PHOTOS

By: Kevin Ramsell
LOVES PARK, IL (Saturday, June 07, 2008) – A great crowd was in attendance to witness the Kar Korner World Famous Trailer Race. Mother Nature delayed the start of the racing but in the end, it was Steve Rubeck, Fred Nason, Aaron Rude, and David Lignell taking home feature wins.

Rubeck and Noel Ramge battled for the lead in the early going of the 30-lap feature event. That was until the first caution flew when Matthew Clossey spun in turn four. Rubeck would have the lead on the re-start.

He would take off on the re-start while the great crowd in attendance saw some awesome side-by-side racing behind him.

On lap 16, Tim Sargent was battling with Bob Kahler for position when Sargent got loose coming off of turn two, hit the right front of Kahler and would spin to the infield. Sargent would fall to the rear while Kahler retained his position.

Rubeck continued to lead while Kahler found himself in a great side-by-side battle with Matt Berger in the closing laps.

It was Rubeck taking home his second win of the year while Kahler would get loose off of turn four allowing Berger to finish second. Ricky Bilderback would come home third with Ryan Carlson in fifth. Jerry Gille rounded out the top five.

“We will take them any way we can, they were fighting pretty well behind me,” Rubeck stated. “The Seven car (Kahler) gave me a bump, that was my wake up call and I took off.”

Nason would collect another feature win in the Bargain Hunter Sportsman division.

Ron Morris took the early lead in the 25-lap feature event. Chris Gantz moved up from his sixth starting spot to challenge Morris for the lead on lap 3. Gantz would work his way past Morris and take the top spot a lap later.

Nason, who was also the fast qualifier, started eighth and made his way to challenge for the lead on 15. Gantz would hold off his first attempt. On the second attempt, Nason would get a good bite coming off of turn two and get on the inside of Gantz. The two battled side-by-side until the two made contact in turns three and four on lap 20 causing sparks to fly and Nason was gone.

Nason would pick up his second win of the year with Gantz holding off Brock Behnke for third. Ron Morris was fourth with Don Exline in fifth.

Rude made the Ford fans happy as he drove his Pinto to victory lane in the Budweiser American Short Tracker feature.

Brett McCoy was the early leader in the 25-lap feature event. He would be challenged early by Rude.

On lap 13, Rude went to the inside of McCoy to challenge for the lead; this allowed Kelly Evink to go on the outside of Rude and slip by to take over the second spot while Rude fell back to third.

With four laps to go, Evink was on the inside of McCoy for the lead when the two made contact coming off of turn four. This caused Evink to spin to the infield and McCoy cut a left front tire and came to a stop on the backstretch. This handed the lead over to Rude.

During the caution, McCoy showed his displeasure with Evink by throwing his helmet at Evink. Evink would have to go to the pits and repair his damaged windshield.

On the re-start, Rude would pull away by a car length over Steve Erickson Jr. to take home his first checkered flag of the season. Jeff Tenure would come home third with George Sparkman in fourth. BJ Sparkman would round out the top five.

Lignell held off a hard charging Terrance Robinson to collect the Coca-Cola RoadRunner feature win.

Side-by-side racing was the theme in the 20-lap feature event as it was Raymond Hardesty and Kevin Nighswonger battling for the lead for the first nine laps until Nighswonger was able to pull out at the halfway mark.

Four laps later, Nighswonger would spin out on his own coming out of turn two handing the lead over to Ricky Nielsen. Three laps later, Lignell would get past Nielsen for the lead with Robinson right behind him.

The last two laps had Robinson and Lignell battling for the lead and at the finish it was Lignell by a bumper over Robinson. Robert Roush was third with Nielsen in fourth. Christopher Jones rounded out the top five.

Roush was disqualified following post-race inspection.

The evening concluded with the Kar Korner World Famous Trailer Race. The fans were their feet as they witnessed the mayhem and carnage that was all over the quarter-mile oval. At the end, it was Zach Thomure winning it over the 15 other competitors.

Next Saturday night its Nason’s Landscaping and Just Engineering Night with the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series in action. The Stanley Steemer NASCAR Late Models, Bargain Hunter Sportsman, Coca-Cola RoadRunners, and SuperCups will be in action starting at 7:07 pm.

Also, next Saturday night will be the School Bus Jump that was originally scheduled for May 17th along with a Kid’s Candy Scramble.

For more information please call the track office at (815) 633-1500 or visit the Speedway’s website at www.rockfordspeedway.com.

NASCAR All American Sportsmen

A-Main 01 -- 1. Fred Nason, Roscoe; 2. Chris Gantz, Rockford; 3. Brock Behnke, South Beloit; 4. Ron Morris, Belvidere; 5. Don Exline, Oak Lawn; 6. Warren (Butch) Swinbank, Rockford; 7. Ron Young, Rockford; 8. Justin Sellers, Carol Stream; 9. Ricky Nielsen, Rockford; 10. Beau Lawson, Machesney Park; 11. Dave Edwards, Salem, Wis; 12. Randy Samples, Rockton; 13. Deanna Hurd, Rochelle.

Time Trial -- 1. Fred Nason, Roscoe; 2. Don Exline, Oak Lawn; 3. Chris Gantz, Rockford; 4. Brock Behnke, South Beloit; 5. Warren (Butch) Swinbank, Rockford; 6. Deanna Hurd, Rochelle; 7. Ron Morris, Belvidere; 8. Ron Young, Rockford; 9. Beau Lawson, Machesney Park; 10. Justin Sellers, Carol Stream; 11. Randy Samples, Rockton; 12. Ricky Nielsen, Rockford; 13. Dave Edwards, Salem, Wis.
Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Fred Nason, Roscoe; 2. Chris Gantz, Rockford; 3. Don Exline, Oak Lawn; 4. Brock Behnke, South Beloit; 5. Warren (Butch) Swinbank, Rockford; 6. Deanna Hurd, Rochelle.

NASCAR American Short Trackers

A-Main 01 -- 1. Aaron Rude, Cambridge, Wis; 2. Steve Erickson, Jr, Machesney Park; 3. Jeffery Turnure, Rockford; 4. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 5. Boyce (BJ) Sparkman, Machesney Park; 6. Tim Melvin, Machesney Park; 7. Steven Allman, Oconomowoc, Wis; 8. Jack Atchison, Stillman Valley; 9. Nick Letsinger, Rockford; 10. Kelly Evink, Machesney Park; 11. Victor Young, Genoa; 12. Artt Higbee, Rockford; 13. Rachel Sparkman, Loves Park; 14. Tanner Atchison, Byron; 15. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 16. Billy McCoy, Belvidere; 17. Kenny Marcellis, West Chicago; 18. Rob Baaske, Rockford; 19. Matt Woelber, Belvidere; 20. Nick Cina, Jr, Roscoe; 21. Zach Rodriguez, Rockton; 22. Keith Pierce, Machesney Park.

Time Trial -- 1. Kelly Evink, Machesney Park; 2. Tim Melvin, Machesney Park; 3. Aaron Rude, Cambridge, Wis; 4. Steve Erickson, Jr, Machesney Park; 5. Nick Cina, Jr, Roscoe; 6. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 7. Boyce (BJ) Sparkman, Machesney Park; 8. Brett McCoy, Belvidere; 9. Jeffery Turnure, Rockford; 10. Billy McCoy, Belvidere; 11. Zach Rodriguez, Rockton; 12. Steven Allman, Oconomowoc, Wis; 13. Jack Atchison, Stillman Valley; 14. Keith Pierce, Machesney Park; 15. Nick Letsinger, Rockford; 16. Artt Higbee, Rockford; 17. Kenny Marcellis, West Chicago; 18. Tanner Atchison, Byron; 19. Matt Woelber, Belvidere; 20. Victor Young, Genoa; 21. Rachel Sparkman, Loves Park; 22. Glen Smith, South Beloit; 23. Rob Baaske, Rockford.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Nick Cina, Jr, Roscoe; 2. Kelly Evink, Machesney Park; 3. George Sparkman, Loves Park; 4. Tim Melvin, Machesney Park; 5. Steve Erickson, Jr, Machesney Park; 6. Aaron Rude, Cambridge, Wis.

NASCAR Late Models

A-Main 01 -- 1. Steve Rubeck, Monroe Center; 2. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 3. Ricky Bilderback, Rockton; 4. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 5. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 6. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Roscoe; 7. Noel Ramge, Helenville, Wis; 8. Bill Hobson, Roscoe; 9. Bob Kahler, Caledonia; 10. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 11. Tyler Peterson, Lake Geneva, Wis; 12. Jacob Gille, Winnebago; 13. Matthew Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 14. Tim Sargent, South Beloit; 15. Dan Carlson, Rockford; 16. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 17. Joe Rusciano, Crystal Lake; 18. Michael Bilderback, South Beloit; 19. Robert Nelson, Solon Mills.

Time Trial -- 1. Jerry Gille, Roscoe; 2. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 3. Michael Bilderback, South Beloit; 4. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Roscoe; 5. Ricky Bilderback, Rockton; 6. Bob Kahler, Caledonia; 7. Ryan Carlson, Loves Park; 8. Tim Sargent, South Beloit; 9. Steve Rubeck, Monroe Center; 10. Noel Ramge, Helenville, Wis; 11. Matthew Clossey, Beloit, Wis; 12. Alex Papini, Machesney Park; 13. Mark Hartline, Gilberts; 14. Bill Hobson, Roscoe; 15. Jacob Gille, Winnebago; 16. Tyler Peterson, Lake Geneva, Wis; 17. Dan Carlson, Rockford; 18. Robert Nelson, Solon Mills; 19. Joe Rusciano,

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Jon Reynolds, Jr., Roscoe; 2. Matt Berger, Loves Park; 3. Michael Bilderback, South Beloit; 4. Ricky Bilderback, Rockton; 5. Bob Kahler, Caledonia; 6. Jerry Gille, Roscoe.

NASCAR Road Runners

A-Main 01 -- 1. David Lignell, Rockford; 2. Terrance Robinson, Beloit, Wis; 3. Ricky Nielsen, Rockford; 4. Christopher Jones, Rockford; 5. Raymond Hardesty, McHenry; 6. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park; 7. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 8. Lloyd Hawkins, Machesney Park; 9. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere; 10. Richard Edge, Marengo; 11. Sabrina Castillo, Rockford; 12. Jerry Edge, Marengo; 13. Dave Lumsden, Jr., Rockford; 14. Chris Weber, Cashton, Wis; 15. Kevin Nighswonger, Rockford; 16. Steven Clark, Rockford; 17. Richard Nielsen, Byron; 18. Kyle Watts, Loves Park; 19. Linnea Lundy, Loves Park; 20. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 21. Vachenzia Jester, Beloit, Wis; 22. David Russell, Rockford; 23. Dan Sanders, Rockton; 24. Mike Vines, Byron; 25. Robert Roush, Marengo.

Challenge 01 -- 1. David Lignell, Rockford; 2. Raymond Hardesty, McHenry; 3. Chris Weber, Cashton, Wis; 4. Lloyd Hawkins, Machesney Park; 5. Sabrina Castillo, Rockford; 6. Joey Thomas, Rockford; 7. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 8. Kyle Watts, Loves Park; 9. Richard Edge, Marengo; 10. Robert Roush, Marengo.

Trophy Dash 01 -- 1. Terrance Robinson, Beloit, Wis; 2. Gene Marocco, Machesney Park; 3. Jeff Allendorf, Belvidere; 4. Joshua Lundy, Loves Park; 5. David Lignell, Rockford; 6. Robert Roush, Marengo.