Westenberg Charges to B&M Electric 50 Win
By Andrew Schaller
JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, May 15, 2010) – Jefferson’s Luke Westenberg dominated all 50 laps on his way to winning the B&M Electric 50 at Jefferson Speedway on Saturday night. On an evening in which 144 cars plugged the pit area, Westenberg grabbed control on the first lap and never looked back on his way to victory lane.
Starting alongside Ryan Zielski, Westenberg grabbed the point when Zielski got loose exiting turn four on the opening lap. Jerry Eckhardt also took advantage, moving around Zielski into second a lap later. The first of two cautions waved on lap nine for a multiple car melee in turns three and four. On the restart, Casey Johnson moved into the top five while Westenberg continued to show the way in front. Johnson made his way up to third by lap 16 with Kyle Jarlsberg in tow. Westenberg and Eckhardt opened up a sizeable advantage as the laps ticked away while Johnson and Jarlsberg battled for third. The second caution waved on lap 46 for an incident involving cars toward the end of the lead lap. The accident collected Eckhardt and Jarlsberg as they tried to avoid the wreckage. Both competitors were forced to retire for the evening. Johnson lined up in the runner up spot behind leader Westenberg as the green returned. Johnson applied pressure to the leader, looking for a way past. But Westenberg held strong to the top spot as he crossed the stripe first for the win. Rounding out the top five were Johnson, Doug Hahn, Bob Kahler and Steve Dobbratz.
In Sportsman action, a last lap pass by Watertown’s Bret Schmidt netted him the win in the 30 lap feature event. John Handeland and Mike Winters paced the field to green with Handeland taking the early lead. Winters tried to come back strong on the low side of Handeland. Winters relinquished his challenge on lap seven as Kody Hubred moved up to take over the second spot. Handeland continued to lead as Schmidt made his way into the top five on lap 15. Five laps later, Schmidt was up to fourth and closing on the leader. With only four laps remaining, Schmidt slid into second and set his sights on Handeland. As they came down to the white flag, Schmidt found himself right on Handeland’s rear bumper. Schmidt got a good luck under the leader as they exited turn two and raced down the backstretch. As they came to the line, Schmidt owned a slight advantage to get the win with Handeland settling for second. Hubred, Winters and Phil Denikas completed the top five.
Gary Stark of Sun Prairie lead every lap of the 20 lap International feature on his way to getting the win. Starting on the pole, Stark grabbed the point through turns one and two of the opening lap. Stark immediately began to stretch his advantage with Matt McKinney in second. Stark was never challenged for the top spot as he cruised to the win with McKinney, Rob Lange, Ashley Smith and Chris Gottschalk rounding out the top five.
Waterloo’s Dustin Ward charged to the front of the pack on his way to claiming the 25 lap Hobby Stock main event. Chester Williams and Kyle Chwala led the field to green. Jimmy Robinson made it a three way battle for the top spot on the first lap with Robinson and Williams emerging side by side for the lead. A lap later, Ward joined the party to once again make it a three way fight. On lap five, Ward found himself in sole possession of the point with Williams right behind in second. Ward continued to extend his lead as the laps ticked away. Steven Sauer made a late race charge toward the front, getting up to second on lap 17. But Ward’s lead was too large for Sauer to close and challenge. At the checkers, it was Ward for the win followed by Sauer, Jim Tate, Johnny Robinson and Kyle Stark.
In Road Warrior action, it was Bill Reynolds taking top honors in the 10 lap feature event. Brett Carson took the initial lead on lap one with Reynolds right behind in second. Reynolds dove under Carson on lap five, looking to lead. A lap later, Reynolds owned the top spot with Carson dropping to second. Reynolds drove off to see the checkers first followed by Carson and Roger Stephenson.
Beaver Dam’s Phil Wuesthoff lead all but the first lap to grab the win of the 20 lap Bandit feature. Brandon Johnson took the early lead on lap one with Wuesthoff moving up to second. On lap two, Wuesthoff drove to the outside of Johnson, clearing with sole possession of the lead on lap six. Wuesthoff immediately opened up a large lead on his way to the win. Following him across the line was Kyle Watters, Jeff LeFave, Devon Dixon and Gary Stark.
Next Saturday, May 23, is a full program in all division highlighted by the Goodyear 50 lap Late Model feature plus the Best Appearing Car contest. 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-
B&M Electric 50 lap Feature Results- 1) 16 Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 2) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 3) 99 Doug Hahn, Whitewater 4) 7 Bob Kahler, Caledonia (IL) 5) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 6) 21 Ryan Zielski, Oconomowoc 7) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 8) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 9) 82 Chad Stevens, Beloit 10) 4 Luke Padfield, Jefferson 11) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 12) 71 Jason Deppe, Waterloo 13) 61 Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 14) 87 Kyle Jarlsberg, Jefferson 15) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 16) 21 Brandon Pendleton, Helenville 17) 11 Trent Erdman, Fort Atkinson 18) 11 Tim Petrie, Fort Atkinson
Fast Qualifier- 52 Steve Dobbratz—14.268 seconds
Consy- 16 Tyler Peterson, 55 Joe Pecaro
Last Chance- 71 Jason Deppe, 11 Tim Petrie, 11 Trent Erdman, 21 Brandon Pendleton
Heat Winners- 1) 41 Mike Taylor 2) 21 Brandon Pendleton 3) 81 Don Gaserude 4) 21 Ryan Zielski
Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 20 Bret Schmidt, Watertown 2) John Handeland, Jefferson 3) 20 Kody Hubred, Utica 4) 77 Mike Winters, Sun Prairie 5) 7 Phil Denikas, Columbus 6) 71 Jason Dunn, Sun Prairie
Fast Qualifier- 7 James Helmer- 15.144 seconds
Last Chance- 27 Tom Schuette, 82 Mike Acheson, 14 Andy Raley, 4 Jim Taylor
Heat Winners- 1) 14 Andy Raley 2) 71 Jason Dunn
International-
Feature Results- 1) 35 Gary Stark, Madison 2) 95 Matt McKinney, Fort Atkinson 3) 135 Rob Lange, Helenville 4) 05 Ashley Smith, Lake Mills 5) 61 Chris Gottschalk, Jefferson 6) 26 Mike Lambert, Madison
Fast Qualifier- 57 Mark English—16.473 seconds
Last Chance- 90 Kyle Smith, 74 Scott Uttech, 11 Jason Kubicz, 5 Peter Shelley
Heat Winners- 1) 83 Devin Wild 2) 95 Matt McKinney 3) 35 Gary Stark
Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 2) 11 Steven Sauer, Waterloo 3) 27 Jim Tate, Watertown 4) 99 Johnny Robinson, Beloit 5) 92 Kyle Stark, Waterloo 6) 22 Chester Williams, Waukesha
Fast Qualifier- 99 Johnny Robinson—16. 407 seconds
Last Chance- 88 Roger Stephenson, 241 Ed Klug, 86 Tony Ciano, 49 Buck Stultz
Heat Winners- 1) 241 Ed Klug 2) 39 Ken Scott 3) 9 Dustin Ward
Road Warrior-
Feature Results- 1) 6 Bill Reynolds 2) 7 Brett Carson, Jefferson 3) 88 Roger Stephenson, Jefferson 4) 71 Dave Gigl
Fast Qualifier- 6 Bill Reynolds—17.364 seconds
Heat Winner- 7 Brett Carson
Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 99 Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 2) 48 Kyle Watters, Stoughton 3) 81 Jeff LeFave, Fort Atkinson 4) 111 Devon Dixon 5) 20 Gary Stark, Madison 6) 2 Keaton Hubred, Utica
Fast Qualifier- 13 Brandon Condroski—14.447 seconds
Consy- 43 Mitch Brockway, 11 Cory Jansen
Last Chance- 02 Michelle Heimann, 61 Chris Gottschalk, 36 Erik Bennett, 62 Eaan Carson
Heat Winners- 1) 43 Mitch Brockway 2) 09 Nick Schmidt 3) 61 Chris Gottschalk 4) 99 Phil Wuesthoff
