7/12/2019
Dacotah Speedway
ARNESON DOMINATES LEGENDARY 50
With rain in the area, track officials did their best to push the show along. After the competition of the WISSOTA Street Stock feature, Mother Nature decided to help with track prep with a light rain shower. However, the sun came back out and drivers worked the track back in to get ready for 50 legendary laps. Grundy Center, Iowa’s Joel Rust started on the pole when the green flag waved but a speedy Austin Arneson grabbed the lead going into turn one. Arneson quickly distanced himself from the field and before lap 10 was already putting cars a lap down. However, Arneson struggled to negotiate lapped traffic which helped Dakota Classic Modified Tour Champion, Tom Berry, to reel in the leader. The two drivers battled for the lead in lapped traffic but Arneson held on to the top spot. Caution regrouped the field when Jon Plowman came to stop on the frontstetch on lap 23. It also happened to be the secret halfway point that race officials picked before the race.
Drivers parked their cars on the frontstretch and had five minutes to make adjustments. However, due to lightning near the race track, race officials made the difficult decision to cut the race by ten laps. This was to ensure the race could be completed before severe weather hit the track but also allow race fans to get home safely. When the green flag waved with 17 laps to go, Arneson pulled away once more. Once Arneson started catching the tail end of the field, Berry erased Arneson’s large lead. As Arneson weaved through traffic, Berry stayed close on his rear bumper. Unfortunately, as the white flag waved, Berry broke a J-Bar on the car which allowed Ricky Thornton Jr to inherit the second position. But Thornton Jr had his hands full with Casey Arneson. When the checkered flag waved, Casey Arneson made a last lap pass to finish second ahead of Ricky Thornton Jr. Hunter Marriott finished fourth while Lucas Schott rounded out the top five. Austin Arneson led every lap to dominate the Legendary 50 and win $10,004.
Article Credit: Becca Rattei
Submitted By: Becca Rattei