Edwards takes MW Mods: Rodin wheels to Bomber victory

• Bomber Heat Race

Marion’s Cory Rodin (22) battles Enderlin’s Tyler Pfaff (11) during a Bomber heat race at Jamestown Speedway on Saturday. Rodin won this week’s Bomber feature, after Pfaff won last week’s 15-lap main event. (Michael Savaloja / The Sun)

Talk about it

With all the variables that can come into play over 20 laps of green-flag racing, getting what a driver wishes can be a pretty tall order.

But that’s the thing about luck. When it’s your night, it’s your night.

Eric “The Kid” Edwards led every lap of the WISSOTA Midwest Modified A-Main from the outside pole at Jamestown Speedway on Saturday night, as the race stayed green throughout and Edwards got his wish.

“It was nice. I basically told my buddy Steve Ost over here before the race, if I could get a jump to the lead and if we go flag-to-flag I said, ‘I got it in the bag,’” Edwards said. “It seems like usually when the caution comes out then I’m in trouble or whatever, but as long as we kept green the whole time I figured I’d have a pretty good shot at it.”

From the high side, Edwards was able to hold off Jamestown’s Jeremy Forester who was looking low for the lead early, and with eight laps left Edwards held off another attack brought on by Valley City’s Greg Friestad as the pair finished 1-2.

Edwards had moved to the middle and Friestad was able to peak his nose under Edwards a couple of times, but Edwards stayed smooth and essentially ran a perfect race.

“I never seen him, never heard and never thought anything, I guess,” Edwards said of Friestad. “I started on the high side and basically stayed there. As the race went on I kept on moving down and down and down. It seemed like it hooked up better the farther I kept going down and about the middle of the track was the hot spot.”

Forester took third, as Lyn Lamb finished fourth and Rusty Kollman brought home fifth. Jim Morlock came from 12th to take sixth, while Preston Carr motored from second-to-last (18th) to capture seventh.

It’s been a little while since Edwards — who drives both a B-Mod and an A-Mod — last visited the winner’s stage at Jamestown. But the Edgeley, N.D. native’s victory was no shocker.

In his eighth year driving a B-Mod, Edwards is competitive week-in and week-out at Jamestown Speedway.

“It’s pretty tough competition. On a given night you’ve got 30 to 40 midwest mods here, so it’s one thing just to make the feature and it’s another to win it,” Edwards said. “I think this is my third win in Jamestown in eight years. It doesn’t happen very often for me so I appreciate every chance I get.”

Bombers

The same car Lucas Rodin of Fullerton, N.D. wheeled to victory at the 2010 Jamestown Speedway Stock Car Stampede was back in the winner’s circle on Saturday night.

But a new paint scheme, a change in number and a different member of the Rodin family rode with it.

Marion’s Cory Rodin — Lucas’s cousin — threaded his way from the eighth starting position and held off Carrington’s Chris Gussiaas over a green-white-checker finish in the 15-lap Bomber feature. Rodin bested a field of 22 cars to roll to his second career victory at Jamestown Speedway.

“I did my best to try and get up there, and once I did thank God I got a couple of cautions,” Rodin said. “I made my move, the car stuck and I got it.”

Rodin’s car was fast up top as he picked his way through the top five early. A total of five cautions flags were displayed throughout.

After two yellows and one lap in the books Rodin had moved up to fifth, and he went on to pass Jamestown’s Bryan Wolf and Keith Striefel on the second restart to move into third after just two completed laps.

Wolf’s night came to an end when he flipped his car on its driver’s side in turn No. 4 with two laps to go. He walked away and was scored 16th.

Gussiaas started on the outside pole and was being followed by fourth-place starter Brent Vetter in second during the early going. Rodin overtook Vetter for second on the high side after the race’s third restart with nine circuits remaining.

Rodin then went to work on Gussiaas, and he was able to get under Gussiaas and lead back to the line as they crossed side-by-side when the race’s final yellow waved for the altercation that ended Wolf’s night.

Rodin was now the leader, and he pulled away over the green-white-checker finish to win it.

“Before that caution I saw that Gussiaas was right beside me,” Rodin said. “We got that caution, they gave me the lead and it put him behind me. The car was pushing a little bit but I made it work there.”

Gussiaas finished second, Vetter captured third, Enderlin’s Tyler Pfaff took fourth and Wimbledon’s Devin Christ rolled home fifth.

Next Saturday is High School Graduates Night at Jamestown Speedway. Graduation seniors can bring their grad announcements and be admitted free.

Jamestown Speedway

Saturday

Results

WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds

Feature: 1, Eric Edwards; 2, Greg Friestad; 3, Jeremy Forester; 4, Lyn Lamb; 5, Rusty Kollman; 6, Jim Morlock; 7, Preston Carr; 8, Kelly Hagel; 9, Tony Konold; 10, Landon Becker; 11, Scott Bintz; 12, Lucas Rodin; 13, Ryan Lehr; 14, Brandon Gussiaas; 15, Troy Nelson; 16, Darren Pfau; 17, Travis Aljets; 18, Tyler Schrenk; 19, Brad Sheridan; 20, Bob Sagen.

Consi: 1, Nelson; 2, Carr; 3, Aljets; 4, Schrenk; 5, Jay Sahr; 6, John Clemens; 7, Shannon Schlenker; 8, Andee Beierle; 9, Andy Kapp; 10, Steve Ost; 11, Terry Sahr; 12, Jason Thoms.

Heat 1: 1, Kollman; 2, Lamb; 3, Rodin; 4, Sagen; 5, Carr; 6, Kapp; 7, Schlenker.

Heat 2: 1, Forester; 2, Becker; 3, Lehr; 4, Gussiaas; 5, Nelson; 6, Beierle; 7, J. Sahr.

Heat 3: 1, Edwards; 2, Hagel; 3, Konold; 4, Sheridan; 5, Ost; 6, Clemens; 7, T. Sahr.

Heat 4: 1, Friestad; 2, Bintz; 3, Morlock; 4, Pfau; 5, Aljets; 6, Schrenk; 7, Thoms.

Bombers

Feature: 1, Cory Rodin; 2, Chris Gussiaas; 3, Brent Vetter; 4, Tyler Pfaff; 5, Devin Christ; 6, Keith Striefel; 7, Tyler Hintz; 8, Leann Christensen; 9, Justin Schempp; 10, Kyle Anderson; 11, Dusty Hinrichs; 12, Taran Langland; 13, Jamie Moulsoff; 14, Jon Perkins; 15, Scott Miller; 16, Bryan Wolf; 17, Dale Wampler; 18, Matthew Kropp; 19, Brandon Moser; 20, Keith Kinzler; 21, Dalton Polries; 22, Steven Nicholson.

Heat 1: 1, Gussiaas; 2, Wampler; 3, Striefel; 4, Perkins; 5, Hinrichs; 6, Moulsoff; 7, Anthony Clark; 8, Tyler Schlenker.

Heat 2: 1, Pfaff; 2, Rodin; 3, Langland; 4, Miller; 5, Anderson; 6, Kinzler; 7, Nicholson; 8, Schempp.

Heat 3: 1, Vetter; 2, Wolf; 3, Christ; 4, Polries; 5, Hintz; 6, Christensen; 7, Kropp; 8, Moser.

Hornets

Feature: 1, Andrew Michel; 2, Alex Kelstrom; 3, Aaron Michel; 4, Dylan Wiesz; 5, Merle Stoppleworth; 6, Brandon Michel; 7, Colten Laber; 8, Matt Mcpherson; 9, Sam Gray.

Sun sports writer Michael Savaloja can be reached at (701) 952-8461 or by email at mikes@jamestownsun.com

Tags: auto racing, sports, racing