2024 Year In Review…
Submitted by George Baumann
The schedule would highlight 18-nights of racing featuring eight divisions. PDTR/MSA Sprints along with the B-Mods and Grand Nationals would race twelve nights. Each of these nights they would be joined by another division. Badger Midgets, Wingless Sprints, Lightning Sprints and Legends.
The Super Six Late Models were scheduled for six nights. Late Models also raced with the WABAM Dirt Kings twice. The IRA Sprint cars and the PDTR/MSA sprints raced five times with Grand Nationals and B-Mods joining them once each
Mother Nature made its self-known forcing a number of cancelations and shortening several other events
Opening night on April 27th saw rain wipe out two A-mains. Greenville driver T.J. Smith drove his Grand National to the winner’s circle to start things off. After starting in the front he was lapping traffic on lap four. Slower cars permitted Dustin Weiss and Will Sorce to catch him but Smith would hold on.
Cole Thomas, a rookie, won the B-Mod A-main in a race that saw four caution flags and a rain delay. After the track was restored the race continued. Thomas would lead the way with Waupun’s Barrett Hummelmeier and Sheboygan Falls driver Steve Lorier giving chase. After more rain the PDTR/MSA sprint car and Wis. Wingless A-mains were lost to the rain.
A rainout on May 4th occurred and on May 11th races would take place. Military, police, f ire and emergency medical services (EMT’s) were welcomed. The Super Six Late Models series put 24 cars in the pits.
Mitch McGrath used the outside lane to drive to his 16th win with PDTR. Troy Springborn, Justin Richie and Brad Mueller followed him across the finish line.
T.J. Smith paced the sprint cars getting his first sprintcar win on the fairgrounds oval. Kevin Karnitz came from the 3rd row to finish second ahead of Tony Wondra and Ben Schmidt.
Cascade driver Brad Weiss won the Grand National race holding off a determined Luke Scholten. It was his first career A-main win at Plymouth. B-mods also gave us an exciting race with Waupun’s Colten VanHierden winning ahead of Travis Schmidt.
May 18th the IRA came to the Fairgrounds. Blake Nimee would win the IRA event with Scotty Neitzel second. Scotty Thiel while racing hard to catch the leaders flipped in turn four. The Wis. Wingless main was stopped a number of times due to crashes. In the end, Tate Hensley picked up his first career win with Johnny Fahl second.
Weather would claim the next two schedule programs before the cars would be back in action on June 15th. Ben Schmidt would notch his first win of the season. After starting 12th he passed Donny Goeden for the lead on lap-17. Goeden would hold on to second with Alex Pokorski next.
Kiel driver Steven Weber won his fifth A-main on his home track in a race with just one caution. Brian Gilles was second and Luke Scholten third. The B-mod race after seven cautions was cut to just 15-laps. Spencer Long from Sheboygan Falls won for the first time in his career.
Lightning Sprints were included in the program. Brian Strane Jr. continued his successful season using lapped traffic to move to the front from the fourth row. Mark Heinert was second.
During Sprint qualifying a fire erupted in the cockpit of Lance Fassbinder’s car. The Burnett driver sustained severe burns on his legs and would spend the remainder of the summer rehabbing.
Rain returned and the scheduled program on June 22nd was cancelled. June 29th saw good weather and just the third complete show of the season and it provided plenty of good racing. The Seubert Calf Ranches Late Model race saw Taylor Scheffler take home the $2,500 first prize. Despite six caution flags, Mitch McGrath charged after Scheffler but the cautions ended his run. He did however make a late run and would be a close second ahead of Brad Mueller.
The Sprint Main saw Ben Schmidt come from the third row to secure the lead on lap 11 passing Kevin Karnitz on the high side. Robbie Pribnow also utilizing the tracks high side went after Schmidt and was able to make the winning pass on lap 24 getting his fourth career win at the Fairgrounds and ninth with the MSA. Karnitz would finish a respectable third ahead of Bill Taylor and rookie Clayton Rossmann.
Grand Nationals entertained the fans and saw Dustin Weiss come from the sixth row for his first win at Plymouth. On lap 6, TJ Smith made a three-wide pass enrout to a solid second place finish. 2023 co-champions Will Sorce and Brian Gilles both passed numerous cars to garner top-five finishes.
Beaver Dam driver Barrett Humelmeier, a third generation driver, would get his first win at Plymouth in the B-mod division. Travis Schmidt from Waldo started 10th and would work his way up to second just ahead of Spencer Long
At the end of June Points leaders were, Travis Schmidt B-Mods, Dustin Weiss Grand Nationals, Ben Schmidt Sprints and Mitch McGrath Late Models.
After taking the Fourth of July weekend off, rain returned and affected the program on July 13th. Unfortunate, because it was a special night to honor the class of 2024 Wall of Fame inductees. After the heat races, the new inductees were introduced to the delight of the large crowd. The Super Six Late Model A-main ran six laps before it started raining. Thus the show was complete. Vintage Modifieds were included in the program.
After rain and curfew effected seven of the first 11 programs on July 20th racing resumed with Taylor Scheffler making it two straight wins in his number 10S Late Model. After several restarts, Brad Mueller moved to the front and ran side by side with the leader for a number of laps with Scheffler prevailing. Jayden Schmidt was fast and finished third.
TJ Smith won his second Sprint Car race of the season utilizing the multi-lane track. Brandon Berth went after Smith but had to settle for second. Ben Schmidt on lap 17 made contact with a slower car and flipped in turn three. Justin Erickson was third and Alex Pokorski fourth.
85-year-old Dick Hed paced the Grand National Feature early. Will Sorce after starting 8th would catch Hed and take the lead on lap 8. Gilles would get up to second but no further as Sorce would get his first win of the season and 9th at Plymouth. Dustin Weiss and Tyler Kulow would be next with Hed 5th.
The B-Mods would see another driver notch his first career win, this time it would be Rory Welch. It would not be easy as Barrett Hummelmeier had a big lead, but Welch slowly caught him in lapped traffic and made a low-line pass on lap 18. Travis Schmidt came from the fourth row to claim third ahead of Steve Lorier.
The IRA returned on July 27, former PDTR and MSA champion Danny Schlafer was dominating the IRA race before disaster struck. In turn one on lap 12 Schlafer’s car would touch a car he was lapping and flip. The momentum sent his car through the turn one fence.
The rest of the race was wild with three drivers, Blake Nimee, Jake Nueman and Joel Myers Jr. racing three-wide at times. On lap 28 of the 30-lap race, Myers would take the lead and get the win.
In the PDTR/MSA race, Kurt Davis and his son Tyler would finish 1 – 2. Tyler started sixth and would move into second after the second, and final, yellow flag on lap 13. The win was Kurt’s first at the Fairgrounds in over three years. Robbie Pribnow and TJ Smith were next across the line while Waldo’s Chris Clayton charged from 20th to 5th.
B-Mods joined the show and Mike Sandholm from Oconomowoc filled in for his Daughter Miranda and led every lap in a winning effort. Brandon Knepprath passed Hunter Larson on lap 8 and went after Sandholm. Despite staying close he was unable to execute a pass. Travis Schmidt came from the 6th row to the fourth ahead of Hummelmeier who also started in the 6th row.
Entering the month of August, point leaders were Brad Mueller Late Models, Ben Schmidt Sprints, Dustin Weiss Grand Nationals and Travis Schmidt B-Mods.
August 3rd saw the Lightning Sprints make their 2nd appearance of the season. A coin and candy drop at intermission sponsored by VanDerVaart Concrete was a highlight for the kids, (and their parents). A coloring contest showed off the talents of the kids as well.
On the track 14-year old Joe Hintz from Burnett surprised everyone getting his first career win. In the process, he had to come from the third row and after a lap 11 restart would move into second. Using the low-line the would pass Donny Goeden for the lead two laps later and drive to the win. On the white flag lap TJ Smith would get upside down in turn two. Kurt Davis would be third ahead of Justin Erickson and Kevin Karnitz.
Nick Schumacher from Eagle showed up for the first time in 2024 and after starting on the pole of the Grand National race turned aside all challengers. Luke Scholten stayed close but had to settle for second with Jeff Muehlbauer third.
Steve Lorier took advantage of a pair of lap-7 yellow flags to charge forward. Lorier then raced Spencer Long close until lap 20 when Long found himself trapped behind a slower car with Lorier passing on the outside for the win. Travis Schmidt was third ahead of former champion Andy Welter and Hummelmeier was fifth after contact with the wall earlier.
The Lightning Sprint point’s leader Brian Strane Jr. took himself out of the race early after hitting an infield tire flipping. Nick Petska was very fast and breezed to his first win of the season. Mark Heinert was second and Mike Neau third.
On August 10th Brad Mueller with a second place finish locked up the Super Six Late Model Championship. The $5,000 prize for winning the 30-lap race however went to Nick Anvelink who used a move on the final lap for the win. It was Anvelinks first visit to the Fairpark this season.
Ben Schmidt would continue to extend his points lead by virtue of claiming the Sprintcar 25-lap race. The race saw plenty of close racing with rookie Hintz, Billy Kreutz (continuing his return to the track after a 20-year absence), and Schmidt battling at the front. Schmidt would finish ahead of Kreutz and Hintz. The win would be the 24th for Schmidt putting him third on the all-time A-main win list at Plymouth and 45th with the MSA tying him with Brandon McMullen.
The Grand National race saw lots of sparks fly with several incidents involving a number of cars. At one point, a four-car crash on the backstretch blocked the track and brought out the red flag.
Jake Richards from Neshkoro took advantage of his front row starting spot to get the win. Nick Schumacher came from the third row to challenge but it would be Richard’s night. Steven Weber was third ahead of Tyler Kulow. Past champion Brian Gilles had a frustrating night, first another car flattened a tire, then while slowing his car was struck again. Will Sorce started 13th and moved to the top-5.
The B-mod Main saw rookie Cole Thomas come from the third row for his second win of the season. Thomas was fast early and sailed into the lead on lap-4. Barrett Hummelmeier started in the sixth row and would finish second ahead of Spencer Long, Brandon Knepprath and Travis Schmidt.
After another rainout, racing resumed on Friday August 23rd. The WaBam Late Models returned and again it would be Anvelink with a late race maneuver that would send him to victory lane. After a series of restarts Anvelink, on lap 29 would slip from the outside line to the bottom and slide into the lead ahead of Brad Mueller. Mitch McGrath was third, Troy Springborn fourth and Mike Mullen fifth.
With a week off from the IRA, Scotty Thiel strapped into a Randy Sippel car and started on the pole. TJ Smith challenged him early and made a pass that was negated after Katelyn Krebsbach crashed very hard on the backstretch. Despite the violent tumble she was not injured but visibly upset. Ben Schmidt came from 8th to the runner-up spot ahead of Brandon Berth, Alex Pokorski and Kurt Davis.
The Grand National race had another driver get his first win with PDTR, Scott Kafka lead early and would fend off Chad Espen and former champion Luke Scholten. Tyler Kulow came from the fourth row to get third while Gillis was next coming from the fifth row,
Rookie Logan Brass took advantage of several late race yellow flags to claim his first career A-main win. Geoff Zdroik was second ahead of Tim Thrun who had lead the race early. The Red flag halted action earlier when Kelan Wolfe’s car flipped a number of times in turn one.
The final points races of the season would have Will Sorce win the Grand National Championship for the second year in a row, while the B-mod title would go to Travis Schmidt, his first.
August 31st racing would be the featured venue at the County Fair. The IRA and the PDTR/MSA would supply the grandstand show. Plymouth’s Justin Erickson was the dominant driver taking the lead early and pulling away after several restarts. Kurt Davis and Ben Schmidt followed while Eric Wilke and Chris Clayton each passed 13 cars to round out the top-five. Bill Taylor on lap 21 flipped in turn one bringing out the red flag.
The IRA race featured Joel Myer’s Jr. winning for the second time in a row. Scotty Thiel lead early but on lap- 12 made contact with a slower car and spun. Myers started 12th in the field and Travis Arenz went from 11th to second. Shelby Bosie from Lincoln, IL flipped in turn four after making contact with Myers on lap 22.
The Jim “Wildman” Watson Classic was next on September 21st. Dirt Kings Late Models provided plenty of action. Brad Mueller would lead for much of the race but while in a heated battle with Brett Swedberg late in the race would make contact with the turn four wall allowing Swedberg to collect the win. Joel Bennett would get second, Nick Anvelink third Mueller fourth and Taylor Scheffler would be fifth.
Wingless sprints supplied good racing with three-car action at the front. 2020 series champion Jimmy Sivia in the end would hold off current points lead Zach Raidart for the win.
A-Mods featured a 6-car pileup on the initial start before Cody Schroeder would grab the point. Working around four cautions, Schroeder would have too much and get the win. Only nine of the starting field would finish.
Street Stocks would see Josh McDonald hold off a late charge from Eddie Anschultz for the win.
On September 28th the stands were packed for the annual Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships. The IRA saw Scotty Thiel win the 30-lap Rick Schmidt Memorial race and claim his first series Championship.
The PDTR/MSA season would end with Ben Schmidt in the winner’s circle putting an exclamation mark on his championship season. T.J. Smith finished second despite his efforts to pass Schmidt, Shane Wenninger filling in for Bill Taylor would be third, Alex Pokorski fourth and Kevin Karnitz fifth.
Wingless Sprints gave us an exciting race with veteran Johnny Fahl using the high-line to pass Jimmy Sivia for the lead and win on lap 19 of the 20-lap race. Mike Neau won the Lightning Sprints race with Chad Stouthamer second.
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Top-Ten Points:
Late Models: 1) #89Brad Mueller 375, 2) #10S Taylor Scheffler 362, 3) #70 Justin Richie 350, 4) #77 Bill Edler 313, 5) D1 Turk Letizia 302, 6) tie #74 Mitch McGrath 295 and #10 Paul Parker 295, 8) #24S Jayden Schmidt 293, 9) #22 Charlie Schmidt 289, 10) #97 Justin Schmidt 280.
Sprints: 1) #35 Ben Schmidt 884, 2) #4 Alex Pokorski 841, 3) #3 Justin Erickson 836, 4) #22B Brandon Berth 821, 5) #63K Kevin Karnitz 807, 6) #69S TJ Smith 804, 7) #69 Bill Taylor 751, 8) #11 Tony Wondra 728, 9) Clayton Rossmann 685,10) Joe Hintz 658.
Grand Nationals: 1) #14X Will Sorce 647, 2) #89 Brian Gillis 633, 3) #24 Tyler Kulow 630, 4) 53W Dustin Weiss 622, 5) #95 Donny Kulow 566, 6) Scott Kafka 546, 7) #80 Luke Scholten 544, 8) Steven Weber 521, 9) #15 Derek Kaat 461, 10) 53B Brad Weiss 456.
B-Mods: 1) #3 Travis Schmidt 701, 2) #66 Steve Lorier 679, 3) #17 Brandon Knepprath 676, 4) #59 Spencer Long 668, 5) Barrett Hummelmeier 654, 6) #73 Rory Welch 611, 7) #9L Hunter Larson 587, 8) #19P Parker Glander 573, 9) #11B Brad Buckman 479, 10) Zachery Schmidt 470.
B-Mods
Sheboygan Flooring sponsored this Division: Hard Charger Sponsor was Schwaller’s Painting & Staining.
Fifty-One different drivers competed. Forty-Two races were run with nineteen drivers winning at least once.
A-Main wins: #91 Cole Thomas 2; One each: #33H Barrett Hummelmeier, #59S Spencer Long, #66 Steve Lorier, #66C Colten VanHeirden, #73 Rory Welch, #89 Logan Brass, #18 Mike Sandholm.
Most Top-fives: #3 Travis Schmidt 7, Hummelmeier 6, #17 Brandon Knepprath 5, Long 5.
Most Top-tens: Knepprath 8, Lorier 8, Schmidt 7, Long 7, Hummelmeier 7.
Most total wins: Hummelmeier 7, Van Heirden 4, Thomas 4, Schmidt 3, Lorier 3, Knepprath 3, Long 3.
Hard Chargers: (35) Schmidt, (29) Lorier, (28) Hummelmeier, (25) Brass, (24) Larson, (24) Ellis, (23) Knepprath. ( 20) Glander.
Champion: #3 Travis Schmidt
Rookie of the Year: #11B Brad Buckman
Most Improved Driver/Season: #59S Spencer long
Grand Nationals
Oostburg Automotive sponsored this division, Racers Hall sponsored Hard Chargers
Thirty-five different drivers competed with sixteen winning at least one race.
Eight A-mains were run with eight different drivers stopping in victory lane. One each, #8 Jake Richards, #14X Will Sorce, #23 Scott Kafka, #34 Steven Weber, #47 Nick Schumacher, #53B Brad Weiss, #53W Dustin Weiss, #69S TJ Smith.
Most Top-fives: Will Sorce 7, Brian Gillis 6, #24K Tyler Kulow 6, #53W Dustin Weiss 4, #80 Luke Scholten 4.
Most Top-tens: Donny Kulow 8, Sorce 8, Gillis 7, Scholten 6, Dustin Weiss 6, Tyler Kulow 6,
Most total wins: Sorce 3, Tyler Kulow 3, Scholten 3.
Hard Charger: (42) Sorce, (40) Gillis, (33) Dustin Weiss, (24) Tyler Kulow, (22) Donny Kulow, (21) Scholten.
Champion: #14X Will Sorce
Rookie of the Year: #35 Jared Weiss
Most Improved Driver/Season: #59S Spencer Long
Sprint Cars
Akright Auto sponsored this division: Kristine Hartmann, Pleasant View Realty sponsored the Hard Charger.
Forty-eight different drivers competed. Fifty-three races were run with seventeen drivers winning at least once.
Ten A-Mains saw seven drivers win at least one; #35 Ben Schmidt 3, #69S T.J. Smith 2, one each were #3 Justin Erickson, #14J Joe Hintz, #0 Robbie Pribnow, #39 Kurt Davis, #39S Scotty Thiel.
Most Top-fives: Schmidt 7, Alex Pokorski 5, T.J. Smith 5, Kurt Davis 4, Karnitz 4.
Most Top-tens: Schmidt 9, Justin Erickson 8, Karnitz 8, Alex Pokorski 8, T.J. Smith 7, Brandon Berth 6, Joe Hintz 6, Kurt Davis 5.
Most total wins: Schmidt 7, Smith 6, Davis 5, #24 Scott Conger 5, Erickson 4, Berth 4,
Hard Chargers: (40) Schmidt, (40) Clayton, (36) Hintz, (32) Doug Wondra, (30) Karnitz, (30) Smith, (28) Berth.
Champion: #35 Ben Schmidt
Rookie of the Year: #09 Clayton Rossmann & #14J Joe Hintz
Most Improved Driver/Season: #69S T.J. Smith
Late Models
106.5 The Buzz sponsored this division and the Hard Charger.
These numbers include the four Super Six events.
Thirty-three different drivers competed. 19 races were run with 11 drivers winning at least once.
Four A-Mains saw three drivers winning at least one; #10S Taylor Scheffler 2, #15 Nick Anvelink 1, #74 Mitch McGrath 1.
.
Most Top-fives: #89 Brad Mueller four, three each, #70 Justin Richie, McGrath, Scheffler 3.
Most Top-tens: Four each, Scheffler, Richie and Mueller.
Most total wins: (5) Scheffler, (2) Anvelink, #22 Charlie Schmidt, McGrath, Mueller, #99 Mike Mullen.
Hard Chargers: (26) #24S Jayden Schmidt, (17) #10 Paul Parker, (16) #19J Justin Green, (12) #9Z Jayme Zidar, #54 Kevin Baldry, #55B Joe Bongioro, McGrath, (11) Justin Richie.
Champion: #89 Brad Mueller
Rookie of the Year: none
Most Improved Driver/Season: none
Dedication to Dirt: Fred DeBlaey
Sponsor/Dedication: Kim’s 5 Corners Bar & Eatery
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PDTR thanks all officials for their dedication to the race program.
Our fans, they are the best.
See you next spring…… |
