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Season Points Champions Crowned At Chateau Raceway But First
Time Winners Steal The Show
By: Matthew Grage
LANSING, MN (August 28) - The 2009 AMSOIL Dirt Track Racing Season is
officially into the Home Stretch at Chateau Raceway in Lansing, Powered by
Miners Outdoor Power and Recreation, as Season Championship Night was run
Friday Night. It was the final night for Track Points to determine the
season Track Champions for the year. Two Track Championships were decided
before the night even started as a pair of drivers already had
insurmountable leads going into the nights action. Those two, Doug Hillson
of Blooming Prairie in the "Frenches Repair and Fabrication USRA Modifieds"
and Mike Blowers of Waseca in the Senior Division of the "S and S Auto
Salvage Hornet Class" were able to relax and enjoy the nights festivities,
while other drivers were in for one big battle to either hold onto there
leads are put up a big numbers on the night to move to the top on the final
standings. As it turned out the other five Champions crowned on the night
were the drivers who lead the points coming into the night. While they all
didn't take home feature wins, they all did enough to hang onto there points
leads and grab there titles. In the "RS Auto Rebuilders WISSOTA Street
Stock" Class A. J. Zvorak of Blooming Prairie claimed his second straight
Championship in the class. Cole Queensland of Grand Meadow also came home a
Track Champion for the second year in a row as he claimed the "Farm Boy BBQ
WISSOTA Super Stock" Track Title. In the "Power 96 WISSOTA Midwest Modified"
points battle it was Bryan Hernandez of Blooming Prairie who took his third
title in the last seven years. Bryan was also Track Champion in the class in
2002 and 2004. The title in the Junior Division of the Hornet class went to
Jacob Stark of Austin. It was Jacobs first Track Championship and added his
name to the list of Fathers and Sons who have claimed titles at the track
over the years. Jacobs dad, Matt, won the WISSOTA Midwest Modified Title at
the Track in 2001. The final Champion is Kylie Kath of Owatonna who won his
first Track Championship taking home top honors in the "Pizza Ranch Pure
Stocks."
The Track Championships were just part of the evenings activity as there was
plenty of exciting racing as well with six of the seven feature winners
picking up there first feature wins of the season at Chateau. In post race
interviews three of the six said they were in fact there first career
feature wins as well. The first of the trio of first time winners came in
the WISSOTA Midwest Modified Class where Mike Paulson of Rochester pulled
into victory lane for the first time in his career. Paulson drew the pole
for the main event and out ran the front of the field to lead the first lap
before the first of two cautions waved on lap two. On the restart he had a
trio of the top cars at the track lining up behind him with Jerry Young of
Blooming Prairie in second just ahead of AJ Wiste of Adams and Bryan
Hernandez of Blooming Prairie. Wiste was Herandez's closest rival for the
Track Championship and was working hard to get to the front to get all the
points he could in trying to catch Bryan for the title. Shortly after the
green went back out Wiste made his move for second but was unable to make
any kind of move on Paulson and ran around in second for the rest of the
race. Hernandez's Championship almost took a hit on a late caution when he
ended up having to pit while running fourth with just five laps remaining.
He was able to make it back out before the green flag flew but running in
twelfth place which would have put him in a tie with Wiste in the points if
AJ could get to the front. Bryan picked up one spot over the balance of the
race to finish eleventh, and with Wiste ending up second Bryan ended up
holding on to the title by just three points. Young ended up finishing third
followed by Jason Born of Medford and Bob Bunne of Ostrander. Paulson also
scored a win in his heat giving him a sweep for the night while the other
heat win went to Wiste.
Also scoring his first career feature win was WISSOTA Super Stock driver
Brett Dulas of Waseca. Brett started inside row two but wasted no time
sweeping to the front on the first lap of the feature. Jeff Brauer of
Rochester who had taken home the classes lone heat win earlier in the night
quickly moved up to second and put the pressure on Brent. Dulas survived two
early cautions to hold Jeff off on the restarts and lead flag to flag to
claim that first career feature victory. Brauer held on to second ahead of
Track Champion Cole Queensland. Cole just needed to take the green flag to
wrap up his title.
In the Junior Hornet feature Charlie Steinberg of Kasson jumped out of row
two on the drop of the green to get to the point and raced off to his first
career feature win. The race was slowed by a pair of cautions including one
scary head on incident in turn two on lap two. Garitt Wytaske of Lansing got
turned around in the middle of the turn and Linsy Hershberger of New
Richland came head on into him. Both cars suffered major damage but both
drivers appeared okay as they rode back to the pits on the end of the
wreckers. Brandon Vogt of Rose Creek came up just short in his bid to take
Jacob Starks Track Championship away from him. Vogt trailed Stark by five
points going to the feature after winning one of his heats in which Stark
managed just a third place finish. Vogt came up from row three to take home
second in the race but with Jacob finishing in fifth he ended up two points
short of overtaking him. Casey Trom of Zumbrota and Matt Brooks of Austin
finished third and fourth. Wytaske claimed the classes other heat win.
While it wasn't his first career feature win it was his first feature win of
the season at Lansing for Scott Olson of Rochester in the WISSOTA Street
Stock class. Olson started front row along with Bobby Kilby of Austin in the
main event. Kilby got the better jump on the drop of the green and lead the
races first four laps with the two running side by side a good share of the
time. On lap five Olson found an opening on the bottom of turn two and moved
on by for the lead as the two went down the back straightaway. Kilby kept it
close for awhile but Olson held his line and opened up a bit of a lead as
the laps wound down to the checkers. Dan Holland of Brownsdale came home in
third followed by Ryan Goergen of Stacyville Iowa and Track Champion AJ
Zvorak. Zvorak had enough of a lead in the points after the heat that he
just needed to take the green flag to claim his title. Olson also claimed a
heat win on the night giving him a sweep. The other heat win went to
Holland.
In USRA Modified action Steve Wetzstein of West Concord has a bunch of
feature wins around the region this summer as he currently leads the USRA
National Modified Points race, however he had yet to pick one up at Lansing
this summer, that is until Friday Night. Steve started outside row four and
was running sixth after lap one which was lead by Dustin Steinbrink of
Austin. Tommy Myer of Blooming Prairie came out of row two to run second to
Steinbrink for the races first two laps before making his move to the front
on lap three. Wetstein meanwhile was making his way forward rather quickly.
He picked up one spot on lap two and two more on lap three to move up to
third. It took him three more laps to reel in Steinbrink and make the move
to take over second. From there it was going to take some help as Myer had
checked out on the field and had built up a sizeable lead that was going to
be tough to crack. That help came in the form of a yellow flag on lap
twenty-one after the field had ran nineteen caution free laps since an early
lap two caution. The caution would not only cost Myer the win as Wetzstein
wasted no time on the restart sweeping past Tommy for the lead, it also cost
Todd Scharkey of Kasson a solid finish. Todd was running third just ahead of
Jason Cummins of New Richland when the yellow came out. While circling
around under caution Todds right front tire went down. He pitted as the race
was about to go back green leaving him with a disappointing fifteenth place
finish. Wetzstein, Myer and Cummins finished one-two-three followed by
Steinbrink and 2009 Track Champion Doug Hillson. Wetzstein ended up with a
sweep on the night after also taking one of the classes heat wins. Myer also
had a heat win along with Mike Sorensen of Rochester.
Also getting his first Chateau feature win was Dylan Nelson of Freeborn.
Dylan started outside front row and out ran the field on the drop of the
green to take the early lead, a lead he would not give back. Brandon Shaner
of Owatonna had a nice run. After starting back in row four Shaner picked
his way through the field to come home in second just ahead of Kevin Vogt of
Rose Creek. Ryan Henderson of Holmen Wisconsin and Jason Newkirk of Austin
rounded out the top five. Newkirk was trying to make a last ditch effort to
move past Kath for the Track Championship but with his fifth place finish
and Kath coming home in eleventh he ended up three points short. In victory
lane Nelson said while it was his first feature win at Lansing it was his
second of the summer and of his career. Dylan also picked up a sweep on the
night as he picked up a heat win at the start of the night. Also getting
heat wins were Newkirk, and James Weber of Austin.
Breaking up the party for the first time feature winners was Mike Blowers of
Waseca in the Senior Hornet Division where he walked away with his
thirteenth feature win of the season. With another heat win on the night as
well he also scored a sweep for the twelfth time this year. Jason McShane of
Waseca finished second followed by Dale Stucky of Kenyon, Paul Kroneman of
Austin and Gary Stahl of Kasson.McShane picked up the classes other heat
win.
While it was Season Championship Night it was far from the final action of
the season at Lansing. The Track will host show eleven of the eighteen race
schedule for the "USMTS Hunt for the Caseys General Store Championship
Series" next weekend. Racing action next Friday night will get underway with
hot laps shortly after 7:00 and racing action to follow about 7:30. Joining
the USMTS Modifieds on the show next week will be WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds,
Pure Stock and Hornet classes. The following weekend, Friday Night September
11th and Saturday Night September 12th it will be the two night "Midwest
Modified Fall Nationals" with WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds competing for extra
cash and a chance at improving there standings in the National Points Race.
Also running in the Third Annual Fall Nationals weekend will be the WISSOTA
Street Stocks, WISSOTA Super Stocks, Pure Stocks, and USRA Modifieds. Both
nights will be complete shows. Than to wrap up the 2009 racing season it
will be the Third Annual "Buzz Festival" featuring the two Hornet Divisions.
That will also be a two night show, Friday Night October 2nd and Saturday
Night October 3rd with two complete shows. All seven of the tracks Class
Divisions will run both nights of the Festival for one last go before
packing it in for the season.
Results
Pizza Ranch Pure Stocks (2009 Track Champion: Kylie Kath-Owatonna)
Feature - Dylan Nelson-Freeborn, Brandon Shaner-Owatonna, Kevin Vogt-Rose
Creek, Ryan Henderson-Holmen WI, Jason Newkirk-Austin, Adam Godeke-Hollandale,
Brady Krohnberg-Walters, Stacy Krohnberg-Walters, James Connors-Waseca,
Sammie Fromm-Owatonna, Kylie Kath-Owatonna, Matt Miller-Austin, James
Weber-Austin, Jesse Cruz-Owatonna, Dan Kopischke-Waseca, Aaron Sletten-Owatonna,
Samantha Stark-Austin
Heat 1 - Newkirk, Kath, Miller, Connors, Kopischke, Cruz
Heat 2 - Nelson, Godeke, Shaner, S Krohnberg, Henderson, Stark
Heat 3 - Weber, B Krohnberg, Vogt, Fromm, Sletten
RS Auto Rebuilders WISSOTA Street Stocks (2009 Track Champion: AJ Zvorak-Blooming
Prairie)
Feature - Scott Olson-Rochester, Bobby Kilby-Austin, Dan Holland-Brownsdale,
Ryan Goergen-Stacyville IA, AJ Zvorak-Blooming Prairie, Jason Barber-New
Richland, Jesse Baer-Minnesota lake, Jesse Stahl-Austin, Brent
Holland-Glenville, Tyler Peterson-Hollandale, Lee Jonsgaard-Minnesota City
(No Show: Ross Spitzer-Dodge Center)
Heat 1 - Olson, Goergen, Stahl, Jonsgaard, B Holland, Spitzer
Heat 2 - D Holland, Zvorak, Barber, Kilby, Peterson, Baer
Power 96 WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds (2009 Track Champion: Bryan Hernandez-
Blooming Prairie)
Feature - Mike Paulson-Rochester, AJ Wiste-Adams, Jerry Young-Blooming
Prairie, Jason Born-Medford, Bob Bunne-Ostrander, Joe Horgdahl-Kasson, Greg
Pfefier JR-Austin, Dave Stevens-Albert Lea, Beau Lammers-Owatonna, Harland
Morehart-Eyota, Bryan Herandez-Blooming Prairie, Billy Steinberg-Kasson,
Dustin Sletten-Owatonna, Randy Parmenter-Albert Lea, Troy Dahle-Morristown,
Travis Wytaske-Rochester
Heat 1 - Paulson, Hernandez, Bunne, Pfefier JR, Lammers, Morehart, Horgdal,
Sletten
Heat 2 - Wiste, Dahle, Young, Stevens, Born, Wytaske, Steinberg, Parmenter
Farm Boy BBQ WISSOTA Super Stocks (2009 Track Champion: Cole
Queensland-Grand Meadow)
Feature - Brett Dulas-Waseca, Jeff Brauer-Rochester, Cole Queensland-Grand
Meadow, Josh Bartel-Kasson, Ryan Siegle-Grand Meadow, John Thissen-Sargeant,
Mark Wytaske-Austin, Greg Mattick-Hayfield
Heat 1 - Brauer, Dulas, Queensland, Mattick ,Wytaske, Siegle, Bartel,
Thissen
French's Repair and Fabrication USRA Modifieds (2009 Track Champion: Doug
Hillson-Blooming Prairie)
Feature - Steve Wetzstein-West Concord, Tommy Myer-Blooming Prairie, Jason
Cummins-New Richland, Dustin Steinbrink-Austin, Doug Hillson-Blooming
Prairie, Mike Sorensen-Rochester, Brian Shaw-Brownsdale, Josh Mattick-Austin,
Mike Lawson-Owatonna, Greg Jensen-Albert Lea, Jeremy Misgen-Ellendale, Matt
Olson-Albert Lea, Harland Morehart-Eyota, Todd Scharkey-Kasson, Wally Bustad-Austin,
Jacob Dahle-Morristown, Ben Mattick-Hayfield, Bobby Swanson-Kasson (No Show:
Greg Erickson-Chatfield, Travis Peterson-Mapleton)
Heat 1 - Wetzstein, Cummins, Stienbrink, Swanson, Morehart, J Mattick
Heat 2 - Myer, Dahle, Shaw, Scharkey, Bustad, Jensen, Olson
Heat 3 - Sorensen, B Mattick, Misgen, Hillson, Lawson, Erickson
S and S Auto Salvage Junior Hornets (2009 Track Champion: Jacob
Stark-Austin)
Feature - Charlie Steinberg-Kasson, Brandon Vogt-Rose Creek, Casey Trom-Zumbrota,
Matt Brooks-Austin, Jacob Stark-Austin, Michaela Stucky-Kenyon, Samantha
Zipse-Northwood IA, Brody Shaw-Brownsdale, Cole Lonergan-Dexter, Garitt
Wytaske-Lansing, Linsy Hershberger-New Richland
Heat 1 - Vogt, Steinberg, Stark, Trom, Hershberger, Shaw
Heat 2 - Wytaske, Lonergan, Brooks, Zipse, Stucky
S and S Auto Salvage Senior Hornets (2009 Track Champion: Mike
Blowers-Waseca)
Feature - Mike Blowers-Waseca, Jason McShane-Waseca, Dale Stucky-Kenyon,
Paul Kroneman-Austin, Gary Stahl-Kasson, Michael Wytaske-Lansing, Briana
Grinstead-Austin, Bob Schoenfelder-Grand Meadow, Rusty Carlson-Byron, Kaitly
Stark-Austin, Kelby Johnson-New Richland (No Show: Jeremey Wenzel-New
Richland, Jamie Tapp-Austin)
Heat 1 - Blowers, Stahl, Stucky, Wenzel, Wytaske, Carlson
Heat 2 - McShane, Kroneman, Schoenfelder, Grinstead, Stark, Johnson
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