Erickson Takes Rivers Edge Farm Market 50
By Andrew Schaller
August 16, 2008; Jefferson WI — Jason Erickson of Fort Atkinson stated his case for title contention by getting his first feature win of the 2008 season in the Rivers Edge Farm Market 50 lap Late Model feature. Erickson closed the gap on the pair of drivers ahead of him in the standings and made it a three way battle for the championship with little time left in the season. Ty James and Allen Petrie paced the field of 18 competitors to the green with James taking early control of the event as they crossed the stripe to complete lap one.
Petrie fell in behind the leader as they raced to the first of five cautions on lap nine. After the restart, John Ovadal moved into the top five and began making his way to the front. After restarting from the second caution period, Ovadal dove to the inside to take away the third spot from Dylan Schuyler. A lap later, Ovadal was by Petrie for second and setting his sights on James for the top spot. Ovadal hunted the leader until finally catching him on lap 24. He shot to the inside of James and the two touched exiting turn four resulting in flat tires for both drivers and ending their evenings early. This handed the lead over to Petrie with Casey Johnson in second and Erickson lurking in fourth. As the green returned, Johnson took the point away from Petrie while Erickson was looking to get by Scott Lindsay and move forward. Erickson got to third on lap 33 and made quick work of Petrie for second. Erickson charged to the rear bumper of Johnson and dove to the inside of the leader. The duo battled side by side until Erickson gained control of the top position with only three laps remaining. Erickson motored to the stripe for the win followed by Johnson, Lindsay, Steve Dobbratz and Bob Kahler.
Janesville’s Tom Reents defended his position as Sportsman point leader by winning the 30 lap feature event over fellow title contender Dave Oswald. Shaun Scheel and Mike Acheson battled at the start as the two drivers raced wheel to wheel for the opening laps with Reents lurking in third. Scheel took control on lap three and brought Reents with him in second. Reents sized up the leader for a couple laps until making his move on lap seven. Reents worked the inside of Scheel, eventually taking the lead on lap 11. Oswald used the door opened by Reents to follow into second and begin shadowing the leader. Oswald followed in Reents footprints waiting for him to make a mistake. But Reents stayed solid on his way to the checkers for the win. Rounding out the top five were Oswald, Tory Bagley, Scheel and Acheson.
In International action, Kyle Smith of Lake Mills took top honors in the 20 lap feature event. Brandon Pendleton shot into the lead at the drop of the green with Scott Hoeft falling in line behind him for second. Smith went right to work on Hoeft, getting by for the spot on lap six. Smith started to reel in the leader, pulling up to his bumper on lap 12 and moving to his inside a lap later. They fought side by side until Smith finally gained control of the lead with only four laps to go. Smith cruised on to take the win followed by Pendleton, Hoeft, Matt McKinney and Joe Cross.
Johnson Creek’s Zac Schmidt claimed his first career feature victory in the 25 lap Hobby Stock main event. Battling through two early cautions, Schmidt and Greg Pruitt lead the field to green with Pruitt taking a slight lead into turn one. Schmidt battled back on the inside, taking the position for himself on lap five. Schmidt began to stretch his lead while Kyle Stark made his way into second with Tim Lange third. Schmidt maintained his advantage while Stark tried to hold off Lange. As the laps wound down, Stark got loose in turn four allowing Lange to slip by for second. But Schmidt was too far ahead for Lange to catch as they flew to the checkers. It was Schmidt for the win with Lange, Jimmy Robinson, Stark, and Dustin Ward completing the top five.
Barrett Hammond of Minneapolis, MN got his first career feature win by capturing the 20 lap Bandit feature race. Heather Stark and Hammond lead the pack to green with Stark taking the point early on. Hammond followed Stark around the speedway, looking for an opportunity to get by for the lead. Caution slowed the field on lap 9, and as the green flew once again, Hammond started to look to the outside of Stark for the lead. Hammond couldn’t make the high groove work, so he sliced back to the inside of the leader, pulling even on lap 11. Hammond cleared for the position and began to check out from the field while Stark slipped into the pack. Hammond cruised to the win followed by Travis Schneeberg, Tommy Pfeifer, Tony Ciano and Dave Schmidt.
Next Saturday, August 23, is Winners Circle Challenge night along with a full program of racing. Feature winners from the past year will compete for prestige and bragging rights in these very competitive events. Highlighting the regular racing program will be the Watertown Bowl 50 lap Late Model feature. Time trials begin at 5:00 with racing at 7 pm sharp. Jefferson Speedway is located halfway between Jefferson and Cambridge on Hwy 18. For more information, please visit www.jeffersonspeedway.com.
Jefferson Speedway Race Summary
Late Model-
Rivers Edge Farm Market 50 Feature Results- 1) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 2) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 3) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 4) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 5) 7 Bob Kahler, Belvidere, IL 6) 12 Allen Petrie, Sun Prairie 7) 16 Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 8) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 9) 61 Jerry Eckhart, Johnson Creek 10) 99 Doug Hahn, Whitewater 11) 41 Mike Taylor, Stoughton 12) 44 Roger Behlke, Jefferson 13) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 14) 13 Andy Brocker, Jefferson 15) 71 John Ovadal, Watertown 16) Ty James, Oconomowoc 17) 38 Rob Somers 18) 3 Chuck Duncan, Milwaukee
Fast Qualifier- 94 Jason Erickson—14.262 seconds
Last Chance- 38 Rob Somers, 13 Andy Brocker, 99 Doug Hahn, 41 Mike Taylor
Heat Winners- 1) 38 Rob Somers 2) 33 Dylan Schuyler 3) 52 Steve Dobbratz
Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 42 Tom Reents, Janesville 2) 31 Dave Oswald, Cottage Grove 3) 52 Tory Bagley, McFarland 4) 8 Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 5) 82 Mike Acheson, Johnson Creek 6) 7 James Helmer, Oconomowoc
Fast Qualifier- 52 Tory Bagley—15.279 seconds
Last Chance- 7 Kyle Watters, 83 James Assmann, 36 RC Van Ramsel, 86 Justin Schultz
Heat Winners- 1) 20 Kody Hubred 2) 19 Dan Schmidt
International-
Feature Results-1) 90 Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 2) 21 Brandon Pendleton 3) 00 Scott Hoeft, Jefferson 4) 95 Matt McKinney 5) 67 Joe Cross 6) 35 Gary Stark, Sun Prairie
Fast Qualifier- 57 Mark English—16.541 seconds
Last Chance- 5 Peter Shelley, 194 Tommy Pfeifer, 66 Neil Higgins, 07 Ken Hoff
Heat Winners- 1) 3 Shawn Gunsolas 2) 66 Neil Higgins 3) 61 Chris Gottschaulk
Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 19 Zac Schmidt, Johnson Creek 2) 96 Tim Lange 3) 33 Jimmy Robinson, Orfordville 4) 92 Kyle Stark, Lake Mills 5) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 6) 27 Jim Tate, Watertown
Fast Qualifier- 96 Tim Lange—16.540 seconds
Last Chance- 27 Jim Tate, 88 Roger Stephenson, 41 Nick Newton, 07 Joey Thomas
Heat Winners- 1) 41 Nick Newton 2) 19 Zac Schmidt 3) 96 Alan Dorn
Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 19 Barrett Hammond 2) 75 Travis Schneeberg 3) 57 Tommy Pfeifer 4) 86 Tony Ciano 5) 10 Dave Schmidt 6) 81 Jeff LeFave
Fast Qualifier- 57 Tommy Pfeifer—14.385 seconds
Last Chance- 90 Tytus Helgestad, 76 Al Stillman, 29 Waylin Willman, 82 Mark Dewey
Heat Winners- 1) 90 Tytus Helgestad 2) 82 Mark Dewey 3) 86 Tony Ciano