by Nick Gima
 Ashland, WI, May 30 -- Young Nick Oreskovich of Mason held his line like a seasoned pro and held off stout challenges right up to the finish line for his first career feature win during the ABC Raceway’s fast-paced AmsOil Dirt Track Series program presented by WITC-Ashland Campus on Saturday night.

In the WISSOTA Super Stock 20-lap headliner, which ran non-stop after an opening-lap spin by Don Koivisto, Oreskovich hugged the inside groove and hit his marks, forcing three-time track champ Brian Mikkonen to search for a way around the sixth-year driver, who is in his third season in the Supers. Mikkonen flew around the high groove to build momentum, but after each corner he drew up to the back bumper of Oreskovich on the straightaways and could progress no further. Behind the lead pair positions were swapped frequently among Randy Spacek, Eric Olson, pole-sitter Dave Flynn and Kevin Eder. By mid-race Oreskovich and Mikkonen were battling alone for the win, but during the back half of the show Spacek and Olson drew up on the lead pair. With three laps left backmarker Tad Schoonover, about to go a lap down, held his line, allowing Oreskovich to clear but blocking Mikkonen temporarily. This allowed Olson to steal second, and he drew up alongside Oreskovich with a great run off the final corner for one last shot at the win, but Oreskovich had just enough pull for the crowd-pleasing victory, by less than five one-thousandths of a second. Mikkonen was less than a car-length back in third at the stripe, while Spacek and Eder followed at a distance.
Emotions ran high in Victory Lane in each of the other five features on this night, too. In the non-stop WISSOTA Modified 20-lapper Jerry Hartman of Marenisco, MI, used the upper line to eventually pull away from Jeff Spacek, then held on as Dean Yrjanainen closed in to win his 33rd career ABC Raceway feature, and his first in two summers. Hartman, who contemplated retiring from racing after a tough 2008 campaign, was nearly untouchable after building a near-straightaway lead on Spacek only a few laps in. Yrjanainen followed the same line as Hartman and swept around Spacek five laps into the run, while Scott Hudack, who nearly pulled off a heat win earlier by running around the outer rim of the smooth, fast track, was right on Yrjanainen’s tail only four laps later. In the late stages of the go Hartman’s tires began to fail him, allowing Yrjanainen to draw near and take a couple of looks to the inside on the leader during the final circuits, but Hartman had just enough left to hold on for a two-length win. Hudack was not far behind Yrjanainen for third, and Spacek held off a late charge by Duane Dale for fourth.
Another driver who had not been in the winner’s circle in a while - Ashland’s Dennis Groom - captured his third WISSOTA Street Stock feature win and first since July 2003. It took three tough laps to get around polestarter Steve Anderson for the lead, but once Groom got there he stayed there, hugging the bottom line through the turns and drawing away just enough down the straights. John Kallas, who has been on an early roll this early season with five feature wins at other tracks, survived a lap 6 challenge by Cory Casari before presenting a challenge of his own to Anderson over the final two laps, eventually getting by for second. But there wasn’t enough time to mount a similar threat to Groom, whose margin of victory was less than a car-length. Anderson followed in close formation in third, and Casari held on to fourth a ways back, in front of Larry Haderly.
Taylor Leuthner of Duluth, MN, has not had his WISSOTA Midwest Modified racer out much this season, but the car looked to be in mid-season form as he collected his second career Ashland win. Leuthner looked to have things well in hand, cruising out to a healthy lead early in the 15-lap A-main, but by his own admission he became complacent up front, allowing a hard-working Mike Truscott to forge his way through the field into second place and chase down the leader by lap 8. On lap 11 Truscott pulled alongside Leuthner and looked to have swiped the lead away, but this was the wake-up call Leuthner needed; he slipped to the inside on Truscott on the very next go-around and recaptured the point, not to give it up again. Leuthner was also helped by a scuff of the back-straight guard rail by Truscott with two circuits left, eliminating Truscott’s momentum and giving Leuthner the biggest winning margin of the night - about eight lengths. Further back in the field Jesse Ogston survived a battle with George Dalbeck and Jimmy Latvala to enjoy one of his best runs ever here, placing third, with Latvala and Dalbeck trailing at a distance.
Chuck Hawkinson’s victory in the Six-Cylinder feature was also a long time in coming, as the two-time division champ has been frustrated in his attempts to move up into Supers over the past summer and change. The Mellen campaigner began the 15-lap feature from the outside of the front row and beat polesitter Ken Tyykila into turn 1, followed closely by Neil Adamczak. From there Hawkinson was able to lead every lap, but not without a couple of threats along the way. After a lap 3 restart for a Scott Ovaska spin, Hawkinson held on as first-nighter and former track champ Greg Jaeger moved up to challenge Adamczak for second. This opened the door for Shawn McFadden Jr to slip into the fight and eventually take the runner-up spot from both of them. Jaeger came storming back to race with McFadden, allowing Hawkinson the chance to build a small but comfortable cushion. That lead disappeared with four to go, when the caution came out for a two-car get-together. Jaeger’s chances to win expired when his car bobbled coming out of turn 2 on the restart, dropping him out of the top five and giving McFadden the opportunity to pull to within a car-length of the leader. But Hawkinson was not to be denied his first feature win since August of 2006, while Adamczak ran a solid race to earn third-place money, ahead of Pat Beeksma and Tyykila.
The Pure Stock main event was not without its share of drama as well, despite the fact that Chad Carlson of Superior came away with his second feature win here in as many nights. Nathan Dees tried his best to hold on to the early advantage, challenged often but helped by back-to-back caution slowdowns after two laps. But Dees eventually was overtaken by the tightly-knit pack, led by Dustin Follett and Carlson. When Follett pushed up the turn 4 hill on lap 4 Carlson captured the lead and Steve Christman moved into second. The nose piece off Ken Tody Jr’s car was discarded on the track with three laps left, and on the subsequent restart Jeff Christman attempted to squeeze between Follett and Tim Carlson for third place. Contact with Follett turned Christman’s car around, forcing another restart and sending Follett to the tail of the field. As the cars were realigned for the restart Chad Carlson’s car began to spew heavy blue smoke, and during the green-white-checkered finish Steve Christman made repeated attempts to obtain the lead, but Carlson’s car held up long enough for Chad’s fifth ABC Raceway win. Christman’s car was later disqualified for a mechanical infraction, giving runner-up honors to Chad’s brother Tim, with Jeff Christman, Paul Milanowski and Dees completing the top five.