Posted by Kankakee Speedway on 7/25/2005, 12:49 pm
Board Administrator

KANKAKEE -- The Kankakee Valley Motor Speedway hosted a full four divisions of racing Friday night, but it was a simple tuneup for Kevin Weaver. He won his heat and the feature without a serious challenge as he prepared for the $2500 Late Model main event set for July 29. Meanwhile, the track's defending champion, Ted Loomis, started in the front row with Weaver, but spun out on the first lap. He had to go to the back of the field and spent the rest of the race coming back for fourth. Loomis' car seemed unmanageable at first and his spin in turn four of the first lap damaged his car and left Dick Potts' on the tow truck's hook. When the race restarted Loomis (who came into the night 11 points out of first in the season championship) jumped up in the high groove and promptly knocked the right corner of his rear spoiler off of his car. Not deterred by the damage, Loomis charged hard on the low side and the in the high groove and narrowly missed out on passing second-place John Provanzano (the new point leader) and third-place Eric Kwasigroh. Meanwhile, in the Open-Wheel Modified feature, Dan Hamstra started in the front row; grabbed the lead on the first lap; and like Weaver was never challenged again. However, the more observant fans saw an exciting story unfolding if they kept an eye on Joel Funk. Funk found a way to pass when the rest of the field looked like a single file parade. He worked his way past Jason Hastings, then Kyle Cooper, and finally Vince Cooper before he caught a glimpse of Hamstra. But time ran out on his challenge. In the Street Stocks, Jay Hamilton brought out a brand new car (a 1980 Chevelle) and proved that it was up to the task of keeping him on top of the point standings. Kevin Lenzen turned in the division's quick time and showed that he could gain on Hamilton in long runs, but was unable to pass and settled for second. Don McCarty also seemed ready to challenge, but he couldn't get enough traction in his low groove. He wound up third. In the Independent Modifieds, Kyle Cooper ended Toby Howard's run of feature wins. Howard took the main event in the division's other two visits here this summer, but, after winning his heat, he could do no more than follow Cooper in the main event. Summaries: Late Model Division FastTime: Mike Matagaras � 14.311 First Heat: 1. Ted Loomis; 2. John Provanzano; 3. Matagaras Second Heat: 1. Kevin Weaver; 2. Dicki Potts; 3. Wes Steidinger Third Heat: 1. Eric Kwasigroh; 2. George Sheffler; 3. Kerry Matthew Semi-Feature: 1. Doug Zartler; 2. Steve Metz; 3. Brian Claudnic Feature: 1. Weaver; 2. Provanzano; 3. Kwasigroh; 4. Loomis; 5. Garrett Slager Open-Wheel Modifieds Fast Time: Dan Hamstra � 15.734 First Heat: 1. Hamstra; 2. Phil Line; 3. Dave Porth Second Heat: 1. Vince Cooper; 2. Matt Bachman; 3. Joel Funk Third Heat: 1. Jason Hastings; 2. Kyle Cooper; 3. Travis Kohler Semi-Feature: 1. Kevin Hastings; 2. AJ Dixon; 3. Mike Spatola Feature: 1. Hamstra; 2. Funk; 3. V. Cooper; 4. K. Cooper; 5. J. Hastings Street Stock Division Fast Time: Kevin Lenzen � 17.534 First Heat: 1. Lenzen; 2. Bill Stevenson; 3. Billy Wicker Second Heat: 1. Jay Hamilton; 2. Brett Peters; 3. Mike Cavanaugh Third Heat: 1. Don McCarty; 2. Jay Morris; 3. Darrin Kohler Feature: 1. Hamilton; 2. Lenzen; 3. McxCarty; 4. Stevenson; 5. Cavanaugh Independent Modifieds First Heat: 1. Toby Howard; 2. Chris Fortner; 3. Brad DeYoung Second Heat: 1. Kyle Cooper; 2. Chris Airhood; 3. Jeff Barger Feature: 1. Cooper; 2. Howard; 3. Airhood; 4. Fortner; 5. DeYoung