Double win for Dresselhouse at third round of Washtenaw RC Raceway series

Dan Dresselhouse Sweeps Truck Classes at WRCR Round#3 Points Race

Report by: Tom Erickson

Photos by: Kymm Thompson

 

The third round of the season was held on December 3rd, 2016 at the Washtenaw County Fairgrounds between Ann Arbor and Saline, Michigan. Competition was fierce but Dan Dresselhouse scored in all classes putting all of his 4 cars on the podium and securing wins in both Truck classes. The track had more moisture than previous rounds such that traction changed. The surface is a mix of Clay and Sandy Clay with most drivers choosing super soft compound tires. With attendance still strong, racing action was exciting in all classes.

 

Novice Class

 

The Novice class was divided into two qualifying groups for Round#3 so that a birthday group could race together. A great place to have a party and have some fun racing with your friends. This round qualifying was again a battle between Terry Bush, Troy Wells and Milo Spieth. After three rounds of qualifying Terry Bush was able to repeat his Round#2 result and TQ the class. Troy started second and Milo in third. Ellanore Blue just missed the big A-Main show starting first in the B-Main. At the start of the B-Main Eli Hurt was able to get ahead of Ellanore to set the early pace. Ellanore pressed on and was able to get ahead of Eli and begin to build her lead finishing with a solid win. 

 

 

Novice B-Main Podium

The energy of the B-Main translated to the A-Main directly as the tone sounded and the field of mostly 2wd Short Course trucks piled into the first turn. The carnage that ensued collected Milo into the tubes sending him back to last place. Troy was able to get ahead of Terry as they both sped down the front straight. Kevin Heller followed behind in third place after starting fourth. Travis Massey also benefited on the first lap jumping up to fourth place. Fifth place on the first lap went to Clay Hurt after he was able to get past upside down trucks. The early lap crashes gave Troy a large lead over Terry which was too much for Terry to overcome. Clay leveraged his starting success and consistent laps to catch up to Travis and pass him to take over fourth place within the first laps. Milo began to regain his composure and moved into position setting up a four way battle with Kevin, Travis and Todd Aker. At the halfway point Clay successfully passed Kevin with Milo pressuring behind. Kevin crashed sending him back to seventh place moving Milo up to fourth place. By the end of the race Todd finished in 5th place ahead of Travis. Milo caught at the line finished 4th place. Clay Hurt finished 3rd place. Terry Bush in a solid 2nd place and Troy captured his second win in the packed Novice class.

 

 

Novice A-Main Podium

Open Mini Class

 

The Open Mini class is growing each race with new entries from Nat Potter and Tom Erickson. This class is still dominated by Losi Mini8ight and Mini8ightT vehicles. The only exception is Tom’s Traxxas Mini Rally car. Qualifying was dominated by Joe Gates taking the TQ honors. Ben Belote was able to keep it close and qualified second. The start of the main event was not smooth for both Ben and Joe as Nat Potter gained the advantage early jumping to the lead. Both Ben and Joe, after reset of their cars by marshalls, set out to move back into their starting positions. Tom Erickson and Milo Spieth rounded out the field as the minis crossed the line on the first lap. Joe quickly passed Nat to retake the point leaving Ben to fight for the second position. Nat was not able to hold off Ben after four laps. Tom was struggling to get his mini Rally car around the track and his race ended after 5 laps leaving the fourth spot to Milo. The podium was set mid race with Joe taking 1st place, Ben in 2nd place, Nat in 3rd place and Milo in 4th place.

 

 

Open Mini A-Main Podium

Stampede Class

 

Another round in the books with a great turnout of Stampedes. With so many trucks on the track, getting a smooth run in qualifying was not easy. Sean Carney put it all together to capture the TQ and rights to start first in the main. Matt lemorie did his best to score a second TQ but had to settle for second on the starting grid. Ben Belote won the first two events this season but qualified third this round. At the start Matt spun in the first section letting Sean gap the field. Ben moved into second with Joe Gates following through in third place. Then in the camelback Sean got hung up on the tube causing him to drop back to fourth and collecting Joe. This let Matt pass both of them to take over the second spot. On the next laps, Matt, Joe and Sean swapped spots allowing Ben to build a larger lead. Joe was holding second place ahead of Matt. A late charge by Matt resulted in him taking over second for a few laps and trading spots again with Joe. In the closing laps Matt was able to gain enough to hold the second place as he followed Ben across the finish line. Ben won his third main in a row in this class with Matt in 2nd place. Joe finished a strong 3rd place. Sean finished 4th place ahead of C.J. Boka. Can Ben continue to dominate the Main events in the coming rounds? 

 

 

Stampede A-Main Podium

Stock Buggy 17.5t Blinky Class

 

Again in the 3rd points race of the season the Stock Buggy class fielded 21 buggies to compete for a spot in the A-main. The TQ position was not set until the last lap of the third qualifier as six of the drivers were running faster than the second round TQ set by Tom Erickson. In the closing laps of the last qualifier Ben Belote was in the lead as Tom was reducing the gap every lap. The two were close in position on the track as well. As the clock closed on the five minute qualifier, Ben was caught at the line just ahead of Tom who cleared another lap by less than a second setting the TQ for the event. 

 

The B-main went off first in the main order with Nat Potter starting from the BQ position. The B-main started with all buggies charging through the option lane. Nat drove his B5M smooth on the opening lap setting a good pace as Mark Thompson, Zach Kohler and Brian Hurt squeezed through side by side. Brian was the victor as the lead group crossed the finish line on the first lap with Zach in third and Mark in fourth. Josh Aker stayed close in fifth place. Only Brian was able to match Nat’s lap times as the two sped nose to tail each lap. Mark held off Zach as Josh joined the battle for third early. By mid race Mark was able to hold a small lead over Zach as Josh fell back slightly setting the finishing order. Nat won the B-main from start-to-finish, Brian only 3.4 seconds behind in 2nd place, Mark “Peanut M&M” Thompson in 3nd place.

 

 

Stock Buggy B-Main Podium

The A-main was stacked with past champions. Third on the grid was Dan Dresselhouse who had set the early TQ in the first round of qualifying. Chris Peterson started fourth just ahead of Forrest Remington. The start was crazy as Tom lead the field through the option lane a little too slow causing Ben to tag his B5M spinning his car and collecting Dan. As the pack sped down the front straight it was Forrest that took the lead with Chris following as Tom and Ben were able to get through the carnage. Dan was sent all the way to last place. Tom was able to get by Ben and Chris on the first lap to settle in the second position and then stuffed his nose into a tube sliding back to fourth place as Chris took over the lead. Forrest quickly regained the lead as Chris flipped his car and slipped back to third as Tom passed Ben and Chris to regain the second position. Forrest and Tom began to gap the second group as Dan rejoined in fifth place. Forrest stuffed his buggy into a tube allowing Tom to take over the lead. As this happened Dan set the fastest lap of the main event giving him the chance to move into third place ahead of Chris. Tom and Forrest battled for the lead as the announcer, Joe Gates, was straining at all the action in the top six cars. In the closing laps Forrest regained the lead and quickly built a small gap ahead of Tom. It was not big enough to recover after flipping his buggy in the option lane letting Tom pass on the last lap. Tom won the main event with only a 1.1 second margin ahead of Forrest in 2nd place. Dan was able to fend off Chris for the 3rd place podium spot.

 

 

Stock Buggy A-Main Podium

Stock Short Course Truck 17.5t Blinky

 

This season Danny Dresselhouse has dominated the opening points races in the Stock Short Course Truck class taking the TQ and Win in each. Tom Erickson and Sean Carney have come close but not quite fast enough. This round Tom set the fastest time in the opening qualifier just ahead of Dan and Sean. As the qualifying rounds terminated TOm’s early time stood firm giving him the ultimate TQ and the first spot on the grid in the main. This class is another class stacked with fast drivers. At the start of the A-main Tom lead the field through the Option section smooth with Dan chasing close behind. Sean started in the three spot with Patrick Ferris just getting by him as they passed the finish line. Dan began to create a gap ahead of Tom and the rest of the pack. Pat and Sean close in on Tom to battle for the second spot. The three tangled letting C.J. Boka and Andy Dresselhouse join the mix. As the third lap marked off it was C.J. that came out ahead with Tom right on his bumper. Sean and Patrick were close behind and not ready to settle. As the next lap was completing Tom took the inside line on CJ and they went Door-to-Door around the last turn with Tom taking over 2nd place. Sean and Patrick were close enough to challenge CJ continuing the battle now for third place. First Sean held the position but after a few laps CJ was able to hold the position as the field completed half of the main event. Sean pushed past CJ setting up Patrick to also get past to take over fourth place. Dan had an 11 sec. Lead over Tom as Sean and Patrick traded spots for the rest of the main event. As the tone sounded signifying the end of the event Dan was on top with a victory lap, Tom finished in 2nd place and Patrick in 3rd Place.

 

 

Stock SCT A-Main Podium

4x4 Short Course Truck

 

This round the field of eleven 4x4 Short Course Trucks were prepared to fight for a win as Season points leader Conner Stanley was absent. Qualifying was brutal with Matt Lemorie, Andy Dresselhouse and Mark Riegle all turning fast laps. At the close of the third round it was Mark Riegle that captured the top spot with Matt and Andy in second and third. The opening laps of this class are always intense as everyone is vying for position and advantage over each other. This round was no exception. Mark, Matt and Andy lead the first lap through in starting order as the rest of the pack piled up in the option lane. This allowed Corey Blue get through and hold fourth place just ahead of Brian Hurt. Action on the second lap resulted in Matt sliding back to fifth letting Andy and Brian move up a spot and Anthony Wright stepping into the fourth spot. The following laps were packed with position changes as Andy and Mark pushed hard to see which of them would lead the class. Andy was victorious assuming the lead ahead of Mark, Brian and Matt. Steve Boster moved into the fifth spot. The top four drivers were turning laps at a similar pace. Andy maintained the led spot with only a few seconds ahead of Mark. Brian spent the rest of the main holding off Matt. At the finish it was Andy in 1st place, Mark in 2nd place, and Brian in 3rd place.

 

 

4x4 SCT A-Main Podium

4wd Open Buggy Class

 

Another exciting class to watch is the 4wd Buggy class. Fastest drivers running what Dan Burnham calls the Formula 1 cars of RC offroad racing. Qualifying opened with Ben Belote breaking the 13 lap mark in five minutes. No one could top this in the remainder of the qualifying attempts. Forrest Remington made the best attempt securing the second position. Dan and Andy Dresselhouse filled out the next two spots. At the onset of the main event, Ben held first place as the rest of the pack jockeyed for position behind him. Patrick Ferris, who started in the sixth position jumped up to third place on the opening lap pressuring Forrest for second place. He quickly got around him and pressured Ben for the lead. Ben crashed in a bad spot losing a large amount of time waiting for a marshal to right his vehicle. Patrick assumed the lead and Dan had got ahead of Forrest and Tom Erickson moved into the fourth position. With only six laps in, Patrick retired his buggy shifting the field up one spot as Ben rejoined the pack in the fourth position. Up front Dan and Forrest were setting a pace that gapped the rest of the field while staying very close to each other. Behind them Tom and Ben were battling it out for the last spot on the podium. At the tone Forrest came out on top finishing 1st place with Dan in 2nd place. Ben out drove Tom to secure the 3rd place spot. 

 

 

4wd Buggy A-Main Podium

Stock Stadium Truck 17.5t Blinky Class

 

The Stadium Truck class is still strong this season with eleven entries this round. In qualifying it was no surprise that Dan Dresselhouse secured the TQ position. C.J. Boka, always a contender, was solid in second position. Andy Dresselhouse edged out the remainder of the field to start from the third position. At the tone signifying the start of the main event, Dan set an early fast lap and settled into a blistering fast pace. CJ and Andy tangled as they fought over the second spot. Andy held the position early but CJ got around him after a few laps. David Ferris, who started in the sixth position, was in the fourth position early on as Mark “Peanut M&M” Thompson on his tail. By mid-race the top spots seemed to be settled in with large gaps between them. Mark was able to get ahead of David to settle into the fourth position. And Dan Burham moved passed David to capture the fifth position. As the clock closed out after seven minutes, Dan crossed the line in 1st place, C.J. finished in 2nd place, and Andy in 3rd place.

 

 

Stock Truck A-Main Podium

Modified Short Course Truck Class

 

So far this season it has been clear that Gary Reiser has his SC5M dialed not only winning the first two points events but also grabbing the TQ points award this round. Gary began qualifying along the same lines setting the early lead. Matt Lemorie and Mark Riegle tried to meet this challenge without success. Gary started the A-main in the top position with Matt and Mark behind him. As the top three moved through the track they remained in starting order. Anthony Wright, who started sixth, secured the fourth position the first time over the finish line ahead of Mark Naus. On the second lap Matt laid down a fast lap with enough to pass Gary and take over the lead. After Matt passed Gary, Mark Riegle crashed sending him back to fifth place. Then Anthony crashed giving third position to Mark Naus, Brian Hurt into fourth and Mark Thompson up to fifth. Midway through the main event, Mark Thompson improved his pace and moved into the fourth position as Brian Hurt got past Mark Naus sending him back to fifth. A late effort by Mark Naus gave him the fourth position for a few laps but Mark Thompson would not let that go and regained the position on the last lap. Matt broke Gary’s winning streak and finished 1st place, Gary settle for 2nd place, and Brian Hurt finished his best finish all season in 3rd place. 

 

 

Mod SCT A-Main Podium

King-of-the-Hill Winner: Mark “Peanut M&M” Thompson

 

 

The 2016-17 season is going strong with over 100 entries for round#3. The race program was again well run and finished before 7PM. This week the 100Grand bar went to Mark Thompson in the King-of-the-Hill class. The next points event is planned for December 17th, 2016. Don’t forget the 3rd Annual Alzheimer's Race on December 28th, 2016. Doors open at 8AM with racing starting at 10AM. Look for the season schedule at www.WRCR.biz or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WashtenawRcRaceway/