Weekend "ON TAP"

Well folks, a lot of racing is PLANNED over the next four days, unfortunately it looks like a lot of rain in the forcast as well.

Team Feger heads south to kick things off at Tri-City Speedway on Thursday and Friday with $2000 to win shows scheduled for both nights.
**Paducah has a Northern Allstars show on Friday as well but that would only be likely if Tri-City has rain.**

Saturday has the team at Lincoln Speedway for the $2000 to win Monster Midwest show. If Lincoln gets rained out, Tri-City is running a $2000 to win show.

Sunday has the guys at Shepp's for a pair of features at the little bullring. Double UMP points as well.

With rain in the forcast and this being the last weekend for UMP points, keep checking back as the weekend progresses and I will try to keep up with where the firesuit and his crew are headed.
If you run into any gremlins, tell them Team Feger will be at Farmer City and Fairbury.

**The Thursday show at Tri City has been cancelled due to rain.**

Weekend "LAST CALL"

Peoria Speedway State Championship 100 lapper.
Tire gremlins came to town.

Super Secret Sunday at Shepp's.
Mechanical gremlins took over where the tire gremlins left off.

Take a couple of deep breaths and count to 10...

"HAPPY HOUR"

With Kankakee Speedway being the only track that was not rained out, (it actually was but nobody told them) Team Feger headed north for a game of "dodge the lap cars."
After finishing second in the "late models on ice" heat race #2, the redraw put Jason in the second row inside starting position for the big 100 lapper...18 green flag, 82 caution laps.
After the front row was reset due to a bad start, Feger took the lead from the pole position and was never seriously challenged in the time shortened feature.

It wasn't pretty but a win is a win and more important, Team Feger regained a bit of a cushion in the UMP points battle.

Weekend "ON TAP"

Tri- City to kick off the weekend.
Looks like Jason and the daredevils will be heading south to kick off the weekend's racing at Tri- City Speedway in Pontoon Beach, IL Thursday for a $2000 to win UMP special. The team will stay at Tri- City for the $2000 to win Monster Midwest show on Friday as well.

Saturday's plans are yet undecided as both Tri- City and Peoria have UMP specials. As soon as a decision is made, we'll get it updated on here.

**UPDATE**
All events at Tri-City Speedway have been cancelled for the upcoming weekend due to rain/impending rain.

**UPDATE**

Team Feger is headed to Kankakee Motor Speedway for the Friday night show.
Saturday's plan is to be in Peoria Il. for the $6000 to win, 100 lap "State Championship" race. According to officials at Peoria Speedway, if the show is rained out on Saturday the event will be ran on Sunday. Racing is early starting at 5pm.

"Clawhammer" update.
The new car is very close to completion with plans of having it in the box this weekend. The game plan is to stick with "Split Lip" for now (if it ain't broke, don't fix it) but the new car will be there...just in case.
I gotta tell you that along with Bob Pierce, Feger Bros. Racing does build a nice race car.

Hopefully the rain will stay away and Team Feger can do some 'damage' this go 'round.
Oh wait a minute, I was told not to say anything that might jinx the guys this weekend...

Hope you suck!

See you all down by the river.

Feger on Dirtcast

Check out Jason Feger's interview on DirtCast, All Dirt, All the Time.

Feger discusses chasing the UMP points championship and more.

http://dirtcast.com/2009/09/22/jason-feger-ump-late-models-092209/

Weekend "LAST CALL"

A lot of travel for a little bit of racing.
Unfortunately, with Mother Nature putting the kibosh on most of the weekend's activities, I did find out a few things this weekend that I really didn't need or want to know.

#1. Bob Sargent doesn't ALWAYS prepare a perfect track. While I will give Bob all the credit he deserves on his track prep, this weekend was a bit off at PIR. Either the top never slowed down or the bottom never got any faster, passing was at a premium.

#2. On one of the few nights that a Sargent track is one lane, that is sure to be the night that the #25 car would have a flat tire and have to come from the tail. After doing his best to repaint the right side "Paducah Speedway White," Jason put on a heck of a charge rallying from last place on lap 13 to salvage a fifth place finish. Feger and fourth finishing Erb did have a great race going on between them for the last 15 laps or so, with Jason showing him the nose on several occasions. Jason capped off the run with a last lap slider in one and two that set up a drag race down the backstretch, however Erb managed to get Jason at the line.
With Team Feger's strong comeback in the feature, they were able to do some damage control only allowing Dennis to gain 3 markers in the UMP points chase.

#3. A Wal-Mart in Missouri is no different than a Wal-Mart in Illinois. Target, Shoe Carnival and most Harley Davidson stores don't differ much either.

#4. This goes along with #3. Waiting to see if rain is going to cancel the races is NEVER fun. Even if there are strippers, midgets, clowns and a gambling boat...rain outs still suck.

#5. As for the UMP national title chase, being a Chicago Bears fan and a Jason Feger fan have a lot in common...it's gonna come right down to the end of the game.

So, with three great shows on the schedule and then I-55 and Lasalle falling to rain, the weekend was kind of anti-climatic.
At least the Bears won.

One last thing, I've got to give a shout out to Luke, president of the Nashville, Tennessee chapter of the Feger Fan Club. Thanks for taking care of business in the Music City for us.

Weekend "ON TAP"

Blue moon of Kentucky keep on shinin'...
Now that the frustration of last weekend is behind us, Team Feger is looking forward to PIR as a kick off to a big racing weekend. Hoping to become the back-to-back winner of the Wayne Coakley Memorial, Jason and the team have "Split Lip" repaired and ready to go. (It's amazing how hard 6 laps at Eldora can be on a race car.)

Saturday has the guys at I-55 in Pevely Mo. for the $10,000 to win Pepsi Nationals.
I-55 has not been kind to the boys as of late, however last year's run at this event was impressive as Jason came from deep in the field to finish fourth against some powerhouse teams.
I've finally got Andy and Brie talked into making the trip, Cheeseburger is talking about heading down as well, so come on down and join the posse.

Fall Nationals at Lasalle this Sunday.
As if those first two shows aren't enough, the $7000 to win Fall Nationals at Lasalle Speedway should offer up a nice nightcap to the weekend's activities. The show at Lasalle is scheduled to start a bit early, I believe racing at 6pm. Plus it's a Bob Sargent show so it will be over at a decent hour... don't let a Sunday show keep you from going racing and supporting Team Feger.

UMP National Points update.
Jason and crew are still holding onto a slim 10 point lead in the UMP national points ranking, this is a "make it or break it" weekend for the team as far as the whole points battle is concerned.
Nothing against that Erb guy but c'mon Jason...kick his ass.
It's time for a changing of the guard.

Not much racing left in 09' so I hope to see you all somewhere this weekend.

ELDORA "LAST CALL"

The end result of this year's World 100.
I think we all became a bit complacent and expected Jason to be in the show...we forgot how humbling that place can be.
I think I'll take a bit of a 'copout' this time and say "what happens in Eldora stays in Eldora." (Sure wouldn't want to bring home any of this weekend's "mojo" anyway.)

On the lighter side,I was by the shop tonight and asked Jason how I should sum things up.
His reply... "Just say the driver went into turn one and ran out of talent."

Like I said before, that place can humble you...

Weekend "ON TAP"

It's big, fast and mean...and it calls itself ELDORA SPEEDWAY.

Weekend "LAST CALL"

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
The weekend provided some great racing and some frustrating moments for Team Feger. But I guess if it was easy, it wouldn't be cool.

Peoria Speedway's $5000 to win Thursday special show. Setting overall fast time and winning an exciting heat race over Shannon Babb, things were looking good for the feature.
Unfortunately, a rare miscue on tire selection put Jason on defense as he struggled to keep the car down on the "bottom fast" track. Searching all over the track for a quick line other than the hub, Jason searched to no avail. Salvaging a sixth place finish, the guys readied themselves for the big racing weekend ahead.
On a personal note, I've got to give a big THANK YOU to our buddy Tom and his crew for saving us the great seats!!

Farmer City 50 Monster Midwest show.
A second place qualifying run put Team Feger on the pole of the second heat, which Jason used as a tune up session for the big show.
Get the popcorn ready.
Starting the feature on the outside front row, it only took turns one and two to decide who was going to control the pace. A little door banging with pole sitter Darren Miller for effect, then it was time to roll out. Feger "walked the dog" opening up a half a lap lead midway through the race, but Babb was coming and a late race caution put Shannon on Jason's back bumper.
I was a bit worried as Babb is the last guy you want to tangle with at Farmer City and he was flying before the caution. On the restart Feger would not be denied, quickly reclaiming a straightaway lead over the hard charging Babb.
Something about a victory at Farmer City tastes a little sweeter, beating the likes of Moyer, Babb, Miller and Erb makes it even more so.
The "Dirty 30" victory lap was a classic for those that remember.

Moment of the night goes to the other seven drivers that were in the redraw in front of the grandstand. When Jason drew the outside front row starting position, there was an audible groan/sigh as they suddenly realized second place money was all that would be up for grabs.

Fairbury Speedway's "Prairie Dirt Classic."
After the showing at Farmer City, we were all anticipating a strong run at the $10,000 to win Prairie Dirt Classic. After a 15th place qualifying effort(?) the invert went Jason's way putting Team Feger on the pole of the heat race. That's when it got ugly. Running in second place and challenging for the lead...a little puff of smoke ended the night for Feger Racing.
Broken camshaft.
The guys tried to complete a motor swap in time for a "banzai run" in the consi but it wasn't meant to be. For the first time in 2009, Team Feger was on the trailer before the main event. The sad part of it is, the race track was totally a Feger race track...hammer down against the fence.
Even with the frustration, Team Feger upheld their standards, the party around the hauler was as if Jason had won the show.
Win lose or draw, the guys don't disappoint... and the Jello shots provided by "Mr. Turn Four" were killers as well!

Quote of the night goes to Rodney Unzicker. As my wife, Kim and I walked past the Unzicker's tailgate party, we wished them good luck. With an evil smile, Rodney replied, "If you see the Fegers, tell them we've got their "Jungle Juice."
Austin has been bragging this stuff up for a while now and man was it tasty. Plus after a couple of glasses, the mind erasing effects helped make the evening seem not quite as bad.

Lincoln Speedway Monster Midwest $2000 to win Labor Day special.
With the wounds from Saturday night still fresh. Team Feger rolled into Lincoln Speedway with two things on their minds, kicking ass and chewing gum...and they were all out of gum.
After winning the heat and drawing a fourth place starting spot for the feature, the stage was set. It only took a handful of laps for Jason to claim the top spot and from that point he was counting laps until the finish. I can't recall how many cars were on the lead lap at the finish, but it wasn't many.(I told you he would win it Chad...)
Gotta' love a driver that's hungry.
This was Team Feger's seventh Monster Midwest feature win of the season and with it, they stretched out their point lead a bit over second place Ryan Unzicker.

Quote of the night goes to Jason. When Don Hammer asked Jason how he felt about shortening the feature to 30 laps from the usual 40, Jason replied "Why don't you ask me that on lap 29..."
Could have asked on lap 5.

Feger Racing welcomes Stearn Ironworks and Jaxon Chase Steel Detailing to the Team.

Ain't it funny how things work out?
Back in Jason's sportsmen days, one of his fiercest competitors was Ryan McQueary. At that time there was no love lost between the two and lets just say the two never exchanged Christmas cards.
Skip forward about six years. While both drivers moved up to late models, Ryan curtailed his driving career a few seasons ago to focus on family and business. Even though he wasn't driving, I would often see the McQueary's, Ryan, his brother Chad and their father Bob at various tracks from East Bay to Peoria and many places in between. It gets in your blood.
We all spent a lot of time watching Jason's career take off.
While Jason is starting to make things happen for himself in the racing world, The McQueary's have been hard at work in the business world.
Enter Stearn Ironworks and Jaxon Chase Steel Detailing, two family owned businesses that work in conjunction with one another. Chad put things in a nutshell..."Jaxon Chase tells us what and how to build it, then Stearn Ironworks handles the manufacturing. The companies work together to produce items such as structural beams, columns, stairs, handrails...all sorts of things."
As I mentioned before, racing gets in your blood. With the businesses established, Ryan, Bob and Chad felt the time was right to re-involve themselves in the sport.
One time rivals are now the freshest ink on the Team Feger #25, occupying space on both quarter panels. I asked Ryan why they decided to go with Jason. " I've been watching Jason for years and I always thought he had a lot of talent, he just needed some financial backing to help take his program to the next level. Our goal is to help him get to that next level. We're in this for the long term and if things go as planned, what we've done so far is just the tip of the iceburg."

Great news for Team Feger, not only do they have new advertising partners on the car, they have new partners that UNDERSTAND racing. Now it's up to Jason and the team to to get Stearn, Jaxon Chase and all the fine folks listed on the right as much exposure as possible.
I prefer victory lane photos myself...

Weekend "ON TAP"

Looks like Korey has Team Feger staying close to home this weekend. Thursday thru Sunday has the guys traveling no more than 45 minutes from the compound with Peoria, Farmer City, Fairbury and Lincoln "ON TAP."
With no travel time to deal with and Team Feger never shying away from a good time, this would be a good weekend to buy stock in Anheuser -Busch.

Also, due to the length of the new rig, a driveway had to be put in at the shop. Special thanks to Wheatley Trucking for hauling in the rock in and Tony Sting...I mean Tony Strong for laying it all down. (Seems Tony got into a bee hive while moving the dirt...you do the math.)

Should be a great weekend, hope to see you at the races.

Weekend "LAST CALL"

You ever have things going along just fine, then *BAM*, it all goes awry? Well, that about sums up the weekend for Team Feger.
Friday night started out great. Starting on the pole of the heat, it only took the first two corners to know how that was going to turn out as Jason cruised to an easy win. Even with some other drivers doing better with the passing points, Team Feger would start the 50 lap feature in the second row. Plenty of time to race to the front.
Then the rain came.
Races cancelled.

Saturday night at I-55 Speedway proved to be an exercise of frustration for the guys. Unloading a proven fast car and a pole starting position in the heat, things were looking good. Then a broken axle at the start of the heat relegated the 25 car to the back of the consi. Haven't had to race many of those lately. Knowing they were in line for a provisional, the team experimented with setups as the track was not it's usual self. Taking the provisional put Feger shotgun on the field...24th.
With MARS using double file restarts on cautions, there was still the possibility of a good finish if things went Jason's way.
The feature went green for 40 laps.
While Jason was able to advance ten positions and raced his tail off to do so, a 14th place finish left the guys shaking their heads in frustration. Giving back some UMP points to a third finishing Dennis Erb was not in the plan either.
The guys will "clean their wounds" and move on.

Quote of the weekend has to go to Devin, commenting after the feature:
"Well...that sucked."
Yep.

Shop Talk / Weekend "ON TAP"

Feger joins Team Zero/ Scott Bloomquist Racing!!
Just kidding. But if you were at the tracks last weekend, there were a lot of double-takes as Team Feger pulled in the pits. With a little assistance from the McQueary family, Jason bought Scott Bloomquist's used race trailer, complete with 9'x9' skull logos on the sides. It's a really nice piece and it isn't taking long for the guys to adjust to the extra space. With the capability to haul two cars and all the spare parts, it will give the team even more options throughout the season.

I was talking to Austin about the trailer. I commented that Scott won a lot of "crown jewel" events out of that hauler and that hopefully it still had some of that "mojo" left in it.
Always the optimist, Austin replied "It's already won $850 at Kankakee last Friday, does that count?"

Big motor back in the car.
Just in time for a couple of "motor" tracks. The guys have the big powerplant or as I like to call it, "The Rhyne-O," back in the car. Jason doesn't do too bad with his little motors but that big motor never stops pulling. With some of the talent they'll be up against this weekend, at least they're taking a bazooka to the gunfight.

PIR and I- 55 are "On Tap" for the weekend.
Korey has it confirmed on the schedule page. Team Feger heads south this weekend for the MARS/UMP double header at Paducah KY on Friday, and I-55 Raceway at Pevely MO on Saturday. Both events are $5000 to win and should have plenty of competition. PIR is one of the team's favorite tracks, sans flat tires. Let's just hope Hoosier can hold up to the punishment.

I-55 has also produced some good runs as of late and I highly recommend both tracks for putting on great shows.

Ump Points.
It looks like Team Feger has opened the national point lead up a little bit, now 29 points ahead of Dennis Erb Jr.
With Dennis heading south and Korte in the neighborhood, Team Feger is "locked, cocked, and ready to rock." Time to go down there and get some more of those big MARS/UMP checks.

Hope to see you at the races.

Great weekend for Team Feger

Work and family obligations kept me away from the track and the internet this weekend, might be time to buy one of those "Blackberry" phones with all the bells and whistles...what did we do before the internet? And if they want to name a phone after something that tastes good, why don't they call it "The Pizza?"
I would of had one when they first came out.

Friday night at Kankakee Speedway
With rain cancelling the races at Farmer City, the team headed north for a night of points racing. Jason set fast time, started 8th in the fast heat, finished 3rd. Then rallied from a third starting spot to win the 25 lap feature.

Saturday Monster Midwest show at Highland
After Qualifying 2nd, and finishing second in the heat, Jason Took the lead on lap 17 and took the victory. Reports are that the track was racy throughout the night and Jason and 2nd finishing Korte put on a great show for the fans. I believe this marks Team Feger's 16th feature win of the season, and their fifth "Monster Tour" win as well.

Sunday Monster Midwest show at Quincey Raceway
Going by the results on the "MM" website, looks like a fifth place qualifying run put the 25 car outside row two of the 2nd heat. After winning the heat and drawing the pole position for the big show, it was looking like this weekend might be a clean sweep. But, apparently Mark Burgtorf had a little better run, with Jason finishing second.
Team Feger now leads the Monster Midwest points by a mere 9 markers over Ryan Unzicker.

All in all, not too bad of a weekend for the guys. We'll see how the national UMP points stack up after this weekend, but Team Feger should have maintained their slim point lead over Dennis Erb. The next few weeks will be the true test for the guys...keep that momentum going.

Lots of cool things happening at the Feger Compound, more on that later...

Shoptalk / Weekend "ON TAP"

Not much talk, but a lot of activity.
With the UMP points battle as tight as it is, everyone is focused on getting ready for the upcoming weekend. Look for Team Feger to be at Farmer City on Friday night for a regular show. Saturday is still undecided between The Northern Allstars at Lasalle, or the Monster Midwest show at Highland. Sunday, the Team will be at Quincy Raceway for night two of the Monster tour. I'll have Saturdays decision posted as soon as it's made. With Dennis gaining back some points at FALS last Saturday, Team Feger will have their game faces on this weekend. (Even though I will still try to get them to go see The Reverend Horton Heat's show after Fridays races!)

The new car, "Clawhammer," is in the shop and under construction. Still has that new race car smell to it. Once the cockpit and decking are in place, the rest should come together fairly quick. My guess would be a debut right after the World, but you never know.

Lots of neat things going on at the shop, not letting the cat out of the bag just yet, but keep your eyes open cuz' you never know what might happen!

Hope to see you at the races.

All good things come to an end.

Unfortunately, Team Feger's four race win streak has come to an end at FALS. After qualifying second overall and winning the heat, things were looking good for another strong run. After a fourth place draw for his starting spot in the field, things went well for the first few laps. Jason was running in second and pressing the leader, however, after an early caution, the car wasn't right. As the race wore on, Jason turned more and more to defense, racing hard to avoid losing positions. With two laps to go, the right rear went completely flat, forcing Jason pit side. "The car never really felt right from the start" commented Jason after the race "I wonder if that tire wasn't going down at the beginning (of the feature)."
Not to be kept down for long, Jason was all smiles as he took care of fan requests for autographs and pictures. That is one quality that I've always admired about Team Feger...they've never forgotten that the fans are the reason all of this happens.

Lots of positive comments about the blog and the website being kept current. With Tracy's workload, it's been a real pleasure for Korey and I to step in and help out. Korey Rich has been keeping the schedule/results page current. He's been typing lots of "ones" in the results column, after last night, he'll unfortunately have to put another number next to the "one."

Quote of the night comes from Kristy. "Where's my Joey dollar?" Her and I have a long running bet on who will finish higher in the feature, Jason or Joe Harlan. When Jason heard her say that, the second quote of the night popped up..."Ain't I still about $299 dollars ahead?!"

Good times.

Identifying the goals...

On the way to Kankakee, the guys made a list of their goals for the evening:
1 Set fast time.
2 Win the heat.
3 Draw good for the feature.
4 Put a power move on Dennis that he won't soon forget.
5 Win the feature by at least a straightaway.
6 Keep UMP points lead.
7 Take over the Monster Midwest points.
8 Party like rockstars.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

Quote of the night comes from Butch Hixson, commenting on Jason's feature run.
"Bigger Balls than anyone right now..."

Weekend "ON TAP"

"Monster" weekend in store for Team Feger.
Friday night has the team heading to Kankakee Speedway for the Monster Midwest Show. Saturday night follows the tour right down Rt. 24 to the Fairbury American Legion Speedway. Both events pay $2000 to the winner. With the team running local this weekend, come out and support Team Feger. Both tracks provide exciting , side by side racing, and the after-party at FALS is always a good time.
(Rumor has it, a certain FALS corner worker will be bringing the Jello shots!)

Feger recaptures the UMP points lead.
In a tight, three way battle for the UMP points championship, Jason has retaken the lead by a mere 14 points over Dennis Erb. Randy Korte is also adding points fast...looks like this is shaping up to be quite a contest.
Jason is also running third in Monster Midwest points going into this weekend, 14 points out. Hopefully, last weekends luck and momentum continues.

Fresh ink
Team Feger would also like to welcome aboard two new advertising partners,
Jaxon Chase and Stearn Ironworks now occupy space on both quarter panels.
More details to follow shortly!

Hope to see everyone at the races!

Shoptalk

Swung by the shop today to check the happenins' and it was sad to see "Nightrain" being cleaned up to be dismantled and retired. For those of you that don't know, the cars have names. Nightrain and Split Lip. Seems Nightrain gave one too many piggy-back rides at Clarksville. Anyway, Jason was at Pierce's finishing up a new chassis, and the guys will start assembly of the new car ASAP.
I asked Austin what the new car will be named.

"Clawhammer."

Clawhammer? Has a nice ring to it, but why Clawhammer?

"Cuz' you can get a lot of *(things)* done with a clawhammer..."

Agreed.