By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 25, 2020 – Another hot and humid evening for racing produced some even steamier action on the track as Plymouth Dirt Track Racing staged its fifth racing program of the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds third-mile clay oval in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, July 25.

Point leader Travis Arenz of Sheboygan claimed his first A-main victory of the season in the 25-lap Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 360 Sprint Car A main, four-time PDTR Late Model track champion Brad Mueller of Random Lake racked up his A-main first victory of the season in the 25-lap Gasroots Project Late Model main event, Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee notched his second straight Klips N Tips 25-lap Grand National A-main triumph and Sheboygan’s Steve Lorier rolled to his initial A-main win of the 2020 campaign in the time limit-shortened 22-lap B Mod A main.

Polesitter Brandon Berth of Cascade of grabbed the lead on the drop of the green flag in the PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main, while 2018 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Justin Miller of Plymouth worked the low groove to pass outside front row starter Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum for second on lap 2.

Berth held a sold cushion over Miller before the first of two caution flags appeared on lap 5 when Waldo’s Chris Clayton spun in turn three. On the restart, 2011 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove, who started fourth, used the high groove to challenge the low-riding Miller for second on lap 6.

One lap later, Tim Haddy of Waupun spun in turn two to bring out the second and final caution flag of the race. When the race resumed, Schmidt again worked the high groove to pass Miller for second on lap 7, while two-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee, who started fifth, also pounded the high line to move into third on lap 8.

By lap 12, Berth had built up a half-straightaway cushion over Schmidt. Two laps later, 11^th starter Travis Arenz used the preferred low line to work underneath Miller into third before quickly setting his sights on the leaders.

Berth began to encounter slower traffic on lap 16, which allowed Schmidt and Arenz to close the gap significantly. On lap 18, Arenz dove under Schmidt for second before using another low move in turn one on lap 19 to wrestle the lead away from Berth in heavy lapped traffic.

Arenz then pulled away over the final six laps to secure his second career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and eighth career Midwest Sprint Car Association main event win by a half-straightaway margin.

After the race, Arenz was penalized for passing below the infield track tires, which resulted in the loss of points and pay. Despite the penalty, Arenz was still credited with the victory.

“I was told by an MSA/PDTR official that I was the race winner, but I am getting third-place pay and points because I advanced a spot earlier in the race with the left front over the tires,” Arenz said. “The reason they gave me the win was because there were a lot of other cars passing below the tires tonight and not just me. It’s not how I want to win. I really wish we had a two-lane track like last week. Unfortunately, the bottom was so fast, it made it difficult to pass.”

Berth came home second to record a career-best 360 Sprint Car A main showing, Schmidt finished third, Miller wound up fourth and 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh worked his way up from the 10^th starting spot to round out the top five.

In his first appearance of the year at the Plymouth Dirt Track, polesitter Tony Peterson of Mukwonago seized the lead on the opening lap, while outside front row starter Brad Mueller slipped into second.

The lone caution of the race appeared on lap 2 when Eric Michaels of Cleveland spun to a stop in turn four. On the restart, Mueller began to reel in Peterson along the low line, while 2014 PDTR Late Model champion Mitch McGrath of Waukesha, who started fifth, worked the high groove to secure third on lap 6. After Mueller, Peterson and McGrath went into turn four on lap 6 three wide for the lead, Mueller emerged as the race leader in turn on lap 7 with McGrath sliding into second.

On lap 9, Mark Rose of Dorchester, who started eighth, passed Peterson to assume third. As McGrath continued to stick primarily to the high grove in an attempt to track down the low-riding Mueller, the leaders hit slower traffic starting on lap 19.

With lapped cars racing in the preferred low groove, Mueller had to slow his pace a bit, which allowed McGrath to close in the final five laps. However, Mueller held off McGrath’s advances by three car lengths to secure his 21^st career PDTR Late Model A-main victory.

McGrath had to settle for second, Rose placed third, fourth starter Turk Letizia of Milwaukee finished fourth and New London’s Justin Ritchie charged from his 16^th starting spot to place fifth.

Outside front row starter Aaron Stolp outpowered 2008 PDTR Grand National champ Matt Yancey of Sheboygan, who started on the pole, to pace the opening lap of the 25-lap Grand National main event.

On lap 3, the first of three caution flags appeared when Steven Weber of Plymouth and defending PDTR Grand National champion Tyler Kulow of Plymouth spun in turn two.

On the restart, third starter Derek Kaat of Plymouth, two-time PDTR Grand National champ Don Sorce Jr. of West Allis, who started fifth, and eighth starter Luke Scholten of Oostburg dueled three wide in turn three on lap 4 for third with Scholten taking over the third spot.

Two laps later, the second caution appeared when Jeff Muehlbauer of Elkhart Lake stopped along the frontstretch. On the restart, Scholten when high to seize second on lap 7. Three laps later, Sorce Jr. maneuvered past Yancey to gain third in the running order.

With Stolp in clear command at the front of the field, Sorce Jr. closed on Scholten over the final 10 laps, but he could not pull off the pass.

Stolp went on to secure his second career and second consecutive PDTR Grand National A main victory by a half-straightaway margin over Scholten. Sorce Jr. was third, Yancy placed fourth and Kaat completed the top five.

Polesitter Steve Lorier outpowered outside front row starter Jason Schilling of Greenfield to lead the opening lap of the B Mod A main before fourth starter Jesse Cullen of Chilton seized second on lap 2.

The first of six caution flags appeared on lap 3 when Spencer Long of Sheboygan Falls spun in turn two. Two laps later a red flag appeared when Rory Welch of Grafton, Jesse Jakubowski of Sheboygan Falls, James Rautmann of Howards Grove and David McCutcheon made hard contact near the backstretch wall.

On the restart, Cullen and Schilling waged a heated duel for second before the third caution period on lap 7 when Patrick Hansen of Sheboygan Falls spun in turn three. When the race resumed, sixth starter Elijah Koenig of Beaver Dam made his presence felt as he moved in third on lap 7 and then advanced to second in turn two on lap 8.

One lap later, Koenig was quickly closing on Lorier for the lead, while defending PDTR B Mod champ Tim Warner of Fond du Lac worked up from his fifth starting spot into third on lap 9.

The fourth caution flag appeared on lap 10 when Patrick Hanson spun again in turn four. Following the restart, Warner and Koenig waged a torrid battle for second, which culminated with Koenig seizing control on the runner-up spot on lap 13.

The fifth caution flag was presented on lap 16 when Gary Glander of Sheboygan Falls spun in turn four. On the restart, Koenig charged in to pressure Lorier for the top spot along the low line. Koenig pulled alongside Lorier for the lead on lap 22 when the sixth caution was displayed for a three-car incident in turn two, which brought the race to an end due to the 25-minute per A-main race time limit.

Lorier secured his second career PDTR B Mod A-main victory with Koenig finishing second and Warner in third. Schilling ended the race in fourth, but was disqualified after failing to meet the minimum weight requirement following the race. Rookie Trevor Frank of Sheboygan, who started third, earned a career-best fourth-place finish and Cullen rounded out the top five.

Preston Ruh of Elkhart Lake won the PDTR 360 Sprint Car B main.

The fifth PDTR racing program of the 2020 season, which was sponsored by Hopf Farms, drew a total of 86 cars, including 31 360 Sprint Cars, 17 Late Models, 15 Grand Nationals and 23 B Mods.

This week will feature two events in three days at The Plymouth Dirt Track as the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions joins with the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series for the second annual Rayce Rudeen Foundation event on Thursday, July 30 and the regular PDTR program presented by Pedal Down Promotions is set to take place two nights later on Saturday, Aug. 1.

The July 30 event, which was rescheduled from May 26, will feature the highest-paying Winged 410 Sprint Car race in Wisconsin history as a cool $26,000 will go to the winner. The large purse is expected to attract a stellar field featuring many of the country’s top Sprint Car drivers.

Last season Australian standout James McFadden captured the victory aboard retired NASCAR star Kasey Kahne’s No. 9 machine in the first All Star Circuit of Champions Sprint Car A-main at the Plymouth facility since 1995. The July 30 all-Sprint Car event will also feature the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars.

Among the drivers expected to compete are retired All Star Series owner and three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart of Columbus, Ohio, who won last year’s Rayce Rudeen event at 34 Raceway in West Burlington, Iowa as well as an IRA event at The Plymouth Dirt Track last Aug. 31, two-time defending All Star Series point champ Aaron Reutzel of Clute, Texas, two-time All Star Series champion Greg Wilson of Benton Ridge, Ohio and nine-time IRA champ Bill Balog of Hartland, along with All Star and IRA series regulars Cory Eliason of Visalia, Calif., Jeb Wise of Angola, Ind., Paul McMahan of Nashville, Tenn., two-time IRA champion Scotty Neitzel of Beaver Dam, former IRA champ Jeremy Schultz of Beaver Dam, former IRA champ Jake Blackhurst of Hanna City, Ill. and Russel Borland of Kewaskum.

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

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.

 

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANTVIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Justin Miller 2, Ben Schmidt 3, Travis Arenz 4, Mike Decker 5, Preston Ruh 6, Scott Conger 7, Bill Taylor 8, Nich Melis.

HEAT 2

1, Shane Wenninger 2, Anthony Knierim 3, Kevin Karnitz 4, Chris Clayton 5, Tyler Tischendorf 6, Lance Fassbender 7, Scott Armstrong 8, Blake Wondra

HEAT 3

1, Brandon Berth 2, Tyler Davis 3, Brandon McMullen 4, Tim Haddy 5, Doug Wondra 6, Justin Erickson 7, Nick Daywalt 8, Austin Hartmann.

HEAT 4

1, Kurt Davis 2, Adam Miller 3, Davey Ray 4, Will Gerrits 5, Tony Wondra 6, Tyler Brabant 7, Josh Teunissen (DNS).

B MAIN

1, Preston Ruh 2, Justin Erickson 3, Nick Daywalt 4, Lance Fassbender 5, Tony Wondra 6, Bill Taylor 7, Doug Wondra 8, Tyler Brabant 9, Blake Wondra 10, Scott Armstrong 11, Mike Decker 12, Scott Conger 13, Austin Hartmann 14, Nich Melis (DNS) 15, Josh Teunissen (DNS).

A MAIN

1, Travis Arenz 2, Brandon Berth 3, Ben Schmidt 4, Justin Miller 5, Brandon McMullen 6, Kurt Davis 7, Justin Erickson 8, Tyler Davis 9, Lance Fassbender 10, Will Gerrits 11, Anthony Knierim 12, Davey Ray 13, Nick Daywalt 14, Tyler Tischendorf 15, Kevin Karnitz 16, Tony Wondra 17, Christ Clayton 18, Tim Haddy 19, Bill Taylor 20, Preston Ruh 21, Adam Miller 22, Shane Wenninger.

GASROOTS PROJECT LATE MODELS

HEAT 1

1, Mitch McGrath 2, Jim Schmidt 3, Eric Michaels 4, Ted Dolhun Sr. 5, Sawyer Specht 6, Charlie Schmidt 7, Billy Rezutek 8, Justin Ritchie 9, Joe Bongiorno.

HEAT 2

1, Turk Letizia 2, Brad Mueller 3, Tony Peterson 4, Mark Rose 5, Justin Schmidt 6, Tim Buhler 7, Kevin Baldry 8, Chad Ludwigson.

A MAIN

1, Brad Mueller 2, Mitch McGrath 3, Mark Rose 4, Turk Letizia 5, Justin Ritchie 6, Justin Schmidt 7, Jim Schmidt 8, Charlie Schmidt, 9, Tim Buhler 10, Joe Bongiorno 11, Ted Dolhun Sr. 12, Kevin Baldry 13, Billy Rezutek 14, Tony Peterson 15, Eric Michaels 16, Sawyer Specht 17, Chad Ludwigson.

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONALS

HEAT 1

1, Luke Scholten 2, Don Sorce Jr. 3, Steven Weber 4, Derek Kaat 5, Brett Wenzel 6, Paul Perronne 7, Eric Lingford 8, Brad Weiss.

HEAT 2

1, Donny Kulow 2, Dick Hed 3, Aaron Stolp 4, Matt Yancey 5, Tyler Kulow 6, Jeff Muehlbauer 7, Ross Rate.

A MAIN

1, Aaron Stolp 2, Luke Scholten 3, Don Sorce Jr. 4, Matt Yancey 5, Derek Kaat 6, Dick Hed 7, Steven Weber 8, Donny Kulow 9, Brett Wenzel 10, Brad Weiss 11, Eric Lingford 12, Paul Perronne 13, Ross Rate 14, Jeff Muehlbauer 15, Tyler Kulow.

CELLCOM B MODS

HEAT 1

1, Steve Lorier 2, Jesse Cullen 3, Tim Thrun 4, Justin Bauer 5, Craig Gessner 6, Andy Welter 7, Jesse Jakubowski 8, Travis Schmidt.

HEAT 2

1, Tim Warner 2, James Rautmann 3, Barry Maas 4, Spencer Long 5, Gary Glander 6, Jim Fischer 7, Rory Welch 8, David McCutcheon.

HEAT 3

1, Elijah Koenig 2, Jason Schilling 3, Trevor Frank 4, Patrick Hanson 5, Phil Campanella 6, Andy Singer 7, Jonathan Hitsman.

A MAIN

1, Steve Lorier 2, Elijah Koenig 3, Tim Warner 4, Trevor Frank 5, Jesse Cullen, 6, Justin Bauer 7, Jonathan Hitsman 8, Tim Thrun 9, Andy Welter 10, Spencer Long 11, Rory Welch 12, David McCutcheon 13, Craig Gessner 14, Andy Singer 15, Gary Glander 16, Jim Fischer 17, Phil Campanella 18, Barry Maas 19, Patrick Hanson 20, James Rautmann 21, Jesse Jakubowski 22, Travis Schmidt (DNS), 23, Jason Schilling (DQ).

McMullen, Stear claim A-main victories

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 18, 2020 – Nine-time Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association champion Bill Balog of Hartland showcased his considerable skill behind the wheel of a 410 Winged Sprint Car by outmaneuvering Sheboygan’s Scotty Thiel in a heart-pumping, back-and-forth battle over the final five circuits on the way to his third IRA A-main victory of the 2020 season in the 30-lap headliner Saturday, July 18 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Former PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh captured his third A-main victory of the 2020 campaign in the 25-lap Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car main event, while Ion Stear of Hebron, Ill. notched a wire-to-wire victory in the 20-lap Interstate Racing Association Lightning Sprints A main.

In the 30-lap IRA 410 Sprint Car Series headliner, Balog grabbed the lead on the opening lap from the pole position, while Thiel, who started on the outside of the front row, settled into second.

Balog built up a solid half-straightaway lead in the early going before the leaders encountered lapped traffic on lap 8, which allowed Thiel to close the gap drastically.

On lap 11, Balog found himself boxed in behind a pair of slower cars along the inside groove, which allowed Thiel to use the outside line of the well-prepared, multi-groove track surface to power into the lead in turn one on lap 12.

Once out front, Thiel pulled away to a full straightaway cushion over Balog until the first of five caution flags was displayed for a spin in turn two involving IRA rookie Jack Routson of Waterman, Ill. on lap 17. Three laps later, Routson spun again in turn four right in front of Thiel, who had to take evasive action to avoid getting collected.

Thiel again bolted away to a big lead on the ensuing restart and had built up another full straightaway advantage over Balog when a red flag was displayed when Matt Vandevere of Zion, Ill. flipped in turn two on lap 25.

On the restart, Thiel again held the advantage over Balog, while two-time IRA champion Scotty Neitzel of Beaver Dam, who started third, moved low to duel with USAC Sprint Car standout Chase Stockon of Fort Branch, Ind., who started fifth, for third.

The fourth caution period came on lap 26 when Scott Biertzer of West Bend stopped in turn two. Balog pulled off what proved to be the winning move on the restart has he ripped off a well-executed slide job in turn two to wrestle the lead away from Thiel, who battled back in turn four to briefly regain the top spot. However, Balog charged back in turn two on the following lap to take the lead for good.

The final caution flag appeared on lap 27 when Todd Daun of Pleasant Prairie spun in turn two. Thiel tried to execute a slide job of his own in turn two on the ensuing restart. However, Balog held strong along the high groove to maintain the top spot.

Thiel was not done yet as he utilized the low line on the final circuit to nearly pull even with Balog in turn four. However, Balog held on to nip Thiel at the finish line by one car length en route to his 116^th career IRA A-main victory.

“I got stuck in the middle there with the lapped cars twice and got boxed in,” Balog said. “He [Thiel] was able to get around and then he set out on a pretty good pace to build up a big lead. I didn’t think we would get him, honestly. We were just a little too tight for most of the race.

“On that restart, I just pulled the wing back and slid him in turn two and it worked out,” he said. “On the last lap, I actually saw his front wheel coming out of turn four and that was pretty intense. It was a great race. Those kind of races are what we are here to do.”

Despite leading much of the race, Thiel had to settle for second.

“That was probably the most fun I’ve had racing with Bill,” Thiel said. “We really pushed each other to the limits. On that second to last caution, I think he timed out what I had been doing on the previous restarts and pulled off that slider to get the lead. I tried fighting back and continued to push hard, but I also wanted to race clean. We just have to improve a little bit to get one spot better and beat the 17B next time.”

Stockon, who is a non-wing regular on the USAC National Sprint Car tour, turned a solid third-place showing in his first appearance at The Plymouth Dirt Track.

“This a first-time experience for me here at this track,” Stockon said. “We had a good race car tonight. I’m not that used to running with wings and these guys race hard and clean. It was a fun 30 laps.”

Neitzel placed fourth and former IRA champion Jeremy Schultz placed fifth after starting seventh.

In the 25-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main, polesitter Tim Haddy of Waupun took the lead on the opening lap with outside front row starter Scott Conger of Eagle slipping into second with fourth starter Brandon McMullen third.

On lap 4, McMullen used the high line to power around Conger into second. Haddy began to encounter slower traffic on lap 10, which allowed McMullen to reel in Haddy considerably.

Three laps later, McMullen dove low to slip underneath the high-riding Haddy for the lead in turn two. The three-time Midwest Sprint Car Association champion wasted no time in building up a solid lead along the middle to low grooves.

Haddy remained within striking distance in the second half of the race and drew within two car lengths of McMullen on the final circuit. However, McMullen held on to secure his 18^th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 26^th career MSA main event triumph to move into sole possession of third place on the all-time MSA win list and fourth on the all-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main win list in the caution-free, non-stop race.

“Tim was really good in clean air early in the race, but I could tell when we got to the lapped cars that with the air getting taken off the wing, he was getting a little tight,” McMullen said. “I tried to work the middle and through the bottom and it worked out for us tonight.”

Haddy finished second, Travis Arenz of Sheboygan, who started seventh, placed third, third starter Anthony Knierim of Franksville placed fourth and Conger rounded out the top five.

In the 20-lap IRA Lightning Sprints A main, Ion Stear took the lead on the drop of the green flag from the pole. Starting on lap 6, Stear worked skillfully through lapped traffic to extend his lead.

The first of two red flags appeared on lap 11 when Andrew Kiedrowski of Union Grove flipped in turn one. Following the restart, Mark Heinert of Oak Creek, who started second, moved in to pressure Stear, while fifth starter Nick Petska of Spring Grove, Ill. worked his way into third on lap 15.

On lap 18, Heinert brought out another red flag when he flipped following contact with a slower car in turn two. Following a green-white-checkered flag restart, Stear held strong to secure the victory.

“The car felt real good throughout the race,” Stear said. “This place usually gets dry slick, but it was a really good racing surface tonight.”

Petska placed second, C.J. Malueg of Johnsburg, Ill. finished third after starting sixth, defending IRA Lightning Sprints champ Mike Neau of Pleasant Prairie finished fourth after starting third and Jeff Schmidt of Slinger placed fifth after starting fourth.

Sean Rayhall of Woodstock, Ga. earn the fast qualifier award in IRA 410 Sprint Car Series time trails with a lap of 12.146 seconds. Balog and Thiel won the two IRA four-lap dashes to earn front row starting spots in the A main.

The all-Sprint Car program attracted a total field of 75 cars, including 23 IRA 410 Sprint Cars, 36 PDTR/MSA 360 Sprint Cars and 16 IRA Lightning Sprints.

Next Saturday, July 25 The Plymouth Dirt Track will host its 360 Sprint Car, Late Model, Grand National and B Mod divisions.

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

BUMPER TO BUMPER IRA 410 SPRINT CARS

QUALIFYING

1, Sean Rayhall 12.146 2, Scotty Thiel 12.152 3, Joey Moughan 12.193 4, Bill Balog 12.267 5, Chase Stockon 12.273 6, Todd King 12.273 7, Jake Blackhurst 12.292 8, Jeremy Schultz 12.465 9, Jordan Goldesberry 12.511 10, Dave Uttech 12.664 11, Russel Borland 12.734 12, Scotty Neitzel 12.748 13, Scott Biertzer 12.811 14, Matt Vandevere 12.819 15, Jack Routson 12.839 16, Robbie Pribnow 12.927 17, Kris Spitz 13.065 18, Wayne Modjeski 13.072 19, Todd Daun 13.076 20, Josh Walter 13.118 21, Johnny Fahl 13.248 22, Chris Larson 13.742 23, Hunter Custer 15.537.

HEAT 1

1, Jake Blackhurst 2, Bill Balog 3, Dave Uttech 4, Robbie Pribnow 5, Scott Biertzer 6, Sean Rayhall 7, Todd Daun 8, Chris Larson.

HEAT 2

1, Scotty Thiel 2, Chase Stockon 3, Jeremy Schultz 4, Russel Borland 5, Matt Vandevere 6, Kris Spitz 7, Josh Walter 8, Hunter Custer.

HEAT 3

1, Scotty Neitzel 2, Jordan Goldesberry 3, Joey Moughan 4, Jack Routson 5, Todd King 6, Wayne Modjeski 7, Johnny Fahl 8,

DASH 1

1, Bill Balog 2, Scotty Neitzel 3, Chase Stockton 4, Jeremy Schultz 5, Jake Blackhurst.

DASH 2

1, Scotty Thiel 2, Jordan Goldesberry 3, Sean Rayhall 4, Todd King 5, Joey Moughan.

A MAIN

1, Bill Balog 2, Scotty Thiel 3, Chase Stockon 4, Scotty Neitzel 5, Jeremy Schultz 6, Joey Moughan 7, Jordan Goldesberry 8, Jake Blackhurst 9, Todd King 10, Dave Uttech 11, Robbie Pribnow 12, Kris Spitz 13, Wayne Modjeski 14, Johnny Fahl 15, Chris Larson 16, Todd Daun 17, Scott Biertzer 18, Matt Vandevere 19, Hunter Custer 20, Josh Walter 21, Jack Routson 22, Sean Rayhall 23, Russel Borland.

KRISTINE HARTMANN REALTY 360 SPRINT CARS

HEAT 1

1, Ben Schmidt 2, Justin Erickson 3, Matt Vandevere 4, Justin Miller 5, Lance Fassbender 6, Nick Daywalt 7, Blake Wondra 8, Preston Ruh 9, Scott Armstrong.

HEAT 2

1, Will Gerrits 2, Brandon McMullen 3, Jack Vanderboom 4, Tony Wondra 5, Scotty Neitzel 6, Bill Taylor 7, Mike Decker 8, Austin Hartmann 9, Adam Miller.

HEAT 3

1, Scott Conger 2, Anthony Knierim 3, Shane Wenninger 4, Brandon Berth 5, Tyler Brabant 6, Nich Melis 7, Alex Pokorski 8, Tyler Davis 9, Kevin Seidler.

HEAT 4

1, Travis Arenz 2, Tim Haddy 3, Kevin Karnitz 4, Tyler Tischendorf 5, Chris Clayton 6, Josh Teunissen 7, Kurt Davis 8, Ken Schmick 9, Doug Wondra.

B MAIN 1

1, Brandon Berth 2, Tyler Tischendorf 3, Preston Ruh 4, Blake Wondra 5, Mike Decker 6, Kevin Seidler 7, Austin Hartmann 8, Doug Wondra 9, Ken Schmick 10, Josh Teunissen (DNS).

B MAIN 2

1, Kurt Davis 2, Nick Daywalt 3, Chris Clayton 4, Tyler Davis 5, Bill Taylor 6, Nich Melis 7, Alex Pokorski 8, Tyler Brabant 9, Scott Armstrong 10, Adam Miller (DNS).

A MAIN

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

IRA LIGHTNING SPRINTS

HEAT 1

1, Ion Stear 2, Mark Heinert 3, C.J. Maleug 4, Jeff Schmidt 5, Shawn McGill 6, Bob Jeziorski 7, Max Brannam

HEAT 2

1, Josh Rehberg 2, Nick Petska 3, Mike Neau 4, Andrew Kiedrowski 5, Kevin Fredericksen 6, Phil Brannam 7, Ron Curasi 8, John Kirk

A MAIN

1, Ion Stear 2, Nick Petska 3, C.J. Malueg 4, Mike Neau 5, Jeff Schmidt 6, Kevin Fredericksen 7, Josh Rehberg 8, Bob Jeriorski 9, Shawn McGill 10, Phil Brannam 11, Max Brannam 12, Ron Curasi 13, Mark Heinert 14, John Kirk 15, Andrew Kiedrowski 16, Ron Brannam.

Stolp, Warner score PDTR A-main triumphs

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 11, 2020 – Two-time and defending Morton Buildings World of Outlaws Late Model series champion Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill. ran his winnings streak at The Plymouth Dirt Track to three straight as he scored a convincing victory in the 50-lap main event at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, July 11.

The third appearance of the World of Outlaws Late Model Series at the Plymouth third-mile clay oval drew a strong field of 39 competitors, but its was Sheppard who stood tall above the competition by earning his 35^th career series fast qualifier award, winning the first 10-lap heat race and steering his Valvoline-sponsored blue No. 1 machine to his eighth A-main victory of the 2020 season and 63^rd career main event triumph in World of Outlaws Series competition.

Aaron Stolp of Milwaukee led flag to flag en route to his front career 25-lap PDTR Klips & Tips Grand National A main victory, while defending PDTR Cellcom B Mod track champion Tim Warner of Fond du Lac came from his dead last starting spot to capture the victory in the 25-lap B Mod A main.

Outside front row starter Cade Dillard of Robeline, La. outpowered polesitter Jimmy Mars of Menomonie to seize the lead in turn four of the opening lap, while Sheppard, who started fourth, dove low on lap two to pressure the high-riding Dillard for the top spot in turn two.

By lap 5, the leaders were already approaching lapped traffic, which required Dillard and Sheppard to explore alternative racing lines to maintain their positions. In heavy lapped traffic, Sheppard pulled event with Dillard on lap 11 and the two World of Outlaws Series standouts dueled side by side over the next lap before the first of two caution flags was displayed on lap 12 when Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill. slowed along the frontstrech with a flat tire.

Under caution, Dillard relinquished the lead to Sheppard when he pulled into the pits to change a flat left front tire, he suffered after contact with the lapped car of Brent Larson of Lake Elmo, Minn.

On the restart, Sheppard pulled away along the preferred outside groove, while 2004 World of Outlaws Late Model Series champion Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tenn., who started seventh, moved up to fourth and 16^th starter Ashton Winger of Hampton, Ga. advanced into fifth on lap 12.

On lap 17, Sheppard hit slower traffic again, which allowed Mars to cut the gap substantially. Mars had pulled within striking distance when the second caution flag appeared on lap 30 after Jason Rauen of Farley, Iowa slowed along the frontstretch.

With Sheppard firmly in control out front, Chase Junghans of Manhattan, Kan., who started sixth, hit his stride on the restart to rocket past Bloomquist and eighth starter Ricky Weiss of Headingly, Manitoba, Canada into third with a daring slide job in turn three on lap 33.

Junghans quickly moved in two challenge Mars for second lap 40, while New London’s Justin Ritchie, who started 10th, worked the low groove to perfection to move into fifth on lap 41 before advancing to fourth two laps later and finally into third by slipping underneath the cushion-pounding Junghans on lap 48.

At the head of the pack, it was all Sheppard has he expertly sliced his way through lapped traffic to secure his third consecutive World of Outlaws Late Model Series victory and series leading 10^th career win in the state of Wisconsin by a full straightway margin.

“Our car is so consistent right now,” Sheppard said. “I can run it really anywhere on the race track and feel confident about it right now. The guys work so hard to give me a great car. It is really a pleasure to drive and a thrill to race in front of great race fans on a nice track like this.”

Mars held on to place second to lead a healthy contingent of Wisconsin drivers, who fared well against the World of Outlaws touring pros.

“It was a good night for the local guys with myself in second and Justin Ritchie also doing very well,” Mars said. “It is neat to see the locals doing well when the Outlaws come to town. Brandon was obviously real good the whole race and he was really hard to keep up with once he got out front.”

Ritchie, who is a regular competitor in the PDTR Late Model division, finished third, but was penalized three spots by World of Outlaws officials following a quarter panel height check in post-race inspection, which moved him back to sixth in the official running order. The result was still Ritchie’s best career finish in World of Outlaws Late Model Series competition.

Junghans was credited with third, followed by Weiss in fourth and Bloomquist in fifth.

In the 25-lap, Grand National A main, Aaron Stolp outside his outside front row starting spot to get the jump on polesitter Dave Holm of Cascade and take the lead in turn two of the opening lap.

Action quickly got heated behind Stolp as Holm third starter Dick Hed of Plymouth and fourth starter Jeff Muehlbauer of Elkhart Lake went three wide into turn three on the opening circuit with Hed prevailing to secure second.

By lap 5, Stolp had built up a half-straightaway cushion over Hed. The first of two caution flags of the race was displayed on lap 10 for a spin involving Derek Kaat of Plymouth in turn two.

Two laps later, another caution flag flew when Paul Perronne of Plymouth, Seth Westimayer and The Who Racing No. 4 car collided in turn four.

On the restart, again Stolp showed his strength as he pulled away to a comfortable full straightaway advantage over the second half of the race to notch his first career PDTR Grand National A-main victory.

Hed was second, fifth starter Luke Scholten of Oostburg finished third, Muehlbauer was fourth and sixth starter Donny Kulow of Elkhart Lake placed fifth.

After an aborted start for a spin involved David McCutcheon on the opening lap, outside front row starter Steve Lorier of Sheboygan led the opening lap of the 25-lap B Mod A main while polesitter Jonathon Baumann of Sheboygan slide into second on the opening circuit.

On lap 3, third starter Gary Glander of Sheboygan Falls moved in to take second with 2018 PDTR B Mod champion Tim Sheppard of Beaver Dam, who started fifth, taking third.

Glander was closing on Lorier when the second caution was displayed on lap 6 for Rory Welch of Grafton, who spun in turn two. On the restart, Sheppard ventured to the outside groove to pass Lorier for second, while seventh starter Jesse Cullen of Chilton charged into challenge Lorier for the top spot along the low line. On lap 8, Cullen grabbed the lead along the extreme inside lane.

After a caution for debris on lap 14, Sheppard powered under Cullen to assume the top spot in turn four as Warner, who started 20^th, followed Cullen’s tire tracks into second.

On the restart, Warner showed his strength by extending the lead while Lorier and Aaron Butterbrodt of Milwaukee, who started 10^th, moved in to duel with Lorier for second on lap 16.

The fifth and final caution was displayed on lap 18 when Baumann spun in turn one. Lorier secured second from Butterbrodt on the restart. Meanwhile, Warner extended his advantage in the closing laps to secure his fourth career PDTR B Mod A-main victory.

“I’m really proud of my team,” Warner said. “I have to thank Jeff Steenbergen of Ultimate Race Cars for the great car that his really run to drive. The track was pretty racey tonight. I just picked my spots and tried to do my best.”

Lorier finished second, Butterbrodt was third, seventh starter Brian Wieland of Sheboygan placed fourth and Barry Maas of Cascade, who started ninth, finished fifth.

World of Outlaws last chance qualifier race winners were Brent Larson and two-time and defending PDTR Late Model champion Justin Schmidt of Cleveland.

A total of 78 cars checked into the pit area in three divisions, including 39 Morton Buildings World of Outlaws Series cars, 19 Grand Nationals and 20 B mods.

Next Saturday, July 18 The Plymouth Dirt Track will host the first of four scheduled Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series events of the 2020 season, along with the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars and IRA Lightning Sprints.

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

 

MORTON BUILDINGS WORD OF OUTLAWS LATE MODEL SERIES

Date of the Race

July 11, 2020

A-Main

1. 1-Brandon Sheppard [4][$10,000]; 2. 28m-Jimmy Mars [1][$5,000]; 3. 18-Chase Junghans [6][$3,000]; 4. 7-Ricky Weiss [8][$2,500]; 5. 0-Scott Bloomquist [7][$2,000]; 6. 70-Justin Ritchie [10][$1,700]; 7. 10s-Taylor Scheffler [9][$1,400]; 8. 12-Ashton Winger [16][$1,300]; 9. 29v-Darrell Lanigan [13][$1,200]; 10. 20-Rodney Sanders [12][$1,100]; 11. 99b-Boom Briggs [11][$1,050]; 12. 97-Cade Dillard [2][$1,000]; 13. 97s-Justin Schmidt [18][$950]; 14. 11-Justin Reed [21][$900]; 15. B1-Brent Larson [17][$850]; 16. 28-Dennis Erb Jr. [5][$800]; 17. D1-Turk Letizia [20][$770]; 18. 49-Jake Timm [15][$750]; 19. 74-Mitch McGrath [3][$730]; 20. 98-Jason Rauen [14][$700]; 21. 79-Jim Schmidt [22][$700]; 22. 1m-Mike Mataragas [19][$700]; 23. 89-Brad Mueller [23][$700]; 24. 54-Kevin Baldry [24][$700]. Lap Leader(s):Dillard 1-11; Sheppard 12-50. Hard Charger Award:12-Ashton Winger [+8]

Qualifying Flight A

1. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 14.412; 2. 97-Cade Dillard, 14.447; 3. 7-Ricky Weiss, 14.462; 4. 28-Dennis Erb Jr., 14.48; 5. 10s-Taylor Scheffler, 14.527; 6. 99b-Boom Briggs, 14.605; 7. 29v-Darrell Lanigan, 14.751; 8. 49-Jake Timm, 14.836; 9. B1-Brent Larson, 14.955; 10. 1m-Mike Mataragas, 14.972; 11. 89-Brad Mueller, 15.021; 12. 10-Paul Parker, 15.052; 13. 11-Justin Reed, 15.185; 14. 6m-Jeff Massingill, 15.23; 15. 3m-Dale Markham, 15.402; 16. 7B-Tim Buhler, 15.417; 17. 22-Charlie Schmidt, 15.657; 18. 16-Zack Kessler, 15.799; 19. 4b-Glen Blanke, 16.317; 20. 55-Donny Singer, 16.398

Qualifying Flight B

1. 98-Jason Rauen, 14.723; 2. 20-Rodney Sanders, 14.723; 3. 97s-Justin Schmidt, 14.725; 4. 18-Chase Junghans, 14.804; 5. 74-Mitch McGrath, 14.819; 6. 28m-Jimmy Mars, 14.839; 7. 70-Justin Ritchie, 14.951; 8. 79-Jim Schmidt, 14.995; 9. 0-Scott Bloomquist, 15.221; 10. 3-Brett Swedberg, 15.297; 11. 15-Nick Anvelink, 15.316; 12. D1-Turk Letizia, 15.368; 13. 25-Jared Siefert, 15.372; 14. 12-Ashton Winger, 15.387; 15. 19-Dustin Sorenson, 15.908; 16. 27-Derek Janke, 15.908; 17. D7-Jim Letizia, 16.047; 18. 33s-Ron Stroika, 16.436; 19. 54-Kevin Baldry, 16.549

Drydene Heat 1 Flight (A) (10 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer

1. 1-Brandon Sheppard [1]; 2. 7-Ricky Weiss [2]; 3. 10s-Taylor Scheffler [3]; 4. 29v-Darrell Lanigan [4]; 5. B1-Brent Larson [5]; 6. 89-Brad Mueller [6]; 7. 11-Justin Reed [7]; 8. 22-Charlie Schmidt [9]; 9. 3m-Dale Markham [8]; 10. 4b-Glen Blanke [10]

Drydene Heat 2 – Flight (A) (10 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer

1. 97-Cade Dillard [1]; 2. 28-Dennis Erb Jr. [2]; 3. 99b-Boom Briggs [3]; 4. 49-Jake Timm [4]; 5. 1m-Mike Mataragas [5]; 6. 6m-Jeff Massingill [7]; 7. 10-Paul Parker [6]; 8. 16-Zack Kessler [9]; 9. 55-Donny Singer [10]; 10. 7B-Tim Buhler [8]

Drydene Heat 3 – Flight (B) (10 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer

1. 74-Mitch McGrath [3]; 2. 0-Scott Bloomquist [5]; 3. 70-Justin Ritchie [4]; 4. 98-Jason Rauen [1]; 5. 97s-Justin Schmidt [2]; 6. 25-Jared Siefert [7]; 7. 15-Nick Anvelink [6]; 8. 54-Kevin Baldry [10]; 9. D7-Jim Letizia [9]; 10. 19-Dustin Sorenson [8]

Drydene Heat 4 – Flight (B) (10 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer

1. 28m-Jimmy Mars [3]; 2. 18-Chase Junghans [2]; 3. 20-Rodney Sanders [1]; 4. 12-Ashton Winger [7]; 5. 3-Brett Swedberg [5]; 6. D1-Turk Letizia [6]; 7. 27-Derek Janke [8]; 8. 79-Jim Schmidt [4]; 9. 33s-Ron Stroika [9]

Last Chance Showdown 1 (10 Laps) – Top 3 Transfer

1. B1-Brent Larson [1][-]; 2. 1m-Mike Mataragas [2][-]; 3. 11-Justin Reed [5][-]; 4. 89-Brad Mueller [3][]; 5. 6m-Jeff Massingill [4][$110]; 6. 22-Charlie Schmidt [7][$110]; 7. 10-Paul Parker [6][$110]; 8. 7B-Tim Buhler [12][$110]; 9. 3m-Dale Markham [9][$110]; 10. 4b-Glen Blanke [11][$110]; 11. 16-Zack Kessler [8][$110]; 12. 55-Donny Singer [10]

Last Chance Showdown 2 (10 Laps) – Top 3 Transfer

1. 97s-Justin Schmidt [1][-]; 2. D1-Turk Letizia [4][-]; 3. 79-Jim Schmidt [8][-]; 4. 54-Kevin Baldry [7][]; 5. 19-Dustin Sorenson [11][$110]; 6. 15-Nick Anvelink [5][$110]; 7. 33s-Ron Stroika [10][$110]; 8. D7-Jim Letizia [9][$110]; 9. 27-Derek Janke [6][$110]; 10. 3-Brett Swedberg [2][$110]; 11. 25-Jared Siefert [3][$110]

 

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Steven Weber 2, Luke Scholten 3, Dylan Struve 4, Dave Holm 5, Bruce Troesch 6, Brad Weiss 7, Seth Westimayer,

HEAT 2

1, Donny Kulow 2, Jeff Muehlbauer 3, Dick Hed 4, Will Sorce 5, Who Racing 6, Paul Perronne.

HEAT 3

1, Tyler Kulow 2, Don Sorce Jr. 3, Aaron Stolp 4, Derek Kaat 5, Matt Loehr 6, Jim Rohrbeck.

A MAIN

1, Aaron Stolp 2, Dick Hed 3, Luke Scholten 4, Jeff Muehlbauer 5, Donny Kulow 6, Tyler Kulow 7, Steven Weber 8, Don Sorce Jr. 9, Will Sorce 10, Matt Loehr 11, Dave Holm 12, Dylan Struve 13, Who Racing 14, Derek Kaat 15, Brad Weiss 16, Jim Rohrbeck 17, Bruce Troesch 18, Seth Westimayer 19, Paul Perronne.

 

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Justin Bauer 2, Steve Lorier 3, Jonathon Baumann 4, Jonathan Hitsman 5, Patrick Hanson 6, Trevor Frank 7, Tim Warner (DQ).

HEAT 2

1, Brian Wieland 2, Tim Sheppard 3, Rory Welch 4, Brendan Ostrowski 5, Phil Campanella 6, Michael Gilson 7, David McCutcheon

HEAT 3

1, Jesse Cullen 2, Gary Glander 3, Barry Maas 4, Aaron Butterbrodt 5, Donny Singer 6, Dakota Cabunac.

A MAIN

1, Tim Warner 2, Steve Lorier 3, Aaron Butterbrodt 4, Brian Wieland 5, Barry Maas 6, Brendan Ostrowski 7, Donny Singer 8, Rory Welch 9, Tim Sheppard 10, Jonathon Baumann 11, David McCutcheon 12, Michael Gilson 13, Phil Campanella 14, Jesse Cullen 15, Gary Glander 16, Jonathan Hitsman 17, Trevor Frank 18, Patrick Hanson 19, Dakota Cabunac 20, Justin Bauer (DQ).

By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) June 13, 2020 – On an unseasonably cool early summer evening, the racing action was hot and heavy as Plymouth Dirt Track Racing staged its second racing program of the 2020 season Saturday, June 13 at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds third-mile oval in Plymouth, Wis.

In A-main action, Adam Miller of Plymouth outdueled Kewaskum’s Shane Wenninger and Sheboygan’s Travis Arenz to claim his second career PDTR Kristine Hartmann Pleasant View Realty 25-lap 360 Sprint Car main event victory. Two-time defending PDTR Late Model champion Justin Schmidt of Cleveland nipped New London’s Justin Ritchie by inches at the finish line to capture a spirited Gasroots Project 25-lap Late Model A main. Donny Kulow of Elkhart Lake racked up his first career 25-lap PDTR Klips N Tips Grand National A-main victory and Jesse Cullen of Chilton was the victor in a hotly contested 25-lap Cellcom B Mod A main.

Polesitter Adam Miller led the 22-car 360 Sprint Car A-main field on the opening lap while outside front row starter Shane Wenninger slid into second place. On lap 4, Wenninger worked the high groove to power around the low riding Miller exiting turn two.

Four laps later, the leaders began to encounter heavy lapped traffic, which allowed Miller, who had moved up to the cushion, to close the gap on Wenninger. On lap 13, Miller moved within striking distance as Wenninger attempted to work through dense lapped traffic.

One lap later, Wenninger moved low to maneuver past a slower car while Miller pounded the treacherous cushion to shoot back into the lead exiting turn four on lap 14. On lap 16, the first of two caution flags appeared when Chris Clayton of Waldo spun in turn two.

Miller, who was involved in a race-ending flip on the opening lap of last week’s A main, maintained the lead over Wenninger on the restart before fifth starter Tim Haddy of Waupun dove low entering turn three on lap 17 and pushed high in turn four before colliding with Wenninger, who made contact with the frontstretch wall and stopped exiting turn four to bring out the second caution of the race.

On the restart, seventh starter Travis Arenz used a daring low move to take over second place on lap 18. At the front of the field, Miller remained in control along the high groove as he moved through slower traffic in the closing laps to earn his second career PDTR and Midwest Sprint Car Association A-main victory by a 10-car length margin over the hard-charging Arenz. Haddy finished third, third starter Bill Taylor of Kewaskum was fourth and fourth starter Kevin Karnitz of West Bend rounded out the top five.

“We started the race by running pretty good on the bottom before Shane got by us around the top,” Miller said in victory lane. “We were fortunate to get back around him in traffic and then we survived a few cautions to get the win. I couldn’t have asked for a better bounce back after last week. We’ll take it and move on to next week.”

The action-packed Late Model A main opened with Jim Schmidt of Cleveland taking the lead from the pole, while third starter Justin Ritchie assumed second on the opening circuit. On lap 3, Ritchie used the low groove to duck under Jim Schmidt in turn one.

One lap later, Justin Schmidt, who started fifth, used the high line to work his way into third place. As the leaders maneuvered through slower traffic, Justin Schmidt moved into second and closed the gap on Ritchie while four-time PDTR Late Model champion Brad Mueller of Random Lake, who started fourth, used the high grove to seize third and move in to pressure the leaders.

The first of five caution flags appeared on lap 11 when rookie Sawyer Specht of Sheboygan Falls and rookie Chad Ludwigson of Sheboygan Falls collided along the backstretch. On the restart, Mueller vaulted past Justin Schmidt along the high groove before the second caution was displayed for rookie Glen Blanke of Sheboygan Falls and Charlie Schmidt of Cedar Grove in turn three on lap 13.

The third caution flag came out on the next attempted restart when Greg Cantrell of DeKalb, Ill. stalled on the backstretch. On the restart, Justin Schmidt again used the high groove to pass Mueller and challenge Ritchie for the top spot. On lap 16, Schmidt surged past Ritchie with a strong run along the cushion.

Three laps later, Justin Schmidt, Ritchie and Mueller were running in close quarters for the lead when Mueller made contact with the lapped car of Chad Ludwigson, which caused Ludwigson to spin while Mueller left the track with a flat tire, which brought out the fourth caution of the race on lap 19.

On the restart, Ritchie stayed precise on the low groove to regain the lead from Justin Schmidt in turn two on lap 19. Two laps later, the fifth and final caution flag appeared for Sawyer Specht in turn two.

Justin Schmidt was not to be denied in the closing laps as he continued to powered through a very challenging and thick cushion to pull even with Ritchie in the closing laps. On the white flag lap, Justin Schmidt used a huge run out of turn four to edge Ritchie at the finish line to claim his 11^th career PDTR Late Model A-main victory. Ritchie finished second, Jim Schmidt held on for third, sixth starter Turk Letizia of Milwaukee finished fourth and 2016 PDTR Late Model champion Tim Buhler of Greenbush finished fifth after starting seventh.

“The track was crazy tonight,” Justin Schmidt said. “Turn four was very treacherous on the cushion. No one is better on the bottom than Justin Ritchie and it was a great race with him. I didn’t know if I had him or not as it was back and forth for a while. On that last lap, it was just all or nothing. I went in hard, held on and it work out.”

Former PDTR Grand National champion Matt Yancey of Sheboygan led the opening lap of the main event from the pole with outside front row starter Donny Kulow assuming second.

Yancey controlled the opening seven laps by clinging to the inside lane of the slick track surface before Kulow executed a strong low move in turn one on lap 8 to seize the top spot.

Once in front, Kulow pulled away from the field as third starter Jeff Muelhbauer of Elkhart Lake moved in to pressure Yancey for the runner-up spot. Over the final 10 laps, Kulow remained smooth on the low line en route to his first career PDTR Grand National A-main victory by a half-straightaway margin over Yancey, who finished second. Muehlbauer placed third, fourth starter Luke Scholten of Oostburg claimed fourth and defending PDTR Grand National champ Tyler Kulow of Plymouth finished fifth after starting fifth.

After a caution flag on the opening lap for a two-car incident involving Steve Lorier of Sheboygan and rookie Trevor Frank of Sheboygan, Donny Singer of Random Lake paced the first three laps of the B Mod A main from the pole. On lap 4, rookie Will Garceau of Mishicot worked his way up from the third starting spot to take the lead.

The second of four caution flags was displayed on lap 5 for an incident involving Steve Lorier, Trevor Frank and Christopher Gilson of Elkhart Lake. Another caution appeared on the ensuing restart from Patrick Hanson of Sheboygan Falls and David McCutcheon.

On the restart, fourth starter Justin Bauer of Sheboygan Falls worked the outside groove to take second before fifth starter Jesse Cullen passed Bauer for second on lap 6.

On lap 7, the fourth and final caution flag came out when James Rautmann of Howards Grove stopped in turn three. Cullen continued to show his strength on the restart as he moved in to pressure Garceau for the top spot, along with 2018 PDTR B Mod champion Tim Sheppard of Beaver Dam, who started eighth.

On lap 8, Cullen used the outside groove to work around Garceau into the lead in turn three. Meanwhile, defending PDTR B Mod champion Tim Warner of Fond du Lac, who started sixth mounted a charge in the late stages of the race to secure second on lap 14.

As Cullen found a distinct groove to his liking utilizing the middle portion of the track, Warner closed on the later in the waning laps. However, Cullen held on to earn his third career PDTR B Mod A-main triumph. Warner was second, Sheppard placed third, Bauer wound up fourth and Garceau rounded out the top five.

“I could feel someone [Tim Warner] back there a few times near the end,” Cullen said. “I feel I had a pretty good groove there on the bottom and the middle, which really seemed to work well in getting me to the front and into victory lane tonight.”

Doug Wondra of Oakfield won the first 360 Sprint Car B main and Justin Erickson of Plymouth captured the second 360 Sprint Car B main.

The event, which was sponsored by Mayer Automotive, drew a total of 88 cars, including 36 360 Sprint Cars, 16 Late Models, 13 Grand Nationals and 23 B Mods.

The next PDTR program at The Plymouth Dirt Track will take place on Saturday, June 20 with gates opening at 4:30 p.m., hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.

KRISTINE HARTMANN PLEASANT VIEW REALTY 360 SPRINT CAR

Date of Race: June 13, 2020

HEAT 1

1, Lance Fassbender 2, Kurt Davis 3, Adam Miller 4, Tim Haddy 5, Nick Daywalt 6, Scott Conger 7, Alex Pokorski 8, Tom Kreutz 9, Tyler Brabant (DNS).

HEAT 2

1, Will Gerrits 2, Kevin Karnitz 3, Bill Taylor 4, Anthony Knierim 5, Nick Melis 6, Jack Vanderboom 7, Doug Wondra 8, Josh Teunissen 9, Scott Armstrong.

HEAT 3

1, Travis Arenz 2, Justin Milller 3, Tony Wondra 4, Brandon McMullen 5, Mike Decker 6, Justin Erickson 7, Austin Hartmann, 8, Ben Schmidt (DNS), 9, Tyler Davis (DNS).

HEAT 4

1, Chris Clayton 2, Tyler Tischendorf 3, Shane Wenninger 4, Robby Wirth 5, Brandon Berth 6, Blake Wondra 7, Preston Ruh 8, Mike Mac Farlane 9, Ken Schmick.

B MAIN 1

1, Doug Wondra 2, Preston Ruh 3, Blake Wondra 4, Josh Teunissen 5, Nick Daywalt 6, Alex Pokorski 7, Ken Schmick 8, Austin Hartmann 9, Tyler Davis (DNS) 10, Ben Schmidt (DNS).

B MAIN 2

1, Justin Erickson 2, Robby Wirth 3, Jack Vanderboom 4, Mike Decker 5, Scott Conger 6, Scott Armstrong 7, Tyler Brabant 8, Mike Mac Farlane 9, Anthony Knierim (DNS) 10, Tom Kreutz (DNS).

A MAIN

1, Adam Miller 2, Travis Arenz 3, Tim Haddy 4, Bill Taylor 5, Kevin Karnitz 6, Brandon McMullen 7, Kurt Davis 8, Justin Miller 9, Lance Fassbender 10, Justin Erickson 11, Nich Melis 12, Tyler Tischendorf 13, Will Gerrits 14, Brandon Berth 15, Tony Wondra 16, Preston Ruh 17, Chris Clayton 18, Doug Wondra 19, Robby Wirth 20, Jack Vanderboom 21, Blake Wondra 22, Shane Wenninger.

GASROOTS PROJECT LATE MODEL

HEAT 1

1, Charlie Schmidt 2, Tim Buhler 3, Justin Schmidt 4, Greg Cantrell 5, Kevin Baldry 6, Glen Blanke 7, Adrian Roscelli 8, Sawyer Specht.

HEAT 2

1, Turk Letizia 2, Justin Ritchie 3, Brad Mueller 4, Jim Schmidt 5, Ted Dolhun Sr. 6, Chad Ludwigson 7, Donny Singer 8, Victor Benedetto.

A MAIN

1, Justin Schmidt 2, Justin Ritchie 3, Jim Schmidt 4, Turk Letizia 5, Tim Buhler 6, Ted Dolhun Sr. 7, Kevin Baldry 8, Victor Benedetto 9, Donny Singer 10, Adrian Roscelli 11, Glen Blanke 12, Sawyer Specht 13, Brad Mueller 14, Chad Ludwigson 15, Charlie Schmidt 16, Greg Cantrell.

KLIPS N TIPS GRAND NATIONAL

HEAT 1

1, Donny Kulow 2, Jeff Muehlbauer 3, Tyler Kulow 4, Dick Hed 5, Steven Weber 6, Brad Weiss 7, Paul Perronne.

HEAT 2

1, Matt Yancey 2, Derek Kaat 3, Luke Scholten 4, Aaron Stolp 5, Jonathan Otte 6, Don Sorce Jr.

A MAIN

1, Donny Kulow 2, Matt Yancey 3, Jeff Muehlbauer 4, Luke Scholten 5, Tyler Kulow 6, Aaron Stolp 7, Jonathan Otte 8, Don Sorce Jr. 9, Dick Hed 10, Steven Weber 11, Derek Kaat 12, Bred Weiss 13, Paul Perronne.

CELLCOM B MOD

HEAT 1

1, Justin Bauer 2, Tim Sheppard 3, Brandon Knepprath 4, Phil Campanella 5, Rory Welch 6, Michael Gilson 7, Brandon Goeser 8, Trevor Frank.

HEAT 2

1, Tim Warner 2, James Rautmann 3, Will Garceau 4, Brendan Ostrowski 5, Patrick Hanson 6, David McCutcheon 7, Christopher Gilson 8, Dakota Cabunac.

HEAT 3

1, Kyle Odekirk 2, Donny Singer 3, Jesse Cullen 4, Barry Maas 5, Gary Glander 6, Jim Fischer 7, Steve Lorier.

A MAIN

1, Jesse Cullen 2, Tim Warner 3, Tim Sheppard 4, Justin Bauer 5, Will Garceau 6, Barry Maas 7, Brandon Knepprath 8, Kyle Odekirk 9, Donny Singer 10, Gary Glander 11, Brendan Ostrowski 12, Rory Welch 13, Brandan Goeser 14, Michael Gilson 15, David McCutcheon 16, Jim Fischer 17, Phil Campanella 18, Patrick Hanson 19, Steve Lorier 20, Dakota Cabunac 21, James Rautmann 22, Trevor Frank 23, Christopher Gilson.