Kenny Allen Fends Off Hurley In Martinsville Thriller

The roar of modified engines at Martinsville Speedway carries a specific resonance, a mechanical symphony that echoes the historic Made in America 300 from September 27, 2009. As Round 12 of the YYR Tour Modified Series grid aligned for the Old Dominion 200, the atmosphere was thick with the weight of that 2009-themed campaign, a tribute to the era of legends like Mike Stefanik. This was no standard hundred-lap sprint; the double-length marathon demanded a different kind of discipline. To survive the Paperclip, a driver must treat the tight corners with a mix of aggression and surgical precision, fighting the urge to overdrive the entry. If you miss the bottom, the car tightens up, the momentum dies, and you become a sitting duck on those long, punishing straightaways.

James Lowe took the green flag from the pole with championship hunter Luke Logan Allen, the rookie sensation known to the fans as Kid Lemon Lime, pinned to his outside. The early tension was palpable as the field dove into turn one, searching for the grip that would inevitably fade as the track began to rubber up. Within the first quarter of the race, the characteristic ripples and chatter started to develop on the inside line, forcing drivers to wrestle their steering wheels to keep their machines tucked against the curb. While Lowe initially looked like he might check out, the tactical chess match was already brewing behind him among veterans like Kenny Allen and Roger Hurley.

A Lap 23 caution involving Brian Johnson, who caught the treacherous inside curb and spun, triggered the first significant strategic divergence. Most of the leaders stayed out, but Luke Logan Allen made a bold gamble, diving into the pits for fuel only. It was a move designed to let him race with reckless abandon later in the race, unburdened by the fuel-saving calculations that would eventually plague the front-runners. As the green flag returned, Roger Hurley began to defy the conventional wisdom of the track, finding a way to make the high-side lane work. While the marbles—those black specks of tire debris—accumulated in the upper groove, Hurley used the momentum to pressure Lowe, proving that the outside wasn’t necessarily a graveyard if handled with enough finesse.

The mid-race intensity eventually boiled over into the kind of chaos Martinsville is famous for. A multi-car melee involving Brian Neff, Jeff LeMire, and Scott Negus left the latter with heavy suspension damage, effectively ending a promising night. The most significant blow to the championship battle occurred shortly thereafter. Benjamin Campbell, digging deep through turn four, lost the rear end of his machine. The resulting tail-slap sent point leader James Lowe’s #06 nose-first into the inside wall. Lowe’s crew worked frantically, but the damage was done; the car returned to the track with a suspected lack of downforce on the nose, forcing Lowe to over-slow his corner entries and fight a stubbornly tight handling condition.

Todd Liston, meanwhile, was playing a game of survival that suggested a bit of vampire blood in his veins, showing a resilience that kept him relevant long after others had faded. During the final round of service, Liston opted for a two-tire gamble, taking only right-side rubber to help his car rotate better through the center of the corners. It was a technical masterstroke that allowed him to maintain pace despite the older left-side tires. As the laps ticked down, James Lowe began one of the most inspired comeback drives of the season. Despite a car that wanted to push toward the wall, Lowe picked off positions with veteran patience, eventually clawing his way past Josh Buckley and Liston to secure a top-five result.

Kenny Allen crossed the line to take the checkered flag, followed by Roger Hurley and Benjamin Campbell. In a remarkable statistical anomaly, the grit shown by James Lowe in his recovery meant that he and Luke Logan Allen both walked away with exactly 60 points gained for the night, leaving the championship gap unchanged. It was a fitting conclusion to a race that mirrored the endurance and tactical complexity of the 2009 original, proving that whether in the real world or the sim, Martinsville remains the ultimate test of a modified racer’s soul.

Article written by Ryan Senneker

Last-Lap Magic at the Beach: Eric Essary Steals the Palmetto 150 in Final-Corner Thriller

The pursuit of the YYR Tour Modified Series championship arrived at the historic Myrtle Beach Speedway for Round 10 with the title fight balanced on a knife’s edge. Entering the Palmetto 150, point leader James Lowe held a razor-thin 1.2% margin over his primary challenger, Luke Logan Allen—a gap so infinitesimal it essentially rendered the standings a dead heat. As the sun set over the Grand Strand, the high-tension atmosphere was palpable among the contenders, including the ever-consistent Todd Liston, who remained a looming threat in the distance. The abrasive, patchwork asphalt of the Beach promised to chew through rubber with predatory efficiency, demanding a masterclass in tire management from anyone hoping to survive 150 laps on the unforgiving South Carolina oval.

The green flag saw pole-setter Kenny Allen and James Lowe engage in an immediate, high-stakes struggle for the preferred bottom groove. The veteran Kenny Allen successfully fended off Lowe’s outside-line assault, forcing the points leader to settle into a rhythm. While the front-runners sought a steady pace, the early portion of the race was defined by the remarkable ascent of Ben Campbell. Starting from the 13th position at the tail end of the field, Campbell utilized an aggressive yet precise line to slice through traffic, moving into the top five within the opening quarter of the event. Despite Campbell’s charge, James Lowe demonstrated his championship pedigree by methodically working the low line until he finally bypassed Kenny Allen on lap 48, establishing an early dominance that suggested he might check out on the field.

The complexion of the race shifted dramatically on lap 55 when a multi-car collision involving Jeff LeMire, Brian Johnson, and Brian Neff triggered a pivotal caution. This moment forced a critical strategic divergence: most of the leaders, including Kenny Allen, Todd Liston, and Ben Campbell, dived into the pits for fresh rubber. In a display of supreme confidence, James Lowe opted to stay out. Rather than a mere gamble, Lowe utilized the moment to put his racecraft to the ultimate test, defending his lead on tires that now resembled Walter Mondale-era relics compared to the fresh sets behind him. The disadvantage was immediately apparent on the restart as Kenny Allen utilized his superior mechanical grip to rocket past Lowe and reclaim the lead, leaving the points leader to fight a desperate defensive battle against a charging pack.

Mid-race volatility further scrambled the order, characterized by a series of incidents that tested the field’s resilience. Ben Campbell provided a momentary highlight with a spectacular 360-degree “style point” spin that he somehow gathered up to keep moving, though his momentum was blunted. More significantly, a collision with Torrance Childs sent Luke Logan Allen spinning into the fence. Despite the damage, the younger Allen embarked on a relentless charge back through the field. This stage of the race required a delicate balance; while these modifieds appear boxy and clumsy, drivers had to account for a surprising amount of aerodynamic sensitivity on the high-speed sections while simultaneously wrestling against “evil” handling and dodging the “Turtles of Doom”—the unforgiving concrete curbing lining the interior corners. The chase for the lead eventually became a family affair, as Luke Logan Allen methodically bypassed his father, Kenny Allen, to reclaim the top spot late in the race.

As the laps dwindled, Eric Essary emerged as the final predator in the tall grass, having preserved his equipment with surgical precision. Essary initiated a late-race surge that saw him bypass the fading original tires of James Lowe and the worn set of Kenny Allen. By the time the white flag flew, Essary was glued to the back bumper of Luke Logan Allen. In a high-tension display of short-track geometry, Essary dove deep to the inside through Turns 1 and 2, initiating a heist that was as much about guts as it was about grip. The two engaged in a “bumper to bullbar” struggle through the final corners, and even a well-timed “love tap” from Luke Logan Allen in Turn 4 wasn’t enough to unsettle Essary’s rhythm.

Eric Essary roared across the stripe to secure the victory, leaving a heartbroken Luke Logan Allen to settle for second. Behind them, James Lowe managed to pull off a minor miracle; by showcasing veteran defensive resolve on his original tires, he fended off Kenny Allen and Chris Haizlip to secure a third-place finish. While Essary claimed the trophy, Lowe’s ability to escape the Beach with his “Lucky Horseshoe” intact ensured he maintained his narrow championship lead. As the series moves toward the finale, the Palmetto 150 will be remembered as the night where strategic gambles and last-lap heroics redefined the race for the title.

by Ryan Senneker

Under the Lights: James Lowe Reclaims Command at Thompson’s Connecticut 150

by Ryan Senneker

The floodlights sliced through the cooling Connecticut air at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, casting long shadows across the high banks of the “Indianapolis of the East.” Round 9 of the YesterYear Racing Tour Modified Series brought the championship battle to a boiling point, with 150 laps of tight short-track racing standing between the field and the checkered flag. When the night ended, James Lowe had delivered a masterful combination of patience, tire management, and defensive driving, erasing a 13-point deficit to Luke Logan Allen and reclaiming the championship lead.

Lowe’s victory wasn’t built around having the fastest car on any single lap. Starting sixth, he watched Kenny Allen and Luke Logan Allen control the early pace while several competitors gambled on fresh tires during a series of mid-race cautions. Lowe and his team chose track position instead, staying on older tires and protecting the preferred groove. His “high in, low out” approach allowed him to rotate the car through the corners while keeping his rivals behind him.

Roger Hurley spent much of the race applying pressure and ultimately brought home a hard-earned second-place finish. Hurley admitted he struggled on restarts, describing himself as “absolutely terrible” on the jumps and saying he was frequently “eaten alive” when the field went back to green. Despite those struggles, his veteran experience helped him navigate the chaos and stay in contention until the finish.

Eric Essary completed the podium after turning a difficult night into a strong recovery. Essary was caught in a mid-pack incident involving Brian Neff that sent him spinning and dropped him toward the rear of the field. With the leaders staying out, Essary gambled on fresh tires and hoped the strategy would pay off later. It did, allowing him to work his way through the field and secure third.

“I don’t know these modifieds—I’m new to them,” Essary admitted afterward. “The tire wear, I still don’t really understand.” His unconventional strategy proved effective as several drivers struggled with worn rubber during the closing laps.

The rookie battle also produced plenty of action. Ben Campbell started eighth and wasn’t afraid to mix it up with the veterans, even challenging near the front before his rear tires began to fade. A late-race “tank slapper” nearly sent Campbell into the wall, but he managed to save the car and finish sixth. Michael Krumpe also impressed in his debut, avoiding the wrecks and bringing the car home seventh. James Nelson wasn’t as fortunate, ending his night after hitting the inside wall coming off Turn 2 and suffering terminal suspension damage.

Thompson’s narrow groove made passing extremely difficult, putting a premium on tire management and track position. The Right Front took a beating through corner entry and center, while the Right Rear could overheat on exit as drivers fought the bumps and heavy throttle application. The banking seam was another hazard, catching Allen Wannamaker early in the race, while marbles building up in Turn 2 eventually caught Luke Logan Allen and forced him into the wall.

Scott Negus and Kenny Allen both gambled on late tire changes, hoping the extra grip would allow them to charge through the field. Instead, the lack of a second competitive lane limited their progress and reinforced the biggest lesson of the night: at Thompson, track position remains king.

Chris Haizlip was the night’s hard charger, climbing from 21st to eighth, while Brian Johnson completed the top ten after starting 15th. Todd Liston finished fifth after starting 12th, maintaining his position near the top of the championship standings.

The Thompson results dramatically reshaped the championship fight. Lowe erased his 13-point deficit to move back ahead of Luke Logan Allen, while Allen now finds himself chasing the points leader heading into the final stretch. Todd Liston remains third, keeping himself firmly in the championship conversation.

For Lowe, the Connecticut 150 was a textbook example of winning the long game. He resisted the temptation to sacrifice track position for fresh tires, protected the preferred groove, survived relentless pressure, and left Thompson with both the race victory and the championship lead.

The series now takes a week off before heading south to Myrtle Beach. The original Myrtle Beach Speedway may be gone from the physical racing landscape, but the YesterYear Racing Tour continues bringing these legendary venues back to life. With Lowe back on top and Allen looking to answer, the championship fight is entering its final and most important stretch.