TERRE HAUTE —
A look back on the 2011 Wabash Valley auto racing season reveals the best and worst of times the sport has to offer.
A year that generated stellar individual performances, competitive racing and sadly the loss of one of open wheel racing’ s brightest stars.
A campaign that opened under a cloud of uncertainty — mostly thanks to a troubled economy — survived potential financial pitfalls and constant bouts with the elements to offer fans, racers and officials alike a season not soon forgotten.
Those factors played key roles in determining the top 10 stories of 2011 for Valley racing buffs, whether the action was on the local, national or international scene.
Trackside Top 10 stories of 2011
No. 1 — Sadly, in the often unpredictable and violent world of motorsports, death took center stage as the year drew to a close.
The tragic loss of two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon in the IndyCar finale in October stunned those in and outside the sport.
Cries for changes in IndyCar racing soon followed leaving the country’s premier open-wheel group searching for answers regarding the future of racing on the few ovals that remain on the IndyCar scene.
No. 2 — Ironically, Wheldon’s storybook last lap-final turn pass at Indy that won him his second 500 win generated its share of excitement and hopes for much needed momentum for IndyCar racing through most of the season.
No. 3 — In most years, storylines surrounding the action at the Terre Haute Action Track drew top attraction, but in 2011 the talk was as much about the lack of action as what unfolded at the Wabash Valley Fairgrounds.
Inclement weather and questionable off-track decision making resulted in a disappointing and abbreviated two-event year.
No. 4 — Unfortunately, for a second straight year the future of oval track racing at the Fairgrounds was left in limbo as officials were searching for yet another new promoter as the year drew to a close.
USAC released its 2012 schedule revealing four tentative dates at the track but contract negotiations between Fair board officials and a new promoter remains ongoing.
No. 5 — Valley racers shined on several fronts bringing home track titles and a host of wins throughout the summer. None were brighter than the achievements of area driver Levi Jones who netted a record-breaking fifth USAC sprint title to go along with a second Silver Crown championship.
No. 6 — Fears that a sluggish economy would hurt the sport failed to materialize with figures showing only a slight downward trend in track attendance and racer participation.
No. 7 — Valley fans lost two of their most popular short track events as it is announced that the NASCAR Nationwide and Camping World Truck events at Indianapolis Raceway Park would not be part of the 2012 schedule.
No. 8 — Former Action Track competitors walk off with NASCAR’s two biggest prizes. Tony Stewart and Ricky Stenhouse won nailbiting finishes in their bids to win the Sprint Cup and Nationwide series crowns.
No. 9 — If one was to name a driver of the year at the Action Track, there would be little debate who earned the honor. Newcomer Chris Windom dominated the racing, winning both features, leading 56 of a possible 60 laps.
No. 10 — The year draws to a close with a host of high profile driver-team changes on the NASCAR Sprint Cup series circuit.
Parade of track Champions
Valley racers won their share of wins and carried off track titles on several fronts whether it was on the ovals or at the dragstrip. Tracks of interest and their champions include:
CROSSROADS DRAGWAY USA — Champions include: Tony Virgilo-Fast 33 @330, Derrick Troxell Super Pro, Pro-Dustin Brenton, Adam Price in Sportsman, Amara Tewell in High School, Kevin Adams Jr. Dragster and Toni Price Pink Ladies series.
TERRE HAUTE QUARTER MIDGET ASSOCIATION — Jr. Honda-Carson Dillion, Jr. Honda-Colton Wallace, Sr. Honda-Ben Kelly, Heavy Honda-Shelby Van Gilder, Jr. Stock-Carson Dillion, Sr. Stock- Douglas Dillion, Jr. Animal- Reece Reichart, Light World Formula-Cameron Parr, Heavy Wt. Formula-Jonny Newgent, Lt. 160-Gage Pohlman, Heavy B-Josh Schneider.
LINCOLN PARK SPEEDWAY — Sprints- Ethan Barrow, Modifieds-Paul Bumgardner, Super Stocks-Kenny Carmichael and Bomber-David Bumgardner.
In the always highly-competitive Saturday night of weekly racing at LPS, the sprint division produced 15 different feature winners. Casey Shuman (sprints) and Carmichael (stocks and modifieds) were the most prolific winners with each collecting six checkered flags. Area drivers C.J. Bryan and Cullen Goodman were repeat feature winners.
COLES COUNTY DRAGWAY — Super Pro-Bob Paul, Pro-Tommie Harlin, Sportsman-Eric Cooper, Motorcycle-Chad Isley and Nicole Little-Jr. Dragster.
BAKERSFIELD RACEWAY PARK — Hornet-Jeffery Shimmell, B Mods-James Wise, Jr. Sprints-Jadon Rogers, 600 Sidewinders-Zack Teike, 600 Uprights-Sam Borden, 4 Cyl-Jessie Cooley, Wingless 600-Nate McMillin, Restrictor Class-Creed Friz.
LYONS RACEWAY PARK — Super Pro-McColley Young, Pro-Eric Bowling, Sportsman-Bill McCarty, Jr. Dragster-Nathan Jones, Motorcycle-Bill McCarty. Fast 8-James Schantz, VP Fuels Quick 32-Al Peavler.
PARAGON SPEEDWAY — Sprints-Josh Cunningham, Super Stock-Steve Hollars, Bombers-Mike Ham, Pure Stock-Josh Litton.
BLOOMINGTON MOTOR SPEEDWAY — Sprints-Brady Short, Modifieds-Clint De Moss, Super Stock-Jeremy Hines.
The year 2011 will indeed go down in record books as a prosperous and rewarding year for area competitors and their many fans and supporters.
Joe Buckles can be reached at jbuckles4@frontier.com.
Auto Racing
TRACKSIDE: Valley racing showed best, worst of times in 2011
- Auto Racing
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TRACKSIDE: Rain still a pain for Wabash Valley racing organizers
Soggy weather conditions, which have rightfully drawn the ire of Wabash Valley race fans and crews in recent days, continue to plague promoters where it hurts the most — their pocketbooks.
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TRACKSIDE: Tough to rise from sprint-car racing, especially in challenging financial times
Open-wheel sprint-car racing, whether it be at the national or local level, has earned a reputation over the years of generating its share of thrills and excitement for its fans and a valuable training ground for drivers seeking to hone their skills that someday might elevate them to the “major leagues” of their sport.
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METRO ROUNDUP: Rose baseball wins another thriller
Rose-Hulman earned its third victory in its last at-bat in the last five days with a 6-5 win over Franklin in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference baseball Tuesday night at Art Nehf Field.
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East gets jump at SUMAR Classic
In his relatively brief but successful racing career, young Bobby East has at times unfairly been labeled as a driver who could master the pavement ovals but one who was still a work in progress on the dirt.
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Hurtubise, Sumar races on Action Track slate this weekend
Championship racing is scheduled this weekend at the Terre Haute Action Track with U.S. Auto Club features set for today and Saturday.
One USAC championship will be decided and the spread in the other division could widen or tighten up as a result of the races.
The Jim Hurtubise Classic for sprint cars is today. Only 26 points separate three drivers in the point totals. -
TRACKSIDE: Chase Stockon hopes momentum stays with him in Terre Haute
Momentum, an element that can be as elusive to a race driver as that perfect setup, can spell the difference in winning or running at the rear of the pack.
It’s a force difficult to achieve and maybe even harder to maintain. One learns quickly to make the most of the opportunity when it comes his way.
It’s something Chase Stockon will carry with him coming into today’s Jim Hurtubise Classic at the Terre Haute Action Track.
Only days following the biggest victory of his young and promising career, the $10,000-to-win USAC feature at Lawrenceburg, Stockon followed that up with another rich payday this past weekend at Tri-State Speedway. -
IndyCar celebrates return to Pocono
IndyCar driver Ed Carpenter had the chance to take a drive around Pocono Raceway, and promptly handed the car keys to racing great Mario Andretti.
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METRO ROUNDUP: Rain forces postponement of Jim Hurtubise Classic
Rain and the chance of inclement weather forced postponement of the Jim Hurtubise Classic scheduled for Saturday evening at the Terre Haute Action Track.
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METRO ROUNDUP: USAC points leader Levi Jones out for season
Levi Jones, the five-time and reigning United States Auto Club (USAC) National Sprint Car champion, will undergo season-ending surgery on Tuesday to repair two herniated discs in his neck. While a full recovery is expected, the 12-week rehabilitation period will not allow for Jones to finish out the 2012 season, where he has competed in the USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car and TRAXXAS Silver Crown divisions for Tony Stewart Racing (TSR).
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One of the more impressive and welcomed storylines of the recently completed Indiana Sprint Week was the emergence of area driver Chase Stockon on the national sprint car scene.
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JJ joins hero Mears among four-time winners of Brickyard
Love him or hate him, there is no denying that Jimmie Johnson is a master at the Brickyard.
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Hamlin wins Brickyard 400 pole position
Denny Hamlin captured his first ever pole for the Curtiss Shaver 400 at the Brickyard at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday.
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Brad Keselowski made history Saturday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as he took the checkered flag at the inaugural Indy 250 NASCAR Nationwide race.
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Bordais, Popow take checkered flag after downpour
While it never rained a drop during the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the Super Weekend at the Brickyard certainly saw its share Friday as both the inaugural Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge and the Rolex Sports Car Series met with the wet stuff.
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TRACKSIDE: Indiana Sprint Week rises above heat, rain, poor economy
The 25th annual version of Indiana Sprint Week is now officially in the record books and the latest chapter will go down as one of the most successful in recent years.
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Red-hot Hunter-Reay goes for fourth straight at Edmonton
Ryan Hunter-Reay goes for his fourth straight victory Sunday in IZOD IndyCar Series action in Canada.
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Clayton wins at Don Smith Classic
They call Daron Clayton, “The Modern Day Cowboy.”
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The King of Speed
Born in Terre Haute, Roger Curtis grew up on Franklin Street, moved to Riley with his family when he was in sixth grade and attended Thornton Elementary School and Honey Creek Junior High before graduating from Terre Haute South High School in 1985.
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Jones occupies driver’s seat: Six-time THAT winner leads Sprint Week series
When you think of USAC’s Indiana Sprint Week, thoughts of Levi Jones shouldn’t be far behind.
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TRACKSIDE: Late models may have no long-term future in Indiana
Reflecting on what was billed as the biggest week of the summer for dirt-track stock-car racing … while preparing to shift gears for the busiest week of the year for non-wing sprint-car racing in the Wabash Valley.
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Kenny Wallace realizes Action Track dream
Kenny Wallace won the UMP modified feature, leading flag-to-flag for the victory on Thursday night at the Terre Haute Action Track.
Wallace, a NASCAR Sprint Cup driver from 1990-2008, couldn’t have more thrilled to become part of a racing revival at the venerable dirt oval. -
TRACKSIDE: Summer heat has made this ‘The Hell Tour’
It is fittingly billed as “The Hell Tour” for many of the Midwest’s leading late model stock car drivers and their crews.
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Franchitti mired in post-Indy 500 slump
Dario Franchitti hopes to get back on track in IndyCar Series action Sunday in Canada.
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TRACKSIDE: Retired driver LaJoie spreads the word of safety
In his roles as past driving champion and television analyst, Randy LaJoie has rightfully earned the reputation as a major contributor to the sport of auto racing.
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Trackside: Stanbrough on track at midseason
When veteran driver Jon Stanbrough ushered in a new season in Florida back in February, he found himself facing a pair of unfamiliar challenges.
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Atchison, Virgilio win weekend races at Crossroads Dragway
Troy Atchison and Tony Virgilio won feature races in weekend racing at Crossroads Dragway.
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TRACKSIDE: Clauson bucks the IndyCar trend
On the surface, the distance from the dirt oval at Lincoln Park Speedway to the massive, paved Indianapolis Motor Speedway may appear only a few miles apart.
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Stewart Racing driver hangs on in final laps
Tony Stewart Racing’s Levi Jones passed Robert Ballou with 11 laps to go and held off a charging Jon Stanbrough to take the Hoosier Tire Midwest Sprint Car Series’ 25-lap feature Tuesday at the Terre Haute Action Track.
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Stewart takes nostalgic trip behind sprint wheel at Action Track
Any time the reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup champion comes to Terre Haute, it’s a special day for Wabash Valley racing fans.
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TRACKSIDE: USAC Midget Classic not nearly as revered as it once was
It might be three years removed from its birthplace but the Hut Hundred USAC Midget Classic still holds a special place in the hearts of Wabash Valley racing buffs.
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