Wi Dirt Racin

Rice Lake WI, July 25 – Aaron Wilson, who has not raced more than a handful of times in the last two years due to work commitments, held off a strong late challenge from Jason Forehand to win his first Super Stock feature in two years to highlight a big racing program at the Rice Lake Speedway.
With both the UMSS Winged and Traditional sprints joining the program on Saturday, race fans got their monies worth with twenty four races contested over the course of the evening. Sprint winners were Ryan Bowers in the Winged sprints and Rob Caho Jr. in the Traditional non winged sprints. Joining Wilson in victory lane in the track’s regular divisions were Jason Havel, Kori Richter, Shane Halopka and Matt Leer.

Jim Cimfl got a good start and led the first few laps of the Super Stock feature with John Erickson challenging him. Wilson, Jason Forehand and Mike Anderson were all moving up rapidly through the field. Forehand was a terror as he moved up from eighth to second in only two laps and looked ready to dominate the action when, inexplicably, he spun all by himself in turn four,triggering the first of three yellow flags that would fly during the event.
On the green, Wilson charged up to the high side and took over the lead as Anderson, Eric Olson and Forehand, now in the back, resumed their charge to the front. Anderson moved into the second position when another yellow slowed the action which played into Forehand’s hand as he tried to get back through the field.
Wilson continued to ride the cushion up front and Forehand continued to charge, as he passed Olson and then Anderson to climb all the way back up to second. Then, when the yellow waved with five laps to go for a stalled car, it looked like Forehand would have his chance to make the improbable drive back into the lead.
However, Wilson had other ideas and he picked up the pace in the last five laps, as Forehand was not able to cut into his lead; indeed, Wilson actually stretched his lead the last few laps over the first as he drove home for the win and became the seventh different winner in the division this season. Forehand settled for second ahead of Anderson, who himself had initially started at the back of the pack too, with Olson and Scott Zitelman next in line.
Havel had an easy go of it as he won his fourth feature race of the year, tops in the Pure Stock class. The race started out rocky with two yellow flags before a lap could be completed with collisions eliminating two cars. All the early jumbles shuffled the pack and Havel, who had started fifth, quickly moved into the lead and moved away from the field.
Behind him, a good battle for position saw Jim Holden holding the second spot with Nick Traynor, Shawn Amundson and C.J. Wagner all battling each other to move up. Holden, in one of his rare appearances this Summer, proved to be tough to move but eventually Amundson was able to work into the second spot. He took a late shot at the leader, but Havel was comfortably in front and drove home to a relatively easy win. Holden finished a strong third with both Traynor and Wagner tight behind him at the line.
Halopka ran perhaps the most dominating race of the night as he moved effortlessly around the track, using both the high side and the low side as he drove up from the third row to record his third Midwest Modified feature win of the year. Josh Wahlstrom had a good run early as he led the first few laps with Karl Kolek pressuring him. Meanwhile, Halopka , Ryan Viltz and Travis Anderson were all on the move after started in the third and fourth rows respectively. Halopka was especially impressive as he moved all over the track to find holes through which he made passed for position. He blasted past Wahlstrom on the high side to take over the lead and then moved away from the field. Viltz did his best to stay with the leader as he moved into second and tried to chase down Halopka.
One mid race yellow bunched the field but Halopka was again strong on the restart as he pulled out to a five car length lead and Viltz was not able to narrow the distance. The national point leader won for the second night in a row with Viltz and Anderson trailing. Kolek and rookie driver Tim Ekdahl had their finest runs as they completed the top five at the line.
The Street Stocks fielded a strong group of competitors as drivers tune up for the upcoming Little Dream race in early August. However, with the opportunity to showcase the class for that event, instead the race turned into a tedious yellow flag plagued event that dragged on through seven slow downs.
Rob Grabon led his first feature race laps of the season early with Josh Amans and Simon Wahlstrom challenging him. However, spins and stalled cars, mostly for one car incidents, slowed the race repeatedly. One of the yellows saw Amans slow suddenly with issues which ended his challenge for the lead.
Once a few consecutive laps were run, a great battle broke out between Sam Fankhauser and Jimmy Randall for the lead with them soon joined by Kori Richter at the front. Richter moved to the high side of the track and with a power move, drove past both racers to take over the top spot. Fankhauser and Randall continued their duel but now for second as Richter opened up a slight lead over the pack.
The last half of the race nonstop and Chris Peterson started to make his own charge. Moving on the high side of the track, he engaged in a good battle with Fankhauser after Randall had finally taken over second.
Richter continued to drive on without problems and kept a few car lengths over the field as he took his second Rice Lake win of the year. Randall finished a strong second with Peterson overtaking Fankhauser for third and Wahlstrom hung on for fifth.
Mark Hessler and Kerry Halopka battled for the lead on the opening laps of the Modified feature with Hessler eventually gaining the edge. Cory Mahder was a rocket ship early, as he charged quickly through the field, moving up to challenge but then he lost control and spun in turn four, sending him to the back of the pack to try again.
Hessler continued to lead but Leer was now chasing and he pulled up beside Hessler and after a brief battle, took over the lead. Ashley Anderson was also on the move and he drove under Hessler to take over second and he then began to close on the leader.
After a lap seven yellow for a spin, Anderson picked up the pace and drove under Leer and they then went side by side for the lead. Anderson edged ahead briefly but Leer then pickup up the pace himself and retook the lead as a good race raged for the lead. Meanwhile, Mike Anderson had moved up and he and Hessler went side by side for third with the two drivers swapping that position a couple of times.
Leer had a big scare with only four laps left as the leaders got into traffic. Holding a slim lead, Leer tried to get past two slower cars when one spun right in front of him and Leer had to spin his own car to avoid contact. However, no damage was incurred and Leer went back to the nose for the final four laps.
Ashley Anderson hoped that this might be his chance, but Leer had other ideas and he pulled away to record the win, the second in a row at Rice Lake and his second of this weekend. Ashley Anderson finished a strong second with Hessler fighting off Mike Anderson for third while Steve Hallquist held off Mahder from the back for fifth.
Next Saturday night, August 1st, the speedway will try for the second time this year to get in their AFCO Race of Champions qualifying event. Having been rained out on June 20th, for the first time this year tracks have been allowed to schedule a rain date for this event. Feature winners in the four WISSOTA classes will automatically qualify for the AFCO Race of Champions event to be held during the annual WISSOTA 100 at the Dakota State Fair Speedway in Huron South Dakota in September. The draw/redraw format will be used for all classes next Saturday.
Next Saturday is also the last tune up race before August 4th, when the nation’s biggest Street Stock race will take place as the Rice Lake Speedway hosts its annual “Little Dream” race, an event where the Street Stock winner will likely take home well in excess of $10,000.Last year’s record haul of over $12,000 dollars is hoped to be beaten and entries for this event are already rolling in from all parts of WISSOTA country. Modifieds will also be on the schedule that night for a full program.
SUMMARY

Rice Lake Speedway
Rice Lake WI
July 25, 2015
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WISSOTA Modifieds

20 lap Feature – Matt Leer(Bruce), Ashley Anderson(Elk Mound), Mark Hessler(Menomonie), Mike Anderson(Colfax), Steve Hallquist(Eau Claire), Cory Mahder(Eau Claire), Kerry Halopka(Wheeler), Scott Miller(Rice Lake), Pat Hoffman(Rice Lake), Tim McMann(Duluth MN), Aric Lindberg, Will Fisher, Buddy Mayala, Dave Mayala, Wayne Poteet, Kevin Adams
10 lap Heat 1 – Adams(Cameron), Mahder, M. Anderson, Hessler, McMann, Fisher, Poteet, Hoffman
Heat 2 – Leer, A. Anderson, Halopka, Hallquist, Miller, Lindberg, D. Mayala, B. Mayala

WISSOTA Super Stocks

20 lap Feature – Aaron Wilson(Eau Claire), Jason Forehand(Eau Claire), Mike Anderson(Colfax), Eric Olson(Ladysmith), Scott Zitelman(Taylors Falls MN), Jim Cimfl(Turtle Lake), Eric Zitelman(Lindstrom MN), John Erickson(Rice Lake), Luke Schultz(Cameron), Jim Harris(Menomonie), Steve Tesch
10 Lap Heat 1 – Forehand, Erickson, Olson, Harris, E. Zitelman, Tesch
Heat 2 – Wilson, S. Zitelman, Cimfl, Schultz, Anderson

WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds

15 lap Feature – Shane Halopka(Greenwood), Ryan Viltz(Chetek), Travis Anderson(Colfax), Karl Kolek(Menomonie), Tim Ekdahl(Rice Lake), Jamie Bisonette(Dallas), Reid Tiegs(Dallas), David Mastell(Hugo MN), Austin Ellis(Rice Lake), Craig Elliott(Hillsdale), Kyle Runkle, Nate Doyen, Josh Wahlstrom
10 lap Heat 1 – Viltz, Wahlstrom(Rice Lake), Ekdahl, Runkle(Chetek), Elliott, Doyen, Mastell
Heat 2 – Halopka, Kolek, Anderson, Tiegs, Bisonette, Ellis

WISSOTA Street Stocks

15 lap Feature – Kori Richter(Rice Lake), Jimmy Randall(Rice Lake), Chris Peterson(Amery), Sam Fankhauser(Rice Lake), Simon Wahlstrom(Rice Lake), Jay Kesan(Weyerhaeuser), Adam Soltis(Ladysmith), Hunter VanGilder(Rice Lake), Kevin Bogdanovic(Wausau), Cody Kummer(Medford), Cooper Berlin, Bob Wahlstrom, Andrew Ausman, Ashley Wahlstrom, Kolby Kiehl, Mitch Kesan, Troy Chaplin, Rob Grabon, Josh Amans
10 lap Heat 1 – Fankhauser, Richter, S. Wahlstrom, Peterson, Chaplin(Barron), Ausman, M. Kesan
Heat 2 – Amans(Rice Lake), Kiehl(Cameron), Grabon(Bruce), B. Wahlstrom(Chetek), A. Wahlstrom(Rice Lake), Kummer
Heat 3 – Randall, Soltis, J. Kesan, VanGilder, Bogdanovic, Berlin

Pure Stocks

12 lap Feature – Jason Havel(Rice Lake), Shawn Amundson(Rice Lake), Jim Holden(Rice Lake), Nick Traynor(Barron), C.J. Wagner(Rice Lake), Bob Thompson(Cameron), Zach Beaulieu(Chetek), Dwayne Braun(Barron), Austin Workman(Barron), Brent Miller(Cameron), Robert Holmstrom
8 lap Heat 1 – Amundson, Thompson, Holden, Havel, Wagner, Beaulieu
Heat 2 – Traynor, Miller, Workman, Braun, Holmstrom(Rice Lake)

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