Aaron Brocksieck

Aaron Brocksieck had one of those brutal seasons in 2010. Anything that could have gone wrong pretty much did. He wound up seventh in the final Quincy Raceways stock car points standings.

Brocksieck’s 2011 season was much different. Much, much different.

Brocksieck claimed his first series title and second overall (he earlier won the hobby stock crown in 2008), but not before withstanding a gallant late-season charge from 2010 champ Terry Houston. Brocksieck ended with a one-point margin of victory and the Stevie Dirt Stock Car Driver of the Year Award. Brocksieck led the series with seven feature victories and 10 overall wins.

Accenting Brocksieck’s championship run was his and wife Kenzie’s commitment to raising awareness for breast cancer. Brocksieck drove the now-famous pink car — and has vowed to do so again next season. Their efforts helped generate $8,000 that was scheduled to be donated to the Blessing Cancer Center this fall.

The stock car season was divided into two distinct halves. The first half was accented by Brocksieck’s dominance that saw him win five of the first seven features. The second half was defined by Abe Huls and Houston combining to win six main events. Brocksieck’s early dominance allowed him to eventually hold off the late bid by Houston.

The series itself was hampered by extremely low car counts early in the season, but the numbers picked up as the summer progressed. Not dramatically, but enough for track ownership to renew the stocks for 2012.The first two months of the season the average car count was 6.3. The rest of the season averaged between 9-10 with a high of 12.

Houston and Huls earned First Row recognition. Houston is the only driver in the four-year history of the Stock Car awards to either be named driver of the year (2010) or garner First Row notice (2009, 2011) three straight seasons.

STEVIE DIRT STOCK CAR ALL-DIRT TEAMS

DRIVERS OF THE YEAR
2011: Aaron Brocksieck
2010: Terry Houston
2009: Abe Huls
2008: Jeff Mueller

FIRST ROW
2011: Terry Houston, Abe Huls
2010: Abe Huls. Steve Steinkuhler
2009: Kevin Tomlinson, Terry Houston
2008: Chris Wibbell, Dave Wietholder

SECOND ROW
2011: Andrew Griffin, Jerry Jansen
2010: Andrew Griffin, Jerry Jansen
2009: Aaron Brocksieck, Chris Wibbell
2008: Steve Steinkuhler, Doug Huls

Steve Carlin

(NOTE: The following is the second in a series of Driver of the Year and All-Dirt Team releases.)

Talk about a slam dunk. Selecting Steve Carlin for his second Stevie Dirt Hobby Stock Driver of the Year award in three years was probably the easiest decision in all of the classes. Let’s review:

– Carlin won a series-record fifth championship.
– Carlin won a series-record third straight title.
– Carlin’s championship enabled him to take over the No. 1 position in the series’ all-time driver rankings.

Yeah, this one was not rocket science.

A year ago, we selected Bobby Anders as Driver of the Year, even though Carlin won the hobby stock championship. Anders might have been headed for a second Driver of the Year award until a midseason suspension opened the door for Carlin to win that fifth championship he wanted so badly — and he made the most of it.

Once Carlin had the points lead, he never came close to relinquishing it. It was only a matter of who would finish second. And that would be Jake Powers, who with Anders earns First Row designation.

Carlin has either been Driver of the Year or a First Row member in the four years of the Stevie Dirt All-Dirt Team. Powers’ top designation before this season was a Second Row pick in 2009. Anders is a part of the team for a second straight season, joining Carlin as the only driver to earn both a Driver of the Year award and a First Team selection.

Jim Powell also gets a special shout out for inclusion on the All-Dirt Team for a fourth straight year. Carlin is the only other driver who has been a selection every since 2008.

STEVIE DIRT HOBBY STOCK ALL-DIRT TEAMS

DRIVERS OF THE YEAR
2011: Steve Carlin
2010: Bobby Anders
2009: Steve Carlin
2008: Aaron Brocksieck

FIRST ROW
2011: Jake Powers, Bobby Anders
2010: Steve Carlin, Jim Powell
2009: Jim Powell, Mike Wiley
2008: Wes Mayfield, Steve Carlin

SECOND ROW
2011: Nathan Anders, Jim Powell
2010: Jeremy Buss, Jim Brown
2009: Jake Powers, Travis Booher
2008: James Leffew, Jim Powell

Seth Woodruff

For a first-year, four-cylinder series the Wild Things were better than anticipated, thanks to the excitement provided by the comeback of Seth Woodruff and the late-season finish of Kimberly Abbott.

This was an incredibly balanced series, with about a half-dozen drivers taking turns running off two or three dominating weeks in succession. But when examining the drivers’ overall body of work, it was Woodruff who gets the nod as the first Stevie Dirt Wild Thing Driver of the Year.

This is our fourth year for the Stevie Dirt All-Dirt Team awards, but the first time the Wild Things have been included.

Woodruff hovered near the point leaders the first half of the season and then moved his game to the next level following the midseason championship races. Woodruff ran of a two-month string of top feature finishes that allowed him register 18 more points than Casey Kendrick (425-407), who had controlled the series lead well into the second half of the season. Even though Woodruff stumbled a bit down the stretch in September, he had built a big enough lead by that point he had the title clinched before the green flag dropped for the final points feature of the season.

Kendrick and Abbott were the other two Wild Things up for consideration for Driver of the Year, but neither quite measured up to the overall summer Woodruff put together. Woodruff did not win the most features, heats or overall races, but he was steady from April through (most of) September.

Kendrick and Abbott earn the First Row designation on this year’s All-Dirt team. Abbott might even be the favorite going into 2012, considering how she finished the year — three straight feature victories to climb to third in the points behind Woodruff and Kendrick.

2011 STEVIE DIRT WILD THING ALL-DIRT TEAM

DRIVER OF THE YEAR: Seth Woodruff

FIRST ROW: Kimberly Abbott, Casey Kendrick
SECOND ROW: Craig Bangert, Austin Uppinghouse

With the announcement that Quincy Raceways’ late models will be ULMA sanctioned in 2012 comes the reality that there will be no more IMCA Deery Brothers Summer Series races at the Bullring.

Quincy hosted 26 Deery events between 1998-2011. Those races had become fixtures and they’ll be missed, but I’m also excited to see what the ULMA will mean to the track as time progresses. We’ll get into that more as the offseason moves along, but with this blog I simply wanted to bid voyage to the Deery series.

My first summer in Quincy was 1999, so except for the one Deery race in 1998 I saw them all — and enjoyed them all, too. What made them even more entertaining than they might have been was the way Quincy drivers dominated the Deery series on their home track. Quincy regulars won more than half (14) of the races, including nine by Mark Burgtorf. (It should have been 10 victories for Burgtorf, but we won’t get into that 2007 disqualification again.)

Here’s a look back at my own personal favorite Deery memories, the all-time Deery rankings at Quincy and some other odds and ends:

TOP 10 DEERY BROTHERS SUMMER SERIES MOMENTS IN QUINCY

1. Mark Burgtorf’s domination: No other driver dominated Deery races at Quincy like Burgtorf. He won nine times — and it should have been 10.

2. Burgtorf’s disqualification: If not for the DQ, Quincy drivers would have won 10 consecutive Deery races at the Bullring between September 2006 and April 2011.

Lonnie Bailey led a 1-2-3 Quincy sweep in 2002.

3. Frankel’s first: Jason Frankel capped his perfect storm of a 2008 season with his first Deery win in September of that year. That victory punctuated a summer that included an IMCA national and two track (Quincy, West Burlington) championships.

4. Curt Martin’s 1999 win: Martin held off eventual series champion Jeff Aikey to win a July 4 weekend spectacular that included post-race fireworks. Drivers, reporters and track officials in the pits were kept busy dodging the falling debris from the fireworks. Mark Holtmeyer of Quincy was third, scoring the first-ever podium finish for a local driver in a Deery race in Quincy.

5. Lonnie Bailey’s 2002 victory: Bailey, who went on to win the track championship that season, won the July Deery as part of a 1-2-3 sweep by Quincy regulars. The late Brent Slocum and Burgtorf followed him across the finish line. The only other 1-2-3 finish by Quincy regulars came in the September 2007 race when Burgtorf, Frankel and Kevin Tomlinson dominated.

6. Go, Johnny, Go: Veteran driver Johnny Johnson, in his late 60s at the time, dominated the 50-lap event in September 2002. Johnson, longtime driver, sponsor, contributor and friend of racing, passed away earlier this year.

7. Terrific Toland: Rob Toland strung together four Deery wins in five starts between 2004-06. Terry Neal kept him from winning five in a row with an April 2005 victory in the middle of those five races. Ironically, Toland had not won a Deery race at Quincy before that and did not win afterward.

8. Consistency: No driver came close to matching Burgtorf’s consistency. The three-time Deery series champ not only won more races than any other driver in the Quincy Deery events, his 18 top-10 finishes were far and away the best.

Jeff Aikey won the first Deery race at the Bullring.

9. Big draw: The Deery races annually brought in some of the largest fields of late models to Quincy. Seven times in the final 13 Deery races the car count was 40 or higher, with a track-record of 50 for the April 2010 show.

10. Aikey’s 1998 victory: It was the first Deery race at the Bullring and set the tone for what was a profitable and enjoyable relationship with the IMCA for 14 years.

BURGTORF, WOODWORTH PACED QUINCY DRIVERS’ DOMINANCE

Mark Burgtorf and Denny Woodworth were the two most dominant drivers in the 14 years of IMCA Deery Brothers Summer Series events at Quincy Raceways. Burgtorf is No. 1 and Woodworth No. 2 in The Herald-Whig’s all-time rankings for Deery competition at the Bullring.

The Herald-Whig rankings award points on a 15-10-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis to the drivers who finish in the top 10 in each Deery race, the same formula used to determine The Herald-Whig all-time rankings for each of the weekly series at the track..

DEERY BROTHERS ALL-TIME DRIVER RANKINGS AT QUINCY RACEWAYS (1998-2011)

1. Mark Burgtorf, Quincy, Ill., 373 points, 9 victories
2. Denny Woodworth, Mendon, Ill., 181 points, 1 victory
3. Rob Toland, Hillsdale, Ill., 160 points, 4 victories
4. Boone McLaughlin, Mediapolis, Iowa, 124 points, 2 victories
5. Lonnie Bailey, Quincy, Ill., 120 points, 1 victory
6. Brent Slocum, Burlington, Iowa, 107 points, 0 victories
7-tie. Jeff Aikey, Cedar Falls, Iowa, 106 points, 2 victories
7-tie. Terry Neal, Ely, Iowa, 106 points, 2 victories
9. Darrel DeFrance, Marshalltown, Iowa, 85 points, 0 victories
10. Ray Guss Jr., Milan, Ill., 83 points, 0 victories

Victories
Mark Burgtorf, Quincy, Ill., 9
Rob Toland, Hillsdale, Ill., 4
Jeff Aikey, Cedar Falls, Iowa, 2
Boone McLaughlin, Mediapolis, Iowa, 2
Denny Woodworth, Mendon, Ill., 2
Terry Neal, Ely, Iowa, 2
Jason Frankel, Quincy, Ill., 1
Lonnie Bailey, Quincy, Ill., 1
Matt Bailey, Quincy, Ill., 1
Curt Martin, Independence, Iowa, 1
Johnny Johnson, West Burlington, Iowa, 1

Quincy Deery Brothers Summer Series Winners
2011 (2): Terry Neal
2011 (1): Matt Bailey
2010 (2): Mark Burgtorf
2010 (1): Mark Burgtorf
2009 (2): Denny Woodworth
2009 (1): Mark Burgtorf
2008 (2): Jason Frankel
2008 (1): Denny Woodworth
2007 (2): Mark Burgtorf
2007 (1): Boone McLaughlin
2006 (2): Mark Burgtorf
2006 (1): Rob Toland
2005 (2): Rob Toland
2005 (1): Terry Neal
2004 (2): Rob Toland
2004 (1): Rob Toland
2003: Mark Burgtorf
2002 (3): Johnny Johnson
2002 (2): Lonnie Bailey
2002 (1): Mark Burgtorf
2001 (2): Mark Burgtorf
2001 (1): Mark Burgtorf
2000: Jeff Aikey
1999 (2): Boone McLaughlin
1999 (1): Curt Martin
1998: Jeff Aikey

* one race was held in 1998, 2000 and 2005.
** three races were held in 2002

Deery Brothers Champions (Since 1998)
Note: Quincy became an IMCA-affiliated track in 1998.

2011: Ray Guss Jr.
2010: Ray Guss Jr.
2009: Jeff Aikey
2008: Boone McLaughlin
2007: Jeremy Grady
2006: Jeff Aikey
2005: Terry Neal
2004: Rob Toland
2003: Mark Burgtorf
2002: Terry Schlipman
2001: Mark Burgtorf
2000: Mike Smith
1999: Jeff Aikey
1998: Mark Burgtorf

Ongoing technical problems with this and other Herald-Whig blogs has forced a temporary suspension of posts here. As soon as the problems are corrected, we’ll be back!! Just consider this “intermission.”

When we return we will feature our annual Drivers of the Year in each class and the All-Dirt teams.

Sorry about the inconvenience, but we seemed to have blown our engine coming out of turn four.

Quincy Raceways’ late model division is now affiliated with the United Late Model Association (ULMA), a 5-year-old organization headquartered near Moberly, Mo.

The announcement came Tuesday, following months of speculation the track would sever ties with the Vinton, Iowa-based International Motorsports Contest Association (IMCA). Quincy had been an IMCA affiliate since 1998.

“In an effort to maintain the great late model tradition at Quincy Raceways, a change in sanctioning bodies was needed to present the opportunity for (more) late model competitors in the area to compete at the track,” said Tony Rhinberger, who with fellow Quincy businessman Paul Holtschlag own and promote the .29-mile dirt track at 8000 Broadway.

Rhinberger said there has been growing dissatisfaction in recent years with some of the IMCA policies, ranging from how starting lineups are determined for feature events to model of tires. In addition, IMCA late models from Iowa have rarely made the trip south to Quincy in recent years, outside of special events such as the Deery Brothers Summer Series tour stops. In contrast, Quincy drivers have provided strong support for Iowa tracks such as West Burlington and Donnellson.

The uncertainty about the tracks in Donnellson and West Burlington also played into the ULMA decision for Quincy. New ownership at Donnellson recently announced late models will not be part of the track’s lineup. West Burlington, which is up for sale, figures to run a limited schedule at best.

Other ULMA tracks in Missouri in 2011 included Central Missouri Speedway in Warrensburg, Callaway Raceway in Fulton, Double XX Speedway in California, 24 Raceway in Moberly and Scotland County Speedway in Memphis. Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland also ran a ULMA late model class.

“The current IMCA late models who have competed at Quincy Raceways will be legal to race under the ULMA banner with only minor changes, such as adding weight and using different tires,” Rhinberger said. “The change will also allow the late models who are at Quincy to be able to run IMCA-sanctioned events — as well as Deery Brothers races at other tracks — with only minor changes.”

Rhinberger said the 2012 payoff for ULMA late models will be the same as used in recent years. First-place money will be $700, with $125 guaranteed to start the main event.

Rhinberger also said the track is working on securing “a few special events” for the 2012 season to take the place of the Deery races. Quincy hosted 25 Deery events between 1998-2011.

The ULMA is only the third sanctioning body the track has aligned with in its history. Quincy was a NASCAR Weekly Racing Series facility from 1981-96.

(Stevie Dirt note to readers: We are still having problems with the blog site, especially with pictures, logos, etc. We continue to ask your patience until this matter is resolved.)

A late charge by Todd Reed’s fan base over the weekend and Monday sent him to the championship in the third annual online voting for Modified DIRT-y Driver of the Year.

Reed collected 30.2 percent of the ballot to easily outdistance runner-up Michael Long’s 18.3 percent. There were 262 votes cast.

Reed joins previous winners Joe Bliven in sport mods, Aaron Brocksieck in stock cars, Adam Scott in hobby stocks and

MODIFIED DIRT-Y DRIVERS OF THE YEAR
2011: Todd Reed
2010: Jared Schlipman
2009: Tony Dunker

UP NEXT: The late model DIRT-y Driver of the Year ballot will begin sometime Tuesday, unless ongoing problems with the blog prevent it.

We are currently under a yellow flag in Stevie Dirtland.

There has been a problem today with the host site of the “Stevie Dirt” blog. We apologize for the inconvenience. Some materials that have been posted recently have disappeared and we are working to correct the problem.

We hope to be back in business either late Monday night or some time Tuesday.

DONNELLSON, Iowa — Lee County Speedway will continue its longstanding connection with IMCA under new owners Dave and Yvonne Sapp, and with that the track announces today that all five classes will be IMCA sanctioned in 2012.

This announcement means some changes will be coming to two of the classes at the .375-mile oval.

• The hobby stock class will now be sanctioned by IMCA. Former promoters Terry and Jenni Hoenig announced early this year that that particular series would change and the new ownership team will follow through with those plans.

Track officials feel the IMCA rules offer a less expensive alternative for this class in what is suppose to be a beginner level class, according to promoter Dewain Hulett.

“With the lower cost options available for the power plant, we feel that this move will make the class more appealing to racers who are looking to move up from a lower division or wanting to get their start in dirt track racing, “ Hulett said. “IMCA does a very good job of offering a thorough set of rules, that are very cut and dry, which will allow us to keep very good control of the class.

“Having said that, we have already spoken to IMCA and will be able to have some sort of a transition year for our drivers who already have cars that are legal with the track’s previous rules,” Hulett added. “That transition period will not pertain to numerous parts on the car, such as the engine or transmission, but we hope to be able to allow floater rear ends for at least one year.”

It should be noted, however, that those allowances will only be available at Lee County Speedway. The cars taking advantage of the transition period will not be allowed to run at any other track with IMCA rules unless they become completely IMCA legal.

Hulett said more information and the exact items that may be involved in the transition period will be finalized after communication with IMCA officials and will be released as soon as possible.

• The second class to make the switch to IMCA will be the four-cylinder wild things.

“While we understand that the switch may change the availability of few cars, we feel the solid rule book offered by IMCA will make the class much more competitive and easier to control,” Hulett said. “Both of these decisions were made with the betterment of the track in mind.

“I know Terry had announced that the hobby stocks would make the move, and being close to the situation throughout the summer I just felt this was the best thing to do. I know several of our current hobby stock drivers are planning on the move to IMCA stock car, and because of that we were going to rely on new drivers and cars.
“This makes the entry expense much less for those new drivers, and allows more of a true stepping stone for drivers to move to other classes,” Hulett added.

• The grack’s remaining three classes will remain the same — IMCA modifieds, IMCA stock cars and IMCA sport mods are all scheduled return to the track for the 2012 season.

(Information compliments of Jack Walbring)

DONNELLSON, Iowa – A deal was reached Thursday evening for the purchase of Lee County Speedway, Inc., which operates a weekly racing program at the Lee County Fairgrounds.

Terry and Jenni Hoenig , who had served as owners for 14 years, announced that Dave and Yvonne Sapp of Keokuk will be the new owners of the racetrack. The Hoenigs had purchased the track from Lynn Richard in 1998.

“It has been a great 14 years of our lives,” Terry Hoenig said. “We’ve met a lot of wonderful people and made a lot of great memories. We consider everyone at the speedway family.

“We are very excited about the future of the speedway. Not only are the new owners going to carry on great weekly racing action, but they also have some fresh ideas that will improve the racing program for racers and fans.”

Dave Sapp steps to the ownership roll at Lee County Speedway after having owned a race team for 12 years. The Sapps are also the owners of Arrowhead Bowl in Keokuk.

“How often do you get to do something you love to do?” he said. “I got into bowling because I loved it and now I’m in the racing business for the same reason.”

It was announced in August that the track was for sale, and the sale ends speculation of what will happen at the track in the 2012 racing season.

“Jenni and I are very excited that we are able to make this announcement at the end of October,” Terry said. “This will allow racers, fans and sponsors ample time to gear up for the 2012 season.”

Dewain Hulett will be the new promoter/race director at the track and begins his duties immediately. Many of the changes that had been set in motion throughout the 2011 season will be followed through for the 2012 campaign under new management.

“I am very excited to take on the responsibilities as promoter/race director at Lee County Speedway,” Hulett said. “I have grown very fond of the track as an employee the last four years under the previous ownership and feel that we, as the new management, will continue the track’s success and build it to an even higher level.”

Throughout the sales process, Terry Hoenig said it was important to find a buyer that would continue the weekly racing program at Lee County Speedway.

“We have spent 14 years building a strong weekly race program, while providing entertainment for our fans,” Terry said. “Jenni and I are committed to helping the new owners with a smooth transition, as they learn the ins and outs of the business side of racing.”

The new management hopes to build on what has been one of the most successful racetracks in the state of Iowa .

“It makes us proud to have the opportunity to call ourselves the owners and managers of this great speedway,” Hulett said. “While there will be some changes made for the 2012 season, the groundwork has obviously been laid for a very successful year. We look forward to building new relationships with the racers, sponsors and fans.”

More information will be released in the near future by the new management team, including the official announcement of the five classes that will compete at Lee County Speedway in 2012.