[Ray3]

"Records, & increased car count highlight Badger Midget Series season"

By Bryan Gapinski

Sun Prairie, Wis., Oct. 3-- The 83rd year of the Badger Midget Auto Racing Association has come to conclusion. The Zimbrick Chevrolet of Sun Prairie sponsored series reached several milestones during the 19-race season which spanned a period of 161-days. They include:

---Nineteen events, producing eighteen features were held at seven different tracks, with eleven different feature winners, six events were cancelled due to weather related issues.

---The average car count was 24.5 cars per event, with a total of 53 different cars and 59 different drivers competing.

---Chase McDermand becomes just the third "teenage" Badger driver champion, and the youngest at 19 years old, two months and two days. Others under twenty were: Christopher Bell (2014-19y, 8m, 0d) and Aaron Fike (2002-19y, 9m, 8d).

---Chase McDermand's two-point margin in the final point tally was the closest ever in drivers points the record of a three-point difference between Bob Walldan, and John Hartwig in 1974. Car Owner Kevin McDermand topped Tim Routson by thirty-points in the owners points.

---Jack Routson became the youngest feature winner ever capturing the June 8 event at the Plymouth Dirt Track. Routson was 17 years old, three months, and four days. On the "other side of the coin" five-time series champion Kevin Olson became the oldest Badger and Angell Park Speedway feature winner, at 68 years, four months and twenty-eight days when he won the July 21 event.

---Ryan Probst led the series with 47-feature laps led. Probst also tied with Chase McDermand, and Scott Hatton for the most preliminary race wins (six).

---Chase McDermand, Scott Hatton, and Jack Routson tied for the series lead with three fast times each.

---Six different drivers won Badger sanctioned features for the first time in their career: Jack Routson (four), Thomas Meseruall (two), Chase Jones, Mike Stroik, Zach Boden, and Jordan Mattson.

---Eight new track records were established at five different tracks.

Final 2019 Badger Midget Series Points (Driver): 1. Chase McDermand 1462; 2. Jack Routson 1460; 3. Zach Boden 1249; 4. Ryan Probst 1232; 5. Kevin Olson 1153; 6. Scott Hatton 1130; 7. Jeff Zelinski 1050; 8. Matt Recheck 920; 9. Mike Stroik 897; 10. Kurt Mayhew 693.

Final Badger Midget Series Points (Car Owner): 1. Kevin McDermand#40-1462; 2. Tim Routson#14-1432; 3. Harlan Kittleson#2-1249; 4. Probst Motorsports#99-1232; 5. Don Kleven#9-1153; 6. Jerry Hatton#1-1130; 7. David Alexander#15-1050; 8. Team Stroik#9-897; 9. RAB Racing#57-833;
10. Breuer Racing#5-813.

[Ray3]

All of this done with the production based DOHC Midget engine rules! Incredible and very competitive season!!

Check out a complete set of production based Midget engine rules at: http://www.dohcmidgetracing.com

There are so many struggling Midget clubs out there due to high engine costs. Implementing a plan to move to these rules can do for those clubs what they have done for Badger! I recommend phasing out the expensive purpose built engines over a three year period then going to these rules from then on.