Bunkelman, Lawrence, Nosser, Jaeger, Carlson Crowned ABC Champs
Feature wins to Byholm, Spacek, Nye, Beeksma, Follett
by Nick Gima

 Ashland, WI, August 28 -- The ABC Raceway closed out its 2010 regular racing season in fine fashion, with 97 racers coming out to decide the points championships in all five divisions during Fan Appreciation Night, presented by Northstar Beverage of Hurley and WIMI, 99.7 FM, of Ironwood, MI.
 Three of the five championships would be finalized during feature action, and after several dramatic twists Robby Bunkelman, Greg Jaeger and Chad Carlson came away with titles in their respective divisions. Prior to the main events, Scott Lawrence and Mickey Nosser locked down their titles with impressive runs in their heats.

Bunkelman, of Abbotsford, trailed Jeff Spacek by just one point after preliminaries were completed, and he started just ahead of Spacek from the third row in the 20-lap WISSOTA modified feature. Pole starter Bill Byholm of Glidden shot away from Scott Hudack at the start and would lead all 20 laps en route to his first A-main win of the season, but behind him a lot unfolded.  The first half of the race ran off non-stop, during which Byholm’s lead increased to nearly 2.5 seconds. But five laps into the run Spacek’s car developed a mechanical problem and slowed; when the caution flag came out on lap 10 for Ross Lightner’s spin, Spacek limped his car into the pits, ending his night and essentially handing the crown to Bunkelman.  The field then stayed closed to Byholm due to stoppages for spins by Jody Bellefeuille and Kelly Checkalski, and passes for top-three positions by Steve Lavasseur and Bunkelman were negated. The final nine laps were uninterrupted, however, and Byholm held on for his 25th career ABC win, with Lavasseur and Bunkelman in close pursuit. Dean Yrjanainen and Al Uotinen claimed fourth and fifth, respectively.  His third-place effort, combined with Spacek’s tough break, gave Bunkleman his first-ever championship in Ashland.
Lawrence made Raceway history on Saturday, becoming the first driver to win seven consecutive track championships while collecting his ABC-best tenth title overall. The Superior pilot began the night 32 points up on Randy Spacek in the WISSOTA super stock standings, and after winning his track-best seventh heat of the summer he maintained that lead going into feature action, mathematically locking up the title.  Spacek wasn’t about to go down without a fight, however, and in the 20-lap headliner he charged from his fourth-row starting spot toward the front, as Dave Flynn shot past Dave Elliott’s loose car and into the initial lead. Ron Hmielewski’s spin on lap 1 and a four-car melee on the front chute a lap later were the only delays in an otherwise non-stop event.  On lap 3 Lawrence bobbled slightly, and Spacek took advantage for fifth place, and a lap later the lead pair in the points swept around Hmielewski for fourth and fifth. Flynn’s lead grew steadily to over a second as he worked the high groove of the wide, smooth red clay oval, while Spacek picked off positions with ease, slipping past Kevin Eder for second on lap 9.  One circuit later Flynn’s one-second margin had evaporated, as Spacek dove inside and took over the pace, and from there the 1993 track champ from Phillips pulled away to a 3.4-second margin of victory. Lawrence could not keep pace, although he did manage to steal third away from Eder on the final corner and trail Flynn closely at the checkers. Willie Johnson came home with an impressive fifth-place run.
Nosser also had things wrapped up for the WISSOTA Midwest modified championship before the field took the green for its 15-lap feature. The veteran racer from Phillips used a second-place performance in his heat to take a 27-point advantage into the main - two more than the 25-point difference awarded between first and last in the feature.  After a two-car incident on the initial go, Travis Nye of Ashland scooted away from an early threat by Duane Dunbar and paced the field as the first nine laps ran under green. Pat Cook worked hard to steal second away from Dunbar on lap 7, and then Nosser, who started inside on the fourth row, made a daring three-wide pass by both Cook and Dunbar for second a tour later, just before Cody Carlson’s spin on lap 9.  Cook took the runner-up position back a lap after the restart, just prior to another slowdown for a Jake Gondik spin, and Cook and Nosser argued over the position for the next three laps, giving Nye a chance to build a slight cushion as the laps wound down.  However, Shawn Rivord’s looped ride brought about a green-white-checkered finish, and Cook attempted a low-side three-wide pass for the lead under the white flag. But despite a car that was quickly loosening up, Nye held on for his first-ever feature win, with Nosser nipping at his heels. Bill Byholm and second-in-points Taylor Leuthner each passed Cook on that final circuit for third and fourth.
The six-cylinder points title was very much in doubt as feature time neared, with Neil Adamczak holding a scant six-point lead on Jaeger when the field took to the track for its 15-lap A-main. Defending champ Dale Coddington swept around pole starter Tyler Vernon for the early lead, then struggled to hang on to that lead as several yellow flags kept the competition close to his trunklid.  The first caution stop, however, was the costliest for Adamczak, as he slipped into the pit area with mechanical problems while the field was resorted after second-running Tyler Hudack’s spin. Just as happened to Jaeger the week before to give him the points lead, Adamczak did not return to the event, and the title was Jaeger’s to lose.  The 2007 track champ ran a calmly aggressive race, maintaining a top-five run as the race was delayed time and again. Up front, however, Coddington felt constant pressure from Pat Beeksma and Shawn McFadden, Jr, after every restart, and finally Coddington gave up the lead on a lap 9 restart to Beeksma, who was scored out front two laps later when Forrest Schultz spun.  The race did not go its scheduled distance, with Vernon’s spin on lap 12 coming about just as the 30-minute time limit as reached, giving Beeksma, from Ironwood, MI, his third feature win of the summer here. Coddington followed in second, with Tyler Luger and Jaeger awarded third and fourth after McFadden was docked two finishing positions for a jump during one of the restarts.
The pure stock championship was also decided during that class’s feature, as Carlson was only three points up on Al Rapp going in to the wild 12-lapper. Rapp started on the front row alongside polesitter Dustin Follett of Cloquet, MN, with Carlson right behind Follett in row 2. Carlson moved into third right away when Ken Tody, Jr’s car got loose, and after Blake Bretting’s lap 1 spin, the top two in points were side-by-side for the restart behind Follett.  Carlson’s title hopes were nearly dashed when he was tagged for causing a get-together and subsequent spin with Tody the next time around, but, restarting from the back, the 2008 champ from Superior clawed his way toward the front. Rapp labored to get around Follett but finally was rewarded with the lead on lap 3, just before Bruce Kalmon’s spin. Then Tim Carbon’s front-end broke while he was running third, costing him one last shot at a win before hanging it up for the season, and he pitted when Bretting spun again for another stoppage.  Carlson had made his way back to sixth out of the 12 cars remaining by that point, and his pass for fifth of Tiffany Hudack was negated by another yellow flag, but after that he moved to fourth just as Follett challenged and completed a hard-earned pass of Rapp for the lead with three to go. On the final lap Rapp’s last-ditch effort for the win and points title came up just short, while Carlson, the 2008 champ from Superior, slipped past a loose Jonathan Vanusek on the back chute to claim third and the championship by a mere two points.  First-night visitor Josh Johnson overcame an early spin for fourth, and Esten Nelson took fifth.

The Raceway staff will now use the month of September to prepare for the 35th annual Red Clay Classic, to be held on Friday and Saturday, October 1-2. The Northland’s traditional season-ending special race event will feature as many as 200 or more drivers in four WISSOTA-sanctioned classes vying for their share of a purse in excess of $75,000. The headline events will be the 50-lap, $4,000-to-win late model feature and the championship round of the Como Mod Series, as well as action in the super stocks and, for the first time, Mid-mods.
 Information on reserved seating, reserved camp sites at the track, and reserved pit spots is available by calling (715) 682-2672 or (715) 682-5409 Mondays-Fridays from 6-8 pm, or by  following the links Pit Stalls, Seating & Camping.
 The ABC Raceway is located 3-1/2 miles south of Ashland on State Highway 13 and one mile west on Butterworth Road. For raceday information call (715) 682-4990.