Redetzke Tops Challenge Series Late Model Race at Rice Lake Speedway

By Ed Reichert

Rice Lake WI, July 27 – Jake Redetzke led all forty laps in a dominating performance to win the Wollak Construction WISSOTA Challenge Series touring race for the Late Models Saturday night at the Rice Lake Speedway. Meanwhile, Nick Traynor won his first ever Street Stock feature race in a tune up for this coming Tuesday night's Street Stock Little Dream race coming to the speedway while Kevin Adams, Curt Myers Mike Anderson and George Richards were also feature race winners on a busy Saturday night at the speedway.

Redetzke redrew the pole position for the two thousand dollar to win Late Model event after having won a heat race and immediately set a torrid pace for the competition to keep up to. He pulled away from Mike Prochnow at the start of the event and started to build up a safety cushion over the field.

Driving high and hard into the corners and then using a diamond move off of them proved to be a very successful strategy and it gave him great speed down the straightaways as he walked away from the competition.

Darrell Nelson got by both Pat Doar and Prochnow to take over the second spot but he was soon challenged by John Kaanta for that position. As Redetzke continued to build his lead, some of the best racing of the night saw Kaanta and Nelson fight hard for the second spot. Lap after lap, Kaanta would continue to press on the inside of Nelson for that spot but Darrell would continue to fight him off. Finally, Kaanta would make that move stick with a hard drive into turn one and he would edge ahead of Nelson for second.

By this time, however, Redetzke had built up nearly a half lap lead over the field and Kaanta would have to drive hard to try and cut into that lead. Jesse Glenz was now on the move also and he pulled in to challenge Nelson for third. After a few laps, he too was able to get by the Hermantown Minnesota driver and take over the third spot but both he and Kaanta were still significantly behind the leader. Glenz started to close in on Kaanta for second as the only yellow flag of the race flew with twenty six laps complete when Jeff Massingill rolled to a halt in turn four.

The double file restart saw Kaanta select the low side for the restart but Glenz surprised him by getting a great burst of speed on the green and he shot past Kaanta to take over the second spot. Near the end of the race the track started to get particularly fast in the low groove and Redetzke adjusted his line to move to the bottom lane all the way around the track as he again put some distance on Glenz.

Jesse was pushing hard and did manage to cut the lead to about four car lengths at one point with around eight laps to go but then it stabilized, Glenz started to fade back slightly and Kaanta pulled to his rear bumper once again.

At the finish, Redetzke was comfortably in front with Glenz holding off the late charge by Kaanta to maintain second. Nelson settled for fourth while A.J. Diemel came from tenth to finish out the top five racers. It was Redetzke's first Challenge Series win since the end of 2016, his seventh career victory in the Late Models at Rice Lake but his first victory lane ceremony here since the 2011 racing season. Jake, by the way, won his first feature race here driving a Pure Stock way back in the 2003 racing season.

Saturday night was the last tune up for the Street Stocks before next Tuesday night's Little Dream race where the winner will go home with the biggest payoff of the racing season here by far. With several new drivers on hand to try things out before Tuesday, the drivers managed to produce the smoothest running feature for the class this year as the race went nonstop and all sixteen starters were still around at the finish to take the checkered flag.

The race also produced a surprise winner as Nick Traynor, recently taking over the driving chores in a Street Stock after having run his Super Stock most of this year, managed to win his first ever Street Stock feature at Rice Lake with an outstanding drive using the high side of the track to make his winning pass.

Rick Hanestad, with less than satisfying performances out of his new car, returned to his old car for Saturday night's show and he led for the first half of the feature race with a swarm of cars bunched behind him, looking for an opening. Traynor was the one that after following Kolby Kiehl for several laps, decided to move up the track and it produced immediate and positive results as he was able to drive past Kiehl and then close up on Hanestad.

Using that smooth higher line, he was able to drive deep into the corners and roll past Hanestad to take over the lead and with the race remaining under the green, expand on that lead as the laps rolled by.

Zach Elward pulled in from southern Minnesota to test out the track and he made a strong impression on the local drivers as he followed Traynor's line and was able to pull up to third behind Hanestad at the finish as he nipped Hunter VanGilder for the “show” position. Jason Havel also put on quite a show as he managed to finish sixth while driving with a broken arm with that injury inflicted earlier in the day on Saturday.

The win for Traynor was his first ever in the Street Stock after having some dominating runs in the Pure Stock class and then also winning features as he moved up to the Super Stocks in recent years. He also became the eighth different winner in the division this year, setting up the Little Dream as a wide open event with no huge favorite having stepped up.

Kevin Adams increased his feature win total to eight at the track, highest of any driver in any division, in Midwest Modified racing action Saturday. He came from the fourth row to win the race as he maneuvered expertly through traffic to come to the front, with only one yellow flag to aid him in that effort.

Aric Lindberg was the early leader of the race and led for the first half of the main with a large group of cars racing hard just behind him. Adams was weaving his way to the front through this swarm with Austin Ellis and Shane Halopka among others moving to the front. Adams worked into the second spot and then with a strong run off turn two, was able to take over the lead in the race.

The lone yellow saw a tangle of cars on the back chute while fighting in heavy traffic and Halopka got into the wall and his race was ended with front end damage.

As Adams pulled away, there was a great battle for second with Jamie Bisonette on the move and challenging Lindberg for second with Ellis continued to charge. As Adams crossed the line with plenty of space behind him, photo finished for both second and fourth saw Bisonette nip fellow Dallas driver Lindberg and Ellis do the same to Denny Cutsforth.

Curt Myers added to his feature win totals in the Super Stocks as he recorded his sixth win of the year at Rice Lake. The feature race in this class was a two car battle all the way with Myers and Willie Johnsen Jr fighting for the lead while separating themselves from the rest of the pack. Luke Schultz was the initial leader but it only took Johnsen Jr a few laps to work his way up from the third row and using the top side of the track, blast into the lead.

Myers, who started one more row back, also came to the front after being involved in a tough fight for positions with Eric Olson and Terran Spacek. Myers then closed in on Johnsen Jr and following a restart, was able to power past him and take over the lead. However, Johnsen Jr didn't go away and stayed right with the leader, attempting to regain the top spot.

A couple yellow flags for minor spins slowed the action and each time, on the green it would be Myers leading with Johnsen chasing closely behind. The battle behind them remained a good one as Olson moved to third. The top two finished off the race with a four lap dash and Myers again pulled away by a few car lengths to control things and take the win. Lukas Koski had a great run as he moved to the high side of the track and came from ninth to finish a strong fourth and hold off previous feature winner Simon Wahlstrom for that position.

Current national point leader in the Modified class, Mike Anderson, was a pleased winner of their twenty lap main event. Against one of the stronger fields of cars this year, Anderson came from the third row to over take Darrell Nelson for the lead and then pull away from Kevin Adams' attempts to catch him.

Bryan Hessler and Nelson battled for the lead on the opening round before Nelson slipped past Sam Fankhauser and Hessler to slide into the top spot. Anderson was on the move early and drove up to second past Matt Leer and Mark Hanson before the yellow flew for a spinning Pat Hoffman.

On the green, Anderson powered into the first turn and was able to drive past Nelson with a tight move to take over the lead. Meanwhile, Adams was also working his way toward the front from the fourth row, using the high side to his advantage as he worked up through the field. He and Nelson had a good battle for second before Adams was able to move past him and take over the runner up slot. He then set off after Anderson with the last sixteen laps of the race going non stop and while the cars appeared to be pretty even on the track, the early lead that Anderson had established held as he drove on for his fourth win at the speedway this year.

The Pure Stocks wrapped up the night in fine fashion with a hard fought race that saw multiple leaders and only a single yellow flag when Bob Thompson stopped with a flat tire. Rookie driver Devin Fries led his first lap of feature racing action before he was overtaken by Mike Grover for the top spot. Grover was soon challenged by Ryan Clausen and Cody Cimfl for the lead with Clausen making a fine move on the higher side of the track to take over the lead.

However, coming to the front was Richards from the fourth row and he was soon in the competition for the lead. The leaders went three wide for the top spot with Clausen finally relinquishing the lead to Cimfl and Richards and then finally, George put his car into the top spot and managed to gain a couple of car lengths on the field.

The last eight laps of the race went green to checkered and Richards managed to pull out to a small lead which he maintained for his second win of the year. Cimfl finished a strong second while Cory Jorgensen made a late charge as the current national point leader raced up to third with Clausen and Jay Folz completing the top five in a race that saw only two cars not complete the distance.

The next action for the track is the huge Street Stock Little Dream race to be contested on Tuesday night, July 30th with a rain date of July 31st. Street Stocks only will be racing for a top prize yet to be determined by fan and business participation as all hope to top last year's winning prize of $16,088.

The speedway will then take a Summer Break on August 3rd with the next racing action scheduled for Saturday night, August 10th. It will be Hall of Fame night with four new inductees into the Rice Lake Speedway Hall of Fame and the second to the last night for track points as the season winds down rapidly. Race time will be 7 pm.

SUMMARY

Rice Lake Speedway

Rice Lake WI

July 27, 2019

WISSOTA Late Model Wollak Challenge Series

40 lap Feature – Jake Redetzke(Eau Claire), Jesse Glenz(Fall Creek), John Kaanta(Elk Mound), Darrell Nelson(Hermantown MN), A.J. Diemel(Elk Mound), Chad Mahder(Eau Claire), Pat Doar(New Richmond), Steve Laursen(Cumberland), Mike Prochnow(Menomonie), Buddy Hanestad(Boyceville), Joel Collins, Denny Cutsforth, Mark Rose, Jeff Massingill, Rick Hanestad(DNS)

12 lap Heat 1 – Doar, Kaanta, Mahder, Nelson, Diemel, Massingill, B. Hanestad, R. Hanestad
Heat 2 – Redetzke, Laursen, Glenz, Prochnow, Rose(Dorchester), Collins, Cutsforth

WISSOTA Modifieds

20 lap Feature – Mike Anderson(Jim Falls), Kevin Adams(Cameron), Darrell Nelson(Hermantown MN), Matt Leer(Bruce), Cory Mahder(Elk Mound), Mark Hanson(Chippewa Falls), Pat Hoffman(Rice Lake), Bryan Hessler(Chetek), Wayne Poteet(Spooner), Dave Mayala(Barron), Kyle Helling, Steve Hallquist, Sam Fankhauser

8 lap Heat 1 – Nelson, Mahder, Leer, Fankhauser(Rice Lake), Hoffman, Mayala, Poteet
Heat 2 – Adams, Hanson, Anderson, Hessler, Helling(Rice Lake), Dan Kingsley, Hallquist

WISSOTA Super Stocks

20 lap Feature – Curt Myers(Cameron), Willie Johnsen Jr(Superior), Eric Olson(Ladysmith), Lukas Koski(New Richmond), Simon Wahlstrom(Rice Lake), Adam Soltis(Ladysmith), Josh Bach(Barron), Mike Siewert(Cameron), Steve Martin(Farmington MN), Fran Hanson(Almena), Cooper Berlin, Terran Spacek, Josh Cappo

8 lap Heat 1 – Wahlstrom, Soltis, Bach, Luke Schultz(Cameron), Berlin(New Berlin), Siewert
Heat 2 – Myers, Spacek(Phillips), Olson, Johnsen Jr, Koski, Martin, Hanson

WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds

15 lap Feature – Kevin Adams(Cameron), Jamie Bisonette(Dallas), Aric Lindberg(Dallas), Austin Ellis(Rice Lake), Denny Cutsforth(Rice Lake), Fran Hanson(Almena), Jimmy Latvala(Solon Springs), Travis Anderson(Colfax), Kenny Kincaid(Shell Lake), Craig Elliott(Hillsdale), Justin Claussen, Leo Schweiss, Shane Halopka

8 lap Heat 1 – Adams, Halopka(Greenwood), Lindberg, Cutsforth, Kincaid, Claussen, Schweiss
Heat 2 – Bisonette, Elliott, Latvala, Hanson, Anderson, Ellis

WISSOTA Street Stocks

15 lap Feature – Nick Traynor(Barron), Ron Hanestad(Glenwood City), ZachElward(Hayfield MN), Hunter VanGilder(Rice Lake), Kolby Kiehl(Barron), Jason Havel(Rice Lake), Andrew Hanson(Iron River), C.J. Wagner(Rice Lake), Cody Kummer(Medford), Eric Olson(Ladysmith), Will Fisher, Zach Beaulieu, Hunter Anderson, Jim Cimfl, Michael Tuma, Ralph Stark

8 lap Heat 1 – Havel, Kiehl, Hanestad, Beaulieu(Chetek), Cimfl(Turtle Lake), Tuma
Heat 2 – Elward, VanGilder, Wagner, Fisher(Shell Lake), Anderson(Phillips), Zach Manley
Heat 3 – Traynor, Olson, Kummer, Hanson, Alex Minks(Bruce), Stark

WISSOTA Pure Stocks

12 lap Feature – George Richards(Mondovi), Cody Cimfl(Chetek), Cory Jorgensen(Duluth MN), Ryan Clausen(Barron), Jay Folz(Cameron), Mike Grover(Chetek), Devin Fries(Phillips), Bob Thompson(Cameron), Aaron Bernick(Duluth MN), Austin Fencl(Bruce), Mike Huebner Sr, Randy Shackleton, Ken Oftedahl, Josh Miller, Brent Miller, Mike Holmstrom, Terry Kemp

8 lap Heat 1 – Richards, Folz, Clausen, Bernick, B. Miller(Cameron), Huebner Sr, Kemp, Shackleton, Thompson
Heat 2 – Grover, Cimfl, Jorgensen, Fries, J. Miller(Spooner), Holmstrom, Fencl, Oftedahl