Ray Kable did not have the 10th World Short Track Championship marked on his calendar, but a call from Todd Neiheiser helped him change course to The Dirt Track at Charlotte.
After 25 laps of Feature racing from the Summit Racing Equipment DIRTcar UMP Modifieds, Kable now owns the biggest win in his career and brings home an $8,000 check to boot.
The Westminster, MD driver began the night in fourth as Tyler Spalding led over his father, Curt Spalding, in the early stages. Kable rode behind the family duo in third as the field behind him attempted multiple lanes of the 0.4-mile track to gain an edge on the podium spots.
Amongst the field of 28 UMP Modifieds to start, Hyndman, PA’s Drake Troutman found his pace around the cushion as he went from 20th to 10th within the first three laps. The World of Outlaws Real American Beer Late Models presented by DIRTVision rookie continued to make hay around the top as he reached the top five by Lap 8.
While the Spaldings, Kable, and fourth-place Ryan Ayers kept their cars around the bottom, Troutman kept picking up positions by passing Ayers for fourth on Lap 9, then Kable on Lap 12. When Troutman entered the podium, the Spaldings held a 2.2-second lead. He diminished the gap in three laps to battle the family for the lead.
On Lap 15, Tyler was held up on the bottom and created the perfect situation for Troutman to drive around the corner with the lead. When Tyler and a lapped car made contact on the exit of Turn 4, forcing Curt off the racetrack to avoid an accident, Troutman was safe with the lead and drove away from the field. Suddenly, Troutman’s right rear tire shredded with five laps to go, ending his chance to leave the track with the win.
The new lineup saw Spalding, Kable, Ayers, and Tyler Nicely battle in the remaining four laps for the win. Spalding got the restart he needed, but a slip off the bottom of Turns 3-4 opened a lane for Kable to squeeze into. Kable had the momentum, using it through Turns 1-2 to get clear of Spalding, then drove away with the Feature victory in the No. 72K Elite Chassis.
“I went out there with the mindset to survive,” Kable said. “With the track having a lot of characteristics, I just tried to stay as consistent as I could, and it ended up paying off.
“It’s really awesome. We weren’t really planning on coming, we couldn’t make it down here. I end up talking to Todd (Neiheiser), and he was kind enough to let me come and run his stuff, so I’m really glad I could get a win for him.”
Spalding finished the night in second place to cap off his first appearance as a competitor at World Short Track Championship.
“It was fun, never being here before,” Spalding said. “It was a little bit of a different experience this week. I just made one mistake there, it allowed him to get by me, and I couldn’t get him back. I’m glad we came. It was a learning experience for sure, but hopefully we’ll be back.”
Ayers rounded out the podium with a third place finish to leave the night with the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds at The Dirt Track at Charlotte.
“We were not very good on the bottom about Lap 5 or 6,” Ayers said. “(Kyle) Strickler got by me on the top, and I tried it out, then I think we got back up to fourth there, but it was getting too rough for me. So, I moved down, and my right rear (tire) was going flat with about four to go, so I’m glad to salvage a third out of it, so not too bad.”
Feature (25 Laps): 1. 72K-Ray Kable[4]; 2. 1TS-Tyler Spalding[1]; 3. 6-Ryan Ayers[2]; 4. 7-Tyler Nicely[6]; 5. 8K-Kyle Strickler[7]; 6. 5J-Jonathan Taylor[5]; 7. 35A-Michael Altobelli[9]; 8. 00-Blake Tasker[15]; 9. T86-Jesse Rockett[14]; 10. 84-Ryan Toole[23]; 11. 7T-Evan Taylor[26]; 12. 99R-Wyatt Gaggero[18]; 13. 5-Drake Troutman[20]; 14. 96S-Slade Parsons[21]; 15. 5T-Ty Norder[10]; 16. 23Z-Austin Self[19]; 17. 51P-Joey Polevoy[13]; 18. 48-Lance Grady[28]; 19. 5CS-Curt Spalding[3]; 20. 35D-Ryan Dolan[24]; 21. 11L-Troy Loomis[27]; 22. 8A-Austin Holcombe[17]; 23. 99-Cole Hilton[8]; 24. 25-Greg Belyea[25]; 25. 4M-Tim Monroe[22]; 26. 28B-Jason Brookover[11]; 27. 11-Evan Koehler[16]; 28. 114-Jordan Koehler[12]
