|
August Opens With Fox Ridge Action
by Dan Bailey
(ARCADIA, Wisconsin) - - Race fans headed to FOX RIDGE SPEEDWAY Friday night
August 5th to enjoy “KIDS NIGHT” presented by the Trempealeau County Crime
Stoppers! Kids and grown-ups alike enjoyed a bountiful offering of prizes and
gifts as members of area law enforcement, with assistance from “McGruff the
Crime Dog”, spread the word about D.A.R.E. and other community building
efforts underway in the area.
And, before the on-track action heated up, the crowd was treated with a couple
special visits. LeRoy Scharkey was back at the track, wandering the
grandstands and mingling with the crowd, after suffering a heart attack
several weeks ago. Lonnie Earney, visiting a race track for the first time
after his life-threatening wreck a couple months ago, carried the American
Flag for the National Anthem while riding around the track in the D.A.R.E.
car.
THE CONRAD COMEBACK
Sometimes the best moments in a race season come when they’re least
expected.
Ask Independence, WI driver Michael Conrad and I’m sure he’d agree,
“Over the past couple weeks I was wondering if I even wanted to finish the
season!”
The third year driver was referring to the spate of bad luck he’d
experienced over recent weeks. In one incident two weeks prior, his Orange
#M76 left the track with rear end damage so severe it looked like the car
ended at the rear tires!
Then there were troubles in the engine compartment that plagued his efforts;
it was all getting quite frustrating.
But all the effort was worth it as Conrad picked up the very first feature win
of his career Friday night! After a 10-lap side-by-side battle for the lead
with Winonan Andy Bohnstengel, Conrad was able to stretch open the lead and
pull away over the closing laps to grab the win.
The feeling around the Conrad pit area was a mixture of euphoria and relief,
“I just can’t describe how this feels right now!” voiced Conrad as
family members proudly displayed their first “Feature Winner” sticker.
Bohnstengel collected a strong second place finish while pole sitter Erik Kanz
raced to his best feature finish of the year, third, holding off point leader
Danny Hanson and first heat race winner Tom Hund.
LONG WAIT FOR THIRD WIN
After waiting two months since his previous feature win, Brad Waits was back
in the FOX RIDGE SPEEDWAY Victory Lane Friday night with feature win number
three.
Waits took the lead from pole sitter Kerry Ledebuhr on lap two and then held
off some solid challenges by point leader Karl Fenske before collecting the
win. Over the closing laps Waits was able to pull away from Fenske, who then
had to drive hard to retain second as John Doelle was closing in quickly. “I
don’t think Fenske used up his equipment,” thought Waits after being asked
about the lead that built up over the last third of the feature, “I’m more
of a rhythm type of driver. I’m not sure if Karl was driving harder, but I
just kept my rhythm and think I was just turning the same lap times through
the whole feature.”
Fenske and Doelle remain locked in their struggle atop the point standings
with second and third place finishes respectively.
DECISIVE DREGNEY WIN
Like Waits, Rodney Dregney also collected his third feature win of the season.
Racing from the inside of the fourth row, Dregney utilized an ultra low groove
to clear race leader Troy Langowski on lap seven and lead the rest of the way
to the win.
“Because of my starting position, I had to run the bottom,” explained
Dregney, “But as I race continued the top began to look really good.”
Indeed, after taking the lead and seeing the top of the track open up, Dregney
stepped up to the top groove and raced away from the competition. “I
thought, I might as well go up there and try it,” laughed Dregney, “I
moved up there and it was perfect, away we went.”
“You know, I need to say thanx to a couple guys,” continued Dregney,
“Without Jeff and Brian Endle helping to make sure the car is in tip-top
shape, I wouldn’t be in Victory Lane!”
Langowski added another second place feature finish to his stats with first
time visitor Tim Johnson, hauling all the way down to FOX RIDGE from Brainerd,
MN to collect a third place finish.
HOFFMAN WINS
Dean Hoffman once again made the trip from Eyota, MN to FOX RIDGE SPEEDWAY, as
he has all season long. But Friday night, the trip home was more than likely a
bit more enjoyable.
After racking up top-five feature finishes in exactly half of his feature
starts, he finally collected his very first feature win on ‘The Big 3/8
Mile’.
Hoffman lead all but the opening lap en route to the win, with Dan Hesch and
Ryan Olson completing the top-three.
DWYER DEFEATS HORNET’S BEST
Steve Dwyer visited FOX RIDGE SPEEDWAY for just the third time this year and
set a blistering pace in the 4-Cylinder HORNET feature which was fast enough
to grab the feature win. After winning the evening’s second heat race, Dwyer
was incredibly fast during the feature and quickly pulled away from almost the
entire field.
Holmen, WI’s Scott Kronn put up a valiant effort in keeping up with Dwyer,
but could never quite get up along side Dwyer’s #42x to challenge for the
lead.
Point leader Mark Bornitz came from a fourteenth starting spot to finish
third!
Racing resumes next Friday night with ‘La Crosse Beverage Night at THE
RIDGE’. Remember to visit the official FOX RIDGE web site ( www.foxridgespeedway.com
) for point standings, race results, driver profiles and more!
8/5/2205 - Fox Ridge Speedway Results
USRA Modifieds
A-Main 01 -- 1. Brad Waits, Zumbrota, Minn.; 2. Karl Fenske, Winona,
Minn.; 3. John Doelle, Arcadia, Wis; 4. Kerry Ledebuhr, Winona, Minn.; 5. Paul
Hamernik, Winona, Minn.; 6. Jay Ihrke, Dover, Minn.; 7. Rick Hauser, Winona,
Minn.; 8. Jason Marten, Mondovi, Wis; 9. Gary Doelle, Fountain City, Wis; 10.
Harlan Morehart, Eyota, Minn.; 11. Les Jonsgaard, Winona, Minn.; 12. Mike
Budensiek, Zumbrota, Minn.; 13. Dan Hesch, Arcadia, Wis; 14. Mick Glenn,
Minnesota City, Minn..
Heat 01 -- 1. J. Ihrke; 2. B. Waits; 3. J. Marten; 4. R. Hauser; 5. L.
Jonsgaard; 6. D. Hesch; 7. M. Glenn.
Heat 02 -- 1. K. Fenske; 2. K. Ledebuhr; 3. P. Hamernik; 4. G. Doelle;
5. H. Morehart; 6. J. Doelle; 7. M. Budensiek.
WISSOTA Super Stocks
A-Main 01 -- 1. Rodney Dregney, Mondovi, Wis; 2. Troy Langowski, Winona,
Minn.; 3. Tim Johnson, Brainerd, Minn.; 4. Jere Stanton, Arpin, Wis; 5. Travis
Wagner, Arcadia, Wis; 6. Gary Wiersgalla, Fountain City, Wis; 7. Troy Brand,
Winona, Minn.; 8. Jon Duffy, Winona, Minn.; 9. Jesse Lutz, Winona, Minn.; 10.
Bruce Lutz, Minnesota City, Minn.; 11. Justin Sass, Alma, Wis; 12. David
Nastvold, Galesville, Wis; 13. Dan Arneson, Eleva, Wis; 14. Dennis Earney,
Cochrane, Wis; 15. Jeff Dregney, Eleva, Wis.
Heat 01 -- 1. T. Brand; 2. T. Johnson; 3. T. Langowski; 4. G. Wiersgalla;
5. J. Duffy; 6. D. Nastvold; 7. D. Arneson; 8. J. Lutz.
Heat 02 -- 1. D. Earney; 2. R. Dregney; 3. J. Sass; 4. T. Wagner; 5. B.
Lutz; 6. J. Stanton; 7. J. Dregney.
WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds
A-Main 01 -- 1. Dean Hoffman, Eyota, Minn.; 2. Dan Hesch, Arcadia, Wis;
3. Ryan Olson, Strum, Wis; 4. Jeff Brauer, Eyota, Minn.; 5. Travis Krause,
Buffalo City, Wis; 6. James Pehler, Fountain City, Wis; 7. Robert Bautch,
Winona, Minn.; 8. Chris Slinden, Dassel, Minn.; 9. Tom Brink, Winona, Minn.;
10. Joel VonHaden, Trempealeau, Wis; 11. Matt Steffen, Mondovi, Wis.
Heat 01 -- 1. D. Hesch; 2. C. Slinden; 3. D. Hoffman; 4. R. Olson; 5. J.
Brauer; 6. T. Krause; 7. M. Steffen; 8. J. Pehler; 9. R. Bautch; 10. J.
VonHaden; 11. T. Brink.
WISSOTA Street Stocks
A-Main 01 -- 1. Michael Conrad, Independence, Wis; 2. Andy Bohnstengel,
Winona, Minn.; 3. Erik Kanz, Winona, Minn.; 4. Danny Hanson, Alma, Wis; 5. Tom
Hund, Fountain City, Wis; 6. Kylan Gamez, Arcadia, Wis; 7. Matt Wolfe,
Mondovi, Wis; 8. Cory Hanson, Black River Falls, Wis; 9. Gerald Schultz,
Arcadia, Wis; 10. Roger Conrad, Independence, Wis; 11. Chuck Nerland,
Rochester, Minn.; 12. Dan Bork, Alma, Wis; 13. Darryll Foegen, Cochrane, Wis;
14. Dennis Davis, Fountain City, Wis; 15. Adam Wilken, Eau Claire, Wis.
Heat 01 -- 1. T. Hund; 2. C. Nerland; 3. M. Conrad; 4. E. Kanz; 5. A.
Wilken; 6. G. Schultz; 7. D. Foegen; 8. D. Bork.
Heat 02 -- 1. K. Gamez; 2. A. Bohnstengel; 3. D. Hanson; 4. D. Davis; 5.
M. Wolfe; 6. C. Hanson; 7. R. Conrad.
Hornets
A-Main 01 -- 1. Steve Dwyer, LaCrosse, Wis; 2. Scott Kronn, Holmen,
Wis; 3. Mark Bornitz, Holmen, Wis; 4. Mike Thompson, Melrose, Wis; 5. Kris
Oium, Eleva, Wis; 6. Aaron Towner, Trempealeau, Wis; 7. Joel Hesch, Arcadia,
Wis; 8. Coty Slawson, Ettrick, Wis; 9. Roger Niederkorn, Ettrick, Wis; 10.
Rick Slawson, Ettrick, Wis; 11. Mike Krause, Buffalo City, Wis; 12. Steve
Bornitz, Holmen, Wis; 13. Rich Niederkorn, Galesville, Wis; 14. Steve Bryn,
Arcadia, Wis; 15. Kyle Franson, Strum, Wis; 16. Michael Peters, Whitehall, Wis;
17. Tommy Richards, Mondovi, Wis; 18. Mike Skroch, Independence, Wis; 19.
Brandon Gleiter, Alma, Wis; 20. Danny Richards, Mondovi, Wis; 21. Nathan
Kummer, Mondovi, Wis; 22. Corey Klink, Fountain City, Wis; 23. Brad Duellman,
Dodge, Wis; 24. James Clark, Winona, Minn.; 25. Robert Carpenter, Black River
Falls, Wis; 26. Chris Gilbertson, Trempealeau, Wis.
Heat 01 -- 1. A. Towner; 2. R. Carpenter; 3. Ri. Niederkorn; 4. R.
Slawson; 5. J. Hesch; 6. D. Richards; 7. Ro. Niederkorn; 8. B. Gleiter; 9. S.
Bornitz; 10. T. Richards; 11. C. Klink; 12. M. Krause; 13. N. Kummer; 14. J.
Clark.
Heat 02 -- 1. S. Dwyer; 2. S. Kronn; 3. K. Oium; 4. B. Duellman; 5. M.
Thompson; 6. S. Bryn; 7. M. Bornitz; 8. K. Franson; 9. C. Slawson; 10. M.
Peters; 11. M. Skroch; 12. C. Gilbertson.
|
|
|
