If early returns are any indication, it may be shaping up as a wide-open summer season at the Boone County Raceway in Albion.
After two nights of racing at the fairgrounds track, eight feature race winners have been crowned as four new drivers swept to victory Friday, May 8.
Chad Briese (29) of Albion was victorious in the Hobby Stock A Feature, defending champion Randy Hooker (25) of Humphrey took over the Street Stock point lead with his first feature win of 2009, returning Modified champ Jason Gaver (B18) of Columbus won that division’s feature and Bob Milander (77B) of Pierce took the Late Model A race.
Along with Hooker, early point leaders are Norfolk’s Nic Kimmel (17K) in Hobby Stock, Dylan Smith (95) of Osceola in Modified and Jim Johnson (36) of Plainview and Norfolk’s Robert Osborne (35), tied in Late Model.
Hobby Stock
Briese (29) kicked off Friday’s action by winning the initial Hobby Stock heat in front of Albion’s Ryan Fajman (3) and Nelson Vollbrecht (11X) of Stanton.
Brad Bittner (12) of Albion won heat two, followed by Elgin’s Robbie Evans (27) and Shawn Rasmussen (97) of Albion.
Briese then scored his first 2009 feature win, trailed to the checkers by Brent Jochum (4J) of Norfolk, Kimmel, Bittner, Petersburg’s Bryant Borer (7B) and Jon Schalk (50) of Cedar Rapids.
Street Stock
The opening Street Stock heat was won by Jason Frisch (71) of Hoskins, with Randy Hooker second and Albion’s Dave Langan (24) third.
Jason Wilkinson (52) of Neligh won the second heat ahead of Troy Bergman (31B) of Columbus and Elgin’s Bud Miller (75).
Hooker closed the Street Stock portion of the card with his A Feature victory. Wilkinson was runner-up, followed by Justin Addison (26J) of Leigh, St. Edward’s Ron Grape (14) and Mark Hooker (30) of Albion.
Modified
Gaver got a strong night started by winning the first Modified heat in front of Jared Hoefelman (15H) of Columbus and Matt Bonine (14) of Onawa (IA).
Tyler Iverson (98T) of Albion took the second heat checkers, followed to the line by Smith and Albion’s Jacob Anson (13J).
Gaver made a push up the point standings by coming back to win the feature race ahead of Gibbon’s Chad Dolan (87D), Hoefelman, Smith, Ross Afrank (11A) of Norfolk, Kyle Prauner (5K) of Norfolk, Anson and Bonine.
Late Model
Ben Sukup (07) led three Norfolk drivers across the line in the first heat of Late Model action as Chad Jensen (73) finished second and third.
Stanton’s Doug Tomka (L1) won heat two ahead of Albion’s Greg Krohn (20) and Johnson.
Milander (77B) rebounded from a fourth-place heat finish to score the A Feature victory in front of Jensen, Osborne, Johnson, Tomka, Sukup, Tad Pospisil (04) of Norfolk and O’Neill’s Jared Hoerle (21X).
Racing at the Boone County Raceway continues Friday at 8:00 p.m.
Point Standings in Print and Online Editions of Albion News.
