By ohnson 
Donny Schatz emerged victorious by a narrow margin of.113 over Kyle Larson, and a terrifying accident sent a Sprint car soaring over the fence, while sixty-one UMP Mods battled for one of 28 starting positions. That was my Wednesday night at the race track.
Those three elements alone promised an interesting night, and at Volusia Speedway Park, night two unfolded on the high-speed half mile. The scene was set for excitement and drama.
Schatz Reclaims the Spotlight
With a championship-caliber front row featuring WoO titleholder Chad Kemenah alongside, it seemed almost certain that the race was already decided before it began. However, Schatz proved his mettle, seeing his two-second lead evaporate in the final two turns as Kyle Larson, who started from 15th, closed in rapidly. In victory lane, Schatz said, “I really couldn’t hear anyone coming, but I couldn’t get off the top as the car in front of me was right there. Nevertheless, with this field, I knew someone had to be coming.”
Two red flags interrupted the action, and when asked about making changes during the delay, Schatz explained, “We didn’t make any adjustments as we expected the car to perform during the race.”
A Frightening Accident with Stunning Consequences
In one of the most harrowing accidents in recent years, Joey Saldana’s ride sent shockwaves through the crowd. Jason Johnson and Saldana were engaged in a fierce battle for second place, and throughout the race, several drivers had been pushing to the limit in turn two. At full speed and full throttle, the two made contact, sending Saldana into the air, flipping over the track-side barrier (which was several feet high). Separating the pit grandstands from the track was probably several feet of grass, a fence, and maybe another ten feet of walkway. Saldana soared above the track barrier as he flipped, but continued to gain altitude and soared over the fence. From the frontstretch, there was a moment of concern when it seemed he might reach the backstretch stands. He bent the top of the catch fence and then clipped the end of the bleachers, breaking a couple of boards at the bottom. He continued through another chain link fence before finally coming to a rest well outside the back straight. At one point, his car made contact with the boom of a tow truck, which may have helped slow down the wildly flipping vehicle. Announcers reported that the drivers were okay, but the incident left the spectators on edge.
In the pits, the Johnson crew hurriedly removed the front axle from Saldana’s car while the 17 of Saldana’s finally arrived, only for more bad luck to strike as the tow truck’s boom broke, sending the car crashing to the ground. Both drivers are regulars in the World of Outlaws, and it was uncertain if they would return for the final night of the All Stars on Thursday night, as their point season begins on Friday.
Sixty-One Modifieds in Action
Drivers from California, British Columbia, Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Indiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Minnesota, and Iowa came to compete with the UMP Modifieds on Wednesday night. With ten car heats, where the top three advance, it was a challenging proposition. These guys are far from a support class, and they race with multiple grooves, putting on a solid show. Heats are like mini features, with talent from all corners. These drivers race for nearly a week before chasing the gator trophy, demonstrating a significant investment.
Pit Stops and Racing Action
35 sprints started the night, but Jason Sides was out with a broken rocker arm after hot laps. He said they could have fixed it, but noted that he is an Outlaw and so running in the All Star show wasn’t critical. Rico Abreu started from the second row of the B and, by the time the top three were between turns one and two, he was in the lead, using an inside fence-hugging maneuver. He easily won the B. Kraig Kinser came from the B and seemed on track to finish in the top five until the final laps, when he ended up sixth. Dale Blaney made his debut in the Zemco car and finished seventh. Lucas Wolfe is in Florida with the orange 5w, with the Orange Crate Brewing Company logo on the wing from Syracuse, N.Y. Chad Kemenah launched the car from the outside pole in the main and Schatz thought it would be called back, but it wasn’t. Brian Brown had the fastest time, but his night took a turn for the worse after that as he eventually finished only 11 laps. Caleb Helms was leading his heat until Schatz got him on the last lap going into the third turn. Aaron Reutzel secured his qualifying spot by passing Ian Madsen on the last lap as he took the top side out of turn four. The draw for the dash was somewhat anticlimactic as Schatz and Kemenah drew the poles. Some surprises in the pits included Brown, Justin Henderson, and Mark Dobmeier. Henderson has a sharp-looking car. Daryn Pittman and Brad Sweet finished fourth and fifth as they made their debut this year. I had good conversations with Ron Hedger, Lowell Zehr, and Dave Dixon. You can usually find someone you know around the track, and I’ll know many more when the big-blocks arrive next Tuesday for practice. Christopher Bell is in the TSR 14 for the rest of the week. This isn’t the car Tony Stewart drove at Bubba. It’s a car that TSR had Bell run in the past, and they brought it along. There’s no word on if Tony will be racing at all the rest of the week, but it’s a feeling he probably won’t. I had great talks with Brian Ruhlman and Paul McMahan, and those will be featured in the coming days on Dirt Track Digest. Dave Farney was waving the flags. A yellow on lap 22 of the Sprint main was due to the high winds combined with the turbulence of the Sprints, causing the checkered flag from the starter tower to fly to the front straight. One of the biggest impacts of the night came when UMP driver Hunter Gustafson hit the first turn wall full throttle as he approached. Check out the DTD photo galleries as George Smith and Brent Smith were taking all sorts of pictures. Some are already posted, and more will be coming. The list of modified drivers seems to be growing by the day, and it’s sure to be an exciting event. If you’re satisfied with the Sprint car action by Sunday, there’s a major show at New Smyrna as the K&N East teams are in, and 28 are entered, and they’ll be joined by the Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series on the asphalt. I hope you enjoy the DTD coverage, and it will expand as the action continues. Information or comments can be sent to foley395@hotmail.com.