FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
10.07.2023 CHARLESTON SPEEDWAY: CHARLESTON, IL
The 60th straight season of Stock Car Racing at The Charleston Speedway comes to a successful close with high expectations for the 61st season of 2024!
We MUST recognize the Fans, the Drivers, the Teams and the Partners of The Charleston Speedway for everything you have done over the past 6 decades to ensure that Stock Car Racing is ALIVE and WELL in a Central Illinois town, otherwise known for its University. In 1964, Mr. Humphres created Humphres Speedway, and immediately began hosting stock car races, Over the past 60 years there have been 10 different owners on official record, but there have been many more different promoters, each one doing their part to ensure Mr. Humphres efforts would not be lost under their watch! That effort and goal continues under the management of the Ross family. We know that The Charleston Speedway is nothing more than a 30-acre dirt circle, without YOU!
You, the FAN; You, the DRIVER; You, the TEAM MEMBERS; and You, the PARTNER; YOU are The Charleston Speedway!
So as this 60th consecutive season of Stock Car racing at The Charleston Speedway draws to a close, THANK YOU for your continued support, THANK YOU for everything you do, the things we see and the things we don’t -- THANK YOU!
Every year in October, we invite all the kids out to enjoy walking in the pit area, meeting the drivers, and getting as much candy as they can carry! This is a FREE event for the kids to enjoy…..and we KNOW the drivers enjoy it too, but we will keep that our little secret. We all look forward to seeing all the kids having a blast in the pit area! Thank you to Amazing Grace Ministries for helping sort through the seeming chaos and making the event a great success. Amazing Grace Ministries have become a vital part of The Charleston Speedway and we look forward to their continued involvement for many years to come! With the Trunk or Treat over, it was time for some racing!
DIRTcar Modified division saw 21 entries. Qualifying came as no surprise with the #21D of Danny Schwartz at the top of the board with a time of 14.103, followed by the #58R of Ryan Hamilton with a time of 14.221 and 3rd fast was the #121 of Deece Schwartz with a time of 14.511. The young gun from Kentucky in the #99, Hunt Gossum would struggle with mechanical issues and fail to post a qualifying time. Qualifying in the books, it’s heat race time. Heat 1 pole sitter, Danny Schwartz would go flag to flag to pick up Heat 1 win over 2nd place Brent Moore and 3rd place Jimmy Hayden. Heat 2 pole sitter, Ryan Hamilton would struggle just a bit to get in front of the veteran driver, Kenny Carmichael Sr., but he did on lap 3 and was able to pick up the win. Kenny Carmichael Sr would finish 2nd in front of 3rd place Rob Fuqua. Heat 3 would see Deece Schwartz starting P1 and lead every lap over 2nd place Matt Dillon and 3rd place Scott Hutchinson. The DIRTcar Modified feature was as exciting as you might expect to end the season out. Pole sitter Danny Schwartz would cross the line on lap 1 in 2nd behind the #58R of Ryan Hamilton. Hamilton would set the pace as he proceeded to show the way. Danny Schwartz would be forced to ride in 2nd, sometimes as close as 0.2 tenths of a second behind Hamilton, other times as far back as 1.013 seconds; but he never lost sight of the leader as he averaged a 0.7655 second gap for the first 16 laps. While Ryan Hamilton was enjoying his lead over Danny Schwartz, they were quickly catching lap traffic. As the pair entered turn 1, it was obvious that 2 lapped cars were about to impact the outcome of the race, as the 4 of them exited turn 2, that thought became a reality as Hamilton chose to try and split the lead cars, somehow Schwartz made his car skinny enough to slip right under all 3 of them and take the lead going down the back stretch! Ryan Hamilton cleared the lapped cars and set his sights on taking the lead back, however with only 4 laps remaining, Danny Schwartz was able to fend off the challenge and pick up his 3rd DIRTcar Modified feature win of 2023 at The Charleston Speedway. A dejected Ryan Hamilton would be forced to settle for 2nd while Deece Schwartz came across the line in 3rd. Without a doubt, the Hard Charger Award goes to the #4K of Taylor Kerz who started 21st and came home 10th! One other notable accomplishment was the 15th to 9th place run of the #1 of Mike Lenz. The fast and furious 20 lap feature event went green to checker flag in less 15min! They were flying and putting on a show. If you were not able to catch the final DIRTcar Modified Feature of 2023, just click here and check out the action for yourself: https://youtu.be/gjWdmagjvSM?si=vPhPW883vaGB2YDu
The DIRTcar Street Stock division saw 10 entries, and while the car count was not high, the competition was very stout! Heat 1 would be set from pill draw and the #14D of Dalton Mannin would start P1. When the green flag dropped, Mannin jumped out to an early lead that regardless of the hard charging efforts of the other competitors, Dalton Mannin parked his #14D hot rod in victory lane for Heat 1. Ryan Taylor in the #5 would finish 2nd from his 5th place starting position, while Jerrad Krick would finish 3rd from his 10th place starting position. Feature line-up would set the #14D of Dalton Mannin on the coveted pole position, with the #5 of Ryan Taylor alongside him on the front row. When the green flag dropped, Mannin would jump to the early lead and lead lap one. However, the hard charging Ryan Taylor would prove too great of a challenge as Taylor took the lead on lap 2. While the front row was fighting for the top spot, lurking in the shadows was the #99K of Jerrad Krick. Krick rode in their tire tracks seemingly waiting to see how things would shake out before he went on the attack. By lap 4, Krick had waited long enough, and made his move, taking the lead from Ryan Taylor. Lap 5 would be the end of the night for the #14D of Dalton Mannin as he would succumb to mechanical issues. Jerrad Krick would go on to lead the remaining laps of the 15-lap feature to claim his 9th DIRTcar Street Stock feature at The Charleston Speedway. Ryan Taylor would finish a strong 2nd ahead of the #42 of the 2023 Charleston Speedway Street Stock Champion, Jesse Simmons. There was no clear Hard Charger Award winner as 4 different competitors gained the same number of positions. The DIRTcar Street Stock division never disappoints and if you want to see the action from 10/7/2023, simply click here:
https://youtu.be/RXptZYHJQvc?si=fFZlzAx2GtbVz2Ms
With the season drawing to a close, both the “Powder Puff” race as well as the “Mechanics” race are staples of The Charleston Speedway and are always worth the wait to see. The “Powder Puff” race is where the women that are behind the scenes all summer long, get to be center stage and drive their significant others, race car!! Do they get it right, right away? Absolutely not. But they put up with our crazy habit and so the drivers do everything they can to ensure their lady has her chance to give driving a shot. 5 ladies entered “Powder Puff” race #1. Starting last and rocketing her way to the lead was the #40J of Sarah McCullough, followed by 2nd place Kathy Eller in the #11 and in 3rd was the #79 of Amy Hoke. In “Powder Puff” race #2, there were 10 entries. Unfortunately, 3 of them could not start. Jerrica Jones started 6th in her #48 and shot to the lead, winning the race. Tanaya Russell in the #71R finished 2nd while Callie Lefler in the #X71 finished 3rd.
The “Mechanics” race is a bit of a different story. This is the rare opportunity for the men behind the wrenches, to put them down and climb in behind the wheel! “Mechanics” race #1 was won by our very own Tow Mater operator, David Montz in his #9 car, followed by the #44DD of Donovan Stark in 2nd and the #71R of Jake Russell in 3rd. “Mechanics” race # 2 saw the #10C of Ryan Blair wheel his Late Model into victory lane, followed by the #66K of Robert Stephens and the #79 of Caleb Vincent. There were a couple of regular drivers that were “testing” their car during the Mechanics race that finished up front, but we like to pay tribute to the actual Mechanics that participated! Way to go Ladies and Gentlemen; we hope you enjoyed yourselves as much as we enjoyed watching you wheel those hot rods!
If you missed any of the Powder Puff or Mechanics races, we’ve got you covered, click here to check them out:
Powder Puff Race #1
https://youtu.be/KojDhgt3QKo?si=-PMGjZHtY7cEPQm7
Powder Puff Race #2
https://youtu.be/S-yOss5SxCI?si=BLMI8WJO1gJB80_B
Mechanics Race #1
https://youtu.be/kzw2sCscLAo?si=QxhtVyXTno_CSDfm
Mechanics Race #2
https://youtu.be/a7m8ANIR7Z0?si=_03DPHcv_L8JRG9f
We cannot fail to mention the accomplishments achieved in our DIRTcar Hornet division in this last race of the 60th season. Heat 1 was won by the #9 of James Trivitt from his P2 starting position while Heat 2 was won by the #14P of Paul Lawhorn from his P6 starting position! The feature was all James Trivitt as he would start P1 his #9 car. The green flag dropped and he was gone, leading by as much as a full second over 2nd place! James Trivitt would pick up his FIRST win of the 2023 season on the last night. 2022 Track Champion, Dee Friar would only be able to get to 2nd place from his 6th place starting position. Paul Lawhorn who started P2 would struggle just a bit, but manage to rally back and hold onto a 3rd place finish.
The great racing action of our DIRTcar Hornet division is just a click away:
https://youtu.be/zMqc8NnBEvo?si=6ukzybb6su93-ng8
In our DIRTcar Factory Stock division we had 12 entries. Qualifying would see the #90 of Lee Joseph Hall set fast time with a time of 16.521 followed by Steve Nolen in the #66JR with a time of 16.845 and rounding out the top 3 would be the #27 of Mike Reitz with a time of 16.955. Heat 1 was won by the #27 of Mike Reitz when he jumped to the lead on lap 1 and never let go. Lee Joseph Hall would wheel his #90 to finish 2nd while Jim Pruitt in his #74 followed in 3rd place. Heat 2 was won by the #66JR of Steve Nolen, over Wayne Russell in his #X71 in 2nd and Levi Russell in 3rd in his #71. The feature was set up with Mike Reitz starting P1 and Steve Nolen starting P2. The green flag dropped and Steve Nolen, Mr. 2nd place, jumped to the lead on lap 1 and never let go picking up his FIRST win of the season. Steve Nolen has been a threat all summer long, always up front, always a contender, but for whatever reason, victory lane has alluded him. Not tonight, having already finished 2nd seven times this season along with finishing 2nd in the Championship points, Steve Nolen is all too familiar with 2nd, tonight he wanted that top spot and nothing would stand in his way. After leading ALL 15 laps, Steve got his Victory and WON the Feature! Lee Joseph Hall would work his way from 3rd to finish 2nd and Mike Reitz would slide back two spots from where he started to finish 3rd. Zack Simmons in his #Z42 would claim the Hard Charger award with his P12 to P5 finishing position! Really happy to see Steve Nolen and his crew get the win they worked so hard for all season long, if you missed it, you can relive it all right here:
https://youtu.be/YTOkB2NaNNU?si=Vk-YaLbeqLW7_vy0
Don’t forget the action from our DIRTcar Pro Modified division. Spoiler alert: the National Champ did not beat the veteran. Find out who won right here:
https://youtu.be/yJz7KU6NUP0?si=sbkXOEXKiUae1nEY
There was a special guest in our DIRTcar Pro Late Model division from Kankakee County Speedway that stopped in for a visit. He dropped by, took all the money, and went home. See what he did by clicking right here:
https://youtu.be/X43nEUcrqkE?si=gR5EAQR74YFzSLW-
Fast time qualifiers for 10.5.23
DIRTcar Modified: #21D Danny Schwartz 14.103
DIRTcar Pro Modified: #121 Deece Schwartz 14.558
DIRTcar Factory Stock: #90 Lee Joseph Hall 16.521
Heat Race Winners from 10.5.23
DIRTcar Modified: #21D Danny Schwartz & #58R Ryan Hamilton & #121 Deece Schwartz
DIRTcar Pro Modified: #121 Deece Schwartz & #44 Gabe Menser
DIRTcar Street Stock: #14 Dalton Mannin
DIRTcar Pro Late Model: #01 Billy Knippenberg
DIRTcar Factory Stock: #27 Mike Reitz & #66JR Steve Nolen
DIRTcar Hornet: #9 James Trivitt & #14P Paul Lawhorn
Feature Winners from 10.5.23:
DIRTcar Modified: #21D Danny Schwartz
DIRTcar Pro Modified: #44 Gabe Menser
DIRTcar Street Stock: #99K Jerrad Krick
DIRTcar Factory Stock: #66JR Steve Nolen
DIRTcar Hornet: #9 James Trivitt
Powder Puff #1: #40J Sarah McCullough
Powder Puff #2: #48 Jerrica Jones
Mechanics Race #1: #9 David Montz
Mechanics Race #2: #10C Ryan Blair
Be sure to check out, and purchase a few of the MANY photos that were taken at the Speedway right here:
https://srldesigns.smugmug.com/
ALL Photo credits to SRL Designs.
Feature video credits go to Zack Carter.
The NEXT thing and the LAST thing on the 2023 schedule are the awards ceremony scheduled for Nov. 11, 2023, at The Bella Vita Private Resort located directly behind the speedway. Doors open at 5pm and awards will be presented at 7pm.
60 years’ worth of racing action at The Charleston Speedway are officially in the books, and we are looking forward to the next 60! Will you help us keep the legacy of the Humphres Family alive and well by supporting stock car racing at the speedway in 2024? We certainly hope so--
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL REAL SOON…………..AT THE CHARLESTON SPEEDWAY!!!
#chuckvegas