Hot racing at I-55 Sprint Series Round Three Story and photos by Joe Brittin PEVELY, MO - Round three of the I-55 Sprint Series had 109 entries on hand at the new sprint track located near Pevely, Missourri on a hot July Sunday where temperatures reached into the high nineties. The four race series is co-hosted by the St. Louis Karting Association (SLKA) and the Mid-State Kart Club of Springfield, IL. Since the previous round at Pevely was rained out, practice time was critical for those who were racing at the track for the first time. With the high temperatures and tight corners at Pevely, finding the right setup with enough grip was a challenge for the newcomers. The SLKA regulars seemed to be at an advantage on this day as they won the feature races in all classes. Local hot-shoe Matt Riggs, of Pevely, MO captured the large Yamaha Senior Sportsman class of 21 entries. He also won the Briggs Light class and placed second in the Briggs Medium class. Greg Dingess of O'Fallon, MO won the competitive Yamaha Junior Supercan class and pulled double duty placing fourth in the Briggs Restricted Junior class. Cale Downs, of Pana, IL, won the Briggs Heavy class and also finished third in the Briggs Medium class. Brian Hannon nearly pulled off the double win taking first in the Yamaha Heavy class and second in Yamaha Light. Other class winners included Dereck Crocket, Matt Bruns, Tim Mayer, Nick Harris, Craig Pyatt, Brett Cogo and Becky Kaestner. The final race of the series will be conducted as a one-day show at Mid-State Raceway on September 6. Practice is scheduled to start at 11 am with racing to start around 3:30 pm. The feature races will be run under the lights and the series awards will be given out immediately following the features. Fifty bonus points will be awarded for the final race at Mid-State Raceway. Series points will be based on the best three out of four races and competitors must participate in a minimum of three events to receive series awards. Jackets, T-shirts and large trophies are among the prizes to be awarded to the top five in each class that qualify for series awards. See www.midstatekartclub.com for more information.