Sunday, August 10, 2008

Clint Smith 8th at North-South 100

UNION, Ky. (Aug. 9) — Polesitter Darren Miller didn't have to be reminded of the challenge he faced at the 26th annual Sunoco Race Fuels North-South 100 at Florence Speedway. Starting alongside Miller on the front row of the $50,000-to-win event was Hall of Famer Scott Bloomquist, who entered the race with three of the richest 100-lap victories of the 2008 season. | Slideshow "When it comes to these big races," the Milledgeville, driver said, "he's the guy to beat." Rising to the challenge, Miller dueled with Bloomquist all race long, eventually taking command with 21 laps remaining with a turn-four slide job and fending off a last-lap charge to grab the richest victory of his career. "We've been close to a couple of them, but this is just awesome," the 31-year-old Miller said in victory lane. "And $50,000? I needed that." Bloomquist led all but two laps through the first two-thirds of the race, but Miller began stalking him after the second of two cautions on the 65th lap and dove underneath Bloomquist for the winning move after running the high-side most of the previous 14 laps. Bloomquist stayed with Miller as they worked through occasional lapped cars through the race's final stages, ramping up a last-lap charge that fell short as he crossed the finish line with his nose just behind Miller's rear deck. Sixth-starting Matt Miller, a Waterville, Ohio, driver unrelated to the winner, took third from Eddie Carrier Jr. of Salt Rock, W.Va., late in the race while Carrier settled for the fourth, the same position he started. Bart Hartman, the 2005 North-South winner from Zanesville, Ohio, rallied from 11th to finish fifth and 21st starting Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine, Iowa, made the race's biggest move in racing up to sixth. Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., who started 10th, was running fifth on the final lap, but pulled to the infield with flames licking out from the engine compartment. Babb ended up 14th, the last driver on the lead lap. Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., was part of a three-car duel up front through most of the first half of the race, but Francis was knocked from contention when he got into the wall between turns one-and two on lap 51 to draw the race's first caution. Darren Miller, whose previous richest victory came with a $20,000 triumph in the unsanctioned Late Model Shootout at Outlaw Motor Speedway in Muskogee, Okla., in May 2004, jumped atop his car in celebrating in victory lane at Florence as he joined the exclusive club of drivers with victories of $50,000 or more. "This is just awesome. I needed this so bad," said Miller, who also earned $20,000 two years ago for finishing second to Bloomquist at Batesville (Ark.) Motor Speedway's Topless 100. "I had a new motor coming and wasn't even sure how I was going to pay for it, but I guess I can pay for it now." Miller never was more than a half-straightaway behind Bloomquist at any point in the race, and actually slipped underneath the Mooresburg, Tenn., veteran to lead laps 34-35 amid heavy traffic before Bloomquist swept back around. Following the lap-65 caution, it was a two-car race the rest of the way and Miller was able to find the winning groove. "That last caution there, (my crew) told me Carrier was up top and to try and go up there, and I did that, and then the track started cleaning up down lower, and that helped me down there, too," Miller said. "We got to those two lapped cars that were kind of racing each other, and I thought, 'Come on guys, get single-file so I can go.' I managed to get through them and had a little clear track there, and felt pretty good then." Miller never got anxious about the final laps because he said he wasn't even certain how many more laps remained as Bloomquist tried to track him down and regain the lead over the final 20 laps. "The funny thing is, I was just trying to run my race there, and here there's no (score) board or anything to watch to know the laps," Miller said. "The white came out, it was like, 'Great, one more lap.' I didn't even have those five laps that I was counting down. I was just trying to run my race and the white flag came out and, I was like, 'Oh, I've just gotta make one more lap good and make it count.' " Miller, who missed much of the 2007 with serious thyroid condition that sapped him of his strength, made it count to win his second career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event and become the 21st winner on the circuit in 2008 in denying Bloomquist his fourth megapurse victory of the season. Bloomquist pocketed $42,000 at West Plains (Mo.) Motor Speedway's Show-Me 100 over Memorial Day weekend, $100,000 at Eldora (Ohio) Speedway's Dream XIV two weeks later, and $50,000 the weekend prior to the North-South 100 at Cedar Lake Speedway's USA Nationals in New Richmond, Wis. Bloomquist got the jump at the green flag with Miller, Francis, Carrier and Brady Smith of Solon Springs, Wis., in tow. Eighth-starting Terry Phillips of Springfield, Mo., worked his way into the top five by the fifth lap and the top three of Bloomquist, Miller and Francis battled through the early stages. The frontrunners entered the heaviest traffic of the race on the 30th lap will Miller ducking under Bloomquist to go ahead on lap 34. Miller led another lap before Bloomquist swept around the slower car of Freddy Smith and regained the lead from Miller on lap 36. Francis began running the extreme high groove and he got too high on lap 51 while running just behind the leaders, getting into the wall between turns one and two and heading to the infield for attention from his crew. Bloomquist and Miller led Carrier, Matt Miller and Phillips back to the restart, and Phillips began to fade just past the halfway point and Hartman was holding fifth at the lap-65 caution for a slowing Steve Casebolt on the backstretch. It was a two-car race the rest of the way as Miller moved to the high side, setting up his race-winning slide job. Feature notes Miller's Victory Circle Chassis has a Pro Power engine and sponsorship from NAPA, Graphic Arts Express, McLaughlin Freight Service, J.C. Dubil Racing Parts, Cobra Graphics, Ideal Ready Mix, VP Racing Fuels and Port City Racing. ... Pro Power's Bill Schlieper, always an exuberant figure for his drivers in victory lane, joined Miller for photos after a post-race hug. "We've been working on some things here lately, and it's been working really well helping," Miller said. ... Miller has five big-purse victories in 2008, including three on the UMP DIRTCar Summernationals tour. ... Miller's previous Lucas Oil Series victory came Aug. 3, 2006, at Cedar Lake Speedway. ... Third-place Matt Miller was just a tick away from being in the mix up front late in the race. "If I could've gotten by Eddie (Carrier) on that last restart with about 30, 35 to go, without a doubt I think I could've gotten up there and mixed it up with Darren and Scott," he said. ... Rocket Chassis was tops among chassis manufacturers in the North-South 100 with nine drivers among 25 starters. The rest of the breakdown: GRT (5), Bloomquist (4), Victory Circle and Mars with two apiece and one apiece for Pierce, MasterSbilt and Warrior. ... Another big-money race is up next for the Lucas Oil circuit. The 16th annual Topless 100 pays $40,000 to the winner on Aug. 15-16 at Batesville Motor Speedway in Locust Grove, Ark. 26th annual Sunoco Race Fuels North-South 100 Pos. Driver (car no.), hometown, chassis, earnings 1. Darren Miller (32D), Milledgeville, Ill., Victory Circle, $50,000 2. Scott Bloomquist (0), Mooresburg, Tenn., Bloomquist, $10,000 3. Matt Miller (7), Waterville, Ohio, Rocket, $7,000 4. Eddie Carrier Jr. (28), Salt Rock, W.Va., Rocket, $5,000 5. Bart Hartman (75), Zanesville, Ohio, Rocket, $4,000 6. Brian Birkhofer (15B), Muscatine, Iowa, Mars, $3,800 7. Tim McCreadie (39), Watertown, N.Y., Rocket, $3,600 8. Clint Smith (44), Senoia, Ga., GRT, $3,400 9. Jimmy Mars (28), Menomonie, Wis., Mars, $3,200 10. Darrell Lanigan (29), Union, Ky., Rocket, $3,000 11. Terry Phillips (75), Springfield, Mo., GRT, $2,750 12. Billy Moyer (21), Batesville, Ark., Victory Circle, $2,700 13. Jeremy Payne (74), Springfield, Mo., GRT, $2,650 14. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., Rocket, $2,625 15. Jerry Rice (1B), Verona, Ky., Rocket, $2,600 16. Jesse Lay (33), Walton, Ky., Pierce, $2,575 17. Earl Pearson Jr. (44), Jacksonville, Fla., $2,550 18. Eric Jacobsen (5), Santa Cruz, Calif., Bloomquist, $2,525 19. Skip Arp (31), Georgetown, Tenn., GRT, $2,500 20. Steve Casebolt (c9), Richmond, Ind., Rocket, $2,500 21. Jimmy Owens (20), Newport, Tenn., Bloomquist, $2,500 22. Steve Francis (19), Ashland, Ky., Rocket, $2,500 23. Freddy Smith (00), Seymour, Tenn., Warrior, $2,500 24. Brady Smith (2), Solon Springs, Wis., Bloomquist, $2,500 25. Jack Sullivan (18), Greenbrier, Ark., GRT, $2,500 Fast qualifier (among 95 cars): Payne, 17.559 seconds. Heat race winners: D. Miller, Bloomquist, Francis, Carrier, B. Smith, M. Miller Consolation winners: Moyer, F. Smith, Birkhofer Provisional starters: Lanigan, Pearson, Casebolt, Lay ---- "This is the first time that we've really been able to use our new tech processes, that we've done enough field testing to use it," Lewis said Friday night at Florence following the disqualifications. "And we felt like if it was going to be used, it's going to be used in qualifying for a $50,000-to-win show. That's the right place to check." Lewis refused to say whether the drivers admitted using illegal chemicals, only that "they accept their penalty." Casey didn't want to comment while McWilliams protested the penalty. "There's no way they can actually prove there was a softener in my tire," he said. Lewis said further penalties against Casey and McWilliams could be announced Tuesday, Aug. 12. Series officials checked tires from seven drivers: each of the six fastest qualifiers in the groups along with series points leader Earl Pearson Jr. Lewis said Pearson was chosen so it wouldn't appear the series was targeting non-regulars in an event that drew a track-record 95 entries, most of them non-series regulars. Lewis said the series made the move "to show everybody that we're serious and checking tires." Previous attempts to police chemical softeners have been difficult, but Lewis is confident the device will help the tour assure competitors that drivers are on a level playing field regarding the series tire rule. "This is an electronic device that's got a reading on it, and it's considered an acceptable device within the industry," he said.

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