Steve
Kinser Captures 1/3-mile Short Track Nationals Preliminary Feature at Eagle
Raceway
Eagle, NE — Sept. 16, 2005 — By Chris
Dolack, WoO Sprint Series Public Relations Director
For the third time this season, Steve Kinser powered his way to Victory Lane at
Eagle Raceway.
In the 30-lap opener to the
Joey Saldana, who started on the pole in his Volcano Joe’s/Bridgestone Presents
the Champ Car World Series Maxim, led the first nine laps and regained the lead
on the Lap 12 before eventually settling for third. Daryn Pittman, coming off a
victory on Tuesday, kept his Titan Garages & Carports Maxim in the top five
all race, eventually winding up fourth.
Kinser, Schatz, Saldana and Pittman are locked into the Stacker 2® Dash on
Saturday. Combined with the two fastest qualifiers who make it through their
heat races on Saturday, the Dash will set up the top six positions for the
40-lap main event.
Saldana raced into the lead in the first corner, sliding his machine along the
bottom while Pittman went right to the cushion. Behind them, Schatz, Kinser and
Brooke Tatnell in his Castrol/Steel Dreams Eagle went three-wide into Turn 3.
After five intense laps, the lone caution of the race with five down gave
everybody a chance to catch their breath. On the restart, Saldana and Pittman
stayed on the bottom while Schatz slid up to the top and eventually carried his
momentum around Pittman to grab second. A lap later, Kinser made the same move
to swipe third.
Saldana was still holding onto the bottom on Lap 10 when Schatz got a strong
run off of Turn 4 and swept in front to complete the lap. They would battle
back and forth over the next three laps while Kinser was sizing up both of
them.
With Schatz in front on Lap 14, Kinser got around on the top coming off of Turn
4 seized the lead to complete the lap. With traffic running side-by-side,
Kinser and Schatz found a spot to plow through and those two edged away from
the field, with Kinser eventually taking the checkered flag worth $5,000.
Kinser also won the preliminary and A-feature in June at Eagle Raceway.
Tatnell held on to finish fifth followed by Sammy Swindell in the
Wirtgen/Jackpot Junction Casino Maxim,
“We got a bad draw and had to start in the back of the Dash,” said Kinser, a
Mean 15 racer from Bloomington, Ind., who will be chasing his 19th A-feature
victory of the season on Saturday night. “We actually had a good Dash that got
us up to third. Then I found a little spot where everybody was blocked in
lapped cars. They were running around there and about four laps is all it was
good for before it went away. Those four laps allowed me to get in the lead and
then it was pretty hard. I should have been pounding the top the last couple of
laps but I didn’t see anybody so I wasn’t going to give that bottom up.
“It was a good racetrack, a fun racetrack. You could move around on it. There
was more than one groove on it.”
Schatz was coming off a West Coast swing that saw him win twice and run solidly
in the top 10 night after night.
“We tried something with our racecar tonight like we’ve run in the past at a
short track out West to see what it could do,” said Schatz, a Mean 15 racer
from Fargo, N.D., who has six A-feature wins this season. “It was good there,
but tonight I wasn’t as good as I needed to be. We had a tire going down and
that didn’t help us, which is probably why we weren’t very good at the end.
We’re locked in and that’s where we want to be.”
With the season winding down and Schatz in the top five in points, he and his
crew of Ricky Warner and Dion Hindi are beginning to think about how to improve
for 2006.
“The rest of the year is a test session for us,” Schatz said. “We’re
experimenting, trying some things to get ready for next year. This is the only
time we have to do it. We’re not in a points battle so we’ll just keep playing
around and see if we can find something that gives us a little bit of an edge
for next year.”
Saldana won the pole with a victory in the Stacker 2 Dash and as the leader he
wasn’t going to give up the bottom of the track, not knowing what the action
behind him looked like. Once Schatz and Kinser made the top groove work,
Saldana fought through traffic to hold off Pittman for third.
“When those guys ganged up on me I had to do something so I tried moving
around,” said Saldana, a Mean 15 racer from Brownsburg, Ind., a preliminary
feature winner in May at Lernerville who will be seeking his first A-feature
win of 2005. “It might have made a better race for the fans but they still beat
me anyway. It was good for us because we haven’t been starting up front.”
After a scary three-car incident in a heat race when the Outlaws raced in June
at Eagle that left Saldana with serious head injuries, he was just happy to post
positive results on Friday.
“I’m excited just to be racing,” he said. “Coming back here is no big deal. It
could have happened anywhere. It was just a freak deal. We just have to get
better with our racecar. We haven’t been starting up front, and tonight we were
lucky with the pill they drew [that inverted the Dash field]. That’s about a
normal place for us to qualify. Starting 10th to 15th is normal, and we’ve been
racing pretty good.”
Pittman has been one of the hottest drivers on the circuit of late. Coming off
a victory Tuesday in Colorado, Pittman has consistently been finishing in the
top 10 since early August.
“Since right before the Nationals we got going pretty good and have been pretty
steady ever since,” said Pittman, a native of Owasso, Okla., and a Mean 15
racer who moved back into the top 10 in points with his finish on Friday. “We
picked up two wins and only been out of the top 10 once since the Nationals.
I’m happy the team is doing a really good job. It’s a prelim night and top four
is really all you’re shooting for. The outside has been tough on these starts,
but I think we have a good enough car. We’re slowly making some strides to get
back into the points deal a little bit. As long as we keep being consistent and
finish the year as good as we’re running, I’ll be tickled to death.”
Pittman was one of the many drivers who found that the 1/3-mile Eagle Raceway
surface was in its best condition for an Outlaws race in years, offering a
chance to race in three separate grooves.
“That was more of the Eagle of old to me,” Pittman said. “That’s probably the
best racetrack I feel like we’ve had here in a couple of years. You could move
around the top, bottom and right through the middle, too. I think they do a
good a job. Craig [Cormack] works hard at putting on a good show and I think
they definitely have things going the right way.”
After the 1/3-mile Short Track Nationals at Eagle Raceway, the Outlaws invade
Jackson Speedway on Sept. 23 in Jackson, Minn., then return Sept. 5 to Powercom
Park in Beaver Dam, Wis., and compete Sept. 27 at K-C Raceway in Chillicothe,
Ohio.
EAGLE RACEWAY NOTEBOOK
• Terry McCarl paced the 32-car field
in time trials with a lap around the high-banked 1/3-mile oval in 11.304
seconds at 106.051 mph. Joey Saldana established the single-lap record of
11.124 seconds on Sept. 20, 2002, and Paul McMahan matched it on Sept. 19,
2003. Craig Dollansky was second quick with a lap in 11.338 seconds at 105.733
mph. Following his quick time, McCarl pulled the No. 6 pill, meaning the field
for the Dashes would be completely inverted with the fastest car making it
through the heats starting last.
“It’s nice to know you’re fast and that you’re qualifying good,” said McCarl, a
six-time Knoxville Raceway champion from Altoona, Iowa. “If you’re top two on
[Saturday] you get a shot at the Dash again so it’s real important to get
qualified good. Hopefully we can do it again.”
• Steve Kinser’s victory Friday night was his sixth preliminary feature win
this season. He leads the series with 18 A-feature victories. … Kraig Kinser
captured the Knoxville Nationals on Aug. 14 for his sixth A-feature victory of
the season. He also has a preliminary feature win at Las Vegas. … Donny
Schatz’s victory on Sept. 4 at Calistoga Speedway was his sixth of the season.
…
• Eagle Raceway is a 1/3-mile oval. The series has raced 10 times this season
on a track that size, including preliminaries, with five different winners.
Chad Kemenah earned the first
• Drivers who have raced to victory in preliminary features this season include
(in alphabetical order) Craig Dollansky three times (Manzanita/Williams
Grove/Silver Dollar), Jason Johnson once (Williams Grove), Kraig Kinser once
(Las Vegas), Steve Kinser six times (Eagle twice/Billings/Elma/Calistoga/Silver
Dollar), Danny Lasoski three times (Australia/Knoxville/Calistoga), Kerry
Madsen once (Australia), Paul McMahan once (Williams Grove),
• In the B-main, Craig Dollansky, the night’s second fastest qualifier, led
from flag-to-flag. He slowed only when he caught the rear of the field, which
was running two abreast in Turns 3 and 4. That allowed
• In the Stacker 2® Dash that made up the top six inside rows of the main
event, Joey Saldana fended off Donny Schatz over the first three laps and then
pulled away to victory and the pole, a bit of redemption for his injury in June
at Eagle that forced him out of action for a couple of weeks. Schatz held on to
finish second with Steve Kinser racing from fifth to third after finally
getting around
• In the second Dash that set the outside top six rows for the A-main, Daryn
Pittman jumped out to a quick lead as Brooke Tatnell worked around 2002 Eagle
Raceway champion Billy Alley. Jason Solwold maintained his ground while Sammy
Swindell caught and passed Kraig Kinser on the final lap.
• In the first heat, Danny Lasoski fought off Jac Haudenschild in the first
corner then drove away from the field, leading all 10 laps and winning by 4.415
seconds. Haudenschild maintained second while Brooke Tatnell and fast qualifier
Terry McCarl worked their way around Kerry Madsen, with all five transferring
to the main event.
• In the second heat, Justin Henderson jumped to the lead at the drop of the
green flag and with clear track powered to victory by 2.779 seconds. Jason
Solwold held off
• The third heat featured some of the best racers the
• In the fourth heat, Jason Sides pulled out to a quick lead before Joey
Saldana tried to run him down. Saldana got to Sides’ rear bumper coming off of
Turn 2 for the final time, but Sides slammed the door, forcing Saldana onto the
binders going into Turn 3 and giving Sides enough of a cushion to pick up the
win. Billy Alley held off Steve Kinser for third while Kraig Kinser earned the
final transfer spot.
• After the 1/3-mile Short Track Nationals at Eagle Raceway, the Outlaws invade
Jackson Speedway on Sept. 23 in Jackson, Minn., then return Sept. 5 to Powercom
Park in Beaver Dam, Wis., and compete Sept. 27 at K-C Raceway in Chillicothe,
Ohio.
• The Outdoor Channel will air at 8 p.m. Eastern on Sept. 21 the Gold Cup Race
of Champions from Silver Dollar Speedway and on Sept. 28 the 1/3-mile Short
Track Nationals from O’Reilly Auto Parts Eagle Raceway.
• The Official
• If fans can’t get to a track to see the series, they can experience the
excitement of the
• The
WoO Sprint Series Statistical Report; 1/3-mile Short Track
Nationals Preliminary; Eagle Raceway; Eagle, Neb.; Sept. 16, 2005
Qualifying
1) Terry McCarl, McCarl 24, 11.304
2) Craig Dollansky, Karavan 7, 11.338
3) Sammy Swindell, Forbrook 5, 11.350
4) Steve Kinser, Kinser 11, 11.356
5) Kraig Kinser, Kinser 11K, 11.372
6)
7)
8) Brooke Tatnell, Rush Racing 8, 11.444
9) Kerry Madsen, VerMeer 55, 11.454
10) Jason Solwold, Carnahan R19, 11.463
11) Donny Schatz, Schatz 15, 11.472
12) Billy Alley, Alley 22, 11.473
13) Joey Saldana, Woodward 2, 11.501
14) Daryn Pittman, Titan Racing USA 21, 11.506
15) Brandon Wimmer, Two Winners Racing 7TW, 11.514
16) Danny Lasoski, Stewart 20, 11.533
17) Jac Haudenschild, Roth 83, 11.603
18) Justin Henderson, Oswalt D11, 11.617
19) Paul McMahan, Helm 11H, 11.618
20) Kevin Swindell, Swindell 1, 11.634
21) Jason Sides, Sides Motorsports 7S, 11.637
22) Tim Shaffer, Parsons 6, 11.653
23) John VanDenBerg, McCarl 7X, 11.661
24) Shane Stewart, Rudeen Racing 26, 11.757
25) Collin Northway, Northway 60, 11.886
26) Jesse Hockett, VKCC Motorsports 75, 11.903
27) Wayne Johnson, Fattfro 14AJ, 11.913
28) Seth Brahmer, Brahmer 13, 11.923
29) Ryan Anderson, Anderson 71R, 12.020
30) Mike Woodruff, Haneborg 44, 12.529
31) Duane Olson, Olson 16, 14.117
32) Greg Jones, Jones 35, No time
First Heat Race (10 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Danny Lasoski
2) Jac Haudenschild
3) Brooke Tatnell
4) Terry McCarl
5) Kerry Madsen
6) Collin Northway
7) Ryan Anderson
8) Shane Stewart (DNS)
Second Heat Race (10 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Justin Henderson 2) Jason Solwold
3)
4) John VanDenBerg
5) Brandon Wimmer
6) Jesse Hockett
7) Craig Dollansky
8) Mike Woodruff
Third Heat Race (10 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Donny Schatz
2) Paul McMahan
3) Tim Shaffer
4) Daryn Pittman
5) Sammy Swindell
6)
7) Duane Olson
8) Wayne Johnson
Fourth Heat Race (10 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Jason Sides
2) Joey Saldana
3) Billy Alley
4) Steve Kinser
5) Kraig Kinser
6) Kevin Swindell
7) Seth Brahmer
8) Greg Jones
Stacker 2 Dash (6 laps, finishing order determined inside first 6 rows of
A-feature)
1) Joey Saldana
2) Donny Schatz
3) Steve Kinser
4)
5) Kerry Madsen
6) Terry McCarl
Second Dash (6 laps, finishing order determined outside first 6 rows of
A-feature)
1) Daryn Pittman
2) Brooke Tatnell
3) Billy Alley
4) Jason Solwold
5) Sammy Swindell
6) Kraig Kinser
B-main (12 laps, top 4 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Craig Dollansky [$20]
2)
3) Shane Stewart [$20]
4) Kevin Swindell [$20]
5) Jesse Hockett [$150]
6) Wayne Johnson [$125]
7) Mike Woodruff [$100]
8) Collin Northway [$100]
9) Ryan Anderson [$100]
10) Seth Brahmer [$100]
11) Greg Jones [$100]
12) Duane Olson [$100]
A-main (30 laps)
1) Steve Kinser [$5,000]
2) Donny Schatz [$3,000]
3) Joey Saldana [$2,500]
4) Daryn Pittman [$2,200]
5) Brooke Tatnell [$2,100]
6) Sammy Swindell [$2,000]
7)
8) Kerry Madsen [$1,600]
9)
10) Danny Lasoski [$1,300]
11) Kraig Kinser [$1,200]
12) Terry McCarl [$1,100]
13) Jason Solwold [$1,000]
14) Craig Dollansky [$700]
15) Billy Alley [$600]
16) Jason Sides [$600]
17) Paul McMahan [$600]
18) Tim Shaffer [$600]
19) Brandon Wimmer [$600]
20) Shane Stewart [$600]
21) John VanDenBerg [$500]
22) Justin Henderson [$500]
23) Kevin Swindell [$500]
24) Jac Haudenschild [$500]
Lap leaders: Joey Saldana 1-9, 12; Donny Schatz 10-11,13; Steve Kinser
14-30
Notes: Shane Stewart had engine problems and was unable to start the
first heat race.
Rk.DriverDriver
Pts.Team Pts.Team
Driver Team Team Team Team A-feature
Rank Driver Points Points Earnings Diff. Wins Top 5 Top 10
1 Steve Kinser 8195 8195 $438,180 0 18 40 52
2
3 Craig Dollansky 7618 7618 $179,760 -577 2 20 36
4 Kraig Kinser 7473 7473 $315,200 -722 6 20 34
5 Donny Schatz 7380 7380 $255,060 -815 6 16 32
6 Danny Lasoski 7344 7344 $179,105 -851 1 12 30
7 Tim Shaffer 7167 7167 $175,365 -1028 3 14 25
8 Brooke Tatnell* 7154 7430* $172,295 -765 2 18 31
9 Paul McMahan 7150 7150 $114,940 -1045 0 7 21
10 Daryn Pittman 7117 7117 $148,555 -1078 3 11 25
11 Terry McCarl 7117 7117 $127,440 -1078 0 11 24
12 Shane Stewart 6930 6930 $128,780 -1265 0 6 22
13 Joey Saldana 6911 6911 $140,945 -1284 0 13 24
14
15 Jason Sides 6707 6707 $81,510 -1488 0 2 11
16 Jason Solwold 6461 6461 $95,260 -1734 0 4 13
17 Tim Kaeding**** 6130 0**** $0 -8195 0*** 0 0
18 Brandon Wimmer 5959 5959 $51,140 -2236 0 0 3
19 Sammy Swindell 4247 4097 $112,880 -4098 2 14 17
20 Jac Haudenschild** 3303 7007 $132,550 -1188 2*** 9 23