Havel Tops Pure Stock Special at Rice Lake Speedway

By Ed Reichert

Rice Lake WI, Sept. 1 – Jason Havel led from start to finish to win the Pure Stock special that was the highlight event of the opening night of the annual Labor Day weekend doubleheader Saturday night at the Rice Lake Speedway on Dirt Track Specialties and H & E Redi Mix night at the speedway. Other winners included Kevin Adams who doubled up in the Modifieds and Midwest Modifieds, Shane Kisling and Sam Fankhauser.

Thirty two Pure Stocks signed in to race on Saturday and twenty four of them qualified to start the main event with Havel and James Vendela sharing the front row. Havel immediately jumped into the lead with Vendela, Dan Boissy, Kade Leeper, Andrew Hanson and Randy Graham running tight in a group behind him. Adam Pratt, a recent winner at the track, spun on the first lap and diminished his chances greatly as he had to go to the tail. Consistent winner George Richards was an early victim of one of the multi car crashes also.

Havel continued to lead as the over anxious field suffered from some early issues with the yellow flying five times in the first five laps as a number of spins slowed the action The biggest crash saw Leeper get sideways off turn four and get pounded hard by Mike Pratt but fortunately, both drivers were OK but the equipment was not.

Finally, everyone got settled in and a long period of green flag racing then took place with Havel continuing to dominate. He put a comfortable margin between himself and second place Hanson while Boissy and Graham battled for third. A very good race saw C.J. Wagner trying to fight off a pack that included Vendela, Kyle Copp and Adam Pratt who has worked his way back up through the field.

The final yellow flew when Vendela was turned around with only four laps remaining in the race. The field was bunched one more time and while Hanson tried to stay with Havel, it was Jason once again pulling away as he drove on to his fourth feature win of the season at the track. Hanson finished a strong second with the rookie driver Boissy holding off Graham for third. Wagner, despite a badly smoking car, held off Vendela and Copp to complete the top five.

Adams had a very good night as he was a double winner, scoring feature triumphs in both of the open wheel classes. He started on the pole of the Modified feature and led from start to finish in that race, weathering several early challenges before pulling away at the end. Dave Baxter pushed Adams at the beginning of the race before Grant Southworth moved into the second spot while Cory Mahder, Mark Hanson and Justin Oestreich were all on the move.

A couple of early yellows slowed the action but on each green, Adams would continue to lead. Southworth slipped back a couple of spots as Mahder was on the charge and moved into second spot with Oestreich following him into third. Mahder pushed hard but Adams was able to maintain his lead until the final yellow at the midpoint of the race slowed the action once again.

Disaster struck Mahder at this point as the front end on his car was broken and as the field idled around the track, he was forced to park his car and needed a wrecker to get back to the pits. Oestreich then took over as the second place car and he made several stabs at Adams over the last half of the race, but Adams had a good groove and he was never seriously challenged as he raced on for his sixth Modified feature win of the season at the track.

Oestreich, who always seems to run well here, finished a strong second while Southworth made a late charge on the outside and drove back up into third, after a good battle with fellow Bloomer driver Scott Duval while Hanson rounded out the top five.

The Midwest Mods proved to be a tougher task for Adams as he started seventh in that main event and had to work his way up through the field. Michael Truscott was the early leader as he opened up a few car lengths on the field in the early going. Joe Chaplin Jr. settled into second but there was plenty of challenges as Adams, Shane Halopka and Calvin Iverson were all on their way to the front.

Adams was picking off cars each lap until he worked his way up to third and then the second yellow of the race bunched the field. Adams was able to slip Chaplin Jr and then set his sites on leader Truscott. Michael was not going to go away easily but off turn two, Adams was able to nose under the leader, accelerate down the back chute and take over the top spot. Iverson was also on the move as he also passed Chaplin Jr. and moved into third.

One more spin set up a five lap dash to the checkered and despite Truscott trying his best, Adams had control and drove on for the win, his seventh of the year at the track in the MidMods. Truscott finished a strong second followed by Iverson and Chaplin Jr with Halopka rounding out the top five.

The Super Stock feature got off to a very bad start as front row starters Curt Myers and Shane Kisling tangled in the first turn on the opening lap. Kisling bounced off the wall and stalled off turn two with the majority of the field barreling down at him and a hard, multi car crash that included at least eight cars was the result. The red flag flew as the track was nearly blocked, and while all drivers were reported to be fine, such was not the same for several of the race cars with the entries of Andy Grymala and Nick Oreskovich being the worst of the damaged cars. Mike Siewert and Steve Davidson was also eliminated from the race while the other four returned to the action with heavy body damage.

Somehow, Kisling managed to avoid the worst of the impact, and he was the pole sitter for the restart with Matt Deragon sharing the front row with him. Kisling jumped into the immediate lead with Deragon and the family duo of Randy and Terran Spacek all in a good battle for position. Randy worked his way past Deragon to take over second as the yellow continued to fly several times before the halfway point of the race.

Following a restart on lap seven, Terran was able to pass his father on the outside and drive into second and he became the chief challenger to Kisling. After all the slowdowns in the first half of the race, the last thirteen laps ran off nonstop. Kisling continued to lead with Terran Spacek continuing to shadow him for the lead with Randy Spacek and Deragon fighting behind him.

Kisling continued to hold the top spot but Terran was closing in on him and as the field came to the white flag, Kisling slid out and Spacek was right there to pull to his rear bumper. Howver, Kisling was careful on the final lap not to give any openings, and Shane crossed the line with Spacek on his rear bumper to take his first feature win of the year at the track and become the eleventh different Super Stock winner of the season. Terran finished a very strong second with Deragon fighting off Randy Spacek for third while Eric Olson worked his way up through the field to complete the top five after starting sixteenth.

Sam Fankhauser would become the second driver to visit victory lane for the first time in 2018 as he topped a very competitive Street Stock main event. Fankhauser shared the front row with Cody Kummer and then battled side by side before Fankhauser edged past to take the early lead as the yellow flew for a spin by Zach Manley who had to go to the tail.
Fankhauser continued to lead but the lead pack was bunched as Kummer and Eric Olson wanted the lead also and found hard. Twice Olson very nearly got by on the restarts following yellow flags, of which there were three more in the first half of the race. But on each occasion, Fankhauser would fight off the competition to continue to lead.

Manley, who went to the back after his first lap spin, was fighting his way back up through the field and by the halfway point, had cracked the top five. He continued to battle as he drove under both Kummer and Olson to take over second and began to apply the pressure to the leader.

Manley was driving hard into the corners and trying to get under Fankhauser but Sam, who likes the higher side of the track, continued to hold him off.

One last yellow, when Parker Anderson took a wild slide through the very wet infield and almost took down some sign boards, set up a three lap sprint to the finish. Manley was all over Fankhauser the final three tours, but Sam fought off every challenge and drove home for the win over Manley and Olson. Kummer ran a consistent race to finish fourth with Mike Knudtson trailing. Fankhauser's win made him the twelfth different Street Stock winner at the track this season, tops for all divisions.

One hundred and thirty seven drivers signed in for the opening night of action with another full racing program, with a larger payoff, scheduled for Sunday night, September 2nd. This will be the final race of the 2018 racing season at the Rice Lake Speedway.

SUMMARY

Rice Lake Speedway
Rice Lake WI
September 1, 2018

WISSOTA Modifieds

20 lap Feature – Kevin Adams(Cameron), Justin Oestreich(Elk River MN), Grant Southworth(Bloomer), Scott Duval(Bloomer), Mark Hanson(Chippewa Falls), Michael Truscott(Chippewa Falls), Pat Hoffman(Rice Lake), Neil Balduc(Bessemer MI), Cole Varsho(Stratford), Mike Anderson(Jim Falls), Kent Baxter, Sam Fankhauser, Jake Miller, Gary Baxter, Donnie Lofdahl, Justin Schill, Aric Lindberg, Dave Mayala, Rick Friendt, Cory Mahder, Dave Baxter, Mark Hessler, Kerry Halopka, Kyle Helling, Steve Hallquist, Jason Gross

8 lap Heat 1 – Adams, Southworth, K. Baxter(Colfax), Truscott, Lofdahl(Duluth MN), Helling, Varsho
Heat 2 – Mahder(Eau Claire), Hallquist(Eau Claire), Duval, Hoffman, Fankhauser(Rice Lake), Balduc, G. Baxter
Heat 3 – Oestreich, Hanson, Miller(Somerset), Lindberg(Dallas), Schill(Centuria), Anderson
Heat 4 – G. Baxter(Eau Claire), Hessler(Menomonie), Halopka(Wheeler), Gross(Osceola), Mayala(Barron), Friendt

WISSOTA Super Stocks

20 lap Feature – Shane Kisling(Park Falls), Terran Spacek(Phillips), Matt Deragon(Ashland), Randy Spacek(Phillips), Eric Olson(Ladysmith), Tommy Richards(Mondovi), Jeff Brauer(Eyota MN), Bart Steffen(Eau Claire), Aaron Wilson(Eau Claire), Cody Kummer(Medford), Marcus Simonson, Wayne Dean, Jim Cimfl, Tucker Quinn, Luke Schultz, Adam Soltis, Nick Oreskovich, Andy Grymala, Cody Cimfl, Mike Siewert, Steve Davidson, Rick Randall, Curt Myers, Jason Schill
10 lap B Feature – Schultz(Cameron), Steffen, Quinn(Ladysmith), Randall(Wakefield MI), Steve Martin(Farmington MN), Andy Cimfl, Jason Quarders, Austin Workman

8 lap Heat 1 – Richards, Myers(Cameron), J. Cimfl(Turtle Lake), C. Cimfl(Chetek), Wilson, Quinn, Quarders, Steffen
Heat 2 – T. Spacek, R. Spacek, Schill(Centuria), Soltis(Ladysmith), Siewert(Cameron), Randall, Stefan Hogue, Wayne Harris Jr
Heat 3 – Kisling, Deragon, Brauer, Dean(Eau Claire), Simonson(Luck), Schultz, Workman
Heat 4 – Oreskovich(Mason),Kummer, Grymala(Superior), Olson, Davidson(Richland Center), Martin, A. Cimfl

WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds

15 lap Feature – Kevin Adams(Cameron), Michael Truscott(Chippewa Falls), Calvin Iverson(Eleva), Joe Chaplin Jr(Cameron), Shane Halopka(Greenwood), Tanner Hicks(Ashland), Jason Gross(Osceola), Travis Anderson(Colfax), Wayne Stricker(Highbridge), Scott Splittstoesser(Cottege Grove MN), Craig Elliott, Gary Baxter, James Kannegiesser, Jimmy Latvala, Josh Smith, Fran Hanson, Chase Friendt, Derek Haas, Chris Bretting, Dan Larson Jr, Brady Larson, Brayten Cisneros, J.D. Ford, Craig Lofdahl
10 lap B Feature – Bretting(Washburn), Hanson(Almena), Friendt(New Richmond), Cisneros(Blooming Prairie MN)Craig Haas(Thorp), Ken Larson, Jon Marsh, Jared Stricker

8 lap Heat 1 – Splittstoesser, Hicks, B. Larson(Amery), Larson Jr(Eau Claire), Kannegiesser(Hayward), Bretting, Cisneros
Heat 2 – Adams, Truscott, Iverson, W. Stricker, Baxter(Eau Claire), Friendt, C. Haas
Heat 3 – D. Haas(Thorp), Halopka, Lofdahl(Duluth MN), Smith(Fall Creek), Elliott(Hillsdale), Hanson, K. Larson
Heat 4 – Gross, Chaplin Jr, Anderson, Ford(Somerset), Latvala(Solon Springs), J. Stricker

WISSOTA Street Stocks

15 lap Feature – Sam Fankhauser(Rice Lake), Zach Manley(Chetek), Eric Olson(Ladysmith), Cody Kummer(Medford), Mike Knudtson(Osseo), C.J. Wagner(Rice Lake), Braden Brauer(Eyota MN), Parker Anderson(Phillips), Travis Loew(Barron), Jamey Fisher(Chetek), Mike Chaplin, Michael Tuma, Alex Minks, Kevin Bogdanovic, Danny Richards, Hunter VanGilder, Bob Wahlstrom, Ashley Wahlstrom, Cooper Berlin

8 lap Heat 1 – Olson, Anderson, Wagner, Bogdanovic(Phillips), Minks(Bruce), Tuma
Heat 2 – Fankhauser, Richards(Mondovi), Manley, B. Wahlstrom(Chetek), Brauer, Fisher, Jay Kesan
Heat 3 – Kummer, Knudtson, A. Wahlstrom(Rice Lake), Chaplin(Rochester MN), Berlin(Rice Lake), Loew

WISSOTA Pure Stocks

20 lap Feature – Jason Havel(Rice Lake), Andrew Hanson(Iron River), Dan Boissy(Trego), Randy Graham(Trego), C.J. Wagner(Rice Lake), James Vendela(South Range), Kyle Copp(Brule), Adam Pratt(Bloomer), Chris Endle(Mondovi), Will Fisher(Shell Lake), Cooper Berlin, Aaron Bernick, Jeremy Cash, Mike Roth, Ryan Lindenfelser, Max Prusak, Tyler Wahlstrom, Ryan Hill, Mike Grover, Dave Holub, Mike Pratt, Ryan Clausen, Kade Leeper, George Richards
10 lap B Feature – Roth(Deerwood MN), Prusak(Hopkins MN), Lindenfelser(Trego), Hill(Colfax), Trenten Holub(Sarona), Austin Fencl, Wayne Braun Sr, Mike Holmstrom, Mike Huebner, Dusten Holub

8 lap Heat 1 – A. Pratt, Boissy, Endle, Cash(Duluth MN), Copp, Roth, Prusak, Mike MacAdams
Heat 2 – Hanson, Havel, Wagner, M. Pratt(Bloomer), Clausen(Barron), Hill, Lindenfelser, Holmstrom
Heat 3 – Berlin(Rice Lake), Vendela, Fisher, Bernick(Duluth MN), Dave Holub, Fencl, Cory Jorgensen, Dusten Holub
Heat 4 – Graham, Leeper(Guthrie MN), Richards(Mondovi), Wahlstrom(Chetek), Grover(Chetek), T. Holub, Braun Sr, Huebner