Red Cedar Speedway Tom Steuding Memorial
Brad Erickson
On Friday, June 11, 2021, the Red Cedar Speedway continued the racing season with a huge night of racing including the Tom Steuding Memorial, which featured $3,007 to win the Late Models presented by T.L. Sinz Plumbing. In addition, the WISSOTA Race of Champions qualifier was held and sponsored by Keyes Chevytown and Dirt Track Specialties (DTS).The WISSOTA, Late Models, Modifieds, Super Stocks, Midwest Modifieds, Street Stocks, and RCS Hornets were all in attendance.
Scorching heat has affected the West Central Wisconsin are for several days and an afternoon thundershower did nothing to deter the racing action. The track was worked in and was ready for racing well before 7:00 pm and temperatures were still in the 90’s as the action began. Winners on the evening saw Shane Halopka, Jesse Redetzke, Jesse Bryan, Andrew Hanson, and Jeremey Johnson standing in Victory Lane and it was AJ Diemel who took home the increased payday in the Late Model feature.
With all classes using draw redraw line up procedures, there were three heats of Late Models which were won by Pat Doar, Sam Mars, and James Giossi. The front row of the feature pitted Jake Miller on the pin with Mark Hessler to his outside. Under green, they moved three-wide on the backstretch with Jake Redetzke coming from the second row to join the fray. After the first of thirty nonstop laps, it was Redetzke with a slight door to door advantage over Hessler. Redetzke then took command of the race and stretched his advantage over the field.
Meanwhile, sixth starting AJ Diemel raced to third and worked on Hessler for the runner up spot. Diemel overtook the position and set his sites on the leader, who had a solid advantage, as Redetzke was running the upper rim, against the wall. Behind them, Hessler was running a solid third and tenth starting Jesse Glenz had worked his way to fourth. As laps ticked away, Diemel was definitely eating into Redetzke’s advantage. He caught him, and in lapped traffic, used the lower line to slip by into the lead. Once out front, he simply powered away into the night and ran away from the pack on his way to the checkered flag. Redetzke held strong in second as Glenz was able to get past Hessler for third. Hessler finished his strong run in fourth as Sam Mars rounded out the top five.
The three WISSOTA Modified heats were won by Clayton Wagamon, Ashley Anderson, and Jake Hartung. The feature was led to green by Steve Hallquist and Shane Halopka, but it took three attempts to get to speed due to two fourth corner spins. The third time was a charm and the opening lap featured sliders everywhere and aggressive moves to get to the cushion as up against the wall was the preferred line. After one lap it was Shane Halopka out front of Adam Ayotte as the seemingly unbeatable Ashley Anderson moved into third.
Anderson was able to overtake second, but Halopka had checked out on the field. Ayotte ran in third as Mark Hanson was in fourth and Jake Hartung had raced from the fifth row to fifth position. A spinning Nick Koehler once again slowed the pace and erased Halopka’s significant advantage. They returned to green with no changes when Hanson broke and was not able to safely clear the raceway, drawing the yellow flag. Under green, Halopka remained in his upper groove as Anderson tried to make a move below him for the lead. Anderson was not able to make the pass and he moved to the top line and followed Halopka home to the checkered flag. Ayotte finished in third as Cory Mahder finished fourth after starting 17th on the field. A several lap long side by side battle was waged for fifth with Hartung beating out Mike Anderson for the spot at the finish line.
The Super Stocks had one heat with Redetzke carrying the checkered flag. It is nearly impossible to pass Tommy Richards on the bottom and just as difficult to beat Jesse Redetzke up high. Tonight, the front row was exactly that, and everyone knew the race would likely be won by whomever was able to secure the lead first. After an aborted attempt to get under green, Redetzke ran high and Richards low, side by side, for the first two laps. It was Redetzke leading by the slightest of margins at the line, but Richards didn’t plan to go away. On the third circuit, much of which was still door to door, Redetzke was able to take a clear lead and Richards followed him to the cushion to set chase.
In a story of Redetzke and Richards out front, they left the entire field in their wake. Redetzke moved away from Richards to a solid advantage as they entered into lapped traffic, but Richards himself also had a significant lead over third running Danny Thomas. As Redetzke streaked under the checkered flag, both he and Richards had set a scorching pace and were on the same straightaway and closing on the third-place finisher Thomas, Rick Hallquist came home in fourth over Dylan Leu who rounded out the top five.
The WISSOTA Midwest Modified heats were topped by JD Ford, Derek Haas, and Kennedy Swan. It was all Jesse Bryan from the pole at feature time as he backed up his win the week before with another impressive run to the checkers. Other than seventh starting Kyle Kirberger taking a peek underneath Bryan in turns three and four after the lone caution and restart of the event, Bryan was not challenged seriously during the race. Kirberger finished a strong second over Swan, who passed Nick Ayotte for third on the final circuit. Ford rounded out the top five.
The WISSOTA Street Stocks never fail to impress as they provide some of the most competitive racing in the area. They always run tight formations and provide an excellent product week after week. It was Jim Randall and Dustin Doughty winning heats as Doughty and Cody Kummer led the field to green in the feature. Doughty took the lead at the drop of the green as Kummer, Randall, and Hanson raced three-wide for second position. A caution flag slowed the action, but back under green, it was Doughty again, but this time Kummer stayed with him, and they raced door to door for the lead. With Doughty securing the point.
As Doughty led, Andrew Hanson moved in and raced Kummer side by side for second with Hanson edging into the runner up position. Hanson wasn’t done yet, as he closed on Doughty, poked his nose under him, pulled even, and moved to the lead himself. Hanson would stay out front as they battled in his shadow all the way to the checkered flag. Kummer was able to move door to door with Doughty with two laps remaining and he completed the pass to take second. Behind Doughty, Randall and Hunter Anderson had a two-wide run to the line with Randall taking fourth and Anderson rounding out the top five.
In yet another RCS Hornets sweep, it was Jeremy Johnson’s turn to return to Victory Lane. It was a no doubt about it run for Johnson as he moved from the outside of the front row to a significant advantage at the finish. Sixth starting Sean Svee won a spirited battle for second over Love in third. Levi Price finished ahead of fifth place Randy Stensgaard. Armond Love was the other heat winner.
The Red Cedar Speedway is scheduled to return to racing a Friday, June 18, 2021, but the WISSOTA Late Models and Modifieds will not be in attendance as there are local track running high paying events which allows Red Cedar Speedway regulars to go compete for higher stakes. The evening will include a Mechanics Race along with the WISSOTA Super Stocks, Midwest Modifieds, Street Stocks, and RCS Hornets all being on the card.
WISSOTA Late Model Feature (25 Laps): 1. 58-AJ Diemel[6]; 2. 27-Jake Redetzke[3]; 3. 7X-Jesse Glenz[10]; 4. 13-Mark Hessler[2]; 5. 28-Sam Mars[5]; 6. 519-Steve Laursen[11]; 7. 11-Pat Doar[9]; 8. 85-John Kaanta[8]; 9. 11X-James Giossi[4]; 10. 68-Mike Prochnow[12]; 11. 65-Jake Miller[1]; 12. 31-Michael Keller[15]; 13. 7C-Jim Carlson[14]; 14. 22-Nick Panitzke[7]; 15. 21F-Gunner Frank[17]; 16. 92-Aaron Wilson[18]; 17. 95-Shawn Carlson[19]; 18. (DNF) 21-Todd Frank[13]; 19. (DNF) 14-Robbie Johnson[16]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 11-Pat Doar[1]; 2. 58-AJ Diemel[4]; 3. 13-Mark Hessler[2]; 4. 7X-Jesse Glenz[7]; 5. 21-Todd Frank[6]; 6. 14-Robbie Johnson[3]; 7. 95-Shawn Carlson[5]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 28-Sam Mars[5]; 2. 22-Nick Panitzke[1]; 3. 85-John Kaanta[4]; 4. 519-Steve Laursen[2]; 5. 7C-Jim Carlson[3]; 6. 21F-Gunner Frank[6]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 11X-James Giossi[2]; 2. 27-Jake Redetzke[3]; 3. 65-Jake Miller[1]; 4. 68-Mike Prochnow[5]; 5. 31-Michael Keller[6]; 6. 92-Aaron Wilson[4]
WISSOTA Modified Feature (20 Laps): 1. 3JR-Shane Halopka[2]; 2. 81-Ashley Anderson[5]; 3. 04JR-Adam Ayotte[3]; 4. 55-Cory Mahder[17]; 5. 05-Jake Hartung[9]; 6. 57-Mike Anderson[10]; 7. 1-Paul Harelstad[11]; 8. W-Cory Williams[18]; 9. 99L-Steve Lavasseur[12]; 10. 8S-Tony Schill[8]; 11. 42-Paul Niznik[4]; 12. 10-Daniel Bargender[15]; 13. 48-Cody Brightbill[16]; 14. 14W-Clayton Wagamon[6]; 15. (DNF) 18-Mark Hanson[7]; 16. (DNF) 9-Josh Hessler[14]; 17. (DNF) 13-Nick Koehler[13]; 18. (DNF) 27H-Steve Hallquist[1]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 14W-Clayton Wagamon[1]; 2. 8S-Tony Schill[2]; 3. 42-Paul Niznik[3]; 4. 57-Mike Anderson[6]; 5. 13-Nick Koehler[4]; 6. (DNF) 55-Cory Mahder[5]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 81-Ashley Anderson[1]; 2. 04JR-Adam Ayotte[2]; 3. 18-Mark Hanson[5]; 4. 1-Paul Harelstad[3]; 5. 9-Josh Hessler[4]; 6. (DNF) W-Cory Williams[6]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 05-Jake Hartung[2]; 2. 3JR-Shane Halopka[3]; 3. 27H-Steve Hallquist[1]; 4. 99L-Steve Lavasseur[6]; 5. 10-Daniel Bargender[4]; 6. 48-Cody Brightbill[5]
WISSOTA Super Stock Feature (18 Laps): 1. 207-Jesse Redetzke[2]; 2. 7R-Tommy Richards[1]; 3. T40-Danny Thomas[4]; 4. 26H-Rick Hallquist[3]; 5. 14L-Dylan Leu[8]; 6. 15-Jonathan Dachel[9]; 7. 18B-Dean Butler[7]; 8. 55S-Derrike Suckow[5]; 9. 2-Bart Steffen[6]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 207-Jesse Redetzke[3]; 2. 7R-Tommy Richards[6]; 3. 26H-Rick Hallquist[5]; 4. T40-Danny Thomas[7]; 5. 55S-Derrike Suckow[1]; 6. 2-Bart Steffen[2]; 7. 18B-Dean Butler[4]; 8. 15-Jonathan Dachel[9]; 9. (DNF) 14L-Dylan Leu[8]
WISSOTA Midwest Modified Feature (18 Laps): 1. 21B-Jesse Bryan[1]; 2. 2-Kyle Kirberger[7]; 3. 18S-Kennedy Swan[3]; 4. 04N-Nick Ayotte[2]; 5. 343-JD Ford[6]; 6. 68-Shadow Kitchner[9]; 7. 43K-Kaden Blaeser[12]; 8. 80-Derek Haas[5]; 9. R1-Jay Richardson[15]; 10. 37-Travis Anderson[18]; 11. 20-Austin Ellis[13]; 12. 19-Josh Wahlstrom[10]; 13. 89X-Matt Klukas[11]; 14. 12-Craig Haas[4]; 15. 6-Steve Haas[8]; 16. 22G-Gavin Olson[16]; 17. 89-Tyler Lamm[14]; 18. 61-Andrea Keeney[17]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 343-JD Ford[5]; 2. 12-Craig Haas[2]; 3. 21B-Jesse Bryan[4]; 4. 19-Josh Wahlstrom[3]; 5. 20-Austin Ellis[6]; 6. 22G-Gavin Olson[1]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 80-Derek Haas[1]; 2. 68-Shadow Kitchner[6]; 3. 6-Steve Haas[4]; 4. 89X-Matt Klukas[5]; 5. 89-Tyler Lamm[3]; 6. 61-Andrea Keeney[2]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 18S-Kennedy Swan[1]; 2. 04N-Nick Ayotte[3]; 3. 2-Kyle Kirberger[5]; 4. 43K-Kaden Blaeser[6]; 5. R1-Jay Richardson[2]; 6. 37-Travis Anderson[4]
WISSOTA Street Stock Feature (18 Laps): 1. 20-Andrew Hanson[3]; 2. 12-Cody Kummer[2]; 3. D1-Dustin Doughty[1]; 4. 15R-Jim Randall[4]; 5. 27H-Hunter Anderson[5]; 6. 9-Adam Soltis[6]; 7. 1R-Cole Richards[10]; 8. 79-Jeff Nowak[7]; 9. 22-Alex Minks[9]; 10. (DNS) 3R-Danny Richards
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 15R-Jim Randall[3]; 2. 20-Andrew Hanson[4]; 3. 12-Cody Kummer[5]; 4. (DNF) 3R-Danny Richards[2]; 5. (DNF) 22-Alex Minks[1]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. D1-Dustin Doughty[1]; 2. 27H-Hunter Anderson[3]; 3. 79-Jeff Nowak[5]; 4. 9-Adam Soltis[2]; 5. (DNF) 1R-Cole Richards[4]
RCS Hornets Feature (10 Laps): 1. 917-Jeremy Johnson[2]; 2. 383-Sean Svee[6]; 3. 29-Armond Love[3]; 4. 21P-Levi Price[1]; 5. 17-Randy Stensgaard[4]; 6. 9SR-Scott Cooper[7]; 7. 4-Joslin Carothers[8]; 8. 42-Vanessa Seipel[10]; 9. 05-Tucker Kempe[5]; 10. (DNF) 9JR-Roy Cooper[9]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 917-Jeremy Johnson[4]; 2. 17-Randy Stensgaard[1]; 3. 4-Joslin Carothers[2]; 4. 05-Tucker Kempe[3]; 5. 9JR-Roy Cooper[5]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 29-Armond Love[2]; 2. 383-Sean Svee[1]; 3. 9SR-Scott Cooper[4]; 4. 21P-Levi Price[5]; 5. 42-Vanessa Seipel[3]
