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Sunday, July 21

A long week of racing concluded Sunday at Granite City Motor Park, with the third round of the weekend for the Structural Buildings WISSOTA Challenge Series Late Models. It was also a special event for the Midwest Modifieds, while the other four WISSOTA classes ran a regular program.

Our Late Models, while being just as good as most any series around, generally aren't structured as traveling teams, with big crews and the other things needed to be on the road for extended periods of time. So, by Sunday of a three-race weekend, teams fell off the grid and didn’t make the final stop. However, those who are vying for top spots in the final series point standings found a way to make it happen, and 17 of them signed in to race on Sunday.

Current point leader Cole Searing was one who had to scramble following two separate wrecks Saturday at Cedar Lake. His car had to go back to Mars Race Cars for work and was not driveable on Sunday. Fortunately, part-time competitor Steve Hucovski offered up his car for the night; with Hucovski’s car also an MB, I assume it’s close to what Searing was driving. As such, it turned out to be a lifesaver for Searing. He finished fifth in the main in that car, holding onto his point lead by the slimmest of margins.

And, as the drivers prepare for what should be a thrilling but grueling week of racing when the Northern Storm six-night series begins in August, we know it will be fun, but also a test of wills.

Another special part of this program was the Braiden Benjamin live auction that was held following all qualifying. This benefit raised funds for a driver fighting cancer. There was a lot of support from the drivers who helped to make it a successful night.

In Challenge Series action, Shane Sabraski was quick qualifier at 13.553 seconds. Sabraski's time, by the way, was a new track record. The series has been doing that more often than not this year.

The Challenge Series event was the star of this evening’s program and despite the fact that only 17 cars took the green flag, they put on a good show. The race featured three different leaders before Sabraski took control and led the last 14 laps for the win.

Kevin Burdick was the early leader with Jesse Glenz and Tyler Peterson trailing, as Sabraski moved to fourth and rode there for awhile. On lap nine, Glenz drove around Burdick and took over the lead. Glenz was racing in South Dakota for most of the weekend, but stopped at GCMP on his way home and was making the detour worthwhile. The yellow flew on lap 18 for a spin; on the green, Sabraski made the move of the night, splitting the duo of Peterson and Burdick in second and third in a spectacular move down the back chute.

He then stalked Glenz for the lead but Glenz continued to show the way.

Another yellow with 24 laps complete was significant. Again, on the restart, Sabraski showed speed other drivers weren't able to match and he got a good run on Glenz and rolled past him to take over the top spot. Once in front, Sabraski drove away for the win, his ninth feature win of 2024 already.

As Glenz faded in the last dozen laps, Peterson raced up to second with Burdick also getting past Glenz. As mentioned, Searing brought the borrowed car home fifth.

The other special race of the night was the Midwest Modified feature. Promoter James Trantina put a lot of extra money into the Mid Mod purse, with their feature paying $2,000 to win and $125 just to start – very good money indeed. Twenty-five Mid Mods signed in and all started the feature.

Having Joey Jensen on the pole, with the tear he’s been on lately, seemed like the race was settled before the green flag dropped. While that was eventually the case, it did take awhile for the plot to unfold. Landyn Randt surprised us all by getting the jump on Jensen and taking the early lead, as Randt used the outside line to get a nice push into the top spot.

Jensen tailgated Randt in the early going, with Blake Adams moving into third.

Randt, no doubt, was feeling the heat from Jensen and on lap 10, he went too hard into turn one, slammed the outside wall hard, and then slowed with a flat tire, triggering the yellow.

Jensen inherited the lead and then showed the way for the final 21 laps for the win. He had to fight his way through lapped traffic, with Adams close behind. Jensen is a veteran, however, and he didn't slip once as he worked through the five slower cars he needed to pass to maintain his lead.

I thought Adams might try to slide him in the late going as that appeared to be the best way to pass on the topside-dominant track. But, Adams was never able to get close enough to Jensen to make such a move a reality. He, instead, settled for a nice $1500 payday for second. Zach Benson made a determined drive from 10th to finish a close third, and still took home $1250. This race really paid well, so it was a surprise there weren't more drivers on hand.

Four other WISSOTA divisions also raced, including Super Stocks, Mod Fours, Street Stocks and Hornets. There was a short field of Street Stocks Sunday but Jim Gullikson still had to make quite a drive, starting eighth. He eventually took the lead with just four laps remaining to take the win. Kyle Howland led from the opening green and fought off Levi Randt until lap 11, when Randt got past after Howland's car started to get really loose. Just a lap later, however, Gullikson made the winning pass with Randt holding on for second ahead of Charlie Shiek.

There were four different leaders in the 15-lap Mod Four feature race. Tyler Larson led the opening lap, before he shockingly lost a wheel while in the lead and was done for the night. Rookie Connor Bruss, who is improving each and every week, then took the lead and he held the top spot briefly before Luke Erlandson made the pass and moved out front.

Erlandson was running well, but not as well as Tommy Bawden. He drove around Erlandson and took over the lead by the midpoint of the race. He then maintained that spot to the finish, with Erlandson and Bruss finishing behind him.

It looked for quite some time that Brandon Linquist might get the Super Stock win. He started on the pole, took off at a good pace and seemed in control of what turned out to be a green-to-checkered race. However, the orange No. 7A was on the move after starting seventh. Smoothly and stealthily, Sabraski climbed through the pack. He caught Linquist on lap 12, and that was it; he drove on from there for the win. Linquist had a fine run as he held off Dexton Koch on the last lap for second.

Jack Post and Austin Jacobson each had the chance to lead a lap of the Hornet feature before Jenna Hagemann drove past them both. The Hornets also raced green to checkered, and she pulled away for the win. Payson Patrin made a late rush to take second.

The racing was good and the track held up well. I did note that the blue markers on the inside of the track, lauded earlier this year as keeping the cars out of the infield without tearing up the cars, have been added to with a whole group of big tires. Apparently they needed something just a bit more substantial to keep the drivers from cutting the corners.

It got to be a long night with a 10:30 pm finish, tough on a Sunday night. But the reason for the late hour was largely due to the auction that lasted just over an hour. For that reason, a little less sleep on Sunday night is not an overwhelming sacrifice to make. In other words, stop whining.

Thursday, July 25

It was a gorgeous night for racing at Grand Rapids Speedway Thursday. The special event on the schedule was the KME Racing Series Late Model event, along with a weekly program in the track’s other classes.

Kapella Machine Electronics, for the second year in a row, has put together a series of races involving the four tracks in northern Minnesota and northern Wisconsin that run Late Models on a regular basis. There is extra pay on tap for the race, as well as a nice point fund at the end of the series. Thursday night's race paid $2,500 to win and there was also a random draw of the cars on hand, minus the feature winner, for a bonus of $2500. It’s a good deal for all from Pat Kapella, who owns KME and owns and sponsors several of the drivers who run at these tracks weekly.

There was a good field of both Hornets and Mid Mods on hand, while the Super Stocks and Pure Stocks were both just a bit light on cars. In all, 85 cars signed in to race in the six classes of racing.

The Late Model field of 17 was considered just a bit light, but this series does provide for one throwout race. Trevor Anderson was visiting from South Dakota in the Dirt Track Supply entry, in likely his first time ever to race in this area.

Auto racing has a long heritage on the Iron Range of Minnesota. When I think back on the recent history of racing up here, two drivers – George Ledin and Roger Paolo – stand out to me as veterans who have raced for many years and have always been a staple of racing up here and at the tracks of the Twin Ports.

Thursday I took a minute to talk to each, mostly curious about how many years they have each raced. For George Ledin, this is his 51st year of racing, a monumental feat in and of itself. And did you know that Ledin is a native of southern Wisconsin, having grown up in the Burlington, Wisconsin area? He started racing when he was 17 on blacktop at Lake Geneva Raceway, a track long gone due to urban expansion. He moved up here to northern Minnesota, hoping to get a job working in the mines. That never happened, but he stayed in the area and raced up here ever since, starting in the Hobby Stock class and gradually working his way up to Late Models.

Roger Paolo is in his 44th year of racing, having also started as a 17-year-old. He has always lived in the Hibbing area and he started racing in the old Six Cylinder class that raced at Hibbing in years past. He also gradually worked his way up to Late Models and is hopeful that next year he will be able to upgrade his equipment with a newer chassis. Right now he is racing a 2013 Rocket chassis with a Ford motor that is just too heavy compared to what some of the others are racing.

Both Ledin and Paolo wish they could be more competitive but continue to race anyway, with George indicating that the end of his career might be within sight before too long.

So when you see those two at the track, take a minute to thank them for all the years of entertainment they have provided for Late Model fans and fans in general. While next year at this time they will have combined for more than 100 years of racing experience, the end could be coming for them soon.

It was like back in the old days, as Shane Sabraski raced in three divisions Thursday, the first time that he has done that in quite a while. And with the crew and resources to do it, why wouldn't you? Right now he is scorching hot in all three classes. And boy, the competition learned that fact the hard way later on Thursday.

New to the Modified class was Jonathen Feda from Bemidji. Feda used to race in the Mod Four class. Raice Westover was also a new face. He came down from Fort Francis to race here for the first time this year.

I'm sure some folks get tired of hearing and reading about Shane Sabraski, but the blunt truth is that when someone is as good as he is and wins as much as he does, he is news.

Anyone who races against him or has met him can’t have a complaint about him. He is a nice guy to talk to and on the track, seldom if ever touches another car. He is perhaps the smoothest driver on the track this area has ever seen, in my opinion, while also being exceptional in his skill of reading the race track.

This past Thursday he was not only fast but exceptionally lucky, too, as he drew the front row for heat races in all three classes. The result? Three wins without even breaking a sweat.

He had to work a bit harder come main event time, but he was up to the task. He started in the second row of the Super Stock feature with Doug Koski, having one of his finest seasons to date, taking the early lead. Sabraski quickly moved to second and when Koski slid up off the bottom exiting turn four, Sabraski was right there to drive past him and then pull away. He was unchallenged the rest of the event, which had only a single yellow flag.

The duo of Dustin and Dylan Nelson battled hard for third and they caught Koski right at the end. While Sabraski was already on the scale, the Nelsons surrounded Koski on the last lap, passing him on both the top and bottom side. Dustin was second and Dylan was third.

The featured event was the Late Model main, with the drivers going 25 laps. Sabraski benefitted from a front row start and after fighting off Kevin Burdick on the first lap, he took the lead and extended it considerably. As he pulled away, Burdick and Johnny Broking had a good battle for second, with Broking eventually prevailing.

A late spin set up a five-lap duel to the finish, with Broking having made a little ground on Sabraski under the long green. However, Sabraski pulled away easily when the green came back out. Jeff Massingill drove up to third while Jeff Provinzino came from 11th to fourth.

Some may have thought Sabraski would be stopped by Kevin Adams in the Modifieds, but they were wrong again.

While Adams made a great move on the opening lap and shot from third to the lead, Sabraski was not far behind, moving from seventh to second in that same period. Just three laps later, when Adams slid off the bottom and gave up the groove, Sabraski just drove under him and proceeded to pull away; he had traction Adams could only wish for.

Buzzy clobbered an infield tire in his effort to regain the lead and was like a three-legged stool as he dragged that dead left front around the track for the rest of the race. Bob Broking drove past for second, but Adams managed to hold off Charlie Castle and came home third.

It was not a night of luck for the Adams family, for sure. Not only did Kevin clobber his car, but son Blake appeared to have the Mid Mod feature in his back pocket when his car started to misfire and he lost the lead because of it.

He had started out great, having been the first driver to identify the fast lane around the track. The Mid Mods were the first feature after intermission and track prep having been done. Following a lap three spin, Adams went roaring up on the top side and moved from fifth to second and just two laps later, passed Darrin Lawler to take over the lead. He looked to be well positioned to take another feature win as Sam Blevins and ninth-starter David Simpson chased him.

However, coming down the front chute Adams’ car started to falter, losing power and bucking and chugging for a lap before it seemed to clear and he continued. But it started to do the same thing again and this time worse; he was quickly eaten up by Blevins and Simpson and eventually had to park the car.

Simpson continue to roar up to the front and got past Blevins to take over the lead. Despite some late pressure from Mikey Blevins, up from 12th and Sam Blevins, Simpson took his second feature race of the week and the weekend had yet to start!

Earlier, Simpson told me Thunder City had a huge crowd for their weekly show on Wednesday night, which was the Richard Schutte Memorial. The 50/50 spit the pot was more than $10,000 and they had more than 130 cars in the pits. Just about all of them are local and area entrants! That place is rockin’!

The Pure Stock feature was a two-driver battle all the way. Jake Smith took the early lead and actually held the top spot for the full 15 laps. However, after a lap one yellow, the race went green to checkered flag, and Chaston Finckbone began to gain a little ground. Lap after lap, Finckbone moved in, and on the final lap, he got to within a car length of Smith. Smith drove the smooth and steady race, however, and never made the mistake that would have cost him.

I wish officials would lay down the law with the Hornet drivers. Many are driving in a careless manner that is going to get someone hurt before they wise up.

Polesitter Easton Pfeiffer was punted in the first turn and spun around in front of the whole pack to start the feature. However, no one was punished and those who were still running lined up to try it again. This time, Mikayla LaBarge took the lead, a position she held past the midpoint of the race. Meanwhile, as the rough housing on the track continued, Trenton Beel and Tristan McLynn caught the leader; McLynn made the pass, only to have the yellow save LaBarge.

With four laps to go and back under green, both McLynn and Beel passed LaBarge for the lead and they then went at it for the top spot. Beel body-checked McLynn off turn two, and took over the point. As McLynn rushed to get back on the track, he clipped LaBarge, who had taken over second. She was turned completely around and then hit hard, head-on, by another driver. The red flag was triggered.

It took quite a while to get her out of the car and while there was no report from the announcer, the hope is that she was just shook up badly after a very hard hit.

Beel was lined up in the lead for the restart and held on for the last two laps to take the win over Ryker Larson and Anastashia Chavez.

I’ve said this before. Something needs to be done and soon before they have no cars left and someone gets hurt.

Whether it was the great weather or the car show going on at the fairgrounds, Thursday's show was a very good one and actually one of the biggest crowds I have seen here this season and beyond. All racing was complete around 10 p.m. and for many, it was still short sleeve weather at this point.

Friday, July 26

It was Dunn County Fair night on Friday, July 26 at Red Cedar Speedway. Dunn County has been having a county fair since way back in 1885 when 50 acres of land was purchased east of Menomonie for the development of a fairgrounds. Of course, as we now know, what was once outside of town is now surrounded by the growing city of Menomonie. Commercial businesses, individual housing, an elementary school and even a hospital are now just down the street from the fairgrounds to its east. Being right in town does make things handy for the fair, though it has brought challenges for the race track throughout the season and over the years.

It was the second-straight night of racing at Red Cedar. On Thursday, the DRC Street Stock Tour, along with the Super Stocks and Hornets, put on a show. Racing then continued on Friday with WISSOTA-sanctioned Late Models, Modifieds and Mid Mods joining the Streets for another DRC race, as well as the unsanctioned Hornets.

The heat wave was starting on Friday night and it was a steamy night at the races.

There were 25 Street Stocks on hand to race, representing four states. The current point leader was Kyle Dykhoff, who had an 11-point lead over Chippewa Falls' Ty Agen. A solid field of drivers was on hand in the other WISSOTA classes, even though the Late Models had other events at other tracks that were tugging at them.

Among interesting items noted in the pits before the show began was a new number and new wrap for Street Stock driver Kolby Kiehl. Instead of his normal number No. 9, he was running the number No. 8, which was part of the business noted in giant letters on the side of the car, Cobra Chassis. This was in tribute to “Cobra Dave” Mueller, a name well-known in the chassis building business in this area for a long time. “Cobra Dave,” who it turns out is an uncle to Kiehl, was inducted into the ABC Raceway Hall of Fame on July 27 but since Kiehl couldn’t be there that night (he has his own track to run on Saturday), they put this wrap on the car in tribute to him. The plan is to leave the wrap on for the rest of the racing season.

Parker Anderson reported that he has replaced nearly everything on his Street Stock, including the motor, and the performance of it has greatly improved. This car actually belongs to Scott Bintz and will likely be returned to Bintz after the Little Dream next week. Bintz wants to race it in the WISSOTA 100, so Anderson’s plans are very much up in the air for the rest of the season.

This is not a new car, but one actually raced previously by Parker's brother. After he got a flat tire and had to pull off in his heat race, he was the hard charger in the main event, coming from 24th to finish 10th. He is hoping for better luck this coming Tuesday.

New to me on Friday was MidMod No. 71, driven by Barry Johnson from Nelson, Wisconsin. Barry is not new to the racing game, however, having driven a USRA Late Model successfully for a number of years.

Travis Anderson reports that he has changed virtually everything on his car for this week except the driver, hoping for some improved performance from the car. It looks like a little tuning is still needed, as it was hit and miss during the night and he eventually pulled out of the main event.

Bryan Hessler made his first appearance of the year at Red Cedar with his Modified. As a driver who doesn't keep the same colors on his car as many do, this year his car is a bright blue. He later had a top-10 finish.

Blake Adams reported that the problem on his car that probably cost him a feature win Thursday was a faulty fuel pump. It was already acting up as he passed for the lead, but just kept getting worse. Later on Friday against a tough field of drivers he scored a top-five finish.

The featured attraction on Friday was the DRC Street Stock feature, with this series having just a single event left after Friday night. All 25 cars on hand started the feature and they raced for 25 laps with just a single caution.

The winner was Justin Vogel, doing what he always does. That is, he pounds the cushion until it wears out, and then he looks for an alternative line around the track. This strategy has worked for years for him and has resulted in national championships and huge feature wins. While he is one of the few Street Stock drivers who run this line, he has always has success doing so.

On Friday, he started third in the main with Cody Kummer – Thursday night's winner – taking the early lead. There were two distinct lines on the track, with most running the low line. And then there was Vogel's line. While Vogel worked up a head of steam on the outside, Hunter VanGilder, Kyle Genett and Andrew Hanson were all on the move toward the front themselves.

Vogel was most successful as he gained momentum and pulled up alongside Kummer; Kummer was helpless to stop the charge of Vogel, who drove past him on the outside and then began to pull away as the race stayed under the green.

Genett moved into third by the halfway point of the race and then began to challenge Kummer for second, with Hanson getting past VanGilder, too.

As the race wore on, the groove began to change slightly, with Vogel dipping just a bit lower in the corners. He was still running a line that was higher than most. Genett challenged Kummer for second but after a fight for that spot, Kummer again began to edge away.

Things were almost crazy on the final lap; with Vogel running in heavy lapped traffic, Warren Bartelt had a right rear tire blow and he got sideways right in front of the leader. Vogel was able to take evasive action, however, and crossed the line as the winner. Kummer and Genett followed and VanGilder repassed Hanson to take fourth. The feature was run was apparently in stark contrast to the previous night's display.

The Modified feature was a crowd pleaser, with two Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin high school students battling it out for the win. Danny Thomas took the early lead and he was running at a hot pace as he pulled out to an advantage. However, Kaden Blaeser went to the top side of the track and began to cut into Thomas’ lead, while Kennedy Swan and Kevin Adams were also on the move. The Mods found the top side to be best and they were all running dangerously close to the walls as they tore to the front.

On lap seven Blaeser blew past Thomas to take over the lead. Soon after, Swan also got past and the two teenagers took off from the field.

Eventually Adams also passed Thomas and as the laps started to wind down, the top three were running in close formation as they tickled the wall repeatedly. Unfortunately for Adams, he tickled the wall just a bit too hard, and he suddenly slowed with a flat tire with just four laps to go.

The restart brought on the most breathtaking moment of the race; Swan got a good run on the leader and threw a monster slider at Blaeser in turn four. The two, at high speed, were inches apart as they raced through that corner. Blaeser held on, however, and then Swan dropped back just a bit then as Blaeser drove on for the win over Swan and Mike Anderson.

It was hard to believe that Ashley Anderson had not won a Late Model feature yet this year at Red Cedar, because he always runs so well here. He took care of that on Friday, coming from the third row to take his first win here. Brett Shafer took the early lead and actually built up quite a cushion over the field. A yellow before a lap was completed slowed the action, but then they raced 20 green-flag laps to the finish. Anderson, who moved up the track to the top side early, took some time to catch the leader.

Shafer fought hard but Anderson had the topside momentum and he drove into the lead. With no yellows to slow him, eventually he had a full straightaway over the field, with just lapped traffic to contend with.

Shafer had perhaps his best run yet as he finished a solid second, while the battle for third included three drivers going at it for most of the race among Rick Hanestad, John Kaanta and A.J. Diemel in the top five.

Nick Koehler has been particularly fast since he got his new car recently, and he showed that once again Friday. He came from the second row to win yet again. Jake Stai had a great run early on, as he took the early lead, fighting off a very fast Steve Goss to lead the first six laps.

However, it didn't take Koehler long to find that top side. He drove past Shadow Kitchner and Goss and closed on Stai.

Koehler continued his charge and drove past Stai to take over the lead and like the other features, with few yellows to slow the action, the leader drove away from the field. Making a fine charge to the front was Derek Haas, who started ninth but quickly moved up and past Stai for second just after the midpoint of the race.

There was some dandy battling for position behind the top two, as Kitchner held off 12th-starter Joey Jensen for third. Only four cars didn't complete the distance.

The final checkered flag flew before 10 p.m., perfect for folks to head out on the midway and visit the fair. A good-sized crowd was in the stands to witness the concluding racing event of the Dunn County Fair.

Saturday, July 27

Rice Lake Speedway was back in action Saturday for the first time in 24 days due to scheduling quirks and rainouts. This is the second time there has been a long break in the action, and I think that it has hurt the overall program.

The steamy weather probably doesn't help either. Though racers should have had their fill of nights off by this point given the rainouts of 2024, in searching results it appears many tracks had lower numbers for their regular night and some special events didn't draw near the numbers I would have expected.

In the pits Saturday, I noticed George Dalbeck, from the U.P. of Michigan, made his first appearance of the year with his Mid Mod. I believe it’s only the second time he has raced this year. His MB is interestingly powered by a crate motor and he has gone with a completely different look for 2024, running a red car. I also noted that he is using a trailer that was formerly used by Don Muzzy.

Dalbeck didn't have the best of nights with a bad draw for his heat and then a boot in the behind early in the feature, but hopefully he will return again at some point this year. He always puts on a good show.

A new Pure Stock on hand was driven by Caleb Duffie from Chippewa Falls. Caleb is the stepson of Brad Hudson, who drove for a number of years in the Mid Mod class. He was on hand as was Jim Hudson, Brad's father. Jim used to spin the wrenches for years for Modified driver M.G. Johnson back in the day. Caleb is only 15 but stands about 6 ft. 4 inches, playing both football and wrestling for Chippewa Falls. It appeared overheating issues cut both his races short on Saturday.

Brad is remembered for being the centerpiece of one of the most scary accidents ever seen at Rice Lake. His Mid Mod caught fire right on the front chute and burned literally to the ground before it could be extinguished. That's when fire protection was sub par at many tracks (and still is at a bunch of them yet today).

I need to do a better job of keeping up with our drivers. Saturday I had the chance to talk to Kori Richter for a few moments. Kori was one of the track's most successful drivers for years in both the Street Stock and Super Stock classes. I knew that he didn't race last year but I didn't know why until he told me he had serious heart surgery that was likely life-saving. Now he is back and feeling good and trying to get his car tuned in. He has raced at ABC and Proctor already this year, as well as at Rice Lake. Saturday he got caught up in a Talladega-type Super Stock crash and despite being all bent up, he was running in the top five when he suddenly shut down and left for the infield.

The Modifieds were a late addition to the program, after some of the teams appealed to the track owners to put them back on the schedule. Those who were expected to be on hand did show and they did have enough for a couple heats.

The Late Models made their second and final appearance of the season on Saturday. What a surprise to see Tony Bahr back behind the wheel of Jerry Brummond's car for the night. Regular driver Mike Anderson wanted to run his Modified elsewhere, so Brummond turned to Bahr, who hadn't run a Late Model in over 10 years. We just inducted him into the track Hall of Fame weeks ago and now he shows up back racing!

He actually did quite well, finishing second in a heat race. He then shot himself in the foot when he forgot to go to the scales and was DQ'd! Ouch! This put him in the back of the feature where he eventually pulled off late in the race.

The “Wild Hogs” are a group of bike riding guys who are great supporters of Rice Lake Speedway, never missing a race here and traveling to many other tracks. They are well known for supplying the bacon in the big coolers that goes to the top finishers in the Little Dream race each year. Tonight one of “The Hogs” won the 50/50 and he threw the nearly $400 dollar winnings into the Little Dream for next week. They were the first contributor to what we all hope will be a record-breaking night.

The track prep team used a new tool they have at their disposal, though they may have dug it just a bit too deep trying to get moisture into the surface. The track was a bit loose for the heat race action but after it was graded at intermission, it was excellent for the features.

The Mid Mod drivers produced an excellent and exciting feature event on Saturday, won by Cody Cimfl. His first feature win in the Mid Mods came by just .039 seconds over Blake Adams, who was working the cushion at the end of the race. Adams’ car was steaming as he finished the event, the result of an earlier tangle that did front end damage.

Cimfl's win was even sweeter, given that he had actually crossed the finish line first in an A-main earlier this year, only to weigh in light.

On the same excellent track that the Mid Mods had, the Super Stocks had four lead changes among three different drivers in the first four laps of the race. But then things fell apart badly with the first of two really bad crashes happened, back to back.

In heavy traffic on the back chute, one of the leaders was sideways and before he could correct his car, he was rear-ended by another at speed. Cars went flying in all directions as car after car crashed into the mess. All told, at least 10 cars were in the pileup and seven eliminated from the race.

And after the long clean-up, another crash before a lap could be completed took out another four cars. The race started with 19 cars and ended up with six.

I was most disappointed in the very poor turnout of Late Models for the second and final appearance for them at the track this year. The original schedule for 2024 had only one Late Model show booked, but a Late Model driver came forward and suggested a date he thought might be a good one so the track booked the second show. That driver didn't show up on Saturday.

Later, it was realized that Ogilvie was running a regular program Saturday, and Hibbing was hosting a $5,000 to win event. As I checked to see who raced where, there was not a single driver who raced at Hibbing who would have been expected to race at Rice Lake, and perhaps just one crossover at Ogilvie. What we were missing were the local racers who chose to not race anywhere Saturday.

The owners decided to leave the payout as it was, didn’t have an entry fee, and there was no rise in back gate fees. They even cut the laps by 10 to save on fuel and tires. What they got in return was barely half the drivers who raced earlier this year. Fortunately the spectators still got to see Late Models race, for the same admission price they pay every Saturday.

The owners will certainly have to consider all things when scheduling Late Models for 2025.