Cole Tops The Champ for First Modified Win of the Season!
By Joe Verdegan

July 5, 2003; Sturgeon Bay, WI. - In the world of stock car racing, winning a feature is about as good as it gets.  But it gets even better when you beat one of the best.

That's how the script played out for Mike Cole, as one of Door County's own topped three-time track champ Todd Dart in the IMCA modified feature at the Thunderhill Raceway in Sturgeon Bay Saturday night.  Close feature finishes were the order of the day, as Cole's narrow win was duplicated by Charlie Kroll in IMCA stock cars, James Tebon in the street stocks,  IMCA hobby stocker David Lane and Dan Gregorich in the 4 cylinders.

Racing three nights a week has paid dividends for Cole, who has been ranked among the top ten modified drivers in the state this season.  All that experience certainly didn't hurt, as he found himself racing tightly for position with veterans Dan Ratajczak, Jerry Wenzel, Tom Stark, Julie McDermid and Dart in the early stages of the modified headliner.   It took the first third of the race for that pack to sort out, and challenge early leader Billy LeMieux.

Cole established the edge on lap seven.  He quickly moved in on LeMieux, and within four laps gained the inside line for what proved to be his winning pass.   While Cole ran alone, second was up for grabs until late in the contest when Dart took the measure of McDermid and Wenzel to secure the spot.  With six laps to go, Dart closed on Cole.  But the point leader's charge fell short as Cole was able to hold him back at the wire for his first feature win of the season.

The IMCA stock car feature provided nearly a carbon copy finish, as two-time defending champ Craig Paque saw a late race charge on Kroll fall just short.

"Chargin' Charlie" had taken the lead on the fifth lap on a low line, three-wide pass on Bernie Reinhardt and Brett Wenzel.  Even though the race was caution free, Kroll could never escape from a tight field comprised of Reinhardt, Paque, Wenzel, Shawn Kilgore, Jeff Vlies, Pat Davister and Tim VanDeHei.

It was close formation until Paque finally gained control of second with six laps to go.   Like Dart had done before him, Paque beared down on the leader, but could not gain a line on Kroll to attempt a pass.  The narrow win was Kroll's first on the season.

All of the feature finishes were close, but none could match the street stocks.  Rick Sternard looked like a sure bet to win his second feature in a row as the last laps wound down.  His closest competitors were early leader Michael Soukup and points leader Troy Muench.  But contact with three laps to go appeared to knock both from contention.

Sternard's cruise to victory lane was derailed on the final corner of the final lap with lapped traffic blocking his path.  Tebon used the delay to close in.  The lapped car and the two leaders collided coming through the corner.  Both Sternard and Tebon were able to right themselves, but the bottleneck allowed Muench to fly back into contention on the outside.

Once clear of the lappers, all three leaders headed for the checker in a cluster.    In a near photo finish, Tebon had the edge on Muench by a matter of feet en route to his second win of the season.

Lapped traffic nearly cost Lane his first career feature as the first year driver from Green Bay held off Wayne Moore in the closing stages of the hobby stock main.

Lane took command from the initial green.  Moore looked to be headed to a solid second at best.  But when Lane got caught in lapped traffic, Moore was able to slip to the inside with three to go.  With more momentum on the higher line,  Lane was able to reclaim the top spot, beating Moore to the line by three car lengths.

Gregorich debuted a brand new four cylinder in perfect fashion.  The first race for a first time driver ended in a win.

A tense moment came early in the program as Tim McCormick was sent barrel-rolling down the front stretch in the first modified heat.  McCormick escaped unhurt, and miraculously his crew had him back on the track for the semi-feature.

Saturday night, NAPA Auto Parts of Sturgeon Bay will host the show featuring the Raceway's five divisions along with the annual Powder Puff.  Racing gets underway at the John Miles Fair Park in Sturgeon Bay at 6:00PM.   

IMCA MODIFIED
20 LAP FEATURE:  Mike Cole, Baileys Harbor - Todd Dart, Algoma - Julie McDermid, Oconto Falls - Jerry Wenzel, Two Rivers - Dan Ratajczak, Frog Station - Bill LeMieux, Sturgeon Bay
Semi-Feature:  Darrell Massart, Brussels - Jay Matthias, Green Bay - Randy LeMieux, Sturgeon Bay - George Henkel, Sturgeon Bay
Heat 1:  Tom Stark, Egg Harbor - Ratajczak
Heat 2:  Billy LeMieux - Jared Siefert, Green Bay
Heat3:  Tony Herbst, Sturgeon Bay - Wenzel

IMCA STOCK CAR
18 LAP FEATURE:  Charlie Kroll, Algoma - Craig Paque, Algoma - Shawn Kilgore, Kewaunee - Bernie Reinhardt, Sturgeon Bay - Tim VanDeHei, Green Bay - Pat Davister, Luxemburg
Heat 1:  Chris Christensen, Carlsville - Gary Reinhardt, Fish Creek
Heat 2:  Kroll - Matt Junio, Casco

STREET STOCK
15 LAP FEATURE:  James Tebon, Algoma - Troy Muench, Green Bay - Rick Sternard, Sturgeon Bay - Kevin Jandrin, Forestville - Scott Reinhardt, Baileys Harbor - Jeremy Wiitala, Green Bay
Semi-Feature:  Thom Terrien, Green Bay - Kevin Brungraber, Carlsville - Frank Paul, Kewaunee - James Iverson, Dykesville
Heat 1:  Muench - Wiitala
Heat 2:  Mickael Soukup, Sturgeon Bay -Von  Etchyson, Forestville
Heat 3:  Tebon - Sternard

IMCA HOBBY STOCK
15 LAP FEATURE:  David Lane, Algoma - Wayne Moore, Sturgeon Bay - Mike Mueller, Green Bay - Ed Anschutz, Algoma - Evan Madden, Algoma - Ryan LeMieux, Sturgeon Bay
Heat 1:  Joe Hegnet, Sturgeon Bay - LeMieux
Heat 2:  Greg Aregoni, Sturgeon Bay - Marcus Moede, Casco

4-CYLINDER
FEATURE:  Dan Gregorich, Kewaunee - Ken Malcore, Algoma - Don Mahlberg, Green Bay - Chad Williams, Sturgeon Bay
Heat:  Williams - Malcore