Press Release-Illini Drivers Sweep Illinois Fall Nationals

Contact Bob Sargent of Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200 or Jay Hardin at
jhardin3@verizon.net for additional information.

Springfield, IL-Drivers from the state of Illinois swept the UMP Late Model
and UMP Modified features for the 15th Best Western-Illinois Fall Nationals
for the first time in the fifteen year history of the event as
Milledgeville's Darren Miller captured the $12,000 first prize for the UMP
late Models and Chatham's Brian Shirley took home the $2,000 UMP Modified
top prize.  The features were a continuation of the program that was
suspended on September 17 at the Illinois State Fairgrounds due to rain.

Miller set a new track record and a world one lap qualifying record for a
UMP Late Model on the 17th with a circuit in excess of 130 miles an hour and
won his heat at an average speed of over 125 miles an hour to capture the
pole position.  At teh start three time Best Western-Illinois Fall Nationals
winner Brian Birkhofer of Muscatine Iowa surged into the lead and he and
miller began pulling away from the rest of the late model pack.  A caution
onlap 10 bunched the field but it was clear that Birkhofer and Miller were
the class of the field and they quickly began working into lapped traffic.
Birkhofer began pulling away from Miller but unfortunately could not keep up
the torrid pace and tell tale smoke began eminating from the rear of the
Daufeldt Transport machine on lap 20 giving Miller the lead as Birkhofer
pulled off the race track.  Miller survuved two more caution flags and his
NAPA machine carried him to his first mile track win.  Three caution flags
slowed the pace to just over 58 miles an hour, just shy of the 30 lap track
record set by Scott Bloomquist last year.

Two of the cautions involved heavy wall contact by popular local drivers.
Springfield drivers Joe Ross Jr. and Justin Allgaier were running second and
third on lap 25 when Allgaier went to pass Ross entering the first corner.
Ross lost control and backed the Bill West owned late model hard into the
first turn concrete.  Ross was able to walk to the ambulance with assistance
complaining of pain in his right leg.  Allgaier brought out the next caution
two laps later when he hit the third turn wall, Allgaier was uninjured.

Springfield's Roger Bricker managed a best ever second place finish at the
Best Western-Illinois Fall Nationals, with marin'es Mark Voight taking tird,
Decatur's Terry Babb fourth and Brimfield's Tim Lance fifth giving Illinosi
drivers a sweep of the top five slots.

Sangamon County kept much of the first place money handed out at the
Springfield Mile this year.  Justin Allgaier scored a popular win in the
ARCA Allen Crowe 100 in August, with New Berlin's Steve Sheppard Jr. winning
the companion Sportsman Nationals event.  This time Chatham's Brian Shirley
posted his first ever mile track win when he led wire to wire to win the UMP
Modified main of the Best Western-Illinois Fall Nationals.

Fresh off a big win in the Knoxville Late Model Nationals race in Iowa
Shirley started outside of track record holder and fast qualifier Jeff Leka
for te modified event.  Leka, a two time Fall Nationals modified winner kept
the pressure on Shirley and the two ran virtually nose to tail until the
second caution of the race on lap 11 when Petersburg's Mike Hess hit the
turn two wall.  Under the caution Buffalo native Leka pulled the Kirland's
Carpets/HPR Pierce race car behind the pit wall with an apparent motor
problem.  Shirley would be unchallenged the rest of the way, scoring a
popular win with the Vern's Auto repair machine before a partisan crowd.
Missouri's Vance Wilson posting a fine second place finish, while fellow
Missouri driver John O'Neal of kansas City had the drive of the day starting
dead last and finishing third, followed by Todd Kirkland and defending
winner Curt Rhodes.

Full event results will be posted at www.trackenterprises.com at a later
time.