Southworth tops a short Red Cedar Speedway Night
By Ed Reichert
MENOMONIE – It was Friday night so that could mean only one thing; it was again time to rain. In what has turned out to be a reoccurring theme to the 2013 racing season at the Red Cedar Speedway, track officials were again battling the weather, this time oncoming thunderstorms packing a wallop.
Last Friday night, June 21, the track was able to squeeze the racing program in between aggravating showers, but Friday the rains came much quicker and harder and only two feature races were able to be completed before the skies opened up. The remaining feature races will be rescheduled. The Midwest Modified and Pure Stock features were able to be run before the rains hit and Grant Southworth won his first Red Cedar main of the year while rookie sensation Hunter VanGilder won his second straight Pure Stock main event.
The Midwest Modified main event was scheduled for fifteen laps but with the weather coming in and a trio of yellow flags to slow the action, the event was twice cut in length and ended up being a ten lap contest. Second-year driver Ben Schultz very nearly earned his first ever career win as he led the majority of the contest before being overhauled in the last going by Southworth. Josh Smith rebounded from an early spin to take third with Schultz and Kerry Halopka next in line.
It was a green, white and checkered finish for Hunter VanGilder in the Pure Stock feature. In the final two laps, VanGilder took off with Jeremy Dahl in close pursuit. Dahl tried the high side but VanGilder fought him off as the white flag waved. VanGilder made a solid final lap, rolling smoothly through the corners and Dahl wasn’t able to muster a challenge as he settled for second while the rookie took his second straight win at Red Cedar. Dustin Doughty settled for third while Jason Havel tore back up through the pack to take fourth ahead of Jesse Bryan.
The five remaining feature races will be made up in two weeks. They will be a part of the Friday, July 5th program that will also feature the Kid’s Club at 6 p.m. that night which will also be MDA “Fill the Boot” night sponsored by the Menomonie Fire Department.
The reason that the features can’t be made up next week is that another huge event will instead be featured next Friday. In the second biggest Late Model event of the year, the Blaine Brothers WISSOTA Challenge Series comes to the Red Cedar Speedway. Sponsored by Tractor Central, the Late Model feature will pay $3,000 to the winner with a large field of Late Models representing several states expected to be on hand. Also racing next Friday will be the Modifieds, Super Stocks, Midwest Modifieds, Street Stocks and Pure Stocks with the Hornets having the night off.
JUNE 21 RACING SUMMARY
Red Cedar Speedway
WISSOTA Late Models
Feature – Postponed to July 5
8-lap Heat 1 – John Kaanta (Elk Mound), Scott Gilberts (Menomonie), Lance Matthees (Winona MN), Rick Hanestad (Boyceville), Chad Mahder (Eau Claire)
Heat 2 – Mike Prochnow (Menomonie), Jake Redetzke (Eau Claire), Adam Hensel (Baldwin), Greg Nippoldt (Roberts), Robby Bunkelman (Abbotsford), Jerry Bloom
WISSOTA Modifieds
Feature – Postponed to July 5
8-lap Heat 1 – Kevin Adams (Cameron), Jay Richardson (Spring Valley), Jesse Glenz (Cadott), Brent Prochnow (Colfax), Mark Gerth (Menomonie), Mark Hanson, Matt Leer, Cory Williams, Robbie Johnson
Heat 2 – Cory Mahder (Elk Mound), Mike Anderson (Colfax), Steve Hallquist (Eau Claire), Brandon Jensen (Hammond), Jake Hartung (Elmwood), Mark Hessler, Curt Myers, Ashley Anderson
WISSOTA Super Stocks
Feature – Postponed to July 5
8-lap Heat 1 – Aaron Wilson (Eau Claire), Shane Kisling (Sarona), Mike Keller (Menomonie), Jesse Redetzke (Eau Claire), Jason Forehand (Eau Claire), Kyle Helling, Jim Cimfl, Mark Polen, Rick Hallquist
Heat 2 – Steve Thomas (Menomonie), Tommy Richards (Mondovi), Ben Hillman (Menomonie), Tom Karis (Menomonie), Jim Harris (Menomonie), Gunnar Watkins, Bart Steffen, Mike Fitzpatrick
WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds
10-lap Feature – Grant Southworth (Bloomer), Shane Halopka (Greenwood), Josh Smith (Eau Claire), Ben Schultz (Menomonie), Kerry Halopka (Wheeler), Mike Schnider (Rice Lake), Jake Smeltzer (Menomonie), Travis Anderson (Colfax), Luke Shackleton (Menomonie), Ross Fuhrman (Ashland), Bill Stettner, Dylan Goettl, Jason Richardson, Nick Koehler, Jake Smith, Mike Truscott
8-lap Heat 1 – K. Halopka, Truscott (Chippewa Falls), Schultz, Schnider, Ja. Smith (Eau Claire), Goettl, Stettner, Fuhrman
Heat 2 – S. Halopka, Southworth, Jo. Smith, Koehler (Bloomer), Anderson, Smeltzer, Shackleton, Richardson
WISSOTA Street Stocks
Feature – Postponed to July 5
6-lap Heat 1 – Doug Wojcik (Ladysmith), Danny Richards (Mondovi), Jerry Conrad (Mondovi), Andrea Keeney (Ridgeland), Kelly Knutson (Osceola)
Heat 2 – Adam Soltis (Ladysmith), Sam Fankhauser (Rice Lake), Cody Kummer (Medford), Ron Hanestad (Glenwood City), Mike Knudtson (Osseo), Troy Fransway (Elk Mound)
Pure Stocks
8-lap Feature – Hunter VanGilder (Rice Lake), Jeremy Dahl (Knapp), Dustin Doughty (Ladysmith), Jason Havel (Rice Lake), Jesse Bryan (Menomonie), Randy Burton (Menomonie), Mike Grover (Chetek), Jake Hanson (Downing), Andrew Conklin (Ladysmith), Jay Barnier (Chippewa Falls), George Richards
6-lap Heat 1 – Havel, Bryan, VanGilder, Grover, Conklin, Barnier
Heat 2 – Richards (Mondovi), Dahl, Doughty, Burton, Hanson
Hornets
Feature – Postponed to July 5
6-lap Heat 1 – Jeremy Johnson (Elmwood), Armond Love (Fall Creek), Buddy Hanestad (Boyceville), Justin Franson (Fall Creek), Devin Johnson (Ellsworth), Chad Prissel, Jess Seim
Heat 2 – Eric Schultz (Downing), Mark McQuisten (Elk Mound), Dan Prissel (Mondovi), Brendan Uetz (Menomonie), Eric Albrightson (Baldwin), Brady Boigenzahn, Derek Knutson, Matt Klukas.