It is only fitting that the drivers and crews of the CORR EXXON Superflo Series had to work a little harder during Rounds 11 and 12. After all, Labor Day is September 4. The drivers of the EXXON Superflo Series battled each other as well as Mother Nature during each round. Fortunately, even the racing gods wanted to see the action from the Crandon International Off-Road Raceway, while the rain held off and the sun began to shine in Round 12.
The Sportsman series concluded following Round 12, crowning five champions in the Light Buggy, Single Buggy, Super Buggy, Sportsman Stock, and Sportsman Two divisions. The only division that was clinched prior to Round 12 was Sportsman Two. Tommy Bradley, dominating throughout Tour 2000, won an unprecedented 9 out of 12 races. Gary Behrens (Light Buggy), Steven Federico (Single Buggy), Chad Hord (Super Buggy), and Jerry Edgerton (Stock), rounded out the Champions in the Sportsman Divisions.
The Pro Divisions had six races remaining following Round 12, with Jeff Kincaid dominating the Pro-Lite Division. Scott Taylor took First Place away from Evans who was following Round 12. Taylor had 177 points, followed closely by Evans' 174. In Pro-4, Rob MacCachren continued to hold the lead over Rod Millen and Curt LeDuc.
In Pro-4 action, Round 11 featured a battle between the top three drivers: Rob MacCachren, Rod Millen, and Curt LeDuc. Millen's Toyota Tundra grabbed the early lead followed by the Rancho Ford of Scott Douglas and the Trail Master Ford of Rob MacCachren.
After the second lap, Millen held the lead and MacCachren overtook Douglas for Second Place. That began one of the most exciting battles in a Pro-4 race this season. MacCachren continued to nudge closer to Millen and waited for his chance to attempt a pass.
MacCachren actually lost a little ground when he got caught in lapped traffic, but his truck quickly caught up with Millen. On the last lap, MacCachren made a daring pass to take First Place and claim his sixth victory in Tour 2000. Millen finished Second and LeDuc Third.
In Round 12, Millen and Douglas again jumped in front of the group from the land-rush start. Millen and his Toyota Tundra did not let up while he swiftly moved through each turn and accelerated through the fast straightaways. He was able to push himself all the way to the end, claiming victory. Prior to Round 12, Millen and LeDuc were tied for second with 164 points. Following his fifth victory in Tour 2000, Millen took sole possession of Second Place in the point standings. MacCachren finished second in Round 12 and held a 19-point lead over Millen - 203 to 184.
MacCachren capped off the weekend with his second consecutive Borg-Warner Trophy. The 10-lap non-points race featured a contest between the Pro-4, Pro-2, and Sportsman Two trucks. Scott Douglas led throughout most of the race, but he began to slow with two laps to go, and MacCachren took the lead.
The top three drivers coincidently finished in the top three in Round 11 of the Pro-2 division. The EXXON Superflo Ford of Scott Taylor took the checker flag for the first time since Round 6. The Star Craft Mobility Chevy of Evan Evans finished second, and the Lucas Oil Chevy of Carl Renezeder finished third.
Round 12 again featured a strong start from Evans and Taylor. Evans was holding him off for the first three laps before a rock broke the yoke on the chevy's transmission. Taylor extended his lead over the rest of the pack and held off the Chevy of Dan Vanden Heuvel. Taylor's sweep in Rounds 11-12 helped him overtake First Place in the point standings over Evans. Evans was now three points behind Taylor.
The Pro-Lite division was a great race for Jason Crowder in Round 11, but there was disappointment in the end. In his bright-green Wicked Willys Ford, Crowder claimed the start, followed by points leader and Crandon native Jeff Kincaid driving the Forest County Potawatomi Toyota. Kincaid edged closer to Crowder, who was vying for his second victory in Tour 2000.
With less than two laps to go, Kincaid spun out in loose dirt around a turn, propelling Crowder to a larger lead. Then there was the disappointment. On the final lap, with one jump and one turn to go, the motor cut off. As he attempted to start the truck again, it caught on fire, ending his day.
The crowd rose to their feet when Crandon's own Jeff Kincaid claimed his eighth win, increasing his lead over Chris Brandt. J.R. Wheeler, in his Indy Expediting Ford Ranger, had his best finish in 2000, placing third. The results following Round 12 were identical to the Round 11 results.
In Round 12, however, Kincaid took the early lead from Crowder and held it the whole race. Wheeler had his second consecutive Third Place finish. Kincaid is building on his second winning streak in Tour 2000. He has now won 9 out of the 12 rounds and is currently on a four-race win streak. Kincaid has 204 points for Tour 2000, followed by Chris Brandt (159) and Art Schmitt (146).
In Sportsman Two, Tommy Bradley swept Rounds 11 and 12. Even though Bradley had already won the championship, each racer drove as if they were in contention for the championship. George Schultz finished second in Tour 2000 with 154 points, only three points ahead of Third Place finisher, Mike Oberg.
In Sportsman Stock, the top three drivers were in contention heading into the final round of the season. Keith Steele held a slim 1-point lead over Mark Kleiman, and 9 points ahead of Jerry Edgerton. With a Second Place finish in Round 11, Edgerton had to win Round 12 to have a slight chance to win the championship. All Steele had to do was finish in the top five to secure the championship. He did that for much of the race, but after fire erupted in his truck, he dropped to ninth in Round 12. Edgerton did what he had to do by winning the race. He finished the championship with 141 points. Steele and Kleiman tied for second in Tour 2000, four points behind Edgerton.
In the Single Buggy division, the battle for the championship in Round 12 featured Steven Federico versus Michael Seefeldt. In Round 11, Federico finished second, and Seefeldt fell back to ninth. At the end of the day, Federico led 168 to 162. In the twelfth round, Federico and Seefeldt moved to the front of the field. Federico maintained Third Place, making sure he did not do anything to jeopardize his position. Seefeldt put the pressure on Federico by taking the lead and eventually winning the race, but Federico finished right behind him, taking the championship by 2 points: 184 to 182. Mark Steinhardt finished third in tour 2000 with 147 points.
In the Super Buggy division, Chad Hord held a 17-point lead following Round 11 with a Second Place finish. Larry Gourlie took his third victory in that round, and was hoping that in some way he could overtake Hord for the championship. Gourlie could not quite win, but finished second in Round 12 and had 153 points for Tour 2000. Hord placed fifth in Round 12 and finished with 165 points. Todd Wallace won in Round 12 and finished third in the final point standings with 150 points.
The Light Buggy division had a similar scenario to the Super Buggy and Single Buggy divisions because Gary Behrens had 111 points going into the final round with Greg Stingle only four points behind. Behrens allowed Stingle to get close by finishing eleventh in Round 11 while Stingle placed sixth. Behrens finished sixth in Round 12 and Stingle placed eleventh. Behrens clinched the championship with 121 points. Stingle had 112 points, and Ben Andrews finished third in the championship points with 95.
At this point, the Pro Divisions of the CORR EXXON Superflo Series had six rounds remaining in Tour 2000. The next stop was the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. For ticket information, contact: (317) 236-6515.
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