Erdman Hangs On to Win at Jefferson Speedway
By Andrew Schaller
JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, June 18, 2011) Fort Atkinson’s Trent Erdman led every lap of the Cost Cutters 50 lap Late Model feature event en route to victory lane with the win. Despite leading flag to flag, Erdman was forced to show he deserved the win as he held off the hard charging John Ovadal for many laps to secure the victory.
Erdman and Dan Chesmore paced the field to the green flag with Erdman taking control as they exited turn two on the opening circuit. Brandon Pendleton tried to follow Erdman as he pulled even with Chesmore for second. The sole caution waved on lap eight when Dylan Schuyler spun on the front stretch. Chesmore lined up behind Erdman for the restart with Pendleton in third and Shaun Scheel riding in fourth. The leaders ran nose to tail until lap 15 when Scheel got a run under Pendleton into turn one. Scheel made the pass, but got loose on exit allowing Ovadal to fire under him and slide into third. Ovadal shadowed Chesmore until lap 22 when he made his move on the low side. After a brief battle, Ovadal cleared for second and set his sights on the leader, Erdman. Ovadal began to peek to the low side of Erdman on lap 29. Ovadal spent several laps trying to get past the leader with being successful. Ovadal managed to draw even with Erdman as they flew through turns one and two lap after lap, but Erdman would pull back out to the lead down the back stretch each time. Ovadal made one last attempt as he charged under Erdman entering turn one on the final lap. But Erdman shot back out into the lead down the straightaway as he charged to the checkers for the win. Ovadal settled for second followed by Steve Dobbratz, Casey Johnson and Jason Erickson.
Kurt Kleven of Cambridge captured his second feature win of the season by laying claim to the 30 lap Sportsman main event. John Handeland fired into the lead at the drop of the green as they entered turn one. Handeland got loose on exit allowing Scott Riedner to rifle under him and grab the point as they crossed the line to complete lap one. Mark Deporter followed into second with Kleven up to third. Deporter began to work on Riedner for the lead while Kleven watched from close behind. Deporter pulled even on the low side, clearing for the top spot on lap nine and bringing Kleven along for second. Kleven sized up the new leader for a couple laps before making his move on lap 12. Kleven dove under Deporter as he maneuvered past to take the lead with Jay Kalbus in his tracks for second. Kleven began to pull away slightly while Kalbus had his hands full with James Helmer. Caution waved with only five laps remaining setting up a shootout to the finish. But Kleven was up to the challenge as he hung on to see the checkers first. Kalbus came home second followed by Helmer, Jason Thoma and Deporter.
Waterloo’s Kyle Stark stayed hot in the 2011 season as he completed the evening sweep for the second consecutive week after winning the 20 lap International feature event. Dale Smith led early with Kenny Au up to second. Au slipped under Smith on lap two and moved out to the lead with Smith dropping to second. Stark found himself in the top five on lap five as he continued to slice his way to the front. Stark was in fourth a lap later and in third by lap six. Stark continued to charge to the front, taking second on lap seven and pulling even with Au for the lead on lap eight. Stark was alone on the point by lap nine as he began to drive away from the field. Stark cruised to the stripe to get the win and complete the sweep. Au hung on for second with Gary Stark, Mark English and Kyle Smith rounding out the top five.
Jim Tate Jr of DeForest claimed the 25 lap Hobby Stock main event to pick up his second win of the season. Lucas Buckingham and Jeff LeFave brought the field to green with Buckingham taking the initial lead on lap one. Ben Monday drew even with the early leader on lap two, clearing for the position a lap later. Zack Schmidt followed him into second and quickly charged under the new leader to lead lap four. Chester Williams made his way to second on lap six as Dustin Ward and Tate entered the top five. Tate drove to the outside of of Ward as he began his trek to the front. Tate found himself in third on lap 10 and in second by lap 12. Tate continued to use the high groove as he pulled even with Schmidt for the lead on lap 14. Tate cleared for the spot as they entered turn one on lap 16. Ward followed Tate’s path on the outside as he made his way to second just before the caution waved to set up a two lap shootout to the finish. As racing resumed, Tate held off the advances of Ward as he flew past the checkers first for the win. Rounding out the top five were Ward, Schmidt, Williams and Brent Gergen.
Scott Pauls of Deerfield captured the 15 lap Road Warrior feature event. Tim Ellis and Leonard Reimer made up row one at the start with Ellis leading lap one. Reimer pulled back even with Ellis on lap two as they battle back and forth for the top spot. Ellis reclaimed the point on lap three with Pauls moving up to second. Pauls began to creep up on the inside of Ellis, drawing even with the leader on lap five. Pauls finally cleared for the position on lap nine. Pauls cruised to the checkers to get the win followed by Ellis, Bill Sweeney, Mike White and Rodger Stephenson.
The final event of the evening was the 20 lap Bandit feature won by Phil Wuesthoff of Beaver Dam. Bryan Gottschalk led lap one from the pole with Michael Heimann up to second and Keith Erickson in third. Erickson drove to the outside of Heimann on lap seven as Gottschalk opened up a slight advantage. Heimann and Erickson touched on lap 10 forcing Heimann to slow and handing second to Erickson. Erickson began to close on Gottschalk as Wuesthoff made his way to third. Erickson once again drove to the outside, pulling alongside Gottschalk for the lead. On lap 14, Gottschalk floated a little high as they exited turn two allowing Wuesthoff to drive under him as they battled three wide at the front. Wuesthoff emerged with the lead with Erickson pulling in behind him for second. Wuesthoff charged to the checkers to get the win followed by Erickson, Heather Stark, Derek Dixon and Gottschalk.
Next Saturday, June 25, is Mid-Season Championships sponsored by J&L Tire and WJVL FM. Time trials begin at 5pm with racing at 7pm. The Tournament of Destruction round two is on tap for Sunday, July 3. Men, metal and mayhem take to Wisconsin’s Action Track capped off by fireworks by Thundercat Fireworks. 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-
Cost Cutters 50 lap Feature Results- 1) 11 Trent Erdman, Fort Atkinson 2) 71 John Ovadal, Watertown 3) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 4) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 5) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 6) 99 Doug Hahn, Whitewater 7) 27 Dan Chesmore, Janesville 8) 8 Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 9) 44 Roger Behlke, Jefferson 10) 16 Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 11) 61 Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 12) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 13) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 14) 21 Ryan Zielski, Oconomowoc 15) 77 Bruce Lee, Cambridge 16) 21 Brandon Pendleton, Helenville 17) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 18) 96 Tim Lange, Dousman
Fast Qualifier- Casey Johnson—14.292 seconds
Last Chance- 29 Scott Lindsay, 4 Chris Quam, 21 Ryan Zielski, 96 Tim Lange
Consy- 99 Lincoln Keeser, 7 Ed Kubicz
Heat Winners- 1) 99 Lincoln Keeser 2) 29 Scott Lindsay 3) 21 Ryan Zielski
Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 51 Kurt Kleven, Cambridge 2) 27 Jay Kalbus, Watertown 3) 7 James Helmer, Beaver Dam 4) 6 Jason Thoma, Jefferson 5) 2 Mark Deporter, Fort Atkinson 6) 55 Terry Wangsness, Jefferson 7) 26 Scott Riedner, Waunakee 8) 22 Brady Lilly, Milton 9) 32 Greg Staude, Jefferson 10) 5 Kameron Lee, Cambridge 11) 19 Dan Schmidt, Farmington 12) 20 Kody Hubred, Utica 13) 4 Jim Taylor, Stoughton 14) 71 Jason Dunn, Sun Prairie 15) 15 Will Rece, Stoughton 16) 19 John Handeland, Jefferson 17) 3 Ken Hoff, Jefferson 18) 11 Adam Bleskan, Menomonie Falls
Fast Qualifier- 7 James Helmer—14.938 seconds NEW TRACK RECORD
Heat Winners- 1) 20 Kody Hubred 2) 55 Terry Wangsness
International-
Feature Results- 92 Kyle Stark, Waterloo 2) 31 Ken Au, Jefferson 3) 35 Gary Stark, Sun Prairie 4) 57 Mark English, Edgerton 5) 90 Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 6) 23 Casey Strese, Jefferson 7) 66 Neil Higgins, Watertown 8) 26 Mike Lambert, Madison 9) 6 Dale Smith, Lake Mills 10) 5 Peter Shelley, Edgerton 11) 75 Travis Schneeberg, Cottage Grove 12) 97 Chris Chenoweth, Jefferson 13) 83 Devin Wild, Jefferson 14) ONO Keith Bell, Brodhead 15) 41 Nick Newton, Jefferson 16) 95 Matt McKinney, Fort Atkinson
Fast Qualifier- 92 Kyle Stark—16.201 seconds
Last Chance- 83 Devin Wild, 5 Peter Shelley, 41 Nick Newton, ONO Keith Bell
Heat Winners- 1) 41 Nick Newton 2) 57 Mark English 3) 92 Kyle Stark
Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 27 Jim Tate Jr, DeForest 2) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 3) 19 Zack Schmidt, Johnson Creek 4) 22 Chester Williams, Waukesha 5) 2 Brent Gergen, Jefferson 6) 21 Ben Monday, Columbus 7) 55 Lucas Buckingham, Whitewater 8) 86 Tony Ciano, Janesville 9) 77 Sean Watters, Jefferson 10) 11 Steven Sauer, Waterloo 11) 81 Jeff LeFave, Fort Atkinson 12) 71 Jamie Dunn, DeForest 13) 72 Gary Paulick, Union Grove 14) 7 Jim Wolf, Watertown 15) 54 Geno Schlieve, Janesville
Fast Qualifier- 27 Jim Tate Jr—16.334 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) 72 Gary Paulick 2) 9 Dustin Ward
Road Warrior-
Feature Results- 1) 18 Scott Pauls, Deerfield 2) 01 Tim Ellis, Loves Park (IL) 3) 42 Bill Sweeney, Edgerton 4) 33 Mike White, Janesville 5) 88 Rodger Stephenson, Cambridge 6) 6 Bill Reynolds, Watertown 7) 71 Leonard Reimer, Janesville 8) 78 Kevin Pauls, Middleton 9) 51 Rory Hardy, Oregon 10) 23 Tory Bagley, McFarland 11) 135 Rob Lange, Jefferson
Fast Qualifier- 42 Bill Sweeney—17.076 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) 71 Leonard Reimer 2) 23 Tory Bagley
Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 99 Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 2) 03 Keith Erickson, Columbus 3) 93 Heather Stark, Waterloo 4) 111 Derek Dixon, Janesville 5) 31 Bryan Gottschalk, Jefferson 6) 83 Brandon Sletten, Sun Prairie 7) 09 Nick Schmidt, Menomonie 8) 14 Kyle Riedner, Waunakee 9) 17 Tadd Douglas, Jefferson 10) 37 Seth Reamer, Columbus 11) 53 Dylan Buckingham, Whitewater 12) 16 Josh Lenz, Lake Mills 13) 31 Michael Heimann, Waunakee 14) 76 Alan Stillman, Fort Atkinson 15) 69 Adam Faherty, Evansville 16) 02 Kyle Watters, Stoughton 17) 52 Brad Birzer, Ixonia
Fast Qualifier- 93 Heather Stark—14.480 seconds
Last Chance- 69 Adam Faherty, 76 Alan Stillman, 16 Josh Lenz, 52 Brad Birzer, 02 Kyle Watters
Heat Winners- 1) 98 Felicia Dewey 2) 09 Nick Schmidt 3) 93 Heather Stark