By Brian Liskai
FREMONT, Ohio – Jon Henry knew on a tight bullring like Fremont Speedway, lapped traffic would come into play. He and Curtis Roberts battled each other and heavy lapped traffic during the middle portion of the Sunoco American Late Model Series feature at “The Track That Action Built” before Henry used the high line in turn four to grab the lead on lap 16 and then survived several late race cautions to score his second career win at the track on Underground Utilities Inc. Night.
“You do what you have to do. The guys were telling me it seems like the high side was fastest. So I figured if I just calm down a little bit on the top and get through the bumps, I didn’t think anyone could pass me on the bottom. I have to thank all these fans for coming out here. This is a fun place to come race. We don’t get to race here that often. I really have to thank my Dad, John and Randy for all their help. I have to thank Rocket Chassis. This is a brand new orange front end Rocket and has two heat race wins and two wins,” said Henry beside his Fultz Fabrications backed machine.
“That’s one thing when you come to Fremont…you know it’s tight and you know you’re going to have to battle around traffic. I knew when I rolled up there pretty quick and got to Roberts…he was kind of dicing and I was able to hang with him and I knew I had to go back to the top shelf and see if I can get around him,” added Henry from the Engine Pro Victory Lane.
“I really have to thank the Dirty Dozen. They are the reason I’m able to do this this year…all 12 of them,” said Henry of the sponsors JLH General Contractor, William H. Bass Trucking, Reproductive Assistance, Truman Quarter Horses, Re-Deck of Northwest Ohio, Home Savings and Loan, Mike and Sheila Keller, Ron Spencer Real Estate, Automated Transport, Lehman & Lehman, Norada Lanes and APC.
In the Fremont Federal Credit Union 305 Sprints, hometown driver D.J. Foos executed a slide job on Nate Dussel in turns one and two on the last lap to take the lead and his fourth career Fremont Speedway win. It was Foos’ fourth win of the season as he has scored three at Attica Raceway Park.
“I just had to wait until we got to lapped traffic…I tried and tried. He (Dussel) bobbled a couple of times in the hole down in turn four and I followed him right through it. Was that a good race or what?” asked an elated Foos beside his Level Performance, Automatic Fire Protection, Tender Turn Car Wash, Buckshot Farms, Pit stop Carryout backed #11F.
“I couldn’t ask for a better season so far. A couple of weeks ago here we struggled…this makes up for that,” added Foos, thanking his Mom and Dad and sponsors, Crown Battery, Kistler Racing Products, Gyro Motorsports and Linder’s Speed Equipment. “This afternoon Daryl Schiets (of Schiets Motorsports) said ‘look, I have some money for you now make it happen.’ I have to take my motor to Level’s…I have a cracked block we found today. But this feels good.”
It was a marathon race of attrition in the Fremont Fence Dirt Trucks as numerous cautions slowed the flow of the race with only nine of the 20 starters taking the checkered flag. But, Fremont’s Dustin Keegan held off challenges from Bob Dible then Art Ball and John Ivy to score his first career Fremont Speedway victory.
“This is awesome. I didn’t think this would come in a truck…I thought it would be a sprint car (he has raced 305 sprints over the years) but I’ll take this one,” said Keegan in the Engine Pro Victory Lane. “I knew Art and Johnny were coming…I just didn’t know how close. I was nervous on those last restarts…I just wanted to see that checkered. I have to thank Ted Foster and Foster’s Auto Body, York Fabrication, Chuck Roelle Fabrication and Advanced Auto Parts. And the truck owner Joe West for putting this thing together for me, my dad and all the crew.”
Dusty Moore and Ryan VanderVeen would bring the field of 22 to the green for the 30-lap late model feature. Michael Stiltner would stop before a lap could be completed. On the next restart Devin Schiels spun. The third time was the charm with VanderVeen grabbing the lead over third place starter Curtis Roberts, Moore, Brian Ruhlman, Phil Austra, Ky Harper and Henry. After one lap was scored Matt Irey would spin in turn four. Once the green came out again, it was the start of a long green-flag run.
VanderVeen would continue to lead with Roberts driving to his inside while Ruhlman and Henry got around Moore. Roberts would grab the lead on lap four with VanderVeen trying to battle back with Henry moving into third on lap five. Roberts pulled away slightly with VanderVeen and Henry racing side by side for second with Ruhlman, Harper and Moore giving chase. However, with eight laps scored, Roberts would race into heavy lapped traffic as Henry took second. As the back of the field raced two and at times three wide, Roberts was finding it difficult to find a way around, allowing Henry to close. Roberts and Henry would dart in and out of the traffic until lap 13 when John Bores spun. It was a huge break for the leaders, giving them a clear track.
On the restart, Roberts could not shake Henry as VanderVeen ran third with 14th starter Ryan Missler on the move up to fourth and Harper in fifth. Coming down to complete the 16th lap, Henry drove to Roberts’ outside exiting turn four to grab the lead with Missler getting around VanderVeen for third. Henry, Roberts and Missler would run nose to tail over the next five laps before hitting lapped traffic again on lap 21. The caution would fly though for an Ernie Haynes spin in turn three with fourth place Harper having no where to go as he stopped on the speedway.
Henry would pull away slightly on the restart with Roberts and Missler battling hard for second with VanderVeen and Jerry Bowersock in tow. The final caution would fly on lap 26 for Ruhlman who coast to a stop in turn two. Now with a clear track, Henry switched up his low grove in turns three and four to go to the top shelf and would pull away the final four laps for the win. Roberts would finish second with Missler, Bowersock and VanderVeen rounding out the top five.
Nate Dussel and Jimmy Colvin would bring the 305 sprint feature to the green with Dussel grabbing the lead over Colvin, Steve Rando, Dustin Dinan, Stuart Brubaker and Caleb Griffith. Griffith would charge into fourth on the second circuit, but Dinan would fight back the next lap as the caution would fly. On the restart, Colvin would dive under Dussel in turn one to grab the lead with Griffith rim-ridding around Dinan and Rando into third. Griffith would take second on lap seven and immediately closed on Colvin. Just as the leaders had caught the rear of the field, Matt Ferrell would bring out the caution on lap 10.
On the restart Colvin would use the bottom groove while Griffith continued on the high side with Dussel, Dinan and eighth place starter Foos giving chase. Colvin and Griffith would race side-by-side over the next two laps until disaster struck Griffith as his left front wheel broke off exiting turn four, ending his night. The restart order was Colvin, Dussel, Foos, Dinan, 14th place starter Paul Weaver, Rando and Brubaker. The race would go green till the end.
As they completed the 17th lap, Dussel would drive low in turn one to steal the lead from Colvin. Foos would wrestle second away on lap 19 as they raced into traffic. Dussel and Foos would pick their way through the traffic as they raced each other with Weaver moving into third with four laps to go. After taking the white flag, Foos dove low in turn one and slid up in front of Dussel to take the lead and drove on to the win. Dussel, Weaver, Colvin and 15th starter John Ivy would round out the top five.
The start of the 20-lap dirt truck feature was an omen of bad things to come. A caution on the opening lap involved three trucks. When the green came back out, Bob Dible would lead over Dustin Keegan, Brian Melnek Jr. Art Ball, Steve Endicott and Willie Keegan. Keegan would drive around Dible for the lead a lap later as the caution would fly for Dan Roepke Jr. and Cory Ward with separate problems. A lap and another caution for Melnek and Jeff Wank. On each restart, Keegan was able to hold off Dible and now Ball. With five laps in, it was shaping up to be a great battle with Keegan, Dible, Ball and 11th starter John Ivy.
Wank would stop on the track to bring out another caution on lap 7 with the running order Keegan, Dible, Ball, Ivy, Willie Keegan, Endicott, Kent Brewer and Brian Sorg. Again on the restart it was a tremendous battle between Keegan, Dible, Ball and Ivy. At the half way mark, the race’s fifth caution would fly for Brian Sorg and Craig Holland who stopped in separate incidents. Two laps later and Dible’s great run would end as he coasted to a stop. Now it was Keegan over Ball, Ivy and Willie Keegan.
Dustin Keegan, Ball and Ivy would race nose to tail and side-by-side at times for the lead over the next six laps until the final caution flew on lap 18 for a Ben Good spin. It was now a two lap dash to the finish with Keegan trying to hold off Ball and Ivy. Keegan was up to the challenge and scored the win over Ball, Ivy, Willie Keegan, 14th place starter Kent Brewer and 20th place starter Keith Sorg.
Fremont Speedway will be back in action Saturday, May 12 for Root’s Poultry Night featuring the Fort Ball Pizza Palace 410 sprints for a Kistler Racing Products FAST (Fremont Attica Sprint Title) Championship Series event with the first ever appearance of the non-wing BOSS/MTS Sprints and the dirt trucks.
For more information go to www.fremontohspeedway.com or like Fremont Speedway on Facebook or follow the track on Twitter.
Fremont Speedway – 5/5/2012
UUI Night
ALMS Late Models (27 Cars)
[#]-Starting Position
Qualifying – Callie’s Performance
1. 9R-Curtis Roberts, 14.885; 2. 15-Jon Henry, 14.904; 3. 95J-Jerry Bowersock, 14.953; 4. 23V-Ryan VanderVeen, 15.106; 5. 34-Ky Harper, 15.184; 6. 49-Brian Ruhlman, 15.285; 7. 15B-Mike Bores, 15.290; 8. 29-Garrett Krummert, 15.378; 9. 75-Dusty Moore, 15.387; 10. 48-John Bores, 15.500; 11. 51-Devin Shiels, 15.572; 12. 15A-Phil Ausra, 15.615; 13. 50Y-Ryan Missler, 15.666; 14. 23C-Jeremy Canada, 15.694; 15. 21-Larry Kingseed, 15.727; 16. 99M-John Mayes Jr., 15.752; 17. 36-Matt Irey, 15.807; 18. 5H-Ernie Haynes, 15.811; 19. 2-Justin Chance, 15.876; 20. 555-Justin Coulter, 15.903; 21. 12-Michael Stiltner, 15.913; 22. 5M-Ryan Markham, 16.035; 23. 99-Steve Sabo, 16.110; 24. 30-Nate Potts, 16.187; 25. 33-Don Gordon, 17.172; 26. 2W-Fred Wahl, 19.151; 27. 1F-Justin Collet, 19.213
Heat 1 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 34-Ky Harper[2] ; 2. 49-Brian Ruhlman[1] ; 3. 15-Jon Henry[4] ; 4. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[3] ; 5. 5H-Ernie Haynes[8] ; 6. 51-Devin Shiels[5] ; 7. 12-Michael Stiltner[9] ; 8. 21-Larry Kingseed[7] ; 9. 23C-Jeremy Canada[6]
Heat 2 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 23V-Ryan VanderVeen[4] ; 2. 15A-Phil Ausra[1] ; 3. 555-Justin Coulter[7] ; 4. 2-Justin Chance[6] ; 5. 50Y-Ryan Missler[5] ; 6. 5M-Ryan Markham[8] ; 7. 29-Garrett Krummert[3] ; 8. 48-John Bores[2] ; 9. 1F-Justin Collet[9]
Heat 3 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 75-Dusty Moore[2] ; 2. 9R-Curtis Roberts[4] ; 3. 15B-Mike Bores[3] ; 4. 36-Matt Irey[5] ; 5. 99-Steve Sabo[6] ; 6. 30-Nate Potts[7] ; 7. 99M-John Mayers Jr.[1] ; 8. 33-Don Gordon[8] ; 9. 2W-Fred Wahl[9]
B-Main – Computer Man Inc. (10 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 51-Devin Shiels[1] ; 2. 12-Michael Stiltner[4] ; 3. 5M-Ryan Markham[2] ; 4. 21-Larry Kingseed[7] ; 5. 29-Garrett Krummert[5] ; 6. 23C-Jeremy Canada[10] ; 7. 48-John Bores[8] ; 8. 99M-John Mayers Jr.[6] ; 9. 33-Don Gordon[9] ; 10. 1F-Justin Collet[11] ; 11. 2W-Fred Wahl[12] ; 12. 30-Nate Potts[3]
A-Main – (30 Laps)
1. 15-Jon Henry[7]; 2. 9R-Curtis Roberts[3]; 3. 50Y-Ryan Missler[14]; 4. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[10]; 5. 23V-Ryan VanderVeen[2]; 6. 29-Garrett Krummert[20]; 7. 15A-Phil Ausra[4]; 8. 5M-Ryan Markham[18]; 9. 34-Ky Harper[6]; 10. 15B-Mike Bores[9]; 11. 21-Larry Kingseed[19]; 12. 51-Devin Shiels[16]; 13. 75-Dusty Moore[1]; 14. 555-Justin Coulter[8]; 15. 99-Steve Sabo[15]; 16. 33-Don Gordon[21]; 17. 49-Brian Ruhlman[5]; 18. 2-Justin Chance[11]; 19. 5H-Ernie Haynes[13]; 20. 48-John Bores[22]; 21. 36-Matt Irey[12]; 22. 12-Michael Stiltner[17]
Hard Charger: 29-Garrett Krummert[+14]
Fremont Federal Credit Union305 Sprints (28 Cars)
[#]-Starting Position
Heat 1 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 40-Caleb Griffith[1] ; 2. 5-Dustin Dinan[7] ; 3. 9-Jimmy Colvin[5] ; 4. 19R-Steve Rando[4] ; 5. 22D-Dan Hammond[2] ; 6. 36-Seth Schneider[9] ; 7. 5R-Jordan Ryan[6] ; 8. 22M-Dan McCarron[3] ; 9. 94K-Kurt Huber[10] ; 10. 77S-Jim Sipe[8]
Heat 2 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 4M-Jamie Miller[1] ; 2. 25-Jason Keckler[6] ; 3. OO-Alvin Roepke[8] ; 4. 8J-Jess Stiger[2] ; 5. 1W-Paul Weaver[9] ; 6. 10S-Roger Shammo[5] ; 7. 717-Trey Jacobs[7] ; 8. 3B-Jeremy Duposki[3] ; 9. 7X-Jay Howe[4]
Heat 3 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 35-Stuart Bruker[1] ; 2. 11F-D.J. Foos[5] ; 3. 67M-Matt Ferrell[4] ; 4. 1-Nate Dussel[7] ; 5. 8K-John Ivy[8] ; 6. 10X-Dustin Stroup[6] ; 7. 39-Matt Merrill[2] ; 8. 10-Josh Harrison[9] ; 9. 68G-Tyler Gunn[3]
B-Main – Computer Man Inc. (10 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 10X-Dustin Stroup[3] ; 2. 36-Seth Schneider[1] ; 3. 10S-Roger Shammo[2] ; 4. 5R-Jordan Ryan[4] ; 5. 10-Josh Harrison[9] ; 6. 68G-Tyler Gunn[12] ; 7. 39-Matt Merrill[6] ; 8. 77S-Jim Sipe[13] ; 9. 717-Trey Jacobs[5] ; 10. 94K-Kurt Huber[10] ; 11. 7X-Jay Howe[11] ; 12. 22M-Dan McCarron[7] ; 13. 3B-Jeremy Duposki[8]
A-Main – (30 Laps)
1. 11F-D.J. Foos[8]; 2. 1-Nate Dussel[1]; 3. 1W-Paul Weaver[14]; 4. 9-Jimmy Colvin[2]; 5. 8K-John Ivy[15]; 6. 5-Dustin Dinan[4]; 7. 35-Stuart Bruker[5]; 8. 19R-Steve Rando[3]; 9. 4M-Jamie Miller[11]; 10. 36-Seth Schneider[17]; 11. 10X-Dustin Stroup[16]; 12. OO-Alvin Roepke[7]; 13. 8J-Jess Stiger[12]; 14. 10-Josh Harrison[20]; 15. 25-Jason Keckler[9]; 16. 67M-Matt Ferrell[10]; 17. 22D-Dan Hammond[13]; 18. 10S-Roger Shammo[18]; 19. 5R-Jordan Ryan[19]; 20. 40-Caleb Griffith[6]
Hard Charger: 1W-Paul Weaver[+11]
Fremont Fence Dirt Trucks (27 Trucks)
[#]-Starting Position
Heat 1 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. D1-Dustin Keegan[1] ; 2. P51-Willie Keegan[2] ; 3. 17-Bob Dible[3] ; 4. O1-Art Ball[5] ; 5. 94-John Ivy[6] ; 6. 16-Steve Sabo[4] ; 7. 33C-Kyle Cline[9] ; 8. 23M-Brad Mitten[8] ; 9. 95-Keith Sorg[7]
Heat 2 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 88-Dan Roepke Jr.[6] ; 2. 4X-Brian Sorg[1] ; 3. O9-Jeff Wank[4] ; 4. 18W-Cory Ward[7] ; 5. 8KB-Kent Brewer[5] ; 6. 9-Curt Inks[3] ; 7. 22J-Josh Kiser[8] ; 8. 3R-Chuck Rolle[2] ; 9. 73-Cody Basinger[9]
Heat 3 – (8 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 8-Steve Endicott[5] ; 2. 45-Brian Melnek Jr.[1] ; 3. 4-Dave Brewer[6] ; 4. 71-Craig Holland[9] ; 5. 44-Todd Keegan[2] ; 6. 52-Charlie Gingrich[4] ; 7. 79-Andrew Lutman[7] ; 8. 99-Art Howey Jr.[8] ; 9. 115-Ben Good[3]
B-Main – Computer Man Inc. (10 Laps – Top 5 finishers transfer to the A-feature)
1. 33C-Kyle Cline[4] ; 2. 3R-Chuck Rolle[8] ; 3. 9-Curt Inks[2] ; 4. 23M-Brad Mitten[7] ; 5. 115-Ben Good[12] ; 6. 95-Keith Sorg[10] ; 7. 22J-Josh Kiser[5] ; 8. 73-Cody Basinger[11] ; 9. 16-Steve Sabo[1] ; 10. 52-Charlie Gingrich[3] ; 11. 79-Andrew Lutman[6]
A-Main – (30 Laps)
1. D1-Dustin Keegan[3]; 2. O1-Art Ball[5]; 3. 94-John Ivy[11]; 4. P51-Willie Keegan[6]; 5. 8KB-Kent Brewer[14]; 6. 95-Keith Sorg[19]; 7. 33C-Kyle Cline[16]; 8. 115-Ben Good[20]; 9. 8-Steve Endicott[4]; 10. 23M-Brad Mitten[17]; 11. 17-Bob Dible[2]; 12. 4X-Brian Sorg[7]; 13. 3R-Chuck Rolle[15]; 14. 71-Craig Holland[8]; 15. 18W-Cory Ward[12]; 16. O9-Jeff Wank[10]; 17. 45-Brian Melnek Jr.[1]; 18. 44-Todd Keegan[13]; 19. 9-Curt Inks[18]; 20. 88-Dan Roepke Jr.[9]
Hard Charger: 95-Keith Sorg[+13]