11/16/2017
RacinBoys
Dale McDowell Wins $20k in Wild National 100 Finale
Ben Shelton (Welcome, NC) -- Dale McDowell was left breathless and almost at a loss for words moments after driving his Shane McDowell Racing #17m Will Kinzer Foundation/ Sweet-Bloomquist Chassis Super Late Model to the $20,000 win in the 43rd annual National 100.
On a day that saw rain delay the start of the Super Late Model feature by several hours, McDowell rebounded from a mid-race miscue to claim the win by a matter of feet over Scott Bloomquist.
“It was a crazy day, crazy evening,” said McDowell. “The race track was actually pretty racey for race fans. It was a little slimy and we went through a lot of tearoffs. First of all, thank you guys (fans) for staying and hanging out because if it wasn’t for you guys we wouldn’t be able to do what we do, speaking for all of us (racers).”
On Friday evening Dale McDowell trekked to East Alabama Motor Speedway (Phenix City, Alabama) for the opening round of the 43rd annual National 100. Laying down the fastest time overall in his qualifying group, McDowell earned the outside-front-row starting spot for the opening night $5,000-to-win feature.
Before the Super Late Model A-Main hit the track, race officials deemed the track conditions unsafe and postponed Friday’s preliminary feature to Saturday afternoon. After bringing out a caution on lap-11 in the feature on Saturday afternoon, Dale rebounded to a fifth-place finish in the remaining laps. He trailed Jimmy Owens, Kyle Bronson, Tim McCreadie, and Brandon Overton across the finish line.
Later Saturday night, McDowell recorded the fourth-fastest time in his qualifying group, positioning him seventh on the starting grid for the final preliminary feature. With $5,000 on the line, Dale McDowell was an early retiree from the 43-lap feature after breaking a driveshaft on lap 36. He was credited with a 22nd-place outing.
Wrapping up the 43rd annual National 100 on Sunday, Dale was slated to roll off sixth for the main event. After Mother Nature delayed the feature several hours, McDowell overtook Kyle Bronson on lap-56 and held the top spot for the next 12 circuits before slipping off the topside of turn three.
However, McDowell wouldn’t be done with his bid for the win.
With only six cars battling for the top spot in the remaining 32 circuit, Dale jumped back into the lead on lap 84, when race-leader Scott Bloomquist pitted for electrical issues. Holding off a hard-charging Bloomquist on the final lap, Dale McDowell captured his sixth win of the season, which came over Bloomquist, Dennis Erb Jr., Ross Bailes, and Tim McCreadie.
He was awarded a $20,000 payday for his victory in the 100-lap affair, which marked his second-career triumph in the big event.
“I knew it was tough right there at the end,” McDowell said. “All those guys had pitted and I knew Scott and them had pitted. I don’t know if they got new tires. We had a hole in the nose from early and I couldn’t turn. The track officials pushed it down and patched it up best they could, but I just couldn’t turn like I needed to. But I was able to hang on there so it was a good night for us.”
Full results from these events are available at www.EAMSDirt.com .
The 2017 season has now drawn to a close for Dale McDowell and Shane McDowell Racing.
Dale ends the season with six wins, 21 Top-5 finishes and 36 Top-10 finishes.
Stay tuned to http://www.ShaneMcDowellRacing.com for the latest updates and news as the team prepares for the 2018 campaign.
Shane McDowell Racing would like to thank all of their sponsors and marketing partners including Textron Off Road, Kinzer Drilling, Quality Natural Gas, New Era Industrial, Boyd’s Speedway, Cometic Gaskets, Klotz Synthetic Lubricants, Will Kinzer Foundation, Sweet-Bloomquist Race Cars, Warrior Race Cars, ECR Engines-Chevrolet, Clements Race Engines-Chevrolet, FK Rod Ends, Go Lithium, Penske Shocks, Schoenfeld Headers, Keyser Manufacturing, TWM, All Star Performance, Performance Bodies, Five-Star Bodies, FSR Racing Products, Hoosier Tire, Wiles Driveshafts, Weld Racing Wheels, Butlerbuilt Seats, GW Performance, Mark IV ATV's, Racing Optics, Winters Rearends, QuarterMaster, Sweet Manufacturing, Peterson Fluid Systems, and MSRMafia.com Marketing Services.
For the latest information on Shane McDowell Racing please visit http://www.ShaneMcDowellRacing.com .
Submitted By: Kirk Elliott