ATTICA, Ohio – A week ago Rusty Schlenk crashed while leading at another track, bending his late model frame.
His crew went to work this week and the results was spectacular Friday, May 24 at Attica Raceway Park on Venture Visionary Partners/Norwalk Concrete/Etna Supply/RPM Performance Parts Night.
The McClure, Ohio, driver took the lead at Attica Friday on lap four of the Valvoline American Late Model Iron Man Series first series race, and dominated for the $5,000 pay day.
Schlenk lapped up to the sixth-place car in the feature and had a nearly seven second lead when he took the checkers for his 41st career win at Attica. The victory in the non-stop 40-lap feature is the third on the season for Schlenk at Attica with Kyle Moore edging out Seth Daniels for second and Ryan Missler and Rod Conley rounding out the top five.
“Man I was nervous all week long. I had a half-track lead on everybody last week at Oakshade and a lapped car spun out in front of me and I hit him wide open and bent the front clip and I’ve been nervous ever since. I didn’t know if this thing would go around the race track again but I think it goes around even better,” said Schlenk.
Indiana driver Cale Thomas led all 30 laps of the Callie’s Performance Products 410 Sprints feature for his first win of the year at Attica in a race that saw only one caution. Thomas, who leads the track’s points, made some great moves, particularly coming off the top side of the track early then patiently picking through traffic for his third career win at Attica, holding off a charging Jordan Ryan, Trey Jacobs (from 11th), Stuart Brubaker and Tyler Gunn.
“I ran the top because I thought the cushion was pretty good. I kept seeing someone out of the corner of my eye and I know how you are supposed to get around the top here and I just didn’t feel very good so I decided just to make them go around me. I could tell just how the moisture was coming back on the bottom and if you got out of it it was very slick. I just had to stay in position behind the lapped cars and just pounce on them whenever they make a mistake. I feel like I’ve good have had a couple of these here by now….finally got one,” said Thomas.
Dustin Stroup had quite the night at Attica Raceway Park. After crashing the previous Saturday at Fremont, Stroup’s crew put together a car they call “Faith,” and faith took Stroup to victory lane twice in one night.
Stroup took the lead from Jimmy McGrath on lap six and drove to the win in the make-up Fremont Fence 305 Sprint feature from May 3 over Seth Schneider, Jamie Miller, McGrath and John Ivy. In the night’s regular 305 sprint feature Brenden Torok led the first seven laps before Miller took over. Stroup drove into the lead on lap 12 and pulled away for his second win of the night and the seventh of his career at Attica with Miller, Bryan Sebetto, Schneider and Torok rounding out the top five.
The finish:
Feature (40 laps): 1. 91-Rusty Schlenk[3] ; 2. 1*-Kyle Moore[1] ; 3. S21-Seth Daniels[5] ; 4. 50-Ryan Missler[2] ; 5. 71R-Rod Conley[4] ; 6. 51-Devin Shiels[17] ; 7. 92-Justin Chance[13] ; 8. 1N-Casey Noonan[8] ; 9. 03-Gregg Haskell[16] ; 10. 71C-RJ Conley[7] ; 11. 1-Shane Bailey[21] ; 12. 8-Rob Anderzack[15] ; 13. 75-Dusty Moore[19] ; 14. 20W-Justin White[10] ; 15. 5M-Ryan Markham[12] ; 16. 74-Jeff Warnick[22] ; 17. 33AJ-Austin Lay[20] ; 18. 94-Mike Bores[14] ; 19. 10-Nathon Loney[6] ; 20. 14JR-JR Gentry[9] ; 21. 9P-Jeff Babcock[18] ; 22. C8-Cole Perine[11] ; 23. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[23]