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ABC Raceway To Welcome Mid-Mods On August 19
by Nick Gima
Ashland, WI, August 9 -- Officials of the ABC Raceway will welcome the
fastest-growing division in WISSOTA to its red-clay oval on Saturday, August
19.
The Midwest modifieds - a detuned version of the “big” mods that have
circled the Raceway nearly every race night since late in the 1985 season -
will make their first-ever appearance at the Ashland track during Heartland
Communications Night at the Races. The division will join the track’s five
weekly classes for a full program of racing action.
Since being introduced into the WISSOTA Promoters Association line-up a few
short years back, the number of drivers building and racing “mid-mods” has
exploded into the low hundreds. At tracks such as Proctor, Superior and Grand
Rapids the car counts can reach 30 or more on a given race night.
Cars in the division use full-fledged WISSOTA modified-specification chassis
but drivetrains from the street stock division, making the cars much less
expensive to build and maintain than the more traditional mods.
Many drivers from budget-level classes throughout the region have used the
“mid-mods” as a natural progressive step up the racing ladder, while
others have used them to pare down their racing budgets. Local drivers now
competing in mid-mods include former ABC track champs Duane Dunbar and Jimmy
Latvala and feature winners Wayne Engen and Nick Lavato.
“The secret to the cars is timing,” says Duluth, MN’s Randy Vezina, who
won his first career street stock feature at Ashland last July 23. “The
horsepower is similar (to the streeters), but the power-to-weight ratio makes
the cars much more challenging and exciting to drive.”
An estimated 25-30 Midwest mods are expected to try out the 3/8-mile red clay
oval. An impressive purse, made up of donations by area businesses and the
track’s regular street stock payout, will provide for approximately $3,000
in prize monies and a $400 feature winner’s check. The event will pay points
towards the national WISSOTA standings for those drivers in attendance.
Businesses that have already contributed to the purse include FastLane
Motorsports, Lake Nebagamon Ready Mix, Copp's Tire and Auto, the Airport Inn,
Diversified Business Dynamics, Dale's Automotive, Northland Lawn, Sports &
Equipment, Lakeshore Sales & Service, and Schraufnagel Auto Glass. At
press time there are ongoing discussions with several other businesses that
could produce an even bigger payout.
Reserved seats and tickets, as well as reserved camping sites, for the
September 29-30 Red Clay Classic are still available at the track during the
August 12, 19 and 26 race programs. Reservation information is also available
by calling Mary at (715) 682-2672 from 9 am-8 pm Mondays through Fridays, or
by inquiring via e-mail at .
The Raceway will hold ladies’ “powder-puff” races on Saturday, August
12, and the regular season ends with Pepsi Fan Appreciation Night on Saturday,
August 26, during which the 2006 track points champions will be named.
Action for each of the final three nights of racing starts with hot laps at
6:15 pm, while green-flag racing begins at 7. The ABC Raceway is located 3-1/2
miles south of Ashland on State Highway 13 and one mile west on Butterworth
Road. “Racenight Live” will air Saturday on WJJH, 96.7 & 102.3 FM,
with up-to-date track news and weather information. For raceday information
call (715) 682-4990, or log on to the track’s website, .
ABC Raceway - WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds
Feature Purse - August 19, 2006
(as of August 9)
1st place - $400
2nd place - $300
3rd place - $250
4th place - $200
5th place - $185
6th place - $170
7th place - $150
8th place - $140
9th place - $130
10th place - $120
11th place - $110
12th place - $100
13th place - $90
14th place - $80
15th place - $70
16th-24th place - $60
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