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Sunday, September 8

The second annual WISSOTA NAPA Central MPH Invitational was held Sunday at Bemidji Speedway once again.

Bemidji remains the logical track to host this event, as they have one of the largest weekly fields of Pure Stocks, Mod Fours and Hornets. It supplies a solid base of drivers for this race. They also have a strong fan base for these classes, who strongly support their local drivers, and as a result they have a nice crowd for this race. The spectacular early fall weather surely didn't hurt either.

And let's face it, one of the first places everyone heads when they arrive at Bemidji Speedway is the Chicken Shack—what would a trip here be without a helping of what they serve?

Many of the officials who were on hand for the race will then move on to the WISSOTA 100. Don Shaw and Tony managed the track prep, with Justin Pogo and “Big Kenny” doing the teching for the night. Also spotted handling various responsibilities were Rob Palmer and Todd Good. Chris Stepan served as the race director, while Kyle Hall called the action and Brian Riedemann waved the sticks. There are likely many more who were involved, and it was certainly an all-star crew.

This race is a special opportunity for Hornet, Pure Stock and Mod Four drivers to have their special night and race for some very nice money, including a $2,000-to-win feature for the Mod Fours.

Car counts in all three classes were very similar to last year’s premier running of the event. There were drivers who came quite the distance to race, including a couple of South Dakota drivers and a couple from northwestern Wisconsin. Lots of giveaway items and special bonus prizes were in effect for this event, with the hope just about everyone might win something as a thank-you for attending.

National point standings were also in play, with all three races very close. With limited races available for these classes following the MPH Invitational, the wick was turned up a bit.

While the top contenders in national points were on hand in both the Mod Fours and Pure Stocks, only one of the top six in Hornet national points was in the field. The top two battling it out for the championship were not in attendance.

For the second straight year, the Mod Fours also had the opportunity to qualify on the clocks for their heat races, with the top four then inverted for heat race action, similar to what the Challenge Series does in the Late Model class. The other two classes drew for their spots, but passing points also set their feature lineups.

With the number of cars on hand, no B features were necessary. Dustin Holtquist was the quick qualifier at 16.213 seconds on the Shaw-prepared track, which was just about as good as I have seen it here. However, this track also wasn't beaten up by seven or eight classes that normally race here on Sundays.

Two dozen Mod Fours took the green flag for the 25-lapper. Luke Erlandson took the early lead over current national points leader Dean Larson, but it was not Larson's night; he steadily faded back through the field.

Dustin Holtquist started fourth and quickly moved into the runner-up spot. With four yellows in the first four laps, it was tough to establish any kind of rhythm and on lap five Holtquist dropped past Erlandson to take over the lead.

The pressure as leader was now on to Holtquist and he had to endure several more yellows and even a red flag when a large contingent of cars got together on the back chute, and Doug Frederick was actually shoved over on to his roof. He was okay, but done for the race.

The last seven laps of the race went nonstop and in each corner, Erlandson tried to nose under Holtquist, but Holtquist had the speed to hold him off and drive home for the win. Erlandson and Chad Funt were next in line. Sixteen cars completed the race with all on the lead lap.

The Pure Stock feature was smoother, but just barely, as the yellow still waved six times in 20 laps. For Brent Mindock, the 300-mile journey to Bemidji was rewarded with the big win, as he led from start to finish to claim the $750 top prize. He did have plenty of challenges for the lead. Dustin Puffe was the challenger for the first half of the race, until Josh Berg moved into second and took on the fight. Berg was able to nose under the leader several times but Mindock had just enough to hold off Berg for the lead. Berg deserves a lot of credit for running Mindock clean; the chances certainly existed to bump him out of the lead. While there was plenty of that going on in the fight for various spots, the battle for the win remained clean.

Mindock ended up the winner with Berg nailed to his rear bumper and Chaston Finckbone running a close third ahead of Puffe and Deryk Weleski.

The Hornet feature was the cleanest in numbers of yellows, but there was plenty of slamming and banging throughout the heavy, pack-style racing, with a couple drivers losing high running positions.

Russell Kiker, Jr. used the outside pole to take the early lead over Jenna Hagemann and Trenton Beel. Beel ran with the leaders for much of the race, despite whistling water out of his car. (This later ended his night.)

Hagemann continued to challenge for the lead to the halfway point of the race. One lap later, she was able to make a strong outside move and drive into the lead, while Kiker, Jr. and Bobie Arnes were involved in a multi-car tangle that sent Kiker, Jr. to the tail.

As Hagemann pulled away slightly, there continued to be a war for the positions behind her, with Arnes eventually getting shuffled back in the pack, while Chase Pourrier moved in to take over second. Drivers avoided a lost wheel with just three laps to go, and on the following restart, Hagemann pulled away to take the win with Pourrier second and Anthony Jensen driving up to third.

For Hagemann, it was her second straight MPH Invitational win and remains the only female to win a WISSOTA 100.

The race remains a hit for the drivers in the three classes involved, and I suspect this race will continue as long as the fan count remains strong and the large number of sponsors continue to support this event.

Wednesday, September 11

The 2024 WISSOTA 100 kicked off on Wednesday, September 11 at Don Shaw’s I-94 emr Speedway on a spectacular September day.

With weather that felt more like the middle of summer, there was no reason not to be at the track for one of the biggest events of the year, and certainly the biggest weekend for WISSOTA auto racing of the year.

As is the recent custom of this race, five classes were in racing action each night through Saturday, including the Street Stocks, MidMods, Super Stocks, Modifieds and Late Models. They all ran full programs of heats and feature races each night, culminating in the Championship Features on Saturday.

Since there are plenty of folks on hand to report the lap by lap, play by play action from the event, I will instead be focused on some of the other things going on as a part of this racing week.

The last two years have also included the Structural Buildings Challenge Series wrap-up as part of the Wednesday program, crowning its champion at I-94. The 2024 series chase was a close one between Tyler Peterson and Cole Searing, with just a matter of a few points separating them and the $10,000 series championship check. New this year, the top finishers in the Late Model feature also had the option of using their Wednesday finish as a qualifier for the 100, setting the first eight spots along the inside row.

The car count for opening night was very similar to what it has been in recent years, with the numbers holding remarkably steady. Not all the same drivers show up each year, but the total number seems to be similar from year to year.

Opening night for 2024 produced a field of 270 drivers in the five classes. The Street Stock count was exactly the same as last year, while there were 10 more Supers, four less Mid Mods and two less Mods. There were seven more Late Models. In total, the opening night number was up 11 from 2023.

Keep in mind, with the format used for this event, drivers can arrive on either Thursday or Friday night and still race and qualify for the 100 features on Saturday. In fact, last year an additional 25 drivers arrived during those two nights.

There were drivers racing in several classes as well this year. My rough calculations show 11 different drivers taking on two classes, including Kolby Kiehl, Tim Johnson, Kaden Woodie, James Trantina, Dylan Kromschroeder, Mike Stearns, Cory Tammen, Tyler Peterson and Johnny Broking. The real ironmen, Travis Saurer and Shane Sabraski, raced in three classes.

While the basic format remains the same for the weekend, a couple of procedural issues have changed for 2024. The double-file restarts were used again, but new for 2024 the second-place runner in an event picks either the inside or outside lane. Once the second-place driver chooses his or her preferred lane, the even-numbered place holders also move to that lane.

I'm still pushing for the “choose cone,” like other organizations use. Every driver makes a decision whether he wants the inside or outside lane. This makes restarts even more fun.

A new passing points calculation system is being used this year. It will reward drivers for passing cars in a race, as it always has, but the new calculations also penalize those who lose spots, too. This is probably the most fair system around and a good upgrade.

More all-star race personnel was on hand to put on the event, including WISSOTA board members and other folks who are experts at their craft. Calling the action was local legend and I-94 track announcer Ron Krog, alongside Kyle Hall and Jason Schaunaman from South Dakota.

It is always interesting to note the changes that take place even at this late part of the season. There were a couple of new Street Stock drivers in the pits, having moved up after racing this year in the Pure Stocks. Sophie Anderson, I believe, raced in the 100 last year as a Street Stock after she raced all summer with the central Minnesota Pure Stocks, and did so again this year. Coltyn Schuler, with more than 20 Pure Stock wins already this year in Minnesota, made a couple changes on his car and is racing Street Stocks this week. He tells me that he will be moving up to the Streets full time in 2025.

Kolby Kiehl has been racing more extensively with his Super Stock, which was wrecked in a very early season flip at Red Cedar Speedway. With his racing cut back to a minimum this year since his purchase of Rice Lake Speedway, he still managed to put his Super on the fourth row for the 100 Saturday. He will also try to qualify the Street Stock he purchased from Kaden Woodie when his Super was wrecked.

Cory Tammen is in the Modified normally driven by Jeff Flaten this weekend, while Travis Saurer is driving a second Late Model for the Sam Zender team. Austin Kuehl flew in from Arizona to drive one of Paul Mueller’s Late Models, after he raced his Modified in Iowa last week.

The top eight finishers in the Qualifying Feature races each of the first three nights lock into the finales on Saturday night, but they have the option of passing on those positions to try for better starting positions Thursday and Friday.

Often a driver will pass on his starting position, hoping to do better on a following night and start farther forward on Saturday. It is a calculated risk and has been known to work both ways over the years, with some benefitting and others getting locked out of the finale due to their gamble.

For drivers racing for national points, the multiple features are an advantage. Each night awards points, whether you opt out or take the finishing spot.

This year a large number of drivers passed over their first efforts. The top 15 finishers in each Qualifying Feature have to stop at the scales, where they are asked if they want their spot for Saturday or not; they must declare at that time. Officials struggled to find a willing top eight in the Late Models and Street Stocks Wednesday, with many wanting to try again for better starting spots on Thursday. Apparently everyone is planning on winning Saturday. That ought to make for an interesting first corner of the main events.

Even with pre-tech for the teams, there are always issues found afterward. Sometimes it’s just little things like forgetting to scale, but opening night there were four drivers disqualified: three in the Mid Mods and one Late Model. A couple of the Mid Mods DQs cost them good finishing spots in their heats and ruled them out of feature races, too.

In my area, I don't get to see the Eisenschenk sisters and Kollin Hibdon race at all, since they focus most of their Late Model racing in the Red River Valley area. However, when I see them they have proven to be excellent drivers, even with the few Late Model starts between them. I have seen Hibdon race more often, from his Modified days when he has won a number of big races. I used to see him race in Arizona, Nevada and over “The Hump in Pahrump,” where he’s from.

Doing well in the Late Model class, the Eisenschenks are also very good Sprint Car racers and are both stars in the making.

Wednesday night marked perhaps the biggest opening night crowd in many years for a 100, and the fine weather certainly must have played a part in that. Folks also dug into their jeans as the 50/40 Split the Pot was $3,493.

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