<B>OSKALOOSA, Iowa --</B> The O’Reilly Auto Parts United States Modified Touring Series returned to the Carriker Ford Southern Iowa Speedway for the fourth time this season on Wednesday night, with six-time defending O’Reilly USMTS champion Kelly Shryock looking to keep his record perfect this season at the Oskaloosa, Iowa, facility.

While Shryock has been dominant in his Modified, Wednesday's honors belonged to this season's dominant Stock Car driver at the Oskaloosa speedplant. Coming from the eighth starting position, Brad Pinkerton used his experience on the big half-mile clay oval to score his first O’Reilly USMTS victory, and his first Modified win this season at his home track.

The two-class racer from New Sharon, Iowa, has met with limited success in the Modified ranks during the regular season, but has notched six victories in the USRA Stock Car division, along with back-to-back victories in the $10,000-to-win Pro-Line Buildings Great American Stock Car Challenge.

A stout field of 38 cars were on hand for the USMTS.com Southern Iowa Challenge, with O’Reilly USMTS veteran Mark Noble of Blooming Prairie, Minn., garnering the pole position for the 30-lap Holley "A" Main. Noble set a torrid pace early on and looked to be on track to grab his first triumph of the season. Mike Hejna of Clear Lake, Iowa, grabbed the lead on lap 10, then the gremlins that have haunted Noble all season returned as his familiar #74 Modified slowed, bringing out a caution flag and dashing his hopes of taking home the $2,000 top prize.

On the restart, Steve Stewart of Washington, Iowa, had his steering break and launched into the turn 4 wall to bring out a second yellow flag. Hejna assumed the point on the race's final restart and paced the field through lap 18 when Pinkerton blazed around the high side of Hejna to take the lead. From there, "Pinky" rode the high groove over the final 12 laps en route to the victory, holding a comfortable 10-car-length advantage at the checkered flags.

Shryock, who had won nine of the previous 13 O’Reilly USMTS events at Oskaloosa, started 18th after qualifying for the main event by finishing third in the second "B" main. The Fertile, Iowa, pilot picked off 16 cars but ran out of time and laps, settling for a runner-up finish but picking up the Olympic Fire Protection Hard Charger honors.

Hejna took home third-place money while Tommy Myer of Blooming Prairie, Minn., finished fourth. Rounding out the top-5 finishers was 16th-starting Mike Hughes of Rose Hill, Iowa. Rose had won the USRA Modified feature at the Carriker Ford Southern Iowa Speedway the previous Wednesday night after starting 18th.

Pinkerton, Brad Bakken, Myer, Dean Mahlstedt and Hejna were heat race winners. Zack VanderBeek, the track's current points leader and winner of the most recent O’Reilly USMTS event, won the first "B" main while Jason Krohn captured the second "B" main.

Next up for the O’Reilly Auto Parts United States Modified Touring Series will be Thursday, Aug. 4, as the "Best of the Best" will have their hands full at the 1/2-mile oval at the Knox County Fairgrounds in Knoxville, Ill. for the annual Illinois Challenge presented by J&J Steel and 34 Raceway. Gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 6:45 and racing at 7. Street Stocks and Hobby Stocks will also be on the racing card. The Series remains in Illinois on Friday, Aug. 5, as the Quincy Raceways welcomes the O’Reilly USMTS for the first time since the 2003 season. The four-day swing wraps up on Saturday, Aug. 6, with the Dirt Works Race Cars Memphis Shootout presented by Walker Collision & Spillman Auto at the Bentz GM Country Scotland County Speedway in Memphis, Mo.

For more information, check us out online at www.USMTS.com or call 515-297-3870 for up-to-the-minute schedule and weather information.

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<B>OFFICIAL RESULTS

O’Reilly Auto Parts United States Modified Touring Series

USMTS.com Southern Iowa Challenge

Carriker Ford Southern Iowa Speedway, Oskaloosa, Iowa

Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2005</B>

Showing finishing position, car number, driver, hometown and starting position in parentheses.

The top 12 drivers in Home Pride Passing Points accumulated in the heat races will be locked into the Holley "A" Main, with the top 8 re-drawing for their starting positions.

<B>HEAT #1 (8 laps):</B>

1. 17p - Brad Pinkerton -- New Sharon, IA (2)

2. 99 - Martin Bennett -- Ankeny, IA (4)

3. 55 - Alan Mondus -- Lakeville, MN (6)

4. 33z - Zack VanderBeek -- New Sharon, IA (8)

5. 14J - Jake Neal -- Omaha, NE (7)

6. 9g - Rick Gustin -- Marshalltown, IA (5) DNF

7. 7 - Al Hejna -- Clear Lake, IA (3) DNF

8. 17s - Mike Spaulding -- Bemidji, MN (1) DNF

<B>HEAT #2 (8 laps):</B>

1. 50 - Brad Bakken -- Garner, IA (2)

2. 26 - Brad McEwan -- Storm Lake, IA (4)

3. 7k - Jason Krohn -- Slayton, MN (3)

4. 11 - Mike Hughes -- Rose Hill, IA (6)

5. 3 - Kelly Shryock -- Fertile, IA (7)

6. 61 - Bruce Hanford -- Davenport, IA (8)

7. 11k - Jeremy Keller -- Bismark, ND (5)

8. 555 - Ryan Ruter -- Kanawha, IA (1) DNF

<B>HEAT #3 (8 laps):</B>

1. 65 - Tommy Myer -- Blooming Prairie, MN (1)

2. 74 - Mark Noble -- Blooming Prairie, MN (8)

3. 82m - Ryan Meyer -- Liberty, IL (6)

4. 14 - Jon Tesch -- Watertown, SD (4)

5. 4R - Ron Ver Beek -- Oskaloosa, IA (2)

6. 26f - Dan Fetters -- Montour, IA (3)

7. 1R - Ryan York -- Racine, MN (5)

8. 5 - Todd Shute -- Des Moines, IA (7) DNF

<B>HEAT #4 (8 laps):</B>

1. 21M - Dean Mahlstedt -- Garner, IA (1)

2. 17 - Steve Stewart -- Washington, IA (3)

3. 98 - Kevin Stoa -- Polk City, IA (2)

4. 64 - Russell Stewart -- Mount Ayr, IA (7)

5. 25 - Marty Thompson -- Mineral, IL (4)

6. 24 - Darin Walker -- Bowling Green, MO (6)

7. 5K - Kenneth Cox -- Greenland, AR (5) DNF

<B>HEAT #5 (8 laps):</B>

1. 7ii - Mike Hejna -- Clear Lake, IA (5)

2. 31 - Corey Dripps -- Waterloo, IA (2)

3. 12 - Terry Walker -- Riverside, IA (4)

4. 5t - Todd Inman -- Des Moines, IA (6)

5. 105 - Kevin Peters -- Monmouth, IL (1)

6. 31j - Barry Sandeman -- Creston, IA (7)

7. 13 - Charlie Thomas -- Oskaloosa, IA (3) DNS

<B>"B" MAIN #1 (12 laps):</B>

1. 33z - Zack VanderBeek -- New Sharon, IA (1)

2. 7 - Al Hejna -- Clear Lake, IA (10)

3. 98 - Kevin Stoa -- Polk City, IA (3)

4. 4R - Ron Ver Beek -- Oskaloosa, IA (6)

5. 5t - Todd Inman -- Des Moines, IA (4)

6. 64 - Russell Stewart -- Mount Ayr, IA (2)

7. 555 - Ryan Ruter -- Kanawha, IA (13)

8. 105 - Kevin Peters -- Monmouth, IL (7)

9. 31j - Barry Sandeman -- Creston, IA (8)

10. 14J - Jake Neal -- Omaha, NE (5)

11. 26f - Dan Fetters -- Montour, IA (9)

12. 1R - Ryan York -- Racine, MN (11) DNF

13. 13 - Charlie Thomas -- Oskaloosa, IA (12) DNS

<B>"B" MAIN #2 (12 laps):</B>

1. 7k - Jason Krohn -- Slayton, MN (2)

2. 11 - Mike Hughes -- Rose Hill, IA (3)

3. 3 - Kelly Shryock -- Fertile, IA (5)

4. 14 - Jon Tesch -- Watertown, SD (4)

5. 12 - Terry Walker -- Riverside, IA (1)

6. 61 - Bruce Hanford -- Davenport, IA (7)

7. 24 - Darin Walker -- Bowling Green, MO (9)

8. 11k - Jeremy Keller -- Bismark, ND (10)

9. 17s - Mike Spaulding -- Bemidji, MN (12) DNF

10. 5 - Todd Shute -- Des Moines, IA (13) DNF

11. 25 - Marty Thompson -- Mineral, IL (6) DNF

12. 9g - Rick Gustin -- Marshalltown, IA (8) DNF

13. 5K - Kenneth Cox -- Greenland, AR (11) DNF

<B>HOLLEY "A" MAIN (30 laps):</B>

1. 17p - Brad Pinkerton -- New Sharon, IA (8)

2. 3 - Kelly Shryock -- Fertile, IA (18)

3. 7ii - Mike Hejna -- Clear Lake, IA (6)

4. 65 - Tommy Myer -- Blooming Prairie, MN (7)

5. 11 - Mike Hughes -- Rose Hill, IA (16)

6. 31 - Corey Dripps -- Waterloo, IA (12)

7. 21M - Dean Mahlstedt -- Garner, IA (4)

8. 7k - Jason Krohn -- Slayton, MN (14)

9. 7 - Al Hejna -- Clear Lake, IA (15)

10. 12 - Terry Walker -- Riverside, IA (22)

11. 26 - Brad McEwan -- Storm Lake, IA (5)

12. 4R - Ron VerBeek -- Oskaloosa, IA (19)

13. 14 - Jon Tesch -- Watertown, SD (20)

14. 99 - Martin Bennett -- Ankeny, IA (2)

15. 82m - Ryan Meyer -- Liberty, IL (11) -1 Lap

16. 555 - Ryan Ruter -- Kanawha, IA (24) DNF

17. 61 - Bruce Hanford -- Davenport, IA (23) DNF

18. 98 - Kevin Stoa -- Polk City, IA (17) DNF

19. 55 - Alan Mondus -- Lakeville, MN (10) DNF

20. 5t - Todd Inman -- Des Moines, IA (21) DNF

21. 50 - Brad Bakken -- Garner, IA (3) DNF

22. 74 - Mark Noble -- Blooming Prairie, MN (1) DNF

23. 33z - Zack VanderBeek -- New Sharon, IA (13) DNF

24. 17 - Steve Stewart -- Washington, IA (9) DNF

<B>Lap Leaders:</B> Noble 1-9, M. Hejna 10-18, Pinkerton 19-30.

<B>Provisional Starters:</B> Hanford, Ruter.

<B>Olympic Fire Protection Hard Charger:</B> Shryock (started 18th, finished 2nd).

<B>Next Race:</B> Aug. 4, Knox County Fairgrounds, Knoxville, Ill.

<B>Contingency Awards:</B>

Edelbrock - Shryock.

TCI Automotive - M. Hejna, Dripps.

ISKY Racing Cams - M. Hejna.

KEVKO Oil Pans & Components - Myer.

GRT Race Cars - Hughes.

QuickTime Performance Race Parts - Mahlstedt.

KSE Racing Products - Krohn.

AERO Race Wheels - Ruter.