In a division dominated by older racers, a 16-year-old driver and his 14-year-old crew chief represent the youth movement in the IMCA late model class. This year, Logan Duffy scored his first two career wins in his second season of late model racing. His brother, Landon Duffy, turns the wrenches. The two have worked together since they raced go-karts at ages six and four, respectively.
“It was only natural for us,” said Logan, of Independence, Iowa. “Ever since we were little kids, there was a race car at the farm. Guys came to the farm and worked on them at night. We were the kids hanging in the barn, watching and learning about the cars.”
The Duffys’ farm produces corn and soybeans, but its bigger claim to fame may be the racers they help grow. While the Duffy brothers’ father, Jim Duffy, never raced, their grandfather, Gary Crawford, is a racing legend. Crawford lays claim to more than 300 feature wins.
“Racers who live in town and didn’t have a garage asked my dad and grandfather if they could keep their cars on the farm,” Logan said. “[My grandfather] was always willing to help another racer.”
The Duffys first win came at Iowa’s Marshalltown Speedway. They scored their second victory at their hometown’s Independence Motor Speedway.
“It meant more to win in front of our family and friends in Independence,” said Logan. “Our first win at Marshalltown was the most exciting, though.”
Logan Duffy proudly carries the banner of the IMCA late model youth movement — and he expects more to follow.
“The other drivers can now see that youth is coming to the division,” Logan said. “We may be the youngest, but there will be more to come. The young racers aren’t just in the sport mods, stock cars, and hobby stocks.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
