Modified driver Kollin Hibdon runs the No. 48. In dirt racing, it’s not uncommon to see multiples of the same number. This created some confusion last Thursday for the feature during the IMCA.TV Winter Nationals at Cocopah Speedway in Somerton, Arizona.
“The Raceceiver in my ear was screaming for car 48 to move up from 10th to the pole,” Hibdon, 18, of Fargo, North Dakota, said. “There was another car number 48 up there already, and I thought my starting position was 10th.”
The event drew 88 entries. Earlier that day, Hibdon won the 10th heat race. The other No. 48, driven by Aaron Elwess, of Vancouver, Washington, won the seventh heat. Then, the officials shuffled the top 10 starting lineup via a pill draw.
“I didn’t know who drew my pill, and I didn’t think I could be up there, in front of the field,” said Hibdon. “But, I definitely was not going to tell the officials ‘No, I don’t want to move up.’ If they wanted me to start on the pole, I was happy to do so.”
From the pole, Kollin Hibdon led every lap of the 25-lap feature en route to his first win of 2023. Despite being only 18, it was his 50th career modified win.
The IMCA.TV Winter Nationals continues this weekend at Cocopah Speedway. Hibdon hopes to pick up win No. 2 for the year, and No. 51 for his career, while keeping in mind which No. 48 goes where.
After Cocopah Speedway, he’ll stay in the Southwest, competing in his entry fielded by Dell Arneson, of Fargo, North Dakota.
“I’m looking at Central Arizona Raceway in Casa Grande, and the Workin’ Man [Nationals] in Las Vegas for my next events,” Hibdon said. “Then, I should be ready for the start of the season in the Dakotas.”
(For more on Central Arizona Raceway, read “Central Arizona Raceway to Reopen in November”.)
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.
