Dirt on Dirt - Feger rides Kankakee's top side to collect $5,000

June 11

Kankakee County Speedway,

Kankakee, IL

Sanction: DIRTcar Summer Nationals - $5,000

Information provided by: Todd Turner, series and track reports (last updated June 12, 12:07 pm)

Feger rides Kankakee's top side to collect $5,000

Jason Feger
Dillon McCowan
Brian Shirley
Mark Whitener
Frank Heckenast Jr.
Billy Moyer
Braiden Keller
Drake Troutman
Kyle Bronson
Trey Mills
Dennis Erb Jr.
Shannon Babb
Joseph Joiner
Tyler Millwood
Brenden Smith
Tyler Erb
Rusty Griffaw
Clay Stuckey
Chase Osterhoff
Oakley Johns
Christian Hanger
Paul Parker

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Jason Feger's team celebrates at Kankakee County Speedway.

What won the race: Second-starting Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., overcame a few mid-race restarts to lead all 30 laps en route to a dominant victory in Wednesday night's 30-lap DIRTcar Summer Nationals main event at Kankakee County Speedway. Feger beat Dillon McCowan to the checkers by 2.259 seconds for the $5,000 payday and his first Summer Nationals triumph since last July 18's season finale at Sycamore Speedway in Maple Park, Ill.

Quotable: “Well it’s been a rough start to the year for us, but I feel like we’ve been working really hard and getting better and better. It feels good to get a win with Summer Nationals early on the tour, second night, I mean that takes that pressure off, so now we can just focus on racing,” Feger said. “It ended up being a pretty good race. I felt like there early I could maneuver really well, top, bottom, middle and towards the end though, it definitely started getting where you had to be up top.”

Key notes: Feger notched his 31st career DIRTcar Summer Nationals victory and his first Kankakee triumph since a $5,000 MARS payday on May 19, 2023. ... It's his fifth overall victory of the season. ... Polesitter Dillon McCowan inherited second when Tyler Millwood spun on a lap-15 restart attempt, but never truly challenged Feger during the race's second half. ... The fourth-starting Millwood, of Kingston, Ga., appeared to avoid contact with Feger on the lap-15 restart and over-rotated, spinning at the turn-one entrance; Millwood restarted 18th after the entire field avoided him, but could only rebound to finish 14th. ... Brian Shirley inherited third on the lap-15 restart and rounded out the podium finishers. ... Mark Whitener slipped by Frank Heckenast Jr. for fourth on lap 27, relegating Heckenast to fifth. ... Twelfth-starting Billy Moyer, winner of Tuesday's $5,000 season opener at Brownstown (Ill.) Bullring, worked his way as high as fourth by lap 17 before fading to sixth at the checkers. ... Tyler Erb challenged Drake Troutman for seventh before spinning at the entrance of turn one on lap 21, drawing the third and final caution. He soldiered to a 16th-place finish in the final rundown. ... The opening stoppage came on lap 15 when Christian Hanger ripped his spoiler off on the turn-four retaining wall, then retired. ... Paul Parker was the race's first retiree when he pulled off on the sixth lap. ... The 30-lapper lasted 16 minutes, with 17 starters completing the distance. ... Michael Leach lost a motor before he could complete a lap in time trials and scratched for the night. His team intends to swap the engine before Thursday's racing action at Peoria (Ill.) Speedway.

On the move: Mark Whitener of Middleburg, Fla., started 13th and finished fourth.

Winner's sponsors: Feger’s Longhorn Chassis has a Clements Racing Engine with sponsorship from Titan Industries, SC Online Sales, Hoker Trucking, The Big Cheese MM, Out-Pace Racing Products, CorrosionX, Multi Fire Wires, RemTek Enterprises, RLM Enterprises, Cheap Cars, FK Rod Ends, Keyser Manufacturing, Speedwerx, Go Lithium Battery, Bilstein Shocks, Schaeffer’s Racing Oil, Wehrs Machine, VP Racing Fuels, Griffin Sign Shop and Limelight Graphics.

Points chase: After Kankakee: 1. Billy Moyer (135); 2. Jason Feger (131); 3. Dillon McCowan (122); 4. Shannon Babb (114); 5. Drake Troutman (106).

Current weather: Clear, 77°F

Car count: 40

Fast qualifier: Drake Troutman

Time: 15.015 seconds

Polesitter: Dillon McCowan

Heat race winners: Brian Shirley, Dillon McCowan, Tyler Millwood, Jason Feger

Consolation race winners: Josh Boller, Shannon Babb

Provisional starters: Clay Stuckey, Rusty Griffaw, Paul Parker, Christian Hanger

Next series race: June 12, Peoria Speedway (Peoria, IL) $5,000

Editor's note: Corrects Feger's sponsor list.

From staff reports

KANKAKEE, Ill. — Updates from Wednesday’s second round of the DIRTcar Summer Nationals at Kankakee County Speedway, an event highlighted by a 30-lap, $5,000-to-win feature for DIRTcar Super Late Models (results unofficial):

Feature

Second-starting Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., overcame a couple of mid-race restarts to lead all 30 laps en route to a dominant victory in Wednesday night's 30-lap DIRTcar Summer Nationals main event at Kankakee County Speedway. Feger beat Dillon McCowan to the checkers by 2.259 seconds for the $5,000 payday and his first Summer Nationals triumph since last July 18's season finale at Sycamore Speedway in Maple Park, Ill.

Feature lineup

(30 laps)

Row 1: Dillon McCowan, Jason Feger
Row 2: Brian Shirley, Tyler Millwood
Row 3: Kyle Bronson, Chase Osterhoff
Row 4: Trey Mills, Frank Heckenast Jr.
Row 5: Drake Troutman, Braiden Keller
Row 6: Tyler Erb, Billy Moyer
Row 7: Mark Whitener, Oakley Johns
Row 8: Joseph Joiner, Brenden Smith
Row 9: Shannon Babb, Dennis Erb Jr.
Row 10: Clay Stuckey, Rusty Griffaw
Row 11: Paul Parker, Christian Hanger

Consolation race results

(10 laps; top two transfer)

B-main finish: Shannon Babb, Dennis Erb Jr., Paul Parker, Brody Smith, Matthew Larson, Lyle Zanker, A.J. Cooley, Jacob Kolwyck, Eli Johnson, Mike Lofgren, Chuck Southard, Clay Stuckey, Josh Boller, Carson Brown, Kevin Weaver, Mike Provenzano.

(Eight laps; top four transfer)

C-main finish: Josh Boller, Chuck Southard, Mike Lofgren, A.J. Cooley, Rusty Griffaw, Chistian Hanger, Dan DeYoung. Scratched: Thomas Hunziker, Chad Finley, Michael Leach, Jackson Hise, Austin Howes.

Heat race recap

Third-starting Brian Shirley took control from Drake Troutman and led the final seven laps to win the first heat race by 1.884 seconds over fourth-starting Kyle Bronson. Troutman held on for third after leading the opening lap, with fifth-starting Mark Whitener grabbing the fourth and final transfer spot into Wednesday’s 30-lap feature. … Dillon McCowan led all eight laps to win the second heat by 1.197 seconds over third-starting Trey Mills. Tyler Erb held on for second, with fifth-starting Joseph Joiner rounding out the top-four finishers. … Tyler Millwood controlled all eight laps from the pole to win the third heat by 3.971 seconds over third-starting Chase Osterhoff. Braiden Keller started and finished third, while fifth-starting Oakley Johns finished fourth, earning the fourth transfer position into the $5,000-to-win Summer Nationals second round. The race’s lone caution came on the opening lap when Mike Provenzano and Jackson Hise tangled at the entrance to turn one; Hise retired, while Provenzano continued to finish seventh. … Jason Feger overcame an early restart en route to a flag-to-flag victory in the fourth and final heat race, winning by 1.849 seconds over Frank Heckenast Jr. Billy Moyer, winner of Tuesday’s $5,000 season opener at Brownstown (Ill.) Bullring, finished third, while sixth-starting Brenden Smith completed the top four. Austin Howes finished 10th after slowing for the race’s lone stoppage on the fourth lap.

Heat results

(Eight laps; top four transfer)

First heat: Brian Shirley, Kyle Bronson, Drake Troutman, Mark Whitener, Shannon Babb, Matthew Larson, Lyle Zanker, Chuck Southard, Chad Finley, Dan DeYoung.

Second heat: Dillon McCowan, Trey Mills, Tyler Erb, Joseph Joiner, Paul Parker, Eli Johnson, Jacob Kolwyck, A.J. Cooley, Mike Lofgren. Scratched: Michael Leach.

Third heat: Tyler Millwood, Chase Osterhoff, Braiden Keller, Oakley Johns, Dennis Erb Jr., Carson Brown, Mike Provenzano, Josh Boller, Christian Hanger, Jackson Hise.

Fourth heat: Jason Feger, Frank Heckenast Jr., Billy Moyer, Brenden Smith, Brody Smith, Kevin Weaver, Clay Stuckey, Thomas Hunziker, Rusty Griffaw, Austin Howes.

Time trials

Group A
Driver (car no.), hometown, time (unofficial)
1. Drake Troutman (22*) Hyndman, Pa., 15.015
2. Dillon McCowan (75), Urbana, Mo., 15.019
3. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., 15.081
4. Tyler Erb (1), New Waverly, Texas, 15.194
5. Brian Shirley (3s), Chatham, Ill., 15.201
6. Trey Mills (14jr), St. Augustine, Fla., 15.217
7. Kyle Bronson (40B), Brandon, Fla., 15.229
8. Paul Parker (10), Kaukauna, Wis., 15.369
9. Mark Whitener (5), Middleburg, Fla., 15.663
10. Joseph Joiner (10), Milton, Fla., 15.672
11. Matthew Larson (8), Lake Elmo, Minn., 15.811
12. Eli Johnson (55), Clewiston, Fla., 16.013
13. Chad Finley (42), St. Johns, Mich., 16.110
14. Jacob Kolwyck (21k), Griffith, Ind., 16.512
15. Lyle Zanker (9), Rockford, Ill., 16.543
16. Mike Lofgren (55x), Lombard, Ill., 16.615
17. Chuck Southard (108), Franklin, N.C., 16.890
18. A.J. Cooley (14), Monticello, Ind., 17.046
19. Dan DeYoung (74), Hobart, Ind., 17.974
20. Michael Leach (09), Sun River, Mont., no time
Group B
1. Tyler Millwood (31), Kingston, Ga., 15.418
2. Jason Feger (25F), Bloomington, Ill., 15.526
3. Braiden Keller (k67), West Lebanon, Ind., 15.627
4. Frank Heckenast Jr. (99jr), Frankfort, Ill., 15.635
5. Chase Osterhoff (130), Kankakee, Ill., 15.825
6. Kevin Weaver (B12), Gibson City, Ill., 15.830
7. Carson Brown (28B), New London, N.C., 15.835
8. Billy Moyer (21), Batesville, Ark., 15.859
9. Oakley Johns (c6), Hohenwald, Tenn., 15.900
10. Clay Stuckey (15), Shreveport, La.., 15.916
11. Christian Hanger (29), Winchester, Tenn., 15.944
12. Brenden Smith (17ss), Dade City, Fla., 15.980
13. Dennis Erb Jr. (28), Carpentersville, Ill., 16.008
14. Rusty Griffaw (16), Festus, Mo., 16.093
15. Mike Provenzano (m27), Marseilles, Ill., 16.151
16. Thomas Hunziker (38), Bend, Ore., 16.166
17. Jackson Hise (388), Ocala, Fla., 16.178
18. Brody Smith (17sr), Dade City, Fla., 16.400
19. Josh Boller (05B), Greencastle, Ind., 16.418
20. Austin Howes (17A), Lewistown, Mo., 16.716

Wednesday’s schedule

(All times local)
4 p.m. - Pits open
5 p.m. - Grandstands open
6:15 p.m. - On-track activity
- Late Model hot laps
- Modified group qualifying
- Late Model time trials (2 laps)
- 604 Crate group qualifying
- Pro mod group qualifying
- Stock car group qualifying
Opening ceremonies
- Modified heats (8 laps)
- Late Model heats (8 laps)
- 604 Crate heats (8 laps)
- Pro mod heats (8 laps)
- Stock car heats (8 laps)
- Late Model C-main (8 laps)
- Modified consolation (8 laps)
- Late Model B-main (10 laps)
Intermission/track prep
- Modified feature (25 laps)
- Late Model feature (30 laps)
- 604 Crate feature (20 laps)
- Pro mod feature (20 laps)
- Stock car feature (15 laps)