8/3/2018
GLSS-Great Lakes Super Sprints
DALMAN TOPS FIELD AT HARTFORD
Hartford, MI – Gregg Dalman (Bellevue, MI) who finished 2nd behind points leader Dustin Daggett (Portland, MI) twice this year, was able to flip the table on Daggett tonight at Hartford Motor Speedway for his first feature win of the 2018 season!
Making our first appearance at Hartford since the track was reconfigured from a half to a 3/8ths mile track, many of the Great Lakes Super Sprints drivers had some adjusting to get used to turns 3 and 4. With a strong field of 27 cars, it would be a battle every time each group hit the track.
Group qualifying 3 cars at a time, the first groups on the track had the advantage with the sun and heat drawing the moisture out of the track in the clear early evening. Dalman set fast time with a 15.312 second lap. Daggett was 2nd quick, with Andy Teunessen (Kalamazoo, MI), Joe Swanson (Etna Green, IN) and Linden Jones (Edwardsburg, MI) rounding out the top 5 spots. Mitch Brown (Ontario, CA) and Max Stambaugh (Elida, OH) both had car problems during their groups, but were able to make it back and run last to better their positions.
In the Kistler Engine heat 1, Chase Ridenour (Perry, MI) was able to jump out to a quick lead with Dalman right behind holding onto 2nd . Andy Chehowski fought and held on to a 3rd place finish while Jones was able to take 4th by holding off a charging Jake Brown (Ontario, CA) at the finish by .064 seconds. Ridenour and Dalman moved on to the Home Pro Roofing Bracket Dash and Chehowski and Jones punched their tickets to the A-Main.
Tyler Fitzpatrick (Goshen, IN) and Conner Morrell (Bradenton, FL) led out the Campbell Performance heat 2. Fourteen year old Morrell jumped out to the early lead with Fitzpatrick right behind him. Daggett got around Fitzpatrick in lap 3 and set his sights on the young Morrell. Morrell held Daggett off for 6 laps putting in a time just a tenth off quick time, but Daggett was able to get around Morrell in the 7th lap and taking the checkered flag just .40 seconds ahead Morrell. Fitzpatrick finished 3rd and in a photo finish, Danny Sams III got Phil Gressman (Helena, OH) for 4th. Daggett and Morrell moved on to the Home Pro Roofing Bracket Dash and Fitzpatrick and Sams moved on to the A-Main.
In the Kistler Racing Products heat 3, Brad and Jared Lamberson (Parma, MI) started side by side and led the group around to the start. As the field entered turn one, the cars were 3 wide as Teunessen was able to hold the high line in turn 2 and beat the whole field into turn 3. Jared Lamberson ran into some car troubles and pulled off after the first lap. Brad Lamberson held on to 2nd for 4 laps until a hard charging Mitch Brown gets around Lamberson in lap 5. Lamberson was able to get around Brown in the final lap to take back 2nd ahead of Brown by .58 seconds. Stambaugh, who started on the tail was able to get around Trey Smith (St Joseph, MI) for the 4th transfer spot at the finish by a .243 second margin! Teunessen and Brad Lamberson moved on to the Home Pro Roofing Bracket Dash and Brown and Stambaugh moved onto the A-Main.
Kyle Poortenga (Woodland, MI) and Brett Mann (Goshen, IN) led out the next group in the Specialty Fuels & Logistics heat 4. Fighting engine problems, Mann had to pull off, moving Swanson up on the front row. Swanson and Poortenga quickly moved out front for the lead with Michael Summers (Warsaw, IN) and Andrew Scheid (Sparta, MI) bringing up 3rd and 4th. Swanson and Poortenga punched their tickets into the Home Pro Roofing Bracket Dash and Summers and Scheid held on to finish 3rd and 4th respectively and secure moving on to the A-Main.
In the Home Pro Roofing Bracket Dash, the top 2 finishers from each heat were paired up in 4 brackets for 1 on 1 dual in 2 quick laps. The loser went back to the pits and secured a starting spot in the 3 or 4 row of the feature. The winners lined back up to run the other 3 bracket winners for a 4 lap dash and starting positions in the front 2 rows of the feature. The winners of the 4 bracket dashes were Dalman, Daggett, Teunessen and Ridenour. At the end of the 4 lap dash, Daggett won the pole of the feature with Dalman securing the front row and Ridenour and Teunessen rounded out the 2nd row. Daggett won $500 for the dash, with Dalman winning $250, Ridenour $150 and Tuenessen $100.
The third start was the charm in the stacked B-Main. Gressman got out to a strong lead and wouldn’t be challenged in the 12 lap last chance race. Smith kept Gressman in his sights and commanded 2nd while Eli Lakin (Buchanan, MI) ran 3rd and finished 3rd. Jake Brown, who started on the tail after a spin out in the 2nd restart, made a hard charge at Bill Jacoby, making the last transfer spot into the A-Main.
With the winners of the bracket dash and the B-Main joining the 8 other cars, the A-Main was ready to push off. As Daggett and Dalman bring the field around and take the green, the whole field makes it cleanly through turns 1 and 2, as the leaders were coming out of turn 4, Lakin gets into the wall at the top of 3 and flips over and lands outside of turn 4. After Lakin’s car is moved away from the house we have a complete restart and everyone makes it through the first lap cleanly.
In lap 7, Scheid makes contact with a couple cars and the inside wall, and he does a double forward somersault and comes to rest at the top of turn 3. Summers and Smith suffered some damage and they were done for the night and Chehowski had some damage but was able to race on.
When racing resumed Daggett was out front cruising with with Dalman, Ridenour, Brown and Morrell trying to reel him in. In the 18th lap, Dalman did just that, getting under Daggett and taking the lead. Dalman had the right set up tonight as he pulled away from the field, giving Daggett the chance to watch him take the checkered flag for his first victory of the season. Daggett took 2nd with Ridenour, Mitch Brown and Morrell rounding out the top 5 for the night!
Nick Hull (South Whitney, IN), Lakin and Scheid were all ok after their wrecks tonight.
For full official results and up to date points standings, go to our website at www.greatlakessupersprints.com. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for pictures and current events.
Our next race is tomorrow, August 4th at the Playground of Power, Plymouth Speedway.
(winners circle photos by John Berglund)
Article Credit: Barry M. Marlow
Submitted By: Barry Marlow
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