Westenberg Finally a Winner

By Andrew Schaller

JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, June 20, 2009) – After playing the bride’s maid in two fantastic finishes recently at Jefferson Speedway, Luke Westenberg of Jefferson finally grabbed the top spot for himself by taking control and winning the Rivers Edge Meat Market 50 lap Late Model feature. Westenberg has been on the verge of grabbing his first win this season at Wisconsin’s Action Track in recent weeks, and seemed to be a man on a mission on this particular Saturday night.

Tony Koepke and Ryan Zielski paced the field of 18 competitors to the drop of the green with Zielski taking the early lead as the crossed the stripe to complete lap one. Chris Quam followed Zielske around Koepke into second. The first of five caution periods appeared on lap four. As the field restarted, Zielski began to stretch his lead with Quam riding in second and Jerry Eckhardt third. Caution number two came when Eckhardt made contact with point leader Jason Erickson and spun to the infield. As the green returned, Zielski again moved away from the pack only to see his lead erased for another caution on lap 20. By this time, Kyle Jarlsberg had worked his mount into second behind the leader. Jarlsberg began working Zielski on the low side, looking to get a run on the leader. After another caution period, Westenberg was on Jarlsberg’s rear bumper and pressuring hard. On lap 32, Westenberg slipped under Jarlsberg and pulled even for second allowing Zielski to open up a large lead. Two laps later, Westenberg was in sole possession of the runner up position and looking to close on the leader. The final caution on lap 38 would allow Westenberg to do just that. As the green flag flew once again, Westenberg began chipping away at Zielski’s lead. With seven laps remaining, Westenberg got a good run on the leader and pulled alongside. A lap later, Westenberg was out front and in control. He cruised to the checkers for the win followed by Zielski, Jarlsberg, Bob Kahler and Steve Dobbratz.

Fort Atkinson’s Kurt Thompson dominated every lap of the 30 lap Sportsman main event to get the win. Starting on the outside of Dan Schmidt, Thompson took control exiting turn two on the opening lap. Shaun Scheel followed Thompson into second with Scott Riedner in tow for third. Scheel took a look to the inside of Thompson each lap through turns one and two, but was unable to sustain his momentum to get by the leader. Meanwhile, Bret Schmidt and Tory Bagley were making their way to the front and into the top five on lap seven. The top five would break away from the rest of the field with Thompson showing the way. Bret Schmidt got a good run around the outside of Riedner to take over third. On lap 24, Schmidt drove hard into turn one and made contact with Scheel, forcing both up the track and allowing Bagley to fire past into second. That allowed Thompson to slip away from the pack slightly and drive off to the win. Rounding out the top five were Bagley, Scheel, Bret Schmidt and Riedner.

Joe Cross of Sun Prairie took advantage of his front row starting spot to lead flag to flag and take the win in the 20 lap International main event. Cross took control down the backstretch on the first lap from pole sitter James Bell. Casey Strese maneuvered into second with Chad Olds right behind in third. Point leader Mark English began shadowing the top five on lap 11, moving to fifth two laps later. English motored through the top five, picking up a position each lap until he was sitting on the rear bumper of Cross in second. With two laps remaining, English dove to the low side of the leader through turns one and two. But as the duo exited the corner, English began to sputter. English regained control in time for one last attempt at the win. But Cross proved strong enough to hold him off and see the checkers first. English finished second followed by Strese, Olds and Bell.

Waunakee’s Kyle Riedner took advantage of a late race gift to grab the win in the 25 lap Hobby Stock feature. Terry Wangsness took the initial lead on the opening lap with Alan McBride following into second. McBride made his move for the lead on lap five, driving past Wangsness on the low side. Meanwhile, Riedner and Johnny Robinson were fighting their way towards the front, moving into second and third behind McBride. On lap 17, Robinson got a good run on the outside and pulled even with McBride into turn one. But as they exited turn two, they touched slightly allowing Riedner to shoot past into the top spot. Riedner took the position and ran away to the checkers for the win followed by Robinson, Dustin Ward, McBride and Jimmy Robinson.

Brandon Johnson of Avalon was another benefactor of a front row starting spot, winning the 20 lap Bandit feature from the outside of row one. Johnson took control on the opening circuit with Scott Pauls moving into second. The pair raced nose to tail as they began to encountered heavy lapped traffic midway through the event. As they weaved through traffic, Kyle Watters and Travis Schneeberg were charging through the field and into the top five. As the laps wound down, Watters caught the leaders and motored past Pauls into second. But Johnson maintained his advantage during the closing laps to take the win. Watters, Pauls, Schneeberg and Dennis Johnson rounded out the top five.

Next Saturday, June 27, is Mid Season Championship Night at Jefferson Speedway. Come and see some great racing action as drivers state their case for the 2009 crown by kicking off the second half of the season with a win. 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-
Rivers Edge Meat Market 50 lap Feature Results- 1) 16 Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 2) 21 Ryan Zielski, Oconomowoc 3) 87 Kyle Jarlsberg, Cambridge 4) I Bob Kahler, Belvidere (IL) 5) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 6) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 7) 44 Roger Behlke, Jefferson 8) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 9) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 10) 99 Doug Hahn, Whitewater 11) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 12) 12 Allen Petrie, Sun Prairie 13) 41 Mike Taylor, Stoughton 14) 61 Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 15) 32 Tony Koepke, Jefferson 16) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 17) 4 Luke Padfield, Jefferson 18) 3 Chuck Duncan, Milwaukee

Last Chance- 3 Chuck Duncan, 4 Luke Padfield, 12 Allen Petrie, 41 Mike Taylor
Heat Winners- 1) 11 Trent Erdman 2) 21 Ryan Zielski 3) 87 Kyle Jarlsberg

Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 66 Curt Thompson, Fort Atkinson 2) 52 Tory Bagley, McFarland 3) 8 Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 4) 20 Bret Schmidt, Watertown 5) 26 Scott Riedner, Waunakee 6) 4 James Helmer, Oconomowoc
Fast Qualifier- 52 Tory Bagley—15.288 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) 22 Brady Lilly 2) 8 Shaun Scheel

International-
Feature Results- 1) 67 Joe Cross, Sun Prairie 2) 57 Mark English, Edgerton 3) 23 Casey Strese, Watertown 4) 89 Chad Olds, Whitewater 5) 27 James Bell, Brodhead 6) 35 Gary Stark, Sun Prairie
Fast Qualifier- 35 Gary Stark—16.376 seconds NEW TRACK RECORD
Consolation- 77 Sean Watters, 01 Brent Bergholz
Last Chance- 29 Waylin Willman, 61 Chris Gottschalk, 74 Scott Uttech, 29 Brad Knapp
Heat Winners- 1) 00 Scott Hoeft 2) 05 Ashley Smith 3) 57 Mark English

Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 1 Kyle Riedner, Waunakee 2) 99 Johnny Robinson, Beloit 3) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 4) 62 Alan McBride, Milton 5) 33 Jimmy Robinson, Orfordville 6) 19 Zac Schmidt, Johnson Creek
Fast Qualifier- 11 Steve Sauer—16.635 seconds
Last Chance- 22 Chester Williams, 22 Kyle Chwala, 72 Gary Paulick, 54 Dustin Lean
Heat Winners- 1) 29 Mike Manley 2) 22 Chester Williams 3) 1 Kyle Riedner

Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 18 Brandon Johnson, Avalon 2) 17 Kyle Watters, Stoughton 3) 18 Scott Pauls, Deerfield 4) 75 Travis Schneeberg, Cottage Grove 5) 7 Dennis Johnson, Watertown 6) 81 Jeff LeFave, Fort Atkinson
Fast Qualifier- 75 Travis Schneeberg—14.608 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) 52 Steve Bayer 2) 10 Dave Schmidt 3) 17 Kyle Watters