We got to Moulton and unloaded the racecar to beautiful skies and a wonderful welcome. The promoter of the track met us as we pulled into the gate, and he knew who Mark was. He told us he was very happy to have us race there and he made us feel very welcome. Instead of running heat races, at this track our division qualifies, then starts the feature event straight in the order that you qualify. So this would be interesting, Mark got a few practice laps early in the night. But the track was very wet and nothing like it was during qualifying. But Mark and Gary put a set up on the car that they felt would work. Mark pulled onto the track and ripped of a good lap. When all the qualifying was over, The #88D UPS Store, Trail of Tears car was 4th fastest. YES, He ended up 4th quick, and only 1/4 of a second from being the fastest! Not to shabby for not being on this track in over a decade! But that has always been one of Marks proudest points. The fact that he is not just a "One track Racer". Through out his racing career he has always been able to adapt quickly to different race tracks.

So the #88D, Waterloo Market, Dixie Diner, Ford lined up and started the feature in the 4th spot. The green flag dropped and they all raced pretty close and very clean. Then right at the half way mark the yellow waived for a blown engine in the #2v car. At the restart of the race the M21 car got a run on Mark and made a pass in turn 4. However the very next lap Mark took the Yellow #88D deep into the turn and re-captured the 4th position. After that Mark opened quite a distance over the 5th place car of the #27 Cody Springer, (he also passed the M21 car). So the race finished with us running in the 4th spot, just as we started. Actually, The #88D & the #27 car were the ony 2 cars to make any passes. Thats straight up qualfying starts at their best. That is why we are not fans of qualifying at dirt tracks. The races tend to string out with very little passing.

All in all it was a good night for the UPS Store of Florence, Alabama race car. We ran a new engine and it ran well. We went to an unfamiliar track and we ran competitive. And there was no damage to the race car! We enjoyed the track at Moulton. The people there treated us great, and the track was in great shape. The show ran very well and clicked along after it got started. However we are Thunderhill Racers! We will be back at The Hill next week if mother nature lets us. But in the event that The Hill cancels, we now have a very nice plan "B"...

At the drop of the green flag on the feature it was clear that Mark had a fast racecar. In 4 laps he had alpready moved into the 5th position. Mark was again behind the #127 car of Robert Ardry and passing for the 3rd position when a big cloud of smoke erupted from the exhaust of the Bright Yellow, "Trail of Tears" Hot rod. Mark shut the car down and rolled into the infield. Our night was finished.

Back at the shop during the week the guys disassembled the engine to find that it broke an intake valve and destroyed a piston. It wasnt a total destruction of an engine, but bad enough. The total bill to fix it is going to be close to $2000. It is currently at the shop being repaired, however we are not sure when we will be able to pay for it. So for the time being the team is on the sideline.

On an up note. The guys did get moved into the new race shop that has been being built for almost a year now. It is so nice to be in the new building that is dedicated just for Team Dowdy Racing. We had been sharing a building with Mark's father Lloyd. However it really wasnt built to house our racecars as well as Lloyds collector cars. It was very tight for Mark to navigate in his wheelchair. Now things are much better arranged and accessable for the team.

We hope to have our engine back in the car soon, as there is a couple big money shows coming soon that the team would like to attend. A Limited Late model special at Thunderhill on August 7th, and a Limited Late Model Special at Corinth Speedway in Corinth, MS on August 14th. Unfortunatly by losing the 3rd engine of the season we have fallen from 2nd in the championship points to 4th in just a couple of weeks.

Stay tuned for more news soon, and you can also follow us on Facebook. Just search for Dowdy Racing and click on "like" when it loads...

We will be taking next Saturday off for a family vacation to Northern Indiana. So the Dowdy Racing Team will be back in action on July 10th at Thunderhill in Summertown, Tennessee. Also we would all like to wish Mark's daughter Dena a VERY Happy Birthday. Dena turned 21 on Saturday night. She is a nursing student at Ball State University and cant get home until the end of July. We are all very proud of you Dena...

In the feature, Mark started alongside last weeks winner Brad Skinner. At the start of the race Brad jumped to the lead and began to work the middle of the track. Mark took his UPS Store car up to the top of the track and tried to run him down. However soon the #41 of Ben Davis was challenging for the 2nd position. Mark & Ben ran a great race as Ben would pull along side several times and the two ran within inches of each other. However each attack by Ben was answered by Mark as his top side momentum would carry him back to the spot. The whole time that Mark & Ben raced each other, Skinner's 17R was out front cruising to a victory.

The 2nd place finish in the feature, along with the win in the heat race puts Team Dowdy in a very close race for the points championship. The track has not released the point standings at this time. However it is a very tight race between the #127 of Robert Ardry and The #88D, Florence,UPS Store, Waterloo Market car. We also want to thank the rest of our sponsors as well: The Trail of Tears Memorial Motorcycle Ride, Dixie Diner, Farmers & Merchants Bank, GSSC Machine Shop Services, Wilburn Oil Company & D & R Hardware. Also our product supply sponsors FK Rod Ends & Mckelroy Motorsports. All of you together make it possible for this team to compete.

Mark would like to specially thank Dennis Brewer & Gary Jones for having this car ready every time it hits the track. Fields racing, (Mark & Shorty) for their help with parts and info. And finally, his lovely fiance' Michelle for all of her support.

The team is planning on returning to the Thunderhill Raceway next Saturday, June 19th. And we now have Marks daughter Darci with us for a few weeks! See more by visiting "ThunderhillRacing.com" And, you can find us on "Facebook" now as "Dowdy Racing" or via Mark's personal account "Mark Dowdy"...

Our two 2nd place finishes on Saturday night put Team Dowdy into 2nd place of the tracks championship points. The team is clicking right now. Its just a matter of time before Mark becomes the first paralyzed racer of ANY kind, to win a feature event against a field of able bodied competitors. For more information, you can always visit us here at www.Dowdyracing.com or find us on Facebook as Dowdy racing...

The team was idle for the week while Michelle was down. Luckily for us the weather wouldn't let racing to happen at Thunderhill Raceway. So we didn't lose ground in points. On Friday, April 30th the team loaded up and went to Thunderhill for the make-up race that was rained out the previous Saturday. Mark started 6th in the heat race and charged up to the 4th spot. finishing there. So he started the feature event in the second row on the outside. The green flag fell and the cars flew into turn one. Brad skinner charged to the lead in the 17R. The #88D UPS Store, TASCA Mustang fell in behind the #27 of Keith Coan and spent the next 20 laps racing him for the 3rd & 4th positions. The race went fairly fast and we finished 4th. It was a clean night of racing, with no damage at all. So we called it a good points night and went home.

The following nights races were cancelled due to rain. So that sets us up for another 2 night weekend at T-hill. You see, the track policy is that whenever they lose a Saturday night of racing to weather. It will be made up on the following Friday. Then, the next scheduled show will be ran on the same weekend on Saturday...

So on May 7th the team loaded the #88D, UPS Store, Waterloo Merchants, Trail of Tears, D&R Hardware, TASCA Ford Mustang and headed back to the racetrack. Mark looked VERY fast during hot laps. However that is just practice and it doesn't pay anything. So we lined up in the 3rd position for the start of the heat race. After a couple of quick cautions the drivers finally settled in and ran 10 quick laps. Mark finished the race in the second position, directly behind the #101 car of Bruce Belew. However Belew failed to go to the post race weigh in at the scales. So we inherited the win in the heat, and the front row start for the feature.

The feature lined up with the #41 of Ben Davis and the #88D of Mark Dowdy on the front row. Mark was thrilled because he had been running on the very top of the track during the heat. And he was VERY fast up there. So the green flag flew, they charged into turn one and Mark and Ben made it through and flew down the backstretch side by side. The next time by the flag stand, Ben was ahead by a slight amount. They charged back into turn one, much like they did the first time and Mark went over the cushion of the track by about 6 inches. For those who don't know, the "cushion" is a berm of dirt piled around the top off the track that helps to hold the cars on the track. When you place your right side tires over it, There is no traction at all... Mark had just placed his RR tire over the cushion in between turns 1 & 2. So, the Yellow #88D car disappeared over turn 2. The yellow flag was displayed and Mark returned to the track. He re-started the race at the tail of the field, and quickly started working back to the front. However as soon as he got to mid-pack there was a 3 car pile up going into turn 3. Mark had no place to go so he spun the car to the outside of the track just barely hitting the wall. The contact with the wall did no damage to the car, however it did flatten the left rear tire. So Mark took the #88D Ford Mustang back to the pit area. The guys changed the tire, however the race had re-started and there was no sense in returning to the track. We loaded up and saved it for the next race.

On Saturday, May 8th, Team Dowdy Pulled into Thunderhill Raceway ready to go and feeling good. Sleepy & Gary have had the car running VERY fast lately and Mark has been driving like his "old self". Mark pulled the Waterloo Market, Dixie Diner, UPS Store of Florence, Alabama, Trail of Tears #88D TASCA Ford Mustang out onto the track for practice. After 3 very quick laps he suddenly slowed and pulled off the track. Upon returning to the trailer he let Dennis (sleepy) & Gary know he felt a bad "shudder" in the engine. The guys checked it out and feel that the crankshaft may be broken.... So the team loaded the car for the night and set out of the evenings events at Thunderhill.

We are currently trying to get another engine for next weeks events. The team will be hard at work all week and we hope to maintain our 3rd place position in the points at Thunderhill raceway. We would like to thank Larry Stephens, of the UPS Store in Florence, Alabama for his help at the racetrack. Also much thanks goes out to Jim & Megan Smith for all of their help at the shop this week. Gary Jones is also a HUGE asset to this team for all he is doing to help Mark during the week. We thank you all so much!!!

So minimal changes were made for the feature, which saw Mark starting in the 3rd row. The green flag flew and so did the cars. However the SK1 car of Walter Bolton seamed to lose control. He made contact with Mark, sending him spinning to the infield. The yellow was quickly displayed as the cars hadn't even made it thru turn 4 yet. Mark was placed back into the 3rd row and a complete restart was called for. This time it was a much better start and the cars fired into the turns with dirt flying! Mark quickly jumped into the 5th spot and was very close to 4th. However soon the yellow flew again as the 27 car of Kieth Coan spun while running second. This moved the #88D, UPS Store of Florence, AL. car into the 4Th position on the restart. After a few more laps of green flag racing Mark put a very nice move on the #2 car of Doyle Manley to gain the 3rd spot. He then began a strong series of laps to run the leaders down. However, Ben Davis in the 41 and Robert Ardry in the 127 had built a straight away lead. By the time the checkerd flag fell, the top three finishers were all in line with each other.

Mark finished 3rd and passed post race inspection. So it was a good night of racing for the #88D, UPS Store, Trail of Tears, Waterloo Market, Dixie Diner, D & R hardware, Farmers & Merchant Banks, WOCO Oil, GSSC Machine shop services, TASCA Mustang!!! (Wow, say that fast 3 times)...Lol

On another note... Mark's Fiance Michelle, has fallen ill. She has been hospitalized at ECM Hospital in Florence, AL. and may require surgery. The team may not race this Saturday as Mark has been at the hospital with Michelle since Sunday.

Lets all hope for a fast recovery for Michelle...

Last Saturday night was the opening night at the Thunderhill raceway. The UPS Store, Trail of Tears, Waterloo merchants, TASCA Mustang was all cleaned up and looking good. We had a lot of great compliments on the new Yellow paint scheme. The car looks great and thats a tribute to the work of Sleepy and Doug at Mckelroy Mootrsports. Sleepy does the Tin work for the team, as well as crew chief the car. Doug did the graphics on the car and he does great work.

As far as the racing goes, lets just say it was not a good night. The car was very tight, and wouldnt turn early in the night. Then after a few adjustments, the car went to the other extreme. It was very loose and Mark just had a hard time controlling the car. So after the 2nd spin in the feature, Mark just pulled the car into the pit area. So I guess the moral of the story is... "live to race another day".

The Dowdy Race team is planning on running at the Thunderhill Raceway every saturday night during the 2010 season. We are aiming our sights at the points title for the track. So stay tuned folks, Mark & the guys will work on the car and get it hooked up. Mark & Sleepy will be back this Saturday. Gary is gonna be gone in Louisiana this week and we will miss him. Come out to Thunderhill raceway and say "Hey" to us. We love meeting the folks that visit our web site....

Shelly out!

The Waterloo Market and Grille, of Waterloo, AL will return for a second season with the team. WOCO... the Wilburn Oil Company, of Tupelo, MS is joining the team.  GSSC Enterprises: Machine Shop Services of Memphis, TN and The Farmers and Merchants Bank of Waterloo, AL will also join the list of sponsors for the team.  We are very pleased to have them all these great companies on aboard. Mark is still talking with another potential sponsor in the area to try and wrap up a deal for the season. We hope to have another announcement soon regarding this!

The town of Waterloo, AL and its local merchants have asked us to extend an invitation to everyone to join us in Waterloo on Sept 17, 18, & 19th for the Trail Of Tears’ motorcycle ride & festival. Every year Waterloo, AL is the official end of the annual Trail Of Tears motorcycle ride and an official sponsor of the Dowdy Racing team. The website for the official ride site is @ www.al-tn-trailoftears.net.

In the shop, the team has been hard at work putting together the new Warrior Late Model. Mark has been in contact with an asphalt team from Irvine, CA, and has developed a new braking system for the car with their help. The engine has been freshened and put back in the car, the chassis has been re-assembled with the 2010 updates, and soon the car will go to McKelroy Motorsports, in Ford City AL, so that Sleepy can have it for a week to put a new, shiny, smooth body on the car.

Also we would like to welcome Gary Jones of Florence, AL to the team. Gary races a modified in the area, after moving back home from being in Texas for a few years. Gary has decided to run a limited schedule for 2010 so that he can help the team run a full schedule in a chase for the points title at the Thunderhill Raceway in Summertown, TN.

Yes the team will concentrate on a points chase at Thunderhill this season. Mark has never been one to stay at one track and chase points. However with the North Alabama Speedway switching to "Crate" late models for the 2010 season, we will no longer be racing there. Mark does NOT like the whole concept behind "crate" racing, in which you buy an assembled engine from GM and race it. You are not allowed to open it and work on it yourself. You have to send it away for any and all work to be performed on it. This was intended to make racing more affordable. However we feel it has just opened up a whole another type of cheating. Fake engine seals and engine tampering is common place in this type of racing. No thank you, we will continue to race the way it was intended. The team that goes to work in the shop and focuses on making the car faster, will succeed on the race track.

So stay tuned folks! The updates will come more often and we are on track for the first race of the season on April 10th @ Thunderhill Raceway. It’s getting closer and we are getting EXCITED!