The last time Jim Horejsi made the Big Dance at the IMCA Super Nationals? 2001. However, he finally qualified his stock car this year at Boone Speedway.
“It’s the hardest thing in all of racing to make that feature,” Horejsi, of Marshall, Minnesota, said. “Think about it. Nearly 300 evenly equipped cars vying for one of 30 spots in the feature. So much comes into play. They farm the track every 10 races. Conditions depend on when your heat race is scheduled. The track could be greasy, dry slick, one lane, or multiple lanes. Then you have to make it through the qualifying features. Finally, the remainder of spots in the 30-car field comes from the winners of the LCQ races on Saturday. Even some of the heavy hitters have to go home with about 240 other drivers whose week didn’t go their way.”
In 2001, he started the Big Dance middle of the second row–fifth–the first year they went three wide for the green flag. Horejsi finished eighth. This past weekend he started 22nd and finished 14th. While most wouldn’t get excited about a mid-pack finish, the IMCA Super Nationals’ Big Dance isn’t any ordinary race.
“I can’t even explain what this means,” said Horejsi. “Things went completely my way —something that only happens a few times in years of racing. We made it on Night 1! It is an unbelievable feeling locking in to the “Big Dance” on Night 1. It was a giant weight off of our shoulders.”
Jim Horejsi ultimately felt thankful for the opportunity to compete in the Big Dance.
“Where has 24 years gone?” Horejsi said. “I’m blessed — I’m just traveling and having fun. I bring the grandkids, and we’re making friends and memories along the way. Heck, all of the friends I have made in my lifetime have been friends I made in racing. I raised my kids at racetracks, and now my grandkids are growing up at racetracks. I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
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.
