August 3
Merritt Speedway,
Lake City, MI
Sanction: American Ethanol Late Model Tour (DIRTcar) (Wood Tic Dan Salay Memorial) - $10,000
Information provided by: Series and track reports (last updated August 4, 1:08 pm)
Schlenk dominates Wood Tic, collects $10,000
Wood Tic Dan Salay Memorial
- Rusty Schlenk
- Chad Finley
- Dona Marcoullier
- Nick Kurtz
- David Mielke
- Travis Stemler
- Kyle Roberts
- Brandon Thirlby
- Eric Spangler
- Rich Bell
- Matt Shipley
- Logan Arntz
- Kyle Novak
- Greg Gokey
- Chris Brindley
- Dave Baker
- Steven Hilliker
- Mike Vandermark
- Colin Shipley
- J.C. Witherspoon
- Brett Miller
- Cody Bauer
- Mike Staszak
- Jesse Playter
- Brad Harden
- Isaac Wolfgang
presented by
Jim DenHamer
Rusty Schlenk celebrates in victory lane at Merritt Speedway.
What won the race: Michigan native Rusty Schlenk, now racing out of McClure, Ohio, dominated all 74 laps Saturday at Merritt Speedway for a $10,000 American Ethanol Late Model Tour victory in the Wood Tic Dan Salay Memorial. Schlenk took the checkers 9.048 seconds ahead of runner-up Chad Finley.
Key notes: Schlenk, who has seven career series victories, built a six-second lead after 50 laps and continued building on it. ... The $10,000 winner's check matched Schlenk's career-high total; he previously collected $10,000 in Oakshade Raceway's Birthday Race on July 17, 2010. ... The race ran caution-free, wrapping up about 10:55 p.m. ... Schlenk lapped all but 11 competitors. ... Schlenk's previous series victory came July 27, 2018, at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. ... Schlenk and Brandon Thirlby won Saturday's 25-lap odd-even prelims. ... Merritt blended the 31st edition of the Wood Tic with the Dan Salay Memorial for a two-day, $10,000-to-win event sanctioned by the American Ethanol Late Model Tour. ... David Mielke of Gladwin, Mich., remains the tour's lone repeat winner. ... The Salay Memorial honors the former racer, longtime Brandon Thirlby crew member and father of Thirlby’s girlfriend Leah Salay, who died in 2017 after a short bout with cancer.
Winner's sponsors: Schlenk’s C.J. Rayburn Race Car is powered by an ECR Engine and sponsored by Buckeye Concrete Coatings, Tom Finch Automotive, Dominator Race Products, Velocita USA, Landrum Performance Springs, VP Racing Fuel, Vahlco Racing Wheels, Wilwood and CP-Carrillo.
Points chase: Entering the weekend, Brandon Thirlby (632 points) of Traverse City, Mich., led Travis Stemler (590), Logan Arntz (575), Rich Bell (531) and Eric Spangler (430).
Current weather: Clear, 70°F
Car count: 38
Fast qualifier: Travis Stemler
Time: 14.337 seconds
Dash winner: Rusty Schlenk
Heat race winners: Dona Marcoullier, Brandon Thirlby, Eric Spangler, Nick Kurtz
Consolation race winners: Mike Vandermark, Greg Gokey
Next series race: August 30, Farmer City Raceway (Farmer City, IL) $5,000
Editor's note: Results and race details are unofficial.
