It what seems to be a theme for the 2020 season, Tri County Racetrack was again forced to postpone their event. The bonus, nonpoints races originally scheduled for Friday, Oct. 30 were moved to the following night due to a power outage at the track. Tropical storm Zeta left thousands in the dark and the track was included in that group. Fortunes changed and fans enjoyed the Halloween special which was highlighted by the Blue Ridge Outlaw Late Model Series.
In the main event, a dramatic pass for the win was negated by an equally dramatic disqualification following the race. “The Murphy Bulldog” Jamie Oliver set quick time during Blue Ridge Outlaw qualifying and rolled off from inside of row one for the “Dash for Cash” which featured the top six qualifiers battling for eight laps. Oliver was unable to hold off a hard charging David Payne and the driver known as “The Coach” won the dash and the right to choose his starting lane for the feature.
Payne picked the outside which moved Oliver to the low lane. The pair brought the 13-car field up to speed and under the flag stand to start the 30-lap event. Payne’s lane choice proved to be the right one as he used the momentum built up top to clear Oliver and lead the initial lap. Within a handful of laps, Jason Deal and his No. 7 made it a three-car battle for the top spot.
Just as the action was heating up, what appeared to be a failure in the right front caused Oliver’s car to head straight into the turn three wall with a hard impact. The former track champion was able to exit the car unassisted as the crowd applauded with relief.
On the following restart, Deal tried his best to stay with Payne. In the second position, Deal almost spun in front of the field exiting the fourth turn. Luck and skill combined and Deal hit the infield and merged back into the pack without further incident.
While all the drama was unfolding up front, Warne’s Danny Ledford and his No. 4 were marching forward. Ledford’s Limited Late Model was clad with a side spoiler which served as an equalizer against the higher horsepower Super Late Models.
Like an angler on the open water, Ledford kept reeling Payne in and on lap 25, his Longhorn chassis was shown as the leader. Ledford held Payne at bay and to the delight of his fans, crossed under the checkered flag for the apparent victory. Payne was right behind in second with Deal crossing the stripe in third.
As the field idled into the infield for post-race tech inspection, Ledford’s car cleared the first step and rolled onto the “Droop” pad where series officials checked the deck height of the car. Unfortunately, the No. 4 was ruled in violation and disqualified. That gave Payne the win and the $1,800 check. Deal was moved to the runnerup position and Tri County newcomer Mark Dysart was credited with third. A member of Ledford’s crew credited a broken part for the post-race failure.
In other action, Drew “Macho Man” Deaver piloted his Savage Crate Late Model to victory, Bobby Elkins took the win in the Modified Hobby feature, Charles Devine, Jr. held off Alex Vance for the Street Stock victory, Tucker Anderson outlasted the competition for the Pony win, Brad Sosebee parked his No. 55 in Victory Lane for the 602 Beginner division and Josh Deese added to his win total in the Front Wheel Drive race.
Promoter Ray Cook announced the track will host the North Carolina State Championship Friday, Nov. 20. Track champions will be honored during the event which will be highlighted by Fall Nationals Super Late Model Series race which will pay $4,000 to the winner. Drivers from the Modified Hobby, Street Stock and Front Wheel Drive divisions will also be in action.