By: Eric Huenefeld
It had been 43 days since Stanley Steemer NASCAR Late Model points leader Ryan Carlson last visited Rockford Speedway victory lane. In that time, Carlson also saw his fair share of bent sheet metal, struggling race cars and watched his nearly 50 point lead evaporate.

Saturday night, Carlson would do his best to erase the negatives of the past five plus weeks in topping the evenings 30 lap main event. The feat was anything but easy, as the Loves Park driver would have a mirror full of his two chief rivals for a majority of the race. Carlson held strong and took the trophy, his fourth of the season.

The race would start with Mark Hartline and Vern Fagerberg Jr leading the field to green. Hartine would lead the opening circuit by inches, with Fagerberg ripping the lead away from Hartline on lap 2. As the top two tussled, the "big three" points contenders, Carlson, Jerry Gille and Jon Reynolds Jr. would work through the field together in quick, thrilling fashion. In a matter of eight laps, the trio climbed from eighth, ninth and tenth to second, third and fourth. Just as Carlson and company reached Fagerberg's bumper, the leader snapped sideways and collected two other cars, those of Tom Gille and Wayne Freimund, and brought out the yellow flag.

The caution would then put Carlson, Gille and Reynolds together up front and set up the ensuing 22 lap chess match, with Carlson protecting the lead while getting constant pressure and the occaisional nudge from Gille, and with Reynolds pursuing closely waiting to pounce on either. As the field approached lap traffic with five to go, Carlson extended his lead slightly and would go on to win the race by one and a half car lengths. Gille would hold second, and Reynolds followed in third. Matt Berger finished the event in fourth spot. Gille did, however, cut Carlsons point lead to single digits for the first time this season. The margain now stands at merely seven points between the top two with three races remaining.

In the Budweiser American Short Tracker feature, it appeared as if things were going to continue to go the way of four-time Track Champion George Sparkman, who jetted to the lead after an early yellow in the divisions 25 lap main event. With nearly a straightaway lead on the field by lap 10, Sparkman appeared to have his second feature win in hand. However, thorugh the pack came George's brother BJ, who lost the points lead two weeks ago to his sibling after a hard heat race wreck. After charging from his starting spot deep in the field, BJ found second place and his rhythm and began to chase down George. A yellow with seven to go tightened the field and would give BJ a chance to make his move.

On the restart, the two brothers broke away and went side-by-side for the top spot. BJ would take the lead with a little door-to-door contact on lap 21. A lap later, in his efforts to retake the lead and payback his brother, George would nudge and spin BJ to bring out the yellow flag and send himself to the tail of the field. On the restart, BJ and his teammate Scotty Hoeft would control first and second, with George fighting back through the field. As the checkers flew, the teammates of BJ Sparkman and Hoeft would nab the top two spots with Kyle Lapier taking third followed by second year driver Chris Jones. George Sparkman would charge hard and finish in sixth and minimize the damage to his points lead.

As usual, the Mountain Dew Roadrunners did not disappoint. That divisions 20 lap feature would see a side-by-side race for the top spot for over half of the event. The lead tango featured Johnny Robinson II, who was making his first Roadrunner start of 2011, and Terry Ciano, who was looking for his second win of 2011. The two would shadow each other from lap 7 to lap 18, when Ciano finally made the move on the bottom side to take the lead. Robinson would come back and make one more bid for the win, falling only a half carlength short of becoming the eleventh Roadrunner feature winner of the season. Alex Papini made his usual late race charge and took a third place finsh while padding his points lead. Joey Thomas crossed the line fourth but did not pass Post Race Inspection, which moved Figure 8 Champ Dennis Smith Jr to fourth in the final rundown.

The Illini Midgets made their final regular season appearance a memorable one, with a frantic 25 lap feature that saw Elk Grove Village driver Sean Murphy capture his first Rockford Speedway win in several tries. Murphy passed both Scott Dunning and Tyler Deschaine for the lead near the race's midway point and stormed away to seal the deal. Dunning and Deschaine continued their battle throughout the race, with Dunning holding the runner up spot and Deschaine settling for third. Ryan Probst finished in fourth and nearly stole a spot or two as the checkered flag flew.

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8/20/2011 - Rockford Speedway Results

NASCAR American Short Trackers
A-Main 01 -- 1. Boyce (BJ) Sparkman, Machesney Park; 2. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis; 3. Kyle Lapier, Belvidere; 4. Christopher Jones, Rockford; 5. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 6. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 7. Nick Letsinger, Rockford; 8. Devon Dixon, Janesville, Wis; 9. Brad Henrey, Rockford; 10. Nick Worman, Algonquin; 11. David Russell, Jr, Machesney Park; 12. Artt Higbee, Rockford; 13. Steve Cavin, Rockford; 14. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere; 15. Alan Bekielewski, Roscoe; 16. Bryan Ellis, Loves Park; 17. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 18. Steve Drays, Milton, Wis; 19. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis.

Heat 01 -- 1. Nick Letsinger, Rockford; 2. Steve Drays, Milton, Wis; 3. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 4. Brad Henrey, Rockford; 5. Artt Higbee, Rockford; 6. David Russell, Jr, Machesney Park; 7. Nick Worman, Algonquin.

Heat 02 -- 1. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis; 2. Kyle Lapier, Belvidere; 3. Alan Bekielewski, Roscoe; 4. Devon Dixon, Janesville, Wis; 5. Bryan Ellis, Loves Park; 6. Steve Cavin, Rockford.

Heat 03 -- 1. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 2. Boyce (BJ) Sparkman, Machesney Park; 3. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 4. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere; 5. Christopher Jones, Rockford.

Time Trial -- 1. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 2. Boyce (BJ) Sparkman, Machesney Park; 3. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere; 4. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 5. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis; 6. Christopher Jones, Rockford; 7. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis; 8. Bryan Ellis, Loves Park; 9. Kyle Lapier, Belvidere; 10. Alan Bekielewski, Roscoe; 11. Steve Cavin, Rockford; 12. Devon Dixon, Janesville, Wis; 13. Steve Drays, Milton, Wis; 14. Artt Higbee, Rockford; 15. Nick Letsinger, Rockford; 16. Brad Henrey, Rockford; 17. David Russell, Jr, Machesney Park; 18. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 19. Nick Worman, Algonquin.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere; 2. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 3. Christopher Jones, Rockford; 4. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 5. Boyce (BJ) Sparkman, Machesney Park; 6. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis.

NASCAR Late Models
A-Main 01 -- 1. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 2. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 3. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 4. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 5. Wayne Freimund, Elkhorn, Wis; 6. John Beinlich, Prairie View; 7. Mitchell Garfield (r), Gilberts; 8. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 9. Nick Shutkas, Loves Park; 10. Steve McBride (r), South Beloit; 11. Vern Fagerberg, Bloomingdale; 12. Tom Gille, Winnebago; 13. Brandon Eash, Machesney Park; 14. Austin Nason, Roscoe.

Heat 01 -- 1. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 2. Vern Fagerberg, Bloomingdale; 3. Wayne Freimund, Elkhorn, Wis; 4. John Beinlich, Prairie View; 5. Steve McBride (r), South Beloit; 6. Nick Shutkas, Loves Park; 7. Austin Nason, Roscoe.

Heat 02 -- 1. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 2. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 3. Tom Gille, Winnebago; 4. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 5.Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 6. Brandon Eash, Machesney Park; 7. Mitchell Garfield (r), Gilberts.

Time Trial -- 1. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 2. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 3. Tom Gille, Winnebago; 4. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 5. Brandon Eash, Machesney Park; 6. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 7. Mitchell Garfield (r), Gilberts; 8. Wayne Freimund, Elkhorn, Wis; 9. Nick Shutkas, Loves Park; 10. John Beinlich, Prairie View; 11. Austin Nason, Roscoe; 12. Vern Fagerberg, Bloomingdale; 13. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 14. Steve McBride (r), South Beloit.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 2. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 3. Tom Gille, Winnebago; 4. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 5. Brandon Eash, Machesney Park; 6. Matt Berger, Loves Park.

NASCAR RoadRunners
A-Main 01 -- 1. Terry Ciano, Jr., Janesville, Wis; 2. Johnny Robinson II, Beloit, Wis; 3. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 4. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 5. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 6. Jason Van Hise, Loves Park; 7. Anthony Lloyd, Loves Park; 8. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere; 9. Brian Mayer, Machesney Park; 10. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock; 11. Steve Gregory, Machesney Park; 12. James Gregory, Winnebago; 13. Patrick Featherston II, Byron; 14. Lloyd Hawkins, Machesney Park; 15. Steven Dover, Machesney Park; 16. Kyle McQuality, Stillman Valley; 17. David Rodden, Loves Park; 18. Brent Garnhart, Machesney Park; 19. Terry Van Hise, Machesney Park; 20. Kenneth Brazee III, Rockford; 21. Curt Nighswonger, Rockford; 22. Braeden Yelland, Poplar Grove; 23. Jonathon Dean, Machesney Park; 24. Josh DiGiovanni, Machesney Park; 25. Dana Czach, Wauconda.

Heat 01 -- 1. Johnny Robinson II, Beloit, Wis; 2. Lloyd Hawkins, Machesney Park; 3. Kenneth Brazee III, Rockford; 4. Jonathon Dean, Machesney Park; 5. Terry Van Hise, Machesney Park; 6. Curt Nighswonger, Rockford; 7. David Rodden, Loves Park; 8. Brent Garnhart, Machesney Park; 9. Braeden Yelland, Poplar Grove.

Heat 02 -- 1. Jason Van Hise, Loves Park; 2. Josh DiGiovanni, Machesney Park; 3. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 4. James Gregory, Winnebago; 5. Steve Gregory, Machesney Park; 6. Steven Dover, Machesney Park; 7. Kyle McQuality, Stillman Valley.

Heat 03 -- 1. Patrick Featherston II, Byron; 2. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 3. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 4. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock; 5. Terry Ciano, Jr., Janesville, Wis; 6. Anthony Lloyd, Loves Park; 7. Brian Mayer, Machesney Park; 8. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere; 9. Dana Czach, Wauconda.

Challenge 01 -- 1. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock; 2. Jason Van Hise, Loves Park; 3. Dana Czach, Wauconda; 4. David Pautsch, Jr, Roscoe; 5. Mark Bielefeldt, Loves Park; 6. Steven Dover, Machesney Park; 7. Terry Van Hise, Machesney Park; 8. Jonathon Dean, Machesney Park; 9. Brent Garnhart, Machesney Park.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 2. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock; 3. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 4. Anthony Lloyd, Loves Park; 5. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere; 6. Dana Czach, Wauconda.

Illini Racing Series Midgets
A-Main 01 -- 1. Sean Murphy, Elk Grove Village; 2. Scott Dunning, Bolingbrook; 3. Tyler Deschaine, Loves Park; 4. RyanProbst, New Lenox; 5. Mike Gass, Worth; 6. Ray Seech;; 7. Aaron Willis, Jr, Essex; 8. Brian Dobis, Frankfort; 9. Bob Adams, St. Charles; 10. Doug Orseske, Frankfort; 11. Justin Lindemann, Ixonia, Wis; 12. Eddie Sauer, Davis; 13. FrankReiss, Genoa; 14. Scott Koerner, Joliet; 15. Patrick Bruns, Champaign.

Heat 01 -- 1. Sean Murphy, Elk Grove Village; 2. Aaron Willis, Jr, Essex; 3. Patrick Bruns, Champaign; 4. Mike Gass, Worth; 5. Tyler Deschaine, Loves Park; 6. Scott Koerner, Joliet; 7. Scott Dunning, Bolingbrook.

Heat 02 -- 1. Ryan Probst, New Lenox; 2. Bob Adams, St. Charles; 3. Ray Seech;; 4. Eddie Sauer, Davis; 5. Brian Dobis, Frankfort; 6. Doug Orseske, Frankfort; 7. Justin Lindemann, Ixonia, Wis; 8. Frank Reiss, Genoa.

Time Trial -- 1. Sean Murphy, Elk Grove Village; 2. Tyler Deschaine, Loves Park; 3. Aaron Willis, Jr, Essex; 4. Mike Gass, Worth; 5. Lamont Critchett, Demotte, Ind.; 6. Patrick Bruns, Champaign; 7. Ben Gillis, Wesmont; 8. Scott Koerner, Joliet; 9. Scott Dunning, Bolingbrook; 10. Ray Seech;; 11. Doug Orseske, Frankfort; 12. Bob Adams, St. Charles; 13. Ryan Probst, New Lenox; 14. Eddie Sauer, Davis; 15. Brian Dobis, Frankfort; 16. Frank Reiss, Genoa; 17. Justin Lindemann, Ixonia, Wis.