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Thon
becomes 9th different winner of Alan Kulwicki Memorial at Slinger!
By Weyer / Margetta |
May 20,
2001; Slinger, WI - Charlie Thon Jr. became the ninth different face in Victory
Lane in as many Bob Fish Pontiac/Buick/GMC Alan Kulwicki Memorial races Sunday night at
the Slinger Super Speedway.
“I have to thank the guys that race here as they all race clean
and I have to thank God for taking care of our heroes like Alan Kulwicki, Dale Earnhardt,
and Al Schill Jr.,” stated Thon after scoring the victory in the prestigious late
model event that has yet to have a two-time winner.
Thon took the green flag from the pole position and swapped the lead with Chris Ratajczyk
for the opening laps while Al Schill and John Zimmerman fought it out for third. Cindy
Peterson broke loose on lap nine in turn three and collected Florian Wisinski. Randy
Schuler and John Mueller also became involved with Schuler’s car ending up directly
on top of Mueller’s machine, causing the event to come to a halt under the red flag.
All drivers emerged from the incident uninjured.
Thon continued to hold the point once the field was back under green as Ratajczyk began to
fade, allowing Schill, Conrad Morgan, and Eric Fransen to get by. Brad Mueller, Zimmerman,
and Lowell Bennett were also in the mix as the lead cars ran in a bundle. Thon led lap 25
and collected the $100 Mac Tools Halfway Bonus while Schill and Morgan staged their own
battle for second with Fransen, Mueller, and Zimmerman racing hard behind the top three.
Mueller broke loose while racing inside of Fransen on lap 27 to bring out another caution
and the ensuing melee collected Zimmerman, Toby Rott, and Donavan Morgan. Mueller, Rott,
and D. Morgan were relegated to the pit area while Fransen was placed at the rear of the
field for his alleged involvement in the incident.
Thon once again shot out into the lead on the restart and had to ward off numerous
challenges from Schill who was able to use the inside groove to pull alongside. Schill was
able to draw even in the corners but Thon had enough horsepower to edge ahead as the laps
began to wind down. Thon eventually was able to establish a solid lead as Schill fell into
the clutches of C. Morgan and Bennett who were right behind in third and fourth. Thon took
the win while Morgan and Bennett both moved up to finish second and third respectively,
dropping Schill to fourth. Jamie Wallace claimed the fifth spot after starting deep in the
field.
Fransen returned to claim the second 50 lap late model feature for his second feature win
of the season.
The lead lap cars from the first event were inverted for the start of the second race and
Rataczyk took the early lead before Fransen claimed the top spot on lap six. Schill, Rich
Loch, and C. Morgan followed behind the lead duo while Fransen extended his lead. Morgan
got by Schill for second on lap 21 as Bennett entered the top five with Fransen still
holding a comfortable lead. Fransen led at the halfway mark and collected the Mac Tools
Halfway $100 Bonus as Morgan tried to cut into his lead while working lapped traffic.
The top five began to string out and Fransen maintained his advantage to take the victory
over Morgan and Bennett. Schill was fourth while Ratajczyk capped off a good run with a
fifth place finish.
Todd Thelen dominated the late model semi-feature to take the win over Mike Egan and Fred
Winn. Brad Hartman held off Matt Koucerek to win the late model consi. Bennett won the
dash and Mueller was the fastest qualifier at 11.738 seconds.
Dan Miller won his first feature event of the season in the 30 lap Midwest Modified main
event.
Miller fell behind early leader Mike Graczkowski and Gregg Pawelski at the drop of the
green flag and took the lead with an inside move on a restart following a caution period
on lap 11 when Brian Holtz spun after getting tagged by another car. Shortly after losing
the lead, Graczkowski got loose in the first turn and slid up the racetrack, collecting
numerous cars in the process. A total of eight cars were involved in the incident and all
but those of Chris Petersen and Mike Held were able to continue.
Miller held the point over Jeff Holtz, and Ed Grober while Dan Jung and Ron Weyer kept the
leaders in sight. Jung and Grober got together on lap 19 to bring out another caution as
B. Holtz recovered from his earlier spin to take third place from Weyer just behind Miller
and J. Holtz. J. Holtz was able to maneuver to the inside of Miller numerous times over
the final ten laps but was unable to find enough traction to take the lead as Miller held
on for the win. Jeff Holtz was second while Brian Holtz and Weyer were each awarded third
place following a scoring error. Steve Lurvey was fourth and Alan Keppert finished fifth.
In other action, J. Holtz won the modified dash and Ed Grober was the fastest qualifier
with a lap of 12.571 seconds.
Bill Shavlik held off a determined Paul Wagner to win the 18 lap Slinger Stinger feature.
Scott Ascher finished a close third while Jason Feyereisen bested Patrick McIntee for
fourth place.
Shavlik and Wagner each recorded Slinger Stinger heat wins while Wagner also set fast time
at 13.381 seconds.
The Figure 8 event did not have a winner as leader Scott Goetzke and Bill Ahles Jr.
crashed in the X on the final lap and apparent winner Shane Becker failed post race
technical inspection. The teams of P.J. and Aaron Cain and Joe and Ryan DeStefano won the
Team Cruiser races while Jasper Drengler won the Spectator Elimination race. Gary Bauer
won the Speedway Guest Car event. Joseph Mertz won the $100 AAL Challenge and four year
old Rachel Peszko found the lucky penny in the penny drop to win $430 in cash and prizes.
For Complete
results from the RACESTAT computer CLICK HERE
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E.H. Wolf
/ Amoco present
Memorial Day Weekend Special at Slinger!
By Weyer / Margetta |
Special;
Slinger, WI - E.H. Wolf and Sons along with Amoco present the Memorial
Day Weekend Special Sunday night, May 27, at the Slinger Super Speedway.
The evening, highlighted by an 80 lap late model feature, will also include a full racing
program in the late model, Midwest modified, Slinger stinger, team cruiser, speedway guest
car, spectator elimination, and figure 8 divisions.
Fans wishing to attend the races can pick up special coupons for $1 off admission at
participating Amoco retailers. Participating Amoco retailers include Steve’s
Amoco-Sheboygan, EZ In and Out Amoco-West Bend, Willow Creek Amoco-Germantown, County Line
Amoco-Colgate, Bullfrog Station Amoco-Dousman, Don’s Unimart Amoco-Slinger, Rapid
Mart Amoco-Hartford, Schaefer’s Amoco-Slinger, Westside Mart Amoco-Hartford, Village
Mart Amoco-Jackson, Romies Amoco-Allenton, Pioneer Plaza Amoco-Richfield, and Wild Goose
Station Amoco-Juneau.
Conrad Morgan, Lowell Bennett, Eric Fransen, Charlie Thon, and Donavan Morgan have all won
feature races at Slinger this season and they will be on hand to take on other top drivers
such as Brad Mueller, Al Schill, and David Prunty in the special 80 lap late model main
event.
Spectator gates open at 4:45 p.m. with time trials at 5:15 p.m. and racing scheduled to
begin at 7 p.m. The Slinger Super Speedway is located � mile West of Highway 41 on
Highway 144 in Slinger. For more information, call the track office during normal business
hours at (262) 644-5921 or check out the track website at www.slingersuperspeedway.com. |
