued with accidents, wrecks and spinouts. It was a tough night for the Pro Modifieds division during the night.

The Sunday night special at Macon Speedway was made possible due to Saturday rainfall that was moved to Sunday thanks in part to Macon Speedway officials for adjusting the schedule and adding Sunday as a rain date. The 75th Anniversary Celebration was sponsored by the Decatur Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. 75 consecutive years of racing at the World’s Fastest 1/5th mile dirt track is a major accomplishment and Macon Speedway continues to strive to bring exciting racing to its fans and community on a week-in and week-out basis.

Macon Speedway opens the gates again this week for its usual Saturday night race event. This Saturday will be the 6th Annual KerbyStrong Event Presented by 98.1 GRIZ-FM. Pro Late Models, BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds, Sportsman, Archer’s Alley Street Stocks, Pro Modifieds and Hornets will make up the night’s action. 

Feature Rundowns (Top 10’s)

DIRTcar Pro Late Models 

1) 4 +3 Jake Little Springfield, IL 38J 2) 7 +5 Guy Taylor Springfield, IL X 3) 2 -1 Cody Maguire Carlinville, IL 32M 4) 1 -3 Donny Koehler Macon, IL 64 5) 3 -2 Blake Damery Blue Mound, IL 10 6) 8 +2 Brady Lynch Hillsboro, IL 14B 7) 5 -2 Jarod Shasteen Macon, IL 21 8) 9 +1 Derek Smith Decatur, IL 14 9) (DNF) 6 -3 Storm Beiler Decatur, IL 33B 10 (DNF) 10) – Curtis Hobbs Farmer City, IL 53

BillingsleyRewards.com Modifieds 

1) 2 +1 Tommy Sheppard Jr New Berlin, IL T6 2) 3 +1 Alan Crowder Elwin, IL 87C 3) 5 +2 Rodney Standerfer Summerfield, IL 28 4) 7 +3 Jacob Steinkoenig Highland, IL 24S 5) 10 +5 Chris Morefield Edwards, IL 10M 6) 1 -5 Zach Rhodes Taylorville, IL 11 7) 6 -1 Dave Crawley Jr Decatur, IL 37 8) 13 +5 Chris Bolyard Mulberry Grove , IL 88Z 9) 15 +6 Guy Taylor Springfield, IL 77 10) 8 -2 Tyler Blankenship St Elmo, IL 3B

DIRTcar Pro Mods

1) 4 +3 Billy Knebel Pocahontas, IL 52 2) 2 – Kevin Crowder Argenta, IL 15C 3) 5 +2 Ryan Hamilton Fairview Heights, IL 58R 4) 1 -3 Maxx Emerson Taylorville, IL 78 5) 7 +2 Ryan Timmons Centralia, IL 23 6) 10 +4 Brian Burns Bethany, IL 7B 7) 8 +1 Anthony Tucker Charleston, IL 55 8) 17 +9 Roy Magee Springfield, IL 11 9) 3 -6 Kevin Rench Hillsboro, IL 116 10) 19 +9 Adam Rhoades Clinton, IL 10

DIRTcar Sportsman

1) 1 – Jeremy Nichols Lovington, IL 67R 2) 3 +1 Wes O’Dell Springfield, IL 87 3) 5 +2 Ethan Schnapp Springfield, IL 2S 4) 10 +6 Bobby Beiler Blue Mound, IL 3J 5) 2 -3 Andy Zahnd White Heath, IL 2Z 6) 4 -2 Scott Landers Taylorville, IL 41 7) 20 +13 Jeff Reed, Jr Blue Mound, IL 53R 8) 18 +10 Timmy Dick Monticello, IL 122 9) 16 +7 Danny O’Dell Springfield, IL 17 10) 12 +2 Terry Myers Buffalo, IL 12M

Archers Alley Street Stocks

1) 1 – Jeremy Nichols Lovington, IL 67R 2) 2 – Terry Reed Cerro Gordo, IL T5 3) 3 – Bobby Beiler Blue Mound, IL B26 4) 7 +3 Guy Taylor Springfield, IL X7 5) 4 -1 Jeff Reed, Jr Blue Mound, IL 53R 6) 6 – Jaret Duff Maroa, IL 21 7) 11 +4 Lance Evans Westville, IL 37 8) 5 -3 Tommy Pickering Cerro Gordo, IL 199 9) 15 +6 Jonathon Hall Harristown, IL 3J 10) 10 – Gene Reed Hammond, IL X5

DIRTcar Hornets

1) 3 +2 Mike Eskew Springfield, IL 21 2) 2 – Brady Reed Decatur, IL 32B 3) 7 +4 Billy Mason Brownstown, IL 357 4) 6 +2 Justin Deemie Pekin, IL 13J 5) 5 – Jeremy Hancock Peoria, IL 28J 6) 13 +7 Allan Harris Chatham, IL 3H 7) 15 +8 Jacob Shanks Decatur, IL 31 8) 8 – Carson Dart Springfield, IL 66D 9) 19 +10 Cook Crawford Lincoln, IL 64CK 10) 17 +7 Chandler Stewart Vandalia, IL 754

Micros By Bailey Chassis 

1) 1 – Devin Feger East Peoria, IL 84 2) 3 +1 Trevin Littleton Jacksonville, IL 44 3) 2 -1 Molly Day Allerton, IL 17 4) 5 +1 Tony Clifton Mt Zion, IL 23 5) 4 -1 Cole Tinsley Bonne Terre, MO 00 6) 13 +7 John Barnard Sherman, IL 8B 7) 15 +8 Will Armitage Athens, IL 7A 8) 11 +3 Daryn Stark Springfield, IL 55S 9) 18 +9 Cody Swisher Atwood, IL 2 10) 12 +2 Jacob Tipton Decatur, IL 10

Sunday Funday To Feature 7 Divisions Of Action

(Macon, IL) Macon Speedway’s 75^th Season Celebration, featuring seven divisions of racing action, will have to wait one extra day as Saturday rainfall plagues Central Illinois. Sunday’s action, presented by the Decatur Area Convention & Visitors Bureau of Illinois will start one hour earlier than regular times.

With the Saturday forecast looking questionable earlier this week, Macon Speedway announced online Thursday that Sunday would be used as a rain date, if needed. With an already shortened season, Macon Speedway officials wanted to give drivers every opportunity to get on track and race in addition to gathering points toward their DIRTcar national championship race.

All Sunday, September 13^th times will be one hour earlier than Saturday scheduling. Pit gates will open at 2:00, grandstands at 4:00, driver pill draw will end at 4:50, hotlaps will begin at 5:00, and racing will begin at 6:00 PM.

On track action will include the DIRTcar Pro Late Models, BillingsleyRewards.com DIRTcar Modifieds, DIRTcar Pro Mods, DIRTcar Sportsman, Archers Alley Street Stocks, DIRTcar Hornets, and Micros By Bailey Chassis. The Sportsman will be racing to honor former competitor Tim Bedinger, while the Hornets will be running in the Ed Cain Trucking Hornet World Championship.

Grandstand admission is $15, while kids 11 and under are free. Tickets and pit passes will be available at the track on raceday.

About Macon Speedway:

For more information, follow Macon Speedway online at www.maconracing.com, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/maconracing) and Twitter (@maconspeedway). It’s easy to join the Macon Speedway text service. Fans can text MSFANS to 74574 to receive fan information. Drivers text MSDRIVERS to 74574 to receive driver information. Message and data rates apply. Updates are also available by calling Macon Speedway at 217-764-3000.

Macon Speedway is located nine miles south of Decatur on U.S. 51, then 0.6 miles west on Andrews Street and south to 205 N. Wiles. Macon Speedway hosts racing every Saturday night, plus many weeknight specials. Macon Speedway is a proud member of the Contingency Connection’s $150,000 Racer Rewards Program.