By Gregg Paul
(Slinger, WI) The 2009 season for the 4 cylinder Slinger Bees was dominated by the drivers who wound up finishing in the top five in points. There were 18 events on the calendar, and those in the top five captured 14 of the 18 feature wins. Alex Prunty led the way with 5 feature wins, while the 2009 Champion Joe Lang took home four checkered flags. Other multiple feature winners included John DeAngelis with three wins and Carl Benn with two. Taking home a single feature win included Erik Long, Brian Strane, Mike Lang, and Katie DeStefano.
By Gregg Paul
(Slinger, WI) The 2009 season for the 4 cylinder Slinger Bees was dominated by the drivers who wound up finishing in the top five in points. There were 18 events on the calendar, and those in the top five captured 14 of the 18 feature wins. Alex Prunty led the way with 5 feature wins, while the 2009 Champion Joe Lang took home four checkered flags. Other multiple feature winners included John DeAngelis with three wins and Carl Benn with two. Taking home a single feature win included Erik Long, Brian Strane, Mike Lang, and Katie DeStefano.
Points are also given for qualifying at Slinger, and this division again saw the top five in points dominate qualifying. Joe Lang took top honors with seven poles and scored points in 16 of the 18 weeks, with 14 of those weeks being in the top three. Erik Long followed with 5 poles and Derek Hoerig with two. John DeAngelis, Carl Benn, Brandon Tackes, and Alex Prunty each captured one pole.
There were three ladies who competed in this division, with Katie DeStefano faring the best by scoring one feature win and finishing ninth in points. Erica Knutson ended up 17th in points, and Sue Bennett, wife of the 2009 Super Late Model Champion Lowell Bennett, tried her hand twice including a top ten finish.
Here is a further look at the top five in points:
Joe Lang 2009 Slinger Bees Champion #11
Consistency was the model that Joe Lang followed, as he methodically drove to the track championship. His four feature wins ranked second amongst all drivers, but led the way with 13 top five finishes. He also scored six top three finishes. Qualifying was also one of Lang’s strong suits as he set fast time on seven occasions. He qualified in the top three in 14 of the 18 weeks, and only twice failed to score points in qualifying.
John DeAngelis #7
John was almost as consistent as Joe Lang, but unfortunately almost doesn’t quite equal anything. John took home three feature wins to go along with 7 top fives and 5 top threes. John was also a threat in qualifying capturing one pole and 10 top three runs. There were only three occasions when John did not score a point for qualifying.
Carl Benn #01
Carl was also a constant threat every week and made his way to the front often. Carl scored 2 feature wins to go along with 8 top fives and 7 top threes. Carl was able to snare one pole and 5 top three qualifying efforts. There were only four occasions when Carl did not score a point for qualifying.
Brandon Tackes #24
Brandon had several good runs throughout the season, but just could not find his way to Victory Lane. Eleven times he finished in the top five and 8 of those times he was among the top three. Brandon did capture one pole position as well.
Alex Prunty #1
Alex is another member of the infamous Prunty family who has tackled the Slinger Super Speedway. Apparently Alex has learned from his family, as he led the way with 5 feature wins. Alex also managed 9 top five finishes, of which 6 were in the top three. He also captured one pole position and had 5 top three qualifying efforts.