WEST BURLINGTON, Iowa — J.J. Hickle made a late race move that sealed the win in the 30-lap $5,000 to win “Fall Haul” at the 34 Raceway on Saturday.
It was the second win of the season with the Mohrfeld Solar Sprint Invaders for the Quilcene, Washington native. Hickle’s move was a pass of Paul Nienhiser, who was making his first appearance with the series since suffering a back injury in July.
It took five tries to get the main event underway, and by the time the green flew for at least one lap, five cars were sidelined.
Josh Schneiderman (contact from another car), Chase Richards (crash), Nick Guernsey (front end), Colton Fisher (contact with another car) and Jaden Alexander (crash) were the victims. No one was seriously injured.
One lap was in the books when Alex Vande Voort got over the top of turn one, bringing his second caution of the event. Dustin Selvage led Nienhiser, Riley Goodno, Hickle and Zach Daum back to green.
Selvage was flying on the high side and entering lapped traffic on the sixth circuit, when Tyler Lee came to a stop and Cody Wehrle visited the work area. Tasker Phillips spun two laps after that.
While Selvage built another lead, Goodno and Nienhiser battled for the runner-up spot, trading the position twice by lap 10. Cam Martin entered the top five after starting 14th before Riley Scott spun on lap 11.
Selvage led Nienshier, Goodno, Hickle and Cam Martin at that point. Again, the battle was for second, with Goodno and Nienhiser exchanging the spot twice more. Selvage was into lapped traffic on lap 19. With five to go, Chris Martin did a 360 spin, bringing the final caution of the race.
Heading into turn two, Selvage’s right rear tire got over the top of turn two, and Nienhiser cruised by into the lead with Hickle in tow. On lap 27, Hickle hit the top of turn four and somehow squeezed between Nienhiser and the wall to take the lead.
Hickle would lead to the checkers ahead of Nienhiser, Goodno, Terry McCarl, who restarted at the tail early, and Selvage. Garrett Benson, Nienhiser, McCarl and Fisher claimed $300 for winning heats.
“I don’t know what happened on the restart with Dustin and Paul,” said Hickle. “I was in the catbird seat with nothing to lose. I decided to recommit to the bottom there, and man. We’re just a family team, and to pass those guys like that was special. I felt like we had a really good car on the long runs. We struggled a bit on the restarts. It was a hard race to get going in. I’m sure glad to get out of the seat after a night that was that long.”
“That was a bit bittersweet,” said Nienhiser. “This (Fall Haul) has seemed to have my number for whatever reason. I led a lap tonight, and I think that’s about four out of five that I’ve led and had a chance to win. There’s always next year. I didn’t really do a good job during all those yellows. I was really worried about engine temperature. We were a little higher than I liked. That kept me from keeping the tire warm and it sealed over a bit. That last restart, Dustin kind of made a mistake. I thought it was going to go my way, but I just couldn’t get launched off the exit like I needed to, and my tires wouldn’t get going. JJ had a pretty good head of steam and I couldn’t keep him behind me. He earned that one. Being out of the car as long as I have, I owe it to these guys.”
The finish:
Feature (25 laps): 1. 63, JJ Hickle, Quilcene, WA (9) 2. 50, Paul Nienhiser, Chapin, IL (4) 3. 22, Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA (1) 4. 24, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (5) 5. 6, Dustin Selvage, Indianola, IA (2) 6. 99, Zach Daum, Pocahontas, IL (11) 7. 4, Cam Martin, Ankeny, IA (14) 8. 57, Cam Sorrels, Hallsville, MO (23) 9. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (16) 10. 88c, Brogan Carder, Sioux Falls, SD (15) 11. 1TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (22) 12. 7, Tyler Lee, Cedar Rapids, IA (12) 13. 59, Evan Semarad, Malcolm, NE (13) 14. 40, Cody Wehrle, Burlington, IA (18) 15. 2B, Garrett Benson, Concordia, MO (8) 16. 23, Devon Dobie, Wapakoneta, OH (10) 17. 31, McCain Richards, Burlington, IA (17) 18. 88, Riley Scott, Quincy, IL (24) 19. 1A, John Anderson, Des Moines, IA (27) 20. 15JR, Cole Mincer, Burlington, IA (25) 21. 33, Alan Zoutte, Knoxville, IA (19) 22. 7w, Alex Vande Voort, Knoxville, IA (3) 23. 11, Colton Fisher, Danville, IA (7) 24. 11x, Jaden Alexander, Knoxville, IA (21) 25. 7B, Nick Guernsey, Burlington, IA (26) 26. 4x, Chase Richards, Burlington, IA (20) 27. 49, Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA (6).
