KANKAKEE, IL (May 24) - Just like the unpredictably of the weather in the Midwest these days, so were the finishes of all three feature events at Kankakee Motor Speedway, Friday night. With the temperatures dipping down to the low 40's, race fans huddled under whatever covers they could find in an attempt to stay warm while getting their weekly fix of racing action. Despite a sub-par turnout of both cars and spectators, the racing action throughout the night was anything but predictable.

In the 30-lap UMP late model headliner, Tom Pauley of Lockport, IL, looked to have things well in hand over Joe Harlan, who himself was running alone in the two spot. As Pauley made his way through lap traffic, gingerly biding his time and showing great patience in making each pass, all of a sudden an arm went out the window to signal there was a problem, and Pauley moved his car to the top of the speedway in turn two.

Harlan of El Paso, IL, driving the J.R. Pick Motorsports Rayburn/Howard Race Engines Grand Prix, assumed the lead with little more than a lap and a half remaining, and cruised home to the win, which he called a gift. "Sometimes things just happen that way in racing. It just shows that you should never give up and keep plucking away. Tom (Pauley) had us covered tonight, and we didn't have anything for him, but he must of had a problem there at the end, and we were there in a position to capitalize on that," said Harlan in victory lane.

As the race began, several top cars were eliminated from action when Sam Epling Jr. got out of shape in turn two on the opening circuit. The melee that ensued collected the likes of Frank Reaber, Gary May, Shawn Toczek, and Epling himself. On the next attempt at the restart, John Provenzano got into the rear of Corey Turner in turn four prompting another yellow flag. In that same incident Mark Stetler was squeezed into the front stretch wall resulting in some body damage to the front nose of his car which sent him to the pit area for the night.

On the third attempt at a complete restart, the field now of 13 cars got off without a hitch. While most of the field attacked the hub of the race track, several others including Richie Hedrick and Jeff Martin stormed around the rim. Al Atkinson was quickly working his way up to as far as fifth before pulling into the infield grass on lap nine.

The battle throughout the night involved Turner, Provenzano, and Hedrick. At the half way point, Pauley was in command being chased by Harlan, Provenzano, Turner, and Hedrick, who had just taken that fifth spot from Jay Fiene. As Pauley approached the backmarkers and began navigating his way through the slower traffic, Hedrick worked his way around Provenzano on lap 21, and quickly closed in on Turner before making the pass on him on lap 22.

With less than two to go, Pauley had what appeared to be an easy victory in hand, but trouble with his car forced him to the top side and out of harm's way, while Harlan scooted by underneath and assumed the lead. Hedrick now had his eyes on second, but so did Turner, who was able to wrestle away the runner-up spot on the final lap, while Hedrick settled for third. Provenzano finished fourth, while Jeff Martin of Kansas, IL claimed fifth. For Martin, it was his first run of the year after awaiting the completion of his motor. Martin was able to get in some testing laps at the Charleston Speedway Thursday night to shake the bugs out prior to the trip to Kankakee.

Rounding out the top ten were Fiene, Tom Peltonen, Bill Reiniche, Brad Schwartz, and Garrett Slager. Only 11 cars finished the race, which was slowed by two cautions.

Heats were won by first-time winner Kerry Matthew of Rensselear, IN, Atkinson, and Reaber. Atkinson also claimed the consolation race, while Pauley won the dash. Corey Turner set fast time on a very slick track with a lap of 15.246.

In UMP open-wheel modified action, Tommy Kroll of Chebanse, IL slipped underneath Lance Dehm of Chatsworth, IL on lap 19 then held off Dehm to the line in capturing his first feature win of the season at KMS.

When the green flag fell, several cars touched as they exited turn two, including polesitter Dale Leuth and Kroll, allowing Dehm to sneak by the inside and assume the lead. R.J. Gall and Dave Porth also took advantage of the ragged start to improve their starting positions. The yellow came out on lap 2 for Kevin Hastings and Chad Osterhoff, who tangled in turn one.

When the race resumed it was Dehm on the point, with Gall, Porth, Matt Rhyne, and Kroll in tow. While the top three cars worked the high side of the track, Rhyne and Kroll dialed in the bottom. Both Rhyne and Kroll persisted long enough to close the gap on the top three, who now were Dehm, Porth, and Gall at the halfway mark of the scheduled 20-lapper.

Gall found trouble with the turn three wall, and subsequently the catch fencing on lap 12. Gall chased Porth hard into turn three and misjudged his entry. As a result, Gall showered the speedway with sparks before getting up on two wheels and riding the wall before the safety catch fencing brought him to an abrupt halt. Gall was uninjured in the mishap.

What looked to be an unchallenged run for Dehm quickly turned into a dogfight over the final seven laps between Kroll and himself. As Kroll continually three-wheeled his way off of each corner, he closed the gap by hugging the bottom while Dehm stayed committed to the middle of the race track. With five laps to go, George Aimone Jr. spun in turn two bringing out the yellow cloth once more. This set up a five-lap dash to the checkers between Dehm, Kroll, and Porth.

Porth slipped off the rim of the speedway in turn two on lap 16 and lost nine positions but was able to continue on without incident. The error proved to be costly for Porth who looked to have another top three finish well in hand. This allowed Rhyne to takeover the third spot, while Tim Reynolds and Leuth closed out the top five. With now just two laps remaining, Kroll dove underneath Dehm for the lead in turn two. In turn three the duo made contact without incident and Kroll was able to hang on for the win, while Dehm settled for second. Rhyne ran a string third and was a contender throughout the night, while Reynolds took fourth, and Joe Clark of Gary, IN rallied from near the rear of the field for fifth, passing Leuth on the final lap in what was easily the most impressive run of the night.

Josh Ferguson and Kevin Hastings captured preliminary heat races, while Leuth claimed the trophy dash. Jim Farris won the consolation race.

When the streets stocks took to the speedway, the few fans that remained hoped that the 15-lapper would go quickly and without any cautions. After all, it was too cold for any more cautions. Well the street stocks once again did not disappoint. John Geary jumped out to the lead when he drove away from Jay Hamilton and Kevin Lenzen. Geary would never look back from that point on, but received heavy pressure from Lenzen. Shannon Shutter lost the motor on lap number five, but made his way to the infield grass without incident. On lap seven, Lenzen was knocking on the door of Geary, before he too had motor trouble that forced him to retire to the infield.

With five to go, Geary, Hamilton, Jeff Momper, Wicker, and Matt Cleary led the way. Momper would slow and momentarily pull to the infield, but a lap 12 caution for Darrin Kohler, who rocketed off of turn two. Momper rejoined the field, as well as, Kohler. Geary would drive to the checkers for the first time this season, and he was followed by Hamilton, Wicker, Cleary, and Mike Cavanaugh. Rounding out the top ten were Chad Osterhoff, Jake Howard, Jerry Legner, Kohler, and Momper.

Heats were won by Geary, Hamilton, and Lenzen, while Wicker picked up the trophy dash. Osterhoff topped the consolation race.

Complete Race Summary

Late Models

Feature (30-laps) - 1. Joe Harlan 2. Corey Turner 3. Richie Hedrick 4. John Provenzano 5. Jeff Martin 6. Jay Fiene 7. Tom Peltonen 8. Bill Reiniche 9. Brad Schwartz 10. Garrett Slager 11. Frank Heckenast 12. Tom Pauley 13. Al Atkinson 14. Mark Stetler 15. Frank Reaber 16. Sam Epling Jr. 17. Gary May 18. Shawn Toczek

Fast Qualifier - Corey Turner 15.246

Trophy Dash - 1. Tom Pauley 2. Sam Epling Jr. 3. Corey Turner 4. John Provenzano 5. Joe Harlan 6. Jay Fiene

Heat 1 - 1. Kerry Matthew 2. Eddie Leviner 3. Mick Miller 4. Tim Routson 5. Butch Slager 6. Chuck Dixon 7. Mike Provenzano 8. Brian Rickey 9. Bill Reiniche 10. Dan Autullo 11. Ken Snyder

Heat 2 - 1. Al Atkinson 2. Gary May 3. Frank Heckenast 4. Brad Schwartz 5. Larry LeGrand 6. Don Hilleary 7. Mark Stetler 8. Jeff Martin 9. Bart Schwartz 10. Tom Peltonen (positions 6 - 9 unsure of)

Heat 3 - 1. Frank Reaber 2. John Provenzano 3. Shawn Toczek 4. Richie Hedrick 5. Tom Pauley 6. Corey Turner 7. Joe Harlan 8. Jay Fiene 9. Sam Epling Jr. 10. Ted Loomis

Consi (Top 4) - 1. Al Atkinson 2. Tom Peltonen 3. Brad Schwartz 4. Bill Reiniche 5. Butch Slager 6. Eddie Leviner 7. Don Hilleary 8. Mick Miller 9. Dan Autullo 10. Larry LeGrand 11. Tim Routson 12. Bart Schwartz 13. Ken Snyder 14. Kerry Matthew 15. Chuck Dixon 16. Brian Rickey 17. Mike Provenzano

Open-Wheel Modifieds

Feature (20-laps) - 1. Tommy Kroll 2. Lance Dehm 3. Matt Rhyne 4. Tim Reynolds 5. Joe Clark 6. Dale Leuth 7. Jim Moore 8. Phil Line 9. Dave Smith 10. Jim Farris 11. Josh Ferguson 12. Dave Porth 13. Mick Roach 14. Chad Osterhoff 15. Mike Mosier 16. George Aimone Jr. 17. R.J. Gall 18. Kevin Hastings

Trophy Dash - 1. Dale Leuth 2. Tommy Kroll 3. R.J. Gall 4. Lance Dehm 5. Matt Rhyne 6. Dave Porth

Heat 1 - 1. Josh Ferguson 2. Jim Farris 3. Dave Rudisill 4. Dave Smith 5. Jim Moore 6. Mike Mosier 7. Chad Osterhoff 8. George Aimone Jr. 9. Jason Hastings 10. Kenny Kasper 11. Joe Clark

Heat 2 - 1. Kevin Hastings 2. Tommy Kroll 3. Mick Roach 4. Dale Leuth 5. Lance Dehm 6. Phil Line 7. Tim Reynolds 8. R.J. Gall 9. Matt Rhyne 10. Matt Bachman

Consi - 1. Jim Farris 2. Joe Clark 3. Josh Ferguson 4. Jim Moore 5. Mike Mosier 6. Jason Hastings 7. Kenny Kasper 8. Dave Rudisill

Street Stocks

Feature (15-laps) - 1. John Geary 2. Jay Hamilton 3. Billy Wicker 4. Matt Cleary 5. Mike Cavanaugh 6. Chad Osterhoff 7. Jake Howard 8. Jerry Legner 9. Darrin Kohler 10. Jeff Momper 11. Scott Raymond 12. Eugene Eldridge 13. Don McCarty 14. Kevin Lenzen 15. Steve Thorsten 16. Kelly Hannan 17. Shannon Shutter

Trophy Dash - 1. Billy Wicker 2. Jay Hamilton 3. John Geary 4. Kevin Lenzen 5. Jeff Momper

Heat 1 - 1. John Geary 2. Jeff Momper 3. Jake Howard 4. Shannon Shutter

Heat 2 - 1. Jay Hamilton 2. Darrin Kohler 3. Bill Warner 4. Don McCarty

Heat 3 - 1. Kevin Lenzen 2. Billy Wicker 3. Mike Cavanaugh 4. Matt Cleary

KANKAKEE, Ill. (April 26, 2002) With $2,000 up for grabs, there's always bound to be a few travelers pull into the pits, but one unexpected guest pulled and simply stole the show. Shannon Babb, the young Illinois phenom known as "The Decatur Invader"outclassed a field of 37 total late models en route to scoring a popular, and dominant win over fellow Illinois hotshoe Bob Pierce, and Wisconsin native Russ Scheffler.

Babb, driving the Car City/Petroff Towing/Rayburn/Jay Dickens/Monte Carlo, started on the pole of the 30-lap event and led every lap en route to claiming the $2,000 top prize. The only caution of the race would come on the first lap when Doug McCammon sat spun in turn one, thus prompting track officials to call for a complete restart. When green flag racing resumed Babb wasted no time in pulling out ahead of Scheffler down the backstretch while others sorted things out behind the twosome.

Ten laps into the contest, it was Babb showing the way with Scheffler, Bob Pohlman Jr., Frank Reaber, and Pierce in tow. By lap 13, Babb was beginning to close in on the backmarkers, the first of which was Bret Sievert. Two circuits later at the halfway mark, it was still Babb, Scheffler, and Pohlman Jr. up front, with Pierce, who had moved around Reaber on lap 14, now in fourth.

By lap 20, Pierce had worked his way underneath Pohlman Jr. for the third spot and began to stalk Scheffler for second. On lap 23, John Provenzano, who was having a top ten run, pulled to the infield with mechanical woes, thus ending a good run for him. On lap 25, Pierce slipped by Scheffler for second and set his sights on Babb, who by this time was barely within sight. With five to go and time not on Pierce's side, Babb gingerly worked his way slower lap traffic and coasted to an impressive win over Pierce, Scheffler, Pohlman Jr., and Jay Fiene. Fiene put together an impressive run after starting 11th on the grid. Pierce, who started eighth, was making his first start of 2002, and showed no signs of rust as he worked his Kankakee magic to climb up to the runner-up slot.

Rounding out the top ten were Kevin Weaver (started 14th), Reaber, Richie Hedrick, Eddie Leviner, and 2001 track champion Corey Turner.

Mark Ziesmer won heat race number one over Jim Laws, Jason Bogle, and Roy Mitchell.

Doug McCammon captured heat two over Clint Hines, Frank Heckenast, and Larry Stotts.

Ted Loomis won heat three over Gary May, Kevin Weaver, and Chris Carlson.

Bob Pierce took heat four over Corey Turner, Russ Scheffler, and Richie Hedrick.

Chuck Dixon won the first of two last chance races over Stotts, and McCammon, while Bret Sievert scored the win over Loomis, and Carlson in the latter.

Shannon Babb won the late model dash over Russ Scheffler, Bob Pohlman Jr., and John Provenzano.

Babb, who went out early in qualifying, was the only driver to crack the 14-second mark, and did so on both attempts with a best of 13.809 setting the standard for the night.

In UMP open-wheeled action it was Lance Dehm of Chatsworth, IL overtaking early race leader Dave Porth with four laps to go, then hold on for the season-opening win at the 1/3-mile speedplant. Porth, piloting a new Pierce chassis, would lead the opening 16 laps before Dehm was able to muscle by on the inside in his new Hoffman chassis sponsored by Livingston Stone, Pontiac RV, and Bryan Fehr Trucking.

The first caution of the event came on lap 2 when the Hastings brothers, Kevin and Jason, got stacked up along with fellow competitor Kyle Cooper in turn one. Only Jason hastings was unable to continue. On lap four, the second yellow came out for debris on the racetrack. One lap later, Dan Drogemuller brought out the caution yet again when he looped his mount in turn three, thus ending his night with handling problems.

Meanwhile, a nifty battle waged on for the third and fourth spots throughout most of the contest between Aaron Ricketts, Kyle Logue, R.J. Gall, and Bob Pohlman Jr. Ricketts was able to hold them off for most of the race, but gave way to Gall late in the race, only to have Gall slip off the high side of turn two on the very next lap. Logue then went to work on Ricketts for third and made the pass, only to have the caution come out on lap 16 when Mike Porth sat facing the front-stretch wall just out of the turn four exit.

Logue, after being sent back to fourth, once again set his sights on Ricketts for third, and made the pass one lap later while Gall and Pohlman Jr. battled for the fifth spot. Gall was able to work the high side just enough to get by Ricketts off of turn four as the checkered flag waved. At the stripe it was Dehm holding off Porth, followed by Logue, Gall, and Ricketts. Rounding out the top ten were Pohlman Jr., fast qualifier Tommy Kroll, Jim Ferris, Matt Bachmann, and Jerry Danford.

Roger Duszinski won the tough luck award on the night, after he flipped his way just after he completed his qualifying run.  Duszinski escaped slightly shaken but not stirred.

Dave Rudisill won the first of three heat races over Kevin Davis, Randy Purcell, and Phil Line.

Kyle Cooper won heat two over Jerry Danford, Mick Roach, and Jerald Meier.

Matt Bachmann captured the third and final heat over Kyle Logue, Jim Ferris, and Bob Pohlman Jr.

Joel Funk won the last chance consolation event, with Kyle Cooper, Mick Roach, and Dave Rudisill also advancing to the 20-lap A main.

Dave Porth claimed the modified dash over Aaron Ricketts, R.J. Gall, and Matt Rhyne.

Billy Wicker of Bradley, IL won the wild and wooly street stock feature, as he moved past Kevin Lenzen with several laps to go when the two became entangled in a maze of lap traffic. John Geary led the opening lap of the race until he sailed off the high side of turn two resulting in the race's only caution. Matt Cleary then inherited the point being chased by both Lenzen and Wicker. Cleary himself became a victim of the lap traffic as he had to relinquish the lead to Lenzen on lap nine. Shannon Shutter moved past Cleary for third with seven laps to go, and actually closed in on Lenzen and Wicker, who were still fighting off lap cars.

With three to go and Lenzen out front, Wicker looked low while Lenzen took to the top side around two slower cars. Wicker was able to thread his way by the backmarkers just a touch more easily than Lenzen as the two entered turn one with now just two laps remaining. That would prove to be the difference in what otherwise could be described as a chess match between the top two point getters from a year ago. Last year, with the season championship on the line, it came down to the final race of the season to determine who would reign track champion. Lenzen fell that night with a flat rear tire before the race really began and Wicker struggled himself to the championship points title.

When starter Jim Whittington waved the final checkered flag on the night, it was Wicker squeeking by Lenzen for the win, followed by Shutter, Cleary, and Jay Hamilton, while A.J. Dixon, Jay Morris, Jeff Momper, John Geary, and Lee Hall rounded out the top ten.

Heat races were won by Shutter over Cleary, Mike Estrada, and Hamilton in heat one.

Geary scored the win in heat two over Joe Buyno, Neil Martin, and Tim Boots.

Kevin Lenzen won heat three over A.J. Dixon, Billy Wicker, and Jay Morris.

Geary also won the street stock dash over Lenzen, Hamilton, Wicker, and Momper. The dash was set by the top five in points from a season ago.

Also be sure to visit www.kankakeemotorspeedway.com for any news or schedule changes throughout the year.

Complete Late Model Results

Fast Qualifier (37 cars) Shannon Babb - 13.809

Late Model Dash (6-laps) - 1. Shannon Babb 2. Russ Scheffler 3. Bob Pohlamn Jr. 4. John Provenzano 5. Eddie Leviner 6. Frank Reaber

Late Model Feature (30-laps, $2,000-to-win) - 1. Shannon Babb 2. Bob Pierce 3. Russ Scheffler 4. Bob Pohlman Jr. 5. Jay Fiene 6. Kevin Weaver 7. Frank Reaber 8. Richie Hedrick 9. Eddie Leviner 10. Corey Turner

Heat 1 (8-laps) - 1. Mark Ziesmer 2. Jim Laws 3. Jason Bogle 4. Roy Mitchell 5. Larry LeGrand 6. Shawn Toczek

Heat 2 (8-laps) - 1. Doug McCammon 2. Clint Hines 3. Frank Heckenast 4. Larry Stotts 5. Mark Stetler 6. Tom Pauley 7. Tony Coglianese 8. Sam Epling Jr. 9. Bret Sievert 10. Eric Kwasigroh

Heat 3 (8-laps) - 1. Ted Loomis 2. Gary May 3. Kevin Weaver 4. Chris Carlson 5. Tim Hamburg 6. Mike Busch 7. Chuck Dixon 8. Danny Sorce 9. Jay Fiene 10. Wes Steidinger

Heat 4 (8-laps) - 1. Bob Pierce 2. Corey Turner 3. Russ Scheffler 4. Richie Hedrick 5. Eddie Leviner 6. John Provenzano 7. Bob Pohlman Jr. 8. Shannon Babb 9. Frank Reaber 10. Jammie Wilson

Consi 1 (15-laps, top 3 advance) - 1. Chuck Dixon 2. Larry Stotts 3. Doug McCammon 4. Tim Hamburg 5. Clint Hines 6. Danny Sorce 7. Mike Busch 8. Larry LeGrand 9. Mark Ziesmer 10. Frank Heckenast 11. Sam Epling Jr. 12. Mark Stetler

Consi 2 (15-laps, top 3 advance) - 1. Bret Sievert 2. Ted Loomis 3. Chris Carlson 4. Jason Bogle 5. Roy Mitchell

Complete UMP Modified Results

Fast Qualifier (30 cars) Tommy Kroll - 15.568

Modified Dash (6-laps) - 1. Dave Porth 2. Aaron Ricketts 3. R.J. Gall 4. Matt Rhyne 5. Lance Dehm 6. Tommy Kroll

Modified Feature (20-laps) - 1. Lance Dehm 2. Dave Porth 3. Kyle Logue 4. R.J. Gall 5. Aaron Ricketts 6. Bob Pohlman Jr. 7. Tommy Kroll 8. Jim Ferris 9. Matt Bachmann 10. Jerry Danford 11. Mick Roach 12. Kyle Cooper 13. Kevin Hastings 14. Mike Porth

Heat 1 (6-laps) - 1. Dave Rudisill 2. Kevin Davis 3. Randy Purcell 4. Phil Line 5. Mike Mosier 6. Dave Smith 7. Jason Hastings 8. Mickey Kirk 9. Kelly Jones 10. George Aimone

Heat 2 (6-laps) - 1. Kyle Cooper 2. Jerry Danford 3. Mick Roach 4. Jerald Meier 5. Joel Funk 6. Mike Porth 7. Kevin Hastings 8. Dan Drogemuller 9. Mike McCarthy

Heat 3 (6-laps) - 1. Matt Bachmann 2. Kyle Logue 3. Jim Ferris 4. Bob Pohlman Jr. 5. R.J. Gall 6. Dave Porth 7. Tommy Kroll 8. Matt Rhyne 9. Lance Dehm 10. Aaron Ricketts

Consi (10-laps) - 1. Joel Funk 2. Kyle Cooper 3. Mick Roach 4. Dave Rudisill 5. Phil Line 6. Mike McCarthy 7. Mike Mosier 8. Randy Purcell (DQ)

Complete Street Stock Results

Street Stock Dash (6-laps) - 1. John Geary 2. Kevin Lenzen 3. Jay Hamilton 4. Billy Wicker 5. Jeff Momper

Street Stock Feature (15-laps) - 1. Billy Wicker 2. Kevin Lenzen 3. John Geary 4. Matt Cleary 5. Jay Hamiltton 6. A.J. Dixon 7. Jay Morris 8. Jeff Momper 9. John Geary 10. Lee Hall 11. Neil Martin 12. Jerrad Krick 13. Jason Turner 14. Unknown 15. Bill Warner 16. Rick LaFine 17. Steve Thorsten

Heat 1 (6-laps) - 1. Shannon Shutter 2. Matt Cleary 3. Mike Estrada 4. Jay Morris 5. Lee Hall 6. Chad Osterhoff 7. Jeff Momper 8. Norm Nesselrodt 9. Grodon Weaver

Heat 2 (6-laps) - 1. John Geary 2. Joe Buyno 3. Neil Martin 4. Tim Boots 5. Jason Turner 6. Shawn Bordelais 7. Dwayne Cigancik 8. Kenny Allen

Heat 3 (6-laps) - 1. Kevin Lenzen 2. A.J. Dixon 3. Billy Wicker 4. Jay Morris 5. Tom Bell 6. Unknown 7. Unknown 8. Sheryl Los 9. John Grosvenor 10. Steve Thorsten 11. Jerrad Krick