Springport Motor Speedway was the place to be on July 8th, as Racin? and Rockin? II took the place by storm. Seventy-six cars graced the pits, and the racing action was the best yet this season. The Rockin? end of the program was a crowd-pleaser as well, with the Basement Dogs kicking out some classic rock tunes as everyone chowed on roast pig and a variety of other food, all included in the price of admission. A big thank-you goes out to Matt Schindewolfe (lead singer of the Basement Dogs) and others who were so instrumental in making the event a success for the second year in a row.

The WMMQ Classic Rock 94.9 MI Modifieds came out in droves to be part of R & R II. Twenty-nine drivers took times for their 30-lap feature, with Perry Davenport raising the bar in qualifying. Many of the drivers opted to scratch their original times to purchase two additional laps to try to out-qualify Davenport. His time stuck, but many drivers did improve their times. Two Australian Pursuits were run with Larry Wallace winning the first, and Ron Parish taking the second. A 10-lap Last Chance race was also run with Dick LaPratt, Dave Goostrey, Ken Buchner, Tracy Heeney, Jim Kennedy, and Dale Eglon transferring into the feature.

Phil Luckhurst and Bill Butler made up the front row for the start of the 30-lap feature, and at the drop of the green, P. Luckhurst jumped out to lead lap one, with Dan Loughan in hot pursuit. Dick Maurer was on the move, with Larry Wallace and Mike Luckhurst in tow. Maurer made his way around Loughan and caught P. Luckhurst, and the duo pulled away from the field. P. Luckhurst and Maurer got together, P. Luckhurst gathered it up, but Maurer was too much for him. Maurer drove away from the lead pack, as Wallace tried to reel in P. Luckhurst for second. Loughan was sitting in third, as M. Luckhurst was holding off the advances of Bill Luckhurst and Chris Ozanich. Ozanich and B. Luckhurst ran side by side for a number of laps, before Ozanich made his way into the fifth position around both M. and B. Luckhurst. Caution on closed up the field, setting up a five-lap dash to the checker. Maurer drove away on the start, as Ozanich went to work on Loughan for fourth. At the stripe, it was Maurer, P. Luckhurst, Wallace, Ozanich, and Loughan.

Seventeen Performance Automotive Street Stocks tested their mettle on the 3/8-mile oval, with Pat Dent setting fast time. Jeremy Lutz and Al Williams sat on the front row, and at the drop of the green, everyone wanted to lead the first lap, running three-wide at times. Lutz led lap one, with Williams and Corey Davis on his tail. Davis took over the top spot on lap five, with Chuck Goostrey and Chuck Ewing moving to the front in second and third. Lap six saw Mike Ammerman lose a radiator hose, watering down the track. Dan Lewis got into Ammerman, while Ian Sprague, caught in the middle of three-wide racing with Damon Place and Scott Sigman, had no place to go, and once he got into the water, he tagged Lewis. Walt Obrinske Jr. was working his way nicely up through the field, and on the restart, found himself sitting in eighth behind Place. Davis once again was leading the field, with Ewing hanging with him just ahead of Rich Kinch, while Goostrey, and Bubber Patrick ran side by side just ahead of Obrinske Jr. Obrinske drove into the lead around Davis, as Dent broke into the top five. Obrinske pulled away from the field, leaving Dent to try to reel him in, as Davis, Patrick, and Ewing vied for position. Sigman worked his way into the top five around Davis, with four laps to go. Dent reeled in Obrinske, but was able to hold off Dent for the win. At the checker, it was Obrinske Jr., Dent, Patrick, Sigman, and Davis. Patrick also took the Australian Pursuit win.

Seventeen Holiday Powersports Pony Stocks were chomping at the bit to get their 20-lap feature underway. Jacob Newman led lap number one, as John Ward galloped his way to the front to lead lap two. Brent McCort and Kyle Callahan kept Ward in their sights, and McCort zeroed in on Ward to take over the lead on lap five. McCort, Ward and Callahan ran in a tight pack, as Oleski and Joe Bates tried to reel them in. At the line, it was McCort, Ward, Callahan, Oleski, and Bates. McCort also cashed in on an Australian Pursuit win.

It was great to see five Pure Stocks enter competition, but it was a stranger to the track that walked away with the win. Aaron Spearling took the top spot in the early laps, while Russ Potter IV, Wayne Parkhurst II, and Doug Patrick jockeyed for position. Spearling opened up a commanding lead, and after 10 laps, it was Spearling, Parkhurst II, Potter IV, Patrick, and Bryan Passick Sr.

Nine Super Pros opted out of the Auto City show to round out the racing program, sponsored by Lipari Foods, at R & R II. Rob Buckley, fast qualifier, started shotgun on the field, and patiently worked his way up through traffic on his way to the front. Tommy Cook took over the top spot from Mike Tutino on lap nine, with Mark Kortz and Rob Buckley making their way around Jim Davis, trying to keep Cook from running away. Kortz caught Cook on lap 23 and it only a matter of time before Buckley caught them. Caution on lap 47 closed up the field behind the trio, and on the restart, Kortz went to work on Cook for first. Buckley and Kortz ran side by side behind Cook. Rick Everidge and Mike Kugler were wrapped up in their own battle for fourth, as the leaders put the tail of the field a lap down. Everidge was the last remaining car on the lead lap at lap 60. Three laps later, Buckley made his way around Kortz. Kortz got a run on Buckley, took back the second spot, and the fight was on. Kortz and Buckley swapped the second position three times in the remaining eight laps. No one had anything for Cook though, and after 75 laps, it was Cook, Kortz, Buckley, Everidge, and Lynch.

Please join us Sat., July 15th, for Motorcycle Night. Anyone riding a motorcycle to the track will be admitted for ½ price. The race program will be sponsored by Holiday Powersports featuring Modifieds, Street Stocks, Pony Stocks, Pure Stocks, and Legends. Hope to see you at the races!