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Kaeding dodges trouble, wins at Fremont

By Craig Murphy

    Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.

    For Tim Kaeding, he was both on July 22 as he won the National Sprint Tour main event at Fremont Speedway in Fremont, Ohio.

    Kaeding held off teammate and boss Steve Kinser for his 11^th win of the season. It was Kinser’s seventh runner-up finish of the season. Five of those have been to Kaeding.

    Early in the 40-lap race, Kaeding began moving forward from his sixth starting position. Kaeding was third by lap 14.

    In front of him, front row starters Jason Solwold and Phil Gressman put on a great show. Solwold took the lead on the start, but Gressman continually hounded him for the lead.

    Solwold had run into bad luck the last two races, and it happened yet again Saturday night on the 1/3-mile track.

    On lap 19, the lapped car of Jamie Miller spun off turn 4 in front of the two leaders, who had nowhere to go and got collected. Gressman’s car got in the air and briefly caught fire, while a strong running Mark Keegan also got involved. All drivers were okay.

    “I was kind of cruising around there, trying to find the best place to run,” Solwold said. “We had a good car, but that’s the way our luck is going right now.

    “I was following two lapped cars, and I had a hard time figuring out where to go,” Solwold added. “We came off (turn) 4, and the lapped car got sideways. I got hit from behind and was knocked into the wall. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

    Kaeding, meanwhile, saw the trouble unfolding.

    “They were setting a good pace,” he said of Solwold and Gressman, who left before he could be reached for comment. “I saw the lapped car about to start spinning, so I took the foot off the gas.”

    Once the accident was cleaned up, Kaeding cruised. Behind him, Kinser was moving up.

    Kinser was fourth after the accident, third by lap 29, and second on lap 33. After a late restart, Kaeding couldn’t be caught as he defeated Kinser, Jason Meyers, John Ivy and Caleb Griffith. Points leader Danny Lasoski, who won the NST show at Fremont in June, was sixth.

    Kaeding didn’t know what the outcome would have been with Solwold and Gressman still running at the end.

    “It’s hard to say,” Kaeding said. “I was pretty much hanging back. I knew we were going to get into lapped traffic. There are a lot of races I’ve lost by going into traffic too early. They are great racers, but that’s what happens when you go into traffic fast. That’s short track racing.”

    Kaeding admitted to having a “not again” reaction when he saw who was behind him late.

    “Anytime Steve’s behind you, you’ve got to step up your game,” Kaeding said. “I just wanted to keep the tires on it.”

    Kinser wasn’t overly thrilled with his night.

    “It was just an average run,” Kinser said. “I can’t make the car work on the bottom right now. I figured there was not much of a chance unless we got into some lapped cars.”

    Meyers started 19^th, got spun on the first lap, and later did a 360 in turn 1. In spite of that, he charged past several cars late for third.

    “I had to do it the hard way,” Meyers said. “We had a great car tonight. We were a little bit off to start the night, so we had to start back there. But we definitely had something for (the Kinser cars). I just wish I could have started further up.”

    Trophy dashes were won by Gressman and Solwold, with Gressman choosing to start on the inside pole for the 40-lap main event.

    Heat races were won by Kinser, Solwold, Meyers and Jason Sides. Paul McMahan was the fastest of 41 qualifiers with a time of 12.609 seconds, his fifth fast time of the year. The B-main was won by Greg Wilson, while the C-main was won by Craig Mintz.

    The National Sprint Tour hits the road for another swing next month, starting with an Aug. 3 race at Susquehanna Speedway Park in Newberrytown, Pa. That race is followed by an Aug. 5 show at Selinsgrove Speedway in Selinsgrove, Pa. and an Aug. 6 show at Hagerstown Speedway in Hagerstown, Md.

Fremont Speedway National Sprint Tour results

Fremont, Ohio / July 22, 2006

Qualifying Results

Pos  First  Last   No.  Best Tm
1   PAUL McMAHAN 20 12.609
2   Mark Keegan X 12.620
3   DEAN JACOBS 6 12.634
4   Greg Wilson W20 12.685
5   Caleb Griffith 12 12.694
6   TIM KAEDING 11K 12.798
7   SHANE STEWART 26 12.858
8   Brock Mayes 11B 12.863
9   STEVE KINSER 11 12.864
10   Brian Smith 55X 12.869
11   Brandon Martin 11M 12.894
12   David Harrison 10 12.907
13   Phil Gressman 1R 12.935
14   Todd Heller 14H 12.948
15   DANNY LASOSKI 83 13.003
16   Byron Reed 5 13.047
17   Chuck Wilson 31 13.058
18   JASON SOLWOLD R19 13.059
19   Jamie Miller 7B 13.064
20   BRIAN PAULUS 28 13.084
21   Kyle Cummins 1H 13.129
22   Bruce Robenalt 98 13.154
23   JASON MEYERS 14 13.154
24   JASON SIDES 7S 13.156
25   Al Roepke 99 13.173
26   John Ivy 53 13.176
27   Dale Blaney 2 13.188
28   Butch Schroeder 7K 13.195
29   Lee Jacobs 16 13.217
30   Kelly Kinser 4K 13.233
31   KERRY MADSEN 11H 13.246
32   Cody White 26W 13.253
33   Mike Linder 3 13.285
34   Bryan Scott 37Z 13.332
35   Roger Shammo 10S 13.339
36   Aaron Middauth 91 13.349
37   Roger Campbell 1ZL 13.350
38   Keith Baxter 1B 13.389
39   Corey Seeling 97 13.690
40   Tim Hunter 2H 13.757
41   Craig Mintz 8S 14.399  

Heat One Finish

1   STEVE KINSER 11
2   Phil Gressman 1R
3   Kyle Cummins 1H
4   Caleb Griffith 12
5   PAUL McMAHAN 20
6   Chuck Wilson 31
7   Mike Linder 3
8   Craig Mintz 8S
9   Roger Campbell 1ZL
10   Al Roepke 99
11   Lee Jacobs 16  

Heat Two Finish

1   JASON SOLWOLD R19
2   TIM KAEDING 11K
3   Brian Smith 55X
4   Kelly Kinser 4K
5   Mark Keegan X
6   John Ivy 53
7   Bruce Robenalt 98
8   Keith Baxter 1B
9   Todd Heller 14H
10   Bryan Scott 37Z  

Heat Three Finish

1   JASON MEYERS 14
2   DANNY LASOSKI 83
3   Brandon Martin 11M
4   Jamie Miller 7B
5   KERRY MADSEN 11H
6   Dale Blaney 2
7   SHANE STEWART 26
8   Corey Seeling 97
9   Roger Shammo 10S
10   DEAN JACOBS 6  

Heat Four Finish

1   JASON SIDES 7S
2   BRIAN PAULUS 28
3   Tim Hunter 2H
4   David Harrison 10
5   Byron Reed 5
6   Brock Mayes 11B
7   Cody White 26W
8   Aaron Middauth 91
9   Greg Wilson W20
10   Butch Schroeder 7K 

C-Main Finish

1   Craig Mintz 8S
2   Aaron Middauth 91
3   Roger Shammo 10S
4   Roger Campbell 1ZL
5   Keith Baxter 1B
6   Corey Seeling 97 

Dash One Finish

1   Phil Gressman 1R
2   Brandon Martin 11M
3   Caleb Griffith 12
4   PAUL McMAHAN 20
5   STEVE KINSER 11
6   Byron Reed 5 

Dash Two Finish

1   JASON SOLWOLD R19
2   Mark Keegan X
3   TIM KAEDING 11K
4   Brian Smith 55X
5   David Harrison 10
6   DANNY LASOSKI 83 

** Phil Gressman has lane choice.

     He took the bottom.

B-Main Finish

1   Greg Wilson W20
2   DEAN JACOBS 6
3   John Ivy 53
4   SHANE STEWART 26
5   Brock Mayes 11B
6   Dale Blaney 2
7   Chuck Wilson 31
8   Mike Linder 3
9   Todd Heller 14H
10   Lee Jacobs 16
11   Bruce Robenalt 98
12   Butch Schroeder 7K
13   Craig Mintz 8S
14   Al Roepke 99
15   Roger Shammo 10S
16   Cody White 26W
17   Roger Campbell 1ZL
18   Aaron Middauth 91

A-Feature Line-Up - 40 LAPS

1R   -   R19
11M -   X
12   -   11K
20   -   55X
11   -   10
5     -   83
6     -   W20
26   -   7B
28   -   1H
14   -   7S
53   -   4K
11H -   2H 

1   TIM KAEDING 11K
2   STEVE KINSER 11
3   JASON MEYERS 14
4   John Ivy 53
5   Caleb Griffith 12
6   DANNY LASOSKI 83
7   Greg Wilson W20
8   KERRY MADSEN 11H
9   SHANE STEWART 26
10   JASON SIDES 7S
11   DEAN JACOBS 6
12   Byron Reed 5
13   PAUL McMAHAN 20
14   Kelly Kinser 4K
15   Mark Keegan X
16   Kyle Cummins 1H
17   Brandon Martin 11M
18   Brian Smith 55X
19   Tim Hunter 2H
20   BRIAN PAULUS 28
21   JASON SOLWOLD R19
22   Phil Gressman 1R
23   Jamie Miller 7B
24   David Harrison 10

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