Miller is the "Thriller" at Illinois Valley 50 at LaSalle
By: Betty Glynn
LaSalle, IL - Darren "The Thriller" Miller claimed the first ever WORLD Dirt Racing League PolyDome Late Model Series sanctioned race at LaSalle Speedway on Sunday night. The Chadwick, IL driver was on top of his game when he showed up for the season finale and drove off with the $5,000 top prize.
When the green dropped, Miller took advantage of his front row outside start and powered into the lead over the pole sitter, Wisconsin’s Eric Pember. Miller, dubbed "The Thriller" by his fans and Pember charged around the high banked super ring at record speeds and started putting the competition a lap down by the end of the fourth lap on the circuit.
The action was just heating up when Wisconsin’s George Scheffler found himself out of control and spun during Lap 12. Trying to return to the track from the infield he charged into the machine of LaSalle’s Mike Glynn and then into Bloomington’s Jason Feger who ended his journey slamming hard into the front stretch concrete barrier.
On the restart, another caution halted the pace as Iowa’s Dave Eckrich stopped with a flat. Shortly after the green was granted, Pember took off on command as Jimmy Mars also of Wisconsin and Miller traveled three wide with him until Miller used the low line to grab the lead back on Lap 17.
Once in power, Miller cruised through the clay for the last half of the event as if he was walking on thin air. Dodging lapped traffic became too easy as he found himself lapping the same cars multiple times.
While Miller and Mars were traveling around from a front start, another Wisconsin driver was making his mark. Kerry Hansen started with a mere two cars behind him on the grid but managed to stay focused and headed straight to the front of the field.
For many it was believed that Hansen was a lap down when in reality he was driving fast forward and into an impressive third place finish.
Miller was the only driver hailing out of Illinois in the top eleven finishers while the badger state boasted three drivers in the top ten.
Crossing the line after Miller, was Mars who had won at the speedway in his last visit early in the season. Hansen took third ahead of Iowa’s Chad Simpson, Pember, John Anderson of Nebraska, Minnesota’s Justin Fegers, Brady Smith of Wisconsin, Kyle Berck of Nebraska, Dave Eckrich, Missouri’s Chris Smyser, Tonica’s Eric Dauber, Marseilles John Provenzano, Benseville’s Frank Reaber, Jim Letizia of Wisconsin, and Bill Koons of Nebraska as the last competitors finishing.
Drivers not finishing the race were Glynn in seventeenth over, Jay Fiene of West Chicago, current WDRL points leader Denny Eckrich of Iowa, Kirkland’s TJ Markham, Brian Harris of Iowa, Tony Izzo Jr. of Utica, Feger and Scheffler.
How the WDRL line ups are determined:
A passing points system is used to determine starting positions throughout the nights preliminary events. Quite simply a luck of the draw, or click of the mouse, in this case is based quite clearly on luck.
Normally, the Late Model drivers for the regular shows at LaSalle Speedway earn their positions based on timed qualifications but in the WDRL Series they hold qualifier races based on their draw at registration.
There is a set number of points distributed for the finishing position and additional points if a driver passes any cars on his way to the finish.
To clarify questions regarding the format the following excerpt was posted by Tom Lathen the Director of Marketing and Media for the WDRL Series.
"The system is pretty simple. As I mentioned throughout the night last evening, the drivers, first of all, receive points for where they finish their qualifier - 59 for first place, 55 for second place, 51 for third place, and so on. Additionally, each driver receives 1.76 points for every position advanced during the qualifying race. The top 18 locked up positions in the feature race, with the top eight being inverted for the pole dash. nothing becomes official until the results are placed into the computer in the WDRL trailer and the report is generated."
Qualifier Races:
In early action, Dave Eckhrich won the first qualifier race over Chad Simpson, Denny Eckrich, and George Scheffler. Justin Fegers won the second with Eric Dauber, John Provenzano and Jim Letizia trailing. The third qualifier event was taken by Jimmy Mars as Eric Pember, Frank Reaber and Kyle Berck followed. The final qualifier race was collected by Chris Smyser in front of Darren Miller, Mike Glynn and Brian Harris.
Pember won the pole dash race.
Street Stocks and Hornet:
Oglesby’s Nick Sell charged his way from fifth to win the Street Stock’s final special of the season.
Fifteen drivers were on hand to compete for the $500 feature race. Immediately after green Tom Otrembiak took control as Steve Dimmick, John Peterson and Chuck Provenzano fell in line behind him.
By Lap 4, Sell was on the move and in third. Four laps later there was a four wide battle with Otrembiak, Dimmick and two lapped cars when contact ended Otrembiak’s lead. For the restart Dimmick now held the point but not for long as Sell charged after the green. One lap later he took over to take home the victory.
At the checkers, it was Dimmick in the second place with Bill Clemmons third, Provenzano fourth and Otrembiak came back for a fifth place finish. The finishing order for positions sixth through ten were John Peterson, Mike Hughes, Steve Schweimelein, Jeff Small and Doug Ray.
Twenty one Hornets showed up for the final support class. Geno Kalb won over Dave Roggy, Rob Hammitt, Karl Hayes, Justin Rutledge, Tim Faust, Kristina Brown, Jeff Anderson, David Knapp and Ryan Johnson.
LaSalle Speedway Results
WDRL Polydome Series Late Model
First Qualifier Race: Dave Eckrich, Chad Simpson, Denny Eckrich, George Scheffler, Brady Smith, Jason Feger, Joe Burba, John Hampel, Scott Cramer, Jerry Pitts
Second Qualifier Race: Justin Fegers, Eric Dauber, John Provenzano, Jim Letitzia, TJ Markham, Kerry Hansen, Chris Simpson, David Tuft, John Anderson
Third Qualifier Race: Jimmy Mars, Eric Pember, Frank Reaber, Kyle Berck, Jay Fiene, Garrett Slager, Tom Markham, Rich Bell, Reno Markham
Fourth Qualifier Race: Chris Smyser, Darren Miller, Mike Glynn, Brian Harris, Tony Izzo Jr., Turk Letizia, Mike Provenzano, Bill Koons, Tim Lance
Pole Dash: Eric Pember, Darren Miller, Chad Simpson, Jimmy Mars, Justin Fegers, Dave Eckrich, Chris Smyser, Eric Dauber
Feature: Darren Miller (32D), Jimmy Mars (29), Kerry Hansen (25H), Eric Pember (90X), John Anderson (1K), Justin Fegers (F15), Brady Smith (2), Kyle Berck (14), Dave Eckrich (58), Chris Smyser (25S), Eric Dauber (22), John Provenzano (7), Frank Reaber (F7), Jim Letizia (D7), Bill Koons (0K), Mike Glynn (K9)-DNF, Jay Fiene (72)-DNF, Denny Eckrich (50)-DNF, TJ Markham (21M)-DNF, Brian Harris (21H)-DNF, Tony Izzo Jr. (21)-DNF, Jason Feger (25X)-DNF, George Scheffler (10S)-DNF
Street Stock
First Heat: Steve Dimmick, Chuck Provenzano, Bill Clemmons, Jay Mesachik
Second Heat: Tom Otrembiak, Nick Sell, John Peterson, Robert Schlappi
Feature: Nick Sell, Steve Dimmick, Bill Clemmons, Chuck Provenzano, Tom Otrembiak, John Peterson, Mike Hughes, Steve Schweimlein, Jeff Small, Doug Ray, Robert Schlappi, Mike Flanagan, Joe Jelinek, Barry Maricle, Jay Mesarchik
Hornet
First Heat: Geno Kalb, Rob Hammitt, Tommy Cain, Scott Vanoppen
Second Heat: Tony Provenzano, Jeff Anderson, Dave Roggy, Karl Hayes
Feature: Geno Kalb, Dave Roggy, Rob Hammitt, Karl Hayes, Justin Rutledge, Tim Faust, Kristina Brown, Jeff Anderson, David Knapp, Ryan Johnson, John Schmidt, Scott Vanoppen, Jerrod Thomas, Rick Kuhn, Don Fox, Dustin Moine, Tony Provenzano, Tommy Cain, #5, #125, John Morehead
By: Betty Glynn
LaSalle, IL - Darren "The Thriller" Miller claimed the first ever WORLD Dirt Racing League PolyDome Late Model Series sanctioned race at LaSalle Speedway on Sunday night. The Chadwick, IL driver was on top of his game when he showed up for the season finale and drove off with the $5,000 top prize.
When the green dropped, Miller took advantage of his front row outside start and powered into the lead over the pole sitter, Wisconsin’s Eric Pember. Miller, dubbed "The Thriller" by his fans and Pember charged around the high banked super ring at record speeds and started putting the competition a lap down by the end of the fourth lap on the circuit.
The action was just heating up when Wisconsin’s George Scheffler found himself out of control and spun during Lap 12. Trying to return to the track from the infield he charged into the machine of LaSalle’s Mike Glynn and then into Bloomington’s Jason Feger who ended his journey slamming hard into the front stretch concrete barrier.
On the restart, another caution halted the pace as Iowa’s Dave Eckrich stopped with a flat. Shortly after the green was granted, Pember took off on command as Jimmy Mars also of Wisconsin and Miller traveled three wide with him until Miller used the low line to grab the lead back on Lap 17.
Once in power, Miller cruised through the clay for the last half of the event as if he was walking on thin air. Dodging lapped traffic became too easy as he found himself lapping the same cars multiple times.
While Miller and Mars were traveling around from a front start, another Wisconsin driver was making his mark. Kerry Hansen started with a mere two cars behind him on the grid but managed to stay focused and headed straight to the front of the field.
For many it was believed that Hansen was a lap down when in reality he was driving fast forward and into an impressive third place finish.
Miller was the only driver hailing out of Illinois in the top eleven finishers while the badger state boasted three drivers in the top ten.
Crossing the line after Miller, was Mars who had won at the speedway in his last visit early in the season. Hansen took third ahead of Iowa’s Chad Simpson, Pember, John Anderson of Nebraska, Minnesota’s Justin Fegers, Brady Smith of Wisconsin, Kyle Berck of Nebraska, Dave Eckrich, Missouri’s Chris Smyser, Tonica’s Eric Dauber, Marseilles John Provenzano, Benseville’s Frank Reaber, Jim Letizia of Wisconsin, and Bill Koons of Nebraska as the last competitors finishing.
Drivers not finishing the race were Glynn in seventeenth over, Jay Fiene of West Chicago, current WDRL points leader Denny Eckrich of Iowa, Kirkland’s TJ Markham, Brian Harris of Iowa, Tony Izzo Jr. of Utica, Feger and Scheffler.
How the WDRL line ups are determined:
A passing points system is used to determine starting positions throughout the nights preliminary events. Quite simply a luck of the draw, or click of the mouse, in this case is based quite clearly on luck.
Normally, the Late Model drivers for the regular shows at LaSalle Speedway earn their positions based on timed qualifications but in the WDRL Series they hold qualifier races based on their draw at registration.
There is a set number of points distributed for the finishing position and additional points if a driver passes any cars on his way to the finish.
To clarify questions regarding the format the following excerpt was posted by Tom Lathen the Director of Marketing and Media for the WDRL Series.
"The system is pretty simple. As I mentioned throughout the night last evening, the drivers, first of all, receive points for where they finish their qualifier - 59 for first place, 55 for second place, 51 for third place, and so on. Additionally, each driver receives 1.76 points for every position advanced during the qualifying race. The top 18 locked up positions in the feature race, with the top eight being inverted for the pole dash. nothing becomes official until the results are placed into the computer in the WDRL trailer and the report is generated."
Qualifier Races:
In early action, Dave Eckhrich won the first qualifier race over Chad Simpson, Denny Eckrich, and George Scheffler. Justin Fegers won the second with Eric Dauber, John Provenzano and Jim Letizia trailing. The third qualifier event was taken by Jimmy Mars as Eric Pember, Frank Reaber and Kyle Berck followed. The final qualifier race was collected by Chris Smyser in front of Darren Miller, Mike Glynn and Brian Harris.
Pember won the pole dash race.
Street Stocks and Hornet:
Oglesby’s Nick Sell charged his way from fifth to win the Street Stock’s final special of the season.
Fifteen drivers were on hand to compete for the $500 feature race. Immediately after green Tom Otrembiak took control as Steve Dimmick, John Peterson and Chuck Provenzano fell in line behind him.
By Lap 4, Sell was on the move and in third. Four laps later there was a four wide battle with Otrembiak, Dimmick and two lapped cars when contact ended Otrembiak’s lead. For the restart Dimmick now held the point but not for long as Sell charged after the green. One lap later he took over to take home the victory.
At the checkers, it was Dimmick in the second place with Bill Clemmons third, Provenzano fourth and Otrembiak came back for a fifth place finish. The finishing order for positions sixth through ten were John Peterson, Mike Hughes, Steve Schweimelein, Jeff Small and Doug Ray.
Twenty one Hornets showed up for the final support class. Geno Kalb won over Dave Roggy, Rob Hammitt, Karl Hayes, Justin Rutledge, Tim Faust, Kristina Brown, Jeff Anderson, David Knapp and Ryan Johnson.
LaSalle Speedway Results
WDRL Polydome Series Late Model
First Qualifier Race: Dave Eckrich, Chad Simpson, Denny Eckrich, George Scheffler, Brady Smith, Jason Feger, Joe Burba, John Hampel, Scott Cramer, Jerry Pitts
Second Qualifier Race: Justin Fegers, Eric Dauber, John Provenzano, Jim Letitzia, TJ Markham, Kerry Hansen, Chris Simpson, David Tuft, John Anderson
Third Qualifier Race: Jimmy Mars, Eric Pember, Frank Reaber, Kyle Berck, Jay Fiene, Garrett Slager, Tom Markham, Rich Bell, Reno Markham
Fourth Qualifier Race: Chris Smyser, Darren Miller, Mike Glynn, Brian Harris, Tony Izzo Jr., Turk Letizia, Mike Provenzano, Bill Koons, Tim Lance
Pole Dash: Eric Pember, Darren Miller, Chad Simpson, Jimmy Mars, Justin Fegers, Dave Eckrich, Chris Smyser, Eric Dauber
Feature: Darren Miller (32D), Jimmy Mars (29), Kerry Hansen (25H), Eric Pember (90X), John Anderson (1K), Justin Fegers (F15), Brady Smith (2), Kyle Berck (14), Dave Eckrich (58), Chris Smyser (25S), Eric Dauber (22), John Provenzano (7), Frank Reaber (F7), Jim Letizia (D7), Bill Koons (0K), Mike Glynn (K9)-DNF, Jay Fiene (72)-DNF, Denny Eckrich (50)-DNF, TJ Markham (21M)-DNF, Brian Harris (21H)-DNF, Tony Izzo Jr. (21)-DNF, Jason Feger (25X)-DNF, George Scheffler (10S)-DNF
Street Stock
First Heat: Steve Dimmick, Chuck Provenzano, Bill Clemmons, Jay Mesachik
Second Heat: Tom Otrembiak, Nick Sell, John Peterson, Robert Schlappi
Feature: Nick Sell, Steve Dimmick, Bill Clemmons, Chuck Provenzano, Tom Otrembiak, John Peterson, Mike Hughes, Steve Schweimlein, Jeff Small, Doug Ray, Robert Schlappi, Mike Flanagan, Joe Jelinek, Barry Maricle, Jay Mesarchik
Hornet
First Heat: Geno Kalb, Rob Hammitt, Tommy Cain, Scott Vanoppen
Second Heat: Tony Provenzano, Jeff Anderson, Dave Roggy, Karl Hayes
Feature: Geno Kalb, Dave Roggy, Rob Hammitt, Karl Hayes, Justin Rutledge, Tim Faust, Kristina Brown, Jeff Anderson, David Knapp, Ryan Johnson, John Schmidt, Scott Vanoppen, Jerrod Thomas, Rick Kuhn, Don Fox, Dustin Moine, Tony Provenzano, Tommy Cain, #5, #125, John Morehead
