Cole Spacek Tops Rice Lake Speedway Opener

By Ed Reichert

Rice Lake WI, May 1 – After a one week delay due to weather issues, the sixty ninth consecutive full season of racing at the Rice Lake Speedway took off on Saturday night, enhanced by an absolutely beautiful first day of May. A large crowd was on hand as one hundred and one drivers signed in to race and the five opening night winners included Cole Spacek, Kyle Copp, Simon Wahlstrom, Cody Kummer and Cory Jorgensen. Judging was done during the evening for the Best Appearing car in each class and those winners will be announced before the program begins next Saturday night. 

For Spacek, it was his first feature win ever at the Rice Lake Speedway as he became the fourth different leader during the Modified feature, a race where he had to trade the late lead back and forth with his father Jeff who would end up third.

Rookie Modified driver but seasoned Midwest Modified champion Shane Halopka would be the early leader of the race with challenges from Pat Hoffman and Mike Anderson. However, it was Kevin Adams who would put the most pressure on Halopka as he moved into second after starting in the sixth position. Three early race yellows for minor spins would keep the field bunched and this gave Adams the chance to put the pressure on and with a hard charge off of corner four, he was able to drive into the lead. 

While many would believe that this would mark the end of the lead changing, the Spacek family would have none of that as both Jeff and Cole would then move up to challenge Adams for the lead and when Adams started to falter coming off the corners, Jeff was able to move right up to his rear bumper and following a lap ten yellow for another spin, he got a great restart and drove under Adams to take over the lead. But just as soon as Jeff Spacek would take the lead, suddenly his son Cole was right there to put the heat on him and he drove past his father to take over the lead. 

The next few laps would provide some of the most entertaining racing of the evening as the Spaceks would swap the lead twice back and forth before Cole would assume the top spot for good. One more yellow of lap fifteen would see another contender emerge as Pat Hoffman would get a good restart and would pass Jeff Spacek for second. Hoffman would attempt a pass for the lead himself but Cole Spacek was able to keep himself several car lengths in front and he would drive on for an exciting win. Hoffman would finish a strong second with Jeff Spacek, Dave Mayala and Cooper Berlin completing the top five. 

The Super Stock feature race would also see four different leaders before the issue was settled and a winner declared. Curt Myers started on the outside pole and he would get the jump on D.J. Keeler to lead the opening lap. However Dave Flynn would move up from the second row to challenge Myers for the lead as a lead pack of around a half dozen cars raced hard for the lead. 

With a strong move in turn three, Flynn was able to drive under Myers and take over the top spot. Myers tried to fight back and regain the lead and he went too hot into turn three, spinning and collecting front runners Nick Oreskovich and Nick Traynor and unfortunately, all three would be knocked out of the race. 

Flynn would lead on the restart but he was soon challenged again by Keeler and the two Superior drivers would battle back and forth with each claiming the top spot briefly before Flynn was again able to race away by a few car lengths. At this time, Kyle Copp also became a factor as he raced up from the third row to make it a three car battle for the lead. He was able to drive under Keeler to take over second and began to challenge Flynn for the lead. Several times he poked the nose of his car under Flynn in the corners but each time Flynn would fight him off. 

Then disaster struck for the race leader as Flynn broke the front end on his car and unable to turn in the corners, he rolled to a stop and handed over the top spot to Copp. The last half of the race would see Keeler try to track down the Iron River Wisconsin racer but Copp was running strong and would drive on for the win. His victory was his first win at Rice Lake since he won a Pure Stock feature at the track back during the 2018 racing season. Keeler would finish a strong second and the late race show was provided by Simon Wahlstrom who started thirteenth and was able to race his way all the way up to third at the finish. Eric Olson and Josh Bach would complete the top five. 

Previous to the Super Stock main, Wahlstrom would find victory lane as he raced to a fifteen lap win in the Midwest Modified feature, being the fourth and final leader of that event. Jamie Bisonette would get the jump on Tyler Kintner and lead the opening lap of the MidMod main but then fellow Dallas resident Aric Lindberg would come barreling up from the second row to race by his friend and take over the top spot. Two yellows in the early going would keep things bunched and following each restart it was Bisonette and Lindberg battling for the lead. 

Bisonette would then claim the top spot back briefly before Kintner would then take a shot at holding the front position as the trading of positions by the front running pack was intense. Suddenly, out of no where, Wahlstrom would come up from the third row and put on a strong challenge that would see him take over the top spot. 

Then a new set of challengers would emerge as Cody Carlson moved up from the fourth row to put the heat on Wahlstrom while Austin Ellis, who started ninth, closed in on Kintner for position. The last half of the race would remain under the green with Wahlstrom fighting off a strong challenge by Carlson before then pulling away by several car lengths as he would go on for the win. Ellis would continue his run as he got by Kintner for third while Kenny Kincaid would make a last corner pass on Mike Schnider for fifth after Schnider drove back through the field after being an early race spin victim. 

The amazing part of Wahlstrom’s win was that this was the first time he had raced a MidMod, being a veteran driver in the Super Stock class but his first time behind the wheel in competition in this division produced a feature win. 

The Street Stock feature was a rugged affair that produced the seasons first roll over as Colton Klueckman got over on his roof following a skirmish in turn two late in the event. Before that the action was just as intense as a great three battle for the lead had broken out, ended only when Shawn Amundson spun in turn two. Previous to that, Cody Kummer, Kyle Genett and Amundson had a pitched battle going on for the top spot and after Kummer settled into the lead with Genett all over him for the top spot, Amundson made a strong drive up from the third row to make it a three way fight for the lead. 

Several times Amundson tried to nose under Kummer with Genett right beside him. Things came to a head in turn two when Amundson made a hard drive and tried to squeeze under Kummer but instead got a piece of the infield which spun him around and triggered the yellow flag. Amundson called it a night which left Kummer and Genett to continued their battle as a series of yellows continued to make the race a series of short bursts. Hunter Van Gilder had raced his way back up into contention after going to the rear of the pack early, but hard racing with another contender saw him get into the back stretch wall, triggering another yellow and then on the restart, Genett lost second when his car broke and he stalled on the track. 

This left a two lap race to the checkered and Kummer pulled away to record the win and start a good defense of his track title earned last year. Kolby Kiehl and Joe Ott both did a great job of racing hard and taking advantage of circumstances as they ended up second and third following the late race shuffling of the running order. Travis Loew and and James Clausen wrapped up top five finishes also. 

A big field of Pure Stocks would require a B Feature to set the twenty car starting field for the main event. Bob Wahlstrom, a veteran racer in the Street Stocks has moved down to the Pure Stocks for 2021 and he would take the early lead with immediate challenges from Aaron Bernick, Jared Akervik and Cory Jorgensen. Akervik and Jorgensen would be most persistent and Jorgensen would be able to drive past Wahlstrom to take over the lead. Jorgensen would continued to lead the way and following a mid race yellow, the only one of the contest, Akervik would also get past Wahlstrom to take over second and try to chase down Jorgensen for the lead. The two Northland drivers, who see each other on the track several times a week, fought it out the rest of the way and it was the former national champion, Jorgensen who would go on to take a narrow win. Akervik would finish a close second with Wahlstrom crossing the line in a cloud of smoke for third. Bernick hung in there throughout the race to finish fourth and Max Prusak would come from ninth to round out the top five. 

Another five division program is slated for next Saturday night at the track with the Best Appearing awards to be announced before the start of the show. The first special event of the year will be coming up in two weeks with the first appearance of the WISSOTA Late Models the special attraction. They will race in the Trackside Collectibles 40, a two thousand dollar to win, two hundred dollar to start event for WISSOTA’S most powerful division along with racing in the five other classes as a bonus. 

Race time is 7 pm next Saturday night with updated information found on the speedway website at www.ricelakespeedway.net and the speedway face book page. 5/1/2021 at Rice Lake Speedway

WISSOTA Modifieds

A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 22S-Cole Spacek[6]; 2. 308-Pat Hoffman[5]; 3. 22-Jeff Spacek[13]; 4. 204-David Mayala[10]; 5. 33-Cooper Berlin[11]; 6. (DNF) 3JR-Shane Halopka[2]; 7. (DNF) 40-Kevin Adams[7]; 8. (DNF) 57-Mike Anderson[4]; 9. (DNF) 18W-Wayne Poteet[1]; 10. (DNF) 11-Sam Fankhauser[8]; 11. (DNF) 74-Shaun Kreyer[9]; 12. (DNF) 34JR-Dan Larson Jr[3]; 13. (DNF) 10-Kyle Helling[12]; 14. (DNS) 20-Denny Cutsforth; 15. (DNS) 2-Todd Gehl; 16. (DNS) 27H-Steve Hallquist

Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 40-Kevin Adams[8]; 2. 57-Mike Anderson[2]; 3. 3JR-Shane Halopka[3]; 4. 22S-Cole Spacek[4]; 5. 74-Shaun Kreyer[1]; 6. 204-David Mayala[7]; 7. (DNF) 22-Jeff Spacek[6]; 8. (DNS) 27H-Steve Hallquist

Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 11-Sam Fankhauser[7]; 2. 308-Pat Hoffman[1]; 3. 18W-Wayne Poteet[6]; 4. 34JR-Dan Larson Jr[4]; 5. (DNF) 33-Cooper Berlin[8]; 6. (DNF) 10-Kyle Helling[2]; 7. (DNF) 20-Denny Cutsforth[5]; 8. (DNF) 2-Todd Gehl[3]

WISSOTA Super Stock

A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 26-Kyle Copp[5]; 2. 12-Duane (DJ) Keeler[1]; 3. 46-Simon Wahlstrom[13]; 4. 1E-Eric Olson[12]; 5. 67-Josh Bach[11]; 6. 77-Josh Saunders[10]; 7. 2F-Jeffrey Frey[9]; 8. 01-Michael Anderson[8]; 9. (DNF) 29F-Dave Flynn[3]; 10. (DNF) 245-James Cimfl[7]; 11. (DNF) 18-Willie Johnsen Jr[15]; 12. (DNF) 21F-Nick Oreskovich[4]; 13. (DNF) 28-Josh Cappo[14]; 14. (DNF) 40-Nick Traynor[6]; 15. (DNF) 1M-Curt Myers[2]; 16. (DNS) 21-Mike Siewert; 17. (DNS) XJR-Austin Workman

Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 21F-Nick Oreskovich[4]; 2. 26-Kyle Copp[9]; 3. (DNF) 67-Josh Bach[1]; 4. (DNF) 1E-Eric Olson[6]; 5. (DNF) 46-Simon Wahlstrom[5]; 6. (DNF) 28-Josh Cappo[8]; 7. (DNF) 18-Willie Johnsen Jr[3]; 8. (DNF) 21-Mike Siewert[7]; 9. (DNF) XJR-Austin Workman[2]

Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 1M-Curt Myers[2]; 2. 40-Nick Traynor[3]; 3. 29F-Dave Flynn[7]; 4. 12-Duane (DJ) Keeler[5]; 5. 245-James Cimfl[6]; 6. 01-Michael Anderson[4]; 7. 2F-Jeffrey Frey[8]; 8. 77-Josh Saunders[1]

WISSOTA Midwest Mods

A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 38-Simon Wahlstrom[5]; 2. 32C-Cody Carlson[8]; 3. 20-Austin Ellis[9]; 4. 22-Tyler Kintner[2]; 5. 4-Kenny Kincaid[12]; 6. 40-Mike Schnider[21]; 7. 9-Brady Uotinen[7]; 8. 18S-Kennedy Swan[3]; 9. 17-Jamie Bisonette[1]; 10. 18X-Dylan Miller[16]; 11. 31-Jason Vokovan[17]; 12. 46-Zach Slayton[13]; 13. 55-Jesse Polson[15]; 14. 19H-Kevin Herrman[19]; 15. (DNF) 221-Aric Lindberg[4]; 16. (DNF) 6-Cory Deilke[18]; 17. (DNF) 37-Travis Anderson[6]; 18. (DNF) 2-Tanner Gehl[11]; 19. (DNF) 13-Chris Bretting[10]; 20. (DNF) 93-CJ Wagner[14]; 21. (DNS) 28-Francis Hanson

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 38-Simon Wahlstrom[2]; 2. 18S-Kennedy Swan[3]; 3. 17-Jamie Bisonette[7]; 4. 13-Chris Bretting[1]; 5. 46-Zach Slayton[5]; 6. 18X-Dylan Miller[4]; 7. 6-Cory Deilke[6]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 32C-Cody Carlson[4]; 2. 9-Brady Uotinen[3]; 3. 221-Aric Lindberg[5]; 4. 2-Tanner Gehl[7]; 5. 93-CJ Wagner[1]; 6. 31-Jason Vokovan[2]; 7. 19H-Kevin Herrman[6]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 20-Austin Ellis[1]; 2. 37-Travis Anderson[6]; 3. 22-Tyler Kintner[4]; 4. 4-Kenny Kincaid[3]; 5. 55-Jesse Polson[2]; 6. (DNF) 28-Francis Hanson[7]; 7. (DNF) 40-Mike Schnider[5]

WISSOTA Street Stock

A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 12-Cody Kummer[2]; 2. 9K-Kolby Kiehl[9]; 3. 79-Joseph Ott[8]; 4. 40-Travis Loew[4]; 5. 24-James Clausen[3]; 6. 26T-Ty Agen[10]; 7. 71X-William Fisher[18]; 8. 38-Thomas O’Brien[19]; 9. 33-Daniel Boissy[11]; 10. (DNF) 9-Adam Soltis[7]; 11. (DNF) 17-Zach Beaulieu[16]; 12. (DNF) 28-Colten Klueckman[20]; 13. (DNF) 80-Brandon Hakala[12]; 14. (DNF) 16X-Kyle Gennett[1]; 15. (DNF) 19F-Gunner Orcutt[14]; 16. (DNF) 84-Hunter VanGilder[6]; 17. (DNF) 30-Shawn Amundson[5]; 18. (DNF) 20-Andrew Hanson[13]; 19. (DNF) 79N-Jeff Nowak[15]; 20. (DNF) 66-Eric Haupt[17]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 12-Cody Kummer[6]; 2. 16X-Kyle Gennett[1]; 3. 30-Shawn Amundson[4]; 4. 26T-Ty Agen[3]; 5. 20-Andrew Hanson[5]; 6. 17-Zach Beaulieu[7]; 7. 71X-William Fisher[2]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 9K-Kolby Kiehl[3]; 2. 24-James Clausen[5]; 3. 79-Joseph Ott[1]; 4. 33-Daniel Boissy[2]; 5. 19F-Gunner Orcutt[6]; 6. 66-Eric Haupt[7]; 7. (DNF) 28-Colten Klueckman[4]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 84-Hunter VanGilder[1]; 2. 40-Travis Loew[3]; 3. 9-Adam Soltis[4]; 4. 80-Brandon Hakala[6]; 5. 79N-Jeff Nowak[2]; 6. (DNF) 38-Thomas O’Brien[5]

WISSOTA Pure Stock

A Feature 1 (12 Laps): 1. 16-Cory Jorgensen[3]; 2. 19J-Jared Akervik[4]; 3. 88-Robert Wahlstrom[1]; 4. 17-Aaron Bernick[2]; 5. 66P-Max Prusak[9]; 6. 4-Jeremy Cash[5]; 7. 1-Ryan Olson[6]; 8. 23R-James Rahn[17]; 9. 00Z-Bryar Zimmerman[16]; 10. 2B-Nicholas Hazelton[7]; 11. 2S-Tristan Scheuermann[15]; 12. 70-Bob Thompson[10]; 13. 18M-Leo Moos[13]; 14. (DNF) 57-Randy Graham[11]; 15. (DNF) 15H-Dusten Holub[8]; 16. (DNF) OXSR-Michael Huebner Sr[14]; 17. (DNF) 31-Travis Hazelton[12]; 18. (DNF) 14A-AJ House[19]; 19. (DNF) 91-Michael Holmstrom[20]; 20. (DNS) 15X-George Hansford

B Feature 1 (8 Laps): 1. 23R-James Rahn[4]; 2. 15X-George Hansford[1]; 3. 14A-AJ House[10]; 4. 91-Michael Holmstrom[7]; 5. 55-Kevin Meeds[6]; 6. 715-Josh Miller[5]; 7. 72-Cully Butterfield[8]; 8. (DNF) 52-Austin Fencl[3]; 9. (DNS) 4K-Terry Kemp; 10. (DNS) 29M-Michael Miller; 11. (DNS) 17G-Chris Gross

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 15H-Dusten Holub[1]; 2. 17-Aaron Bernick[2]; 3. 66P-Max Prusak[7]; 4. 18M-Leo Moos[3]; 5. 15X-George Hansford[6]; 6. 715-Josh Miller[4]; 7. 72-Cully Butterfield[5]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 19J-Jared Akervik[1]; 2. 4-Jeremy Cash[3]; 3. 70-Bob Thompson[4]; 4. OXSR-Michael Huebner Sr[2]; 5. 4K-Terry Kemp[7]; 6. 55-Kevin Meeds[6]; 7. (DNF) 14A-AJ House[5]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 88-Robert Wahlstrom[5]; 2. 2B-Nicholas Hazelton[4]; 3. 57-Randy Graham[3]; 4. 2S-Tristan Scheuermann[6]; 5. 52-Austin Fencl[7]; 6. 91-Michael Holmstrom[2]; 7. (DNF) 17G-Chris Gross[1]

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 16-Cory Jorgensen[1]; 2. 1-Ryan Olson[2]; 3. 31-Travis Hazelton[4]; 4. 00Z-Bryar Zimmerman[6]; 5. 23R-James Rahn[3]; 6. (DNF) 29M-Michael Miller[5]