6/20/2016
Cottage Grove Speedway
Kyle Yeack Repeats As CGS Wallbanger Cup Winner; Starks, Campos, Lipke, And Moffett Also Earn Wins
Kyle Yeack Repeats As CGS Wallbanger Cup Winner; Starks, Campos, Lipke, And Moffett Also Earn Wins
By Ben Deatherage
(Photo Courtesy of Northwest Racing Productions)
Cottage Grove, Oregon- Cottage Grove Speedway would be the place to be on Saturday June 18th for the tenth annual Wallbanger Cup. The Wallbanger Cup is one of the biggest Street Stock races in the Pacific Northwest and is ran in memory of the late Mark Howard. A full pit area would complement the event with over eighty total entries that included Street Stocks, 360 Sprints, Late Models, IMCA Sport Mods, and the Quality RV Repair Hornets that were all on the card.
In the fifty-two lap finale for the Wallbanger Cup it would be a fantastic one. Coburg’s Kevin Williamson would seize the top spot on the opening lap in his Eugene Mortgage Brokers/Bet To Farm IPA/Furniture Options/Grain Station Brew Works #W7 entry. Williamson would be extremely fast in the first half of the race and was able to construct a lead of half a lap over second place as well as several lapped cars between himself and second. The field would be red flagged at lap twenty-four to top off the fuel cells to go the rest of the way.
Three lapped cars would separate first and second when they would take the green flag on lap twenty-five. The yellow flag would come out a lap later but second place Kyle Yeack would restart right behind Williamson. On the ensuing restart Yeack would make his presence known on the inside of Kevin Williamson and would make the pass on lap twenty-eight after a brief side-by-side battle.
Yeack, in his Radiator Supply House/Cascade Outdoor Power Equipment/RGS Performance #47 Camaro, would set a rapid pace afterwards and pulled away from the rest of the field. A lap forty-three caution would bunch up the leaders one final time but Yeack would master it and go unchallenged the remainder of the distance to win his second consecutive Wallbanger Cup.
Kevin Williamson held on to second place while Albany’s Justin Evans would finish third in the Al Flora owned Northwest Trucking Academy/Albie’s Medical Transport/Allied Medical Transport/Monty’s Racing Repair #99 Cougar. Andrew Langan, from Jasper and chauffeuring the D&L Truck Parts/A-1 Radiator/Sierra Gear & Axle #74 machine, crossed the wire in fourth with the The Herbal Connection/Headstash Horticulture/White Label Extracts/Cindy Sew It Emboridary and Sewing #69 Camaro of Eugene’s David Schmidt in fifth.
Kevin Williamson was the fastest of twenty-seven qualifiers while Gresham native Kevin Roberts won the Dot’s Trophy Shop Trophy Dash in his Big Sky Landscaping/Gray’s Racing Engines/James Gang Pizza/Powers Transport #88 Camaro. Heat race winners were the Crump Logging/D&L Truck Parts/Dean Schultz Heating and Air/Cottage Grove Customs #85 of Cottage Grove’s Evan Britton, Chris West of Woodland, Washington in his Maaco Body & Paint/Tom’s Performance #7W entry, and Justin Evans. Kevin Roberts would win the consolation feature and the Pure Romance by April/Pro Auto Racing/Curt Deatherage Auto Electric/Dennymite Race Cars #25 of Eugene’s April Howard was triumphant in the Miss Wallbanger Cup all-female race.
In the 360 Sprint Cars it would be a non-stop feature after an opening lap incident. Puyallup, Washington youngster Trey Starks would take full advantage of his pole starting position to get to the front on the second green flag start. Starks would set a wicked fast pace against the rest of the field to keep his Starks Timber Processing/Southstar Equipment Limited/Security Race Products #55 machine from second place. Starks would lead every single lap to win his first race at CGS in 2016 in only his first appearance at the venue this year.
The Rocket Designs/Auto Stitch Embroidery/BC Motorsports/Johnny Cat Inc. #11 KPC of Medford’s Roger Crockett fought his way to the front to end his evening in second and Kyle Miller, of Eugene and driving the Kady Adelman owned Machine For Speed By Craig Jensen/GK Machine Fabrication #6A XXX, was third after having issues on the first lap. Albany’s Bricen James, in Tim Galloway’s Myers Logging/Eugene Denture Clinic #51 XXX, got an impressive fourth while Central Point pilot Jake Wheeler completed the top five, in fifth, in his Reser’s Fine Foods/In & Out Gardens/Dave’s Carpet & Vinyl Liquidators/Dirt Collective Media House #21WR KPC.
Trey Starks was fast time of the night and Kyle Miller won the Dot’s Trophy Shop Trophy Dash. Heat race winners were Jake Wheeler and Sutherlin teenager Cooper Desbiens in his J.H. Desbiens Construction/Budget Lumber/Lithia Autobody/Oregon Tool & Supply #4D Maxim.
The Late Models would get some incredibly crucial track time before next Saturday’s Loggers Cup. Lebanon’s Josh Sim would be the car to beat for much of the race. Sim, driving his MG Construction/Westshore Tailgating/Mother Goose Resale #20 Swartz, held back several challengers for quite some before being overtaken on the sixteenth lap. The new driver to blaze the trail was Rob Campos of Scio.
Once Campos secured the lead he was able to simply sail away. He would stay out front for the remainder of the distance to pick up the feature victory. The J&S Farms/5 Budz Gardening & Extracts/Doerfler Farms/Drager Performance #9C GRT, of Campos, became the fourth different winner in as many races this year in the Late Model division.
Redmond’s Ron Brewster was second in his Central Oregon Trucking/Driving Force Graphics #31B Rocket while third would go to the South Coast Construction/Pacific Real Estate Management/MHK Plumbing/Rivers End Sports Bar #67 X-Factor of Mike George from Coos Bay. The rest of top five would be made up of Salem driver Britton Donahoo, in his O&O Farms/Watson Service & Repair/FinishLine Graphics #5 MasterSbilt, crossed the line in fourth and Josh Sim was fifth.
Mike George was the fastest qualifier in time trials and Ron Brewster won the Dot’s Trophy Shop Trophy Dash. Heat race winners were Rob Campos and Britton Donahoo.
The IMCA Sport Mods would have a really good car count and a really good race. Marcola’s Brandon Letsom would lead the first lap of the feature in the Letsom Racing #45 Harris. He would be overtaken on lap two by the Frisbie Racing/Clark Printing/Discount Race Car Parts/Harbor Rail Services Company #17 Shaw of Vancouver, Washington native Chris Frisbie. Frisbie would pace the field for some time before losing the top spot on lap seven.
Yreka, California driver Jimmy Lipke would grab the first place position and remain there the rest of the way. The only thing that would slow down the Ryland Racing/Paradise Painting/Traci Kivela Photography/Susan River Realty #4Y machine was three cautions but he would master every single restart. It would be Lipke’s first win at CGS and his first appearance of the season.
The KNND 1400 AM/Vintage Inn Family Restaurant/D&D Automotive/Oregon Taxi #13 Shaw of Springfield’s Shawn Hand was the runner-up while fellow Springfield driver Daniel Ray would finish his Brad’s Car Tunes/Quality RV Repair/D&L Truck Parts/MTD Motorsports #01 Harris in third. Winston’s Buddy McHargue was fourth in the Brett Gill Landscaping/John Murphy at Farmers Insurance #29 Harris and Chris Frisbie recovered from a lap twelve incident to place fifth.
The Quality RV Repair/Point S Springfield Tire Factory/Fastenal/Matco Tools #51N Harris of Jayson Nelson, from Springfield, set fast time and Daniel Ray was the winner of the Dot’s Trophy Shop Trophy Dash. Jayson Nelson and Chris Frisbie were the two heat victors.
Finally the Quality RV Repair Hornets would really entertain the crowd. Sutherlin’s Bernie Bryant would be very quick in the early goings. The Roseburg Honda #37 entry, of Bryant, would stay in front of the field until lap eight. It was at that time when the J&M Racing #7C Nissan 200SX, of Josh Corley from Westfir, would assume the lead. Corley would possess the coveted position until a late race pass by Brad Moffett of Veneta. Moffett, in his Edge Motorsports/Tire Sport/Green Electric #65 Volkswagon Golf, would not be out of the woods quite yet as he would have to hold of a determined Josh Corley. Moffett was able to stay in the lead at the drop of the checkered to win his first race of the season.
Josh Corley was a very close second and Bernie Bryant finished third. Dale Holland would get fourth in the Holland Automotive/Checkered Flag Asphalt Paving & Sealcoating #16 Toyota Tercel while the Junction City Muffler Shop/Twisted Bit Arena/Snap On Tools/J&M Racing #23F of Junction City’s Marcel Forte finished fifth.
Veneta’s Joe Maricle was fast time of the night in his More of Everything Racing Collectables/Royal Refuse Service #11 machine as well as the winner of the Dot’s Trophy Shop Trophy Dash. The Roseburg Honda #78 car of Rich Dickenson from Roseburg, Marcel Forte, and Dale Holland were heat race winners.
Cottage Grove Speedway returns to racing on Friday June 24th for $5.00 Fast Friday. $5.00 will get anyone the age of 13+ into the races on Friday only. Classes in action include the IMCA Modifieds and Quality RV Repair Hornets.
Then on Saturday June 25th the ¼-mile clay oval will be hosting one of the biggest Late Model races around with the return of the Logger’s Cup. Late Models, the Wingless Sprint Series, IMCA Modifieds, and Quality RV Repair Hornets will all be on the card. Tickets for Saturday are Tickets are Adults $13.00, Juniors/Seniors $10.00, Youth (6-12) - $5.00, Family Pass $30.00, and Children 5 or under are FREE. As will happen all year long in honor of our 60th Anniversary the 60th fan through the Front Gate gets in for FREE.
Times for both days are Pit Gates open at 2:00 PM, Front Gates 4:00, and Racing is scheduled to start around 6:30. For more information log on to www.cottagegrovespeedway.com and check out the track’s Facebook page and click “Like”.
Submitted By: Ben Deatherage