Kevin Kovac's Take Five
Take Five: Frields returns home, rejoins Rauen crew
In a new feature appearing regularly on DirtonDirt, senior writer Kevin Kovac will offer readers five things worth mentioning from around the Dirt Late Model landscape (index to previous Take Fives):
No. 1: Zach Frields enjoyed a great run of over a year with Mount Airy, N.C.-based Koehler Motorsports and driver Ricky Thornton Jr., but earlier this month he departed the team to return home to the Hawkeye State. A 44-year-old native of Davenport, Iowa, who has worked in Dirt Late Model racing for his entire adult life, Frields is back as crew chief for Jason Rauen of Farley, Iowa, the veteran racer for whom Frields worked before joining Koehler Motorsports. While Frields won’t keep up the heavy travel schedule he maintained with Thornton, he said Rauen plans this season to race more than he has since 2023. Rauen, 46, is looking to compete in a mix of open-motor and Malvern Bank Series events.
No. 2: Speaking of Rauen, I found out something I didn’t know about the Iowa businessman, driver and team owner: he’s a standout competitor in the tractor-pulling ranks. For several years Rauen has been traveling to tractor pulls throughout the Midwest; the last two years, in fact, he’s been the Pro Stock division points champion of the Badger State Tractor Pullers. Rauen still has his tractors — powerful behemoths with turbocharged engines that can be built up to 680 cubic inches — and, as Frields said, “He is pretty darn good at it.”
No. 3: There’s a special show for the JRR Motorsports team this Friday at Ponderosa Speedway in Junction City, Ky. The $10,000-to-win Northern Allstars Late Model Series event is tagged as the Jeff Gullett Memorial to honor the James Rattliff-owned operation’s late crew chief. Gullett oversaw the Rattliff racing program from 2005 until his sudden passing in September 2024 at his Harrodsburg, Ky., home at the age of 61. The entire JRR driver lineup — Justin Rattliff, Jason Jameson and Josh Rice, who has an off-weekend from Lucas Oil Late Model Series action — will be on hand to compete at Ponderosa.
No. 4: James Rattliff is hosting a big event of his own — non-racing, though — this Saturday at his JRR Motor Sales in Campbellsville, Ky. From noon to 3 p.m., Rattliff and his staff will present their annual Easter egg hunt that’s free for all kids. They’ll have 10,000 Easter eggs stuffed with goodies plus Easter basket giveaways, inflatables and games, food trucks, and other special prizes and activities. The Easter Bunny will also be available for photos, but there’s no word if Rattliff will have one of his Dirt Late Model drivers put on the costume for the afternoon.
No. 5: How about the new-look Tyler Carpenter was sporting during Sunday’s Lucas Oil Series Buckeye Spring 50 at Atomic Speedway in Alma, Ohio? That long, mop-top head of hair he’s always had is gone, replaced by a more closely cropped cut. He still has a swooping part from the right side, but it’s definitely shorter. The 36-year-old from Parkersburg, W.Va., told DirtonDirt’s Kyle McFadden that it’s the “first true haircut” he’s had in about 20 years.
