For the past thirty years or so, no matter what division was racing and no matter which local track it was at, one of the favorites to win each and every night and particularly the special events when extra money was on the line, Tony Bahr was always one of the favorites to take home the trophy as the winner.
One of the most prolific winners ever at area tracks and one that always seemed to run extra well at special events, Tony was a master of whatever class he was racing in at the time and included everything from Midwest Modifieds to Late Models.
Influenced by his father Jim and other friends, Tony first started racing in 1992 at the Rice Lake Speedway. With his father still running the QQ on his race car , Tony's first race car bore the #55 but he would eventually become most recognized for driving the QQ himself, after his father stopped racing. But he also had great success driving the #89 for Dale White. By the way, the QQ identification on the race car came from Eau Claire County highway QQ, which is where the Bahr family lived.
Tony's first race car was a 1981 Dave Morgan built chassis that was put together by his pit man Curt Cooley with his first feature win coming at Rice Lake during the 1994 racing season.
And once he started winning, there was no stopping him as he ran up one of the highest feature win totals in Rice Lake Speedway history. And also nearly unmatched were the number of different classes in which he won main events.
As one of the very few drivers in track history to have won feature races in four different classes, he had great success in whatever class he was driving at the time. He won twenty features races in the Modified class between 1994 and 2007 driving cars numbered 55, QQ and 89. He also won ten Late Model features in the QQ and #89 between 2001 and 2006. He then transitioned to the Midwest Modified class where he won four feature races between 2018 and 2022 in limited appearances as he scaled back his racing. Throw in a lone Super Stock feature win in 2011 driving the Q6 car which was a second car for the Shane Kisling Team and his total of thirty four feature wins in four different classes is among the best ever at Rice Lake. Of all the wins at Rice Lake, Tony considered the Labor Day weekend doubleheader sweep with the Late Model in 2001 to be his most memorable.
The list of special event wins and achievements earned is very impressive. Among them would be five Punky Manor Challenge of Champions win in three different classes, two wins at the Red Clay Classic in Ashland, two Northern Nationals wins at Gondik Law Speedway, two Kyle Runkle Memorial wins, a preliminary night win at the Battle at the Bullring in Humboldt Kansas, a Super Stock special win and Dirt Late Model magazine also named him “Mr. September” in 2002. He also won the 2004 Trifecta award with titles at Rice Lake, Red Cedar and Eagle Valley. Throw in Season Champions in 1996 and 2005 in the Modified at Rice Lake, Midseason Titles in 1995 and 1996 along with Best Appearing Car awards in 1995 with the Modified and 2001 with the Late Model and Tony had the kind of successful career that most drivers just dream of.
Some special people that helped him out over the course of his career would include his wife LuAnn, Curt Cooley, Ken Anderson, Jon Ausman, Mark Hanson and Jay and Deanna Amundson. He also had some great car owners that included Dale and Tammy White, Bob Sekora, Willy Little, Jerry Brummond, Brian Ness and Mitch and April Shackleton. Sponsors that were with him for many years included: White City Glass, Louie and Irene Lane Trucking, Rookies Pub, Chippewa Valley Heavy Haul, Troy's Shop, Goulet's Garage, Ausman Property Management, CFR, Tim's Automotive, Champ Pans, Sportsman's Lodge and Documation.
Tony officially retired from racing at the end of the 2023 racing season at the age of fifty nine. He does have a Pure Stock waiting in the wings for his grand daughter Audie to drive once she turns 18. A long time Heavy Equipment Operator and Eau Claire native, Tony is now retired and lives with LuAnn in Haugen.
Ladies and gentlemen, Rice Lake Speedway Hall of Famer, Tony Bahr.