New Events Add To Rice Lake Speedway Season
by Ed Reichert
Rice Lake WI – Before the first green flag flies for the 2021 dirt track racing season at the Rice Lake Speedway, competitors will likely already have noticed that the schedule will offer more variety and new events than the track has offered for several seasons. Along with three $2,000 to win Late Model specials, the weekly competitors in the other divisions that race will also get to be involved in some new races booked on the schedule.
According to track co-owner Dave Adams, “ we were looking at adding some fun new events and shaking things up just a bit,” stated Adams. “These new races should be fun for both the racers and fans and give the drivers a chance to win a few extra dollars along with that.”
One of the series of new races is the “Mystery $1,000 to win feature” events, a series of five races, one for each class over the course of the Summer. While the Pure Stocks know that their special will be a part of the Labor Day race on September 4th, the other four divisions won’t know until race time just which class will be racing for the extra money.
Slated to be held on June 5th, June 26th, July 10th and August 3rd, these races were not designed to attract big numbers of visiting drivers but instead to reward those drivers that make the Rice Lake Speedway their weekly home.
Each of these four nights, once qualifying is complete, a drawing will determine which class will be racing for the extra money and all classes will get the one thousand top prize bonus. This way, no one knows where the extra money will be going which should make it fun for everyone to see which class draws the extra cash that night. And once that class has gotten the bonus, they will be eliminated from future drawings so that all classes will get once chance during the Summer to race for the extra money.
“Our idea was to make it a fun thing and liven things up just a bit, so we hope that everyone enjoys the idea,” said Adams.
The other new event on the schedule is the “feature races only” night, slated for the last regular season race of 2021 on August 28th. On that night, all classes will race two feature races with double the pay and double the winners. There will be no heat races as drivers will draw a number for the first feature race and that is how the first features will be lined up. Each class winner will then draw a number after the first set of races and whatever they draw will determine the number of cars to be inverted for the second set of feature races.
“It should be an exciting way to wrap up the regular season and a lot of fun. And who can complain about seeing another full set of feature races as a bonus,” commented Adams. “Something new like this should be a big hit for everyone.”
With everything still on track for the opener and the early Spring helping the track prep, the first on track activity is scheduled for Thursday night, April 22ndwith a practice night at the track where drivers in all classes can come and tune their cars up for opening night, when the Rice Lake Speedway opens the grounds for the sixty ninth consecutive year of racing on Rice Lake’s North side on Saturday night, April 24th.
Anyone having questions about the speedway should call Dave Adams at 715-205-2861 or Mitch Hansen at 715-205-1122.
