[donwilshe]

Area Auto Racing News
June 14, 2013

(Marion, OH.) - For the second race week in a row the Midwest Supermodified Association (MSA) presented by Adkins Glass went green-white-checkers in their feature race at a blistering pace, this week on the banks of ARCA’s Toledo (OH) Speedway. For the 14th consecutive year Ron Hemelgarn has sponsored the All American Coach/Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness “All American Fastest Short Track Show in the World” featuring the winged low slung ground pounding warriors. And this year it played host to a first time Supermodified winner, and hometown racer, Jimmy McCune. McCune got a great start and set a blistering pace out front in clean air, never looking back for 40 amazingly fast laps that took an elapsed time of 9 minutes and 18 seconds to complete in front of a standing room crowd.

Pole Sitter Jim Paller and McCune would bring the strong field to the start as McCune mustered up a great get go and blasted to the point immediately setting the pace. Paller would tag along setting pace in second and hugging the bottom line as the field behind scattered in a battle for every position. As McCune continued to set the standared and Paller ran his own race, ISMA Champion Mike Lichty and MSA Champion Trent Stephens where battling their way towards the front. However, as they battled the laps wound down and McCune continued to set sail on a rail. At the half (20 laps) Litchy was now fourth and Stephens had yet to crack the top five as cars blasted around the pavement. With ten to go it was now apparent if McCune did not break or a yellow flag did not fly he was coasting to the checkers. Lichty was now in third and going after Paller as Stephens now broke to fourth position. As the white flag flew Lichty got under Paller and grabbed the runner up spot but that was all she wrote as McCune ripped under the checkers for the victory. Paller would hang onto third, Stephens fourth, and D J Shullick Jr. would round out the top five finishers.

19 cars showed up at the famed Toledo oval as Lichty would set fast time with a qualifying lap of 12.940. Two cars would be lost in practice when the No. 00 of Zach Gibson would do significant damage to his car after bouncing of the Toledo concrete and “Liquid” Lou Cicconi would jump in his old ACME Racing ride Steve Stout’s No. 49 only to lose the engine in practice. The ten lap heat winners included McCune and Lichty. Next up the MSA group goes home for a Saturday night by the lake, Sandusky (OH) Speedway, before they make the July Independence Day weekend trip to Bear Field (IN) Speedway.

“I tell you what, to win in a Supermodified here in the short amount of time we been running it feels absolutely amazing,” said the happy race winner. “I knew we had a good race car, I just didn’t think we could hold them off for 40 laps. I just drove every lap like it was the last lap. I was worried, I saw the 84 car coming and coming, I was just waiting with five to go for him to just come up there and blow by me, but he never did. I just can’t thank Don and Sue Ellen enough for letting me drive their cars, it’s a blessing, and I am extremely pleased. Dick Myers at RAM Engineering has built me some really great shocks. I had no idea I would lead every lap, I would have never guessed this in a million years, I am just really pleased,” finished the Toledo native.

Said runner-up Lichty, “Track position means a lot here. When you go green to checkers it’s very hard to make up ground, I was just off the first 12 to 15 laps then the car came in. We just needed a caution being half a track behind trying to make up ground. You always know Toledo gets strung out, that’s why you have to get a good start and get going. I am happy, thanks to Reed Salvage and everybody on the crew they work hard to give me a good piece. Our car just was not there at the start and when it came in Jimmy just had such a lead. From the look of the stands Toledo and the MSA did a good job, so hats off to them,” finished the 2012 ISMA Series Champion.

“It was a pretty good race for us, McCune just took off,” stated third place Paller. “I was trying to run with him, but the car started getting tight. Lichty came from the back and just drove right underneath me coming off of turn two. I just held on to third place and it worked out pretty good for us. There are a lot of good cars and good drivers here. It was nice to see everyone race with respect for everyone else and just run their race,” finished Paller.

Feature (40laps): Jimmy McCune, Mike Lichty, Jim Paller, Trent Stephens, D J Shullick Jr., Mike McVetta, Charlie Schultz, Kevin Jaycox Jr., Matt Marlowe, Kyle Edwards, Dave McKnight, Tim Ice, Danny Shirey, Rich Reid, Brad Wyatt, Bobby Dawson, Moe Lilje, Zach Gibson (DNS), Lou Cicconi (DNS)

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Todd Ridgeway
ridgewayphotos1@roadrunner.com
Circle Track Magazine
Area Auto Racing News
Late model Racer Magazine
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[donwilshe]

Biobased USA Gets First Supermodified 1st Win At Toledo!
Posted on 6/17/2013 at 0807 AM by DONW

We at Biobased are so thankful to all those that made this possible. Its not a person but a team that works well together that can make things happen! As I was told when I got into racing there are 3 kinds of people. Spenders, Menders and Benders. I think you all know which each them are! So lets get on with the thanks.

Team Owner Suellen Wilshe with the support and permission of my wife I would never have been able to go racing at all. If the wife aint happy as the say in racing there is no racing. 2nd let me thanks the man that I turned over my race cars teams to manage. Lets start with not just a person but a institution in local racing for the last 60 or more years and that would be the McCune Family headed by Jim McCune who runs the teams and I stay out of the way. He and his son Jimmy McCune our driver setup the car and work with crew members Ben Gustafson, Gary Mullins, Marty the Engineer, Les Bales, Mike Strecher, Mark Bassett and all their wives.

I cant forget that along the way we have had a lot of help from others. Former driver AJ Russell and his father Richard, Lenny and his father Mr. Fletcher. Cant forget Mr. Hemelgarn and Dennis LaCava, Paul Ray Breece and legendary Dick Myers. Randy and Rhonda Burch, Doug and Kyle Edwards have always been there for us with advice and calming me down. Now onto the vendors that supplied us with the hardware. Dave Steele Performance, Engine builder Jim Micheals Performance Technology, and Kercher Engines Tuning and Maintenance experts Dick and Jr Kercher. Jim and Justin Belfiore who sold us the Belfab Chassis. Support from the Supermodified community with to many drivers and teams encouraging us to push on and keep trying and don't give up. All the race tracks that allowed us to develop our skills. And we cant forget the associations we race in MSR, MSA and ISMA without them there would be no supermodified racing. Well I am sure I left some people off the list and at 68 I apologize but the memory is not so good. Again thanks Jim and Jimmy again for making this happen. Don and Suellen Wilshe

[Will Shunk]

Don, Suellen, Jim, and Jimmy,
Thank you for supporting supermodified racing and the annual Toledo Speedway show. You spanked the competition for a well deserved victory. Continued success in 2013. I look forward to cheering you on again @ Toledo in 2014.