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Tornado Alley – Look out Jackson Town!
(Bill W) August 21, 2008 – Johnny Cash and June Carter sang…
We've been talkin' 'bout Jackson, ever since the fire went out.
I'm goin' to Jackson, I'm gonna mess around,
Yeah, I'm goin' to Jackson,
Look out Jackson town.
When "Tornado" Billy Alley rolled through Jackson (Minnesota version) last weekend, fans and drivers alike took notice, as he pulled down his first Jackson Nationals triumph worth $5,000 on Saturday night. It was good medicine after leading much of Friday's prelim before falling to third at the checkers. There was no confirmation that Billy was "dancing on a pony keg" after the races like June Carter had done, but he had a right to be a "big talkin' man"! This weekend, he'll try to maintain his second place standing in the Knoxville 410 point race.
The heat race was essential in Friday's prelim at the Jackson Speedway, and Billy made the most of it, winning from inside row two. "That set up our whole weekend really," he relates. "The track was pretty narrow and it was big to win that. I don't get to Jackson too often, but I do run a ½ mile regularly, and I think that's an advantage we have there."
He started third in the preliminary feature, and after challenging early leader, Gregg Bakker, he took the point on lap six. But once he entered lapped traffic, his setup choice suffered, and Jake Peters and eventual winner, Wayne Johnson, stormed by relegating him to third at the checkers. "Everything was running fine; we were just off on gear a bit," says Billy. "Around cushion when we were out front, we were good, but in lapped traffic, I made a couple of mistakes and that broke my momentum. That killed me for a lap, and Jake (Peters) and Wayne (Johnson) got by me."
A third place run in Saturday's dash, set Billy up behind front row starters Brian Brown and Jody Rosenboom. Billy shot forward immediately and was in the lead pulling away by the second go-around. He wired the field the rest of the way, maneuvering through traffic and taking the big trophy home. "The car was super!" he says. "I could screw up, and the car would still bail me out of it. The track was similar to Friday's and we had it dialed in. During the 360 Nationals (at Knoxville Raceway) we had found some combinations with setup and fuel, and we carried that over successfully to Jackson."
While on the road, the SA Racing #22 team stopped at Huset's Speedway in Brandon, South Dakota for some 410 racing on Sunday. The results were lackluster. Billy was sixth quick and finished where he started in the heat (fourth). "We have a motor designated for Huset's that I purchased from Phil Durst," says the native of Lincoln, Nebraska. "It's an older motor, and we're still trying to figure out the fuel and the gearing for it there. We ran Huset's one other time with this motor, and it was slick. Sunday, we were guessing it would get slick, but it was just as heavy after the feature as when the night started, and we weren't prepared for that."
Starting seventh in the 25-lap feature, Billy spent some time in the top five, but settled for seventh at the checkers. "The motor was so pulled down that it didn't want to run," he says. "It was so bad, that even with how tight our car was and the heaviness of the track, we couldn't pull the front wheels off the ground. I didn't have enough gear to do it. I made a good move at the beginning, up to about fifth, but we had a restart, and Jake and (Mark) Dobmeier went around me like I was tied to a fencepost. We didn't go backwards by any means, but we didn't go forward either. Huset's doesn't take a big motor or the fancy stuff to win, you need laps. A lot of the guys there don't travel a lot, but they're tough, because it's about setup…and we weren't set up."
Billy took a little bit of heat for not sticking around long after the feature. "I'd like to apologize for that, we lick to stay and visit with fans. It's tougher on a Sunday night when you've been on the road. We had my dad along, and he and (crew chief Bob) 'Buns' (Richardson) have to work on Monday morning. After three nights of racing on the road over the weekend, they were ready to get home."
Billy is holding down a bit of a cushion in second in the Knoxville 410 standings, but with two point races remaining, nothing can be taken for granted. He'll be looking for his third win of the year at Knoxville this Saturday night.
New T-Shirts!
Check out Billy's new T-Shirts designed by GRAFX 2 A Tee! Get them at the trailer, or e-mail Billy to order!
Hoseheads Radio
If you are too far from Knoxville to make it on race night at Knoxville, Billy's races will be on the internet at www.HoseheadsRadio.com all season long! Join "Hot" Rod Pattison and Bill W for all the action starting at 7:30 p.m. CST. SA Racing is a proud partner of Hoseheads Radio this season!
Billy on the Radio
Billy is making morning appearances all race season long on KJJY (92.5 FM) in Des Moines. He's looking forward to talking about racing…and other things with Hatfield and McCoy.
Down the Alley
Eli Murphy from Omaha, NE asks: Congratulations on your win at Jackson and your strong season with a new team. Do you foresee any changes in equipment or your schedule for 2009?
Billy answers: Things are looking good. It looks like we'll be able to race a little more. I would say a long-term goal for our team is to hit the road, but not next year yet. Everything needs to be in order with your team and inventory built up and such. Our inventory now is solid on the local level, but its not on the national level yet. Shane Sterling and Delta Oil are putting us in position and having success in our first year helps too. We need to get another year under our belt with what and who we have. As far as equipment, there won't be many changes there either.
Got a question for Billy? Send it to us at [email protected], and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for Billy" in your subject line.
Alley's Anecdotes
Billy's $5,000 grab at Jackson was impressive, but he has won three $10,000 finales in his short career. He topped Shane Stewart, Brian Brown, Zach Chappell and Jesse Hockett on September 27, 2003 in ASCS action at the Missouri State Fair Speedway in Sedalia. His two 360 Nationals wins also paid $10,000. He won over Wayne Johnson, Terry McCarl, Jason Johnson and Jake Peters in 2004, and topped Gary Wright, Brown, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Dusty Zomer in 2005.
Tornado Alley
"Tornado Alley" is an up close look at the past, present and future of 2006 Knoxville Raceway track champion, Billy Alley. To receive "Tornado Alley", send an e-mail to [email protected] with "Alley" in the subject line.
Billy and SA Racing would like to thank Delta Oil, Sterling Physical Therapy, Bolz Farms, Aeroquip, Awesome Racewear, The Buckles Brothers, Buss Excavating, JEI Chassis, McLain Motorsports, Schmit Automotive, Wesmar Racing Engines, Red Devil, Brakes, Pro Shocks, Fuel Safe, C&R Radiator, Vortex Wings, Sander Engineering, K&N Filters , Harris Decals, Toad Valley Golf Course, Speedway Motors, Featherlite Inc., Autometer, D'Agostiono Racing, Monarch's Restaurant, Volvo, Hoosier Tires.
Billy celebrates his Jackson Nationals win (Todd Hoffman)
Bill W MediaMonroe, IAUSA[email protected]
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