InsideGroove - Race Report

SPANGLER BARNETT HARLEY DAVIDSON POINT LEADER FOLLOWING 9TH WIN

Aztec, NM -- While Dove Creek CO race car builder Aaron Spangler has wrapped up the Aztec Speedway dirt modified track championship by collecting his 9th 30 lap feature win Saturday night, making a 20th start as he moved him past 13 year old Las Cruces racer Johnny Scott into the season point lead for the rich Barnetts Harley Davidson State Series. The Barnett points count just your 20 best starts and Spangler stands just 4 points in front of J Scott and 14 ahead of Bumper Jones in that race. Tonight, Spangler paced the final 7 laps after charging from 12th starting for that 9th win. In his best run of the year, Ken Ward led several laps and finished 2nd ahead of Danny Nelson Jr. After placing 2nd in the B Main, Kenny Hendershot charged forward from 18th starting spot to win his first ever 25 lap IMCA Stock Car main event. Andy Hockenhull was second ahead of Frank Powell Jr. Leading from lap 2 to the checkered flag, Nick Nelson won his second straight mini stock main event and third overall for the 2003 season. Daniel Nelson III ran second ahead of point leader Steven McDaniel after Zach Rouse received a two position penalty for a jump start. Bobby Simons beat Ed Mangum and Jeff Jennings in the hobby stock feature. E Mangum still holds hope of catching season point leader Howard Asbe as H Asbe ran 11th and saw his point lead shrink to jut 27 points. The action followed a tough weather month for the track. August 2 and August 23 were both rained out and the August 16th show had a multi-hour rain delay.

The dirt modifieds had a 28 car turnout, but Donny Carey was sidelined early and the remaining 27 cars all lined up for the 30 lap feature. Heat winners were teenaged Porter Smith, D Nelson Jr, Larry Cornell and IMCA Stock Car graduate Ralph Klemish. Klemish and Cornell were on the front row for the 30 lapper. Cornell led six laps before Garrett Higgins put a Burson family mount into the lead. Ward moved up to duel Higgins side by side for the top spot and Ward did claim the lead on lap 21. On lap 22, Higgins and Eddie Farley tangled dueling for 2nd and the race was over for both. Spangler drove by Ward on lap 24 for the top spot and he went on to win by six car lengths over Ward. D Nelson Jr was third. With former track champion Craig Nelson sidelined for the season due to a back injury suffered when he hit the wall in Olathe CO, Danny Bradford jumped into his Ford powered mount and drove it from 15th starting to a 4th place finish. Smith ran fifth ahead of Chad Burson, Cortez regular Dennis Rieb, Kevin Brown and Frank Powell Sr. Both Smith and Burson are 18 years old. The race had four yellows and a single red flag when Tim Karl destroyed his car by hitting the turn 2 wall headon. He was unhurt. In the track points, Spangler is 95 points ahead of C Nelson. Bradford is 40 points back of C Nelson and just 2 ahead of Farley, 5 in front of Derek Neil.

The IMCA Stock Cars ran four heats and a 16 car B Main to determine the 24 A Main starters. Heat winners were Powell Jr, Beth Hartsfield, Leroy Hartsfield and Scotty Beasley. Ted Boettler outraced Hendershot for the B Main win with Melissa Farley third ahead of Paul Otero. The husband-wife team of B and L Hartsfield shared the front row for the 25 lap main event. B Hartsfield led the first lap, but sixth starting Hockenhull took over on lap 2. He paced the field until lap 19 when Hendershot raced into the top spot. Hockenhull salvaged second ahead of Powell Jr, Rex Higgins and Tim Hopper. After the race, the top five cars received a very thorough inspection and all five passed. Season point leader Allen Bradley gave up fifth when he slowed on the final lap and allowed Hopper to pass him. Larry Bradley was 7th ahead of Jerald Wright and Greg Ruybalid. A Bradley is 44 points ahead of Hoppper and there is a great battle occuring for third in points. Melissa Farley is 23 points back of Hopper, but just 1 point ahead of Higgins, 2 in front of Powell Jr and 3 ahead of both Beasley and Daniel Christensen. Hendershot climbed to 8th in points with his first win. Several Aztec cars ran Sunday night in Albuquerque with Powell Jr second there ahead of L Bradley as Albuquerque star Jim Willis won that $750 to win show.

The mini stocks split their 15 cars into a pair of heat races and 11 of them towed to Albuquerque on Sunday for their first ever race at that 3/8 mile clay oval. The top four feature finishers tonight were also the top four in heat 1 as McDaniel beat N Nelson in the heat race. David Benson won heat 2 ahead of Dian Sivers and Zeke Sivers. N Nelson came from 3rd starting to win the main event. Zach Rouse crossed the line 2nd after racing from 8th, but was callled for a jump start and penalized back to 4th. D Nelson III gained second ahead of McDaniel. D Sivers placed fifth ahead of Amanda Auckland and Z Sivers. McDaniels point lead is 27 over Z Sivers, 46 ahead of Rouse and 72 ahead of D Nelson III. D Sivers is just 2 points back of D Nelson III. At the Albuquerque show, McDaniel won with Rouse second ahead of D Sivers and Albuquerque racer Rick Boelter.

The hobby stocks placed their 12 cars into a pair of heat races. E Mangum and Jeff Jennings won heat races. Sixth starter Simons was the feature winner ahead of 4th starter E Mangum and 7th starter Jennings. Frankie Hendershot ran fourth ahead of Mark Maez, Leon Shinn and Dereck Rhoden. H Asbe ran 11th and leads E Mangum by 27 points. Jennings moved around the absent Rusty Estes into third. Estes is still 2 points ahead of fifth ranked Steve Asbe.

Due to the IMCA SuperNationals, the Sept 6 date at Aztec will be a non-point show. The track is dark on Sept 13 and runs the annual Floyd Reynolds Memorial two night SCOA Winged 410 sprint car show on Sept 19-20. The IMCA Stock Cars race Friday night that weekend and the dirt modifieds race on Saturday night.

Summary Hobby Stock Heat 1-Ed Mangum, Bobby Simons, Frankie Hendershot, Mark Maez, Ralph Mangum. Heat 2-Jeff Jennings, Steve Asbe, Howard Asbe, Allen Palmer, Caleb Tabet. Main-Simons, E Mangum, Jennings, Hendershot, Maez, Leon Shinn, Dereck Rhoden, R Mangum, Tabet, S Asbe, H Asbe, Palmer. Mini Stock Heat 1-Steven McDaniel, Nick Nelson, Zach Rouse, Daniel Nelson III, Amanda Auckland. Heat 2-David Benson, Dian Sivers, Zeke Sivers, Marissa Burson, Gary Linker. Main-N Nelson, D Nelson III, McDaniel, Rouse, D Sivers, Auckland, Z Sivers, Matthew Higgins, Brittany Tillerson, Linker, James Duff, Benson, T J Morrow, Burson. IMCA Stock Car Heat 1-Frank Powell Jr, Daniel Christensen, Jerald Wright, Bill Cochran, Paul Dorsett. Heat 2-Beth Hartsfield, Andy Hockenhull, Tim Hopper, Rex Higgins, Ted Boettler. Heat 3-Leroy Hartsfield, Allen Bradley, Larry Bradley, Greg Ruybalid, Melissa Farley. Heat 4-Scotty Beasley, Ray Hollingsworth, Tim Nobis, Arlen Cochran, Richard Trujillo. B Main-Boettler, Kenny Hendershot, Melissa Farley, Paul Otero, John Hank, Caroline Kircher, Brandon Tenski, Trujillo, Dan Philpott, Frank Danjou. A Main-Hendershot, Hockenhull, Powell Jr, Higgins, Hopper, A Bradley, L Bradley, Wright, Ruybalid, Nobis, Farley, B Cochran, Hank, Hollingsworth, Boettler, Beasley, Trujillo, L Hartsfield, Tenski, B Hartsfield, Kircher, Christensen, A Cochran, Otero. Dirt Modified Heat 1-Porter Smith, Eddie Farley, Lee Moss, Dennis Rieb, M E Eddleman. Heat 2-Danny Nelson Jr, Garrett Higgins, Frank Powell Sr, Mark Brown, Tim Karl. Heat 3-Larry Cornell, Kevin Brown, Chad Burson, Danny Bradford, Randy Eitel. Heat 4-Ralph Klemish, Ken Ward, Aaron Spangler, Chris Vivolo, Garland Tucker. Main-Spangler, Ward, D Nelson Jr, Bradford, Smith, Burson, Rieb, K Brown, Powell Sr, Derek Neil, Eddleman, Cornell, James Tabet, Klemish, Vivolo, Tucker, M Brown, Eitel, Iley Jackson, Moss, Farley, Higgins, Bob Anderson, Karl, Steve West, Kyle Herrin, Kevin Vick.
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