Cars in field: 36
Pole: Ty Majeski (98)
Outside pole: Johnny Sauter (45)
Stages: 20-20-60
Weather: Cloudy, 66 degrees with a 4 mph breeze. Rain is predicted overnight.
Caution on lap 5 of 100 for a multi-truck wreck involving Ty Dillon (25), Thad Moffitt (46), Nick Sanchez (2), Tanner Gray (15), Stewart Friesen (52), Jake Garcia (13), Keith McGee (27), Lawless Alan (33), Rajah Caruth (71), Matt Crafton (88), Layne Riggs (38), Chase Purdy (77), Matt Mills (42), and Grant Enfinger (9).
Restarting on lap 11 of 100 with Johnny Sauter (45) and Ty Majeski (98) on the front row.
The television broadcast need to depend less on in-vehicle cameras for showing racing action. The entertaining action occurs outside the cars and the view from inside is extremely limited and limiting and irrelevant. The blimp camera tends to be pretty useless at engaging the viewer. The viewpoint is so distant it is akin to trying to watch the race as you fly into the Atlanta airport. The drone shots are nauseating at best. The television networks need to get back to more human operated cameras at the track. The crew in the broadcast center obviously has too much to do to properly operate remote cameras to provide optimal viewing of the event. When the camera work is subpar the race appears boring, repelling the viewer. The view is especially heinous when a split-screen is implemented with a blimp shot and an in-car shot. The television viewer can see nothing of the racing and the shots .
Lawless Alan spins on lap 14 of 100 bringing out the caution flag.
The 38 crew pushes the Laynes Riggs truck to the garage area on lap 16 of 100.
Restarting on lap 19 of 100 with Johnny Sauter (45) and Ty Majeski (98) up front.
Johnny Sauter (45) wins stage one.
Restarting on lap 26 of 100 with Ty Majeski (98) and Tyler Ankrum (18) on the front row.
Caution on lap 30 of 100 for debris. Someone lost a tire carcass on the truck.
Restarting on lap 37 of 100 with Tyler Ankrum (18) and Ben Rhodes (99) on the front row.
The ARCA race has been moved from Saturday afternoon to after the Truck Series race tonight.
NASCAR is letting them roll around under caution trying to get through the race. Of the 37 laps run, 18 have been under the green flag. Since they can’t manage to race in a way that will allow NASCAR to hit its schedule, NASCAR is taking matters into their own hands and limiting their opportunities to wreck by elongating the cautions.
Caution on lap 38 of 100 for rain.
MRN reports they will likely end the stage under caution.
Stage two ends under caution with Tyler Ankrum (18) at the head of the field.
MRN’s Moody (turn 2) – rain, Bagman (backstretch) – rain, Dillon Welch (exit turn 4) – stopped raining, in front of the MRN broadcast booth it has stopped raining.
The trucks have been brought to a stop on pit road on lap 40 of 100. The drivers remain in the cars.
Red flag.
Yellow flag is back out.
MRN reports the trucks are pulling away. FS1 is shwoing Kaitlyn Vincie, Trevor Bayne and Todd ‘Onion’ Bodine chatting. I very much enjoy looking at Kaitlyn’s legs, but I did actually tune in to watch racing.
Restarting on lap 43 of 100 with Bret Holmes (32) and Johnny Sauter (45) on the front row. Some pitted, some stayed out.
Bret Holmes gets a shove to the lead by Tanner Gray (15). Gray takes over the lead on lap 45 of 100.
Caution on lap 45 of 100 for a crash by Keith McGee (27) into the outside wall. Stewart Friesen (52) also has some damage on the front left of his truck.
MRN reports 25 of the 48 laps completed were run under caution, so far.
Restarting on lap 51 of 100 with Bret Holmes and Johnny Sauter on the front row.
Caution on lap 56 of 100 for spins by Bayley Currey (41) and leader Bret Holmes (32).
Restarting on lap 61 of 100 with Nick Sanchez (2) and Johnny Sauter (45) leading them to the green flag.
A third lane formed and instead of seeing the action from outside a vehicle we were stuck looking at the side of a truck from a camera in some other truck – no numbers visible.
Unfortunately we were stuck with an in-truck camera shot when two trucks had contact. We don’t know why or how since we can’t see a decent shot of the action.
Ben Rhodes (99) is pitting under green on lap 69 of 100.
MRN reports he may have been the one who was door-slammed. He got new tires and headed back onto the track. Now – several laps later – we’re stuck with a split-screen of the racing action and a couple of crappy shots from in-truck cameras attempting to show what happened with the contact.
Again we’re stuck inside the truck as a big wreck happens on lap 72 of 100 bringing out the caution. Ben Rhodes tried to get in front of the draft the field split him, then Ben went around in a cirle tagging the 15 as he tried to get control. Rhodes though there was still a tire rub when he returned to the track after that green-flag pitstop for tire changes. MRN reports it looks like that tire went down again and Rhodes clipped Tanner Gray (15) and Toni Breidinger (1) trying to avoid wrecking the truck. There’s a lot of fluid coming out of the 99 truck on pit road. Rhodes is out of the track and stepping across the wall.
MRN reports the 99 actually cut the fuel line with that tire issue.
Restarting on lap 76 of 100 with Corey LaJoie (7) and Chase Purdy (77) on the front row.
Caution on lap 78 of 100 for Christian Eckes (19) going around off a bump by Corey LaJoie. Johnny Sauter (45) got a piece of that, along with Stefan Parsons (75).
Restarting on lap 84 of 100 with Nick Sanchez (2) Taylor Gray (17), Corey LaJoie (7), Chase Purdy (77), Jack Wood (91), and Tyler Ankrum (18) at the front of the field.
Caution on lap 85 of 100 for spins by Toni Breidinger (1) and Dean Thompson (5).
Another long caution period the eat up laps.
Johnny Sauter (45) is speaking from the care center as the field does the choose for the restart.
Restarting on lap 91 of 100 with Nick Sanchez (2), Taylor Gray (17), Jack Wood (91), Rajah Caruth (71), Corey Lajoie (7), Tyler Ankrum (18), Chase Purdy (77) at the head of the field.
Corey LaJoie shoves Rajah Caruth (71) to a big lead. The rest of the field catches and passes them on the outside.
Caution on lap 93 of 100 for a crash including Timmy Hill (56), Chase Purdy (77), Christian Eckes (19), Tyler Ankrum (18). Purdy’s fire system extinguishes a big blaze under the hood.
Once again an extended caution period winds down the lap count.
Restarting in overtime with Nick Sanchez (2), Rajah Caruth (71), Taylor Gray (17), Corey Lajoie (7), Jack Wood (91), Corey Heim (11), Matt Crafton (88), Tanner Gray (15), Bret Holmes (32), Grant Enfinger (9) up front.
White flag!
Jack Wood (91) goes around Taylor Gray(17) goes over on his roof on top of Daniel Dye’s hood, the field is crashing, Corey LaJoie (7) Dean Thompson (5), Daniel Dye (43), Christian Eckes (19), Codie Rohrbaugh (97), Bayley Currey (41), Matt Crafton (88), Stewart Friesen (52), Corey Roper (04), Grant Enfinger (9), Tanner Gray (15) and Spencer Boyd (76).
Caution is out with Nick Sanchez (2) in the lead.
That was an exciting event. They raced hard. The final laps had too much happening and were too exciting to accurately describe. The television coverage was lacking at times making it appear to be a boring race. Toward the end the cameras were frequently on the action, outside the vehicle. The ability to actually see the field and the action was essential in an event like tonight’s race. I think it would’ve been a better race during daylight hours – more racing fewer caution laps. It was a scary, but exciting end.