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Monday, June 23

The Midwest Mods were part of the World of Outlaws program Monday night at Ogilvie Raceway, and they ran three big heat races plus a B Feature to set their 24-driver starting field for the 20-lap main event. They did a great job of racing and drove nonstop for the whole distance.

Jake Molitor started on the pole and he led all 20 laps with a dominant performance — especially impressive given that he does not race at this track on a regular basis.

Jason VandeKamp started fifth and worked into the runner-up slot by the halfway point of the race, spending the later half of the race trying to catch Molitor. As Molitor made his way through lapped traffic, of which there was quite a bit of in the second half of the race, VandeKamp started to make some progress. In the final couple laps he was close enough to provide at least a mild challenge to the leader. Another five laps might have made things interesting but as it was, Molitor handled the traffic well and drove on for the win.

Jason Miller had an outstanding run in the Eric Gadach car, starting seventh and coming home third. Devin Fouquette and Joe Swearingen completed the top five.

Congratulations to promoter Nate Fischer and the Wagamon family for putting on an excellent night of racing.

Wednesday, June 24

The support classes for the World of Outlaws’ visit to I-94 Speedway did a great job of providing just that, with strong numbers and relatively clean races. However, the Midwest Mod feature did get trimmed by a couple laps when it started to wear out its welcome with just a few too many yellow flags.

There were thirty of the MidMods on hand and all were allowed to start the main event; 28 of them did so. This might have been the only mistake made during the night, as a B Feature to weed out just a few drivers might have been quicker in the long run.

As it was, the racing was good up front but there were just a few too many slowdowns. There were, however, three different leaders during the event with South Dakota’s Luke Johnson in the lead for the first six laps. One early yellow saved him when Dylan McCaughan, down from Manitoba, was about to pass him until the yellow flew.

On the following lap, Johnson did indeed get passed for the lead but it was another driver, Bailey Cousins, who made the pass. Cousins, also from Manitoba, then led up to the halfway point when he was passed by Matt Schow, who then pulled away and took the win.

Schow has been on a roll here, also winning last Friday. He didn't let a fourth-row starting spot keep him from victory lane. He charged immediately, moving from eighth to second by lap seven but it took him five laps to then race past Cousins and take the lead.

Four yellows and a red flag slowed the action and ultimately led to the time limit being reached. One grinder sent Tanner Bitzan into a flip after he was launched off the car of Austin Hunter. All three Bitzans who raced in the event were a part of the crash and they constituted less than half the crash participants, as it was a big one. Bitzan was able to drive his car off the track but it wasn't much to look at, for sure.

A quick two-lap finish was called for by the clock watchers. Schow motored on for the win, while Landyn Randt passed Cousins to get second. Randt did throw one slider late at Schow off turn two, but Schow was able to turn under it and keep the lead. From there, he pulled away.

A nice field of 20 Street Stocks took the green from Mark Blom for their 15-lap finale. Eric Riley grabbed the lead from the green but Keith Tourville, who started fifth, moved into position quickly and it only took him three laps to drive past Riley and take over the lead. Once in front, he was never challenged in a race that ran off smoothly with the yellow waving just a pair of times, both for minor spins.

As Tourville controlled the action up front, the battle for second was a good one between Kyle Dykhoff and Levi Randt. They swapped the position several times before Dykhoff claimed it at the finish, while early leader Riley faded to fourth at the end.

Every single driver who started the race took the checkered flag and not a single one of them was as much as a lap down. They provided a smooth conclusion to the evening's racing.

Thanks to track owner James Trantina III and Don Shaw and his crew who refused to let the rain spoil their fun. Even with the challenges they took on, all racing was done around 11 p.m.

Thursday, June 25

“Thunder In The Pines” erupted again on Thursday night at Grand Rapids Speedway as another weekly program commenced. It was a wonderful weather night for being outdoors and attending races and one of those rare nights lately when one didn't have to keep an eye trained toward the horizion to keep look out for approaching severe weather.

Sprint Cars were on hand and Late Models had the night off. There was also an excellent crowd on hand, perhaps the biggest that I have seen so far this year at GRS. The old myth that the Iron Range is Late Model country might be getting broken or perhaps because of other events in the general area, the crowds have risen here on Thursday nights. No matter: it was just good to see the grandstand mostly full of spectators.

A good field of racers was on hand also, at least by 2026 standards. It was a season high with 25 Midwest Mods, which were generously divided up into four heats. All the classes had at least enough drivers to run a pair of heats which has become the gold standard of modern life (except for the Pure Stocks, which still remain a bit on the low side).

Thursday was also the second stop already in the racing week for several drivers, including both Steve Stuart and David Simpson, who had raced Wednesday at Thunder City. Stuart expressed some real frustration. After getting off to a very fast start to the season, he has kind of hit “the wall” and feels like he’s on the “struggle bus” as he fights the slick race tracks of late. While still showing lots of speed, he’s not been able to maneuver his car and make the passes he needs to keep winning. He even mentioned that right after the holiday, he might take a couple nights off and finish up his new Dirt Dueller Super Stock, which sitting in his garage and pretty much ready to race other than the body. He has had the car there all season, but with the hot start he got off to, didn’t feel like he needed it early on.

Johnny Broking was a spectator on Thursday night; he let his dad, Bob, race the Modified and helped out in the pits. He reported that they have a new spec engine in his Late Model that will get its first test on Friday at Gondik Law. The motor is actually a Modified motor that they will use, after damaging their spec engine last week here.

Simpson reported that they had a good night overall at Thunder City; no damage of any kind and a win in the Midwest Mod, so they will move into the busy weekend in good shape.

Luke Johnson, who had raced at I-94 on Wednesday night, drove over to race at Grand Rapids on Thursday night for the first time.

It was a different surface that greeted the drivers on Thursday compared to earlier weeks. It was quite dry and despite a number of sprinkling sessions between heats and during the break after the heats, it remained that way all night. There was no cushion pounding. There was none to be found and, for most, it meant a night of tip-toeing around the bottom of the track and utilizing a different driving style than they’ve been using here so far in 2026.

Of course, the good drivers adjust quickly and don't get caught off guard, but for some of the less-experienced, at certain points they tended to get caught trying to make a racing line where it just wasn’t going to happen.

For the fans, a dry surface doesn't provide the cushion-pounding and slide-job kind of racing that some desire, and racing on this type of track requires much more patience and a feel for finding the openings when they develop. Huge speed is not the order of the night on dry tracks but close competition is often the result.

The Super Stocks were first out at feature time and it started out busy with three different leaders in the first few laps. Kevin Salin led one lap before Stuart got past him. But Stuart just couldn't make his car hold the bottom and Shane Sabraski drove under him several laps later to take the lead. Once in front, Sabraski was gone in the nonstop main. Dylan Nelson advanced to the second spot in the final running order over Stuart.

Twenty-four Midwest Mods took to the track next and things got off to a rocky start. A first lap crash eliminated outside pole starter Carter Matthews with a flat tire thanks to another competitor who was too jacked up on the opening lap.

Brant Gruba then grabbed the lead for a lap before being passed by Darrin Lawler. Lawler has run very well here for several weeks and did so again tonight; he battled in the lead pack for the entire race.

However, he couldn't hold off Simpson, who seems to shine on these slippery, stop-and-go kind of tracks. Simpson got under Lawler to take the lead, then held the point for the final 17 laps.

Blake Adams redrew poorly and it took some time for him to work forward from the fourth row. Eventually he got up to second by lap eight and used the final yellow of the race to get to Simpson's bumper. However, he simply couldn't keep up tonight and had to settle for second as Simpson pulled away under green flag stretches. Michael Blevins, Sr. started and finished third.

Jody Bellefeuille made his first appearance of the season a winning one and topped the Modified feature. After Bob Broking got the jump on him and led the opening laps, Bellefeuille made one of the few second groove passes of the night in turn four.

Once in front, Bellefeuille built up a big lead, but a late race yellow, the first of the contest, threatened to cause him problems. But pulled away again to take the win. There was some shuffling in those late laps and Sabraski was the loser; he dropped one position as Simpson drove home for third.

It was another good show for the Hornets; the black and hard slick tracks seem to promote the best racing for the four bangers. On Thursday, the lead pack stayed bunched up and close racing was the order of the race.

After a side by side battle for the win, Brady Fosso was able to edge past Mikayla LaBarge, then held on for the win over her and a charging Nick Ruzich. The Hornets ran off a nonstop feature and most of the field ran very competitively.

There was no stopping Jake Smith, who led from start to finish to win the Pure Stock feature to wrap up the night. He got the jump at the start and despite two yellow flags that bunched the field, no one was able to challenge him. Austin Carlson and Mason Smith followed him to the checkered.

The final flag waved at about 9:45 p.m., slightly later than had been the case recently but still comfortably within the curfew and early enough that many folks headed for the pits to do some bench racing.

To avoid conflicts over the holidays, Grand Rapids will race on Wednesday night next week. Late Models are the headliner class and more information is available on their website.

Friday, June 26

Five WISSOTA classes were in action Friday night at Red Cedar Speedway, along with the USRA Late Models. It was a day that threatened rain early, but then brightened, bringing sun and a touch of summer humidity.

A good field of drivers were on hand to race, with nearly 100 in the pits. The Street Stock field was short on cars, as it normally is in this area, but later their feature event was one of the most warmly received races of the night — more on that later.

Among those making their first starts at the track this year were Cody Borgeson, Chad Johnson, Dan Nissalke, Marcus Simonson and Steve Lavasseur.

Ron Mahder made a return to his old stomping ground and produced a strong run in the Super Stock feature — he also got to witness his nephew win an exciting Late Model main.

Longtime competitor Mike Knudtson returned to the Street Stock wars, and for the first time he had another stake in the action — Mason Knudtson is a rookie racing in the Midwest Mods.

Steve Thomas was also on track for the first time this season, this time in a Mid Mod. Chad Johnson was back out in the Super Stock ranks as well, so it was a night where many longtime favorites reminded us they aren't quite done with their racing careers, just yet.

And although he was not racing in a WISSOTA class, it was also a stunning development to see Chuckie DeSmith back on the track after a long layoff. It's probably been so long that a lot of fans don’t even remember or weren't at the track for the years of Chuckie racing both Super Stocks and Late Models.

Of course, it didn't take long to hear stories of DeSmith’s spectacular exit off what is now called Gondik Law Speedway's pit exit. That night he went flying into the pits and crashed into and destroyed a travel trailer that was parked in what became a very bad spot. Robbie Johnson and I had a chuckle about that one.

I quizzed Joe Swearingen about what happened to his Super Stock, a car he got toward the end of last year and seemed very happy with. He told me it is sitting in the shop, waiting for the 2027 racing season. He lost one of his key pit guys this year and is also breaking in a new team member. He felt two race cars might be just a bit much, so the Super Stock will wait for next year to get back on the track.

A very different track greeted the drivers on Friday night; it was hard and slick, icy-slick in fact. But it was smooth and once everyone figured it out, it raced just fine.

During the night they continued to mist it from time to time, mostly on the top side; this did make the outside line the fast way around the track. It also was conducive to slide jobs and we saw some dandies in the feature races. Not everyone, however, likes barreling around the top side and banging off the walls as needed. However, for those who like to pretend they are Sprint Car drivers, it was a night they enjoyed — and to heck with those right-rear quarter panels.

It took barely an hour to run off all the heat races, giving track officials time for track prep. They were still able to complete the program early, which then allowed them time to shoot off the fireworks and still not toy with the track curfew.

The feature races offered a wide variety of results and drama on Friday night, from dominating displays of runaway wins, to extremely close and exciting battles.

Certainly the highlight was young Layla Chaplin and her first-ever main event victory, in just her second year of racing. A former kart racer, she stepped into a Street Stock last year. With the help of her parents, who have to drive her to all her races, and racing an extremely aggressive schedule last year and this year, the hard work from all has paid off. If there is a Street Stock race to be had, they will generally be there, be it close or far from home.

This year she has been joined in the class by her older sister Alaina, who also raced karts but is very big into dance. The latter dominated her time until she saw what fun Layla was having and wanted a part of the action, too, so to speak.

Up and down the roads they go with family and friends keeping them on the track for their busy, busy schedule. On Friday, Layla led from start to finish to win the feature race, an event that was only close following the two yellow flags for slowing cars. Cole Richards challenged her following those two yellows, but she hit her marks and gradually pulled away. She has a strong car under her.

There were plenty of hugs all around in victory lane for the memorable win. They are a family of resolve and it is nice to see all their hard work and efforts rewarded.

Two excellent feature races were also highlights of the evening.

The Late Models went 20 laps nonstop and the first 10 laps were among the best racing seen all season. John Kaanta took the early lead but he soon had three other drivers battling him hard for the top spot. Jesse Glenz and Lance Hofer were soon all over Kaanta for the lead, and then they were joined by Chad Mahder, who had stumbled early but then fought his way back into the action. Kaanta was using a lot of track, starting low and then sliding high into the corners, while the other three nipped at his heels.

The lead pack of four was spectacular, as Glenz and Mahder ran just inches apart at high speed.

Mahder made the move that won him the contest just at the halfway point, when he found room to squeeze around Kaanta up against the wall. He then drove away for the win. Glenz took second and Ashley Anderson made a late rush from the fourth row to finish third.

The Mods also ran nonstop and this race was a two-driver battle all the way. Blake Adams edged past Matt Leer to take the initial lead but just a lap later, he got hung up on the wall just enough to allow Kaden Blaeser to drive under him and take over the lead. Those two then went at it for the rest of the way, as they pulled away to nearly a full straightaway in front of the rest of the pack.

Lap after lap they fought for position, with Adams making a good lap that allowed him to close to the back of Blaeser. Then Blaeser had the next better lap and pulled away slightly, all this time dancing the high side up against the concrete.

Adams made one late charge and then threw a big slider at Blaeser on the final lap, but came up short, as the pair of teenagers had the crowd on their feet. These two continue to dominate the Modified racing in this area so far this year, with many more memorable battles between them likely to break out before the snow flies. Shane Halopka finished third.

Adams also came up one sport short in the Midwest Mod feature, this time to Brandon Jensen — who himself is mighty tough to beat here. It didn't hurt that Jensen drew the pole and had the top spot to himself for 15 laps. Meanwhile, Nick Koehler and Adams, who have been dominating the local Midwest Mod racing so far this season, both had to fight their way to the front. Koehler started from row three and Adams was one more row behind in the big field of drivers that took the green.

They eventually got to second and third and had one last shot when the yellow waved with just four laps to go. Swearingen had a flat tire and the yellow came out.

However, neither was able to provide any challenges to Jensen back under green, who pulled away from them over the last few laps and drove on for the win. Koehler had second until his car stumbled and he slowed out of turn four. Adams was able to nip him for the spot at the flagstand.

On a night when the yellow flag got a rest, the Super Stocks also raced green to checkered for their finale and Jesse Redetzke dominated this race. He started on the outside pole and after allowing Leslie Leu to get the jump on him, he took the lead on lap two and ran away with the win. No one was close to him the rest of the way. Mahder was second and Avery Anderson was third.

It was a good, clean and smooth night of racing. A good-sized crowd was on hand to see the fireworks. Red Cedar returns to racing action in two weeks.

Saturday, June 27

Rice Lake Speedway was warm Saturday for fans and drivers. The heat built on Saturday along with some humidity, and a strong wind was blowing. Unfortunately for spectators, it was from the exact wrong direction. The track crew did a good job of keeping us all from being covered in Blue Hills clay, but there were a few reminders that yes indeed, we were at a dirt track race.

There were new faces on hand Saturday as well at Rice Lake, much like Friday at Red Cedar.

Osceola's Jason Miller was on hand for the first time, in the process of making a comeback of sorts to the Modified class. He has not done much racing in the past few years. He reported that the last time he raced at Rice Lake was in 2012, when he finished second in a USMTS race.

This was also a busy weekend for announcer Scott Erickson. A former racer and announcer at several different tracks, Erickson now has the “bull pen” role. When an announcer goes down in this area and/or needs a night off, Erickson generally gets the call. This weekend he replaced both Scott Tiefs and Ben Brost on Friday and Saturday, respectively. A little change is good from time to time; each of the three has their own style, which also adds some variety.

Unfortunately, when I tried to do that job, I found there wasn't much need for someone who sounded like Elmer Fudd!

All told, there were 15 drivers who made their first appearance of the year at the track on Saturday, with many more expected to do the same on Thursday of next week for the Firecracker race. It will be interesting to see whether defending K-Runk winner Jason VandeKamp, who almost never races here, is among those on hand.

Probably the biggest takeaway from Saturday night’s racing program was the fact that Mike Anderson is back on track in the figurative sense. Anderson has been one of the most dominant figures at the speedway now for two decades and his win totals and other achievements are among the most impressive in track history. But he has been going through a cold period of late, getting shut out of victory lane in 2025 for the first time in more than two decades. He won at least one feature race at the track for 21 straight years until he failed to get a victory last year. This season started just about as slow, but he has shown some signs of late that things were starting to turn around.

Saturday night he showed the Anderson of old, starting in the third row of what might have been the strongest field of Modifieds so far this year. He quickly charged to the front, blasting past close friend and running mate Kennedy Swan on lap 12, and then disappearing into the Barron County dusk.

Saturday night marked his 59th Modified feature win at Rice Lake and he has now won feature races at the track in 23 different years.

Jesse Redetzke made his first appearance and won. He drove past Alex Myers on lap six of the Super Stock feature and then onto victory. Redetzke doesn't race too much at the track anymore but was a regular for a lot of years, much of that time when he was racing Late Models. He does have feature wins here in three different classes, including Late Models and Pure Stocks.

He touched on that Saturday night in his victory lane interview. He explained he had his start in racing at Rice Lake, sharing a Pure Stock with his brother Jake for one year before they both had cars the next year. His first-ever win in racing was at Rice Lake, winning a Pure Stock feature way back in 2004.

By the way, for those new to the sport, his Super Stock car number is not 2-0-7, but rather, 20-seven. The 20 is for car owner Dan Arneson, who ran that number for years on his own cars until he retired to car-owner status, while the 27 is the Redetzke number, also carried by Jake and before them, father Jerry.

The night was marked by a fast track that had multiple grooves, making for some close racing action. In fact, the side-by-side battles between Simon Wahlstrom and George Richards in the Pure Stocks and the Street Stock battle between Cody Cimfl and Cole Richards were among the closest and most intense racing seen at the track all year. The fact they were able to race so closely and so hard without making any significant contact is a measure of their driving skills.

With their wins, Wahlstrom and Blake Adams are now tied for the lead in track victories with five each. Both, by the way, are also in the running for national titles, too.

Tough luck marked the Street Stock feature, where it appeared Hunter VanGilder was going to drive on for his second straight victory until his car suddenly broke at about the midpoint of the race.

Mike Tuma finally made his first appearance of the year with his Street Stock, as that class slowly grows back in size. However, the number of drivers in this area currently running Street Stocks is down. For the track to come anywhere close to the normal car count for the upcoming Little Dream race, it will take quite a minor miracle or lots and lots of out-of-town cars showing up for that race. Rumors persist that the start money for 2026 will be bumped up considerably, which might help in that regard.

I was glad to see Coach Mark Thomas finally make it to the track for a Saturday show. Unfortunately his evening ended quickly when he lost a driveshaft down the back straightaway on the opening lap of the feature for the Midwest Mods.

Attention now turns to this coming Thursday night, when the annual Firecracker special will be held at the track. The tradition of shooting off fireworks on this holiday goes way back to the 1960s when the old Indianhead Stock Car Racing Assn., which owned the track at that time, started the tradition by purchasing some fireworks and members of club would then go up on the hill behind the track and shoot them off. It was a far cry from what is allowed and done these days. Lots of things were different back then.

Sunday, June 28

One of the very few tracks to get a race in on Sunday, June 28 was Proctor KME Speedway, and it must have been a very tough call whether to race or not. The forecast was, for lack of a better word to describe it, crappy! Thunderstorms and rain were expected throughout the region.

Lake Superior was at it again, with a strong southeasterly breeze howling over the harbor. And while it might have been near 80 and humid away from the shoreline, it was only 53 degrees crossing the bridge into Minnesota. It was not much warmer than that at the track. With that damp breeze just cutting to the body, I hate to sound like a wimp, but it was COLD. Many folks wore the same clothes they might in mid February. The weather in this region is nuts — there's no other way to describe it.

As it turned out, the sun shined through most of the racing program but all the weather concerns drove away the crowd. Track officials sped through another program and were done with the whole show shortly after 7 p.m., which meant the racing itself took just about two hours.

Pat Kapella of KME helped out, with another night of promotions where five fans, on a lucky drawing, received $100 for showing up.

It was somewhat ironic that Cody Carlson, one of the drivers leading the fight to keep Modifieds on the program weekly, was on the sidelines helping the Blake Adams team on Sunday. However, his reason was legitimate — he hurt his motor racing this weekend and may be out of action for a considerable period of time.

Ronnie Malecki has a very unusual color combination on his Late Model, one not seen very often. He said he likes it and that it is easy for fans to find on the track, but admitted not all his sponsors are in love with it. Sunday turned out to be a miserable night for the team, as their car broke right at the drop of the green flag in their heat race and he was done for the night.

I finally had the chance to talk to Cory Jorgenson about his big switch up from the Midwest Mods to the Late Models in 2026. He said that it was just time for him to make a change and the opportunity came up to get a Late Model, so he jumped at it. Longtime fans will remember Cory has raced Late Models before when he moved here from North Dakota and has also raced Modifieds, Midwest Mods and even Pure Stocks, when his vertigo issues made it unsafe to drive anything more powerful.

His car this year is a Rocket he purchased from Billy Leighton, Jr. in Nebraska and is he using the popular 525 crate engine option favored by many who race in this region.

Kevin Carlson is somewhat satisfied with his Late Model season to date, as many drivers are still trying for that first win. He has already earned his, but he also feels like he might have given away a couple of other possible wins due to late yellows and an issue with his car not refiring well on restarts. He is also waiting on the shocks that are supposed to be on his car, that are being rebuilt and not yet on the car.

The Pure Stocks and Super Stocks had Sunday off due to the Vintage Cars racing.

The track proved to be challenging on Sunday, as it was dry and very slick with most just tiptoeing around the slick oval. When they did do some misting, it helped open up a second lane for passing to a point. The racing was done right on the tires, with passes mostly made when someone slipped off the bottom.

Blake Adams got rained out at Granite City on Sunday and likely came to Proctor looking for some feature wins, but that didn't work out for him; he didn't have his best night.

In the first main for the Midwest Mods, Paul Ripley slipped to the inside on lap one, getting past both of the front-row drivers, and he then led the rest of the race. Adams eventually moved to second but simply couldn't catch Ripley on this night.

The Late Model feature was probably the best of the night and there was certainly more passing than perhaps the rest of the night combined. Disregarding Kyle Peterlin, who took off from the outside pole and ran away with the win, there was some very good battling for position behind him.

Kevin Burdick put on quite a show as he started in the fifth row and drove all the way up to second. He was actually catching Peterlin at the end, although Peterlin may have been cruising a bit. Danny Vang also made a nice march, coming from seventh to finish a strong third.

The Modifieds may have been short on numbers but no one could argue about the quality of those that were on hand. Some of them found that they could carry their speed more by riding the high side and Brandon Copp did that to perfection. He grabbed the lead on lap one and then drove away for a convincing win ahead Jody Bellefeuille and Darrell Nelson.

It was Brady Fosso and Nick Ruzich battling it out once again for the Hornet win, with Fosso winning this round. Ruzich led lap one before Fosso got past a lap later and led the rest of the way. Sometimes I think some of these drivers might be playing games, as Fosso had both Ruzich and Kyle LeDoux nailed to his rear bumper for much of the race before it seemed like Fosso decided it was time to go. Fosso then pulled away from the pack for the win.