Vetter Night at the Races
Jeremiah Davis
Storm Lake Times
With the large amounts of rain our area had this week, there was no worry about a dry track at Buena Vista Raceway in Alta. With no rain on Wednesday, the biggest problem was finding a place for racers to park their trailers, as the infield was flooded.
Teams parked outside the track, right next to the horse arena, giving fans an unusual but nonetheless pleasing view of the entire racetrack.
The Modified drivers retook their spot as main event following the Kyle Suter Memorial and Stock Car Shootout Series last week.
In the feature, Justin Sackett got a great start, jumping to the lead in the first turn, closely followed by Nick Deal. Sackett was able to stretch his lead in the early stages of the race, with Jeremy Mills coming to join the fight, racing with Deal for 2nd.
At the halfway mark, Mills was able to get around Deal for 2nd. However, on the same lap a caution flew. Under the caution, Deal pulled off the track with some emitting from somewhere under the car, ending his night.
On the restart, Jay Noteboom, who had inherited the 3rd spot, got a great jump and challenged Sackett for the lead right away.
Behind those two, Chris Ableson raced past Mills for 3rd, but that was short lived. A lap after the pass Ableson lost control trying to keep from hitting Mills and going off track, dropping him to the rear.
After that caution, Sackett got another great restart, and Noteboom would not challenge because of a flat right front tire. Mills retook 2nd following the problems of his fellow racers, and challenged Sackett for the lead.
Brad Williams followed the two while fighting off Reese Coffee for third. Sackett had a great car on this night, and held on for the flag to flag victory, his first at BVR. Mills finished a close 2nd, while Williams held on for third.
Earlier that night the Modifieds held their King of the Hill event. Sackett nearly made it a two-fer, as he faced Jay Noteboom in the final. Sackett beat Coffee and Williams to get to the final, while Noteboom beat Jim Thies and Nick Deal.
The two lap race was a tight one, but Noteboom was able to hold on and take the 2009 Modified King of the Hill crown.
The Stock Car feature on Wednesday night saw only 8 cars race the feature event, a far cry from the 44 that showed up last week for the Memorial race.
Donavon Smith took the early lead, with brothers David and Dustin close behind.
The whole race seemed to be dominated by the brothers Smith, with each running in the top three throughout the event.
The first half of the race saw Donavon and David racing for the lead, but with 7 to go, points leader Dustin showed everyone in attendance just exactly why he’s leading those points.
With 4 laps to go David encountered a flat tire, Brian Blessington the benefactor of Smith’s troubles, taking third while Dustin held off several advances from Donavon.
Dustin was able to hold on in the end, picking up yet another win at BVR. Donavon finished a nose behind Dustin, with Blessington third.
The Sport Mod feature saw a familiar face running away with the win.
Chris Grothe held the early lead, but Meyer wasted no time driving through the pack and taking the lead on the third lap.
Meyer stretched out his lead over the middle part of the race, with Chad Dills the only car to come close to challenging.
Coming down to the final laps saw two attempts at a green white checker finish, as twice a yellow was thrown on the white flag lap.
Each time, however, Meyer held on, and eventually crossed the line first, picking up yet another win this season at BVR. Dills finished a strong second, with Tony Pogeler third.
In the opening laps of the Hobby Stock feature, fans looked to be in store for a new winner. Daniel Smith jumped out to a sizeable early lead. An early caution erased his advantage, however, and the caution brought points leader Shannon Anderson within striking distance.
Anderson moved past John Briggs and Smith in a hurry, and took off to a sizable lead. Over the course of the race Anderson was never really challenged, and ran away with the win. Briggs finished a strong second with Craig Brotherton coming home third.
The sport compact feature lacked flash again this week, with one driver leading all the laps once again.
Mark Lindgren took the early lead, and simply refused to be denied on that night. Lindgren saw brief challenges from Josh Egesdal and Todd Paulsrad.
Lindgren never really felt the pressure, leading flag to flag and bringing home the win over second place Egesdal and third place finisher Paulsrad.
