From Bill W
Kaley Gharst led start to finish on a fast track at the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson, Iowa Wednesday night. The win over the 30 sprinters assembled was the fourth Ideal Ready Mix Sprint Invaders tally for him at the 3/8 mile oval, and the 14th all-time (tied for 1st) with the series.’
A draw by Shake-Up Dash winner Jim Moughan Jr. put Gharst, driving the Plath Motorsports #14P on the pole for the 25-lapper. The Decatur, Illinois driver broke out to an early lead, while Tasker Phillips rode the rim in turns one and two to shoot in the runner-up position. Moughan moved by Josh Higday into third before a lap eight caution for a stopped Ben Wagoner.
Gharst pulled away on the restart, and Higday moved into third before Travis Porter spun on lap 11. The next 11 laps went non-stop, and Gharst built a large advantage. Higday and Phillips battled for second, and Moughan entered the battle as well. Eventually, Phillips would lock down the runner-up spot with Moughan and Higday in tow.
The last stoppage came on a red for Jon Agan, who flipped on the frontstretch, battling in the top ten with three laps to go. The three lap dash did not phase Gharst, who navigated the cushion in turns one and two and the low side of three and four. “We haven’t been running well, and we put together a car we ran last year,” said Gharst. “We ran against the fence on the top of turns one and two, and there was a pretty big hole in three and four, so I didn’t want to test the high side. It was just good to get a win after struggling like we’ve been.”
The seventeen year old, Phillips, registered a career best second place finish. “I was just trying to get through turn one,” he said of his run on the cushion to move into second.. “I usually struggle with the full fuel load. I could have kept running the cushion, but I lost my brakes about lap five. I was using the bump in turn three as my brake and I exited low in four. The finish was a bonus, and it means we may be able to travel a little more. We’re pretty much done in the field now.”
Moughan talked of his third place run. “I loved the track. It’s a big track for me, and I need to get used to running the big tracks again. The car was tight to start, and got a lot better in the middle of the race. I traded third with Higday a few times, and it was rolling good until the red came out. It’s good to get another top three.”
Mark Shirshekan drove from 12th to 4th , while Russ Hall rounded out the top five. Finishing sixth through tenth were Higday, hard-charger Bobby Mincer, Ryan Jamison, Donnie Steward and Matt Sutton.
In addition to the dash, Moughan also picked up his heat race. Other winners were Mike Hess, Wagoner and Gharst. Mincer took the B main.
Mike Houseman Jr. was not able to start the feature after getting upside down after contact from Hall in a battle for second at the end of their heat race. Mike Williams flipped out of the park over turn two in the fourth heat. Neither driver was injured.
The next event on the Sprint Invaders calendar is Friday, June 25 at the Jacksonville Speedway in Jacksonville, Illinois.
Results
Ideal Ready Mix 34-lap A main Finish (started): 1. 14P, Kaley Gharst, Decatur, IL (1) 2. 7TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (4) 3. 1m, Jim Moughan Jr., Springfield, IL (3) 4. 3x, Mark Shirshekan, Farmington, MO (12) 5. 45c, Russ Hall, Pleasant Hill, IA (5) 6. 41, Josh Higday, Des Moines, IA (2) 7. 15, Bobby Mincer, Burlington, IA (16) 8. 51J, Ryan Jamison, Mediapolis, IA (13) 9. 16HD, Donnie Steward, West Burlington, IA (14) 10. 3, Matt Sutton, Macomb, IL (9) 11. 88, Jarrod Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA (18) 12. 18, Mike Hess, Springfield, IL (6) 13. 4J, Justin Parrish, Oquawka, IL (17) 14. 53H, Matt Harms, Chillicothe, IL (20) 15. 80x, CJ Houseman, Norwalk, IA (10) 16. 47T, Tony Shilling, Knoxville, IA (19) 17. 31P, Travis Porter, Rock Island, IL (15) 18. 65, Jordan Goldesberry, Springfield, IL (7) 19. 4A, Jon Agan, Knoxville, IA (11) 20. 84, Ben Wagoner, Emden, IL (8) DNS – 68, Mike Houseman Jr., Des Moines, IA. Lap Leader: Kaley Gharst 1-25. Hard Charger: Bobby Mincer.
Golden Eagle Distributors – Budweiser of Burlington Heat Race #1 (8 laps, top four to feature, top two to Dash): 1. Jim Moughan Jr. (1) 2. Josh Higday (2) 3. Matt Sutton (4) 4. Mark Shirshekan (3) / 5. Bobby Mincer (8) 6. Matt Harms (6) 7. 40, Andy Huston, Roseville, IL (5) 8. 38, Seth Wilke, Burlington, IA (7)
Cole Implement of Media, IL Heat Race #2 (8 laps, top four to feature, top two to Dash): 1. Mike Hess (1) 2. Jordan Goldesberry (2) 3. CJ Houseman (5) 4. Ryan Jamison (7) / 5. Justin Parrish (3) 6. 9x, Bart Andrews, Mediapolis, IA (4) 7. 99, Jimmy Davies, Oquawka, IL (6) 8. 36, Justin Newberry, West Burlington, IA (8)
Huston Land Improvement of Roseville, IL Heat Race #3 (8 laps, top four to feature, top two to Dash): 1. Ben Wagoner (2) 2. Russ Hall (1) 3. Mike Houseman Jr. (4) 4. Donnie Steward (7) / 5. Tony Shilling (3) 6. Jarrod Schneiderman (5) 7. 7, Sid Blandford Jr., Vail, CO (6)
Cen-Pe-Co Lubricants Heat Race #4 (8 laps, top four to feature, top two to Dash): 1. Tasker Phillips (1) 2. Kaley Gharst (7) 3. Jon Agan (6) 4. Travis Porter (2) / 5. 56, Matt Krieger, Burlington, IA (5) 6. 61J, Daniel Bergquist, Burlington, IA (3) 7. 4, Mike Williams, Knoxville, IA (4)
Golden Eagle Distributors – Budweiser of Burlington Shake-Up Dash (6 laps): 1. Jim Moughan Jr. (2) 2. Tasker Phillips (1) 3. Russ Hall (3) 4. Mike Hess (4) 5. Kaley Gharst (8) 6. Josh Higday (6) 7. Jordan Goldesberry (5) 8. Ben Wagoner (7)
Holtkamp Truck & Trailer Repair B Main (12 laps, top five to feature): 1. Bobby Mincer (1) 2. Justin Parrish (2) 3. Jarrod Schneiderman (7) 4. Tony Shilling (3) / 5. Matt Harms (5) 6. Jimmy Davies (10) 7. Andy Huston (9) 8. Bart Andrews (6) 9. Justin Newberry (12) 10. Seth Wilke (11) 11. Daniel Bergquist (8) 12. Matt Krieger (4) DNS – Sid Blandford Jr., Mike Williams
Contingency Awards:
Rod End Supply: CJ Houseman, Ben Wagoner
Saldana Racing Products: Mike Hess
Hepfner Race Products: Travis Porter
Weld Racing: Justin Parrish