Young Racing Talent Successful on a Friday Night

Friday, June 13th, was a strong night for young drivers across several NASCAR Advanced Auto Weekly Racing classes at Hawkeye Down Speedway! From breakthrough victories to photo finishes, the night of racing delivered high-stakes drama across multiple NASCAR Regional classes as well as the visiting American Iron Racing Series, keeping the crowd on their feet and the championship battles heating up.

SUNLINE HORNETS

Photo by Ed Siems

Daniel Grother got out to a good lead in the heat race, leading the first half. Kurt Bohnsack took the lead and brought John Carnahan with him at the finish. 

Grother led the opening lap, while Carnahan charged to 2nd and took over the lead a lap later. Bohnsack was right behind, and the top two pulled away. Five laps in, Chad Vozenilek ended up out of shape and spun, collecting Hochstedler. Vozenilek would continue on, but it would be the end of the evening for Hochstedler. 

On the restart, Bohnsack hung out on the outside for several laps until sliding out of turn four. In the last handful of laps, he got to challenge Carnahan again, but would not be able to get by. Carnahan would take his second trip to Green State Credit Union Victory Lane. 

LEGENDS.DIRECT LEGENDS

Dallas Kibbe worked over Kacey Korsmo for the lead in the first Legend heat. Kacey held him off until three to go when he wiggled and allowed Kibbe and Father Kevin Korsmo by. Kibbe went on to win the heat over Kevin Korsmo. 

In heat two, Danny Lehmkuhl had a strong start with the Slabaugh brothers chasing him. Halfway in, Austin Slabaugh got clear of Lehmkuhl, who slipped a lap later and lost another position to Nick Slabaugh. Austin Slabaugh collected the heat win. 

Kibbe battled Nick Slabaugh at the start of the feature race, with Lehmkuhl ahead and Austin Slabaugh powering around and pressuring for the lead. As Lehmkuhl and Austin battled, Lehmkuhl spun off turn four but took the blame for the incident, allowing Austin to keep his position. 

Austin got away but slid high off turn four shortly after, giving way to Kibbe for the top spot. With five to go, Kevin Korsmo took over the runner-up spot and arrived at the Kibbe bumper with two to go. In the final corner, Kevin looked outside but couldn’t keep the momentum, giving Kibbe his first feature victory. 

“It’s been a long time coming,” Kibbe said. “I’m not done yet.”

AMERICAN IRON RACING SERIES

It was all Wesley Jones in the first AIRS heat race while Scott Fridley and Robin Atkins battled for second. Fridley would retain the 2nd spot behind Jones for the victory. 

The second heat was all Lisa Miller ahead of Dennis Etten. Etten had to hold off a brief challenge from Lennon Jones but was able to keep the runner-up spot. 

Etten led at the green flag of the feature with Wesley Jones quickly getting to 3rd. An early yellow with Lennon Jones spinning on the front stretch bunched up the field. Wesley Jones took a peek but had to back out and reset. 

Photo by Ed Siems

Not long after, Jones took the battle to Etten. Etten slid up the track but slammed the door shut, holding onto the lead when the yellow came out for Miller spinning in turn four. Jones powered ahead on the restart and kept the lead to get the win. 

ANDERSON AUTOMOTIVE HOBBY STOCKS

Early in the hobby stock heat race, Brayden Beauregard made contact with Scott Siems which resulted in Siems spinning. One lap after the restart, Adam Petrzelka got to 2nd and began to work over Hayden Sherman. With two to go, Petrzelka got ahead by a nose but Sherman slid up and made contact with Petrzelka. Sherman had enough steam to pull off the win at the end. 

The feature looked similar to the heat, with Sherman leading over Petrzelka. A tight battle ensued, but the show was all up front. Sherman had enough speed and leaned on Petrzelka at the right times to hold on and lead at the white flag. Coming to the checkered, Jason Sherman had a mechanical failure, which led to him spinning on the backstretch and being t-boned by Beauregard. This brought out the yellow flag, which ended the race, and Hayden Sherman captured his first feature win. 

Photo by Ed Siems

“I don’t even know what to say,” Hayden said in victory lane. “This certainly wasn’t on my bingo card.” 

ALL SEASONS AUTOMOTIVE SPORTSMAN

Will Zamastil showed the way in the first Sportsman heat for three laps when Todd Ness took over. With three to go, Greg Hentrich took over 2nd but couldn’t catch up to Ness before the checkered flag. 

Photo by Ed Siems

The second heat saw Corey Crispin set the pace and stay ahead of Brandon Herb by about a half-second to capture the victory. 

For the first couple of laps of the feature, the top six were two-by-two-by-two until Zamastil pulled ahead. Ness then pulled inside of Crispin before the yellow flag came out for a single-car spin. Ness made it three-wide but had to back out of it, leaving Zamastil just ahead of Crispin. 

With eight laps to go, Zamastil pushed high, and Ness slipped through to the lead with Herb on his bumper. The yellow came out once again for a single spin, prompting another restart. Herb got a good run off turn two but couldn’t get alongside and settled for 2nd behind Ness, who went to Green State Credit Union Victory Lane. 

CASSILL MOTORS SPORT MODS

Photo by Ed Siems

Steve Wimer led the majority of the first heat race until two to go, when Bryan Baxter was on the outside. Wimer went deep into three, making contact with Baxter and bringing out the yellow. Stacy Olson assumed the lead and took the heat win over Steve Schnoor.

Nathan Ballard quickly used the outside to take the lead in heat two, with Tallan Chandler getting around Chad Siems on lap two. 

Schnoor snagged the lead right away in the feature, and behind him, they went three-wide. Chandler took over 2nd, and Ballard got to 3rd. With 10 laps to go, Chandler powered to the lead with Ballard following behind. 

With six laps left, Ballard sent it into turn three, making contact with Chandler, resulting in a cut tire for Ballard and bringing out the yellow. Chandler continued to lead until the end, with Ballard making it back to 2nd when the checkered flag.

CVMA Lap of Honor in Hawkeye Downs’ 100th Racing Season

In addition to the night full of racing, Hawkeye Downs Speedway welcomed its Veteran of the Night partners with the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association 39-2 to the track. Members of the CVMA participated in a Lap of Honor, a special lap around the track on their motorcycles at the end of opening ceremonies in honor of our nation’s military.

Next Race: Friday, June 20th - Mid-Season Championship

The Hawkeye Downs Speedway Mid-Season Championship takes place this Friday, June 20th! The HyVee Candy Dash returns at intermission! Kids, bring your bags to fill with candy during the dash. 

Gates open at 6:00pm, with racing starting at 7:00pm. Tickets are available at the gate or online at MyRacePass.com.