The 2023 racing season is about over aside from a few special events so time to summarize things.
I have mixed feelings this time of year. I hate to see racing end, but I also grow weary of the travel, long shows, the political/sanctioning body debates that seem to never end on social media and the churning of the rumor mill. I usually don’t go to events where 7-8 classes are being run, but I make a few exceptions – the Fall Classic at Ogilvie Raceway, one of my favorite tracks, is one of them this weekend.
I have concerns about the future of racing. There are good things – a lot of talented young drivers in their teens and 20s, the Dirt Race Central Street Stock Tour’s continued success, the fact this area hosts some bigger events (World of Outlaw shows, Wissota 100, Seitz Memorial, etc.), and just the general camaraderie of being at the track and seeing all the friendships that have developed.
If you read my blog, you know some of my concerns. Too many classes. Long racing programs which drive away fans. Sanctioning bodies that don’t listen to the commonsense feedback of drivers. Favoritism. Politics. People who post inaccurate information on social media about drivers and tracks. The lack of constructive dialogue to make things better. People may say all I do is focus on the negatives, which is completely false – 90 percent of my blogs are positive and focus on racing on the track. But acknowledging the problems and opportunities and ideas for improvement is important for the survival and growth of the sport.
I won’t belabor those points other than to say that drivers, fans, track owners/promoters and sanctioning bodies all have a hand in making things better. But my optimism for that actually happening has decreased, sadly. There are too many people looking out for their own self-interests and not the bigger picture in racing. I hope I'm wrong.
Here’s some recapping the 2023 season:
Track Championships
Each year I’ve done a list of track champions for the tracks I’ve covered. This year I didn’t have a regular rotation of what I covered but I will include several tracks on the list.
A few notes on the track champions. Rich Pavlicek won the IMCA Sport Mod track championship at three tracks – Buffalo River Speedway, Norman County Raceway and Red River Valley Speedway. Several drivers won two championships – Brodee Eckerdt (IMCA Hobby Stocks at RRVS and NCR), Evan Hendrickson (INEX Legends at BRS and RRVS), Joe Thomas (Wissota Mod at Sheyenne and Casino) and Cole Greseth (Wissota Street Stock at BRS and I-94 EMR Speedway).
Red River Valley Speedway
INEX Legends – Evan Hendrickson, Mapleton
IMCA Hobby Stock – Brodee Eckerdt, Grand Forks
IMCA Modified – Dave Shipley, Argusville
IMCA Sport Mod – Rich Pavlicek, Casselton
IMCA Stock Car – Andrew Jochim, Harwood
IMCA RaceSaver Sprint – Andy Pake, Felton
Casino Speedway
Wissota Late Model – Chad Becker, Aberdeen
Wissota Modified – Joe Thomas, Fargo
Wissota Midwest Modified – Tommy Nichols, Watertown
Wissota Street Stock – Maria Broksieck, Goodwin
Wissota Hornet – Adam VanDerostyne, Canby
Gen X Late Model – Tony Croninger, Watertown
Bemidji Speedway
Bemidji Mini Stocks – Ashton Schwinn, Little Falls
Wissota Pure Stock – Josh Berg, Bemidji
Wissota Hornet – Chad Reller, Waskish
Wissota Mod 4 – Blake Erickson, Bagley
Wissota Super Stock – Matt Sparby, Bemidji
Wissota Midwest Modified – Doyle Erickson, Bagley
Wissota Modified – Nic Jacobson, Bemidji
Buffalo River Speedway
IMCA Sport Mod – Rich Pavlicek, Casselton
POWRi Minn-Kota Lightning Sprint – Kate Taves, Detroit Lakes
INEX Legends – Evan Hendrickson, Mapleton
Short Trackers – Hunter Goulet, Fargo
IMCA Hobby Stock – Brad Orvedal, Fargo
Wissota Street Stock – Cole Greseth, Harwood
IMCA Modified – Allen Kent, West Fargo
Viking Speedway
Wissota Midwest Modified – Taylor Bitzan, Brandon
Wissota Modified – Dusty Bitzan, Brandon
Wissota Street Stock – Nitro Jimmy Williams, DeGraff
Wissota Super Stock – Trevor Saurer, Dalton
Short Tracker – Kole Kampsen, Belgrade
Norman County Raceway
INEX Legends – Ryan Braseth, Ulen
Wissota Midwest Modified – Corey Storck, Morris
IMCA Stock Car – Rob VanMil, Barnesville
IMCA Sport Mod – Rich Pavlicek, Casselton
IMCA Hobby Stock – Brodee Eckerdt, Grand Forks
River Cities Speedway
BWW NOSA Sprint – Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks
Wissota Late Model – Dustin Strand, East Grand Forks
Wissota Midwest Modified – Jory Berg, Grand Forks
Wissota Street Stock – Tucker Pederson, East Grand Forks
Sheyenne Speedway
Mini Stocks – Mason Bogart, Milnor, N.D.
Hobby Stock – Jayden Michaelson, Aberdeen
INEX Legends – Collin Compson, Valley City
Wissota Midwest Modified – Nate Reinke, Lisbon
Wissota Modified – Joe Thomas, Fargo
Wissota Street Stock – Kyle Anderson, Jamestown
I-94 EMR Speedway
Gen X Late Model – Dave Mass, East Bethel
Short Tracker – Shawn Beto, Wahpeton
Wissota Late Model – Cole Schill, Hawley
Wissota Midwest Modified – Mike Nichols, Watertown
Wissota Modified – Brady Gerdes, Villard
Wissota Street Stock – Cole Greseth, Harwood
The first wins club was pretty large in 2023 locally, the list is below:
Kody Machart, Moorhead, INEX Legends, May 21 (Buffalo River Speedway)
Evan Hendrickson, Mapleton, INEX Legends, May 26 (Red River Valley Speedway)
Andrea Jacobson, Fargo, IMCA Hobby Stock, June 11 (Buffalo River)
Laela Eisenschenk, West Fargo, IMCA RaceSaver Sprint, June 15 (Norman County Raceway)
Nic Hiles, Miltona, Short Tracker, June 17 (VIKING SPEEDWAY)
Tanner Bitzan, Brandon, Wissota Midwest Modified (Viking) June 17
John Seng, Grand Forks, Wissota Late Model, June 17 (Devils Lake Speedway)
Tayten Blascyk, Hoffman, Wissota Midwest Modified, July 1 (Viking)
Blayne Sweet, Sauk Centre, Short Tracker, July 1 (Viking)
Sophie Anderson, Chokio, Pure Stock, July 6 (KRA Speedway)
Roger Berkness, Eagle Bend, Wissota Street Stock, July 15 (Viking)
Jayden Pavlicek, Casselton, IMCA Sport Mod, July 16 (Buffalo River)
Zander Compson, Valley City, INEX Legend, July 19 (Buffalo River)
Brad Lorentz, Eagle Bend, Wissota Street Stock, July 22 (Viking)
Kate Taves, Detroit Lakes, POWRi Minn-Kota Lightning Sprint, July 22 (Official Greenbush Race Park)
Matthew Taves, Detroit Lakes, POWRi Minn-Kota Lightning Sprint, July 23 (Buffalo River)
JJ Nieuwbeerta, Alexandria, Wissota Street Stock, July 29 (Viking)
Jon Carlson, Brandon, Wissota Midwest Modified, July 29 (Viking)
Jeff Odden, Reiles Acres, IMCA Modified, July 30 (Buffalo River)
Braiden Mund, Milnor, Short Tracker, Aug. 6 (Buffalo River)
Cejay LaValley, Bemidji, Wissota Hornet, Aug. 17 (Grand Rapids Speedway)
Weston Clauson, Kathryn, Mini Stock, Aug. 17 (Sheyenne)
Andrew Tysdal, Fergus Falls, Gen X Late Model, Aug. 18 (I-94 EMR Speedway)
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