Wilder Takes Victory, Fleeman Championship In Hedman Husler Hedders 100 at Peach State
GAS Finale Provides 10th Different Winner

By Brandon Reed
Photos by Fred Hanyon, MSA

Jefferson, GA - October 5, 2008 - It was a historic night for the Georgia Asphalt Series as they wrapped up their 2008 season at Peach State Speedway Saturday night, and crowned their 2008 champion.

First it appeared that Kyle Fowler was on his way to his first GAS victory after dominating the 100 lap event.

But a determined Dennis Wilder, from nearby Commerce, GA, drove hard in the closing laps, and passed Fowler with two laps remaining to win his first GAS series event in the Hedman Husler Hedders 100.

"It's been a long time since I've been right here," said an elated Wilder in victory lane. "I want to dedicate this win to two people. I had a best friend named Cole Butler, who passed away about two months ago. This is for him and for Mr. James Garrison. If it wasn't for those two, the world just wouldn't be the same."

For Fowler, who took the lead on lap 23, and held it until Wilder's late race pass, it was a situation where several things happened at the end.

"The car was awesome in the first part, and I thought we had it in the bag," he said. "The right front tire came apart. We were just riding, and I had no idea Wilder was around, and he came up and got me."

Wilder's victory gave the GAS series 10 different winners in 12 races, a record for the five year old series.

Not to be overlooked, however, was the crowning of a champion Saturday night. 2007 GAS champion Russell Fleeman held a 30 point lead over Ryan Sieg coming into the final event. Fleeman, who has had an uncharacteristically tough season, had initially planned a conservative strategy. But when Sieg's night ended with mechanical failure 39 laps into the event, Fleeman became the first back-to-back GAS series champion with a fifth place finish.

"It feels good," the Dacula native said after the event. "We had a good car coming into tonight, knowing we had one thing to do, finish the race. I was looking forward to winning the race, but I'll take a fifth place and the championship."

For Fleeman, who won five times en route to winning the 2007 title, his 2008 campaign was a little rough. He won only once, taking the victory in the Spring Fling 100 at Peach State in May, and took a wild ride later in the year at Senoia, flipping his car over on the front stretch.

"You get these racing seasons where you struggle a little bit, and it feels like you struggle all year long," Fleeman said. "We turned the car over, but we've got good guys that helped me, and we regrouped and came back to sow the championship up. It feels good."

It was a relatively clean race, with only one caution all night. That came on lap 47, when Braselton, GA driver Shane Sawyer spun on the front stretch while running third, making hard contact with the inside wall.

With the long green flag stints, fans were treated to the high speed, highly competitive racing that has become synonymous with the GAS series and with Peach State Speedway. Most of the action took place for the second position, with Max Gresham, Fleeman, T.J. Reaid and Allen Gordon swapping spots on every lap. Late in the event, Gresham began to fade, and Wilder moved his way through the field, and put himself in position for the winning pass.

If you had asked Wilder earlier in the night, however, he probably would have told you winning was the last thing he had expected.

"All day in practice yesterday and today, we were struggling a little bit," he said. "I told (crew chief) Steve Elrod that we had to get a little bit better, and he said if we didn't, then we were going to load up and go home.

"I had to step up on the steering wheel there to get it done."

Fowler held on for second, with GAS series rookie of the year T.J. Reaid third, Gordon fourth and Fleeman fifth. Beau Slocomb, Bobby East, Gresham, Bubba Pollard and Ralph Carnes rounded out the top ten.

Georgia Asphalt Series
Hedman Husler Hedders 100

Final Finishing Order

1. Dennis Wilder (Commerce, GA)
2. Kyle Fowler (Smyrna, GA)
3. T.J. Reaid (Acworth, GA)
4. Allen Gordon (Albany, GA)
5. Russell Fleeman (Dacula, GA)
6. Beau Slocomb (Macon, GA)
7. Bobby East (Concord, NC)
8. Max Gresham (Griffin, GA)
9. Bubba Pollard (Senoia, GA)
10. Ralph Carnes (Anderson, SC)
11. Nick Potts (Jefferson, GA)
12. James Nealis (Gainesville, GA)
13. Thomas Stokes (Anderson, SC)
14. Randy Porter (Anderson, SC)
15. Lee Langford (Commerce, GA)
16. Ryan Crane (Panama City, FL)
17. Shane Sawyer (Braselton, GA)
18. Ryan Sieg (Tucker, GA)
19. Paul Kelley (Pendergrass, GA)
20. Ronnie Sanders (Fayetteville, GA)