PHOTOS

By: Kevin Ramsell
LOVES PARK, IL (Saturday, September 27, 2008) – The Saturday night action at the Rockford Speedway was at a high at the 43rd Annual Army National Guard National Short Track Championships with Jon Reynolds Jr. having a Hollywood style finish to win the BRP Big 8 Series presented by Gandrud Chevrolet 108-lap feature event. Doug Bennett, Jim Tate Jr. and Pat Ecklund also took home wins.

The Big 8 Series feature had a wild finish as Reynolds slid sideways coming across the start/finish line as the checkered flag flew. And that wasn’t enough drama for Reynolds as he believed he had a broken valve spring in the closing laps as well.

“He (Sargent) is going to have to go through me, and he almost did,” a happy Reynolds stated in victory lane. “With 40 to go, I just flipped the mirror because I just didn’t want to know and my spotter is telling me that he is getting closer and closer. It was just coming apart, I was looking down and trying to let off and try not to use much motor down the straightaway.”

The feature event got off to a rough start as Nick Shutkas got into the backstretch wall and then made hard contact with the turn three on the opening lap of the feature event.

On the re-start, it was Tim Sargent taking the lead over Jon Reynolds Jr. The two pulled away to battle for the top spot in the first eight laps. On lap 9, Reynolds got on the inside of Sargent to battle for the top spot; Reynolds would take over the top spot a lap later.

Michael Bilderback and Ryan Carlson were quickly moving through the field with Bilderback moving to third and Carlson to fourth by lap 10.

At the 30-lap mark, it was still Reynolds in the lead with Sargent in second. Behind him, it was uncle versus nephew as Ricky Bilderback challenged Michael Bilderback for the third spot. That was until the caution flew on lap 35 when Mike Beyers spun coming off of turn two.

Reynolds continued to lead with Sargent in second with 51 laps completed. That is when the caution flew again when Ross Kenseth and Skylar Holzhausen made contact coming off of turn two causing Kenseth to spin. Both were able to continue but would re-start at the rear.

At the halfway mark, it was Reynolds still pacing the field but behind him Sargent had both of the Bilderbacks in his rear view mirror. But, the family feud continued allowing Sargent to pull away and chase down Reynolds with 40 laps to go.

Bad luck for the current point leader Jeremy Miller on lap 74 as he and Kyle Jarlsberg were battling for sixth when the two made contact coming off of turn two, causing Jarlsberg to spin. Both were sent to the rear of the field.

Reynolds pulled away from Sargent on the re-start while Michael Bilderback challenged Sargent for the second spot. Sargent would hold the position and gain about two car lengths on the young driver.

With ten laps to go, Sargent made his charge to the back bumper of Reynolds hoping to challenge for the lead as it sounded like Reynolds motor was starting to go away from him.

Sargent was all over the back bumper as Greg Oliver’s white flag flew in the air. As the two came off of the fourth turn, Sargent got into the back right rear panel and got Reynolds loose. Reynolds car began to spin as he came to the checkered flag but came across the line sideways before Sargent to take the victory.

Michael Bilderback was third with Uncle Ricky in fourth. Carlson rounded out the top five.

Carlson was the fastest qualifier with a time of 13.921 seconds. Travis Dassow and Ryan Miles won the qualifying heats. Ross Kenseth and Mike Beyer won the qualifier heats. Andrew Kulka won the last chance race.

The National Short Track Super Late Models qualified for tomorrow’s 200-lap main event with seven-time Rockford Speedway champion Bobby Wilberg setting the fast time of 13.006 seconds. A total of 39 cars qualified today.

Brad “JJ” Mueller was second with a time of 13.055 seconds with Josh Vadnais in third with his time of 13.063 seconds. Brett Sontag was fourth with a time of 13.096 seconds and two-time defending NSTC Champion Jeremy Lepak rounded out the top-five with a time of 13.110 seconds.

Wilberg rolled a one in pre-race ceremonies to create a ten-car invert for tomorrow’s main event. Dan Lensing and Ryan Carlson will lead a field of 26 cars to the green flag.

Two qualifying heats took place tonight with the top two in each advancing to the feature event on Sunday. Brandon Hill won the first qualifying race with Josh Bauer in second and Josh Nelms won the second with M.J. Gajewski in second.

Don Whitebear got the action going on the opening lap of the 50-lap feature event for the Area Sportsmen feature as he spun on the backstretch. Joel Clossey ended up on top of the front hood of Randy Samples as a result Whitebear spinning back on the track and everyone tried to stop and avoid hitting him.

On the re-start it was Scott Lawver taking the lead with Bob Hansberry in second being challenged by Doug Bennett for the position on lap 10. That was until three laps later when Hansberry was in turns one and two when it appeared that something broke in his rear end causing his car to snap and slap the wall. Hansberry was able to walk away but was done for the evening.

Lawver continued to lead at the halfway mark with Bennett on his bumper looking for a way to challenge for the lead. Chris Gantz was running third with Fred Nason in fourth.

With 15 laps to go, it became a three-car battle for the lead as Nason tried to go low three laps earlier on Gantz for third and fell back to fifth as Justin Sellers got by him on the outside for fourth.

Lawver would lead the rest of the way as the checkered flag flew with Bennett in second and Gantz in third. Sellers would finish fourth with Nason in fifth.

But, Lawver failed to pass post-race inspection and Bennett was given the win.

History was made at the National Short Track Championships as 13-year-old Bobby Yonke became the youngest winner in the 43-year history.

Yonke started fourth in the 25-lap USST Super Truck feature event and took the lead from Steve Miller on lap 6 and pulled away to the victory.

The best battle was behind him with John Wood battling with Colin Larson for second. At the checkers, it was Wood taking the position.

Tate Jr. pulled away from Jimmy Robinson in the closing laps to win the 43-lap Hobby Stox feature.

Lincoln Keeser was the early leader in the event but lost the lead on lap 10 when he was battling Chet Paffel for the top spot when the two made contact on the backstretch sending Paffel hard into the wall. Keeser got a flat tire out of the deal and had to go to the pits.

This handed the lead over to Robinson who was pressured by Jim Tate Jr. until Tate got by him for the lead on lap 25.

Tate would pull away from Robinson in the closing laps to take his first NSTC Hobby Stox win. Robinson easily finished second with Johnny Robinson II in third. Michael Meyers was in fourth with Brad Luck rounding out the top-five.

The Illinois Vintage Racing Cars concluded the night of racing with a 25-lap feature event. The fans were treated to a great three-car battle between Pat Echlin and Tom Knippenberg. Echlin would hold off Knippenberg by a car length to take the win.

Big 8 Series Limited Late Models
A-Main 01 -- 1. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Roscoe; 2. Tim Sargent, South Beloit; 3. Michael Bilderback, South Beloit; 4. Ricky Bilderback, Rockton; 5. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 6. Steve Dobbratz, Rio, Wis; 7. Jeremy Miller, Rockton; 8. Travis Dassow, West Bend, Wis; 9. Brady Liddle, Oregon, Wis; 10. Ed Szelagowski Jr, Westfield, Wis; 11. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 12. Ross Kenseth, Spring Valley; 13. Kyle Jarlsberg, Cambridge, Wis; 14. Skylar Holzhausen, Bangor, Wis; 15. Ryan Miles, Crystal Lake; 16. Tyler Sauter, Necedah, Wis; 17. Andrew Kulka, Deerfield, Wis; 18. Nathan Oppliger, Oregon, Wis; 19. Kyle Shear, Roscoe; 20. John Paul Odegaard, Brooklyn Center, Minn.; 21. Noel Ramge, Helenville, Wis; 22. Bob Wilberg, Town of Beloit, Wis; 23. John Baumeister, Jr., Lake Geneva, Wis; 24. Jim Duchow, Kaukauna, Wis; 25. Nick Shutkas, Loves Park.

Last Chance "A" 01 -- 1. Andrew Kulka, Deerfield, Wis; 2. Jim Duchow, Kaukauna, Wis; 3. John Paul Odegaard, Brooklyn Center, Minn.; 4. Tony Bagstad, Westby, Wis; 5. Tyler Bauknecht, Reedsville, Wis; 6. Jacob Gille, Winnebago; 7. Noel Ramge, Helenville, Wis; 8. Ty Reedy, Holmen, Wis; 9. Jacob Finney, Sycamore; 10. Wes Coon, Nekoosa, Wis; 11. Becca Kasten, Mequon, Wis; 12. Mike Taylor, Stoughton, Wis; 13. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 14. Nathan Oppliger, Oregon, Wis; 15. Joe Rusciano, Crystal Lake; 16. Rich Hinerichsen, II, Machesney Park; 17. Vern Fagerberg, Bloomingdale; 18. Alex Papini (r), Machesney Park; 19. Jon Minor, Stoughton, Wis.

Heat 01 -- 1. Travis Dassow, West Bend, Wis; 2. Brady Liddle, Oregon, Wis; 3. Skylar Holzhausen, Bangor, Wis; 4. Andrew Kulka, Deerfield, Wis; 5. Becca Kasten, Mequon, Wis; 6. Wes Coon, Nekoosa, Wis; 7. John Paul Odegaard, Brooklyn Center, Minn.; 8. Joe Rusciano, Crystal Lake; 9. Rich Hinerichsen, II, Machesney Park; 10. Ty Reedy, Holmen, Wis; 11. Vern Fagerberg, Bloomingdale; 12. Alex Papini (r), Machesney Park.

Heat 02 -- 1. Ryan Miles, Crystal Lake; 2. Kyle Shear, Roscoe; 3. Tyler Sauter, Necedah, Wis; 4. Jim Duchow, Kaukauna, Wis; 5. Tyler Bauknecht, Reedsville, Wis; 6. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 7. Jacob Gille, Winnebago; 8. Tony Bagstad, Westby, Wis; 9. Noel Ramge, Helenville, Wis; 10. Jacob Finney, Sycamore; 11. Nathan Oppliger, Oregon, Wis; 12. Mike Taylor, Stoughton, Wis; 13. Jon Minor, Stoughton, Wis.

Heat 03 -- 1. Ross Kenseth, Spring Valley; 2. Tim Sargent, South Beloit; 3. Michael Bilderback, South Beloit; 4. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 5. Kyle Jarlsberg, Cambridge, Wis; 6. John Baumeister, Jr., Lake Geneva, Wis; 7. Nick Shutkas, Loves Park.

Heat 04 -- 1. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 2. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Roscoe; 3. Jeremy Miller, Rockton; 4. Ricky Bilderback, Rockton; 5. Bob Wilberg, Town of Beloit, Wis; 6. Steve Dobbratz, Rio, Wis; 7. Ed Szelagowski Jr, Westfield, Wis.

Time Trial -- 1. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 2. Jeremy Miller, Rockton; 3. Michael Bilderback, South Beloit; 4. Ricky Bilderback, Rockton; 5. Kyle Jarlsberg, Cambridge, Wis; 6. Steve Dobbratz, Rio, Wis; 7. Tim Sargent, South Beloit; 8. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Roscoe; 9. John Baumeister, Jr., Lake Geneva, Wis; 10. Bob Wilberg, Town of Beloit, Wis; 11. Ross Kenseth, Spring Valley; 12. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 13. Nick Shutkas, Loves Park; 14. Ed Szelagowski Jr, Westfield, Wis; 15. Skylar Holzhausen, Bangor, Wis; 16. Jim Duchow, Kaukauna, Wis; 17. Brady Liddle, Oregon, Wis; 18. Ryan Miles, Crystal Lake; 19. Travis Dassow, West Bend, Wis; 20. Tyler Sauter, Necedah, Wis; 21. Andrew Kulka, Deerfield, Wis; 22. Kyle Shear, Roscoe; 23. Mike Lloyd, Davis; 24. Jacob Gille, Winnebago; 25. Alex Papini (r), Machesney Park; 26. Tyler Bauknecht, Reedsville, Wis; 27. Becca Kasten, Mequon, Wis; 28. Noel Ramge, Helenville, Wis; 29. Rich Hinerichsen, II, Machesney Park; 30. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 31. Wes Coon, Nekoosa, Wis; 32. Jacob Finney, Sycamore; 33. Vern Fagerberg, Bloomingdale; 34. Tony Bagstad, Westby, Wis; 35. John Paul Odegaard, Brooklyn Center, Minn.; 36. Jon Minor, Stoughton, Wis; 37. Ty Reedy, Holmen, Wis; 38. Nathan Oppliger, Oregon, Wis; 39. Joe Rusciano, Crystal Lake; 40. Mike Taylor, Stoughton, Wis; 41. Tyler Peterson (r), Lake Geneva, Wis; 42. Tyler Kelley, Oregon, Wis.

Area Sportsmen
A-Main 01 -- 1. Doug Bennett, Brodhead, Wis; 2. Chris Gantz (r), Rockford; 3. Justin Sellers (r), Carol Stream; 4. Fred Nason, Roscoe; 5. Jason Thoma, Jefferson, Wis; 6. Randy Samples (r), Rockton; 7. Brock Behnke, South Beloit; 8. Warren (Butch) Swinbank, Rockford; 9. David Lounsbury, Beloit, Wis; 10. Robert Hansberry, Beloit, Wis; 11. Bob Wilberg, Town of Beloit, Wis; 12. Don Whitebear, Red Wing, Minn.; 13. Joel Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 14. Kyle Watters, Stoughton, Wis; 15. Scott Lawver, Roscoe.

Heat 01 -- 1. Justin Sellers (r), Carol Stream; 2. Scott Lawver, Roscoe; 3. David Lounsbury, Beloit, Wis; 4. Warren (Butch) Swinbank, Rockford; 5. Randy Samples (r), Rockton; 6. Joel Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 7. Kyle Watters, Stoughton, Wis.

Time Trial -- 1. Brock Behnke, South Beloit; 2. Bob Wilberg, Town of Beloit, Wis; 3. Jason Thoma, Jefferson, Wis; 4. Fred Nason, Roscoe; 5. Robert Hansberry, Beloit, Wis; 6. Chris Gantz (r), Rockford; 7. Don Whitebear, Red Wing, Minn.; 8. Doug Bennett, Brodhead, Wis; 9. David Lounsbury, Beloit, Wis; 10. Warren (Butch) Swinbank, Rockford; 11. Randy Samples (r), Rockton; 12. Scott Lawver, Roscoe; 13. Justin Sellers (r), Carol Stream; 14. Kyle Watters, Stoughton, Wis; 15. Joel Clossey, Beloit, Wis.

Hobby Stocks
A-Main 01 -- 1. Jim Tate, Jr., Watertown, Wis; 2. Jimmy Robinson, Orfordville, Wis; 3. Johnny Robinson II, Beloit, Wis; 4. Michael Meyers, Beloit, Wis; 5. Brad Luck, Prairie du Sac, Wis; 6. Rodger Stephenson, Cambridge, Wis; 7. Steve Sauer, Waterloo, Wis; 8. Tim Lange, Dousman, Wis; 9. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 10. Jason Brewster, Beloit, Wis; 11. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 12. Brad Warthan, Sparta, Wis; 13. Terry Ciano, Jr., Janesville, Wis; 14. Harley Jankowski, Sparta, Wis; 15. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park; 16. Mike Swanson, Rockford; 17. Ben Monday, Marshall, Wis; 18. Jeff Burrows, Sparta, Wis; 19. Lincoln Keeser, Johnson Creek, Wis; 20. Chet Paffel, Beloit, Wis; 21. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit.

Heat 01 -- 1. Lincoln Keeser, Johnson Creek, Wis; 2. Ben Monday, Marshall, Wis; 3. Steve Sauer, Waterloo, Wis; 4. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 5. Jeff Burrows, Sparta, Wis; 6. Mike Swanson, Rockford; 7. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 8. Jason Brewster, Beloit, Wis; 9. Harley Jankowski, Sparta, Wis; 10. Terry Ciano, Jr., Janesville, Wis; 11. Brad Warthan, Sparta, Wis; 12. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park; 13. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park.

Time Trial -- 1. Jim Tate, Jr., Watertown, Wis; 2. Brad Luck, Prairie du Sac, Wis; 3. Michael Meyers, Beloit, Wis; 4. Tim Lange, Dousman, Wis; 5. Rodger Stephenson, Cambridge, Wis; 6. Jimmy Robinson, Orfordville, Wis; 7. Johnny Robinson II, Beloit, Wis; 8. Chet Paffel, Beloit, Wis; 9. Steve Sauer, Waterloo, Wis; 10. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 11. Ben Monday, Marshall, Wis; 12. Jeff Burrows, Sparta, Wis; 13. Lincoln Keeser, Johnson Creek, Wis; 14. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 15. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 16. Harley Jankowski, Sparta, Wis; 17. Brad Warthan, Sparta, Wis; 18. Mike Swanson, Rockford; 19. Jason Brewster, Beloit, Wis; 20. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park; 21. Terry Ciano, Jr., Janesville, Wis.

Super Late Models
Heat 01 -- 1. Brandon Hill, Genoa City, Wis; 2. Josh Bauer, Random Lake, Wis; 3. Mike Meyerhofer, Burlington, Wis; 4. Eddie May, Crystal Lake; 5. Terry Patnode;; 6. Jeff Way, Burlington, Wis; 7. Bryan Turtle, Shakopee, Minn.; 8. Jeremy Spoonmore, Somonauk; 9. Rick Corso, McHenry; 10. Andrew Morrissey, DeForest, Wis; 11. Tony Strupp, West Bend, Wis.

Heat 02 -- 1. Josh Nelms, Lockport; 2. M.G. Gajewski, Wausau, Wis; 3. Stevie Campbell, Lisle; 4. Tom Gille, Winnebago; 5. Rich Bickle, Edgerton, Wis; 6. Joey Miller, Lakeville, Minn.; 7. Erik Pierce, Lake in the Hills; 8. Mike Strupp, Theresa, Wis; 9. Rich Schumann Jr., Portage, Wis; 10. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 11. Scott Koerner, Plainfield.

Time Trial -- 1. Bob Wilberg, Town of Beloit, Wis; 2. Brad "JJ" Mueller, Random Lake, Wis; 3. Josh Vadnais, White Bear Lake, Minn.; 4. Brett Sontag, Joliet; 5. Jeremy Lepak, Wausau, Wis; 6. Collin Bamke, Slinger, Wis; 7. David Prunty, Brownsville, Wis; 8. Steve Rubeck, Monroe Center; 9. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 10. Dan Lensing, Poplar Grove; 11. Matt Kocourek, Franklin, Wis; 12. Nathan Haseleu, Pardeeville, Wis; 13. Jeff Kendall, Montello, Wis; 14. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 15. Eddie Hoffman, Wheaton; 16. Larry Schuler, Minooka; 17. Eddie May, Crystal Lake; 18. M.G. Gajewski, Wausau, Wis; 19. Brandon Hill, Genoa City, Wis; 20. Josh Nelms, Lockport; 21. Tony Strupp, West Bend, Wis; 22. Stevie Campbell, Lisle; 23. Josh Bauer, Random Lake, Wis; 24. Mike Strupp, Theresa, Wis; 25. Andrew Morrissey, DeForest, Wis; 26. Rich Bickle, Edgerton, Wis; 27. Mike Meyerhofer, Burlington, Wis; 28. Tom Gille, Winnebago; 29. Jeff Way, Burlington, Wis; 30. Terry Patnode;; 31. Rich Schumann Jr., Portage, Wis; 32. Joey Miller, Lakeville, Minn.; 33. Bryan Turtle, Shakopee, Minn.; 34. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 35. Rick Corso, McHenry; 36. Erik Pierce, Lake in the Hills; 37. Jeremy Spoonmore, Somonauk; 38. Scott Koerner, Plainfield; 39. Bill Hobson, Roscoe.

Trucks
A-Main 01 -- 1. Bobby Yonke, Loves Park; 2. John Wood, Sun Prairie, Wis; 3. Collin Laursen, Nelson, Wis; 4. Jeff Babb, Elgin; 5. Thomas Roney, Ridgefield; 6. Steve Miller, Manitowoc, Wis.

Time Trial -- 1. John Wood, Sun Prairie, Wis; 2. Bobby Yonke, Loves Park; 3. Thomas Roney, Ridgefield; 4. Steve Miller, Manitowoc, Wis; 5. Jeff Babb, Elgin; 6. Collin Laursen, Nelson, Wis.