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2010 Media
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ASA MIDWEST TOUR
CHAMPION CLAIMS VICTORY IN THE 2ND ANNUAL JOE SHEAR
CLASSIC 136
Unofficial SLM
Results
By: Kari Shear-Carlson
(Sunday, May 2, 2010) The season opener for the
American Speed Association® Kwik Trip Midwest
Tour presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment
and
grandstay.net is
officially in the books. Steve Carlson took home
the checkered flag for the 2nd Annual “Joe Shear
Classic 136” presented by ECHO Chain Saws. After
starting on the inside of row three, Carlson
quickly moved up the field taking the lead on
lap 29 over Illiana Speedway Champion, Jeff
Cannon. Ross Kenseth, driver of the #25, Blain’s
Farm & Fleet Ford Fusion followed the veteran
Carlson and moved on the inside of Cannon for
second position.
Carlson had
the honor of racing with Joe Shear for many
years and learned a lot from him. “It’s really
cool to win this race. I dropped out early last
year with a flat and felt bad about that. I
wanted to come back and win this year. I used to
pit by Joe Shear as much as I could. He did not
seem to mind and I learned a lot from him.
Eventually I learned enough and was able to race
with him and even sometimes beat him,” added
Swiss Colony Touring Star, Carlson.
After starting
in the 14th position, ECHO/Oregon Cutting
Systems “Quick Cut” Qualifier, Chris Wimmer
patiently and methodically gained ground moving
up to 10th position by lap 29. As the laps were
winding down to the break at lap 100, Travis
Sauter, driver of the #5 Cranberry Creek
Cranberries sponsored car was beginning to make
his move. As Jeff Cannon was gaining on Kenseth,
Sauter was keeping them both in his sight. With
16 laps until the break, 2009 winner, Nathan
Haseleu stalled on the back stretch bringing out
the caution flag. Carlson continued to pull away
from the field at the restart and Sauter had his
sights set on Cannon.
In honor of
Joe Shear’s famous #36, cars had a break at lap
100 to make minor adjustments. With the threat
of rain heading into the area, drivers took the
green flag for the final 36-lap shootout.
Carlson once again pulled away from the field.
Chris Wimmer was on the move after the 10-minute
break moving into sixth position and quickly
took over fifth from Dave Feiler with 20 laps
remaining.
After starting
in the 17th position, Travis Sauter took over
third place with 19 laps to go with his sights
set on Kenseth for second, falling short in the
closing laps. “We were too loose during the
first 100 laps. If we would have qualified
better, it would have been a lot different. If I
wasn’t running for points I would been a little
more aggressive with Ross, but I can’t
complain,” said Sauter.
Ross Kenseth
has found victory lane at Madison International
Speedway in the past, but was unable to
challenge the veteran for the victory.
“Following Steve Carlson was amazing. He is the
most talented driver out here and has the most
experience. I learned a lot running behind him
and look forward to learning all I can
throughout the season,” stated Kenseth. Rounding
out the top five were Jeff Cannon and Chris
Wimmer. The 2009 Joe Shear Classic 136 winner,
Nathan Haseleu had a disappointing day,
finishing in the 22nd position after electrical
problems shortened his day.
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Matt
Kenseth's son experiences tire trouble in Berlin
Raceway debut
May 10, 2010, 7:15AM
MARNE -- For a
brief period of time, it looked as if Ross
Kenseth would challenge established drivers such
as Johnny Benson Jr. for Saturday’s championship
in the 125-lap CRA Super Series at Berlin
Raceway.
The 16-year-old son of NASCAR Sprint Cup driver
and 2003 series champion Matt Kenseth found out
tire trouble sometimes causes the best-laid
plans to run off the track.
Kenseth was in third place at one point at
Berlin before fading, but he eventually
recovered and finished ninth overall. Wyoming
driver Brian Campbell won the event.
“We started off and the car was great. I didn’t
have any complaints,” Kenseth said. “The car was
a little tight but we caught up with the leaders
on a great restart. The right rear tire was
going down throughout the race and we had 10
pounds (of pressure) at one point, so we came in
and took care of it and that really hurt us.
“We came in and did a panel-bar adjustment and
went back out, and there were only four lugnuts
on the right rear tire, so we were hoping for
the tire not to fall off, and we salvaged a good
finish.”
Kenseth, a native of Spring Valley, Ill.
(located an hour north of Peoria), took part
Saturday in his first CRA race. It wasn’t his
first exposure to cars, however. Not by a
longshot.
“I’ve been running go-karts since the age of 5,”
Kenseth said.
Kenseth has been very successful at it. He took
part in racing at Shawno, Wis., winning Kid Kart
and Box Stock classes while competing on the
go-kart circuit.
When he was 13 years old, he raced INEX Legend
Cars legally after getting help with a license
from another famous father-son duo, Nelson and
Tony Stewart. From there he toured the NASCAR
circuit with his dad to prepare for CRA racing.
"My dad and I did the Snowball Derby last year
and that was a fun race,” Kenseth said.
The Snowball Derby, a 300-lap late model race
held in December of every year, was formerly
sanctioned by NASCAR but NASCAR drivers still
take part in the event. Kenseth finished 12th.
He was not the only driver to have a famous
NASCAR father; Chase Elliott, whose father is
Bill Elliott, also took part in the race.
While Matt is on the NASCAR circuit, Ross is
traveling CRA; he will be at Winchester, Ind.,
this weekend.
“During the summer we race every weekend and so
does (Matt), so it’s kind of hard to be
together,” Kenseth said. “I’d hope to be on the
NASCAR circuit eventually.”
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May 16, 2010
Kenseth wins CRA
race at Winchester
By Ken de la
Bastide
CNHI News Service
WINCHESTER, Ind. —
It turned out to be an interesting first visit to
Winchester Speedway for Ross Kenseth as he came away
with a victory at the historic track Sunday in the
Manning Service 100.
Kenseth led only one lap in the Champion Racing
Association Super Late Model feature, but it was the
money lap.
It didn’t look like a win was in the cards for the son
of NASCAR star Matt Kenseth halfway through the event.
Kenseth was the fast qualifier and started the 100-lap
feature fourth following the inversion of the fastest
four qualifiers.
At the start, Indianapolis driver Tommy St. John
jumped into the lead chased by defending CRA champion
John VanDoorn, Scott Hantz, Kenseth and Jason Shively.
Kenseth passed Hantz on the sixth lap, got inside of
VanDoorn after 22 laps and set his sights on St. John.
For the next 28 laps, Kenseth ran in St. John’s tire
tracks and several times looked to get underneath to
make the pass.
The complexion of the race changed on Lap 51 when
Kenseth came off Turn 4 and clipped the left rear of
St. John’s car. The result was St. John making hard
contact with the inside front straight wall and
Kenseth being sent to the tail of the field.
That gave the lead to Hantz, who was being chased by
VanDoorn and Jeff Lane. Kenseth started climbing
through the field and, with 21 laps remaining, was
running in the third position when the sixth caution
flag flew.
On the restart, Jeff Lane, losing pressure in a rear
tire, pulled to the inside and let Kenseth move into
the second position. The seventh and final caution
flag waved when Lane’s tire let go and he made contact
with the Turn 1 wall.
The question was would Kenseth be able to pass Hantz,
a two-time CRA champion, with 18 laps remaining?
Several times Kenseth attempted to get a run on Hantz
coming off the fourth corner but would back out and
fall into line, obviously not wanting a repeat of the
incident with St. John.
Just when it appeared Hantz was going to hold on for
the victory, Kenseth made an inside move coming off
the fourth corner on Lap 99. There was slight contact,
but both drivers continued in the throttle.
Entering Turn 1, Hantz didn’t protect the high line,
which allowed Kenseth to use the preferred groove to
get the advantage on the back straight.
At the checkers, Kenseth won by .3 seconds over Hantz
with JR Roahrig, who started 17th in the 29-car field,
claiming third, followed by Rick Turner and Eddie Van
Meter.
“First I want to apologize to the 14 (St. John),”
Kenseth said following the win. “It was all my fault.
I got a little free in the corner, and the car pushed
up.”
Kenseth said Winchester is a really fast place to run,
and it took some adjusting to the unusual line used at
the track. He said most tracks you try to run the low
groove, and Winchester is just the opposite.
Hantz said there was one lap too many in seeking his
fourth career win at the track.
“The fastest car doesn’t always win, but today it
did,” he said. “Kenseth did a good job.”
Ohio driver Jack Smith, who had mechanical problems
prior to qualifications, started last in the field and
drove to a seventh-place finish.
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Kenseth dominates in
first Elko action
Monday, May 24, 2010
7:28 AM
Elko, MN May 22,
2010--Ross Kenseth came to Elko Speedway to "get some
laps" in preparation for the upcoming Elko100 touring
event and left with a clean sweep as the Cambridge, WI
hotshoe led qualifying, topped his Semi Feature and then
worked around Lakeville's Billy Mohn on lap 12 of 40
enroute to claiming a clean sweep in the NASCAR Super
Late Model action to highlight the NASCAR Whelen All
American Series action Saturday May 22, 2010.
At the drop of the
green in the 40 lap NASCAR Super Late Model headliner,
the 21 starters saw Billy Mohn charge to the point with
Brian Johnson, Ross Kenseth, Steve Anderson and Matt
Goede in tow. By lap four, Kenseth moved to the highside
of Johnson for second, with Goede ducking to the inside
of Anderson for fourth two laps later. As the action
remained "clean and green", Kenseth worked the outside
line to perfection, catching Mohn on lap 11 before
taking the point on lap 12 as Goede moved under Johnson
to join the top three. Once at the point, Kenseth kept a
smooth line, but couldn't shake the persistent Mohn who
dogged him the final 28 laps and despite a 24th lap
caution for a spinning David Fredrickson, Kenseth would
work his way to victory lane, with Mohn a strong second,
Goede third, "Dundas Donny" Reuvers charged home fourth
with Johnson holding on to a top five.
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Quarter Master's Clutch Performance of the Week
Who
Came Through in The Clutch This Time?
As Decided by the Staff of Speed51.com
Ross Kenseth
#25 CRA Super Series Super Late Model
While Darlington Raceway
is known as the track that is "Too Tough to Tame", someone could
have used the same slogan for Winchester Speedway (IN) if they
thought of it first. Winchester is a scary-fast, high-banked
action track where it's hard to get around and easy to be
intimidated. Want to survive Winchester? Good luck. Want to win
there? Even more good luck. It usually takes plenty of that
along with experiences and guts. Newcomers need not apply. Ross
Kenseth didn't waste any time learning the track though. The
teenager headed to Winchester for his first race there this past
weekend and on opening day of the track's 2010 season, he stole
the show by winning the CRA Super Series feature there. Kenseth
didn't just luck into a victory either. He took on one of the
best racers that Winchester has seen in a Super Late Model,
Scott Hantz, and passed him for the victory on the final lap.
That performance allowed Ross Kenseth to be named as the winner
of this week's Speed51.com Quarter Master Clutch Performance of
the Week award. Here are a few of our panelist comments on
Kenseth this week... "Ross Kenseth winning at Winchester Sunday.
In his first ever visit to the famous High Banks, he was Fast
Qualifier, then came from the tail after an on track incident to
make a spectacular pass of Scott Hantz on the outside in turns
one and two on the white flag lap to get the victory." "Ross
Kenseth at Winchester. First time visit there...gets fast
time...sent to the rear for spinning out the leader with 49 laps
to go...comes through the field and passes Scott Hantz on the
last lap for the win. Not bad for the rookie in his fourth Super
Late Model race."
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KENSETH TAKES HOME FIRST EVER
ASA MIDWEST TOUR VICTORY
By: Kari
Shear-Carlson
(Sunday, June 6, 2010) After getting rained out on
Saturday, the American Speed Association® Kwik Trip
Midwest Tour presented by ECHO Outdoor Power
Equipment and grandstay.net had a full day of racing
today. Ross Kenseth, driver of the #25 Blain’s Farm
& Fleet Ford Fusion took home the checkered flag for
his first ever ASAMT victory.
The 26 car field
took the green flag led by Bloomington, MN driver
Dean Cornelius and Sparta, WI driver Tim Schendel.
An early caution on lap four for Joel Theisen
bunched up the field and Kenseth challenged Schendel
at the restart. On lap 12, Kenseth took the lead on
the outside and quickly caught lapped traffic. Chris
Wimmer and Jonathan Eilen had a great battle going
for third position. Eilen took over the second spot
from front-row starter, Tim Schendel and Wimmer
followed for third.
The second and
third cautions of the day came out for Dean
Cornelius and Jeff Storm both spinning on separate
occasions in turn two. 2009 ASAMT Champion and last
year’s Elko winner, Steve Carlson broke an a-frame
on lap 44 ending his day. Eilen wasted no time at
the restart challenging Kenseth for the lead, but
was unable to take the top spot. Wimmer took the
opportunity and got by Eilen for second and Schendel
followed through for the third spot. Several laps
later Eilen slowed in turns three and four and was
off the track with an ignition problem.
Wausa, WI native,
Chris Wimmer started challenging Kenseth on the
inside for the lead on lap 67. They fought
side-by-side until lap 73 when the fourth caution of
the day came out for Jeff Storm spinning in turn
two. When the green flag dropped, Wimmer dove to the
inside of Kenseth and took the top-spot with ten to
go but Kenseth powered back on the outside to take
it back.
As Wimmer and
Kenseth continued to battle, Jacob Goede was
methodically moving through the field and caught up
to the leaders with five laps remaining but did not
have enough to get by them. “If we would have had a
little bit better starting spot, I think we could
have challenged them a little bit better. They were
running side-by-side and I was running all over the
track so, if they would have gotten together, maybe
I could have gotten by them,” said Goede. Goede did
not have enough for either of them and Kenseth took
home the victory over Wimmer and Goede.
Wimmer dropped a
cylinder with 15 laps to go, but it did not hurt him
and he continued to fight for the top spot. “He ran
me real clean and I ran him hard. I was waiting for
him to screw up but he didn’t, Wimmer said with a
smile. “I dropped a cylinder with 15 laps to go but
it didn’t hurt me too much.”
This was Kenseth’s
second victory at Elko Speedway. He won a weekly
Saturday night event on May 22nd. The 17-year-old
was able to maintain his lead in the outside groove
and knew that Wimmer would not be able to take his
groove away. “He ran us down pretty good. I wanted
it to stay green. I pinched him down a bit and I
appreciate him running me clean and not wrecking
me,” added Kenseth.
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