To some the Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL event at the Dirt Track @ Route 66 Raceway (Chicagoland Speedway) might have seemed like a failure. In reality it could be considered the biggest success of the season.
Sure the spectator turnout wasn't much. Especially when the 10,000 seat grandstand has 3000 fans scattered throughout the seating. The fact of the matter it was a hit within the motorsports community.
Here are some of the reasons why:
The internet broadcast, complete with five broadcast personalities, multiple cameras, a production crew, and a director that was continually calling the shots every second of the night, continues to raise the bar race after race. On Wednesday evening, the live internet feed was featured at the International Motorsports Hall of Fame to coincide with Jeremy McGrath’s (who was in Joliet racing his Monster Energy PRO-2WD) induction ceremony.
The sponsorship that Traxxas put forth with Kyle Busch Motorsports had the NASCAR community talking throughout the week. Sure it was cool to see Kyle running a PRO-2WD under the lights with the likes of RJ, McGrath, Rob Mac, LeDuc, and Taylor, but more importantly the event had other teams and companies that are already involved with professional motorsports taking a look at what TORC and short-course off-road racing is all about.
Why is this important? TORC and short course off-road racing need team owners that hire drivers similar to other forms of professional motorsports. The team owner concentrates putting all the pieces together, including marketing and sponsorship, while the driver concentrates on his efforts on the track. When this happens, the overall product at the track is improved, and the distinction between PRO and Sportsman becomes well defined.
There are established motorsports teams with the entire infrastructure in place that could add a short-course program with a minimal investment. These teams can also use the off-road market as another tool to complete a sponsorship contract, similar to the Traxxas – Kyle Busch partnership.
The spectator turnout on the second evening was probably three times larger than opening night. Which is incredible since the only advertising was done the weekend before at the track’s monthly demolition derby. If you were at the track Thursday night you saw representatives from ARCA, USAC, a few NASCAR truck teams, businesses from the motorsport community, and several members of the area drag racing community.
After talking a few first time fans in the pit area on Thursday, many were in attendance the night before. When they came back for the second night they made sure a few other friends came along as well. The fans in attendance are a part of a rather large motorsports community in the Joliet/Chicago area. Along with Chicagoland Speedway’s facility, right down the road is the Autobahn Country Club road racing facility as well as a few circle tracks like LaSalle and Rockford.
The directors of Chicagoland facility were blown away with every aspect of short course off-road racing and promised to find better dates for the TORC event in their calendar for the upcoming 2011 event. Yes, TORC will be back racing in the largest market, outside of NYC and LA, in the country.
Just like Oshkosh and Glen Helen, you build it and promote it; the spectators will come by the bus full. If the 2011 TORC event is promoted properly, Chicagoland will be looking for more grandstands.
That’s my take on this unique mid-week TORC off-road event.
If Rowdy and Robby (Gordon) both show up at Crandon next week that would really be a story.
- Mike Reusche, mtgraphics@ymail.com
Friday, August 27, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Glen Helen & Oshkosh May Be Looking Back to the Future
The latest short course races under the direction of TORC as well as LOORS were very similar in many aspects.
Here are some of the similarities from Oshkosh and Glen Helen.
1. - Both were very short tracks - each were approximately .8 mile in length.
2. - Both were held at night.
3. - Both had overflow crowds.
4. - Both had the front gate turning customers away.
5. - Both had incredible racing, with positive feedback from racers as well as fans.
6. - Both were promoted properly to get the fans to the track.
7. - Both had new faces in the sport land on the podium.
8. - Both had the largest Sportsman racer turnout of the year for their respective series.
9. - Both venues didn't have the largest fan turnout of the year, but the energy in the crowd sure made it seem like they were.
10. - Both venues has some missed steps, but their future is very bright.
I could go on and on, but my point is if the facility is located in the proper market, promoted and marketed to the community, spectators will get to the track and fill the stands.
I'm from the Midwest, but have been a spectator at my share of West Coast short-course events. Glen Helen in many respects is like Crandon West. The property is iconic, in the Motocross world as well as in the short course world. I remember wanting to go to the Glen Helen and race against the Class 10 (today's Super Buggy) elite.
(Greg George, Glen Harris, Jerry Whelchel, the Gilman's, and others but we never made the trek. Fortunately in the 70s & 80s they came back my way to places like Lake Geneva and Montreal).
Now with past and present stars of Supercross, Motocross, Freestyle, and Super Moto racing with four wheels under them at Glen Helen & Oshkosh, it brings together today's action sports heros with yesterday's super heros as they take on the stars of short course like Huseman, the Greaves, Renezeder, Menzies, the George's, & others.
Lucas Oil brought all of them together to the right location and bam! an event many will talk about for years to come.
The same thing happened at the TORC Oshkosh event, the event was held in the Fox Valley of eastern Wisconsin. The population base for the area that runs from Fond du Lac north to Green Bay, approximately 700,000. The majority of the MORR membership/TORC Sportsman competitors come from this area. The promoters of the event are also residents of the valley and off-road racers. The right promotional work was done via television, radio, and at several types of motorsports events leading up to the weekend. It was billed as the event your came watch today's superheros in the PRO division(Greaves,RJ, McGrath, Huseman, Douglas, etc) and the stars of tomorrow (Gerald, Vanden Huevel,Greaves, Dorr, etc.) in the Sportsman classes. All the hard work paid off. Now PRO racers want two weekends of racing in Oshkosh for 2011.
These events were more like Mickey Thompson's vision of off-road racing.
- Create short tracks with the fans right on top of the action.
- The competition is a combination of top racers in other forms of motorsports as well as off-road racing's home-grown talent competing at the highest level.
- Then go out and promote this aspect so motorsports fans outside of the off-road community pay for the price of admission.
What was different with Glen Helen and Oskhosh was the venue, they aren't the cavernous stadiums of stick and ball sports. These are locations synonymous with off-road racing, where 5,000 fans created the atmosphere of a crowd three times it size.(In the future, I'm pretty sure both will have seating for 15,000)
I don't know if either sanctioning body had Mickey Thompson's Off-Road Gran Prix in mind when creating events at these locations, but looking back at some of the events' aspects, Mickey's short-course torch is still burning strong.
- Mike Reusche
mtgraphics@ymail.com
philsinc@ymail.com
Here are some of the similarities from Oshkosh and Glen Helen.
1. - Both were very short tracks - each were approximately .8 mile in length.
2. - Both were held at night.
3. - Both had overflow crowds.
4. - Both had the front gate turning customers away.
5. - Both had incredible racing, with positive feedback from racers as well as fans.
6. - Both were promoted properly to get the fans to the track.
7. - Both had new faces in the sport land on the podium.
8. - Both had the largest Sportsman racer turnout of the year for their respective series.
9. - Both venues didn't have the largest fan turnout of the year, but the energy in the crowd sure made it seem like they were.
10. - Both venues has some missed steps, but their future is very bright.
I could go on and on, but my point is if the facility is located in the proper market, promoted and marketed to the community, spectators will get to the track and fill the stands.
I'm from the Midwest, but have been a spectator at my share of West Coast short-course events. Glen Helen in many respects is like Crandon West. The property is iconic, in the Motocross world as well as in the short course world. I remember wanting to go to the Glen Helen and race against the Class 10 (today's Super Buggy) elite.
(Greg George, Glen Harris, Jerry Whelchel, the Gilman's, and others but we never made the trek. Fortunately in the 70s & 80s they came back my way to places like Lake Geneva and Montreal).
Now with past and present stars of Supercross, Motocross, Freestyle, and Super Moto racing with four wheels under them at Glen Helen & Oshkosh, it brings together today's action sports heros with yesterday's super heros as they take on the stars of short course like Huseman, the Greaves, Renezeder, Menzies, the George's, & others.
Lucas Oil brought all of them together to the right location and bam! an event many will talk about for years to come.
The same thing happened at the TORC Oshkosh event, the event was held in the Fox Valley of eastern Wisconsin. The population base for the area that runs from Fond du Lac north to Green Bay, approximately 700,000. The majority of the MORR membership/TORC Sportsman competitors come from this area. The promoters of the event are also residents of the valley and off-road racers. The right promotional work was done via television, radio, and at several types of motorsports events leading up to the weekend. It was billed as the event your came watch today's superheros in the PRO division(Greaves,RJ, McGrath, Huseman, Douglas, etc) and the stars of tomorrow (Gerald, Vanden Huevel,Greaves, Dorr, etc.) in the Sportsman classes. All the hard work paid off. Now PRO racers want two weekends of racing in Oshkosh for 2011.
These events were more like Mickey Thompson's vision of off-road racing.
- Create short tracks with the fans right on top of the action.
- The competition is a combination of top racers in other forms of motorsports as well as off-road racing's home-grown talent competing at the highest level.
- Then go out and promote this aspect so motorsports fans outside of the off-road community pay for the price of admission.
What was different with Glen Helen and Oskhosh was the venue, they aren't the cavernous stadiums of stick and ball sports. These are locations synonymous with off-road racing, where 5,000 fans created the atmosphere of a crowd three times it size.(In the future, I'm pretty sure both will have seating for 15,000)
I don't know if either sanctioning body had Mickey Thompson's Off-Road Gran Prix in mind when creating events at these locations, but looking back at some of the events' aspects, Mickey's short-course torch is still burning strong.
- Mike Reusche
mtgraphics@ymail.com
philsinc@ymail.com
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Oshkosh Off-Road Festival - TORC Sportsman Short Course Racing at Its Best!
Oshkosh Off-Road Festival - TORC Sportsman Short Course Racing at Its Best!
Oshkosh, WI (July 29, 2010) - Crandon may be the "Big House" but after the two evenings of racing at the Oshkosh Speedzone this past weekend, the off-road world can't stop talking about the country's newest stop on the 2010 Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL schedule. The standing room only crowds experienced some of the best non-stop door to door action short course off-road racing had to offer. When Ricky Johnson described TORC off-road racing as a combination of Supercross and Ultimate Fighting all on four wheels, the Oshkosh Off-Road Festival is exactly what he had in mind. The PRO drivers put on an incredible show, but the Sportsman competitors put on an opening act that will be hard to duplicate.
The two day TORC event began with uncertainty as over eight inches of rain covered the Fox Valley area the day before the event. Undaunted, USAC and race promoters Vanden Heuvel and Flanagan went to work draining the Winnebago County Fairgrounds and the .5 mile circle track that would host the third stop of the 2010 TORC World Tour.
While the track work was progressing, the weather cleared up in time for the Thursday evening Pit Party sponsored by the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery. The Tilted Kilt girls from the Oshkosh locale were there serving free samples of their fine restaurant fare, as wel asl posing for photos and offering discount coupons for the establishment.
Remarkably the track was in top shape thank to the endless efforts of Mike and Brad Arndt, the Speedzone's Mike Rabe, and USAC's Jeff Norstrom. When the first group of Sportsman racers hit the track early Friday evening the track surface held just enough moisture to eliminate any dust problems and offer the competitors excellent traction.
Unfortunately the campgrounds were waterlogged preventing most of the teams from setting up camp near the race track. Considering the torrential downpour, every team was just glad the racing was to go on as scheduled.
Speaking of schedule, the moisture in the track needed as much time as possible to dissipate, so USAC officials, to no one's surprise, cancelled practice.
While the track was drying out, the line of cars and trucks at the fairground entrance was continually getting longer and longer. Eventually the Winnebago County Sheriff's Department began assisting traffic at the closest intersection about a half mile away. As the off-road fans made their way to the grandstands, the Vendor Midway greeted everyone with companies representing practically every aspect of the off-road and truck community. The scene made for an incredible event.
Before the PRO truck competitors made it to the track, a large contingent of Sportsman racers, ninety-one drivers, representing eight different divisions had their time on the track.
TORC Sportsman Round 7
The first race of Friday evening was the combined Classix and Formula 4x4 event. Both classes had their largest turnout of the year. The large number of racers also put on their best performances of the season as well. In the Classix race, it came down to veterans Rob Weiland and Dale Chestnut. Weiland took his second TORC win of the year, as points leader Dale Chestnut finished second, and Jeremy Forbes finished third in his first race of the season.
The Classix division saw Snow Dogg Snow Plows add to the festivities by awarding the podium finishers Wilson, Chestnut, and Forbes cash bonuses during the trophy presentation.
At the same time the Formula 4x4 racers were well represented as Brad Lemarche had his retro Ford Ranger out for his first full weekend of racing. Brad didn't disappoint as he dominated the field. In second was Ben Passa in his Chevy El Camino bodied 4x4, and Milan Mazanec came home in third in the Ford F-150.
The Light Buggy contingent was next as nineteen limited single seat buggies attacked the .8 mile off-road course. Starting from well back in the field, Matt Gerald in his Sticker Dude Wornstar Buggy took the win, as Maxxis' Matt Ashauser held on to second, Holtger Motorsports driver Craig Paitl grabbed the final spot on the podium.
The Enduro Trucks were next. This is another great division to get one's feet wet in short-course off-road racing. The reason; you can take an Enduro Truck, race it for a time, and then upgrade the modifications to compete in the Super Stock Truck class.
The race came down to a battle of "Young Guns," Brent Smith and Chris Bowser. The two racers had a similar battle during Round 5 in Bark River. Once again it was Smith first, Bowser second, and veteran Bob Birkholz third.
Some of the best Single Buggy racers in the country lined up for the stadium style battle. Early on, Nebraska's John Fitzgerald held the top spot only to be challenged by Lower Michigan's Jeff Villemure and the Upper Peninsula's "Iron Mulisha" member Brad Erickson. After some jockeying back and forth, the winner was Jeff Villemure, with Erickson second, and Fitzgerald third.
The first of the Heavy Metal Hitters, Super Stock Truck, lined up twelve strong. The front runners of the class started in the back half of the field. It looked like Mitch Dorr and his Fabricated Steel Ford would hold off Eric Ruppel and his Phil's Inc Ford for the win, but a last corner pass by Ruppel took the win, followed closely by Dorr, as points leader and "Iron Mulisha" member Scott Beauchamp finished third.
The high flying Super Buggy class also had its largest field of the year as Bob Klaus became the fifth different winner this season. Steve Krieman in his Phil's Inc. VW powered buggy as the runner-up, and CJ Greaves recovered to bring his Traxxas Super Buggy across in third.
The final Sportsman race of the evening, was a another battle between Dan Baudoux in his Teamtech Motorsports Ford and Mike Vanden Heuvel in the Flanagan's Stop n Shop Chevy. Vanden Heuvel took the win followed by Baudoux and Michael Baker.
After all the Sportsman and PRO racing was complete, the rains came once again, but not as severe as Thursday afternoon. Needless to say, Saturday afternoon practice was cancelled as well. When Sportsman Round 8 racing began, USAC had the track in perfect condition.
TORC Sportsman Round 8
The Saturday evening crowd was even larger than the night before as the Classix race saw new faces on the TORC Sportsman podium. Crandon's Bill Wilson stood on the highest step on the box, followed by Jeremy Forbes, with Shawn Tingley rounding out the Top-3.
Once again Snow Dogg Snow Plows stepped up and awarded the podium finishers a nice bonus for their great performances at the Oshkosh Speedzone.
The Formula 4x4 race saw Brad Lemarche take the win once again, followed by Ben Passa, with current points leader Dave Miah in third.
The Light Buggy race was a repeat of Round 7. As Matt Gerald took the win, but not before spinning out twice, as Matt Ashauer was the runner up. The final spot on the podium was the #100 Holtger Motorsports, but this time around Bryan Holtger was behind the wheel. The third place finisher shares driving chores with his brother in law Craig Paitl. With either Craig or Bryan at the wheel, Holtger Motorsports can't go wrong.
Enduro Trucks was a near repeat performance from the night before. This round Brock Smith (teammate to brother Brent) led the charge to the finish with Chris Bowser and Bob Birkholz right in the wake of the Smith Bros. Chevy.
The Single Buggy ranks saw John Fitzgerald finally get back to his winning ways as Jeff Villemure continued his weekend with a solid second place. Brad Erickson moved down a spot to take a well deserved third place. The Single Buggy class consistently offers some of the most competitive off-road racing week after week.
The Super Stock Truck race saw Dan Beauchamp grab the lead and then rollover without ever relinquishing the lead. His cousin, Scott Beauchamp quickly moved into the second spot as the two Escanaba, Michigan natives went door to door. Unfortunately, the damage Dan suffered from the rollover eventually slowed his pace. This left Scott to hold off a late charging Mitch Dorr for the win, as Eric Ruppel rounded out the top three.
The "F-1" of short-course off-road racing was next on the schedule. Steve Krieman had a dominating performance in his Bertils VW powered Super Buggy. Second place was the night before winner, New Jersey's Bob Klaus, as Wisconsin's Scott Schwalbe finished third.
The final Sportsman race of the weekend saw the Limited 2 Baudoux/Vanden Heuvel battle renew itself. This time both trucks didn't make it to the finish. The final two laps saw a great race between Michael Baker and Rhonda Konitzer. Both racers grabbed the lead from each other more than once in the brief timeframe. When the checkered flag waved Baker had about a two foot advantage over Konitzer. Bob Gremler finished on the podium for the first time after joining the ranks at Crandon. When the racers reached the podium, the crowd went wild showing their appreciation for a well fought race.
Just before 11pm the PRO-4x4 race ended as the huge crowd headed home or back to their campers, while talk about next year's event had already begun. Whether you were a Sportsman or a PRO competitor, everyone went home with a smile on their face.
Later that night there was talk about having two weekends of racing at the Oshkosh Speedzone, but like the promoter's were saying, let's get this event wrapped up before anyone gets ahead of themselves. Regardless the buzz around the Winnebago Fairgrounds and the Oshkosh Off-Road Festival was overwhelmingly positive.
Thanks goes out to all those that made the weekend possible; Midwest Promotions Vanden Heuvel/Flanagan, MORR, the Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL, USAC, Budweiser, and all the volunteers that made the weekend a great experience for all those in attendance.
- Mike Reusche, mtgraphics@ymail.com
Oshkosh, WI (July 29, 2010) - Crandon may be the "Big House" but after the two evenings of racing at the Oshkosh Speedzone this past weekend, the off-road world can't stop talking about the country's newest stop on the 2010 Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL schedule. The standing room only crowds experienced some of the best non-stop door to door action short course off-road racing had to offer. When Ricky Johnson described TORC off-road racing as a combination of Supercross and Ultimate Fighting all on four wheels, the Oshkosh Off-Road Festival is exactly what he had in mind. The PRO drivers put on an incredible show, but the Sportsman competitors put on an opening act that will be hard to duplicate.
The two day TORC event began with uncertainty as over eight inches of rain covered the Fox Valley area the day before the event. Undaunted, USAC and race promoters Vanden Heuvel and Flanagan went to work draining the Winnebago County Fairgrounds and the .5 mile circle track that would host the third stop of the 2010 TORC World Tour.
While the track work was progressing, the weather cleared up in time for the Thursday evening Pit Party sponsored by the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery. The Tilted Kilt girls from the Oshkosh locale were there serving free samples of their fine restaurant fare, as wel asl posing for photos and offering discount coupons for the establishment.
Remarkably the track was in top shape thank to the endless efforts of Mike and Brad Arndt, the Speedzone's Mike Rabe, and USAC's Jeff Norstrom. When the first group of Sportsman racers hit the track early Friday evening the track surface held just enough moisture to eliminate any dust problems and offer the competitors excellent traction.
Unfortunately the campgrounds were waterlogged preventing most of the teams from setting up camp near the race track. Considering the torrential downpour, every team was just glad the racing was to go on as scheduled.
Speaking of schedule, the moisture in the track needed as much time as possible to dissipate, so USAC officials, to no one's surprise, cancelled practice.
While the track was drying out, the line of cars and trucks at the fairground entrance was continually getting longer and longer. Eventually the Winnebago County Sheriff's Department began assisting traffic at the closest intersection about a half mile away. As the off-road fans made their way to the grandstands, the Vendor Midway greeted everyone with companies representing practically every aspect of the off-road and truck community. The scene made for an incredible event.
Before the PRO truck competitors made it to the track, a large contingent of Sportsman racers, ninety-one drivers, representing eight different divisions had their time on the track.
TORC Sportsman Round 7
The first race of Friday evening was the combined Classix and Formula 4x4 event. Both classes had their largest turnout of the year. The large number of racers also put on their best performances of the season as well. In the Classix race, it came down to veterans Rob Weiland and Dale Chestnut. Weiland took his second TORC win of the year, as points leader Dale Chestnut finished second, and Jeremy Forbes finished third in his first race of the season.
The Classix division saw Snow Dogg Snow Plows add to the festivities by awarding the podium finishers Wilson, Chestnut, and Forbes cash bonuses during the trophy presentation.
At the same time the Formula 4x4 racers were well represented as Brad Lemarche had his retro Ford Ranger out for his first full weekend of racing. Brad didn't disappoint as he dominated the field. In second was Ben Passa in his Chevy El Camino bodied 4x4, and Milan Mazanec came home in third in the Ford F-150.
The Light Buggy contingent was next as nineteen limited single seat buggies attacked the .8 mile off-road course. Starting from well back in the field, Matt Gerald in his Sticker Dude Wornstar Buggy took the win, as Maxxis' Matt Ashauser held on to second, Holtger Motorsports driver Craig Paitl grabbed the final spot on the podium.
The Enduro Trucks were next. This is another great division to get one's feet wet in short-course off-road racing. The reason; you can take an Enduro Truck, race it for a time, and then upgrade the modifications to compete in the Super Stock Truck class.
The race came down to a battle of "Young Guns," Brent Smith and Chris Bowser. The two racers had a similar battle during Round 5 in Bark River. Once again it was Smith first, Bowser second, and veteran Bob Birkholz third.
Some of the best Single Buggy racers in the country lined up for the stadium style battle. Early on, Nebraska's John Fitzgerald held the top spot only to be challenged by Lower Michigan's Jeff Villemure and the Upper Peninsula's "Iron Mulisha" member Brad Erickson. After some jockeying back and forth, the winner was Jeff Villemure, with Erickson second, and Fitzgerald third.
The first of the Heavy Metal Hitters, Super Stock Truck, lined up twelve strong. The front runners of the class started in the back half of the field. It looked like Mitch Dorr and his Fabricated Steel Ford would hold off Eric Ruppel and his Phil's Inc Ford for the win, but a last corner pass by Ruppel took the win, followed closely by Dorr, as points leader and "Iron Mulisha" member Scott Beauchamp finished third.
The high flying Super Buggy class also had its largest field of the year as Bob Klaus became the fifth different winner this season. Steve Krieman in his Phil's Inc. VW powered buggy as the runner-up, and CJ Greaves recovered to bring his Traxxas Super Buggy across in third.
The final Sportsman race of the evening, was a another battle between Dan Baudoux in his Teamtech Motorsports Ford and Mike Vanden Heuvel in the Flanagan's Stop n Shop Chevy. Vanden Heuvel took the win followed by Baudoux and Michael Baker.
After all the Sportsman and PRO racing was complete, the rains came once again, but not as severe as Thursday afternoon. Needless to say, Saturday afternoon practice was cancelled as well. When Sportsman Round 8 racing began, USAC had the track in perfect condition.
TORC Sportsman Round 8
The Saturday evening crowd was even larger than the night before as the Classix race saw new faces on the TORC Sportsman podium. Crandon's Bill Wilson stood on the highest step on the box, followed by Jeremy Forbes, with Shawn Tingley rounding out the Top-3.
Once again Snow Dogg Snow Plows stepped up and awarded the podium finishers a nice bonus for their great performances at the Oshkosh Speedzone.
The Formula 4x4 race saw Brad Lemarche take the win once again, followed by Ben Passa, with current points leader Dave Miah in third.
The Light Buggy race was a repeat of Round 7. As Matt Gerald took the win, but not before spinning out twice, as Matt Ashauer was the runner up. The final spot on the podium was the #100 Holtger Motorsports, but this time around Bryan Holtger was behind the wheel. The third place finisher shares driving chores with his brother in law Craig Paitl. With either Craig or Bryan at the wheel, Holtger Motorsports can't go wrong.
Enduro Trucks was a near repeat performance from the night before. This round Brock Smith (teammate to brother Brent) led the charge to the finish with Chris Bowser and Bob Birkholz right in the wake of the Smith Bros. Chevy.
The Single Buggy ranks saw John Fitzgerald finally get back to his winning ways as Jeff Villemure continued his weekend with a solid second place. Brad Erickson moved down a spot to take a well deserved third place. The Single Buggy class consistently offers some of the most competitive off-road racing week after week.
The Super Stock Truck race saw Dan Beauchamp grab the lead and then rollover without ever relinquishing the lead. His cousin, Scott Beauchamp quickly moved into the second spot as the two Escanaba, Michigan natives went door to door. Unfortunately, the damage Dan suffered from the rollover eventually slowed his pace. This left Scott to hold off a late charging Mitch Dorr for the win, as Eric Ruppel rounded out the top three.
The "F-1" of short-course off-road racing was next on the schedule. Steve Krieman had a dominating performance in his Bertils VW powered Super Buggy. Second place was the night before winner, New Jersey's Bob Klaus, as Wisconsin's Scott Schwalbe finished third.
The final Sportsman race of the weekend saw the Limited 2 Baudoux/Vanden Heuvel battle renew itself. This time both trucks didn't make it to the finish. The final two laps saw a great race between Michael Baker and Rhonda Konitzer. Both racers grabbed the lead from each other more than once in the brief timeframe. When the checkered flag waved Baker had about a two foot advantage over Konitzer. Bob Gremler finished on the podium for the first time after joining the ranks at Crandon. When the racers reached the podium, the crowd went wild showing their appreciation for a well fought race.
Just before 11pm the PRO-4x4 race ended as the huge crowd headed home or back to their campers, while talk about next year's event had already begun. Whether you were a Sportsman or a PRO competitor, everyone went home with a smile on their face.
Later that night there was talk about having two weekends of racing at the Oshkosh Speedzone, but like the promoter's were saying, let's get this event wrapped up before anyone gets ahead of themselves. Regardless the buzz around the Winnebago Fairgrounds and the Oshkosh Off-Road Festival was overwhelmingly positive.
Thanks goes out to all those that made the weekend possible; Midwest Promotions Vanden Heuvel/Flanagan, MORR, the Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL, USAC, Budweiser, and all the volunteers that made the weekend a great experience for all those in attendance.
- Mike Reusche, mtgraphics@ymail.com
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