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Dan Nelson was the man to beat in the Super Stock division, as he outlasted the competition in the feature race. Nelson took an early lead and stayed out of trouble to win the event. |
June 22, 1997; Manitowoc, WI.
Dan Nelson pulled out all the stops to win the 15-lap Super Stock race, in fender-to-fender racing action Sunday Night at the Manitowoc County Expo Raceway.
Track conditions were excellent as racing enthusiasts and spectators packed the grandstands to watch the exciting track action arranged by Speed Public Relations Inc. Promoter John Martin Kwitek. The track will mark its grand opening under Kwitek's management at 6 pm on Sunday, June 29, with time trials scheduled for 5 pm.
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Dan Nelson was the man to beat in the Super Stock division, as he outlasted the competition in the feature race. Nelson took an early lead and stayed out of trouble to win the event. |
Nelson took the checkered flag in a super-stock race that left only four cars still in the running to cross the finish line. Mike Walvoord took second place, bouncing back from a late spinout on curve 3. Rick Otte took third place after recovering from a starting-lap spinout. Kel Lamb captured fourth place despite engine trouble. Randy Rahn, whose aggressive on-track maneuvers left Rick Otte's car with right-side damage, ran into engine trouble and failed to finish the final laps but still came away in fifth place.
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The 25-lap winged-modified feature race provided equally exciting racing action as Alex Crimmings captured a solid first place in a race that featured a complete restart after Todd Scholz spun out in the first lap. Scholz had appeared down with mechanical problems but was back for the restart. Jay Schneider paced the initial round of the event before Brian Van Scoy took over the top spot with Crimmings advancing to second before Schneider retired from the event with motor trouble. |
| Alex Crimmings took the win in the first Winged Modified feature event of the season at Expo Raceway |
Crimmings took over the top spot on lap seven diving under Van Scoy to take the lead. Dave Enders worked his way through the field and into third before the halfway point and presented several challenges to Van Scoy before falling back a bit near the finish. Van Scoy captured second place with Enders in third; Bill Wenninger, fourth; and Bill Johnson, fifth. Several cars also encountered mechanical problems.
The action was non-stop at the Expo Speedway as drivers eagerly prepared to battle their challengers, since many races at other tracks both in Wisconsin and throughout the Midwest had been rained out over the weekend because of thunderstorms and torrential rains that left cities like Milwaukee and Sheboygan flooded.
| Promoter of the Manitowoc Expo Raceway, John Martin Kwitek joins Outlaw Modified driver David Otte of Cedar Grove in victory lane after the took the win in the 20 lap main event. Otte was the class of the field in the division. |  |
In other racing action at Expo Raceway, David Otte came on strong and stayed there to take the checkered flag in the 20-lap outlaw-winged IMCA type modified feature race. Mike Kudick sped into second place after a hotly contested battle with third-place finisher Jerry Wenzel. Jack Parrish took fourth place, with Brian Reif nabbing fifth place.
| Tom Leonard took the feature in the Street Stock division outclassing his rivals. Leonard driving this Monte Carlo put a lap on the field in the event. |  |
Tom Leonard lapped his competitors in a race that left no one within striking distance in the 15-lap street-stock feature race. Leonard easily took the checkered flag in a race where his competitors battled with everything from engine problems to spinouts and a broken axle. Chris Lange managed second place despite a spinout. Tim DeHei captured the third place spot. Daryle Pautz recovered from a spinout to finish fourth. Wade Beloueia came in fifth.
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| Mike Kudick took an Outlaw heat
race, in this sharp modified early in the evening. |
Scott Haupt took first place in the 15-lap legends-class race. The legends, new to the usual five division lineup and which made for six racing divisions Sunday at Expo Raceway, raced in a rare appearance on a dirt track north of Milwaukee. Other legends finishers besides Haupt were Darwin Banes in second place; Tim McQuiston, third; Curt Gnatzig, fourth; and Joe Haupt, fifth.
In the 6-lap cruisers feature race plagued by mechanical problems, Jason Close and Ken Anderson managed to overcome last minute engine woes to take first place. Dave Wing and Gary Faulkner took second place, virtually shut down by mechanical woes both in the heat and feature race.
In the street stock heat, Tom Leonard led the pack with a first place finish. Daryle Pautz captured second.
In the outlaw modifieds, Craig Lager took the heat race victoy over Brian Reif.
With two heats for the super-winged modifieds, Jay Schneider captured first place and Brian Van Scoy took second in the first heat, with Tony Wondra finishing first and Tom Johnson taking second in the second heat.
In the super stock heat action, Mike Walvoord nabbed first place and Randy Rahn, second.
In the cruiser's heat, Jason Close and Ken Anderson were first, with Dave Wing and Gary Faulkner coming in second.
RESULTS
Winged Modified:
25 Lap Feature Event: 1.) Alex Crimmings; 2.) Brian Van
Scoy; 3.) Dave Enders; 4.) Bill Wenninger; 5.) Bill Johnson; 6.)
Tom Spooner; 7.) T.J. Luedtke 8.) Tony Wondra
10 Lap Heats:
ONE: 1.) Jay Schneider; 2.) Van Scoy
TWO: 1.) Wondra; 2.) Johnson
Outlaw Modified:
20 Lap Feature: 1.) Dave Otte; 2.) Mike Kudick; 3.)
Jerry Wenzel; 4.) Jack Parrish; 5.) Brian Reif; 6.) Craig Lager
10 Lap Heat: 1.) Kudick; 2.) Reif
Super Stocks:
15 Lap Feature: 1.) Dan Nelson; 2.) Mike Walvoord; 3.)
Rick Otte; 4.) Kel Lamb; 5.) Randy Rahn.
10 Lap Heat: 1.) Rahn; 2.)Nelson
Street Stocks:
15 Lap Feature: 1.) Tom Leonard; 2.) Chris Lange; 3.)
Tim VanDeHei; 4.) Daryle Pautz; 5.) Wade Beloueia
8 Lap Heat: 1.) Leonard; 2.) Pautz
Crusiers:
Feature: 1.) Jason Close and Ken Anderson; 2.) Dave Wing
and Gary Faulkner
Heat: 1.) Close/Anderson 2.) Wing/Faulkner
Legends:
15 Lap Feature: 1.) Scott Haupt; 2.) Darwin Banes; 3.)
Tim McQuiston; 4.) Curt Gnatzig; 5.) Joe Haupt
10 Lap Heat: 1.) S. Haupt; 2.) McQuiston