Ovadal Again In River’s Edge Farm Market 50!

By Larry Starr

June 17, 2006; Jefferson WI – John Ovadal Jr of Watertown claimed top honors in the “River’s Edge Farm Market” 50 lap Late Model feature. Starting inside row 7, Ovadal started the journey to the checkers as Tony Koepke grabbed the early lead.

Koepke led the way for 33 laps, holding off a strong challenge, by Noel Ramge for much of the way. At on point the battle for the lead opened, nearly, a half lap lead over the field. Caution came, on lap 24, for a crash in turn 3, closing the field for the restart, with Koepke at the point, Ramge 2nd, and Ovadal up to the 5th spot. Ovadal motored past Ken Olson, for 3rd, on lap 30, and claimed 2nd from Ramge on lap 33. Caution came, again, on lap 33, when a pair of cars tangled in turn 2. On the restart, Ovadal moved to the inside, making the winning pass on lap 34. At the stripe it was Ovadal for the win, followed by Doug Hahn, Koepke, Ramge and Jerry Eckhardt.

In Sportsman action Mark Deporter of Fort Atkinson notched the win in the 30 lap Main event. Starting outside row 3, DePorter headed toward the point, as James Helmer jumped to the early lead. Helmer held off DePorter, for 10 laps, before losing the top spot. As DePorter claimed the lead, Mike Heelein was close behind for 2nd. Heelein moved to the inside, launching his bid for the lead, pulling alongside many times, but was never able to seal the deal. As they flew past the checkered flag it was Deporter for the win, followed by Heelein, Scott “Chico” Riedner, Jay Kalbus and Dave Oswald.

In International action Mark English drove from a 12th place start to another feature win, in the 20 lap main. Kyle Smith claimed the early lead, surrendering the point to Mike Bingham on lap 10. Bingham held off English, for 3 laps, before dropping to 2nd. At the finish it was English, followed by Bingham, Mike Winters, Joe Cross and Scotty Hoeft.

In Hobby Stock action Pete Elgas of Janesville claimed top honors in the 20 lap feature. Starting outside row 3 Elgas headed toward the front, as Tim Lange claimed the early lead. Lange led the way for 6 laps, as Elgas made his way to 2nd. Moving to the outside, on lap 6, Elgas motored to the top spot by lap 7. Once at the point Elgas opened up a strong lead, as he showed the way to the checkers. At the stripe it was Elgas for the win, followed by Brett Carson, Johnny Robinson, Ken Au, and Lange.

In Bandit action Ryan Oldenhoff dominated the 20 lap main event, guiding the field flag-to-flag, with Tim Bristol hot on his heels. At the finish it was Oldenhoff for the win followed by Bristol, Rodney Mundt, Bobby Selsing and Jim Remsik.

Selsing set a new track record in qualifying, with a 14.518 second orbit of the Bandit track.

The overall championships, for the Summer Rumble, were: Late Model – Aaron Wilke, Sportsman – Don Trush, Hobby Stock – Jim Robinson and Bandit – Sean Watters.

Next week Smith Motors presents the “Mid-Season Championships” at Wisconsin’s Action Track, featuring a 50 lap Late Model Feature and extended features in all Divisions. Don’t miss Wisconsin’s best Short Track Racers, battling for the season point lead.

Gates open at 2:00PM, qualifying at 4:30PM, and the first Green flag at 7:00 sharp.

Jefferson Speedway is half way between Cambridge and Jefferson on Highway 18. Visit us online at www.jeffersonspeedway.com.

Jefferson Speedway Race Summary – 06/17/2006 Scout Night

Late Model Division Feature Finish
1) 71 John Ovadal Jr (Watertown) 2) 53 Doug Hahn (Whitewater)
3) 32 Tony Koepke (Fort Atkinson) 4) 17 Noel Ramge (Helenville)
5) 61 Jerry Eckhart (Johnson Creek) 6) 18 Andy Wendt
7) 68 Ken Olson (Fort Atkinson) 8) 71 Tim Noble (Janesville)
9) 44 Roger Behlke (Jefferson) 10) 23 Chris Koepke (Jefferson)
11) 4 Chris Quam (Stoughton) 12) 52 April Reimer (Beloit)
13) 33 Dylan Schuyler (Jefferson) 14) 52 Steve Dobbratz
15) 27 Tom Schuette (Fort Atkinson) 16) 16 Luke Westenberg (Watertown)
17) 27 Dan Chesmore 18) 46 Nick Wendt
Fast Qualifier: 27 Dan Chesmore : 14.507 seconds
Fast Dash: 71 John Ovadal Jr (Watertown)
LastChance: 52 April Reimer, 46 Nick Wendt, 23 Chris Koepke, 27 Tom Schuette
Heats: Qual1) 52 April Reimer, Qual2) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Qual3) 32 Tony Koepke

International Division Feature Finish
1) 57 Mark English (Janesville) 2) 0 Mike Bingham (Milton)
3) 77 Mike Winters (Sun Prairie) 4) 67 Joe Cross (Sun Prairie)
5) 00 Scotty Hoeft (Watertown) 6) 61 Chris Gottschalk (Jefferson)
Fast Qualifier: 00 Scotty Hoeft (Watertown) : 16.725 seconds
Fast Dash: 57 Mark English (Janesville)
LastChance: 05 Ashley Smith, 99 Keryn Hopwood, 27 James Bell, 01 Brent Berkholtz
Heats: Qual1) 05 Ashley Smith, qual2) 0 Mike Bingham

Sportsman Division Feature Finish
1) 28 Mark DePorter 2) 8 Michael Heelein (Fort Atkinson)
3) 26 Scott Riedner (Waunakee) 4) 27 Jay Kalbus (Watertown)
5) 31 David Oswald (Cottage Grove) 6) 41 Dick Reents (Portage)
Fast Qualifier: 27 Jay Kalbus (Watertown) : 15.180 seconds
Fast Dash: 26 Scott Riedner (Waunakee)
LastChance: 8 Shaun Scheel, 1 Jody Krueger, 20 Kody Hubred, 9 Craig Kleinsteiber
Heats: Qual1) 20 Kody Hubred, qual2) 6 Chris Ehrhart, qual3) 2 Eaan Carson

Hobby Stock Division Feature Finish
1) 52 Peter Elgas (Janesville) 2) 62 Bret Carson (Johnson Creek)
3) 99 Johnny Robinson II (Beloit) 4) 31 Ken Au (Jefferson)
5) 96 Tim Lange (Dousman) 6) 60 Chet Paffel (Newerk Township)
Fast Qualifier: 31 Ken Au (Jefferson) : 16.502 seconds
Fast Dash: 99 Johnny Robinson II (Beloit)
LastChance: 56 Randy Strassburg, 29 Mike Manley, 99 Lincoln Keeser, 7 Scott Carson
Heats: Qual1) 5 Jon Bue Ira, qual2) 30 Josh Carson, qual3) 41 Nick Newton

Bandit Division Feature Finish
1) 29 Ryan Oldenhoff 2) 71 Tim Bristol (Watertown)
3) 21 Rodney Mundt 4) 42 Bobby Selsing
5) 98 John Remsik (Watertown) 6) 77 Sean Watters (Sun Prairie)
Fast Qualifier: 42 Bobby Selsing (New Track Record): 14.518 seconds
Fast Dash: 4 Stephen Scheel (Lake Mills)
LastChance: 25 Darren Brown, 22 Brady Lilly, 7 Dennis Johnson Jr, 89 Chad Olds
Heats: heat1) 89 Chad Olds, heat2) 21 Rodney Mundt, heat3) 29 Ryan Oldenhoff,