BOONE, Iowa — Tom Berry Jr. was good enough to get in the race.
Then he proved he was good enough to win it.
Berry started sixth and took over the front following an early restart, then led the last 29 of 30 laps in winning the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational, during the IMCA Speedway Motors fueled by Casey’s Friday evening at Boone Speedway.
The Modified checkers were good for $1,000, plus another $725 in lap money courtesy of Elmquist Towing.
“This means a lot. At Super Nationals, the main goal is to win the ‘A’ feature but in the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational, you’ve got to be good enough to win a race to be eligible, then qualify,” said Berry, who’d won 13 IMCA features paying $1,000 or more since last September.
“You’ve got to be good enough to qualify for the race and that means that all 30 cars in it had to have some kind of speed.”
Troy Morris III led the opening circuit, then spun the next time around the track.
“There were some guys around me who still had to run a qualifier tonight so they had to be a little more cautious. Not that I wanted to wreck anything but I could run harder because I have all night and tomorrow to fix things,” said Berry. “I got a good shot on the start, got behind Morris and when I got by him he must have spun.”
Berry took over up front and was chased to midway by Daniel Gottschalk and Brandon Beckendorf. Gottschalk was just half a car length off the pace on lap 15; Beckendorf was in second to stay following a restart on lap 16.
Gottschalk, Jeremy Mills and Todd Shite completed the top five.
“Honestly, you couldn’t have asked for a better night. My right rear tire probably delaminated 8-10 laps in. To manage for 20-22 laps in with half a tire was incredible,” said Berry. “I was thinking of pulling off, then the caution came.
“I just hunkered down. I knew the line I had to hit and made my car as wide as possible.”
Sixty-three drivers competed in two rounds of time trials, first by region and then at-large, for starting spots on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational grid. Berry is now eligible to qualify for the 2025 invitational.
The complete week of Super Nationals is broadcast by SPEED SPORT.TV affiliate IMCA.TV.
The finish:
Tom Berry Jr., Brandon Beckendorf, Daniel Gottschalk, Jeremy Mills, Todd Shute, Joel Rust, Chaz Baca, Ethan Braaksma, Collen Winebarger, Tim Ward, Troy Foulger, Troy Cordes, William Gould, Austen Becerra, Eddie Belec, Kollin Hibdon, Troy Morris III, Bryson Yeager, Johnny Whitman, Trevor Fitz, Myron DeYoung, Brett Berry, Mitchell Hunt, Jake McBirnie, Ryan McDaniel, Zane DeVilbiss, Dylan Thornton, Cody Thompson, Braxton Yeager, Tripp Gaylord.