McClellan wins stock car race in return to Northwest Missouri

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November 25, 2009

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Wed Nov 25, 2009, 11:28 PM CST

By Anvil Welch

awelch@joplinglobe.com

Few achievements can equal winning a stock car race at the Northwest Missouri State Fair in Bethany.

Just kidding, of course, but Jasper’s Ron McClellan won’t disagree.

McClellan still is savoring the 20-lap A feature victory in the modified class this past Labor Day Weekend.

McClellan also cherishes winning the B modified main event at the dirt track in 2007.

McClellan, who plans to tackle the matinee Turkey Classic on Saturday at Springfield Raceway, said those wins were special because of his background.

“It’s a big deal for that part of the country,” McClellan said Wednesday. “They estimated the crowd at 4,000 for the races this year.”

McClellan, who’ll be 63 on Sept. 28, was reared in northwest Missouri.

He graduated from Grant City High School in 1965 (now Worth County with the consolidation of Sheridan and Grant City). He came to this area in 1969 to attend Missouri Southern.

“I attended my first stock car races at that track (at Bethany) when I was 16,” McClellan said. “Plus, when I played football at Grant City, we’d be playing in the infield of that track when we played at Bethany. Track meets also were held at the race car track.

“Plus, when we go back to race at Bethany, we see a lot of relatives and friends,” McClellan said. “My love of stock car racing started at that old track.

McClellan won a heat race to earn the pole starting position this season at Bethany.

“I led all the way and received $600 which probably paid for our expenses,” McClellan said.

Wednesday’s phone call to McClellan found him hauling hay to feed cattle.

“It takes a couple of hours every other day (to feed 200),” McClellan said. “We’re able to grow our hay (on the 500 acres).

“I believe it was in 1977 that I began driving a race car,” McClellan said. “It was a late model on dirt and we competed at Beaver Lake Speedway (Rogers, Ark.), the Monett Speedway and Thunderbird Speedway (Muskogee, Okla.). Beaver Lake and Thunderbird are gone, of course.

“I left racing for three years in the 1980s to start our own business (Southwest Rentals in Joplin),” McClellan said. “We sold the business but we rent out commercial property in addition to farming.”

Ron and wife Jacque have two daughters (Shelly and Colette). Grandson Erik, 11, and Jacque attend the races.

“We’ve met a lot of nice people at the race track,” McClellan said. “Jacque has been very faithful and a great supporter.

“I’m looking forward to Saturday. I hope the weather is nice and Jerry (track co-owner Jerry Hoffman of Hoffman Race Cars) has a good turnout.

“Jerry has been a great friend and big help in racing,” McClellan said. “As the crow flies, we live 5-6 miles from each other. I probably wouldn’t still be racing if not for him.”

Turkey Classic notes: Classes on Saturday, in addition to modified, are open late model, sport mod and Legends Cars. ... Pit gates open at 10 a.m. with hot laps at 1 p.m. and racing at 2 on the quarter-mile clay track. ... Admission prices are $15 and $5 (ages 6-12). Pit passes are $35. ... First place in main events will pay $2,000 (late model), $1,000 (modified), $400 (sport mod) and $300 (Legends Cars).

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McClellan wins stock car race in return to Northwest Missouri

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr wants the city to distribute weather radios to all Joplin homes that don’t have one. That’s 11,000 radios. Do you think that’s a good use of $300,440?

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