Schuyler Scores at Season Opener
By Andrew Schaller
JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, April 30, 2011) Jefferson’s “Thrillin” Dylan Schuyler lived up to his moniker on Saturday night at Jefferson Speedway. Rocketing out from his front row starting spot, Schuyler dominated the Late Model feature en route to claiming the Goodyear Spring Sizzler 50 lap main event.
Schuyler grabbed control on the opening lap from fellow front row starter Jason Hicks with Ryan Zielski following into the second spot on lap two. Zielski wasted little time as he began to pressure Schuyler on the low side for the top position. His efforts were slowed as caution waved on lap six after Doug Hahn made hard contact with the back stretch wall. As racing resumed, Zielski once again dove under the leader looking to make his move. Zielski pulled even for the top spot on lap ten with Jerry Eckhardt watching from third. Schuyler regained sole possession of the lead on lap 17 with Zielski riding in his tracks. John Ovadal moved into the top three on lap 26 with Jason Erickson in tow for fourth. Schuyler continued to show the way as Ovadal and Erickson battled for third. As the checkers flew, it was Schuyler for the win with Zielski in second. Erickson nipped Ovadal for third at the stripe with Steve Dobbratz rounding out the top five.
Jay Kalbus of Madison motored to the front and ran away with the 30 lap Sportsman feature event. Scott Riedner and Adam Bleskan led the field to green with Riedner gaining control on lap two. Jason Dunn followed Riedner into second with Kalbus already up to third by lap five. Kalbus looked to get past Dunn for second just as the first of two cautions waved over the field on lap eight. On the restart, Dunn began to apply pressure to Riedner with Kalbus charging to the outside. Kalbus cleared for second and immediately dove under Riedner on lap 11. Kalbus completed the pass in turn four and started to pull away from the pack as Jason Thoma entered into a battle with Riedner for second. Thoma claimed the position on lap 17 as Kalbus’ lead continued to grow. Caution on lap 21 erased the advantage the Kalbus was enjoying, but as racing resumed, Kalbus was too much to handle and he cruised to the win. Completing the top five were Thoma, Riedner, Dunn and Mark DePorter.
Waterloo’s Kyle Stark took control midway through the 20 lap International feature and never looked back on his way to the win. Travis Schneeberg grabbed the initial lead on lap one with Neil Higgins following into second. Higgins quickly maneuvered past Schneeberg into the lead on lap three with Matt McKinney in tow for second. Stark found himself in the top five and moving forward by lap five. By lap eight, Stark was in third and looking to get by McKinney. Stark made the pass for second on lap nine as he set his sights on Higgins in front. A lap later, Stark moved to the low side exiting turn four under Higgins. Stark cleared for the top spot on lap 11 as he immediately began to stretch his lead. Kyle Smith made his way to second by lap 13, but Stark was too strong to catch. At the stripe, it was Stark by a large advantage over Smith, Gary Stark, Higgins and Casey Strese.
Dustin Ward of Waterloo capped an exciting finish of the 25 lap Hobby Stock main event by getting his first win of the 2011 season. Jamie Dunn and Jim Wolf paced the field to green with Dunn taking control out of turn two on the opening circuit. Chester Williams made his way to second on lap two as he began to pressure Dunn. On lap four, Dunn got crossed up exiting turn four. Dunn spun down the front stretch to bring out the sole caution of the race. Williams inherited the top spot for the restart with Larry Moen filling up his rear view mirror. As the green returned, Moen quickly made his move around Williams for the lead, claiming the spot on lap six. Meanwhile, Steven Sauer and Ward were making their way through the pack and into the top five. On lap 14 Ward, Williams and Sauer made it a three wide fight for the second spot as Ward emerged with the position. Ward began to close on Moen as the laps wound down. With three laps remaining, Ward drove to the outside of the leader, pulling even for the top spot. Ward completed the pass on lap 23 as he charged to the checkers for the win. Moen settled for second followed by Jim Tate, Sauer and Williams.
In Road Warrior action, Bill Reynolds of Watertown picked up where he left off the 2010 season by getting the win in the 10 lap feature event. Kevin and Scott Pauls made up row one at the start with Scott taking control on lap one. Reynolds found himself in third on lap two as he watched Rob Lange and Scott Pauls battle for the lead. On lap three, Lange claimed the point bringing Reynolds along for second. Reynolds made his move for the lead on lap four, taking the position as Lange fell to second. Lange made one more effort to retake the lead on the final lap, but Reynolds held him at bay to grab the win. Lange was second with Scott Pauls, Kevin Pauls and Rory Hardy rounding out the top five.
The final event of the evening was the 20 lap Bandit feature event. Waterloo’s Heather Stark charged to the front of the field to get the victory. Jason Kubicz led the field early with Seth Reamer riding a close second. After a caution on lap two, Kyle Riedner moved under Kubicz to overtake the lead with Reamer and Dave Schmidt in tow. Reamer began to apply heavy pressure to the new leader as Stark sliced her way into the top five. By lap seven, Stark was up to third. Reamer looked to the high side of Riedner allowing Stark to shoot past into second and set her sights on the leader. On lap 14, Stark took the outside groove as she pulled even with Riedner for the top spot. Two laps later, Riedner experienced mechanical difficulties handing the spot to Stark. Stark took control and ran away to the checkers for the win followed by Mitch Brockway, Nick Schmidt, Phil Wuesthoff and Keith Erickson.
Next Saturday night is round two in the 2011 season with racing action in all six divisions. Time trials begin at 5pm with racing at 7pm sharp. 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-
Goodyear Spring Sizzler 50 lap Feature Results- 1) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 2) 21 Ryan Zielski, Oconomowoc 3) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 4) 71 John Ovadal, Watertown 5) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 6) 68 Dan Jung, Slinger 7) 61 Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 8) 51 Dale Nottestad, Cambridge 9) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 10) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 11) 27 Ty James, Oconomowoc 12) 44 Roger Behlke, Jefferson 13) 13 Rob Myers, Hartford 14) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 15) 63 Jason Hicks, Delavan 16) 21 Brandon Pendleton 17) 8 Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 18) 99 Doug Hahn, Whitewater
Fast Qualifier- 52 Steve Dobbratz—14.251 seconds
Last Chance- 29 Scott Lindsay, 51 Dale Nottestad, 13 Rob Myers, 27 Ty James
Consy- 16 Luke Westenberg, 99 Lincoln Keeser
Heat Winners- 1) 77 Bruce Lee 2) 51 Dale Nottestad 3) 29 Scott Lindsay
Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 27 Jay Kalbus, Madison 2) 6 Jason Thoma, Jefferson 3) 26 Scott Riedner, Waunakee 4) 71 Jason Dunn, Sun Prairie 5) 2 Mark DePorter, Fort Atkinson 6) 22 Brady Lilly, Milton 7) 19 Dan Schmidt, Farmington 8) 55 Terry Wangsness, Jefferson 9) 11 Adam Bleskan, Menomonee Falls 10) 51 Kurt Kleven, Deerfield 11) 31 Alex Lee, Columbus 12) 15 Will Rece, Stoughton 13) 75 Rick Coppernoll, Cottage Grove 14) 23 Randy Breunig, Columbus 15) 7 James Helmer, Beaver Dam 16) 36 RC Van Ramsel, Cottage Grove
Fast Qualifier- 23 Randy Breunig—15.008 seconds
Last Chance- 55 Terry Wangsness, 19 Dan Schmidt, 36 RC Van Ramsel, 15 Will Rece
Heat Winners- 1) 19 Dan Schmidt 2) 75 Rick Coppernoll 3) 26 Scott Riedner
International-
Feature Results- 1) 92 Kyle Stark, Waterloo 2) 90 Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 3) 35 Gary Stark, Sun Prairie 4) 66 Neil Higgins, Watertown 5) 23 Casey Strese, Jefferson 6) 95 Matt McKinney, Fort Atkinson 7) 57 Mark English, Edgerton 8) 5 Peter Shelley, Edgerton 9) 26 Mike Lambert, Madison 10) 31 Ken Au, Jefferson 11) 75 Travis Schneeberg, Cottage Grove 12) 29 Waylin Willman, Janesville 13) ONO Keith Bell, Brodhead 14) 6 Dale Smith, Lake Mills 15) 61 Chris Gottschalk, Jefferson 16) 27 James Bell, Brodhead
Fast Qualifier- 35 Gary Stark—16.275 seconds
Last Chance- 29 Waylin Willman, ONO Keith Bell, 61 Chris Gottschalk, 27 James Bell
Heat Winners- 1) 27 James Bell 2) 92 Kyle Stark 3) 35 Gary Stark
Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 2) 10 Larry Moen, Sun Prairie 3) 27 Jim Tate, Watertown 4) 11 Steven Sauer, Waterloo 5) 22 Chester Williams, Waukesha 6) 86 Tony Ciano, Janesville 7) 2 Brent Gergen, Jefferson 8) 77 Sean Watters, Jefferson 9) 22 Kyle Chwala, Lake Mills 10) 39 Ken Scott, Rio 11) 7 Jim Wolf, Waukesha 12) 71 Jamie Dunn, Sun Prairie 13) 49 Buck Stultz, Lake Mills 14) 39 Justin Kumbier
Fast Qualifier- 9 Dustin Ward
Heat Winners- 1) 10 Larry Moen 2) 39 Ken Scott
Road Warrior-
Feature Results- 1) 6 Bill Reynolds, Watertown 2) 135 Rob Lange, Jefferson 3) 18 Scott Pauls, McFarland 4) 78 Kevin Pauls, McFarland 5) 71 Bill Sweeney, Janesville 6) 51 Rory Hardy 7) 88 Tina Stephenson, Cambridge
Fast Qualifier- 6 Bill Reynolds
Heat Winner- 6 Bill Reynolds
Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 93 Heather Stark, Waterloo 2) 43 Mitch Brockway, Ixonia 3) 09 Nick Schmidt, Menomonee 4) 99 Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 5) 03 Keith Erickson, Columbus 6) 37 Seth Reamer, Columbus 7) 111 Devon Dixon, Janesville 8) 13 Taylor Schmude, Cambridge 9) 11 Cory Jansen, Lake Geneva 10) 18 Robby Robinson, Orfordville 11) 31 Michael Heimann, Waunakee 12) 7 Dennis Johnson, Lake Mills 13) 53 Dylan Buckingham, Whitewater 14) 02 Michelle Kriegel, Sun Prairie 15) 1 Kyle Riedner, Waunakee 16) 10 Dave Schmidt, Menomonee 17) 19 Jim Lorang, Stoughton 18) 4D Brandon Riedner, Waunakee
Fast Qualifier- 99 Phil Wuesthoff
Last Chance- 13 Taylor Schmude, 53 Dylan Buckingham, 02 Michelle Kriegel, 18 Robby Robinson
Consy- 98 Felicia Dewey, 57 Tim Lund
Heat Winners- 1) 36 Erik Bennett 2) 16 Josh Lenz 3) 4D Brandon Riedner