Who is the IRA?
By Bill W:
As the IRA (Interstate Racing Association) enters Knoxville this Saturday, many fans might say, "Who is the IRA?" One thing that will be noticed immediately is a huge increase in the car count. A good share of these will be IRA travellers. The IRA brings more cars with it than any other 410 winged series including the World of Outlaws and the All Star Circuit of Champions. Though they race primarily in the upper midwest, the IRA schedule stretches as far east as Attica, Ohio, this year will race as far west as Jackson, MN (May 25), and will come south to Knoxville twice, once this weekend, and again for the 1200 pound nationals at the end of July.
Now sponsored by Bumper to Bumper, the IRA has actually been around since the late sixties. What started out as a modified group in 1966, evolved into a supermodified series in the '70s, and finally a sprint group in the '80s. Based in southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois, the IRA has continued to grow in popularity the last eight years under the direction of IRA president Steve Sinclair. This weekend's show was to be the second in a Knoxville vs. IRA shootout series. The first race at Powercom Park in Beaver Dam, WI was a wash. In fact, the IRA has only gotten three of their scheduled six races in. Sound familiar? The third round of the series will be the 1200 pound nationals, with the finale being the Jerry Richert Sr. Memorial at Cedar Lake Speedway near New Richmond, WI on September 7.
The IRA has gone to a unique format change for 2002. The cars are timed and then heats are run. The invert for the heats is six, meaning that the fastest car starts outside row three, the next fastest inside row three, and so on. The heats will usually transfer four cars to the A, with two B mains transferring three cars to make a 22 car field. This will vary depending on the number of cars. The four heat winners will make up the first two rows of the feature, and they will be inverted by time. The next six starters will be the six fastest who qualified out of their heats. They will also be inverted. The rest of the field will be lined up by their qualifying time. This format sometimes changes when races are being co-sanctioned or when the group is racing at Knoxville, however you can always count on good racing action with those inverts.
Though the Knoxville competition is usually pretty tough on this group, some have the power, laps and skills to compete with the locals. Here are a few. John Haeni from Lomira, WI is the early season leader in points for the group, and has turned some impressive laps at Knoxville in the past. Look for the #21J to be charging. Todd Hepfner is from Sussex, WI and drives the #28 sprinter. Hepfner is young and has a lot of potential. Currently second in points in the young season, Todd captured his first IRA feature at Jacksonville, IL last season. He also made the feature in this event a year ago. Kim Mock from Kenosha, WI is the defending champ and has more laps at Knoxville than most. Mock piloted the Larry Cahill 7 for a short time on a weekly basis at Knoxville, and brings his #1m after a very impressive showing at the Knoxville Nationals a year ago, participating in the C scramble.
Scotty Neitzel already has a feature win under his belt this year in a non-IRA event at Hartford, MI. Neitzel has shown steady improvement in his orange #2w over the last couple of years and looks fast again this season. The Beaver Dam, WI native suffered mechanical ills in last year's 1200 pound nationals or else he would have bagged a top five finish in the 100+ car field. Joe Roe is the eight time champ of the IRA, and has had past success at Knoxville. The native of Zion, IL is an IRA legend. Look for him in the black #61. Add competitors like Raymond Hensley, Steve Meyer, Joe Symoens, Mike Stefka, Darrell Dodd, Wayne Modjeski, Ty Bartz and many others to the Knoxville regulars and the stage is set for a great one.
The IRA is a close knit family, and looks out for each other with help on and off the track. The blue collar organization is known for fielding drivers who have a passion for racing, but also have full-time jobs during the week. If you get a chance, thank as many of these drivers as you can for making the long tow to Knoxville. They will appreciate getting an opportunity to talk with you.
For a ton of information on the IRA, visit their website at www.irasprints.com.