(Story by Kelly Ninas)
Saying that the competition was fierce would be an understatement when looking at the heated action at the Lincoln County Raceway on Saturday night in North Platte, Nebraska. When all the smoke cleared, Colton Osborn, Jamey Kennicutt, Casey Woken, Luke Wassom and Andrew Baumgardner were the last ones standing as they earned trips to the winners circle.
Taking advantage of a tacky race track, Colton Osborn of Cozad was the victor in the IMCA Modified feature. Osborn started in the second row and was able garner the lead on the seventh lap as he never looked back on his way to winning the feature event. Working his way through traffic, Jeremy Frenier of Ft. Morgan, Colorado was able to drive into contention near the midway point of the feature and then stay ‘up on the wheel’ to earn runner-up accolades. Coming from his third row starting position, Cale Osborn of Cozad was third overall in the feature event after starting his evening off on the right foot with a heat race victory. David Murray Jr of Oberlin, Kansas also was a heat race winner in the division.
Starting on the front row, Jamey Kennicutt of Gothenburg was able to lead every lap to earn the win in the IMCA Northern Sport Modified feature. Heat race winner Kennicutt was able to hold off all challenges during the waning laps to notch the victory. Putting all sorts of pressure on Kennicutt during the feature event was runner-up finisher Zach Schultz of North Platte. Schultz was among the leaders from the onset as he started on the inside of the second row when the green flag dropped. After having mechanical issues during the heat race, Kerry Jones of North Platte was able to solve the formula with his hot rod to turn the corner in the feature event as he drove his way onto the podium in third place overall.
In one of the most competitive feature events, there were four different lead changes as the IMCA Stock Cars continued their close competition that heated up during the ‘King of the Hill’ event that was won by Casey Woken of Norton, Kansas. The Norton Nightmare Casey Woken was able to drive his way onto the podium from deep, as he started on the outside of the fifth row when the green flag dropped. Woken was able to gain the lead on the tenth lap where he set sail for the finish in fine fashion. Prior to Woken gaining the lead, Robbie Kosmacek was the leader for much of the first half of the feature event. Taking advantage of the circumstances presented to him on the waning laps, Dan Eller of North Platte was the second place finisher in the feature event. Eller was able to persevere through on track incidents to make the best to earn runner up honors. Being among the leaders from the onset, Jeff Whiting of Gothenburg started on the inside of the second row. Whiting’s efforts to stay among the lead group was rewarded with a third place finish in the feature event. Whiting along with feature winner Woken were the heat race winners in earlier in the evening competition.
The fans in the stands were on the edge of their seats during the final laps of the IMCA Hobby Stock feature that was won by Awesome Luke Wassom of Broken Bow. Wassom started the feature event in the fourth row and was in a see-saw battle for the lead during the waning laps. Wassom was able to make a move during the final lap that paid off dearly on his way to winning the feature event. Coming home in second place overall was Jeromy Wagner of Kensington, Kansas. Wagner started the feature event in the third row and was able to be in the thick of things throughout the feature to be rewarded with runner-up accolades. Showcasing great consistency throughout the feature, Nate Refior of Sutton, Nebraska saw his efforts pay off with a podium finish in third place overall. Wagner was joined by Jacob Hagan of Kearney in winning heat races in the hobby stock division.
Wasting no time in getting to the front of the field, Andrew Baumgardner of North Platte drove to the front and then never looked back in winning the IMCA Sport Compact feature. Baumgardner started in the fifth row when the green flag was waved and took the lead on the fourth lap after accidents that occurred during the early going. Recovering from early lap tire changes, Quincy Eggleston of Valentine was able to build up his momentum to finish strong to the tune of runner-up honors. Having one of his best performances to date, Kaden Dady of North Platte crossed the finish line in third place overall.
(Unofficial Results)
–IMCA Modified Feature: 1. 50c-Colton Osborn; 2. 17j-Jeremy Frenier; 3. 6c-Cale Osborn; 4. 4p-Dave Pedersen; 5. 0hp-Bryan Herrick; 6. XII-Jay Steffens; 7. 4c-Charley Brown; 8. 34jw-Cole Hodges; 9. 97m-David Murray Jr. 10. 93h-Klancey Honeycutt.
Heat Race Winners: 6c-Cale Osborn; 97m-Murray
–IMCA Northern Sport Modified Feature: 1. 15k-Jamey Kennicutt; 2. 55z-Zach Schultz; 3. 12j-Kerry Jones; 4. 511-Zach Buesing; 5. 88-Eric Kackmeister; 6. 4-Colton Aspenleiter; 7. 69-Adam Kackmeister.
Heat Race Winners: 15k-Kennicutt
–IMCA Stock Car Feature: 1. 35jw-Casey Woken; 2. 75-Dan Eller; 3. 16w-Jeff Whiting; 4. 5d-Travis Demilt; 5. 15r-Robbie Kosmacek; 6. 03-Ben Arvdal; 7. 72h-Jim Hagan; 8. 47-Russ Small Jr; 9. 45-Mikey Dancer; 10. 24-Bob Chalupa.
–IMCA Hobby Stock Feature: 1. 2w-Luke Wassom; 2. 29-Jeromy Wagner; 3. R89-Nate Refior; 4. 99m-Allyn Myers; 5. 12t-Tanner Jones; 6. 5-Chuck Ledbetter; 7. 20b-Brady Henderson; 8. 72b-Jacob Hagan; 9. 96k-Sean Miller; 10. 28d-Devin Bjorklund.
Heat Race Winners: 29-Wagner, 72b-Hagan.
–IMCA Sport Compacts Feature: 1. 44u-Andrew Baumgardner; 2. 7e-Quincy Eggleston; 3. 84d-Kaden Dady; 4. 71c-Christian Destefano; 5. 00d-Daryl Cauffman; 6. 07-Merle Johnson; 7. 15-Gary Molt; 8. L2-Lonnie Lenser Jr; 9. 24u-Tom Baumgardner.
Heat Race Winner: 7e-Eggleston.
