Twelve months ago, Dave Darland showed up for the annual running of the Kokomo Klash at the Kokomo Speedway in an unfamiliar position.
The popular racer was there to compete in a car he had never seen before and for an owner he had never met. After being in the thick of the USAC Amsoil National Sprint Car Series points battle for most of the season, his previous car owners apparently thought that the tank was dry on Darland’s career.
“I guess they don’t think I know how to drive a race car anymore,” I vividly recall Darland saying that night. “[The previous owners] said they wanted to go a different direction. You know, if I could find a good paying regular job, I think I would just quit.”
Fortunately for us as fans, that career change doesn’t look to be in the works anytime soon. Looking back on that night, it’s easy to see that Darland was obviously frustrated and more than likely hurt.
Having known Darland for the better part of 20 years now, dating back to covering his high school basketball games at Lewis Cass, he is not the type of person to rub someone’s nose in it when he gets the last laugh. In his humble, unassuming way, he gets his point across at the place it hurts car owners the most — by simply laying the smack down to the competition at dirt tracks across the country.
During the offseason, he reunited with legendary car owner Jeff Walker and they have set their sights on yet another USAC National Sprint Car title. With just four races remaining, Darland holds a 23-point lead over second place Bryan Clauson (1,876-1,853). Through most of the season it looked like the title was shaping up to be a four-driver tussle as Levi Jones, Jon Stanbrough as well as Darland and Clauson all were seemingly within striking distance.
However, Jones opted for surgery on his neck following the Sprint Car Smackdown at the local oval in late August and Stanbrough has slid backwards after getting together with Jones in the Smackdown finale and destroying his primary car.
Should Darland hold off Clauson and Stanbrough in the final four races out West, it would be his fifth career USAC National title. He picked up his first championship in the Silver Crown Series in 1997 and then while behind the wheel of the famed Hoffman Racing No. 69, grabbed the 1999 Sprint Car title. Joining a select few of drivers to have won championships in all three of USAC’s “Big Three” divisions, he scored back-to-back titles in 2001 and ‘02 aboard Steve Lewis’ No. 9 midget.
Like Darland, Walker is also looking to score yet another owners title after he and Tony Elliott scored national championships in both 1998 and 2000.
“A lot of people questioned me when [Elliott] and I went our separate ways,” Walker said earlier this season. “Let’s face it, Tony was a helluva race car driver. There has always been a bit of a rivalry between [Elliott] and Dave and I’m sure that it didn’t help things much when Dave got into the car right after him but let’s face it — he’s Dave Darland. In my opinion, I don’t think there is a better driver out there or has been for a long time, if ever.”
So for the rest of us who are getting gray in the beard and a little bit of a gut after turning 40 years old, Darland can be an inspiration that we can all still achieve our goals if we are willing to work hard at it.
Trio of racers on the mend
Kokomo’s Josh Spencer is done for the season after sustaining an injury in the season finale at the Kokomo Speedway, however reports have stated that he is on the mend. During the feature event, Spencer stopped his No. 66J at the pit entrance and was later transported to the hospital.
Ione, Calif., standout Justin Grant, who relocated to Indiana to pursue his racing dreams, is now back home out West after sustaining a broken neck in a passenger car while riding with his car owner’s son leaving the Eldora Speedway following the World 100.
Grant, who had a breakout year in 2011 and scored a handful of wins this year driving the No. 40 owned by Mark Hery, is optimistic that following rehabilitation he will again be behind the wheel of a race car.
Logan Jarrett noted he was sore but recovering after a scary-looking crash at the Lawrenceburg Speedway a couple weeks back. Apparently he had brake problems which resulted in the second-generation standout flipping wildly and being struck in mid-air by Drew Abel.
Stockon earns Terre Haute win
Chase Stockon, who we reported on following the Sprint Car Smackdown in August for competing just days after losing his mother to cancer, led from green to checkered in posting the win in the Jim Hurtubise Classic at the Terre Haute Action Track on Friday night.
Robert Ballou was second and Jerry Coons Jr. third. Tracy Hines and Darland rounded out the top five.
On Saturday at Terre Haute, Bobby East showed how his dirt program has improved in capturing the USAC Traxxas Silver Crown Series Sumar 100.
East led all 100 circuits in beating Coons and Peru’s Russ Gamester to the checkered flag. Bud Kaeding and Hines rounded out the top five. Darland took 12th and Kokomo’s Shane Cottle 14th.
Brett Bowman may be reached by email at brettbowman29@aol.com or through the sports department.
Sports
BOWMAN: Darland clearly still knows how to drive a race car
Veteran sprint shoe is chasing after another USAC title.
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Eastern dominates Taylor in softball
GREENTOWN — The third time turned out not to be the charm for the Taylor softball squad as Eastern improved to 3-0 on the season over its backyard rival Wednesday night, ousting the Titans from the Class 2A Eastern Sectional 15-0 in five innings.
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Barnes sets Taylor's career hits record
Taylor baseball standout Logan Barnes made his final game at George Phares Field one to remember.
Barnes pitched four solid innings to lead Taylor past Monroe Central 9-3 Tuesday. In addition, he went 2 for 3 at the plate, pushing his career hits total to a school-record 142. -
Kats drop heartbreaker
When the postseason arrives, emotions surge like a roller-coaster. One minute, it’s a long uphill, then a wild series of events offer a barrage of frights and thrills. And then, for one team, the ride ends and there aren’t any more tickets for another go around.
After two days of chills and thrills, Kokomo’s softball team ran out of tickets Tuesday night in the Class 4A Harrison Sectional. The Kats dropped a 4-3 decision to Harrison in eight innings, giving up a run in the top of the extra frame, and having a runner tagged out at home in the bottom of the frame.
“It was a great game,” Harrison coach Dick Mitchell said. “It’s always nerve-wracking to coach in one of them, but both teams played their hearts out. Nobody deserved to lose that game, but unfortunately somebody does.” -
Comets turn heads at track regional
Heading into Tuesday’s IHSAA girls track and field regional at Fort Wayne Northrop High School’s Spuller Stadium, event workers alike weren’t sure of Eastern High School’s location.
After the dust settled, they may feel compelled to get a map out and find out where Greentown is located.
Led by seniors Sarah Wagner, Brittany Neeley and Bethany Neeley, the Comets qualified for the state finals in six separate events to finish fourth as a team with 55.5 points, behind host and champion Northrop (78), Bellmont (68) and Carroll (Allen) 66. -
GASKINS: Hibbert’s block was thing of beauty
For the better part of the NBA season, ESPN devoted all kinds of time on SportsCenter episodes to replays of two dunks. Anyone who watches any ESPN at all surely knows the two to which I’m referring: 6-foot-11 DeAndre Jordan of the Los Angeles Clippers posterizing 6-3 Brandon Knight of the Detroit Pistons, and 6-8 LeBron James of the Miami Heat hammering home a dunk over 6-2 Jason Terry of the Boston Celtics.
Day after day, ESPN commentators lavished endless praise, which quickly grew tiresome. The dunks were strong, but Jordan and James were much taller and heavier than Knight and Terry and the dunkers also caught perfect alley-oop passes with the defenders in poor positions to defend. Still, ESPN commentators loved these plays.
I kept wondering if a great defensive play would receive the same kind of love. -
Coons, Walker, Glassburn reach Victory Lane
When the dust settled Sunday evening at the Kokomo Speedway, a pair of drivers who have visited Victory Lane in the past at the local oval found themselves there once again while a talented up-and-comer hit the hallowed ground for the first time.
Jerry Coons Jr. had his way in the sprint car feature and Craig Walker seemed to get faster as the laps wound down to win the Street Stock main event, however Kokomo High School sophomore Kory Glassburn had to scratch and fight before scoring the first feature win of his career in the Thunder Car A-main. -
Field is set for Indianapolis 500
After being bumped from the starting field while sitting on the qualifying line on pole day, Josef Newgarden turned the fastest time on bump day, assuring himself a spot in the Indianapolis 500.
The field of 33 cars will have one final opportunity to practice on Friday before next Sunday’s 97th running of the 500.
One year ago the Sarah Fisher Racing Team withdrew Newgarden’s entry on the first day of qualifying and had to qualify on bump day. This year the team decided not to make another qualifying run and got bumped. -
Athlete of the week
Cole led the small-school Comets to the Kokomo Sectional title, their first title since 1998.
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Kats regain tennis throne
At 10:51 a.m. Saturday morning, the bulk of Kokomo’s girls tennis team sprinted from the viewing hill to the east entrance of the tennis courts to mob No. 1 singles player Morgan Mohr as she came off the court following her 1-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Eastern’s Courtney Clark.
The No. 3 singles match was still raging, but the team match was already won. The Wildkats had reconquered the throne from two-time defending champion Eastern and were once again champions of the Kokomo Sectional. -
Eastern boys track claims first sectional title since 1998
The boys track and field coach at Eastern High School from 1987 until last season, Paul Nicholson’s parting message to his team was simple: “Don’t deny the gift.”
That motto left such a lasting impression on the Comets’ returning athletes that they had it screen printed on their 2013 season T-shirts.
With Nicholson in attendance to celebrate with them, new coach Austin Roark and the Comets outlasted host Kokomo to win their first sectional title since 1998 Thursday night, topping the Wildkats by 3.5 points, 124.5-121.
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