Category Archives: NEWS

Rain forces postponement of World of Outlaws event at Red River Valley Speedway to August 19

Posted on by Posted in NEWS

WEST FARGO, N.D. — June 17, 2017 —Rain has forced the postponement of the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas for the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series originally scheduled for Saturday, June 17 at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota.

The event has been re-scheduled for Saturday, August 19. All tickets from the originally scheduled race will be honored for that date.

For more information on tickets, visit www.slspromotions.com or call 815-344-2023.

Twitter: @SLS_Promotions

Facebook: SLS Promotions LLC

Well Known Track: Donny Schatz returns to Red River Valley Speedway this weekend

Posted on by Posted in NEWS
Steve Eichelberger Photo
Paul Arch Photo

WEST FARGO, N.D. — June 14, 2017 — Every racetrack in his home state of North Dakota is special to Donny Schatz for one reason or another. Though, Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo may be on top of the list. Growing up, he was a fan in the stands when the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series would come to town. As he cut his teeth in the sprint car world, he spent many nights at the track competing. He even was involved on the promotional side, as his family ran operations at Red River Valley Speedway for a few years.

Schatz will get his first crack at Red River Valley Speedway since 2012 this week, as the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series returns to the historic track on Saturday, June 17 for the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas.

“If there is one place you look forward to getting back to, it’s a place you got a lot of laps at growing up,” said Schatz. “That was really my home track, even though I grew up in Minot. I spent a lot of Friday night’s racing there. We have only been there once with the new configuration, with the World of Outlaws, so I am looking forward to getting there and trying to get that elusive win in front of the hometown crowd.”

While the Schatz family was in charge of Red River Valley Speedway they shortened the track from a sprawling half-mile to a three-eighths-mile. The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series has competed once on that configuration, which was the series last visit in 2012. Schatz, who has four wins with the Outlaws at Red River Valley Speedway, finished third in that event. He actually was victorious with the Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions on the re-configured surface in 2011, as well as finishing second with the series earlier that season at the track.

“The big tracks across the country seem to be dwindling for weekly racing and it was something we as a family felt like it was necessary to make it smaller,” explained Schatz. “We went through that expense. The people that are running it now are doing an awesome job. I’ve watched a lot of races online and they are doing a fantastic job with the race track and the racing has been pretty stellar.”

Prior to racing at Red River Valley Speedway this weekend, Schatz will get to compete at another track that is well known to him, River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks. He has won eight times at the high-banked bullring, including four straight and six of the last seven races contested by the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at the track.

“They have made Grand Forks a little bigger over the years and have made it wider and a lot of fun,” Schatz noted. “We’ve had a lot of success there. That’s another place I spent a lot of Friday night’s racing at, when I was growing up. It’s kind of like the perfect weekend. You get Grand Forks and Fargo in the same weekend. That’s something you dream of as a kid and here were are in 2017, with that opportunity.”

The Northern Late Model Racing Association (NLRA) will compete both nights with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at River Cities Speedway and Red River Valley Speedway and Schatz will do double duty both nights in his Tony Stewart Racing owned sprint car and his self-owned late model. Schatz won on the same night in both cars in August of 2013 at the track and also picked up an NLRA win at River Cities in August of 2014.

“I’ve done it at Grand Forks several times and if everything is going okay, it’s a good thing,” he shared. “If something goes wrong on either side of the fence, it’s a big challenge. To do it two nights in a row, I can tell you that on Sunday, I’ll be pretty worn out. That’s part of it, though. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. We’ll do our best to have a good weekend in both cars and see if we can’t have a lot of fun in the process.”

With the schedule picking up and the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series competing nine times in a 19-day stretch to wrap up the month of June and open July, Schatz is looking forward to being at the track night after night. Entering the pair of races in his home state this weekend, Schatz leads the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series standings as he chases his ninth championship. He tops the leaderboard with 10 wins as well as 27 top-five finishes.

“We are getting to more race tracks and doing a lot more racing, which is great,” said Schatz. “For me, this time of the year, we are at a lot of tracks that are closer to home and places that I’ve been around quite a few times. It’s a little bit more humbling for me to be around this area. We’re definitely ready to get the summer started and, yeah, we enjoy it. Hopefully we can have a great summer like we have in the past.”

Tickets for the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas, featuring World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and NLRA at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota, on Saturday, June 17 can be purchased online at slspromotions.ticketforce.com or by phone at 815-344-2023 and at the track on race day.

Fans can also save $5 on General Admission tickets when purchased at participating NAPA Auto Parts stores. Tickets buyers will exchange their NAPA receipt for a race ticket at the Main Grandstand ticket booth on race day.

Twitter: @SLS_Promotions
Facebook: SLS Promotions LLC

The Breakdown: World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at Red River Valley Speedway

Posted on by Posted in NEWS
(Rob Kocak Photo)

WEST FARGO, N.D. — June 12, 2017 — The Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas was a longtime fixture on the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series schedule. The event returns on Saturday, June 17, marking the first time since 2012 that the series has visited the track in West Fargo, North Dakota. Leading the way will be eight-time and reigning series champion Donny Schatz who now calls Fargo home. This edition of The Breakdown sets the stage for the 2017 edition of the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas for the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at Red River Valley Speedway.

The track
Red River Valley Speedway is a high-banked, three-eighths-mile that was formerly a half-mile. The track record of 12.566-seconds was established by Joey Saldana on June 17, 2012 on the new configuration of the track.

Past winners
Donny Schatz is the winningest active full-time World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series driver at Red River Valley Speedway with four victories. Schatz, who raced with the Outlaws for the first time at the track in 1993 as a teenager, won for the first time at Red River Valley Speedway in 2002. He followed that up with a preliminary feature win in 2003 and swept both nights of the Duel in the Dakotas in 2006, the season he won his first World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series championship.

Daryn Pittman, the 2013 series titlist, won at Red River Valley Speedway in 2008, while Joey Saldana won at the track in 2004.

Steve Kinser, the 20-time series champion, leads all drivers with 16 overall wins at Red River Valley Speedway. Kinser won nine A-Feature events and seven preliminary features. Fellow Hall of Famer Sammy Swindell, who won the most recent Outlaws race at the track in 2012, is next on the list with 14 totals wins, split evenly between A-Features and preliminary features.

Former series champions Jason Meyers and Danny Lasoski were both victorious at Red River Valley Speedway, when it was a half-mile.

Doug Wolfgang is also a past winner with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at Red River Valley Speedway, along with Jac Haudenschild, Stevie Smith, Johnny Herrera, Jeff Swindell and Craig Dollansky.

The players
Donny Schatz is the current point leader with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series and leads the series with 10 A-Feature wins thus far in 2017. David Gravel and Brad Sweet are currently tied second, with Daryn Pittman fourth and Shane Stewart fifth. Jason Johnson is currently sixth in points, with rookie Sheldon Haudenschild seventh, Logan Schuchart eighth, Joey Saldana ninth and Jason Sides 10th.

Also on the road this season are veteran drivers Paul McMahan, Kraig Kinser and Greg Wilson, along with youngsters Jacob Allen, Clyde Knipp and rookie Brent Marks.

Double Duty
Donny Schatz will also compete in his late model with the Northern Late Model Racing Association (NLRA) at Red River Valley Speedway, as well as the night before at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks. Schatz swept both the World of Outlaws and NLRA races at River Cities in August of 2013. Schatz raced his late model last week in Winnipeg, picking up a top-10 finish.

Plenty of starts
Jason Sides, Paul McMahan and Shane Stewart have each raced nearly 20 times at Red River Valley Speedway in their respective careers. McMahan has seven top-10 finishes at the track, while Sides has six and Stewart five. Sides leads the trio with a best finish of second in 2007.

Return visit
Greg Wilson, the defending Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award winner, made a pair of starts at Red River Valley Speedway in 2006, finishing 15th in each of those races.

On the podium
Brad Sweet and David Gravel both raced at Red River Valley Speedway in 2011 with the Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions. Sweet finished second in that event to Donny Schatz, while Gravel finished third. Shane Stewart also competed in that race. Gravel has made a total of four starts with the All Stars at the track and has four top-10 finishes.

First timers
Jason Johnson, Logan Schuchart, Jacob Allen, Clyde Knipp and Brent Marks will all be making their first visit to Red River Valley Speedway.

Tickets for the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas, featuring World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, along with the Northern Late Model Racing Association (NLRA) at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota, on Saturday, June 17 can be purchased online at slspromotions.ticketforce.com or by phone at 815-344-2023, as well as at the track on race day.

Twitter: @SLS_Promotions
Facebook: SLS Promotions LLC

Arneson Remains Unbeatable at Red River Valley Speedway

Posted on by Posted in NEWS

By Mike Spieker

WEST FARGO – Austin Arneson picked up his fifth win of the season Friday night at Red River Valley Speedway. Arneson has now won five of the first six IMCA Modified features at the West Fargo dirt track. The only race he hasn’t won came on May 25th, where he crossed the finish line first, but was disqualified following the race for his car weighing in too light.

Jason Strand took the early lead of the modified feature from the third starting position. Strand paced the field in his No. E85 machine until defending track champion, Rob VanMil, took the top spot on lap six.

Strand battled back with 15 circuits remaining and briefly took the lead down the back straightaway. VanMil was too strong, however, and pulled away from Strand using the high lane.
With Arneson starting 11th, it took him several laps to make his way up to the front, but once he did he made his presence known.

Arneson took second at the halfway point before challenging VanMil for the lead with under five laps remaining. The two veteran drivers were side by side for the lead when they made contact on the front straightaway, which sent VanMil spinning uncontrollably into the infield. Race officials charged VanMil with the caution, which sent him to the back of the pack.

Arneson held off Dave Shipley and Strand in the final laps to take the win.

The IMCA Sport Mod feature began with Taylor Grove taking the early lead after starting in the fourth position. The Shelly, Minn. driver held a comfortable lead over Luke Johnson before the yellow flag waved with 10 laps to go.

On the restart, Johnson took the point after a four-wide battle for the lead with Grove, Chris VanMil, and Jesse Skalicky. In what looked to be a replay of last week’s feature, Johnson had his hands full with Skalicky as they raced for the lead in the closing stages.

After battling side by side for four trips around the three-eighths mile dirt oval, Skalicky grabbed the lead with seven laps to go and went on to claim his fifth win of the season.

Duffy Froemke picked up the IMCA stock car feature win in dramatic fashion. The Lisbon driver stalked Rick Schulz for the duration of the 15-lap feature before stealing the win on the last corner of the final lap. Froemke dove to the inside of Schulz entering turn three and slid up right in front of Schulz exiting turn four to win the race back to the checkered flag. The win was Froemke’s fourth of the year.

Hillsboro’s Brandon Schmidt executed a dominating performance in the IMCA hobby stock feature. Tim Estenson grabbed the INEX Legends feature win from the fourth starting position. The win marks Estenson’s fifth win of the young 2017 season.

RESULTS:

Modifieds:
Feature – 1. Austin Arneson, Fargo, N.D.; 2. Dave Shipley, Fargo, N.D.; 3. Jason Strand, Portland, N.D.; 4. Jarrett Carter, Lisbon, N.D.; 5. Dale Kraling, Mayville, N.D.

Sport Mods:
Feature – 1. Jesse Skalicky, Fargo, N.D.; 2. Luke Johnson, Moorhead, Minn.; 3. Kelly Jacobson, Fargo, N.D.; 4. Chris VanMil, Barnesville, Minn.; 5. Taylor Grove, Shelly, Minn.

Stock Cars:
Feature – 1. Duffy Froemke, Lisbon, N.D.; 2. Rick Schulz, Horace, N.D.; 3. Tim Compson, Valley City, N.D.; 4. Kelly Jacobson, Fargo, N.D.; 5. John Sandvig, West Fargo, N.D.

Legends:
Feature – 1. Tim Estenson, Fargo, N.D.; 2. Donavin Wiest, Wishek, N.D.; 3. Andrew Jochim, Glyndon, Minn.; 4. Baiden Heskett, Shakopee, Minn.; 5. Kaitlyn Skalicky, Fargo, N.D.

Hobby Stocks:
Feature – 1. Brandon Schmidt, Hillsboro, N.D.; 2. Tim Shiek, Fargo, N.D.; 3. Tim Church, Moorhead, Minn.; 4. Torey Fischer, West Fargo, N.D.; 5. Eric Novacek, West Fargo, N.D.

World of Outlaws set for Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas at Red River Valley Speedway on June 17

Posted on by Posted in NEWS


WEST FARGO, N.D. — June 7, 2017 —The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series will hit the track at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota for the first time since 2012 on Saturday, June 17, 2017 for the Gerdau Recycling “Duel in the Dakotas.”

In the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series last visit to Red River Valley Speedway in 2012, three-time series champion and Hall of Famer Sammy Swindell was victorious. Swindell started on the pole and led early before Chad Kemenah took the top spot on lap-9. Swindell would re-take the lead with eight laps remaining to earn his seventh A-Feature win at the track.

Donny Schatz, who calls Fargo home, has won four times at his home track, including winning both nights of the 2006 “Duel in the Dakotas.” The eight-time and defending series champion has 26 top-10 finishes in World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series competition at Red River Valley Speedway. Schatz raced with the Outlaws for the first time at the track as a teenager in 1993, finishing 15th.

Joey Saldana, who is currently ninth in points, has three wins at Red River Valley Speedway in his career, with the most recent of those coming in 2004. The veteran driver has finished seventh or better in each of his last six starts at the track.

Daryn Pittman, the 2013 World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series champion, won in his last start at Red River Valley Speedway in 2008.

Jason Sides has five straight top-10 finishes at Red River Valley Speedway, dating back to 2005. The veteran driver has made 19 starts in his career with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at the now-three-eighths-mile, which was a half-mile for many years.

Shane Stewart and Paul McMahan have similar resumes at Red River Valley Speedway. McMahan has made 18 starts and has seven top-10 finishes, while Stewart has taken the green flag 16 times and recorded five top-10 runs. Kraig Kinser has eight top-10 finishes in 12 starts at the track in his career, including a third-place run in 2005.

Greg Wilson, the reigning Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award winner, has made a pair of starts at Red River Valley Speedway, with those coming in 2006.

Exactly half of the 16 drivers competing full-time with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series in 2017 will be making their first visit to Red River Valley Speedway. David Gravel, Brad Sweet, Jason Johnson, Logan Schuchart, Jacob Allen, Clyde Knipp, as well as rookie contenders Sheldon Haudenschild and Brent Marks will all be getting their first glimpse at the track.

Tickets for the “Duel in the Dakotas,” featuring World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota, on Saturday, June 17 can be purchased online at slspromotions.ticketforce.com or by phone at 815-344-2023.

Fans can also save $5 on General Admission tickets when purchased at participating NAPA Auto Parts stores. Tickets buyers will exchange their NAPA receipt for a race ticket at the Main Grandstand ticket booth on race day.

Twitter: @SLS_Promotions

Facebook: SLS Promotions LLC

Discount World of Outlaws tickets available at NAPA Auto Parts stores for Red River Valley Speedway event on June 17

Posted on by Posted in NEWS

WEST FARGO, N.D. — June 2, 2017 — Discount General Admission tickets for the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas, featuring the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, N.D., on Saturday, June 17 are now available for purchase at participating NAPA Auto Parts stores.

Each General Admission ticket purchased at a NAPA Auto Parts location will feature a special $5 discount. Tickets buyers will exchange their NAPA receipt for tickets at the Main Grandstand ticket booth on race day.

With the NAPA Auto Parts $5 discount, Adult General Admission tickets purchased at participating stores are $32, while Child General Admission (6-12-years-old) are $12. Children ages five-under will be admitted free in the General Admission seating section.

To find a NAPA Auto Parts store, visit:
https://www.napaonline.com/en/auto-parts-stores-near-me

Additional information for the Gerdau Recycling Duel in the Dakotas at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, N.D., on Saturday, June 17 can be found at https://slspromotions.ticketforce.com. Reserved seats can also be purchased online and by calling 815-344-2023.

Twitter: @SLS_Promotions
Facebook: SLS Promotions LLC

Johnson Steals Rrv Speedway Win on Final Lap

Posted on by Posted in NEWS

By Mike Spieker

WEST FARGO – With threatening skies off to the west, it was an accelerated night at Red River Valley Speedway Friday evening as the track hustled to beat the weather.

Luke Johnson picked up his first win of the season in the IMCA Sport Mods. The Moorhead driver was charged for a debris caution in the opening laps, which put him to the tail of the 17 car field. Within a matter of laps, Johnson had made his way back up to second, but he had defending track champion, Jesse Skalicky, in his way.

Johnson took advantage of a late-race caution as he used the low side of the speedway to reel in Skalicky. It came down to a drag race to the checkers, where Johnson edged out Skalicky by a half car length.

“There was a real small tack strip around the bottom, and if you entered the corner real slow and hit it, you could carry a lot of speed out of the corner,” said Johnson in KRJB victory lane.

Fargo’s Austin Arneson continued his winning ways after picking up his third win at the West Fargo three-eighths mile dirt oval.

After four and even five wide racing early on, Rob VanMil paced the field of 22 cars in the early going.

On lap seven, Arneson, who started in 11th, came up to challenge the Barnesville, Minn. wheelman for the race lead. Arneson successfully maneuvered by the No. 4D of VanMil before cruising out to a five and one-half second lead.

Arneson backed up his win Thursday night at Norman County Raceway in Ada, Minn. as he went on to score the victory over Jarrett Carter, who started 13th.

Rick Schulz picked up the IMCA Stock Car feature win. The Horace driver has scored countless victories in the WISSOTA street stock class over the years at the speedway but held off Lisbon’s Duffy Froemke for his first win in the brand new stock car division.

Sean Johnson was victorious in the INEX Legends, while Tim Shiek won the IMCA hobby stock feature.

Racing continues next Friday night at Red River Valley Speedway with ‘Meet N Greet’ night, where all fans can get an up-close look at the cars and visit with their favorite drivers during intermission. On June 17th the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars make their highly anticipated return to West Fargo.

RESULTS

Modifieds:

Feature – 1. Austin Arneson, Fargo, N.D.; 2. Jarrett Carter, Lisbon, N.D.; 3. Dave Shipley, Argusville, N.D.; 4. Rich Pavlicek, Casselton, N.D.; 5. Rob VanMil, Barnesville, Minn.

Sport Mods:

Feature – 1. Luke Johnson, Moorhead, Minn.; 2. Jesse Skalicky, Fargo, N.D.; 3. Matt Talley, Sabin, Minn.; 4. Chris VanMil, Barnesville, Minn.; 5. Kelly Jacobson, Fargo, N.D.

Stock Cars:

Feature – 1. Rick Schulz, Horace, N.D.; 2. Duffy Froemke, Lisbon, N.D.; 3. Kelly Jacobson, Fargo, N.D.; 4. Randy Klein, Lisbon, N.D.; 5. Tim Compson, Valley City, N.D.

Hobby Stocks:

Feature – 1. Tim Schiek, Fargo, N.D.; 2. Torey Fischer, West Fargo, N.D.; 3. Nick Nelson, Georgetown, Minn.; 4. Kalvin Kesselberg, Ada, Minn.; 5. Eric Novacek, West Fargo, N.D.

Legends:

Feature – 1. Sean Johnson, Kindred, N.D.; 2. Dean Julsrud, Barnesville, Minn.; 3. Brandon Erickson; 4. Scott Richardson, Pelican Rapids, Minn.; 5. Mariah Henriksen, Glyndon, Minn.

Arneson Finds Victory Lane Friday Night at Red River Valley Speedway

Posted on by Posted in NEWS

By Mike Spieker

WEST FARGO – Many race fans left Red River Valley Speedway after Thursday night’s ‘Dakota Cat 100’ event thinking Austin Arneson won the night’s 42-lap IMCA Modified feature. However, Arneson came up 25 pounds light at the scales, forcing an automatic disqualification. That handed the win over to Austin’s brother, Cale, who followed Austin to the checkered flag.

That only fueled Austin’s drive to win even more on Friday night.

The Fargo native led the final 27 laps in a dominating performance to win the second and final night of the inaugural ‘Dakota Cat 100.’

With 12 laps in the books, it quickly became another battle between the Arneson brothers for the win as Cale led Austin.

On lap 15, Austin got a run on Cale and stole the point before opening a sizable lead.

With 23 laps to go, a caution reset the field, which allowed last Friday’s winner, Michael Greseth, to move into the runner-up spot. Greseth set his sights on the No. 10 of Arneson, but Arneson was too strong as he pulled away by four seconds in the closing laps.

Arneson was unchallenged on the final lap as he took his second RRVS win of the season.

“The track was [in the best condition] we’ve seen in a long time. Hats off to Jake and Sharnel [Bitker] and Nick [Skalicky],” said Arneson in victory lane. “The track was really technical tonight. It was slow and you had to hit your marks. We are still fine tuning on some things to make [the car] better.”

Luke Johnson edged out Dan Dowling in the final laps of the IMCA Sport Mod feature. However, Johnson and Dowling were both disqualified following post-race inspection. That gave Jesse Skalicky his fourth RRVS win of 2017.

Duffy Froemke held off Rick Schulz in a thrilling green-white-checkered finish during the IMCA stock car feature. The win was Froemke’s second of the year at the West Fargo three-eighths mile dirt oval.

Scotty Richardson picked up a popular win in the INEX Legends, while Tim Shiek was victorious in IMCA Hobby Stock action.

Racing continues next Friday night at Red River Valley Speedway, starting at 7pm.

DQ Hands Cale Arneson first RRVS Modified Win

Posted on by Posted in NEWS

By Mike Spieker

WEST FARGO – Many race fans left Red River Valley Speedway Thursday night thinking Austin Arneson won the night’s 42 lap IMCA Modified feature. However, Arnesen came up 25 pounds light at the scales. That handed the win over to Austin’s brother, Cale, who followed Austin to the checkered flag.

Last Friday’s winner, Michael Greseth of Harwood, jumped out to the early lead as the green flag waved on the Modified feature. Greseth looked to have the car to beat in the first handful of laps before he was forced to retire from the event prematurely with mechanical issues.

That gave the lead to Johnny Scott. Once assuming the lead, the New Mexico driver checked out from the field and seemed to have the race in hand.

With six laps remaining and a full straightaway lead over Austin Arneson, Scott also suffered a catastrophic failure as a broken j-bar forced him pitside.

“We didn’t have the fastest car tonight,” said Austin Arneson after the race in victory lane. “We’ve been testing on the setup here as of late and we were just too tight tonight. Johnny [Scott] is a good friend of ours and that’s a heck of a tough way to lose a race.”

The night was dedicated to injured Fargo driver Mike Bruns, Sr., who traveled with Arneson as a crew member for several years.

“This is Mike Bruns’ race and he’s a great family friend,” Arneson said. “He was on the road with us for the last five seasons and every big race I’ve won he has been side by side with me.”

A benefit was held for Bruns during the intermission and Austin Arneson offered to add to that total by donating all of his winnings before knowing he would later be DQ’d.

For Cale, the win was his first in IMCA Modified action at RRVS

Chris VanMil backed up his win at Buffalo River Race Park’s season opener and claimed the IMCA Sport Mod feature race. .

Brandon Schmidt went back-to-back in the IMCA hobby stock as he visited KRJB Victory Lane in his No. 219 machine. Fifteen-year-old Tim Estenson, who flipped his INEX legend last Friday night, rebounded to score his fourth win of the season.

Kelly Jacobson grabbed his first career IMCA stock car win by holding off Minot’s Scott Yale on the final lap.

Racing continues Friday night at Red River Valley Speedway for the final night of the Dakota Cat 100.

Greseth Grabs First RRVS Modified Feature Win

Posted on by Posted in NEWS, Uncategorized

By Mike Spieker

WEST FARGO – Red River Valley Speedway was back in action Friday night with a strong field of 85 race cars in attendance among the five racing division. Michael Greseth, Jesse Skalicky, Baiden Heskett, Aaron Olson, and Brandon Schmidt all visited KRJB 106.5FM Victory Lane.

Harwood’s Michael Greseth picked up his first IMCA modified win of the season, despite starting outside of the fifth row. Greseth began moving forward at the drop of the green flag, picking off 10 cars in the first 10 laps.

With 12 circuits remaining in the 20-lap feature, Greseth stole the lead away from pole sitter, Michael Johnson, at the flagstand.

From there, Greseth built up a comfortable lead to take the victory over Dave Shipley and Tyler Peterson, who both started outside of the top 10. Johnson and Tyler Hall rounded out the top five.

Jesse Skalicky’s phenomenal start to the 2017 season continued during the IMCA Sport Mod feature. The Fargo driver started mid-pack in the 11th position but quickly made his way through the field. Skalicky topped the top three on lap five, but Moorhead’s Luke Johnson held a comfortable lead up front.

A caution with 10 to go gave Skalicky the break he needed as he started right on Johnson’s rear bumper for the restart. Skalicky was able to get by Johnson’s No. 8J machine, before checking out from the pack. Skalicky went on to record his third win of the season at RRVS to remain undefeated at the West Fargo dirt oval.

Fargo’s Kelly Jacobson charged from 17th to finish second.

Aaron Olson topped the field of IMCA stock cars with a late race pass on Duffy Froemke for the lead. After Froemke led the majority of the feature, a restart with six to go was the deciding factor. Olson stormed by Froemke with four laps to go to claim his third victory of the young 2017 season.

Baiden Heskett picked up his first win in the INEX legends, while Brandon Schimdt found victory in the IMCA hobby stocks.

Racing continues next Thursday and Friday night at Red River Valley Speedway with the running of the inaugural two-night Dakota Cat 100.

RESULTS

IMCA Modifieds:
Feature – 1. Michael Greseth, Harwood, N.D.; 2. Dave Shipley, Argusville, N.D.; 3. Tyler Peterson, Hickson, N.D.; 4. Michael Johnson, Moorhead, Minn.; 5. Tyler Hall, Fertile, Minn.

IMCA Sport Mod:
Feature – 1. Jesse Skalicky, Fargo, N.D.; 2. Kelly Jacobson, Fargo, N.D.; 3. Taylor Grover, Shelly, Minn.; 4. Greg Larson, Kindred, N.D.; 5. Chriss VanMil, Barnesville, Minn.

IMCA Stock Cars:
Feature – 1. Aaron Olson, Mekinock, N.D.; 2. Duffy Froemke, Lisbon, N.D.; 3. Rick Schulz, Horace, N.D.; 4. Eric Harpole, Bismarck, N.D.; 5. Kelly Jacobson, Fargo, N.D.

IMCA Hobby Stocks:
Feature – 1.Brandon Schmidt, Hillsboro, Minn.; 2. Tim Church,; 3. Kasey Ussatis, Nome, N.D.; 4. Maranda Borg, Harwood, N.D.; 5. Torey Fischer, West Fargo, N.D.

INEX Legends:
Feature – 1. Baiden Heskett, Shakopee, Minn.; 2. Josh Julsrud, Barnesville, Minn.; 3. Andrew Jochim, Glyndon, Minn.; 4. Kaitlyn Skalicky, Fargo, N.D.; 5. Brian Hanson, Jamestown, N.D.