Topless 100

Moyer getting up to speed again

Billy Moyer Jr. is shown in this undated photo.
Billy Moyer Jr. is shown in this undated photo.

The headline came as a shock to his fans and ardent followers of dirt late model racing, but Billy Moyer Jr. saw it coming for a long time.

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billymoyerjr.com

Billy Moyer Jr. decided not to retire after a brief hiatus from racing earlier this summer to take care of “some personal stuff” and is now enjoying success on tracks throughout the Midwest.

The headline appeared above a story on the popular late model racing website dirtondirt.com on April 20: "His racing fire flickering, Moyer Jr. stepping away."

At a glance

WHAT 23rd annual Topless 100 for dirt late models with the roofs removed

WHEN Tonight and Saturday. Gates open at 3 p.m. and racing starts at 8 p.m.

WHERE Batesville Motor Speedway, Locust Grove

PURSE More than $170,000, including $40,000 to win and $2,000 to start in the main event

SCHEDULE Tonight: Time trials and heat races. Saturday: Last-chance qualifiers and the 100-lap main event. There also will be a complete modified event each night.

TICKETS Reserved tickets are $30 each night. Adult general admission tickets are $25 each night. Children ages 6-11 get in for $5. Pit passes are $35 each night.

Past champions

2014 Jimmy Owens, Newport, Tenn.

2013 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.

2012 Steve Francis, Ashland, Ky.

2011 Scott Bloomquist, Mooresburg, Tenn.

2010 Jared Landers, Batesville

2009 Jimmy Owens, Newport, Tenn.

2008 Tim McCreadie, Watertown, N.Y.

2007 Jimmy Mars, Menomonie, Wis.

2006 Scott Bloomquist, Mooresburg, Tenn.

2005 Billy Moyer, Batesville

2004 Dale McDowell, Rossville, Ga.

2003 Shannon Babb, Decatur, Ill.

2002 Billy Moyer, Batesville

2001 Scott Bloomquist, Mooresburg, Tenn.

2000 Jimmy Mars, Elk Mound, Wis.

1999 Scott Bloomquist, Mooresburg, Tenn.

1998 Wendell Wallace, Batesville

1997 Billy Moyer, Batesville

1996 Bill Frye, Greenbrier

1995 Billy Moyer, Batesville

1994 Freddy Smith, Kings Mountain, N.C.

1993 Tony Cardin, Greenbrier

Moyer never said "retirement," but he gave no indication he was going to continue in the footsteps and tire tracks of his Hall of Fame father, Billy Moyer, on dirt tracks around the nation.

After a change of heart a month later and a full summer schedule of successful racing, Moyer's racing wick is fully lit again heading into this weekend's 23rd annual Topless 100 at Batesville Motor Speedway.

"I just had some personal stuff and had some issues inside myself. It wasn't anything else," Moyer said recently from the racing shop he shares with his father in Batesville. "I just needed to step away. I didn't know if I would ever race or not. I just needed to get the heck away from everything, and I did.

"Now my head is where it needs to be, and I think it shows with the results and how strong we've been."

Moyer and his team raced the full United Midwestern Promoters Summernationals series throughout June and July, a grueling tour that took teams to 30 tracks over 32 days in nine states across the Midwest. He was competitive throughout the series, won twice and wound up 10 points shy of taking the championship his father has claimed six times.

"I think our worst night was like a 10th," Moyer said. "We had a heck of a lot of top-fives. I don't think there was a single night where we weren't competitive."

Moyer's hiatus actually began after a weekend of racing with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at Chillicothe, Ohio, and Brownstown, Ind., on March 20-21. He finished 17th at the former and failed to qualify for the latter. After a month of not racing, he announced he was finished.

"You can do some jobs without your heart in it," he told Kevin Kovac of dirtondirt.com. "But you cannot drive a race car without your heart in when you do it at our level. ... I've come to the point where I don't feel like I can give 110 percent every night, so it's time to focus on some different things in my life."

Now Moyer, 27, says it was simply a case of being burned out.

"I've been racing for 10 years, but I've been working in it for about 15, at least," he said. "I started working for Dad when I was 12 or 14, but I've been on the road my whole life. I missed out on a lot of things. But if I would have gone to college parties and messed around, I wouldn't have had the success that I've had. I'll gladly take that."

After a good deal of soul searching over the next month, Moyer was ready to return to the track at a Comp Cams Super Dirt Series event at Columbus, Miss. He set quick time in his qualifying group and built a large lead in his heat race. Even though a blown engine later in the heat ended his night, his fire was clearly lit again.

"I got out of my car and Dad's there getting out of his car and we both kind of smiled at each other," Moyer said. "He said, 'There ain't nothing like the adrenaline rush you get from this.' I said, 'No, there's nothing even close.' "

Moyer also said he understands how some fans have trouble understanding that he just needed a break.

"I didn't need to be in a race car," he told dirtondirt.com. "I just had some personal stuff go wrong -- nothing healthwise, just my head. ... But I got some stuff taken care of, and I feel a lot better as a person.

"If people want to crucify me for taking time off and then coming back, they can say whatever they want. But we didn't go broke, we're not on drugs, we don't have anybody pregnant, we're not getting married. Every rumor I've heard, it's all wrong. Nobody knows the situation. It's just me."

With many of the season's top events still to come, including this weekend's Topless 100, Moyer said he is still in position to have a special year.

"Nothing is finished, that's for sure," he said. "We've got a really good piece right here, and we're just trying to stay as consistent as we can and win some races."

Sports on 08/14/2015

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