Story by Kelly Ninas
As the season points races heat up, the action on the track is that much more competitive with every point mattering that much more and that was evident at Lincoln County Raceway in North Platte, Nebraska on Saturday evening.
Earning the privilege of driving their way to the winners circle were IMCA drivers: Jay Steffens, Jamey Kennicutt, Jeff Whiting, Tanner Clough and Daryl Cauffmann and Rocky Mountain Dwarf Racing Assocation (RMDRA) victor Alex Amen.
Putting on a whale of a show for the fans in the stands were the RMDRA All-Stars that flourished, none more than Alex Amen of Brush, Colorado. Amen had a clean sweep at Lincoln County Raceway by winning his heat race, the King of the Hill challenge and then walking away the winner of the feature. Amen was able to make the pass for the lead as the white flag was waved to cruise his way to the win after starting the feature in the fifth row when the feature started. Finishing second behind Amen was Jerry Hunter of Greeley, Colorado. Hunter led the first lap and then bided his time in the lead group to earn the podium finish in second place overall. Veteran wheelman Brad Bayne of Eaton, Colorado was on the verge of winning the feature, as he took the lead on lap nine and was the leader until Amen passed him with two laps remaining. Bayne recovered from his spin quite nicely to finish with third place accolades.
Leading the laps that mattered the most was Jay Steffens of North Platte in the IMCA Modified feature event. From the onset, Jay Steffens was able to be within striking distance of the leader, Dave Pedersen of Brady who led the first 13 laps of the feature. Steffens was able to step up the ladder and drive around the outside of Pedersen to garner the lead on the final two laps of the feature event. After leading the way for most of the feature, Pedersen kept his elbows up and stayed consistent during the final two laps to finish second overall. Coming on fast and furious during the second half of the feature event, Brandon Clough of Wallace was able to drive his way onto the podium to finish third after starting on the inside of the third row when the green flag dropped. Finishing fourth overall was heat race winner Cole Hodges of Ogallala.
Grabbing the early lead and doing everything in his power to hold off any and all challenges, Jamey Kennicutt of Gothenburg was the victor in the IMCA Northern Sport Modified feature. Kennicutt started on the outside of the second row and grabbed the lead on the second lap and never trailed again to claim the checkered flag. Within striking distance for many of the final laps were the duo of Tony Schultz and Zach Schultz, both of North Platte, as they finished second and third overall. Tony Schultz started the feature in the third row and Zach Schultz was on the outside of the fourth row when the green flag was dropped.
Getting the lead and doing his best to run away and hide was the formula for success for Jeff Whiting of Gothenburg during the IMCA Stock Car feature. Whiting started in the fifth row and was able to avoid incidents that occurred during the initial laps that halted the fast-paced action swiftly. Whiting grabbed the lead on the second lap from runner-up finisher Travis Demilt of Ogallala, who led the first lap of the feature. Demilt started on the fourth row when the initial green flag would fly, but was shuffled among the leaders in the starting grid as a result of accidents early in the feature. Having a stellar finish was a reward for his consistency for Robbie Kosmacek of North Platte in bringing home his hot rod in third place overall. Kosmacek started the feature event in the second row before being shuffled to the back early, to then drive his way back onto the podium.
Starting fast and finishing even strong was Tanner Clough of Wallace in winning the IMCA Hobby Stock feature. Clough was able to battle for many laps early on with leader Jeromy Wagner of Kesington, Kansas. Clough was the advantageous one when Wagner brought out a yellow flag and Clough took over the lead, a position that he did not relinquish to score the feature win. After leading the first two laps, Jacob Hagan of Kearney was able to recover quite nicely from losing the lead to earn second place accolades. Gaining great experience and confidence, Brady Henderson of Curtis had one of his best finishes of the season as a reward for his efforts to earn third place honors.
Continuing his remarkable season behind the wheel of his IMCA Sport Compact, Daryl Cauffman of North Platte won the feature on Saturday evening. Cauffman started the feature on the inside of the second row and was able to snare the lead away from Quincy Eggleston of Valentine on the third circuit to then hold off all contenders to win the feature. Close behind Cauffman was reigning season points champion Andrew Baumgardner of North Platte. Baumgardner was in position to make a move for the lead, but the door was closed by Cauffman and Baumgardner was forced to settle with runner-up honors. Lonnie Lenser Jr of Valentine piloted his hotrod to a third place finish in the feature after starting on the outside of the fourth row.
(Unofficial Results)
–Rocky Mountain Dwarf Racing Association Feature: 1. 46r-Alex Amen; 2. 16r-Jerry Hunter; 3. 3r-Brad Bayne; 4. 5r-Tyler Trengove; 5. 11r-Charlie Drager; 6. 28r-Matt Burkey; 7. 22r-Leroy Delka; 8. 33r-Marc Marble; 9. 21r-Brady Delka; 10. 2r-Duane Bayne.
Heat Races: 46r-Amen; 21r-Brady Delka.
–IMCA Modified Feature: 1. XII-Jay Steffens; 2. 4p-Dave Pedersen; 3. 20b-Brandon Clough; 4. 34jw-Cole Hodges; 5. 0hp-Bryan Herrick; 6. 93h-Klancey Honeycutt.
Heat Race: 34jw-Hodges.
–IMCA Northern Sport Modified Feature: 1. 15k-Jamey Kennicutt; 2. 55m-Tony Schultz; 3. 55z-Zach Schultz; 4. 88-Eric Kackmeister; 5. 3-Gary Long; 6. 34-Matt Caudillo; 7. 12j-Kerry Jones; 8. 57-Shane Jones; 9. 69-Adam Kackmeister.
Heat Race: 55m-Tony Schultz.
–IMCA Stock Car Feature: 1. 16w-Jeff Whiting; 2. 5d-Travis Demilt; 3. 15r-Robbie Kosmacek; 4. 24-Bob Chalupa; 5. 71-Andrew Dillenburg; 6. 72h-Jim Hagan; 7. 31-Darin Racek; 8. 75-Dan Eller; 9. 47-Russ Small Jr; 10. 99-Dan Beberniss.
Heat Races: 16w-Whiting; 24-Chalupa.
–IMCA Hobby Stock Feature: 1. 1-Tanner Clough; 2. 72b-Jacob Hagan; 3. 20b-Brady Henderson; 4. 12t-Tanner Jones; 5. 5-Chuck Ledbetter; 6. 29-Jeromy Wagner.
–IMCA Sport Compact Feature: 1. 00d-Daryl Cauffman; 2. 44u-Andrew Baumgardner; 3. L2-Lonnie Lenser Jr; 4. 24u-Tom Baumgardner; 5. 84d-Kaden Dady; 6. 68-Bobby Potter; 7. 4k-Kyle Filyaw; 8. 7e-Quincy Eggleston; 9. 71c-Christian Destefano.
