Kevin Kovac's Take Five
Take Five: Gap's stiff but modest field for Gauntlet
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: Promoter Vic Hill enjoyed great weather — an afternoon high temperature in the mid-80s and no chance of rain — for Tuesday’s opener of his four-race Gauntlet at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn. The rest of the week looks warm, too, though some marginal chances for precipitation have crept into the forecast. But the car count to kick off the unsanctioned Super Late Model event that offers a $100,000 bonus if a driver wins one of the three prelims and Saturday’s $30,000-to-win finale? An underwhelming 26 entries for the $7,500-to-win show couldn’t have been what Hill was anticipating. The quality was certainly there with the field boasting five of the best veteran pick-and-choose racers (feature winner Jonathan Davenport, Mike Marlar, Chris Madden, Dale McDowell and Jimmy Owens) and Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series regulars Devin Moran, Ricky Thornton Jr., Brandon Overton and Carson Ferguson, but it’s not enough to put the Gauntlet on the map as the marquee blockbuster that Hill is seeking to create at the high-banked, 4/10-mile oval.
No. 2: The start of the Gauntlet probably does point out how difficult it is to establish a major event — aside from those at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio — that’s not sanctioned by one of the national tours. Even though Hill found a week for his Gauntlet that had both the Lucas Oil Series and World of Outlaws Late Model Series idle and is offering some lucrative purses, he only drew four Lucas Oil regulars and not a single WoO traveler. (Todd Morrow opened the season on the WoO circuit, but dropped his tour bid last week.) The lure of a winnable $100,000 bonus is attractive, but it’s not all about the money for the majority of national teams who value some time in the shop rather than spending almost a week at one track in mid-April. They’re also a month removed from finishing Georgia-Florida Speedweeks and have plenty of series events coming up. And some enticing regional shows in the Midwest this weekend are keeping national tourers close to home. To wit: Ryan Gustin of Marshalltown, Iowa, initially planned to compete in the Gauntlet but has opted to run the MARS-sanctioned Slocum 50 at his home state's 34 Raceway; Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., is taking his family-owned No. B5 to the MARS shows; the red-hot Hudson O’Neal of Martinsville, Ind., wants to participate in his grandfather Marvin’s Northern Allstars-sanctioned memorial race on Friday at Paragon (Ind.) Speedway; and Tyler Erb of New Waverly, Texas, is headed to Paragon and Saturday’s Iron-Man affair at Eldora.
No. 3: Will the Gauntlet turnout pick up for the Wednesday, Friday and Saturday programs? While the 100-grand bonus can only be claimed by drivers who enter every night, it’s possible that some regional racers will join the fields, especially the weekend events and with the knowledge that the car counts aren’t enormous. Chris Ferguson of Mount Holly, N.C., is one Southeasterner who’s eyeing the final two nights — he reported that he had to change his plans to run the entire Gauntlet because he didn't get back his team’s lone motor in time, but he expects to have the powerplant buttoned in his machine for the weekend.
No. 4: Jonathan Davenport’s victory in the Gauntlet’s opener continued a good stretch for his household. While J.D. was sweeping the weekend’s MLRA Spring Nationals at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Ind., his 13-year-old son, Blane, participated in a fishing tournament on Sunday and qualified for the Bassmaster Junior National Championship, which is scheduled for July 24-25 at Kentucky Lake in Paris, Tenn.
No. 5: Ricky Thornton Jr. isn’t just a superstar driver. Now he’s also a sponsor. His Ricky Thornton Jr. Racing logo appears for the second straight year on the sprint car driven by teenager Hunter Hanson of Lakeview, Minn., who competes at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D., and other tracks across the Upper Midwest. Thornton wrote on Facebook that he’s “pumped for another year of getting to be a small part in Hunter’s program,” calling the budding youngster “the next big thing” because he “works on his cars, finds sponsors, runs the finances and wins races.”
