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Sunday, April 27

We are making progress. Sunday night, April 27, Granite City Motor Park opened its gates for the first time for the 2025 WISSOTA Auto Racing season. The temperature was fine, but there was a very strong wind blowing out of the east, directly into the main grandstand. Despite this, a nice-sized opening night crowd braved the less than appealing temperatures to see the opening night of racing.

There were enough drivers on hand for a couple heats in each class, except for the Street Stocks which were a little light on Sunday. The field contained a number of top-notch racers, however, so it wasn’t really necessary to have a huge car count. And, on a Sunday night, a speedy program is paramount to keep spectators returning week after week, and pull competitors from near and far.

Many drivers were actually relishing the fact that for the first time in 2025, they were given the opportunity to race on a Sunday and get three nights of racing in.

It was a taxing weekend for the Randt racing team out of Siren, Wisconsin. They traveled back and forth to watch eldest son Landyn play in an elite hockey tournament in the Twin Cities, and watched Levi at night in his Street Stock at three different tracks. Landyn had opted out of his Mid Mod for this week due to the tournament.

It seemed as though the hard work and lack of sleep for all concerned paid off, however. Landyn will be entertaining some interesting offers to play hockey next year and Levi scored a pair of top-three finishes, tarnished only by a mechanical breakdown later on Sunday at Granite City.

The dubious winner of the Hard Luck award of the weekend goes to the Simpson racing team, and their defending Mid Mod National Champion, David. They were on their way to Zeuli’s Engine Shop earlier this week to get everything dialed in for a long weekend of racing, but they had truck trouble on the way. They limped into Hutchinson, Minnesota and that’s where they sat all weekend, waiting on parts for their truck.

One of the folks in the pits who I always enjoy talking to is Tony Proell, driver of the No. 27 WISSOTA Modified. Proell is one of the most well-versed folks when it comes to racing in all divisions all over the country. He is a fan of racing, as well as being a driver, and there aren’t many who are both. It is always fun to chat with him about the racing scene in general.

Proell splurged this year and got himself a new motor for his Modified, one that he said will probably be the last he ever gets. Every year as of late he has talked about retiring but he always returns. He enjoys the atmosphere and company in the pits too much to leave it. He had a significant birthday this off-season, one that might cause some to hang up their helmet, but he still enjoys his Friday nights at Princeton and Sunday nights here at Granite City.

For obvious reasons, announcer Ron Krog likes to point out to the crowd that WISSOTA Street Stock driver Justin Vogel always drives with one hand, and successfully so. His right hand rests on the deck of his car. Don't ask me why I happened to notice it on Sunday, but I saw that we have two more drivers who use that rare tactic. Both Super Stock driver Tommy Bawden and Mod Four driver Chad Funt were using the same method, driving with their left hand while just resting their right hand on the deck of the car. It certainly works well for Bawden, as I will note in a minute.

As is usually typical for dirt tracks in the upper Midwest in spring, the track was a little bumpy, as many others have been to start this season. However, it did not appear to be unmanageable and the drivers were still able to put on a show and race. The pounding of the cars on the track, some sun and warmer weather will help these issues be a thing of the past.

The evening certainly started out with a bang: the Street Stock heat race started the season the right way with a photo finish for the win. Then, if you wanted more action, Tristan Labarge rolled the nose of his car under the front end after hitting a ute tire and barreled down the front chute right in front of the crowd. Then, the car shot straight into the turn one wall where it then flipped onto its roof. He was okay, but there certainly was a lot of drama and action, right from the get-go.

For the first time during the 2025 racing season, after waiting for the other tracks I’ve attended to use the new rule, the “choose cone” was in effect for the feature races on Sunday at Granite City. Promoter James Trantina has been a big proponent of this change, so it was not a surprise he used it. The surprise for me was that until this night, no one else had tried it.

However, my excitement was short-lived, and perhaps that was my fault. The way I read the rule, my assumption was that using the choose cone meant the leader would still have the Delaware advantage of starting by himself. So, when they pulled out the cone and everyone picked their lane, the second-place driver started right alongside the leader, which from my view is highly unfair. I believe the leader of any race should get protection. To lose that spot, he should be passed on the track, and not have another racer alongside him.

We quickly looked up the rule at the track, and I feel it is written in a rather ambiguous way; it could be interpreted in several different ways. The next day I asked another promoter about it and his response was that he interpreted the rule to mean that each track could use it in their own manner. To make this situation even stranger, when there are five or less laps in a feature race and the yellow comes out, they go back to a full Delaware restart.

I emailed WISSOTA general manager Nikki Cook about this. I feel like if tracks are going to put the second-place car directly alongside the leader on choose-cone restarts, I'd much rather see them use the Delaware restarts. It is more fair, in my opinion.

She did get back to me this week and as it turns out, I was mistaken once again. Under the choose cone rules, the leader is not protected like the Delaware restart style protects leaders. Whoever is farthest forward in the restart line and selects the opposite lane from the leader gets to pull right up alongside the leader for the restart, in essence making it a double-file restart throughout the pack. It makes no difference in what position that driver was running in prior to the restart; whoever is farthest forward and picks the lane opposite the leader gets to start next to the leader.

For that reason I now have changed my position on using the choose cone. Sorry for the flip-flop, but I am now opposed to its use. Thanks to Nikki for getting back to me so soon and clearing things up for me.

Feature race action included some nice runs and “firsts” for a few drivers. Trey Hess was rewarded for his long drive from Grand Forks with a feature win, as he dominated the Street Stock feature. He started on the outside pole and ran away from the pack. Kolton Brauer took some time to move up from fifth at the start and he was not going to catch Hess, who won his first-ever feature at Granite City.

It didn't take Bawden long to figure out the Super Stock class. He grabbed the lead after a good battle with Max Nelson. Nelson was eventually sidelined when he broke some suspension parts after an aggressive drive on the cushion. Once Bawden got to the lead, he pulled away from the pack and even when Dexton Koch got to second, he couldn't cut into the lead that Bawden held.

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