Piecko, Jr. Wins 8th Straight At Summer Shootout 2006 Opener
By John Wiedemann – www.racingwisconsin.com
Milwaukee – May 24, 2006 – The 2006 season of the Summer Shootout, which was delayed a week, got underway with the usual tense and exciting racing that can be expected from the series at the historic Milwaukee Mile. Ryan Miles won his first ever feature in the series Legends division. Morgan Schissel took home the win in the first ever Super Cup feature in the Summer Shootout series. Michael Piekco, Jr. and Kyle Jusits returned to Victory Lane, a place they both called home in the 2005 season.
Starting off the season on the track was the Super Cup feature. The Young Guns racing the Super Cups will be part of the series four times this season. Morgan Schissel started on the pole but Cody Lipstreuer moved past to lead the first lap as well as the following five. Alyssa Myers held down the third position with Dakota Potts moving into the fourth spot. Just past the midpoint of the race Potts took over the third position and then Lipstreuer looped his ride while coming out of the fourth turn allowing the next three drivers to get past. Schissel found himself back in the lead and this time would not give it up leading the final laps to the checkers. Myers made the dash to the checkers exciting pulling alongside Potts through the fourth turn and taking over the second spot in a drag race to the line.
After a heat race win by Eddie Mecum, Jr. the Thunder Roadsters hit the track with Mecum starting behind the battling Pieckos in the feature. Mike Piecko, Jr. started second but took the lead away from his dad, Mike Piecko, Sr., on the first lap and then led every lap of the race on the way to the win. It wasn’t that easy though as Piecko, Sr. pulled along side his son numerous times but could never take the position away. Including races last season, this win was Piecko, Jr.’s eighth win in a row in the Thunder Roadster division.
Kyle Jusits also continued where he left off last year. The 2005 Bandolero champion won both the heat race and the feature race. In the feature, Jusits took the lead early and pulled away from the field to take the win. Following Kyle to the finish were Andy Luebbke, Jesse Bernhagen, Aaron Moyer, Adam Rawski and Blake Brown. Unfortunately, Luebbke failed post race inspection moving the others up a position.
The final feature of the night belonged to the Legends and they provided the fans with the most exciting racing of the night. The group of young racers in the Legends division are going to be the drivers to watch in the area racing scene for years to come. Taking the point to start the twenty lap race was fifteen year old Ryan Miles followed by thirteen year old Michael Bilderback and seventeen year old Ernie Schaal. The three youngsters with veteran Curt Gnatzig in tow pulled away from the field to have the battle for the top spot contested between themselves. Bilderback was the first to switch up the running order by moving to the inside of Miles through turns three and four and taking the lead on lap six. A few laps later Schaal would also move past Miles to take over the second spot. The top three cars continued nose to tail and started to pull away from Gnatzig in fourth. The race was going to be a battle of the young guns.
Schaal started to make his move for the top spot, closing in on Bilderback and completed the pass leading lap seventeen. On the next lap Miles snuck past Bilderback and took control of the second position. The complexion of the race changed through the third and fourth turn as a chain reaction of bumps between the top three cars moved Shaal back a spot and then had him spinning on the last lap and falling back to third. Miles took over the lead followed by Bilderback and crossed the finish line in that order. Even after spinning, Schaal maintained third place followed by Gnatzig, James Hanson and George Giesen.
The Summer Shootout returns to the Milwaukee Mile on June 7th. with the Allison Legacy, Bandolero, Thunder Roadster and Legend divisions. Spectator admission is free for all 2006 Summer Shootout events, with bleacher seating in the infield for families to view all the races. Practice begins at 4:40 p.m. followed by heat races at 5:35 p.m. and then the feature races starting at 6:25 p.m.
RESULTS
SUPER CUP
Feature: Morgan Schissel, Alyssa Myers, Dakota Potts, Cody Lipstreuer, Greg Ballard, Cheyenne Ballard
THUNDER ROADSTERS
Feature: Mike Piecko, Jr., Mike Piecko, Sr., Eddie Mecum, Jr.
Heat: Eddie Mecum, Jr., Mike Piecko, Jr., Mike Piecko, Sr.
BANDOLEROS
Feature: Kyle Jusits, Jesse Bernhagen, Aaron Moyer, Adam Rawski, Blake Brown, Brandon Heisler, Caylie Duncanson, Kyle Piecko, Andy Luebbke (DQ at post race inspection)
Heat: Kyle Jusits, Andy Luebbke, Blake Brown, Jesse Bernhagen, Aaron Moyer, Brandon Heisler, Caylie Duncanson, Kyle Piecko, Adam Rawski (dns), Kyle Coates (dns)
LEGENDS
Feature: Ryan Miles, Michael Bilderback, Ernie Schaal, Curt Gnatzig, James Hanson, George Giesen, Zack Townsend, Cody Townsend, Ric Mattie (dns)
Heat: Ernie Schaal, Michael Bilderback, Ryan Miles, Curt Gnatzig, James Hanson, George Giesen, Zack Townsend, Ric Mattie, Cody Townsend
Through the 1960’s, The Milwaukee Mile was a hotbed of weekly short track racing on the ½-mile and ¼-mile ovals that shared the frontstretch of the historic speedway’s one mile oval. Grass roots racing makes a weeknight return to America’s Legendary Oval on a modified oval using a portion of the speedway’s newly-redone infield road course, set within turn two of the mile track.
For full coverage of the Summer Shootout, visit www.racingwisconsin.com/summershootout
For ticket information and details on the all the exciting events at The Milwaukee Mile, visit www.milwaukeemile.com.
By John Wiedemann – www.racingwisconsin.com
Milwaukee – May 24, 2006 – The 2006 season of the Summer Shootout, which was delayed a week, got underway with the usual tense and exciting racing that can be expected from the series at the historic Milwaukee Mile. Ryan Miles won his first ever feature in the series Legends division. Morgan Schissel took home the win in the first ever Super Cup feature in the Summer Shootout series. Michael Piekco, Jr. and Kyle Jusits returned to Victory Lane, a place they both called home in the 2005 season.
Starting off the season on the track was the Super Cup feature. The Young Guns racing the Super Cups will be part of the series four times this season. Morgan Schissel started on the pole but Cody Lipstreuer moved past to lead the first lap as well as the following five. Alyssa Myers held down the third position with Dakota Potts moving into the fourth spot. Just past the midpoint of the race Potts took over the third position and then Lipstreuer looped his ride while coming out of the fourth turn allowing the next three drivers to get past. Schissel found himself back in the lead and this time would not give it up leading the final laps to the checkers. Myers made the dash to the checkers exciting pulling alongside Potts through the fourth turn and taking over the second spot in a drag race to the line.
After a heat race win by Eddie Mecum, Jr. the Thunder Roadsters hit the track with Mecum starting behind the battling Pieckos in the feature. Mike Piecko, Jr. started second but took the lead away from his dad, Mike Piecko, Sr., on the first lap and then led every lap of the race on the way to the win. It wasn’t that easy though as Piecko, Sr. pulled along side his son numerous times but could never take the position away. Including races last season, this win was Piecko, Jr.’s eighth win in a row in the Thunder Roadster division.
Kyle Jusits also continued where he left off last year. The 2005 Bandolero champion won both the heat race and the feature race. In the feature, Jusits took the lead early and pulled away from the field to take the win. Following Kyle to the finish were Andy Luebbke, Jesse Bernhagen, Aaron Moyer, Adam Rawski and Blake Brown. Unfortunately, Luebbke failed post race inspection moving the others up a position.
The final feature of the night belonged to the Legends and they provided the fans with the most exciting racing of the night. The group of young racers in the Legends division are going to be the drivers to watch in the area racing scene for years to come. Taking the point to start the twenty lap race was fifteen year old Ryan Miles followed by thirteen year old Michael Bilderback and seventeen year old Ernie Schaal. The three youngsters with veteran Curt Gnatzig in tow pulled away from the field to have the battle for the top spot contested between themselves. Bilderback was the first to switch up the running order by moving to the inside of Miles through turns three and four and taking the lead on lap six. A few laps later Schaal would also move past Miles to take over the second spot. The top three cars continued nose to tail and started to pull away from Gnatzig in fourth. The race was going to be a battle of the young guns.
Schaal started to make his move for the top spot, closing in on Bilderback and completed the pass leading lap seventeen. On the next lap Miles snuck past Bilderback and took control of the second position. The complexion of the race changed through the third and fourth turn as a chain reaction of bumps between the top three cars moved Shaal back a spot and then had him spinning on the last lap and falling back to third. Miles took over the lead followed by Bilderback and crossed the finish line in that order. Even after spinning, Schaal maintained third place followed by Gnatzig, James Hanson and George Giesen.
The Summer Shootout returns to the Milwaukee Mile on June 7th. with the Allison Legacy, Bandolero, Thunder Roadster and Legend divisions. Spectator admission is free for all 2006 Summer Shootout events, with bleacher seating in the infield for families to view all the races. Practice begins at 4:40 p.m. followed by heat races at 5:35 p.m. and then the feature races starting at 6:25 p.m.
RESULTS
SUPER CUP
Feature: Morgan Schissel, Alyssa Myers, Dakota Potts, Cody Lipstreuer, Greg Ballard, Cheyenne Ballard
THUNDER ROADSTERS
Feature: Mike Piecko, Jr., Mike Piecko, Sr., Eddie Mecum, Jr.
Heat: Eddie Mecum, Jr., Mike Piecko, Jr., Mike Piecko, Sr.
BANDOLEROS
Feature: Kyle Jusits, Jesse Bernhagen, Aaron Moyer, Adam Rawski, Blake Brown, Brandon Heisler, Caylie Duncanson, Kyle Piecko, Andy Luebbke (DQ at post race inspection)
Heat: Kyle Jusits, Andy Luebbke, Blake Brown, Jesse Bernhagen, Aaron Moyer, Brandon Heisler, Caylie Duncanson, Kyle Piecko, Adam Rawski (dns), Kyle Coates (dns)
LEGENDS
Feature: Ryan Miles, Michael Bilderback, Ernie Schaal, Curt Gnatzig, James Hanson, George Giesen, Zack Townsend, Cody Townsend, Ric Mattie (dns)
Heat: Ernie Schaal, Michael Bilderback, Ryan Miles, Curt Gnatzig, James Hanson, George Giesen, Zack Townsend, Ric Mattie, Cody Townsend
Through the 1960’s, The Milwaukee Mile was a hotbed of weekly short track racing on the ½-mile and ¼-mile ovals that shared the frontstretch of the historic speedway’s one mile oval. Grass roots racing makes a weeknight return to America’s Legendary Oval on a modified oval using a portion of the speedway’s newly-redone infield road course, set within turn two of the mile track.
For full coverage of the Summer Shootout, visit www.racingwisconsin.com/summershootout
For ticket information and details on the all the exciting events at The Milwaukee Mile, visit www.milwaukeemile.com.
