Jason Feger celebrates his first career MLRA feature victory in the $7,000 Harvest Hustle finale.
What won the race: Third-starting Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., led all 50 laps Saturday at Sycamore Speedway to capture the $7,000 Harvest Hustle weekend finale. Feger's victory is the first of his career with the Missouri-based Lucas Oil Midwest LateModel Racing Association.
Quotable: "We tried a little bit of different stuff tonight, it was really good and the car worked awesome, we just got a really good jump there on that start and I was just going to try and keep it on the bottom as much as I could and try and make them guys pass me or make a mistake," an emotional Feger said. "You’ve got to dedicate this to Rick Eshelman. Our sport lost a great guy today, there’s no one like him, he always made you smile and talked to everybody and was just a great guy. I’m glad we were able to pick up the win and we will honor him tonight and think about him and get back to work."
Key notes: Jeff Larson of Freeport, Ill., moved into the runner-up position on the lap-40 restart and finished 2.444 seconds back. ... Friday's runner-up finisher Brian Shirley of Chatham, Ill., finished third. ... After winning Friday's $5,000 opener, polesitter Chad Simpson of Mount Vernon, Iowa, failed to lead a lap and finished fourth. ... World of Outlaws Case Late Models points leader Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill., recorded his second fifth place finish of the weekend. ... Frank Heckenast Jr. of Frankfort, Ill., was seeking his fifth MLRA top-five finish of the year when he experienced trouble while running third on lap 39. Heckenast tagged the field until he retired on lap 46, finishing 20th. ... Saturday's feature, the MLRA tour's third-ever visit to Sycamore, was slowed by four cautions and lasted 27 minutes, with 14 competitors completing all 50 laps. … Only two series races remain this season, a weekend doubleheader at Tri-City (Ill.) Speedway on Oct. 14-15.
On the move: Justin Duty of Molalla, Ore., started 14th and finished eighth.
Winner's sponsors: Feger’s Longhorn Chassis has a Pro Power engine with sponsorship from Titan Industries, Hoker Trucking, Floyd’s Waste Systems, Digital Copy Systems, RLM Enterprises, Rosser Battery, Remtek Enterprises, Speedwerx, Cheap Cars and Griffin Signs.
Points chase: After Sycamore Saturday: 1. Chad Simpson (4,330); 2. Kolby Vandenbergh (3,905); 3. Daniel Hilsabeck (3,545); 4. Steve Stultz (2,865); 5. Johnny Scott (2,635).
Current weather: Clear, 50°F
Car count: 23
Fast qualifier: Frank Heckenast Jr.
Time: 14.159 seconds
Polesitter: Chad Simpson
Heat race winners: Chad Simpson, Dennis Erb Jr., Jason Feger, , , , ,
Next series race: October 14, Tri-City Speedway (Granite City, IL) $5,000