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ALGER — Nick Engberg’s first win in front of the home folks was a big one.
Engberg took the lead on the 15th lap and dominated the second half of the A Main to win on the first night of the 360 Nationals at Skagit Speedway.
Travis Rutz moved up from 12th to finish third and take the lead in points. Danny Kirkpatrick was second and will join Rutz, Cory Chamberlain, Engberg, Seth Bergman and Rick Fauver in the A Main scramble to determine starting position of the first three rows of tonight’s A Main.
Engberg is from Burlington and raced at Skagit Speedway for several years before running at Gray’s Harbor. He won several races there, but had never taken the checkered flag in front of his hometown fans until Friday.
“It’s great, really great,” Engberg said. “I’ve got a lot of people here, and both of my sponsors are here.”
Engberg moved into second after Josh DeWitt was black flagged out of the lead on 13 with muffler problems. Willie Croft inherited the lead, but held it for just two laps before Engberg passed Croft low to take the lead. He survived three restarts without danger to take the victory.
“You can feel them out there in back of you, but by the first turn they were gone,” Engberg said.
Danielle Huson had moved from eighth to third, but blew a motor on the 27th lap, ending her race after a furious battle over several laps with Rutz.
Engberg was the fastest at the front of the pack, but the show at the back half of the field was Jayme Barnes. Trying to be the first driver to win Dirt Cup and the 360 Nationals in the same year, Barnes not only won the B Main, but gained about eight spots through the first half of the A Main, had to go into the pits, then climbed all the way back to finish seventh.
Barnes dominated the B Main, surviving several restarts to win from the front row. Jeff Hodgson, Derek Holmwood, Bergman and Mitch Olson stayed in that order from the second lap on, all qualifying for the A Main.
Michael Harris survived a carnage-filled C Main to post the victory in a race where only eight of the 17 racers crossed the finish line.
Three cars flipped on the first turn of the race on two would-be starts. Harris never trailed, with Mack Brown close on his tail in second the whole way. Steve James and Randy Pierce moved past Dan Dunlap to take the final two move-up spots.
Hodgson had the fast qualifying time, posting a 12.222. Thirty-two of 48 competitors circled the lap in less than 13 seconds. The cars had just one qualifying lap each.
Veteran Alan Munn won the first heat race after two wrecks on the start. Munn led all the way, with Jason Bloodgood and Robby Vaughn moving into the A Main. Hodgson, the fast qualifier, was unable to move up a spot from fourth and had to settle for the pole on the B Main.
Engberg won the second heat race from the pole, starting the second race by edging Bergman into the outside. Colton Heath and Steve Kilcup slipped past Bergman into second and third, and finished there.
Heath challenged Engberg in the middle of the race, but couldn’t pass him.
Huson led from start to finish of the third heat, with Chamberlain passing Mike Sather midway through the race to take second. Both moved up. Barnes lost his muffler early in the race and finished last, bumping him down to the B Main, which he won.
Fauver, DeWitt and Brian Kirkpatrick stayed in that order at the top of the fourth heat, but DeWitt pushed Fauver much of the race, and Kirkpatrick nearly caught DeWitt for second on the final laps after Fauver opened up a little space.
All three advanced to the A Main.
Danny Kirkpatrick and then Rutz slipped by Croft on the start of the fifth and final heat, and those three took the move up spots, staying in that order.
• Eric Francis can be reached at 360-416-2131 or by e-mail at
