Hawkeye Downs Wall of Fame member Spaw takes the wheel

CEDAR RAPIDS – Some of the rules and specifications may have changed, but last night was largely a return to days of old for Johnny Spaw.

The Hawkeye Downs Wall of Fame member hopped behind the wheel of a Late Model racecar and participated in the weekly points races on the half-mile asphalt oval for the first time since 2010.

Spaw, 53, finished fourth in the eight-car feature, won by Caleb Adrian. Spaw said adjusting from a 10-inch tire to eight inches was the most significant difference.

'Especially in the 90's, we were on really hard tires on a really worn-out racetrack back then,” Spaw said. 'Kind of that's where they're at now with these tires. The lap times are about a second slower than they were before they put these tires on.”

Spaw has been serving as crew chief for Brad Osborn this season. It's been a fruitful union, as Osborn was the Late Model points leader entering last night's races. With Osborn out of town, the plan was put in motion a couple of weeks back for Spaw to race in his place.

'We're still working out some bugs,” Spaw said. 'Every week I think we've got him faster. Right now Brad's car still has a lot of the parts on it from when they had different rules. This car has to weigh like 100 pounds heavier than a lot of the other cars.”

Spaw won eight Late Model points championships at Hawkeye Downs, the last in 2003. He was inducted into the Hawkeye Downs Wall of Fame in 2009, one year before missing out on a ninth points championship to current NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Joey Gase. Currently, Spaw is having a successful season racing an IMCA stock car each Saturday on the dirt tracks at West Liberty Raceway.

Nathan Ballard was a double-winner last night, crossing the finish line first in both the Hobby Stocks and Sportsmen classes. Kevin Korsmo (Legends) and Dallas Chandler (Hornets) took over sole possession of the points lead in their respective classes with feature wins.

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