PRACTICE 1 • PRACTICE 2 • QUALIFYING • RESULTS • PHOTOS

By: Kevin Ramsell
BURLINGTON, WI (Monday, May 05, 2008) – A huge crowd enjoyed the sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60’s as the ASA Kwik Trip Midwest Tour presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment opened Madison International Speedway’s season with the running of the ECHO Chainsaw 100. The fans saw Dan Fredrickson pick up his fourth ASAMT win and the hottest driver in racing pick up a podium finish.

QUALIFYING WAS CLOSE…AGAIN

Researchers say that it takes less than a tenth of a second to blink. Going by that estimate, it is safe to say that the top three in qualifying were as close as a blink of the eye.

While Kyle Busch appeared to be the fastest man in town after the two practice sessions, it was Jacob Goede taking home is second career ECHO “Blows Away the Competition” Fast Qualifier Award at Madison. Goede earned an ECHO Blower for his efforts.

Goede also received a $100 bonus from Allen Delius of Pro Source Motorsports and Pony Xpress Motorcoaches for his fast time.

But, Goede didn’t blow away the field in qualifying as he paced the field with a lap time of 17.754 seconds. Fredrickson was second fastest with a lap time of 17.756 seconds while Travis Sauter was third with a lap time of 17.759 seconds. Yes, that is .005 seconds difference and less than a blink of an eye.

Busch qualified 14th with a lap time of 17.895 seconds.

ASAMT Rookie, Nick Murgic was making his first ever visit to MIS and held on to the 16th qualifying spot to earn a starting spot in the feature event with a time of 17.910 seconds. Frank Kreyer was 17th with a lap time of 17.922 seconds.

Of the 46 cars that qualified, 20 of them had a qualifying time of less than 18.000 seconds. 34 of the 46 qualifiers qualified within .5 seconds of Goede. Steve Schultz, the 45th qualifier was only .859 seconds behind the fast qualifier. Steve Dobbratz had a rough qualifying run as he spun out on his first lap. He would end up 1.382 seconds behind Goede.

THE WEATHER IS SO NICE…LET’S PLAY TWO

Dobbratz along with Russ Blakeley not only competed in the ASAMT race, but they also competed in the Big 8 Series 38-lap feature as well.

Dobbratz failed to make the ASAMT race, but would finish 16th in the Big 8 Series race.

Blakeley qualified 13th in the ASAMT race and finished ninth in the main event. He would finish 15th in the Big 8 Series event.

Jeremy Miller used a last lap pass to get by Michael Bilderback for the win. Bobby Wilberg was third. Second generation driver, Skylar Holzhausen was fourth. Ross Kenseth, son of Matt Kenseth, was fifth. Both Holzhausen and Kenseth were competing at MIS for the first time.

TOUGH RUN FOR ELKO WINNER

ASAMT Elko winner, Jake Ryan was hoping to have his momentum continue at MIS. But oil pressure issues limited his practice time but he would come out and qualify seventh for the event. He would finish 25th in the main event as the oil pressure problems caused him to sideline.

But, Ryan was still all smiles as his father, who is suffering from ALS, was able to make the journey from Farmington, MN to watch his son race. Ryan is hoping to win the championship for his father this season.

BUSCH ENDS HIS BUSY WEEKEND WITH A PODIUM FINISH

Kyle Busch came to MIS to compete in his fourth race in four days. On Thursday, he competed at Southside Speedway in Midlothian, VA on behalf of the Denny Hamlin Foundation in which he won the event.

On Friday, he would finish third in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race and follow that up with a second place finish on Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event.

On Sunday, he would beat Mark Eswein by .007 seconds to finish third in the ECHO Chainsaw 100.

Busch will be competing in three more ASAMT events in 2008. He will be at the Iowa Speedway event on July 20th, Wisconsin International Raceway on August 5th, and The Milwaukee Mile on August 24th.

SPECIAL THANKS FROM KWIK TRIP STORES

Kwik Trip Stores, Inc. would like to thank the MIS fans for their participation in their Special Olympics raffle. They raised $1,413 for Special Olympics Wisconsin. They would also like to give a special thanks to the drivers and crew who purchased a lot of tickets as well.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE

This writer would like to thank Pastor Scott and the entire ASA Midwest Tour staff for the surprise birthday cake that was presented to Kyle Busch and me prior to driver introductions on Sunday.

Kyle celebrated his birthday on Friday, May 2nd with mine being the next day.

It was a fun and memorable experience and another reason why this series is doing the right things for its fans and their own officials. Thank you!!!

Oh, I would like to apologize to Kyle for smearing some frosting on his face. I will admit that he almost got me first.

The next event for the ASA Kwik Trip Midwest Tour presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment will take place on Saturday, May 17th at Jefferson Speedway in Cambridge, WI.

Last year, Nathan Haseleu returned to Jefferson to pick up his only ASAMT win so far. It will be an exciting night of racing at Wisconsin’s Action Track.

To learn more about the American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment and the engine giveaway program, please contact the ASA Midwest Tour office by calling (262) 514-3880 or by e-mailing Tim Olson at tim@asamidwesttour.com or Steve Einhaus at steve@asamidwesttour.com.

To learn more about the Daytona Beach, Florida-based Racing Speed Associates or the American Speed Association Racing Member Track program, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from all the racetracks and regional tours involved in the American Speed Association, visit www.asa-racing.com.