Championships Clinched at Red River Co-op Speedway Season Finale

Steven Bradley, Winnipeg, MB (October 1) Red River Co-op Speedway wrapped up their 2016 schedule on Saturday night – the second day of a 2-part season finale. The pits were operating at full capacity as 132 competitors from 7 classes looked to end their race season in victory lane. Fall temps in the mid teens kept fans in the stands all night. A large number of spectators took advantage of a pre-race pit party where the back gates where opened for fans and drivers to mingle before the races. Track prep staff groomed a smooth race surface that became dry slick for all 7 features, and after the final checkered flag of the night flew the dirt surface resembled asphalt with the amount of rubber each corner had taken on.

Ricky Weiss put a stop to Dustin Strand’s dominance in the WISSOTA Late Model division – holding off the national points leader to pick up the win. Strand finished in second ahead of Brad Seng, while Mike Balcaen and Rick Fawcett ended their seasons in the top 5. Shane Edginton’s sixth place finished was enough to secure his first RRCS Late Model track championship. Mike Balcaen finished second in points just 9 behind the leader, while Kevin Sexton and Mike Martin each finished in third 23 points back.

In WISSOTA Modified action, Ward Imrie bounced back after blowing his engine the previous night and sealed his championship title with a win. Scott Greer finished a close second ahead of Johnny Broking, Bob Broking and Kevin Sexton who finished in the top 5. Imrie successfully defended his track championship 31 points over both Kevin Sexton and Scott Greer.

In WISSOTA Midwest Modified racing, Dustin Strand picked up back-to-back wins after defeating Jamie Davis for the win. Grant Hall placed third ahead of Paul Veert and Hunter Hougard. Veert racked up the track championship 20 points over second place Grant Hall and 25 points ahead of third place Austin Hunter.

In the WISSOTA Street Stock series, Ryan Satter swept the weekend after his second win in as many nights. Adam Burrows held off Shawn Teunis for second while Art Linert and Peter Letkeman earned top 5 placings. Shawn Teunis defended his track championship – finishing 57 points ahead of Peter Letkeman and 86 points ahead of brother, Jesse Teunis.

In the Northern Super Truck class, Jamie Vernaus topped the 10 truck field for the second night in a row to end his season in victory lane. Dustin Enns placed second while Rene Poluyko, Dan Klim and Rod Fidler collected top 5s. Vernaus’s win sealed the track championship 14 points over second place Dustin Enns and 24 over Rene Poluyko.

In the Pure Stock division, Les McRae survived a run-in with a lap car and held off veteran Derek Pollock to collect the feature win. Kevin Delaine finished third ahead of Rob Reese and Andrew Thomas. Pollock’s second place finished secured the track championship 30 points over Rob Reese and 36 points ahead of Kevin Delaine.

In the 4 Cylinder Stocks, Scott Perdonic returned to victory lane after a race-long battle with Ian Cabernel who finished second. Mike Demchuk held off Sean Cassidy for third while rookie Justin Krause finished fifth. Cassidy’s fourth place finish was enough to pick up the track championship just 4 points ahead of second place Dean Miljure and 14 points ahead of Mike Demchuk.

In WISSOTA Late Model racing, Ricky Weiss beat Dustin Strand off the front row and took the lead.

The first of 2 cautions fell on the opening lap when Paul Veert and Stewart Hayward collided and spilled over turn 3. Hayward was deemed responsible and was sent to the back for the complete restart.

Weiss once again secured the point on the restart with Strand and Seng close behind. On lap 2, Shane Edginton climbed into the top 5 after passing Bill Mooney exiting turn 2.

The second and final caution took place on lap 7 after rookie Shane Holden took a spin and stalled low in turn 2.

On the restart, Weiss once again stuck his right side wheels into the outer brim and took the lead.

On lap 9, Mike Balcaen completed a pass on Edginton in turn 4 to move into the fourth position. Edginton fell out of the top 5 when Mike Martin got by exiting turn 4.

Back up front, Weiss began taking on heavy lap traffic with 4 laps remaining, which slowly reeled Dustin Strand in from second.

With just 2 laps remaining, Rick Fawcett climbed into the top 5 after getting by Mike Martin in turn 2.

As laps wore down, Weiss kept his car wound up on the high line and stayed far enough ahead of Strand to pick up the feature win. Strand finished in second while Seng, Balcaen and Fawcett ended their seasons with top 5 placings.

Ricky Weiss swept the Late Model division with a win in heat 2. Dustin Strand also picked up a win in heat 1.

Shane Edginton’s sixth place finish was enough to earn his first RRCS Late Model track championship – 9 points ahead of Mike Balcaen and 23 ahead of both Kevin Sexton and Mike Martin.

In WISSOTA Modified action, Ward Imrie used a front row starting spot to take the early lead.

On lap 2, Bob Broking dove inside Scott Greer entering turn 3 to take over second position. Johnny Broking and Greer battled hard for third position until a caution fell on lap 6 when Jerome Guyot was ticketed for sending a tractor tire onto the racing surface.

On the restart, it looked like Imrie’s new engine was working at peak performance as he stayed on the point with Greer moving back into second position.

On lap 7, Bob Broking moved into fourth spot after getting by Lee McRae in turn 4. McRae fell out of the top 5 when Kevin Sexton passed him in turn 4.

As laps wore down, Greer took a small bite into the lead Imrie had built, but it wasn’t enough as Imrie scored his eighth RRCS feature win of the year to seal his championship title. Greer finished in second while Johnny Broking, Bob Broking and Kevin Sexton rounded out the top 5.

Ward Imrie swept the Modified class by earning a win in heat 2. Scott Greer and Bob Broking also picked up heat wins earlier in the night.

Ward Imrie clinched the 2016 Modified track championship by 31 points over Kevin Sexton and Scott Greer. Jerome Guyot finished on third 67 points back.

In the WISSOTA Midwest Modified division, Patrick Sobolik, Brandon Rehill, Brendan Luschinski, Channing Sproule and Jason Williamson all joined the 24 car feature event by earning top 5 finishes in the B-main.

A red flag was thrown on the opening circuit when a massive pileup collected everyone from 14th spot and back exiting turn 4.

On the complete restart, Dustin Strand was quick to lead from the front row while Jamie Davis and Grant Hall gave chase.

On lap 11, Strand began encountering lap traffic which enabled Davis to move beside him on the bottom line as the battle for the lead began heating up.

A caution on lap 13 interrupted the side-by-side battle when Ted Doell looped him car in turn 3 right in front of the leaders. Luckily everyone escaped untouched as Doell was sent to the rear.

On the single file restart, Strand once again took the lead with Davis in close proximity. A final caution took place on the white flag lap when Austin Hunter and Channing Sproule collided high in turn 3. Hunter was deemed responsible and was sent to the back.

On the single file, green-white-checkered restart, Strand remained perfect as he did all weekend and led the pack to the checkered flag – winning his second Midwest Modified win in as many nights. Davis finished a close second while Grant Hall, Paul Veert and Hunter Hougard rounded out the top 5.

Dustin Strand swept the class by earning a win in heat 2. Jamie Davis, Paul Veert and Grant Hall also picked up heat wins.

Paul Veert’s fourth place finished was enough to overtake Austin Hunter for the points championship. Grant Hall finished second in points 20 points back while Austin Hunter’s bad luck in the Prairie Classic ended his season in third – 25 points behind.

In the WISSOTA Street Stock series, Ryan Satter led the 13 car field to green.

Shawn Teunis completed a pass on Art Linert in turn 4 of the third lap to secure third position.

While the back half of the field raced side-by-side, the top 5 competitors ran a single file line from start to finish. Ryan Satter easily maintained the point and picked up his second feature win in as many nights. Adam Burrows placed second while Shawn Teunis, Art Linert and Peter Letkeman finished in the top 5.

Ryan Satter swept the Street Stock class with a heat win earlier in the evening. Second place Adam Burrows also collected a heat win.

Shawn Teunis defended his Street Stock championship title by 57 points – clinching the crown by simply taking the green flag. Peter Letkeman ended his season second place in overall points while Jesse Teunis placed third in championship points 86 points back of the leader.

In the Northern Super Truck class, Rene Poluyko led 10 trucks to green from the pole.

On lap 4, Jamie Vernaus powered by Poluyko for the lead exiting turn 2. Dustin Enns climbed into the top 3 after starting seventh when he passed Dan Klim for the position.

On lap 9, Enns completed a pass on Poluyko for the runner-up position entering turn 1. Over the remaining 6 laps Enns tried his best to cut into the lead Vernaus had built, but Vernaus ran a flawless line and easily collected his second feature win in as many nights. Enns finished in second while Poluyko, Klim and Rod Fidler all collected top 5 finishes.

Rene Poluyko and Dan Klim both picked up heat wins earlier in the night.

Jamie Vernaus captured the NSTR track championship 14 points over second place Dustin Enns. Rene Poluyko finished third in championship points 24 points back of the leader.

In the Pure Stock division, an opening lap caution reset the field after Ed Marquart and Brayson Bytheway spun in turn 1.

On a complete restart, Les McRae took the lead with Rob Reese picking up 2 spots to secure second spot. The race’s second caution took place on lap 2 after Riley Beamsih looped his Pure Stock in turn 2.

McRae once again stuck his Mustang up front on the restart with Reese in hot pursuit in second.

On lap 3, Reese pulled under McRae for the lead exiting turn 2 as the race for the lead began to heat up. After 3 laps of hard side-by-side racing, Reese fell out of the battle when he lost the handle in turn 4, and now found himself in seventh.

A yellow flag was displayed shortly after when Austin Overwater slipped over the turn 3 brim.

McRae continued to lead on the restart with Derek Pollock now applying pressure from the second position.

On lap 8, McRae’s chances of making a return to victory lane took a drastic turn for the worse when he got involved with a lap car that was trying to find his way to pit road. McRae attempted to pass Brayson Bytheway high entering turn 1 but was surprised when he didn’t turn left at the corner – rather straight off the end of the turn. Both divers slammed the brakes on over turn 1 and a caution was thrown. McRae was given the lead back under yellow.

On the restart it didn’t appear the leader had suffered any damage from the run in with Bytheway as McRae continued to set the pace from the point. As the race wore on, McRae began encountering lap traffic in the final laps.

Despite heavy lap traffic, Pollock wasn’t able to catch the leader and McRae went on to score the feature win. Pollock picked up 7 spots to finish in second while Kevin Delaine, Rob Reese and Andrew Thomas all finished with top 5 placings.

Les McRae swept the Pure Stock series by earning a win in heat 2. Derek Pollock and rookie Austin Overwater also collected heat wins.

Derek Pollock picked up the Pure Stock track championship with a 30 point lead over second place Rob Reese. Kevin Delaine finished in third 36 points back.

In 4 Cylinder Stock action, just 1 competitor was missing from the scheduled 19 car feature after rookie Madison Brown took a nasty roll over turn 1 in her heat race.

Ian Cabernel beat Scott Perdonic off the front row at the drop of the green flag to take the early lead.

On lap 2, Mike Demchuk climbed 3 positions after getting by Dean Miljure exiting turn 4 – leaving Miljure left to battle Sean Cassidy for fourth.

The race’s only caution occurred on lap 8 after Brandon Rehill collided with a tractor tire low in turn 1 which ripped the rear bumper off his car and dislodged the right rear tire. Rehill was towed to the pits for the night and the field was reset.

On the restart, Cabernel moved to the point ahead of Perdonic with Demchuck securing third.

On lap 9, Jim Mulholland knocked Miljure back to fifth after a pass down the back straightaway. Justin Krause knocked Miljure out of the top 5 on the next lap after a pass exiting turn 4.

With 3 laps remaining, Perdonic pulled up beside Cabernel and a side-by-side battle for the lead began forming. As the leaders approached the white flag, Perdonic finally secured the lead and held it for the last lap to pick up the feature win. Cabernel finished in second while Demchuk, Cassidy and Krause finished in the top 5.

Scott Perdonic swept the 4 Cylinder series by picking up a heat win. Ian Cabernel also collected a heat win earlier in the night.

Sean Cassidy was able to build on the 1 point lead he had entering the day as he collected his first 4 Cylinder championship by 4 points over second place Dean Miljure. Mike Demchuk finished in third 14 points back.

Stay tuned to Red River Co-op Speedway’s website and social media over the off season to lean about events coming in 2017. For all the news on events, visit www.redrivercoopspeedway.com.

Race Summaries

WISSOTA Late Models
Feature – Ricky Weiss, Dustin Strand, Brad Seng, Mike Balcaen, Rick Fawcett, Shane Edginton, Mike Martin, Bill Mooney, Paul Veert, Stewart Hayward, Steffen Snare, Kevin Sexton, Steve Anderson, Walt Morris, Shane Holden, Kevin Geisbrecht (DNF), Kary Rogers (DNF).
Heat 1 – Dustin Strand, Brad Seng, Bill Mooney, Shane Edginton, Rick Fawcett, Stewart Hayward, Walt Morris, Steve Anderson, Shane Holden.
Heat 2 – Ricky Weiss, Mike Balcaen, Steffen Snare, Mike Martin, Paul Veert, Kevin Sexton, Kevin Giesbrecht, Kary Rogers.

WISSOTA Modifieds
Feature – Ward Imrie, Scott Greer, Johnny Broking, Bob Broking, Kevin Sexton, Lee McRae, Danny Staff, Greg Ferris, Jeff Davis, Ryan Kereluk, Ryan Cousins, James Wall, Garrett Gamsby, Brody Strachan, Ian Rousseau, Jordan Duray, Gavin Paull (DNF), Jerome Guyot (DNF), Jeff Pritchard (DNS).
Heat 1 – Scott Greer, Jordan Duray, Lee McRae, Kevin Sexton, Jerome Guyot, Brody Strachan, Ian Rousseau.
Heat 2 – Ward Imrie, Johnny Broking, Gavin Paull, Danny Staff, Garrett Gamsby, Ryan Kereluk (DNF).
Heat 3 – Bob Broking, Greg Ferris, Jeff Davis, Ryan Cousins, James Wall, Jeff Pritchard.

WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds
Feature – Dustin Strand, Jamie Davis, Grant Hall, Paul Veert, Hunter Hougard, Christopher Leek, Tony Caissie, Victoria Stutsky, Darren Boychuk, Patrick Sobolik, David Delaine, Jason Somack, Nick Audette, Cosy Ossachuk, John Hettinga, Dylan Sabatini, Brendan Luschinski, Edward Bell, Ted Doell, Channing Sproule, Jason Williamson, Austin Hunter (DNF), Brandon Rehill (DNF), Gavin Paull (DNF).
B-Main – Patrick Sobolik, Brandon Rehill, Brendan Luschinski, Channing Sproule, Jason Williamson, Alex Kellar, Tom Morriseau, Rob Stutsky, Erich Frey (DNF), Curtis Giesbrecht (DNS), Brandon Wieler (DNS), Devon Gordon (DNS), Murray Kozie (DQ).
Heat 1 – Jamie Davis, Christopher Leek, Gavin Paull, Edward Bell, Nick Audette, Brandon Rehill, Erich Frey, Jason Williamson.
Heat 2 – Dustin Strand, Hunter Hougard, Austin Hunter, Darren Boychuk, Jason Somack, Murray Kozie, Rob Stutsky, Curtis Geisbrecht.
Heat 3 – Paul Veert, Cody Ossachuk, Victoria Stutsky, Dylan Sabatini, David Delaine, Patrick Sobolik, Brendan Luschinski, Alex Kellar.
Heat 4 – Grant Hall, Tony Caissie, John Hettinga, Ted Doell, Tom Morriseau (DNF), Brandon Weiler (DNF), Devon Gordon (DNF), Channing Sproule (DNF).

WISSOTA Street Stocks
Feature – Ryan Satter, Adam Burrows, Shawn Teunis, Art Linert, Peter Letkeman, Brent Olson, Jesse Teunis, Steve Boone, Doug Perrier, Andrew Maxwell, Rod Wolfe, Brent Douglas, Darryl Desserre (DNF), Brad Wall (DNS).
Heat 1 – Ryan Satter, Shawn Teunis, Brent Olson, Rod Wolfe, Brent Douglas, Jesse Teunis, Brad Wall (DNF).
Heat 2 – Adam Burrows, Art Linert, Peter Letkeman, Andrew Maxwell, Darryl Desserre, Steve Boone, Doug Perrier.

Northern Super Trucks
Feature – Jamie Vernaus, Dustin Enns, Rene Polyuko, Dan Klim, Rod Fidler, Rick Lowey, Arnie Todosey, Wayne Brosky, Trevor Krause, Marc Zondag (DNF).
Heat 1 – Rene Poluyko, Jamie Vernaus, Rod Fidler, Dustin Enns, Wayne Grosky.
Heat 2 – Dan Klim, Rick Lowey, Arnie Todosey, Trevor Krause, Marc Zondag.

Pure Stocks
Feature – Les McRae, Derek Pollock, Kevin Delaine, Rob Reese, Andrew Thomas, Trevor Rambow, Austin Overwater, Crysta-Mae Thomas, Mike Wenham, Cole Maydanuk, Lance Relf, Micheal Wood, Zac Brennan, Roger Boisjoil, Ed Marquart, Tobby Giesbrecht, Bill Messier, Riley Beamish, Nathan Klassen (DNF), Jeremy Bezan (DNF), Brayson Bytheway (DNF).
Heat 1 – Derek Pollock, Rob Reese, Kevin Delaine, Cole Maydanuk, Zac Brennan, Roger Boisjoil, Ed Marquart.
Heat 2 – Les McRae, Andrew Thomas, Lance Relf, Trevor Rambow, Crysta-Mae Thomas, Brayson Bytheway, Michael Wood.
Heat 3 – Austin Overwater, Jeremy Bezan, Nathan Klassen, Bill Messier, Mike Wenham, Riley Beamish, Tobby Giesbrecht.

4 Cylinder Stocks
Feature – Scott Perdonic, Ian Cabernel, Mike Demchuk, Sean Cassidy, Justin Krause, Norm Anderson, Dean Miljure, Jim Mulholland, Nick Audette, Denis Seguin, Sheldon Simoens, Tanner Burke, Ryan Higgins, Joshua Peters, Shane Rehill, Alex Farr, Lee Moir, Brandon Rehill (DNF), Madison Brown (DNS).
Heat 1 – Scott Perdonic, Dean Miljure, Brandon Rehill, Ryan Higgins, Justin Krause, Lee Moir, Shane Rehill, Nick Audette, Joshua Peters, Alex Farr.
Heat 2 – Ian Cabernel, Sean Cassidy, Mike Demchuk, Kim Mulholland, Denis Seguin, Norm Anderson, Tanner Burke, Sheldon Simoens, Madison Brown (DNF).