Jared Umbenhauer Claims his First Win of Season at Grandview Speedway & Pit Notes

Grandview Speedway was racing against the weather and completed their entire racing program prior rain arriving.  Jared Umbenhauer also was able to beat the weather and a full field of NASCAR modifieds for his first win of the 2021 season.  The modified feature was run in 12 minutes with only two caution flags.

Kevin Graver in the 7A ½ entry led the field for the first 19 laps.  On lap 20 it was Jared Umbenhauer moving into the lead with Craig Von Dohren following him closely into 2^nd place.  The two leaders hit lapped traffic on lap 22 but it was Umbenhauer flawlessly weaving in and out of traffic to take the win and his first trip to the Grandview victory lane since 2018.

In victory lane Jared Umbenhauer commented “Feels good to be back.  We got one spot better than last week when we ran 2^nd to Kressley.  We found something in the consolation two weeks ago and here we are.  We tighten up a bit before the feature tonight.  The top was faster but with everyone up there you have to use the two lanes on the bottom to pass and then go back up top.  I didn’t want to rush to the front and wanted to be patient and when I got to lapped traffic and it all worked out.  You can’t waste no time in lapped traffic and you got to go with these guys breathing now your neck.  I made a few risky moves in and out of lapped traffic but it all worked out.”

 The Modified top ten was rounded out by Craig Von Dohren in 2^nd followed by Louden Reimert, Duane Howard, Kevin Graver, Craig Whitmoyer, Kevin Hirthler, Brett Kressley, Dylan Swinehart and Jeff Srunk in 10^th.

The heats were won by Carroll Hine, Kevin Graver and Jeff Strunk.  Hine and Graver won from their respective poles while Strunk won from the 9^th starting position on the grid.  The last chance consolation was won by Ryan Grim.

Modified Feature (30-laps) – 4/24/21 Grandview Speedway:

Winner – 1. Jared Umbenhauer, 2. Craig Von Dohren, 3. Louden Reimert, 4. Duane Howard, 5. Kevin Graver, 6. Craig Whitmoyer, 7. Kevin Hirthler, 8. Brett Kressley, 9. Dylan Swinehart, 10. Jeff Strunk, 11. Ryan Grim, 12. Doug Manmiller, 13. Dillon Steuer, 14. Ron Kline, 15. Brett Gilmore, 16. Justin Grim, 17. Richie Hitzler, 18. John Willman, 19. Ryan Lilick, 20. Jack Butler, 21. Nate Brinker, 22. Brad Arnold, 23. Darrin Schuler, 24. Cory Merkel, 25. Ron Haring Jr., 26. Joe Funk III, 27. Danny Bouc, 28. Brad Grim.

DNS – Carroll Hine III

DNQ: Mark Kratz, Bobby Gunther Walsh, Mark Levy and Jesse Leiby

Modified Pit Notes

Jared Umbenhauer has been closing in on his first win of the season since opening day of the season.  Last week he continued to move in with a 2^nd place finish to Brett Kressley only one spot from victory lane.  This week Jared was able to park it in victory lane from the 12^th starting position to earn his first win of the season and first Grandview win since August of 2018.

Craig Von Dohren has finished in the top ten in all three point races this season with two 2^nd place finishes and a 9^th.  Von Dohren may have changed cars from his 1C to the # 30 but hasn’t missed a beat with his on track consistency as he defends his 2020 Grandview track point championship.

Louden Reimert finished a season best 3^rd from an 8^th place starting position.  Louden took the lead for a few laps during the feature.  Back at the trailer Louden noted “Car was real good tonight.  We had a little heat race body damage but we made a lot of setup changes for the feature.  The track slicked off tonight and we were ready for it.  I briefly got the lead but made the wrong lane choose on the restart and fell back to 3^rd.”  Three races into the season Louden sits 8^th in modified points and only 50 points out of the top 5 which is one of his goals for the 2021 season at Grandview.  Louden historically has been consistent with top 10 finishes throughout the season and if he follows suit this season he’ll be making a solid run to join the top 5 this season.

Kevin Graver in only his second outing of the season at Grandview with the 7A ½ entry was able to get his career best Grandview with a 5^th place finish.  Kevin noted “We were able to stay up front all night, lead some laps and battle with Louden for the lead early on.  All in all we couldn’t be happier with our 5^th place finish tonight.  We have had minimal time on track here at Grandview and happy to have a strong baseline in only our 2^nd week out this season.  This is a great start for us here and we plan to run here weekly along with our teammate Ebby Ridge in the 7½A sportsman entry who is also off to a strong start with an 8^th place finish last week.”

Craig Whitmoyer posted a 6^th place finish for his best finish of the 2021 season.  Whitmoyer who has been struggling in the first few weeks of the season hopes to have turned the corner this week.  Craig raced a mid-week Thunder on the Hill series event earlier this week and was able to test some setup changes for this weekend.  The changes worked and has Whitmoyer back in the top ten where he hopes to stay next week.

Duane Howard in the Butch Getz 15g entry continues their strong start to the 2021 season with a 4^th place finish from a 16^th place starting position.  Last week Duane also finished 4^th from a 22^nd starting position.   Duane currently sits 2^nd in Grandview season points only 29 points behind Brett Kressley.

Brett Kressley finished 8^th from a 14^th starting position.  But the rest of the story is Brett was in 9^th on lap 7 when he spun into infield with a contact flat.  He was able to change the tire and return to the rear of the field in 20^th and work his way forward to an 8^th place finish which was instrumental in maintaining his 29 point lead.

Dylan Swinehart in the Bailey 81 entry finished 9^th from an 18^th starting position for their best finish of the season.  Dylan noted “We put the car on coils for a midweek show and car improved right away.  I got hung out on the top in the heat race but was able to rebound to 7^th. Normally I wouldn’t have been able to come back from last to 7^th so the coils are making a different.  The car was good for the feature tonight but we can get it better and are still searching our new setup with the coils.”

Dillon Steuer made a strong run to a 13^th place finish from a 23^rd starting position.  Dillon is improving every week and finished a career best 3^rd last week and currently already sits 9^th in modified points in his first full year at Grandview.

Darrin Schuler finished 23^rd in the feature but was thrilled to qualify for their 2^nd straight race and this time qualify from the heat race instead of the consolation.  Darrin noted “We were a little too tight in the feature as the track did not slick up as much as I thought it would.  By running all 30 laps of the feature we are getting a better feel for this car.  We plan to make some adjustments and start to pick-up some speed next week.”

Carroll Hine III won his heat race and handicapped to the pole but could not make the call for the feature due to mechanical issues from the heat race.  Joe Funk was the alternate in the feature.

Grandview’s next event is on Saturday May 1^st with the modified and sportsman in a two division show and racing starting at 7:30 PM.