ABC Raceway Hands Out the Hardware
Champs, others celebrated at annual banquet

by Nick Gima
 Ashland, WI, January 16 -- Over 350 racers, fans, track workers and sponsors gathered at the Bad River Lodge, Casino & Convention Center on Saturday night to honor the track champions and others from the ABC Raceway’s 2009 stock-car racing season.
 After an buffet-style dinner was served, over 50 door prizes were awarded to lucky fans, and five drivers’ names were drawn as recipients of free reserved pit spaces for the upcoming season.
 During opening remarks by track announcer and banquet emcee Nick Gima, it was noted that 235 different racers competed in points-paying events at the northern Wisconsin speedplant in 2009, up from 212 the summer before. On average, 103 cars competed at the track during the six-division shows held there in 2009.
 Raceway president Kurt Beeksma then thanked the crowd for attending, while congratulating and commenting on the track champions, recognizing the volunteer track workers and the Board of Directors, and expressing appreciation to the track’s sponsors and other individuals and organizations that assisted in the success of the 2009 campaign.
 Duane Dale, of Aurora, MN, earned his first-ever ABC Raceway points championship in the WISSOTA modified division. The 19-year veteran made the two-and-a-half-hour trek faithfully every weekend, and it paid off with a season that included his third career feature win here on July 4, two heat wins, and a division-leading seven top-five finishes. Dale also added his first-ever super stock feature win on July 24 during the Super Stock Challenge.
 Four-time ABC champ Al Uotinen of Superior finished 33 points back of Dale to take runner-up honors in the final rundown, followed by six-time former track champ Dean Yrjanainen of Lake Nebagamon, Bill Byholm of Glidden, and Scott Hudack of Ashland.
 Completing the top ten were defending champ Jeff Spacek of Phillips, Kent Baxter of Elk Mound, Jerry Hartman of Marenisco, MI, Washburn’s Ross Lightner, and Robby Bunkelman of Abbotsford.
 Superior’s Scott Lawrence collected his sixth consecutive WISSOTA super stock championship trophy on this night. Capping off his 25th season of racing, Lawrence tied former modified star Don Copp for consecutive titles in Ashland, and combined with his three street stock titles he claimed here after the 1997-’99 seasons, he now tops the list of ABC champs with nine.
 His season included one feature win, as part of a clean sweep on July 11, to bring his track total to 41, ranking him ninth all-time.
 Only ten marks behind Lawrence in the final standings was Eric Olson of Ladysmith, who committed to running at Ashland full-time in 2009 and quickly enhanced an already-stout super stock field, earning his first ABC Raceway feature win on July 18. Also finishing in the top five in this class were former three-time champ Brian Mikkonen of Iron River, 1993 titlist Randy Spacek of Phillips, and former Rookie of the Year Kevin Eder of Ashland.
 Finishing fifth through tenth in the supers were Mason’s Nick Oreskovich, Joe Oliver and Dave Flynn, both of Superior, Ken Truscott of Greenland, MI, and Washburn’s Art Hyde.
 Ashland’s Steve Stuart has been the only WISSOTA Midwest modified points champion the ABC Raceway has ever known, after completing the ‘09 campaign with his second straight such crown. Stuart, who plans on moving into the modified ranks in 2010, truly stepped up his program this past summer, thanks to his 14th career feature win here on August 1 as well as a second-place points effort and three A-main wins in Proctor, MN. The back-to-back titles in the Mid-mods are in addition to his 2006 championship in the six-cylinder division. 
 In the tightly-contested Mid-mod standings, Jimmy Latvala of Solon Springs finished only three points back in second, but his 2009 season was highlighted by his June 13 return to ABC’s victory lane for the first time since 1996. Phillips’ Mickey Nosser and Rick Przybylski of Ashland tied for third in points in this class, while Jesse Ogston of Duluth claimed fifth.
 The second five in Mid-mod points included former super stock champ Duane Dunbar of Marenisco, MI; young hotshoe Taylor Leuthner of Foxboro, Washburn’s Pat Cook, and Travis Swanson and Rob Weber, both of Ashland.
 Larry Haderly will hold the honor of being the final WISSOTA Street Stock champion in ABC Raceway history. The veteran racer from Marengo collected his 2nd straight title, his fourth in the past six seasons, and his fifth overall. Haderly chalked up only one feature win - on June 27 - but his worst finish in any feature all summer was sixth. He also led the division with six heat victories.
 Dennis Groom of Ashland was the runner-up in the final streeter standings; the 2001 champion also tied Mikkonen for the track’s high mark with nine top-five finishes. Third in points was Hurley’s John Kallas, whose career-best season included finishing fifth in the final national WISSOTA standings. Two-time pure stock champ Cory Casari of Hurley and Ashland’s Bruce Kalmon completed the top five.
 Sixth through tenth in the final street stock standings included Kyle Weber of Drummond, five-time track champ Greg Kuklinski of Ironwood, MI; Steve Anderson, also of Ironwood, Jordan Kurtti of Bruce Crossing, MI; and Sam Fankhauser of Weyerhaeuser.
 Dale Coddington of Hayward prevailed in a very hotly-contested six-cylinder points battle in which the top ten finishers were separated by only 40 points. Coddington, who finished second by only one point in 2008, capitalized on 11 top-ten finishes in 12 shows during 2009, including feature wins on the final two nights of the season, to claim his first career championship in his ninth season of racing.
 Fifth-year driver Shawn McFadden, Jr, was only 14 points back of Coddington at the end of the season to post a career-best second-place points effort. Sophomore CJ Polacek of Phillips and former two-time sixes champ Chuck Hawkinson of Mellen tied for third in the final standings, and another second-year racer, Neil Adamczak of Ashland, finished fifth.
 The difference between McFadden in second and Scott Ovaska of Marengo in sixth was a mere four points, while 2007 titlist Greg Jaeger of Mellen, defending champion Patrick Beeksma and Don Muzzy, both of Ironwood, MI, and Iron River’s Tyler Luger filled out the top ten.
 For only the second time in Raceway history, two drivers tied for a divisional points championship. Tim Carbon of Highbridge and Tim Carlson of Superior finished the 2009 pure stock season in a dead heat, with four other drivers within just 12 points of their title.
 Carbon’s championship was particularly sweet, as he celebrated his first-ever crown in his 25th season of racing. His two feature wins - on June 20 and July 11 - gave him a total of nine, all coming within the past three seasons. He also tallied two heat wins on the season, and six other times he finished in the top ten in his feature.
 Carlson, meanwhile, followed up what his brother Chad had done in Ashland the season before with his share of the pure stock title. During his eighth racing campaign he captured two heat wins and posted six top-five feature performances - but he did not score a feature win all summer, making his accomplishment that much more impressive.
 Hot on the heels of the co-champions was Ashland’s Ken Tody, Jr, who finished only four points back. Austin Blom, who made the long tow from Saginaw, MN, each weekend, was rewarded with a fourth-place trophy, while Hurley’s Nathan Dees finished fifth in points.
 The second five in the pure stocks consisted of Jeff Christman of Superior, Joe Wolfe of Montreal, Ashland’s Matt Deragon, the Ashland-based team effort of Tammie Bretting and Paul Milanowski, and Don Livingston of Bayfield.
 Each of the champions received a large trophy, a handsome jacket and a custom portrait of their cars in action to commemorate their accomplishments. The top ten in each class received trophies, while the top 15 in final points shared in the track’s points fund, provided they competed in at least half of the race programs run in 2009.
 The top rookies in each class were also presented trophies during the awards presentation. They included Destin Lorimor (mods) and Willie Johnsen (supers), both of Superior, Swanson (Mid-mods), Kyle Weber (streets), Bobby Durand of Mason (sixes), and Dustin Gay of Ashland (pures).
 Polacek was presented the Raceway’s Most Improved Driver trophy, while super stock driver Roy Pumala of Mason was honored with the prestigious Sportsman of the Year award. Kallas received a custom-made racing jacket as the top feature winner (four) of 2009.
 Twelve drivers were honored who won either their first-ever ABC Raceway feature or their first in a specific class, including Adamczak, Rob Christman, Olson, Oreskovich, Polacek, Jake Redetzke, Shawn Rivord, Tody, Cook, Dale, Curt Myers, and Rob Weber. Also, ten ABC Raceway regulars were recognized for their top-50 finishes in the final WISSOTA national points standings - Dale and Steve Lavasseur in the modifieds; Olson and Eder in the super stocks; Nosser, Stuart, Mike Truscott and Ogston in the Midwest mods; and Kallas and Fankhauser in the street stocks.
 In a presentation by Kurt Beeksma, track treasurer Cheryl Klobucher received the sixth annual President’s Award for her outstanding efforts and tireless service. Beeksma also presented the track’s first-ever Award of Excellence to former president and current Board member Weaver Wherritt and to chief lap counter and points director Jeanne Hmielewski; each has contributed over 40 years of continuous service to the success of the ABC Raceway.
 A slide-show presentation compiled by Skip Hunter Photography featuring action from the past season was played throughout the entire ceremony.
 The 2010 racing season is slated to start in mid-May. The ABC Raceway is located 3-1/2 miles south of Ashland on State Highway 13 and one mile west on Butterworth Road.