Riverside Raceway matched its highest turn out of the season in the Street Stocks as the drivers vied for the $300 top prize.

Valeria started on the inside of the second row for the 30-lap main event, but quickly got to the outside as Jordan Kurtti led the opening laps. Valeria applied pressure and got around Kurtti on lap four.

Roger Walker was in hot pursuit and took the lead from Valeria just a couple laps later. For a little bit, it looked as though it was going to be a Walker runaway, but toward the midway portion of the race Walker’s car began to fade as Valeria’s car got better.

Just past halfway Valeria worked to the inside of Walker, the two rubbed a little bit and Valeria came out on top. Valeria handled lap traffic a little better than Walker in the final 15 laps and pulled away for the win.

Class point leader John Kallas was mired in the traffic early on in the race and had to settle for a third place finish. Kallas currently sits 14 points ahead of Valeria, with three nights remaining in the championship.

The rest of Boone’s Building Supply Night was quite intriguing with two rarely enforced rules coming into effect and a scary moment in the Family Fours.

Riverside Raceway has a little known provision in the rulebook, which is called its “Gentleman’s Agreement.” Paraphrasing from the rulebook, if a driver believes he or she has caused a yellow, the driver can go to the tail of the field without any questions asked.

On lap nine of the Miller Lite WISSOTA Midwest Mod Feature, Bob Richardson was running in second with Chad Boettcher right behind him in third. Richardson got loose and spun entering turn one, causing the caution flag.

After reviewing the tape, track officials were ready to put Richardson to the back, deeming that he had spun by himself. Instead Boettcher had fallen to the back of the line, essentially giving Richardson second place back.

It set up a great battle between Richardson and Jason Zdroik for the win in the WISSOTA Midwest Mods. Zdroik had the lead and utilized his advantage by running right along the cushion on the upper edge of the racing groove. That forced Richardson to try to pass low.

Richardson found some tack on the inside, right next to the infield berm and was able to keep the pressure on Zdroik. That was until three laps to go when Richardson drove a little too deep into turn one and nearly spun.

The slip up allowed Zdroik to cruise to his fourth feature win of the season. Boettcher, meanwhile, was not really hurt by his decision to go to the back. He recovered to finish third and remains ten points ahead of Rob Rodziczak.

Dicky Carlson held off Chad Rosinski and Wayne Nylund for the win in the Pure Stock Feature. It was to be Carlson’s seventh feature win of the season, and fourth in a row. But after the race, it was discovered that Carlson was wearing clothing that did not meet Riverside Raceway’s guidelines for fire protection in the Pure Stocks.

Carlson was wearing the top half of his driver’s suit, but only street clothes for the bottom. Carlson, who was already warned once by track officials about his attire, was disqualified for his second infraction.

Besides denying Carlson of a win, the disqualification all but mathematically eliminates him from track championship contention. Rosinski earned credit for his second win of the season and sits 14 points ahead of Michael Diak. Carlson would have been 33 points behind, but instead finds himself a whopping 87 points out of first.

A three-car incident in the Family Fours prompted a red flag. On lap five, Richard Barlowski got into the side of Scott Krueger and sent him into the outside wall down the front stretch. Lee Schuppler got involved when Barlowski’s car came back down the racetrack and into the side of Schuppler’s.

Schuppler slammed into the inside guardrail, rode the rail the down the frontstretch before turning into the infield and the pit area. Schuppler was temporarily knocked unconscious and luckily his car entered the pits at a slow rate of speed, so no bystanders were hurt.

Schuppler regained consciousness while inside his car and was taken into the ambulance provided by Eagle River Memorial Hospital for observation, before being released.

Once racing resumed, Rhinelander’s Mike Kirkham pulled away from Erik Scharf and earned his fourth Family Four feature win of the season.

Miller Beer of the Northwoods sponsors racing next week at Riverside Raceway. The Month of Specials continues with the fourth running of the Riverside 40, a 40-lap WISSOTA Midwest Mod special. It pays $500 to the winner.

Hot laps begin at 7:30 PM, with racing at 8:00 PM.



RESULTS: Riverside Raceway – Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Miller Lite WISSOTA Midwest Mods

Heat: 1st 1J-Jason Zdroik; 2nd 2-Bob Richardson; 3rd 15-Rob Rodziczak; 4th 8-Chad Boettcher; 5th 14-Troy Smart; 6th 7M-Jeff McDonald

Feature: 1st 1J-Zdroik; 2nd 2-Valeria; 3rd 8-Boettcher; 4th 15-Rodziczak; 5th 7M-McDonald; 6th 14-Smart

Fire-Up Fireworks WISSOTA Street Stocks

Heat: 1st 1-Fritz Scharf; 2nd 26-Jordan Kurtti; 3rd 2-Ken Valeria; 4th 5-Roger Walker; 5th 8-Ron Van Dusen; 6th 99-John Kallas; 7th 74-Cliff Houle; 8th 23-Kevin Maulson, Jr.; 9th 2X-Neal Slizewski

Eagle River 30: 1st 2-Valeria; 2nd 5-Walker; 3rd 99-Kallas; 4th 26-Kurtti; 5th 1-F.Scharf; 6th 74-Houle; 7th 23M-Maulson, Jr.; 8th 2X-Slizewski; 9th 8-Van Dusen

Pure Stocks

Heat 1: 1st 21-B.J. Slizewski; 2nd 71-Wayne Nylund; 3rd 7-Jason Melton; 4th 50-Steve Locy; 5th 01Z-Ron Reese

Heat 2: 1st 22C-Michael Diak; 2nd 8-Chad Rosinski; 3rd 20-Scott Schwinn

Feature: 1st 8-Rosinski; 2nd 71-Nylund; 3rd 50-Locy; 4th 22C-Diak; 5th 20-Schwinn; 6th 7-Ja.Melton; 7th 01Z-Reese; 8th 21-B.J. Slizewski

Family Fours

Heat 1: 1st 2-Mike Kirkham; 2nd 31-Richard Barlowski; 3rd 44-Erik Scharf; 4th 75-Cory Dickman; 5th 18-Bobby Sheldon ($)

Heat 2: 1st 57-Lee Schuppler; 2nd 26-Leo Nippa; 3rd 6 7/8-Scott Krueger; 4th 81M-Marci Melton

Feature: 1st 2-Kirkham; 2nd 44-E.Scharf; 3rd 81M-M.Melton; 4th 26-Nippa; 5th 31-Barlowski; 6th 57-Schuppler; 7th 6 7/8 Krueger; 8th 75-Dickman