Springfield Mile II pres by Memphis Shades/American Flat Track
Illinois State Fairgrounds
Springfield, Illinois
September 6, 2020
AFT Production Twins Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Ben Lowe (Yam), 36.971 seconds
2. Patrick Buchanan (Kaw), 37.317
3. Chad Cose (Har), 37.317
4. James Rispoli (Har), 37.331
5. Cory Texter (Yam), 37.466
6. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), 37.518
7. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 37.608
8. Danny Eslick (Kaw), 37.636
9. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 37.653
10. Dylan Bell (Har), 37.778
11. Hayden Gillim (Har), 37.912
12. Jacob Lehmann (Kaw), 38.005
13. Scott Barrett (Kaw), 39.257
14. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), no time recorded
15. Max Whale (Kaw), no time recorded
16. Brock Schwarzenbacher (Kaw), no time recorded
17. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), no time recorded
18. Cole Zabala (Kaw), no time recorded
19. Michael Inderbitzin (Kaw), no time recorded
20. Ryan Wells (Kaw), no time recorded
21. Cody Johncox (Yam), no time recorded
22. Kevin Stollings (Kaw), no time recorded
23. Shelby Miller (Kaw), no time recorded
24. Dylan Morin (Kaw), no time recorded
25. Jeremiah Alexander (Kaw), no time recorded
26. Brian Lehfeldt (Kaw), no time recorded
27. Cameron Smith (Kaw), no time recorded
AFT SuperTwins Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.315 seconds
2. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 36.377
3. Jared Mees (Ind), 36.503
4. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 36.518
5. Brandon Price (Ind), 36.701
6. Davis Fisher (Ind), 36.742
7. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), 36.780
8. JD Beach (Yam), 36.785
9. Dalton Gauthier (Har), 36.830
10. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.849
11. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 36.887
12. Bryan Smith (Har), 36.890
13. Ryan Varnes (Ind), 37.128
14. Dan Bromley (Ind), 37.285
15. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.369
16. Jay Maloney (Ind), 39.811
AFT Production Twins Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Ben Lowe (Yam), 36.954 seconds
2. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), 37.011
3. James Rispoli (Har), 37.129
4. Chad Cose (Har), 37.163
5. Danny Eslick (Kaw), 37.256
6. Ryan Wells (Kaw), 37.321
7. Patrick Buchanan (Kaw), 37.368
8. Max Whale (Kaw), 37.407
9. Cory Texter (Yam), 37.432
10. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 37.522
11. Cameron Smith (Kaw), 37.552
12. Hayden Gillim (Har), 37.634
13. Dylan Bell (Har), 37.645
14. Kevin Stollings (Kaw), 37.659
15. Jacob Lehmann (Kaw), 37.678
16. Dylan Morin (Kaw), 37.716
17. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 37.719
18. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 37.870
19. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), 38.386
20. Brian Lehfeldt (Kaw), 38.417
21. Jeremiah Alexander (Kaw), 38.667
22. Brock Schwarzenbacher (Kaw), 38.759
23. Shelby Miller (Kaw), 39.562
24. Scott Barrett (Kaw), 39.589
25. Cole Zabala (Kaw), no time recorded
26. Michael Inderbitzin (Kaw), no time recorded
27. Cody Johncox (Yam), no time recorded
AFT SuperTwins Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.042 seconds
2. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 36.208
3. Davis Fisher (Ind), 36.239
4. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 36.354
5. Jared Mees (Ind), 36.458
6. Brandon Price (Ind), 36.544
7. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 36.556
8. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.557
9. Ryan Varnes (Ind), 36.641
10. Dalton Gauthier (Har), 36.775
11. Dan Bromley (Ind), 36.810
12. Bryan Smith (Har), 36.840
13. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), 36.864
14. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.234
15. Jay Maloney (Ind), 37.316
16. JD Beach (Yam), 37.449
AFT Production Twins Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. James Rispoli (Har), 36.929 seconds
2. Ben Lowe (Yam), 36.937
3. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 37.061
4. Chad Cose (Har), 37.070
5. Patrick Buchanan (Kaw), 37.125
6. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 37.175
7. Cory Texter (Yam), 37.186
8. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), 37.350
9. Hayden Gillim (Har), 37.384
10. Dylan Bell (Har), 37.389
11. Ryan Wells (Kaw), 37.424
12. Danny Eslick (Kaw), 37.445
13. Jacob Lehmann (Kaw), 37.475
14. Kevin Stollings (Kaw), 37.681
15. Max Whale (Kaw), 37.702
16. Cole Zabala (Kaw), 37.821
17. Dylan Morin (Kaw), 37.999
18. Cameron Smith (Kaw), 38.214
19. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 38.395
20. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), 38.683
21. Brian Lehfeldt (Kaw), 38.859
22. Jeremiah Alexander (Kaw), 39.034
23. Scott Barrett (Kaw), 39.670
24. Shelby Miller (Kaw), 39.777
25. Brock Schwarzenbacher (Kaw), 39.852
26. Michael Inderbitzin (Kaw), no time recorded
27. Cody Johncox (Yam), no time recorded
AFT SuperTwins Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 36.333 seconds
2. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 36.373
3. Davis Fisher (Ind), 36.450
4. Brandon Price (Ind), 36.470
5. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 36.578
6. Jared Mees (Ind), 36.608
7. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.671
8. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.688
9. Dalton Gauthier (Har), 36.977
10. Dan Bromley (Ind), 37.139
11. JD Beach (Yam), 37.142
12. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), 37.143
13. Bryan Smith (Har), 37.381
14. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.484
15. Jay Maloney (Ind), 38.115
16. Ryan Varnes (Ind), no time recorded
AFT SuperTwins Superpole Practice Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 36.701 seconds
2. Jared Mees (Ind), 36.725
3. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.774
4. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.844
5. Brandon Price (Ind), 36.863
6. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 36.879
7. Dalton Gauthier (Har), 37.060
8. Davis Fisher (Ind), 37.172
9. Brandon Robinson (Ind), no time recorded
10. Ryan Varnes (Ind), no time recorded
AFT SuperTwins Superpole Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 36.417 seconds
2. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.446
3. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 36.511
4. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 36.612
5. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.679
6. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 37.000
7. Ryan Varnes (Ind), 37.031
8. Brandon Price (Ind), 37.044
9. Davis Fisher (Ind), 37.134
10. Dalton Gauthier (Har), 37.155
Provisional AFT Production Twins Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. James Rispoli (Har), 8 laps
2. Chad Cose (Har), -0.007 second
3. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), -1.148 seconds
4. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), -1.162
5. Danny Eslick (Kaw), -2.373
6. Hayden Gillim (Har), -2.491
7. Cameron Smith (Kaw), -2.669
8. Max Whale (Kaw), -2.904
9. Dylan Morin (Kaw), -6.123
10. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), -15.575
11. Brian Lehfeldt (Kaw), -19.820
12. Scott Barrett (Kaw), -23.618
13. Brock Schwarzenbacher (Kaw), -8 laps
Provisional AFT Production Twins Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Ben Lowe (Yam), 8 laps
2. Cory Texter (Yam), -0.395 second
3. Ryan Wells (Kaw), -0.621
4. Nick Armstrong (Yam), -0.808
5. Patrick Buchanan (Kaw), -0.924
6. Kevin Stollings (Kaw), -1.096 seconds
7. Jacob Lehmann (Kaw), -2.652
8. Dylan Bell (Har), -2.850
9. Cole Zabala (Kaw), -2.971
10. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), -13.523
11. Jeremiah Alexander (Kaw), -13.571
12. Shelby Miller (Kaw), -18.719
Provisional AFT SuperTwins Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 8 laps
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), -0.786 seconds
3. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -0.798
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), -2.744 seconds
5. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), -2.797
6. Ryan Varnes (Ind), -4.443
7. Dan Bromley (Ind), -6.753
8. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -11.081
Provisional AFT SuperTwins Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 8 laps
2. Sammy Halbert (Ind), -0.324 second
3. Brandon Price (Ind), -2.046 seconds
4. Bronson Bauman (Ind), -2.064
5. Dalton Gauthier (Har), -2.233
6. Bryan Smith (Har), -2.289
7. Jay Maloney (Ind), -8.993
8. JD Beach (Yam), -2 laps
Provisional AFT Production Twins Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. James Rispoli (Har), 17 laps
2. Ben Lowe (Yam), -0.091 second
3. Chad Cose (Har), -0.125
4. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), -0.145
5. Hayden Gillim (Har), -0.326
6. Cory Texter (Yam), -0.588
7. Danny Eslick (Kaw), -0.613
8. Nick Armstrong (Yam), -0.673
9. Ryan Wells (Kaw), -0.909
10. Kevin Stollings (Kaw), -0.990
11. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), -1.018 seconds
12. Dylan Bell (Har), -2.188
13. Max Whale (Kaw), -3.892
14. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), -8.042
15. Patrick Buchanan (Kaw), -4 laps
16. Jacob Lehmann (Kaw), -14 laps
17. Cameron Smith (Kaw), -16 laps
Provisional AFT SuperTwins Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 25 laps
2. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -0.044 seconds
3. Briar Bauman (Ind), -1.991 seconds
4. Bronson Bauman (Ind), -7.750
5. Davis Fisher (Ind), -8.068
6. Bryan Smith (Har), -8.261
7. Dalton Gauthier (Har), -11.941
8. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), -13.945
9. Ryan Varnes (Ind), -14.929
10. Dan Bromley (Ind), -14.936
11. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), -20.705
12. JD Beach (Yam), -22.742
13. Jay Maloney (Ind), -1 lap
14. Brandon Price (Ind), -14 laps
15. Sammy Halbert (Ind), -17 laps
16. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -18 laps
More, from a press release issued by American Flat Track:
Mees Triumphant in Springfield Mile II Thriller
“The Rocket” Rispoli further extends AFT Production Twins points lead.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (September 6, 2020) – American Flat Track superstar Jared Mees (No. 9 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) added to his burgeoning Mile legend with a triumphant ride in Sunday’s thrilling Springfield Mile II presented by Memphis Shades at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield, Illinois.
Almost from the start, the AFT SuperTwins presented by Vance & Hines Main Event took shape as a four-rider showdown emerged, one foreshadowed by the top fastest times clocked in the AFT SuperTwins SuperPole qualifying event. A battle featuring Mees, home-track hero Jeffrey Carver Jr. (No. 23 Happy Trails Racing FTR750), ‘13 Springfield double winner Brandon Robinson (No. 44 HCRR Racing/Ben Evans Racing Indian FTR750) and reigning Grand National Champion Briar Bauman (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) left fans breathless as the leaders diced it out throughout the race.
Robinson looked to be the first to drop from contention, drifting to more than a half second back when the high line stopped working for him with eight minutes to go. Rather than cruise to an easy fourth, however, he altered his strategy and made a dive-bombing low line work to his advantage. He officially rejoined the fray with five minutes left, just as Carver and Mees were throwing elbows at triple-digit speeds.
With two minutes to go, Bauman struggled to maintain the pace. He stayed close enough to take advantage should anything happen but didn’t appear to have what it took to go for the win.
Carver, on the other hand, was in rare form; the Springfield crowd favorite was comfortable enough to blast around the high line while looking back over his shoulder at his rivals, sliding his FTR750 at full song. Unfortunately, his race ended in bitter disappointment when his machine broke while running a close second with less than two laps remaining.
That unfortunate turn of events for Carver left Mees and Robinson to decide the winner. Robinson attempted to square up Mees coming off of Turn 4 for the final time and nearly pulled it off, falling just 0.043 seconds short of victory. Bauman rounded out the podium just under two seconds back.
Mees said, “I’ve raced a lot of Springfield Miles from like 2002 on, and this was one of the most different Springfield Mile racing lines I’ve ever raced. I’m not saying that in a bad way — it was cool that we had a really different track from yesterday to today, and it was just down to which team and rider could adapt to it the quickest.”
Bronson Bauman (No. 37 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) won out over Davis Fisher (No. 67 BriggsAuto.com Indian FTR750) and Bryan Smith (No. 4 Harley-Davidson/Vance & Hines XG750R Rev X) in their battle for fourth.
Saturday’s winner, Sammy Halbert (No. 69 Coolbeth-Nila Racing Indian FTR750), was stuck in the second pack early before suffering a mechanical issue, which forced him out completely with eight minutes remaining on the clock, after another day of clocking very fast times in qualifying sessions and the AFT SuperTwins SuperPole.
As a result, Mees now boasts a relatively healthy title advantage over primary rival Bauman (132-119). Halbert remains in third with 95 points but lost most of his padding over Robinson (88) and the second Bauman (81) going into next weekend’s double header at Williams Grove Speedway.
AFT Production Twins
It took James Rispoli (No. 43 Latus Motors Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R) more than ten years to return to the top of the dirt track podium but only two races to get back there again. The AFT Production Twins points leader extended his championship advantage on Sunday with a victorious ride in an absolute stunner at the Springfield Mile.
Reigning champion Cory Texter (No. 1 G&G Racing/Roof Systems Yamaha MT-07) stole the holeshot but was quickly eclipsed by the twin XG750Rs of Rispoli and Chad Cose (No. 49 Wally Brown Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R).
During the opening few minutes of the race, those three were in control; Cose did the bulk of the leading over Rispoli, with Texter keeping the honest from close behind in third.
However, when Ben Lowe (No. 25 Roof Systems of Dallas/Bruce Lowe Excavating Yamaha MT-07) blasted around the outside to move into second and then Hayden Gillim (No. 159 Burcham & Glidden Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R) went way low to drive under the entire pack and briefly move into the lead, all bets were off.
An astonishing final five minutes saw eight riders within a half-second of the lead, trading positions in a relentless, nearly un-trackable fashion. Virtually every line was in play and none of the eight seemed any more likely than another to get to the checkered flag first.
The wild Main Event took another twist with less than a minute remaining on the clock when Patrick Buchanan (No. 175 Parkinson Brothers Racing/PRO 1 Industries Kawasaki Ninja 650) went down and brought out the red flag.
After a short stoppage, the melee picked up right where it left off. At the restart, Varnes seized control of what had become a four-lap sprint to the stripe. Saturday’s winner held the lead spot until the clock hit 0:00 — indicating that two laps remained — and Cose and Lowe stormed up alongside.
Rispoli re-entered the picture as the white flag waved, diving under Cose to take the lead on the final lap. A perfect launch off of T4 secured the win, while Lowe and Cose also overhauled Varnes to finish in second and third, respectively.
Gillim finished fifth with Texter, Danny Eslick (No. 64 Scott Powersports/R&D Machine Kawasaki Ninja 650), Nick Armstrong (No. 60 Lessley Brothers Racing/Competitive SheetMetal Yamaha MT-07), Ryan Wells (No. 94 Parkinson Bros./Waters Autobody Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R), and Kevin Stollings (No. 99 Roof Systems/Motion Pro Kawasaki Ninja 650) finishing 6-10, all within one second of the win.
Race-winner Rispoli said, “Man, I am so stoked! I love it! I got second here last year and finished fifth yesterday and we were in a bit of a dismal place. We had to respond, and the whole Latus Motors team put together a great package today. We made a lot of changes to get in the hunt.
“It was a carnage race — absolute carnage. In the end, I fired it up the inside in Turns 3 and 4, was able to get a little bit of a gap, tucked for dear life, and no one came by. I’m fired up.”
This weekend’s races will air on NBCSN, with the Springfield Mile I set to air on Saturday, September 19, starting at 3:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. PT, and the Springfield Mile II to follow on Sunday, September 20, at 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. PT. The broadcasts will include exclusive features, cutting-edge aerial drone and onboard footage, and the expert commentary of AFT legend Chris Carr.
Next Up:
American Flat Track will be back in action in just a few days’ time with the Williams Grove Half-Mile I & II doubleheader in Mechanicsburg, Penn., on Friday, September 11th, and Saturday, September 12th. Gates will open both days at 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. PT with the Main Event program set to begin at 7:45 p.m. ET/4:45 p.m. PT. Tickets are available online at https://store.americanflattrack.com/ebooking/ticket/view/id/3130/#selectTickets. Live coverage of the entire weekend’s racing activities will be available on any device for less than $1 per event via TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.