Johnson Stays Hot at Jefferson Speedway

JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, July 05, 2014) Edgerton’s Casey Johnson maintained his hot streak at Wisconsin’s Action Track on Saturday night. After winning the TUNDRA Super Late Model Series event two weeks ago and winning the 50 lap Late Model feature last week, Johnson combined two top five finishes in the Morrison’s Auto Parts and Glassworks of Wisconsin twin 35 lap features to win the overall title. Helenville’s Brandon Pendleton and Kyle Smith of Lake Mills each took top honors in the two feature events for Jefferson Speedway’s premier division.

John Ovadal Jr and Pendleton paced the field to green in the first 35 lap event with Pendleton taking command on lap one. Ovadal tried to fight back on the low side, but Pendleton maintained control while Noel Ramge moved ahead to battle Ovadal for second. Ramge claimed the spot on lap four as the leaders lined up single file. Alex Papini joined the leaders in the top five on lap 15 as he tried to pick his way toward the front. Papini made it to third behind Ramge on lap 23 as the duo battled for second behind Pendleton. At the checkers, it was Pendleton winning the caution free affair followed by Ramge, Papini, Johnson and Dale Nottestad.

Feature number two got underway with Trent Erdman and Smith making up the front row. Smith grabbed the lead exiting turn four on the opening circuit with Dylan Schuyler up to battle Erdman for second. Schuyler took the runner up position from Erdman on lap five with Zack Riddle in tow for third. Schuyler began to apply pressure to Smith on the point, but Smith kept him at bay as Johnson picked his way into the top five. The first caution of either twin feature slowed the pace on lap 27 when Erdman spun in turn four. As racing resumed, Riddle began to challenge Schuyler for second while Smith continued to show the way. A final caution waved on lap 31 setting up a four lap shootout to the finish. Smith remained steady in the closing laps to see the checkers first and pick up his second feature win of the season. Schuyler finished second with Riddle, Johnson and Nottestad rounding out the top five. With a pair of fourth place finishes, Johnson was crowned the overall winner. Alex Papini took second overall with Nottestad finishing third.

A wild finish to the 30 lap Sportsman feature resulted in Steven Sauer of Waterloo parking in victory lane with the win. Jason Bragg and Adam Bleskan led the field to green with Bragg taking the early lead. Seth Lootans charged alongside Bragg on lap four, clearing for the top spot two laps later with Jay Kalbus in tow. Lootans and Kalbus ran nose to tail while Sauer made his way up to third by the midway point of the race. Kalbus continued to bide his time behind Lootans waiting for the right moment to make his move. That moment came with three laps to go as Kalbus got under Lootans exiting turn two. Kalbus and Lootans raced door to door with Kalbus gaining the advantage entering turn one on the final lap. Using lapped traffic, Kalbus took possession of the lead down the backstretch and into turn three. Lootans charged hard into the corner as they pair made heavy contact exiting turn four. Both drivers slowed to collect their machines allowing Sauer to fire past and cross the stripe first to pick up the win. Terry Wangsness was also able to get by and claim second with Jim Tate Jr in tow for third. Kalbus came home fourth followed by Lootans in fifth.

Watertown’s Chris Chenoweth captured the victory in the 20 lap International feature event. Neil Higgins took the lead on lap one from the pole with Joe Cross up to second. John Handeland took second away from Cross on lap eight with Seth Reamer in his tracks for third. Mike Lambert joined Reamer as they fought for third on lap 13. A lap later, Lambert and Chenoweth slipped past Reamer and Handeland for second and third respectively. The two competitors raced wheel to wheel as they both closed in on Higgins at the front. Chenoweth and Lambert caught the leader with two laps to go as Chenoweth slid up next to Higgins. The duo remained side by side over the final two laps with Chenoweth barely nipping Higgins at the line by inches for the win. Higgins settled for second followed by Lambert, Reamer and Handeland.

Cody Buchs of Mazomanie scored the win in the 25 lap Hobby Stock main event. Boyd Eichelkraut led lap one from the pole with Jeff LeFave up to second. LeFave moved past Eichelkraut to take over first on lap two as Buchs charged into third. Buchs got by Eichelkraut for second on lap six with Bobby Selsing Jr following into third a lap later. Buchs went to work on LeFave for the top spot on lap eight, completing the pass two laps later with Selsing still in his tracks for second. Selsing began searching for a path around the new leader, but Buchs kept him in his rear view mirror. Selsing began to fade in the closing laps allowing Buchs to drive off to the win. Selsing finished second followed by Dustin Ward, Dylan Buckingham and Phil Wuesthoff.

Jefferson’s Chris Gottschalk dominated the 20 lap Road Warrior feature to get the win. Matthew Melchiori and Tom Dorn led the field to green as they battled side by side early on. On lap four, Gottschalk split the difference on the two front row starters to grab control of the lead. Gottschalk immediately began to separate himself from the pack as Bill Sweeney pulled into second. Gottschalk continued to flex his muscle out front while Sweeney tried to hold off Bill Reynolds for second. Reynolds made the pass with five laps to go, but Gottschalk was already well on his way to picking up the win. Reynolds came home second followed by Sweeney, Craig Henning and Kenny Storkson.

Trent Rueth of Jefferson claimed the 15 lap Bandit feature event. Adam Schook took the initial lead on lap one with Rueth already up to second. Rueth charged under Schook on lap two as they fought door to door for the top spot. Rueth claimed the position on lap three as Josh Marx moved into third. Marx motored past Schook for second with Nick Schmidt eventually following into third. Rueth cruised over the remaining laps to see the checkers first for the win. Marx was second with Schmidt, Brandon DeLacy and Schook completing the top five.

Next Saturday, July 12, is a full program of racing sponsored by Tired Iron Promotions. Time trials begin at 5pm with racing at 7pm. Jefferson Speedway is located halfway between Jefferson and Cambridge on Hwy 18. Please visit www.jeffersonspeedway.com for more information.

Jefferson Speedway Race Summary-

Late Model-

Feature #1 Results- 1) Brandon Pendleton, Helenville 2) Noel Ramge, Helenville 3) Alex Papini, Machesney Park (IL) 4) Casey Johnson, Edgerton 5) Dale Nottestad, Cambridge 6) John Ovadal Jr, Watertown 7) Michael Grueneberg, Madison 8) Zack Riddle, Stoughton 9) Chris Quam, Stoughton 10) Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 11) Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 12) Trent Erdman, Fort Atkinson 13) Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 14) Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 15) Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 16) Tory Bagley, Stoughton 17) Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 18) Steve Dobbratz, Rio

Feature #2 Results- 1) Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 2) Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 3) Zack Riddle, Stoughton 4) Casey Johnson, Edgerton 5) Dale Nottestad, Cambridge 6) Alex Papini, Machesney Park (IL) 7) Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 8) Chris Quam, Stoughton 9) Noel Ramge, Helenville 10) John Ovadal Jr, Watertown 11) Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 12) Michael Grueneberg, Madison 13) Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 14) Tory Bagley, Stoughton 15) Steve Dobbratz, Rio 16) Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 17) Brandon Pendleton, Helenville 18) Trent Erdman, Fort Atkinson

Overall Finish Results- 1) Casey Johnson, Edgerton 2) Alex Papini, Machesney Park (IL) 3) Dale Nottestad, Cambridge 4) Zack Riddle, Stoughton 5) Noel Ramge, Helenville

Fast Qualifier- Zack Riddle—14.389 seconds

Consi- Tyler Peterson, Andy Brocker, Kyle Taylor

Last Chance- Jerry Eckhardt, Steve Dobbratz, Tory Bagley, Luke Westenberg

Heat Winners- 1) Tyler Peterson 2) Chuck Duncan 3) Brandon Pendleton 4) Alex Papini

Sportsman-

Feature Results- 1) Steven Sauer, Waterloo 2) Terry Wangsness, Jefferson 3) Jim Tate Jr, Deforest 4) Jay Kalbus, Whitewater 5) Seth Lootans, Kenosha 6) Mark Deporter, Fort Atkinson 7) Jason Thoma, Jefferson 8) Tim Coley, Madison 9) Jim Taylor, Stoughton 10) Jason Bragg, Machesney Park (IL) 11) Adam Bleskan, Menomonee Falls 12) Robert Hansberry Sr, Beloit 13) Jason Kubicz, Whitewater 14) Tony Ciano, Janesville 15) Mike Storkson, Evansville

Fast Qualifier- Steven Sauer—15.155 seconds

Heat Winners- 1) Robert Hansberry Sr 2) Seth Lootans

International-

Feature Results- 1) Chris Chenoweth, Watertown 2) Neil Higgins, Watertown 3) Mike Lambert, Madison 4) Seth Reamer, Waupun 5) John Handeland, Belleville 6) Merek Pankow, Jefferson 7) Dan Birkett, Jefferson 8) Joe Cross, Sun Prairie 9) Jason Uttech, Watertown 10) Keith Bell, Brodhead 11) Josh Lenz, Lake Mills 12) Aaron Randle, Jefferson

Fast Qualifier- Mike Lambert—16.422 seconds

Heat Winners- 1) Keith Bell 2) John Handeland

Hobby Stock-

Feature Results- 1) Cody Buchs, Mazomanie 2) Bobby Selsing Jr, Edgerton 3) Dustin Ward, Waterloo 4) Dylan Buckingham, Whitewater 5) Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 6) Jeff LeFave, Fort Atkinson 7) AJ Lloyd, Loves Park (IL) 8) Lucas Buckingham, Whitewater 9) Jim Wolf, Watertown 10) Boyd Eichelkraut, Stoughton 11) Jared Vike, Columbus 12) Josh Courtney, Madison 13) Gary Paulick, Union Grove 14) Robert Myher, S.Beloit (IL) 15) Garrett Goulder, Fort Atkinson 16) Kevin Henderson, Waterford 17) Ed Hayes, Fort Atkinson

Fast Qualifier- Dustin Ward—15.784 seconds

Heat Winners- 1) Jim Wolf 2) Dylan Buckingham

Road Warrior-

Feature Results- 1) Chris Gottschalk, Jefferson 2) Bill Reynolds, Watertown 3) Bill Sweeney, Edgerton 4) Craig Henning, Helenville 5) Kenny Storkson, Evansville 6) Matthew Melchiori, Milwaukee 7) Chad Olds, Whitewater 8) Brian Gottschalk, Jefferson 9) Tom Dorn, Fort Atkinson 10) Rodger Stephenson, Cambridge 11) Mike Storkson, Evansville 12) Scott Hoeft, Watertown

Fast Qualifier- Chris Gottschalk—16.732 seconds

Heat Winners- 1) Scott Hoeft 2) Bill Reynolds

Bandit-

Feature Results- 1) Trent Rueth, Jefferson 2) Josh Marx, Dousman 3) Nick Schmidt, Oak Creek 4) Brandon DeLacy, Fort Atkinson 5) Adam Schook, Whitewater 6) Heather Stark, Sun Prairie 7) Tyler Deporter, Fort Atkinson 8) Dennis Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 9) Paul Reagles, Colgate 10) Noah Pankow, Jefferson 11) Sueter Bennett, Franksville 12) Mike Bleecker, Lake Mills

Fast Qualifier- Brandon DeLacy—17.192 seconds

Heat Winners- 1) Trent Rueth 2) Nick Schmidt