Laine Schwehr’s life changed in a matter of seconds last September. He rolled his No. 56 Wissota Late Model hard while leading a heat race at the Jamestown Stampede.  The result of the crash was a broken neck and compressed spine. And after he was airlifted to Fargo, as he was being examined for feeling in his arms and legs, a neurosurgeon offered a potential prognosis. He had no feeling below the chest as the doctor examined him. “I said, ‘just don’t sugar coat it,’” Schwehr

When I was a kid in the 19—s, well let’s say a few years ago, I couldn’t wait for race season to start. As far I was concerned, racing could start at the beginning of May and then go to September and it still wouldn’t be enough. Of course, I was not paying the bills – my dad paid my way in for many years (and paid for the gas to get to the track), and I wasn’t a car owner/driver who spent a lot of time and money keeping their cars on the track. My attitude on that has changed

One of the most popular phrases in today’s world is “downsizing” and most of the time it has a negative connotation.  In the corporate world it usually means a bunch of people losing their job, sadly. There are other examples of there being fewer in our world. There are less potato chips in a bag than ever. Restaurant portions are smaller.  There simply aren’t as many M&Ms in a bag anymore (trust me, I know). Parking spaces seem even smaller, even with more SUVs and trucks on

My dad suggested I start this blog in 2017. He said you go to the races anyway; you keep track of the results…why not write about it. So I gave it a try. In his final years, his lung disease prevented him from going to the track in person, so I provided texts of the races I went to to keep him connected a little bit.  He never got to see the blog grow, unfortunately, as he died on Sept. 2017. Not many nights happen in racing when I don’t think of him, as my devotion and love

I went to Aberdeen, S.D., last weekend to watch a Minnesota State Moorhead football game at Northern State. On the drive there I was thinking that a majority of my previous trips to the Hub City have been for racing, aside from a few MSUM softball trips where I had to stat the games. I had a lot of windshield time and it got me thinking about what I truly like about racing, or what keeps me motivated to keep blogging. The obvious things come up – the competition on the track,

Close finishes like this at Viking remain a great part of racing. Collin Nelson Photo/Outlaw Action Photography With the Gopher State Showdown at I-94 EMR Speedway wrapping up the season in local racing, I’ve been doing some reflecting.   I watched some of the Gopher Showdown online, and sadly there were some torn-up race cars – but unfortunately that happens during invitational season when you get so many people who do not race against each other on a regular basis.  From a

Most likely, barring a change of heart, the RaceChaser blog race reports and feature stories are done for 2025. I may do a few editorials...

Brady Gerdes won the Wissota Modified feature. Photo by Cody Papke) Night 1 of the Lou’s Mad Town Showdown was held Friday at Madison...

In western Minnesota, there is a strong case that the Wissota Street Stock class is the toughest division to race in weekly, based on the...

At a time in racing when racetracks are adding more classes to their year-end invitationals, the folks at ABC Raceway south of Ashland,...

Doyle Erickson won the Wissota Mod feature (photo by Lisa Rhen/Lisa Jean Designs) Night 1 of the Bemidji Stampede featured 113 cars on...

For Aaron Michel of Jamestown, the appeal of racing isn’t just the competition on the track. It’s also trying to get the race car to work...

Racing, like for many people is an escape from the day-to-day stresses of life. While the sport can frustrate drivers, fans and track...

Ryan Gierke fended off challlenges from Shane Sabraski to win the Wissota 100 Mod title. Photo by Alex Ostenson/AOK Photography. The...

In the past – and purely for fun – I’ve written some previews about the Wissota 100, highlighting some of the favorites. It’s tough...

Cole Schill won his first John Seitz Memorial title. (photo by Speedway Shots). The 19 th  annual John Seitz Memorial concluded on...

Cole Greseth won four track titles this summer. The regular season is over in local racing and invitational season is here, and one thing...

Levi Randt led flag-to-flag in the Wissota Street Stock feature. (Photo by Alex Ostenson, AOK photography) I grew up about 40 minutes...

Todd Stark celebrates his feature win and track championship at Casino Speedway Sunday (Photo by Darin Stein) The points races took...

Viking Speedway in Alexandria held Night 1 of its annual Labor Day doubleheader on Saturday with a solid 71 cars on hand.   Night 2 of...