Eldora Speedway, King of Dirt Late Model Events - The Dream

If you attended The Eldora Dream this year, you quickly realized the popularity of the Dirt Late Model sport. With just about every dirt track in the nation having a Late Model class, the cars are everywhere. The dedication of the fans is amazing, and the stars of the sport enjoy immense recognition.

The legendary Eldora Speedway, a kingpin of Dirt Late Model racing located in Western Ohio, brings many thousands of dirt stock car fans to view an equally legendary race, The Dream, on the second weekend of every June. A measure of the race's popularity was verified by the 55,000 hits on the Eldora Web site on race day.

These avid fans know that all the stars of all the top series will be on hand as all of them take the weekend off so they can attend. Not only is the prestige of the event a major draw, but the $100,000 payoff to the winner brings them in, as well. And make no mistake-a win in this event is a career-maker. It's like winning the World Series or the Daytona 500.

But The Dream is but one of a pair of stock car events at Eldora that make it the top track in Dirt Late Model racing. First, it was the initial track to introduce big-money feature races with its still-prestigious World 100 in 1971. Then, in 2001, there was a single Eldora Million race that awarded a seven-figure prize to winner Donnie Moran. Charismatic track owner Earl Baltes knows how to promote and stage a race.

The fans certainly weren't disappointed this year as all the previous winners were on site to attempt a repeat of their accomplishments. One of those drivers was the spirited Scott Bloom- quist, who really has had this place under his thumb through the years. Not only was this his third Dream win and sixth Top 10, he's also won the World 100 a trio of times. Baltes has emptied his billfold a number of times for Bloomquist.

It would have been hard, however, to call Bloomquist the unanimous pre-race favorite. That's mainly due to the Big E accomplishments of two other drivers, Donnie Moran and Billy Moyer. Bloomquist, Moran, and Moyer have garnered a total of 12 World 100 wins, and with Bloomquist's win this year, they have won half of the 10 Dream races. Their accomplishments are even more amazing when the high level of competition is taken into account. It was all Bloomquist for the 10th Dream, and he took preparation to the highest level, even preparing his tires himself, knowing exactly what he needed.

No doubt, most would consider this trio the superstars of the dirt stock car sport, capable of running up front in any show. With many other top drivers arriving from 20 states, however, there were several competitors ready to step up and challenge for the win. A big race like The Dream, in fact, typically draws 15-20 drivers capable of winning.

One of those drivers was the most consistent Dream driver of them all-Steve Francis-who has made every event. In the previous five races, his worst finish was a Ninth. This year he finished 18th.

The Action
After having the entire two-day event combined into a single day of racing due to heavy rains, the feature race didn't start until the wee hours of the morning. But Bloomquist's eyes were wide open from start to finish, intent on getting that highly-craved win.