Chris Ratajczyk Racing 2008

* * * FEATURE RESULTS * * *

Place	Start	Car #	Driver	Event	Home Town	Model
1	1	51S	DENNIS SCHMIDT	FEAT	Juneau	Etzel
2	2	98B	ZEKE BISHOFBERGER **	FEAT	FT ATKINSON	CHEVY
3	3	61E	JERRY ECKHARDT	FEAT	JOHNSON CREEK	CHEVY
4	9	81G	DON GASERUDE	FEAT	FORT ATKINSON	CHEVY
5	12	8W	AARON WILKE	FEAT	WATERLOO	CHEVY
6	5	16JW	JOHN WASSERBURGER	FEAT	Poynette	Dodge
7	4	76BB	BOBBI BISHOFBERGER	FEAT	FT ATKINSON	CHEVY
8	6	88R	CHRIS RATAJCZYK	FEAT	WEST BEND	CHEVY
9	13	46NW	NICK WENDT **	FEAT	WATERTOWN	PONTIAC
10	14	34S	DEAN SCHULTZ	FEAT	JUNEAU	PONTIAC
11	7	18W	ANDY WENDT	FEAT	WATERTOWN	CHEVY
12	15	151	MIKE TAYLOR	FEAT	STOUGHTON	FORD
13	10	46AW	AL WEISHOFF	FEAT	COLUMBUS	LEXUS
14	19	31M	ERIC MELCHIOR	FEAT	WATERTOWN	CHEVY
15	17	3D	DELBERT DESJARLAIS	FEAT	COLUMBUS	DODGE
16	11	6P	SCOTT PATRICK	FEAT	SULLIVAN	OLDS
17	16	86S	TYLOR SCHULTZ	FEAT	COLUMBUS	PONTIAC
18	8	76RB	RON BISHOFBERGER	FEAT	FORT ATKINSON	CHEVY
19	18	97M	ED MELCHIOR	FEAT	WATERTOWN

Chris Ratajczyk captured the victory in the 35-lap limited late model main event, leading flag to flag to take the win over Steve Apel and Scott Ascher.

Jake Vanoskey and Ratajczyk led the field to the green flag and Ratajczyk jumped to the lead over Vanoskey and Steve Apel. Scott Ascher raced his way into fourth place on lap three and Apel took over second on lap six. One lap later, Ascher moved into third bringing Dave McCardle along with him and into fourth. With Ratajczyk maintaining the lead, Apel and Ascher tried to track him down while Jon Reynolds Jr. sliced his way forward to enter the top five. Ratajczyk was unchallenged en route to the victory while Apel took the checkered flag in second place. Ascher finished third followed by McCardle and Reynolds Jr. Jon Ovadal Jr. crossed the finish line in sixth place ahead of Jake Vanoskey and Rob Braun. Chris Blawat and Trevor Dassow were ninth and tenth respectively.

Dave McCardle won the limited late model fast dash and Jon Reynolds Jr. set fast time for the division with a lap of 12.289 seconds.

(7-15-08) Slinger Speedway-Slinger Nationals

his mom and sister wore bags over their heads for the first 15 laps of the main event.

Dave McCardle paced the opening laps as McIntee battled with Blawat over second as Scott Ascher advanced to fifth place by the end of lap three. McIntee made the move to second on lap six while McCardle continued to lead as Ascher and Becca Kasten raced forward to fourth and fifth respectively. On lap 13, Ascher slowed, moving Rob Braun into the top five as McCardle led over McIntee and Blawat. McIntee had his car working on the inside and he was able to duck low to make the pass for the lead on McCardle on lap 18. Two laps later, Blawat made his way by McCardle for second place and Kasten worked her way to third place as the white flag was displayed. McIntee held on over the final lap to take the win over Blawat. Kasten finished third while Jon Reynolds Jr. and Braun rounded out the top five. Michael Bilderback finished sixth ahead of Chris Ratajczyk and Ryan DeStefano while McCardle and Trevor Dassow were ninth and tenth respectively. Jon Reynolds Jr. was the fastest qualifier at 12.324 seconds.

Michael Bilderback made his first appearance as Slinger a successful one as he charged to the win in the 30-lap limited late model feature.

Ryan DeStefano and Corey Funk led the field to the green flag and DeStefano lead the opening laps as he held off Funk until Funk’s machine spun exiting turn two on lap four to bring out the caution flag. DeStefano lined up on the inside for the restart while Jerry Eckhardt used the outside lane to quickly take the lead as racing resumed. With Eckhardt out front, Chris Ratajczyk worked his way to second place on lap eight and Bilderback followed suit a lap later to take over third place. The field was slowed under the yellow flag again on lap eleven when Wes Biswell slid to the wall in turn one after trying to avoid a near incident between the cars racing in front of him. As racing resumed, Ratajczyk and Eckhardt immediately went to battle for the lead, racing side by side with Bilderback close behind. As Eckhardt and Ratajczyk fought for the lead on lap 16, the cars made contact in turn one, resulting in Ratajczyk’s car nosing slightly against the wall to draw the caution flag. Bilderback became the new leader as the field went back to green as Dave McCardle and Rob Braun raced for second. Braun was able to secure the spot just before the field was slowed under yellow on lap 18 when Rob Myers hit the wall in turn four. As racing resumed, Bilderback was able to ease away slightly as Braun and McCardle renewed their battle for second. Bilderback was never headed over the final laps and he took the checkered flag for his first Slinger win while Braun was able to hold off McCardle for second. Steve Apel and Pat McIntee completed the top five finishers. Ratajczyk ended up 18th.

Biswell and Brad Keith staged a torrid battle for the top spot in the opening laps with the lead changing hands nearly every lap as Chris Ratajczyk and Jimmy Dragich raced in the tire tracks of the lead duo. Keith was finally able to take command by lap ten with Biswell remaining strong on the outside and Ratajczyk looking for a way by on the inside. Keith had to fend off challenges from all sides to maintain the lead as the first caution flag waved on lap 13 when Jack Raby spun and backed into the wall in turn three. During the caution period, Keith was judged to have committed a lane violation during the racing before the yellow flag and was sent to the rear of the field. Biswell took the inside line for the restart, leaving Ratajczyk the outside groove and as racing resumed, Biswell jumped in front while contact between third place Dragich and Ratajczyk, sent Ratajczyk spinning around in turn four to bring out the yellow flag again. With Dragich and Rataczyk forced to start at the rear of the field for the restart, Jon Reynolds Jr. moved into second and took his turn challenging Biswell for the lead. A final caution flag on lap 27 for a minor spin in turn one, set up a three lap dash for the checkered flag. Reynolds looked high and low for a way around Biswell in the final laps and despite a slight bobble by Biswell on the white flag lap, was unable to find his way around as Biswell took the victory. Steve Apel finished a strong third while Jerry Eckhardt and Rob Braun were fourth and fifth respectively. Chris Ratajczyk was the winner of the limited late model fast dash and Becca Kasten blistered the speedway in 12.358 seconds as the fastest qualifier in the division.

Jon Reynolds Jr. took top honors in the 35-lap limited late model main event that despite running caution-free featured plenty of action.

Brad Keith and Rob Braun led the field to the green flag and Braun quickly jumped into the lead while Keith raced with Steve Apel and Chris Blawat for second. Braun stretched out his advantage as Blawat and Keith raced door to door for second while further back, Reynolds and Chris Ratajczyk began to move forward. Braun’s race went up in smoke on lap ten as his car suddenly slowed while enjoying a comfortable advantage on the field, turning the lead over to Keith who was under pressure from Blawat. By lap 15, Blawat held the top spot while Reynolds and Ratajczyk began to challenge Keith for second with Apel in their tire tracks. The fierce battle for the lead positions was marked by contact amongst the lead cars and Keith became a victim of the circumstances as his car was sent spinning off the frontstretch on lap 19 while Blawat continued to lead over Reynolds. Reynolds took to the high groove and began to challenge Blawat for the lead, taking the position on lap 21. Once out front, Reynolds was never headed and he charged to the win while Apel nipped Blawat at the line for second. Scott Ascher advanced late in the event to finish fourth while Ratajczyk took the checkered flag in fifth.

Jerry Eckhardt paced the opening laps ahead of Ascher, Jim Dragich, Rob Braun, and Brad Keith. Ascher began to pressure Eckhardt for the lead while Dragich, Keith, and Braun all fought hard for third place while Steve Apel, Dave McCardle, Jon Reynolds Jr. and Chris Ratajczyk began to advance forward. Ascher was able to duck to the inside of Eckhardt to take the lead on lap nineteen. A lap later, McCardle slid sideways off turn two while battling with Apel and after the field bottled up behind him, a piece of the bodywork on Chris Blawat’s car came loose, necessitating a caution flag. Ascher was able to maintain the lead on the restart over Eckhardt as Keith battled with Dragich for third just before the caution flag appeared again for a spin by Trevor Dassow on lap 22. Ascher again held onto the lead as racing resumed as Keith went to work on Eckhardt for second while Braun also worked his way around Eckhardt for third. Over the final laps the best battle on the speedway was for fifth between Dragich, Apel, Ratajczyk, and Jon Ovadal. On the final lap, contact between Dragich and Apel sent Apel spinning around as Ascher drove to the victory over Keith and Braun. Eckhardt finished in fourth while Ratajczyk edged Ovadal for the fifth spot. David McCardle was the winner of the limited late model fast dash. Qualifying for the division was rained out.

The Limited Late Model feature race turned in to a game of survival as six of the nineteen cars that started the race were the only ones to make it to the checkered flag. The beginning laps of the race featured a side by side battle at the front of the pack with Jerry Eckhardt running on the outside of Ty James. Just as James seemed ready to separate himself from the battle, the caution flag flew with spins by Trevor Dassow and Brad Joecks on the frontstraight and Tim Elfert on the backstraight. Brought back together for the restart, James and Eckhardt continued their battle for the lead. Two laps later the second caution flag of the event was displayed when Jimmy Dragich found the backstraight wall after contact with Brad Keith.

It only took a lap for the third caution flag to fly with more cars spinning in turn four. Steve Apel and Jon Reynolds Jr. were involved in this incident. Right after the restart, the fifteenth lap of the race, the caution flag needed to make another appearance. The race leaders got together at the front of the pack sending both James and Eckhardt into the wall. Chris Ratajczyk who had restarted in third was also involved and was too damaged to continue. Actually the 61 car lost control and careened off the wall

over the hood of the Ratajczyk ride, and it was damaged body, upper, lower, wheel...more to follow

The term “cautions breed cautions” was proven as the leaders got together again. This time it was David McCardle getting into Corey Funk with Funk ending up in the wall. John Ovadal Jr. led the field on the way to the final caution which flew after 11 year old Brett Moffit got together with Reynolds Jr. sending both cars hard into the turn three wall. At this point the checkered flag flew with the caution flag ending the race at twenty-five laps. Ovadal Jr. took the win, his second in a row at the speedway.

Corey Funk captured the Limited Late Model Dash from the pole position. Reynolds Jr. was the top qualifier with a lap of 12.327 seconds.

LIMITED LATE MODEL FEATURE 30-LAPS
1.	Jon Ovadal Jr. (Watertown)	4.	David McCardle (Menomonee Falls)
2.	Rob Braun (Wales)	5.	Chris Ratajczyk (West Bend)
3.	Jon Reynolds Jr. (Roscoe, IL)

(5-25-08) Slinger Speedway

Chris Blawat took advantage of his pole position starting spot to hold on to the lead at the start of the Limited Late Model feature. While the rest of the field battled behind him, Blawat kept his ride on the bottom of the track. On the restart after a caution on the tenth lap, Steve Apel took over the second position from Jerry Eckhardt and Bob Braun started making his move after falling back early. With two laps left Braun worked his way inside of Apel, taking over the second position as the white flag waved. Laps ran out for Braun as Blawat to the checkers for a flag to flag win.
Chris Ratajczyk, sporting a Remington 1100 shirt took 4th place showing a steady pain free race.
The late model semi feature victory and pass to the feature went to Trevor Dassow. Dassow grabbed the top spot just after the halfway point and held off Tim Elfert to the checkers.

Chris Ratajczyk won the 15-lap limited late model semi-feature over Pat McIntee and Tim Elfert. Becca Kasten and Rob Myers finished in fourth and fifth place respectively. Dave McCardle won the limited late model fast dash and Jon Reynolds Jr. set fast time at 12.188 seconds.

Jon Reynolds Jr. began the season right where he left off last year, as he edged Chris Ratajczyk to win the 35-lap limited late model main event.

Brad Keith raced to the early lead at the drop of the green flag ahead of Steve Apel, Reynolds, and Dave McCardle. With Keith maintaining the top spot, Reynolds raced into second place by lap ten and began to track down Keith for the lead. Reynolds pulled alongside Keith numerous times and the two raced side-by-side with Keith able to hold onto the lead in lapped traffic. On lap 18, Reynolds was able to edge ahead just before the caution flag waved for an incident involving Jack Rabey in turn three. On the restart, Reynolds sprinted ahead to a sizeable advantage while Keith found himself in battle for second with Chris Ratajczyk, Steve Apel, and Scott Ascher. Apel was able to grab second place by lap 20, bringing Ratajczyk with him into third place as Keith and Ascher raced for the fourth spot. Ratajczyk was able to work his way by Apel for second place as Reynolds enjoyed a commanding lead.

On lap 29, Rob Braun clipped the backstretch wall and spun entering turn three. When his car slid down the banking, it was solidly collected by the car of Jerry Eckhardt and the caution flag flew again. Reynolds and Ratajczyk lined up for the double-file restart with just six laps to go and Reynolds was able to hold onto the lead before the field was slowed again under yellow on lap 32 following a spin by Trevor Dassow. Reynolds was up to the task over the final three laps and he took the checkered flag ahead of Ratajczyk for the victory. Steve Apel finished third ahead of Scott Ascher and Brad Keith. Earlier in the afternoon, Jimmy Dragich was the fastest qualifier in the limited late model division after turning a lap of 12.376 seconds.