As they say in life, good things come to those who wait.

That was certainly the case for longtime racer Deric Kramer who has put in the time, put in the effort, but hasn’t enjoyed the results.

But that all changed on Monday as the 32-year-old out of Sterling, Colorado earned his first career professional class victory behind the wheel of the American Ethanol Chevrolet Camaro in Pro Stock at the 30th annual Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties at Heartland Motorsports Park.

Kramer, who earned his second-career number one qualifier award earlier in the weekend by narrowly edging class veteran Erica Enders, once again matched up with the two-time champion on Monday after a number of rain delays pushed the annual event in Topeka, Kansas to a fourth day.

In the final, Kramer left first with a .009 light against the notoriously quick-on-the-tree Enders and held that advantage throughout to earn career victory number one with a 6.615-second pass at 209.36 mph. Enders, in her third final of 2018, finished with a 7.409 at 143.58 mph after running into trouble early and aborting the run.

“It’s great. I’ve been working a long time for this and I have to thank all of my sponsors and everyone that has helped bring this team together and allow us to do what we do on the weekends,” Kramer said. “This first win leaves me a little speechless, but I am already looking forward to the next one, I can tell you that.”

Kramer, who had one previous final round appearance and one additional top qualifier award in 72 prior starts, finally broke through in one of the more unique and challenging races of his career.

Varying weather conditions left teams scrambling to adjust throughout much of the weekend until heavy rains on Sunday shifted the strategy to a clean track and cool conditions Sunday evening. The Pro Stock competitors got in one round Sunday evening before teams were forced to reset on Monday.

And for Kramer, there were no easy round wins either day on the path to victory.

Kramer barely survived round one against his former car and driver Will Hatcher as both drivers ran into trouble and had to abandon their runs. Kramer drifted out of the groove and was forced to lift, while Hatcher drifted toward the wall, also having to get out of the throttle. Kramer advanced with a 7.594 to Hatcher’s 7.616.

Kramer then had to survive back-to-back holeshots, advancing past Matt Hartford and Jason Line, before meeting up with Enders in the final. Both wins were close, with Kramer edging Hartford in round two with a 6.621 to a 6.604 thanks to a .022 reaction time, followed by an even closer win in the semifinal as Kramer used a .006 light to edge Line – 6.600 to a 6.580 – and advance to the final.

Enders had wins over Greg Anderson, Tanner Gray and Mark Hogan to reach her third final of the season.

“It is always great as a driver to know that you did your part,” Kramer said. “I have been doing that all weekend and that is the best you can really ask for as a driver.”

The weekend was filled with excitement for NHRA’s newest first-time winner as the turbulent finish on Sunday and Monday were preceded by a thrilling two days of qualifying that saw Kramer bounce around the ladder before landing in the No. 1 spot in his final pass of the weekend, giving him a clean sweep of the ladder.

And it was all made possible by the perfect combination of driver and machine.

After watching fellow journeyman Bo Butner do the same last season, Kramer joined forces with KB racing in the offseason and the results have been immediate. With more than half of his career round wins coming this season, Kramer now finds himself a championship contender as he goes from looking for his first win to bigger aspirations as the season unfolds – even if he has to go through his own team to get there.

“Anytime you can put your engine builder on the trailer it is a good time,” Kramer said with a laugh. “It is a little surprising (the start to the season), but at the end of the day there are just five gears between myself and the finish line. I know I’ve got a good team. I know I’ve got good power from the KB guys and right now we are putting that package together. It is really good (for us) right now.”