Jeff Jeras Wins The Spectator 200 Enduro and Dave Berndt Claims the Compact Special 100! By Dan Margetta

September 19, 2004; Slinger, WI - Jeff Jeras raced to the win in the Spectator 200 Enduro Sunday afternoon at the Slinger Super Speedway while Dave Berndt took the checkered flag in the Compact Special 100.

     Mark Fogel led the opening laps of the Spectator 200 from his sixth starting position, but he soon gave way to Jason Muelmans by lap 30. Jeras started deep in the field and steadily worked his way through traffic to first take over the lead on lap 50 from Meulemans. Jeras initial time out front was short-lived however, as he spun on lap 53 and fell back to third place as both Jason and Jeff Meulemans were able to pass by.  Jason Meulemans maintained the top spot for the next 30 laps while Jeras charged his way back into second place by lap 80. Using the top side of the track to drive through the heavy traffic, Jeras caught and passed Meulemans for the lead on lap 86. With Jeras and Meulemans out front, Jeff Meulemans battled with Les Weidenhoeft and Frank Calabrese for the third through fifth positions. The drivers were given a short break to check their cars at the halfway mark with Jeras leading over Jason Meulemans, Weidenhoeft, Jeff Muelemans, and Calabrese.

      Jason Meulemans was able to briefly retake command of the event as the second half got underaway, passing Jeras in traffic shortly after the restart. However, Jeras once again took to the top- side of the speedway and by lap 115, had already worked his way back into the lead. Steve Stegner smacked the turn three wall on lap 122 and a red flag session was necessary to remove his car from the track As racing resumed, Jeras jumped out to a sizeable lead over Muelemans as the top five stabilized until lap 154 when Weidenhoeft lost a wheel while running third, stopping the race for a second time under the red flag. Weidenhoeft wasn’t the only one of the front-runners to have problems as Jeff Meulemans dropped from the event on lap 157 with mechanical problems. The shake-up in the top five moved Calabrese up to third place with Rick Cregger and Dave Brezinsky taking over fourth and fifth place respectively. Jeras could not be caught over the final laps as he took the checkered flag first to score his most prominent Enduro victory. Jason Muelemans finished in second place while Calabrese, Brezinksy, and Trevor Schmidt rounded out the top five. Following the event, Jeras refused the claim rule on his vehicle and was therefore disqualified, leaving the event with no official winner.

      Jason Meulemans returned to compete in the Compact Special 100 and quickly jumped into the lead at the start over Pete Tedisch and Berndt.  Meulemans began to fade as Tedisch took over the lead while Joseph Bentfield and Berndt raced for second place while Justin Poenitsch and Chris Bishop fought for the fourth position. A multi-car incident in turn one on lap 26 brought out the red flag as a wad of cars piled into turn one while trying to avoid a stalled machine that was being assisted by the jam truck on the frontstretch. Included in the melee, was the fifth place car of Bishop and the event was stopped as he had to be extricated from his car by the safety crew. Once out of the car, Bishop was transported to a local hospital for observation and later returned to the track after being released.

      Tedisch led briefly on the restart but soon lost the lead to Berndt just before the event was stopped a second time on lap 30 when Tom Kirchner rear-ended the jam truck while it was attempting to remove the disabled car of Andy Soine.  As racing resumed, Jamie Vetter came to life and quickly took over the top spot from Berndt on lap 40. Vetter continued to lead at the halfway mark over Berndt, Bobby Quaderer, Matt Schatz, and Jared Apel. Numerous spins and incidents amidst the heavy traffic scrambled the top five in the middle stages as by lap 60 Vetter led Berndt, Ryan DeStefano, Tom Berens, and Schatz. Vetter’s hopes of winning went up in smoke on lap 66 when his car developed engine problems and Berndt stormed by to take the lead. Berndt was never headed from there and drove to his second consecutive win in the 100-lap event for the compact cars. Berens finished second ahead of DeStefano while Matt Rowe and Schatz rounded out the top five. Following the event, Berndt and DeStefano refused the claim rule and were disqualified, leaving the event with no official winner. 

Slinger Super Speedway

Event: Spectator 200 Enduro, Compact Special 100             Date: September 19, 2004

Twin 75's Spring Opener at Slinger Super Speedway
By Lanae Weyer

Special; Slinger, WI — As the 2004 race season comes to a close, it’s time to look ahead to next year, when we celebrate the 59th consecutive year of racing at Slinger Super Speedway. On April 24, 2005, on-track action at the world’s fastest quarter-mile oval begins with the Twin 75’s Spring Opener.

On Saturday April 23, 2005 fans will have the opportunity to view the all the divisions of competition for the 2005-racing season during the annual practice day. In order to prepare for the racing season, the following divisions, Late Model, Midwest Modified, Midwest Sportsman, Thunderstocks, Slinger Bees and Figure 8’s, will each be given practice time. General admission on practice day is free for all fans interested in watching the warm-up action.

The 2005 Spring Opener is a special event that will kick off the season. Sunday night action at Slinger Super Speedway will begin on May 1, and will run until September 18, 2005. Advertising and sponsorship opportunities as well as company and group outings are available for the 2005 season. For more information, contact the speedway’s public relations department at 262.628.7929 or visit our web-site at www.slingersuperspeedway.com.