Sportsman Bark River I Race Report

TORC Sportsman Bark River I Race Report
TORC Sportsman Keep the Fans Wanting
More!
Frana Makes History in Super Buggy -
Stingle Wins Four in a Row -Vanden Heuvel & Chestnut Double Up - Super Stock Truck
Gets Rowdy
Glenview,
IL (July 12, 2010) - The first visit to Bark River for the 2010 Traxxas TORC
Series presented by AMSOIL Championship
saw near perfect weather for Rounds 5 & 6 for the sixty eight Sportsman
drivers that took the green flag. The weekend saw the first ever win in Super Buggy
by an
all-wheel drive vehicle, and a Light Buggy competitor extend his winning streak
to four in a row.
The 1.2
mile all-natural terrain track has some additions to the layout since the last
visit in 2009. A rather long berm was added to the Cemetery Turn, the table top
in front of the spectator area was made taller, and the finish line was also
directly in front of the spectators at the crest of the tabletop jump.
The entire
weekend was broadcast live on the internet thanks to USAC's incredible production
team. Robi Powers and Cheyne Statzny were handling play-by-play while Megan
Stanton covered all the podium celebrations. If you were unable to watch the
TORC racing live, both days of racing are also archived on www.usacracing.com for
viewing at your convenience.
The Bark
River Lions Club opened the track up for a practice session Friday evening to
go along with the usual Saturday and Sunday morning sessions. The additional
time for practice and testing was greatly appreciated by all the participants.
Saturday's
Round 5 action began with the Classix division. Dale Chestnut in his 2WD Ford
Bronco led flag to flag while a real battle raged for the final spots on the
podium. At different times in the six lap event, three different drivers
occupied the runner-up spot. At the flag, Randy Pennings grabbed the runner-up
position, while Jeffrey Tomlin went past Kurt Schuch on the final lap for third
place.
The Enduro
Trucks were next as Chevrolet took control of the podium. Brent Smith led
almost every lap, but Chris Bowser seemed glued to his bumper lap every inch of
the way. The final lap saw contact between the two several times, but nothing
could unhinge Smith from the top spot. Bowser settled for second as the always
tough Matt Ives finished third.
The next up
was Limited 2. The 650hp version of a
PRO-2 truck really keeps the fans on their feet. The Round 5 action did not
disappoint. The first seven laps saw a heated battle between Dan Baudoux and
Mike Vanden Heuvel. During the seven laps, Baudoux somehow kept Vanden Heuvel
at bay. Then as the two trucks ran side-by side for much of the back section of
the track, Baudoux had a tire that was loosing pressure. Then the two champions
touched in mid-air as they flew over the Monster Energy Hill. This was enough
for Vanden Heuvel to take over the lead and win the round.
Meanwhile,
the flat tire had great reduced Baudoux's pace. Suddenly as he approached the
final corner, a three way battle for the second spot suddenly appeared. Michael
Baker, Rhonda Konitzer, and Dan Baudoux were three wide heading for the Kuhmo
Tire finish line. A near photo finish had Konitzer taking second and Baker just
edging out Baudoux for third.
Light Buggy
saw Greg Stingle continue to dominate the class as his Orange Flanagan Stop n
Shop Buggy took the top spot. Another Fox Valley
resident, Bill Kortens came home second as Jeff Virnig crossed the finish line
in third. Bill Kortens recorded fastest lap of the nineteen drivers during the
round with an average speed of 55.872mph.
Single
Buggy saw a battle between longtime competitors, Rhinelander Wisconsin's Mark
Steinhardt, and Escanaba, Michigan's Brad Erickson continue their long
standing rivalry. In Round 5 Steinhardt would finish first with Erickson right
on his rear bumper. While all this going on, another Wisconsin native Rob
Kinner was battling with Ontario,
Canada's Travis
Dinsmore for the final podium spot. At the flag Dinsmore edged out Kinner for
the final spot on the box.
The Super
Stock Truck racers lined up thirteen strong for the land rush start. The first
half of the race it was a battle between Iron Mulisha members Danny and Scott
Beauchamp. The Beauchamp cousins seem to always find the front of the field.
Danny led flag to flag with his black and orange Ford. It looked like Scott
Beauchamp in his Chevy would follow his cousin all the way to the finish, but Illinois'
Mitch Dorr had
other thoughts. With three laps to go, Dorr manhandled his Ford around Scott to
finish the race between the Iron Mulish members.
The history
making Super Buggy racer was the final race on Saturday's schedule. On any
given day at least four or five drivers in this class have an honest shot at
the win. This day was no different, except John Frana had a good feeling about
his very unique all-wheel drive creation. The morning practice session saw
Frana turn the quick lap of the class. So when the green flag was waved
everyone had their eyes on the #7 BrandName Super Buggies. After a brief battle
with Steve Krieman at the start, Frana led flag to flag for his first ever
Super Buggy victory. Not only was it a first time win for the driver, but for an
all-wheel drive vehicle in the class. Second place went to Championship point's
leader CJ Greaves, as Steve Krieman finish in third.
Sunday's
Round 6 action was just as awesome. A check with the weatherman, had race
official making a change to the schedule in order to get the PRO racing
completed before any rain hit the area. This meant the Super Stock Trucks and
the Super Buggies would end the day's festivities instead of the PRO trucks.
The Classix
hit the track first as Dale Chestnut went back to back with another win. Robert
Weiland rebounded from a Round 5 DNF to come in second. Veteran competitor from
Crandon, Wisconsin Bill Wilson finished third.
The Enduro
Truck race saw Brent Smith's brother Brock behind the wheel of the black and
gold Chevy. The Smith Brother's Chevy held the top spot until the halfway point
of the race when the engine expired. Matt Ives took over the lead and held all
the way to the finish. Chris Bowser was the runner-up again. Matt Dale took the
final spot on the podium for the first time this year.
The Limited
2 round began, once again, as a battle between Dan Baudoux and Mike Vanden
Heuvel. This time Baudoux had a drivetrain failure early on giving Vanden
Heuvel the win. Rhonda Konitzer came across the finish a strong second as Don
Williams took third.
The
nineteen driver Single Buggy was a carbon copy of Saturday's Round 5. Greg
Stingle jumped into the lead and never looked back. Bill Kortens finished
second and Jeff Virnig third.
The Single
Buggy race saw Mark Steinhardt trying to run down Brad Erickson. This time
Erickson took the win as "Steiny" was runner up. Fourth place finisher in Round
5, Rob Kinner also had a close battle with Travis Dinsmore, with Kinner taking
the final podium spot.
The Super
Stock Truck race was very interesting to say the least. The land rush start saw
a several trucks coming together as Mitch Dorr's Ford ended up on the bed of Don
Demeny's Dodge. By
the time Dorr got rolling again the other twelve trucks were well on there way
down the track.
At the
front of the pack Chris Bowser was keeping Eric Ruppel at bay as Danny and
Scott Beauchamp were trying to occupy the same third place position. Eventually
Danny would have to come in to change a flat tire.
Then with
two laps to go, caution was thrown out the door, so to speak. Scott Beauchamp
pushed Ruppel wide in a corner just as Bowser's truck lost an engine. This put
Beauchamp first, Ruppel second, and with an amazing comeback Don Demeny third.
On the final lap, Dorr had moved into fourth right on Demeny's bumper. The
final lap saw Dorr making contact with the Demeny. No matter how hard Dorr
tried, nothing could rattle Demeny in his yellow Dodge. At the finish it was
Scott Beauchamp first, Eric Ruppel second, and Don Demeny third.
(On a side note after the race, disparaging
thoughts, as well as heated words were exchanged within the Super Stock Truck
pit area. Round 6 was a very aggressive race.)
The final
race of the day was Super Buggy. The questions on everyone's mind was, "Could
Frana repeat or would CJ Greaves win another one?" Well, the answer was Steve
Krieman.
The last half of the race was a battle between Frana, Schwalbe,
Greaves, and Krieman. With two laps to go Frana spun out ending his chance.
Schwalbe seemed content with third place after a rough time early in the
season, but Krieman and Greaves went wheel to wheel all race long. Both took
turns with the lead, but when the checkered flag fell. It was Steve Krieman
first, CJ Greaves second, and Scott Schwalbe third. This way Krieman's first
win in a long time. His last win was during his 2007 championship winning
season.
Somehow the
rain held off and great racing was witnessed by the one largest July crowds for
a Bark River off-road event. The spectator hill and grandstands were
packed, the campground was overflowing, and good time was had by all.
The 2010 Traxxas
TORC Series presented by AMSOIL World Tour heads about 120 miles south to the
Oshkosh Speedzone in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin for Sportsman Rounds 7
and 8. If the racing and activity at Bark
River are any indication
what to expect, you don't want to miss it. If you can't attend the July 23-24
evenings of racing, you can watch it live online at www.usacracing.com [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103561475579&s=547&e=001scjjgkpKoBY7Dk_S4RVkVrCx78tQqRdvDC7XbZgdsRJvkoiOlQRiv-9GmoOhoTrLI6ZtBgTp0XJZ45dcQJBIJ08EFHtfqvhaYCJ-Se8Mfnmw74Dq4t5_fA==]
or www.torcseries.com [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103561475579&s=547&e=001scjjgkpKoBZUzorZJeK5jSk5jM1tHuuhdqvF0JW_onBGxsxkV6r5UHXG9CwWntS7mce05f5teHnlIXF8kKINo1wFvWHS5IvmoFR6D2sfpplQySluRxr4wA==].
- Mike Reusche, MTG - mtgraphics@ymail.com [mailto:mtgraphics@ymail.com]

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