July 27, 2015 at 2:52 p.m.
Smallest racers provide biggest thrills at TNT Motor Speedway
Smallest racers provide biggest thrills at TNT Motor Speedway
For the first eight laps of the 10-lap feature, 6-year-old Dayton Rein was in a bumper-to-bumper race with 10-year-old Dustin Kangas. Rein, from Conover, was looking for his first win in his first year of racing, while Kangas, from Phelps, has been a staple in NAPA Victory Lane. When the two were side-by-side coming out of the second turn, they came upon 5-year-old Elliot Brownrigg-Johnson.
Rein went to the high side to get around the new Junior Sprint racer, while Kangas went to the bottom side. This gave Kangas the lead, and the fans likely thought the race was over.
But Rein quickly caught back up to Kangas on the final turn of the final lap. Then it was an exciting dash to the finish. Kangas crossed the finish line first.
"Who says you have to have a 300-plus horsepower stock car to put on a good race, when a couple children 10 years old and younger racing a 17-horse Briggs and Stratton powered Junior Sprinters can put on a race like that?" asked Jamie Pooch of TNT Motor Speedway.
The Junior Sprint feature was the first event on the docket and set the stage for a night of close racing.
A 12-car field of Pure Stock cars kept changing the lead throughout the race. Crandon's Joe Chaney held the lead for the first few laps. Then it was Jake Ison's turn to guide the pack. Then it was Eagle River's David Blackberg's turn. While all those that had the lead for a portion of the race, the only one that mattered is who was leading when the checkered flag flew.
That was Jason Melton, class point leader, Tyler Lundberg struggled for most of the race, but still worked his way to the front when Blackberg and Ison connected in a battle for the lead. Lundberg also took advantage of other driver mistakes or engine problems to end up second.
"It's been five years since I got a win at TNT," Melton said afterward. "This is awesome. After last week of not blowing a (transmission), this win was important for the Pure Stock points battle."
While in NAPA Victory Lane, Jason's younger brother Steve came by to give him a thumbs up. Steve was in the battle for first for most of the race before finishing fifth.
It was a good night for the Melton racing family. In the WISSOTA Midwest Modified Feature, Dan Melton was on the bumper of fellow Rhinelander driver Dennis Mikkelson for most of the race. The current Midwest Modified points leader tried every line the high-banked one-third mile oval has - except for the tight line that Mikkelson had on the bottom of the track.
With the race winding down, Mikkelson opened the door on the inside of Turn 2. Something he had not done for most of the race.
Melton quickly shot below Mikkelson, took the lead and went on to get the win.
In familiar fashion for TNT fans, everyone knew that another exciting race was about to begin in the TNT Pro Trucks. It was a carbon copy of the Pure Stock feature with different drivers taking turns in the lead. After winning the earlier heat, Birnamwood's Forrest Crandall opened up the race in the lead, then it was a side-by-side battle between Eagle River's James Koga, Crandall, and Pelican Lake's Herb Dettman. Also in the mix was the 12-year-old sensation, Parker Retzlaff of Rhinelander.
Through all the position changes, the current Pro Truck points leader, Cory Allen, simply sat back and waited for the dust to clear.
Koga lost his power steering, Crandall had problems keeping control in the corners, Dettman ran the high line, and Retzlaff got caught in traffic. Meanwhile Allen used his skills and patience to get the win.
"I was so bummed as I was running great, had the lead and had a shot at the win until I lost the power steering and couldn't turn," commented Koga.
The theme of early-race leaders being unable to seal the victory continued in the WISSOTA Street Stock feature as Chetek's Steve Karshbaum not only jumped out to an early lead, he kept extending his lead as the race was winding down. Then, with no one near Karshbaum, he lost control on the backstretch and spun out.
With Karshbaum at the back of the pack because of the spin, the finish turned into one of the best races the class has seen this season. Ryan Valeria and Brit Bromann of Eagle River and Tomahawk's' Derek Eberl went three laps battling side by side. At the line, Eberl held off Bromann and Valeria for his second straight WISSOTA Street Stock feature win.
The points leader going into Saturday night's races, Jordan Kurtti of Bruce Crossing, took a job that requires him to move out of the area. He will not be able to race the rest of the year, leaving the WISSOTA Street Stock Points Championship up for grabs.
Another shocker took place in the Stinger class. Merrill's Louis Malluege has dominated all year long. The only surprise in this class took place a couple of weeks ago when Eagle River's Quentin Morrison beat Malluege.
On Saturday, Kasey Gross of Gleason followed in Morrison's footsteps by beating Malluege in the Stinger feature.
The only feature that held no surprises was in the Micro Sprint 600 as Denver Larson defeated his younger brother Dylan for the win.
The Saturday night is Junior Sprint special at TNT Motor Speedway. Bicycles will be given away to lucky fans. UTVs will then join the racing program on Saturday, Aug. 8. TNT Motor Speedway is located south of Three Lakes, off U.S. Highway 45.
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