BRISTOL, Tenn. – It was a night for open trailers, homemade T-shirts and volunteer pit crews at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Welcome to the Short Track U.S. Nationals “The Last Lap.”

A total of 226 cars entered the latest salute to grassroots racing at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile.

The pits and parking lots had a strong midwestern vibe, with the mix of cars including 98 Compacts, 68 Street Stocks and 60 Modifieds.

For many, Saturday was the first experience with the massive grandstands and high banks of BMS. The event represented the culmination of a dream.

This short track festival included followers from tracks like Shady Bowl Speedway in De Graff, Ohio, Montpelier Motor Speedway in Montpelier, Indiana, and Owosso Speedway in Owosso, Michigan.

No lap is routine at Bristol, even for NASCAR regulars. These part-time drivers deserve credit for accepting the Bristol challenge.

While some of the competitors had experience on the high banked Indiana speedways at Salem and Winchester, not even the most advanced simulator can prepare a driver for Bristol where it’s hard to find time to breathe while executing dizzying 15 second laps.

In terms of bragging rights, few achievements can match a victory at Bristol. The gladiator sword given to race winners just adds to the prestige.

Saturday’s show began on a bizarre note as the pace car for the C Main in the Vore’s Compact Touring Series hit the tire barrier before the start of the. There was also a crash on the opening lap.

Jake “The Turtle” Albright posted the top qualifying lap among the front-wheel drive, four-cylinder Compacts while Kingsport’s John Ketron took the No. 10 spot.

Following the invert, Ketron started second in the A Main behind Austin Scott for the 50-lap A Main. Albright was placed in the No. 11 spot, but he moved up quickly.

When Scott bobbled on the second lap, Ketron grabbed the lead and held it for five laps before Todd Metz Jr. executed the pass.

One of the most dramatic moments of the long night followed seconds later when a rear tire broke on the Metz car. Ketron somehow managed to avoid damage by nearly coming to a complete stop on the high side of the track.

After several of his rivals were forced to the pits with mechanical issues, defending race winner Tom Gossar emerged as the victor in the 38-car field.

Shawn Boward and Cody Griffith finished second and third, with Ketron in fourth.

Ketron was supported by several racers from the Northeast Tennessee area, including seven-time Kingsport Speedway Mod 4 track champion Kevin Canter from Abingdon. With 10 wins in the Pure 4 division at Kingsport last season, Ketron won the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Division III national championship.

It was the third career triumph for Gossar at BMS.

What’s the secret for Gossar?

“Man, I don’t know,” said Gossar who operates a towing service. “There are a lot of good people who help us work on this car and make all this happen. We’ve just been kind of lucky when it comes to these big tracks like Bristol.”

Gossar wasn’t worried when he had to start the race outside the top five.

“I knew that 50 laps is a long race for this series,” Gossar said. “I saw a few cars getting hot, spewing water and having tire issues. It was a matter of time before I had the chance to get up front.”

Former BMS winners Chuck Barnes Jr. (Louisville) and Brett Hudson (Owensboro, Ky.) earned the top two starting spots in the CRA Street Stocks. Barnes posted a lap of 17.152 seconds at 104.944 seconds.

But Austin Maynard (Goshen, Indiana) led all 40 laps in the Street Stock feature in his debut at BMS. Chuck Barnes Jr. and Jeff Lane were next in the 36-car field.

With Maynard (Goshen, Indiana) pulling away at the front, the race was halted by caution with 12 laps remaining. After holding off a challenge from Lane at the restart, Maynard edged Barnes Jr. at the finish.

An emotional Maynard paid credit to Barnes Jr. in Victory Lane.

“Chuck has helped me a lot and I owe this all to him,” Maynard said. “He gave me the setup and told me what I needed to do in the race. I appreciate Chuck and his crew more than he knows. This is awesome.”

Maynard said he learned how to attack BMS with each lap.

“We only had one good practice session, so I was skeptical about how we were going to do,” Maynard said. “I just knew we had to make it happen.”

Cody Stickler (Pinellas Park, Florida) qualified first in the 40-lap Midwest Modified race with a track record lap of 15.034 seconds at 127.631 mph. According to series officials, 46 cars posted record laps in practice.

Stickler, who also has Super Late Model experience, started third after the invert. He grabbed the lead on the third lap and cruised to victory by a comfortable margin.

“It was definitely not easy. It helps to have a great race car like this,” Stickler said. “Starting third really helped. Getting out in clean air is always a good thing.”

It was the fourth feature win of the season for the 30-year-old Stickler.

“This win ranks up right at the top in my career,” Stickler said.

Defending race winner Kyle Pervis (Ohio), Matt Dimit, Chuck Barnes and Tim Burkett rounded out the top five in the 22-car field.

The diverse event ended at 11:29 p.m. when Luke Warhurst won the Midwest Modified Tour B Feature. Fans were braving 38-degree weather at that point.

at Bristol Motor Speedway

1.Austin Maynard, 2. Chuck Barnes, Jr., 3. Jeff Lane, 4. Brett Hudson, 5. Heath Helton, 6. Dalton Conner, 7. Chuck Barnes, Sr., 8. Andrew Teepe, 9. Brian Bayer, 10. Jeff Stith

1.Cody Stickler, 2. Matt Dimit, 3. Kyle Purvis, 3. Chuck Barnes, 5. Tim Burkett, 6. David McManus, 7. Nick Lechota, 8. Brett Hudson, 9. Scottie Lamp, 10. Matt Maurer

1.Tom Gossar, 2. Shawn Bowar, 3. Cody Griffith, 4. John Ketron, 5. Karter Stark, 6. Josh Richardson, 7. Devon Dixon, 8. Tim Hintz, 9. Jesse Jones, 10. David Yoder