Sikeston racer bounces back from crash

Daron Clayton's no stranger to the spills and tumbles that accompany short-track racing, but his crash Saturday, he said, tops his list of scary rides.

Clayton, 19, of Sikeston was battling steering problems on his yellow No. 92 sprint during the feature race at Auto Tire and Parts Racepark when the steering locked and sent the car head-on into the pit-road exit along the back straightaway. The impact with the concrete retaining wall sent Clayton's car spinning back onto the track. Several racers avoided his idle car, but one didn't.

"I remember getting hit, then I remember laying on the stretcher. I was blacked out for about 30 seconds," Clayton said Wednesday. "My mom was videotaping everything until right before the car hit me, so I haven't seen a video of the actual impact. Everybody's told me it looked bad, though."

Clayton's car, which landed on its side after the impact with the wall, was struck in the roll cage by the other car. And although parts of the steel roll cage were collapsed all the way to his shoulders, Clayton said credit goes to the cage and safety features like the thick foam padding that surrounds the driver's head.

"I'm lucky the other car hit me where it did, really," he said. "If I'd been hit right in the center of the roll cage, I'd still be in the hospital right now."

Clayton was taken to a Cape Girardeau hospital after the crash and returned home later that night. Besides a concussion and black eye, he's still dealing with a little soreness.

"I was lucky," he said.

The car was a total loss, but Clayton said the motor, rear end and a few parts were salvaged. A new car should arrive at Clayton's shop next week and may be ready to race by the weekend. He already has a new seat: Butler Built, a manufacturer of safety equipment, gave him a new one after company officials saw photos of his crash.

He said he plans to continue following the National Championship Racing Association tour the rest of the season with a few trips to ATPR and other Midwest tracks mixed in. He's sixth in the NCRA series point standings and has a feature win this season at ATPR.

A funny thing happened on the way to the track ...

The adventure Saturday for Perryville mini stock racer Rick Ruch began long before he arrived at the gates of ATPR.

Going south on Interstate 55 Saturda afternoon, Ruch's truck and trailer became detached when a hitch broke. The trailer, with the race car on board, rolled into the passing lane, then crossed the grassy median and the two northbound lanes before coming to rest -- still upright -- in an area off the highway.

Traffic on I-55 avoided the solo trailer, and Ruch and his crew fixed the hitch and got to ATPR after events already started, sending him to the back of the lineup for his heat race.

The day would get a lot better, though: Ruch finished second in his heat race and won the feature after a last-lap pass. The finish pushed him into the points lead of the touring RAMS mini stocks.

Here and there

Jeff Dona of Gordonville finished second for the second straight year in the NHRA super stock division event Sunday at Gateway International Raceway near Madison, Ill. Dona is in the middle of one of his most successful drag racing seasons and is ninth in the NHRA national super stock points.

The Mid America Racing Series late models visit Malden Speedway for a $3,000-to-win event Friday. Modifieds will race for $1,500 to win.

St. Francois County Raceway near Farmington will hold a full program headlined by sprints and modifieds Friday andSaturday.

Pure stocks will compete Saturday for $1,000 to win at ATPR.

A sign of how competitive the modified division is at ATPR this season: Chris Hall became the only two-time winner in that class on Saturday. There have been seven different winners in the class in eight events this year.

The UMP Summernationals late model series will add big-race options over the next few days as it winds through the region. The series heads to Kentucky Lake Motor Speedway near Calvert City tonight, then to Paducah (Ky.) Raceway on Friday, I-55 Raceway near Pevely, Mo., on Saturday, Montgomery County Speedway near New Florence, Mo., on Sunday, and Mount Vernon (Ill.) Speedway on Monday. Each event will be worth at least $6,000 to win.

Work continues at the new Poplar Bluff Speedway, although no opening date has been announced. Crews have been busy this week preparing parking areas and preparing to install the metal grandstand seating onto concrete supports already in place. Concrete walls, buildings, lights and the dirt itself also are finished.

Fredericktown Raceway will take off Friday and resume racing July 11.