WHEEL, Tenn. - Mark Moore prevailed in a back-and-forth tussle with Craig Howard to win Saturday night's 15-lap Kentucky Vintage Racing Association feature at Duck River Speedway, the south central Tennessee ¼-mile banked dirt oval nicknamed "Ducktona."
It was a reversal of fortune for Moore, on two counts. He finished second to Howard's father, Ozzie, in last year's KVRA visit to Duck River, and he came up short in a battle against Dave Davidson in the first feature of this two-race weekend Friday night at Paducah (Ky.) International Raceway.
Howard lost second place when he spun and slowed in Turn 4 of the final lap. Lynn Wilson was second, with Steve Alexander third.
Howard, of Shelbyville, Tenn., started on the pole, but it was Moore, from the outside front-row starting spot, who roared into an early lead. Howard chased him until Moore came upon the lapped car of Bobby Varnon on the backstretch of the fifth lap.
The two leaders sandwiched Varnon as they roared into Turn 3, with Howard emerging in front. He held command for nine laps, but Moore, who had pulled alongside him on the inside coming off Turn 2 of the 12th lap, completed the pass with a similar move the next time around. Moore pulled away over the final three circuits, finishing about five car lengths ahead of Wilson.
"Whenever we had that caution (on lap 9, for Jason Bailey's spin coming out of Turn 2), I figured I'd have enough time left to do something," Moore said. "My car was getting good bite, and he (Howard) was going into the turns a lot harder. I think he was pressing a little bit."
The victory was the fourth of the season for Moore, of Murray, Ky., and his 1933 Chevy coupe No. 33.
Alexander and Howard were heat race winners, both leading their eight-lap preliminaries from start to finish. Moore's ill-handling car slipped from second to fourth, but he nursed the car back to a second-place finish to earn the outside front-row starting spot. The chassis adjustments he made after the heat gave him a car capable of winning.
Moore remarked about last year's visit to Duck River, when he and Howard's father, Ozzie, raced for the victory. Moore ended up second by a nose.
"Last year, we ended up side by side coming off the last turn," he said. "I thought that maybe that was going to happen again."
The race marked the first KVRA start for Wilson, of Ringgold, Ga., and his brother, Wayne, of Monroe, Ga. Wayne Wilson took fifth, just behind Johnny Moran. Lynn Wilson's 1936 Chevy coupe was built by former KVRA competitor Tommy Tichenor of Manitou, Ky. Saturday night was the first time the car has competed in a KVRA event since 2007.
For the second time in the last two races and for the second year in a row at Duck River, the vintage sedans and coupes were lined up along the front straightaway and fans were invited out of the grandstands for a closer look at the cars. Another "meet and greet" session was held Aug. 1 at Clarksville (Tenn.) Speedway.
SUMMARY
WHEEL, Tenn. - Results of Saturday night's Kentucky Vintage Racing Association event at Duck River Speedway, with car number, driver's name and hometown, type car, laps completed and reason out:
1. (33) Mark Moore, Murray, Ky., 1934 Chevy, 15, running.
2. (8) Lynn Wilson, Ringgold, Ga., 1936 Chevy, 15, running.
3. (37) Steve Alexander, Murray, Ky., 1937 Pontiac, 15, running.
4. (89) Johnny Moran, Athens, Ala., 1933 Chevy, 15, running.
5. (7) Wayne Wilson, Monroe, Ga., 1934 Ford, 15, running.
6. (40) Craig Howard, Shelbyville, Tenn., 1940 Chevy, 14, spun.
7. (C9) Nick Alexander, Murray, Ky., 1932 Chevy, 14, running.
8. (7) Jerry Hagewood, Winchester, Tenn., 1934 Chevy, 14, running.
9. (5) Bobby Varnon, Huntsville, Ala., 1934 Ford, 12, running.
10. (29) Jason Bailey, Athens, Ala., 1929 Ford, 9, stalled.
11. (35) James Scott, Murray, Ky., 1935 Plymouth, 9, suspension.
12. (C8) Luke Rutter, Madisonville, Ky., 1941 Buick, 3, steering.
n (261) Bryan Garner, Rogersville, Ala., 1935 Plymouth, did not start.
Margin of Victory: 5 car lengths.
Leaders: Howard pole, Moore 1-4, Howard 5-12, Moore 13-15.
Cautions: 1 (lap 9, 29 spin T2)
FIRST HEAT: 1. Steve Alexander; 2. Johnny Moran; 3. Nick Alexander; 4. Jerry Hagewood; 5. Wayne Wilson; 6. Luke Rutter; 7. Bobby Varnon.
SECOND HEAT: 1. Craig Howard; 2. Mark Moore; 3. James Scott; 4. Lynn Wilson; 5. Jason Bailey. DNS: Bryan Garner.
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