Scotts navigate dry-slick track for 1-2 USMTS finish

TIPTON - With all the rain that has hit Eastern Iowa in the last few weeks - and especially in the last few days - it would've been easy to assume the racing surface for Wednesday night's United States Modified Touring Series race at Cedar County Raceway in Tipton would've been full of moisture.

On the contrary, what racers found last night was an enjoyable, dry-slick track, meaning not a lot of surface moisture and the feeling of racing on ice.

Las Cruces, N.M. native Stormy Scott navigated the 40-lap main event around the slick but racy track to get the USMTS Central Region victory at the $2,000 check that came with it ahead of his twin brother, Johnny.

'You've just got to try to keep your car as straight as you can, be smooth on the gas and try to make the least amount of mistakes,” Stormy said. 'Because it's a lot harder to make up speed on a slick track than it is (otherwise)

'We have a good car on the slick, and hopefully we can keep this going.”

The USMTS main event went flag-to-flag with no cautions, which is a feat on a tacky, fully-gripped racetrack, let alone on a dry-slick.

When a race with 20 cars in the field on a 1/4-mile track goes without a caution, the leaders end up in lapped traffic nearly at all times.

And in conditions like that - where the racing is good, but focus and consistency in driving is key - navigating around slower cars can be a bit treacherous. The twin brothers did just fine, and were able to battle for the win for much of the race before Stormy collected his fourth USMTS Central Region main event win in a row.

'When the track is dry like that, you've just got to hit your mark every time and just try to stay smooth and not spin the tires too bad,” Johnny said. 'When you get to lapped cars, you've got to clear them as fast as you can so you can get back to your rhythm that you've got going. If you have to follow cars too long, the guys behind you catch you quick. That's what happened to us tonight a little bit.”

IMCA late models ran last night as a support race for the USMTS modifieds, and Oxford native Andy Eckrich took home the win and $1,000 prize ahead of Davenport's Brian Harris.

Eckrich started fourth, but got a good jump on those around him and was able to set sail early in the race. Like the Scott brothers, Eckrich said in those conditions, he knew he had to be smooth, and if he stayed that way, it would be hard for competitors to pass.

It typically took cars 5-10 laps to complete a pass with the way the track was racing, and having that knowledge gave the car ahead a huge advantage - something Eckrich certainly utilized.

'I just knew if I didn't drive over the bank (on the front and backstretch) I'd have a good chance of winning,” Eckrich said. 'It was slick enough that I knew if someone was going to pass me, they weren't going to do it in one corner. They were going to have to eat away at me, so if I saw somebody or heard something, I'd step it up.

'It's slick enough, slow enough, that you know if you hard charge it, you're actually going to hurt yourself.”

The IMCA late models return to weekly racing starting on Friday night, while the USMTS modifieds head to Buena Vista Raceway in Alta Thursday night.

Though the Scotts call New Mexico home, Stormy and his team are based out of Alta, so tonight's race serves as a home game for him. Last time out wasn't great, but he said the drive for five wins in a row is certainly in play.

'It's not easy - I've never had this many wins in a row for sure,” Stormy said. 'I've only raced (at Buena Vista Raceway) once - it wasn't too good of a show - so we'll see. I think we should be pretty good there, though.”

RESULTS

USMTS Modifieds

1. Stormy Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.; 2. Johnny Scott, Las Cruces, N.M.; 3. Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon; 4. Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.; 5. Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas; 6. Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo.; 7. Jake Gallardo, Las Cruces, N.M.; 8. Brad Dierks, Clarence; 9. Daniel Hilsabeck, Waukee; 10. Bryan Rowland, Woodward, Okla.; 11. Kelly Shryock, Fertile; 12. Corey Dripps, Waterloo; 13. Dylan Smith, Osceola, Neb.; 14. Dan Chapman, Clarence; 15. Kurt Kile, Nichols; 16. RJ Gonzales, Moline, Ill.; 17. Joe Beal, Milan, Ill.; 18. John Fellman, Blue Grass; 19. Justin Rix, Olin; 20. Nick Nevins, Lisbon; 21. Scott Heeren, Forreston, Ill.

IMCA Late Models

1. Andy Eckrich, Oxford; 2. Brian Harris, Davenport; 3. Justin Kay, Wheatland; 4. Spencer Diercks, Davenport; 5. Joe Zrostlik, Long Grove; 6. Ryan Dolan, Lisbon; 7. Kyle Hinrichs, Swisher; 8. Milo Veloz Jr., Colona; 9. Chuck Hanna, Port Byron, Ill.; 10. Richie Gustin, Marshalltown; 11. Scott Fitzpatrick, Long Grove; 12. Kevin Kile, Nichols; 13. Jake Meier; 14. Mike Garlanel; 15. Jay Chenoweth, Wapello; 16. Curran Beckler; 17. Ross Pierce, Dubuque; 18. Travis Denning, Sterling; 19. Matt Ryan, Davenport; 20. Andy Nezoworski

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