After Tyler Farr was placed on vocal rest Maddie and Tae were happy to step for him and help their friend Lee Brice kick off his “Life Off My Years Tour.” The duo’s Tae Dye says that the two were scheduled to write for the next album when they received the call about joining the tour, but quickly made a few changes to accommodate the new tour schedule and help out their friends.
Authorities Are Investigating A Weekend House Fire That Left One Man Dead In Southeast Iowa
FAIRFIELD, Iowa (AP) — Authorities are investigating a weekend house fire that left one man dead in southeast Iowa.
Officials with the Fairfield Police Department say fire crews found the body of 56-year-old Richard Hendershot while responding to a Sunday house fire in Fairfield.
The Iowa State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation are assisting in the ongoing investigation. No further information was provided.
NASCAR Press Conference Today At 12:30 PM
NASCAR will hold a press conference this afternoon in Charlotte, North Carolina, to reportedly announce the details of a new “charter system” for Sprint Cup teams. The agreement is expected to guarantee an allotment of starting spots for certain team owners and shrink race fields to forty cars, down from the current forty-three. The system would provide owners with additional revenue and create more value for their teams … The press conference will be streamed live at MRN.com and on the MRN App.
A Knoxville House Fire Killed A 77-Year-Old Woman And Injured Her Husband
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (AP) — A Knoxville house fire killed a 77-year-old woman and injured her husband.
Marion County Sheriff Jason Sandholdt says around 11 p.m. Sunday dispatchers received a call about a Knoxville house engulfed in flames with a woman inside.
Sheriff’s deputies attempted to put out the fire but they were unable to enter the home. When Knoxville rural firefighters arrived, they contained the fire and removed the woman from the house.
Emergency responders took Patricia Henning to a nearby hospital, where she later died. Her husband, 79-year-old Ronald Henning, was injured and taken to a burn unit at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
The cause of the fire is being investigated.
February 8th: On This Day
On this day in 2011, Chris Young’s “Voices” was at number one on the country charts. Young made chart history as only the second artists in the history of the Billboard Country Chart to release the same single and have it go to #1.
Scotty McCreery Parts Ways With His Record Label
Scotty McCreery and his record label Mercury Nashville have parted ways. McCreery released a statement saying, “I enjoyed being on Mercury Nashville/Interscope and I appreciate all the great people who worked hard on my behalf while I was there. I am excited about what the future holds and the opportunities being presented to me.”
X-Finity And Camping World Truck Series Switching Up The Post Season
NASCAR announced in January that the X-FINITY and Camping World Truck Series will each feature a seven-race post-season Chase format to crown a champion, similar to the ten-race “playoff” system now in place for the Sprint Cup Series. The newly implemented championship formats will include two elimination rounds leading up to The Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Twelve drivers will qualify for the X-FINITY Series Chase with eight drivers eligible in the Truck Series. The three series will begin their respective Chases at three different tracks: Sprint Cup at Chicagoland Speedway, X-FINITY Series at Kentucky Speedway and the Truck Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Sectional Wrestling Results 2-6-16
Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont won their Class 1A Wrestling Sectional at English Valleys Saturday with 202 points and Sigourney/Keota finished 2nd with 185 earning both teams a trip to the Class 1A Regional Team Dual tournament this Tuesday night at Sigourney where they will dual each other in the semi finals at 6pm with the winner facing either SE Warren or I-35 in the finals to advance to the State Team Duals. Tri County /Montezuma finished 4th, Pekin 5th, English Valleys 6th and Cardinal was 8th. The E-B-F Rockets qualified six wrestlers for this Saturday’s District Tournament including four champions, Tyler Landgrebe at 106, Adam Proctor at 113, Alex Hanna at 132, and Dalton Griffiths at 170. The Rockets also had two runners up including Dakota Boyer at 138 and Austin Angle at 182. Sigourney/Keota also qualified six wrestlers for Districts including three champions…Lane Boender at 145, Kaleb Reeves at 182 and Noah Boender at 195, while Luke House at 113, Nick Ives at 126 and Noah Reeves at 160 each finished 2nd. Tri County/Montezuma advanced 4 wrestlers including Travis Lewis who was Champion at 126, as well as Clay Harper at 195, Hunter Foubert at 220 and Tyler Thompson at heavyweight who each finished 2nd. English Valleys advanced 2 wrestlers on to Districts including Zach Axmear champion at 152 and Cooper Andreassen who was 2nd at 106. Pekin and Cardinal each moved one wrestler through as Clayton McKim of Pekin at 120 and Dakota Miller of Cardinal at 145 each finished 2nd. West Marshall and Pleasantville finished 1-2 in the team race in the Sectional at Belle Plaine also earning trips to the Class 1A Regional Team Duals. Lynnville-Sully finished 3rd, and North Mahaska 4th. North Mahaska qualified two wrestlers for Districts including Jarrett Stodghill who won the championship at 126 and Tyler Strasser who was runner up at 120 while Lynnville-Sully advanced just one as Carson Dunsbergen finished runner up at 132. All these wrestlers will compete in a District Tournament this Saturday in Pleasantville starting at Noon where the top two finishers in each weight class will advance to next week’s State Wrestling Tournament.
Albia easily won their Class 2A Sectional while Knoxville narrowly finished 2nd just 1 ½ points ahead of 3rd place PCM. Albia will wrestle Knoxville at Albia Tuesday in the Regional Team Dual semifinals with the winner facing ADM or Ballard in the finals to advance to the Class 2A State Team Duals. Centerville finished 5th and Davis County was 6th. Albia qualified nine wrestlers for Districts including four champions, Aden Reeves at 106, Storm Little at 113, Bryce Leschen at 145, and Carter Isley at heavyweight. David Morris at 126, Blake Lawless at 152, Brett Martin at 160, Ben Mason at 182, and Trevor Blackford at 220 each finished 2nd. A couple highlight matches included top ranked Isley beating 4th ranked Brock Caviness of Knoxville by major decision 12-3 in the finals and 10th ranked Wes Cummings of PCM upsetting 4th ranked Lawless at 152 by major decision 10-1. PCM crowned three champions and qualified seven wrestlers for Districts. Lucas Roland at 138, Wes Cummings at 152 and Jarron Trausch at 170 were all champions while Jakob Fenton at 106, Clay Van Wyk at 113, Chance Palm at 120, and Xavier Miller at 145 each finished 2nd for the Mustangs. Knoxville crowned four champions and advanced six total as Michael Ullestad at 160, Cameron Brown at 182, Jordan Beal at 195 and Travis Poffenbarger at 220 were all champs, plus Joe Hollinrake at 132 and Brock Caviness at heavyweight each finished 2nd. Davis County advanced two wrestlers as Walker Henderson was champion at 132 and Dylan Henderson finished runner up at 170. These wrestlers all advance to Saturdays District Tournament starting at Noon in Knoxville where the top 2 finishers in each weight class will advance to State.
Moravia finished 3rd in their Class 1A Sectional at SE Warren coming up just 23 points shy of advancing to the Regional Duals but did qualify six wrestlers for Districts. Twin Cedars finished 8th and did not have any district qualifiers. For Moravia, Allen Parlier at 106, Nicholas Martin at 126, Briar Cochran at 132 and Quinton Castell at 220 all were champions while Dallas Price at 145 and Jacob Martin at 152 each finished 2nd. They each advance to Saturdays District Tournament at I-35 Truro where the top 2 in each weight move on to State,
Washington and Mediapolis were in a dogfight for the team title in their Class 2A Sectional at Mediapolis but Washington won the title by 4 ½ points and advanced 10 of their 14 wrestlers to Districts. Mid Prairie finished 5th and advanced four to Districts including Levi Duwa who won the title at 220, while Duncan McCain at 113, Cameron Tolander at 170 and Visouth Peterschmidt at 195 each finished 2nd. Their District will be at Clear Creek Amana on Saturday.
Grinnell came up just short of advancing to the Class 2A Regional Duals finishing 3rd behind South Tama and Roland Story at their Sectional held at BCLUW Saturday, but the Tigers still advanced seven wrestlers on to Districts. The Tigers crowned three champions including Joe Simon at 106, Jake Simon at 145, and Tanner Hoffstetter at heavyweight and four runners up including Lane Milner at 126, Kaiden Gosselink at 132, Dalton Kies at 138 and Jevin Wyatt at 152. They will compete in a 2A District at Applington Parkersburg on Saturday.
Story provided by Jamie Brockman
City Council Special Meeting
The Oskaloosa City Council held a special meeting and public hearing Thursday evening to consider a resolution approving the submission of a Community Development Block Grant application for downtown revitalization in Oskaloosa…
Total estimated cost of the project is just over $812,000 with the city requesting $390,000 in grants to improve facades in a targeted area of the downtown. The area is comprised of 41 buildings in the 100 block of High Avenue West, the 100 block of High Avenue East, and the 200 Block of High Avenue East. A total of 11 owners, who collectively own or control 14 of the 41 properties within the target area, have expressed support for the application. Eligible buildings were rated “poor” or “fair” in the National slum & blight survey…
The CDBG Downtown Revitalization Program has been in operation for several years. During that time, a number of Iowa communities have participated and have successfully renovated portions or all of their downtowns. The local effort envisions the grant funds being used to encourage other public and private entities to donate funds to create a larger project than either pool of money could on its own. A variety of guidelines are used to preserve the downtown’s historical features and ensure all work complies with existing federal and state regulations.
$250,000 from the city would be used to pay architect fees, grant administration fees, and construction costs. If Oskaloosa is awarded a grant, an 18-month contract between the state and the city will be required. The contract would require the revitalization projects comply with various federal programs, including historic preservation and other regulatory guidelines. Building owners will be asked to sign temporary easements of 5-7 years to assure any work conducted under the program is not altered in the near future.
Motion to apply for the grant passed unanimously. Recipients of the grants will be announced in May, and target date for completion is the fall of 2017.
Story provided by Bob Ballard
USMTS Racers, MVT Road Warriors Hunting Big Bucks In 2016
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (Feb. 5) — The 18th season for the United States Modified Touring Series is shaping up to be the biggest and best so far with the best of the best in dirt modified racing looking to get their piece of the lucrative USMTS pie.
“With some races moving one week due to the way the calendar falls, it made it very tough to get all of the races put together to fill each region and have multiple race swings,” said USMTS President Todd Staley. “Somehow, after hundreds of hours on the phone and emailing back and forth with dozens of track operators, it all came together for the eighteenth year in a row.”
Not only is the schedule of events littered with must-see shows, but continued strong support from USMTS marketing partners has allowed for a much heavier treasure chest for the racers to fight for.
Each of the three USMTS regional points champs will earn $6,000 during the 2016 USMTS Casey’s Cup powered by S&S Fishing & Rental-up from $5,000 last year-with even more cash spread out to the other finishers in the top ten.
This year’s USMTS National Champion will earn $25,000 with a lot of extra money above last year’s payout for the rest of the top 15 spots.
Staley announced that the USMTS is also doubling the guarantee to all drivers running every ‘Hunt’ race to $2,000 regardless of where the driver winds up in the final standings.
The Hunt for the USMTS Casey’s Cup powered by S&S Fishing & Rental will kick off Thursday, Aug. 4, at the Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Mo., and wrap up Thursday, Sept. 22, during the first night of the 18th Annual Featherlite Fall Jamboree at the Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minn.
Overall, this year’s ‘Hunt’ is comprised of 21 events at 20 race tracks in seven states over the course of 50 days and nights. Combined, one driver can pocket a cool $40,000 for winning all three regional crowns and the 2016 USMTS National Championship.
To sweeten pot even more, Mesilla Valley Transportation has stepped up this season to present the MVT Road Warrior rewards program for 2016.
This MVT Road Warrior program will offer $10,000 to any driver that does not miss a single USMTS event in 2016 (including all points races and “big money” crown jewel events).
If only one driver makes every race in 2016, he or she gets the whole $10,000. If two drivers have perfect attendance, each will get $5,000 and so forth.
The total amount may exceed $10,000 because no matter how many drivers make every single race, each one of them is guaranteed at least $2,000. The bonus money will be paid out during the $10,000-to-win 17th Annual USRA Fall Nationals at the Southern New Mexico Speedway in Las Cruces, N.M., Oct. 20-23.
There aren’t many people out there that do more for the racers than Royal Jones, and the new MVT Road Warrior program is just another example of that,” Staley added.
In addition to serving as the President of Mesilla Valley Transportation, Jones is also an accomplished dirt modified racer and also owns and operates the Southern New Mexico Speedway and Western Tech Speedway Park in El Paso, Texas.
“We understand just how grueling and expensive it can be to run each and every points race in the USMTS, and drivers are rewarded at year’s end to kick off the Hunt with extra points,” Staley said. “It makes it possible for a racer to win the USMTS National Championship even if you don’t make every show-especially if you can get on a roll when the end of the year comes around like Jason Hughes did last year.”
Hughes closed out the 2015 campaign as the hottest modified driver in the country and swept all three nights of the Featherlite Fall Jamboree-the first to do it in 17 years of the event-on his way to claiming his second USMTS title in six years.
The USMTS Casey’s Cup powered by S&S Fishing & Rental will launch in February with a foursome of three-day shows in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma comprising USMTS Winter Speedweeks.
Action opens up at the Shady Oaks Speedway in Goliad, Texas, with an open practice on Wednesday, Feb. 10, from 6-9 p.m. All drivers in all classes are welcome and grandstand admission will be free on that night with pit passes $25.
Racing action will kick off at 7 p.m. on Thursday night. USMTS Modifieds will be racing for $2,000 to win and Limited Mods paying $400 to win. Grandstand prices are $15 for ages 13 and up with kids 12 and under free and pit passes will be $35.
Friday night racing starts at 7:30 p.m. with USMTS Modifieds racing for $3,000 to win, Limited Mods going for $500 to win and Mod Lites racing for $300 to win. Grandstands are $20 for 13 and older with 12 and under free and pit passes $40.
On Saturday, the first heat race takes the green flag at 6 p.m. with USMTS Modifieds paying $4,000 to win, Limited Mods paying $650 to win, Mod Lites $400 to win and $400 to win for the Pure Stocks. Grandstand tickets are $20 for 13 and older with 12 and under free and pit passes $40.
The Shady Oaks Speedway is located 4.0 miles north of Goliad on US 183, then 3.0 miles east on FM 622. To learn more, check out their website at www.shadyoakspeedway.com.
Round 2 of USMTS Winter Speedweeks moves to north with a stop at the Heart O’ Texas Speedway outside of Waco for the 7th Annual Day Motor Sports Texas Spring Nationals. Once again, three complete shows are in the works with Wednesday practice from 6-9 p.m. Grandstand admission is free and pit passes are $20.
On Thursday, racing begins at 7:30 p.m. with USMTS Modifieds battling for $2,000 to win and Limited Mods racing for $500 to win. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, kids ages 6-12 are $5 and 5 and under are free. Pit passes are $35.
Friday’s show will start at 8 p.m. with USMTS Modifieds racing for a $3,000 top prize while Limited Mods race for $600 to win and I-Stocks for $300 to win. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, kids ages 6-12 are $5 and 5 and under are free. Pit passes are $35
Saturday night will feature the same three classes with even bigger payouts. USMTS Modifieds will be going for $4,000 to win, Limited Mods $700 to win and I-Stocks $400 to win. Spectator admission is $20 for adults, kids ages 6-12 are $5 and 5 and under are free. Pit passes are $40.
The Heart O’ Texas Speedway is a semi-banked 1/3-mile clay oval just off of I-35 at exit 343 (FM 308), then 0.6 mile north on east frontage road. For more information, call 254-829-2294 or check outwww.heartotexspeedway.com online.
The third round of USMTS Winter Speedweeks happens at the Ark-La-Tex Speedway in Vivian, La., for the 5th Annual Cajun Clash. Wednesday’s practice is 6-9 p.m. with free admission to the grandstands and 420 pit passes.
Thursday’s racing program starts at 7 p.m. with $2,000 to win USMTS Modifieds, $500 to win Limited Mods and $300 to win Factory Stocks. Grandstand tickets are $15 with kids ages 12 and under getting in for free. Pit passes are $35.
On Friday, the green flag unfurls at 7 p.m. with USMTS Modifieds competing for $3,000 to win while Limited Mods will battle for $600 to win and Factory Stocks $400 to win. Grandstand tickets are $20 with kids ages 12 and under getting in for free. Pit passes are $35.
Saturday’s finale at Gene Boyter’s popular high-banked oval gets started at 6 p.m. USMTS Modifieds will race for $4,000 to win with Limited Mods paying $700 to win, Factory Stocks $500 to win and Pro-Mods joining the card for $400 to win.
The Ark-La-Tex Speedway is located 0.6 mile south of SR 2 on SR 1, then 0.7 mile west on Airport Rd., then 2.2 miles south on Boyter Lane Rd. For race day information, call the track hotline at 318-375-3470 or clickwww.arklatexspeedway.net to visit them online.
Practice kicks things off at the Southern Oklahoma Speedway in Ardmore, Okla., on Wednesday, March 2 from 6-9 p.m. with all classes welcome to the open test ‘n’ tune. Admission to the grandstands is free with pit passes $20.
Racing begins Thursday at 7 p.m. USMTS Modifieds will be looking to take home a $2,000 winner’s share of the prize money with Limited Mods competing for $400 to win. Grandstands are $15 for adults and kids ages 6-12 are $5 with children 5 and under free. Pit passes are $35.
On Friday, the first heat race rolls onto the track at 7 p.m. with USMTS Modifieds racing for $3,000 to win, Limited Mods $500 to win and Hobby Stocks $300 to win. Grandstands are $20 for adults and kids ages 6-12 are $5 with children 5 and under free. Pit passes are $35.
Saturday’s USMTS Winter Speedweeks finale starts at 6 p.m. USMTS Modifieds race for $4,000 while Limited Mods pay $600 to win and Hobby Stocks $400 to win.
Grandstands are $20 for adults and kids ages 6-12 are $5 with children 5 and under free. Pit passes are $40.
The Southern Oklahoma Speedway is a semi-banked 3/8-mile clay oval located 0.7 mile east of I-35 (exit 29) on US 70, then 1.8 miles south on US 77. For more information, call 405-627-1766 or click www.southernoklahomaspeedway.
For unfortunate fans unable to make one or more of these blockbuster events, every lap of every race at every event during USMTS Winter Speedweeks will be broadcast live via pay-per-view on www.RacinDirt.com.
To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/usmts, follow us on Twitter atwww.twitter.com/usmts and Instagram at www.instagram.com/usmts or subscribe to our YouTube channel atwww.youtube.com/usmtstv.