The race nights are dwindling down on the 2013 season at Dawson County Raceway and Sunday evening was very evident, as racers were scratching the itch of picking up the most points possible in the IMCA divisions to circle the oval in Lexington, Nebraska along with the visiting Grand National Late Models.

Cashing in on the opportunity of making a trip to the winners circle and maxing out on available points to be scored was Jeremy Frenier, Mike Nichols, Chad Dolan, Tiffany Bittner and David Dembowski along with late model hotshot Robert Leonard.

Working flawlessly through traffic was the formula for success for Robert Leonard  of Gibbon, Nebraska as he stayed within striking distance of early leader Jarred Hackler of Hastings from the drop of the green flag. Leonard would work his way into the lead with just under 10 laps remaining to drive away with the victory in the Grand National Late Model division. Putting together a rally in the waning laps to earn runner-up honors was Merna veteran wheelman Kevin Safranek. No stranger to Dawson County Raceway, Josh Leonard of Gibbon finished strong to the tune of a third place finish. Les Siebert of York, the Cash Dash winner and early leader Hackler capped off the top five with fourth and fifth place finishes.

Wasting no time to get to the front, Jeremy Frenier of Fort Morgan, Colorado grabbed the lead on the fifth circuit and never looked back, despite the hungry challengers that were on his back bumper numerous times through the feature. Frenier claimed the victory in the IMCA Modified division on Sunday. Making a valiant effort to drive past Frenier was Cozad, Nebraska hotshoe Colton Osborn, who was forced to settle with runner-up accolades. Osborn started in the seventh row. Leading the initial laps of the contest was third place finisher Charley Brown of Maxwell, Nebraska.

Continuing to find his way to the winners circle was Chad Dolan of Gibbon in the IMCA Northern Sport Modified division.
Dolan led the final six laps to claim the checkered flag. Bryan Herrick avoided being collected in the big accident near the halfway point and was able to drive his way to runner-up honors. Earning a podium finish for his efforts was Dean Wilkinson of Oakdale, Nebraska in third place overall. North Platte’s Dillon Schulz was the early leader until the restart at the conclusion of lap 13 during the feature event that collected Schulz and many others in a turn one incident.

Reaching an elite milestone, Harlan, Iowa veteran wheelman Mike Nichols drove his way to the point on the third lap and would not be denied in notching his 300th IMCA Stock Car Feature victory. The victory did not come easy for Nichols, as he was challenged throughout the course of the feature by Maywood, Nebraska’s Casey Werkmeister who would cross the finish line in second place overall. Kyle Werkmeister of Maywood was third overall with a stellar drive from his fourth row starting position.

For the second consecutive week it was Tiffany Bittner of Norfolk, Nebraska’s world and the rest of the IMCA Hobby Stock contenders were in her rear view mirror in the final laps. Bittner won her heat race in fine fashion and would snare the lead in the feature after snaring the lead on then final two laps to claim the victory. Looking to challenge for the top spot was fourth row starter Anthony Martin of Wilcox, Nebraska. Martin was rocketing around the oval but his efforts for the lead ran out of laps, as he earned second place accolades. Trying his best to hold his hotrod on the cushion was Dillon Thompson of Campbell, Nebraska and his efforts would be rewarded with a show position finish in the feature.

Leading the laps that mattered the most was Grand Island’s David Dembowski in the IMCA Sport Compacts feature, as he drove to the front on the white flag lap and held ship to conquer the checkered flag. Crossing the stripe in second place after leading the first 10 laps was Zach Olmstead of Overton, Nebraska. Developing great consistency on the Lexington oval, David Earhart was rewarded for his efforts with third place accolades.

Racing action will returning to the fast-paced 3/8th mile oval on the Dawson County Fairgrounds with a Fan Appreciation Night as well as the five IMCA divisions will compete for top season honors during the Championship Night of racing on Sunday, gates open at 5 p.m. with the first green flag scheduled to drop at 6:30 p.m.Unofficial Results:
–Grand National Late Models: 1. 1-Robert Leonard; 2. 28-Kevin Safranek; 3. 85j-Josh Leonard; 4. 51-Les Siebert; 5. 00-Jarred Hackler; 6. 3-Andy Gregg; 7. 55-Jake Neighbors; 8. 88-Brandon Leonard; 9. 13t-Tyler Andreasen; 10. 52-Dean Wilkinson.
–Heat 1: 1. 51-Les Siebert; 2. 28-Kevin Safranek; 3. 88-Brandon Leonard.
–Heat 2: 1. 00-Jarred Hackler; 2. 3-Andy Gregg; 3. 55-Jake Neighbors.
–IMCA Modified Feature: 1. 17j-Jeremy Frenier; 2. 50c-Colton Osborn; 3. 4c-Charley Brown; 4. xii-Jay Steffens; 5. 2-Jeremy Herbst; 6. 4p-Dave Pedersen; 7. 34jw-Casey Woken; 8. 19-Chuck Stryker; 9. 1xjr-Cody Blessing; 10. 6c-Cale Osborn.
–Heat 1: 1. 7a-Steve Aitken; 2. 4p-Dave Pedersen; 3. xii-Jay Steffens.
–Heat 2: 1. 4c-Charley Brown; 2. 17j-Jeremy Frenier; 3. 19-Chuck Stryker.
–IMCA Northern Sport Modified Feature: 1. 87d-Chad Dolan; 2. 0-Bryan Herrick; 3. 52-Dean Wilkinson; 4. 1x-Denny Egge; 5. 8c-Corey Cruzan; 6. 1-Paul Donovan; 7. 72h-Jim Hagan; 8. 79s-James Stewart; 9. 7-Vince Leibert; 10. 20-Hunter Cantrall.
–Heat 1: 1. 87d-Chad Dolan; 2. 15k-Jamey Kennicutt; 3. 13-Terry Dressel.
–Heat 2: 1. 55d-Dillon Schulz; 2. 0-Bryan Herrick; 3. 7-Vince Leibert.
–IMCA Stock Car Feature: 1. 63-Mike Nichols; 2. 24w-Casey Werkmeister; 3. 42w-Kyle Werkmeister; 4. 11k-Kyle Clough; 5. 25-Jared Brooks; 6. 16w-Jeff Whiting; 7. 72-Robert Walker; 8. 31-Darin Racek; 9. 99-David Easterday; 10. 57-Dan Stoll.
–Heat 1: 1. 24w-Casey Werkmeister; 2. 29e-Brendan Eilts; 3. 24-Bob Chalupa.
–Heat 2: 1. 42w-Kyle Werkmeister; 2. 99-David Easterday; 3. 11k-Kyle Clough.
–IMCA Hobby Stock Feature: 1. 95b-Tiffany Bittner; 2. 9a-Anthony Martin; 3. 11-Dillon Thompson; 4. 52-Jason Wilkinson; 5. 44-Caleb Hetrick; 6. 26x-Russ Speck; 7. 30pk-Ethan Kenney; 8. 7t-Tyson Canas; 9. 72b-Jacob Hagan; 10. 5-Chuck Ledbetter.
–Heat 1: 1. 52-Jason Wilkinson; 2. 9a-Anthony Martin; 3. 5-Chuck Ledbetter.
–Heat 2: 1. 95b-Tiffany Bittner; 2. 0-Kyle Bond; 3. 26x-Russ Speck.
–IMCA Sport Compact Feature: 1. 52-David Dembowski; 2. 98z-Zach Olmstead; 3. 22e-David Earhart; 3. 3-Charlie Blowers; 4. 85-Justin Smallcomb; 5. 29e-Justin Schmidt; 6. 67-Alex Fletcher; 7. 12s-Dalton Smith.
–Heat: 12. 1. 98z-Zach Olmstead; 2. 52-David Dembowski; 3. 12s-Dalton Smith.