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KIMMEL CONQUERS SALEM

SALEM, IN, – With a record ARCA/Salem crowd squarely in his corner, hometown hero Frank Kimmel gave the locals exactly what they came to see – a convincing win on the home turf.

Kimmel, of nearby Jeffersonville, Indiana, turned back one final charge from Tim Steele to win the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 Sunday afternoon at Salem Speedway earning his 24th career ARCA RE/MAX Series victory, and fourth overall on the renowned half-mile, high-banked oval.

“It’s so great to do it in front of the hometown fans,” Kimmel said in victory lane. “The car was perfect; I could put it wherever I needed to, and that’s critical here at Salem because you’re constantly dealing with traffic. Tim (Steele) drove me real clean and was strong all day but what can you say; the Advance Auto Parts-Pork White Meat Chevy was a tick stronger, and it showed here today. Big thanks to my car owner Larry Clement for the opportunity, my brother Bill who’s our crew chief, the entire team; these guys are the best. We love this old house; we feel like we have home field advantage, and we can’t wait to come back.”

A late-race caution set the stage for a three-lap shoot-out to the finish with Kimmel leading over Steele, the only other driver on the lead lap. But on this day, Steele was no match for Kimmel and had to settle for second by a margin of a half second at the final stripe. Jeff Finley, in the John Bailey Excavating Chevrolet, finished third one lap down ahead of Jason Jarrett, who won the ARCA Highest Finishing Rookie honors for finishing fourth in the ML Motorsports Chevrolet. Todd Bowsher, in the Jack Bowsher Racing Ford, chased Jarrett to the stripe and finished fifth recording his career-best finish.

Kimmel won a record Salem/ARCA payout of $17,445, which included the $4,000 Pork Pole-Win Bonus for winning from the pole, his third consecutive Old Milwaukee Pole Award after four events. In addition, the defending RE/MAX Series champion and current point leader led 146 laps of the 200-lap race giving it up only briefly to Steele a couple of times and once to Tracy Leslie. Leslie, the defending race winner, was stout all day and led 29 laps before the rear end failed in his Cavin Councilor-owned Target Saws and Blades Chevy ending his day 79 laps shy of the finish.

The race was slowed by five cautions for 38 laps, one of which involved four cars on the backstretch triggered by rookie Michael Melton who, five laps down, lost control of his Chevy Monte Carlo coming off turn two. Melton’s machine bounced off the outer retaining wall and directly into the lead-lap cars of Joe Cooksey, Billy Venturini and Vern Slagh who were all racing for position. There were no injuries however all four cars were extensively damaged.

Blaise Alexander steered his Superior Logistics Services Pontiac to the finish in sixth in front of Soddy Daisy, Tennessee driver Ron Cox who finished seventh in Wayne Hixson’s Chevrolet. Rick Markle, in the Smartwireless.com-Racedayad.com Chevrolet, finished a respectable eighth ahead of rookie Ryan Vos who won the Hoosier Tire Performance Hard Charger Award in the Vermeer Diggin Dutchman Ford for racing from 24th to ninth in the final running order. Karla Lampe, a mother of six from Carroll, Iowa, recorded her career-best RE/MAX Series finish of tenth in the Carroll Refuse-All Pro Door Company Chevrolet.

Leslie won the Loctite Halfway Leader Award as well as the Landrum Spring Hard Luck Award while Kimmel, who increased his point lead over Steele by 150 markers, collected the Quarter Master Comin’ Thru in the Clutch honors.

1 1 46 Frank Kimmel        Jeffersonville IN Advance Auto Parts-Pork White Meat Chevy 200 Running
2 2 16 Tim Steele          Coopersville MI HS Die-Softech Ford 200 Running
3 8 70 Jeff Finley         Lansing MI Bailey Excavating Chevrolet 199 Running
4 4 67 Jason Jarrett       Hickory NC ML Motorsports Chevrolet 198 Running
5 12 21 Todd Bowsher       South Vienna OH Jack Bowsher Racing Ford 197 Running
6 3 91 Blaise Alexander    Montoursville PA Superior Logistics Services Pontiac 197 Running
7 13 23 Ron Cox            Soddy Daisy TN Hixson Construction Chevrolet 195 Running
8 14 60 Rick Markle        Mooresville NC Smartwireless.com-Racedayad.com Chevy 191 Running
9 24 38 Ryan Vos           Jackson MI Vermeer Diggin Dutchman Ford 187 Running
10 20 74 Karla Lampe       Carroll IA Carroll Refuse-All Pro Door Company Chevy 187 Running
11 21 34 Darrell Basham    Henryville IN Darrell Basham Racing Chevrolet 184 Running
12 23 6 Tim Turner         Pulaski TN Wayne Peterson Racing Pontiac 184 Running
13 7 1 Andy Belmont        Penndel PA America Online-Racecakes-York Ford 182 Running
14 16 48 Donny Morelock    Largo FL Mountain Rock Music Ford 179 Running
15 9 5 Randy VanZant       Brookville OH Mike's Body Shop Pontiac 177 Running
16 26 24 Chuck Weber       Mesquite TX Cardinal Tool Company Chevrolet 175 Running
17 18 84 Norm Benning      Pittsburgh PA Benning Racing Chevrolet 171 Running
18 6 19 Tracy Leslie       Mt Clemens MI Target Saws & Blades Chevrolet 121 Rear End
19 17 36 Marty Butkovich   Ray MI Bowtie Construction Chevrolet 121 Rocker Arm
20 19 28 Mike Buckley      Ann Arbor MI Midwest Mall Fronts Chevrolet 79 Engine
21 5 51 Joe Cooksey        Centralia IL Fuelvend.com Chevrolet 58 Accident
22 10 65 Vern Slagh        Zeeland MI Quality Car Washes Ford 58 Accident
23 11 25 Billy Venturini   Concord NC IRM-Permatex Chevrolet 58 Accident
24 25 13 Michael Melton    Cedar Grove TN Whitetails Unlimited Chevrolet 53 Accident
25 28 06 Dennis English    Benton KY Nancy English Racing Chevrolet 34 Rear End
26 29 64 Todd Antrican     Miamisburg OH Norm Benning Racing Chevrolet 10 Handling
27 15 83 Mark Gibson       Winder GA Advance Auto Parts-Pork White Meat Chevy 6 Rear End
28 22 7 Kevin Belmont      Feasterville PA Racecakes.com-AOL Ford 4 Ignition
29 27 4 Greg Sarff         Columbus OH Hylton Motorsports Ford 2 Handling
   56 Eric Martin          Chattanooga TN Hixson Construction Chevrolet DNS