2011 Route 66 Coverage


75 Cheese Cows Awarded at Badger Route 66 Series

Coverage from route 66 sprint series 2011 round 3

The Margay/Bridgestone Route 66 Sprint Series presented by L&T Manufacturing, Russell Karting Specialties and Laukaitis Racing held round three at Badger Raceway on June 18 and 19 in Dousman, WI. The event was sponsored by Merlin Racing Karts. A great turn out of 239 entries competed over the weekend for the coveted "cheese cows" which were awarded to the top five in each class. The hosting Badger Kart Club has a long tradition of awarding Wisconsin cheese shaped like a cow to the top five in each class at their major events.

With no major conflicting events being held in the mid-west, many kart racers attended this event, using it as an opportunity to race in a big event at the historic Badger Raceway. The Route 66 Series regulars found the competition to be tough and some new names would take home the top-five trophies and cheese cows on this weekend.

Badger Kart Club (BKC), which has held kart races for 52 years at Badger Raceway, has a large membership of volunteers that helped stage this event with around 25 club members helping out each day. BKC regularly attracts 180 entries at their club races and has vast experience at staging top level karting events. The event went off very smoothly under direction of veteran club President Bob Prusinski with help from Shirley Howard, Gordy Gahagan, George Sieracki, Bob Vehring and Bingo Emmons among others. BKC was also promoting their club at the Milwaukee Mile on this weekend during the Indy car race. The free cookout provided by BKC on Saturday night of barbeque pork, bratwurst, fresh watermelon, deserts and much more was greatly enjoyed by all.

Plenty of pre-race practice time was made available by BKC leading up to the event and by Friday the main paddock was full with many teams having to pit in the overflow paddock. Four rounds of practice were held on Saturday before the racing got underway for seven classes. The predicted rain stayed away for the most part with only a few sprinkles falling on Saturday. On Sunday, practice started out in the wet, but the track was able to be dried out in time for qualifying and all racing was completed under dry conditions.

At the Sunday morning driver's meeting, a drawing was held for a set of Bridgestone YLC tires sponsored by Margay/Bridgestone which was won by Zack Buecker. Josh Hotz won the drawing for a Dimplex Power Chef electric grill sponsored by Marx Fireplaces and Lighting.

Three drivers were able to capture double class wins over the weekend. Jason Foley swept the Yamaha Supercan Lite and Komet Senior classes by setting fast time, winning the pre-final and finals in both classes. Collin Griffin won both the Yamaha Junior Heavy and Lite finals. And Michael Paterno swept the Yamaha Rookie Lite and Heavy classes by setting fast time, winning the pre-final and finals in both classes.

The first final racing on Saturday was the Adkins Speed Center Yamaha Supercan Lite class with 23 entries. Jason Foley (Merlin/Switch) paced the field after capturing the pre-final and setting the fast time in qualifying. Kyle Gluth and Jimmy Clark stayed on Foleys tail much of the race until Foley pulled away to two second advantage at the finish of the 16-lap final. Drake Ostrom, Kevin Bowler and Brad Brittin rounded out the top six in the next pack. Foley also set quick time of the race at 40.458.

Next up was the Kid Kart Championship class sponsored by Kart Star Motorsports. Luke Howard looked to have a lock on the final win after winning the pre-final and setting fastest lap in the final. However a DQ in post-race tech handed the win to Talan Drake followed by Kyle West, Josh Hansen, Carter Cass and Tyler Allison rounding out the top five in the 12 kart field.

The Triple E Sales Yamaha Sportsman Lite class was up next. Pre-final winner David Malukas (Birel) and Becker Reardon paced the field at the start of the 20 kart field. Malukas took the lead on lap one followed closely by Reardon. Reardon moved to the point briefly at about mid-race however Malukas was able to retake the lead and pulled out to a .713 second win over Reardon. The next three of Thayne Chapin, Alex Bertagnoli and Kaleb Allison rounded out the top five in a tight battle. The race ended a little roughly with two karts spinning into the safety bags in turn one after taking the checkered flag. Malukas also set the fastest race lap at 42.408.

The next class racing, Yamaha Junior Heavy, sponsored by Vogel Heating & Cooling was chosen for the daily "pea-pick" format and did not qualify. Josh Hotz won the first heat and Collin Griffin won the second heat giving him enough points to start on the pole in the finals along side of Mike McAndrews in the 22 kart field. McAndrews grabbed the lead into turn one on the start and led for the first two laps. Griffin reclaimed the lead in turn four and was able to hold off McAndrews for the win by just .496 seconds at the end of the 16 lap final. Behind the front two, the pack of Josh Hotz, Grant Sandberg, Kenlen Morse, Michael Geringer and Perry Needham were locked in a fierce battle for the third through seventh positions. Collin Griffin (Arrow/Adkins) also set the fastest race lap at 40.306.

Next up was the CKT Racing Engines Yamaha Rookie Lite class with 16 entries. Fast qualifier and pre-final winner Michael Paterno paced the field along side Connor Cass. Paterno grabbed the lead in turn one followed closely Cass. The front pack of Paterno, Cass, Grant Griesbach, Matthew Northrop and Brenden Trent stayed together for the entire race. Paterno (Margay) won by just .347 seconds over Griesbach who set the fastest race lap at 42.916. Northrop, Cass and Trent rounded out the top five finishing within two seconds of the winner.

The next class to race with 23 entries was the Franklin Motorsports TAG I Senior class. Tommy Anderson (Kosmic/Vortex) paced the field at the start after winning the pre-final and qualifying first. Anderson took the lead into turn one followed by Brian Jacobson and Cal Stewart. Anderson was able to stretch out his lead to almost two seconds at the finish over Jacobson. Stewart, Dillon Krantz and Drake Ostrom rounded out the top five a few seconds back. Plenty of good battles were going on throughout the field with Matt Stagl and Mark Vielgut finishing 6th and 7th and TJ Koyen, Justin Vancil and Keenan Hertzner rounding out the top ten.

The final class to compete on Saturday was the Formula Yamaha Masters class sponsored by Margay Racing. This class utilizes the pea-pick/heat format for the whole season. Chad Kruger (Margay/Adkins) won both heats and lined up on the pole for the final. Kruger pulled away to a ten second win over Kenny Price with Dave Timmerman, Clair Ruenger and Bob Kaminski rounding out the top five. Kruger also set fastest race lap at 40.660.

The first class racing on Sunday was Komet Senior, sponsored by Jet Karting with 16 entries. The front row was paced by fast qualifier and pre-final winner Jason Foley along side of Kyle Gluth. The top four of Foley, Gluth, Jimmy Clark and Nick Stagl were locked in a tight battle for the lead with Gluth leading for several laps. Foley (Merlin/Switch), a former track record holder at Badger, used his experience to pull off the win by just .072 seconds over Gluth. Clark finished third just .2 seconds back and Stagl finished fourth just .38 seconds back. Drake Ostrom finished fifth followed by Mike Dionne, Brad Brittin and Darin Marcus in a tight battle for sixth.

The Yamaha Junior Lite class sponsored by Express Karts and Parts was up next with 22 entries. Pre-final winner Collin Griffin paced the start and took the lead followed by Nicky DeFronzo and Christian Besasie. Griffin maintained a slight advantage over DeFronzo and Besasie while they swapped positions for second and third place. Meanwhile, Grant Sandberg and Kenlen Morse had their own battle ongoing for fourth place. Griffin (Arrow/Adkins) was able to hold off Besasie at the finish by just .160 seconds followed by DeFronzo, Sandberg and Morse. Josh Hotz and Anthony Granata finished 6th and 7th a few seconds back followed by Robby McQuinn, Michael Geringer and Scott Matulik in the top ten. Nicky DeFronzo set fastest race lap at 40.090.

The Formula Yamaha Senior class sponsored by Streeter Super Stands was up next. Fast qualifier and pre-final winner Drake Ostrom paced the final along side Adam Crepin. Ostrom (Merlin/Adkins) turned the quickest lap times of the race at 39.953 and held a three second advantage at the finish over Crepin. Brian Zirves, Nick Roberts and Dave Timmerman rounded out the top five at the finish.

The Ballistic Designs Komet Sportsman class final was up next. The front row was paced by fast qualifier and pre-final winner Brandon Lemke and Alex Bertagnoli. Lemke (Birel/Source) gradually pulled away to a five second win over Bertagnoli. Colton Peterson, Austin Schaff and Owen Leatherberry rounded out the top five.

Next up was the Comet Kart Sales Yamaha Supercan Heavy class which was chosen for the daily pea-pick format. Jimmy Clark won the first heat and Jason Birdsell won the second heat giving him enough points to line up on the pole for the final along side of Drake Ostrom. Ostrom grabbed the lead into turn one and led for most of the 16 lap final. Jimmy Clark (Merlin/Adkins) worked his way around Birdsell and gradually moved to the front to overtake Ostrom on the final lap in turn five. Rounding out the top five were Birdsell, Adam Crepin and Tim Brinkman. Jimmy Clark ran the fastest race lap at 41.017.

The Two Cycle Engine Technologies Yamaha Sportsman Heavy class final gridded next with 20 entries. The front row of David Malukas and Becker Reardon paced the field at the start in what was to be one of the best races of the day. The front pack of Malukas, Kaleb Allison, Reardon, Thayne Chapin, Dillon Schwanbeck, Austin Schaff, Riley Yates, Brandon Lemke and Brant Carter were locked in a furious battle with three-wide racing and position swapping ongoing throughout the race. Reardon was off the track on lap 11 and Malukas was off on the final lap. Kaleb Allison (Merlin/Triple-E) managed to pull away from the lead pack and win by 1.8 seconds over Chapin, Schwanbeck, Schaff and Yates. Becker Reardon set the fastest race lap at 42.855.

Next up was the TAG II Senior class sponsored by Kart Lift. Fast qualifier and pre-final winner Jamie Sieracki paced the start along side Drake Ostrom. Ostrom beat Sieracki to turn one on the start and led the pack of Sieracki, TJ Koyen and Tommy Anderson. Sieracki (Merlin/Leopard) moved to the point about mid-race and pulled out to a 1.786 second win over Koyen, Anderson, Mark Vielgut and Ostrom. Sieracki also set fast race lap at 37.451.

The final class of the day, Yamaha Rookie Heavy sponsored by Switch Racing Engines gridded next for their final led by fast qualifier and pre-final winner Michael Paterno along side of Luke Kohlbecker in the 13-kart field. Paterno (Margay) took the lead at the start and pulled away from the field for a five second win with Grant Griesbach, Kohlbecker, Brenden Trent and Zachary Della rounding out the top five. Grant Griesbach set the fastest race lap at 43.29.

Merlin kart chassis captured the most wins over the weekend with six class final wins. Margay had three wins followed by Birel and Arrow with two wins each and one win for Kosmic. For the complete race results, visit www.mylaps.com.

The next round of the series will be held at Concept Haulers Motor Speedway in Norway, IL on July 16 & 17. Friday practice will be available. All entrants will have a chance to win a set of Bridgestone YLC tires in a drawing held at the Sunday morning driver's meeting. The 3rd Annual Komet Throw-down money race for the KPV Senior class will be held Saturday evening at Norway.