(Racing Every Saturday Night)
Race Results
June 26, 1999
By Rob Ristesund
A thrilling late model stock car feature capped an exciting evening of racing action Saturday night at Lake County Speedway. The fifteen lap event began with front row starters Marty Barber and Bruce Bortnem battling side-by-side for the first four circuits before Bortnem finally edged ahead for the early lead. A lap six caution reset the field and on the restart it was the third place car of Curt Bauman getting by Barber for second. Two laps later it was Bauman surging past Bortnem for the lead with fifth row starter Brad Wollman right behind to take the second spot. Now it was Bauman’s and Wollman’s turns to do battle as they ran side-by-side for the next three laps, with the rest of the field right behind them, always running two and sometimes three abreast. Then with two laps to go Bauman went too high and scraped the turn two wall, letting Wollman by for sole possession of a lead that he would hold the rest of the way for his second win of the year. Wollman’s fellow fifth row starter, Dale Furby, got by Barber late in the race to take second while Barber settled for third ahead of Bortnem and Scott Freet. Bauman slowed after contacting the wall and came across the finish line tenth.
After suffering problems early in the season, Mike Ellingson has gotten it together of late as he topped the field to take the Pam Oil/Valvoline/AC Delco/Lewis Drug/ Pepsi sprint feature win. Ellingson led the entire distance to capture his second feature win in a row and his third out of the last four. Brad Nelson had a good run to take second followed by Kim Muntefering, Gary Johnson and Brian Baker. Chad Meyer had just moved into third late in the event when his powerplant locked up and sent him into the turn four wall, ending his hopes for a good finish.
The Nordstrom’s Sportsmen “A” feature saw Chris Ellingson come from the fourth row to take his second feature win of the year. Ellingson ran down early leader Ryan Nelson on the sixth lap of the twelve lap event and after following him for a couple of circuits Ellingson took advantage of a bobble by Nelson in the second turn of lap eight to slip by for the lead and on to the win. Nelson came across the finish stripe second ahead of Matt Ayres, Matt Steuerwald and Rick Goth.
Rick Wibeto became the first three-time feature win at the track this year as he topped the hobby stock “A” feature. Wibeto came from the fourth row to pass Nick Grad on the sixth lap of the twelve lap event and went unchallenged the rest of the way to take the win. Fifth row starter Tim Dann worked his way through the field to take second followed by Josh Schmidt, Jeff Beck (who had a $500 bonus riding on him to take the win) and Dale Tomes.
In the front-wheel drive two-driver cars, the team of Harmon and Ludwig held off a fast-closing team of Schmidt and Grayson to take the “A” feature win. Willmott and Insley were third ahead of Rose and Dafoe.
360 Sprint Cars
PAM OIL/VALVOLINE/AC DELCO HEAT: 1. Steve Haman, Egan; 2. Chad Meyer, Sioux Falls; 3. Brad Nelson, Brookings; 4. Brian Baker, Rock Rapids, Iowa.
LEWIS DRUG/PEPSI HEAT: 1. Mike Ellingson, Dell Rapids; 2. Kim Muntefering, Mitchell; 3. Chuck McGillivray, Madison; 4. Gary Johnson, Madison.
FEATURE: 1. Ellingson; 2. Nelson; 3. Muntefering; 4. Johnson; 5. Baker; 6. Haman; 7. Kevin Ingle, Huron; 8. Meyer.
Late Model Stock Cars
FIRST HEAT: 1. Bruce Bortnem, Brookings; 2. Marty Barber, Brandon; 3. Curt Bauman, Brookings; 4. Scott Freet, Madison; 5. Don Bickett, Ramona.
SECOND HEAT: 1. Gus Clark, Sioux Falls; 2. Rick Eich, Colman; 3. Brad Wollmann, Bridgewater; 4. Larry Dixon, Ramona; 5. Dale Furby, Sioux Falls.
FEATURE: 1. Wollman; 2. Furby; 3. Barber; 4. Bortnem; 5. Freet; 6. Clark; 7. Todd Sterzinger, Colman; 8. Eich; 9. Larry Dixon; 10. Bauman; 11. Don Bickett, Ramona; 12. Perry Tschetter, Bridgewater; 13. Rob Anderson, Chester; 14. Ross Dixon, Ramona.
Nordstrom's Sportsman
FIRST HEAT: 1. Ryan Nelson, Madison; 2. Chris Ellingson, Madison; 3. Rick Goth, Madison.
SECOND HEAT: 1. Matt Steuerwald, Madison; 2. Russ Englund, Hartford; 3. Matt Ayres, Parker.
THIRD HEAT: 1. Jeff Coster, Sioux Falls; 2. Kenny Berens, Parker; 3. J.J. Zebell, Parker.
FOURTH HEAT: 1. Tony Callies, Wentworth; 2. Moose Schuldt, Sioux Falls 3. Russ Peterson, Sioux Falls
FIRST B FEATURE: 1. Jeff Wittrock, Sioux Falls; 2. Ron Fischer, Tripp; 3. Brad Haas, Sioux Falls 4. Todd Holter, Humboldt; 5. Darin Duffy, Dell Rapids.
SECOND B FEATURE: 1. Jeff Hertel, Parker; 2. Richard Holbrook, Sioux Falls; 3. Bob Dafoe, Sioux Falls; 4. Josh Tangen, Bruce; 5. Al Barnhart, Madison.
A FEATURE: 1. Ellingson; 2. Nelson; 3. Ayres; 4. Steuerwald; 5. Goth; 6. Fischer; 7. Zebell; 8. Wittrock; 9. Schuldt; 10. Hertel; 11. Ayres; 12. Holbrook; 13. Peterson; 14. Callies; 15. Berens; 16. Coster.
I.M.C.A Hobby Stocks
FIRST HEAT: 1. Dan Doyle, Flandreau; 2. Tim Dann, Lennox; 3. Dale Tomes, Dell Rapids; 4. Justin Selken, Hartford.
SECOND HEAT: 1. Nick Grad, Madison; 2. Rick Wibeto, Sioux Falls; 3. Derck Uthe, Madison; 4. Mark Janke, Madison.
THIRD HEAT: 1. Steve Carmody, Ramona; 2. Jeff Beck, Winfred; 3. Dean Schoenwald, Madison.
B FEATURE: 1. Josh Schmidt, Marion; 2. Andy Ullom, Madison; 3. Doug Van Liere, Madison; 4. Curt Ottosn, Madison; 5. Chad Lemme, Wentworth; 6. Jason Armstrong, Flandreau.
A FEATURE: 1. Wibeto; 2. Dann; 3. Schmidt; 4. Beck; 5. Tomes; 6. Carmody; 7. Grad; 8. Doyle; 9. Selken; 10. Janke; 11. Ullom; 12. Uthe; 13. Schoenwald.
Front Wheel Drives
FIRST HEAT: 1. Scholl/McGillivray; 2. Rose/Dafoe, Sioux Falls; 3. Schmidt/Grayson, Brookings.
SECOND HEAT: 1 Harmon/Ludwig, Canton; 2. Anderson/Michelke, Madison; 3. Sampson/Tieszen.
THIRD HEAT: 1. Wilmott/Insley, White; 2. Fuller/Parish, Sioux Falls; 3. Herlyn/Nelson, Marion.
B FEATURE: 1. Gross/Schmitt; 2. Boatright/Kunkel, Hartford; 3. Olson/Gluh, Madison; 4. Haynes/Walter, Bridgewater; 5. Schneider/Miles, Colman.
A FEATURE: 1. Harmon/Ludwig; 2. Schmidt/Grayson; 3. Willmott/Insley; 4. Rose/Dafoe; 5. Gross/Schmitt/ 6. Scholl/McGillivray; 7. Anderson/Michelke; 8. Boatright/Kunkel; 9. Herlyn/Nelson/ 10. Fuller/Parish.