Devil's Bowl Speedway

 

 

Dunn Claims First USA Modified Victory

Mesquite, TX (May 11, 2002) - Clyde Dunn, Jr. pulled inches ahead of Randy Kirkland in the final turn to win the first USA modified feature of his career at Devil’s Bowl Speedway Saturday night. Kevin Ramey captured his first USA sprint car win of the 2002 season in a feature that saw the red flag fly four times. Jimmy Goodwin took his second straight late model main. Trandell White topped the street stocks for the second time this year.

The wildest ride of the night was in the late model main when the Nr. ZZ car went end over end down the front straight wall. The car came to rest just past the flag stand with the driver, who goes by the racing name of "Sloppy Hogg" briefly unconscious. He quickly recovered consciousness and was taken from his car on a backboard. He was alert and had no obvious serious injuries when he was transported to a local hospital for further observation.

The devastating crash, which destroyed the car, occured on the 12th lap of a close late model feature. Bradley Zimmerman had jumped out to the early lead. Jimmy Goodwin and Steve Trevathan worked their way toward the front in a very close battle. Goodwin got past Zimmerman for the lead on the ninth lap, with Trevathan taking second a lap later. As the leaders approached the flag stand two laps later, smoke and fluid started coming out from under Zimmerman’s car exiting turn four. Zimmerman had moisture under his rear tires when he went to set the car for turn one. He went off the top of the turn, as did Ronnie Long, just a bumper behind Zimmerman.

Behind them, Hogg was running in ninth place and his car slipped sideways trying to power down the straight in the moisture. Tracy Adams had no where to go and tagged Hogg. What would have been a normal spin turned violent when Hogg’s rear wheel dug into the track and flipped the car on top of the front straight wall. The car tumbled end over end a couple times, flying as high as the flag stand before coming to rest in the grassy area between the grandstand fence and the track.

Zimmerman was able to repair his car during the 20 minute delay to safely remove the driver of the Nr. ZZ car, and clean up the debris. In the restart, Goodwin got a very good jump in the Gatlin Motors / Movin’ On Tire Nr. 12 and took the win, his second straight. Trevathan held second, though he slipped back slightly when he tried to get around Goodwin on the last lap. Zimmerman and Long were third and fourth with Skip O’Neal claiming fifth. Trevathan and Darren Ellis won the heat races.

Dunn came out last year with a very good, very fast car for his rookie season. The 19 year old karting veteran quickly established himself as a capable driver, but he had a lot of tricks to learn from the veterans at Devil’s Bowl. Saturday night he showed he had learned those lessons well. He started the Smiley’s Racing Products / Dunn Brothers Asphalt and Paving Nr. 88 on the inside of the sixth row. Randy Kirkland took the lead coming out of turn four on the first lap and built a comfortable lead. Dunn ran two and three wide most of the race with Rick McCommas and Rowdy Starnes. Dunn moved up to third on the seventh lap and quickly caught second place Darrell Hathcock. Kirkland had built his lead to half the length of the front straightaway when the only caution of the race flew on the 13th lap.

Restarting in third position, Dunn quickly moved into second. He could not pull past Kirkland in the first and second turns. Twice he made a run to try and get under Kirkland in three and four, but pinched the car down to avoid contact with Kirkland. On the final lap, Dunn went a little wider entering turn three and was able to hold his position under Kirkland. Dunn had a half a car-length on Kirkland as they pulled out of the turn on to the front straight. With Dunn on the inside, Kirkland had more momentum. The pair drag raced to the checkered flag with Dunn able to hold off Kirkland by about six inches for the win. McCommas was third behind Kirkland with Starnes fourth and Hathcock taking fifth. Jerry Cowart won the B main with Hathcock, Kirkland and Dave Peoples winning the heat races. McCommas started 14th and passed 11 cars to earn the Timber Wolf Hard Charger Award.

Things started out bad and quickly got worse when the USA sprint cars took to the track for their 20-lap feature. Glenn Stubblefield, Jr. Made contact with another car in the pack entering turn one and bicycled off the top of the turn. After his damaged car was towed to the pits, the remaining 20 cars tried to start again. Keith Walker and George White bumped coming down to start. Phil Valura could not avoid White, jumped the left rear tire and flipped end over end. After the cleanup, Stubblefield was able to rejoin the field without losing a lap. The race finally got started on the third try. Brian Pinckard took the lead, having to battle with Paul White and Kevin Ramey for the lead. The trio had a great battle with White and Ramey racing three wide with Pinckard. On the sixth lap, White took the lead, but Ramey got past on the next trip around the half-mile clay oval.

At the same time, fifth place Rawdy Hull went off the end of turn three at full speed. He managed to turn the car before it started flipping. Despite four or five hard end over end flips, Hull walked away from the wreckage only slightly shaken. That gave the lead back to White. On the restart, Greg Young got tangled in the heavy traffic and slowed at the top of turn one. Bob Ewell could not avoid Young and tipped over after crashing into the almost stopped car. Ewell was okay, but the front end of the car was broken. The green flag finally came out again, only to be replace by the red a lap later.

Jerry Pinckard had taken fourth place and was racing hard with several cars. Again contact in the tight pack of race cars send Pinckard flipping through turn two. Ricky Summers also was knocked out as his car was damaged in the crush to avoid Pinckard. The second half of the race finally got started. Ramey pulled under White in turn two and started to pull away. The Burkham Construction / Smiley’s Racing Nr. 7M was fast and with all the red flags, Ramey had the car perfectly tuned to put down all the horsepower the track could take. Ramey built his lead and charged to victory. White was a close second with Matt Clevenger taking third in a good run. He started 15th and was only up to 11th at the halfway point of the race. Clevenger’s third place finish gave him the points lead for the USA sprint cars, the first time the young driver has ever led the points at Devil’s Bowl. Brian Harvill and Larry Long rounded out the top five. Charlie Brown, Rawdy Hull and Kevin Ramey won the heat races.

The street stock main had its share of crashes and three cautions. Michael Grubbs set the pace for the first laps with Rick Wycough taking the lead after the first caution. Though the leaders were racing hard, the action was behind them. Several cars spun after contact with other cars, with most continuing. Mike Meeks, Jr. caught Wycough and pulled ahead by inches in the sixth lap. But the two cars banged together coming out of turn four and down the front straight. Meeks did a masterful job of saving his car after it turned sideways due to the contact. Meeks had to drop out due to the damage. Wycough led on the restart after that caution, but soon dropped out due to damage on his car. Meeks returned to the track, but was a lap down. Trandel White in the Garcia's Lawn Care / Whitestar Trailers Nr. 10 took over the lead and pulled ahead. Michael Murphy soon took second and tried to catch White but ran out of laps when the checkered flag fell. Doug Smith took third, with Travis Pace and Pat Walls completing the top five. White also won the trophy dash with Thomas Weeks, Wycough and Arin Lawrence winning the heat races.

Story by Reggie Fields

For more information, call Devil’s Speedway at 972-222-2421

RACE RESULTS - Devil’s Bowl Speedway - Saturday, May 11, 2002

USA SPRINT CARS - First Heat Race: 1. #72, Charlie Brown, Greenville, TX; 2. #39, Marvin Lough, Fort Worth, TX; 3. #5, Jerry Pinckard, Coppell, TX; 4. #31B, Brian Harvill, Irving, TX; 5. #5E, Brandon Erwin, Lake Kiowa, TX; 6. #28, Larry Long, Dallas, TX; 7. #43, Phil Valvra, Ennis, TX

Second Heat Race: 1. #8H, Rawdy Hull, Kennedale, TX; 2. #1, Paul White, Temple, TX; 3. #10W, George White, Fort Worth, TX; 4. #85B, Jerry Bell, Rowlett, TX; 5. #52, Keith Walker, Irving, TX; 6. #99, Rick Summers, Mesquite, TX; 7. #9, Greg Young, Wichita Falls, TX

Third Heat Race: 1. #7M, Kevin Ramey, Fort Worth, TX; 2. #0, Brian Pinckard, Grand Prairie, TX; 3. #65, Skip Wilson, Garland, TX; 4. #31, Matt Clevenger, Flower Mound, TX; 5. #44, Glen Stubblefield, Jr., Seagoville, TX; 6. #85, Bob Ewell, Forney, TX; 7. #55, Bill Harvill, Irving, TX

A FEATURE: 1. #7M, Kevin Ramey, Fort Worth, TX; 2. #1, Paul White, Temple, TX; 3. #31, Matt Clevenger, Flower Mound, TX; 4. #31B, Brian Harvill, Irving, TX; 5. #28, Larry Long, Dallas, TX; 6. #65, Skip Wilson, Garland, TX; 7. #44, Glen Stubblefield, Jr., Seagoville, TX; 8. #39, Marvin Lough, Fort Worth, TX; 9. #0, Brian Pinckard, Grand Prairie, TX; 10. #55, Bill Harvill, Irving, TX; 11. #52, Keith Walker, Irving, TX; 12. #10W, George White, Fort Worth, TX; 13. #5, Jerry Pinckard, Coppell, TX; 14. #5E, Brandon Erwin, Lake Kiowa, TX; 15. #99, Rick Summers, Mesquite, TX; 16. #8H, Rawdy Hull, Kennedale, TX; 17. #9, Greg Young, Wichita Falls, TX; 18. #85, Bob Ewell, Forney, TX; 19. #85B, Jerry Bell, Rowlett, TX; 20. #72, Charlie Brown, Greenville, TX; 21. #43, Phil Valvra, Ennis, TX

USA MODIFIEDS - First Heat Race: 1. #04, Darrell Hathcock, Dallas, TX; 2. #66, Mike Goodson, Ardmore, OK; 3. #121, Bobby Ruffin, Crandall, TX; 4. #50X, Rowdy Starnes, McKinney, TX; 5. #84, Tom Lorenz, Balch Springs, TX; 6. #50D, David Gailley, Mesquite, TX; 7. #6P, Jerry Cowart, Mesquite, TX; 8. #3W, Eddie Williams, Quinlan, TX; 9. #64, Rick Preddy, Little Elm, TX; 10. #K2, Kevin DeLashaw, Hendrix, OK

Second Heat Race: 1. #77, Randy Kirkland, Mesquite, TX; 2. #20, Ronnie Welborn, Princeton, TX; 3. #88, Clyde Dunn, Jr., Sunnyvale, TX; 4. #39, Rick McCommas, Balch Springs, TX; 5. #12W, Dale Wester, Ovilla, TX; 6. #98, Marc Madison, The Colony, TX; 7. #23Z, Richard Miller, Terrell, TX; 8. #5, Billy Fronterhouse, Wylie, TX; 9. #27, Tony Batt, Princeton, TX; 10. #13, Chuck Beusch, Red Oak, TX

Third Heat Race: 1. #11, Dave Peoples, Royse City, TX; 2. #71, Ronnie Carty, DeSoto, TX; 3. #2, Brian Short, Denison, TX; 4. #19, Richard McGibboney, Dallas, TX; 5. #18, Frank Rose, Mesquite, TX; 6. #19J, Jeff Welborn, Princeton, TX; 7. #17, Charles Lasater, Garland, TX; 8. #12, Roy Capps, Princeton, TX; 9. #34, Jay Miller, Terrell, TX

B Main: 1. #6P, Jerry Cowart, Mesquite, TX; 2. #19J, Jeff Welborn, Princeton, TX; 3. #23Z, Richard Miller, Terrell, TX; 4. #98, Marc Madison, The Colony, TX; 5. #17, Charles Lasater, Garland, TX; 6. #50D, David Gailley, Mesquite, TX; 7. #64, Rick Preddy, Little Elm, TX; 8. #27, Tony Batt, Princeton, TX; 9. #13, Chuck Beusch, Red Oak, TX; Did not start - #34, Jay Miller, Terrell, TX; Did not start - #5, Billy Fronterhouse, Wylie, TX; Did not start - #K2, Kevin DeLashaw, Hendrix, OK; Did not start - #12, Roy Capps, Dallas, TX; Did not start - #3W, Eddie Williams, Quinlan, TX

A FEATURE: 1. #88, Clyde Dunn, Jr., Sunnyvale, TX; 2. #77, Randy Kirkland, Mesquite, TX; 3. #39, Rick McCommas, Balch Springs, TX; 4. #50X, Rowdy Starnes, McKinney, TX; 5. #04, Darrell Hathcock, Dallas, TX; 6. #84, Tom Lorenz, Balch Springs, TX; 7. #66, Mike Goodson, Ardmore, OK; 8. #19, Richard McGibboney, Dallas, TX; 9. #20, Ronnie Welborn, Princeton, TX; 10. #71, Ronnie Carty, DeSoto, TX; 11. #11, Dave Peoples, Royse City, TX; 12. #6P, Jerry Cowart, Mesquite, TX; 13. #18, Frank Rose, Mesquite, TX; 14. #12W, Dale Wester, Ovilla, TX; 15. #19J, Jeff Welborn, Princeton, TX; 16. #2, Brian Short, Denison, TX; 17. #121, Bobby Ruffin, Crandall, TX; 18. #98, Marc Madison, The Colony, TX; 19. #17, Charles Lasater, Garland, TX; 20. #23Z, Richard Miller, Terrell, TX

LATE MODELS - First Heat Race: 1. #21, Steve Trevathan, Forney, TX; 2. #22, Cheyney Hopkins, Combine, TX; 3. #12, Jimmy Goodwin, Garland, TX; 4. #92, Harry Hronas, Sunnyvale, TX; 5. #ZZ, Sloppy Hogg, Arlington, TX; 6. #7, Mike Nelson, Rowlett, TX; 7. #44, Cameron Wilson, Gainesville, TX; 8. #B23, Bill Blue, Plano, TX

Second Heat Race: 1. #23, Darren Ellis, Royse City, TX; 2. #11X, Brad Zimmerman, Mesquite, TX; 3. #28, Ronnie Long, Dallas, TX; 4. #4, Tracy Adams, Rowlett, TX; 5. #19, Jeff McGibboney, Dallas, TX; 6. #88, Keith Darrow, Mesquite, TX; 7. #9, Rapid Richard Robinson, Hurst, TX; 8. #8, Skip O'Neal, Midlothian, TX

A FEATURE: 1. #12, Jimmy Goodwin, Garland, TX; 2. #21, Steve Trevathan, Forney, TX; 3. #11X, Brad Zimmerman, Mesquite, TX; 4. #28, Ronnie Long, Dallas, TX; 5. #8, Skip O'Neal, Midlothian, TX; 6. #92, Harry Hronas, Sunnyvale, TX; 7. #23, Darren Ellis, Royse City, TX; 8. #19, Jeff McGibboney, Dallas, TX; 9. #88, Keith Darrow, Mesquite, TX; 10. #44, Cameron Wilson, Gainesville, TX; 11. #9, Rapid Richard Robinson, Hurst, TX; 12. #4, Tracy Adams, Rowlett, TX; 13. #ZZ, Sloppy Hogg, Arlington, TX; 14. #B23, Bill Blue, Plano, TX; 15. #22, Cheyney Hopkins, Combine, TX; Did not start - #7, Mike Nelson, Rowlett, TX

STREET STOCKS - First Heat Race: 1. #5X, Thomas Weeks, Quinlan, TX; 2. #29, Tim McManus, Dallas, TX; 3. #7, Chuck Hall, Mesquite, TX; 4. #4, Doug Smith, Mesquite, TX; 5. #8, Mark Ross, Mesquite, TX; 6. #39, Pat Walls, Frisco, TX; 7. #31, Walter Dorsett, Royse City, TX; Did not start - #38, Mike Walls, Flower Mound, TX; Did not start - #9X, Bart Pearson, Royse City, TX

Second Heat Race: 1. #48, Rick Wycough, Richardson, TX; 2. #10, Trandel White, Balch Springs, TX; 3. #99, Dewitt Donald, Jr., Garland, TX; 4. #29D, Mike Deaver, Mesquite, TX; 5. #57, Don Tyner, Forney, TX; 6. #9, Andy Jones, Mesquite, TX; 7. #21, Michael Murphy, Ferris, TX; 8. #11X, Brad Zimmerman, Mesquite, TX

Third Heat Race: 1. #9L, Arin Lawrence, Carrollton, TX; 2. #17, Travis Pace, Mesquite, TX; 3. #37, Mike Meeks, Jr., Mesquite, TX; 4. #5, Mark Reedy, Mesquite, TX; 5. #00X, Michael Grubbs, Sachse, TX; 6. #51X, Danny Florence, McKinney, TX; 7. #34, Jimmy Luker, Terrell, TX; Did not start - #42, Gayla Jones, Mesquite, TX

Trophy Dash: 1. #10, Trandel White, Balch Springs, TX; 2. #48, Rick Wycough, Richardson, TX; 3. #17, Travis Pace, Mesquite, TX; 4. #5X, Thomas Weeks, Quinlan, TX; 5. #29, Tim McManus, Dallas, TX; Did not start - #9L, Arin Lawrence, Carrollton, TX

A FEATURE: 1. #10, Trandel White, Balch Springs, TX; 2. #21, Michael Murphy, Ferris, TX; 3. #4, Doug Smith, Mesquite, TX; 4. #17, Travis Pace, Mesquite, TX; 5. #39, Pat Walls, Frisco, TX; 6. #29D, Mike Deaver, Mesquite, TX; 7. #99, Dewitt Donald, Jr., Garland, TX; 8. #5, Mark Reedy, Mesquite, TX; 9. #9L, Arin Lawrence, Carrollton, TX; 10. #31, Walter Dorsett, Royse City, TX; 11. #00X, Michael Grubbs, Sachse, TX; 12. #34, Jimmy Luker, Terrell, TX; 13. #9, Andy Jones, Mesquite, TX; 14. #38, Mike Walls, Flower Mound, TX; 15. #37, Mike Meeks, Jr., Mesquite, TX; 16. #48, Rick Wycough, Richardson, TX; 17. #29, Tim McManus, Dallas, TX; 18. #57, Don Tyner, Forney, TX; 19. #8, Mark Ross, Mesquite, TX; 20. #5X, Thomas Weeks, Quinlan, TX; 21. #51X, Danny Florence, McKinney, TX; 22. #7, Chuck Hall, Mesquite, TX; Did not start - #11X, Brad Zimmerman, Mesquite, TX; Did not start - #9X, Bart Pearson, Royse City, TX; Did not start - #42, Gayla Jones, Mesquite, TX

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