Author: Jeff Pederson

Your fast track connection

Josh Walter, Torque Racing ready to fire up 2019 MSA season

Josh Walter of Plymouth, Wis. is set to embark on his 14th season of Sprint Car competition in 2019 by chasing the Midwest Sprint Car Association and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car Series point championships. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) March 25, 2019 – Following a long, cold winter filled with meticulous planning and preparation, Josh Walter and his Torque Racing team is just about ready to turn up the heat on dirt tracks throughout the state of Wisconsin.

After finishing third in both the Midwest Sprint Car Association and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car point standings and posting one A-main triumph in his return to the 360 Sprint Car ranks in 2018, Walter is eager to take on the full 30-race MSA and PDTR slate again in 2019.

Walter, who is set to embark on his 14th season of Sprint Car competition in 2019, is hoping to improve on the team’s 2018 campaign, which he admits left a bit to be desired.

“We came into the offseason slightly disappointed in last season,” Walter said. “We knew we needed to make some changes for 2019 if we were going to do better than last year.  The car has been modified to comply to the latest World of Outlaws rules, so we will see if that has any effect on some of our setups. I have been hitting the gym and doing the best I can to be the best in the car that I can be.

“If I had to use one word to describe our 2018 season, it would be ‘underwhelming,’” he said. “The team did a great job, and I gave it my best in the car.  However, pill draws didn’t seem to go our way often and I don’t think the car was all there. We had some fueling issues in the middle of the year and lost some speed. After we got that fixed, I believe the engine was getting tired. The engine was built in 2012 and the last freshen was in 2014, so we got plenty of life out of it.” 

Walter was pleased with the tremendous support displayed during Torque Racing’s annual brat fry on March 2 at Plymouth Tap.

Josh Walter of Plymouth, Wis. recently debuted his 2019 machine at the annual Torque Racing Brat Fry at Plymouth Tap in Plymouth, Wis. – RC Custom Design photo

“This was our 13th pre-season brat fry and we had an excellent turnout,” Walter said. “This was our best year yet and I couldn’t be more excited about the upcoming season with all the support we’ve received from our sponsors, family, friends and fans. Our team is so grateful to have the people in our lives that are willing to bend over backwards, put in the hard work and make so many sacrifices to get us on track and keep us there.”

Torque Racing’s 2019 season includes 20 races at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wisconsin and 10 additional MSA touring events at six different Wisconsin tracks as Walter plans to chase both the MSA and PDTR 360 Sprint Car titles.

“I feel 2019 will be an interesting year,” Walter said. “We plan on focusing on the MSA schedule. However, we will evaluate a few traveling shows that we aren’t too excited about from a safety standpoint and track quality. I look forward to being back at Beaver Dam, Seymour and Sun Prairie. Plymouth is great being so close to home. I don’t have a favorite track on the schedule anymore. I think each track has its own unique characteristics that you can be excited about as long as you can make the best of those things.”

Walter is tentatively set to pry the lid off the 2019 campaign by taking his 360 Sprint Car on a shakedown run with the Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series on April 20.

“At this point, we plan on participating in the April 20th IRA show at Beaver Dam Raceway,” Walter said. “It’ll be a good place to shake down the car and get some laps there in a 360 again, since we’ll be returning there on August 24th for an MSA show. Beyond that, we don’t have any plans to run anywhere else.”

The team will kickoff the 2019 MSA and PDTR 360 Sprint Car season one week later on Saturday, April 27 at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Heading into the 2019 campaign, Walter has some specific goals in mind.  

“I can honestly say we are going to try and make every A-main feature, get more wins and make a run for the championship in 2019,” Walter said. “It might seem bold to say those things, but I usually want to just have fun. I can’t think of anything that would be more fun than achieving those three things.” 

Torque Racing sponsors for the 2019 season include JDV Lawncare, Brittany’s School of Dance, Sheboygan by Owner, Plymouth Tap, Platinum Restoration Services, Doug’s Quality Beef, Tiffany’s Wildtree, Cow Pies, Full Throttle Ink, Lakehouse Bar & Grill, Ruh Custom Woodworking, RC Custom Design, Home Transitions, Kombucha Brothers and Pedal Down Promotions. 

“We don’t have all that many changes in 2019 as the crew and team has stayed together and have a strong relationship,” Walter said. “The chassis has been updated and the engine has been gone through and freshened. That is about it for the car. We did add quite a few sponsors this year beyond our other sponsors that have supported us for years.”

Torque Racing Sponsor Showcase – Pedal Down Promotions

Torque Racing is pleased to welcome Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis. to the team for the 2019 season.

Founded by experienced newspaper journalist Jeff Pederson, Pedal Down Promotions is geared up to provide all of the promotional content that businesses, non-profit organizations, sports teams and creative individuals need to spread the word about their products, services, accomplishments, endeavors, hopes and dreams.

Pedal Down Promotions provides news releases; newsletters; website blog posts, photography; video presentations, websites and social media content development, printed promotional materials, resume and cover services for job seekers, book editing, book publishing and book cover design services and much more.

Since its inception in 2016, Pedal Down Promotions has been highly involved in local dirt track racing scene, providing race reports for Plymouth Dirt Track Racing, driver profile articles for various racing publications and public relations services for area racing teams, track and series.

Pederson is pleased that Pedal Down Promotions will provide public relations services for Josh Walter and Torque Racing throughout the 2019 racing season.

“We are always looking to help race drivers, teams and tracks spread the word about their racing endeavors,” Pederson said. “I am excited about the opportunity to assist Josh Walter and Torque Racing in stepping up their promotional efforts through weekly press releases and social media updates for each MSA and PDTR event during the 2019 season. It should be a lot of fun and we are hoping to give the team’s sponsors, supporters and fans an up-close look into what it takes to put a successful racing team on the track on a weekly basis. Josh is a top-notch competitor who understands the importance of effective communication in advancing awareness of the exciting sport of dirt track racing.”

Torque Racing invites you to contact Pedal Down Promotions by phone at 920-323-7970 or via email at pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com. More information about Pedal Down Promotions can be found at www.pedaldownpromo.com.

2018 Torque Racing By The Numbers

Total Events – 23

A Main Victories – 1

Top Five A Main Finishes – 10

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 17

Midwest Sprint Car Association Points – 3rd

Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Points – 3rd

2019 Josh Walter-Torque Racing Schedule

Saturday, April 20 – Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, April 27 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, May 4 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, May 11 – Plymouth, Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, May 18 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis

Saturday, May 25 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, June 1 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Sunday, June 2 – Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wis.

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

Saturday, June 15 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, June 21 – Spring Lake Speedway, Unity, Wis.

Saturday, June 22 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, June 28 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Wednesday, July 3 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, July 6 – TNT Speedway, Three Lakes, Wis.

Friday, July 12 – Outagamie Speedway, Seymour, Wis.

Saturday, July 13 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, July 20 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Sunday, July 21 – Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wis.

Saturday, July 27 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, August 2 – Outagamie Speedway, Wis. (rain date only)

Saturday, August 3 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, August 10 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Sunday, August 11 – Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wis.

Saturday, August 17 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, August 23 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, August 24 – Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, August 31 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, September 7 – TNT Speedway, Three Lakes, Wis.

Saturday, September 14 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, September 27 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, September 28 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, November 9 – Midwest Sprint Car Association Awards Banquet, The Columbian, West Bend, Wis.

2019 Josh Walter-Torque Racing By The Numbers

Total Events – 0

A Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 0

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 0

Heat Race Victories – 0

March 25, 2019 / by Jeff Pederson

Trotta ready to serve up ‘California Cheese’ children’s book

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) March 14, 2019 – Fresh off the success of his first two entries in his highly popular “Cheese Book Series” Sheboygan, Wis. children’s book author Lee Trotta is back on the scene with a new book titled “California Cheese.”

Trotta released his first cheese-based children’s book in 2016 titled “Florida Cheese” before unveiling his second children’s book “Wisconsin Cheese” in 2017.

All three “Cheese Book Series” selections star three Jewish mice from New York City named Bernie, Ebeneezer and Jonah, who live in a wall of a bagel bakery. As mice tend to do, they each crave cheese and are willing to go anywhere to satisfy that craving, which leads to their various adventures throughout the United States.

“In the first book, the three mice take a vacation to Florida and find plenty of cheese for the road trip,” Trotta said. “In ‘Wisconsin Cheese,’ the mice visit Washington, D.C. where they befriend a former Wisconsin Congressman and U.S. Speaker of the House, who agrees to allow them to travel back with him to Wisconsin to satisfy their yearning for Wisconsin cheese.”

“California Cheese,” which is published on Trotta’s own Globetrotta Productions imprint, will be officially released on Saturday, April 6 with a special book launch event during a craft and vendor fair at Cooper Elementary School in Sheboygan, Wis. from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The new book features Bernie, Ebeneezer and Jonah taking a magical journey to California to meet a highly popular television mouse.

“In this book, our three mouse heroes fall in love with a cartoon mouse on TV,” Trotta said. “They just have to meet this giant among mice. The first problem they encounter is that they are visiting friends in Wisconsin and the giant mouse lives in California. That problem is solved when Mrs. Zastrow decides to take her children and her visiting mice out to California to find the cartoon mouse at the big theme park. They all learn important lessons along the way, as do children reading the story. They make new friends at the theme park and even meet a big music producer who takes them inside Hollywood. And of course, Mrs. Zastrow treats the mice to cheese like they’ve never seen before.”

According to Trotta, the Cheese Book Series is meant to educate, as well as entertain children with the new “California Cheese” book including even more educational elements that his two previous cheese books.

“This is the most educational of cheese books yet,” Trotta said. “My hope is that school teachers will use it as an educational tool in their classrooms. It is a beautifully illustrated book that makes for a suitable kindergarten or elementary school lesson plan. I can even see it being a template for problem solving strategies geared to adult audiences.”

For “California Cheese,” Trotta enlisted the illustration talents of Kara Saemann of Minneapolis, Minn. to help complete the book’s eye-catching look.

“I draw each of the illustrations with pen and ink and with ‘California Cheese,’ Kara Saemann helped me to fill in the color on the illustrations with her computer graphics wizardry,” Trotta said. “The books have a pretty unique look to them through the illustration method and there are a number of locations in each of the three cheese books that people will recognize.”

Trotta is presently gearing up to promote the book at book festivals and events in Wisconsin and throughout the country, including possibly a separate book launch event in California.

“I’ve greatly enjoyed the appearances I’ve done to promote my previous cheese books,” Trotta said. “I get to read the book to kids at these events and see their reactions and responses, which is priceless for me. I typically read the books with a New York accent and the kids get pretty excited about that.”

After “California Cheese” launches on April 6, it will be available on Amazon.com, as well as at Book Heads in Plymouth, Wis., in addition to Lucy’s Roost, Tiny Tykes and Victorian Chocolate Shoppe in Sheboygan, Wis.

For more information on Trotta’s children’s books, visit the Florida Cheese Facebook page.

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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

 

 

March 14, 2019 / by Jeff Pederson

Unity Music Festival to play final tune

MARY ANN WALDBAUER of Sheboygan Falls, who founded the Unity Music Festival to benefit the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund in 2005, is set to present the 15th and final edition of the event at the Stefanie H. Weill Center for the Performing Arts in Sheboygan on Saturday, April 6, at 7 p.m.

Waldbauer ready to send popular cancer care fundraiser out with a bang

After 14 years of planning, organizing and coordinating, it is finally time for Unity Music Festival Founder Mary Ann Waldbauer of Sheboygan Falls to sit back and relax a bit.

Waldbauer, who founded the Unity Music Festival in 2005 as a way to support local cancer patients in need, has announced that this year’s 15th annual Unity Music Festival at the Stefanie H. Weill Center for the Performing Arts in Sheboygan on Saturday, April 6 will be the last.

“It’s bittersweet as we are coming up on our 15th and final Unity Music Festival,” Waldbauer said. “This all started out in our basement and a vision from God one night to help people raise money for cancer patients through music. Never did I think God would have had me take this to 15 years. In addition to assisting so many people dealing with cancer who are in great need, this event has given people in our community a wonderful experience by performing on the most prestigious stage around – the Stefanie Weill Center. Our youngest performer was 7 years old and our oldest was 100.”

Over the past 14 years, nearly 60 musical acts and local, regional and national performers have donated their time to entertain audiences during the UMF concert.

“I am so grateful for all the musical performers that have joined us over the years,” Waldbauer said. “It makes me laugh when I think about when I called different musical groups and they would ask what I play or sing. I would say, ‘I sing in the shower, and play with our grand kids. I really have no musical talent. I love to organize and loved seeing how every year this has come together with so many people young and old using their God-given talents. We all have them, everyone’s is just different.”

THE RICE FAMILY will be among the musical performers for the 15th and final edition of the Unity Music Festival to benefit the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund at the Stefanie H. Weill Center for the Performing Arts in Sheboygan on Saturday, April 6, at 7 p.m.

This year’s final UMF concert, which is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 6, features two popular returnees in the The Rice Family and The Eldorado’s, as well as UMF newcomer The Shin Diggs, formerly known as Pretty Naughty.

The Rice Family returns to the UMF lineup as one of the most heralded groups to ever perform at the event.

“The Rice Family is thrilled to be performing in the Unity Music Festival again this year,” Kristen Rice said. “We will be playing a variety of well-known musical selections from classical to bluegrass, and everything in-between. With two children playing in the Sheboygan Symphony Orchestra and three children playing in the Sheboygan Area Youth Symphony, there is never a time when music is not being played in our home. The children range in age from 11 to 21 and enjoy playing music together for their church, as well as for various events in the community. Their collection of instruments includes violin, cello, mandolin, banjo, guitar, ukulele, drums and piano.”

Formed in Sheboygan in the early 1960s, The Eldorado’s are contemporaries of musical legends such as Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry and The Ventures.

In the early days, The Edorado’s played regularly at the Shebogyan YMCA, Weiler’s Ballroom in Port Washington and other hot spots throughout Wisconsin with original members Allen Berchem, Don Cvetan, Lance Schuh, Stu Froehlich and Dennis Behring.

THE SHIN DIGGS are slated to perform at the 15th and final edition of the Unity Music Festival to benefit the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund at the Stefanie H. Weill Center for the Performing Arts in Sheboygan on Saturday, April 6, at 7 p.m.

Amagingly, three of the original five members (Berchem, Cvetan and Froehlich) are still in the band.

The Shin Diggs, which recently changed their name from Pretty Naughty, are well known locally for playing popular, contemporary music spanning multiple genres.

Formed through a Craiglist ad in 2017, The Shin Diggs have performed at venues throughout Wisconsin, including Headliners in Neenah, Sluggers in Appleton, Chearwater Harbor in Waupaca, Edge-O-Dells in Wisconsin Dells and the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee over the past two years.

“This year is shaping up to be another fantastic line up,” Waldbauer said. “Back by popular demand are the Eldorado’s and The Rice Ramily, while The Shin Diggs are new this year. Our co-emcees are Denice Nugent and Carrie Green from the YMCA Livestrong Progra, which serves cancer patients and cancer survivors. There will also be a grand finale that you won’t want to miss.”

Just as it has each year since its inception, all money raised through the final edition of the Unity Music Festival go to the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund (SCCCF), which assists cancer patients and their families within Sheboygan County.

“Just as it has every other year that I’ve done this, all the proceeds stay local to support the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund,” Waldbauer said. “Its all about people helping people right here in our own community. Anyone suffering a financial hardship due to cancer can benefit from this fund. We can help with heat, light, water, house mortgages, wigs, rent, uninsured medical bills, groceries or gas cards, quality of life classes, etc. We help make their quality of life better while going through this devastating time in their lives.”

THE ELDORADO’S are set to return for the 15th and final edition of the Unity Music Festival to benefit the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund at the Stefanie H. Weill Center for the Performing Arts in Sheboygan on Saturday, April 6, at 7 p.m.

Established in 2000, The Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund is the brainchild of local medical oncologist, H. Marshall Matthews, who recognized the need to help cancer patients through their cancer journey; it was established in 2000.

In 2002, 17 gestures totaling $2,700 were approved. Since then, hundreds of gestures, amounting to more than one million dollars, have been accepted by the SCCCF.

Waldbauer says the Unity Music Festival has made great strides in raising funds to assist cancer patients in Sheboygan County, and she is highly focused on making the final UMF the best one yet.

“With the donations of time, great talent, generous contributions and the sponsorships of local businesses, this cancer benefit has raised at total of $392,988 over the past 14 years,” Waldbauer said. “We expect this year’s event to be even bigger and better in order to assist those who fall victim to this devastating disease.”

Over the past 14 years, the Unity Music Festival has thrived as one of the most anticipated annual music-driven fundraising events in the Sheboygan County area with a loyal base of dedicated sponsors and supporters.

“We have so many businesses that have financially supported this event, with donations of items or baskets,” Waldbauer said. “Over the Years we have had Green Bay Packers players serve as emcees, including Mark Tauscher, Chester Marcol, Antonio Freeman, and Chris Jacke, each of which were sponsored by Mersberger Financial in Sheboygan Falls.”

Fundraising activities will kick off the festivities beginning at 5 p.m. with silent and live-auction viewing, as well as dollar and 50/50 raffles.

In addition, a gala appetizer buffet will take place beginning at 5:30 p.m. next door to the Weill Center with Chef Clint Kasprzak and Miesfeld’s staff providing the appetizers.

A limited number of gala appetizer buffet tickets are available for $30 each by contacting Mary Ann Waldbauer by phone at 467-3303 or via email at umfmaryann@charter.net

“Chuck Miesfeld and his staff have been so generous in making the Gala Appetizer Buffet successful, along with Blattners Piggly Wiggly, Schwarz’s Fish, Gosse Tortes, Pick-N-Save, Festival Foods, Piggly Wiggly North and Plymouth, Legend Larry’s and Rich Ramminger, Waldbauer said.

Unlike previous UMFs, the grand finale edition will not feature a live auction during intermission, which means the evening will be filled with even more music.

“A new twist for all that have attended this event in the past years is that that there will be no live auction on stage so that people can enjoy more music,” Waldbauer said. “We will instead have a high-end table along with silent auctions that will line the halls, as well as door raffles and 50/50 raffle tickets.”

General admission tickets are currently on sale for $20 per person and gala buffet tickets are also available for $30.

Show tickets are available in advance at Blattner’s Piggly Wiggly in Sheboygan Falls 1166 Fond du Lac Ave. in Sheboygan Falls, 467-0477), Mary Ann or Rick Waldbauer (998 Huron Trail in Sheboygan Falls, 467-3303), Midwest Dental of Plymouth (1415 Eastern Ave. in Plymouth, 893-8458), Stefanie H. Weill Center for the Performing Arts (826 North Eighth St. in Sheboygan, 208-3243), Matthews Oncology (1621 North Taylor Drive in Sheboygan, 458-7433), Vince Lombardi Cancer Clinic (1222 North 23rd St. in Sheboygan, 457-6800), Plymouth Piggly Wiggly (141 Eastern Ave. in Plymouth, 893-0741), Oostburg Piggly Wiggly (944 Center Ave. in Oostburg, 564-2234), Howards Grove Piggly Wiggly (714 South Wisconsin Drive in Howards Grove, 565-4421), Northside Piggly Wiggly (2905 North 15th St. in Sheboygan, 458-9991), Southside Piggly Wiggly (3124 South Business Drive, 452-0411), Festival Foods (595 South Taylor Drive in Sheboygan, 694-6260), Oostburg State Bank (905 Center Ave. in Oostburg, 564-2336), Trilling True Hardware (901 Michigan Ave. in Sheboygan, 457-5541), Sheboygan Chevrolet Buick (3400 South Business Drive, 459-6804), Falls Healing Arts (275 North Main St., 467-8690) and Midstar Printing (1209 Pilgrim Road in Plymouth, 893-4808).

“I have always kept tickets affordable at $20 hoping some businesses would buy a few tickets up for their employees, and many times people will buy up tickets to give to cancer patients,” Waldbauer said. “It’s a great way to get away from their everyday challenges and have enjoyable night out.”

The Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund is a publicly supported 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Contributions by the public are fully tax-deductible.

For more information on the Unity Music Festival visit unitymusicfestival.org or the Unity Music Festival Facebook page.

More information on the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund can be found at www.scccf.org.

“Having cancer hit not only me, but my family as well,” Waldbauer said. “I know first-hand the impact this makes on families. I’ve loved hearing the stories from people about how the SCCCF helped them. It has kept me motivated to keep doing this all these years. I am grateful for my very supportive husband over these past 15 years, along with all the help from my children, family, friends, and neighbors. Many have been with me on this journey from day one. I could not have done it without their love and support.”

For additional information about the 2019 Unity Music Festival or to purchase gala appetizer buffet tickets, call Mary Ann Waldbauer at 467-3303 or email umfmaryann@charter.net

February 25, 2019 / by Jeff Pederson

Torque Racing sets 2019 schedule, continues preseason preparations

Josh Walter his set to embark on the full 30-race Midwest Sprint Car Association schedule in 2019. Walter’s Torque Racing team will travel to seven different Wisconsin tracks in 2019 with the season opener slated for Saturday, April 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) February 4, 2019 – With less than three months remaining until the 2019 Midwest Sprint Car Association season opener at the Plymouth Dirt Track on Saturday, April 27, Josh Walter and his Torque Racing team have been busy poring over their preseason checklist as the first green flag of the new year inches ever closer.

After finishing third in both the Midwest Sprint Car Association and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car point standings in his return to the 360 Sprint Car ranks in 2018, Walter is eager to take on the full 30-race MSA and PDTR slate again in 2019.

Torque Racing’s 2019 season includes 20 races at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wisconsin and 10 additional MSA touring events at six different Wisconsin tracks.

The team will make three appearances at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie (Sunday, June 2, Sunday, July 21 and Sunday, Aug. 11), with two events scheduled at both the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam (Wednesday, July 3 and Friday, Sept. 27) and TNT Speedway in Three Lakes (Saturday, July 6 and Saturday, Sept. 7).

In addition, single MSA traveling series events are on the docket at Spring Lake Speedway in Unity (Friday, June 21), Outagamie Speedway in Seymour (Friday, July 12) and Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam (Saturday, Aug. 24).

“Our plans are to race the entire MSA Sprints and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing schedules for 2019 with the same goals as last year,” Walter said. “We want to have fun, win as many races as we can and be in the championship hunt as long as the cards fall right.”

Walter, who is entering his 14th season of Sprint Car competition, adds that he would welcome the chance to supplement his racing schedule with additional opportunities to jump behind the wheel.

“I’m always looking to do more racing if a seat is open,” Walter said.

Walter is pleased to have bolstered Torque Racing’s fleet of sponsorship partners in the offseason to include Lakehouse Bar & Grill in Crystal Lake, Ruh Custom Woodworking of Plymouth, RC Custom Design of Fredonia, Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc and Oostburg Concrete.

Torque Racing’s returning sponsors for the 2019 season include: JDV Lawncare, Brittany’s School of Dance, Sheboygan by Owner, Plymouth Tap, Platinum Restoration Services, Doug’s Quality Beef, Tiffany’s Wildtree, Cow Pies and Full Throttle Ink.

“We are looking forward to working with our current and new sponsors to make 2019 a great season,” Walter said.

Torque Racing is currently gearing up for its annual preseason brat fry fundraiser on Saturday, March 2 starting at 10 a.m. at Plymouth Tap, located at 101 East Mill St. in Plymouth.

“The 2019 car will be on display and we will have all-day raffles and walk-around raffles too,” Walter said. “We will be serving brats, burgers and beverages all day as well. Torque Racing and Plymouth Tap will also be hosting the first-ever Bar Olympics on that day. You won’t want to miss out on that. It should be a lot of fun.”

The Bar Olympics competition, which runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., will feature two-person teams in a round-robin format, including four pool games, four 501 dart games, four corn hole games, four foosball games and one team bye per round. The Bar Olympics competition will be limited to 17 teams with 100-percent payout. The first-place team receives $300, second place gets $150 and third place will earn $60.

Teams can sign up in advance for the Bar Olympics at Plymouth Tap now through 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 2. The entry fee is $30 per two-person team.

Torque Racing is currently seeking additional sponsors for the 2019 season. For more information on how to get involved, contact Josh Walter by phone at 920-400-0720, email at sprint.racer12w@gmail.com or via Facebook at www.facebook.com/TorqueRacing12w.

Torque Racing Sponsor Showcase – Ruh Custom Woodworking LLC.

Torque Racing is pleased to welcome Ruh Custom Woodworking of Plymouth, Wis. to the team for the 2019 season.

Twenty-five years ago, Ruh Custom Woodworking owner Greg Ruh started taking on a few small woodworking projects for family and friends for fun, which over time evolved into his own full-fledged business.

“I worked at Wilderness Log Homes for 17 years and that’s what got me to have this desire to pursue operating my own woodworking business,” Ruh said. “I make anything people are looking for. Past projects include such things as beds, bunk beds, tables, TV stands and any type of log furniture imaginable. With the support of my family, Ruh Custom Woodworking LLC is starting to become a very successful local business. Our business motto is, ‘If you can dream it, we can build it.’”

Ruh began attending races as a young child with his parents and immediately caught the racing bug. Not only a racing enthusiast, Ruh was a racer himself. He fulfilled his dream of racing his own car in 1993 and competed locally over 10 seasons. Ruh continues to be passionate about the sport of racing and loves to share that passion with his kids, attending as many races as possible with his family.

Ruh says joining with Josh Walter and Torque Racing as a team sponsor for the 2019 campaign serves as a natural fit for Ruh Custom Woodworking LLC.

“My business has decided to sponsor Torque Racing and Josh Walter for the 2019 racing season,” Ruh said. “I like that Josh runs locally. He is also a very competitive racer and a great overall person in and out of the car.”

Torque Racing invites you to contact Ruh Custom Woodworking LLC by phone at 920-980-2087 or via email at gregruh66@gmail.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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

2018 Torque Racing By The Numbers

Total Events – 23

A Main Victories – 1

Top Five A Main Finishes – 10

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 17

Midwest Sprint Car Association Points – 3rd

Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Points – 3rd

 

2019 Josh Walter-Torque Racing Schedule

Saturday, March 2 – Torque Racing Brat Fry, Plymouth Tap, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, April 27 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, May 4 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, May 11 – Plymouth, Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, May 18 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis

Saturday, May 25 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, June 1 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Sunday, June 2 – Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wis.

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

Saturday, June 15 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, June 21 – Spring Lake Speedway, Unity, Wis.

Saturday, June 22 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, June 28 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Wednesday, July 3 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, July 6 – TNT Speedway, Three Lakes, Wis.

Friday, July 12 – Outagamie Speedway, Seymour, Wis.

Saturday, July 13 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, July 20 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Sunday, July 21 – Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wis.

Saturday, July 27 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, August 2 – Outagamie Speedway, Wis. (rain date only)

Saturday, August 3 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, August 10 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Sunday, August 11 – Angell Park Speedway, Sun Prairie, Wis.

Saturday, August 17 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, August 23 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, August 24 – Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, August 31 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, September 7 – TNT Speedway, Three Lakes, Wis.

Saturday, September 14 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Friday, September 27 – Dodge County Fairgrounds, Beaver Dam, Wis.

Saturday, September 28 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

Saturday, November 9 – Midwest Sprint Car Association Awards Banquet, The Columbian, West Bend, Wis.

 

2019 Josh Walter-Torque Racing By The Numbers

Total Events – 0

A Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 0

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 0

Heat Race Victories – 0

 

You need to add a widget, row, or prebuilt layout before you’ll see anything here. 🙂
February 5, 2019 / by Jeff Pederson

2019 ‘The Bird & The Bear” book tour scheduled

Nine dates slated at seven venues across Wisconsin to promote new Pedal Down Promotions book publication

(GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN) December 19 – Motorsports author Joe Verdegan of Green Bay has released his 2019 tour schedule for his fourth book “The Bird & The Bear,” published by Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis.

The book chronicles a pair of Northeastern Wisconsin racing legends – Kimberly’s Roger “The Bear” Regeth and Appleton’s J.J. “The Tweety Bird” Smith. In their racing careers spanning several decades starting in the 1960’s, the pair racked up several hundred feature wins and multiple track championships along the way on both dirt and asphalt ovals across Northeastern Wisconsin.

The tour includes a pair of radio show appearances, two motorsports related shows and stops at three Northeastern Wisconsin race tracks that Regeth and Smith experienced a great deal of success in their colorful careers.

The ’19 Tour kicks off Monday night, Jan. 21, 2019 at the Big Apple Pub & Grill in Manitowoc on “Sports Talk” on 1240 WOMT AM with hosts Greg Anderson and Brian Norton. Stop two will be at the fourth annual Luxemburg Racing Show Saturday, Feb. 9 at the Kewaunee County Fairgrounds in Luxemburg.

Stop number three will be at the 5th annual NEW MOTORAMA at Shopko Hall in Green Bay Friday thru Sunday March 29-31. The tour then heads south to West Allis Tuesday, April 2 at the famed Milwaukee Mile at Paulie’s Pub for the 35th season of host Jim Tretow’s “Racing Roundup” show.

Shawano Speedway, the famed half-mile where both Regeth and Smith are members of the track’s Hall of Fame, will host a signing at their season opening race Saturday, April 13. Outagamie Speedway in Seymour powered by Eastern Wisconsin Stock Car, another track where “The Bird” and “The Bear” boast several track titles, will host a signing at their season lid lifter Friday night, May 10 at the Outagamie County Fairgrounds.

The final leg of the ’19 Tour will be at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna for the second annual “Pre-Season Pit Party” Thursday night, May 16.

“What these signings have evolved into is a true racer’s reunion for both former drivers and fans alike,” Verdegan said. “Those two legendary drivers will be attending some of these signings next year.”

Verdegan’s other books include “Life In The Past Lane – a history of stock car racing in Northeast Wisconsin from 1950-1980” (released 2015), “Wisconsin International Raceway – Where The Big Ones Run” (released 2016) and “Life In The Past Lane – The Next Generation” (released 2017).

All four of Verdegan’s books can be obtained through the following venues:

Amazon.com
Coastal181.com
barnesandnoble.com Barnes and Noble (print on demand)
Muenster Shell (Green Bay)
Bosse’s News (Green Bay)
Book Stop (Green Bay)
Bay Speed Center (De Pere)
Hobby Town (Ashwaubenon)
Hank N Karen’s Pub (Appleton)
Right Foot Performance (Appleton)

December 19, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Torque Racing preps for 2019, joins forces with Pedal Down Promotions

Josh Walter celebrates in victory lane after winning the 360 Sprint Car A-main event on Pedal Down Promotions Night at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth on Saturday, May 26, 2018. Walter has enlisted Pedal Down Promotions to provide public relations services for his Torque Racing team during the upcoming 2019 season. – Photo by Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) December 12, 2018 – Since the final checkered flag fell on the 2018 season in late September, Josh Walter’s Torque Racing team has not backed off one bit, instead keeping the pedal down in shifting into full preparation mode for 2019.

After spending three seasons racing in the 410 Sprint Car ranks, the 14-year veteran returned to his roots in 2018 for a full-time assault on the Midwest Sprint Car Association and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car schedule.

Walter enjoyed a strong 2018 campaign finishing third in both the MSA and PDTR point standings on the strength of one A-main victory, 10 top-five A-main finishes and 17 top-10 A-main showings in 23 events.

“I thought the season started off decent,” Walter said. “We never really had any stellar pill draws, but we were able to pass cars and make the best of the positions we were put in. Around the middle of the season, I felt like the car had lost some speed and we had a few nights that we DNF’d in two heat races and one feature, which put us a little behind where we needed to be to stay competitive. We spent several weeks chasing the car’s speed issue, until we found out we had a fuel pump that was slowly retiring from racing. All in all, our team did a great job keeping the car in prime condition, giving me the best opportunity they could to win races.”

Looking ahead to the 2019 campaign, Walter has been hard at work assembling a solid foundation of sponsorship partners.

“We are looking forward to 2019,” Walter said.” We have many of our 2018 sponsors returning to the car so far, including JDV Lawncare, Brittany’s School of Dance, Sheboygan by Owner, Plymouth Tap, Platinum Restoration Services, Doug’s Quality Beef, Tiffany’s Wildtree, Cow Pies and Full Throttle Ink. We are very excited to add several new sponsors for 2019 including Lakehouse Bar & Grill in Crystal Lake, Ruh Custom Woodworking and RC Custom Design. We are looking forward to working with our current and new sponsors to make 2019 a great season.”

Walter is especially pleased to be adding a new dimension to his racing program in 2019 as he strives to spread the word about the team’s racing efforts to sponsors, supporters and fans through a new partnership with Manitowoc-based public relations agency Pedal Down Promotions.

“I’m extremely grateful that our team was able to secure a spot with Pedal Down Promotions to utilize as our public relations, media and promotional service provider,” Walter said. “Jeff Pederson does great work and has a way of expressing racing feelings into words, as I feel we as drivers don’t always know the right things to say. We are looking forward to all that Pedal Down Promotions provides before, during and after the season. Jeff gives the best weekly summaries, nightly updates and seasonal write ups in our sport. This is a great opportunity for our team to provide the recognition to our sponsors and team members that they deserve.”

Walter is aiming to take on the full MSA and PDTR 360 Sprint Car schedules once again in 2019.

“As of right now, the team has been updating the chassis with the latest safety improvements, getting the engine fresh for the 2019 season and slowly organizing to prepare for racing circumstances,” Walter said. “Our plans are to race the entire MSA Sprints and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing schedules for 2019 with the same goals as last year. We want to have fun, win as many races as we can and be in the championship hunt as long as the cards fall right.”

Torque Racing will kick off its 2019 season on Saturday, March 2, 2019 with its annual team brat fry at Plymouth Tap in Plymouth.

Torque Racing is currently seeking additional sponsors for the 2019 season. For more information on how to get involved, contact Josh Walter by phone at 920-400-0720, email at sprint.racer12w@gmail.com or via Facebook at www.facebook.com/TorqueRacing12w.

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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

2018 Torque Racing By The Numbers
Total Events – 23
A Main Victories – 1
Top Five A Main Finishes – 10
Top 10 A Main Finishes – 17
Midwest Sprint Car Association Points – 3rd
Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Points – 3rd

December 12, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Pokorski Motorsports reflects on rock solid 2018 campaign

 

Paul Pokorski earned five heat race victories in Midwest Sprint Car Association action during the 2018 season. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) November 7, 2018 – In a sport as unpredictable and endlessly challenging as dirt track racing, consistency is something that all racers aspire to, but few achieve.

For Paul Pokorski and his Pokorski Motorsports team the 2018 season was loaded with a remarkable level of unwavering consistency, which was sustained over a five-month span from the drop of the green flag at the Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on April 29 to the final checkered flag at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 29.

In fact, 26-year driver recorded the team’s most consistent season in 14 years by completing every lap of every A main he competed in during the 2018 campaign, while steering clear of any major incidents or mechanical malfunctions.

The 2014 Midwest Sprint Car Association Masters Series champion racked up five top-five A-main finishes, 16 top-10 A-main showings and five heat race triumphs in 24 events during the 2018 campaign.

Drawing on the strength of its highly consistent finishes, the Pokorski Motorports team placed fifth in the final Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car standings and fourth in the Midwest Sprint Car Association standings, just three points out of third place, during the 2018 season.

“I’d say it was good a good season,” Pokorski said. “I am proud of the fact that we were competitive most nights, some better than others of course, but we were competitive. We also finished every race on the lead lap with no breakdowns and no wrecker rides. That is a huge success in any form or division of racing.”

After unseasonably cold spring weather condition forced the cancellation of the team’s planned 2018 season opener at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis., the team made a late decision to enter an Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series event at the Beaver Dam Raceway on April 29.

Despite competing with an underpowered 360 powerplant, Pokorski qualified for the IRA A main and came home with a respectable 15th-place finish in the A main.

On May 5, Pokorski opened the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car season with a 10th-place showing in the A main. Following a rain out on May 12 and an abbreviated night of racing on May 19, which ended before the A main due to rain, Pokorski reeled off three straight top-10 finishes in the next three events before dipping to a 13th-place finish at The Plymouth Dirt Track on June 9.

Pokorski bounced back to record a sixth-place showing in A-main action at The Plymouth Dirt Track on June 15. A doubleheader weekend produced a ninth-place showing at Spring Lake Speedway in Unity on June 22 and a 12th-place showing at The Plymouth Dirt Track on June 23.

After a weather cancellation at Plymouth on June 30, Pokorski registered one of his best performances of the season in an MSA event at the high-speed half-mile Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam on July 6.

Pokorski started seventh and worked the high groove into record a strong second-place showing in the A-main event, which proved to be a standout night for the three-time Eastern Wisconsin Stock Car Winged Super Modified champion.

“Running second at Dodge County is the one thing that comes to mind when thinking of a highlight of the season,” Pokorski said. “I used to dread going there, but I’ve come to like it and look forward to it, which shows in the results.”

Pokorski came back the following night to post a sixth-place showing in the Mid-Season Championship A-main event at The Plymouth Dirt Track on July 7 before backing that up with a 10th-place showing at Plymouth on July 14.

Pokorski registered a strong fourth-place finish in A-main action at Plymouth on July 28 and added a sixth-place showing at Plymouth on Aug. 4, during an evening that also produced one of Pokorski’s biggest disappointments of the 2018 season.

“The most difficult moment this season for me was probably an unintended run in with Adam Miller that caused him to wreck during a heat race at Plymouth on August 4th,” Pokorski said. “It bothers me when I make mistakes, especially when it hurts someone else physically or financially.  He and I were both having fun up until that moment, but stuff like that takes the fun out of racing for both people involved, but it is part of it and we’ve been on both sides, so you just have to move on.”

Pokorski added two more top-10 showings the following weekend as he finished third at Plymouth on Aug. 11 and tallied a sixth-place showing at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie on Aug. 12.

On Aug. 18, Pokorski equaled his second-best finish by placing second at Plymouth. The following day, Pokorski suffered some rare misfortune as a flat tire forced him to pit late in an A-main at TNT Speedway in Three Lakes. However, he bounced back to salvage an 11-place showing.

After recording a ninth-place finish at Plymouth on Aug. 25, Pokorski posted an eighth-place finish at Outagamie Speedway Powered By EWSC in Seymour on Aug. 31 and added sixth-place finish at Plymouth on Sept. 1.

Pokorski notched an 11th-place finish at Plymouth on Sept. 8 before capping the 2018 campaign with another 11th-place showing at Plymouth on Sept. 29.

“Consistency in our team members, set-ups on the car and our weekly routines in the shop and at the track definitely made a difference this year,” Pokorski said. “This team has been together for a very long time by racing standards. Everyone knows their role and what needs to be done and when it needs to be done. Also, coupling with great vendor partners like Goodwin Competition, Competition Driveline, Behling’s Racing Equipment and R&H racing to name a few has been great for us. Those people do a great job on the parts we get from them or ask them to service. It all adds up to a year like this one. I would actually say the last few years have not been terrible, but this year was definitely smoother sailing than any I can remember.”

Encouraged by how his 2016 Maxim performed over the second half of the 2018 season, Pokorski is looking forward to fine tuning a few things to come out even stronger in 2019.

“I always feel like it takes us until about mid-season to learn something significant and improve over where we started the year,” Pokorski said. ‘I’d say we learned a few things again. Just goes to show you need to keep on learning every day, in regard to racing or anything else in life. I was really happy with the last month or so.  The last night we went a little too far with some of the things we were trying, which is good. Now we know how far is too far. We can start with what worked and start working on the next thing…whatever it is.”

Looking ahead to next year, it appears that it will be business as usual for the Pokorski Motorsports team.

“I don’t plan on changing anything for next year,” Pokorski said. “We just plan on getting everything fresh and try to get ahead and stay ahead on all the projects and commitments that go along with racing.  We already have a good jump on 2019.”

Pokorski is thankful for the support he received once again this year from his dedicated pit crew.

“I have to thank my wife, Lynn, for tolerating 26 years of racing,” Pokorski said. “Also, my brother-in-law and crew chief Dave Schultz for sticking with me. Randy Leamer for always making last-minute adjustments when I change my mind. Randy was battling an ankle that had to be replaced just before the end of season and we missed his help at the end of the year. I’m also proud of Aaron Pederson and Ian Schultz for continuing to learn and help with whatever they can.”

A collection of longtime supporters and one major new addition filled out an impressive list of Pokorski Motorsports sponsors for the 2018 season.

The Pokorski Motorsports sponsors for the 2018 season include: Quest Engineering Inc., Acme Armature Works Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Jens, Reinbold & Pfeffer Family Funeral Service & Crematory, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tilser Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

“I can’t thank all of our advertising partners enough for their help,” Pokorski said. “Hopefully others will too. We were thrilled to have Quest Engineering come on board with us this year. We appreciate their support. Goeden’s Auto Body keeps the race car the right shade of blue and always takes care of what we send their way. Mark and Joel Jens have been long time partners. Al Knepprath at Kettle Moraine Landscaping is always supportive on and off the track. Novak’s Service in Manitowoc and Tisler Salvage are both longtime partners. I need to also acknowledge The Cawley Company, which is our longest active sponsor at 22 consecutive years. Their support over such a long time period is greatly appreciated. Finally, I was happy to have Acme Armature back to help for another year.”

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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

2018 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 24

MSA events – 23

IRA events – 1

A Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 5

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 16

Heat Race Victories – 5

Midwest Sprint Car Association Points – 4th

Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Points – 5th

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

2018 ‘The Bird & The Bear’ Holiday Book Tour Announced

Six Wisconsin book tour dates on tap for December 2018 as Pedal Down Promotions second book publication launches

The front cover for Northeastern Wisconsin Motorsports Author Joe Verdegan’s fourth book “The Bird & The Bear,” chronicling the racing adventures of J.J. “Tweety Bird” Smith and Roger “The Bear” Regeth, has been released. The book will be launched on Saturday, Dec. 8. with a special event at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton, Wis. – Woody’s Signs book cover design.

 
(Green Bay, WI) – Motorsports Author Joe Verdegan of Green Bay has announced a six-date holiday book tour to promote his new book “The Bird & The Bear” for the month of December 2018.
 
The book features the tales of Northeast Wisconsin racing legends J.J. “Tweety Bird” Smith and Roger “The Bear” Regeth. It will be launched Saturday, Dec. 8 at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton from noon to 3 p.m. Les Stumpf Ford is a longtime sponsor of “The Bear” and was Regeth’s employer for 17 years.
 
Following the book launch, Kaukauna’s “The X Bar” will host a signing Thursday, Dec. 13 from 6-8 p.m. The X Bar is owned by late model and Figure 8 racer Craig Krueger. Two days later, Hank & Karen’s Pub in Appleton will host a signing on Saturday, Dec. 15 from 1-4 p.m. Local racing enthusiast Hank Grishaber owns the bar with his wife Karen.
 
The tour will make its only Milwaukee area stop Sunday, Dec. 16 at the Milwaukee Miniature Motors Racing Memorabilia show at the Waukesha County Exposition Center in Waukesha from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
 
The tour swings over to Seymour on Wednesday night, Dec. 19 at the Hustle Inn. from 6-8 p.m. The Hustle Inn is owned by Leslie Fulton. Her uncle was former Seymour Speedway promoter Paul Kaczrowski and George Kaczrowski owned the Hustle Inn for many years and sold the bar to Fulton 14 years ago.
 
The final stop on the book tour will be Saturday, Dec. 22 at Bosse’s News Depot on Green Bay’s east side from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
“We’ve trimmed our holiday book tour down to six dates as I think that’s plenty,” Verdegan said. “Both J.J. and Roger will be at the book launch at Les Stumpf Ford on December 8th. Roger has committed to all of them and there’s a good chance J.J. will make some of the other signings, too. Those guys are both great story tellers and we very much look forward to the tour in December. The books have always made great Christmas gifts for race fans and this one will be no exception.”
 
Verdegan’s other books will be on sale at the signings. They include his 2015 release “Life In The Past Lane – a history of stock car racing in Northeast Wisconsin from 1950 – 1980.” “Wisconsin International Raceway – Where The Big Ones Run”, a 2016 release will also be available, along with “Life In The Past Lane – The Next Generation,” which was launched in 2017.
 
Race fans who cannot attend any of the signings can pre order books. You can purchase books through PayPal at jverdegan2 or you can send check or money order for $20.00 plus $8.00 shipping and handling to Joe Verdegan, 203 N. Ashland Avenue, Green Bay, Wisconsin 54303. Any book purchases made prior to the Dec. 8 book launch will guaranteed shipping during the week of Dec. 10 in plenty of time for the holidays.
“The Bird & The Bear” will be published by Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis. To contact Pedal Down Promotions, call 920-323-7970, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com or visit www.pedaldownpromotions.com.
 
You can reach Verdegan at jverdegan2@gmail.com or message him through his Facebook account. To keep track of other developments with “The Bird & The Bear” please check out the Northeast Wisconsin Racing History page on Facebook.
“The Bird & The Bear” 2018 Holiday Book Tour Schedule 
Saturday, December 8 - Les Stumpf Ford Appleton, WI, 12-3 p.m. 

Thursday, December 13 - The “X” Bar Kaukauna, WI, 6-8 p.m.

Saturday, December 15 - Hank & Karen’s Pub Appleton, WI, 1-4 p.m.

Sunday, December 16 - Racing Memorabilia Waukesha, WI, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Wednesday, December 19 - The Hustle Inn. Seymour, WI, 6-8 p.m. 

Saturday, December 22 - Bosse’s News Depot Green Bay, WI, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

‘The Bird & The Bear” book cover released

The front cover for Northeastern Wisconsin Motorsports Author Joe Verdegan’s fourth book “The Bird & The Bear,” chronicling the racing adventures of J.J. “Tweety Bird” Smith and Roger “The Bear” Regeth, has been released. The book will be launched on Saturday, Dec. 8. with a special event at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton, Wis. – Woody’s Signs book cover design.

(GREEN BAY, WI) Oct. 8, 2018 – The much-anticipated front cover of motorsports author Joe Verdegan’s fourth book “The Bird & The Bear” has been released.

The cover of the book, which features Northeast Wisconsin racing legends J.J. “Tweety Bird” Smith and “The Bear” Roger Regeth, was completed by Bryan “Woody” Wodack of Woody’s Signs in Sturgeon Bay, Wis.

The book will be launched in less than two months on Saturday, Dec. 8 from noon to 3 p.m. at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton.

 “I’ve had Woody put together signs and banners for my book signings these past three years and his work is second to none,” said Verdegan of Green Bay, Wisconsin. “It was important for me to go with local talent in designing the cover for this fourth book and Woody is one of the best in the region when it comes to this sort of thing.”

 The photos on the cover were both taken by De Pere native and former Midwest Racing News columnist Pete Vercauteren at Shawano Speedway in the 1970s.

The top photo includes Smith with his famous Gene Wheeler-owned “Tweety Bird” racer from 1976. The bottom picture is of Regeth on Shawano’s pit lane from 1977 in his famous “Les Stumpf Ford-sponsored-Chevy” owned by Jerry Sheriff and prepared by Mike Randerson.

“In the ‘70s, Shawano Speedway didn’t have guardrail along the backstretch so some younger fans may not pick that up when they glance at the cover,” Verdegan said. “The ‘70s provided some excellent racing on the half-mile and on dirt tracks in the greater Green Bay area. In this book we’ll cover that entire era, along with the sportsman and coupe days for both Roger and J.J., their days racing in USAC and  their racing careers after the ‘70s with Roger in the grand national and Mid-American Sportsman divisions and J.J. battling on Thursday nights in the late models at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna.”

 A complete Holiday Book Tour will be released in the very near future.

Woody’s Signs is a full-service vinyl lettering and embroidery shop. To learn more about Woody’s Signs and the services they offer check their website at woodyssigns.com or call 920 743 7052. You can also email Wodack at woody@woodysigns.com.

 “The Bird & The Bear” is being published by Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis. You can learn more about their services at pedaldownpromotions.com or email Jeff Pederson at pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com.

 To follow progress on the completion of “The Bird & The Bear” please check the “Northeast Wisconsin Racing History” page on Facebook. You can email Verdegan at jverdegan2@gmail.com.

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Pokorski Motorsports puts a bow on 2018 campaign, turns page to 2019

 

 

Paul Pokorski (4) races with Danny Schlafer (25), during 360 Sprint Car heat race action at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 29. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) October 3, 2018 – Paul Pokorski and his Pokorski Motorsports team completed a season highlighted by remarkable consistency by tallying an 11th-place showing in the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing-Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car season finale at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 29.

With 27 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars signed in for the four-division Wisconsin Sprint Car Championship program, which also included the Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Cars, Wisconsin Wingless Sprint cars and Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprints, Pokorski started fourth in the second heat race.

The 26-year open-wheel racing veteran used a strong start to settle into third on the opening lap. Following a caution on lap 3, Pokorski used a strong restart to pull even with the second-place car of Danny Schlafer. After dueled side by side for a lap, Schlafer fended off Pokorski’s advances to retain the runner-up spot.

Pokorski maintained the third position the rest of the way to earn a spot in the 25-lap A-main event.

After the A-main invert, Pokorski rolled off ninth in the final PDTR-MSA A main of the 2018 season.

In the opening laps, Pokorski found himself running 11th. After a caution on lap 9, Pokorski gained two spots when 2018 Midwest Sprint Car Association champ Kurt Davis exited the race after contact with the turn three wall and Tim Haddy pitted to fix damage incurred following contact with the turn four wall.

On lap 18, Justin Miller, who went on to claim the 2018 PDTR 360 Sprint Car championship, slipped past Pokorski to drop the West Bend driver to 10th.  As the laps wound down Kevin Karnitz managed to seize the 10th spot away from Pokorski, who wound up 11th in a race won by Danny Schlafer.

“The car was a little off all night,” Pokorski said. “We are always trying some different things and Saturday night was no different. The changes we tried did what they were supposed to, but they got the car way too tight and made it kind of a handful to drive.”

Pokorski finished the team’s most consistent season in 14 years by completing every lap of every A main he competed in during the 2018 campaign, while steering clear of major incidents or mechanical malfunctions.

The 2014 MSA Masters Series champion racked up five top-five A-main finishes, 16 top-10 A-main showings and five heat race triumphs in 24 events during the 2018 campaign.

Drawing on the strength of its highly consistent finishes, the Pokorski Motorports team placed fifth in the final PDTR standings and fourth in the MSA standings, just three points out of third place, during the 2018 season.

“As a team, I think we are all proud of the fact that we made it through the season and completed every lap of every race with no crashes,” Pokorski said. “That makes it a lot more fun for everybody involved.”

Pokorski is thankful for the support the team received from its sponsors throughout the 2018 season and is already looking forward to doing it all over again in 2019.

“I want to thank all of our 2018 sponsors, who continue to support us,” Pokorski said. “We will start working on 2019 in the next week or so. It is going to be a long winter and we have some work to do to improve a bit next year.”

The Pokorski Motorsports sponsors for the 2018 season include: Quest Engineering Inc., Acme Armature Works Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Jens, Reinbold & Pfeffer Family Funeral Services & Crematory, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

For more information on Pokorski Motorsports throughout the off season, check out Pokorski Motorsports on Facebook or visit www.pedaldownpromotions.com.

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Quest Engineering Inc.

Pokorski Motorsports will like to welcome Quest Engineering of Richfield, Wis. as a new sponsor for the 2018 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 focus 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.

“We spent time working on new sponsorship for this year and we are very excited to have Quest Engineering on board with us for 2018,” 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.

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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

2018 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 24

MSA events – 23

IRA events – 1

A Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 5

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 16

Heat Race Victories – 5

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Schlafer nets record 22nd PDTR A-main victory, Miller claims first 360 Sprint Car title

Justin Miller (15M) of Plymouth captured his first career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car championship and Danny Schlafer (25) of Sussex became the winningest driver in the history of the PDTR 360 Sprint Car division by collecting his 22nd career A-main victory, during the second night of the Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth on Saturday, Sept. 29. – RC Custom Design photo

Balog tops Stewart again, Blackhurst earns first IRA crown

 By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS, Plymouth, Wis.) September 29, 2018 – Night two of the Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships brought the 2018 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing season to a close in thrilling fashion before an enthusiastic crowd on a cold fall evening at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 29.

Four of Wisconsin’s premier Sprint Car racing series gathered to conclude the 2018 season with champions determined following tight points battles over the better part of the past six months.

Justin Miller of Plymouth nipped 2010 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee by two points to secure his first career PDTR Richard’s of Dunbar 360 Sprint Car title. Jake Blackhurst of Hanna City, Ill. collected his initial Interstate Racing Association (IRA) 410 Sprint Car Series championship by a seven-point margin over Sheboygan’s Scotty Thiel. Tim Cox of Park City, Ill. picked up his first Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car Series champion and Ion Stear of Hebron, Ill. earned the 2018 Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprint Series title.

Danny Schlafer of Sussex moved to the top of the PDTR 360 Sprint Car all-time victory list by notching his 22nd career A-main triumph in the 25-lap 360 Sprint Car A main. For the second time in a month, Bill Balog of Hartland pulled off a last-lap pass of three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart of Columbus, Ind. to claim the season-ending 30-lap IRA A main contested in memory of Frank Filskov, Roy Fenske, Rick Schmidt, Dick Symoens and Dick Witt. Ryan Zielske of Oconomowoc pulled off a final-lap pass to claim the 20-lap Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car A main and Mark Heinert of Oak Creek was determined the winner of the rain-shortened 10-lap Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprint A main.

Outside front row starter Doug Wondra of Lomira jumped out to the lead on the drop of the green flag of the 25-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main. With Wondra leading polesitter Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum and fourth starter Tim Haddy of Waupun in the early going, the first of two caution flags appeared on lap 4 when Josh Walter of Plymouth spun in turn two.

On the restart, the low-riding Wenninger and the cushion-pounding Haddy moved in to pressure on lap 7. One lap later, Haddy powered around Wenninger and Wondra entering turn one to claim the top spot.

On lap 9, Haddy jumped the cushion and clipped the turn four wall to allow Wondra to regain the top spot just before the second caution came out for Kurt Davis, who entered the program with a 15-point lead over Justin Miller in the PDTR 360 Sprint Car point standings, following heavy contact with the wall between turns three and four after a mechanical failure on his machine.

The accident ended Davis’ night and relegated him to a 22nd-place finish.

After Haddy pitted following contact with the turn four wall while leading, Wondra held the top spot on the restart with Wenninger and 10th starter Adam Miller of Plymouth in tow.

On lap 9, Adam Miller powered past Wenninger into second place before moving past Wondra to grab the lead in turn two on lap 10. Meanwhile, seventh starter Danny Schlafer was making his move as he pulled off a perfect slide job to take second on lap 11.

Three laps later, Schlafer slid past Adam Miller take the lead on lap 14. Schlafer then worked the high groove to perfection to maintain a solid lead, while Will Gerrits of Waupun, who was making his first appearance since suffering a broken arm in an accident at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam in early July, assumed second on lap 22.

Schlafer weaved his way through lapped traffic in the closing laps to secure his record 22nd PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 51st Midwest Sprint Car Association (MSA) A-main triumph.

Gerrits registered his best career 360 Sprint Car finish with a second-place showing, 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh, who started third, placed third, Adam Miller ended up fourth and Wenninger rounded out the top five.

After starting 12th, Justin Miller posted an eighth-place finish to secure his first career PDTR 360 Sprint Car championship by two points over Kurt Davis, who topped Miller to secure his third career MSA title.

In the 30-lap IRA A main, Mike Reinke of Howards Grove grabbed the early lead from his outside front row starting spot before the first of three caution flags appeared on lap 1 for a spin involving Russel Borland of Kewaskum and Scott Biertzer of West Bend.

On the restart Reinke led again, but fourth starter Tony Stewart was on the move as he split Reinke and polesitter Scotty Thiel with a slide job to take the lead on lap 2 in turn four.

With Stewart running strong on the cushion, eight-time IRA champ Bill Balog, who started third, worked the low groove to challenge Reinke for second on lap 4. However, Reinke held strong and closed the gap on Stewart when the leaders caught the back of the field on lap 5.

On lap 9, Reinke was within striking distance when a caution flew for the slowing machine of Todd King of Sheboygan Falls.

On the restart, Balog executed a slide job to seize second from Reinke in turn four on lap 10. With Stewart holding a half-straightaway lead on 13, Balog turned it on to close the gap quickly over the next 12 laps in heavy lapped traffic to move into position to challenge Stewart.

Balog ducked low to pressure Stewart on a pair of occasions on lap 25 and 28, but he was unable to wrestle the lead away from Stewart. On the final lap, Stewart moved to the middle of the track in turn three, which opened the door for Balog to slip underneath and steal the lead away in turn four.

Balog outpowered Stewart to the finish line to earn his fourth IRA A-main victory of the 2018 season worth a hefty $6,000 by a half-car-length margin.

Stewart had to settle for second for the third consecutive time in IRA A-main action at The Plymouth Dirt Track this year. Reinke placed third, Thiel wound up fourth and Jake Blackhurst secured his first career IRA title by a seven-point margin over Thiel with a fifth-place finish after starting sixth.

One night after making his first appearance at The Plymouth Dirt Track of his stellar 46-year career, three-time World of Outlaws champion and Sprint Car veteran Sammy Swindell of Germantown, Tenn. advanced from the 12th starting spot to finish sixth behind the wheel of the Sheboygan-based Thone Motorsports No. 1 machine.

“Tony was real good early and then I noticed he started to try some different lines and we just kept after it,” Balog said in victory lane. “I just tried to keep him in my sights and it turned out well at the end. It is always a lot of fun racing with Tony. He is just an awesome racer and I think we all appreciate when he comes out and races with us.”

Stewart credited Balog for capitalizing on his mistake on the final lap.

“I just gave it away on the last lap,” Stewart said. “I knew Bill was coming and I was trying to block a slide job on the last lap and I ended up sliding up to the middle, which was enough for him to get by. Bill is an awesome driver. He is the type of driver who you can race wheel to wheel with for the entire race and never touch. That is what makes racing fun.”

Reinke was pleased with his podium performance.

“We stayed with them pretty well for most of the race and to finish third to those guys, I can’t complain,” Reinke said. “They were both better than us tonight, but all in all it was a pretty decent night for us.”

Scotty Thiel was named the winner of the 2018 Hopf Farms Bullring Showdown and Tony Stewart captured the Rocky Rococo Pizza Challenge.

Nick Petska of Spring Grove, Ill. grabbed the lead of the 20-lap Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car A main from his outside front row starting spot with polesitter Ryan Zielski following in second.

On lap 5, seventh starter Jordan Mattson of Milwaukee ventured up to the high groove to seize fourth. Three laps later Mattson moved in to pressure third starter Chris Dodd of Trevor for third.

As Petska, Zielski, Dodd and Mattson dueled in close quarters at the front of the field, heavy rain began to fall on the racing surface, which forced the race to be stopped on lap 15 with five laps remaining.

After a delay, the race resumed with Petska had to contend with Zielski, who applied heavy pressure beginning on lap 16. On the final lap, Zielski moved high in turn three to power around Petska with Mattson and Dodd in tow.

With the top four competitors spread out four wide in a mad scramble to the finish line Zielski secured his first Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car A-main victory of the 2018 season. Mattson placed second, Dodd was third, Petska finished fourth and fourth starter Allen Hafford of Beach Park, Il. wound up fifth.

Tim Cox placed sixth to wrap up his first Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car championship.

Mark Heinert of Oak Creek grabbed the lead on the opening lap of the scheduled 20-lap Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprint A main as fourth starter Mike Neau of Kenosha moved into second on lap 2.

On lap 4, C.J. Malueg of Johnsburg, Ill., who started fifth, assumed second as Heinert had built up a full-straightaway lead.

Heavy rain returned and forced the race to be halted on lap 10 with Heinert declared the winner.

Malueg placed second, Neau was third, Tim Brannam wound up fourth and Ron Brannam rounded out the top five.

Ion Stear secured the 2018 Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprint Series championship.

Round two of the Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships event drew 98 Sprint Cars in four divisions, including 27 IRA 410 Sprint Cars, 27 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars, 29 Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Cars and 15 Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprints.

The 2019 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing season will again feature weekly racing on most Saturday nights, including several special events. The 2019 PDTR season will begin on Saturday, April 27. Visit www.plymouthdtr.com for off-season information.

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Thiel holds off Stewart to capture opening night of IRA Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships at Plymouth

Scotty Thiel of Sheboygan was victorious in the 30-lap Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series A main at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 28. – RC Custom Design photo

Cox nets Wingless Sprint Car triumph with last-lap pass

 By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS, Plymouth, Wis.) September 28, 2018 – On a night when two all-time Sprint Car racing legends mounted spirited bids for victory, Scotty Thiel of Sheboygan held off both veteran drivers to stand tall at the end of the 30-lap Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series event on night one of the Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships Friday, Sept. 28, at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Thiel, who came into the night trailing IRA point leader Jake Blackhurst of Hanna City, Ill. by just 36 points in the chase for the 2018 IRA title on the final weekend of points competition, lined up on the front row of the A-main event beside polesitter Steve Meyer of Sheboygan Falls.

On the drop of the green flag, Thiel shot high to power his way into the lead while Meyer tucked into second along the low groove. In the early going, Meyer patiently worked the low line to close the gap on the high-riding Thiel. On lap 5, Meyer ducked under Thiel to seize the top spot in turn one on lap 6.

However, Thiel battled back to slide underneath Meyer to regain the top spot in turn three before Meyer lost control and spun entering turn four to bring out the first caution of the race on lap 6.

When the race resumed, Thiel held strong to the high line while three-time World of Outlaws Series champion and 46-year Sprint Car veteran Sammy Swindell of Germantown, Tenn., who started fourth, worked the low groove into second. As the leaders encountered lapped traffic on lap 9, Swindell, who was making his first-ever appearance at The Plymouth Dirt Track behind the wheel of the Sheboygan-based Thone Motorsports No. 1 machine, quickly began to close the gap on Thiel.

Swindell pounced on lap 13 with a low move in turn two to gain the top spot. Three laps later, Swindell found himself mired in heavy lapped traffic, which allowed Thiel to recapture the lead in turn four on lap 16.

On the next lap, Swindell moved up to the outside lane to challenge for the top spot before tagging the frontstretch wall attempting to maneuver around Thiel. The contact with the wall produced a flat right rear tire on Swindell’s car, which forced him to slow on the track to bring out the second caution flag of the event.

After going to the work area, Swindell’s crew discovered additional damage to the right rear of the car, which kept him from returning to action and relegated the Sprint Car Hall of Famer to a 23rd-place finish.

On the restart, three-time NASCAR Cup champion and veteran Sprint Car stalwart Tony Stewart of Columbus, Ind., who started 10th, made his presence known as he worked the high groove to seize third from sixth starter Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh on lap 19 before diving low to pass third starter Jeremy Schultz of Beaver Dam for second on lap 22.

Stewart, who finished second to eighth-time IRA champion Bill Balog of Hartland by .004 of second in his most recent appearance at The Plymouth Track on Sept. 1, was closing the gap quickly on Thiel along the cushion when Dave Uttech of Kenosha hit the wall existing turn two and flipped along the backstretch just in front of the leaders to bring out a red flag on lap 27.

On the restart, Thiel stuck to the low groove to block Stewart’s ability to pull off a slide job entering turn one. From there, Thiel stayed planted to the low line, while Stewart pounded the cushion, en route to his fourth A-main victory of the 2018 IRA season.

Stewart had to settle for second for the second straight race at Plymouth, Schultz placed third, McMullen wound up fourth and Mike Reinke of Howards Grove started and finished fifth.

Thiel’s victory coupled with Blackhurst’s seventh-place showing, allowed the Sheboygan driver to pull within 15-points of the IRA points lead heading into the final night of the IRA season on Saturday, Sept. 29, at The Plymouth Dirt Track.

“It feels great to win this race on the final weekend of the IRA season,” Thiel said in victory lane. “Knowing where we stand going into these last two nights here this weekend, the bottom line is we just need to win races. We were trying to knock down the wall at the start of the race and it worked okay for a while. Then we got to racing with Sammy and the track just seemed to be too wide for us to run up there consistently and keep up a good pace.

“On the last restart, I got a good run on the bottom and managed to hold Tony off,” he said. “I saw the No. 14 gradually moving up the scoreboard and I knew he was probably working the bottom quite a bit like he did last Sunday at LaSalle. We weren’t necessarily set up to run the bottom, but we made it work at the end. I’m so happy for my crew. They always give 110 percent to make the car the best it can be for every race. Now we have one night left tomorrow night back here at Plymouth and we have to go out and try to win that one too.”

After finishing second for the second time in IRA competition at Plymouth in less than a month, Stewart was upbeat and complimentary of his fellow competitors.

“I can’t complain about coming up from 10th to finish second with these guys,” Stewart said. “All these guys that have a lot of laps here, like Scotty [Thiel] and Bill [Balog], are tough to beat at this track and they just seem to get tougher every year. Tonight, I’m sure Sammy [Swindell] would have also been in the mix for the win too if he hadn’t of had that flat tire. Sometimes people don’t give local guys enough credit, but its tough for someone like me to come here on occasion and run with them for wins. I’m almost at a disadvantage because they have run so many laps here and they know the track so well.”

Schultz, who has fallen short of gaining an IRA A-main victory in 2018, was dejected that he was not able to get his car to victory lane.

“I’m proud of my guys and everything they do to put me in a position to win races, but it just hasn’t happened this year,” Schultz said. “I feel really bad about that. It is weird to say finishing third is one of the highlights of our season, but it has been that kind of year.”

In the 25-lap Wisconsin Wingless A-main Allen Hafford of Beach Park, Ill. grabbed the lead on the opening lap from the pole. On lap 2, fifth starter Matt Vandevere of Zion, Ill. moved past outside front row starter Nick Petska of Spring Grove, Ill. to seize second.

By lap 8, Vandevere had closed to Hafford’s rear bumper and began to pressure for the lead. Meanwhile, current Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car Series point leader Tim Cox of Park City, Ill. worked his way into third, on lap 11, after starting sixth.

On lap 15, Vandevere ventured up to the high groove in an attempt to challenge Hafford for the top spot, which left the door open for Cox to assume second on lap 16.

Cox closed to within inches of Hafford’s rear bumper on lap 23 and on the final circuit, Cox used a huge run on the backstretch to power under Hafford entering turn three. Cox then held on through turn four and back to the checkered flag to post his first Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car A-main triumph of the 2018 campaign in the caution-free race.

Hafford finished second, Petska was third, ninth starter Craig Campton of Pardeeville placed fourth and Chris Dodd of Trevor wound up fifth after starting fourth.

Todd King of Sheboygan Falls won the IRA B main and Jack Blackhurst was earn the IRA fast qualifier award with a last of 11.803.

Rod Colburn of New Berlin captured the Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car B main and Chris Dodd of Trevor was the Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Car fast qualifier with a lap of 14.358.

The event drew 29 IRA 410 Sprint Cars and 33 Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Cars.

IRA Interstate Racing Association, Plymouth Dirt Track, Sept. 28, 2018
A Feature 1 30 laps
1. 64-Scotty Thiel, [2]; 2. 14-Tony Stewart, [10]; 3. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, [3]; 4. 10W-Brandon McMullen, [6]; 5. 02-Mike Reinke, [5]; 6. 17B-Bill Balog, [9]; 7. 25-Jake Blackhurst, [7]; 8. 2W-Scott Neitzel, [8]; 9. 1M-Phillip Mock, [20]; 10. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, [12]; 11. 4B-Scott Biertzer, [13]; 12. 7-Scott Uttech, [14]; 13. 23-Russel Borland, [18]; 14. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski, [17]; 15. 85M-Steve Meyer, [1]; 16. 22-Todd King, [19]; 17. 4K-Kris Spitz, [15]; 18. 73-Ben Schmidt, [11]; 19. 12-Michael Decker, [23]; 20. 10V-Matt VandeVere, [21]; 21. 32-Jeremy Hunt, [24]; 22. 68-Dave Uttech, [16]; 23. 1-Sammy Swindell, [4]; 24. 43-Jereme Schroeder, [22]
B Feature 1 12 laps
1. 22-Todd King, [1]; 2. 1M-Phillip Mock, [4]; 3. 10V-Matt VandeVere, [3]; 4. 43-Jereme Schroeder, [2]; 5. 12-Michael Decker, [5]; 6. 32-Jeremy Hunt, [6]; 7. 11X-Tony Wondra, [9]; 8. 29-Hunter Custer, [7]; 9. 63-Nick Matuszewski, [11]; 10. 45-Matt Wiese, [10]; (DNS) 18-Keith Fellner,
Heat 1 10 laps
1. 2W-Scott Neitzel, [2]; 2. 02-Mike Reinke, [1]; 3. 25-Jake Blackhurst, [4]; 4. 4B-Scott Biertzer, [5]; 5. 10W-Brandon McMullen, [3]; 6. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski, [6]; 7. 22-Todd King, [7]; 8. 32-Jeremy Hunt, [10]; 9. 11X-Tony Wondra, [9]; 10. 45-Matt Wiese, [8]
Heat 2 10 laps
1. 1-Sammy Swindell, [3]; 2. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, [2]; 3. 17B-Bill Balog, [4]; 4. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, [1]; 5. 7-Scott Uttech, [5]; 6. 23-Russel Borland, [6]; 7. 1M-Phillip Mock, [10]; 8. 43-Jereme Schroeder, [7]; 9. 18-Keith Fellner, [8]; 10. 63-Nick Matuszewski, [9]
Heat 3 10 laps
1. 14-Tony Stewart, [2]; 2. 73-Ben Schmidt, [1]; 3. 64-Scotty Thiel, [4]; 4. 85M-Steve Meyer, [3]; 5. 4K-Kris Spitz, [6]; 6. 68-Dave Uttech, [5]; 7. 10V-Matt VandeVere, [8]; 8. 12-Michael Decker, [9]; 9. 29-Hunter Custer, [7]
Qualifying 1 00:00:00
1. 25-Jake Blackhurst, 00:11.803[2]; 2. 17B-Bill Balog, 00:11.853[11]; 3. 64-Scotty Thiel, 00:11.926[26]; 4. 10W-Brandon McMullen, 00:11.954[5]; 5. 1-Sammy Swindell, 00:11.970[28]; 6. 85M-Steve Meyer, 00:12.023[4]; 7. 2W-Scott Neitzel, 00:12.066[20]; 8. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, 00:12.085[27]; 9. 14-Tony Stewart, 00:12.109[17]; 10. 1M-Phillip Mock, 00:12.116[6]; 11. 02-Mike Reinke, 00:12.125[15]; 12. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 00:12.145[18]; 13. 73-Ben Schmidt, 00:12.202[16]; 14. 4B-Scott Biertzer, 00:12.252[9]; 15. 7-Scott Uttech, 00:12.279[1]; 16. 68-Dave Uttech, 00:12.306[14]; 17. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski, 00:12.316[10]; 18. 23-Russel Borland, 00:12.326[8]; 19. 4K-Kris Spitz, 00:12.469[24]; 20. 22-Todd King, 00:12.547[19]; 21. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 00:12.602[21]; 22. 29-Hunter Custer, 00:12.799[13]; 23. 45-Matt Wiese, 00:12.917[7]; 24. 18-Keith Fellner, 00:12.943[25]; 25. 10V-Matt VandeVere, 00:13.050[3]; 26. 11X-Tony Wondra, 00:13.138[29]; 27. 63-Nick Matuszewski, 00:13.218[22]; 28. 12-Michael Decker, 00:13.313[12]; 29. 32-Jeremy Hunt, 00:14.034[23]
WingLESS Sprints, Plymouth Dirt Track, Sept. 28, 2018
A Feature, 25 laps
1. 40-Tim Cox, [6]; 2. 38-Allen Hafford, [1]; 3. 18-Nick Petska, [2]; 4. 7S-Craig Campton, [9]; 5. 01-Chris Dodd, [4]; 6. 21-Ryan Zielski, [3]; 7. 97-Nathan Crane, [14]; 8. 2-Jordan Mattson, [10]; 9. 2K-Jimmy Kouba, [7]; 10. 19K-Derek Crane, [21]; 11. 70-Chris Klemko, [11]; 12. 1-Rod Colburn, [17]; 13. 0-John Fahl, [20]; 14. 48-Jason Cox, [18]; 15. 20-Natalie Klemko, [16]; 16. 4-Jordan Paulsen, [22]; 17. 91-Jimmy Sivia, [12]; 18. 71S-Doug Schenck, [8]; 19. 9-Greg Olsen, [19]; 20. 15V-Matt VandeVere, [5]; 21. 23Z-Zach Raidart, [15]; 22. 41-Dennis Spitz, [13]
B Feature 1 12 laps | 00:00:00
1. 1-Rod Colburn, [2]; 2. 48-Jason Cox, [3]; 3. 9-Greg Olsen, [1]; 4. 0-John Fahl, [4]; 5. 19K-Derek Crane, [9]; 6. 4-Jordan Paulsen, [6]; 7. 6B-Vince Bartolotta, [8]; 8. 29OG-Tom Eller, [11]; 9. 94-Jim Wehrman, [14]; 10. 00-Paul Shaffer, [10]; 11. 22-Bruce Waterworth, [12]; 12. 12-Shawn Swim, [7]; 13. 39-William Huck, [15]; 14. (DNF) 15H-Kevin Hinich, [5]; (DNS) 29-Randy Stanford, ; (DNS) 70K-Jake Kouba, ; (DNS) 77-James Walldan,
Heat 1 8 laps | 00:00:00
1. 40-Tim Cox, [1]; 2. 01-Chris Dodd, [4]; 3. 2K-Jimmy Kouba, [2]; 4. 38-Allen Hafford, [3]; 5. 0-John Fahl, [6]; 6. 4-Jordan Paulsen, [5]; 7. 22-Bruce Waterworth, [8]; 8. (DNF) 29-Randy Stanford, [7]; (DNS) 77-James Walldan,
Heat 2 8 laps | 00:00:00
1. 21-Ryan Zielski, [4]; 2. 70-Chris Klemko, [2]; 3. 41-Dennis Spitz, [1]; 4. 2-Jordan Mattson, [3]; 5. 15H-Kevin Hinich, [6]; 6. 12-Shawn Swim, [5]; 7. 00-Paul Shaffer, [7]; 8. 94-Jim Wehrman, [8]
Heat 3 8 laps | 00:00:00
1. 15V-Matt VandeVere, [5]; 2. 7S-Craig Campton, [3]; 3. 18-Nick Petska, [4]; 4. 23Z-Zach Raidart, [2]; 5. 1-Rod Colburn, [1]; 6. 6B-Vince Bartolotta, [6]; 7. 29OG-Tom Eller, [7]; 8. 39-William Huck, [8]
Heat 4 8 laps | 00:00:00
1. 71S-Doug Schenck, [3]; 2. 91-Jimmy Sivia, [2]; 3. 97-Nathan Crane, [5]; 4. 20-Natalie Klemko, [7]; 5. 48-Jason Cox, [1]; 6. 19K-Derek Crane, [6]; 7. 9-Greg Olsen, [4]; (DNS) 70K-Jake Kouba,
Qualifying 1 00:00:00
1. 01-Chris Dodd, 00:14.358[33]; 2. 21-Ryan Zielski, 00:14.437[14]; 3. 18-Nick Petska, 00:14.595[12]; 4. 9-Greg Olsen, 00:14.611[4]; 5. 38-Allen Hafford, 00:14.653[27]; 6. 2-Jordan Mattson, 00:14.660[30]; 7. 7S-Craig Campton, 00:14.675[25]; 8. 71S-Doug Schenck, 00:14.686[19]; 9. 2K-Jimmy Kouba, 00:14.697[3]; 10. 70-Chris Klemko, 00:14.721[26]; 11. 23Z-Zach Raidart, 00:14.740[10]; 12. 91-Jimmy Sivia, 00:14.778[28]; 13. 40-Tim Cox, 00:14.797[7]; 14. 41-Dennis Spitz, 00:14.809[17]; 15. 1-Rod Colburn, 00:14.840[15]; 16. 48-Jason Cox, 00:14.858[1]; 17. 4-Jordan Paulsen, 00:14.860[16]; 18. 12-Shawn Swim, 00:14.886[5]; 19. 15V-Matt VandeVere, 00:14.914[24]; 20. 97-Nathan Crane, 00:15.040[29]; 21. 0-John Fahl, 00:15.113[13]; 22. 15H-Kevin Hinich, 00:15.113[9]; 23. 6B-Vince Bartolotta, 00:15.140[8]; 24. 19K-Derek Crane, 00:15.142[31]; 25. 29-Randy Stanford, 00:15.155[21]; 26. 00-Paul Shaffer, 00:15.400[2]; 27. 29OG-Tom Eller, 00:15.507[22]; 28. 20-Natalie Klemko, 00:15.525[20]; 29. 22-Bruce Waterworth, 00:15.628[6]; 30. 94-Jim Wehrman, 00:15.851[23]; 31. 39-William Huck, 00:16.272[11]; (DNS) 70K-Jake Kouba, ; (DNS) 77-James Walldan,

 

 

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Verdegan’s ‘The Bird & The Bear’ book to be launched Dec. 8 at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton

Jeff Pederson (left) of Pedal Down Promotions and Northeast Wisconsin Motorsports Author Joe Verdegan (right) have joined forces for Verdegan’s fourth book titled “The Bird & The Bear,” which is set to be launched with a special event held on Saturday, Dec. 8, at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton from noon to 3 p.m. The book will be published by Pedal Down Promotions. – Pedal Down Promotions phot

Pedal Down Promotions publication features Northeast Wisconsin racing legends Roger Regeth and J.J. Smith

(Appleton, Wis.) – Motorsports author Joe Verdegan of Green Bay has announced the release of his fourth book “The Bird & The Bear” will be launched Saturday, Dec. 8 from noon to 3 p.m. at Les Stumpf Ford in Appleton, Wis.

The book chronicles a pair of Northeastern Wisconsin racing legends – Kimberly’s Roger “The Bear” Regeth and Appleton’s J.J. “The Tweety Bird” Smith. In their racing careers spanning several decades starting in the 1960s, the pair racked up several hundred feature wins and multiple track championships along the way on both dirt and asphalt ovals.

Both competed in the old USAC stock car circuit as well in the 1960s. Regeth played the “villain” role to a “T”, while Smith was a popular driver wherever he competed. Both drivers elicited a chorus of “cheers and jeers” whenever they showed up to do battle.

Regeth was employed at Les Stumpf Ford for 17 years and was a manager/buyer for one of Wisconsin’s largest car dealers. He was famous for wheeling his Les Stumpf Ford sponsored pink and blue No. 96 Chevrolet Camaro at area tracks, which was a conversation piece in itself. Regeth and Smith won multiple track titles on area ovals in the dirt tracks in the 1970s.

Regeth’s career stopped after the 1978 season, but “The Bear” came out of retirement to compete in Grand National Sportsman and Mid American Stock Car Series action in the early 1990s.

When the 1980s rolled around, Smith began to focus most of his attention on the weekly asphalt racing at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna. Smith captured WIR’s late model title driving for Anthony Brothers Racing in 1990.

“I’m beyond thrilled that company president Corey Stumpf and his staff have agreed to host our book launch at Les Stumpf Ford,” Verdegan said. “Les Stumpf Ford has been a prominent business in the Fox Valley for several decades, dating back 97 years. They’ve also been huge backers of local stock car racing, most notably supplying the pace car at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna for many years. We’re hoping for a great turnout at Les Stumpf Ford on December 8th!”

Both Regeth and Smith will join Verdegan at the book launch on Dec. 8.

Verdegan has previously penned three other books covering motorsports history. In 2015, Verdegan released “Life In The Past Lane – A history of stock car racing in Northeast Wisconsin from 1950-1980.” “Wisconsin International Raceway – Where The Big Ones Run” was published in 2016, while Verdegan’s third book, “Life In The Past Lane – The Next Generation” was launched in 2017.

Verdegan’s first three books were published through M and B Global Solutions of Green Bay, Wisconsin. “The Bird & The Bear” is being published by Pedal Down Promotions of Manitowoc, Wis.

Les Stumpf Ford is located at 3030 W. College Ave. in Appleton, just 30 minutes south of Green Bay. You can learn more about Les Stumpf Ford by visiting the website Stumpfford.com.

A complete 2018 “Holiday Book Tour” with Verdegan, Regeth and Smith is expected to be released in the near future.

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Pokorski Motorsports battles through tough draw at PDTR

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 12, 2018 – Despite finding themselves behind the 8-ball throughout the second-to-last Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program of the season, Paul Pokorski and his Pokorski Motorsports team fought hard to claw out an 11th place showing in the 360 Sprint Car A main at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 8.

With 27 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars signed in for the program, an unfriendly draw forced the 26-year veteran to start last in the first Sprint Car heat race. After lining up ninth in the nine-car heat race, Pokorski worked past Tyler Brabant and Chris Clayton with a nifty low move in turn one to advance to seventh on lap 2. Pokorski maintained his position the rest of the way to notch a seventh-place showing in the 10-lap race.

After making the A-main invert when another driver was disqualified for failing to weigh in following heat race action, Pokorski started the extended 30-lap 360 Sprint Car A main from the 16th spot. The 2014 Midwest Sprint Car Association Masters Series champion searched to find his comfort zone on the tricky track surface in the opening laps of the event.

On lap 4, Pokorski moved up to 15th in the running order. Three laps later, Pokorski worked around Scott Conger and Tony Wondra to advance to the 13th spot. After settling in to run the outside groove, Pokorski powered around Doug Wondra on lap 13 to work his way into 12th.

As the laps wound down, Pokorski hit his stride as he bolted past Chris Flick in turn four on lap 16 to secure 11th. Pokorski was gaining quickly on the 10th-place car of Travis Arenz when the checkered flag flew on the caution-free race, which was won by Justin Miller.

“We knew we were going to have a hard road to hoe with the bad number draw for the heat race,” Pokorski said. “We tried a couple of things hoping to make the car better than the last couple weeks in the heat race. Instead, it made it worse. So, we went back to what’s been working for us for the A main and the car was good again. I think over the last five laps, we were as fast as anyone, but starting 16th really makes it tough.”

After two weeks off, the Pokorski Motorsports team will close out the 2018 PDTR and Midwest Sprint Car Association campaign on Saturday, Sept. 29 at The Plymouth Dirt Track, along with the Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series, Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Cars and Wisconsin-Illinois Mini Sprints.

Pokorski enters the final night of the 2018 season tied for fourth place in the PDTR point standings with Danny Schlafer, 94 points behind points leader Kurt Davis. In the MSA points race, Pokorski also sits fourth.

“We are hoping to put together a solid run in our last night of the year to finish off the season strong,” Pokorski said. “Then we will start getting ready for next year right away. I picked up some body panels on Saturday to start the preparation process for 2019 already.”

The Pokorski Motorsports sponsors for the 2018 season include: Quest Engineering Inc., Acme Armature Works Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Jens, Reinbold & Pfeffer Family Funeral Services & Crematory, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

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

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Quest Engineering Inc.

Pokorski Motorsports will like to welcome Quest Engineering of Richfield, Wis. as a new sponsor for the 2018 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 focus 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.

“We spent time working on new sponsorship for this year and we are very excited to have Quest Engineering on board with us for 2018,” 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.

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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

2018 Pokorski Motorsports Upcoming Schedule

Saturday, September 29 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

 2018 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 23

MSA events – 22

IRA events – 1

A Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 5

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 16

Heat Race Victories – 5

 

 

 

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

McGrath dominates PDTR Dirt Kings Late Model event

Mitch McGrath of Waukesha claimed the victory in the 30-lap Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A-main event at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 8. – RC Custom Design photo

Miller, Kulow, Van Hierden, Boden snag A-main victories as Loehr, Sheppard, Ruh claim titles

 By Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS, Plymouth, Wis.) September 8, 2018 – The final regular Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program of the 2018 season brimmed over with a wide variety of racing action, which included runaway statement-style victories, heated side-by-side competition, inspired charges from the back of the pack and a new A-main track record, while three drivers wrapped up division titles before a large contingent of spectators on Saturday, Sept. 8 at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis.

Former PDTR Late Model champion Mitch McGrath of Waukesha scored an impressive victory in the 30-lap Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A-main, Plymouth’s Justin Miller established a new track record of 5 minutes and 45 seconds en route to victory in the non-stop 30-lap Richard’s of Dunbar Sprint Car A main. Tyler Kulow of Plymouth emerged with the victory in a hotly contested 30-lap Klips and Tips Grand National A main. Colten Van Hierden of Waupun made his first appearance of the season at PDTR count with a victory from the rear of the field in the time-shortened 26-lap Cellcom B Mod A main. Zach Boden of Madison topped the 15-lap Kristine Hartmann Pleasantville Realty Micro Sprint A main.

McGrath, who collected the PDTR Late Model championship in 2014, started the Dirt Kings Late Model Tour headliner from the pole and immediately flexed his muscle to grab the lead on the opening circuit with outside front row starter Paul Parker of Kaukauna settling into second.

As McGrath pulled out to a comfortable lead, third starter Brett Swedberg of Shawano moved in to pressure Parker along the low groove. Just as McGrath was about to encounter lapped traffic, Turk Letizia of Milwaukee spun in turn two to bring out the first of three caution flags.

Following the restart, McGrath bolted away to build up a full-straightaway cushion over Parker. McGrath was closing in on the rear of the field when a red flag was displayed for Eric Michaels of Cleveland, who flipped in turn one after contact with an infield tire on lap 17.

After another caution was thrown on the restart for Joel Bennett, who spun in turn three. When the race resumed, McGrath again shot away from the field while Shawano’s Troy Springborn, who started fourth, used the high groove to pull around seventh starter Chris Engels of Green Bay to secure fourth on lap 18.

Meanwhile, it was all McGrath at the front of the field as he skillfully negotiated lapped traffic in the closing laps to pull away to notch his 11th career PDTR A-main victory and second career Dirt Kings Late Model Tour main event by a half lap margin over Parker. Swedberg placed third, Springborn wound up fourth and Engels rounded out the top five.

Justin Miller led the field to the green flag in the 30-lap PDTR Sprint Car A main from the pole and bolted into the lead in turn one of the opening lap. On lap 2, 2010 PDTR Sprint Car champ and current point leader Kurt Davis of South Milwaukee, who started third, shot past second starter Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum to seize second place in turn two.

Miller stuck to the bottom groove of the third-mile clay oval surface to maintain a solid edge over Davis until the leaders caught the back of the field on lap 14, which allowed Davis to cut the gap a bit.

Miller expertly sliced his way through slower traffic to keep Davis at bay through the mid stages of the race. With five laps to go, Miller was briefly bottled up in slower traffic, which again allowed Davis to close to within striking distance along the low groove.

However, Miller managed to negotiate the slower car and maintain his lead on the way to his third career PDTR Sprint Car A-main victory and fifth overall Midwest Sprint Car Association A-main triumph in a PDTR Sprint Car 30-lap A-main track record time of five minutes and 45 seconds in the non-stop race.

Davis, who heads into the final night of the 2018 PDTR Sprint Car season on Saturday, Sept. 29 with a 15-point lead over Miller at the top of the point standings, had to settle for second, fifth starter Lance Fassbender of Burnett finished third, Wenninger placed fourth and Bill Taylor of Kewaskum wound up fifth, after starting seventh.

Polesitter Dick Hed of Plymouth and outside front row starter Tyler Kulow dueled side by side during the opening lap of the highly entertaining 30-lap Grand National main event before Hed surged ahead to take the lead in turn two on lap 2.

On lap 3, West Bend’s Brad Weiss, who started fifth, shot up to seize third place and two laps later, Weiss pulled alongside Hed and the two dueled door-to-door for the lead on lap 5. On lap 7, Weiss surged ahead of Hed along the outside groove, while fourth starter Kurt Davis rode the high line to challenge Hed for second.

The first of three caution flags appeared on lap 8 when Darryl Trabel of Watertown and Dakota Cabunac spun in turn two. On the restart, Davis continued his charge along the high line while Grand National point leader Matt Loehr of Dotyville, who started third, ducked low to challenge for second on lap 9.

As Weiss, Davis and Loehr dueled in close quarters for the top spot, the second caution flag flew when Donny Singer stopped in turn two on lap 15. The action continued to rage on the restart has Davis and Loehr waged an epic battle for second behind Weiss, who stuck to the low groove to maintain a slight lead.

On lap 17, Davis grabbed second up high, while Kulow rallied to gain third on lap 18. Kulow ran the low groove to perfection to work past Davis for second on lap 19. However, Davis returned the favor on the next lap to regain second.

As Weiss, Davis, Kulow, Loehr and seventh starter Josh Pierce of Fredonia ran in close quarters at the front of the pack, the third and final caution flag was displayed on lap 23 when Cubanac stopped in turn two.

On the restart, Kulow moved up high to grab second from Davis on lap 24 and on the next lap he charged past Weiss to secure the top spot. Meanwhile, Davis cleared Weiss to gain second on lap 29.

Once ahead, Kulow pulled away to notch his fourth career PDTR Grand National A-main victory. Davis placed second, Weiss wound up third, Loehr secured his first career PDTR Grand National championship with a fourth-place finish and Pierce placed fifth.

Loehr topped Davis by 25 points in the final PDTR Grand National standings, while Kulow finished third 32 points behind Loehr.

Jesse Cullen of Chilton led the opening lap of the 30-lap B Mod A main before the first of four caution flags appeared for an incident involving Colten Van Hierden and Mark Hoeppner of Rubicon in turn two on lap 2.

After changing a flat left rear tire, Van Hierden restarted at the rear of the 20-car field. When the race resumed, sixth starter Bill Edler of Howards Grove moved in to take third and seventh starter Barry Maas of Cascade secure fourth in the running order.

As Cullen encountered slower traffic on lap 14, Edler closed in to mount a challenge before the second caution flag was displayed on lap 16 when Steve Lorier of Sheboygan and Mark Hoeppner spun in turn two. The incident forced Edler, who was running second, to take evasive action and spin into the infield. He took his car to the pit area and did not return to the track.

On the restart, Cullen led over fifth starter Gary Glander of Sheboygan Falls as Van Hierden mounted an epic charge from the rear of the field to seize third on lap 17. After another caution for debris on lap 18, Van Hierden continued his march to the front taking second from Glander on lap 18 and setting his sights on Cullen.

On lap 21, Van Hierden used a low move to take over the top spot in turn four. As Van Hierden pulled away at the front of the field, a caution on lap 26 brought the race to a close due to the 30-minute time limit.

Van Hierden, who was making his first appearance of the 2018 season at Plymouth, claimed his third career PDTR B Mod A-main victory, Cullen placed second, 10th starter Travis Schmidt of Plymouth took third, Tim Sheppard of Beaver Dam wrapped up his first career PDTR B Mod track title with a fourth-place finish after starting 11th and Glander completed the top five.

In his first full season racing at Plymouth, Sheppard earned the B Mod championship by 36 points over Gary Glander. Travis Schmidt finished third 75 points behind Sheppard.

Second starter Tory Strauss of Sun Prairie led the first two laps of the 15-lap Micro Sprint A main before third starter Zach Boden seized the lead in turn four. Boden, who was the 2016 PDTR Micro Sprint champ, maintained the lead through a pair of caution flags to secure his ninth career PDTR Micro Sprint A-main win.

Jake Dohner of Milton placed second, Strauss was third, 2017 PDTR Micro Sprint champion Preston Ruh of Elkhart Lake earned his second consecutive track title with a fourth-place finish and Jack Vanderboom of Dousman rounded out the top five.

Ruh topped Emily Portschy of Plymouth by 117 points to claim his second straight PDTR Micro Sprint title.

Mark Rose of Dorchester claimed the Dirt Kings Late Model Tour B main. Josh Walter of Plymouth won the MSA B main. Justin Bauer of Sheboygan Falls captured the B Mod B main.

The final regular PDTR racing program of the 2018 season, which was sponsored by Hidden Dreams Show Cattle, drew a large field 111 cars, including 28 Dirt Kings Late Model Tour cars, 27 Sprint Cars, 25 B Mods, 21 Grand Nationals and 10 Micro Sprints.

Prior to the racing program, the 2018 PDTR Dedication to Dirt Award was presented to longtime announcer Bill Rood, who stated that he would be retiring after 30 years of involvement with racing at Plymouth.

After two weeks off, the 2018 racing season will conclude with a doubleheader weekend of Sprint Car action on Friday, Sept. 28 and Saturday, Sept. 29. The Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series will be in action, along with the Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Cars on Friday, Sept. 28.

On Saturday, Sept. 29, the IRA Sprint Cars and Wisconsin Wingless Sprint Cars will be joined by the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars and Wisconsin-Illinois Sprint Car Series for the final points night of the season for all four divisions.

Three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart of Columbus, Ind. has indicated his intentions to return to race with the IRA 410 Sprint Car Series on Sept. 28-29, as has three-time World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series champ Sammy Swindell of Germantown, Tenn., who will be making his debut appearance at Plymouth.

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Pokorski Motorsports rides momentum into home stretch of 2018 MSA season

Paul Pokorski (4) of West Bend races with Danny Schlafer (25) of Sussex, during a Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car event at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 1. – RC Custom Design photo

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions 

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 5, 2018 – Paul Pokorski and his Pokorski Motorsports team enjoyed a successful Midwest Sprint Car Association (MSA) double dip of racing action over the Labor Day weekend tallying a pair of top-10 A-main showings on Friday, Aug. 31 at the Outagamie Speedway powered by EWSC in Seymour, Wis. and Saturday, Sept. 1 at The Plymouth Dirt Track during the Sheboygan County Fair in Plymouth, Wis.

The inaugural MSA event at Outagamie Speedway powered by EWSC drew a field of 24 entries vying for a bolstered traveling series event purse featuring a $1,500 first-place prize.

Pokorski started the third MSA heat race from the fourth starting spot and wasted no time vaulting his way past Scott Conger and Anthony Knierim into second place on the well-manicured third-mile clay oval. Using primarily the outside line of the multi-groove racing surface, Pokorski gradually reeled in race leader Travis Arenz, eventually move into striking distance on lap 8.

As the white flag was displayed Pokorski dove under Arenz entering turn one and pulled ahead of the MSA rookie exiting turn two. Arenz battled back to try the same move on Pokorski in turn three, but the 26-year veteran held on along the high groove to record his fifth heat race victory of the 2018 season in the 10-lap event.

After starting eighth in the 25-lap MSA A-main, Pokorski fell back to 11th on lap 5 before battling back to work past Tim Haddy into 10th on lap 11. Seven laps later, Scotty Thiel in Randy Sippel’s 39s machine, ducked under Pokorski to move him to 11th.

Two laps later, Pokorski used the low groove to claw his way past Kevin Karnitz into 10th. On lap 22, Pokorski wrestled ninth place away from Lance Fassbender and then set his sights on Shane Wenninger as the laps wound down.

While Pokorski was unable to work around Wenninger, Travis Arenz dropped out on the final lap to give Pokorski eighth place at the finish line in the caution-free race, which was won by Brandon McMullen.

“The MSA event at Seymour on Friday was great all around,” Pokorski said. “The track was really good, the whole event went well and our heat race was fun for sure. The car had a little miss in the engine we fought all night, and that may have cost us some in the main.”

On Saturday, Sept. 1, the Pokorski Motorsports team traveled to The Plymouth Dirt Track for the annual Sheboygan County Fair Night race program, which saw 24 PDTR 360 Sprint Cars sign in.

After starting fifth in the first PDTR 360 Sprint Car heat race, Pokorski fell back to seventh on the opening lap before rallying to pass Chris Larson for sixth on lap 3 and Jeremy Hunt for fifth on lap 4. Pokorski charged in to pressure Tony Wondra for fourth starting on lap 7, but he was unable to pull off the move and wound up fifth at the finish line.

With a few scratches eliminating the need for a B main, Pokorski lined up 13th in the PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main. Pokorski utilized a strong start to move into the ninth position on lap 10.

After a pair of caution flags on lap 10, Pokorski used a strong restart to bolt past Wayne Modjeski and Tony Wondra to assume the seventh spot on lap 12. Pokorski maintained the seventh until working past Kurt Davis to take over sixth as the laps wound down. The 2014 MSA Masters Series champion went on to place sixth in the 25-lap event, which was won by Brandon McMullen, to secure his 16th top-10 A-main finish of the 2018 campaign.

“On Saturday at Plymouth we got rid of the miss we had Friday at Seymour by replacing plugs, the magneto and ignition switch,” Pokorski said. “The car was good all night. I was a little disappointed after the heat. Tony Wondra and I had a good battle in the heat race, but ending up fifth put us way back for the start of the main. In the end, I was pretty happy to go from 13th to sixth in the A.”

With two events remaining in the 2018 season, Pokorski stands fourth in the PDTR 360 Sprint Car points standings 65 points behind points leader Kurt Davis.

On Saturday, Sept. 8, Pokorski Motorsports will compete in the second to last night of the 2018 Midwest Sprint Car Association season at The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth, Wis. Hot laps will begin at 5:30 p.m. with racing to follow at 6 p.m.

“I wish the season was four months longer, but we will enjoy the next two nights and then focus on getting ready for next year,” Pokorski said.

The Pokorski Motorsports sponsors for the 2018 season include: Quest Engineering Inc., Acme Armature Works Inc., Goeden’s Auto Body, Goodwin Racing Engines, Jens, Reinbold & Pfeffer Family Funeral Services & Crematory, Kettle Moraine Landscaping, Novak’s Service Center, Pedal Down Promotions, Tisler Salvage Inc., Allied Bearing Corporation and The Cawley Company.

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

Pokorski Motorsports Sponsor Showcase – Quest Engineering Inc.

Pokorski Motorsports will like to welcome Quest Engineering of Richfield, Wis. as a new sponsor for the 2018 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 focus 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.

“We spent time working on new sponsorship for this year and we are very excited to have Quest Engineering on board with us for 2018,” 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.

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.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.

2018 Pokorski Motorsports Upcoming Schedule

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

Saturday, September 29 – Plymouth Dirt Track, Plymouth, Wis.

2018 Pokorski Motorsports By The Numbers

Total Events – 22

MSA events – 21

IRA events – 1

A Main Victories – 0

Top Five A Main Finishes – 5

Top 10 A Main Finishes – 16

Heat Race Victories – 5

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson

Balog outduels Stewart to capture IRA Sheboygan County Fair Night victory

Bill Balog of Hartland edged NASCAR Legend Tony Stewart by .004 to notch his third Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series A-main victory of the 2018 season at The Plymouth Dirt Track, during the Sheboygan County Fair in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 1. – RC Custom Design photo

McMullen prevails in PDTR 360 Sprint Car action                      

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS, Plymouth, Wis.) September 1, 2018 – Eight-time Interstate Racing Association champion Bill Balog of Hartland and three-time NASCAR Cup Series champ Tony Stewart of Columbus, Ind. have had their share of spirited duels on dirt tracks throughout the Midwest over the years with the Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series event held during 2018 Sheboygan County Fair Night all-Winged Sprint Car program at The Plymouth Dirt Track providing the back drop for another intriguing chapter in this ongoing racing saga on Saturday, Sept. 1.

Reminiscent of their exciting duel at The Plymouth Dirt Track on June 15, 2013, which saw Stewart edge Balog by half a car length, Balog turned the tables this time executing a final corner slide job and holding off Stewart by just .004 of a second at the finish to notch his third IRA Series A-main victory of the 2018 campaign before a capacity crowd at the third-mile Sheboygan County Fairgrounds facility in Plymouth, Wis.

In the companion, Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Richard’s of Dunbar 360 Sprint Car A-main, 2017 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh collected his third Sprint Car A-main triumph of the season at Plymouth.

Stewart drew the pole position for the 30-lap IRA A-main with Cory Eliason of Kingsburg, Calif. in the Thone Motorsports No. 59 entry starting on the outside of the front row.

Stewart got the jump on the drop of the green flag and bolted out to a half-straightaway lead over Eliason in the early going on the wide, smooth and fast racing surface.

Just as Stewart began to catch up to the back of the 24-car field, a red flag was displayed when Todd King of Sheboygan Falls hit the turn four wall and flipped his machine. King was uninjured, but his car was done in the night.

When the race resumed, fifth starter Ben Schmidt of Howards Grove dove low to work his way past Eliason into second while Balog, who started seventh, rode the high groove past IRA point leader Scotty Thiel of Sheboygan, who started fourth, into third place on lap 12.

By lap 9, the leaders began to encounter slower traffic, which Stewart negotiated expertly to build up a half-lap cushion over Schmidt on lap 10. Four laps later, Eliason spun on the frontstretch after contact with Schmidt, which slowed the pace and forced Eliason to restart the race 17th on lap 14.

Prior to the restart, Schmidt made contact with Stewart in turn four just as the green flag was to be displayed causing him to spin his car. After repairing a flat right rear tire, Schmidt restarted 17th, while the contact resulted in damage to the top wing of Stewart’s machine.

Another caution appeared on lap 16 when Mike Reinke of Howards Grove dropped off the pace significantly along the backstretch. On the restart, Thiel dove low to attempt a three-wide pass for the lead in turn two. However, Stewart battled back to maintain the lead along the high groove and Balog retained second place.

Balog hounded Stewart on the preferred outside groove through the final half of the race as the leaders had to negotiate heavy lapped traffic beginning on lap 22. On lap 25, Balog pulled even with Stewart in turn two, but Stewart successfully fended off the challenge and pulled away briefly.

With two laps to go, Balog raced back up to within striking distance and on the final circuit the North Pole, Alaska native unleashed an epic slide job entering turn three to sweep past Stewart in turn four. Stewart turned under Balog and the two drag raced to the finish line with Balog notching his third IRA victory of the season by just .004 of a second, which is the closest margin of victory since the IRA incorporated electronic scoring.

After leading 29 laps, Stewart had to settle for second, Thiel was third, eighth starter and fast qualifier Jake Blackhurst of Hanna City, Ill. was fourth and Brandon McMullen placed fifth after starting sixth.

Balog was happy that he had a chance on the final lap, after missing on an opportunity to take the lead a few laps earlier.

“The car was working good all night and I was hoping to be close enough to make a move at the end,” Balog said in victory lane. “I wasn’t sure if it was going to happen because I thought I threw it away when I had a chance a few laps from the end. It was an awesome race. Tony’s one of the best ever and everyone’s gunning for him when he shows up. We were just a little better at the end tonight.”

Despite coming in second, Stewart was upbeat following the race.

“I love coming up here to race,” Stewart said. “This is a really cool part of the country with great fans. Lapped traffic was tough and being the leader, you don’t know what is going on behind you. I was just trying not to make a mistake over the final few laps. Bill is an awesome driver. I love racing with him. It was a fun night and I hope all the fans had a good time.”

Thiel maintained his IRA points lead with a solid third-place run.

“We gave it all we could and we had a run there on one of the restarts,” Thiel said. “I don’t think we were good enough to win tonight. 17 [Balog] drove a really good race. We will take third and try to get a little better for the next race.”

Tony Wondra of Campbellsport lead the opening laps of the 25-lap PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main from the pole with third starter Scott Conger of Eagle trailing in second. On lap 7, two-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Danny Schlafer of Sussex, who started fifth, used the high groove to power past Conger into second.

One lap later, Schlafer bolted past the low-riding Wondra into the lead in turn three, while seventh starter Brandon McMullen followed in Schlafer’s tire tracks to assume second on lap 9.

The first of four caution flags appeared on lap 10 for an infield tire that had been moved onto the track in turn four. On the restart, the caution flag flew again when Plymouth’s Justin Miller spun in turn one.

On the restart, McMullen used the low groove to pressure Schlafer for the top spot and the two championship-winning drivers dueled side by side before the third caution was displayed on lap 12 for Chris Larson, who spun in turn two.

The battle between McMullen and Schlafer raged on over the ensuing seven laps with the two drivers exchanging the lead before McMullen surged ahead for good along the low groove in turn one on lap 19.

On lap 22, the fourth caution appeared when Schlafer spun his machine in turn four. McMullen controlled the final three laps en route to his 15th career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 21st overall Midwest Sprint Car Association main event triumph.

Josh Walter of Plymouth finished second after starting eighth, Tim Haddy of Waupun used a late charge along the high groove to place third after starting ninth, Conger wound up fourth and second starter Shane Wenninger of Kewaskum rounded out the top five.

Scotty Neitzel of Beaver Dam won the IRA B main. Jake Blackhurst topped the IRA field in qualifying with a fast lap of 12.043.

The all-Winged Sprint Car program included 27 IRA 410 Sprint Car entries and 24 PDTR 360 Sprint Car machines.

The next Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program on Saturday, Sept. 8 will feature the final points event of the 2018 season for the B Mod, Grand National and Micro Sprint divisions, as well as a special appearance by the Dirt Kings Late Model Series in addition to the PDTR 360 Sprint Cars. Hot laps begin at 5:30 p.m. with racing at 6 p.m.

November 15, 2018 / by Jeff Pederson