Jim DenHamer photo
ERIE, MI (September 1, 2018) –Chad Blonde (Litchfield, Michigan) picked up his third 2018 King Engine Bearings King of Michigan win at Hartford Speedway Friday and wrapped up the 2018 KoM Championship with an exciting 0.177 second win over Ryan Ruhl (Coldwater, Michigan).
The SOD Kids Feature Draw put Shawn Valenti (Fostoria, Ohio) and Mark Aldrich (Addison, Michigan) on the front row for the feature with Blonde, the current SOD point leader, starting sixth. Before a lap could be completed, Michael Schumacher (Constantine, Michigan) brought out the red with a turn three crash. Blonde charged into the lead on lap 2 while fifth starter Ruhl took second on lap four. Ruhl did everything he could to reel in the leader, but Blonde was strong, holding onto a narrow lead as they weaved through lapped traffic and held on to win by less than two-tenths of a second. Both Blonde and Ruhl utilized Krieger Racing Engines powered Maxims.
Zane DeVault (Plymouth, Indiana) led all qualifiers after returning to SOD competition. DeVault picked up his first SOD victory on April 28 at Crystal Motor Speedway before sitting out most of the season due to an injury. For the third time in 2018, Quentin Blonde (Litchfield, Michigan) was the KSE Hard Charger with +7.
As 2018 King Engine Bearings King of Michigan, Blonde will received $1,000 at the Sprints On Dirt Awards Banquet on October 27. Also collecting part of the point fund will be Shawn Valenti, Jay Steinebach, Dustin Shriver, and Ricky Ferkel.
Qualifying – Lane Automotive/MSD Ignition Fast Masters (fast qualifiers) $50 each
| Group | Time | # | Driver |
| RockAuto.com Heat | 14.795 | 7Z | Zane DeVault |
| COMP Cams Heat | 15.434 | 7 | Shawn Valenti |
Heat Races
| RockAuto.com Heat #1 | |||
| # | Driver | Contingency | |
| 1 | 5b | Chad Blonde | |
| 2 | 7Z | Zane DeVault | |
| 3 | 7J | Joe Swanson | Benic Enterprises |
| 4 | 70 | Eli Lakin | Racing Optics |
| 5 | 3 | Dustin Shriver | |
| 6 | 46 | Robert Huisken | |
| 7 | 8 | Justin Ward | |
| 8 | 10J | Chris Jones | |
| DNS | 27B | Boston Mead | |
| COMP Cams Heat #2 | |||
| # | Driver | Contingency | |
| 1 | 71H | Ryan Ruhl | |
| 2 | 7 | Shawn Valenti | |
| 3 | 1a | Mark Aldrich | Benic Enterprises |
| 4 | 10s | Jay Steinebach | Racing Optics |
| 5 | 5QB | Quentin Blonde | |
| 6 | 24+ | Michael Schumacher | |
| 7 | 35 | Josh Ward | |
| 8 | 3G | John Gurley | |
| 9 | 33 | Jeremy Ferguson | |
| 10 | 0 | Ricky Ferkel | |
Feature
| # | Driver | Awards | Contingencies | |
| 1 | 5b | Chad Blonde | Rod End Supply | |
| 2 | 71H | Ryan Ruhl | Jim Coffey & Son | Rod End Supply |
| 3 | 5QB | Quentin Blonde | Rod End Supply | |
| 4 | 7Z | Zane DeVault | Schoenfeld Headers | |
| 5 | 10s | Jay Steinebach | ATL Racing Fuel Cells | |
| 6 | 7 | Shawn Valenti | Allstar Performance | |
| 7 | 1a | Mark Aldrich | ||
| 8 | 70 | Eli Lakin | ||
| 9 | 3 | Dustin Shriver | King Racing Products | |
| 10 | 46 | Robert Huisken | ||
| 11 | 10J | Chris Jones | ||
| 12 | 3G | John Gurley | Keizer Aluminum Wheels | |
| 13 | 35 | Josh Ward | ||
| 14 | 7J | Joe Swanson | ||
| 15 | 33 | Jeremy Ferguson | ||
| 16 | 8 | Justin Ward | ||
| 17 | 0 | Ricky Ferkel | ||
| 18 | 24+ | Michael Schumacher | ||
| DNS | 27B | Boston Mead |
KSE Racing Products Hard Charger – Quentin Blonde (+7)
BR Motorsports Contingency (feature top 10 draw) – Mark Aldrich
DMI (Diversified Machine) Contingency (feature 12-16 draw) – Joe Swanson
Perfit Corporation Lucky Dog – Mark Aldrich
Allstar Performance Better Luck Next Time – Michael Schumacher
For more information about Engine Pro go to www.enginepro.com. For more information about ARP, go to www.arp-bolts.com. The full 2017 Sprints on Dirt schedule, rules, current news, and other information are available at www.sprintsondirt.com.
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