Fix It Forward Speedway in West Fargo welcomed 99 cars for its Red River Valley Fair race on a warm summer evening. It has been a few years since there was racing during the fair. I think it’s hard to gauge the crowd when people are coming in and out the whole night. I hope RRVF keeps racing during the fair because I think it’s a good idea, frankly and a good way to get some non-racing fans to maybe check a night out at the track. Kyle VanMil of Barnesville led the early mo

River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks moved from Friday to Thursday this week, ahead of the holiday weekend, with 89 cars on hand in five classes. I thought RCS had a nice track for the WOO Late Model show last week and as a fan spectating that is how I like the track there. On Thursday the track had some character in spots; the best feature of the night turned out to be the INEX Legends, who were making their second trip to RCS this season. The question in the Wissota Stree

Car counts are always a subject in racing, and with the high gas and diesel prices this year it isn’t a big surprise there has been a decrease at several tracks. A few have bucked the trend, generally numbers are down. The numbers in the A mod class have been going down in the last few years. It’s inspired a blog, and instead of me offering my viewpoints, I decided to let some drivers themselves offer their views, all from different areas. The drivers include: Aaron Johnson

For a few years, the Wiest brothers, Joshua and Shawn, raced against each other in the INEX Legends class in eastern North Dakota – and their goal was to beat each other. Fast forward two years – Shawn Wiest has moved into the IMCA Modified class while Joshua remains in the INEX Legends – and that mentally has changed a bit. “It was fun. I pushed him to the limits all the time,” Joshua said. “I was making him grow and get better, and that’s how we got better.” “It was a l

Within the next few years, Josh Barker will turn over his No. 99 Wissota Street Stock to his son, Jordan, on a regular basis. But there is something the Thompson, N.D., driver would like to do before the torch is passed. Get that first career feature win. “I had a couple that I should have won – driver error and mechanical failure,” Barker said. “I’m still hoping to get that win. It would be awesome to get one before I hang it up.” Barker has raced in the Wissota Street

Sheyenne Speedway in Lisbon was back in action Sunday night as it wrapped up the first half of its 2026 season before taking a hiatus in July. Sheyenne’s car counts have been solid for the most part. They had two heats in every class except the Short Trackers, which to me is a good weekly goal for them. The Wissota Midwest Modifieds, usually around 15 cars a night, had the night off as the IMCA Modifieds were back in town for a second straight week. I have to hand it to She

Viking Speedway had an excellent crowd on hand for its “Free Grandstands” night on an overcast evening in Alexandria. NAPA sponsored the free admission to the stands. The car counts have remained pretty solid at Viking through the first six nights with 74 on hand in the five classes on Saturday. As I said if they hang around 15 Wissota Mods a night weekly (they had 14 on Saturday), I think that is a good number in a racing world where the A mod class numbers have declined (a

World of Outlaw Late Models continued their swing through the area at the River Cities Speedway on Friday and once again, it was another dominant performance by Bobby Pierce. The Wissota Midwest Modifieds and Wissota Street Stocks were the suppose classes with 29 and 23 cars, respectively. With I-94 EMR Speedway racing earlier in the week and Jamestown Speedway being off tomorrow, I figured a few more cars would arrive in those divisions. As I’ve said previously since W

I’ve heard the Wissota vs. IMCA debate pretty much since starting the blog, and at least on Thursday night, there was a chance to see the two sanctioning bodies square off against each other with the Bitker B Mod Challenge at Norman County Raceway. The winner got a fancy belt, and the victory was worth $650. The Wissota cars had to stay true to their rules, as did the IMCA cars. NCR promoter Jake Bitker isn’t afraid to try new things, and this certainly was a different con

I-94 EMR Speedway hosted the World of Outlaw Late Models on Wednesday night with the Wissota Midwest Modified and Street Stocks on hand as support classes. There were 78 total cars, highlighted by 28 WOO late models. The only local Wissota Late Models to take a shot were Shawn Meyer of Wahpeton and Cole Schill of Horace; it used to be years ago that a few more locals would take a shot at such a race, but in terms of equipment, they are at a big disadvantage. Not just the 30

There is another Reinke making noise on the racetrack in Lisbon. Brothers Zach and Nate Reinke are former Wissota Midwest Modified track champions at Sheyenne Speedway and have been fixtures in the class for years at the 1/4-mile oval. Now, Zach’s son, Regan, 14, is having success in the early stages of his racing career. Regan Reinke races in the INEX Legend class and is in his third year in the class, having started at age 12. His last name is a familiar one to regul

For the Anderson-Swenson race team of Alexandria, dirt-track racing isn’t just a hobby. Ask Justin Anderson, father of drivers Avery Anderson and Maddie Swenson. “Racing is more than a sport to our family- it’s where we make memories, chase dreams, learn hard work, and stand together through every lap,” Anderson said. Avery Anderson, 22, drives the colorful #51A Wissota Modified at Viking and I-94 EMR Speedways, while his sister, Maddie Swenson, 25, drives the similarly

Sheyenne Speedway in Lisbon welcomed the IMCA Modifieds for the first time in 2026 on a pleasant evening. Race director Todd Carter made an emphasis the first week about getting the show done in a timely matter, and it’s clearly Sheyenne officials are working hard to do that. Last week’s show got done at 8 p.m.; this week it was 8:08 p.m. when the final checkered waved. Dusty Mund and the entire group of volunteers deserve credit for making this work. It takes everyone to k

I was excited to get a chance to write about Ogilvie Raceway, one of my favorite tracks, as the Dirt Race Central Street Stock Tour stopped at the 3/8-mile oval on Saturday. Ogilvie had 101 cars in six classes. I’ll be honest, if it were closer than 210 miles for me, it would be a part of my Saturday rotation. One observation – the high gas prices are hitting some of these tours pretty hard in terms of car counts. There are a few drivers who followed the DRC Street Stock T

The ¼-mile bullring known as Princeton Speedway hosted the Dirt Race Central Street Stock Tour on Friday night. It is only the second tour race that has been held this year – and even this one looked pretty bleak earlier in the day based on the forecast. Earlier shows at I-94 EMR Speedway and Viking Speedway (the first night) were canceled. The only show to have been held on the tour was Night 2 at Viking which Eric Riley won. I haven’t been to Princeton many times but it

The NLRA Late Models made their second trip to Norman County Raceway in Ada on Thursday night, with another good 27-car field signed in. There was a solid 81 cars on hand in the five classes with the IMCA Stock Cars having the night off. The heats and Wissota Late Model B main were done by 8:06 p.m. One difference from the first show was the NLRA Late Models ran a B main and only took the top two, and with two provisionals, had a 24-car feature. The first NLRA show at NCR s

There isn’t a night at the racetrack – or behind the wheel – that Nick Preston of Fergus Falls doesn’t think of his brother, Kyle. “Every time,” Preston said. “I always wanted to drive another car. I wanted to race against him and never got the chance to race against him. Now I feel like he’s racing with me.” Kyle Preston died unexpectedly in January 2023, in what Nick described as “devastating” for the Preston family. “He took his life,” Preston said. “It was absolutel

Dalton Aabrekke was like many in racing as a kid – he eventually wanted to drive a car himself. At the age of 17, thanks to the Bogart family, he got a chance to try. “I wanted to since I was little,” Aabrekke said. “When I was 17 the Bogarts let use one of their minis to try out.” He’s been hooked ever since. The 27-year-old from Lisbon races in the Hobby Stock class at Sheyenne Speedway, his hometown track. Aabrekke has three career feature wins, including two in the

Buffalo River Speedway near Glyndon held its 5th annual Paint the Track Pink night with 74 cars on hand. BRS donates a portion of ticket sales, $5 for every Paint the Track Pink T-shirt to two recipients battling serious health issues. Lend a Hand Up, which is a part of the Dakota Medical Foundation, boosts that by 20 percent. A wing of Tye Wilke’s IMCA RaceSaver sprint car and roof of Marvin Priem’s IMCA SportMod were also auctioned off to help raise money. One thing peop

On a chilly, brisk June evening Viking Speedway in Alexandria hosted a Wissota Super Stock special to highlight Saturday’s program. The Wissota Super Stocks were racing for $800 to win and had a solid 14 cars on hand. Considering Viking was running ag Jordan Henkemeyer was a rocket from the get-go as he opened a 3-car length lead after one lap and honestly was untouchable in the caution-free race. Carson Miller of Carlos was second as Ryan Satter of Dent and Jeff Crouse