9/10/2020
Skagit Speedway
First of Two Championship Nights Complete at Skagit Speedway
Alger, WA - Two championships were decided on the first of two championship nights of racing at Skagit Speedway. On Thursday night, it was Kelsey Carpenter and Jared Peterson winning the season titles in the Cook Road Shell Sportsman Sprints and NW Focus Midgets respectively. Jesse Schlotfeldt won the Sportsman Sprint Main, while Peterson capped his championship season with the A Main win.
The twenty five lap A Main for the Sportsman Sprints featured carnage and drama, as multiple stoppages gave the leaders multiple chances to bunch up and race for the top spot. Schlotfeldt would lead every lap of the main with Chase Goetz hot on his heels in lapped traffic. Goetz would hold off Sean Johnson for second, keeping Johnson from the one additional finishing position he needed to tie Kelsey Carpenter in points. Carpenter would finish sixth after a torrid battle with Ashleigh Johnson for fifth, giving him his fifth title in the Sportsman Sprints and seventh total at the track. Car owner Bill Rude won his third title with Kelsey and fourth overall.
Jared Peterson was the feature winner and season champion for the NW Focus Midgets. Nick Evans led from the drop of the green, with Evan Margeson and Nik Larson putting big pressure on him. Peterson started seventh and weaved his way forward until moving into the runner up spot around lap 13. Finding the high side of the speedway working well, Jared ran the cushion the whole way around to take the top spot from Nick on lap 17 as he stormed to the win, his fourth at skagit and seventh on the season with the series. The owner's championship came to former Sportsman Sprint co-champ from 1993 Mark Steen and his wife Jolene, who field the Inlaws Racing #32 for Peterson. Evans would finish second in the main and in the season points as well, with Evan Margeson third in the feature.
While Cory Sweatman led the final ten laps of the Outlaw Tuner main event, the official win went to Rick Young as Sweatman was judged to not meet tech specs for the class. It was Young;s first victory of 2020. Zach Dalrymple and Jon Edwards rounded out the podium.
Cook Road Shell Sportsman Sprints
Fast Time - Sean Johnson 12.405
Heat 1 - Eric Turner
Heat 2 - Eric Fisher
Heat 3 - Jesse Schlotfeldt
Main - Jesse Schlotfeldt, Chase Goetz, Sean Johnson, Eric Fisher, Ashleigh Johnson, Kelsey Carpenter, Steve Parker, Steve Vague, Brett McGhie, Cory Summers, Matt Loving, John Tharp, Gunnar Martin, Bill Rude, Jeff Dunlap, Daniel Cernich, Tom Weiss, Jamee Gardner, Eric Turner
Lap Leaders - Schlotfeldt 1-25
Rocket Engines Hard Charger - Summers +5
Season Champion - Kelsey Carpenter
NW Focus Midgets
Heat 1 - Evan Margeson
Heat 2 - Alex Peck
Heat 3 - Shane Smith
Main - Jared Peterson, Nick Evans, Evan Margeson, Nik Larson, Chance Crum, Colton Heath, Alex Peck, Seth Hespe, Alden Ostrom, Levi Harless, Marty Rosler, Ashley Thompson, Mike Stryker, Jesse Munn, Wes Gibbs, Ray Stebbins, Hailey Bower, Shane Smith, Kyle Hanson, Jake Munn, Michael Hodel, JD Dryden, Brian Holmkvist
Lap Leaders - Evans 1-16 Peterson 17-25
Season Champion - Jared Peterson
Outlaw Tuners
Heat 1 - Rick Young
Heat 2 - Zach Dalrymple
Main - Rick Young, Zach Dalrymple, Jon Edwards, Colin Sims, Mike Thomas, Tricia Michelson, Mike Macpherson, Jon Gunderson, Cory Sweatman
Lap Leaders - Edwards 1-3 Young 4-6 Sweatman 7-17
Article Credit: Kaleb Hart