Atomic gears up for 2004 season

Atomic Motor Speedway is gearing up for what promises to be an exciting 2004 season. The one-third mile, high-banked oval located 10 minutes west of Knoxville, TN has released the 2004 rules for the weekly competitors and the 2004 schedule.

The 2004 season kicks off on March 13-14 for the annual running of the Cabin Fever 100. The $10,000 to win event drew some of the biggest names in dirt late model racing in 2003. Many of those same drivers are expected for the 2004 running of this event. Scott Bloomquist led the first 44 laps before tangling with a lapped car. Bloomquist suffered a cut tire and handed the lead to eventual winner Duayne Hommel. Hommel had a comfortable lead until Freddy Smith made a late charge from 16th starting spot to finish a few feet behind Hommel at the wave of the checkers.

The Stacker2 Xtreme DirtCar Series makes the first of two visits on Saturday, April 24 for a one-night, $10,000 to win event. The series returns for the annual Labor Day Weekend event on September 4-5 for a $20,000 to win event. Dan Schlieper won the rain delayed 2003 event. The Southern Xtreme series is scheduled to visit Atomic on Memorial Day weekend on May 29 for a $5,000 to win event.

The O’Reilly Southern All-Stars will visit Atomic on July 3-4 for a $10,000 to win program. Atomic’s Hall of Fame 100 is scheduled for Sept. 25-26. Plus, the exciting weekly lineup that Atomic offers. Check Atomic’s web site at www.atomicmotorspeedway.com for the 2004 schedule and other information. Atomic's first practice is scheduled for March 5-6 with additional practice dates tentatively scheduled for the last two weekends of March.

On Friday, June 25, the AMA Flat Track series will be at Atomic for a national event. Motorcyclists from across the country will be on hand for what promises to be one of the most exciting events on the AMA Flat Track tour.

For 2004, Atomic’s weekly racing lineup will feature late models, sportsman, pure minis, pure streets, classic cars, and front wheel drive. The sportsman class is Atomic’s newest division. Sportsman cars are similar to late models, but with more restricted engine rules to keep costs down. The class is also designed for older late model chassis to still be competitive racecars.

Race fans will be treated to a wide variety of racing in 2004, plus be treated to one of the most updated racing facilities across the country.

Arp claims Atomic Hall of Fame win
By Michael Moats

Atomic Motor Speedway honored racers from the past with the hall of fame weekend. When the racing was over, a current member of the Atomic Motor Speedway Hall of Fame picked up the win in the Hall of Fame feature event. Skip Arp, driving Freddy Smith’s back-up car, picked up the win by leading all 60 laps.

Thirty-one super late models took time during qualifying. The top 16 was locked in by time and the remainder of the field was determined through consolation races. Patrick Duggan set fast time with a lap of 13.1 seconds. Arp was second fast qualifier.

Arp took the lead on the start over Duggan on the blackened race surface. With the feature being during the daytime hours, passing would be a premium. Arp getting the lead at the start was a major key to victory. Duggan settled in to second as Ronnie Johnson and Shane Tankersley battled for third. A caution waved on lap 1 when Freddy Smith made contact with another car and lost the nosepiece. Smith would retire from the race. After the restart, Arp set a fast race as the track picked up speed. Arp maneuvered through lapped traffic with ease during the first half of the feature despite the difficult conditions for passing.

During the last 10 laps of the race, Arp found getting around the lapped cars more difficult. Arp caught lapped cars that were battling for position. That allowed Duggan and Johnson to close in. Arp continued to move through traffic, but Duggan got hung up behind lapped traffic. Johnson dove underneath Duggan to grab second. Arp’s car started getting loose and Johnson moved in. Johnson closed in on Arp’s rear bumper. But Arp did not make a mistake, which allowed him to stay up front and take the win. Johnson was a close second. Duggan edged Jeff Smith for third and Tankersley was fifth.

The limited late model feature started with double points on the line in the final points race of the season. Jeff Monger and Patrick Duggan entered the race tied for first in points. Monger started the feature on the outside of the front row. Duggan started the feature from 6th because of winning the last three features. Derik Duggan started from the pole.

Derik Duggan took the early lead over Monger. D. Duggan built a two-car length lead over Monger. P. Duggan quickly moved into third place as Marty Calloway, Ruben Mayfield, and Aaron Monger made contact. Mayfield got sideways and Duggan split Calloway and A. Monger. Mayfield then spun on lap 3 and A. Monger pitted for a cut tire. D. Duggan continued to lead the race after the restart. Monger and P. Duggan battled side-by-side lap after lap as the eventual advantage would mean a points championship. On lap 17, P. Duggan passed Monger for second. But the caution waved for a spin between Mayfield and Jimmy Calloway and wiping out P. Duggan’s pass. After the restart, P. Duggan resumed his quest to pass Monger. P. Duggan looked high and low on Monger. On lap 28, P. Duggan moved past Monger into second place. P. Duggan quickly reeled in cousin D. Duggan. On lap 34, P. Duggan dropped to the bottom groove and moved around D. Duggan. As the checkers waved, Patrick Duggan took the win. Following the race, Duggan’s car was protested and was found to be illegal. The win went to Derik Duggan. Jeff Monger was second and claimed the limited late model championship. M. Calloway was third, Billy Mayo was fourth, and Matt Henderson finished fifth.

The other feature race on Sunday afternoon was the classic car feature. Bart Baxter came from 6th starting spot to take the win. Baxter’s attempt for the win got off to a rocky start as he spun in turn 4 on one of the start attempts. On the third try, the race got underway with pole sitter Robbie Sands and Jay Ball battling side-by-side for the lead. Ball got the advantage on lap 2 over Sands, who faded through the race. Baxter split Josh Ferguson and Bo Willis to quickly move into third by lap 3. Rocky Estes, Jr. got high in turns 3 and 4 in the loose stuff and fell back to 7th place. After several mid-race cautions, Baxter and Sands fought for second place. Baxter and Sands fought side-by-side lap after lap before Baxter got the position on lap 15. A quick caution set up the final showdown. Baxter dropped to the low side and pressured Ball from the restart. Baxter inched closer to the lead on each lap. As the field took the white flag, Ball’s car got a little loose and Baxter zipped by for the lead and for the win. Estes, who had fought his way back to the front, also scooted by Ball to take second. Ball slipped to third, Willis was fifth, and Mark Dukes finished in fifth. Estes’ second place finish clinched the track championship for the third generation driver.

On Saturday night, more feature races and points championships were decided. The pure mini feature saw a first time winner as Ronnie Shelton took the feature win. Shelton won the first heat race and started the feature from the pole position. Ross Kingery won the second heat race and started from the outside pole position. Shelton grabbed the earlier lead over Kingery. Kingery quickly slid toward the back as the usual front-runners made their way to the front. Derek Elder moved into second and pressured Shelton for the lead. Kingery, Sam Holloway, John Cobb, and Earl Ingram battled for third. Cobb and Ingram eventually battled John Scarbrough for third as Kingery and Holloway gave way. Back up front, Elder continued to pressure Shelton. But Shelton was too strong and took the win in a caution free event. Elder finished second and wrapped up the pure mini track championship. Scarbrough came from 12th starting spot to finish third. Ingram was fourth and Cobb finished fifth.

Junior Watters was the pure street feature winner. Watters passed early race leader Scott Johnson on lap 5 for the lead. Watters checked out and built a comfortable margin over Johnson. Jonathan Sims, Raymond Shepard, and Michael Milsap battled for third. Shepard and Sims made contact on the final lap in turn 3. Shepard took the spot and Milsap followed through to take fourth. Sims slid back to fifth. Sammy Johnson’s seventh place finish was good enough to clinch the pure street championship.

Benji Braden won the front wheel drive feature. Braden took the early lead from pole sitter Robert McDonie. Braden and McDonie battled for the lead throughout the caution-less feature. Braden pulled away in the late stages of the race. David Hall, Jr. stayed close behind the front two cars, but could never get close enough to mount a challenge. Braden took the win over McDonie, Hall, Jr. was third, Rusty Mellette was fourth, and Chris Hooks was fifth. Miranda Malone’s sixth place finish enabled her to clinch the front wheel drive championship.

Super Late Model Feature: 1. Skip Arp, 2. Ronnie Johnson, 3. Patrick Duggan, 4. Jeff Smith, 5. Shane Tankersley, 6. Billy Ogle, Jr., 7. David Payne, 8. Mark Vineyard, 9. Duayne Hommel, 10. Vic Hill, 11. Randle Chupp, 12. Steve Smith, 13. Mark Martin, 14. Anthony White, 15. Brad Coffey, 16. David Laney, 17. Mark Douglas, 18. Charles Hurst, 19. Jimmy Owens, 20. Jason Welshan, 21. Randy Weaver, 22. James Cline, 23. Brad Hall, 24. Freddy Smith

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Derik Duggan, 2. Jeff Monger, 3. Marty Calloway, 4. Billy Mayo, 5. Matt Henderson, 6. Todd Hunt, 7. Aaron Monger, 8. Joey Standridge, 9. Danny Yoder, 10. Jimmy Calloway, 11. Ruben Mayfield, 12. Ralph Standridge, DQ Patrick Duggan

Classic Car Feature: 1.Bart Baxter, 2. Rocky Estes, Jr., 3. Brian Ball, 4. Bo Willis, 5. Mark Dukes, 6. Ron Rudder, 7. Eddie Seaton, 8. Charlie Dunlap, 9. Robbie Sands, 10. Wayne Dukes, 11. Tom Conaway, 12. Micky Norwood, 13. Andrew Compton, 14. Scott Russell, 15. Tom Rudder, 16. Frogg Ingle, 17. Brady Baer, 18. Jason Loveday, 19. David Appling, 20. Jay Ball

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Ronnie Shelton, 2. Derek Elder, 3. John Scarbrough, 4. Earl Ingram, 5. John Cobb, 6. Ross Kingery, 7. Sam Holloway, 8. Terry Wyrick, 9. Billy Bivens, 10. Danny Yoder, Jr., 11. Tim Ladd, 12. Darryl Hill, 13. Travis Lemons, 14. Tim Shultz, 15. Robert Edwards

Pure Street Feature: 1.Junior Watters, 2. Scott Johnson, 3. Raymond Shepard, 4. Michael Milsap, 5. Jonathan Sims, 6. Jason Mount, 7. Sammy Johnson, 8. Roger Smith, 9. Dewayne Dixon. 10. Bruce Willis, 11. Mack Dearing, 12. Steven Redmond, 13. James Boofer, 14. Bucky Nance, 15. Josh Williams

Front Wheel Drive Feature: 1. Benji Braden, 2. Robert McDonie, 3. David Hall, Jr., 4. Rusty Mellette, 5. Chris Hooks, 6. Miranda Malone, 7. A.J. Russell, 8. Mike Bowlin, 9. Doug Campbell, 10. Scott Russell, 11. J.T. Russell, 12. David Sizemore, DNS Isaac Cox

Hall of Fame 100 next on Atomic schedule

On Saturday, September 20, the pure minis, pure streets, and front wheel drive divisions will qualify and feature race in double points races. The limited late models will be qualifying and heat racing. Classic cars will also be heat racing on Saturday. Pit gates open at 4:00, grandstand gates open at 5:00, and hot laps start at 6:30.

Then on Sunday, September 21, the limited late models will compete in a 40-lap, $1,000 to win feature, which will also be a double points race. The classic cars will also be competing in a double points race on Sunday. All point races on Saturday and Sunday will be the final points races of 2003. With double points up for grabs, all divisions are wide open to decide the respective championships. The highlight of the weekend will be the super late models qualifying and feature racing in a 60-lap, $5,000 to win feature. Xtreme Dirt Car Series rules apply. The top 16 cars will be locked in through qualifying with consolation races to follow. Pit gates open at noon, grandstand gates open at 1:00, and hot laps begin at 2:00. Go to http://www.atomicmotorspeedway.com for more information. Ticket prices will be announced soon.

During intermission on Sunday, the two newest members of the Atomic hall of fame will be inducted. Frank "Bo" Harris and Zeke Buchanan are the 2003 hall of fame inductees. Make plans to attend this special event.

Atomic Speedway Labor Day Xtreme Race Results

Fox 43/Advance Auto Parts 100 Xtreme Dirt Car Series Feature: 1. Dan Schlieper, 2. Patrick Duggan, 3. Earl Pearson, Jr., 4. Brian Birkhofer, 5. Randy Weaver, 6. Rick Eckert, 7. Steve Francis, 8. Ray Cook, 9. Jimmy Mars, 10. Skip Arp, 11. Duayne Hommel, 12. Chris Madden, 13. Scott Bloomquist, 14. Jimmy Owens, 15. Billy Ogle, Jr., 16. Jeff Smith, 17. Donnie Moran, 18. Wendell Wallace, 19. Dale McDowell, 20. Gar Dickson, 21. Steve Russell, 22. Matt Miller, 23. Randle Chupp, 24. Freddy Smith, 25. Shane Tankersley

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Patrick Duggan, 2. Jeff Monger, 3. Derik Duggan, 4. Aaron Monger, 5. Joey Standridge, 6. Tim Huddleston, 7. Marty Calloway, 8. Jimmy Calloway, 9. Mike Weeks, 10. Ruben Mayfield, 11. Ellis Parker, 12. Mike Stedam, 13. Matt Henderson, 14. Benji Shaw

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Billy Bivens, 2. Derek Elder, 3. John Scarbrough, 4. Earl Ingram, 5. Bobby Idles, 6. Mike Luttrell, 7. Terry Wyrick, 8. David Woods, 9. Bobby McIntosh, 10. Travis Lemons, 11. Clifford Sands, 12. Joe Everett, 13. John Cobb, 14. Bill Scarbrough

Pure Street Feature: 1. Sammy Johnson, 2. Raymond Shepard, 3. Jonathan Sims, 4. Scott Johnson, 5. Michael Milsap, 6. Mike Bright, 7. Roger Smith, 8. David Brogden, 9. Ryan Monger, 10. Mack Dearing, 11. Junior Watters, 12. Ben Henrick, 13. Scott Webb, 14. Bruce Willis

Classic Car Feature: 1. Bart Baxter, 2. Rocky Estes, Jr., 3. Robbie Sands, 4. Jay Ball, 5. Tom Conaway, 6. Josh Ferguson, 7. Mark Dukes, 8. David Appling, 9. Tom Rudder, 10. Brady Baer, 11. Ron Rudder, 12. Jay Ball, 13. Bo Willis, 14. Frogg Ingle, 15. Marty Miller, 16. Eddie Seaton

Front Wheel Drive Feature: 1. Darryl Hill, 2. David Hall, Sr., 3. Rusty Mellette, 4. Lance Frost, 5. Spunky Brown, 6. Miranda Malone, 7. Corey Buck, 8. Jonathan Shepherd, 9. Gene Moore, 10. Mike Bowlin, 11. Daniel Sizemore, 12. Ronnie Bibbins, 13. Michael Kitts, 14. David Hall, Jr., 15. J.T. Russell, 16. Tim Ladd, 17. Isaac Cox, 18. Chris Hooks

Atomic Xtreme tickets going fast

Weaver wins on wild night at Atomic
By Michael Moats

Some news faces for 2003 visited Atomic’s victory lane along with a familiar name being crowned track champion in the super late models. There was plenty of wild racing and odd happenings on double points night at Atomic.

Randy Weaver picked up his first super late model win of 2003 at Atomic. Weaver came from third starting spot to take the win.

Anthony White and Billy Ogle, Jr. started on the front row with White taking the lead on the first lap. The caution quickly waved on the second lap as Brad Hall got sideways in turns 1 and 2 and was hit by Terry Wolfenbarger and Joe Armes. They continued going, but that stacked up the field just behind them. Eddie McMillan and Troy Eads spun to avoid the altercation and the caution was thrown. The race returned to green with White continuing to set the pace. Weaver dropped to the low side of Ogle. Weaver and Ogle raced side-by-side for several laps before Weaver took the position on lap 6. On lap 8, Hall slowed from a flat tire from the earlier incident to bring out another caution.

The race returned to green with Weaver giving chase to White. Weaver continued to work the low side of the track. Weaver moved along side of White on lap 10. Weaver moved past White on lap 12 to take the lead. Then on lap 14, another wreck in turn 2 involved a spinning Earl Ingram and McMillan. Hall tried to avoid the accident, but was collected and his car landed on top of McMillan’s. No one was injured in the accident. After the track was cleared, Weaver pulled away from White and never looked back in picking up the win. White held off Ogle for second. Mark Vineyard and Patrick Duggan battled all night for fourth with Vineyard edging Duggan for the position. Ogle’s third place finish clinched the super late model championship for 2003.

Patrick Duggan continued to steamroll along in the limited late models by taking his eighth win of the season. Duggan battled cousin Derik for the lead at the start of the race as Derik won the pole position in qualifying. The initial start was called off because some cars didn’t get up to speed while others passed before getting to the cone. The field was reset and the second attempt was a good start. Patrick Duggan shot by Derik Duggan on the outside in turn 1 and never looked back. Jeff Monger pressured Derik Duggan for second throughout the whole race, but could never get along side to make a pass. Ruben Mayfield had a good night by qualifying fourth and ran fourth most of the race. Marty Calloway moved past Mayfield for fourth on lap 21. Aaron Monger pressured Mayfield on the outside for fifth, but Mayfield held the position during the final laps. But it was Patrick Duggan picking up win number 8 in the limited late models. Derik Duggan was second, Jeff Monger was third, Calloway finished in fourth, and Mayfield held onto fifth.

John Scarbrough flexed some muscle in winning the pure mini feature. Scarbrough came from the rear to win his heat race. At the start of the feature, Scarbrough moved past first heat race winner Greg Henderson to take the lead. Henderson then battled Derek Elder for second. Elder moved past Henderson on lap 4 to take second. Billy Bivens battled Henderson for third. On lap 6, Bivens was looking to the outside of Henderson, but spun in turn 2. Henderson retired from the race after a dispute with track officials. On the restart, Scarbrough got a good jump on Elder and pulled away to a comfortable margin. Scarbrough took the win over Elder. Ros Kingery rebounded from a lap 1 spin to finish in third. Bobby Idles was fourth and Mike Luttrell finished fifth.

The pure street feature continued to provide plenty of drama and excitement. Michael Milsap and Roger Smith started on the front row after winning their heat races. Smith took the early lead after several start attempts. Milsap began to fall back as Junior Watters and Jonathan Sims quickly moved past. Sims and Watters made contact on the backstretch of lap 2 that sent Watters spinning. As that was happening, Ryan Monger stopped on the track for a flat tire. Watters and Sims were able to keep their positions. After the restart, Watters began to put heavy pressure on Smith. Watters get draw along side of Smith, but could not make the pass. Sims stayed close behind to make it a three-car battle for the lead at the midway point. Following a caution on lap 10, Raymond Shepard battled Sims for third. Shepard moved past Sims on lap 13 for third place. As the field took the white flag, Smith engine let go in turn 1. Smith moved to the bottom out of the way. Watters zipped to the outside with Shepard and Sims giving chase. Watters came by to take the checkered flag in the lead. Following the race, Shepard protested Watters. Watters refused to tear down, thus disqualifying him from the race. That gave the win to Shepard. Sims finished second, Milsap was third, David Brogdon had his best finish in fourth, and Scott Johnson was fifth.

As was the case with the pure streets, the classic car winner seemed to be n doubt just as someone looked to have the race in hand. When it was over, Robbie Sands won his second straight feature. Josh Ferguson and Rocky Estes, Jr. started on the front row of the feature. Ferguson took the early lead over Estes. Mark Dukes and Sands battled for third. On lap 3, Jason Loveday blew an engine and spun coming off turn 4. As Loveday’s car rolled backwards, he collected Ferguson who was trying to slip by. That ended Ferguson’s night because of suspension damage. That gave the lead to Estes. Following the restart, Estes built a comfortable lead over Dukes. Sands was pressuring Dukes for second. On lap 6, the right rear tire of Estes’ car came off in turn 3. That ended his night and gave the lead to Dukes. After the restart, Sands began to put more pressure on Dukes. On lap 12, Sands was able to get around Dukes for the lead. But Dukes fought back and looked to the inside of Sands. Sands held off Dukes for the win. Bart Baxter came from mid-pack to finish third, Bo Willis was fourth, and Brian Ball in his first race finished fifth.

Miranda Malone won her second front wheel drive feature. Malone started on the outside of the front row with Chris Hooks winning the pole position. On the start, Hooks car had trouble going. That stacked up the inside line. As Hooks’ car rolled slowly into turn 1, Jerry Moore hit the side of Hooks’ car. That ended the night for both. The field was realigned with Malone starting from the pole. Malone got the advantage over David Hall, Jr. at the start. Malone never looked back in picking up the win. Hall held off David Sizemore for third, Rusty Mellette was fourth, and Mike Bowling came in fifth.

Atomic Motor Speedway will take next weekend off because of racing at Bristol. Racing will resume on August 30-31 for the Xtreme Dirt Car Series. The Fox 43/Advance Auto Parts 100 will pay $20,000 to the winner of that event. The cameras of Speed Channel will be on hand to tape the event. Plus racing in other divisions.

Super Late Model Feature: 1. Randy Weaver, 2. Anthony White, 3. Billy Ogle, Jr., 4. Mark Vineyard, 5. Patrick Duggan, 6. Mike Weeks, 7. Terry Wolfenbarger, 8. Greg Knight, 9. Joe Armes, 10. Earl Ingram, 11. Troy Eads, 12. Eddie McMillan, 13. Brad Hall

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Patrick Duggan, 2. Derik Duggan, 3. Jeff Monger, 4. Marty Calloway, 5. Aaron Monger, 6. Ruben Mayfield, 7. Barry Goodman, 8. Jeff Neubert, 9. Joet Standridge, 10. Matt Henderson, 11. Randy Satterfield, DNS Benji Shaw

Pure Mini Feature: 1. John Scarbrough, 2. Derek Elder, 3. Ros Kingery, 4. Bobby Idles, 5. Mike Luttrell, 6. Billy Bivens, 7. Brad Hamilton, 8. Terry Wyrick, 9. Travis Lemons, 10. Greg Henderson, 11. Joe Everett, DNS John Cobb, Jr., DNS Aaron Smallen

Pure Street Feature: 1. Raymond Shepard, 2. Jonathan Sims, 3. Michael Milsap, 4. David Brogdon, 5. Scott Johnson, 6. Eddie Rowland, 7. Roger Smith, 8. Sammy Johnson, 9. Bill Webb, 10. James Boofer, 11. George Martin, 12. Mac Dearing, 13. Travis Malone, 14. Greg Hamilton, 15. Charles Satterfield, 16. Ryan Monger, DQ Junior Watters

Classic Cars Feature: 1. Robbie Sands, 2. Mark Dukes, 3. Bart Baxter, 4. Bo Willis, 5. Brian Ball, 6. Tom Conaway, 7. Brady Baer, 8. Charlie Dunlap, 9. Ron Rudder, 10. Andrew Compton, 11. Rocky Estes, Jr., 12. Josh Ferguson, 13. Frogg Ingle, 14. Jason Loveday

Front Wheel Drive Feature: 1. Miranda Malone, 2. David Hall, Jr., 3. Daniel Sizemore, 4. Rusty Mellette, 5. Mike Bowlin, 6. Scott Webb, 7. Isaac Cox, 8. A.J. Russell, 9. Michael Hooks, 10. Chris Hooks, 11. Jerry Moore, DNS David Hall, Sr.

Atomic Motor Speedway presents:

Ticket Prices

SATURDAY, AUGUST 30
General Admission - $15
(kids 6 & under free, kids 7-12 are $5)
Reserve Seating - $20
VIP Suites - $25
Pits - $30
(kids 12 & under free $10)
Beer Garden available with pit pass

SUNDAY, AUGUST 31
General Admission - $25
(kids 6 & under free, kids 7-12 are $5)
Reserve Seating - $30
VIP Suites - $35
Pits - $35
(kids 12 & under free $10)
Beer Garden available with pit pass

CLICK HERE for directions and more information.

Brad Hall takes first late model win at Atomic
By Michael Moats

Atomic Motor Speedway held a limited late model special to showcase the limited late models. They did not disappoint with three and four-wide racing in a caution free event.

Brad Hall was the big winner in that limited late model feature. The win was Hall’s first late model win in only his second year of racing the late models. Hall’s prior racing experience comes from Legend cars and other cars in asphalt racing. Hall has come close to winning in both limited and super late models this season. Hall was able to seal the deal despite heavy lapped traffic and three other cars vying for the lead.

Hall won the pole position in qualifying, edging out Patrick Duggan. Hall got the quick jump over Duggan in turns 1 and 2. Duggan fought back on the outside as both cars ran side-by-side in turns 3 and 4 and down the front stretch. Hall gained control of the lead, as Duggan couldn’t find the handle on his car in the opening laps. Hall built a sizeable lead in the early laps. Duggan had to battle cousin Derik Duggan for second. Jason McMahan soon joined the battle along with Aaron Monger. Monger had a mechanical problem and entered the infield area for several laps. Derik Duggan took second place as Patrick faded back. McMahan passed Patrick who backslid to fourth. McMahan looked underneath Derik for second.

At lap 10, the leaders began to catch slower traffic. Hall’s sizeable lead began to disappear as the slower cars were battling for positions in front of the leader. McMahan and both Duggans closed up on Hall, making it a four-car battle for the lead. Hall had been working the low side of the track, which was where the slower traffic was being directed to go. As Hall moved to the high side to clear a slower car, McMahan dove underneath Hall and to the outside of the slower car. McMahan and Hall battled side-by-side for a couple of laps. That allowed both Duggans to catch up. Derik looked to the outside of Hall with McMahan still on the low side of Hall. Some of the slower cars moved to the inside, blocking McMahan and allowing Hall to maintain the lead. Derik and Patrick Duggan moved past McMahan on the outside. Fifth place runner Matt Henderson had caught the foursome and looked the high side of Patrick Duggan. As the Duggans cleared McMahan, Henderson shot by McMahan to take fourth.

As the leaders cleared some of the lapped traffic, positions continue to change. Patrick reclaimed second from Derik and McMahan moved by Henderson to retake fourth. McMahan moved back toward the front again. McMahan and Derik Duggan battled for third. As the laps wound down, the leaders again caught more slow traffic. With slower cars battling for their own positions, Hall had a difficult time finding a way around the slower cars. That allowed Patrick Duggan to close up behind Hall with 3 laps to go. Hall used the slower cars as blockers to keep Patrick Duggan behind. Hall cleared most of the slower cars and took the win by two car lengths over Patrick Duggan. McMahan was third, Derik Duggan was fourth, and Henderson finished fifth.

Before the feature, there was a money dash for the six slowest cars in qualifying. Jeff Neubert won the dash over Randy Satterfield and collected the $100 bonus.

Aaron Smallen battled overheating problems in taking the win in the pure mini feature. Smallen won the first heat and used his pole position start to get the early lead over Billy Bivens. Bivens battled John Scarbrough and Lee Sauceman for second in the early laps. Bivens took the position, but was already several car-lengths behinds Smallen. Scarbrough and Sauceman battled for third. Sauceman passed Scarbrough for third on lap 4. Smallen looked to be in a comfort zone with a sizeable lead until a caution came out on lap 5. Then on lap 7, Smallen’s car began to lose water through steam coming out of the front of the car. No fluid was being dumped on the racing surface, so the race remained under green. But the steam got worse and the laps counted down. Despite that problem, Smallen still maintained a three car-length advantage over Bivens. Smallen held on for the win over Bivens. Sauceman was third, Larry Housley finished fourth, and Greg Humphrey was fifth.

The pure street features continue to be some of the best racing in 2003 at Atomic. Junior Watters came from fourth starting spot to take the win. The race got off to a rocky start for pole sitter Raymond Shepard. Shepard put his car on the pole position during qualifying. But at the start of the race, Shepard’s car was slow to go. The cars on the inside line stacked up behind Shepard. The caution quickly waved. As Shepard’s car rolled to a stop in turn 1, Ray Borubb ran into the side of Shepard’s car. Shepard would retire from the race. That moved Sammy Johnson to the pole position. But it was Scott Johnson that got the early lead at the start of the race. Sammy Johnson quickly faded as Jonathan Sims and Watters moved past.

After a couple of quick cautions on lap 2, Scott Johnson and Sims battled for the lead. Sims looked to the low side on Johnson. Johnson was able to hold off Sims until lap 7. Johnson’s car got into the lose stuff in turns 1 and 2. Sims dove to the bottom. Johnson fought back on the backstretch, but Sims and Johnson made contact sending Johnson spinning. Race officials determined Sims was caused the contact and was placed to the rear of the field with Johnson maintaining the lead. This moved Watters into second position. Following the restart, Watters began to pressure Johnson for the lead. On lap 12, Watters moved to the bottom and around Johnson to take the lead. Watters never looked back to take the win. Scott Johnson was second, Sammy Johnson was third, Charles Satterfield finished fourth, and Sims rallied to finish fifth.

Robbie Sands collected another win in the classic car feature. Sands won the pole position in qualifying and took the lead on the opening lap from Josh Ferguson. Sands built a comfortable margin as Ferguson battled Bo Willis and Rocky Estes, Jr. for second. By lap 7, Bart Baxter had joined the battle as he moved into fifth past Mark Dukes. Ferguson moved ahead of Willis and Estes and left the two to battle for third. Baxter looked to the outside of Estes for fourth, but could not make the pass. Robbie Sands cruised to the win over Josh Ferguson. Willis held of Estes for third and Baxter was fifth.

David Hall, Sr., made it two straight wins in the front wheel drive feature. Hall, Sr. got the early lead over Miranda Malone who battled Chris Hooks and David Hall, Jr. for second. Hall’s big advantage came on restarts. Hall would lead the field to the green at a snail’s pace, then hammer the gas and get a tremendous jump over Malone. Hall, Jr., moved past Hooks for third on lap 9, then battled Malone for second. Meanwhile, Hall, Sr. had checked out and won the race. As Hall, Sr. came across the line, his engine expired. Malone held off Hall, Jr. for second, Hooks finished fourth, and Rusty Mellette was fifth.


Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Brad Hall, 2. Patrick Duggan, 3. Jason McMahan, 4. Derek Duggan, 5. Matt Henderson, 6. Marty Calloway, 7. Tim Huddleston, 8. Joey Standridge, 9. Randy Satterfield, 10. Mike Stedam, 11. Jeff Neubert, 12. Benji Shaw, 13. Randy Dillard, 14. Ronnie White, 15. Aaron Monger, 16. Jeremy Palmer, 17. Ruben Mayfield, DNS Jimmy Calloway

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Aaron Smallen, 2. Billy Bivens, 3. Lee Sauceman, 4. Larry Housley, 5. Gred Henderson, 6. Derek Elder, 7. Bobby Idles, 8. Jarrod McAnally, 9. Brad Hamilton, 10. John Scarbrough, 11. John Cobb, Jr., 12. Joe Everett, DNS Terry Wyrcik, DNS Donnie Miller

Pure Street Feature: 1. Junior Watters, 2. Scott Johnson, 3. Sammy Johnson, 4. Charles Satterfield, 5. Jonathan Sims, 6. James Boofer, 7. David Brogdon, 8. Ben Headrick, 9. Mark Rogers, 10. George Martin, 11. Ray Borubb, 12. Greg Humphrey, 13. Raymond Shepard, 14. Mark Dearing, DNS Roger Smith

Classic Cars Feature: 1. Robbie Sands, 2. Josh Ferguson, 3. Bo Willis, 4. Rocky Estes, Jr., 5. Bart Baxter, 6. Mark Dukes, 7. Tom Conaway, 8. Tom Rudder, 9. Wayne Dukes, 10. David Appling, 11. Frogg Ingle, 12. Donnie Arwood, 13. Ron Rudder, DNS Brady Baer

Front Wheel Drive Feature: 1. David Hall, Sr., 2. Miranda Malone, 3. David Hall, Jr., 4. Chris Hooks, 5. Rusty Mellette, 6. Isaac Cox, 7. Michael Hooks, 8. Ronnie Bibbins, 9. Darryl Hill, 10. Daniel Sizemore

White scores first Atomic win
By Michael Moats

Some new faces and familiar faces visited Atomic’s victory lane on a wild night of racing. Anthony White scored his first late model victory at Atomic this past Saturday night. White had to battle Billy Ogle, Jr. through the whole feature to get the win.

White started from the pole position, but took the early lead over Patrick Duggan. Ogle was close behind in third. On lap 2, Earl Ingram spun on the backstretch for the race’s first caution. After the restart, White built a car length advantage over Duggan. Ogle started working on Duggan for second by working the low side of the track. Ogle moved under and around Duggan on lap 5. Ogle began to chase down White. By lap 8, Ogle moved in on the rear bumper of White. As the leaders began working slower traffic, Ogle was ready to make his move. White was trying to get around Shawn Shadoan on lap 10. That allowed Ogle to look to the inside of White. On lap 11, White and Shadoan made contact on the backstretch that sent Shadoan spinning. Ogle tried to avoid the two cars, but clipped the back of White’s car, then grazed the outside wall. White received minor damage to the right front of his car, while Ogle received some damage to the left and right front to his car. All three cars were able to continue.

On the restart, White continued to receive heavy pressure from Ogle. Just behind them, Duggan, Corey Norman, and Mark Vineyard were locked in a battle for third. Ogle looked to the inside of White on several occasions, but the high line was the preferred line on this night. As the race wore on, the damage to Ogle’s car was becoming a factor. The right side of the nose on his car started dragging the ground. This effected the handling of Ogle’s car in the closing laps of the race and allowed White to build a sizeable lead.

On lap 33, Duggan spun on the front stretch from damage to the right front suspension on his car. That moved Norman into third position. On the restart, Ogle made one last attempt on White in turns 1 and 2. But White had the momentum on held onto the lead and took the win over Ogle. Norman was third, Vineyard held off Mike Weeks for fourth. The win was White’s first late model win at Atomic during his 10 year racing career.

Patrick Duggan continued his domination of the limited late model division by taking his seventh win of the season. Duggan won the pole position for the race and got a good jump over outside pole sitter Aaron Monger going into the first turn. The caution quickly waved for a spin in turn 1 that involved Danny Yoder, Randy Dillard, and Tim Denton. Yoder spun in turn 1 while Dillard spun to avoid Yoder. Denton t-boned Dillard’s car and the front of Dillard’s car come to rest on top of Dillard’s car. Dillard and Denton were okay. On the next start, Duggan again took the early lead over Monger. Tim Huddleston settled into third while Jeff Monger, Barry Goodman, and Mike Weeks battled for fourth.

Duggan had built a sizeable lead until a caution waved on lap 17. That allowed Monger to move behind Duggan on the restart. Duggan got another tremendous jump over Monger. Then on lap 18, Monger’s engine let go dumping oil onto the racetrack. That moved Huddleston into second with Goodman and Jeff Monger just behind. On the restart, Duggan sailed out to another big advantage. Monger muscled his way past Goodman for third on lap 20. Goodman jumped back to the low side and underneath Monger. Goodman passed Monger for the position on lap 22. Monger fought back to retake the position on lap 23. Up front, it was Duggan claiming another limited late model victory. Huddleston had his best finish of the year in second. Jeff Monger held off Goodman for third and Mike Weeks finished fifth.

John Scarbrough took his new car to victory lane by winning the pure mini feature. Scarbrough got the early lead over pole sitter Derek Elder. Aaron Smallen gave chase close behind. Scarbrough received early pressure from Elder. Scarbrough ran the high line to keep the engine wound up and eventually build a sizeable lead over Elder. Following a caution on lap 7, Elder dove to the bottom of the track trying to move past Scarbrough. Elder could not make the move and Scarbrough continued to hold the lead. On lap 13, Joe Everett spun coming off turn 4 right in front of Scarbrough and Elder. Both cars missed the spin and continued. After the restart, Scarbrough kept Elder far enough behind to prevent a last lap challenge. Scarbrough picked up the win. Elder was second, Smallen finished third, Bobby Idles was fourth, and Jerry McAnally finished fifth.

Scott Johnson picked up his first Atomic win in the pure street feature. Johnson started from the fifth position, but was leading after a lap 2 crash. Race leader Roger Smith cut a tire coming off turn 4. With traffic stacked up behind him, cars went all directions trying to avoid Smith’s car. Brian Hooks and David Brogdon made contact which sent both cars sliding to the inside wall. Hooks’ car made heavy contact with that wall. Both drivers were okay but were made at each other over the incident. Johnson was in the lead with Jonathan Sims, Sammy Johnson, and Junior Watters just behind. Sims looked under Johnson on the restart, but could not make the pass. Sims’ car appeared to have problems with the right front suspension. But Sims continued and gave chase to Johnson. Watters moved around Sammy Johnson on lap 4 and made it a three-car battle for the lead. Watters looked underneath Sims for second. That gave Johnson some breathing room in the race’s final laps, which allowed Johnson to take the win. Watters edged Sims at the line for second, Sammy Johnson was fourth, and Raymond Shepard came from the deep in the field to take fifth.

Bart Baxter continues to show passing can be done in the low side in the classic car feature. Baxter took the win after starting fourth and passing the front two cars on the low side. Tom Conaway was the pole sitter and early race leader. Conaway held the advantage over Rocky Estes, Jr. and Baxter on lap 1. Baxter and Estes were battling side-by-side on lap 1 for second before Baxter took the position heading into turn 1. On lap 2, Baxter stayed on the low side and moved around Conaway for the lead. On lap 8, Estes finally moved around Conaway for second and looked to chase down Baxter. Following a caution on lap 9, Baxter pulled away from Estes again. Baxter won by a comfortable margin over Estes. Conaway held off Robbie Sands for third and Bo Willis was fifth.

David Hall, Sr. went from the pole position to take the win in the front wheel drive feature. Hall, Sr. got the jump over outside pole sitter Chris Hooks. Hooks battled David Hall, Jr. for second before Hall, Jr. took the position on lap 3. Hall. Sr. had already checked out and went on to take the win over son Hall, Jr. Miranda Malone came from last to finish third, Hooks was fourth, and Timothy Kilby was fifth.

Super Late Model Feature: 1. Anthony White, 2. Billy Ogle, Jr., 3. Corey Norman, 4. Mark Vineyard, 5. Mike Weeks, 6. Terry Wolfenbarger, 7. Joe Armes, 8. Charles Hurst, 9. Earl Ingram, 10. David Laney, 11. Patrick Duggan, 12. Tommy Devaney, 13. Shawn Shadoan

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Patrick Duggan, 2. Tim Huddleston, 3. Jeff Monger, 4. Barry Goodman, 5. Mike Weeks, 6. Jason McMahan, 7. Marty Calloway, 8. Matt Henderson, 9. Joey Standridge, 10. Ronnie White, 11. Danny Yoder, 12. Aaron Monger, 13. Ruben Mayfield, 14. Randy Dillard, 15. Tim Denton

Pure Mini Feature: 1. John Scarbrough, 2. Derek Elder, 3. Aaron Smallen, 4. Bobby Idles, 5. Jerry McAnally, 6. Brad Hamilton, 7. David Woods, 8. Ross Kingery, 9. Joe Everett, 10. Richard McIntosh, 11. Robert McIntosh, 12. John Forrester, 13. Scott Davis, 14. Mike Luttrell, 15. Terry Wyrick, DNS Billy Bivens

Pure Street Feature: 1. Scott Johnson, 2. Junior Watters, 3. Jonathan Sims, 4. Sammy Johnson, 5. Raymond Shepard, 6. Ryan Monger, 7. Charles Satterfield, 8. James Boofer, 9. Mark Rogers, 10. Michael Milsap, 11. Roger Smith, 12. David Brogdon, 13. Brian Hooks, 14. J.D. Stanifer, 15. Ken Dearing

Classic Cars Feature: 1. Bart Baxter, 2. Rocky Estes, Jr., 3. Tom Conaway, 4. Robbie Sands, 5. Bo Willis, 6. Mark Dukes, 7. Ron Rudder, 8. Eddie Seaton, 9. Brady Baer, 10. Wayne Dukes, 11. David Appling, 12. Jason Loveday, 13. Andrew Compton, 14. Josh Ferguson

Front Wheel Drive Feature: 1. David Hall, Sr., 2. David Hall, Jr., 3. Miranda Malone, 4. Chris Hooks, 5. Timothy Kilby, 6. Ronnie Bibbins, 7. A.J. Russell, 8. Mike Kotts, 9. Daniel Sizemore

Madden is Spectacular at Atomic
By Michael Moats

Racers at Atomic Motor Speedway were greeted with a very fast track, despite hot afternoon temperatures. Fast times were the order of business that produced some exciting racing for the Gary Hall Motors Summer Spectacular.

Chris Madden was the big winner as he picked up $5,000 by winning the super late model feature. Madden’s win was not easy going. Jimmy Owens set fast time in qualifying with a blistering time of 12.028 seconds. That edged out Madden and Ronnie Johnson.

The race started with Owens inching ahead of Madden coming out of turn 2. Madden drew along side of Owens going into turn 3. Coming out of turn 4, Owens car slowed and cars behind quickly stacked up to avoid the slowing Owens. With the front stretch nearly blocked, the caution quickly waved. Owens had engine trouble and was out of the race. The field was realigned with Madden now on the pole position and Ronnie Johnson on the outside pole. The race was restarted with Johnson getting the advantage over Madden. But another caution quickly waved as Mike Freeman spun in turn 4. With no completed laps in the books, the field was reset and the race resumed. Madden did not allow Johnson to zip ahead as the two fought side-by-side going through turns 1 and 2. But Johnson took the lead in turns 3 and 4 as the field settled in to a blistering pace.

By lap 10, the field began to catch slower traffic. Madden chased Johnson through the traffic, as Patrick Duggan started moving in on the lead twosome. On lap 12, Johnson got into the loose stuff at the top of the groove in turn 1. That allowed Madden to sneak by into the lead. Duggan had thoughts of taking second from Johnson, but Johnson re-gathered himself and looked to chase Madden down. Madden got held up behind a couple of slower cars on lap 16. Johnson snuck by Madden to retake the lead.

Further back in the field, Randy Weaver, Billy Ogle, and Shane Clanton were battling for fourth. Weaver secured the position, the looked the chase down Duggan. Ogle and Clanton battled for fifth. Jeff Smith and Skip Arp were on the move from deep within the field. Smith found himself in seventh position when a caution waved on lap 18. Arp was in ninth.

On lap 22, a caution came out for a slowing Clanton who had mechanical problems. He would retire from the race. The race resumed with Johnson still leading the way. Madden remained close on his heels. On lap 24, Johnson got sideways coming off turn 4 and almost spun the car. Johnson corrected it, but not before Madden was able to squeeze by on the outside to take the lead. Weaver, Duggan, and Ogle also got by Johnson. Weaver then moved around Duggan for third. Duggan scraped the wall on lap 26, which allowed Ogle to squirt by for the position. Duggan suffered some suspension damage and slowed on lap 27 for another caution.

Smith and Arp were continuing their march to the front. Smith was in fifth and Arp was in sixth when a caution came out for debris on lap 46. Following the restart, Arp decided to try to high groove. Arp moved to the outside and around Smith for fifth. Arp then moved to the outside of Johnson. Johnson held onto the position as another caution waved on lap 49 for Mike Weeks’ spin. Johnson saw Arp’s move and decided to use it on the restart. Johnson moved to the outside of Ogle and moved past to take third. On lap 52, Johnson used the same move on Weaver to take second place. Johnson began to reel in Madden. Johnson caught Madden and again looked to the outside. Joe Armes slowed on lap 58 for the race’s final caution. Madden decided to thwart Johnson’s move by going to the high side on the restart. Madden began to build a comfortable margin in the closing laps of the race. As the field took the white flag, Johnson’s car erupted into flames under the hood. Johnson was able to limp to a fourth place finish. But Madden was the winner of the Summer Spectacular and claimed the $5,000 prize. Weaver was second, Arp used the high line to finish in third, and Ogle was fifth.

Patrick Duggan continued his domination of the limited late model division by claiming another win. Duggan won the pole in qualifying and led wire to wire in the 30-lap feature. Jeff Monger was able to stay close behind for the first part of the race. Duggan checked out and Monger had to battle Brad Hall for second for most of the race. Hall looked to the inside of Monger on numerous occasions. On lap 23, Hall almost spun out in turns 1 and 2. Hall gathered the car back in, but not before losing third to Marty Calloway. Ronnie White had his best run of the year going by running in fifth until he spun the car in turn 2 on lap 26. White hit the inside wall and suffered some front-end damage. After the restart, Hall moved underneath Calloway on lap 27 to retake third. Hall chased down Monger and looked to the low side. Monger was too strong and was able to hold the position. Duggan won by a comfortable margin over Monger, with Hall in third, Calloway in fourth, and Barry Goodman finished fifth.

Aaron Smallen picked up his second straight pure mini win. Smallen battled John Scarbrough for the first part of the race. With no cautions in the event, the leaders caught slower traffic in the closing laps. Smallen was able to negotiate the traffic with no problems. Scarbrough was held up by a couple of cars. That allowed Smallen to build a comfortable margin in the final laps. As Scarbrough had trouble with the slower traffic, that allowed Billy Bivens and Derek Elder to close in. Elder tried to take third from Bivens, but the two almost collided in turn 4. Scarbrough was able to maintain second. Smallen takes his third win of the year. Scarbrough was second, Bivens held off Elder for third, and Bobby Idles was fifth.

Jonathan Sims was able to take advantage of another flat tire by race leader Junior Watters to win the pure street feature. The same situation happened two weeks ago with Watters leading and cutting a tire late in the race. In this race, Watters cut a tire on lap 9. Watters had taken the lead from pole sitter Roger Smith on lap 5. Watters looked as if he would pick up another win. But the flat tired handed the lead to Sims who had passed Smith for second on lap 7. Raymond Shepard had passed Smith for third on lap 8. With Watters in the back of the field, Sims had to contend with Shepard. Sims had no problems in the final laps as he took the win over Shepard. Smith was third, Mac Deoring was fourth, and Sammy Johnson was fifth.

Bo Willis picked up his first win at Atomic in the classic cars feature. Willis won the pole position in qualifying and took the early lead over Robbie Sands. Willis had Sands knocking on his back door throughout the whole race. Sands kept working the low side, but could not find enough bite to make a pass. Rocky Estes, Jr. and Josh Ferguson battled for third just behind Sands. Estes and Ferguson tried working around Sands to make it a three-car battle for second. That allowed Willis to put a couple of car lengths on Sands as he took his first win at Atomic. Sands held onto second, Estes edged teammate Ferguson for third, and Bart Baxter was fifth.

Miranda Malone won the first ever front wheel drive race at Atomic. Malone passed leader and pole sitter Thomas Hooks on lap 4 to take the lead. David Hall, Jr. passed Hooks for second and began to pressure Malone for the lead. Malone and Hall, Jr. had battled for the lead in the second heat race with this battle being an instant replay. Hall, Jr. moved up to the rear bumper of Malone’s car on lap 10. Malone held her line and took the win over Hall, Jr. Hooks finished third, Rusty Mellette was fourth, and Daniel Sizemore was fifth.

Gary Hall Motors Super Late Model Feature: 1. Chris Madden, 2. Randy Weaver, 3. Skip Arp, 4. Ronnie Johnson, 5. Billy Ogle, Jr., 6. Jeff Smith, 7. Ricky Williams, 8. Mark Vineyard, 9. Brian Hendrix, 10. Tommy Devaney, 11. Joe Armes, 12. David Killian, 13. Mike Weeks, 14. Derik Duggan, 15. Patrick Duggan, 16. Shane Clanton, 17. Jeremy Clements, 18. Greg Knight, 19. Mike Freeman, 20. Derek Raney, 21. Terry Wolfenbarger, 22. Jimmy Owens

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Patrick Duggan, 2. Jeff Monger, 3. Brad Hall, 4. Marty Calloway, 5. Barry Goodman, 6. Ruben Mayfield, 7. Jimmy Calloway, 8. Joey Standridge, 9. Greg Smith, 10. Ronnie White, 11. Randy Satterfield, DNS Jeremy Palmer

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Aaron Smallen, 2. John Scarbrough, 3. Billy Bivens, 4. Derek Elder, 5. Bobby Idles, 6. Scott Davis, 7. David Woods, 8. Brad Hamilton, 9. Terry Wyrick, 10. Todd Sorum, 11. Mike Luttrell, 12. Steve Owens, 13. Joe Everett, 14. Richard McIntosh, 15. Robert McIntosh

Pure Street Feature: 1. Jonathan Sims, 2. Raymond Shepard, 3. Roger Smith, 4. Mac Deoring, 5. Sammy Johnson, 6. James Boofer, 7. Ray Boruff, 8. Brian Hooks, 9. Ben Headrick, 10. Greg Humphrey, 11. Junior Watters, 12. Ryan Monger, 13. David Brogdon, 14. Michael Milsap

Classic Cars Feature: 1. Bo Willis, 2. Robby Sands, 3. Rocky Estes, Jr., 4. Josh Ferguson, 5. Bart Baxter, 6. Mark Dukes, 7. David Appling, 8. Charlie Dunlap, 9. Brady Baer, 10. Tom Rudder, 11. Ron Rudder, 12. Tom Conaway, 13. Andrew Compton, 14. Jackie Courtney, 15. Jason Loveday

Front Wheel Drive Feature: 1. Miranda Malone, 2. David Hall, Jr., 3. Thomas Hooks, 4. Rusty Mellette, 5. Daniel Sizemore, 6. Mike Bowlin, 7. Isaac Cox, 8. Scott Webb, 9. David Hall, Sr., 10. Corey Buck, DNS Tim Ladd, DNS Jeff Hamilton, DNS Chris Hooks, DNS Derrek Northern

Summer Spectacular July 19 at Atomic

The Gary Hall Motors Summer Spectacular super late model race is set for this Saturday at Atomic Motor Speedway. The 75-lap, $5,000 to win event is expected to draw some big names from the southeast. Skip Arp, Freddy Smith, Jeff Smith, Ronnie Johnson, Scott Sexton, Billy Ogle, Jr., and Patrick Duggan are just some of the expected drivers. Also in action will be the limited late models, pure minis, pure streets, classics, and front wheel drive. Ticket prices and other information are available at www.atomicmotorspeedway.com or by calling (865) 986-3589.

Rain forces cancellation at Atomic Motor Speedway

Rain moved over Atomic Motor Speedway around 5:45 and forced the cancellation of Saturday night's program. Anyone with a ticket stub can use it for racing on Saturday, July 26. Next Saturday's racing will be the Gary Hall Motors Summer Spectaular, 75 laps for $5,000 to win for the super late models. Pit passes can be used for next Saturday's racing plus the $5 difference in next Saturday's pit pass or for Saturday, July 26

Hommel avoids early trouble for Atomic OSAS win
By Michael Moats

The O’Reilly Southern All-Stars returned to Atomic Motor Speedway for an Independence Day Spectacular with plenty of fireworks on and off the track. When the smoke cleared, defending champion Duayne Hommel was the winner.

The event started on Thursday night with qualifying and heat races for the OSAS late models. Skip Arp set fast time in qualifying with a lap of 12.427 seconds. But it was Chris Madden who won the first heat and the pole position for the 100-lap feature. Other heat race winners were Billy Ogle, Jr., Duayne Hommel, and Clint Smith. Fifty cars were on hand the first night.

The race got off to a rocking start as Madden and Ogle battled for the lead on the first lap. Ogle used the high ling to his advantage to sprint ahead after one lap. Madden chased Ogle with Hommel, Arp and Smith just behind. On lap 2, Madden slowed with mechanical trouble for the race’s first caution. Madden would fall from the race. That moved Hommel into second with Arp in third. On the restart, Ogle looked to put some distance on Hommel. Arp began to put pressure on Hommel for second. Arp moved past Hommel for second on lap 10 and looked to chase down Ogle, who was catching slower traffic. On lap 14, Corey Norman spun in turn 1 as the leaders were approaching. Norman slid up the track and collected Mike Head, Arp, and Hommel, who had already committed to the high side when the spin occurred. Head and Hommel received minimal damage. But Arp’s car sustained major damage to the right front of his car. Arp was done for the night.

Back to green flag racing and Ogle looked in control as he put some distance on a shaken Hommel. Clint Smith was in third and began to work on Hommel. Ronnie Johnson, winner of consolation race number 2, was the big mover in the early laps. Johnson was already up to eighth place by lap 14. Patrick Duggan was in seventh and was also on the move. Duggan moved past Bobby Turner on lap 18 for sixth. Johnson followed Duggan around Turner for seventh.

The leaders again quickly caught slower traffic. On lap 21, Ogle tangled with a slower car in turns 3 and 4 that resulted in Ogle spinning. Ogle’s car came to a stop in turn 4, which resulted in him going to the rear of the field. Hommel inherited the lead with Smith in second, Shane Tankersley in third, Shane Clanton in fourth, and Patrick Duggan fifth.

With Hommel in the lead, the midpoint of the race settled into some green flag racing. Duggan and Johnson continued to move through the field. Duggan worked on getting around Clanton for nearly 20 laps. Duggan moved to the high side and powered his way around Clanton for fourth. Johnson soon followed suite and passed Clanton for fifth.

Following a spin by Royce Bray on lap 64, Johnson began to look on getting around Duggan. Johnson had followed Duggan through the top 10, but was anxious to move around Duggan and continue his march forward. On lap 76, Johnson and Duggan made contact in turns 1 and 2. Johnson spun in turn 2, which brought out another caution. Johnson had to go to the rear of the lead lap cars. Duggan was not rattled by the move. After the race resumed, Duggan motored to the high side of Tankersley in turn 1. Tankersley fought back heading into turn 3. Both cars made contact and got sideways in turn 4. Both cars got straightened out with Duggan in third. Tankersley suffered a cut tire and slowed for another caution. Duggan used the same move to get around Smith for second in the closing laps of the race.

Another driver to make big gains in the latter stages of the race was Mark Vineyard, who made the show through a consolation race. Vineyard was not in the top 10 by lap 64. But Vineyard found the low side to his liking and began to move up. Vineyard passed Mark Douglas to get into the top 10. Vineyard moved around Rex Richey on lap 92 to take fifth place.

But this night belonged to Duayne Hommel after avoiding a couple of close calls in the first 20 laps of the race. Hommel had checked out in the final laps of the race to win comfortably over Duggan. Smith was third, Clanton was fourth, and Vineyard was fifth.

In other racing action, Jeff Monger held off Patrick Duggan to win the limited late model feature. Duggan started from the pole position with Monger on the outside pole position. Duggan and Monger fought side by side on the first lap. Monger used the high line to take the lead on lap 2. Duggan remained close throughout the race. Duggan moved alongside Monger on several occasions in bids for the lead. Despite developing engine problems early in the race, Monger was able to hold off Duggan for the win. Marty Calloway finished third, Ruben Mayfield had his best finish of the season in fourth, and Aaron Monger was fifth.

The pure mini feature continued to offer some of the best racing this season at Atomic. Aaron Smallen held off Derek Elder to pick up the win. Smallen took the early lead from John Scarbrough. Elder quickly moved into second and began to pressure Smallen. Elder bumped and nudged Smallen from behind lap after lap, but Smallen remained calm and drove his line. Elder looked under Smallen many times trying to take the lead. But Smallen remained steady and took the win by a car length over Elder. Scarbrough was third, Larry Sands, Jr. was fourth, and Ronnie Shelton was fifth.

The pure street feature was not lacking in excitement as Jonathan Sims took advantage of Junior Watters’ misfortune to take the win. Sims led the first lap of the race, only to see Watters move around Sims on lap 2 for the lead. Watters looked to be in control as he built a sizeable lead over Sims, who was battling Sammy Johnson for second. A scary moment on lap 9 as Charles Satterfield rolled his car in turns 3 and 4. A wheel came off Satterfield’s car, causing the car to dig into the racing surface and do a rollover. Satterfield was uninjured in the crash. When the field returned to green, Watters again built a sizeable advantage over Sims. On lap 17, Watters’ car went high going into turn 1. Sims and Johnson slipped by to push Watters back to third. Watters had a tire going down and nursed the car during the final laps. That left Sims and Johnson to battle for the win. Johnson looked low on the final lap, but Sims was too strong on the high side and took the win. Johnson was second, Ryan Monger had his best finish in third, Michael Milsap was fourth, and Junior Watters limped to a fifth place finish.

Bart Baxter made it two wins in a row in the classic car feature. Baxter won the pole position over Rocky Estes, Jr. in Thursday’s qualifying. Baxter and Estes fought side by side during the first half of the race. Estes’ car seemed better on the restarts, but Baxter’s car was better as the green flag laps clicked off. Baxter took control of the lead and never looked back to get the win over Estes. Robbie Sands came from last place to finish third, Josh Ferguson was fourth, and Wayne Dukes had another top 5 by finishing fifth.

O'Reilly Southern All-Stars Feature: 1. Duayne Hommel, 2. Patrick Duggan, 3. Clint Smith, 4. Shane Clanton, 5. Mark Vineyard, 6. Rex Richey, 7. Jeff Cooke, 8. Mark Douglas, 9. Ronnie Johnson, 10. Billy Ogle, Jr., 11. David Payne, 12. Terrance Nowell, 13. Royce Bray, 14. Shane Tankersley, 15. Steven Harrison, 16. Jeremy Clements, 17. Mike Head, 18. James Cline, 19. Corey Norman, 20. Bobby Turner, 21. Ray Cook, 22. Terry Wolfenbarger, 23. Skip Arp, 24. Chris Madden, 25. Brad Hall

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Jeff Monger, 2. Patrick Duggan, 3. Marty Calloway, 4. Ruben Mayfield, 5. Aaron Monger, 6. Joey Standridge, 7. Jimmy Calloway, 8. Tony Schrimser, 9. Tim Huddleston, 10. Matt Henderson, 11. Ralph Standridge, 12. Randy Satterfield, 13. Jake Knowles

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Aaron Smallen, 2. Derek Elder, 3. John Scarbrough, 4. Larry Sands, Jr., 5. Ronnie Shelton, 6. Sam Holloway, 7. Scott Davis, 8. Bobby Idles, DNS Larry Housley, DNS Nathan Davis

Pure Street Feature: 1. Jonathan Sims, 2. Sammy Johnson, 3. Ryan Monger, 4. Michael Milsap, 5. Junior Watters, 6. Scott Johnson, 7. Jerry Roach, 8. Charles Satterfield, 9. Greg Humphrey, 10. Bruce Willis, 11. J.D. Stanifer

Classic Car Feature: 1. Bart Baxter, 2. Rocky Estes, Jr., 3. Robbie Sands, 4. Josh Ferguson, 5. Wayne Dukes, 6. Ron Rudder, 7. Bo Willis, 8. Mark Dukes, 9. Tom Conaway, 10. Jason Loveday, 11. Marty Miller, 12. Brady Baer

Southern All Stars Set To Do Battle At Atomic For Independence Day
Spectacular

KNOXVILLE, TN-The O'Reilly Southern All Stars Dirt Racing series will make it's first stop of the 2003 season Thursday & Friday night July 3rd & 4th at the Atomic Motor Speedway in Knoxville, TN for a 100 lap $10,000 to win event.

The battle for the 2003 series championship is one the best in series history as six drivers are within 110 points of each battling for the top prize at the end of the 34-race season.

Three time series champion Clint Smith of Senoia, GA., is currently the points leader heading into the Atomic event and will be on the favorites to capture the $10,000 first place money along with the second place driver in points Mike Head of Ellenwood, GA., who has one series championship to his credit. Third is the 2002 series champion Duayne Hommel of Newport, TN., fourth to the 2002 rookie of the year Terrance Nowell of Phenix City, AL., and fifth the current Boyd Built/BTW/Late Model America Rookie leader Jeff Cooke of Spartanburg, SC.

Sixth in points is Jody Summerville of Rome, GA., seventh to a former Atomic track champion Steven Harrison of Dayton, TN., eighth Royce Bray of Athens, GA., ninth Chris Madden of Gray Court, SC., and then to Brandon Kinzer of Allen, KY, all of who are expected to be in action at Atomic.

Other drivers from across the southeast that are expected to compete include Shane Clanton of Locust Grove, GA., Bryan Hendrix of Knoxville, TN., Randle Chupp of Mooresville, NC, Ray Cook of Murphy, NC, Freddy Smith of Knoxville, TN., Rex Richey of Ringgold, GA., Vic Hill of Greeneville, TN., Skip Arp of Georgetown, TN., James Cline of Oxford, AL., plus many more.

Many of east Tennessee’s finest will be on hand as well. Billy Ogle, Jr., Patrick Duggan, Randy Weaver, Mark Vineyard, Mark Douglas, Joe Armes, Vic Hill, Brad Hall, and Scott Sexton will be looking to keep the $10,000 in east Tennessee.

Also on the racing program will be the limited late models competing for a $1,000 winner’s purse. Drivers such as Patrick Duggan, Jeff Monger, Billy Ogle, Jr., and Aaron Monger will be competing in the limited late model division.

Pure minis, pure streets, and classics will be heat racing on Thursday night and feature racing on Friday night. Increased purses will be offered to all classes in this special event.

Pit gates for this big event will open at 3 pm each day with grandstands at 5:30 pm and race time set for 7:15 pm. General admission tickets are $10 for Thursday and $12 for Friday. For more information contact the Southern All Stars at 256-539-4484 or www.southern-allstars.com or www.atomicmotorspeedway.com for the latest information.

O'Reilly SAS Top 10 Points
Clint Smith - 1028, Mike Head - 1008, Duayne Hommel - 992, Terrance
Nowell - 972, Jeff Cooke - 932, Jody Summerville - 924, Steven Harrison
- 748, Royce Bray - 730, Chris Madden and Brandon Kinzer (T) - 504

O'Reilly SAS Behind the Wheel / Boyd Built Rookie of the Year Standings
Jeff Cooke - 932, Steven Harrison - 748, Royce Bray - 730, Brandon
Kinzer 504 and Larry Blankenship - 188

OSAS Chassis Manufacturer Championship Standings
Warrior - 28
Barry Wright Race Cars - 23
Rocket - 16
Mastersbilt - 10
GRT - 9

OSAS Engine Builder of the Year

Pro Power - 24
Clements - 22
RaceTek - 16
Draime - 9
Cornett - 5

Weeks strong arms Atomic field
By Michael Moats

Some new faces made their way to Atomic Motor Speedway’s victory lane on Saturday night. Great racing and great weather provided plenty of excitement on Atomic’s high banks.

Mike Weeks returned to Atomic’s victory lane for the first time since 2001 in the late model feature. Weeks’ win did not come easy despite leading every lap.

Jeff Treece won the pole position during qualifying for the feature. Treece blistered the track at 12.735 seconds. That was far better than Weeks’ time of 12.902 seconds that earned him the outside pole position.

Treece and Weeks jockeyed for the lead at the start of the race, only to see a quick caution. Joe Armes was collected coming off turn 2 and Brad Hall was also involved in the incident. Armes received some body damage to the right front of his car, but was able to continue along with Hall. The race was restarted and Weeks zipped out to the lead over Treece. But Mark Vineyard was pressuring Treece for second. Vineyard began to work the low line around the speedway. Just behind this battle were some intense battles for position. Derik Duggan and Kevin Coffey were jockeying for fourth and Jeff Monger, Joe Armes, and Steven Harrison were battling for sixth. Monger took the position using the high side of the track and closed in on Duggan. By lap 18, Monger had passed Duggan for fifth place.

Another hard charger on the move was Patrick Duggan who started in eleventh place. By lap 18, Duggan found himself in eighth place. Duggan moved around Armes for seventh on lap 20, then moved around cousin Derik on lap 23 for sixth place. That left Derik Duggan, Armes, and Harrison to fight for seventh place.

Meanwhile, Treece began to close in on Weeks. Treece moved to the high side in an effort to get around Weeks. On lap 25, Treece shot by Weeks on the outside in turns 1 and 2. Weeks rallied on the bottom and moved along side of Treece. Both cars made contact going down the backstretch with Treece tagging the outside wall. Treece sustained major damage to his car and was out of the race. This moved Vineyard into second place.

With the laps winding down, Vineyard turned up the wick on Weeks. Vineyard kept moving lower and lower on the track trying to get around Weeks. On lap 33, Vineyard pulled along side Weeks. But Weeks used the outside line to stay ahead of Vineyard. As the field took the white flag, Vineyard made one last attempt for the lead. Vineyard moved to the low side in turns 1 and 2. As the leaders went into turns 3 and 4, Vineyard dove to the inside of Weeks. Vineyard almost lost control of his car, which allowed Weeks to keep the lead and win by 2 car lengths over Vineyard. Coffey was third, Monger held off Patrick Duggan for fourth.

The UMP open wheels saw Mike Freeman pick up his first Atomic win. Freeman won the pole position in qualifying over John Harrell. At the start of the race, Freeman and Harrell battled side-by-side for the lead on the first lap. Freeman moved ahead of Harrell on lap 2 and never looked back. Harrell remained close throughout most of the feature until fading near the end. Steve Mullinax pressured Harrell for second in the late stages of the race. The best battle of the race was for fourth between Mike Lewis and Shane Bales. Both drivers raced side-by-side nearly every lap of the race. Lewis was running the middle groove while Bales was running the low side. Lewis used the higher line to stay ahead of Bales most of the race. On lap 16, Bales finally moved around Lewis for the position in turn 2. On lap 17, Bales got out of shape in turn 1, which allowed Lewis to retake the position. Robert Justice had moved in on both cars and became part of the battle in the final laps. But the race belonged to Freeman who won with a comfortable margin over Harrell. Mullinax was third, Lewis held off Bales for fourth. The race had no cautions.

Derek Elder continued his domination of the pure mini division by taking another feature win. Elder came from third to first on lap 11 to take the win. John Scarbrough and Aaron Smallen fought for the lead most of the race. Both drivers were heat race winners earlier in the evening. Smallen and Scarbrough traded the lead back and forth. Elder stuck his nose in the battle around the midpoint of the race. As Smallen and Scarbrough traded the lead, Elder closed in each lap. By lap 10, Billy Bivens had moved behind Scarbrough to make it a four-car battle for the lead. Scarbrough had been circling the track on the high side while Smallen was working the low side throughout the whole race. On lap 11, Smallen got slightly out of shape coming out of turn 2. That opened the door for Elder to split Smallen and Scarbrough. Elder took the lead as the field came down the front stretch. The handle started going away on Smallen’s car as Bivens took third place, moving Smallen to fourth. That left Elder and Scarbrough to battle for the lead. As the field took the white flag, Scarbrough moved up to Elder’s rear bumper. But Elder was too strong and took the win by a car length over Scarbrough. Bivens was third, Smallen fell to fourth, and Randy Helton was fifth.

Jonathan Sims racked up another win in the pure street division. Sims qualified for the pole over Sammy Johnson. Sims got the early jump over Johnson. Johnson remained close behind as Roger Smith and Junior Watters battled for third. Sims maintained a one to two car length advantage over Johnson through much of the feature. Smith moved in on Johnson at the mid point of the feature, but Johnson pulled away as Watters slid underneath Smith. Sims picked up the win over Johnson in a lightning fast race that saw no cautions. Smith edged Watters for third and Charles Satterfield was fifth.

Bart Baxter picked up his first win at Atomic in the classic car feature. Robbie Sands took the early lead over Rocky Estes, Jr. Sands and Estes were heat race winners. Sands maintained a comfortable margin over Estes until a caution on lap 6. Following another caution on lap 7, Sands suffered mechanical trouble and fell out of the race. That handed the lead to Estes with Baxter in second. Baxter began to work on Estes, but two more cautions prevented any kind of move on Baxter’s part. Racing resumed on lap 11 and Baxter continued to look to the inside of Estes. On lap 14, Baxter found enough grip on the bottom of the track to move past Estes and take the lead. Estes fought back and looked under Baxter. But Baxter settled in and eased away from Estes in taking the win. David Appling finished in third, Ron Rudder was fourth, and Wayne Dukes finished in fifth.

Racing resumes this Thursday and Friday with the O’Reilly Southern All-Stars Independence Spectacular. Qualifying and heat races will be on Thursday, July 3 with feature races for all divisions on Friday, July 4. The highlight of the event will be the 100-lap, $10,000 to win O’Reilly Southern All-Stars feature. Pit gates open both days at 3:00 and grandstand gates open at 5:30. General admission on Thursday is $10 and $12 on Friday. Super late models, UMP open wheels, pure minis, pure streets, and classic cars will all be in action both nights.

Late Model Feature: 1. Mike Weeks, 2. Mark Vineyard, 3. Kevin Coffey, 4. Jeff Monger, 5. Patrick Duggan, 6. Joe Armes, 7. Steven Harrison, 8. Derik Duggan, 9. Brad Hall, 10. Marty Calloway, 11. Joey Standridge, 12. Ruben Mayfield, 13. Earl Ingram, 14. Jimmy Calloway, 15. Jeff Treece, 16. Tommy Devaney, 17. Josh Manning, 18. Durand Hatmaker, 19. Brad Coffey, 20. Jason McMahan, 21. Aaron Monger, 22. Zeke Buchanan, 23. Darrin Hatmaker, DNS Terry Wolfenbarger

Open Wheel Modified Feature: 1. Mike Freeman, 2. John Harrell, 3. Steve Mullinax, 4. Mike Lewis, 5. Shane Bales, 6. Robert Justice, 7. Carl Lovelace, 8. Wayne Braden

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Derek Elder, 2. John Scarbrough, 3. Billy Bivens, 4. Aaron Smallen, 5. Randy Helton, 6. Scott Davis, 7. Terry Wyrick, 8. Mike Luttrell, 9. Sam Holloway, 10. Brad Hamilton, 11. Darryl Hill, 12. Dennis O'Baugh

Pure Street Feature: 1. Jonathan Sims, 2. Sammy Johnson, 3. Roger Smith, 4. Junior Watter, 5. Charles Satterfield, 6. David Brodgon, 7. Raymond Shepard, 8. James Boffer, 9. Mark Rogers, 10. J.D. Stanifer, 11. Greg Humphrey, 12. Bruce Willis, 13. Brian Fowler, 14. Ryan Monger, 15. Mack Dearing, 16. Robert Johnson, DNS Alisica Miller

Classic Car Feature: 1. Bart Baxter, 2. Rocky Estes, Jr., 3. David Appling, 4. Ron Rudder, 5. Wayne Dukes, 6. Mark Dukes, 7. Tom Conaway, 8. Danny Arwood, 9. Brady Baer, 10. Robbie Sands, 11. Kenny Hicks, DNS Andrew Compton, DNS Tom Rudder, DNS Bo Willis, DNS Jason Loveday

Ogle resumes winning ways at Atomic
By Michael Moats

After two straight weeks of rainouts, drivers were antsy to resume racing at Atomic Motor Speedway. Beautiful sunshine greeted the drivers and the fans on the first day of summer.

Billy Ogle, Jr. resumed his winning ways by taking the super late model feature. The win did not come easy as Ogle came from third starting spot to get the win.

Patrick Duggan earned the pole position during qualifying. His time of 12.752 seconds edged out Randy Weaver’s time of 12.756 seconds for the pole. Ogle, Derik Duggan, and Kevin Coffey were the other top 5 qualifiers.

At the start of the race, Weaver zipped by Duggan going into turn 1. But the move was erased as Brad Coffey spun on the backstretch. The field was realigned and the race resumed. Again, it was Weaver jumping out to the lead. Duggan remained hot on his heels in the early laps as the front two built a comfortable margin over Ogle. As the leaders approached slower traffic on lap 10, Ogle moved in closer to Duggan.

Meanwhile, some serious battling for positions was taking place deeper within the top 10. Mark Vineyard, David Laney, and Terry Wolfenbarger were in a hotly contested battle for sixth spot. Vineyard moved past Laney for the position, but Laney fought back. This allowed Wolfenbarger to sneak by for seventh. Joe Armes was the man on the move. Armes wasted no time marching through the field from his eleventh starting spot. Armes made quick work of Tommy Devaney and Dusty Carver.

Back up front, the leaders began to work slower traffic. Weaver got bottlenecked behind several slower cars that were battling for position. On lap 15, Ogle took advantage of the opportunity and passed Duggan for second. As Kevin Coffey dropped out for mechanical troubles, Wolfenbarger moved passed Vineyard for fourth spot. On lap 16, Armes passed Vineyard for fifth. On lap 18, Armes looked underneath Wolfenbarger for fourth. Wolfenbarger was attempting to get around the slower car of Nathan Parris in turn 2 as Armes dove underneath Wolfenbarger. The cars were three-wide coming out of turn 2. Armes forced Wolfenbarger up into Parris. Wolfenbarger tried to clear some room and made contact with Armes. Both cars were trying to get away from the other, but found themselves up against the inside wall going down the backstretch. Armes came back up the track and into Wolfenbarger. Wolfenbarger spun going into turn 3 and collected Laney and Brad Hall. All three cars dropped out of the race.

As the race resumed after a red flag period, Weaver held a slim margin over Ogle. As the handle seemed to go away on Weaver’s car, Ogle moved underneath to take the lead on lap 21. A few laps later, Armes moved past Duggan for third place. Armes closed in on Weaver. On lap 31, Armes dropped to the inside of Weaver to take second. Armes chased down Ogle, but ran out of laps as Ogle picked up win number four in super late model action. Weaver held off Duggan for third and Vineyard was fifth.

Patrick Duggan continued his domination of the limited late model division. Duggan set fast time over Aaron Monger. As the feature started, Duggan took the early lead over Monger. Monger stayed close behind as he peeked to the outside of Duggan. Duggan finally shook loose of Monger and started easing away. Corey Norman and Jeff Monger battled it out for third spot. Norman secured the position and tracked down Aaron Monger. Just past the midway point, Norman caught and passed Monger for second. Norman was too far behind Duggan in a race that went caution free. Jeff Monger and Billy Ogle, Jr. battled for fourth in the closing laps. Ogle looked underneath Monger lap after lap, but Monger held onto the position. It was Duggan picking up his fifth win of the season in limited late model action. Norman was second, Aaron Monger was third, Jeff Monger was fourth, and Ogle was fifth.

Ricky Arms picked up the win in the UMP open wheels. Arms built a comfortable margin over Mike Freeman in taking the win. The feature got off to a rough start. Pole sitter Michael Asbury spun in turns one and two on the first lap. The spin collected Chris Rickett and Steve Mullinax. Asbury suffered a broke tie rod and dropped out of the race. The field was realigned with Arms now starting from the pole. But on the second start, Eddie Rowland blew his engine dumping oil and parts onto the racing surface. After the clean up, the race was started again. Arms took the lead over Freeman on the first lap. Freeman stayed close behind. Rickett, Stanley Donahoo, and John Harrell were locked in tight battle for third. Rickett began losing the handle on his car and slide back through the field just past the midway point of the race. Billy Ogle, Jr. came blistering through the field and joined the battle between Donahoo and Harrell. As the checkers waved, it was Arms winning by a comfortable margin over Freeman. Donahoo held off Ogle for third and Harrell was fifth.

Kreis Manis picked up his fourth win of the season in the modified street feature. Manis took the lead from the start over pole sitter Tim Kyle. Manis built a comfortable margin over Kyle during the first half of the race. Calvin Sise started last because of mechanical troubles that prevented him from taking time during qualifying. Sise diced through the field and was battling Lynn Selby for fourth on lap 9. Sise passed Selby at the flagman’s stand. Selby nudged Sise in turn 1 which sent both cars spinning. It was deemed both drivers were racing too rough and both were placed at the rear of the field. Sise began another march to the front. Sise had overtaken Danny Bray for third on lap 15. The field got stacked up behind Kyle on lap 16 for a broken tie rod. Several drivers were able to miss Kyle. But David Vandergriff spun to avoid any contact. This moved Sise into second place. On the restart, Manis was too strong for Sise and held on for the win. Bray was third, Shay Loveday finished in fourth, and Vandergriff rallied to finish fifth.

Derek Elder resumed his winning ways in the pure mini division. Elder won the first heat race to earn the pole position for the feature and John Scarbrough won the second heat race. At the start of the feature, Elder zipped out to an early lead. Coming out of turn 4, there was contact between Scarbrough and Danny Yoder, Jr. Scarbrough went spinning and collect Larry Housley and Sam Holloway. All three cars were out of the race. That moved Billy Bivens to the outside front row. At the next start, Bivens jumped to the lead over Elder. Bivens held a two car-length advantage over Elder after the first two laps. Elder began reeling in Bivens and turned the pressure by lap 5. Elder passed Bivens on lap 6 and never looked back in picking up his fifth win of the season. Bivens was second, Aaron Smallen came from last to finish third, Ros Kingery was fourth, and Yoder was fifth.

Roger Smith held off his rival Junior Watters to win the pure street feature. Smith and Watters have had their share of battles over the last two seasons. Watters won the first heat race to earn the pole position and Smith won the second heat race. But at the start of the feature, Smith got the early advantage over Watters. As Smith settled in, Watters started looking on the low side. Watters could not get enough steam on the low side to make a pass. In the closing laps, Smith’s car began to lose some of its handle. Watters again looked to the inside of Smith. But Smith was too strong and edged Watters for the win. Raymond Shepard ran a strong race by staying close to Smith and Watters and finished third. Sammy Johnson was fourth and Jonathan Sims was fifth.

Robby Sands returned to victory lane in the classic car feature. It was a hard fought win as Sands held off Rocky Estes, Jr. for the win. Estes set fast time in qualifying, but started sixth for winning three straight points races. Sands jumped to the early lead over Josh Ferguson. Sands built a comfortable margin over Ferguson. Estes began to march toward the front and found himself in third place by lap 4. Estes battled Ferguson for second place. Just pas the midway point, Estes passed his teammate for the position and began to reel in Sands. With two laps to go, Estes had moved in to the rear bumper of Sands. Estes look to the low side with one lap to go. But Sands was able to hold off Estes for the win. Ferguson was third, Ron Rudder finish fourth, and Bo Willis was fifth.

Results:

Super Late Model Feature: 1. Billy Ogle, Jr., 2. Joe Armes, 3. Randy Weaver, 4. Patrick Duggan, 5. Mark Vineyard, 6. Brad Coffey, 7. Dusty Carver, 8. Tommy Devaney, 9. Derik Duggan, 10. Tim Huddleston, 11. Durand Hatmaker, 12. Nathan Parris, 13. Greg Smith, 14. Earl Ingram, 15. Brandon Williams, 16. Joey Standridge, 17. Terry Wolfenbarger, 18. David Laney, 19. Brad Hall, 20. Kevin Coffey

Limited Late Model Feature: 1. Patrick Duggan, 2. Corey Norman, 3. Aaron Monger, 4. Jeff Monger, 5. Billy Ogle, Jr., 6. Rick Williams, 7. Danny Yoder, Sr., 8. Jason McMahan, 9. Marty Calloway, 10. Joey Standridge, 11. Ruben Mayfield, 12. Randy Satterfield, 13. Rusty Fox, DNS Gene Douglas, DNS Tim Jones

Open Wheel Modified Feature: 1. Ricky Arms, 2. Mike Freeman, 3. Stanley Donahoo, 4. Billy Ogle, Jr., 5. John Harrell, 6. Steve Mullinax, 7. Brett Wyatt, 8. Chris Rickett, 9. Joey Whittenburg, 10. Robert Justice, 11. Shane Bales, 12. James Cole, 13. Tim Ladd, 14. Tim Weaver, 15. Billy Palmer, 16. Michael Asbury. 17. Eddie Rowland

Modified Street Feature: 1. Kreis Manis, 2. Calvin Sise, 3. Danny Bray, 4. Shay Loveday, 5. David Vandergriff, 6. Lynn Selby, 7. Tim Kyle, 8. Donny Baker

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Derek Elder, 2. Billy Bivens, 3. Aaron Smallen, 4. Ross Kingery, 5. Danny Yoder, Jr., 6. John Scarbrough, 7. Sam Holloway, 8. Larry Housley, DNS Scott Davis, DNS Mike Luttrell

Pure Street Feature: 1. Roger Smith, 2. Junoir Watters, 3. Raymond Shepard, 4. Sammy Johnson, 5. Jonathan Sims, 6. Charles Satterfield, 7. Mark Rogers, 8. Scott Johnson, 9. Bruce Willis, 10. Nathan Nelson, 11. James Boofer, 12. Ben Hedrick, 13. David Brogdon, 14. Bucky Vance, 15. Carl Noah

Classic Cars Feature: 1. Robby Sands, 2. Rocky Estes, Jr., 3. Josh Ferguson, 4. Ron Rudder, 5. Bo Willis, 6. Brett Baer, 7. Wayne Dukes, 8. Tom Rudder, 9. Frogg Ingle, 10. Tom Conaway, 11. Mark Dukes, 12. Donnie Arwood, 13. Andrew Compton, 14. Jason Loveday, 15. Jack Reed

Flag Day event cancelled, weekly racing resumes

Flag Day event at Atomic rescheduled for June 21

Atomic program postponed until next Saturday

Atomic Motor Speedway hosts a Flag Day special event

Atomic Motor Speedway hosts a Flag Day special event this Saturday, June 14 presented by Gary Hall Motors. The super late models will be competing in a 60 lap, $5,000 to win event. Atomic rules will apply, but any Hoosier D-55 tire will be permitted. Some of regions top drivers are expected. Skip Arp, Freddy Smith, and Ronnie Johnson, are just some of the drivers expected this Saturday. The east Tennessee contingency will be well represented as well. Billy Ogle, Jr., Mark Douglas, Patrick Duggan, Randy Weaver, Mark Vineyard, and Rick Norris are some of the area’s top drivers expected for this event. The limited late models will be competing in a $1,000 to win non-points event. Plus increased purses in modified streets, pure minis, pure streets, and classics. The UMP open wheel modifieds will also be back in action for a $600 to win event. Pit gates open at 3:00, grandstand gates open at 4:00, with hot laps slated to start at 5:30. General admission tickets are just $12. Atomic is located 10 minutes west of Knoxville off I-40 at exit 364. For more information, visit www.atomicmotorspeedway.com or call (865) 986-3589.

Atomic Rained Out June 7th, $5000 to Win Super Late Models June 14th

Racing at Atomic Motor Speedway was rained out Saturday night. Over the weekend, officials with Atomic Motor Speedway announced a Flag Day special event on June 14. The super late models will be competing in a 50 lap, $5,000 to win event. Atomic track rules will apply, but any D-55 tire will be allowed. All other Atomic classes and the UMP open wheels will also be racing. Pit gates will open at 3:00, grandstands open at 4:00 with hot laps slated to start at 5:30. For more information, visit the track’s web site at www.atomicmotorspeedway.com or call (865) 986-3589. Atomic is located 10 minutes west of Knoxville off I-40 at exit 364.

Ronnie Johnson wins at Atomic
By Michael Moats

The points racing schedule resumed this past Saturday at Atomic with double points races. Several tight points battles were on the line.

Ronnie Johnson made a return trip to Atomic Motor Speedway. And made a return trip to Atomic’s victory lane by winning the super late model feature.

Patrick Duggan won the pole position for the feature with a time of 12.937 seconds. That bested Johnson’s time of 12.992 seconds. Billy Ogle, Jr., Mike Weeks, and Mark Vineyard were the other top 5 qualifiers.

As the field roared to green flag racing, Johnson and Duggan battled side-by-side for the first lap. But a caution soon waved negating the start. With the field realigned, racing resumed with Johnson inching ahead of Duggan on the first lap. Duggan came back by sticking his nose underneath Johnson. Then another caution flag waved on lap 2 for Anthony White’s spin in turn 1. On the restart, Johnson pulled away from Duggan and Ogle. But as the field came around to put another lap on the board, Brad Hall, Joe Armes, and Terry Wolfenbarger all made contact with one another on the front stretch. Armes suffered a flat left rear tire and Wolfenbarger sustained some front-end damage. All cars were able to continue.

Back up front, Johnson once again pulled away from Duggan. Ogle moved in on Duggan as the two battled for second. That allowed Johnson to build an even larger lead. Weeks and Vineyard were locked in a tight battle for fourth, a battle that would last through much of the race. Vineyard would move around Weeks on lap 30 to take fourth place. The best battle of the night was for eighth place as Kevin Coffey, Mike Hill, Greg Knight, and Jeff Monger battled for the position. Monger moved past Coffey on lap 10 before dropping out with mechanical problems a few laps later. Hill and Knight moved in on Coffey with a hard charging Joe Armes joining the battle in the closing laps of the race. Coffey and Hill battled side-by-side for the last 10 laps of the race.

But the night belonged to the Chattanooga Flash, Ronnie Johnson. Johnson won by a comfortable margin over Duggan and Ogle. Vineyard finished fourth and Weeks was fifth.

Jeff Monger claimed another limited late model win by holding off Patrick Duggan. Monger won the pole position over Duggan in qualifying. Monger was able to jump to the early lead over Duggan on the first lap. Corey Norman, Matt Henderson, Aaron Monger, and Tim Huddleston were jockeying for positions behind the leas twosome. Aaron Monger and Huddleston made contact on lap 4 coming out of turn 2. Both cars dropped out of the race. Marty Calloway moved past Henderson for fourth on lap 12 before Calloway retired 2 laps later with overheating problems. Henderson and Chris Wilson fought for fourth. The two young racers battled side-by-side during the final laps of the race.

Back up front, Monger remained a cool customer as Duggan continued knocking on his back door to the final lap of the race. But Monger held on and took the win over Duggan. Norman was third, Henderson held off Wilson for fourth.

Calvin Sise rebounded from some recent rough weeks to win the modified street feature. Sise had been plagued with mechanical failures and the victim of some crashed not of his own doing. Sise showed he was the man to beat on this night by winning the pole position during qualifying over Brian Evans. As the field went to green, Sise got the advantage over Evans. David Miley and Kreis Manis battled for third, until Manis spun on lap 2 in turn 1. Lynn Selby spun and slid into Manis. Selby was able to continue, but Manis would require some work and returned several laps down. Jason Cardwell passed Selby for fourth on lap 11. On lap 12, Selby made contact with Cardwell, which sent Cardwell spinning in turn 2. Selby was charged with the caution and went to the rear of the field. Cardwell remained in the race and battled Miley for third. Cardwell passed Miley for the position on lap 16. Sise maintained the same distance over Evans for most of the race in taking the win. Cardwell finished third, Miley held on for fourth, and Tim Kyle finished fifth.

Derek Elder continued to be a force in the pure minis by taking another feature win. Elder started the feature third after heat race action. Derik Duggan, driving Larry Housley’s car, won the first heat race and John Cobb edged John Scarbrough in the second heat race. Duggan pulled away from Cobb on the start. Elder and Scarbrough quickly moved around Cobb and gave chase to Duggan. Elder worked underneath Duggan on lap 5 and took the lead. Scarbrough and Cobb began to work on Duggan. Scarbrough moved past Duggan for second on lap 8. On lap 9, Donnie Miller was turned into the front stretch wall. Miller was uninjured but was not able to continue. On the restart, Scarbrough starting working on the high side of Elder. Duggan looked to the inside of Scarbrough. On lap 13, Scarbrough got too far into the loose dirt near the wall. The allowed Duggan to shoot by for second. On the last lap, Cobb looked underneath Scarbrough. Again, Scarbrough got a little too high. Cobb and Scarbrough were in a drag race for third coming out of turn 4. At the line Cobb edged Scarbrough by less than 3 feet. Elder took the win over Duggan, followed by Cobb and Scarbrough. Aaron Smallen came from 10th starting spot to finish fifth.

Junior Watters took another pure street win. Watters won the first heat race to start on the pole. But second heat race winner, Jonathan Sims, took the early lead over Watters. That left Watters to battle with Roger Smith for second. Smith took second place from Watters on lap 2. But Smith quickly lost the handle on his car. Watters retook second from Smith. Raymond Shepard moved underneath Smith on lap 4. As the field came out of turn 4, Smith got up against the outside wall, and then climbed the wall to bring out a caution. Smith suffered some suspension damage and would not return. On the restart, Sims got out of shape in turns 1 and 2. Watters snuck by Sims for the lead. Watters would never look back. Sammy Johnson passed Sims for second on lap 11. At the finish, it was Watters taking the win over Johnson and Sims. Charles Satterfield finished in fourth and J.D. Standifer was fifth.

Rocky Estes, Jr. made it four wins in a row in the classic car feature. Estes was the fastest qualifier in qualifying. But the early lead went to second fast qualifier Bart Baxter. Baxter maintained a two-car length advantage until the midway point of the race. Estes reeled in Baxter and began to look to the low side. Estes moved along side Baxter on the bottom, but Baxter continued to hold the lead. On lap 14, Estes cleared Baxter coming off turn 2 and took the lead. A couple of late cautions added to the drama as Baxter put in a bid to retake the lead. But Estes held off Baxter in the final laps to take his fourth straight feature win. Behind Baxter, Wayne Dukes had his best race of the season with a third place finish. Josh Ferguson and Robbie Sands battled most of the race for fourth spot. Ferguson took fourth and Sands finished fifth.

Super Late Model Feature: 1. Ronnie Johnson, 2. Patrick Duggan, 3. Billy Ogle, Jr., 4. Mark Vineyard, 5. Mike Weeks, 6. Terry Wolfenbarger, 7. Brad Hall, 8. Kevin Coffey, 9. Mike Hill, 10. Joe Armes, 11. Greg Knight, 12. Anthony White, 13. David Laney, 14. Brandon Williams, 15. Jeff Monger, 16. Tommy Devaney, 17. Brad Coffey, 18. Randy Weaver

Limited Late Model Feature: 1.Jeff Monger, 2. Patrick Duggan, 3. Corey Norman, 4. Matt Henderson, 5. Chris Wilson, 6. Jason McMahan, 7. Joey Standridge, 8. Tim Damron, 9. Ruben Mayfield, 10. Gene Douglas, 11. Marty Calloway, 12. Ronnie White, 13. Aaron Monger, 14. Barry Goodman, 15. Tim Huddleston, DNS Tim Jones, DNS B.B. Baker

Modified Street Feature: 1. Calvin Sise, 2. Brian Evans, 3. Jason Cardwell, 4. David Miley, 5. Tim Kyle, 6. Danny Bray, 7. David Vandergriff, 8. Lynn Selby, 9. Kreis Manis

Pure Mini Feature: 1. Derek Elder, 2. Derik Duggan, 3. John Cobb, 4. John Scarbrough, 5. Aaron Smallen, 6. Ronnie Shelton, 7. Darryl Hill, 8. Mike Luttrell, 9. Sam Holloway, 10. Ros Kingery, 11. Brad Hamilton, 12. Billy Bivens, 13. Donnie Miller, 14. Terry Wyrick

Pure Street Feature: 1. Junior Watters, 2. Sammy Johnson, 3. Jonathan Sims, 4. Charles Satterfield, 5. J.D. Stanifer, 6. Bucky Nance, 7. Brian Hooks, 8. Michael Milsap, 9. Ryan Monger, 10. Raymond Shepard, 11. Bruce Willis, 12. Roger Smith, 13. Eddie Rowland, 14. Bill Webb

Classic Car Feature: 1. Rocky Estes, Jr., 2. Bart Baxter, 3. Wayne Dukes, 4. Josh Ferguson, 5. Robbie Sands, 6. David Appling, 7. Andrew Compton, 8. Tom Conaway, 9. Tom Rudder, 10. Brady Baer, 11. Tim Sands, 12. Donnie Arwood, 13. Ron Rudder, 14. Bo Willis, 15. Jason Loveday

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