Kuklinski Rolls Streeter, then Rolls to Win in Super at ABC
Adamczak flies to first-ever win

by Nick Gima
Ashland, WI, July 4 -- A season-high 115 entries filled the pit area and supplied their own version of Fourth of July fireworks for the many fans in attendance at the ABC Raceway Saturday night, as four of the six features were won in dramatic fashion.

Veteran Greg Kuklinski, in particular, provided a few “oohs’ and “ahhs” of his own during the AmsOil Dirt Track Series program presented by Northern Clearing, as he rolled his WISSOTA Street Stock onto its roof while negotiating heavy traffic during that feature, then came back three races later and cruised to his track-best 87th career feature win in his WISSOTA Super Stock.

Kuklinski started outside on the front row for the 20-lap super stock main event and literally cruised away from the field, after beating Randy Spacek to the first turn. Spacek stayed in the leader’s tire tracks around the top groove of the smooth, slick red-clay oval, and the duo pulled away from a raging battle for third among five cars. But after a caution flag for fourth-running Kevin Eder’s slowing mount drew the field together, Kuklinski built an even bigger lead while Spacek had to contend with a charging Shane Kisling and Scott Lawrence. Even a second restart a lap later, for Andy Grymala’s spin, couldn’t keep the pack tight to Kuklinski’s bumper, as the Ironwood, MI, pilot disappeared to his first win in a super stock since August 2005. Lawrence slipped below Kisling for third five laps from the end but couldn’t mount a challenge on Spacek, while Brian Mikkonen worked past Kisling for fourth on lap 18 and into the divisional points lead. Kuklinski’s night didn’t go the way he planned in the streeter, however. A jump on a start cost him a win earlier in heat race action, and then, while racing first-nighter Jordan Kurtti for fifth in the 12-lap feature his car got loose, caught the front-straight clay and bounced onto its roof, then came back down on all fours. Kuklinski was slightly shook up but otherwise unhurt.
Cory Casari was looking for his second feature win in as many nights as he led at the start of the street stock feature, ahead of a tight-knit group of seven cars. After Kuklinski’s lap 4 flip, John Kallas swept around Dennis Groom into second and, a lap later, repeated the move to take the lead away from Casari. After Kyle Weber’s spin slowed the field Kallas pulled away, but he still had to survive one more challenge, as the pack tightened up for a green-white-checkered finish after visiting Sam Fankhauser’s spin. Casari tried to squeeze between the inside-running Kallas and the high-groove-riding Groom coming out of turn 4 to take the white flag and nearly turned sideways between them but Kallas’ car helped straighten Casari out, and Casari fell in line behind Groom as Kallas, of Hurley, held on for his second ABC win of 2009. Fankhauser was penalized for a jump on one of the restarts, giving fourth place to Kurtti and fifth to points leader Larry Haderly.
Mickey Nosser of Phillips, the first driver to ever win a WISSOTA Midwest Modified feature at the ABC Raceway back in 2006, won the track’s 25th Mid-mod feature in dramatic fashion. After Rick Przybylski’s spin on the run’s initial start, the race clicked off nearly half of its 15 scheduled laps in quick fashion, with Pat Cook and Travis Swanson racing side-by-side for the lead well ahead of a seven-car logjam led by Nosser. The race restarted after George Dalbeck’s lap 7 spin, and this allowed Nosser to pull alongside Swanson, while Steve Stuart swept around Taylor Leuthner for fourth. Nosser’s Hoosier tires were smoking as he and Swanson closed on Cook, and when Swanson dove inside on Cook it opened the door for Nosser to circle around both and take over the lead. Swanson snuck back underneath Nosser just before Bryce Johnson’s get-together with Przybylski set up another green-white-checkered shootout, but on the restart Nosser again took the long way around the youngster and reclaimed the lead just as the white flag waived. Swanson took one last run at the win by diving inside on Nosser coming out of the final turn, and in a photo finish Nosser edged Swanson by 38-thousandths of a second for his second win ever in Ashland. New points leader Stuart grabbed third away from Cook in the final laps, and visiting hotshoe Mark Gerth snuck into the top five as well.
Ashland’s Neil Adamczak became the third member of that family to win at Ashland, taking his first-ever Six-Cylinder feature by a landslide to complete a sweep of heat and feature wins. Only one caution flag slowed the 15-lap headliner, but Adamczak had to contend with one Beeksma after another during the run. First it was polesitter Tim Beeksma who shot to the early lead ahead of Adamczak, but the young gun pulled up alongside the leader only three laps into the go, while Pat Beeksma followed him into second. The lead pair were just about to make it a two-horse race when the yellow lights slowed their pace on lap 5, for a Justin Bretall-Jim Pelto tangle. Again Adamczak and Pat Beeksma pulled away from the five-car scrum for third, and Beeksma made his move by drawing alongside Adamczak for the lead. But Beeksma’s car sputtered and then slowed into the infield grass, leaving Adamczak all alone to see the crossed flags signaling halfway. By then Adamczak had a nearly-straightaway lead on new runner-up Dale Coddington, and he maintained that advantage right through to the checkered flag. Coddington’s effort, combined with terminal motor problems for Shawn McFadden, Jr, put him atop the sixes’ mid-summer points race, while Greg Jaeger followed Coddington through the dense traffic to a third-place paycheck, with Colin Polacek hot on heels and young DeeJay Mihalek finishing an impressive fifth.
While the full moon wasn’t due for a couple of days, it seemed to have an early effect on the WISSOTA Modified 20-lapper. The yellow flag waived seven times before midrace - and for some of the strangest reasons - before Aurora, MN’s Duane Dale sped off to his first win here of the summer. The front row of Scott Hudack and Robby Bunkelman - whose cars both sport the number 00 - led the field to the green, and it was Bunkelman who established the early pace. But a rash of “yellow fever” began with the cars of Kent Baxter and Dean Yrjanainen locking together and grinding to a stop after just one lap. In subsequent order, a two-car spin, then two stopped cars, then another two-car spin that collected four others kept the field from completing lap 2. Bunkelman used the next two laps to flex his car’s muscle, while Al Uotinen raced Hudack for second. But on lap 4 Bunkelman himself brought out the caution flag, when his car mysteriously stalled in turn 4 and he barely reached the pit exit. Hudack set the pace for the next restart, but Rick Rivord’s car gave up in him to negate that try. That’s when Dale, who started in row 4, began his run to the front. He used an outside line to pull up on Uotinen on lap 5, then threaded the needle between Uotinen and the rim-running Hudack for a daring three-wide pass for the lead on lap 6. Two circuits later the last of the stoppages occurred as first-nighter Pat Hoffman spun, and although Uotinen snuck a peek to the inside on Dale as the race restarted, Dale shook off the threat and sped away to his first win here this summer and third ever at ABC while fortifying his points lead. Fourteenth-starting Jeff Spacek eventually clawed his way up to get by Hudack for third in the race’s late stages, while Jerry Hartman ran a solid fifth.
The Pure Stocks only ran half the laps that the mods did, but their non-stop feature only took three-and-a-half minutes, as Austin Blom of Saginaw, MN, used another of his patented last-lap moves to take the win away from Joe Wolfe and take over the points lead. Wolfe shot from the pole and drew away early, while Don Livingston held the second spot for a couple laps before slowing suddenly, causing the rest of the field to check up and giving runner-up duties to Ken Tody, Jr. Jeff Christman gave Tody all he could handle for several trips around the three-eighths-mile oval before securing the position near the race’s mid-point. Blom’s car, which was uncharacteristically slow during heat-race action, came on strong over the final five laps. He first worked his way around Tody for third on lap 6, and two circuits later duplicated the move to steal second from Christman. Wolff’s significant lead disappeared quickly as Blom reeled him in, and coming out of the final turn to take the checkered Blom pulled up alongside Wolff and literally edged him by less than five feet. Christman held on to third, while Tody came home fourth ahead of a strong run by Nathan Dees.

On Saturday night the County Market of Ashland will present the track’s annual kids’ bike race program, along with another complete six-division race show. Adult admission tickets are just ten dollars, while kids ages 12 and under are free with a paid adult admission. Hot laps are set for 6:15 pm and racing starts at 7. “Race Night” will air live on WBSZ, 93.3 FM, from 4:30-6 pm with at-the-track news and weather updates. 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.

 For more ABC Raceway Pictures Visit Skip Hunter Photography

Results

WISSOTA Modifieds
Feature: Duane Dale, Aurora, MN; Al Uotinen, Superior; Jeff Spacek, Phillips; Scott Hudack, Ashland; Jerry Hartman, Marenisco, MI; Bill Byholm, Glidden; Kent Baxter, Elk Mound; Dean Yrjanainen, Lake Nebagamon; Ross Lightner, Washburn; Destin Lorimor, Superior; Wayne Stricker, Highbridge; Mark Baxter, Dorchester; Pat Hoffman, Rice Lake; Robby Bunkelman, Abbotsford; Paul Niznik, Medford; Kelly Checkalski, Poplar; Rick Rivord, Superior; Larry Prochnow, Menomonie.
Heat 1: Yrjanainen; Dale; Uotinen; Hartman; Byholm; Niznik; Hoffman; Checkalski; Rivord.
Heat 2: Hudack; K Baxter; Bunkelman; Prochnow; Lightner; Lorimor; Spacek; M Baxter; Stricker.

WISSOTA Super Stocks
Feature: Greg Kuklinski, Ironwood, MI; Randy Spacek, Phillips; Scott Lawrence, Superior; Brian Mikkonen, Iron River; Shane Kisling, Sarona; Andy Grymala, Superior; Charlie Anderson, Ironwood, MI; Joe Oliver, Superior; Ron Hmielewski, Marengo; Dave Flynn, Superior; Eric Olson, Ladysmith; Willie Johnsen, Superior; Cy Hoaglan, Ashland; Nick Oreskovich, Mason; Dave Elliott, Minocqua; Kevin Eder, Ashland; Don Koivisto, Saxon; Paul Erikson, Abbotsford; Art Hyde, Washburn; Trevor Wilson, Superior.
Heat 1: Kisling; Spacek; Lawrence; Oreskovich; Flynn; Koivisto; Roy Pumala, Mason.
Heat 2: Eder; Kuklinski; Mikkonen; Oliver; Hmielewski; Hoaglan; Tad Schoonover, Eagle River.
Heat 3: Anderson; Olson; Grymala; Wilson; Erikson; Hyde; Johnsen.

WISSOTA Street Stocks
Feature: John Kallas, Hurley; Dennis Groom, Ashland; Cory Casari, Montreal; Jordan Kurtti, Bruce Crossing, MI; Larry Haderly, Marengo; Kyle Weber, Drummond; Bruce Kalmon, Ashland; Sam Fankhauser, Rice Lake; Greg Kuklinski, Ironwood, MI.
Heat 1: Haderly; Kurtti; Groom; Kallas; Jeff Klopstein, Baraga, MI; Fankhauser.
Heat 2: Casari; Kalmon; Kuklinski; Kevin Maulson, Lac du Flambeau; Weber.

WISSOTA Midwest modifieds
Feature: Mickey Nosser, Phillips; Travis Swanson, Ashland; Steve Stuart, Ashland; Pat Cook, Washburn; Mark Gerth, Menomonie; Taylor Leuthner, Foxboro; Jimmy Latvala, Solon Springs; Jesse Ogston, Duluth, MN; Travis Anderson, Colfax; Duane Dunbar, Marenisco, MI; Rick Przybylski, Ashland; Bruce Belland, Eagle River; Travis Nye, Ashland; Jason Swan, Chippewa Falls; Cody Carlson, Superior; Chris Bretting, Ashland; Bryce Johnson, Barron; Matt Leer, Bruce; George Dalbeck, Wakefield, MI; Glenn Dammer, Duluth, MN.
Heat 1: Gerth; Stuart; Johnson; Belland; Carlson; Mike Brennan, Ashland; Bretting; Bill Brouse, Proctor, MN; Chad Adamczak, Ashland.
Heat 2: Nosser; Leuthner; Latvala; T Anderson; Dammer; Nye; Leer; Zene Anderson, Superior; Rob Weber, Ashland.
Heat 3: Dunbar; Cook; Swanson; Dalbeck; Ogston; Przybylski; Steve Anderson, Ironwood, MI; Swan; Dan Sellung, Mason.
Semi-Feature: Leer; Bretting; Swan; Brouse; S Anderson; Z Anderson; Weber.

Six-Cylinders
Feature: Neil Adamczak, Ashland; Dale Coddington, Hayward; Greg Jaeger, Mellen; Colin Polacek, Phillips; DeJay Mihalek, Ashland; Tyler Luger, Iron River; Don Muzzy, Ironwood, MI; Ken Tyykila, Iron River; Scott Ovaska, Marengo; Chuck Hawkinson, Mellen; Warren Beede, Iron River; Bryan Anderson, Mason; Tim Beeksma, Ashland; Adam Traaholt, Ashland; Cory Marincel, Ashland; Ron Lillie, Wakefield, MI; Bobby Durand, Mason; Forrest Schultz, Ashland; Jim Pelto, Ashland; Justin Bretall, Grand View; Zach Pagels, Marengo; Jonathon Popp, Iron River; Aaron Mashlan, Ashland; Tyler Hudack, Ashland; Pat Beeksma, Ironwood, MI.
Heat 1: Adamczak; Hawkinson; T Beeksma; Luger; Mashlan; Marincel; Anderson; Ovaska; Schultz.
Heat 2: P Beeksma; Polacek; Tyykila; Muzzy; Beede; Traaholt; Hudack; Shawn McFadden, Jr, Ashland; Lillie.
Heat 3: Jaeger; Coddington; Mihalek; Bretall; Pelto; Pagels; Popp; Durand.

Pure Stocks
Feature: Austin Blom, Saginaw, MN; Joe Wolfe, Montreal; Jeff Christman, Superior; Ken Tody, Jr, Ashland; Nathan Dees, Ironwood, MI; Don Livingston, Bayfield; Tim Carlson, Superior; Tim Carbon, Highbridge; Tammie Bretting, Ashland; Matt Deragon, Ashland; Dustin Gay, Ashland.
 Heat 1: Carlson; Carbon; Tody; Christman; Deragon; Gay.
 Heat 2: Dees; Wolfe; Livingston; Bretting; Blom.