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SEDALIA, MO (April 21, 2010) - The Historic Half Mile in Sedalia, Missouri roared back to life last week in grand fashion as 69 drivers and a solid group of dedicated race fans made their way to the Pepsi grandstands and the Midland Sports Cards infield for opening night. Last weekend’s program featured thrills and spills, side-by-side racing, high speed drama, and Ken Schrader, Jeremy Payne, and Randy Martin all visiting victory lane. Race enthusiasts will once again return to the half-mile speed plant this Friday as week two of the race season continues with the Rick Ball Ford 360 Sprints, Subway Late Models, and W-K Chevrolet Modified divisions. Prior to last week’s event, Ken Schrader was asked what he thought his chances were of visiting victory lane and he was not too confident in his answer; however, the Festus, Missouri native fought off a hard challenge from Kansas City’s Dustin Boney in a fierce battle for the inaugural MAMS modified feature event. There were some heavy hitters in town last week joining the talent-rich pool of local modified drivers and many of the same drivers are expected to lay it all on the line again this weekend for the $750 winner’s share of the purse. Last Friday, speedway veteran Chad Lyle pitted twice and still managed to pull off a top five finish while Tim Setzer experienced some mechanical tough luck in the main event after he had made a nice run to the top five in the running order. We will find out this week which driver will rise above the rest of the competitors to lay down the gauntlet in the early chase for the coveted W-K Chevrolet modified championship title. A rare weekend off for some of the biggest-named late model drivers in the business last weekend permitted fans in the stands to see an action-packed race full of fast speeds, wild crashes, and one driver walking away with his first-ever win at the fairgrounds. When the gates opened last weekend, Jeremy Payne, Terry Phillips, and Al Purkey were all ready and waiting to take to the track as they had a weekend off from touring series racing. A pre-race interview with Payne revealed that he had never won a feature event at the speedway but when the time-shortened race was over, he did claim the checkers in the Subway late model division. Turn one became known as calamity corner as no less than three red-flag incidents marred an otherwise fierce race between eventual winner Payne and Bryan Collins, who made his way to the track from Elsberry, Missouri. Bryan Allison, Bob Cummings, and Al Purkey experienced the most serious incidents of the night as Allison nearly flipped on the first lap of the race. Cummings car went airborne over the front stretch guardrail before coming to rest wheels-up near turn one. Then, late in the race, Al Purkey suffered a mechanical failure at full speed about halfway down the front straightaway when his car veered to the left slamming into the guardrail and hopping over the rail into the chain-link catch fence. The car also hit a utility pole before coming to rest on all four wheels facing in the opposite direction in the scariest incident of the night. Luckily, all drivers escaped injury in the separate incidents. We’ll look for more of the close action from the drivers this weekend without the scary incidents! The sprint car crowd was in fine voice last weekend to cheer on their favorite drivers running for the big $1,200-to-win weekly payout. Nearly everyone in West-Central Missouri is familiar with names such as Brian Brown, Martin, Jesse Hockett, and Jonathan Cornell and all of these racers raced their way into the top four by the end of the night. Brown and Martin had some interesting moments in the blistering main event, especially as the laps wore down with lapped traffic coming into play. In the end it was Martin who had the extra edge in bringing home the big win with Brown second and Cornell and Hockett third and fourth respectively. Martin has sent a message to his closest competitors that he is the one to beat on the fast half mile early on, who will answer the challenge and try to race their way into victory lane this weekend? There’s only one way to find out, get yourself on out to Missouri State Fair Speedway and take in all the action this Friday night, April 23rd! Week two at Missouri State Fair Speedway gets underway April 23rd at 5 p.m. when the pit and admission gates open for drivers and fans. Hot laps begin at 7 and racing starts at 7:30. Check out the official Missouri State Fair Speedway website at www.missouristatefairspeedway.com for admission information, registered drivers, and track details. Weekly racing is presented by Aflac. You can join the speedway e-mail group by sending a request to PRatSFS@live.com or become a fan of the speedway on FaceBook by sending a friend request to Missouri State Fair Speedway. Full results from opening night are now posted on the Website. We’ll see you Friday night for week two at the Historic Half Mile! Official Missouri State Fair Speedway Corporate and Business Partners: Aflac, Ditzfield Transfer, W-K Chevrolet, Rick Ball Ford, Subway, Don’s Towing, Greg Smith Ford, Show Me Asphalt, Kiowa Line Builders, Diamond Pet Foods, Mid MO Auto Sales, i-land Internet Service, Pepsi, Midland Sports Cards, Budweiser, Specialty Sports Wear, Advanced Image Systems, Miller Lite, Impact Sign and Lighting, All Star Bail Bonds, Hunt’s Communication w/Dish Network, Missouri Army National Guard, Michael Ross Foundation, Hoosier Tires, Sunoco, KRCG TV 13, Millard Family Chapels, Bodee’s Race Bodies, Bill Sharp’s BBQ, Goody’s Steak Burgers, and South 65 Sonic
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