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Cody Morris, Sapulpa, OK (10-2-2011) - Sprint Car and Midget fans from across the region gathered Saturday night for Emmett Hahn's Creek County Speedway 2011 season finale. Champ Sprints and the Lucas Oil ASCS EcoTec Midgets supported the first American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner Region event at the semi banked 1/4 mile oval since their 2010 campaign opener.
With Creek County sitting idle for much of the record setting summer months while track management was returned to its' 1985 founder, legendary dirt track promoter Emmett Hahn wasted little time in his quest to return quality sprint car racing to the Tulsa area. A successful reopening over the Labor Day holiday weekend was followed by an increasingly rare (for the southern plains) rainout, however Saturday night's 2011 season finale was welcomed by ideal conditions.
A total of 67 open wheel racing teams checked into Creek County confines. A stacked field of 28 ASCS Sooner Region sprint teams across the Sooner State, Arkansas, Texas, and Missouri, would see watch as the loot was snatched by a Washington state native.
Talala, Oklahoma's 2001 ASCS National Tour Champion Zach Chappell would lead the field to an initial start that would be wiped out as contact between Chappell and fellow front row starter Jonathon Beason ended with Beason bouncing to a stop along the turn 3 wall. A second attempt to get a lap in would also share a similar fate, this time with Broken Arrow, Oklahoma's mini sprint grad Alex Sewell coming to a turn 3 stop in his first ASCS start.
The third attempt would prove the charm as Chappell watched fellow Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour competitior Seth Bergman nab the early lead until a four car incident that resulted in Rick Wright Jr. violently flipping down the backstraight halted early progress. Guhtrie, Oklahoma's Michelle Decker would be forced to an early exit along with Wright.
A pair of stoppages at the midway point would provide the only challenge for Bergman as 2009 ASCS Sooner Region champion and current 2011 ASCS Sooner Region leader Joe Wood Jr. battled his way into the 2nd spot behind the Washington state invader.
Bergman's pace would repeatedly prove best as the 23 year old Snohomish, Washington native turned in a wire to wire effort to garner the 1st American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner Region feature win of his career aboard the Peterson Motorsports, Superior Marine, Corridor Electric, and SpeedMart Inc. sponsored no. 23 machine.
Joe Wood Jr.'s runner up effort would prove pivotal, as with just an entry to next week's 2011 ASCS Sooner Region finale at Muskogee's Thunderbird Speedway, Joe Wood Jr. will earn his 2nd American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner Region title in three seasons.
Chappell accepted show position honors, with 2011's ASCS Lone Star Region Champion Matt Covington taking 4th and Tulsa's Brian McClelland advancing from 10th to complete the top 5 running order.
Kyle Bellm, Jonathon Beason, Dustin Morgan, and Zach Chappell each took heat race nods over the 28 car field, with Tulsa's Cameron Hagin furthering his rookie season of ASCS action by topping the 12 lap B Feature.
With slightly less power and a slightly smaller wing, the Creek County Speedway Champ Sprint division aimed to double the open wheel entertainment for the finale occasion. A talented field of 28 regional champ sprint teams entered to take part in the season finale, and while it wasn't quite 4am, it was still a good night for sprint car veteran Mike Goodman.
A veteran of Creek County confines, Jackie York would set the pace for the 20 lap Champ Sprint main event with Skiatook, Oklahoma's Jerrod Wilson alongside, but it was Tulsa's Mike Goodman jumping to an early lead.
A lap 2 yellow would allow the field to get in single file order with Goodman leading September 2nd Champ Sprint victor Brian McClelland and accomplished mini sprint veteran Jerrod Wilson. That order would be maintained until a lap 7 stoppage for a turn 1 Dean Drake Jr. set the stage for a McClelland spin on the restart, ending the latter's bid for a repeat victory as he dove into the first turn a bit too deep in effort to get by the two lapped cars installed between himself and the leading Goodman.
McClelland's early exit bumped Pryor's Glen Passmore up to the runner up slot, but Goodman was good to the task as he rocketed off to nearly a full straightaway's advantage. The race would come to a grinding halt as Kevin Cummings and Layne Heimbaugh collided and tumbled in turn 4. Both drivers would emerge unscathed, but done for the remainder of the event.
The lap 14 restart saw Goodman leading Passmore with Sand Springs, Oklahoma's Kyle Clark up to the 3rd position from his 8th place starting spot. The restart would prove similar to those preceeding it as Goodman would go unchallenged over the final 6 circuits and take the Creek County Speedway 2011 Champ Sprint main event finale win aboard the Premier Homes, Autoshowcase of Tulsa, Goodyear, and Goodman & Associates sponsored red no. 4am.
Kyle Clark turned a late pass into a runner up finish with Passmore ultimately acception show position honors. Jerrod Wilson crossed the stripe fourth with Fred Mattox completing the top 5 running order.
Wilson, McClelland, Mattox, and Glen Passmore each took heat race honors over the 28 car field, with Philip Davis topping the 12 lap B Feature event.
Completing the featured open wheel triad of the 2011 Creek County Speedway season finale, the Lucas Oil ASCS EcoTec Midgets strode in for their 3rd Creek County Speedway visit in series' history and first since Glenpool's Matt Ward aced the inaugural outdoor ASCS EcoTec Midget event on May 21st of 2010.
Reigning 2010 Lucas Oil ASCS2 Outlaw Champion, 2011 Tulsa Shootout Outlaw Sweeper,
and hometown favorite Blake Hahn led the EcoTec Midget field to the start of the 15 lap main event.
It was a lead that would go unchallenged for much of the race, as Hahn immediately gained distance over Bixby's Kevin Bayer. An ASCS EcoTec Midget winner in Creek County's late season reopening on September 2nd, Bayer saved his best for last as a lap 12 caution for stalled teammate Eric Fenton paved the way for a 3 lap shootout for Creek County accolades.
In an event in which the field was largely strung out for much of the first 12 laps, the final 3 laps would completely dazzle onlookers and bring them to their feet as Hahn and Bayer immediately developed an all or nothing contest of slide jobs in each turn for the final three circuits. Bayer held a narrow advanatage as the pair raced under the white flag, but Hahn would execute a perfectly timed slider exiting turn two.
Fans took to their feet as the thrilling finish developed, with most onlookers fully expecting Bayer to execute a slider of his own, but Hahn would ride the high side through turns 3 and 4 to perfection as Bayer's move came up slightly short.
Hahn would take fan applause and a car length advantage to his 2nd Lucas Oil ASCS EcoTec Midget victory of the 2011 season and career first at Creek County Speedway aboard the Speedway Vending, Metric Cycles, Tel Star Communications, XXX Chassis, Hoosie Tire, and La Joie Seating sponsored no. 52.
Bayer crossed the stripe 2nd with Donnie Ray Crawford taking show position honors. Matt Ward and Brandon Hahn completed the top 5 running order.
Hahn took heat race honors over the 8 car field, with Bayer besting qualifer action.
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