3-31 Page 5
Dawson Oelrich, the 2025 WISSOTA Mod Four Rookie Of The Year (Lisa Rhen Photo)
In an effort to help grow the class, XL1 Race Supply announces special Mod Four rookie promo
By Meghan Diemel, Editor
All The Dirt! Racing News
Thanks to the generosity and effort of XL1 Race Supply and other donors, the 2026 season is shaping up to be a huge year for the Mod Four rookie class — from Minnesota to Wyoming.
XL1 Race Supply, of Hillman, MN, recently launched a national and local incentive program designed to support, grow and reward the next generation of Mod Four drivers.
Chad Funt, owner of XL1, said they had a program similar to this two years ago, and the racers involved in that rookie race mentioned how fun it was to run for the title with the extra money on the line and how they pushed harder for the title.
“About mid-winter, I started to see that there would be a lot of new racers in the class and I wanted to come up with something bigger for them to chase,” Funt said. “The idea of XL1 Race Supply adding to the purse for each driver that hits 10 shows was just something to entice the rookies to push each other to race more.”
Once Funt publicized his intentions, other businesses and individual donors stepped forward to add to the effort.
As the extra benefits were structured at press time, for every WISSOTA Mod Four rookie who competes in 10 or more feature races, XL1 Race Supply will contribute $100 to a rookie points fund.
For example, if 12 rookies compete in 10-plus features, XL1 Race Supply will add $1,200 to the fund.
In addition, No. 37L Lila Jacobson Racing will contribute an extra $500, while Rickshaw Racing Supplies has also kicked in $250. Mike Rau at SCAW will add $300 to the pot, and Justin from L&F Builders has also donated $250 to the fund, Funt said.
Hayley with TR Wraps and Graphics also added a wrap to the pile of rewards for the second-place rookie in national points, a $699 value, to boost Funt’s overall efforts with the class.
The WISSOTA National Mod Four Rookie of the Year will receive this fund on top of the standard WISSOTA rookie payout. Depending on participation, the total payout is expected to be around $3250, split 55 percent to first place, 30 percent to second place, and 15 percent to third place.
Then, at the local level, XL1 Race Supply will award a $500 certificate toward the purchase of a new XL1 chassis or engine package to the 2026 Rookie of the Year at the following tracks (pending track participation):
• Princeton Speedway
• Granite City Speedway
• North Central Speedway
• KRA Speedway
• Black Hills Speedway
• Gillette Thunder Speedway
“Now we are looking to grow it even more,” Funt added. “Please, if you are interested in being part of this, reach out to me.”
He said it was important to him to help boost the Mod Fours because the class is a true melting pot — with new and experienced racers, young and old. It offers affordable, fast and competitive racing.
“Class growth starts with getting more racers on the track,” he said. “Once we get a person involved, they bring their friends and family. That’s good for the future of racing, the tracks, WISSOTA and XL1 Race Supply. We are always looking for ways to promote travel in the class. We also sell new and used cars, engines and parts, so keeping new people in the class is beneficial, but supporting the class outweighs the small financial gain!”
He said he’s always looking for former or current drivers with cars sitting in their garage to race them or encourages them to sell them.
“Sometimes that comes off wrong, but with the limited amount of cars, we need them all to be active!” he explained. “Ever year that 10 get built new, eight get damaged. We have gained some new chassis builders in the last few years, so we are going [in] the correct direction.”
Funt said he’s been part of the class since 2010, having ventured into other classes over the last 15 seasons but always returning to the Mod Four class.
“I have watched and learned from the class leaders over the years, guys like Roy Halls, Corry VanMil and Shayne Laske, [who] all had an impact on the class. Mod Fours offer affordability, speed and skills that you can use if you decide to progress up the racing ladder.
“There have been many top drivers [who] have started in the class,” he continued. “I’m really to the point where I get as much joy out of helping and seeing the new driver grow by providing them with hard-to-find parts, advice and just overall class promotion.”
Funt said that though they are a small group in comparison to other classes, for the most part everyone gets along well off the track, and are willing to help each other.
“If we don’t keep passing down the knowledge, evolving the parts, soon we will all just be i-Racing!”
With Funt’s passion to create something great for the rookie class, he said there is possibility for different kinds of promotions in the future for all drivers.
“We have promoted some good paying shows in the past and we kick in on other events, but I prefer to spread the wealth,” he said. “The top drivers don’t need as much motivation to keep going to the track, [and] some of the other drivers need that spark more. I keep talking about doing a traveling series but so far, the stars just haven’t aligned for that to happen. The class is spread out with half of us in Minnesota and the other half in western South Dakota and Wyoming. My vision would be for a weekend out West and another back in Minnesota, with a nice points fund.”
Until then, rookie Mod Four drivers reap the benefits of Funt’s passion for the class and generosity, as well as the generosity of several others. For more information, check out XR1 Race Supply’s socials.