Friday, September 21, 2012
Popular Michigan racer looking for $20,000 payday in this weekend's Down & Dirty 100
Popular Michigan racer looking for $20,000 payday in this weekend's Down & Dirty 100
By Steve Kaminski | Skaminsk@mlive.com
MARNE – Jeep Van Wormer didn’t call this weekend’s opportunity to race Berlin Raceway a Bucket List item, although this is one thing Van Wormer never dreamed would happen.
Photo courtesy of DE Photos
Jeep Van Wormer will be making his Berlin Raceway debut in this weekend's Down & Dirty 100.
Van Wormer, of Pinconning, is one of Michigan’s most successful and popular dirt Late Model racers, and he has competed and won at some of the nation’s legendary dirt tracks. He lives only about three hours from Berlin, so he has heard all about the half-mile in Marne.
But Berlin is an asphalt track, and Van Wormer has spent the past 16 years building his career on dirt.
Three hundred truckloads of dirt and a $20,000 first-place cash prize are luring Van Wormer to Berlin this weekend, though. He will make his first Berlin appearance when he participates in the Keyser Manufacturing Down & Dirty 100 presented by NAPA.
“We have never been to Berlin, not even to check it out,” Van Wormer said. “But we have heard that it is a top-notched facility, and we are excited to have the chance to race there.”
Berlin is hosting an open practice from 4-8 p.m. today, followed by racing on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. both days. Van Wormer will be racing in the featured division, the traveling World of Outlaws Late Model Series. Saturday’s main event winner will earn $20,000.
Van Wormer, 37, has raced at approximately 100 tracks throughout the United States. Career highlights include winning the UMP Fall Nationals at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, in 2003. He also has won 15 career races on the UMP Summer Nationals tour.
In addition, Van Wormer is the only Michigan driver to win a WoO Late Model race. He took top honors in the 2007 race at LaSalle Speedway in LaSalle, Ill.
The World of Outlaws Late Models races from February through November, and it competes at tracks from South Dakota to North Carolina, as well as Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and across the Midwest. Van Wormer made two series starts in August when it visited Winston Speedway in Rothbury and Merritt Raceway in Lake City. Mechanical problems took him out of action in both races.
“We are looking forward to racing against the best this weekend,” Van Wormer said. “You always want to see how you can stack up, and hopefully, we will run well.”
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Lane Automotive Michigan Traditional Sprints Finish Strong at Great Lakes
Lane Automotive Michigan Traditional Sprints Finish Strong at Great Lakes
By Trevor Hollis
Perfect racing weather and thirty of the best non-wing sprint cars in the state of Michigan took to the track at Crystal Motor Speedway to close out the 2012 racing season. A packed house was given a great show and Greg Dalman was able to hold off Brett Mann to pick up the win in the 25 lap feature event.
The feature event would see eventual winner Greg Dalman and former Sprints on Dirt champion Brett Mann on the front row. The last time Mann was behind the wheel of a non wing sprint car was 1998 at Crystal and he wound up victorious. Rust did not seem to be an issue however as Mann and Dallman would battle wheel to wheel for three quarters of the race. Dalman would later say that the top grove had started to take rubber and develop a lot of grip about half way thru and sure enough that is when Dalman would start to pull away from Mann. Brett would hold his own on the bottom but in the end it would not be enough to get around Dallman and he would have to settle for a second place finish.
In heat race action Jay Steinebach would pick up the first checkered flag over Tim Evilsizer and Nick Landon. The second heat would go to Joe Irwin with Dalman and Keith Love rounding out the top three. 2011 champion and defending Great Lakes Nationals champion Joe Bares won heat three. John Watson and Nate Bostrom would round out the top three. And in the final heat it was Steve Irwin picking up the checkered flag over Brett Mann and Mark Irwin. The final few spots in the feature would be filled from the b main. Former series champion Mike Galajda, Chris Pobanz, and Mike Baker would move on making up the top three.
With the season in the books Joe Irwin will pick up his first points championship with the series. Joe's consistent finishes in all of the races would prove to be enough to hold off Steve Irwin who would collect a couple wins on the season and third place finisher Mark Irwin. 2011 champion Joe Bares would hold on to fourth and Mike Baker rounded out the top five. The 2012 rookie of the year title belongs to Nate Bostrom.
Everybody associated with the series would like to take a second and thank all of the sponsors that make everything possible. Huge thanks goes out to series title sponsor Lane Automotive, associate sponsors Strpko Engineering, Hoosier Race Tire, Tri-county Equipment, Allstar Performance, Irwincraft Racecars, and Northwest Automachine. Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do to help this series grow. Well, that's a wrap on 2012! Here's to 2013! We'll see you at the track!!!
Great Lakes Nationals full results:
Strpko Engineering
Heat 1 finish. 1.Steinebach, 2.Evilsizer, 3.Landon, 4.Hawk, 5.Pobanz, 6.Gall,7. Hayward, 8.Rutledge.
Hoosier Race Tire
Heat 2 finish: 1.J Irwin,2. Dalman,3. Love, 4.Chuck Wilson, 5.Galadja,6. Baker, 7.Strpko, 8.Chris Wilson.
Tri County Equipment
Heat 3 finish:1. Bares, 2.Watson,3. N Bostrom, 4.Austrauskas, 5.D Bostrom, 6.Ockerman, 7.Brown.
Allstar Performance
Heat 4 finish: 1.S Irwin, 2.Mann, 3.M Irwin, 4.Rogers, 5.Vanhouten, 6. Woorden, 7. Caines
Irwincraft Racecars
B main finish: 1.Galadja, 2.Pobanz, 3.Baker, 4.Gall, 5.D Bostrom, 6.Strpko, 7.Chris Wilson, 8.Brown, 9.Hayward, 10.Ockerman,11. Woorden. 12. Rutledge 13. Caines 14. Vanhouten
Northwestern Automachine
A-Main finish (starting position)
1. Gregg Dalman (2), 2.Brett Mann (4), 3. Steve Irwin (5), 4. Mike Galajda (17), 5. Joe Bares (1), 6. Jay Steinebach (7), 7. John Watson (11), 8. Nick Landon (3), 9. Chuck Wilson (14), 10. Keith Love (12),11. Joe Irwin (9), 12. Chris Pobanz (20), 13. Mark Irwin (10), 14. Tim Evilsizer (6), 15. Mike Astrauskas (15), 16. Kevin Hawk (13), 17. John Gall (19), 18. Nate Bostrom (8), 19. Nick Rogers (16), 20. Mike Baker (18)
MTS Sprint Car Series
www.mtsprints.com
mtsprints@aol.com
By Trevor Hollis
Perfect racing weather and thirty of the best non-wing sprint cars in the state of Michigan took to the track at Crystal Motor Speedway to close out the 2012 racing season. A packed house was given a great show and Greg Dalman was able to hold off Brett Mann to pick up the win in the 25 lap feature event.
The feature event would see eventual winner Greg Dalman and former Sprints on Dirt champion Brett Mann on the front row. The last time Mann was behind the wheel of a non wing sprint car was 1998 at Crystal and he wound up victorious. Rust did not seem to be an issue however as Mann and Dallman would battle wheel to wheel for three quarters of the race. Dalman would later say that the top grove had started to take rubber and develop a lot of grip about half way thru and sure enough that is when Dalman would start to pull away from Mann. Brett would hold his own on the bottom but in the end it would not be enough to get around Dallman and he would have to settle for a second place finish.
In heat race action Jay Steinebach would pick up the first checkered flag over Tim Evilsizer and Nick Landon. The second heat would go to Joe Irwin with Dalman and Keith Love rounding out the top three. 2011 champion and defending Great Lakes Nationals champion Joe Bares won heat three. John Watson and Nate Bostrom would round out the top three. And in the final heat it was Steve Irwin picking up the checkered flag over Brett Mann and Mark Irwin. The final few spots in the feature would be filled from the b main. Former series champion Mike Galajda, Chris Pobanz, and Mike Baker would move on making up the top three.
With the season in the books Joe Irwin will pick up his first points championship with the series. Joe's consistent finishes in all of the races would prove to be enough to hold off Steve Irwin who would collect a couple wins on the season and third place finisher Mark Irwin. 2011 champion Joe Bares would hold on to fourth and Mike Baker rounded out the top five. The 2012 rookie of the year title belongs to Nate Bostrom.
Everybody associated with the series would like to take a second and thank all of the sponsors that make everything possible. Huge thanks goes out to series title sponsor Lane Automotive, associate sponsors Strpko Engineering, Hoosier Race Tire, Tri-county Equipment, Allstar Performance, Irwincraft Racecars, and Northwest Automachine. Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do to help this series grow. Well, that's a wrap on 2012! Here's to 2013! We'll see you at the track!!!
Great Lakes Nationals full results:
Strpko Engineering
Heat 1 finish. 1.Steinebach, 2.Evilsizer, 3.Landon, 4.Hawk, 5.Pobanz, 6.Gall,7. Hayward, 8.Rutledge.
Hoosier Race Tire
Heat 2 finish: 1.J Irwin,2. Dalman,3. Love, 4.Chuck Wilson, 5.Galadja,6. Baker, 7.Strpko, 8.Chris Wilson.
Tri County Equipment
Heat 3 finish:1. Bares, 2.Watson,3. N Bostrom, 4.Austrauskas, 5.D Bostrom, 6.Ockerman, 7.Brown.
Allstar Performance
Heat 4 finish: 1.S Irwin, 2.Mann, 3.M Irwin, 4.Rogers, 5.Vanhouten, 6. Woorden, 7. Caines
Irwincraft Racecars
B main finish: 1.Galadja, 2.Pobanz, 3.Baker, 4.Gall, 5.D Bostrom, 6.Strpko, 7.Chris Wilson, 8.Brown, 9.Hayward, 10.Ockerman,11. Woorden. 12. Rutledge 13. Caines 14. Vanhouten
Northwestern Automachine
A-Main finish (starting position)
1. Gregg Dalman (2), 2.Brett Mann (4), 3. Steve Irwin (5), 4. Mike Galajda (17), 5. Joe Bares (1), 6. Jay Steinebach (7), 7. John Watson (11), 8. Nick Landon (3), 9. Chuck Wilson (14), 10. Keith Love (12),11. Joe Irwin (9), 12. Chris Pobanz (20), 13. Mark Irwin (10), 14. Tim Evilsizer (6), 15. Mike Astrauskas (15), 16. Kevin Hawk (13), 17. John Gall (19), 18. Nate Bostrom (8), 19. Nick Rogers (16), 20. Mike Baker (18)
MTS Sprint Car Series
www.mtsprints.com
mtsprints@aol.com
Monday, September 17, 2012
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Clay Now Covering Berlin Raceway in Preparation for Historic World of Outlaws Late Model Series Visit Sept. 21-22
Clay Now Covering Berlin Raceway in Preparation for Historic World of Outlaws Late Model Series Visit Sept. 21-22
MARNE, Mich. -- Berlin Raceway's transformation from an asphalt track to a dirt-covered showplace for one spectacular racing weekend is complete.
More than 300 truckloads of clay now cover the 7/16th-mile oval in advance of the Keyser Manufacturing 'Down & Dirty 100' Presented by NAPA Auto Parts, a historic $20,000-to-win World of Outlaws Late Model Series event on Sept. 21-22 that will return the venerable Wolverine State facility to its dirt-track roots.
"Everything has come along great," said Berlin Raceway general manager Mike Bursley, who co-promotes the venerable speedway with Kurt Dietrich under the DBD Ventures banner. "We've had great weather the last couple days to let us get the dirt down without any problems and now it's just a matter of getting the surface worked in and ready for racing."
The first truckload of clay was dumped ceremoniously on Berlin's homestretch last Saturday night following the final checkered flag of the 'Chet Championship Weekend' that closed the track's 2012 pavement racing schedule. Application of the clay commenced full force at 7 a.m. on Monday and continued virtually unabated through Tuesday evening.
Over 7,500 yards of clay - some excavated from the site of an athletic-field construction project at a local college, some from a nearby landfill - has been spread around the track, producing a dirt surface atop the asphalt that is roughly 12 inches thick.
The project has been overseen by Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park promoter Jeremie Corcoran, a former DIRTcar big-block Modified driver who has track-prep experience at several dirt tracks in the Empire State. Berlin officials were put in contact with Corcoran during the summer and decided to contract him to handle all work done on the temporary clay surface.
"Jeremie is doing a great job and has been a huge help," Dietrich, Berlin's operations and marketing manager, said of Corcoran, who hosted a WoO LMS event at Canandaigua in June. "We are very confident in him and really hope this will make the racers feel good that the track will be prepared right."
With bulldozing, grading and rolling equipment for the special event provided by the Georgetown Construction Co. in Jenison, Mich., Corcoran has been smoothing the clay since Monday. He expects to spend the remainder of the week discing, watering and packing the surface in preparation for a possible initial test session for local race teams on Saturday.
A full evening of practice for the WoO LMS event and competitors in the weekend's support divisions is set for Thurs., Sept. 20, from 4-8 p.m. Action will begin on Fri., Sept. 21, with WoO LMS time trials and heat races headlining a program that also includes DIRTcar UMP-sanctioned racing for UMP Modifieds ($1,500 to win), Factory Stocks/Bombers ($350 to win) and 4-Cylinders/Mini-Stocks ($125 to win). The grand finale on Sat., Sept. 22, features WoO LMS B-Mains and the Keyser Manufacturing 'Down & Dirty 100' Presented by NAPA, plus another full UMP Modified show paying $1,500 to win and a $400-to-win Street Stock event.
Racing is scheduled to begin at 7 o'clock each night of the weekend, which is generating plenty of buzz in the Michigan racing community. It's a throwback race for Berlin, which opened for business in 1950 as a dirt track but has exclusively presented asphalt action since 1966.
"So many people are talking about it," said Bursley. "And we've seen people stopping in constantly the last couple days to check out the dirt going down on the track, including a lot of people who remember the dirt days at Berlin back in the '50s and '60s."
"I haven't seen this much excitement about an event I don't think ever," added Dietrich. "This is going to be a huge weekend for Berlin Raceway. I know that we are like little kids on Christmas morning every time we go out and look at the track to see the dirt (surface), and all the calls we're getting and tickets we're selling tells us that a lot of other people are excited too."
Tickets will cost $20 on Friday and $30 on Saturday, with a two-day pass available for $45. Kids are $7 on Friday and $10 on Saturday, or $15 for a two-day pass.
Fans can purchase tickets on-line and obtain the latest information on the event by logging on to www.berlinraceway.com or calling the track office at 616-662-2051.
Fans can also follow Berlin Raceway on Twitter at www.twitter.com/berlinraceway and Facebook at Facebook.com/wherespeedbelongs.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
Fans can also follow the WoO LMS on Twitter at Twitter.com/WoOLateModels and Facebook at Facebook.com/WorldofOutlaws.
Contact: Kevin Kovac
World of Outlaws Late Model Series PR Director
kkovac@dirtcar.com | 704-254-7929
For more information visit www.berlinraceway.com or call the office at 616.677.500. Hours are Tuesday - Friday 9am - 5pm.
PRE SALE TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.BERLINRACEWAY.COM FOR ALL EVENTS!
MARNE, Mich. -- Berlin Raceway's transformation from an asphalt track to a dirt-covered showplace for one spectacular racing weekend is complete.
More than 300 truckloads of clay now cover the 7/16th-mile oval in advance of the Keyser Manufacturing 'Down & Dirty 100' Presented by NAPA Auto Parts, a historic $20,000-to-win World of Outlaws Late Model Series event on Sept. 21-22 that will return the venerable Wolverine State facility to its dirt-track roots.
"Everything has come along great," said Berlin Raceway general manager Mike Bursley, who co-promotes the venerable speedway with Kurt Dietrich under the DBD Ventures banner. "We've had great weather the last couple days to let us get the dirt down without any problems and now it's just a matter of getting the surface worked in and ready for racing."
The first truckload of clay was dumped ceremoniously on Berlin's homestretch last Saturday night following the final checkered flag of the 'Chet Championship Weekend' that closed the track's 2012 pavement racing schedule. Application of the clay commenced full force at 7 a.m. on Monday and continued virtually unabated through Tuesday evening.
Over 7,500 yards of clay - some excavated from the site of an athletic-field construction project at a local college, some from a nearby landfill - has been spread around the track, producing a dirt surface atop the asphalt that is roughly 12 inches thick.
The project has been overseen by Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park promoter Jeremie Corcoran, a former DIRTcar big-block Modified driver who has track-prep experience at several dirt tracks in the Empire State. Berlin officials were put in contact with Corcoran during the summer and decided to contract him to handle all work done on the temporary clay surface.
"Jeremie is doing a great job and has been a huge help," Dietrich, Berlin's operations and marketing manager, said of Corcoran, who hosted a WoO LMS event at Canandaigua in June. "We are very confident in him and really hope this will make the racers feel good that the track will be prepared right."
With bulldozing, grading and rolling equipment for the special event provided by the Georgetown Construction Co. in Jenison, Mich., Corcoran has been smoothing the clay since Monday. He expects to spend the remainder of the week discing, watering and packing the surface in preparation for a possible initial test session for local race teams on Saturday.
A full evening of practice for the WoO LMS event and competitors in the weekend's support divisions is set for Thurs., Sept. 20, from 4-8 p.m. Action will begin on Fri., Sept. 21, with WoO LMS time trials and heat races headlining a program that also includes DIRTcar UMP-sanctioned racing for UMP Modifieds ($1,500 to win), Factory Stocks/Bombers ($350 to win) and 4-Cylinders/Mini-Stocks ($125 to win). The grand finale on Sat., Sept. 22, features WoO LMS B-Mains and the Keyser Manufacturing 'Down & Dirty 100' Presented by NAPA, plus another full UMP Modified show paying $1,500 to win and a $400-to-win Street Stock event.
Racing is scheduled to begin at 7 o'clock each night of the weekend, which is generating plenty of buzz in the Michigan racing community. It's a throwback race for Berlin, which opened for business in 1950 as a dirt track but has exclusively presented asphalt action since 1966.
"So many people are talking about it," said Bursley. "And we've seen people stopping in constantly the last couple days to check out the dirt going down on the track, including a lot of people who remember the dirt days at Berlin back in the '50s and '60s."
"I haven't seen this much excitement about an event I don't think ever," added Dietrich. "This is going to be a huge weekend for Berlin Raceway. I know that we are like little kids on Christmas morning every time we go out and look at the track to see the dirt (surface), and all the calls we're getting and tickets we're selling tells us that a lot of other people are excited too."
Tickets will cost $20 on Friday and $30 on Saturday, with a two-day pass available for $45. Kids are $7 on Friday and $10 on Saturday, or $15 for a two-day pass.
Fans can purchase tickets on-line and obtain the latest information on the event by logging on to www.berlinraceway.com or calling the track office at 616-662-2051.
Fans can also follow Berlin Raceway on Twitter at www.twitter.com/berlinraceway and Facebook at Facebook.com/wherespeedbelongs.
For more information on the WoO LMS, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.
Fans can also follow the WoO LMS on Twitter at Twitter.com/WoOLateModels and Facebook at Facebook.com/WorldofOutlaws.
Contact: Kevin Kovac
World of Outlaws Late Model Series PR Director
kkovac@dirtcar.com | 704-254-7929
For more information visit www.berlinraceway.com or call the office at 616.677.500. Hours are Tuesday - Friday 9am - 5pm.
PRE SALE TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.BERLINRACEWAY.COM FOR ALL EVENTS!
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