Paul Pokorski tallies top-10 effort in Dodge County Harry Neitzel Tribute Race

Paul Pokorski notched the Pokorski Motorsports team’s third top-10 A-main showing of the 2020 season with an eighth-place finish in the fourth annual Midwest Sprint Car Association Harry Neitzel Tribute Race at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions 

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) Sept. 8, 2020 – In his fourth consecutive appearance behind the wheel of the  Pokorski Motorsports 360 Sprint Car, 28-year veteran Paul Pokorski West Bend notched the team’s third top-10 A-main showing of the 2020 campaign at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4 and put together a hard-charging effort from deep in the field in A-main action at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth on Saturday, Sept. 5 during a Midwest Sprint Car Association doubleheader weekend.

On Friday, Sept. 4, Pokorski was among 23 MSA drivers on hand to tackle the sprawling Dodge County Fairgrounds “horsepower half mile” for the fourth annual Harry Neitzel Tribute Race.

After lining up fourth in the in the second eight-lap heat race, Pokorski pulled off a power move on the opening lap to advance past Jack Vanderboom and Justin Erickson into second place.

The 2014 MSA Masters Series champion held down second place throughout the remainder of the race behind race winner Brandon McMullen.

In the 20-lap A main, Pokorski lined up third on the grid and was shuffled back to sixth in the running order on the opening lap. On lap 5, Jack Vanderboom worked past Pokorski and on lap 13 Scotty Neitzel moved Pokorski back to eighth place.

On lap 15, Scott Conger maneuvered past Pokorski. However, Pokorski stormed back to regain the spot in the closing laps en route to an eighth-place finish in a race won by Brandon McMullen.

“The car felt pretty good in the heat race, but I wasn’t hitting turn one and two very well,” Pokorski said. “We changed very little before the feature and for some reason it was a bit of a handful. Maybe we needed to change more to keep up with the racetrack. We’ve been struggling to get consistent with this backup car. We finished eighth, but it felt like we were 18th.”

One night later at The Plymouth Dirt Track, Pokorski joined a field of 29 MSA-PDTR 360 Sprint Car drivers in the third to last race of the season at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds facility.

Pokorski drew the seventh starting spot in the fourth 10-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car heat race and was unable to move up on a fast and tacky track surface as he placed seventh in the race.

After starting ninth in the 15-lap B main, Pokorski had his work cut out for him in order to finish in the top six to gain a berth in the A main. On lap 2, Pokorski fell to 10th before passing Preston Ruh to regain ninth place on lap 5.

The caution flag was displayed on lap 7 when Tyler Davis spun in turn two. Pokorski restarted eighth and worked past Chris Larson on lap 9 to gain the seventh spot.

On the final lap, the sixth-place car of Josh Teunissen got temporarily hung up behind a lapped car entering turn one, which allowed Pokorski to swing high to maneuver around Teunissen into the sixth and final transfer spot at the finish line.

After starting 20th in the 25-lap A main, Pokorski got caught in an incident involving Blake Wondra on lap 3, which prompted Pokorski to visit the work area after making slight contact with Wondra.

After restarting 19th, Pokorski advanced to 16th on lap 7 just before a red flag was displayed for the flipping car of Adam Miller in turn four.  After restarting 16th, Pokorski powered past Doug Wondra, Tony Wondra and Ben Schmidt along the preferred inside groove to move up to 13th.

On lap 15, Pokorski dove under the high-riding Kurt Davis to claim 12th, which is where he finished in a race won by Brandon McMullen.

“Saturday night at Plymouth the car felt great in hot laps and it felt okay in the heat race, but I had hit an infield tire and tore off the left front shock on the first lap,” Pokorski said. “The track was well-prepared and really fast. Therefore, it was hard to pass on. Without a left front shock that made it even harder so we were pretty much just hanging on.

“We struggled a little bit in the B and got lucky to make it into the feature,” Pokorski said. “We changed a bunch of stuff before the feature and made it better, but we still have a ways to go. We left the track with the car in one piece, so we can work on making it better and sometimes that’s all you can ask for.”

The Pokorski Motorsports team announced this week that after sharing the driver’s seat with his 21-year-old son Alex this season, Paul Pokorski will be behind the wheel for the remaining three races of the 2020 season.

“When we switched to the 2011 J&J chassis after our primary 2016 Maxim was involved in an accident, we found that the backup car didn’t really fit Alex well because he is a little taller than me,” Pokorski said. “We don’t want to put Alex in the car if he is not comfortable. Safety is the most important thing. As a result, I will be driving the car for the final three nights of the season.”

The Pokorski Motorsports team is set to be in action this Saturday, Sept. 12 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis., along with the PDTR Grand Nationals and B Mods, along with the visiting Bader Midget Series.

Spectator gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

Sponsors for the 2020 Pokorski Motorsports team are Hopf Farms, Petersen Septic Systems, Quest Engineering Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Lakeshore Family Funeral Homes, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Novak’s Service Center

Pokorski Motorsports would like to acknowledge the support of long-time sponsor Novak’s Service Center of Manitowoc, which is celebrating its 48th year in business in 2020.

Novak’s Service Center is a locally-owned, second-generation, family-owned, five-bay auto repair center, which has been serving customers in the Lakeshore area since 1972.

Novak’s Service Center offers comprehensive auto repair services, including 4 x 4 services, brakes, car and truck care, domestic cars and trucks, electrical services, electronic services, engine and transmission, engine maintenance, expired warranty care, general service, heating and cooling services, import cars and trucks, quick lube services, tires, towing, transmission and undercar services.

Located at 1320 Washington St. in Manitowoc, Novak’s Service Center is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To schedule an appointment, call 920-684-5737 or visit www.novaks1320.com.

For more information on Pokorski Motorsports, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromo.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports Remaining Schedule.

Saturday, Sept. 12 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, Sept. 25 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis

Saturday, Sept. 26 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 15

MSA events – 14

IRA events – 0

A Main Victories – 1

B Main Victories – 1

Top Five A Main Finishes – 1

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 3

Heat Race Victories – 0

Balog, McMullen star in IRA-PDTR Sprint Car twinbill

Nine-time Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series champion Bill Balog of Hartland captured his 10th IRA A-main victory of the 2020 season at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 5. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 5, 2020 – As multiple-time champions and the clear-cut favorites to add another title to their resumes in their respective divisions in 2020, nine-time Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association champion Bill Balog of Hartland and 2017 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing and three-time Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh put their considerable driving prowess on full display by picking up A-main victories, during an all-Sprint Car program at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 5.

In the 30-lap IRA 410 Sprint Series headliner, Balog outdueled Josh Schneiderman of West Burlington, Iowa in the closing laps to claim his 10th IRA A-main victory of the 2020 season.

McMullen snuck past early race leader Will Gerrits of Waupun at the mid-way point to claim his third PDTR A-main victory of the 2020 campaign and sixth overall MSA main event win of the 2020 campaign.

Balog started on the pole of the 30-lap IRA main event and quickly outpowered outside front row starter Scotty Thiel of Sheboygan to lead the opening circuit. On lap 3, Joey Moughan of Springfield, Ill., who started fifth, dipped under the high-riding Thiel to take second.

On lap 6, Balog began to negotiate heavy lapped traffic on the multi-groove track surface, which allowed Moughan to close the gap slightly. On lap 8, Schneiderman, who started seventh, dove low to take third from Thiel before passing Moughan for second on lap 12.

Two laps later, 11th starter Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who was making his 410 Sprint Car debut driving for Ozzie Motorsports, flipped in turn four after clipping an infield tire. Arenz was uninjured, but unable to return to the race.

On the restart, Balog pulled away from Schneiderman before Moughan got sideways in turn four and collected Thiel, which resulted in both drivers flipping their machines hard on lap 15. Both drivers were uninjured, but done for the night.

Balog felt pressure from Schneiderman following the ensuing restart with Schneiderman closing the gap along the low groove, while Balog rode the cushion.

The race was slowed for the third time on lap 19 when a yellow flag was displayed for former IRA champion Jack Blackhurst of Hanna City, Ill., who stopped in turn four.

On the restart, Schneiderman stayed dedicated to the inside line, while Balog moved up high. On lap 23, Schneiderman used a big run along the low groove to wrestle the lead away from Balog exiting turn four.

Schneiderman maintained the top spot over the next six laps when lapped traffic became a factor. On lap 29, Balog dove low in turn three to sneak past Schneiderman in dense lapped traffic.

Sixth starter Scott Biertzer of West Bend followed Balog into second on lap 29 with Schneiderman dropping to third.

Balog then cruised over the final lap en route to his 10th IRA victory of the 2020 season, second IRA triumph of the season at The Plymouth Dirt Track and 123rd career IRA A-main victory.

Biertzer recorded a strong second-place finish, Schneiderman placed third, 15th starter Jordan Goldesberry of Springfield, Ill. finished fourth and Mike Reinke of Howards Grove, who started fourth, placed fifth.

In victory lane, Balog was thankful to have the opportunity to regain the lead, after losing the top spot to Schneiderman with just seven laps to go.

“I think I went upstairs too early, but I felt I was slowing down on the bottom too long,’ Balog said. “The track was good and you really had to drive your car to find the right groove. I’m happy to get this win because for a while there it looked like we were going to get beat.”

Biertzer was thrilled with his second-place run.

“It feels awesome to be here with a second-place result tonight,” Biertzer said. “I have to thank my crew for giving me a good car as well as all my sponsors for their support. We couldn’t be here without them.”

Knoxville Raceway regular Schneiderman, who was making his first career appearance at The Plymouth Dirt Track, was dejected in victory lane, after falling from first to third in the span of two laps.

“I’m pretty disgusted with the result,” Schneiderman said. “I’m upset at myself. Bill is a great race car driver, but we came here to win. My crew worked hard to give us the chance to win after we encountered motor problems last night at Dodge County.”

In the 25-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car headliner, polesitter Will Gerrits of Waupun jumped into the lead on the drop of the green flag, while third starter Brandon McMullen snuck under 2018 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Justin Miller of Plymouth, who started on the outside of the front row.

Former Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh racked up his third A-main victory of the 2020 campaign at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 5. -RC Custom Design photo

The first of two cautions came out on lap 3 when Blake Wondra of Fond du Lac spun in turn four. Gerrits bolted away from McMullen on the restart and held a solid cushion until lap 7 when Plymouth’s Adam Miller flipped in turn four.

Gerrits commanded the ensuing restart as the leaders began to work their way through lapped traffic on lap 10. Two laps later, McMullen dove low to slip past Gerrits for the top spot in turn four on lap 12.

McMullen held his own along the preferred inside lane around the increasingly one-groove racing surface. On lap 24, Justin Miller worked past Gerrits to take over second with two laps to go.

McMullen pulled away in the waning laps to notch his 20th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main triumph and his 29th career MSA A main victory.

Justin Miller placed second, Gerrits wound up third, 2008 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Lance Fassbender, who started fourth, finished fourth and Jack Vanderboom of Dousman charged up from the 11th starting spot to place fifth.

Ryan Ruhl of Coldwater, Mich. was the fastest IRA qualifier with a lap of 11.767 seconds around the third-mile clay oval. Sean Rayhall of Woodstock, Ga. won the 15-lap IRA B main.

Kevin Karnitz of West Bend claimed the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main.

The all-Sprint Car program, which featured a total of 59 cars, included 30 IRA 410 Sprint Cars and 29 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars. Cupcake Wonders was the trophy sponsor for the evening.

The next event at The Plymouth Dirt Track will take place next Saturday, Sept. 12 with the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, Grand Nationals and B Mods, along with a special appearance from the Badger Midgets. The Sept. 12 event will be the final points event of the season for the PDTR Grand National and B Mod divisions.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand for $10.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

BUMPER TO BUMPER INTERSTATE RACING ASSOCIATION

QUALIFYING

1, Ryan Ruhl 11.767, 2, Joey Moughan 11.777, 3, Bill Balog 11.813, 4, Mike Reinke 11.991, 5, Scotty Thiel 12.018, 6, Scott Biertzer 12.095, 7, Kyle Schuett 12.146, 8, Jake Blackhurst 12.151, 9, Scotty Neitzel 12.195, 10, Travis Arenz 12.216, 11, Danny Schlafer 12.236, 12, Josh Schneiderman, 12.257 13, Russel Borland 12.299, 14, Scott Uttech 12.317, 15, Jeremy Schultz 12.343, 16, Jordan Goldesberry 12.356, 17, Robbie Pribnow 12.372, 18, Dave Uttech 12.398,19, Sean Rayhall, 20, Johnny Fahl 12.486, 21, Jereme Schroeder 12.577, 22, Kris Spitz 12.609, 23, Hunter Custer 12.630, 24, Dan McCarron 12.660, 25, Bailey Goldesberry 12.667, 26, Jack Routson 12.703, 27, Wayne Modjeski 12.811, 28, Bryce Schmitt 13.050, 29, Kevin Seidler 12.314 30, Blake Nimee (DQ).

HEAT 1

1, Kyle Schuett 2, Travis Arenz 3, Mike Reinke 4, Russel Borland 5, Jordan Goldesberry 6, Ryan Ruhl 7, Sean Rayhall 8, Bailey Goldesberry 9, Kris Spitz 10, Bryce Schmitt.

HEAT 2

1, Danny Schlafer 2, Scotty Thiel 3, Jake Blackhurst 4, Joey Moughan 5, Rrobbie Pribnow 6, Jack Routson 7, Johnny Fahl 8, Hunter Custer 9, Scott Uttech 10, Kevin Seidler.

HEAT 3

1, Josh Schneiderman 2, Scott Biertzer 3, Scotty Neitzel 4, Bill Balog 5, Jeremy Schultz 6, Jereme Schroeder 7, Dan McCarron 8, Wayne Modjeski 9, Blake Nimee 10, Dave Uttech.

DASH 1

1, Bill Balog 2, Ryan Ruhl 3, Joey Moughan 4, Josh Schneiderman 5, Kyle Schuett.

DASH 2

1, Scotty Thiel 2, Mike Reinke 3, Scott Biertzer 4, Jake Blackhurst 5, Danny Schlafer (DNS).

B MAIN

1, Sean Rayhall 2, Blake Nimee 3, Dan McCarron 4, Dave Uttech 5, Wayne Modjeski 6, Johnny Fahl 7, Hunter Custer 8, Kris Spitz 9, Bailey Goldesberry 10, Bryce Schmitt 11, Scott Uttech.

A MAIN

1, Bill Balog 2, Scott Biertzer 3, Josh Schneiderman 4, Jordan Goldesberry 5, Mike Reinke 6, Russel Borland 7, Ryan Ruhl 8, Robbie Pribnow 9, Scotty Neitzel 10, Wayne Modjeski 11, Dan McCarron 12, Jack Routson 13, Sean Rayhall 14, Kyle Schuett 15, Dave Uttech 16, Jeremy Schultz 17, Blake Nimee 18, Johnny Fahl 19, Jeremy Schroder 20, Jake Blackhurst 21, Joey Moughan 22, Scotty Thiel 23, Travis Arenz 24, Danny Schlafer.

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Bill Taylor 2, Lance Fassbender 3, Anthony Knierim 4, Chris Larson 5, Blake Wondra 6, Tim Haddy 7, Scott Conger 8, Brady Portschy.

HEAT 2

1, Justin Miller 2, Ben Schmidt 3, Adam Miller 4, Kurt Davis 5, Doug Wondra 6, Austin Hartmann 7, Mike MacFarlane.

HEAT 3

1, Will Gerrits 2, Brandon McMullen 3, Jack Vanderboom 4, Tyler Davis 5, Nich Melis 6, Preston Ruh 7, Josh Teunissen.

HEAT 4

1, Tyler Brabant 2, Tony Wondra 3, Justin Erickson 4, Brandon Berth 5, Kevin Karnitz 6, Shane Wenninger 7, Paul Pokorski.

B MAIN

1, Kevin Karnitz 2, Tim Haddy 3, Blake Wondra 4, Shane Wenninger 5, Scott Conger 6, Paul Pokorski 7, Josh Teunissen 8, Preston Ruh 9, Austin Hartmann 10, Chris Larson 11, Tyler Davis 12, Brady Portschy 13, Mike MacFarlane.

A MAIN

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Justin Miller 3, Will Gerrits 4, Lance Fassbender 5, Jack Vanderboom 6, Anthony Knierim 7, Bill Taylor 8, Kevin Karnitz 9, Brandon Berth 10, Justin Erickson 11, Tim Haddy 12, Paul Pokorski 13, Tony Wondra 14, Nich Melis 15, Shane Wenninger 16, Blake Wondra 17, Doug Wondra 18, Tyler Brabant 19, Kurt Davis 20, Scott Conger 21, Ben Schmidt 22, Adam Miller.

 

McMullen bags first MSA Harry Neitzel Tribute triumph

Three-time Midwest Sprint Car Association champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh claimed his fifth MSA A-main victory of the 2020 season in the Harry Neitzel Tribute Race at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4. McMullen is pictured receiving the Harry Neitzel Tribute Race trophy from Brendalee Neitzel. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 4, 2020 – Three-time Midwest Sprint Car Association champion Brandon McMullen Oshkosh added one of the MSA’s crown jewels to his trophy case by claiming the fourth annual Harry Neitzel Tribute Race Friday, Sept. 4, at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis.

The prestigious 14th MSA event of the 2020 season, which was run in honor of the late Beaver Dam resident, who was one of the most beloved figures in the MSA and the entire Southeastern Wisconsin racing community, drew a field of 23 competitors to the “horsepower half mile.”

After an aborted start for a four-car incident in turn two involving Nick Daywalt of Hubertus, Justin Miller of Plymouth, Chris Clayton and Waldo and Plymouth’s Justin Erickson, outside front row starter Tony Wondra of Campbellsport outpowered polesitter Tim Haddy of Waupun to take the lead on the opening circuit of the 20-lap MSA main event.

On lap 2, Brandon McMullen, who started fourth, worked his way past Haddy into second and quickly set his sights on the leader.  By lap 5, McMullen had reeled in Wondra  and attempted to dive low in turn three to take over the spot.

However, Wondra battled back along the outside groove to maintain the top spot in turn four. On lap 7, the leaders began to encounter lapped traffic, which allowed McMullen to again move within striking distance of Wondra.

On lap 11, Wondra drifted high over the cushion in turn four, which allowed McMulllen to seize the top spot along the low groove. Once ahead, McMullen opened up a solid lead, while fifth starter Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who entered the race with a five-point lead over McMullen in the MSA point standings, charged in to work around Wondra into second on lap 18.

McMullen cruised over the final two laps to post his 28th career MSA A-main victory, fifth main event victory of the 2020 MSA season and first Harry Neitzel Tribute Race trophy.

Arenz finished second, Wondra ended up third, 2005 MSA champion Lance Fassbender moved up from the 13th starting spot to place fourth and ninth starter Jack Vanderboom of Dousman rounded out the top five.

After the race, McMullen ranked the victory at the top of his 28 career MSA wins.

“This race really means a lot to me,” McMullen said. “Harry was a really good to us when we first came into the 360s and he was friends with everyone. Pretty much everyone in this pit area tonight knows who Harry was and what he meant to racing in this area. This wins means a ton. I’d say it is the biggest win of my career so far.”

Arenz was satisfied with his second-place run on the high-speed half mile.

“I can’t complain too much about second place,” Arenz said. “It was a good run and I’m happy with it.”

Wondra gave McMullen all he could handle through the first half of the race before ending up with a spot on the podium.

“We were really strong in the beginning,” Wondra said. “This race would have been sweet to win. We just didn’t have anything for those guys at the end tonight.”

Heat race victories went to Travis Arenz, Brandon McMullen and Tony Wondra.

The next two events on the MSA schedule will be at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds on Saturday, Sept. 5 and Saturday, Sept. 12 with grandstand gates opening at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing to follow.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through a diverse array of promotional strategies and methods, including press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

 

Midwest Sprint Car Association

Dodge County Fairgrounds

Beaver Dam, Wis.

September 4, 2020

 

HEAT 1

1, Travis Arenz 2, Tyler Davis 3, Chris Clayton 4, Tim Haddy 5, Chris Larson 6, Will Gerrits 7, Bill Taylor 8, Blake Wondra.

HEAT 2

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Paul Pokorski 3, Jack Vanderboom 4, Justin Erickson 5, Justin Miller 6, Lance Fassbender 7, Scotty Neitzel 8, Tyler Brabant.

HEAT 3

1, Tony Wondra 2, Kurt Davis 3, Nick Daywalt 4, Adam Miller 5, Tyler Tischendorf 6, Scott Conger 7, Preston Ruh.

A MAIN

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Travis Arenz, 3, Tony Wondra 4, Lance Fassbender 5, Jack Vanderboom 6, Tim Haddy 7, Scotty Neitzel 8, Paul Pokorski 9, Scott Conger 10, Will Gerrits 11, Adam Miller 12, Tyler Davis 13, Chris Larson 14, Tyler Brabant 15, Tyler Tischendorf 16, Bill Taylor 17, Preston Ruh 18, Blake Wondra 19, Kurt Davis 20, Chris Clayton 21, Nick Daywalt 22, Justin Miller 23, Justin Erickson.

 

 

 

Walter returns to IRA action at Beaver Dam Raceway

Following a 28-day break from competition, Josh Walter and the Torque Racing team returned to action with the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series on Saturday, Aug. 29 at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions 

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 2, 2020 – After nearly a month away from the track, Josh Walter and the Torque Racing team got back on the throttle in Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car action at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 29.

Walter was among 29 IRA competitors on hand for the Jim Wipperfurth Memorial IRA event. The night got off to a strong start as Walter qualified sixth with a lap of 13.243 seconds around the third-mile clay oval.

After lining up third in the third 10-lap IRA heat race, Walter came home fourth to earn a spot in the 30-lap A-main and a spot in the first four-lap IRA dash. The 15th-year driver started fifth in the first IRA dash and worked past Brinton Marvel to finish the four-lap race in fourth place.

Walter started seventh in the Jim Wipperfurth Memorial headliner and raced in the top 10 in the opening laps on a rapidly changing track surface, which started to lay rubber during the course of the race.

Walter attempted to work both the high and low lines in and an effort to gain a few spots and was running just outside the top 10 when contact with Scott Biertzer along the frontstretch resulted in Walter spinning to a stop near the entrance to turn one to bring out a yellow flag on lap 17.

The spin relegated Walter to the rear of the field with 13 laps to go. The Plymouth, Wis. driver worked the rubber to maneuver his way past Todd Daun, Hunter Custer and Kris Spitz in the closing laps en route to a 17th-place finish in a race won by Jordan Goldesberry.

After suffering through a string of mechanical malfunctions and on-track incidents in recent IRA events, Walter was pleased to bring the car home in one piece after showing good speed throughout the night.

“We are happy to have the fuel pump and electrical issues straightened out that came up during the All Stars race at Plymouth and caused us to drop out before the start of the IRA A main at Antigo where we had earned the pole,” Walter said. “After everything we’ve dealt with this year, we were hoping for a good, clean night with minimal problems and that is pretty much the way it turned out.”

Walter and the Torque Racing team are planning to compete in an IRA doubleheader this weekend at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4 and The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 5.

Spectator gates open at 5 p.m. and warm ups start at 6 p.m. with hot laps, qualifying and hot laps to follow for the Harry Neitzel Tribute Race at the Dodge County Fairgrounds on Friday, Sept. 4.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps slated for 5:30 p.m. with qualifying and racing to follow at The Plymouth Dirt Track on Saturday, Sept. 5.

For those unable to attend, both races will be broadcast live on pay-per-view at floracing.com.

“If all goes well, are planning to run the majority of the remaining IRA races,” Walter said. “We are looking forward to a busy September schedule and hopefully we can start putting together some better finishes in the A mains.”

Torque Racing sponsors for the 2020 season included JDV Lawncare, Brittany’s School of Dance, Sheboygan by Owner, Plymouth Tap, SCA Inc., Doug’s Quality Beef, Cow Pies, Full Throttle Ink, Lakehouse Bar & Grill, Home Transitions, Oostburg Concrete, Services, RC Custom Design and Pedal Down Promotions.

Torque Racing Sponsor Showcase – Full Throttle Ink

The Torque Racing team is pleased to have Full Throttle Ink in Sheboygan Falls on board as a sponsor for the 2020 season.

Full Throttle Ink is Sheboygan County’s premier tattoo, piercing, and apparel shop, located at 501 North Main (Highway 32) in Sheboygan Falls, Wis. Under the direction of owner Jeff Klug, Full Throttle Ink features a 1,100-square foot state-of-the-art tattoo and piercing parlor, as well as a a complete line of 1940s and 1950s-themed high-end hot-rod style clothing.

Full Throttle Ink, which is open daily from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., also offers Motorcult Apparel, Lucky 13 Apparel and Klug’s personal line of Sheboygan County-exclusive apparel.

To book a tattoo or piercing appointment, call 920-467-2215 or email fullthrottleink@hotmail.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

2020 Josh Walter-Torque Racing Tentative Upcoming Schedule

Friday, Sept. 4 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis. (IRA)

Saturday, Sept. 5 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis. (IRA)

Friday, Sept. 11 – Outagamie Speedway, Seymour, Wis. (IRA)

 

2020 Josh Walter-Torque Racing By The Numbers

Total Events – 7

IRA events – 5

A-Main Victories – 0

B-Main Victories – 0

Top Five A-Main Finishes – 0

Top 10 A-Main Finishes – 0

Heat Race Victories – 0

Dash Victories – 1

Dash Appearances – 3

 

Paul Pokorski notches top-10 MSA showing at Beaver Dam Raceway

Paul Pokorski of West Bend collected his second top-10 A-main finish of the 2020 season in the 25-lap Midwest Sprint Car Association Jim Wipperfurth Memorial main event at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 29. – JW’s Car and Racing Photos

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) Sept. 1, 2020 – For the second time in his limited appearances behind the wheel of the No. 4 Pokorski Motorsports 360 Sprint Car during the 2020 campaign, 28-year veteran Paul Pokorski turned in a top-10 showing in Midwest Sprint Car Association A-main action at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 29.

Pokorski, who is sharing seat time in the Pokorski Motorsports car this year with his 21-year-old son Alex, made his fifth and sixth starts of the 2020 season during the rain-shorted Russ Scheffler Tribute Night Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program on Thursday, Aug. 27 and the Jim Wipperfurth Memorial Night at Beaver Dam Raceway on Aug. 29.

On Aug. 27 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. 29 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars checked in for the special Thursday night racing program.

Pokorski opened the evening by starting fifth in the second 10-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car heat race. The 2014 MSA Masters Series champion led to sixth on the opening lap before battling back to pass rookie Austin Hartmann for fifth place on lap 3. Pokorski held on over the final seven laps to finish fifth in the race.

Pokorski then lined up third in the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main and fell to sixth on lap 2 where he ran until a yellow flag was displayed on lap 11 for a spin involving Jack Vanderboom of Dousman.

Following the restart, Pokorski worked past Shane Wenninger to take fifth on lap 13, which is where he finished to earn the 21st starting spot in the 25-lap A main, which was later washed out by rain.

“Thursday night at Plymouth went okay,” Pokorski said. “We made smart changes and the car was surprisingly good in the B even though the result wasn’t great. I was looking forward to running the feature and was disappointed when mother nature got the best of us.”

Alex Pokorski was scheduled to drive the Pokorski Motorsports car in a special Friday night PDTR program on Friday, Aug. 28, which was rained out.

On Saturday, Aug. 29, Paul Pokorski was among 31 MSA 360 Sprint Car drivers to check into the pit area for the second MSA event of the season at Beaver Dam Raceway.

Pokorski turned a lap of 14.499 seconds to place 20th in MSA group qualifying to earn an outside front row starting spot in the second 10-lap MSA heat race.

Polesitter Bill Taylor got the jump on the drop of the green flag, while Pokorski settled into second on the opening lap. Pokorski held on to second through a caution flag on lap 4 to advance to the 25-lap A main.

Pokorski started 12th in the 22-car MSA field and rode the low groove to ninth when the first of three red flags appeared on lap three for a three-car incident involving Adam Miller, Chris Clayton and Justin Miller, who flipped his machine in turn three.

After the restart, Pokorski dropped to 10th when the second red flag appeared for a flip in turn two involving Kurt Davis. On lap later, the third red flag of the race was displayed when Shane Wenninger flipped after contact with Justin Erickson in turn four.

As the track began to take rubber in the closing laps, Pokorski was among the first drivers to find the fast way around and he used the rubbered-up lane in the closing laps to record a solid 10th-place finish in a race won by MSA point leader Travis Arenz to tally the team’s second top-10 A-main showing of the 2020 season.

“I screwed up in qualifying and being in the third of four qualifying sessions already makes it a little bit of a disadvantage due to the track conditions,” Pokorski said. “My mistake just made it that much worse. Nonetheless, that put us in a good starting spot for our heat race. The heat went okay and the car was pretty good.

“In the A main things were busy,” he said. “I ran the middle for a few laps and it wasn’t working. I moved to the extreme outside and gained some momentum, but a caution came out and started us on the bottom. I lost a few spots trying to get going and get back to the top. By then, the rubber was coming in and I should have been running the middle. After the last caution, I found the rubber and passed a car or two. All together it wasn’t a memorable result, but not terrible either.”

This weekend the Pokorski Motorsports team is set to take part in an MSA doubleheader starting with the fourth annual Harry Neitzel Tribute race at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4.

Also on the card will be the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series, along with the Modified division. Pit gates open at 3 p.m., spectator gates are set to open at 5 p.m. with warm ups at 6 p.m. and hot laps, qualifying and racing to follow.

On the following night, the team will return to The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. with the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars supporting the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series.

Spectator gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps and qualifying scheduled for 5:30 p.m. with racing to follow.

Paul Pokorski is expected to be behind the wheel for both nights.

“I’m looking forward to the upcoming two-day weekend,” Pokorski said. “Hopefully, mother nature will cooperate.”

Sponsors for the 2020 Pokorski Motorsports team are Hopf Farms, Petersen Septic Systems, Quest Engineering Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Lakeshore Family Funeral Homes, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Novak’s Service Center

Pokorski Motorsports would like to acknowledge the support of long-time sponsor Novak’s Service Center of Manitowoc, which is celebrating its 48th year in business in 2020.

Novak’s Service Center is a locally-owned, second-generation, family-owned, five-bay auto repair center, which has been serving customers in the Lakeshore area since 1972.

Novak’s Service Center offers comprehensive auto repair services, including 4 x 4 services, brakes, car and truck care, domestic cars and trucks, electrical services, electronic services, engine and transmission, engine maintenance, expired warranty care, general service, heating and cooling services, import cars and trucks, quick lube services, tires, towing, transmission and undercar services.

Located at 1320 Washington St. in Manitowoc, Novak’s Service Center is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To schedule an appointment, call 920-684-5737 or visit www.novaks1320.com.

For more information on Pokorski Motorsports, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromo.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports Remaining Schedule.

Friday, Sept. 4 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, Sept. 5 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, Sept. 12 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, Sept. 25 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis

Saturday, Sept. 26 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 13

MSA events – 12

IRA events – 0

A Main Victories – 1

B Main Victories – 1

Top Five A Main Finishes – 1

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 2

Heat Race Victories – 0

MSA 360 Sprint Car competitors set to chase Harry Neitzel Tribute hardware

Three-time Midwest Sprint Car Association champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh (98), five-time MSA champ Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee (6K) and current MSA point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan (25T) are set to headline the MSA field in the fourth annual Harry Neitzel Tribute Race at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 31, 2020 – As the heated battle for the 2020 Midwest Sprint Car Association title heads into the home stretch, a deep and talented contingent of MSA competitors are gearing up for the prestigious fourth annual Harry Neitzel Tribute Race Friday, Sept. 4 at the Dodge County Fairgrounds “horsepower half mile” in Beaver Dam, Wis.

The special event to honor the universally respected Neitzel, who was one of the MSA’s biggest supporters, has grown into one of the crown jewel events on the MSA schedule.

To date, three different MSA drivers have claimed Harry Neitzel Tribute Race hardware. Five-time MSA champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee took home the inaugural event in 2017, West Bend’s Kevin Karnitz claimed the victory in 2018 and the now retired Jim Melis of Glenbeulah was the 2019 race winner.

Among the favorites to visit victory lane this year will be point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who has tallied four MSA A-main victories, including three triumphs at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. and the most recent MSA event at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 29.

Three-time MSA champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh is hot on Arenz’s heals in the spirited race for this year’s MSA series title on the strength of four A-main victories, including two at The Plymouth Dirt Track, one at Beaver Dam Raceway and another at Gravity Park Speedway in Chilton.

Arenz heads into Friday’s Harry Neitzel Tribute Race with a slim five-point advantage over McMullen in the chase for the 2020 MSA title with just five points races remaining on the season.

The MSA’s all-time winningest driver in A-main competition, Kurt Davis, who stands third in MSA points with a pair of A-main victories at The Plymouth Dirt Track and Outagamie Speedway in Seymour so far this season, will be looking to be the Harry Neitzel Tribute Race’s first repeat winner.

Other top contenders expected to compete include 2018 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Justin Miller of Plymouth, second-year competitor Justin Erickson of Plymouth, past MSA champion Lance Fassbender of Burnett, 2014 MSA Masters Series champion Paul Pokorski of West Bend, Tim Haddy of Waupun, Tony Wondra of Campbellsport and Adam Miller of Plymouth.

Pokorski, Adam Miller and former MSA champ Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove have each claimed one victory in MSA A-main action this season.

Also on the card will be the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series, along with the Modified division.

Pit gates open at 3 p.m., spectator gates are set to open at 5 p.m. with warm ups at 6 p.m. and hot laps, qualifying and racing to follow.

Spectator admission is $25 for adults with kids 6-12 $5 and children 5 and under admitted free. Pit admission is $30.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through a diverse array of promotional strategies and methods, including press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

Arenz charges to fourth 2020 MSA triumph at Beaver Dam Raceway

Travis Arenz of Sheboygan collected his fourth Midwest Sprint Car Association A-main victory of the 2020 season, during the MSA portion of the Jim Wipperfurth Memorial Night at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 29. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 29, 2020 – Third-year 360 Sprint Car driver Travis Arenz of Sheboygan continued his season-long hot streak in Midwest Sprint Car Association competition by notching his fourth A-main victory of the 2020 season Saturday, Aug. 29 at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis.

The 13th MSA event of the 2020 campaign drew a field of 31 competitors to the third-mile Beaver Dam Raceway facility where the Southeastern Wisconsin-based 360 Sprint Car division got its start in 1996.

Doug Wondra of Campbellsport led the opening lap of the 25-lap Jim Wipperfurth Memorial MSA A-main from the pole before 2011 MSA champ Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove, who started third, snagged the top spot in turn two on lap 2, while five-time MSA champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee, who started fourth, followed Schmidt into second.

On lap 3, the first of three red flags appeared when Justin Miller of Plymouth flipped in turn three during an incident that also involved Adam Miller of Plymouth and Chris Clayton of Waldo.

When the race resumed, Schmidt bolted out to a full-straightaway cushion over Davis on the ultra-slick racing surface. On lap 8, Travis Arenz worked his way into third from his 10th starting spot. Three laps later, the leaders began to work their way through lapped traffic, which allowed Davis and Arenz to close the gap on Schmidt.

Arenz worked underneath Davis on lap 13 before Davis brought out the second red flag of the race after drifting high in turn two and hitting the turn two wall before flipping.  Davis was uninjured, but heavy damage to his car forced him to retire from the race.

On the restart, Schmidt again raced away from Arenz, who felt heavy pressure from sixth starter Tyler Tischendorf of Waupaca, who worked his way past Arenz into second before the third and final red flag appeared on lap 14 when Justin Erickson of Plymouth spun in turn four and was collected by Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum, who flipped.

Following the restart, Arenz used the high groove to sweep around Tischendorf into second on lap 15 and quickly reel in Schmidt along the high groove. On lap 20, Arenz pulled off a slide job in turn two to wrestle the top spot away from Schmidt.

Two laps later, three-time MSA champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh, who started 15th, worked past Schmidt into second. McMullen was able to trim the gap slightly in the final three laps, but Arenz was too strong as he held on to secure his 11th career MSA A-main victory.

McMullen finished second, Schmidt placed third, Tischendorf finished fourth and eighth starter Jack Vanderboom of Dousman placed fifth.

MSA heat race victories went to Travis Arenz, Will Gerrits of Waupun, Brandon McMullen and Bill Taylor of Kewaskum.

2005 MSA champion Lance Fassbender of Burnett claimed the 15-lap MSA B Main and Jack Vanderboom was the fast qualifier in MSA group qualifying with a lap of 13.454 seconds.

Kristine Hartmann Pleasantville Realty served as the main sponsor of this year’s MSA Jim Wipperfurth Memorial Race.

The MSA will return to action on Friday, Sept. 4 at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through a diverse array of promotional strategies and methods, including press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

 

Midwest Sprint Car Association

Beaver Dam Raceway

Beaver Dam, Wis.

August 29, 2020

 

QUALIFYING

1, Jack Vanderboom 13.454 2, Tim Haddy 13.505 3, Tyler Tischendorf 13.528 4, Anthony Knierim 13.695 5, Scotty Neitzel 13.743 6, Blake Wondra 13.757 7, Lance Fassbender 13.760 8, Tyler Davis 13.917 9, Scott Conger 13.973 10, Kurt Davis 14.012 11, Ben Schmidt 14.029 12, Josh Teunissen 14.047 13, Doug Wondra 14.200 14, Chris Clayton 14.211 15, Shane Wenninger 14.241 16, Tommy Colburn 14.304 17 Travis Arenz 14.362 18, Justin Erickson 14.441 19, Adam Miller 14.493 20, Paul Pokorski 14.499 21, Justin Miller 14.609 22, Will Gerrit 14.615 23, Brandon McMullen 14.623 24, Bill Taylor 14.674 25, Brandon Berth 14.812 26, Jordan Paulsen 15.118 27, Austin Hartmann 15.160 28, Chris Larson 15.363 29, Tyler Brabant no time 30, Preston Ruh no time 31, Tony Wondra no time.

HEAT 1

1, Travis Arene 2, Justin Miller 3, Doug Wonda 4, Jack Vanderboom 5, Brandon Berth 6, Scott Conger 7, Scotty Neitzel 8, Tyler Brabant.

HEAT 2

1, Will Gerrit’s 2, Tim Haddy 3, Chris Clayton 4, Kurt Davis 5, Blake Wondra 6, Jordan Paulsen 7, Justin Erickson 8, Preston Ruh (DNS).

HEAT 3

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Ben Schmidt 3, Adam Miller 4, Tyler Tischendorf 5, Shane Wenninger 6, Lance Fassbender 7, Austin Hartmann 8, Tony Wondra.

HEAT 4

1, Bill Tayler 2, Paul Pokorski 3, Anthony Knierim 4, Josh Teunissen 5, Tyler Davis 6, Chris Larson 7, Tommy Colburn.

B MAIN

1, Lance Fassbender 2, Scott Conger 3, Shane Wenninger 4, Jordan Paulsen 5, Justin Erickson 6, Blake Wondra 7, Tony Wondra 8, Tyler Brabant 9, Brandon Berth 10, Tommy Colburn 11, Austin Hartmann 12, Chris Larson 13, Tyler Davis 14, Scotty Neitzel (DNS) 15, Preston Ruh (DNS).

A MAIN

1, Travis Arenz 2, Brandon McMullen 3, Ben Schmidt 4, Tyler Tischendorf 5, Jack Vanderboom 6, Scott Conger 7, Lance Fassbender 8, Jordan Paulsen 9, Will Gerrits 10, Paul Pokorski 11, Adam Miller 12, Tim Haddy 13, Bill Taylor 14, Josh Teunissen 15, Doug Wondra, 16, Anthony Knierim 17, Blake Wondra 18, Justin Erickson 19, Shane Wenninger 20, Kurt Davis 21, Chris Clayton 22, Justin Miller.

 

 

 

Rain claims PDTR Russ Scheffler Tribute main events

Jim Schmidt of Cleveland captured the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Russ Scheffler Tribute Night 15-lap B Main before rain washed out the main events Thursday, Aug. 27 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 27, 2020 – After dodging surrounding rain showers throughout the day and early evening, the third annual Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Russ Scheffler Tribute Night program began on a promising note with a season-high total of 101 cars checked into the pit area in four divisions, including a stellar field of 30 Late Models, on Thursday, Aug. 27 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

However, the rain finally hit the third-mile clay oval at the conclusion of the Late Model non-qualifiers race to wash out the remainder of the program, including all four A-main events on an evening honoring the late Russ Scheffler, who stands as the winningest driver in PDTR history with 92 overall race victories, including 45 Late Model A-main triumphs.

The event was considered a complete program as all heat races and two of the three scheduled B main races, as well as the Late Model non-qualifiers race were contested before the rain came.

Russ Scheffler Tribute Night Late Model heat race winners were Tony Peterson of Big Bend, Brett Swedberg of Shawano, Justin Reed of Camp Point, Ill. and Tom Naeyaert of Shawano.

Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 360 Sprint Car heat race winners were Doug Wondra of Lomira, Scott Conger of Eagle, Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee and Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh.

Klips N Tips Grand National heat race winners included Chad Espen of West Bend and Nick Schumacher of Eagle. Cellcom B Mod heat race winners were Jason Schilling of Greenfield, Will Garceau of Mishicot and Travis Schmidt of Waldo.

Lance Fassbender of Burnett was victorious in the 15-lap Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Russ Scheffler Tribute Night 360 Sprint Car B main before rain cancelled the remainder of the program, including all four main events, Thursday, Aug. 27 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

Jim Schmidt of Cleveland captured the 15-lap Late Model B main and Lance Fassbender of Burnett won the 15-lap 360 Sprint Car B main.

Greg Cantrell of DeKalb, Ill. won the 5-lap Late Model non-qualifiers race.

The 11th PDTR racing program of the 2020 season, which was sponsored by KSI Supply and Cupcake Wonders, drew a total of 101 cars, including 30 Late Models, 29 360 Sprint Cars, 17 Grand Nationals and 25 B Mods.

PDTR action is scheduled to resume on Friday, Aug. 28 with the Dirt Kings Late Model Tour returns for the Mueller Sales and Service 30 presented by Specht Electric and Communications. The evening also includes a full points program for the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, as well as non-points programs for the Grand National and B Mod divisions.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with racing at 6:30 p.m.

On Saturday, Sept. 5, PDTR will host the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series, along with the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with racing at 6 p.m.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand for $10.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

 

RUSS SCHEFFLER TRIBUTE NIGHT LATE MODELS

HEAT 1

1, Tony Peterson 2, Justin Ritchie 3, Aaron Wickersheim 4, Kyle Raddant 5, Chris Engels 6, Adam Janke 7, Jake Van Engen 8, Justin Green.

HEAT 2

1, Brett Swedberg 2, Tim Buhler 3, Brad Mueller 4, Jim Schmidt 5, Derek Janke 6, Billy Rezutek 7, Chad Ludwigson 8, Zack Kessler.

HEAT 3

1, Justin Reed 2, Justin Schmidt 3, Charlie Schmidt 4, Mike Mullen 5, Ron Berna 6, Greg Cantrell 7, Mark Rose.

HEAT 4

1, Tom Naeyeart 2, Nick Anvelink 3, Taylor Scheffler 4, Turk Letizia 5, Joel Bennett 6, Jim Letizia 7, Kevin Baldry.

B MAIN

1, Jim Schmidt 2, Ron Berna 3, Chris Engels 4, Joel Bennett 5, Billy Rezutek 6, Kevin Baldry 7, Greg Cantrell 8, Jim Letizia 9, Adam Janke 10, Chad Ludwigson 11, Zack Kessler 12, Justin Green 13, Jake Van Engen 14, Mark Rose (DNS).

NON-QUALIFIERS RACE

1, Greg Cantrell 2, Kevin Baldry 3, Jim Letizia 4, Adam Janke 5, Zack Kessler 6, Chad Ludwigson 7, Jake Van Engen.

A MAIN

Rained out

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Doug Wondra 2, Justin Erickson 3, Bill Taylor 4, Will Gerrits 5, Nich Melis 6, Lance Fassbender 7, Blake Wondra 8, Preston Ruh.

HEAT 2

1, Scott Conger 2, Tyler Davis 3, Kevin Karnitz 4, Adam Miller 5, Paul Pokorski 6, Tony Wondra 7, Austin Hartmann.

HEAT 3

1, Kurt Davis 2, Tyler Brabant 3, Tim Haddy 4, Brandon Berth 5, Ben Schmidt 6, Shane Wenninger 7, Chris Clayton.

HEAT 4

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Tyler Tischendorf 3, Anthony Knierim 4, Justin Miller 5, Travis Arenz 6, Jack Vanderboom 7, Sean Rayhall (DNS).

B MAIN

1, Lance Fassbender 2, Travis Arenz 3, Nich Melis 4, Justin Miller 5, Paul Pokorski 6, Shane Wenninger 7, Tony Wondra 8, Jack Vanderboom 9, Blake Wondra 10, Austin Hartmann 11, Chris Clayton 12, Preston Ruh 13, Sean Rayhall (DNS).

A MAIN

Rained out

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Chad Espen 2, Don Sorce Jr. 3, Derek Kaat 4, Dick Hed 5, Tyler Kulow 6, Dylan May 7, Luke Scholten 8, Steven Weber 9, Matt Yancey.

HEAT 2

1, Nick Schumacher 2, Aaron Stolp 3, Steven Wirtz 4, Brett Sievert 5, Paul Todd 6, J.J. Pagel 7, David Holm 8, Donny Kulow.

A MAIN

Rained out

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Jason Schilling 2, Matthew Roehl 3, Trevor Frank 4, Andy Singer 5, Tim Lange 6, Phil Campanella 7, Conrad Kaufert 8, Barry Maas 9, Jonathan Hitsman.

HEAT 2

1, Will Garceau 2, Elijah Koenig 3, Justin Bauer 4, Brendan Ostrowski 5, Brandon Knepprath 6, Patrick Hanson 7, Ryan Mech 8, Rory Welch.

HEAT 3

1, Travis Schmidt 2, Steve Lorier 3, Jesse Cullen 4, Tim Warner 5, Kyle Odekirk 6, Brady Harshbarger 7, Gary Glander 8, Brian Wieland.

B MAIN

Rained out

A MAIN

Rained out

Ben Schmidt, Justin Schmidt, Stolp, Wieland notch PDTR A-main triumphs

Former Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove claimed his 10th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 22. – C-Marq Photography

Justin Schmidt secures third straight PDTR Late Model title

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 22, 2020 – The 10th Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program of the 2020 season featured a little bit of everything on Saturday, Aug. 22 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis, including a newly crowned three-time repeat Late Model champion, a first-time B Mod A-main winner, a photo finish in the Grand National main event and the first A-main victory of the year for a former Sprint Car champion plagued by bad luck for much of the 2020 season.

In the 25-lap Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 360 Sprint Car A main, 2011 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove got his incident-plagued 2020 season back on track by notching his first A-main victory of the 2020 season. Justin Schmidt of Cleveland tallied his third 25-lap A-main victory of the season to clinch his third straight PDTR Gasroots Project Late Model title by a slim two-point margin over Turk Letizia of Waukesha. PDTR Klips N Tips Grand National point leader Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee pulled off a last lap pass to post his third 25-lap A-main win of the season by just .03 seconds. Brian Wieland of Sheboygan Falls collected his first career PDTR Cellcom B Mod A-main victory in the 25-lap A main.

In the 25-lap 360 Sprint Car A main, Ben Schmidt vaulted into the lead in the first turn of the opening lap from the pole position as outside front row starter Kevin Karnitz of West Bend settled into second.

By lap 4, Schmidt had opened up a full straightaway cushion over Karnitz on the slick and smooth track surface. Three laps later, Schmidt began to work his way through heavy lapped traffic, which allowed Karnitz to close the gap.

On lap 13, the first of two caution flags appeared when Waupun’s Tim Haddy spun in turn two. Schmidt again bolted out to a commanding lead on the restart utilizing the preferred outside groove. By lap 21, Schmidt had again built up a full-straightaway lead as point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who started 12th, and 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh, who started seventh, traded slide jobs for fifth on lap 22.

The second and final caution appeared on lap 24 when Anthony Knierim of Franksville spun in turn four to set up a single-file green, white, checkered flag finish. On the restart, Schmidt again charged away from Karnitz, while Arenz made a daring move to sweep past two-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee, who started fifth, and Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum, who started fourth, to move from fifth to third on the final lap.

Schmidt, who suffered a series of motor failures and a hard crash at Beaver Dam Raceway early in the season, pulled away to secure his 10th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 26th career Midwest Sprint Car Association main event triumph.

Karnitz finished second, Arenz placed third, Wenninger was fourth and Davis rounded out the top five.

The 25-lap PDTR Late Model points season-ending A-main got off to a rough start when rookie Justin Green of Sheboygan Falls, who started second, spun in turn two on the opening lap to bring out the first of two caution flags.

Following a complete restart, third starter Joe Bongiorno of Milwaukee grabbed the lead in turn one, while fifth starter Charlie Schmidt of Oostburg slipped into second. On lap 4, Schmidt ducked under Bongiorno to take over the top spot in turn three.

Justin Schmidt of Cleveland secured his third straight Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model championship by notching his 13th career PDTR Late Model A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 22. – C-Marq Photography

One lap later, Schmidt spun into the infield in turn two, which gave the lead back to Bongiorno. On lap 6, the battle for the lead really heated up when 2016 PDTR Late Model champion Tim Buhler of Greenbush, who started seventh, fourth starter Justin Ritchie of New London and Justin Schmidt, who started eighth, bolted in to challenge Bongiorno for the top spot.

Using the high groove, Justin Schmidt emerged from a wild four-wide duel to take over the top spot in turn four on lap 6 with Ritchie moving into second. Four laps later, the second and final caution flag appeared on lap 10 when 2008 PDTR Late Model champ Billy Rezutek of Big Bend spun in turn two.

On the restart, Schmidt pulled away from Ritchie while ninth starter Turk Letizia of Waukesha, who came into the race with a four-point lead over Schmidt in the chase for the PDTR Late Model title, moved past four-time PDTR Late Model champion Brad Mueller of Random Lake, who started 10th, to take fourth on lap 12.

Schmidt cruised over the final 10 laps to secure his 13th career PDTR Late Model A-main victory and wrap up his third consecutive track title by two points over Letizia. Ritchie placed second, Buhler was third, Letizia placed fourth and Mueller rounded out the top five.

Two-time PDTR Grand National champion Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis took the lead on the opening lap of the 25-lap Grand National A main from the pole with second starter Jonathan Otte of Cedar Grove seizing second.

The first of three caution flags appeared on lap 5 when Derek Kaat of Plymouth stopped in turn three. On the restart, Sorce Jr. pulled away, while third starter Dick Hed of Plymouth and fourth starter Luke Scholten of Oostburg dueled side by side for second before Scholten assumed the runner-up spot on lap 7.

Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Grand National point leader Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee pulled off a last-lap pass to claim his third career PDTR Grand National A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 22. – C-Marq Photography

The second caution appeared on lap 8 when Dylan Struve of Plymouth spun in turn two. Following the restart, Aaron Stolp charged in from his seventh starting spot to move into fourth on lap 10 along the cushion. Three laps later Stolp worked around Hed to take third and three laps later, he rode the high groove past Scholten for second.

The third and final caution was displayed on lap 18 when Josh Pierce of Fredonia spun in turn two. On the restart, Stolp worked the high groove to perfection to pressure Sorce Jr. for the top spot. The high-riding Stolp pulled even with the low-riding Sorce Jr. on lap 20 and the two dueled side by side over the final five laps to set up a thrilling finish.

On the final lap, Stolp pounded the cushion and used a huge run off of turn four to nip Sorce. Jr. at the finish line by just .03 seconds en route to his third career PDTR Grand National A-main victory. Sorce. Jr. had to settle for second, Scholten placed third, fifth starter Steven Weber of Plymouth finished fourth and defending PDTR Grand National champ Tyler Kulow of Plymouth placed fifth after starting ninth.

After an incident involving Barry Maas of Cascade, Spencer Long of Sheboygan Falls, Will Garceau of Mishicot and Conrad Kaufert of Random Lake on the initial start, polesitter Brian Wieland grabbed the lead on the drop of the green flag with outside front row starter Steve Lorier of Sheboygan sliding into second.

On lap 2, fourth starter Jesse Cullen of Chilton moved in second while 10th starter Jason Schilling of Greenfield rode the high groove into fourth on lap 3 before moving into third on lap 4.

By lap 9, Wieland had built up a half-straightaway cushion at the front of the field. Two laps later, the second caution appeared on lap 11 when Rory Welch of Grafton spun against the frontstrech wall.

On the restart, Will Garceau and Jonathan Hitsman of Plymouth spun in turn two. Lorier battled back to take second lap 12, while Waldo’s Travis Schmidt, who started sixth, worked the high line into third on the following lap before taking second from Lorier on lap 13.

Brian Wieland of Sheboygan Falls picked up his first career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing B Mod A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 22. – C-Marq Photography

On lap 19, rookie Trevor Frank of Sheboygan, who started third, flexed his muscle to work underneath Schmidt into second. Five laps later, defending PDTR B Mod champ and current point leader Tim Warner of Fond du Lac moved up from his 12th starting spot to take third with a nifty move in turn four.

Wieland remained smooth at the front of the field in the final circuits on the way to his first career PDTR B Mod victory in flag-to-flag fashion. Frank recorded a career-best second-place finish, Warner placed third, Schmidt wound up fourth and Jerry Duggan of Manitowoc worked his way up from his ninth starting spot to take fifth.

Lance Fassbender of Burnett won the 15-lap 360 Sprint Car B main.

The 10th PDTR racing program of the 2020 season, which was sponsored by the city of Sheboygan Falls Fire Department, drew a total of 82 cars, including 28 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, 15 Late Models, 15 Grand Nationals and 24 B Mods.

PDTR action will resume on Thursday, Aug. 27 with the third annual Russ Scheffler Tribute Night event featuring an added purse for the Late Model division, including a full points night for the PDTR 360 Sprint Car, Grand National and B Mod divisions.

On Friday, Aug. 28, PDTR will host the Dirt Kings Late Model Tour for the Mueller Sales and Service 30. The evening also includes a full points program for the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, as well as non-points programs for the Grand National and B Mod divisions.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6:30 p.m. on both nights.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

 

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Shane Wenninger 2, Kurt Davis 3, Bill Taylor 4, Lance Fassbender 5, Tyler Davis 6, Austin Hartmann 7, Kevin Seidler.

HEAT 2

1, Justin Erickson 2, Doug Wondra 3, Brandon McMullen 4, Travis Arenz 5, Brandon Berth 6, Scott Conger 7, Tony Wondra.

HEAT 3

1, Kevin Karnitz 2, Chris Clayton 3, Justin Miller 4, Anthony Knierim 5, Preston Ruh 6, Will Gerrits 7, Blake Wondra.

HEAT 4

1, Ben Schmidt 2, Tyler Tischendorf 3, Tim Haddy 4, Tyler Brabant 5, Jack Vanderboom 6, Adam Miller 7, Josh Teunissen.

B MAIN

1, Lance Fassbender 2, Will Gerrits 3, Adam Miller 4, Tyler Davis 5, Tony Wondra 6, Scott Conger 7, Austin Hartmann 8, Blake Wondra 9, Josh Teunissen 10, Kevin Seidler 11, Preston Ruh 12, Brandon Berth.

A MAIN

1, Ben Schmidt 2, Kevin Karnitz 3, Travis Arenz 4, Shane Wenninger 5, Kurt Davis 6, Brandon McMullen 7, Justin Miller 8, Tyler Tischendorf 9, Justin Erickson 10, Doug Wondra 11, Lance Fassbender 12, Will Gerrits 13, Chris Clayton 14, Jack Vanderboom 15, Adam Miller 16, Anthony Knierim 17, Tyler Brabant 18, Scott Conger 19, Bill Taylor 20, Tony Wondra 21, Tim Haddy 22, Tyler Davis.

 

GASROOT PROJECT LATE MODELS

HEAT 1

1, Tim Buhler 2, Justin Schmidt 3, Justin Ritchie 4, Charlie Schmidt 5, Joe Bongiorno 6, Chad Ludwigson 7, Sawyer Specht 8, Jim Schmidt.

HEAT 2

1, Turk Letizia 2, Brad Mueller 3, Billy Rezutek 4, Justin Green 5, Jim Letizia 6, Donny Singer 7, Eric Michaels.

A MAIN’

1, Justin Schmidt 2, Justin Ritchie 3, Tim Buhler 4, Turk Letizia 5, Brad Mueller 6, Joe Bongiorno 7, Jim Schmidt 8, Charlie Schmidt 9, Billy Rezutek 10, Justin Green 11, Jim Letizia 12, Chad Ludwigson 13, Sawyer Specht 14, Eric Michaels 15, Donny Singer.

 

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Jonathan Otte 2, Matt Yancey 3, Steven Weber 4, Aaron Stolp 5, Darryl Traber 6, Tyler Kulow 7, Donny Kulow 8, Eric Lingford.

HEAT 2

1, Luke Scholten 2, Dick Hed 3, Don Sorce Jr. 4, Josh Pierce 5, Brad Weiss 6, Dylan Struve 7, Derek Kaat.

A MAIN

1, Aaron Stolp 2, Don Sorce Jr. 3, Luke Scholten 4, Steven Weber 5, Tyler Kulow 6, Dick Hed 7, Brad Weiss 8, Matt Yancey 9, Jonathan Otte 10, Darryl Traber 11, Donny Kulow 12, Eric Lingford 13, Dylan Struve 14, Josh Pierce 15, Derek Kaat.

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Jason Schilling 2, Steve Lorier 3, Spencer Long 4, Gary Glander 5, Rory Welch 6, Matthew Roehl 7, Patrick Hanson 8, Donny Singer.

HEAT 2

1, Travis Schmidt 2, Jesse Cullen 3, Barry Maas 4, Tim Warner 5, Brian Wieland 6, James Rautmann 7, Brandon Knepprath 8, Will Garceau.

HEAT 3

1, Shane Long 2, Trevor Frank 3, Jerry Duggan 4, Jonathan Hitsman 5, Brendan Ostrowski 6, Phil Campanella 7, Conrad Kaufert 8, Jim Fischer.

A MAIN

1, Brian Wieland 2, Trevor Frank 3, Tim Warner 4, Travis Schmidt 5, Jerry Duggan 6, Gary Glander 7, Jason Schilling 8, Steve Lorier 9, Brandon Knepprath 10, James Rautmann 11, Shane Long 12, Brendan Ostrowski 13, Jonathan Hitsman 14, Donny Singer 15, Will Garceau 16, Rory Welch 17, Patrick Hanson 18, Phil Campanella 19, Jesse Cullen 20, Matthew Roehl 21, Jim Fischer 22 Conrad Kaufert 23, Barry Maas 24, Spencer Long.

Bartz rallies from adversity to capture SCCA Cat Majors victory at Road America

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

The Pure Energy Racing team celebrates a F1600 Formula F victory in the SCCA Cat in the Kettle Majors race two at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. on Sunday, Aug. 16. Pictured left to right are Tammy Feldman, Brian “Fuzzy” Feldman, Jeff Bartz and Tom Bartz. 

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 19, 2020 – After enduring two trying days filled with multiple mechanical maladies, Plymouth, Wis. driver Jeff Bartz and the Pure Energy Racing reversed course by roaring to a victory in SCCA F1600 Formula F race two on Sunday, Aug. 16, during the SCCA Cat in the Kettle Majors at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Aug. 14-16.

Bartz and his Pure Energy Racing team were plagued by mechanical gremlins during test day on Friday, which kept their Petty blue No. 33 machine off the track for the majority of the day.

“This weekend turned out to be a major test of patience and willpower as we started the weekend on the test day on Friday with multiple issues,” Bartz said. “Due to us putting in a new engine this weekend, we unfortunately spent much of the weekend working to get the car running properly. Clutch issues and cooling issues left us with only a half a lap completed on the test day Friday. After working from sun up until sun down, we finally got the issues resolved.”

Once the mechanical issues were sorted out, Bartz was able to turn a few laps in the first of the weekend’s two SCCA F1600 Formula F races on Saturday, Aug. 15 before encountering another setback.

“On Saturday we began the day with qualifying and with little to no track time the day prior, this session doubled as a shakedown to verify nothing was wrong or loose and the first test of the new engine,” Bartz said. “Overall, for the first session of the weekend we ended up a respectable fourth in qualifying. I was confident we would be able to move up to the front during the race on Saturday.

“Unfortunately, an oil pressure sensor failure caused me to retire from the race early due to not wanting to damage the engine,” he said. “We were able to verify later that day that the sensor itself was just bad and the engine had normal oil pressure. With the all good on that front, I looked forward to redeeming myself on a tough weekend so far on Sunday.”

Through all the trials and tribulations thrown their way on Friday and Saturday, Bartz and Pure Energy Racing team turned things around in a big way on Sunday.

“For Sunday morning’s race, due to us posting no times in the race, we ended up starting fifth,” Bartz said. “I ended up having a great start and was able to work my way up to the lead by halfway through the first lap. From there, I was able to put my head down and drive to a commanding victory.

“All in all, it was definitely a character-building weekend,” he said. “With all the work we had done over the weekend, the win on Sunday felt that much more satisfying.”

As one of the showcase race weekends of the SCCA season, Bartz was thrilled with the victory on Sunday leading into the crown jewel SCCA National Runoffs at Road America in October.

“The Cat Majors is an SCCA majors tour race where the best of the amateur racers in the U.S. come to compete,” Bartz said. “It is similar to the June Sprints with the only major difference being that the June Sprints is a public event while the Cat Majors weekend is a private SCCA-only event. It still draws the same level of talent, although this specific weekend we did not have any pro teams show up to compete.

“This year my performance definitely was better than in previous years,” Bartz said. “We have been working hard over the offseason and during the season to keep improving the car and are definitely starting to see the results come from that hard work. I believe the engine was a key factor in our performance this weekend and it will definitely help our efforts this year at the SCCA Runoffs at Road America in October. David Hobbs Honda came on board as a sponsor recently and helped us pay for this engine, so I owe my results this past weekend to their support.”

Bartz, who has tallied over 100 race victories in his karting and SCCA racing career, and his Pure Energy Racing team will now use a nearly two-month break from racing to prepare for the prestigious SCCA National Runoffs at the team’s home track.

Jeff Bartz raced to victory in F1600 Formula F race 2 on Sunday, Aug. 16, during the SCCA Cat in the Kettle Majors at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Aug. 14-16. 

“Our next race is the winner-take-all SCCA National Championship Runoffs at Road America October 9-11,” Bartz said. “This is the race we have been preparing for all season and I feel as though we have prepared ourselves well to be able to compete for my end goal for the season, which is to win the runoffs. All the pieces are coming together and I am very excited to compete with some great competition from all across the country.”

Sponsors for the 2020 Pure Energy Racing team include: David Hobbs Honda, CapN SHIELD, Harper Drain & Septic Service, Kearney Driver Development, Hoosier Tire and Pedal Down Promotions.

For more information on Jeff Bartz and the Pure Energy Racing team, contact Pedal Down Promotions via email at pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, by phone at 920-323-7970 or by visiting www.pedaldownpromo.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

2020 Pure Energy Racing Upcoming Schedule

Oct. 9-11 – SCCA National Runoffs, Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis.

 

2020 Pure Energy Racing By The Numbers

Races – 7

Race Victories – 1

Top Five Finishes – 3

Top 10 Finishes – 6

Paul Pokorski searches for speed at Plymouth in back-up car

Paul Pokorski of West Bend returned to action behind the wheel of the Pokorski Motorsports team’s backup car in Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car action at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 15. – JW’s Car and Racing Photos

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 18, 2020 – After nearly a month away from the driver’s seat, 28-year veteran Paul Pokorski was back behind the wheel of the Pokorski Motorsports 360 Sprint Car for a Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 15.

Pokorski, who was one of 30 PDTR 360 Sprint Car competitors to check in for the evening, spent the majority of the night fine tuning the team’s backup 2011 J&J chassis, which was pressed into action following a hard accident in A-main action at Plymouth with Alex Pokorski behind the wheel of the team’s primary 2016 Maxim on Saturday, Aug. 8.

Despite heavy contact with Tyler Davis, Alex Pokorski was uninjured in the accident. However, the car suffered significant damage, which has forced the team to switch to its backup chassis for the remainder of the 2020 season. The younger Pokorski was originally scheduled to drive the car at Plymouth on Aug. 15, but work commitments prevented him from doing so, which provided the elder Pokorski with an opportunity to return to action.

After lining up fifth in the first 10-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car heat race, Pokorski dropped to sixth at the mid-way stage of the race when Brandon Berth slipped underneath the 2014 Midwest Sprint Car Association Masters Series champion.

Pokorski held on to place sixth in the heat race, which left him to qualify for the A-main through the B main. After starting third in the 15-lap B main, Pokorski settled into third in the running order and maintained the position throughout the race to earn the 19th starting spot in the 25-lap A main.

“We definitely had a busy few days this week trying to get a car ready to go for Saturday night,” Pokorski said. “It worked out pretty well in the end, but it wasn’t without its problems. This car is a different brand and design then what we had been running, so it took some different things to make it work.

“We were too tight in the heat race and needed to work on that,” he said. “We made some improvements for the B, but it still wasn’t great.”

Starting near the back of the A-main field, Pokorski ran the bottom of the dry slick track surface in the early stages of the race before moving up to his familiar high line near the middle of the race.

Sticking to the cushion, Pokorski picked up two spots in the final stages of the race to secure a 17th place finish in a caution-free event won by Travis Arenz.

“We blew a radiator hose off as we were on the scales following the B, so that didn’t leave us a lot of opportunity to make changes before the A,” Pokorski said. “The car wasn’t horrible, but just didn’t have the speed we needed. We will continue to work on it and make some significant changes for our next outing.”

The Pokorski Motorsports team will be taking next weekend off for a family event before returning to action with a tripleheader weekend of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing-Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car action beginning Thursday, Aug. 27 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. for the rescheduled PDTR Russ Scheffler Tribute Night program, continuing as support for the Dirt Kings Late Model Tour headliner at The Plymouth Dirt Track on Friday, Aug. 28 and closing out with an MSA headline event at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 29.

“We are taking off next week for a family celebration of life,” Pokorski said. “The team and I are really looking forward to the upcoming three-race stretch coming up the following week with two events at Plymouth and one at Beaver Dam.”

Sponsors for the 2020 Pokorski Motorsports team are Hopf Farms, Petersen Septic Systems, Quest Engineering Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Lakeshore Family Funeral Homes, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Novak’s Service Center

Pokorski Motorsports would like to acknowledge the support of long-time sponsor Novak’s Service Center of Manitowoc, which is celebrating its 48th year in business in 2020.

Novak’s Service Center is a locally-owned, second-generation, family-owned, five-bay auto repair center, which has been serving customers in the Lakeshore area since 1972.

Novak’s Service Center offers comprehensive auto repair services, including 4 x 4 services, brakes, car and truck care, domestic cars and trucks, electrical services, electronic services, engine and transmission, engine maintenance, expired warranty care, general service, heating and cooling services, import cars and trucks, quick lube services, tires, towing, transmission and undercar services.

Located at 1320 Washington St. in Manitowoc, Novak’s Service Center is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To schedule an appointment, call 920-684-5737 or visit www.novaks1320.com.

For more information on Pokorski Motorsports, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromo.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

 

2020 Pokorski Motorsports Upcoming Schedule.

Thursday, Aug. 27-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, Aug. 28-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, Aug. 29-Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Friday, Sept. 4 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, Sept. 5 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 11

MSA events – 10

IRA events – 0

A Main Victories – 1

B Main Victories – 1

Top Five A Main Finishes – 1

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 1

Heat Race Victories – 0

Arenz, Schmidt, Kulow, Warner reign supreme in PDTR main event action

Point leader Travis Arenz (25T) topped 2017 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh (98) to capture his four career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 15, 2020 – The second night of a Plymouth Dirt Track Racing doubleheader weekend saw some familiar faces park their machines in A-main victory lane Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

PDTR 360 Sprint Car point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan notched his third 25-lap A-main victory of the 2020 season. Two-time defending PDTR Late Model champ Justin Schmidt of Cleveland notched his second 25-lap main event win of the season. Defending PDTR Grand National champion Tyler Kulow of Plymouth collected his first main event win of 2020, while defending PDTR B Mod champ Tim Warner of Fond du Lac claimed his third A-main triumph of the 2020 campaign.

In the 25-lap PDTR Sprint Car headliner, 28-year veteran Tony Wondra of Campbellsport jumped out to the early lead from the pole position while 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh grabbed second on the opening lap.

On lap 6, McMullen ventured up the high groove of the dry slick racing surface to wrestle the top spot away from Wondra. Two laps later, Arenz who started fifth, dove under Wondra to take second.

As the leaders encountered lapped traffic on lap 14, Arenz rapidly closed the gap on McMullen before pouncing with a low move in turn one on lap 15 to take the top spot from the high-riding McMullen.

Once in front, Arenz extended his lead steadily, while skillfully maneuvering his way through lapped traffic to collect his fourth career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory, 10th career Midwest Sprint Car Association main event triumph and third A-main win of the 2020 season in the non-stop, caution-free race.

McMullen had to settle for second, outside front row starter Justin Erickson of Plymouth finished third, 2011 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove, who started eighth, placed fourth and Wondra rounded out the top five.

Two-time defending Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model champion Justin Schmidt of Cleveland notched his 12th career PDTR Late Model A-main victory on Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

PDTR Late Model point leader Turk Letizia of Waukesha grabbed the lead of the 25-lap A main from the pole on the opening circuit with 2016 PDTR Late Model champion and second starter Tim Buhler of Greenbush second and fourth starter Mark Rose of Dorchester in third.

The lone caution flag of the race appeared on lap 3 after rookie Sawyer Specht of Sheboygan Falls spun in turn three. On the restart, Justin Schmidt moved up from his third starting spot to challenge Rose for third.

Schmidt secured the third spot on lap 4, while Justin Reed of Camp Point, Ill., who started sixth, followed in fourth on lap 6. As the laps wound down with Letizia still leading, Schmidt hit his stride using the high groove to power around Buhler into second on lap 21 in heavy lapped traffic.

With Letizia boxed in behind the slower car of Ted Dolhun Sr. of Franklin on lap 22, Schmidt worked the high line past Letizia into the lead. Once in the lead, Schmidt continued to deal with dense lapped traffic, which allowed Buhler to close slightly over the final circuits.

However, Schmidt held on to notch his 12th career PDTR Late Model A-main victory. Buhler placed second, Letizia finished third, Reed wound up fourth and fifth starter Taylor Scheffler of Waukesha was fifth.

Polesitter Tyler Kulow and outside front row starter Brad Weiss of West Bend dueled side-by-side for the lead during the first two laps of the 25-lap PDTR Grand National A main before Kulow finally surged ahead around the inside groove exiting turn four on lap 2.

On lap 5, fourth starter Luke Scholten of Oostburg and two-time PDTR Grand National champion Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis battled for third in close quarters before Sorce Jr. gained the top with a high move in turn two on lap 7.

Defending Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Grand National champion Tyler Kulow of Plymouth earned his eighth career PDTR Grand National A-main triumph Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

Four laps later, eighth starter Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee slipped into third, while Sorce Jr. cut the lead cap on Kulow on lap 16. On lap 23, Stolp took second and pushed hard for the lead over the final two seconds.

Kulow held on to secure his eighth PDTR Grand National A-main victory by a slim one-car length margin over the hard-charging Stolp, who placed second. Sorce Jr. finished third, third starter Steven Weber of Plymouth placed fourth and 81-year-old Dick Hed of Plymouth, who started sixth, finished fifth in the non-stop race.

Polesitter Brandon Knepprath of Kewaskum led the first four laps of the 25-lap B Mod A main before defending PDTR B mod champion Tim Warner of Fond du Lac moved in from his sixth starting spot to pressure Knepprath from the top spot.

On lap 5, Warner worked the high groove to bolt past the low-riding Knepprath in turn four. With Warner in the lead, the action was hot and heavy behind him as eighth starter Barry Maas of Cascade, Brendon Ostrowski of Milwaukee, who starter second, and Justin Bauer of Sheboygan Falls, who started fourth, waged a three-wide duel for third on lap 8.

Bauer emerged with the third position along the inside line before the first of four caution flags appeared on lap 9 for a spin in turn three involving rookie Trevor Frank of Sheboygan.

On the restart, Bauer vaulted his way into second with the high-riding Maas following into third. The second caution was displayed on lap 15 when rookie Jim Fischer of Oostburg spun in turn four.

Bauer and Maas engaged in a spirited battle for second starting on lap 15, which lasted for most of the remainder of the race with Bauer working the low groove and Maas riding the outside lane.

Defending Plymouth Dirt Track Racing B Mod champ Tim Warner of Fond du Lac posted his sixth career PDTR B Mod main event victory on Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. – Shawn Mueller Photography

Two more caution flags appeared on lap 18 for a spin involving Phil Campanella of Sheboygan Falls and Rory Welch of Grafton on lap 21.

With less than five laps to go, the final restart the lined up single file per PDTR rules with Bauer surging ahead of Maas for second on lap 21. As the laps wound down, Bauer cut the gap on Warner.  However, Warner proved to be too tough as he cruised to his sixth career PDTR B Mod A-main victory.

Bauer placed second, Maas wound up third, Knepprath took fourth and seventh starter Steve Lorier of Sheboygan placed fifth.

Adam Miller of Plymouth won the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main.

The ninth PDTR racing program of the 2020 season, which was sponsored by Hidden Dreams Livestock, drew a total of 74 cars, including 30 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, 15 Late Models, 14 Grand Nationals and 15 B Mods.

PDTR will resume on Saturday, Aug. 22 with 360 Sprint Car, Late Model, Grand National and B Mod action at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with qualifying at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan Falls will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

 

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Tyler Tischendorf 2, Tony Wondra 3, Justin Erickson 4, Brandon Berth 5, Josh Teunissen 6, Paul Pokorski 7, Doug Wondra 8, Jordan Paulsen.

HEAT 2

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Kurt Davis 3, Travis Arenz 4, Anthony Knierim 5, Blake Wondra 6, Chris Clayton 7, Scott Conger 8, Andy Glewen.

HEAT 3

1, Jack Vanderboom 2, Nick Daywalt 3, Tyler Brabant 4, Kevin Karnitz 5, Justin Miller 6, Bill Taylor 7, Chris Larson.

HEAT 4

1, Ben Schmidt 2, Tim Haddy 3, Lance Fassbender 4, Adam Miller 5, Preston Ruh 6, Austin Hartmann 7, Mike MacFarlane.

B MAIN

1, Adam Miller 2, Blake Wondra 3, Paul Pokorski 4, Chris Clayton 5, Josh Teunissen 6, Bill Taylor 7, Preston Ruh 8, Scott Conger 9, Jordan Paulsen 10, Chris Larson 11, Doug Wondra 12, Mike MacFarlane 13, Austin Hartmann 14, Andy Glewen.

A MAIN

1, Travis Arenz 2, Brandon McMullen 3, Justin Erickson 4, Ben Schmidt 5, Tony Wondra 6, Tim Haddy 7, Lance Fassbender 8, Kurt Davis 9, Jack Vanderboom 10, Kevin Karnitz 11, Justin Miller 12, Adam Miller 13, Tyler Tischendorf 14, Brandon Berth 15, Anthony Knierim 16, Tyler Brabant 17, Paul Pokorski 18, Nick Daywalt 19, Blake Wondra 20, Bill Taylor 21, Chris Clayton 22, Josh Teunissen.

 

GASROOT PROJECT LATE MODELS

HEAT 1

1, Justin Reed 2, Tim Buhler 3, Justin Schmidt 4, Charlie Schmidt 5, Eric Michaels 6, Jim Schmidt 7, Donny Singer 8, Sawyer Specht.

HEAT 2

1, Taylor Scheffler 2, Turk Letizia 3, Mark Rose 4, Jim Letizia 5, Ted Dolhun Sr. 6, Justin Green 7, Chad Ludwigson.

A MAIN’

1, Justin Schmidt 2, Tim Buhler 3, Turk Letizia 4, Justin Reed 5, Taylor Scheffler 6, Mark Rose 7, Jim Schmidt 8, Charlie Schmidt, 9, Justin Green 10, Jim Letizia 11, Eric Michaels 12, Ted Dolhun Sr. 13, Chad Ludwigson 14, Sawyer Specht 15, Donny Singer

 

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Aaron Stolp 2, Luke Scholten 3, Tyler Kulow 4, Brad Weiss 5, Donny Kulow 6, Paul Perronne 7, Derek Kaat.

HEAT 2

1, Don Sorce Jr. 2, Dick Hed 3, Steven Weber 4, Jeff Muehlbauer 5, Eric Lingford 6, Darryl Traber 7, Joe Brenner.

A MAIN

1, Tyler Kulow 2, Aaron Stolp 3, Don Sorce Jr. 4, Steven Weber 5, Dick Hed 6, Luke Scholten 7, Brad Weiss 8, Donny Kulow 9, Darryl Traber 10, Eric Lingford 11, Paul Perronne 12, Jeff Muehlbauer 13, Derek Kaat 15, Joe Brenner.

 

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Craig Gessner 2, Barry Maas 3, Justin Bauer 4, Brandon Knepprath 5, Brendan Ostrowski 6, Trevor Fank 7, Jonathan Hitsman 8, Rory Welch.

HEAT 2

1, Tim Warner 2, Steve Lorier 3, Patrick Hanson 4, Jim Fischer 5, Gary Glander 6, Donny Singer 7, Phil Campanella.

A MAIN

1, Tim Warner 2, Justin Bauer 3, Barry Maas 4, Brandon Knepprath 5, Steve Lorier 6, Gary Glander 7, Jonathan Histman 8, Trevor Frank 9, Craig Gessner 10, Donny Singer 11, Jim Fischer 12, Phil Campanella 13, Patrick Hanson 14, Rory Welch 15, Brendon Ostrowski.

Glenz claims first Dirt Kings win in wild Diamond 42

Jesse Glenz of Fall Creek earned his first career Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A-main victory and second career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model main event triumph in the Diamond 42 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Friday, Aug. 14.  – Dirt Kings photo

Scholten, Schmidt earn first PDTR A-main wins of 2020

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 14, 2020 – Jesse Glenz of Fall Creek, the hottest Dirt Late Model driver in Western Wisconsin, made the long trek to the eastern side of the state pay off to the tune of a $4,200 pay day as he claimed his first Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A-main victory and fifth main event win of the 2020 campaign in an eventful third annual Diamond 42 headliner at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Friday, Aug. 14.

In other non-points PDTR action, Luke Scholten of Oostburg steered the Bender Racing No. 89 car to his first main event victory of the 2020 season in the 25-lap Klips N Tips Grand National A main, while Travis Schmidt of Waldo notched is initial A-main victory of the season in the 25-lap Cellcom B Mod main event.

In a rare appearance at The Plymouth Dirt Track, Jesse Glenz, who started second, bolted into the lead of the 42-lap Diamond 42 Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A-main event along the high groove on the opening lap, while third starter Mike Mullen of Seymour ducked low to assume second on the initial circuit.

The first of sixth cautions appeared on lap 3 when Zack Kessler of Plymouth spun in turn two. Following the restart, sixth starter Justin Reed of Camp Point, Ill. rode the high groove of the fast and tacky racing surface into third place on lap 4 before the second caution appeared on lap 5 for a spin involving Joe Bongiorno of Milwaukee and Ron Berna of Abrams in turn four.

On the restart, Reed used a high move to power his way past Mullen into second on lap 5 before Mullen battled back to regain the runner-up spot along the low groove on lap 9. Meanwhile, Glenz pulled away to a solid lead before lapped traffic made things very interesting starting on lap 16 when Mullen dove low to pull even with Glenz in heavy lapped traffic.

One lap later, the high-riding Reed joined in to make it a three-way duel for the top spot as moved into second lap 18 and powered around Glenz into the lead on lap 19. On lap 20, Mullen briefly grabbed the top spot down low before Reed battled back to regain the lead on lap 21.

On lap 28, two-time and defending PDTR Late Model champion Justin Schmidt of Cleveland, who started 11th, worked his way into fourth along the outside groove. On lap 29, 2014 PDTR Late Model champ Mitch McGrath of Waukesha moved into fourth just as Schmidt moved around Glenz into second.

The third caution appeared on lap 30 when McGrath made contact with Glenz, which sent Glenz spinning in turn three. However, Dirt Kings officials ruled the caution to be inadvertent as Glenz did not stop on the track and both drivers maintained their spots in the running order.

On the restart, Glenz regained second, while McGrath moved into third as Schmidt dropped back after hitting the turn two wall. Just as Glenz was trimming the gap on Reed the fourth caution appeared on lap 37 when Dirt Kings point leader Brett Swedberg of Shawano spun in turn four.

Glenz changed his line to work the middle and high groove of the multi-groove track on the restart to work his way around Reed into the lead in turn two on lap 38. Glenz then pulled away from the rest of the pack as McGrath moved into third on lap 39.

One lap later, the fifth caution appeared when Reed spun in turn two after contact with McGrath as the two battled for second. On the restart, the sixth and final caution flag was displayed when four-time PDTR Late Model track champion Brad Mueller of Random Lake spun in turn two.

On the restart, McGrath moved into second, while three-time Dirt Kings Late Model Tour champion Nick Anvelink of Navarino, who started ninth, made his presence felt by moving into third and challenging McGrath for the runner-up spot.

On the final circuit, McGrath and Anvelink collided while dueling for second, which sent Anvelink into the turn two tire barrier, while McGrath was disqualified from the race for rough driving and subsequently issued a suspension from all Dirt Kings Tour events for the remainder of the 2020 season due to his conduct throughout the program.

Glenz pulled away over the final two laps to notch his first career Dirt Kings Late Model Tour victory, second career PDTR Late Model A-main victory, third straight main event triumph and fifth overall A-main win of 2020.

“I’m super stoked to be in victory lane at Plymouth as it has been a few years since our last victory here,” Glenz said. “Justin Reed was kind of hugging the bottom on that restart and I tried rolling through the middle and then worked up to the top to get by him. I’m super happy with this victory.”

Schmidt placed a strong second after starting in the middle of the pack.

“That caution with about 12 to go hurt us,” Schmidt said. “We were really going pretty good before that. I didn’t really know exactly where I was running for a while until I looked at the scoreboard and saw myself second. This was a really good run for us. We’ve kind of struggled over the past few weeks, so it feels good to get a good finish tonight.”

Ritchie worked his way up from his 13th starting spot to place third.

“It was pretty hairy out there with a lot of guys making some crazy moves,” Ritchie said. “I hope it was a good show for the fans because it was really something to watch from my seat.”

Ron Berna, who started 22nd, recovered from an early race spin to finish fourth and fourth starter Taylor Scheffler of Waukesha placed fifth in the Diamond 42, which was run in honor of Late Model driver “Diamond” Jim Letizia’s 42nd year in racing.

Luke Scholten of Oostburg drove the Bender Racing No. 89 car to his 13th career Plymouth Dirt Track Grand National A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth on Friday, Aug. 14 – C-Marq Photography

Defending PDTR Grand National champion Tyler Kulow of Plymouth jumped out to the lead of the 25-lap Grand National A main from the pole as fourth starter Luke Scholten worked the high groove into second on the opening lap.

On lap 7, Scholten closed in to challenge Kulow for the top spot along the low groove. Kulow and Scholten dueled side by side for multiple laps until Scholten finally surged ahead in turn four on lap 14.

The lone caution flag of the race appeared on lap 21 when Donny Singer of Waldo and Steven Wirtz of Milwaukee stopped in turn four.

Scholten used a strong restart to pull away from Kulow over the final four laps en route to his 13th career PDTR Grand National A-main victory to move into a tie for second place on the division’s all-time main event win list with two-time PDTR Grand National champ Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis.

Roger Lee of Wind Lake placed third after starting sixth, seventh starter Donny Kulow of Elkhart Lake finished fourth and 2008 PDTR Grand National champ Matt Yancey of Sheboygan placed fifth after starting fifth.

Tim Lange of Dousman led the opening circuit of the 25-lap B Mod A main from the second starting spot. On lap 4, polesitter Donny Singer of Waldo moved in to challenge Lange for the top spot. Two laps later, Singer assumed the top spot in turn one just as fourth starter Justin Bauer of Sheboygan Falls moved into second and sixth starter Barry Maas of Cascade moved into third.

Travis Schmidt of Waldo claimed his third career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing B Mod A-main victory at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth on Friday, Aug. 14. -RC Custom Design photo

On lap 11, Maas powered around Bauer to claim second and moved in to pressure Singer for the top spot on lap 13 before the first of two caution flags appeared on lap 13 when Bauer spun in turn two.

On the restart, eighth starter Travis Schmidt ducked low to work underneath Maas into second on lap 15. Five laps later, Schmidt snuck under Singer for the lead as Maas also got around Singer into second on lap 20.

The final caution flag appeared on lap 22 when Steve Lorier of Sheboygan spun in turn two. On the restart, Schmidt pulled away from Maas to claim his third career PDTR B Mod A-main victory by a three-car length margin over Maas, who finished second. Singer held on to take third, third starter Brandon Knepprath of Kewaskum placed fourth and Bauer recovered from his lap 13 spin to place fifth.

Jim Schmidt of Cleveland won the first 12-lap Dirt Kings Late Model B main, while Joel Bennett won the second 12-lap Dirt Kings Late Model B main.

The event attracted a total of 56 cars, including 34 Dirt Kings/PDTR Late Models, 11 Grand Nationals and 11 B mods.

Main event trophies were sponsored by Recognition Race Products.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan Falls will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

 

DISCOUNT SHOP TOWELS DIRT KINGS LATE MODEL TOUR DIAMOND 42

PRO POWER RACING ENGINES HEAT 1

1, Jesse Glenz 2, Paul Parker 3, Justin Schmidt 4, Troy Springborn 5, Joe Bongiorno 6, Ron Berna 7, Tim Buhler 8, Brett Swedberg 9, Lukas Postl.

MUELLER’S SALES AND SERVICE HEAT 2

1, Taylor Scheffler 2, Brad Mueller 3, Justin Reed 4, Kevin Eder 5, Chris Engels 6, Justin Green 7, Derek Janke 8, Kyle Raddant 9, Joel Willman.

WEHRS MACHINE AND RACING PRODUCTS HEAT 3

1, Mike Mullen 2, Aaron Wickersheim 3, Zack Kessler 4, Joel Bennett 5, Jim Schmidt 6, Ron Stroika 7, Mitch McGrath 8, Buddy Hanestad.

DISCOUNTSHOPTOWELS.COM HEAT 4

1, Rick Hanestad 2, Nick Anvelink 3, Justin Ritchie 4, Mark Rose 5, Turk Letizia 6, Tom Naeyaert 7, Charlie Schmidt 8, Jim Letizia.

KIRKPATRICK LAW OFFICE B MAIN 1

1, Jim Schmidt 2, Chris Engels 3, Ron Berna 4, Tom Naeyaert 5, Charlie Schmidt 6, Lukas Postl 7, Derek Janke.

KIRKPATRICK LAW OFFICE B MAIN 2

1, Joel Bennett 2, Mitch McGrath 3, Turk Letizia 4, Tim Buhler 5, Brett Swedberg 6, Ron Stroika 7, Jim Letizia 8, Justin Green.

A MAIN

1, Jesse Glenz 2, Justin Schmidt 3, Justin Ritchie 4, Taylor Scheffler 5, Ron Berna 6, Troy Springborn 7, Paul Parker 8, Aaron Wickersheim 9, Jim Schmidt 10, Nick Anvelink 11, Joel Bennett 12, Joe Bongiorno 13, Turk Letizia 14, Justin Reed 15, Brad Mueller 16, Kevin Eder 17, Brett Swedberg 18, Mike Mullen 19, Mark Rose 20, Chris Engels 21, Rick Hanestad 22, Zack Kessler 23, Mitch McGrath.

 

KLIPS N CLIPS GRAND NATIONAL

Heat 1

1, Luke Scholten 2, Tyler Kulow 3, Matt Yancey 4, Donny Kulow 5, Donny Singer 6, Paul Perronne.

Heat 2

1, Steven Wirtz 2, Daryl Traber 3, Roger Lee 4, Dave Holm 5, Matt Schlehlein.

A Main

1, Luke Scholten 2, Tyler Kulow 3, Roger Lee 4, Donny Kulow 5, Matt Yancey 6, Daryl Traber 7, Steven Wirtz 8, Donny Singer 9, Dave Holm 10, Paul Perronne 11, Matt Schlehlein (DNS).

CELLCOM B MOD

Heat 1

1, Barry Maas 2, Jason Schilling 3, Brandon Knepprath 4, Tim Lange 5, Donny Singer 6, Jim Fischer

Heat 2

1, Travis Schmidt 2, Steve Lorier 3, Justin Bauer 4, Brian Wieland 5, Rory Welch

A Main

1, Travis Schmidt 2, Barry Maas 3, Donny Singer 4, Brandon Knepprath 5, Justin Bauer 6, Jim Fischer 7, Brian Wieland 8, Steve Lorier 9, Tim Lange 10, Jason Schilling 11, Rory Welch.

 

Alex Pokorski experiences highs of first Sprint Car win, lows of nasty wreck at Plymouth

Rookie Alex Pokorski of West Bend poses in victory lane after earning his first career victory behind the wheel of a Sprint Car in the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car B main at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8. – JW’s Car and Racing Photos

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 11, 2020 – The sport of auto racing can best be described as one of the most rewarding, yet humbling endeavors a person can choose to take part in.

Rookie 360 Sprint Car driver Alex Pokorski can attest to this description as he experienced the joys of visiting victory lane for the very first time behind the wheel of a Sprint Car before feeling the devastating lows of being involved in a hard crash later in the night during a Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8.

With 30 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars checked in to the pit area, Pokorski opened his seventh night driving the No. 4 Pokorski Motorsports 360 Sprint Car, by lining up fifth in the first PDTR 360 Sprint Car heat race.

After losing a spot on the opening lap, Pokorski moved back up to fifth on lap 2 when Shane Wenninger dropped out of the race while running near the front of the field. Pokorski held down the fifth spot over the remainder of the 10-lap race, which was contested on a lightning fast and tacky racing surface.

“In the heat race the car felt pretty good, but we were lacking a bit of bite from the center of the corner out,” Pokorski said.

Pokorski then lined up second for the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main and quickly jumped into the lead by outpowering polesitter Bill Taylor on the drop of the green flag.

The West Bend, Wis. driver wasted no time in bolting away from the field and skillfully working his way through lapped traffic to post his first career 360 Sprint Car race victory in the B main event and secure the 17th starting spot in the 25-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main.

“The B main was a lot of fun and the car was hooked up really well,” Pokorski said. “The start went very well and then it was just about being smooth until I got to lap traffic. The lap cars were all spaced out enough, so I didn’t get held up at all. It felt good to get the first win and know that I can be fast in a Sprint Car. It’s something I’ve always dreamed about doing, so it was special.”

After lining up 17th in the A main, a string of early-race incidents saw Pokorski move up to 13th in the initial stages of the race. On lap 10, Pokorski looped his machine in turn four, which forced him to restart the race at the rear of the 18-car field.

Pokorski was holding his own on the ultra-fast racing surface before disaster struck on lap 20 when he was unable to avoid a hard collision with Tyler Davis, who had spun on the front stretch after jumping the thick turn-four cushion.

“The A main was not so great,” Pokorski said. “Tyler [Davis] had spun and was sitting sideways in the middle of the frontstretch. I came out of the corner on the gas and as soon as I saw him, I jammed on the brakes, but I still hit him really hard. The chassis is bent beyond repair I think, so we will be using an older chassis for the rest of this year.”

While the team’s primary 2016 Maxim chassis was badly damaged, Pokorski emerged from the heavy impact uninjured.

“I don’t have any injuries or even bruises,” Pokorski said. “The night was definitely a rollercoaster ride of emotions. The win was amazing. The crash was very upsetting. It totaled our best chassis, among other things, and with my dad winding down his racing career, I don’t think we will be getting a new one.”

The Pokorski Motorsports team is scheduled to return to action with its backup 2011 J&J chassis on Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

Sponsors for the 2020 Pokorski Motorsports team are Hopf Farms, Petersen Septic Systems, Quest Engineering Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Lakeshore Family Funeral Homes, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Novak’s Service Center

Pokorski Motorsports would like to acknowledge the support of long-time sponsor Novak’s Service Center of Manitowoc, which is celebrating its 48th year in business in 2020.

Novak’s Service Center is a locally-owned, second-generation, family-owned, five-bay auto repair center, which has been serving customers in the Lakeshore area since 1972.

Novak’s Service Center offers comprehensive auto repair services, including 4 x 4 services, brakes, car and truck care, domestic cars and trucks, electrical services, electronic services, engine and transmission, engine maintenance, expired warranty care, general service, heating and cooling services, import cars and trucks, quick lube services, tires, towing, transmission and undercar services.

Located at 1320 Washington St. in Manitowoc, Novak’s Service Center is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To schedule an appointment, call 920-684-5737 or visit www.novaks1320.com.

For more information on Pokorski Motorsports, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromo.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

 

2020 Pokorski Motorsports Upcoming Schedule.

Saturday, Aug. 15-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Thursday, Aug. 27-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, Aug. 28-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, Aug. 29-Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis.

 

2020 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 10

MSA events – 9

IRA events – 0

A Main Victories – 1

B Main Victories – 1

Top Five A Main Finishes – 1

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 1

Heat Race Victories – 0

 

 

 

McMullen, Scheffler, Sorce Jr., Warner claim PDTR main event victories

Former Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh collected his 19th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 8, 2020 – The second night of a jam-packed seven-race August schedule featured plenty of close competition in producing 2020 repeat winners in three of the four Plymouth Dirt Track Racing A-main events at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8.

In the 25-lap Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 360 Sprint Car main event, 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh claimed his second A-main victory of the season at Plymouth. Waukesha’s Taylor Scheffler picked up his second 25-lap Gasroots Project Late Model A main triumph of the 2020 campaign. Two-time PDTR Grand National champion Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis scored his first A-main victory of the 2020 season in the 25-lap Klips N Tips Grand National main event. In the 25-lap Cellcom B Mod A main, defending PDTR B Mod champion Tim Warner of Fond du Lac secured his second main event victory of the 2020 campaign.

In the Sprint Car A main, polesitter Tyler Davis of South Milwaukee jumped out to the lead on lap 1 before a red flag was displayed on lap 2 when outside front row starter Tyler Tischendorf of Waupaca spun in turn two and collected rookie Austin Hartmann of Plymouth, who flipped his machine. The incident forced Hartmann to retire from the event, while Tischendorf was able to continue.

On the ensuing restart attempt, Tim Haddy of Waupun spun in turn two and collected Bill Taylor of Kewaskum and Tischendorf. Both Haddy and Taylor were unable to continue in the race.

When the race resumed, 2018 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Justin Miller of Plymouth worked past Davis to assume the lead in turn two on lap 3. Meanwhile, third starter Brandon McMullen moved past Davis into second on lap 6 and quickly set his sets on the leader.

Three laps later, McMullen rode the high groove to perfection on the lightning fast and tacky track surface to sweep around Miller into the lead. One lap later on lap 10, the third caution flag was displayed when Tyler Davis spun in turn two at the same time as rookie Alex Pokorski of West Bend spun to a stop in turn four.

On the ensuing restart, Miller and current PDTR 360 Sprint Car point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who started sixth, collided before Miller stopped in turn one with suspension damage to bring out the fourth caution flag.

The damage was enough to force Miller out of the race while Arenz was sent to the rear of the field for his involvement in the yellow flag incident. Seventh starter Kevin Karnitz of West Bend made his presence felt on the restart has he moved into second while 19th starter Nich Melis of Plymouth worked his way into third on lap 12.

McMullen began to catch the rear of the field on lap 17, which he sliced through expertly to extend his lead over Karnitz. On lap 20, Tyler Davis spun on the frontstretch before Alex Pokorski made hard contact with Davis to bring out a red flag for the fifth and final stoppage of the race. Both drivers emerged from the heavy impact uninjured, but were done for the night.

McMullen again pulled away on the final restart and cruised over the final five laps to his 19th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 27th Midwest Sprint Car Association main event triumph of his career by a full-straightaway margin. Karnitz finished second, 2011 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove finished third after starting 12th, Melis placed fourth and Arenz rebounded from restarting 17th following a lap 10 collision with Justin Miller to place fifth.

Taylor Scheffler of Waukesha notched his fifth career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model A main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8. – RC Custom Design photo

Outside front row starter Taylor Scheffler, who was steering the 15s car formerly raced by his father, Rick Scheffler, outdueled 2016 PDTR Late Model champ Tim Buhler of Greenbush, who started second, to grab the lead of the 25-lap Late Model A main in turn four of the opening lap.

Scheffler extended his lead over Buhler in the early stages of the race before the first of two caution flags was displayed on lap 8 for debris on the frontstretch from Sheboygan Falls rookie driver Chad Ludwigson’s car.

Two laps later, another caution was displayed when Charlie Schmidt of Cedar Grove spun in turn two. On the restart, Scheffler again pulled away while fifth starter Turk Letizia of Milwaukee and sixth starter Justin Ritchie of New London waged a heated duel for fourth place. Following a six-lap, side-by-side battle, Ritchie finally secured the fourth-place position from Letizia.

Scheffler hit lapped traffic on lap 17, which he negotiated successfully over the final eight laps en route to his fifth career PDTR Late Model A-main victory. Buhler held on for second, fourth starter Jim Schmidt of Cleveland placed third, Ritchie finished fourth and Turk Letizia rounded out the top five.

In the 25-lap Grand National A main, Don Sorce Jr. used the high groove to outduel defending PDTR Grand National champion Tyler Kulow of Plymouth, who started on the pole, to take the top spot in turn two on the opening lap.

As Sorce Jr. held down the top spot, third starter Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee moved into third on lap six before passing Kulow for second four laps later. On lap 14, Stolp bolted in to pressure the low riding Sorce Jr. for the lead along the outside groove.

Two-time Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Grand National champion Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis claimed his 13th career PDTR Grand National A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8. -RC Custom Design photo

The lone caution of the race appeared on lap 15 when Darryl Traber spun in turn four. On the restart, Kulow battled back along the outside groove to regain second on lap 16.

Four laps later, sixth starter Steven Weber of Plymouth used a low move to work past Stolp before tracking down Kulow for second on the final lap. At the front of the field, it was all Sorce Jr. has he rolled to his 13th career PDTR Grand National A-main victory to move into sole possession of second place on the division’s main event win list.

Weber finished second, Stolp placed third, Kulow was fourth and 81-year-old Dick Hed of Plymouth wound up fifth after starting seventh.

Outside front row starter James Rautmann of Howards Grove led the opening two laps of the 25-lap B Mod A main before third starter Kyle Odekirk of Plymouth moved in to take over the top spot on lap 3.

The first of two caution flags was displayed on lap 5 when Brandon Knepprath of Kewaskum, Patrick Hanson of Sheboygan Falls and Kassi Krause of Chilton spun in turn two. Following the restart, sixth starter Brian Wieland of Sheboygan Falls moved in to challenge Odekirk for the top spot along the inside groove.

Two laps later, fifth starter Jason Schilling of Greenfield, 10th starter Travis Arenz, who was subbing for Cascade’s Barry Maas, and Chilton’s Jesse Cullen, who started 12th, battled three wide for third place with Arenz securing the position.

On lap 12, Wieland made contact with Odekirk as the two drivers were dueling for the lead. However, Odekirk was able to maintain control of the top spot before the second and final caution flag came out on lap 14 when Justin Bauer of Sheboygan Falls stopped on the frontstretch.

On the restart, Tim Warner moved in from his seventh starting spot to take over second along the high groove. One lap later, Warner pulled even with the low riding Odekirk. After dueling with Odekirk side-by-side for two laps, Warner finally surged ahead in turn four on lap 17.

Defending Plymouth Dirt Track Racing B Mod champion Tim Warner of Fond du Lac picked up his fifth career PDTR B Mod A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 8. – RC Custom Design photo

Once out front, Warner pulled away to notch his fifth career PDTR B Mod A main victory by a half-straightaway margin. Odekirk placed second, Arenz was third, Cullen placed fourth and Wieland rounded out the top five.

Rookie Alex Pokorski claimed his first career 360 Sprint Car race victory in the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main.

The eighth PDTR racing program of the 2020 season, which was sponsored by Cellcom, drew a total of 82 cars, including 30 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, 17 Late Models, 14 Grand Nationals and 21 B Mods.

Next weekend will feature a doubleheader at the Plymouth Dirt Track with the Dirt Kings Late Model Tour Diamond 42 scheduled for Friday, Aug. 14 featuring a first-place payout of $4,200. The PDTR Grand National and B Mod divisions will also run a non-points program with hot laps scheduled at 5:30 p.m. with racing to follow at 6 p.m.

One night later, the PDTR 360 Sprint Car, Late Model, Grand National and B Mod divisions will be in action on Saturday, Aug. 15 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with qualifying at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan Falls will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

 

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Travis Arenz 2, Justin Miller 3, Nick Daywalt 4, Doug Wondra 5, Alex Pokorski 6, Brandon Berth 7, Scott Armstrong 8, Shane Wenninger.

HEAT 2

1, Tyler Davis 2, Scott Conger 3, Tyler Tischendorf 4, Bill Taylor 5, Preston Ruh 6, Kevin Seidler 7, Tyler Brabant 8, Lance Fassbender.

HEAT 3

1, Kevin Karnitz 2, Austin Hartmann 3, Tony Wondra 4, Will Gerrits 5, Josh Teunissen 6, Justin Erickson 7, Chris Clayton.

HEAT 4

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Kurt Davis 3, Ben Schmidt 4, Tim Haddy 5, Anthony Knierim 6, Nich Melis 7, Blake Wondra.

B MAIN

1, Alex Pokorski 2, Brandon Berth 3, Nich Melis 4, Anthony Knierim 5, Bill Taylor 6, Josh Teunissen 7, Justin Erickson 8, Blake Wondra 9, Tyler Brabant 10, Kevin Seidler 11, Lance Fassbender 12, Chris Clayton 13, Scott Armstrong 14, Shane Wenninger (DNS).

A MAIN

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Kevin Karnitz 3, Ben Schmidt 4, Nich Melis 5, Travis Arenz 6, Kurt Davis 7, Brandon Berth 8, Nick Daywalt 9, Will Gerrits 10, Anthony Knierim 11, Scott Conger 12, Preston Ruh 13, Tony Wondra 14, Doug Wondra 15, Josh Teunissen 16, Tyler Davis, 17, Alex Pokorski 18, Justin Miller 19, Tyler Tischendorf 20, Austin Hartmann 21, Tim Haddy 22, Bill Taylor.

 

GASROOT PROJECT LATE MODELS

HEAT 1

1, Jim Schmidt 2, Tony Peterson 3, Brad Mueller 4, Justin Schmidt 5, Taylor Scheffler 6, Joe Bongiorno 7, Justin Green 8, Chad Ludwigson 9, Donny Singer.

HEAT 2

1, Justin Ritchie 2, Turk Letizia 3, Jim Letizia 4, Tim Buhler 5, Charlie Schmidt 6, Jake Van Engen 7, Sawyer Specht 8, Billy Rezutek (DNS).

A MAIN’

1, Taylor Scheffler 2, Tim Buhler 3, Jim Schmidt 4, Justin Ritchie 5, Turk Letizia 6, Brad Muller 7, Justin Schmidt 8, Joe Bongiorno 9, Justin Green 10, Jim Letizia 11, Billy Rezutek 12, Charlie Schmidt 13, Tony Peterson 14, Donny Singer 15, Chad Ludwigson 16, Sawyer Specht 17, Jake Van Engen (DNS).

 

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Dick Hed 2, Derek Kaat 3, Luke Scholten 4, Aaron Stolp 5, Donny Kulow 6, Matt Schlehlein 7, Dylan Struve.

HEAT 2

1, Steven Weber 2, Jeff Muehlbauer 3, Don Sorce Jr. 4, Tyler Kulow 5, Brad Weiss 6, Darryl Traber 7, Paul Perronne.

A MAIN

1, Don Sorce Jr. 2, Steven Weber 3, Aaron Stolp 4, Tyler Kulow 5, Dick Hed 6, Luke Scholten 7, Jeff Muehlbauer 8, Donny Kulow 9, Darryl Traber 10, Brad Weiss 11, Matt Schlehlein 12, Paul Perronne 13, Derek Kaat 14, Dylan Struve (DNS).

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Craig Gessner 2, Brian Weiland 3, Steve Lorier 4, Donny Singer 5, Trevor Frank 6, Kassi Krause 7, Rory Welch.

HEAT 2

1, Jason Schilling 2, James Rautmann 3, Kyle Odekirk 4, Jesse Cullen 5, Gary Glander 6, Brendan Ostrowski 7, Brandon Knepprath.

HEAT 3

1, Travis Arenz 2, Tim Sheppard 3, Tim Warner 4, Justin Bauer 5, Jonathan Hitsman 6, Patrick Hanson 7, Jim Fischer.

A MAIN

1, Tim Warner 2, Kyle Odekirk 3, Travis Arenz 4, Jesse Cullen 5, Brian Wieland 6, Tim Sheppard 7, Donny Singer 8, Gary Glander 9, Steve Lorier 10, Brendan Ostrowski 11, James Rautmann 12, Rory Welch 13, Kassi Krause 14, Brandon Knepprath 15, Jason Schilling 16, Justin Bauer 17, Craig Gessner 18, Trevor Frank 19, Jonathan Hitsmann 20, Patrick Hanson 21, Jim Fischer (DNS).

Walter shows speed, but bad luck lingers in IRA action

Josh Walter competes in the second annual Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions-Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Rayce Rudeen Foundation Race at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Thursday, July 30. -RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 5, 2020 – After being hounded by adversity through the first four races of the 2020 season, Josh Walter and the Torque Racing team displayed plenty of speed to run at the front of the pack, but the sour luck remained during a Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series doubleheader at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Thursday, July 30 and Langlade County Speedway in Antigo, Wis. on Friday, July 31.

On July 30, Walter took a short trip down the road from his Plymouth shop to compete in the second annual Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champoins-Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association co-sanctioned Rayce Rudeen Foundation $26,000-to-win event at The Plymouth Dirt Track.

Walter opened the highest paying Winged 410 Sprint Car race in Wisconsin history by timing in 31st in the 41-car field with a lap of 12.632 seconds around the third-mile clay oval.

After starting sixth in the fourth 10-lap heat race, Walter lost power shortly after the drop of the green flag and rolled to a stop in turn three on the opening lap. Walter went briefly to the work area before retiring from the race with an apparent fuel-pickup issue.

Following some quick repairs, Walter started third in the 10-lap C main needing to finish in the top two positions in order to transfer to the back of the B main.

Walter held down third throughout the majority of the race until the final lap when Sean Rayhall powered past him along the high groove to drop Walter to fourth at the finish line.

“We thought it was an electrical issue in the heat race, so we put in a different mag box,” Walter said. “Later we found out at that the fuel pump came disconnected from the power steering pump just enough to not notice and not turn the pump.

“Unfortunately, after encountering various issues in our previous IRA events at 141 Speedway and Plymouth earlier in the month, our very rough start the season continued with the All Stars,” he said.

While not originally on the team’s schedule, a last-minute decision sent Walter and his Torque Racing team to Northern Wisconsin the following night for a Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association event at the half-mile Langlade County Speedway in Antigo, Wis.

After opening the event by qualifying seventh in the 20-car field with a lap of 17.398 seconds, Walter lined up second in the first IRA heat race.

On lap one, Walter drifted high, which allowed Bill Balog and Scotty Neitzel to move past, while Walter dropped to fourth in the running order. Walter held his position over the final nine laps to place fourth in the race.

Walter then used a favorable dash draw to roll off second in the first IRA four-lap dash. The 15th-year Plymouth driver got the jump on the start to take the lead into turn one and he pulled away from polesitter Dave Uttech to win the first dash and earn the pole position for the 20-lap A main in commanding fashion.

Walter’s high hopes for starting the A main pole were quickly dashed when his 12W car rolled to a stop along the backstretch shortly after being pushed off for the A main. Walter went to the work area before attempting a second push off.

However, the car again did not fire and Walter was forced to retreat to his pit area. He was scored 20th in the race.

“We believe what happened before the A main at Antigo was our older backup mag box failing that we had switched to on Thursday,” Walter said. “There’s no way of knowing when an electrical issue will occur. Most times they briefly show signs of failure and stop working like a battery going dead. However, the mag box showed no issue all night until after two or three laps idling around before we lined up for the A.

“It was just another heartbreaking night for this season, but this one feels worse,” he said. “There’s not much you can do about these things when they happen. We just need to stay positive and look at how well the night was going, instead of how bad it ended. We need to keep in mind it could have always been a lot worse.”

Walter and the members of the Torque Racing team are planning to take most of the remainder of the month of August off to prepare for a potentially very busy September.

“Our next race will be Saturday, August 29th at Beaver Dam Raceway,” Walter said. “After that, our season will look to get pretty busy and hopefully, I can find some consistency with our new car. Our highly tentative schedule will continue Friday, September 4th at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Saturday, September 5th at Plymouth, Sunday, September 6th at 141 Speedway, Friday, September 11th at Outagamie Speedway in Seymour, Saturday, September 19th at Beaver Dam Raceway, Friday, September 25th at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam and Saturday, September 26th at Plymouth.”

Torque Racing sponsors for the 2020 season included JDV Lawncare, Brittany’s School of Dance, Sheboygan by Owner, Plymouth Tap, Doug’s Quality Beef, Cow Pies, Full Throttle Ink, Lakehouse Bar & Grill, Home Transitions, Oostburg Concrete, Services, RC Custom Design and Pedal Down Promotions.

Torque Racing Sponsor Showcase – Full Throttle Ink

The Torque Racing team is pleased to have Full Throttle Ink in Sheboygan Falls on board as a sponsor for the 2020 season.

Full Throttle Ink is Sheboygan County’s premier tattoo, piercing, and apparel shop, located at 501 North Main (Highway 32) in Sheboygan Falls, Wis. Under the direction of owner Jeff Klug, Full Throttle Ink features a 1,100-square foot state-of-the-art tattoo and piercing parlor, as well as a a complete line of 1940s and 1950s-themed high-end hot-rod style clothing.

Full Throttle Ink, which is open daily from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., also offers Motorcult Apparel, Lucky 13 Apparel and Klug’s personal line of Sheboygan County-exclusive apparel.

To book a tattoo or piercing appointment, call 920-467-2215 or email fullthrottleink@hotmail.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

 

2020 Josh Walter-Torque Racing Tentative Upcoming Schedule

Saturday, Aug. 29 – Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis. (IRA)

Friday, Sept. 4 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis. (IRA)

Saturday, Sept. 5 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis. (IRA)

Sunday, Sept. 6 – 141 Speedway, Francis Creek, Wis. (IRA)

 

2020 Josh Walter-Torque Racing By The Numbers

Total Events – 6

IRA events – 4

A-Main Victories – 0

B-Main Victories – 0

Top Five A-Main Finishes – 0

Top 10 A-Main Finishes – 0

Heat Race Victories – 0

Dash Victories – 1

Dash Appearances – 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alex Pokorski gets first taste of Sprint Car A-main action  

Rookie 360 Sprint Car driver Alex Pokorski of West Bend recorded a 16th-place finish in his first A-main event at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Thursday, July 30. -RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 4, 2020 – After a week away from the race track, rookie driver Alex Pokorski and Pokorski Motorsports team returned to action with the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Cars in a supporting role to the second annual Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions-Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series Rayce Rudeen Foundation Race on Thursday, July 30 at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

The PDTR 360 Sprint Car portion of the program, which drew 27 cars, featured a modified format with no B main and the A main lineup set straight up by passing points with no inversion.

After starting eighth in the second 10-lap 360 Sprint Car heat race, Pokorski spun in turn two on lap 2 before restarting the race at the rear of the nine-car field. Pokorski held his position for the majority of the race before moving up to eighth a when Lance Fassbender slowed and dropped out the race on lap 8.

“During the heat race, I felt okay in the car, but it was a little touchy when I had to race close to other drivers,” Pokorski said. “Using the brake or changing my line threw the car off a bit.”

By virtue of his eighth place finish in his heat race, Pokorski lined up 20th in the 24-car 26-lap 360 Sprint Car A-main field.

On lap 6, Pokorski moved up to 19th in the running order before moving around Blake Wondra with a high move in turn four on lap 13. On lap 19, Pokorski lost control and spun, which dropped him back to 22nd when the race resumed.

Pokorski found his groove on the restart to work past Preston Ruh, Mike Decker, Tyler Brabant and Chris Larson over the final seven laps en route to a 16th-place finish in his first career 360 Sprint A main, which was won by Kurt Davis.

“For the A main, we made some adjustments and the car felt really good,” Pokorski. “It was a lot of fun getting to race my way up a few spots and being able to compete in an A main. When I spun, I was mad at myself, but I was able to recover most of or all of the spots I lost in the last few laps. That was the best night I have had so far and I was happy with the results.”

Two days later on Saturday, Aug. 1, Pokorski returned to the driver’s seat for a PDTR 360 Sprint Car event at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

With 32 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars checked in for the night, Pokorski started sixth in the first 10-lap heat race. Pokorski got high on the lightning fast racing surface on the opening laps, which dropped him to eighth in the running order.

Due to the fast and tacky track conditions, passing was at a premium during heat race action and Pokorski finished the race in eighth place.

After starting 12th in the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main, Pokorski moved up to 11th when Blake Wondra spun into the infield on the opening lap. The race was slowed for two red flags involving flips by rookies Mike MacFarlane on lap 5 and Scott Armstrong on lap 13.

After restarting 11th on lap 13, Pokorski moved up one spot over the final two laps to record a 10th-place finish.

“Saturday’s track was very wet and fast all night long,” Pokorski said. “I’ve never experienced a track like that for a race, so it took me a bit to figure out how to drive it. Passing was very difficult. It was hard to make up any ground on people after a few laps under green because everyone could just keep their foot on the floor the whole way around. The B main and heat race were both very similar in that aspect.

“Looking forward, I want to get better at heavy race tracks and become more consistent,” Pokorski said. “I am back at school working already, but luckily I can still make it back for a few more Saturdays to race.”

The Pokorski Motorsports team is scheduled to return to action on Saturday, Aug. 8 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

Sponsors for the 2020 Pokorski Motorsports team are Hopf Farms, Petersen Septic Systems, Quest Engineering Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Lakeshore Family Funeral Homes, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Quest Engineering Inc.

Pokorski Motorsports would like to welcome back Quest Engineering of Richfield, Wis. as a sponsor for the 2020 racing season.

Quest Engineering focuses solely on full overlay cabinetry and complimenting custom products, including kitchen, bath, closets, garage, entertainment and commercial casework projects.

Quest’s skilled team of customer advocates, product specialists, engineers, production managers and operations team rely on a continuous improvement philosophy to pave the road to success.

Founded as a contract wood products fabricator in West Bend by brothers Chris and Todd Lefeber in 2001, Quest operated on mostly manual machines until adding CNC equipment and parametric engineering software to its repertoire in 2006.

In late 2008, Quest Engineering made the move from a direct sales to a dealer sales model with an increased focused on its capacity as a manufacturer. Quest moved from its original facility in West Bend to a newly renovated production facility in Richfield in fall 2012.

In May 2015, working with equipment, software, and special service vendors, Quest expanded with the addition of a second manufacturing plant. Housing a flexible casework production cell, a custom fabrication cell and a small warehouse, a new facility in Jackson was opened, featuring a design center and showroom.

“Quest Engineering came on board with Pokorski Motorsports in 2018 and we are excited to have them back for their third season with us,” Pokorski said. “Quest is a local manufacturer of quality cabinets and we encourage our fans to check out their line of products.”

Pokorski Motorsports invites you to contact Quest Engineering Inc. by phone at 262-334-4949 or by visiting www.questcabinets.com.

For more information on Pokorski Motorsports, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromo.com.

Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping its clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.

For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports Upcoming Schedule.

Saturday, Aug. 8 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, Aug. 15-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Thursday, Aug. 27-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, Aug. 28-Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, Aug. 29-Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis.

2020 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 9

MSA events – 8

IRA events – 0

A Main Victories – 1

B Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 1

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 1

Heat Race Victories – 0

Arenz, Letizia, Weber, Maas pedal to PDTR A-main triumphs

Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan claimed his second A-main victory of the 2020 season on Pedal Down Promotions Night at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 1. -RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 1, 2020 – On one of the most pleasant nights for racing of the 2020 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing season, three of the most polished veteran drivers in the pit area, as well as a rising star in the Sprint Car ranks rolled to A-main victories on Pedal Down Promotions Night at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

PDTR 360 Sprint Car point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan racked up his second A-main victory of the 2020 campaign in the 25-lap Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 360 Sprint Car main event. Milwaukee veteran Turk Letizia noted his first A-main victory in six years in the 25-lap Gasroots Project Late Model A main. Eighteen-year veteran Steven Weber of Plymouth claimed the victory in the 25-lap Klips N Tips Grand National A main and Cascade veteran Barry Maas earned his first career PDTR B Mod main event win in the 25-lap Cellcom B Mod A main.

In the 360 Sprint Car headliner, outside front row starter Tony Wondra of Campbellsport jumped into the lead on the drop of the green flag before Adam Miller of Plymouth flipped in turn four on the opening lap to bring out a red flag.

Following a complete restart, Wondra again grabbed the lead while two-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee, who started third, moved into second with the fifth-starting Arenz bolting into third on the opening circuit.

While Wondra led, Arenz moved in to challenge the high-riding Davis along the low line on lap 4. On lap 5, Tyler Davis of South Milwaukee and Anthony Knierim of Franksville collided in turn two to bring out a caution.

On the restart, Jack Vanderboom of Dousman and Doug Wondra of Campbellsport got together in turn three, which sent Vanderboom flipping on lap 5.

Davis pulled off an impressive low move in turn four on lap 6 to wrestle the lead away from Wondra. Meanwhile, 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh was using the high groove to vault into second from his sixth starting spot on lap 7.

McMullen continued to ride the high groove of the lightning fast track surface to pressure Davis for the top spot. On lap 9, McMullen surged ahead of Davis along the outside groove. McMullen maintained a solid cushion as the leaders encountered slower traffic on lap 13.

Two laps later, Arenz moved into second before Tyler Tischendorf of Waupaca spun in turn two on lap 16. On the restart, Arenz ducked underneath McMullen to assume the top spot on lap 17 exiting turn one.

After that, Arenz moved up to the high line and pulled away from McMullen, who worked both the bottom and top of the track in an attempt to reel in the leader over the next nine laps.

Just as the leaders were about to catch the back of the field, the checkered flag flew with Arenz claiming his third career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main victory and ninth overall Midwest Sprint Car Association main event triumph.

McMullen wound up second, Davis was third, 2008 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Lance Fassbender of Burnett took fourth after starting eighth and 2011 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove charged up from his 16th starting spot to take fifth.

Polesitter Justin Ritchie of New London seized the lead in turn of the opening lap of the 25-lap Late Model A main. On lap 2, Letizia used a big run on the frontstretch to dive under Ritchie for the lead in turn one. As Letizia encountered lapped traffic on lap 8, Ritchie began to close.

Turk Letizia of Milwaukee notched his first Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model A-main victory since the 2014 season on Pedal Down Promotions Night at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 1. – RC Custom Design photo

On lap 12, Ritchie moved to withing striking distance in heavy lapped traffic before making contact with Letizia along the front stretch, which caused Ritchie to spin into the infield and bring out the first of four caution flags.

One lap later, Ted Dolhun Sr. of Franklin spun in turn two to bring out the second caution of the race. On the restart, two-time defending PDTR Late Model champion Justin Schmidt of Cleveland, who started fifth, moved in to challenge Letizia for the top spot along the low line on lap 14.

Meanwhile, the racing behind Letizia and Schmidt was hot and heavy as Mike Mullen of Seymour, who started ninth, and 2016 PDTR Late Model champ Tim Buhler of Greenbush, who started seventh, dueled side by side for third place on lap 21.

The third caution appeared on lap 22 when Mullen spun in turn three. On the restart, Ritchie, Eric Michaels of Cleveland and Charlie Schmidt of Cedar Grove collided exiting turn four to bring out the fourth and final caution.

On the restart, Letizia held strong to pull away from Schmidt over the final four laps en route to his third career PDTR Late Model A-main victory and first main event win at Plymouth since 2014.

Schmidt was second, four-time PDTR Late Model champ Brad Mueller of Random Lake, who started fourth, placed third, Buhler took fourth and 2017 PDTR B Mod champion Justin Green of Sheboygan Falls placed fifth in his first ever night behind the wheel of his father Glen Blanke’s 4B Late Model after starting 15th.

Outside front row starter Luke Scholten of Oostburg grabbed the lead on lap 1 with Steven Weber, who started on the pole, sliding into second. On lap 3, Weber pulled into challenge Scholten for the top spot before the first of two caution flags was displayed on lap 4 for a spin involving Dylan Struve of Plymouth.

Following the restart, Weber moved in to pressure Scholten for the top spot and he continued to hound the leader for the next 14 laps. After sizing Scholten up patiently lap after lap, Weber finally pounced entering turn one on lap 18 to seize the lead.

Steven Weber of Plymouth collected his second career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Grand National A-main victory on Pedal Down Promotions Night at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 1. – RC Custom Design photo

Two laps later, Weber hit lapped traffic, who allowed Scholten to stay in contention for the win. The second and final caution appeared on lap 20 when Paul Perronne stopped in turn one.

Following a single-file restart with five laps to go, Weber stayed tied to the inside lane of the track and fended off Scholten’s advances to notch his second career PDTR Grand National A-main victory.

Scholten placed second, two-time PDTR Grand National champion Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis finished third after starting sixth, Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee charged up from the 11th starting spot to place fourth and 2019 PDTR Grand National champ Tyler Kulow of Plymouth finished fifth after starting ninth.

In the 25-lap B Mod A main, rookie outside front row starter Trevor Frank of Sheboygan grabbed the lead from the start. The first of three cautions appeared on lap four when Steve Lorier of Sheboygan stopped in turn three.

On the restart, fourth starter Jesse Cullen of Chilton moved up from his fourth starting spot to take second with a move along the high line before polesitter Brandon Knepprath of Kewaskum battled back to challenge for the runner-up spot.

The second caution appeared on lap 10 when Patrick Hanson of Sheboygan Falls spun in turn four. Two laps later, defending PDTR B Mod champ Tim Warner of Fond du Lac and Cullen made contact, which sent Cullen spinning in turn four to bring out the third caution flag.

On lap 13, Maas, who started sixth, began to make his presence felt as he moved into second along the high groove. One lap later, Maas, who owns one career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory, worked the inside groove to work past Frank for the lead with a nifty low move in turn three.

Former Winged Super Modified and 360 Sprint Car competitor Barry Maas of Cascade rolled to his first career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing B Mod A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Aug. 1. – RC Custom Design photo

Knepprath wasn’t finished though, as he worked around Frank and closed on Maas over the final circuits. On lap 23, Knepprath ducked under Maas and stayed within striking distance all the way to the checkered flag before Maas, a former Winged Super Modified racer at Plymouth, prevailed by a one-car margin to seize his first career PDTR B Mod A main victory.

Knepprath recorded a career-best second-place finish, Warner placed third, Frank equaled his career-best A-main finish by placing fourth and 11th starter Gary Glander of Sheboygan Falls placed fifth.

Jack Vanderboom won the 15-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main.

The seventh PDTR racing program of the 2020 season drew a total of 80 cars, including 32 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, 16 Late Models, 17 Grand Nationals and 15 B Mods.

The PDTR 360 Sprint Car, Late Model, Grand National and B Mod divisions will next be in action on Saturday, Aug. 8 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan Falls will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Tony Wondra 2, Lance Fassbender 3, Anthony Knierim 4, Chris Clayton 5, Ben Schmidt 6, Jack Vanderboom 7, Mike Decker 8, Alex Pokorski.

HEAT 2

1, Shane Wenninger 2, Travis Arenz 3, Scott Conger 4, Justin Miller 5, Austin Hartmann 6, Scott Armstrong 7, Will Gerrits 8, Tyler Brabant.

HEAT 3

1, Bill Taylor 2, Kurt Davis 3, Adam Miller 4, Josh Teunissen 5, Tyler Tischendorf 6, Brandon Berth 7, Tim Haddy 8, Blake Wondra.

HEAT 4

1, Brandon McMullen 2, Justin Erickson 3, Doug Wondra 4, Tyler Davis 5, Preston Ruh 6, Kevin Karnitz 7, Kevin Seidler 8, Mike MacFarlane.

B MAIN

1, Jack Vanderboom 2, Kevin Karnitz 3, Brandon Berth 4, Josh Teunissen 5, Tyler Tischendorf 6, Tim Haddy 7, Austin Hartmann 8, Preston Ruh 9, Mike Decker 10, Alex Pokorski 11, Scott Armstrong 12, Blake Wondra 13, Kevin Seidler 14, Mike MacFarlane 15, Will Gerrits (DNS) 16, Tyler Brabant (DNS).

A MAIN

1, Travis Arenz 2, Brandon McMullen 3, Kurt Davis 4, Lance Fassbender 5, Ben Schmidt 6, Tony Wondra 7, Justin Miller 8, Justin Erickson 9, Brandon Berth 10, Kevin Karnitz 11, Bill Taylor 12, Scott Conger 13, Chris Clayton 14, Tim Haddy 15, Josh Teunissen 16, Tyler Tischendorf 17, Shane Wenninger 18, Doug Wondra 19, Tyler Davis 20, Anthony Knierim 21, Jack Vanderboom 22, Adam Miller.

 

GASROOT PROJECT LATE MODELS

HEAT 1

1, Brad Mueller 2, Joe Bongiorno 3, Justin Schmidt 4, Eric Michaels 5, Ted Dolhun Sr. 6, Sawyer Specht 7, Chad Ludwigson 8, Donny Singer.

HEAT 2

1, Turk Letizia 2, Justin Ritchie 3, Charlie Schmidt 4, Tim Buhler 5, Mike Mullen 6, Jared Siefert 7, Kevin Baldry 8, Justin Green.

A MAIN’

1, Turk Letizia 2, Justin Schmidt 3, Brad Mueller 4, Tim Buhler 5, Justin Green 6, Ted Dolhun Sr. 7, Charlie Schmidt 8, Eric Michaels 9, Eric Michaels, 10, Joe Bongiorno 11, Sawyer Specht 12, Justin Ritchie 13, Kevin Baldry 14, Chad Ludwigson 15, Jared Siefert 16, Mike Mullen.

 

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Don Sorce Jr. 2, Brad Weiss 3, Derek Kaat 4, Jeff Muehlbauer 5, Tyler Kulow 6, Jim Rohrbeck 7, Dave Holm 8, Dick Hed 9, Paul Perronne.

HEAT 2

1, Steven Wirtz 2, Luke Scholten 3, Steven Weber 4, Donny Kulow 5, Aaron Stolp 6, Matt Yancey 7, Dylan Struve 8, Who Racing.

A MAIN

1, Steven Weber 2, Luke Scholten 3, Don Sorce Jr. 4, Aaron Stolp 5, Tyler Kulow 6, Steven Wirtz 7, Jeff Muehlbauer 8, Dick Hed 9, Matt Yancey 10, Donny Kulow 11, Who Racing 12, Dylan Struve 13, Jim Rohrbeck 14, Brad Weiss 15, Paul Perronne 16, Dave Holm 17, Derek Kaat.

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Jason Schilling 2, Tim Warner 3, James Rautmann 4, Jesse Cullen 5, Trevor Frank 6, Jonathan Hitsman 7, Patrick Hanson 8, Jim Fischer.

HEAT 2

1, Phil Campanella 2, Barry Maas 3, Steve Lorier 4, Rory Welch 5, Brandon Knepprath 6, Gary Glander 7, Donny Singer.

A MAIN

1, Barry Maas 2, Brandon Knepprath 3, Tim Warner 4, Trevor Frank 5, Gary Glander 6, Jason Schilling 7, Jesse Cullen 8, Jonathan Hitsman 9, Donny Singer 10, Rory Welch 11, Patrick Hanson 12, James Rautmann 13, Phil Campanella 14, Steve Lorier 15, Jim Fischer.

Larson continues historic season with Rayce Rudeen Foundation All Star triumph

Kyle Larson of Elk Grove, Calif. picked up his 11th Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions A-main victory of the 2020 season and 26th overall victory on dirt of the year in the Rayce Rudeen Foundation Race at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Thursday, July 30th. – Ricky Bassman photo

Davis moves to top of all-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main win list

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 30, 2020 – The hottest Sprint Car driver in the world, Kyle Larson of Elk Grove, Calif., paid his first visit to The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. for the second annual Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions-Interstate Racing Association Rayce Rudeen Foundation $26,000-to-win event on Thursday, July 30 and promptly shined over a stellar field to claim his sixth straight A-main victory in All Star Series competition and his 26th overall triumph on dirt during the 2020 season in the highest-paying Winged Sprint Car race in Wisconsin history.

In the companion, non-points Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 26-lap Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car A main, two-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee nipped the hard-charging Travis Arenz of Sheboygan by mere feet to claim his second overall Midwest Sprint Car Association main event victory of the 2020 campaign and first A-main victory of the year at Plymouth.

All eyes were on Larson throughout the night as his has been a dominant force everywhere he has raced this season whether in the 410 Winged Sprint Car ranks with the All Star Circuit of Champions and World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series or with the USAC Midget Series, with victories coming in droves for the 28-year-old racing phenom.

After laying down the fastest qualifying lap of the night with a circuit of 11.459 seconds around the third-mile clay oval, Larson placed fourth in the fourth 10-lap heat race and won the second four-lap dash to start on the outside of the front row for the $26,000-to-win Rayce Rudeen Foundation 35-lap A main.

The race got off to a rough start as Austin McCarl of Altoona, Iowa flipped into the turn two catch fence on the initial start and Tyler Courtney of Indianapolis, Ind. spun in turn four on the second start attempt.

When the race finally got under way, polesitter Gio Scelzi of Fresno, Calif. bolted into the lead with Larson following in second and Gio’s brother Dominic Scelzi of Fresno, Calif., who started third, settling into third in the early going.

With Gio Scelzi running the cushion, Larson worked the low and middle groove to reel in the leader on lap 6. On lap 7, the leaders encountered heavy lapped traffic, which allowed Larson to close even further.

On lap 12, Larson pounced as he pulled off a well-executed slide job in turn four to wrestle the led away from Gio Scelzi. Meanwhile, Kerry Madsen of St. Mary’s, New South Wales, Australia, who started seventh, was marching his way to the front of the pack along the high groove.

On lap 14, Madsen worked his way into fourth before charged past Dominic Scelzi into third on lap 16 and eventually powering around Gio Scelzi for second in thick lapped traffic.

As Larson appeared to be biding his time in getting around the slower car of Tyler Courtney for a number of laps, Madsen closed to within two car lengths of Larson on lap 22. However, once Larson cleared Courtney on lap 24, he quickly pulled away from Madsen to build up a quarter-straightaway cushion on lap 26.

Larson, who has six NASCAR Cup Series victories to his credit, skillfully worked his way through lapped traffic over the final nine laps to score his 20th career All Star Series victory and his 11th triumph in 17 All Star starts in 2020 in the third-ever All Star event to be contested at The Plymouth Dirt Track.

“This feels really good,” Larson said in victory lane. “I had to earn it for sure. The track was extremely technical and a lot of fun. The curb was just not going anywhere and it was getting trickier and trickier to run. The lappers were all so even that I couldn’t get by for the longest time, but I was able to follow Sunshine [Tyler Courtney] past a few guys, so that helped.

“I was just making a lot of mistakes, but the track was tough, so I didn’t know how close second was to me,” he said. “Once I got past Tyler though, I felt like I got a good rhythm going again and lapped some pretty decent cars there toward the end. We just had a really good car tonight. It’s not often that you get to chase this kind of money in Sprint Cars, especially this year, so thanks to the Rudeen family and what they’ve done for this race. It’s really cool.”

Madsen, who appeared that he might overtake Larson for the lead in the middle stages of the race, finished a full straightaway behind in second at the finish.

“We had a great race car and we were really running Kyle down for the lead,” Madsen said after the race. “I was trying to be patient and pick my spots, but it just didn’t turn out to be our night.”

Gio Scelzi placed third after a strong run in the early laps of the race.

“I felt pretty good in the early going running the top then Kyle got past me on the bottom, which surprised me because I didn’t think the bottom would be that good,” Gio Scelzi said. “I just have to do a better job in these races. Third is not bad, but we want to win.”

Dominic Scelzi came home fourth and fourth starter Cory Eliason of Visalia, Calif. placed fifth.

Two-time Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee moved into sole possession of first place on the all-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main win list by capturing his 24th division main event win at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Thursday, July 30. – RC Custom Design photo

In the 26-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main, 2018 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Justin Miller of Plymouth, who started on the pole, second starter Kurt Davis and fourth starter Adam Miller of Plymouth dueled three-wide for the entire first lap before Justin Miller surged ahead in turn one on lap 2.

One lap later, Davis ventured up to the high groove to challenge Miller for the top spot. Miller and Davis battled side by side over the next three circuits before Miller eventually regained control of the lead just as the leaders hit slower traffic on lap 10.

Meanwhile, current PDTR 360 Sprint Car point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who started fifth, vaulted into third on lap 15 before surging past Davis into second on lap 18.

One lap later, rookie Alex Pokorski of West Bend spun in turn two to bring out the first of three caution flags. On the restart, Davis bolted back up to the high line to power around Arenz into second before surging past Miller into the lead in turn four on lap 20.

The second caution flag appeared on lap 21 when Adam Miller and Matt Vandevere of Zion, Ill. spun in turn four. One lap later, the third and final caution flag flew when Tyler Davis of South Milwaukee spun in turn two.

On the restart, Arenz charged in to apply heavy pressure along the high line as Davis switched to the inside lane. On the final lap, Arenz pulled even with Davis entering turn one. Davis battled back to regain the top spot going into turn three.

Arenz didn’t back down as he reeled in Davis in the final corner and pulled alongside heading the checkered flag. However, Davis held on to nip Arenz by a half-car length to secure his 24th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main victory and record 62nd career MSA main event win. The triumph pushed Davis past Danny Schlafer of Sussex and to sole possession of first place on the all-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main win list.

Arenz placed second, 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh moved up from his sixth starting spot to finish third, Justin Miller finished fourth and seventh starter Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum placed fifth.

The sixth PDTR racing program of the 2020 season drew a total of 68 cars, including 41 All Star Circuit of Champions-Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Cars and 27 PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Cars.

The PDTR 360 Sprint Car, Late Model, Grand National and B Mod divisions will be in action on Saturday, Aug. 1 with trophies sponsored by Pedal Down Promotions.

Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with qualifying at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

For all remaining 2020 PDTR races, Dennis Darovich of Sheboygan Falls will have his new book “RPM – The Golden Era of Plymouth Dirt Track Racing” for sale under the grandstand.

A portion of the money collected from the sale of the book will be donated to Plymouth Dirt Track Racing.

ALL STAR CIRCUIT OF CHAMPIONS-INTERSTATE RACING ASSOCIATION 410 SPRINT CARS

 QUALIFYING

1, Kyle Larson 11.450 2, Gio Scelzi 11.575 3, Dominic Scelzi 4, Kerry Madsen 11.682 5, Cory Eliason 11.707 6, Tyler Courtney 11.720 7, Cale Thomas 11.760 8, Aaron Reutzel 11.764 9, Sam Haftertepe Jr. 11.791 10, Scotty Thiel 11.850 11, Parker Price-Miller 11.850 12, Terry McCarl 11.878 13, Jeremy Schultz 11.878 14, Josh Baughman 11.917 15, Hunter Schuerenberg 11.922 16, Zeb Wise 11.941 17, Paul McMahan 11.979 18, Skylar Gee 12.006 19, Austin McCarl 12.012 20, Greg Wilson 12.041 21, Bill Balog 12.087 22, Russel Borland 12.115, 23, Mike Reinke 12.125 24, Dave Uttech 12.149 25, Gerard McIntrye 12.185, 26, Jake Blackhurst 12.246 27, Shane Stewart 12.291 28, Robbie Pribnow 12.445 29, Todd King 12.46 30, Scotty Neitzel 12.520 31, Josh Walter 12.632 32, Sean Rayhall 12.697 33, Matt Vandevere 12.731 34, Danny Schlafer 12.739 35, Kris Spitz 12.739 36, John Fahl 12.778 37, Scott Biertzer 12.956 38, Bryce Schmitt 12.988 39, Hunter Custer 13.198 40, Wayne Modjeski 13.288 41, Paige Polyak no time.

HEAT 1

1, Paul McMahan 2, Josh Baughman 3, Cory Eliason 4, Scotty Thiel 5, Russel Borland 6, Dave Uttech 7, Mike Reinke 8, Shane Stewart 9, John Fahl.

HEAT 2

1, Zeb Wise 2, Hunter Schuerenberg 3, Cale Thomas 4, Gio Scelzi 5, Greg Wilson 6, Gerard McIntyre Jr. 8, Hunter Custer 9, Bryce Schmitt.

HEAT 3

1, Austin McCarl 2, Aaron Reutzel 3, Scotty Neitzel 4, Kerry Madsen 5, Danny Schlafer 6, Scott Biertzer 7, Sean Rayhall 8, Wayne Modjeski.

HEAT 4

1, Jake Blackhurst 2, Parker Price-Miller 3, Dominic Scelzi 4, Kyle Larson 5, Robbie Pribnow 6, Matt Vandevere 7. Josh Walter 8, Paige Polyak (DNS).

HEAT 5

1, Jeremy Schultz 2, Terry McCarl 3, Sam Hafertepe Jr. 4, Skylar Gee 5, Bill Balog 6, Tyler Courtney 7, Todd King 8, Kris Spitz.

C MAIN

1, Mike Reinke 2, Todd King 3, Sean Rayhall 4, Josh Walter 5, Kris Spitz 6, Hunter Custer 7, Wayne Modjeski 8, John Fahl 9, Bryce Schmidt 10, Paige Polyak (DNS), 11, Shane Stewart (DNS).

B MAIN

1, Tyler Courtney 2, Bill Balog, 3, Greg Wilson 4, Danny Schlafer 5 Russel Borland 6, Robbie Pribnow 7, Gerard McIntyre Jr. 8, Dave Uttech 9, Mike Reinke 10, Matt Vandevere 11, Todd King 12, Scott Biertzer.

DASH 1

1, Gio Scelzi 2, Dominic Scelzi 3, Zeb Wise 4, Kerry Madsen 5, Jake Blackhurst 6, Sam Hafertepe Jr.

DASH 2

1, Kyle Larson 2, Cory Eliason 3, Austin McCarl 4, Paul McMahan 5, Cale Thomas 6, Jeremy Schultz.

A MAIN

1, Kyle Larson 2, Kerry Madsen 3, Gio Scelzi 4, Dominic Scelzi 5, Cory Eliason 6, Paul McMahan 7, Zeb Wise 8, Parker Price-Miller 9, Cale Thomas 10, Josh Baughman 11, Aaron Reutzel 12, Sam Hafertepe Jr. 13, Skylar Gee 14, Tyler Courtney 15, Jeremy Schultz 16, Bill Balog 17, Scotty Thiel 18, Scotty Neitzel 19, Greg Wilson 20, Jake Blackhurst 21, Terry McCarl 22, Hunter Schuerenberg 23, Danny Schlafer 24, Austin McCarl.

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANT VIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Justin Miller 2, Jack Vanderboom 3, Shane Wenninger 4, Brandon McMullen 5, Will Gerrits 6, Tyler Brabant 7, Doug Wondra 8, Austin Hartmann 9, Kevin Seidler.

HEAT 2

1, Kurt Davis 2, Tony Wondra 3, Kevin Karnitz 4, Travis Arenz 5, Tim Haddy 6, Mike Decker 7, Bill Taylor 8, Alex Pokorski 9, Lance Fassbender.

HEAT 3

1, Ben Schmidt 2, Adam Miller 3, Tyler Davis 4, Nick Daywalt 5, Matt Vandevere 6, Blake Wondra 7, Chris Larson 8, Preston Ruh 9, Scott Armstrong.

A MAIN

1, Kurt Davis 2, Travis Arenz 3, Brandon McMullen 4, Justin Miller 5, Shane Wenninger 6, Ben Schmidt 7, Kevin Karnitz 8, Jack Vanderboom 9, Tony Wondra 10, Nick Daywalt, 11, Bill Taylor 12, Will Gerrits 13, Tyler Brabant 14, Adam Miller 15, Tim Haddy 16, Alex Pokorski 17, Matt Vandevere 18, Blake Wondra 19, Mike Decker 20, Preston Ruh 21, Chris Larson 22, Tyler Davis 23, Austin Hartmann 24, Doug Wondra.

Rogler explores adult medieval fantasy world with ‘Rendered Soul’

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

“Rendered Soul” by Bob Rogler has been released by publisher Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis.

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 28, 2020 – Nearly six months after the release of his debut novel “Heart of Light Book One-Madea’s Fate,” Bob Rogler is back with his second book “Rendered Soul,” geared to adult readers with a medieval fantasy adventure setting serving as the backdrop for the fast-paced heroes-versus-villains storyline.

Published by Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis, Rogler’s second novel features a world filled with magic and monsters, good versus evil, dark against the light. In other words, a place where anything is possible.

“‘Rendered Soul’ take place in a magical realm called the Northrend,” Rogler said. “It is same world which is part of the Madea’s Fate Trilogy and my first fantasy novel ‘Heart of Light Book One-Madea’s Fate.’”

While the Madea’s Fate Trilogy is directed at young adult readers, Rogler is quick to point out that “Rendered Soul” is much more graphic in nature and designed for an adult audience.

“‘Rendered Soul’ is written for adults in mind,” Rogler said. “There are disturbing scenes and descriptions of violence, which set the backdrop for the evil committed by the villain Bëtenoir. Yet, the balance can be restored. It is in eight that the goddess Selorain blesses those devoted to her. Not only with another chance at life, but with the ability to protect those who cannot stand for themselves.”

Rogler says “Rendered Soul” provides a fantasy adventure reading experience that offers a bit of something for every reader to enjoy, especially those that relish the complex eternal conflict between good and evil.

“The Northrend is a vast realm defined by only one’s imagination,” Rogler said. “Darkness and light forever seek dominance in a world where love or hate gives rise to heroes and villains.”

Bob Rogler has released his second fantasy novel “Rendered Soul,” published by Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis.

Rogler, who is the head custodian at Manitowoc Lincoln High School in Manitowoc, Wis, is a resident of School Hill, Wis. where he lives with his wife, Jennifer, son, Logan and daughter, Gabrielle.

“Rendered Soul” is now available for purchase for $20 at Amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com or by contacting Bob Rogler directly at rogler50@yahoo.com, along with Rogler’s first book “Heart of Light Book One-Madea’s Fate,” which was released in February 2020.

Additional retail outlets where “Rendered Soul” can be purchased, along with book signings and appearances will be announced soon on the Heart of Light Facebook page, as well as the Pedal Down Promotions website, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram social media pages in the near future.

Readers are encouraged to write a review of “Rendered Soul” on Amazon.com and Goodreads.

For more information, contact Pedal Down Promotions via email at pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, by phone at 920-323-7970 or by visiting www.pedaldownpromo.com.