5/4/2025
Rice Lake Speedway
Simon Wahlstrom Wins First Rice Lake Speedway Modified Checkered, Crosby and Traynor Repeat
Rice Lake WI, May 3 – After another wet week, the skies cleared finally on Saturday and the Rice Lake Speedway was able to complete week number two of the 2025 racing season. Among the highlights of the Saturday night program was the first ever Modified feature win for long time speedway racer Simon Wahlstrom and repeat wins for Eric Crosby and Nick Traynor. The USRA Late Models made their first visit of the year to the track and Cody Ressie made a late race pass to get that win. Other winners included Terran Spacek and Tyler Vernon as one hundred and eighteen drivers from three states and Canada signed in to race.
Wahlstrom would earn his first ever Modified victory by leading from start to finish in a race that was stopped just once for a yellow flag. The win was not an easy win by any means though, as he was closely pursued for most of the event. He took the initial lead by getting the jump on Kennedy Swan who then pulled in line behind him in the early going.
The yellow flew after just one lap as a three car tangle in turn two stopped the action and ended the night for Canadian driver Riley Matthews. Wahlstrom continued as the leader as the green flag was displayed once again but the running order behind him was shuffled considerably with Brandon Copp, from the third row, finding an opening and moving into second while Darrell Nelson experimented with the high side of the track and moved up a couple spots into third. Cole Spacek was running in the top five when mechanical issues sent him to the pits as the race continued.
By the halfway point, the top five had settled in, each trying to narrow the gap on the cars in front of them but everyone running nearly even. Copp and then Nelson closed up the gap somewhat but neither was able to execute a pass. Wahlstrom was running a flawless race as he needed to with Copp lurking to jump on any mistake.
However, the Mikana driver maintained his control and when the checkered flew, he was several car lengths ahead of Copp to earn his first victory. Copp finished second with Nelson, Blake Adams and Swan completing the top five.
For Wahlstrom, his win also had other memorable implications. With the win, Wahlstrom has now won feature races in five different divisions at the Rice Lake Speedway, only the second driver in the seventy three year history of the track to do so. The only other known driver to score wins in five different divisions at the track is Kevin Adams.
Traynor became the first repeat winner of the 2025 season when he won the Street Stock main event but it took a huge break and incredibly bad luck on the final lap by previous leader Cody Cimfl for this to take place.
The race was Cimfl's as he passed Tom Treviranus and Warren Bartelt on the opening lap to grab the early lead as moved up quickly from the second row. Traynor just as quickly moved up from the third row into second and the battle was on. Three laps into the main, the only yellow flew for a spin and this bunched up the field with Traynor and Danny Richards just behind the leader. Cimfl got a good jump on the restart and pulled away slightly from the field while the battle for second heated up with Richards slipping inside Traynor to take away second.
The rest of the race ran off green to checkers with Cimfl pulling away from the pack as the battle for second continued. Late in the race, as the leaders raced through traffic, Traynor was able to slip past Richards and regain second. This pass would prove to be monumental following the last lap drama.
Cimfl was by himself with a comfortable lead as he took the white flag. However, he cut the first corner too short, clipped one of the big tires marking the inside of the track which broke the front end on his car and with no steering, he slid into the infield on the back straightaway, a half lap short of victory. This stunning development shocked everyone when suddenly Traynor drove out of the last corner as the leader and winner. Danny Richards finished second with Andrew Hanson making another charge through the field, up from eighth to finish third with Cole Richards and Travis Loew completing the top five.
The other repeat winner was Eric Crosby and again, circumstances helped hin to earn that second straight victory. Bob Wahlstrom started on the pole for the Pure Stock feature and led the opening pair of laps with Crosby quickly moving up from fifth to challenge him along with Caleb Duffie.
Going into turn two, Wahlstrom had problems with the right front of his car and he slowed with mechanical issues, giving up the lead and triggering the first yellow all at the same time. Wahlstrom would be done for the night.
Crosby inherited the lead and he then led the rest of the contest. Rob Grabon moved into second by lap four and he would chase Crosby the rest of the distance. This race was slowed five times by spins which kept the field packed and kept Grabon in a position to push Crosby hard for the win. A late tangle saw the third place battle between Duffie and Mark Barta end with both out of the race.
The dash to the finish saw Grabon close to the rear bumper of Crosby but that would be as close as he could get as Crosby maintained his lead to the checkers. Behind Grabon, Austin Fencl, Devin Fries and Steve Karshbaum fnished out the top five.
The Super Stock feature was another race plagued by yellow flags for spins and other issues with officials finally terminating the race five laps short due to time constraints. However, the top two drivers maintained their positions through all the trials and tribulations of the event with Terran Spacek and Dalton Truchon running first and second the entire event. After each of the many yellows, these two drivers pulled away from the field and while Truchon never could pressure Spacek for the lead, he maintained a solid second.
For Spacek, it was his thirteenth career Super Stock victory at Rice Lake, all earned in just the past few years. Chad Johnson had run third for the entire contest but bad luck on the final circuit saw him drop back to fifth with both Eric Olson and Shawn McFadden getting past him.
Tyler Vernon has been strong so far this year in the Midwest Modified division and a lap four pass proved to be the winning move by the Mason driver. Kenny Kincaid took the early lead with Travis Anderson and Vernon challening him early. Vernon, however, was able to find an opening and slip past Kincaid to take over the top spot. Blake Adams and Nick Koehler were also close behind as the lead pack was a tight one.
Vernon had a tremendous scare near the halfway point of the race when a car he was trying to lap spun directly in front on him, slid across the track and made contact with the back of Vernon's car, driving him into the muddy infield. However, Vernon was lucky as other than a little body damage, he was good to go and rejoined the field as the leader for the restart.
And with the final half of the race going nonstop, Vernon was able to put some distance on Kincaid and drive on for the win. A last lap scramble on the back chute among drivers battling for position with cars going in all directions as Vernon took the checkered saw the event scored back to the white flag with positions adjusted from that tangle. Behind Kincaid who finished second, it was Adams, Brady Larson and Jake Stai in the top five.
The USRA Late Models made their first appearance at the track for 2025 and they entertained with a competitive feature race that saw the winning move made by Cory Ressie with just two laps to go. This race had a difficult time getting started with multiple yellows for spins before everyone settled to race. Mitchell Fenske took the early lead with Ressie, who started outside of him in the front row, close behind. As Fenske ran the low line, Ressie experimented by moving up the track and several times got close to making the pass but couldn't quite complete it.
Cade Nelson started fifth, but he was soon up to third and challenging as the top three broke away from the field. Steve O'Brien stayed in contention by using the upper line with Lucas Peterson running close behind him.
The battle for the lead continued with Ressie trying multiple times to get past Fenske and finally, on lap thirteen he was able to nose ahead and take over the lead with Nelson following him through. Just then, a yellow for a spin set up a two lap dash to the finish. Ressie took off strong and despite a push by Nelson, Ressie had the position covered and drove on for the win, his first ever at the track. Nelson would finish a close third and be trailed by Fenske, Peterson and Patrick Kelley. Only one of the twenty one starters wouldn't complete the race. The USRA Late Models will return on June 28th for their second night of the season.
A strong field of Modifieds on hand Saturday worked as a tune up for next Saturday night when the Springtime Modified Spectacular will be held at the track. Sponsored by Henry Repeating Arms, the Modified special will see the winner go home with twelve hundred dollars and a unique, one of a kind trophy provided by Henry. There will be no entry or draw fees for the Modifieds and a full program for the other classes that race at the track will be held also. Regular admission prices will remain in effect.
For more information on this race and other events scheduled for the track, check the speedway website at www.ricelakespeedway.net or the speedway face book page.
Results
19 entries
WISSOTA Modifieds
A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 38-Simon Wahlstrom[1]; 2. 22-Brandon Copp[6]; 3. 44N-Darrell Nelson[5]; 4. 40D-Blake Adams[3]; 5. 18S-Kennedy Swan[2]; 6. 57-Mike Anderson[10]; 7. 3JR-Shane Halopka[7]; 8. 21F-Nick Oreskovich[9]; 9. 20-Austin Ellis[16]; 10. 9U-Brady Uotinen[18]; 11. 74-Shaun Kreyer[11]; 12. 9MM-Aiden Hoffman[15]; 13. 3H-Jake Hiatt[8]; 14. 5-Joe Chaplin Jr[12]; 15. 55-Taylor Olson[17]; 16. 3-Bryan Hessler[14]; 17. (DNF) 308-Pat Hoffman[19]; 18. (DNF) 22S-Cole Spacek[4]; 19. (DNF) 9-Riley Matthews[13]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 3JR-Shane Halopka[1]; 2. 44N-Darrell Nelson[5]; 3. 3H-Jake Hiatt[3]; 4. 57-Mike Anderson[6]; 5. 9-Riley Matthews[7]; 6. 20-Austin Ellis[4]; 7. 9U-Brady Uotinen[2]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 21F-Nick Oreskovich[6]; 2. 38-Simon Wahlstrom[3]; 3. 22S-Cole Spacek[4]; 4. 74-Shaun Kreyer[2]; 5. 3-Bryan Hessler[1]; 6. (DNF) 308-Pat Hoffman[5]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 22-Brandon Copp[1]; 2. 40D-Blake Adams[2]; 3. 18S-Kennedy Swan[3]; 4. 5-Joe Chaplin Jr[5]; 5. 9MM-Aiden Hoffman[6]; 6. 55-Taylor Olson[4]
25 entries
WISSOTA Super Stock
A Feature 1 (20 Laps): 1. 22T-Terran Spacek[1]; 2. 62-Dalton Truchon[2]; 3. 1E-Eric Olson[9]; 4. 51JR-Shawn McFadden[11]; 5. 25X-Chad Johnson[3]; 6. 14X-Leslie Leu[12]; 7. 20*-Andrew Davis[17]; 8. 26-Kyle Copp[6]; 9. 57-Randy Graham[15]; 10. 22AT-Austin Tilton[16]; 11. (DNF) XJR-Austin Harris[21]; 12. (DNF) 74-Noah Shackleton[8]; 13. (DNF) 21M-Alex Myers[4]; 14. (DNF) 1M-Curt Myers[7]; 15. (DNF) 02-Travis Anderson[13]; 16. (DNF) 21-Mike Siewert[10]; 17. (DNF) 1-Ryan Olson[14]; 18. (DNF) 247-Jackson Larson[5]; 19. (DNF) 75-Scott Geiger[19]; 20. (DNF) 28-Josh Cappo[23]; 21. (DNS) 9-Jakob Bond; 22. (DNS) 90-Adam Pratt; 23. (DNS) 01-Michael Anderson; 24. (DNS) 22-Clay Albrecht; 25. (DNS) 10-Jeff Eisner Jr
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 26-Kyle Copp[5]; 2. 247-Jackson Larson[4]; 3. 74-Noah Shackleton[6]; 4. 21-Mike Siewert[1]; 5. 02-Travis Anderson[9]; 6. 22AT-Austin Tilton[3]; 7. (DNF) 90-Adam Pratt[7]; 8. (DNF) 01-Michael Anderson[8]; 9. (DNF) 10-Jeff Eisner Jr[2]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 1M-Curt Myers[4]; 2. 25X-Chad Johnson[1]; 3. 22T-Terran Spacek[8]; 4. 51JR-Shawn McFadden[5]; 5. 1-Ryan Olson[2]; 6. 20*-Andrew Davis[3]; 7. 75-Scott Geiger[6]; 8. (DNF) 28-Josh Cappo[7]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 1E-Eric Olson[5]; 2. 62-Dalton Truchon[1]; 3. 21M-Alex Myers[8]; 4. 14X-Leslie Leu[6]; 5. 57-Randy Graham[2]; 6. 9-Jakob Bond[4]; 7. (DNF) XJR-Austin Harris[7]; 8. (DNF) 22-Clay Albrecht[3]
21 entries
WISSOTA Midwest Mods
A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 41-Tyler Vernon[3]; 2. 4K-Kenny Kincaid[1]; 3. 40D-Blake Adams[4]; 4. 63JR-Brady Larson[6]; 5. 1-Jake Stai[9]; 6. 28-Paul Ripley[15]; 7. 37-Travis Anderson[2]; 8. 7-Mike Schnider[12]; 9. 16-Cory Jorgensen[8]; 10. 19H-Cody Cimfl[5]; 11. 00-Joseph Swearingen[20]; 12. 44-David Dishaw[14]; 13. 47-Tad Schoonover[17]; 14. 10Z-Cade Johnson[13]; 15. 09-Skylar Findley[11]; 16. 410-Jesse Young[10]; 17. 13-Nick Koehler[7]; 18. 88K-Donavan Knutson[19]; 19. 78-Bently Prochnow[18]; 20. (DNF) R1-Robert Crust[21]; 21. (DNF) 71-Jacob Anderson[16]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 13-Nick Koehler[2]; 2. 41-Tyler Vernon[4]; 3. 63JR-Brady Larson[3]; 4. 410-Jesse Young[5]; 5. 10Z-Cade Johnson[6]; 6. (DNF) 00-Joseph Swearingen[1]; 7. (DNS) R1-Robert Crust
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 19H-Cody Cimfl[4]; 2. 37-Travis Anderson[5]; 3. 16-Cory Jorgensen[6]; 4. 09-Skylar Findley[3]; 5. 44-David Dishaw[1]; 6. 71-Jacob Anderson[2]; 7. 78-Bently Prochnow[7]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 4K-Kenny Kincaid[1]; 2. 40D-Blake Adams[2]; 3. 1-Jake Stai[3]; 4. 7-Mike Schnider[5]; 5. 28-Paul Ripley[4]; 6. 47-Tad Schoonover[6]; 7. 88K-Donavan Knutson[7]
19 entries
WISSOTA Street Stock
A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 40T-Nick Traynor[5]; 2. 3R-Danny Richards[6]; 3. 20-Andrew Hanson[8]; 4. 1R-Cole Richards[7]; 5. 40-Travis Loew[11]; 6. 17-Zach Beaulieu[9]; 7. 84-Hunter VanGilder[18]; 8. 10-Dylan Baskin[4]; 9. 16-Warren Bartelt[2]; 10. 20F-Connor Franson[15]; 11. 31-Tom Treviranus[1]; 12. 00Z-Bryar Zimmerman[19]; 13. 20T-Michael Tuma[13]; 14. 81-Charlie Pitcavage[17]; 15. 19H-Kevin Herrman[12]; 16. 19-Paul Krawec[14]; 17. 86-Layla Chaplin[16]; 18. 19J-Jenna Herrman[10]; 19. (DNF) 19C-Cody Cimfl[3]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 16-Warren Bartelt[1]; 2. 31-Tom Treviranus[5]; 3. 10-Dylan Baskin[3]; 4. 19J-Jenna Herrman[2]; 5. (DNF) 81-Charlie Pitcavage[4]; 6. (DNF) 84-Hunter VanGilder[6]; 7. (DQ) 00Z-Bryar Zimmerman[7]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 40T-Nick Traynor[1]; 2. 19C-Cody Cimfl[3]; 3. 3R-Danny Richards[4]; 4. 40-Travis Loew[5]; 5. 20T-Michael Tuma[6]; 6. 20F-Connor Franson[2]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 20-Andrew Hanson[5]; 2. 17-Zach Beaulieu[1]; 3. 1R-Cole Richards[4]; 4. 19H-Kevin Herrman[2]; 5. 19-Paul Krawec[6]; 6. 86-Layla Chaplin[3]
12 entries
WISSOTA Pure Stock
Lakes Gas A Feature 1 (12 Laps): 1. 28-Eric Crosby[5]; 2. 16-Rob Grabon[3]; 3. 52W-Austin Fencl[9]; 4. 95F-Devin Fries[4]; 5. 89-Steve Karshbaum[7]; 6. 47-Anthony Schultz[10]; 7. 4K-Terry Kemp[12]; 8. (DNF) 9M-Marlene Lannet[11]; 9. (DNF) 78-Mark Barta[6]; 10. (DNF) 55-Caleb Duffie[2]; 11. (DNF) QQ-Shane Strenke[8]; 12. (DNF) 88-Robert Wahlstrom[1]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 28-Eric Crosby[4]; 2. 78-Mark Barta[1]; 3. 16-Rob Grabon[3]; 4. 95F-Devin Fries[5]; 5. 52W-Austin Fencl[6]; 6. (DNF) 9M-Marlene Lannet[2]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 88-Robert Wahlstrom[6]; 2. 55-Caleb Duffie[2]; 3. 89-Steve Karshbaum[3]; 4. QQ-Shane Strenke[1]; 5. 47-Anthony Schultz[4]; 6. (DNF) 4K-Terry Kemp[5]
22 entries
USRA Late Models
Mastercraft Industries A Feature 1 (15 Laps): 1. 208-Cory Ressie[2]; 2. 44-Cade Nelson[5]; 3. 99F-Mitchell Fenske[1]; 4. 65-Lucas Peterson[4]; 5. 63-Patrick Kelley[6]; 6. 77-Ryan Howe[9]; 7. 14-Steven O'Brien Jr[3]; 8. 67-Josh Bach[10]; 9. 52-Jason McFadden[21]; 10. 55-Clayton Hofteig[13]; 11. 19-Josh Wahlstrom[8]; 12. 26D-Chad Dawson[12]; 13. 17-Chase Swerman[14]; 14. 42K-Patrick Kletschka[11]; 15. 007-Jess Seim[15]; 16. 73-Larry Fitzsimmons[7]; 17. 62-Todd Green[17]; 18. 3-Tyler Stargardt[20]; 19. 71-Ron Hanestad[18]; 20. 57-Brent Mindock[19]; 21. (DNF) 17J-Jared Bamberger[22]; 22. (DNS) 1-Kody Koski
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 77-Ryan Howe[1]; 2. 14-Steven O'Brien Jr[7]; 3. 73-Larry Fitzsimmons[5]; 4. 67-Josh Bach[3]; 5. 55-Clayton Hofteig[2]; 6. 1-Kody Koski[6]; 7. 57-Brent Mindock[8]; 8. (DNF) 17J-Jared Bamberger[4]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 44-Cade Nelson[2]; 2. 208-Cory Ressie[3]; 3. 63-Patrick Kelley[6]; 4. 42K-Patrick Kletschka[5]; 5. 17-Chase Swerman[4]; 6. 62-Todd Green[7]; 7. (DNF) 52-Jason McFadden[1]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 19-Josh Wahlstrom[5]; 2. 65-Lucas Peterson[4]; 3. 99F-Mitchell Fenske[6]; 4. 26D-Chad Dawson[1]; 5. 007-Jess Seim[3]; 6. 71-Ron Hanestad[7]; 7. 3-Tyler Stargardt[2]
Article Credit: Ed Reichert