The waving of the final checkered flag does not signify the end of the race day's activities though. Drivers, crews and fans are invited to a bon fire with free entertainment, food and beverages at the Bungalow Bar afterwords.
Saturdays lineup had the Front Wheel Drive class first. Karen Koltunski and Steve Hallquist brought out the caution on the first lap when their rides got locked together coming out of the corner, landing Koltunski on top of Hallquist left front tire. Track personnel were able to free the two cars without any damage, and with the grid restored to the original positions the green dropped.
Brooke Fairbanks would be the early leader of a tight formation of cars, one being that of Scott Miller. Miller took the lead on lap four and would go on to be the race winner. Hallquist settled into the runner up spot with Nick Traynor using the high side, bouncing off the banks for a third place finish. Koltunski stayed out of trouble the remaining laps for a fourth place finish ahead of Jesse Tripp.
Eight Powder Puff drivers took over the steering wheel duties next, and rookie Ali Kuehndorf showed poise taking the checkers with a comfortable lead ahead of the competition. With Kuehndorf checked out, Jessica Achterberg had the chore of holding off the advances of Tiffany Davis, Jill Amundson and Amy Morrison. As the laps wound down the foursome would stay in position, giving Kuehndorf her first feature win.
Next on the board were the COMP4 class, a class that has shown multiple winners thus far. After a pair of heat wins, Tadd Davis would vie for a clean sweep in the class with a feature win. Karen Koltunski entered the feature race after finishing runner up in both heat races, hungry for a checkered flag as well. A non stop fifteen lap battle between the pair would put Koltunski a top the podium. Davis's bid for a sweep would be put on hold with a runner up spot. The fight for the third through fifth finishing spots put Marcus Simonson ahead of Al Koltunski and Ken Hanson.
The Full Size class were last on the day, with fifteen cars taking the green flag in hopes of being declared the winner. Bob Thompson lead the first lap losing the position to rookie Jim Demers. Demers would only hold the top spot for one lap though, with Chase Kreier leading the way next. Kreier would lose the lead after a caution bunched the field, giving Scott Miller a shot at the lead.
Miller already had the FWD trophy from earlier, wanting a second piece of hardware to match. Millers wishes would come true in a race shortened due to time limits. Demers posted his best finish with a runner up spot. Bill Crapser worked his way through traffic for third, Simon Wahlstrom would finish fourth in his borrowed ride with Kreier making a last lap pass for fifth.
Rice Lake Ice Racing is held on the north end of Rice Lake every Saturday through March 7th, race time is 12:30 pm.. Admission is free and there is a plowed parking area around the track. Spectators can tune their radios into FM102.5 and listen to live racing action and results, a new twist for the 09 season. For more info visit www.geocities.com/ricelakeiceracing . The club is also selling raffle tickets for a mini chopper to help offset expenses, info can be obtained by contacting the Bungalow Bar at (715)234-9931 or Troy at (715)296-6768.
FWD
Heat 1: 1~Jon Wigchers, Rice Lake; 2~~Nick Traynor, Chetek; 3~Fred Lloyd, Cumberland
Heat 2: 1~Mark Lawrence, Cumberland; 2~Jesse Tripp, Spooner; 3~Brooke Fairbanks, Spooner
Heat 3: 1~Scott Miller, Rice Lake; 2~N. Traynor; 3~J. Wigchers
Heat 4: 1~Karen Koltunski, Cumberland; 2~B. Fairbanks; 3~J. Tripp
Feature: 1~S. Miller; 2~Steve Hallquist, Eau Claire; 3~N. Traynor; 4~K. Koltunski; 5~J. Tripp
POWDER PUFF
Heat 1: 1~Tiffany Davis, Chetek; 2~Sheila Cook, Barron; 3~Jane Demers, Rice Lake
Heat 2: 1~Ali Kuehndorf, Chetek; 2~Jessica Achterberg, Chetek; 3~Amy Morrison, Cumberland
Feature: 1~A. Kuehndorf; 2~J. Achterberg; 3~T. Davis; 4~Jill Amundson, Barron; 5~A. Morrison
COMP4
Heat 1: 1~Tadd Davis, Rice Lake; 2~Karen Koltunski, Cumberland; 3~Ken Hansen, Webster
Heat 2: 1~T. Davis; 2~K. Koltunski; 3~Al Koltunski, Cumberland
Feature: 1~K. Koltunski; 2~T. Davis; 3~Marcus Simonson, Milltown; 4~A. Koltunski; 5~K. Hansen
6/8 FULL SIZE
Heat 1: 1~Jeff Brueggen, Rice Lake; 2~Jim Demers, Rice Lake; 3~Brandon Davis, Chetek
Heat 2: 1~Troy Holder, Rice Lake; 2~Scott Miller, Rice Lake; 3~Bob Thompson, Cameron
Heat 3: 1~T. Holder; 2~S. Miller; 3~Chase Kreier, Cameron
Heat 4: 1~B. Thompson; 2~John Erickson, Cameron; 3~J. Demers
Feature: 1~S. Miller; 2~J. Demers; 3~Bill Crapser, Eau Claire; 4~Simon Wahlstrom, Cameron; 5~C. Kreier