Wi Dirt Racin

J. Tienor

Friday, August 17th, Manitowoc, WI. – Hales Corners Reunion Night and the George Scheffler Memorial Race were on tap this night of racing, sponsored by Doug’s Skipper Inn. Thirty eight Late Models showed for a chance at the win in the big show, while full fields of Grand Nationals and 360 Sprinters delighted the fans in attendance with the Late Models and 360’s runnning flag to flag Main Events. EWSC would like to thank the drivers and crews for their cooperation in putting on a fantastic show.

STREET STOCKS
HEAT 1 – 1, Bradley Ruh. 2, Douglas Engleking. 3, Mike Zitzer. 4, Bob Czarapata. 5, Jerry Brickner. 6, Jeremy Hebel. 7, Tim Mueller. 8, David Gauger. 9, Kevin TeStroete. 10, Ray Fuller. 11, Jeff Bender. (DNS).

Mike Zitzer (Sheboygan) and Bob Czarapata (Krakow) led the field of Street Stocks out for their feature event, with Bradley Ruh (Elkhart Lake) and Douglas Engleking (Menominee Falls) making up the second row. Zitzer led the first lap, with Ruh and Czarapata falling in trail. Caution flags flew early and often in this race, with the first one on Lap 3, resulting in Jeremy Hebel (Two Rivers) heading into the pits and Engleking to the back of the field. Zitzer led the group to the restart, followed by Ruh, Czarapata, Jerry Brickner (Mishicot), and Kevin TeStroete (Chilton). Brickner would slide a couple positions in the yellow Camaro allowing Jeff Bender (Plymouth) and Dave Gauger (Two Rivers) to get around him. On the next lap, Zitzer had his own issues and ended up at the back of the pack, handing the lead to Ruh. A lap later Ruh would lose the lead to TeStroete and fall behind Czarapata after more contact. Engleking in the 47D was climbing back through the field as the next yellow flew at Lap 11, as the A11 of Tim Mueller (New Holstein)died in Turn 4, with Czarapata and Brickner pitting. TeStroete led the field to green, Ruh, Gauger, Bender, and Ray Fuller (Manitowoc) in his tire tracks. Yellow flew again a lap later as Gauger and Bender made contact in Turns 3 & 4, taking both cars out of the race. The race time limit expired during this caution, effectively ending the race and making TeStroete the winner, also he was the biggest mover in the race picking up 8 spots.

FEATURE – 1, Kevin TeStroete. 2, Bradley Ruh. 3, Douglas Engleking. 4, Ray Fuller. 5, Mike Zitzer. 6, David Gauger. 7, Jeff Bender. 8, Jeremy Hebel. 9, Bob Czarapata. 10, Jerry Brickner. 11, Tim Mueller.

WDLMA LATE MODELS
HEAT 1 – 1, Rick Scheffler. 2, Turk Letizia. 3, Nick Anvelink. 4, Pete Parker. 5, TJ Dolhun. 6, Mark Rose. 7, Eric Michaels. 8, Dan Dippel. 9, Dakota Geiger. 10, Ted Dolhun Sr.
HEAT 2 – 1, Brett Swedberg. 2, Ron Berna. 3, Robert Cullen. 4, David Fieber. 5, Cody Welch. 6, Mitch McGrath. 7, Gordie Seegert. 8, Tim Buhler. 9, Brad Mueller. 10, Paul Parker. (DQ).
HEAT 3 – 1, Jim Letizia. 2, Russ Scheffler. 3, Craig Schueffner. 4, Justin Hirt. 5, Ron Stroika. 6, Jestin Danes. 7, Justin Schmidt. 8, Frank Geiger. 9, Jason Enoch.
HEAT 4 – 1, Jimmy Mars. 2, Jim Schmidt. 3, Billy Rezutek. 4, Tom Naeyaert. 5, Nick Cochart. 6, Scott Haugstad. 7, Jim Juneau. 8, Troy Springborn. 9, Tim Warner.
B-MAIN 1 – 1, Nick Anvelink. 2, David Fieber.3, Justin Hirt. 4, Justin Schmidt. 5, Nick Cochart. 6, Ted Dolhun Sr. 7, Frank Geiger. 8, Eric Michaels. 9, Dan Dippel. 10, Dakota Geiger. 11, Jason Enoch. 12, Cody Welch. 13, Scott Haudstad.
B-MAIN 2 – 1, Pete Parker. 2, Craig Schueffner. 3, Ron Stroika. 4, Mark Rose. 5, Paul Parker. 6, Tim Buhler. 7, Jestin Danes. 8, Brad Mueller. 9, Jim Juneau. 10, Gordie Seegert (DNS). 11, Troy Springborn (DNS). 12, Mitch McGrath (DNS). 13, Tim Warner (DNS).

With Nick Anvelink (Navarino), David Fieber (Neenah), Justin Hirt (Tigerton), and Cody Welch (Coleman) transferring from the first B Main and Pete Parker (Kaukauna), Craig Schueffner (Sheboygan Falls), Ron Stroika (Mukwonago), and Mark Rose (Elcho) from the second, the George Scheffler Memorial field was set, ready to battle it out for 40 laps. Last weeks winner Billy Rezutek (Big Bend) relegated to the 11th starting spot, and only a 2 car inversion, Russ Scheffler (Waukesha) and Bret Swedberg (Shawano) sat on the front row. Jimmy Mars (Menominee) and Rick Scheffler (Waukesha) made up the second while Ron Berna (Green Bay) and Turk Letizia (Milwaukee) were Row 3 starters. Russ jumped out the early lead, while Mars in the white 28 tucked in behind him. This did not last long, as Mars worked his way around the black and green 74 and took off, setting a torrid pace. He began lapping cars on Lap 9 as Justin Schmidt (Cleveland) was the first, followed by Rose a lap later. Ten laps in it was Mars, Russ, Swedberg, Ricky, and Turk Letizia. Hirt was the next to be chased down by the leader, while the 10P of Parker pulled off with mechanical problems on Lap 13. Berna pulled off 2 laps later as Mars had caught Stroika and and last weeks winner Rezutek. There were several small battles going on throughout the field as the Diamond Jims cars, D1 of Turk and D7 of Jim were battling for position while Schueffner and Jim Schmidt (Cleveland) were trading positions lap after lap, even as they were lapped by the leader. Mid way through it was Mars dominating the field, Russ, Rick, Swedberg, Turk, Jim Letizia, Bob Cullen (Chilton), Tom Naeyaert (Shawano), Anvelink, and TJ Dolhoun (Milwaukee). Even as the leader was setting a punishing pace, the drivers a lap down were still fighting for positions as Anvelink and Hirt made their way into the top ten. With ten laps to go, the cars were spread out all over the track, running multiple lines and it was looking like it could go flag to flag, Mars held a commanding lead and lapped all the way to 5th place, with only Russ, Rick, and Swedberg still on the lead lap. At 4 to go Mars lapped the 4th place car and on the white flag lap was reeling in the 3rd place car. With the dominating win he rolled into Victory Lane for photos and interview. Hard Charger honors go to Anvelink picking up 8 positions, runner up to Hirt with 7 spots.

FEATURE – 1, Jimmy Mars. 2, Russ Scheffler. 3, Rick Scheffler. 4, Brett Swedberg. 5, Nick Anvelink. 6, Jim Schmidt. 7, Tom Naeyaert. 8, Turk Letizia. 9, David Fieber. 10, Justin Hirt. 11, TJ Dolhun. 12, Billy Rezutek. 13, Robert Cullen. 14, Craig Schueffner. 15, Jim Letizia. 16, Ron Stroika. 17, Justin Schmidt. 18, Mark Rose. 19, Ron Berna. 20, Pete Parker.

GRAND NATIONALS
HEAT 1 – 1, Don Sorce Jr. 2, Steven Ruh. 3, Brad Juckem. 4, Matt Jackson. 5, Kevin Naidl. 6, Donny Kulow. 7, Tyler Kulow. 8, Charlie Sancinati.
HEAT 2 – 1, Dan Sorce. 2, Daniel Schumacher. 3, Ryan Minster. 4, Don Schumacher. 5, Sean Mueller. 6, Scott Houpt. 7, Jason Winkler. 8, Zach Axlen.
HEAT 3 – 1, Tim Thompson. 2, Brian Gilles. 3, Loren Lubach. 4, Brian Cesar. 5, Scott Hermersmann. 6, Mark Kuhfuss. 7, Nick Strobbe.

The Grand National Feature was brought out by Brian Gilles (Howards Grove) and Don Sorce Jr. (West Allis), Tim Thompson (Campbellsport), Dan Sorce (Franklin), Brad Juckem (Chilton), and Ryan Minster (Sheboygan) filled out the top 6. After a yellow on the start for Scott Houpt (Belgium) spinning on the way to green, Gilles held the first lap lead, but contact on the backstretch flattened both of his rear tires and sent him to the pits early. Don Sorce Jr. stepped into the lead with Dan and Thompson challenging him hard. Five laps in it was still Don in the 99 in front, while Thompson and Dan were swapping positions almost every lap. Minster was solidly in 4th, with Steven Ruh (Elkhart Lake) and Dan Schumacher (Milwaukee) battling behind him. Dan in the 14 got around Thompson on Lap 6 and around Don Jr. for the lead on Lap 8. The 00M of Sean Mueller (Plymouth) retired on Lap 8 with issues, and at the half way mark, it was Dan, Don Jr., Thompson, Minster, and Ruh. Don Schumacher (Oconomowoc) brought out the only other yellow at this point, as his drive shaft malfunctioned, retiring him for the night. Dan and Thompson would swap the lead for several more laps, but Dan would claim the lead for good on Lap 15. Flying under checkers it was Dan Sorce with the win, with Thompson, Don Sorce Jr., Minster and Ruh in the top 5. Hard Charger honors to Brian Cesar picking up 7 positions, runner-ups to Ruh, Kevin Naidl, and Tyler Kulow with 6 spots each.

FEATURE – 1, Dan Sorce. 2, Tim Thompson. 3, Don Sorce Jr. 4, Ryan Minster. 5, Steven Ruh. 6, Daniel Schulmacher. 7, Brian Cesar. 8, Matt Jackson(Sheboygan). 9, Kevin Naidl(Reedsville). 10, Phil Coppersmith. 11, Scott Hermersmann(Oak Creek). 12, Brad Juckem. 13, Tyler Kulow(New Holstein). 14, Scott Houpt. 15, Charlie Sancinati. 16, Donny Kulow. 17, Zach Axlen. 18, Jason Winkler. 19, Don Schumacher. 20, Sean Mueller. 21, Brian Gilles.

MSA 360 SPRINTS
HEAT 1 – 1, Tim Haddy. 2, Shane Wenninger. 3, Mark Krueger. 4, Jeff Wilke. 5, John Krebsbach. 6, Al Schlafer. 7, Justin Miller. 8, Dave Lisowe. (DNS).
HEAT 2 – 1, Ben Schmidt. 2, Kyle Marten. 3, Scotty Thiel. 4, Randy Brunette. 5, TJ Luedke. 6, Paul Pokorski. 7, Scotty Neitzel. 8, Don Kiel.
HEAT 3 – 1, Danny Schlafer. 2, Jeremy Schultz. 3, Kurt Davis. 4, Randy Sippel. 5, Tony Wondra. 6, Lee Schroeder. 7, Portschy Racing.

Scotty Thiel (Sheboygan) found himself in the 11th starting spot after winning last week, and points leader Ben Schmidt (Howards Grove) and Tim Haddy (Waupan) made up the front row. Jeremy Schultz (Beaver Dam), Kyle Marten (Sheboygan Falls), Danny Schlafer (Sussex), and Shane Wenninger (Kewauskum) filled in the next 2 rows. Schmidt took the lead at the green, while Schultz made quick work of Haddy and took after the points leader running the high side in his orange, blue & white 5J. By Lap 5 Thiel already moved to 7th, trying to chase down the leaders who were quickly closing on the back-markers. Don Kiel (Whitelaw) & Samantha Portschy (Plymouth) were the first to be run down by the leaders as this race was also shaping up for a possible flag to flag run as the field was spread out. At the midway point it was still Schmidt, Schultz, Haddy, Danny, and Thiel up to 5th with half the field being down a lap, Wenninger and Marten were just outside the top 5. Clean, solid racing was the order of the night as the leaders battled side by side throughout lapped traffic, and still no one gave up spots easy. With 10 to go it was still the Rhine Auto 35 of Schmidt in the lead, with the 5J, the fire-engine red 25 of Schlafer, Haddy in the white 21H and Thiel in the 64 running the rail on the high side, putting some fast cars down a lap as Randy Sippel (Elkhart Lake) and Marten went down a lap. Danny finally caught Schultz and made the pass for 2nd, attempting to run down Schmidt at 5 to go. Both drivers covered each others moves, with Schlafer getting a nose in front at several points, but unable to complete the pass. On the white flag lap he jumped the cushion in Turn 1, causing him to lose a lot of ground and having to fight Schultz off for 2nd place. Schmidt crossed under the checkers picking up another win, Schlafer held off Schultz, and Haddy beat Thiel to the line in the top 5. Kurt Davis (West Bend) in a rare appearance in Manitowoc in 6th, Wenninger, Scotty Neitzel (Beaver Dam), TJ Luedke (Plymouth) and Marten rounded out the top 10. Hard Charger honors to Neitzel picking up 12 spots, runner up to Thiel with 6.

FEATURE – 1, Ben Schmidt. 2, Danny Schlafer. 3, Jeremy Schultz. 4, Tim Haddy. 5, Scotty Thiel. 6, Kurt Davis. 7, Shane Wenninger. 8, Scotty Neitzel. 9, TJ Luedke. 10, Kyle Marten. 11, Randy Sippel. 12, Paul Pokorski. 13, Tony Wondra. 14, Randy Brunette. 15, John Krebsbach. 16, Mark Krueger. 17, Al Schlaefer. 18, Jeff Wilke. 19, Lee Schroeder. 20, Justin Miller. 21, Samantha Portschy. 22, Don Kiel. 23, Dave Lisowe (DNS).

Participants in the Race of Champions race were Whitey Harris in the 74, Mike Melius in the 33, Al Schill in the 21sr, Aaron Solsrud in the 15s who had mechanical problems and ended up in the guard rail, Frank Smith in the 22, Jim Hendricks in the D1, Gary Laack in the D7 and Bill Prietzel in the 10. After a great race put on by these former champions, Gary Laack showed up in Victory Lane, bringing back many memories for a lot of fans.

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