Poulter, Stefka, Double Class Winners at Megacross

 Megacross Shootout Series

Mendota, IL – June 9^th, 2007

By Nikki Dixon

  Round four of the Megacross Shootout Series was another great night of racing at the Tri-County Fairgrounds, totaling 300 entrants, although some of the Megacross regulars were missing due to Loretta Lynn Regional races.  The track crew worked hard to keep the stadium-style track in great condition all night long. In the expert classes, it looked to be another showdown between Ross Martin and Ryan Poulter, until Martin crashed in the whoops in the 125 A heat race, and injured his shoulder.  After some trackside pushing and pulling, Martin was back in action for the 250A heat race, finishing second to Poulter.  But another soil sample in the 125 A main would end Martin’s night early, and set the stage for Poulter to take two big wins.  Bailey Stefka and Dallas Devinney also had a great night, taking home two wins each.

  Ryan Poulter (27) led around the first turn in the 125 A main event, followed by Ross Martin, Derek Whitney, and Randy Woodrin (900).  But in the second turn, Martin went down on the inside and tweaked his shoulder again, and decided to call it quits for the night.  Poulter had his hands full with Whitney in the early laps, until Whitney made a mistake at the end of lap three, and Greg Hochmuth moved into second.  Poulter pulled away, while the rest of the pack was close.  Whitney applied pressure to Hochmuth trying to get back the second spot, but then Whitney went down in the whoops.  Poulter collected the win, as Woodrin closed on Hochmuch on the last lap.  Woodrin went inside over the tabletop triple and through the final turn to cross the finish line in second, just inches in front of Hochmuth.  Dylan Martin and Scott Zont wrapped up the top five.

 In 250A, Whitney led around the first turn, with Poulter and Hochmuth in tow.  Poulter quickly passed Whitney for the lead, while Woodrin and Ty Tyrrell were running top five.  Poulter sprinted to the checkers in the seven lap main to collect the win, followed by Whitney, Hochmuch, Woodrin, and Cody Simonton.

  The Quad A holeshot went to Mark Brennan, followed by Jeremy Beetz and Jason Wehrli.  Beetz moved out front early, while Stephen Schenk charged into second.  As they crossed the finish, Beetz took the win, and Schenk held off Wehrli for second.  Brennan and Justin Medine diced the whole moto, with Brennan getting the nod for fourth at the checkers.

  Derick Skaggs led Quad B around the first turn, with Todd Adamson and Jory Dalsanto in tow.  After a few laps, Dalsanto moved into second, and set his sights on leader Skaggs.  The two had a close race to the finish, with Skaggs holding the lead for the win, and Dalsanto finishing second.  The third spot was up for grabs as the remaining six riders mixed it up for the final laps, with several position changes.  As they reached the checkers, Richard Olson grabbed the third spot, over Charlie Snow and Adamson.

  Chase Wood started out front in 50cc 4-8, followed by Shawn Thompson and Thor Rick.  Wood held off Thompson’s steady pressure the whole race.  They crossed the finish line within a bike length of each other, with Wood taking the win.  Rick, Trevor Hadaway, and Owen Anderson rounded out the top five. 

 In 65 Beginner, Kyle Moore collected the holeshot, trailed by Kurt Harper (18) and Justin Carr.  Harper moved into the lead on the first lap, and stayed out front to the finish.  Moore held down second, while Carr, Dylan Boyd, and Kayla Miller diced for third, with Miller getting the position.  Boyd and Jimmy Lanute wrapped up the top five. 

 Nick Wallace started out front in 15-rider 65 Junior class, followed by Blake Schaefer and heat race winner Jordan Cram.  Wallace held off Schaefer’s charge, and eventually opened up a little gap as they caught some 65 Senior riders.  Wallace carded the win, with Schaefer finishing second.  Cram edged out Stuart Schwagerman and Colton Slamans for third.

  In 65 Senior, Logan Skaggs picked up the holeshot, with Bailey Stefka on his tail.  The two mixed it up for several laps, with Stefka taking over the lead just before they received the white flag.  Stefka then sprinted to the checkers, followed by Skaggs, Travis Ward, Damon Quest, and David Dentzman.

  Stefka and Skaggs also went 1-2 in the 15-rider 85 Junior class, over Conner Robinson, Kyle Nelson, and Jordan Mackiewicz. 

 Greg Hochmuth led from start to finish in the 10-rider 25+ A class.  James Abbott and David Hayes followed Hochmuth around the first turn, but Greg Braet passed Hayes for third on the opening lap.  Hochmuth checked out, while Braet picked off Abbott for second, and Michael Hall and Denny Hacker moved into the top five.  Hochmuth took the victory, followed by Braet and Abbott.  Burton Lavens charged into fourth on the last lap, but Hall took it back before the checkers to finish fourth and Lavens fifth.

  After a lap in 25+ B, Joe Kopecky was the leader, trailed by Ryan George, Todd Schmollinger, Jesse Keith, and Scott Holmes.  Kopecky remained the leader, while George, Keith, and Schmollinger diced for second.  Kopecky carded the win, and George held off Keith in a close race for second, followed by Schmollinger and Holmes.

  Tim Filippi (10) dominated in the 40+ class, leading from wire-to-wire.  Larry Banks and David Degelau battled the whole race for second, with Banks getting the nod.  Keith Hicks caught up to the second place battle, but ran out of laps to make a challenge, and settled for fourth.  Scott Seibert rounded out the top five.

  Zach Martino grabbed the holeshot in Supermini, followed by Robbie Hyson, Dalton Abbott, and Kyle Kuhn.  Abbott and Kuhn tangled in the second turn, and restarted in last, while Cody Slamans moved into the top three.  Martino started pulling away, while Hyson held down second, and Alec Perry moved into third.  But behind them, Slamans, Shawn Patrick, Kuhn, and Robert Wehn diced for position.  Martino secured the win, and Hyson finished second.  Kuhn put in a great ride coming from almost last to finish third, over Perry and Patrick. 

 In 85 Senior, Hyson led the 17-rider class around the first turn, followed by Erik Utech and Perry.  Utech chased Hyson around the track, but Hyson stayed on the gas and collected the win, over Utech, Perry, Timmy Drawant, and Cory Catalani.

  125 B had a full gate, as 20 riders raced to the first turn.  Josh Provost (145) emerged the leader as they came through the rhythm section, with Dallas Devinney and Zach Martino in tow.  After two laps, Devinney pulled side-by-side with Provost, and they went bar-to-bar for a few laps, with Devinney securing the lead, and taking the win over Provost.  There was a close race for third, with Martino edging out Utech and Denny Morsch. 

 Provost started out front in 250 B, trailed by Nick Manning, Bracken, Jesse Keith, and Morsch.  Provost remained the leader, as Bracken moved into second early in the race.  Morsch picked off Keith and Manning to move into third, and tried to catch Bracken at the finish.  Provost carded the win, while Bracken held off Morsch.  Manning and Kyle Slamans completed the top five.

  In 250 C, Adam Fusinetti grabbed the holeshot, over Spencer Neurohr and Brett Miller.  Brandon Mennie was on the charge, and moved into the lead through the rhythm section on lap two, trailed by Fusinetti and Neurohr.  Mennie stayed out front for the win, while Alex Zimmerman moved up to finish second, and Fusinetti carded third.  Scott Seibert and Neurohr wrapped up the top five.