Damon and Dallon Murty have special 1-2 finish at Bristol

BROOKLYN — More than 100 drivers from Iowa jumped on the opportunity to make a dirt-track pilgrimage last month when the 'World's fastest half-mile' converted its asphalt track to dirt for a special weeklong event that drew more than 1,000 drivers from across the nation.

Two drivers who share both a name and number — Damon and Dallon Murty — were not only expecting to attend the event at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee, but quickly realized they could compete.

'Practice went smooth,' Damon said of the lack of adjustments the team needed to make. 'We just stiffened the front end up a little bit and changed gear. That's about it.'

Damon went from 12th to second in his heat race and Dallon charged to the checkered flag from 10th in his. Not only did the pair earn a bunch of passing points, they won their subsequent qualifying races which placed the father-son duo side-by-side on the front row for the main event.

'My heart was racing for a little bit when we strapped in, but once we fired the cars up my mind went blank,' 16-year-old Dallon said. 'I just knew what I had to do. Once we took the green, all of the worries went out of my head and I just went out and drove our race.'

Although Damon has been driving fast and with success for decades, his most formidable opponent has become his own creation.

'I knew I was going to have my hands full with Dallon, because he was quick every time we were on the racetrack,' Damon said. 'I was second to him, but there is no letting him by now. He just drives by me.'

The good news for Dallon is while some fathers may struggle to see their children surpass their success, that in no way applies to Damon.

'I would run second to him any day,' Damon said. 'Especially when it's your son beating you, and knowing that you taught him everything you know and he learned everything from me.

'If it was anyone else, we'd be scratching our heads and I'd be working on my car trying to get faster. I've just come to realize that he's better than I am.'

While the goal is always to run first and second, the team will adjust its strategy as they move away from points racing this summer.

'There are a lot of big money shows that pay more and we're going to try hitting most of them,' Damon said.

That means you can expect to see them at Stuart, Marshalltown, Vinton and occasionally Independence plus any of the big specials planned for 2021.

Later in the season, Dallon also will drive a Modified in hopes of going full-time in the division for 2022.

What would follow that jump?

'If someone wanted to put Dallon on asphalt somewhere big,' Damon said. 'With him winning Bristol, he's getting recognized. Hopefully when he gets in the Mod, he does as well as the stock car and it just keeps building.'

Regardless of the future, the Murtys already are role models for many in their own community with the town of Brooklyn coming out in full force to welcome the pair home with a firetruck escort to the high school, where a crowd of their friends and family waited.

'That was a really big deal,' Damon said. 'I knew about it and Dallon didn't. I didn't figure there would be that many people there, but the town of Brooklyn really supported us.'

Dallon said 'It was a 12-hour car ride and I slept for about 11 hours of it. We exited a mile away from Brooklyn and we all got out and started stretching and I wondered what we were doing. They made me get in the front seat and there was fire trucks on the end of the road so I thought there must be an accident. I wasn't paying attention and all of a sudden we got in the middle of the fire trucks and the guys explained that they were going to lead us into town the way they lead the football team out of town headed to state.'

The surprises didn't end there.

'I figured there would be a couple people waiting at the school, but when we started driving through the town and all of the people were out of their houses and cheering,' Dallon said. 'It means a lot. I thought a lot of people didn't realize what we did, but I think a lot of people do now.'

Comments: justin.webster@thegazette.com