JEFFERSON, NOEL JR. & HARGRAVES ARE APPLE CUP VICTORS

Source: Yakima Media Relations
Date: 04/14/2003

Ron Turner, Ken Kaltschmidt, Ron Bemis and Ken Olson rounded out the 31-car field in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series presented by Dodge feature division.

With older brother Jeff and father George helping other teams in the pits, Jason showed why his Northwest Dodge Dealers Intrepid has been one of the dominant stock cars in the region over the last few seasons. Jefferson took the lead on the opening lap, bringing Mike Longton with him as the pair moved out to a five-car length lead in the early stages of the 100-lap main event.

Longton would settled in behind Jefferson and waited patiently for him to make a mistake, but Tom Sweatman moved in behind Longton’s D&G Bodyworks Ford and the pair battled for the position with Sweatman taking over second place by lap 20.

Sweatman applied constant pressure to Jefferson over the next ten laps before getting loose in turn No. 3 and losing ground to Kaltschmidt and Turner.

As the action was fast and furious in front, Garrett Evans put on a show for the fans as he wheeled his Leonard Evans Hyundai Chevrolet from the back of the pack and returned to the top-3 by the midway point of the race.

Evans would pressure Jefferson and the two rode up the track, which opened the door for Turner who took the lead down the backstretch bringing Evans up to second place in eh exchange.

Jefferson would settle in behind Evans and challenge the four-time NASCAR champion for the position exiting turn No. 4, eventually taking over the second place position as the laps began to close.

Turner would try in vain to hold Jefferson back but the horsepower under the Intrepid’s hood was strong and Jefferson re-took the lead on the backstretch. He held on over the final 15 laps and captured a $500 bonus from Tacoma-Seattle Trailer Repair for winning the race from the pole.

In the Boomers Roadside Grill Street Stock division, Erick Hargraves picked up his second straight victory behind the wheel of the Rick’s Garage Pontiac. Richard Cagle was second followed by Harold Seekins, Terry Cook and Rick Christopherson.

Hargraves won the Street Stock division title in the Fall Classic and started 2003 off in grand fashion with the Apple Cup victory. It would not be easy for Hargraves who had to start in last place based on a full field invert. Several drivers put on impressive shows at the front of the pack while Hargraves worked his way up from the back.

One of those drivers was Randy Knadle who led the early laps of the event before pitting with mechanical difficulties. Chris VanAmberg, a rookie in the Boomers Street Stock division also had a great run before spinning in the apex of turns No. 1 and 2 and falling to the rear of the field. VanAmberg would work his way back up to sixth place.

As the battles raged for position, Hargraves worked his car past hot shoes Ashley Beaman and Andy Beaman and held off a hard charging Cagle for the victory. Cook had perhaps the most impressive run of the day in the division as he started tenth and quietly moved to the top-5 and stayed there most of the race. Seekins also had an impressive day as he grabbed a $100 bonus for his top-5 performance.

The Hobby Stock race was a fan-pleasing affair as “Little B” Buck Noel Jr. made his way from his tenth starting position to grab the lead late in the 35-lap main event and held off a persistent Neal Smith for his first Apple Cup victory. Don Klang was third followed by Ron Morton and Thomas Benscoter.

Chad Pittman led the early portions of the race before pitting with mechanical problems. Don Klang was strong during the middle portions of the race but Noel would not be denied the win.

NOTES OF INTEREST:

Ron Bemis had a great run in the late model division and said getting up Sunday morning brought the feeling of wondering if he could just keep the Bemis Appliance & TV Chevrolet on the lead lap. Bemis and Ken Olson would work together to come from the back of the pack and each would grab their best career finishes in the Les Schwab Tire Centers Apple Cup.

Jeff Mullins and Joel Olson both recorded times of 24.5 seconds or better in the Hobby Stock main event and will be allowed to move up to the Boomers Roadside Grill Street Stock division at Yakima Speedway’s next event. Mullins ran into difficulty late in the race and finished in seventh place while Olson got caught in an early racing incident and finished several laps down in 11th. Speedway rules call for any Hobby Stock driver that runs three consecutive laps of competition under the 24.5-second bracket, must move to the next division.

Ashley Beaman and her cousin Andy both had top-5 finishes in their hand before hard luck visited them during the Boomers Roadside Grill Street Stock main event. Ashley found herself running in the top-3 before making contact with another car, which resulted in her car spinning off the outside of turn No.2. The race car had damage to the front-end and could not be repaired in time to return to completion. Andy Beaman suffered engine trouble and his day would end with an 11th place finish.

37th Annual Les Schwab Tire Centers Apple Cup Final Running Orders-

NASCAR Weekly Racing Series presented by Dodge Late Model stock cars final finishing order in the 37th Annual Les Schwab Tire Centers Apple Cup: 1) Jason Jefferson 2) Ron Turner 3) Ken Kaltschmidt 4) Ron Bemis 5) Ken Olson 6) Scott Walker 7) Mark Owens 8) Corbin Thomas 9) Jack Eby 10) Chuck Dills 11) Christopher Kaltch 12) Brian McCoy 13) Anthony Fugett 14) Mel Shenyer 15) Brent Harris 16) Christian Roeder 17) Jody Tanner 18) Mike Longton 19) Jarrod Johnston 20) Garrett Evans 21) Dan Obrist 22) Rick Thompson 23) Ron Dexter 24) Troy Conrad 25) Tom Sweatman 26) Troy Trammell 27) Ray Wallace 28) James VanCleave 29) Travis Bennett 30) Bob Dexter 31) Jeff Zimmerman

Boomers Roadside Grill Street Stock finishing order:

1) Erick Hargraves 2) Richard Cagle 3) Harold Seekins 4) Terry Cook 5) Rick Christopherson 6) Chris VanAmberg 7) Jack Anderson 8) Jason Huffines 9) Troy Huffines 10) Ashley Beaman 11) Andy Beaman 12) Randy Knadle 13) James Heinle 14) Casey Merrill

Yakima Speedway Hobby Stocks finishing order:

1) Buck Noel Jr. 2) Neal Smith 3) Don Klang 4) Ron Morton 5) Thomas Benscoter 6) Don Sowder 7) Jeff Mullins 8) Chad Pittman 9) Jeff Daughety 10) David Changala 11) Joel Olson 12) Dave Denton 13) Mark Harrah 14) Ross Ogan 15) Bobby Trujillo

See Also .:

• Jason Jefferson Driver Card
• Yakima Speedway Track Page

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