September 10, 2004; Columbus, WI. - It took almost half of the 50-lap race, but Dean Schultz was able to charge from his ninth place starting spot to take top honors in the final Late Model feature race of the year on Championship Night at the Columbus 151 Speedway Friday.

Delbert Desjarlais took the initial run from the pole over Duane Deppe. A caution on lap six slowed the field, Brady Liddle, Andy Wendt, and John Wasserburger the involved cars. The remainder of the race ran caution-free, Schultz taking the checkered flag first over Nick Wendt who started the contest eleventh on the grid.

Ken Scott jumped back into the Street Stocks after running the regular season in a Late Model to land in Victory Lane once again in the 30-lap feature. Joe Roatch led the first seven laps from the pole, but drifted back in the field after Scott took the point on lap eight. Randy Padfield, who had started the race eighth on the grid, made a hard charge to the front,
finishing third in the tight field. Season Champion Bret Schmidt made the run from eleventh to finish second, having already locked up the title.

Three lead changes highlighted the Hobby Stock feature won by Jim Tate, and declared Larry Moen division Champion. Doug Pasbrig led from green, but was slowed by a caution on lap three. He held on at the restart to maintain the lead, lapped traffic becoming a factor on lap eight. The field was slowed once again on lap eleven, and the caution was needed by Todd Wright who advanced to take the lead on lap 16. It took 22 laps, but Jim Tate was able to bolt through the pack from his sixteenth starting spot to lead the last few, and most important lap of the race to win.

The four-cylinder Bandit feature was arguably the most intense race of the night, perhaps of the season. With the championship on the line, Dan Birkett and Bryan Johnson had 20 laps and eighteen other cars on the track to decide
who would come out on top. Birkett, the veteran driver, was leading points coming into the night, and the rookie Johnson was only a few behind him. Both proved themselves every week of the season, flipping the point lead back and forth regularly. The two made up eighth row of the starting grid, Birkett on the inside, Johnson on the outside. The yellow flag was displayed at the halfway mark of the race for an on-track incident, and Johnson was leading at that point, Birkett scored in seventh. The championship was to come down to the wire, but a late-race clash between Allen Petrie, Jr. and
Birkett ended it all. Birkett went off on the hook and took his championship dreams with him. Johnson went on to win the feature, sealing up the title for good.

Mark Remsik took the lead with two laps to go in the Backup feature to win the race, as well as the championship. Steve Oetzel started on the outside of the second row, but was already leading on the completion of the first lap. Remsik worked his way through the pack and pulled away with the win.

The Columbus 151 Speedway will wrap up the 2004 season and kick off 2005 at a banquet in fall. The date and location have not yet been set, but the track is looking at moving the event to a fall date, rather than the traditional mid-March affair.

For complete results from the RACESTAT computer click here


Late Model
Qual: Andy Wendt, Watertown 13.637 secs.
Heat Winners: Jeff Falbe, Beaver Dam; Tony Schuchardt, Oregon; Chad Reimer, Oconomowoc
Semi Transfers: Brady Liddle, Oregon; Falbe; Kurt Clapper, Dane; Reimer; Dennis Schmidt, Juneau
Feature: Dean Schultz, Juneau; Nick Wendt, Watertown; Duane Deppe, Waterloo; Don Gaserude, Fort Atkinson; Aaron Wilke, Waterloo

Street Stock
Qual: Bret Schmidt, Watertown 14.221 secs.
Heat Winners: Joe Roatch, Brooklyn; Schmidt
Feature: Ken Scott, Rio; Schmidt; Randy Padfield, Edgerton; Grant Lindner, Poynette; Dale Weatherwax, Columbus

Hobby Stock
Qual: Jim Tate, Watertown 15.385 secs.
Heat Winners: Ryan Zielski, Oconomowoc; Larry Moen, Madison; Doug Pasbrig, West Bend
Feature: Tate; Todd Wright, Oxford; Alan Dorn, Waterloo; Andy Raley, Fall River; Moen

Bandit
Qual: Bryan Johnson, Stoughton 16.043 secs.
Heat Winners: Art Blakely, Plattevile; Jay Bergin, Watertown; Dan Birkett, Lodi; Dan Gosda, Sun Prairie
Semi Transfers: Blakely; Floyd Burdick, Jr, Wisconsin Dells; Sean Watters, Sun Prairie; Bergin
Feature: Johnson; Troy Yohn, Waterloo; Gosda; Ryan Hart, Edgerton; Kyle Stark, Waterloo

Backup
Feature: Mark Remsik, Deerfield; Tom Gross, Sun Prairie; Steve Oetzel, Marshall; George Wachuta, Brooklyn; Wayne Hook, Oregon