North Central Arkansas Speedway, 5-23-14
By Scott Ramos         

Humid and warm conditions greeted those in attendance this evening at North Central Arkansas Speedway, getting the Memorial Day race weekend underway with several new faces in the pits as the PSRA made the first of two scheduled visits to the track.

The Hornet class again led off the feature racing action after intermission. Early race leader Corey Howell and pole-sitter Josh Williamson raced each other in close quarters for the first 5 circuits until Williamson got into Howell, bringing out the yellow flag. Shannon Howell held the lead for the restart, but Corey and Josh quickly got back out in front with Corey pulling away from Josh over the last few laps for the win.

            Hornet Final Results: 1) #73HD Corey Howell,  2) #114 Josh Williamson,  3) #173 Shannon Howell

Jason Snodgrass won his heat race, but passing points had Lonnie Judd holding the pole position for the start of the USRA B-Modified feature race. Snodgrass held the early advantage going into the first turn, and led every lap on the scorecard on the way to his feature win of the season. Judd kept close to Snodgrass early and settled for a second place finish with Cain Foster claiming third in his first speedway appearance of 2014.

USRA B-Modified Final Results: 1) #71 Jason Snodgrass,  2) #10 Lonnie Judd,  3) #24F Cain Foster,  4) #9 Tyler Campbell

The Hobby cars took the starting green flag behind Richard Carson on the inside of the front row alongside Kevin Collins at the front of the thirteen car field. Collins held the advantage over Carson exiting turn two and stayed out in front of the field until a spin by Carson on lap two brought out the first of four caution flags in the race. Carson was forced to the rear on the restart and after an aborted attempt to restart brought the yellow flag back out the race resumed with Collins pacing Donny Herring and Eric Pinson around at the track in front of the field. Carson slowly worked his way back towards the front of the pack, claiming the fifth spot on lap seven, and then getting into fourth on lap eight. Caution would come over the track again for a solo spin on lap twelve, and another single car spin on the restart left the field close together coming back up to speed. Carson used the closely spaced field to his advantage, getting past Herring on the restart and moving around Pinson into second on lap fourteen. Carson then closed on the leader Collins as the laps ticked past, but never got close enough to the leader to mount a serious challenge for the win. Pinson crossed the finish line running third, but a failed post-race inspection saw Pinson being disqualified, handing third place on the night to Herring.

Hobby Stock Final Results: 1) #2 Kevin Collins,  2) #29 Richard Carson,  3) #8H Donnie Herring,  4) #2X Jimmie Blair,  5) #56 Kenneth Carroll,  6) #45 Matt Bolin,  7) #75T Drew Horton,  8) #32 James Raney,  9) #K1 Kyler VanScoy,  10) #5 Matt Bolin,  11) #44 Lee Smith,  12) #T10 Matthew Seaman,  DQ) #89 Eric Pinson

The three car Super Stock race got started with the drivers three-wide at the start/finish line under the waving green starting flag. Joe Davenport used the bottom groove on the track to claim the early lead on the way to his feature win. Eric Hopper passed Mark Shockley for second on lap two, but was forced off the track on lap five leaving Shockley to try to challenge Davenport on the following restart. Davenport quickly got back out in front and drove away from Shockley to claim the win

Super Stock Final Results: 1) #28 Joe Davenport,  2) #43 Mark Shockley,  3) #21 Eric Hopper,  DNS) #83 Jr. Shearin

 The $1000 to win PSRA feature race went green with Jimmie Richeson on the pole and Kendall Hasty outside the front row. Four laps were recorded with Hasty out in front of Richeson before the first caution flag waved for the car of Paul Dilbeck after Dilbeck hit the wall exiting turn four and a stopped on the front straight. Hasty led Richeson, Ethan Lamons and Shane Collins back to the restart but only one full lap went onto the score sheet before the yellow waved again, this time because the car of Collins lost it’s right rear tire after contact between several drivers in the middle of the pack. Leader Hasty would bring out the next yellow flag only two laps later with a solo spin off turn four giving the lead to Lamons who had moved past Richeson on the previous restart. After a restart for a solo spin on lap eight, Lamons began to pull away for the field and was working through lapped traffic when the caution lights came on again for a two-car spin involving Wesley Taylor and  James Adams. Doug Jones moved to the back bumper of Richeson for the restart, and moved into second before the final yellow of the night on lap eighteen. Lamons held off a stiff challenge by Jones on the restart to pull away and claim the win, with Jones taking home a second place finish with Richeson holding on for third.

PSRA Pure Stock Final Results: 1) #20A Ethan Lamons,  2) #Z28 Doug Jones,  3) #101 Jimmy Richeson,  4) #75T Tyler Schoen,  5) #2 Todd Collins,  6) #52H Kendall Hasty,  7) #00 JP Harris,  8) #3T Stefan Palmer,  9) #78 James Adams,  10) # 90 Don Williams,  11) # 89 Dylan Pinson,  12) #62H Benjamin Haddox,  13) #98 Matt Rush,  14) #3 Wesley Taylor,  15) #1/2 Zane Hunter,  16) #24T Glenn Bratti,  17) #711 Shane Collins,  18) #09 Justin Koch,  19) #14 John E. Brewer,  20) #11D Paul Dilbeck,  21) #17H Weston Holman,  22) #7L Larry West,  23) #5 John Briggs

North Central Arkansas Speedway is located between Yellville and Flippin on Hwy. 62-412. The gates open at 6:00 on Friday nights, with the racing starting at 8:00. Adult admission - $10; seniors and those with a military ID Card - $8; children 7-14 years of age - $5; kids 6 and under get in free. A family plan is just $20 for 2 adults and any children 14 and under, and a pit pass is available for $25. For all the latest speedway information please call 870-449-LAPS(5277), or just go to the North Central Arkansas Speedway website at www.dsmotorsports-llc.com.