Ovadal Owns Rivers Edge Farm Market 50
By Andrew Schaller
JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, June 19, 2010) Watertown’s John Ovadal Jr quickly moved to the front of the pack on Saturday night to claim the Rivers Edge Farm Market 50 lap Late Model feature on Star Country Night at Jefferson Speedway. Ovadal survived a late race charge by Steve Dobbratz to hang on and win the main event.
Roger Behlke and Brandon Pendleton paced the field of 18 competitors to the drop of the green. Pendleton grabbed the early lead as the field exited turn four on the opening lap. Pendleton started to stretch his advantage as Ovadal moved up to battle Behlke for the second spot. Ovadal claimed the position on lap seven and set his sights on Pendleton. Ovadal caught the leader on lap 13 and began to search for a way past. The first of three cautions waved on lap 19, slowing his efforts. On the restart, Ovadal took a peek to the low side of Pendleton. But before he could make his move, caution waved once again for a mulit car melee in turns three and four. When green returned again, Ovadal dove under Pendleton into turn one. After a brief battle, Ovadal cleared for the top spot on lap 24 and began to pull away. The final caution waved on lap 29 for a pair of top five drivers, bunching up the field and allowing Dobbratz to make his move. Dobbratz pulled into second on lap 31 and began to reel in Ovadal as the laps ticked away. Dobbratz continued to chip away at Ovadal’s advantage in the final circuits. With two laps remaining, Dobbratz got a good run on the low side of the leader in turns one and two. But Ovadal held him at bay to see the checkers first. Dobbratz was forced to settle for second followed by Casey Johnson, Trent Erdman and Pendleton.
Scott Riedner of Waunakee laid claim to his third feature win in a row after capturing the 30 lap Sportsman main event. Dan Schmidt and Mike Acheson led the field to green with Schmidt grabbing the top spot on lap one. Mike Winters moved into second with Bret Schmidt in tow for third. Bret Schmidt made his way past Winters on lap eight, bringing Kody Hubred along for third. Bret Schmidt began to challenge his father, Dan, for the point on lap ten while Riedner made his way into the top five. Bret Schmidt got past Dan Schmidt on lap 12 to take over the lead. A lap later, Hubred moved to second, bringing Riedner along for third. Hubred then moved up to challenge Schmidt, racing side by side while Riedner watched from third. On lap 21, Riedner dove to the low side of the two leaders, making a three way battle for the top spot. Hubred was pinched out to third as Riedner motored into the lead. Riedner didn’t look back on his way to the stripe to get the win. Schmidt was second with Hubred, Shaun Scheel and Justin Schultz rounding out the top five.
Jefferson’s Casey Strese led all 20 laps of the International feature on his way to victory lane with the win. Starting from the pole, Strese took control on lap one with Mark Dewey in second. After an early caution, Stephen Scheel moved in second behind Strese and the duo began to pull away from the rest of the pack. Scheel remained in Strese tracks until caution on lap 17 slowed the field. But as the green returned, Strese had the field covered to see the checkers first followed by Scheel, Chris Gottschalk, Dewey and Mike Lambert.
Kyle Stark of Sun Prairie took control early in the 25 lap Hobby Stock feature and then held off a late race charge to get the win. Jimmy Robinson held the initial lead on lap one with Stark quickly moving up to second. Stark made his move to the front on lap eight as he drove to the low side of Robinson looking to lead. Stark claimed sole possession of the spot on lap 12 as Johnny Robinson followed into second. Robinson pulled up to Stark’s rear bumper as the laps wound down and began to search for room to make a pass. On the final lap, Robinson dove under Stark entering turn one and they drove door to door down the backstretch. At the line, Stark owned the slight advantage with Robinson second. Rounding out the top five were Steven Sauer, Jimmy Robinson and Dustin Ward.
Watertown’s Bill Reynolds claimed yet another Road Warrior feature by winning the 10 lap feature event. Roger Stephenson and Bryan Ellis led the field to green with Stephenson leading lap one. Brett Carson moved up to challenge the early leader and lap two, making the pass a lap later and bringing Reynolds along for second. Reynolds wasted little time, making a move to the inside of Carson and taking way the lead on lap four. Reynolds drove off the get the win with Carson second and Stephenson in third.
Brandon Johnson of Avalon captured the 20 lap Bandit feature event. Kevin Pauls and Mike White made up row one at the start with Pauls claiming the early lead. Johnson used the high line to move into the second spot on lap two as he set his sights on Pauls for the top spot. Johnson continued to use his momentum to pull alongside Pauls as they battle side by side. On lap eight, the pair of drivers got loose, allowing Johnson to take over the point with Will Rece moving into second. Rece continued to stalk the new leader throughout the remainder of the race, but Johnson held him off to get the win. Rece was second with Dave Schmidt, Keaton Hubred and Phil Wuesthoff completing the top five.
Next Saturday, June 26, is Mid Season Championship Night sponsored by Smith Motors of Fort Atkinson. The evening’s events will be highlighted by a 60 lap Late Model feature event. Time trials begin at 5pm with racing at 7pm. 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 Farm Market 50 lap Feature Results- 1) 71 John Ovadal Jr, Watertown 2) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 3) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 4) 11 Trent Erdman, Fort Atkinson 5) 21 Brandon Pendleton, Helenville 6) 16 Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 7) 61 Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 8) 81 Don Gaserude, Fort Atkinson 9) 71 Jason Deppe, Waterloo 10) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 11) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 12) 87 Kyle Jarlsberg, Jefferson 13) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 14) 44 Roger Behlke, Jefferson 15) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 16) 7 Bob Kahler, Caledonia (IL) 17) 99 Doug Hahn, Whitewater 18) 87 Tyler Kelley, Madison
Fast Qualifier- 87 Kyle Jarlsberg—14.293 seconds
Consy- 55 Joe Pecaro, 04 Luke Padfield
Last Chance- 71 Jason Deppe, 29 Scott Lindsay, 61 Jerry Eckhardt, 87 Tyler Kelley
Heat Winners- 1) 04 Luke Padfield 2) 94 Jason Erickson 3) 5 Casey Johnson
Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 26 Scott Riedner, Waunakee 2) 20 Bret Schmidt, Watertown 3) 20 Kody Hubred, Utica 4) 8 Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 5) 79 Justin Schultz, Columbus 6) 82 Mike Acheson, Watertown
Fast Qualifier- 26 Scott Riedner—15.159 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) 55 Terry Wangsness 2) 82 Mike Acheson
International-
Feature Results- 1) 23 Casey Strese, Jefferson 2) 4 Stephen Scheel, Lake Mills 3) 61 Chris Gottschalk, Jefferson 4) 82 Mark Dewey, Beloit 5) 26 Mike Lambert, Madison 6) 05 Ashley Smith, Lake Mills
Fast Qualifier- 26 Mike Lambert—16.486 seconds
Last Chance- 90 Kyle Smith, 25 Darren Brown, ONO James Bell, 75 Travis Schneeberg
Heat Winners- 1) 25 Darren Brown 2) 90 Kyle Smith 3) 00 Scott Hoeft
Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 92 Kyle Stark, Sun Prairie 2) 99 Johnny Robinson, Beloit 3) 11 Steven Sauer, Waterloo 4) 33 Jimmy Robinson, Orfordville 5) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 6) 88 Roger Stephenson, Jefferson
Fast Qualifier- 11 Steven Sauer—16.450 seconds
Last Chance- 71 Jamie Dunn, 55 Lucas Buckingham, 96 Alan Dorn, 72 Gary Paulick
Heat Winners- 1) 55 Lucas Buckingham 2) 85 Curt Thompson 3) 9 Dustin Ward
Road Warrior-
Feature Results- 1) 6 Bill Reynolds, Watertown 2) 7 Brett Carson, Johnson Creek 3) 88 Roger Stephenson, Jefferson 4) 71 Pete Weston 5) 01 Bryan Ellis, Loves Park (IL)
Fast Qualifier- 6 Bill Reynolds—17.157 seconds
Heat Winner- 6 Bill Reynolds
Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 18 Brandon Johnson, Avalon 2) 15 Will Rece, Stoughton 3) 10 Dave Schmidt, Menomonie 4) 2 Keaton Hubred, Utica 5) 99 Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 6) 78 Kevin Pauls, McFarland
Fast Qualifier- 5 Kameron Lee—14.550 seconds
Last Chance- 31 Bryan Gottschalk, 57 Stan Schave, 13 Jay Orr, 02 Michelle Heimann
Heat Winners- 1) 27 Adam Faherty 2) 02 Michelle Heimann 3) 15 Will Rece
