Spacek Takes FastLane Super Series Feature at ABC Raceway
by Nick Gima
Ashland, WI, June 17 – The last time Terran Spacek raced at the ABC Raceway was in early October of 2022, when he took home the biggest win of his career – the WISSOTA Super Stock feature at the Red Clay Classic.
Saturday’s win here in the seventh stop of the eight-race Fast Lane Motorsports Northland Super Stock Series presented by Halvor Lines may not have paid as much – $700 – but it might be a huge step toward a bigger overall payday after the Series winds up at Proctor, MN, on June 18.
The win helped the young second-generation Phillips hotshoe leap-frog over defending Series champ Dylan Nelson and 2020 champ Shane Sabraski into the lead in the Series’ overall points standings. It also helped Spacek clinch the title for the “Badger Battle” portion of the tour and puts him prime position to challenge Sabraski for the “North Battle” crown.
Spacek started outside on the front row of the 26-car grid for the 25-lap Superior Floral WISSOTA Super Stock spotlight event and swapped lanes to run the low groove alongside polestarter Steve Stuart for the first couple of laps. Sixth-starting Kyle Copp worked the outside line better than anyone early in the run and pulled alongside and then by the lead pair in a three-wide pass to the front on lap 3.
After Mike Sirois slowed on the track with a flat tire to bring about a caution flag, first-time visitor Tucker Budreau’s spin delayed the next attempt to start, but once back under green Spacek’s car got stronger in the low lane and, on lap 8, he completed what would end up being the race-winning pass.
Spacek was not the only one running the low line well, as Matt Deragon picked off spots over the course of the race’s middle stages to move into third ahead of Stuart, a distance back of the lead pair.
Spacek and Copp entertained the fans with plenty of side-by-side racing until lap 15, when Stefan Houge’s spin slowed the pace for the final time. From there Spacek pulled away as Copp became engaged in a terrific battle for second with Deragon and the 15th-starting Sabraski. At the checkers Spacek held a healthy 1.9-second advantage, with Deragon, Copp and Sabraski following in very close formation for the next three spots. Stuart trailed at a distance in fifth.
Sabraski, from Rice, MN, who seems to be an odds-on favorite just about anywhere he unloads a race car these days, couldn’t leave Ashland without at least one win – and he got one in the non-stop 20-lap Outlaw Wraps & Apparel WISSOTA Modified A-main.
Jake Hiatt, starting outside on the front row, pulled to a substantial early advantage, while sixth-starting Jeff Spacek (Tanner’s uncle) battled with and eventually got by polestarter Tyler Vernon for second two circuits in. Sabraski, who started fifth, followed Spacek to third, took second within another lap, and then set his sights on Hiatt.
It took until lap 5, but Sabraski did take over the pacesetting chores, and he was not challenged from then on. Pat Cook moved up into third before mid-race and spent several laps duking it out with Hiatt, and during the second half of the run Spacek got the extreme outer lane to work for him and pulled up to form a close three-car battle for second – which became four cars thick when Vernon joined in over the last few laps.
Sabraski’s 11th career feature win in Ashland was by a margin of 1.9 seconds, with Hiatt holding on for a season-best second just ahead of Cook, Spacek and Vernon.
Multi-time Red Clay Classic champ Joey Jensen of Forest Lake, MN, put Jason Schill’s car in victory lane after a wild, caution-filled Harmony Wealth Management WISSOTA Midwest Modified feature – Jensen’s tenth career win at the northern Wisconsin red-clay oval but first since 2012.
Polestarter Jesse Polson set the early pace as he drew away from some fierce battles for position, including Paul Suzik’s challenge of James Vendela for second. Suzik won the spot just before first-night visitor Codii Young’s spin on lap 4 reset the field, and on that restart Suzik applied the pressure on Polson with a strong outside-line run to gain the advantage one lap later.
Suzik had built a substantial 1.4-second cushion by lap 9, when Codii’s brother Jesse Young looped his ride to bring the field back together. By this time Jensen, who started the 20-lap race seventh, had worked his way into second, and after three attempts to restart the race, he and Suzik began a thrilling side-by-side battle for the lead over the next five laps, literally exchanging the top spot with every lap as Suzik maintained his high line around the oval while Jensen stayed low.
Suzik was scored as the leader by mere feet on lap 14 when the yellow flag flew for Neil Dees’ car stopped against the front-straight wall, but one lap after retaking the green flag Jensen dug in and took over for good. One last caution stop for a Jeremy Lindquist spin set up a three-lap dash to the checkers, and Jensen got there less than a half-second ahead of Suzik. George Dalbeck, Polson and Marcus Dunbar followed in close formation.
Travis Hazelton of Chippewa Falls continued his strong showings at northern Wisconsin tracks by capturing his third straight Patsy’s Bar & Grill WISSOTA Pure Stock feature here on Saturday.
Hazelton started inside on row 3 but was contending within the first lap, getting by Tyler Kachinske and Kristy Rose and pulling up to leader Brent Mindock’s rear bumper. Hazelton pressured Mindock for several laps but could not get a clean run on him until lap 6, when he pulled alongside and completed an outside pass.
From there Hazelton drew away to a nearly-full-second margin at the final stripe, with Mindock well ahead of Aaron Bernick for second. Tom Treviranus and Kachinske completed the top five as the Pure Stocks ran their ten-lap main event non-stop for the fourth straight week.
Jakob Bond of Mason finally scored his first-ever Lightning Storm Graphics ABC Six-Cylinder feature on Saturday, after four years of trying and coming very close. And it was hard-earned, as he had to endure a green-white-checkered sprint to the finish with several feature-winning drivers on his tail.
After running alongside his brother and polestarter Alex Bond for a lap, Jakob edged ahead just before Shawn Basina’s ride was bumped and spun on lap 2. Mathew Rohlfing and Dalton Truchon moved by Alex Bond after the restart to claim second and third, and then after a lap 4 restart brought about by a Cody Eichmann-Chris Bretting get-together, former three-time track champ Dale Coddington moved up through tight traffic into second.
Jakob Bond held tight to the lead despite the threats from the wily veteran Coddington, and after a late-race stoppage for debris after Brad Hanson’s hard slap of the front-straight wall, Bond fended off several challenges for the landmark win, by a mere quarter-second over Coddington.
Truchon, Rohlfing and Basina followed in close order to complete the top five.
A season-high 96 entries came to Ashland to compete on a sun-splashed Saturday, with temps still close to 80 by the evening’s race time.
On Saturday, June 24, the ABC Raceway will welcome the Northern Renegades sprints to the historic three-eighths-mile red-clay oval to run with its five regular weekly divisions. In addition, the Raceway has rescheduled its popular annual Kids’ Meet the Drivers Night for what should be a fun evening of racing to be presented by the Bad River Lodge, Casino & Convention Center of Odanah.
On Thursday, June 29, the Raceway will host its annual Farm Stock Special, presented by White River Ag Products of Mason. The event will offer big purses for the WISSOTA Modifieds, Midwest Mods and Super Stocks, with the winners of each divisions’ features receiving $2,500, $1,800 and $1,200, respectively.
The grandstand gates and pits will open at 5 pm on Saturday, with hot laps starting at 6:30 followed by the “meet-and-greet” session. The first green flag of the night will fly shortly after 7 pm. The ABC Raceway is located 3-1/2 miles south of Ashland on State Highway 13, then one mile west on Butterworth Road. For raceday information call (715) 682-4990, log on to the track’s website, www.abcraceway.com, or check out the Raceway’s FaceBook page.
Results
Outlaw Wraps & Apparel WISSOTA Modifieds
Feature: 1-10: Shane Sabraski, Rice, MN; Jake Hiatt, Mason; Pat Cook, Washburn; Jeff Spacek, Phillips; Tyler Vernon, Mason; Brandon Copp, Brule; Jack Rivord, Superior; Nick Oreskovich, Mason; Cole Spacek, Phillips; Marcus Dunbar, Marenisco, MI.
11-14: Parker Anderson, Phillips; Colin Chaschuk, Thunder Bay, ON; John Kallas, Hurley; Justin Weinberger, Elk Mound.
Heat 1: Oreskovich; Cook; Rivord; J Spacek; Anderson; Kallas; Weinberger.
Heat 2: Hiatt; Copp; Vernon; Sabraski; C Spacek; Chaschuk; Dunbar.
Superior Floral WISSOTA Super Stocks
Feature: 1-10: Terran Spacek, Phillips; Matt Deragon, Ashland; Kyle Copp, Brule; Shane Sabraski, Rice, MN; Steve Stuart, Ashland; Nick Oreskovich, Mason; James Trantina III, St Joseph, MN; Jordan Henkemeyer, Sauk Rapids, MN; Dylan Nelson, Merrifield, MN; Joey Jensen, Forest Lake, MN.
11-20: Tim Johnson, Brainerd, MN; DJ Keeler, Superior; Andrew Mackey, Duluth, MN; Patrick Beeksma, Ironwood, MI; Austin Niemeyer, Brainerd, MN; Andrew Johnson, Brainerd, MN; Leslie Leu, Medford; Chris Wark, Zimmerman, MN; Scott Lawrence, Superior; Shawn McFadden, Ashland.
21-26: Tucker Quinn, Ladysmith; Stefan Hogue, Altoona; Don Livingston, Washburn; Dan Peterson, Foxboro; Tucker Budreau, Zimmerman, MN; Mike Sirois, Duluth, MN.
Heat 1: Mackey; Copp; Beeksma; A Johnson; Sirois; Chris Johnson, Superior; Jeff Frey, Ogilvie, MN; Randy Graham, Trego.
Heat 2: Trantina; Deragon; T Budreau; Quinn; Paul Gucinski, Superior; Allan Cleveland, Breckenridge, MN; Jake Nevala, Ashland; Rita Anderson, South Range.
Heat 3: Stuart; Oreskovich; Wark; Leu; Niemeyer; Alex Myers, Cameron; Colton Budreau, Princeton, MN; Josh Cappo, Almena.
Heat 4: Spacek; Henkemeyer; Lawrence; Keeler; McFadden; Jeff Eisner Jr, Merrill; Chad Johnson, Colfax; Aaron Mashlan, Ashland.
Heat 5: Jensen; Nelson; Sabraski; T Johnson; Jason Havel, Rice Lake; Hogue; Livingston; Peterson.
Semi-Feature 1: Niemeyer; Sirois; Eisner; C Johnson; Havel; Mashlan; Frey; Graham.
Semi-Feature 2: McFadden; Hogue; Livingston; Nevala; Peterson; Gucinski; C Johnson; Cappo; Anderson; Myers.
Harmony Wealth Management WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds
Feature: 1-10: Joey Jensen, Forest Lake, MN; Paul Suzik, Ironwood, MI; George Dalbeck, Wakefield, MI; Jesse Polson, Superior; Marcus Dunbar, Marenisco, MI; Tyler Vernon, Mason; Dalton Mains, Foxboro; Tanner Hicks, Ashland; Jimmy Latvala, Solon Springs; Ryan Barningham, Bayfield.
11-18: Bryan Lund, Ashland; Matt Jacobson, Bessemer, MI; Jesse Young, Stone Lake; Jeremy Lindquist, Ashland; Neil Dees, Hurley; Scott Splittstoesser, Cottage Grove, MN; Codii Young, Hayward; James Vendela, South Range.
Heat 1: Jensen; Dalbeck; Vernon; Mains; Barningham; Lund; C Young.
Heat 2: Hicks; Dunbar; Polson; Jacobson; Splittstoesser; Cory Jorgensen, Duluth, MN.
Heat 3: Vendela; Suzik; Latvala; Lindquist; Dees; J Young.
Patsy’s Bar & Grill WISSOTA Pure Stocks
Feature: 1-9: Travis Hazelton, Chippewa Falls; Brent Mindock, Prentice; Aaron Bernick, Duluth, MN; Tom Treviranus, Hawthorne; Tyler Kachinske, Duluth, MN; Katlin Pritzl, Park Falls; Kristy Rose, Duluth, MN; Don Cain, Park Falls; Zene Anderson, Superior.
Heat 1: Kachinske; RJ Holly, Marengo; Rose; Cain; Treviranus.
Heat 2: Hazelton; Bernick; Mindock; Anderson; Pritzl.
Lightning Storm Graphics ABC Six-Cylinders
Feature: 1-10: Jakob Bond, Mason; Dale Coddington, Hayward; Dalton Truchon, Ashland; Mathew Rohlfing, Cable; Shane Basina, Bayfield; Chris Bretting, Washburn; Cameron Bond, Mason; Alex Bond, Iron River; Austin Olby, Ashland; Cody Eichmann, Park Falls.
11: Brad Hanson, Glidden.
Heat 1: J Bond; Olby; A Bond; Hanson; Eichmann; Jimmy Stearns, Superior; Trenton Bond, Mason.
Heat 2: Truchon; Coddington; Basina; Rohlfing; C Bond; Bretting.
