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Henkemeyer and Smith secure first-night wins at Central Arizona Raceway

By Meghan Diemel
ATD Editor

CASA GRANDE, AZ (January 23) - WISSOTA racers Jordan Henkemeyer and Jake Smith made their presence known in Casa Grande, Arizona in a big way, as Central Arizona Raceway hosted the first night of the Ernie Mincy Early Thaw Thursday.

The two WISSOTA wheelmen, who won in the Super Stocks and Limited Modifieds, were joined in victory lane by Dylan Thornton in the Late Models, Chaz Baca in the Modifieds, Ryan Peery in the Sport Mods, and Shelby Williams in the Stock Cars.

In the Sport Mod feature, Ryan Peery was the early leader, followed closely by Mark Martini of Avon, Minnesota. Kaden Woodie, of Milaca, MN, was third.

With several laps in the books, Peery and Martini began to break away from the rest of the pack. As the field worked through the second half of the race, the field was strung out around the race track. Martini changed his line a bit and began to reel Peery back in. However, Peery was too strong out front and Martini had to settle for second at the checkered flag. Woodie garnered another podium finish for his time in the desert, while Joe Docekal and David Pitt were top-five finishers.

Of the other WISSOTA racers on hand in the class, Jake Smith – who had both a Limited Mod and a Sport Mod with him in the trailer – finished within the top 10 in seventh.

Cole Schill secured a top-five finish January 23 at Central Arizona Raceway in the Ernie Mincy Early Thaw Late Model division. (Nick Andeson Photo)

Cole Schill, of Hawley, Minnesota, was the polesitter to start the Late Model feature, as fellow front-row starter Dylan Thornton quickly moved out front into the lead followed by Josh Leonard in second. Schill was third to complete the first lap. Former multi-time WISSOTA National Champion Ricky Weiss displaced Schill to fourth during the next lap, as Justin Kay and Clayton Stuckey battled side by side for fifth.

The front-runners began to work their way through lapped traffic, with Thornton having a relatively easy time navigating the backmarkers. Josh Leonard and Ricky Weiss were able to close back in on Thornton, but Thornton pulled back out to about a five-car-length lead.

Leonard and Weiss began to fight hard for second, with Weiss getting by Leonard a handful of laps later.

Thornton kept control in the lead and drove home to the eventual victory with a full straightaway advantage at the checkered flag. Weiss, Leonard, Stuckey, and Schill were top-five finishers. Other WISSOTA racers making the top 10 included Don Shaw (7th), Amelia Eisenschenk (8th) and Matt Gilbertson (10th).

James Trantina was slated to start on the pole in the Super Stock feature, but did not show in the lineup, moving Max Nelson to the pole for the start. He was flanked by Canadian Doug Bolt. Under green, Nelson shot out to the lead, as Dexton Koch raced into second before the caution fell without a lap complete for Alexa Sparby, who spun in one of the turns.

Doug Bolt (Nick Anderson Photo)

With 15 laps still on the board, Nelson again jumped out to the early lead followed by Koch in second. Ninth-starter Henkemeyer blasted into third along the high side, Bolt slipped back to fourth, and Matt Sparby and Allan Cleveland fought for fifth.

Out front Nelson held control over the field, while Henkemeyer was applying heavy pressure to Koch; another caution fell for Alexa Sparby.

It was a rough restart among the top three, with contact made among Koch and Henkemeyer to the rear quarter panels of Nelson, the leader. Nelson took the lead with Henkemeyer and Koch side by side for second, as Bolt slipped by both along the high side into the spot. Koch spun and the field was reset.

Nelson led out front for the restart, with Henkemeyer and Bolt in row two. Sparby got by Bolt to third, as Henkemeyer took over the lead from Nelson. Bolt fought back and into third past Sparby, while Henkemeyer hit the wall and Nelson regained the lead.

Matt Sparby (Nick Anderson Photo)

Slowly but surely Henkemeyer regrouped and used the high side to move back in on Nelson, sliding by him for the top spot. Nelson repaid the favor, with Henkemeyer then regaining the lead a turn or two later.

Henkemeyer drove on to the victory, with Nelson holding off Bolt for third, Koch recovering from his earlier incident to finish fourth, and Matt Sparby completing the top five.

Kaden Woodie was the early leader in the Stock Cars, ahead of Mike Albertsen and Shelby Williams. For many laps, the top three ran nose-to-tail along the high side. With seven laps scored, Albertson gave Woodie a shot to the bumper, then moved to a lane lower to try to get by Woodie. As Albertsen had to regroup from the bobble, Williams drove to the bottom lane and got by Albertsen – and then slipped by Woodie for the lead.

Albertsen and Woodie continued to battle back and forth for second as the laps wound down. Out front Williams took the win, with Albertsen getting second from Woodie. Bo Partain and Kyle Falck were top-five finishers.

Ron Schreiner, a former longtime WISSOTA warrior, was also on hand and he finished eighth in the field.

In the Modifieds, Chaz Baca led the field to the green flag from the pole, flanked by Eston Whisler. Baca was the early leader, with Flippo and Whisler holding the top three spots with three laps scored. Troy Morris III moved into fourth, and Tom Berry Jr. was fifth.

With the race at the midpoint, Baca continued to lead, with Flippo and Morris in the top three. Berry had moved into fourth, and Kollin Hibdon made his way into the top five. A caution fell with five to go for Alan Farley, and the field was regrouped.

Baca led the field back to green, with Morris and Berry right behind. Hibdon moved into fourth, and Drew Janssen was fifth. Baca continued to run strongly to the finish, taking the victory ahead of Morris, Berry, Hibdon and Drew Janssen.

James Trantina and Jarod Klein led the field of Limited Modifieds to the green flag, with Trantina taking the early lead. Klein settled into second just ahead of Lucas Rodin, while Jake Smith was fourth. Ted Doell was fifth before the caution fell for a stack up in the back of the field with just two laps scored.

Trantina had the lead for the restart, as Klein, Rodin and Smith were three wide heading into turn four; Smith powered past Klein and then Rodin into second, with Onyx Johnson settling back into fifth. A caution fell with eight laps scored for a spin in turn four.

Jake Smith and James Trantina threw sliders for the lead following the restart, as Trantina held the top spot to complete the lap; Smith and Rodin were then side by side for second. Smith pulled ahead into the position and began to heavily pressure Trantina for the lead. With 10 to go, Trantina and Smith raced along the ultra high line, with Smith diving down a lane below to gain an advantage in turns three and four.

Trantina brushed the wall in turns one and two with six to go and had to regroup, allowing Smith the chance to make a move for the lead, but a spin brought out the yellow at the same time.

Back under green, Jake Smith dove to the inside lane into turn one, as James Trantina hit the wall along the ultra high side and the field blasted by; Rodin took second, Jess Brekke was third, Scott Tofte moved into fourth and Johnson was fifth.

Smith drove home to the victory, his second in January racing action. Rodin was close behind in second, Brekke completed his charge in third, Tofte was fourth and Johnson completed the top five.

SUMMARY

WISSOTA Super Stocks:

A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 11A-Jordan Henkemeyer[9]; 2. 32-Max Nelson[2]; 3. 81B-Doug Bolt[3]; 4. 78K-Dexton Koch[4]; 5. 81X-Matt Sparby[6]; 6. 00-Jason Hobbs[8]; 7. 4A-Allan Cleveland[5]; 8. 00B-Beau Brown[7]; 9. X81-Alexa Sparby[10]; 10. (DNS) 19X-James Trantina III

Heat 1 (6 Laps): 1. 32-Max Nelson[1]; 2. 81B-Doug Bolt[2]; 3. 81X-Matt Sparby[3]; 4. 00B-Beau Brown[5]; 5. 00-Jason Hobbs[4]

Heat 2 (6 Laps): 1. 19X-James Trantina III[2]; 2. 78K-Dexton Koch[1]; 3. 4A-Allan Cleveland[4]; 4. X81-Alexa Sparby[5]; 5. 11A-Jordan Henkemeyer[3]

Late Models:

A Feature 1 (25 Laps): 1. 38T-Dylan Thornton[2]; 2. 7-Ricky Weiss[3]; 3. 85-Josh Leonard[6]; 4. 15S-Clayton Stuckey[10]; 5. 44*-Cole Schill[1]; 6. 15K-Justin Kay[7]; 7. 42S-Don Shaw[9]; 8. 1-Amelia Eisenschenk[8]; 9. 74-Karl Tipton[12]; 10. 23-Matt Gilbertson[16]; 11. 15-Laela Eisenschenk[14]; 12. 10C-Chad Olsen[15]; 13. 1TPO-Tyler Peterson[21]; 14. 73-Zach Johnson[28]; 15. 37M-Rob Mayea[17]; 16. 2-Rusty Kollman[11]; 17. 78S-Steve Stultz[18]; 18. 38-Thomas Hunziker[13]; 19. 6T-Terry Carter[19]; 20. 73X-Larry Fitzsimmons[23]; 21. 3X-Lyndon Bolt[26]; 22. 79-Jaden Christ[27]; 23. 73B-Adam Bohlman[22]; 24. 97-Dan Henrikson[20]; 25. 37-Jason Rogers[25]; 26. 63-Maria Hankins[24]; 27. (DNS) 11X-Austin Kuehl; 28. (DNS) 11-Blaine Doppler

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 44*-Cole Schill[2]; 2. 15K-Justin Kay[3]; 3. 38T-Dylan Thornton[6]; 4. 15-Laela Eisenschenk[4]; 5. 78S-Steve Stultz[5]; 6. 3X-Lyndon Bolt[1]; 7. 63-Maria Hankins[7]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 11X-Austin Kuehl[1]; 2. 2-Rusty Kollman[2]; 3. 38-Thomas Hunziker[3]; 4. 10C-Chad Olsen[4]; 5. 6T-Terry Carter[5]; 6. 1TPO-Tyler Peterson[6]; 7. 37-Jason Rogers[7]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 11-Blaine Doppler[1]; 2. 74-Karl Tipton[2]; 3. 42S-Don Shaw[5]; 4. 15S-Clayton Stuckey[7]; 5. 37M-Rob Mayea[6]; 6. 73X-Larry Fitzsimmons[3]; 7. 79-Jaden Christ[4]

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 85-Josh Leonard[1]; 2. 1-Amelia Eisenschenk[3]; 3. 7-Ricky Weiss[6]; 4. 23-Matt Gilbertson[4]; 5. 97-Dan Henrikson[2]; 6. 73B-Adam Bohlman[5]; 7. (DNS) 73-Zach Johnson

Modifieds:

A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 75JR-Chaz Baca[1]; 2. 07X-Troy Morris III[8]; 3. 77-Tom Berry Jr[5]; 4. 48K-Kollin Hibdon[10]; 5. 111-Drew Janssen[9]; 6. 82W-Eston Whisler[2]; 7. 111X-Logan Drake[7]; 8. 101-Luke Silber[11]; 9. 413-Tate Johnson[13]; 10. 75-Andrew Peckham[12]; 11. 97TB-Tyson Blood[6]; 12. 515-Devin Fouquette[17]; 13. 09-Kelsy Wedelstadt[22]; 14. 13B-Jess Brekke[15]; 15. 73-Beau Speicher[20]; 16. 28H-Kolby Hannah[19]; 17. 21-KC Dieckman[16]; 18. 28-Ian Whisler[4]; 19. 27EH-Lawrence O'Connor[25]; 20. 57-Drew Christianson[24]; 21. 16OZ-CR Eisenzimer[18]; 22. 13-Jerry Flippo[3]; 23. 29-Alan Farley[21]; 24. 01-Tyler Leach[23]; 25. 520T-Lukas Tellez[26]; 26. 25G-Randy Shafer[14]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 77-Tom Berry Jr[2]; 2. 413-Tate Johnson[1]; 3. 13-Jerry Flippo[7]; 4. 25G-Randy Shafer[5]; 5. 27EH-Lawrence O'Connor[3]; 6. 22S-Sean Stacy[6]; 7. 0-Peyton George[4]; 8. 46-Adam Boggs[8

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 111-Drew Janssen[1]; 2. 75-Andrew Peckham[2]; 3. 111X-Logan Drake[6]; 4. 13B-Jess Brekke[3]; 5. 515-Devin Fouquette[4]; 6. 28H-Kolby Hannah[7]; 7. 16OZ-CR Eisenzimer[8]; 8. 0G-Paxton George[5]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 48K-Kollin Hibdon[1]; 2. 75JR-Chaz Baca[8]; 3. 07X-Troy Morris III[6]; 4. 21-KC Dieckman[2]; 5. 73-Beau Speicher[3]; 6. 57-Drew Christianson[4]; 7. 09-Kelsy Wedelstadt[7]; 8. 22G-Paul Guglielmoni[5]

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 97TB-Tyson Blood[2]; 2. 82W-Eston Whisler[6]; 3. 28-Ian Whisler[7]; 4. 101-Luke Silber[8]; 5. 29-Alan Farley[1]; 6. 520T-Lukas Tellez[4]; 7. X-Shawn Keena[3]; 8. 01-Tyler Leach[5]

B Feature 1 (12 Laps): 1. 515-Devin Fouquette[1]; 2. 16OZ-CR Eisenzimer[6]; 3. 28H-Kolby Hannah[2]; 4. 73-Beau Speicher[4]; 5. 29-Alan Farley[5]; 6. 09-Kelsy Wedelstadt[9]; 7. 01-Tyler Leach[15]; 8. 57-Drew Christianson[7]; 9. 27EH-Lawrence O'Connor[3]; 10. X-Shawn Keena[11]; 11. 0-Peyton George[10]; 12. 46-Adam Boggs[12]; 13. 0G-Paxton George[13]; 14. 22G-Paul Guglielmoni[14]; 15. 520T-Lukas Tellez[8]; 16. (DNS) 22S-Sean Stacy

Limited Mods:

A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 21-Jake Smith[4]; 2. 19-Lucas Rodin[6]; 3. 13B-Jess Brekke[9]; 4. 28-Scott Tofte[5]; 5. 73-Onyx Johnson[3]; 6. 1SX-Travis Saurer[7]; 7. 7TG-Joe Docekal[21]; 8. 1S-Scott Bintz[10]; 9. 0-Dakota Girard[19]; 10. 2-Ariel Mueller[16]; 11. 50-Paul Parks[18]; 12. 95-Ted Doell[15]; 13. 83X-Garett Veldman[20]; 14. 19X-James Trantina III[1]; 15. 8-Tyler Doell[8]; 16. 77-Jarod Klein[2]; 17. 25-Adam Bohlman[11]; 18. 711-Payce Herrera[17]; 19. 00-Jason Hobbs[12]; 20. 001-Joseph Swearingen[14]; 21. 413-Tate Johnson[13]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 28-Scott Tofte[1]; 2. 19X-James Trantina III[5]; 3. 1SX-Travis Saurer[4]; 4. 00-Jason Hobbs[3]; 5. 95-Ted Doell[2]; 6. 2-Ariel Mueller[6]; 7. 0-Dakota Girard[7]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 19-Lucas Rodin[1]; 2. 21-Jake Smith[4]; 3. 8-Tyler Doell[2]; 4. 13B-Jess Brekke[5]; 5. 001-Joseph Swearingen[3]; 6. 711-Payce Herrera[6]; 7. (DNS) 7TG-Joe Docekal

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 73-Onyx Johnson[2]; 2. 77-Jarod Klein[5]; 3. 1S-Scott Bintz[1]; 4. 25-Adam Bohlman[4]; 5. 413-Tate Johnson[6]; 6. 50-Paul Parks[3]; 7. 83X-Garett Veldman[7]

Sport Mods:

A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 21P-Ryan Peery[1]; 2. 4Q2-Mark Martini[2]; 3. 980-Kaden Woodie[3]; 4. 7TG-Joe Docekal[5]; 5. 28-David Pitt[4]; 6. 75-Tyler Johnson[7]; 7. 19-Jake Smith[8]; 8. 30K-Jake Kierstead[9]; 9. 711-Payce Herrera[10]; 10. 316-Brandyn Johnson[12]; 11. 99H-Nick Hankins[11]; 12. 41-Bill Lundock[15]; 13. 73N-Noah Speicher[6]; 14. 0-Dakota Girard[13]; 15. 5O-Braydon Whitfield[14]; 16. (DNS) 44-Eric Winemiller

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 21P-Ryan Peery[5]; 2. 73N-Noah Speicher[1]; 3. 19-Jake Smith[2]; 4. 7TG-Joe Docekal[7]; 5. 30K-Jake Kierstead[3]; 6. 99H-Nick Hankins[6]; 7. 0-Dakota Girard[4]; 8. (DNS) 44-Eric Winemiller

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 980-Kaden Woodie[2]; 2. 28-David Pitt[4]; 3. 4Q2-Mark Martini[7]; 4. 75-Tyler Johnson[6]; 5. 711-Payce Herrera[3]; 6. 316-Brandyn Johnson[5]; 7. 41-Bill Lundock[1]; 8. 5O-Braydon Whitfield[8]

Stock Cars:

A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 82-Shelby Williams[3]; 2. Z3-Mike Albertsen[1]; 3. 980-Kaden Woodie[2]; 4. 75C-Bo Partain[5]; 5. 37-Kyle Falck[4]; 6. 3-Brad Whitfield[6]; 7. 22-Larry Brigner[7]; 8. 97-Ron Schreiner[8]

Heat 1 (6 Laps): 1. Z3-Mike Albertsen[2]; 2. 82-Shelby Williams[1]; 3. 37-Kyle Falck[3]; 4. 980-Kaden Woodie[7]; 5. 75C-Bo Partain[5]; 6. 3-Brad Whitfield[4]; 7. 22-Larry Brigner[6]; 8. 97-Ron Schreiner[8]