Welcome to MATTHARMS53H.COM the online home of Sprint Car Driver Matt Harms. Matt races for D&M Racing in the Sprint Invaders race circuit.

Points Update: We remain 6th in Points following the Season Championship.

September 26, 2009 - D&M Racing ran the Season Championship with the Sprint Invaders at 34 Raceway in Burlington Iowa. Things didn't turn out as good as we would have liked due to possibly out thinking ourselves. In the heat race we started 4th and finished 6th due to a tight handling race car. We didn't make any changes for the Storm Steel Super Dash which we got to run for our 100% participation with the Sprint Invaders and Owner Points, but still the car was tight. We started 5th and finished 6th. We thought the track would change to suit our car but it didn't. The same would be true in the A main feature. We loosened the car up slightly, but it was still way too tight. We started 17th and finished 16th. If we could do it over again, we would've just used the same setup we had in practice which was working really well and we would not have tightened the car up at all. All in all, at least we learned something, and we were able to maintain our 6th position in Driver Points, and 7th position in Owner Points. We'll see you all at the Awards Banquet on November 7th!

September 18, 2009 - We raced at the Farley Speedway in Farley IA for the first time with the Sprint Invaders. We started the heat race 4th and finished 6th due to trying something new with the chassis setup that didn't work out too well. We got it dialed in better for the A main though, and came from 19th to 10th in the A main. I think if I had a little better starting spot I could've finished in the top 5, the car was rolling the corners that well! We hope to see you all this Saturday night at the Season Championship at 34 Raceway in Burlington IA!

September 13, 2009 - On the final night we ran at Quincy Raceway in Quincy IL. We would once again finish 3rd in the heat race and start the A main on the inside of the 4th row. We had a really good race car which we had setup to be fast at the end of the 25 lap feature, but it wasn't to be. We made contact with another car 6 or 7 laps into the feature running 7th and punctured a left front tire and bent the front axle. It was disappointing, but we were happy to finally find a setup that the chassis seemed to really work well with. We'll have everything ready to rock n roll for the race at the 1/2 mile Farley Speedway in IL on Friday night!

September 12, 2009 - On Saturday September 12th we were at Spoon River Speedway in Canton IL for the Tom Knowles Memorial. We had a lot better draw and started the heat race on the pole. We held onto 2nd for a while but finished 3rd in the heat race due to having the engine set too rich. The engine had quite a stumble and pop off the corner and all the way down the straightaway. We were happy to make the A main on night 2 with 31 insanely fast cars again in attendance with the Sprint Invaders. We tried a whole different torsion bar package and it was seeming to work pretty well. In the feature we held our own to finish 11th on a pretty fast rubber down track in the A main.

September 11, 2009 - On Friday September 11th we started night 1 of a 3 night in a row race weekend with the Ideal Ready Mix Sprint Invaders. We drew the last row for our heat race at Morgan County Speedway in Jacksonville IL for the Herb Barlow Memorial. Along with a bad draw we also had an ill handling race car in the heat race which would relegate us to the B main after a 6th place finish in the heat race. This made for a tough night due to there being 29 really fast cars assembled in Jacksonville. We made some changes for the B main, but it didn't quite get the job done. We finished 9th in the B main and they only took 4. We tried hard, but just never found the sweet spot on the handling on Friday night.

September 9, 2009 - D&M Racing took to Columbus Junction Speedway for another round with the Sprint Invaders. We would start the heat race 4th and finished 5th on a pretty racy track. In the feature we would start 12th and we were able to salvage a 10th at the end of the night. We've got the fueling of the engine a little better this week, than we did last weekend at West Liberty, but it's still not quite right. We've got some other tricks up our sleeves, and we have our notes from last year. We'll get the engine dialed in again, we want a top 3 before the year is out! Hope to see you all at the races this weekend for a triple header starting on Friday night at Jacksonville IL for the Herb Barlow Memorial, Saturday at Spoon River IL for the Tom Knowles Memorial, and Sunday night at Quincy IL Raceway. Be sure to check Sprintinvaders.com for live updates from the races!

August 29, 2009 - D&M Racing raced at the 1/2 mile West Liberty Speedway. We started the heat race in the 2nd row inside and finished 4th in the heat race. We would start the A main 8th and finished 13th. We had a decent chassis setup, but the things we tried for the feature the with high speed bypass left the engine way too rich on the bottom end of the RPM curve. The high speed was coming on way too late, making the car sluggish coming out of the corner. Oh well, the only way you learn new things on a race car is to try new things. Some of the best things you can learn on a race car is learning what NOT to do. Dad and I enjoyed having Shawn Robertson and his family and friends with us in the pits at the races. The more the merrier at the racetrack!

August 27, 2009 - D&M Racing has just received a 410 engine due to the trade of our spare 360 engine. We will follow the full Sprint Invaders schedule in 2010, but we run enough 410 shows with our 360 that owning a 410 seemed to make sense. We will run the full Sprint Invaders schedule, and select Midwest All Star Series, and non-wing shows in 2010 with the 410 engine. It isn't 100% clear at this time whether we will have the financial means to have a car for the 360 and the 410, or whether we will just have 1 car and swap engines. D&M Racing is always open to entertain any sponsorship opportunities! Stay posted for any news regarding whether we will be able to get the 410 out yet this year in 2009!

August 22, 2009 - We were at 34 Raceway in Burlington IA for the Sprint Invaders "Twin Features Night." We had a bad draw, putting us in the last row of the heat race in 7th position. With a lot of good guys in the heat race on a fairly heavy track, we would finish the heat race in 6th place setting us up for a long night. Forcing us to run the B main to qualify for the A mains. We would start the B main in the 9th position, but we did have a good setup on the car. With the help of a yellow flag and one red flag, I was able to bring the car home 4th with almost a 3rd on the last lap. In the first 20 lap feature, we started 19th and finished 16th. We were a little loose and starting in the very back of the field didn't help. In the 2nd 20 lap feature, we started 16th and had a little better setup on the car and were passing some cars. We ended up finishing the 2nd 20 lap feature 9th. I can't say how good I felt making it into the show for the Twin Features. Missing out on 2 features in one night would have absolutely killed any chance of finishing in the top 10 in points. We were 9th in points coming into the weekend, and after D&M Racing's hard work, we came out of the weekend 8th in points!

August 21, 2009 - We were at Jacksonville IL for another Sprint Invaders race. We had a good draw, putting us on the outside of row 1 for the heat race. At the drop of the green flag, I was leading the heat race with the rest of the field right on my rear bumper. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of slamming the cushion a little too aggressively on a heavy and rough track and causing us to loose some track position. I would finish the heat race in 5th place. In the feature, we started 11th and finished 12th. The track was quite rough and rutty all night and I was glad to be able to hang on to keep the car around the top 10 for the A main.

August 20, 2009 - Sprint Invaders have added a few dates to the remainder of the season. A date this weekend at Morgan County Speedway and one on Sep. 18 at Farley Speedway have been added. Check out the Schedule for more details.

August 5, 2009 - D&M Racing regrets to announce that we will not be participating in the 2009 360 Nationals due to financial reasons. We don't feel we have the funds necessary to "bring the guns loaded" to the Nationals and keep the equipment to the level it needs to be to keep ourselves competitive with the Sprint Invaders for the rest of the year. Tires and hotel rooms for add up and we want to keep our eye on the prize for Sprint Invaders points. We wish all of the drivers luck, especially our fellow Sprint Invaders competitors, at the 360 Nationals. We will be racing at Danville, Il on Saturday night August 8th.

July 20, 2009 - D&M Racing raced with the Sprint Invaders at Quincy Raceway. We once again didn't get a very good draw for the heat race, but that was no problem for a good handling race car. We were able to come from 7th to 4th in the heat race starting us 11th in the A main feature event. We were able to hang on to 12th after the checkered flag flew in 25 laps in a very stacked field of cars that were assembled in Quincy on Sunday night. We were proud to have a respectable run, and hope to build on that on get some even better finishes yet this year! It was also very nice to have my girlfriend Kathie's family in attendance to see the race and visit in the pits after the races!

July 9-10, 2009 - D&M Racing was slated for a double header with the Ideal Ready Mix Sprint Invaders at Cedar County Raceway in Tipton IA, and Lee County Speedway in Donnellson IA on Thursday July 9th and Friday July 10th.

Thursday night we started the heat race 4th and slipped to 6th due to a mistake I made on the first corner of the first lap. After everybody got going everyone was pretty much going the same speed which wasn't inducive to passing. We would start the A main 20th and we managed to get by some guys for 15th.

On Friday night I felt we had a pretty good car. We had a rough draw, drawing the last row for the heat race starting 8th. We got by a two cars for 6th on a very heavy and wide open race track due to all of the rain Donnellson received. We started the feature 15th and had an outstanding car. By the time we got through turns 1 and 2 on the start of the race I had already passed 4 or 5 cars and was right on the rear bumper of the 3 guys in front of me. Unfortunately, two of those cars in front of me got together and I tried to clear them with no luck. I ended up clipping one of the cars slightly and tore up the front axle and pretty much every bolt on part on the left side of the car. I was pretty disappointed because like I said I had a rocket under me for the feature, and I didn't get a chance to prove it. We'll get the car fixed up and ready to roll for Sunday night at Quincy Raceway with the Sprint Invaders!

June 28, 2009 - We ran with the Invaders at East Moline Raceway. Things started out kinda rough for us, the rear axle snapped in two in hot laps. I'm very thankful though that I was just starting to roll my foot into the gas pedal when it broke, and I was on the straightaway and not in the corner. That could've ended up in a nasty crash! We had the front row outside for the heat race, but we were unable to start the heat race due to changing rear ends, and fixing all the other things that got broken or bent when the axle broke. Big thanks to Matt Rodgerson for the parts; Andy Huston (and Crew) for the help; and Jeff and Shawn Robertson for serving as the pit crew. 22 cars started the A main, and we started 21st. I raced my way up to 15th. Oh well, we'll keep plugging away like we always do and we'll get the results we're looking for. We're getting the car ready for the 1/2 mile West Liberty Raceway in Iowa on the 4th of July!

June 19, 2009 - Rained out at Spoon River. Reschedule Comming.

June 16, 2009 - We've added some pictures from the Illinois Sprint Week event at Spoon River Speedway. Check them out on the Photos page.

June 10, 2009 - D&M Racing raced at Spoon River Speedway as part of the non-wing Illinois Sprint Week. There was tons of "air" present once again weather wise giving us a lean condition with the engine. This set us back in qualifying and in the heat race, starting us last in the 30 lap A main. We richened up the fuel mixture on the engine and had the chassis dialed in, and were able to climb up from 20th to 12th in the A main. A little bit better starting position and we could have really done something in the A main! We think we found something with the fuel setup on the engine, and we'll start the night off better next time! We hope to see you all again at Spoon River Speedway for the Midwest All Star Series race on Friday June 19th!

June 8, 2009 - We've added a feed for weekly results and D&M Racing Announcements.

June 6, 2009 - We raced at 34 Raceway with the Sprint Invaders. We didn't draw very well for the heat race starting us in the last row on theoutside. We had the engine set a little lean giving us a little hesitation out of the corners. We finished 7th in the heat race starting us 19th in the A main. We had the lean condition fixed after some advice from Manny Rockhold and we were able to salvage a 13th place finish in the A main. The second feature would be the 20 lap non-wing A main, which was the first non-wing race in Sprint Invaders history. We ran 3rd for quite a bit of the race, but after a caution flag, we slipped to 4th. We had a great time running with the wing off at Burlington, and our hats are off the Sprint Invaders and 34 Raceway for trying out such a great idea! We'll see ya this Wednesday, June 10th for some more non-wing action at Spoon River Speedway as part of the Illinois Sprint Week!

May 30, 2009 - D&M Racing once again took the wings off and headed to Danville IL at Vermilion County Speedway for some non wing racing. A fantastic racing surface was present, with plenty of moisture and traction. This might be the only time I'd complain about that. With us having a 360 cubic inch engine under the hood racing against competitors with 410 cubic inch engines in their cars it made for a tough night. We finished 6th in our heat, 2 spots out of a transfer, and 10th in the B main making us ineligible for the A main. We had the car setup pretty good, we just came up a little shy in the horsepower department against some of the best 410 guys USAC has to offer. All is not lost though! We got some good seat time for the non wing show at 34 Raceway in Burlington IA next Saturday. The Sprint Invaders will have double features- one 25 lap winged feature, and then a 20 lap non-winged feature. We can't wait for next Saturday, and we hope to see all of you there!

May 22, 2009 - We raced with the Sprint Invaders at Columbus Junction in Iowa. We had a bad draw for our heat race starting us in the last row on the outside in 8th. We had worked our way up to 3rd when a accident happened in front of us, and I was unable to miss the infield tire that got kicked out on the track. The right rear shock was broken off, and the jacobs ladder was bent, forcing us to the pits. We're just hoping that John Schulz is feeling better after the crash, it was very unfortunate. In the feature we started 14th, and were able to finish 12th on a very rutty racing surface in turns 1 and 2. It was a good points night moving us from 11th to 9th in points!

May 9, 2009 - D&M Racing headed to Danville IL, at Vermilion County Speedway to take on some 410 non wing racing with 27 cars in attendance, 4-5 of which were some of USAC's finest. We again had the 360 under the hood. We were one spot shy of transfering out of the heat race to the A main, again forcing us to run the B main. We were able to transfer out of the B main to start 21st in the A main. We hit the right setup and were able to run from 21st to 14th in the A main against the 410 guys. With a little better starting position in the A main we think we found the setup to run top 10 or better with the 410 non wing guys. We'll be back at Danville before the years out, and we'll try to be even better next time! We felt really good after the race!

May 8, 2009 - D&M Racing took on the IRA 410's with our 360 at 34 Raceway in Burlington. It wasn't the best night we've had. We had a mediocre qualifying run, which put us behind in the heat race lineup. We weren't able to transfer out of the heat race, so we had to run the B main. In the B main we had the car dialed in a little better and were running in the final transfer spot to the A main when taking the white flag we were hit in the rear bumper going into turn 1 by a fellow competitor spinning us out. There weren't enough laps left in the race on the lightning fast track to get into the A main. All was well with the car though, and we learned some things with some experimental engine fuel setups we were trying. The 410 guys are tough, so we didn't have too much to hang our heads about. We'll be in good shape when we take on Burlington again with the 360 guys.

May 4, 2009 - This year's schedule is now available in a downloadable format. Click here to download the file.

April 19, 2009 - D&M Racing finally got the season going. We finished 4th in the heat race with a pretty stout field of cars assembled at 34 Raceway in Burlington IA. In the feature, we started 14th and had worked our way up to about 8th or 9th when we had used up too much of the rear tires and ended up fading to 15th. All in all it was a decent night with a freshly assembled car, and we're looking forward to the rest of the year judging by the handling ability we see with the new chassis. We'll hit as many non-wing and Midwest All Star Series shows as possible when we aren't running at all of the Invaders races. Keep your eye on the 53H in 2009!

3 Wide at 34 Raceway in Burlington, IA

February 26, 2009 - Welcome to 2009. We're getting ready for another season with Sprint Invaders. Construction of this years car is underway and we're looking forward to the first race on April 3 at Morgan County. The Schedule has been updated with our plans for the season. We've updated some of the pictures with some help from Dana Royer. Also, the "Gear" has been updated.

December 14, 2008 - We've worked out a way to start selling merchandise. Please click on the "Gear" link to go to the store.

2008 Season Summary - To sum up the 2008 season, it was the best season I've ever had behind the wheel of a sprint car. Although D&M Racing experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows all in the same year. From the lows of getting rear ended by "Big Brown" while coming home from the races, to the highs of getting my career best finish with the Invaders at West Liberty Speedway with a 2nd place finish.

2008 Updates