Iowa State Fairgrounds Speedway

Des Moines, Iowa

Friday, July 28, 2000

Des Moines, Iowa – The regular 2000 racing year ended at the Iowa State Fair Speedway Friday night with the season championships, special races, a large crowd, and a great evening of racing. All features started straight up with high season points at the front.

For the tenth time this season, Jeff Johnson won the Karl Chevrolet NDTR truck feature. Darrell DeFrance won his second IMCA late model feature and Tim St. Arnold won his second 360-sprint feature. Bill Davis Jr. won the IMCA modified feature and Paul Anderson took the IMCA stock car feature. John Davis and Jason Murray won the IMCA hobby stock features. It was the fourth victory of the year for Davis.

In the IMCA late model feature, Chris Smyser started from the front row and looked like the winner as he pulled into the lead and was running hard. But on the sixth lap, he had car trouble and left the race, giving the lead to Darrell DeFrance. DeFrance sprinted to the finish with Craig Jacobs on his tail as they finished one and two. Ron Cochran finished third and Todd Cooney was fourth.

It was pole sitter Danny Wallace who jumped into the lead of the IMCA modified feature and was chased by Bill Davis Jr. and Dave Farren Sr. On lap eight, Wallace got up in the cushion coming off turn three providing the opportunity for Davis and Farren to scoot past. For the rest of the race, they ran in that order with Wallace trying to get around Farren for a shot at the leader. The top four finishers were Davis Jr., Farren Sr., Wallace, and Tom Killen.

In the IMCA stock car main, Don Killen powered his way on the high side of the track to take the lead at the start. On an eleventh lap restart, Maynard Davis III leaped past two cars to move from sixth to fourth. Killen led until apparent problems on the last lap let Paul Anderson and Rick Warden pass him for first and second. Killen finished third with Davis in fourth. After the race, Jeff Anderson claimed the engine of Paul Anderson.

Tim St. Arnold started his 360 sprint on the first row and led the entire 18-lap feature. Larry Pinegar, who started tenth, passed Josh Higday and Doran Doty on the 12^th lap to take second. Doty finished third and Higday fourth.

In the first IMCA hobby stock, John Davis led start to finish for the victory. Larry Embrey started eighteenth and finished second. Adam Hagen was third and Mike Thomas was fourth.

The second hobby stock feature was full of surprises. Mark Chance led the entire race until mechanical problems took him out of the race on the last lap allowing Gene Behle to receive the checkered first followed by Jason Murray, Frank Grove, Jeff Hovick, and Keith Williamson. In the post race inspection, Behle was disqualified for an illegal giving the win to Murray and allowing the others to move up in the finishing order.

In the Karl Moyer NDTR trucks feature, Mark Fee took the lead. Jeff Johnson started last and passed Fee on lap eight and went on for his tenth victory of the season. Fee finished second, Lou Sipolt third, and Michael Hoffman was fourth.

Two special events will be held during the Iowa State Fair. On Saturday, August 12, an event for modifieds, stock cars, hobby stocks, and NDTR trucks will be held in the morning with hot laps beginning at 9:00 am. On Tuesday evening August 15, the Derry Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models, the Midwest Motors Best of the Best Winner Series for IMCA stock cars will visit the track along with a qualifying event for mods as part of the Mr. Midwest Series.

Iowa State Fairgrounds Speedway

Des Moines, Iowa

Des Moines, Iowa – The Iowa State Fair Speedway hosted two special events Friday as part of season championship night. A race for modifieds honored Bill Davis Sr. and the other event allowed the top ten IMCA hobby stock drivers to compete together.

Veteran driver Bill Davis Sr. started racing in 1960 and has competed in variety of levels of competition including street stock, sportsman, late model, and IMCA modifieds. He has 149 IMCA modified events and is second to Dave Farren Sr. in all-time feature wins and was national champion in 1989 and 1990. This special race was for the high nine IMCA modified drivers in points at the track and Davis Sr.

After a draw for starting position, three of the first four positions went to former IMCA national champions – Davis, Farren, and Danny Wallace. Farren started on the pole and grabbed the lead at the start of the ten-lap dash. Davis Sr. passed Danny Wallace for second on the second lap and moved ahead of Farren on lap five. Farren and Wallace chased Davis. Bill Davis Jr., started eighth and passed Wallace on lap nine and Farren on the final lap to finish second behind his father for a family finish.

During the season, over forty and up to 68 IMCA hobby stocks signed in to race with two or three features each night. The top drivers in point averages were spread among the features and did not race together. This special allowed the top ten drivers in points to compete directly with each other.

John Davis hopped into the early lead. Rick Gladson started seventh, moved into third place by the second lap, and passed Davis by nine and remained there to take the 12-lap feature. Davis finished second, Steve Curtis was third, and Keith Williamson finished fourth.