Provinzino, Pember, Ryan Rivord and Madsen
Win Championship Features
By Jerry O'Brien
As so often happens, those drivers who won seasons championships
at the Superior Speedway were not the championship night feature
winners. Jeff Provinzino joined the ranks of first time winners in
the Late Model division at the speedway surviving a strong challenge
from veteran Canadian racer Tom Nesbitt in the 25 lap feature. Once
again second year driver Andrew McKay redrew the pole position with
Pat Doar to his outside. At the green Doar grabbed the lead over
Mckay with Provinzino running third ahead of Bill Byholm and Darin
Meierotto while Tom Nesbitt was fifth. On lap two Provinzino moved
to second, challenged Doar for the lead, powered by on the outside
and began to pull away. Nesbitt took fourth and Todd Gehl
moved into the top five from his tenth starting spot. The first of
three caution flags flew for Randy Hoff's problems in turn one while
Darrell Nelson pulled into the infield with no brakes setting up at
least a hint that the track championship might not quite be wrapped
up. The scenario was thus: with Nelson's departure, second place man
Bill Byholm could tie Nelson with a second place finish, or, were he
to win the feature, he would take the track championship. The green
flag restart didn't take as there was debris spotted on the track
before a lap could be completed. The next try had even more dire
consequences as Andrew McKay spun off turn two collecting Meierotto
and Steve Roseen. All three were finished for the event. With
Provinzino maintaining the lead over Doar, Nesbitt and Gehl, other
drivers were making headway as the previous week's winner Brady
Smith had moved form 15th to seventh and Joel Cryderman had advance
from 19th to just outside the top ten in 11th.
As Provinzino led his pack, the battle for fifth intensified as
Smith, Tim McMann, Gehl and Byholm raced hard for the spot.
Provinzino enjoyed a huge lead but Nesbitt pulled a breakout and
began reeling in the leader and tried for the lead. Also coming on
strong was Trent Follmer who annexed third. Smith went back to the
high route that had taken him to victory and swept by Doar to take
the fourth spot. That is the way they finished as Procinzino took
his first Late Model win at the speedway. Byholm finished seventh
and Nelson defended his track championship by five points.
Eric Pember returned to the Speedway after an absence of two
weeks and hauled the mail around the high banks for the feature win
in the WISSOTA Modified divison. Pember led a parade that included
Al Uotinen, Bill Byholm, Dann Olson and Steve Arpin until just
past half way in the 20 lap event and held a long lead until the
caution flag appeared when Clint Larson's mount lost it's drive
shaft in turn two. Uotinen now found himself on Pember's rear bumper
with 12 laps in leaving eight to go. As Pember easily pulled away,
Uotinen fell to Darrell Nelson's charge into second, but two laps
later pole sitter Cory Jorgenson suffered a hard hit into the front
stretch wall bringing another slowdown. With six circuits left
Pember again pulled away while Uotinen, Nelson and Bob Root who
arrived in the skirmish from 18th, battled for second until Root and
Nelson collided bringing out the final caution flag. Root was
charged with the caution and was sent to the rear. Uotinen got a
good jump on Pember at the ensuing green flag but Pember was able to
stay in front while Kelly Estey, Byholm and Dann Olson battled for
fourth behind Nelson. Estey finished one position behind Nelson in
fourth and won the track championship. Pember, Uotinen, Nelson,
Estey and Byholm were familiar names in the top five.
The luck of the redraw put the two point contenders on the front
row for the 20 lap 25 car WISSOTA Super Stock feature with point
leader Ryan Aho on the pole. Five caution flags slowed the action
including one where point leader Aho was charged and sent to the
rear. Ryan Rivord was very fast and had his best night of the season
besting defending champion Dale Gangl for his first win of the
season. Though Gangl finished second and Aho was only able to finish
11th, Aho took his second Super Stock track championship at the
speedway. It was a heart stopping battle up front for most of the
race as Ryan Rivord led Gangl, cousin Rick Rivord, Joe Oliver and
Aho until the incident that sent Aho to the rear. As the race wore
on and the top four waged their battle, fifth place was filled by Al
Uotinen who had started 15th. After a caution flag just after the
white flag was displayed for a two car tangle, the final order was
Ryan Rivord with the win, Dale Gangl second, Oliver third, Rick
Rivord fourth and Uotinen fifth.
Butch Madsen continues to amaze as he won his sixth WISSOTA
Street Stock feature in seven tries to finish off an amazing season
for the veteran racer. Tom O'Brien came from the outside of the
fifth row to take second in the feature and another second place
finish in season's points to Champion Marshall Andrews. Though
Andrews only had to take the green flag to win his first title, he
chose to glue himself to the rear bumper of Madsen's car for much of
the event and raced his way to the title. O'Brien got by Andrews in
the late stages for second while rookie Riley Matthews and Trevor
Wilson finished in the first five.
The Pure Stocks returned for another visit and put on a pretty
good show. Ande Jarvi of Hibbing won his second feature and was
crowned the mythical Superior Speedway Champion in the Pure Stocks
despite the fact that they do not race at Superior on a regular
basis. Nonetheless, he received a nice trophy for his efforts. Only
a single caution flag marred the action as Jarvi swept to the win
over Glen Dammer, Al Rapp, Tim Carlson and Miles Weske.
Results:
WISSOTA Late Model (24 cars)
Heat 1: Trent Follmer, Steve Roseen, Darin Meierotto, Tom Nesbitt,
Jeff Lien. Disqualified: Rick Hanestad, failed to weigh in. DNF:
Randy Hoff. DNS: Greg Hill
Heat 2: Bill Byholm, Pat Doar, Darrell Nelson, Tim mcMann, Caley
Emerson, Kevin Carlson, Kelly Estey, Roger Paolo
Heat 3: Jeff Provinzino, Jeff Broking, Todd Gehl, Andrew McKay,
Brady Smith, Tyler Keyser, Joel Cryderman, Eric Pember
Feature: Provinzino, Nesbitt, Follmer, Smith, Doar, McMann, Byholm,
Gehl, Emerson, Cryderman, Keyser, Pember, Broking, Hanestad, Paolo,
Lien. DNF: Estey, Carlson, Meierotto, Roseen, McKay, Hoff,
Nelson.
Nelson is the 2004 Late Model Track Champion
WISSOTA Modified (24 Cars)
Heat 1: Kelly Estey, Eric Pember, Dann Olson, Don Copp, Jodi
Olson, Dennis Checkalski, Greg Scheffer, Darrell Carlson
Heat 2: Darrell Nelson, Steve Arpin, Ross Lightner, Al Uotinen, Tom
Turcotte, Jody Bellefeuille, Clint Larson, John Baltich
Heat 3: Bill Byholm, Scott Hudack, Dean Yrjanainen, Cory Jorgenson,
Erik Bjorkland, Bob Root DNF: Jayme Lautigar.
Feature: Pember, Uotinen, Nelson, Estey, Byholm, D Olson, J Olson,
Yrjanainen, Copp, Carlson, Turcotte, Root, Arpin, Bjorkland,
Lightner, Bellefeuille, Baltich DNF: Lautigar, Jorgenson, Hudack,
Scheffer, Larson, Checkalski.
WISSOTA Super Stock (25 cars)
Heat 1: Steve Hucovski, Ryan rivord, Joe Oliver, Adam Long, Dave
Flynn, Gordy Maki, Doug Woodhull, Brian Youderin
Heat 2: Jim Campbell, Scott Lawrence, Dale Gangl, Randy Silverness,
Kyle Peterlin, Mike Bellefeuille, Destin Lorimor, Brian Backlund
Heat 3: Rick Simpson, ryan rivord, John Copp, John Hunker, Al
Uotinen, Donnie Lofdahl, Keith Kern, Rob Cooper
Feature: Ryan Rivord, Gangl, Oliver, Rick Rivord, Uotinen, Hunker,
Silverness, Hucovski, Lorimor, Simpson, Aho, Campbell, Lofdahl,
Long, Woodhull, Maki, Backlund DNF: Bellefeuille, Peterlin, Kern,
Youderin, Copp, Flynn, Cooper, Lawrence
WISSOTA Street Stock (15 cars)
Heat 1: Butch Madsen, Tom O'Brien, Trevor Wilson, Riley
Matthews, John Hettinga, Randy Vezina, Rich Dennhardt, Jamie
Olson
Heat 2: Keith Tourville, Marshall Andrews, Tim Baum, Scott Herrick,
Lou Andrews, Bras Reinhardt DNF Shane Kisling
Feature: Madsen, O'Brien. M Andrews, Matthews, Wilson, Baum,
Tourville, L Andrews, Hettinga, Vezina, Herrick, Dennhardt, Olson
DNF: Reinhardt Marshall Andrews is the 2004 Street Stock
Champion
Pure Stock (19 cars)
Heat 1: Tim Carlson, Allen Price, Tim Donaldson, Andrew Jarvi,
Miles Weske, Dave Reynolds DNF: Ryan Kough, Randy Visgar
Disqualified: Mark carlson Heat 2: Glen Dammer, Al Rapp, Dan
Kingsley, Steve Young, Scott Tousignant DNF: Mike Lambert, Jim
McClellan, Bruce Kalman, Tom Morinville, Brandon Aase Feature: Jarvi,
Dammer, Rapp, carlson, Weske, Donaldson, Kalman, Lambert, M Carlson,
Viisgar, Tousignant, Kough DNF: Reynolds, Price, Kingsley, Aase,
McClellan, Morinville