By: Eric Huenefeld
It wasn't going to be easy for anyone to win the 30 lap Stanley Steemer NASCAR Late Model feature Saturday night at Rockford Speedway. Hot temperatures led to their normal challenges, and a 22-car starting field added a few new contenders to the weekly field of challengers.

Meeting the challenge was Eddie May. May, a long-time Late Model driver from Crystal Lake, as well as a former champion at the former Lake Geneva Raceway, held off all challenges and sailed to his first ever Saturday night feature win at the famed quarter-mile. The win also gave May a leg up on the competition as Nason’s Landscaping Night also signaled Round One of the Gilley's Cool 5.

May had the best seat in the house for the start of the feature, starting outside of Dave Edwards on the front row. May would jump to the lead, with Edwards settling into second spot in the race's opening laps. The lead two would stay stable most of the race, but the action was behind the leaders. Former Late Model Rookie of the Year Alex Papini would be one of the drivers providing the action. Papini, who finished fourth in his first race of 2012 a week prior, would start in the eighth spot, and begin to climb through the field. With a little work, Papini would find himself in third spot by the race's midway point.

Behind Papini, the points leaders Jerry Gille and “Driver X” Jon Reynolds Jr. would also do their best to move forward. The two worked in tandem, with Gille eventually moving into fifth ahead of Reynolds. Soon after, the field strung out and the race appeared to belong to May, but with only two laps to go, Jake Gille would suffer issues under his hood and spin in turn four, bringing out the races only yellow flag, and setting up a shootout to the finish.

On the “cone restart”, Edwards would choose the low line in order to go after May for the lead, while Papini settled for the high side. The move put Papini behind May and next to Edwards and the stage was set. May left little doubt on the restart, jumping two car lengths ahead of the tussle for second spot, which would be won by Papini. Edwards fell to third, where he would finish behind May and Papini. Gille ended the race in fourth spot, with Reynolds making the move from twelfth to fifth by races end.

The competition in the Bargain Hunter Sportsman division is as close as ever. Big fields of cars separated by very little have led to an interesting start to the 2012 season. Two drivers however, are trying to make the division their own this year. It seems where ever Darrell Garman goes, Doug Bennett goes, and vice verse. The two drivers have seemingly been attached at the hip on track this year, and the same was true Saturday night.

Bennett would have the pole for the divisions 25 lap main event, with Garman fittingly to his outside. Garman would beat Garman to the line on lap one and take the lead. Garman stretched his lead early on Bennett, who settled into second spot. Behind the lead duo, the packs of cars formed, and the jockeying for position began. One car of note that was able to make progress through the field was Matt Lundberg. Lundberg, in his “Family Truckster” station wagon would progress into the top five early and battle hard to advance further ahead in the field. Lundberg eventually would settle for fourth.

Alas, it was Garman and Bennett's show again up front. As the laps wound down in the caution-free event, Bennett would begin to close in on Garman, actually peeking below Garman's black #6 a couple times, but never evening up with or passing Garman. Bennett would take second behind Garman, who won his third feature in four attempts this year. Behind Bennett was Johnny Robinson II in third. Lundberg would end up in fourth ahead of Mike Beyer, making his first Sportsman feature run worthwhile, nabbing a fifth place finish.

It was almost deja vu in the Miller Lite American Short Trackers, as both George Sparkman and Nick Cina Jr may have been having flashbacks to opening night. It was on that night that Cina held a straightaway lead on Sparkman with ten laps to go, only to have Sparkman trace him down and get to within six feet of stealing a win. On this night, the roles would nearly be reversed.

Early on, the 25 lap race resembled a shells game, with positions changing left and right. Wisconsin driver Eric Connell would inherit the lead early, and hold a small lead over the ever-changing group of challengers in his rear view. Behind Connell, Chris Jones and Kyle Stark waged a tough tussle for second spot, which saw Stark prevail by lap six. Starks's runner-up status was short lived though, as Sparkman would be on the prowl, and by lap nine, the five-time track champ was sitting in second spot.

Sparkman took the lead just shy of halfway, and began to get away from the field. Connell would then find Cina on his bumper and the two would duel for second. Cina took second, trailing Sparkman by a sizable margin, and with that margin, a chance for a win seemed slim. However, a yellow would soon fly, and the battle was on.

Former track champ Kyle Lapier and Scotty Hoeft would get together out of turn four with six laps to go, setting up the trophy dash to the finish. Cina would get even with Sparkman, but would never be able to complete a move for the win in the last six circuits, settling for second. Sparkman scored his first Saturday night feature win in 18 months. Joe LaMarca followed up his win 2 weeks prior with a third place run, followed by Jones and Connell.

As always, hard charges were the norm in the Rockstar Energy Drink Roadrunners. Four of the top five finishers would come from 19th place or deeper in the 24-car starting field. After a couple of weeks of finding ways to lose races, Anthony Lloyd finally was able to find a way to return to victory lane. Lloyd, who started from the 19th spot, found himself in the lead after a restart on lap 6 following a dust-up in turn two.

With the lead in hand, Lloyd would be in control the rest of the way, but behind him, the traffic jam was immense. “Bullet” Bobby Frisch worked hard to advance to second spot in the races closing laps after staring in 20th position. Points leader Dennis Smith Jr lost his battle with Frisch for the runner-up spot, but still took third after charging from 21st. Ricky Nielson would finish fourth ahead of Gene Marocco, who nabbed a top five after starting in the last row, moving into the top five from the 23rd position.

Racing will take a one week break at Rockford Speedway as the facility prepares for the WXRX Rock Monkey Ruckus taking place Sunday afternoon May 27. NASCAR Whelen All-American Series action returns on Saturday night June 2 with all four NASCAR division plus the Figure 8’s and Sam’s Drive-IN Driver Hot Dog Eating Contest. Visit www.rockfordspeedway.com for additional information or contact the Speedway Box Office at 815-633-1500.

NASCAR Stanley Steemer Late Models
A-Main 01 -- 1. Eddie May, Crystal Lake; 2. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 3. Dave Edwards, Salem, Wis; 4. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 5. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 6. Austin Nason (r), Roscoe; 7. Wayne Freimund, Elkhorn, Wis; 8. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 9. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 10. Mitchell Garfield, Gilberts; 11. Ricky Bilderback, Roscoe; 12. Steve McBride, South Beloit; 13. John Beinlich, Prairie View; 14. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 15. Matthew Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 16. Danny Church (r), Big Bend, Wis; 17. Jacob Gille, Machesney Park; 18. Jacob Finney, Sycamore; 19. Rich Hinerichsen, II, Machesney Park; 20. Brian Johnson, Jr., Machesney Park.

Heat 01 -- 1. Danny Church (r), Big Bend, Wis; 2. Steve McBride, South Beloit; 3. John Beinlich, Prairie View; 4. Brandon Eash, Machesney Park; 5. Jacob Finney, Sycamore; 6. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 7. Matthew Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 8. Timothy Slater, Hampshire.

Heat 02 -- 1. Dave Edwards, Salem, Wis; 2. Wayne Freimund, Elkhorn, Wis; 3. Eddie May, Crystal Lake; 4. Austin Nason (r), Roscoe; 5. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 6. Jacob Gille, Machesney Park; 7. Rich Hinerichsen, II, Machesney Park.

Heat 03 -- 1. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 2. Mitchell Garfield, Gilberts; 3. Ricky Bilderback, Roscoe; 4. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 5. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 6. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 7. Brian Johnson, Jr., Machesney Park.

Time Trial -- 1. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 2. Ricky Bilderback, Roscoe; 3. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 4. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 5. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 6. Mitchell Garfield, Gilberts; 7. Brian Johnson, Jr., Machesney Park; 8. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 9. Austin Nason (r), Roscoe; 10. Rich Hinerichsen, II, Machesney Park; 11. Wayne Freimund, Elkhorn, Wis; 12. Eddie May, Crystal Lake; 13. Dave Edwards, Salem, Wis; 14. Jacob Gille, Machesney Park; 15. Brandon Eash, Machesney Park; 16. Matthew Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 17. Danny Church (r), Big Bend, Wis; 18. John
Beinlich, Prairie View; 19. Jacob Finney, Sycamore; 20. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 21. Steve McBride, South Beloit; 22. Timothy Slater, Hampshire.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Mitchell Garfield, Gilberts; 2. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 3. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 4. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Rockford; 5. Ricky Bilderback, Roscoe; 6. Alex Papini, Machesney Park.

Bargain Hunter Sportsman
A-Main 01 -- 1. Darrell Garman, South Beloit; 2. Doug Bennett, Brodhead, Wis; 3. Johnny Robinson, II (r), Beloit, Wis; 4. Matt Lundberg, Rockford; 5. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 6. Daryl Gerke, Whitelaw, Wis; 7. Scott Lawver, Roscoe; 8. Rob Goodman, McHenry; 9. Justin Sellers, Carol Stream; 10. Bob Moeller, McHenry; 11. Tim Jendrycki, Round Lake; 12. Patrick Featherston II (r), Byron; 13. Austin Nason, Roscoe; 14. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 15. Brandon Swinbank, Fitchburg, Wis; 16. Matt Doris, Arlington Hghts; 17. Adam Peschek, Oconomowoc, Wis.

Heat 01 -- 1. Tim Jendrycki, Round Lake; 2. Scott Lawver, Roscoe; 3. Bob Moeller, McHenry; 4. Brandon Swinbank, Fitchburg, Wis; 5. Justin Sellers, Carol Stream; 6. Patrick Featherston II (r), Byron; 7. Matt Doris, Arlington Hghts; 8. Adam Peschek, Oconomowoc, Wis; 9. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park.

Heat 02 -- 1. Matt Lundberg, Rockford; 2. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 3. Austin Nason, Roscoe; 4. Daryl Gerke, Whitelaw, Wis; 5. Doug Bennett, Brodhead, Wis; 6. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 7. Darrell Garman, South Beloit; 8. Rob Goodman, McHenry; 9. Johnny Robinson, II (r), Beloit, Wis.

Time Trial -- 1. Daryl Gerke, Whitelaw, Wis; 2. Austin Nason, Roscoe; 3. Matt Lundberg, Rockford; 4. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 5. Johnny Robinson, II (r), Beloit, Wis; 6. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 7. Darrell Garman, South Beloit; 8. Doug Bennett, Brodhead, Wis; 9. Rob Goodman, McHenry; 10. Scott Lawver, Roscoe; 11. Justin Sellers, Carol Stream; 12. Tim Jendrycki, Round Lake; 13. Bob Moeller, McHenry; 14. Adam Peschek, Oconomowoc, Wis; 15. Brandon Swinbank, Fitchburg, Wis; 16. Matt Doris, Arlington Hghts; 17. Patrick Featherston II (r), Byron; 18. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 2. Mike Beyer, Machesney Park; 3. Johnny Robinson, II (r), Beloit, Wis; 4. Daryl Gerke, Whitelaw, Wis; 5. Matt Lundberg, Rockford; 6. Austin Nason, Roscoe.

Miller Lite American Short Trackers
A-Main 01 -- 1. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 2. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 3. Joe LaMarca, Rockford; 4. Christopher Jones, Capron; 5. Eric Connell, Fort Atkinson, Wis; 6. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis; 7. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere; 8. Keith Pierce, Machesney Park; 9. Alan Bekielewski, Roscoe; 10. Tim Dix, Beloit, Wis; 11. David Russell, Jr, Rockford; 12. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis; 13. Kyle Lapier, Belvidere; 14. Leo Bujak, III (r), Spring Grove.

Heat 01 -- 1. Alan Bekielewski, Roscoe; 2. Keith Pierce, Machesney Park; 3. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere; 4. Eric Connell, Fort Atkinson, Wis; 5. David Russell, Jr, Rockford; 6. Tim Dix, Beloit, Wis; 7. Leo Bujak, III (r), Spring Grove; 8. Artt Higbee, Rockford.

Heat 02 -- 1. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis; 2. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis; 3. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 4. Kyle Lapier, Belvidere; 5. Joe LaMarca, Rockford; 6. Christopher Jones, Capron; 7. George Sparkman, Loves Park.

Time Trial -- 1. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 2. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 3. Joe LaMarca, Rockford; 4. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis; 5. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis; 6. Christopher Jones, Capron; 7. Kyle Lapier, Belvidere; 8. Eric Connell, Fort Atkinson, Wis; 9. Keith Pierce, Machesney Park; 10. David Russell, Jr, Rockford; 11. Tim Dix, Beloit, Wis; 12. Alan Bekielewski, Roscoe; 13. Artt Higbee, Rockford; 14. Leo Bujak, III (r), Spring Grove; 15. Rachel Sparkman, Belvidere.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Joe LaMarca, Rockford; 2. Kyle Stark, Waterloo, Wis; 3. Christopher Jones, Capron; 4. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 5. Nick Cina, Jr, Belvidere; 6. Scott Hoeft, Watertown, Wis.

RockStar Energy RoadRunners
A-Main 01 -- 1. Anthony Lloyd, Loves Park; 2. Bobby Frisch, Beloit, Wis; 3. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 4. Ricky Nielsen, Rockford; 5. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 6. Howie Ware, South Beloit; 7. Josh Carter, Rockford; 8. Brian Mayer, Machesney Park; 9. Derek Nichol, Roscoe; 10. Kenneth Brazee III, Rockford; 11. Raymond Hardesty, McHenry; 12. Kyle McQuality, Stillman Valley; 13. Brad Troxel, S. Beloit; 14. Adam Cartwright, Marengo; 15. Austin Fowler, Loves Park; 16. James Gregory, Winnebago; 17. Chad Smith, Machesney Park; 18. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock; 19. Shawn Rickelman, Rockton; 20. Linnea Lundy, Loves Park; 21. Jason Van Hise, Loves Park; 22. Brent Garnhart, Machesney Park; 23. Alex Chabucos, Machesney Park; 24. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere.

Heat 01 -- 1. Josh Carter, Rockford; 2. Kyle McQuality, Stillman Valley; 3. Linnea Lundy, Loves Park; 4. Austin Fowler, Loves Park; 5. Shawn Rickelman, Rockton; 6. Brent Garnhart, Machesney Park; 7. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere; 8. Chad Smith, Machesney Park.

Heat 02 -- 1. Alex Chabucos, Machesney Park; 2. Anthony Lloyd, Loves Park; 3. Brian Mayer, Machesney Park; 4. Derek Nichol, Roscoe; 5. Raymond Hardesty, McHenry; 6. James Gregory, Winnebago; 7. Brad Troxel, S. Beloit; 8. Kenneth Brazee III, Rockford.

Heat 03 -- 1. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock; 2. Bobby Frisch, Beloit, Wis; 3. Howie Ware, South Beloit; 4. Adam Cartwright, Marengo; 5. Ricky Nielsen, Rockford; 6. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 7. Jason Van Hise, Loves Park; 8. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park.

Challenge 01 -- 1. Kenneth Brazee III, Rockford; 2. Jason Van Hise, Loves Park; 3. Raymond Hardesty, McHenry; 4. Brent Garnhart, Machesney Park; 5. Brad Troxel, S. Beloit; 6. Adam Cartwright, Marengo; 7. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 2. Dennis Smith, Jr, South Beloit; 3. Bobby Frisch, Beloit, Wis; 4. Howie Ware, South Beloit; 5. Ricky Nielsen, Rockford; 6. Arlyn Roush, Woodstock.