MORR Antigo Race Report

A Weekend Full of
Firsts and Repeat Winners Headline the TORC Sportsman Opener in Antigo
Dave Miah, John Fitzgerald, & Scott Beauchamp Go Back to Back
Mike
Vanden Heuvel & CJ Greaves First Wins
Kortens, Chernetski,
Lear, Sticker Dude, First Career Podiums
Antigo, WI
(June 10, 2010) - The opening weekend of the 2010 Traxxas TORC Series presented
by AMSOIL Sportsman Series took place at the Langlade County Fairgrounds in
Antigo, Wisconsin. The site had hosted off-road races for twenty straight years
before going silent in 2006.
The event
was promoted by area businessman Ronn Krueger and MORR [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103468397952&s=547&e=001cGsHIIZrrPN82KYJlP3_6HjjkUEq1MDPhcTws2vmagwVXM6AtPGoGAv-xo0r8kZjqTBirhG7Kg4_oosY4EW6bPUe-OGJez91ytULygHdOugtT8yQAEQFTCg7cY2jaYtA](Midwest
Off-Road
Racing) lent a hand with the organizing of the event. This was the first TORC [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103468397952&s=547&e=001cGsHIIZrrPMyiuYMFHrG3r1k0dj6n9FfwH3ij8-WsLY_U509BImHV9yIk7YYqDeVur8FwjiSM470k2X_fE2jpiU5Cnd-7pBVnGuzbnh3Ru0re7XeO4gPng==]event
under full
control of USAC [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103468397952&s=547&e=001cGsHIIZrrPMgIsjm9KIwhOiIVkRP3fOmqaKEi3b76kNEJ0yriusJVIi3tRlDq7SofwOwmA730lJZT2q4V8sRi5AhyTL97dqF7yRQamTdZzrEpOFwLP8NLw==]and
if this event is any indication of the remainder of the
season, short-course off-road racing in the Upper Midwest
is in great hands.
When the
registration trailer opened for business on Friday, eighty racers signed up to
tackle the ž mile long track that incorporated the majority of the ˝ mile clay
circle track and a section of the infield. The course had a few high speed
jumps and a lengthy rhythm section right down the middle of the infield. Whether
you were driving a buggy or truck, the layout would offer unique challenges to
every driver in the field.
The weather
the day before was an indicator of what to expect the rest of the weekend.
Intermittent showers would yield to bright sunshine all weekend long. With
weather like this, a water truck was never needed.
Because of
the natural occurring moisture throughout the weekend, practice was cancelled
for both days. Unfortunately, the first group of racers each day also served as
track driers for the rest of the competition.
Round One
The first
group out on the track was the combined Classix and Formula 4x4 race. Both
classes ran together, but for separate race and contingency purses. The Formula
4x4 group saw Dave Miah in his red Bronco dominate the field with 2009 Class
Champion Dave Demaagd coming in second. Meanwhile, Dale Chestnut lead flag to
flag as Eric Chernetski battled through the field for the runner-up spot.
Next up was
the Light Buggy race, where seventeen drivers lined up two by two for the
rolling start. Matt Gerald came from the back of the pack to win the season
opener. While Greg Stingle out dueled Jeff Virnig for the second spot, as Virnig
rounded out the podium.
The V8
powered Enduro Trucks were up next. These are truly stock trucks with almost no
performance modifications allowed. A strong group of ten racers made the lineup
with Brent Smith grabbing the early lead and holding it all the way to the
checkered flag. Second place went to Brandon Rouse, and the final spot on the
podium went to Matt Ives.
The 1600
Single Buggy started the race with twelve competitors. Some of the best drivers
in the country compete at this class and Wisconsin's
Mark Steinhardt and Nebraska's
John Fitzgerald are no exception. These two drivers went head to head with
Fitzgerald taking the win and Steinhardt in second. Rounding out the top three
was Lower Michigan's Jeff Villemure.
Many
consider this next class the most competitive and entertaining class of the
TORC Sportsman group, Super Stock Truck. All three domestic truck manufacturersare
represented and five tire manufacturerscan be seen keeping the 300+ HP
machines pointed in the right direction. Michigan's
Upper Peninsula dominated the top two spots as
Scott Beauchamp's Chevy crossed the line in first, just ahead of his cousin
Danny Beauchamp in a Ford. The Beauchamp families are key members of the Iron
Mulisha, a group of off-road racers and fans from iron ore country in the Upper
Peninsula. Third place went to the 2009 Mole Lake
Cup winner, Illinois' Mitch Dorr.
Super Buggy
was next, as racers from all across North America
came to see who was best. Competitors
from five states and two Canadian provinces were represented in the starting
lineup. Wisconsin's Scott Schwalbe got to the front after a couple of laps and
held it all the way to the checkered flag. The fifteen year old, second
generation racer CJ Greaves, made his way through trafficto finish second, and
New Jersey's Bob Klaus grabbed the final spot on the podium.
The final
race of the day was the combined Limited 2 (formerly Super Truck); Limited 4
race with the V8 powered PRO-Lights added to the back of the field, just to
make things interesting for the fans. Al Drews was the only Limited 4 truck to
enter the Antigo event, so the decision was made for Drews to come out with the
other trucks to put on a good show for the fans.
The three
PRO-Lights were there for an exhibition/test session to get the reconfigured
trucks some track time before the PRO opener in Crandon. Shawn Morris was
driving a Chevy Colorado, Ross Hoek was in his Ford Ranger, and Jenkins
Brothers Racing debuted their Traxxis sponsored Ford Ranger.
The three
class combo was extremely entertaining. On the first lap while making the tight
right hand infield turn, Dan Baudoux rolled over and briefly caught fire. The
damage was minor, but Baudoux had to wait until Sunday to start his season.
After a complete restart, a battle raged for the entire fifteen laps between
Mike Vanden Heuvel and Ron Schreiner. At the finish it was Vanden Heuvel taking
his first big truck win, with Schreiner second and new comer Michael Baker third.
One of the
concepts to assist Sportsman racers with the cost of racing is the "Performance
of the Race" award. For each race during Round One, a driver was chosen that
drove a really great race. Sometimes it maybe the winner of the race, other
times it can be someone that everyone noticed thanks to their driving
performance.
The Butch's
Speed Shop "Performance of the Race"
Winners for Round One were:
Formula 4x4
- Dave Miah, Enduro Truck - Brandon Rouse, Light Buggy - Matt Gerald,
Single
Buggy - John Fitzgerald, Stock Truck - Nick Byng, Super Buggy - CJ Greaves,
and Limited
2 - Mike Vanden Heuvel.
About
fifteen minutes after the final checkered flag had settled, Mother Nature decided
to water the track. The rain didn't let up until late in the evening, making it
an adventure for many preparing their vehicles for Sunday's rounds of racing.
Round Two
Thanks to
all the overnight rain, the first race of the day was more of a survival test,
than an actual race. Once again Dave Miah took the win as Dave Demaegd followed
him around for second place. Classix also had a repeat winner with Dale
Chestnut in first and Eric Chernetski a distant second.
The large Light
Buggy field had two first time podium finishers. Almost immediately Todd Lemke
grabbed the lead and held it all the way to the checkered flag. Bill Kortens
fought his way to his career best finish with a second place finish. The same
was true for third place finisher Eric Lear.
The Enduro
trucks had the three best looking trucks in the division land on the podium. Perennial
hard charger Matt Ives took the win, as Round One winner Brandon Rouse was the
runner up, and Tom Varner occupied the final podium position.
The 1600
Single Buggy began as another Fitzgerald and Steinhardt battle for the top spot.
Just before the midpoint of the race, Steinhardt clipped a larger tractor tire
that was being used as a course marker, while coming through Turn One. The
buggy went in to a spectacular double barrel roll ending with Steiny's buggy
definitely worse for the wear. Gladly Mark was able to walk away from the
incident. Meanwhile John Fitzgerald took another win, as Mike Seefeldt
rebounded from a poor start the day before to finish second, as another Upper Peninsula
racer, Brad Erickson came across the line
in third.
Speaking of
Michigan's Upper
Peninsula, Scott Beauchamp did it again; the Iron Mulisha member
grabbed the lead by lap three and was never challenged. Eric Ruppel tried to
smoke the competition for a second day in a row as his transmission gradually
melted down. Nevertheless, the former class champion took a well deserved runner-up
finish. Third place finisher Don Demeny barely made the start of the race.
Overnight he repaired a driveline issue, rebuilt part of his engine, and just
after breakfast the crew had to make a transmission change. The never give up
attitude of his family and friends paid off with a spot on the podium.
Super Buggy
came down to another shootout between Scott Schwalbe and CJ Greaves, but this
time Greaves was first to cross the finish line. This was the teenager's first
career short course win. Scott Schwalbe took the second spot as Luke "The
Sticker Dude" Zoetmulder finished in third. This was a career best finish for
"The Sticker Dude."
Light rain
had begun to fall during the Super Buggy race, but by the time the final event
of the weekend was ready to start, there was a serious downpour. The combined
Limited 2 and PRO-Light became another survival test. The polesitter, Dan
Baudoux (thanks to last place finish in Round One) dominated, with all his
competition behind him battling the track conditions, the "Rocketman" cruised
to victory. Rhonda Konitzer crossed the finish in second, and Round One winner
Mike Vanden Heuvel rounded out the top three.
Just as the
final race of the weekend was complete, the rain stopped and the sun came out;
a perfect ending to the opening weekend of Sportsman racing in the TORC Series.

New for
2010, USAC is streaming all TORC events live on their website: http://www.usacracing.com/usac_live/usac_live_main
[http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103468397952&s=547&e=001cGsHIIZrrPOjRO7XoFK_mbCGErzZkyA1jXDYOFMWwFwtchOm39RNZwM_jQukcCj-SRYduzUERXMZAKJzYXQdRwuG5SbzyU1uvY-HzqJXVeG7uShL6GSp-6nwLOrSvGXvaTdmkU_Q3C7Ga2_eZN7zFFZoRhWbeHJrIXXAca_HygA=]and
every round of racing will be archived online for viewing at anytime during
the year.
The
traveling off-road show stops at the "Big House" June 19-20 in Crandon, Wisconsin.
The Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL will be hosting the opening rounds
of the PRO series as well as rounds 3 & 4 of the Sportsman series.
The opening
weekend of Sportsman racing for the TORC [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103468397952&s=547&e=001cGsHIIZrrPMyiuYMFHrG3r1k0dj6n9FfwH3ij8-WsLY_U509BImHV9yIk7YYqDeVur8FwjiSM470k2X_fE2jpiU5Cnd-7pBVnGuzbnh3Ru0re7XeO4gPng==]series
was a big hit with the racers,
fans, and the local community. The last few months saw several groups (MORR,
TORC, and USAC) concerned with state of Midwest
off-road racing, working together to create a larger, stronger form of
motorsports. The first public signs of the efforts were evident at the weekend
of racing in Antigo, Wisconsin.
Look for more Sportsman off-road racers to be back racing when the TORC Series make
its next stop in Crandon, Wisconsin.
- Mike
Reusche,mtgraphics@ymail.com [mailto:mtgraphics@ymail.com]

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