PRE RACE NOTES: Dells Raceway Park

Topics:  Dells Duel

Matt Panure
Mid American Stock Car Series
July 2010

About the Event
·Date: Saturday, July 24
·Official Event Name: Dells Duel Part Two
·Times: 2 p.m. – Pits Open, 4 – Stands Open, 4:30 – Qualifying, 6:30 – Racing Starts
·Other Divisions – Late Models, Sportsman, Pure Stocks, Bandits
·MASCS Format – Qualifying, Heats, Last Chance (if necessary), Feature (40 laps)

About Dells Raceway Park
·Layout: Semi-banked, 1/3-mile (Asphalt)
·Location: N1070 Smith Rd., Wisconsin Dells, Wis.
·Phone: 608-253-7223
·Web site: www.dellsracewaypark.com

Past MASCS DRP Winners:
·May 29, 2010 – Mark Pluer, Brookfield, Wis.
·Sept. 12, 2009 – Paul Neisius, Hastings, Minn.
·July 25, 2009 – Pluer
·May 30, 2009 – Brian Back, Rudolph, Wis.
·July 26, 2008 – Kenny Joosten, Wonder Lake, Ill.
·May 31, 2008 – Bill Prietzel, Richfield, Wis.
·July 14, 2007 – Kyle Shear, Roscoe, Ill. (Inaugural MASCS DRP event)

MASCS Winners in 2010:
·April 19 – 33rd Annual Spring Classic, Rockford Speedway – Mark Pluer
·May 21 – Morris May-hem, Grundy County Speedway – Jeremy Bloomberg
·May 29 – Dells Duel One, Dells Raceway Park – Mark Pluer
·June 20 – Vercauteren Memorial, Road America – Bill Prietzel
·July 2 – Big Clay Clash for Cash (non-points), Dodge Co. Fairgrounds – Bill Prietzel
·July 16 – Eh Main, Norway Speedway – Lyle Nowak

MASCS Drivers with Multiple Top Fives in 2010:
·4 – Bill Prietzel
·3 – Lyle Nowak, Mark Pluer
·2 – Jeremy Spoonmore

MASCS Drivers with Multiple Top Tens in 2010:
·5 – Bill Prietzel
·4 – Lyle Nowak, Mark Pluer
·3 – Brian Back, Tyler Bauknecht, Bobby Gutknecht, Scott Null, Jeremy Spoonmore
·2 –Adam Bendzick, Jacob Finney, Crystal Wood

Point Standings Shuffle
With his second place finish to Lyle Nowak, Bill Prietzel stretched his advantage in the 2010 MASCS standings from three points to 12. Nowak jumped to second in standings, leap-frogging Brian Back. James Swan made up some ground at Norway, as well. With his third-place finish Swan moved from tenth to seventh in standings.

Marshfield Postponed, Points Awarded
With severe weather in the area Marshfield Motor Speedway officials decided to postpone the Heart of Wisconsin 40 until Saturday, Aug. 28. Mid-American officials rewarded those who made the trip by giving the standard 25 appearance points.

History Repeats
As Bill Prietzel began to track down Lyle Nowak in the late moments of the Eh Main at Norway, the stage was set for a repeat of the 2009 running of the event. In a flashback to last year, Prietzel caught Nowak in the final five laps but was unable to find his way around the Wausau, Wis., veteran.

141 Speedway Drivers Return
Several Mid-American drivers from 141 Speedway decided to save their asphalt machines and make the trip to Norway Speedway. Josh Sand won his heat and transferred into the feature through the last chance race.

Kevin Damrow, winner of the 2007 Vercauteren Memorial, received his engine in time to make the trip north. Damrow qualified into the Eh Main, started 15th and finished 12th.

Pete Kumbalek, who purchased Don Wood’s Monte Carlo, made his MASCS debut. He also made the trip to Norway. He is scheduled to join Mid-American at DRP on Saturday.

Haese Too
The 1998 MASCS rookie of the year Gregg Haese pieced together a racer just in time to make the trip to Noway Speedway. Haese, the 2008 Driveline super late model feature winner, posted a tenth place finish. Upon return to Two Rivers, Wis., Haese found several parts of his car in need of repair. Haese said so long as he has time to make the repairs that he plans on making the remainder of the 2010 MASCS shedule.

Two Former 141ers Shine
Travis Rodewald and Crystal Wood both brought a strong fan base to Norway. They both made sure those fans made a worth-while trip. Rodewald led in the early going and held on for a fourth-place finish. Wood started in the top five and strongly held off a host of challengers for the fifth spot.

Miles, Miles, More Miles
To get to Norway and Marshfield many Mid-American drivers racked up plenty of hours staring through the windshield of their haulers. However, Scott Null wasn’t heading home on Saturday. Null loaded up and took a trip to Shakopee, Minn., to race his sportsman car on Sunday. He returned home to Lake Mills, Wis., Monday afternoon.

Motor Quick Fix
Bobby Gutknecht and Jake Finney made incredible efforts to race at Marshfield on Saturday. Gutknecht lost an engine at Norway and replaced his power plant Friday night and Saturday morning in Wausau. Jake Finney cracked a head and took a trip to B&B Racing Engines in Appleton, Wis., before heading to Marshfield.

Pluer Struggles, Recovers, Looks to Make More History at DRP
After making contact with Jake Finney early in the feature at Norway, Mark Pluer raced back to a seventh-place finish. The 1996 champion may find some relief in a return to Dells Raceway Park. After winning the event in May, Pluer became the first MASCS driver to win more than one feature at the third-mile. Dating back to his first MASCS race at the venue on July 26, 2008, Pluer has yet to finish outside the top ten at DRP.

Back Sets Fast Time Again
Surprise, surprise – It happened again. In four events that awarded points for qualifying in 2010, Brian Back has set fast time each time. At three venues (Rockford, Grundy and Norway) Back had less than five visits to the track. Heading back to DRP, Back has set fast time in three of the last four MASCS visits.

Bloomberg Files DRP Entry
Morris May-hem winner Jeremy Bloomberg is scheduled to race at DRP on Saturday. After winning at Grundy County, Bloomberg entered the May 29 MASCS race at Dells. He just missed the cut by qualifying 16th, transferred out of the last chance race and finished 12th in the feature.

Other Returning Drivers
Tom McClintock, Butch Mierendorf, Kevin Kulka and Rick Tackman are also scheduled to re-join Mid-American at Dells Raceway Park.

Muskego Wis., pilot Brian Holtz will make his first MASCS start of the season. Along with Holtz's entries of his own car and James Swan's Monte Carlo, Holtz Racing will field a third entry. The third car will be driven by Slinger Speedway late model driver Chris Ratajczyk of West Bend, Wis.

Lichtfeld Territory
Although Mike Lichtfeld has struggled in three of four MASCS starts at Dells Raceway Park, he still serves as a hometown favorite. Racing his late model on a weekly basis at DRP, Lichtfeld has recorded two feature wins. He is fifth in weekly standings, 43 points out of the lead. “Cuatro Cuatro” is also the top rookie in the class thus far in 2010.

Rookie Checkup
Tyler Bauknecht recorded yet another top-ten finish at Norway. With his sixth place finish Bauknecht sits sixth in 2010 standings. The closest rookie contender is Crystal Wood who is 14th in standings.

Swan Still Slinger Standout
Ecstatic after recording a solid finish with his 97 car, James Swan kept his Slinger dominance alive by winning again this past Sunday in Jeff Holtz’s car. Swan has four feature wins, four runner-up finishes, two third-place finishes and a fifth-place finish. He now leads weekly standings by 336 points.

After DRP Back to DRP…
After Dells Duel Part Two Mid-American takes a lengthy break until the third and final visit to Dells Raceway Park for the September Showdown on Saturday, Sept. 11.