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Sunday, June 30

An unfortunate rainout on Friday of the Great Lakes Border Battle at Gondik Law Speedway was a break for yours truly, as the entire program was moved back one day and I was able to make it to Superior for the show’s final day.

While billed as a Modified special, this year the Late Models were added for both days of the program and they brought a lot to the table. Late Models are extremely popular in the Head of the Lakes area and they’re a big crowd draw.

The Late Model class seems to be booming right now and the numbers are really starting to get exciting for all tracks that host the class. This, of course, is a cyclical thing, and the feast right now might be a famine in a couple of years.

There were 38 Modifieds on hand for $10,000 to win, and 38 Late Models on hand for $2,500. You do the math.

The Modifieds, to their credit, produced a spectacular finish to their 50-lap main event that concluded the weekend's activities.

Despite all the rain we have had in the upper Midwest recently – like the last whole month – the track stayed really nice for racing despite this being the second straight night of pounding that it took. It did have a few bumps that didn't affect the racing, and a nasty berm developed as the Modified feature laps moved on, but it provided good multigroove racing. The track is generally very consistent; you know how it's going to start out for the early racing and how it will gradually change over the course of a race event.

We did see the water trucks a considerable number of times and sometimes that does get a bit old, but in the end, if that’s what it takes to keep the track racy and allow the drivers to put on a good show, then so be it.

The Modified feature was the showcase event of the weekend, and it was also one of the longest Modified races put on in all of WISSOTA this year, with the distance set at 50 laps. With no fuel stop, I did wonder about drivers making weight after the show but as it turned out, that was not an issue either. No one was disqualified for that issue.

While there was some excellent feature racing that led up to the Mod main, which was the last event on the card, this race was full of drama and heartbreak for one driver. Twenty-four cars started the 50-lapper for the Mods and Ryan Gierke, who started on the pole, led the opening round. But Brandon Copp was really fast and it took him just one more lap to pass Gierke and take the lead. And once in front, he was the dominant driver for most of the contest, pulling to a half straightaway lead over the pack. After a lap-four yellow for a tangle, the drivers then raced 36 consecutive green flag laps and Copp was in charge for all that time.

Jeremy Nelson, Kaden Blaeser, Gierke and Jody Bellefeuille raced as a group behind Copp and they put on an excellent battle for position as well. Out front, Copp continued to show a comfortable lead, even as he worked through lapped traffic.

A long distance race is the forte of Shane Sabraski, who is so good at biding his time, keeping his wheels under him and smoothly moving up through the field. In this race he started way back in 19th, having had to qualify for the main through a B feature. By the halfway point of the race, he was up to fifth as he battled with Bellefeuille and Gierke for position.

Blaeser had been having a great run, flirting with a top-five position when he rolled to a halt with 11 laps left in the race. This bunched the field once again, but was only the second yellow of the race.

Sabraski got past Bellefeuille on the restart and moved up to second and then set out after Copp for the lead. The two then left to settle the issue between them, as Sabraski looked for a way past Copp. Copp continued to lead, using the line that seems to work so well on the slick Gondik surface – hard and low into the corners, rolling up to the top through the corner, and then picking up the throttle once the car squares up exiting the turn.

Suddenly, Sabraski found a line that worked for him, dropping very low in the corners, squaring off and then shooting off the corners and down the chutes. He really picked up noticable distance in the last five laps using this line. Coming for the white, he got a great run, was side by side with Copp down the front chute, and then slid up inside him in turn one to take the lead.

Sabraski was then sharp enough to angle down across the track to the inside line, which kept Copp from setting up a crossover move and a slide job in the last corner. Copp was blocked from doing so and his last corner effort came up a car length short in what was a truly interesting and demanding race. It was a great job of racing by Sabraski and a very tough loss for Copp, reflected in the pitch of his voice in his interview, which he did with much class, by the way. No sour grapes out of his mouth when he got beat, which was refreshing. And Sabraski also wins with class, too. With now more than 900 feature wins, he’s had lots of practice! Bellefeuille, Gierke and Johnny Broking, in a late rush to the front, completed the top five

The Late Models’ 35-lap feature race was a very good race in its own right, with a bit of a surprise finish. While Johnny Broking has already won feature races in the Late Model, so far he had not won anything approaching this race in terms of cars entered and depth of the competition that this race provided.

Lukas Koski got a great start and led the first seven laps of the race before Pat Doar slid past to take over the lead. It was interesting watching those two battle; when Koski doesn't race, he usually serves as the pit crew for Doar.

Skeeter Estey got into the wall in turn four, turned sideways and then rolled over in a bad crash. While he was fine, there appeared to be considerable damage to his new Late Model.

This red flag changed the race, as on the green, Broking made a bold move into turn one, sliding up in front of Doar with plenty of gusto and taking over the lead. Doar came back and challenged, but at the halfway point of the race, he was still second as Broking was setting a frantic pace. Sabraski, who started eighth, was up to third at this time with Kyle Peterlin and Ashley Anderson next in line.

The second and final yellow of the race occurred when Peterlin, battling for a top five spot, got into the wall right under the flagstand and was done. Doar went for broke on the restart in turn one but he broke traction and both Sabraski and Anderson got past him for position.

Over the last 10 laps Sabraski stalked Broking, just like he ended up doing when the Mods hit the track, but this time his efforts failed. Johnny, who races a fearless line anyway, was not about to be passed and he fought off every attempt by Sabraski to pass him. Anderson, who doesn't race enough to get the credit he deserves, was a strong third at the line with Doar and James Giossi completing the top five.

Here is bad news for the veteran drivers of the Late Model class: the top two in Sunday night's Late Model feature are both rookies in the class, but of course not rookies to racing, and they have many years of racing left in them. With both having good rides, they figure to be a force for years to come.

The Super Stock feature went nonstop for 25 laps and despite the fact their numbers were quite small Sunday, they put on another excellent and intense feature race. Again, for the third time during the program, Sabraski was the stalker as he chased Kyle Copp for essentially the entire race. Copp started on the pole and took the lead from the green, while Sabraski had to work his way past D.J. Keeler. Once he did so, he was on Copp's tail pipe for the rest of the race.

They ran that way at the halfway point of the race and it never changed. Curt Myers eventually took third after a real good battle with Keeler, Doug Koski and Tristan LaBarge.

Sabraski nosed under Copp on nearly every corner during the second half of the race, but each time, Copp fought him off down the chutes. This continued right up to the checkered flag but to the credit of Copp, he never made that one mistake that would have cost him.

A strong run by Tyler Vernon netted him the win in the Mid Mod feature race, the first finale on the track. He led the opening lap but was passed by Joey Jensen, who has been on somewhat of a tear lately, most recently winning the Saturday night show here. But Vernon didn't give up, moved back into a challenging spot and on lap eight, retook the lead from Jensen.

The last 19 laps of this race went green, something that doesn't happen too often with the Mid Mods, and Vernon really flexed his muscle, pulling away from the pack and navigating through some really heavy traffic smoothly, which likely earned him the win. At the finish, he had three lapped cars between himself and Jensen as he navigated a late-race rush hour traffic jam well. Jensen settled for second with Zach Benson third.

There’s a reason they call Sabraski “The Iron Man.” Sunday, he put in 110 laps of feature racing alone and was second twice, as well as the winner of the Modified finale. Each race was tense from start to finish. Broking, Darrell Nelson, Mike Anderson and Billy Kendall were not slackers either, as they raced 85 laps of green-flag racing, while Jake Smith put in 75 between his two cars.

This was an excellent night of racing with some very good feature races to complete the evening.

Monday, July 1

Proctor Speedway held a special event on Monday, with the XR Super Series Late Model traveling series making its first-ever appearance at the track. Along with that group, the WISSOTA-sanctioned Midwest Modifieds were also in action.

As is usually the case when traveling series come to this area, they don't bring enough drivers to provide a full field of racers and generally rely on the WISSOTA Late Model drivers to support the show. Of course, the WISSOTA drivers are underpowered against the open motor regime, but they always do their best. Occasionally, when track conditions and other factors tilt just right, they can run quite well with the open cars that sport probably an extra 200 horsepower over their spec engines.

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