By: Paul Reichert
May 3, 2024
April showers bloom more than just flowers in May as hope springs eternal for a brand new sports season. It is most definitely the case at Tomah-Sparta Speedway as we welcome the return of high octane fuel in the air, the sound of roaring engines coming to life and nail biting racing action. After experiencing a very competitive Chill Chaser Enduro the previous weekend, race fans were revved up for the season opener to begin a new chapter of racing in Cranberry Country. The last feature of the night provided the most excitement as we may have witnessed a preview of round two of the Sportsmen championship title fight.
The first Sportsmen feature of 2024 picked up right where the 2023 season ended. Pole sitter Mark Challet got the jump on defending champion Michael Gilomen for the lead entering turn one. There was exciting close quarters racing for the first few laps of the race as Gilomen tried to make his way under Challet. Charles Vian, Jr. piloted a sharp new ride as he debuted in the Sportsmen class, but he may have a few mechanical issues to deal with as he pulled out after just two laps. Gilomen regrouped as he gave Challet a few car lengths before trying to power by the 13 machine again. That attack came at the halfway mark of the race, but GIlomen still could not find a way by Challet even on the outside. GIlomen pulled back with five laps to go, and gave his pursuit of the lead one last try with two laps left. It was not to be tonight as Challet repelled Gilomen’s challenges to drive away with the victory.
Shelby Lockington outran Seth Gnewikow to turn one for the lead at the start of the Hobby Stock feature. Mike Stoer made quick work of Gnewikow down the back straight to move into second, then Andy Moore grabbed third spot away from last year’s Rookie of the Year at the end of the first lap. A lap later Robby Robinson and Matthew Cleveland would dismiss Gnewikow from the top five. Both Moore and Robinson powered by Stoer to move into the top three on lap three. Robinson was feeling racy on the outside as he shot past Moore to take over second on the fourth lap. Robinson would quickly catch Lockington and drive by her on the outside to become the new leader on lap five. Moore wasted little time after that to get by Lockington to claim the runner-up spot. Cleveland was the driver to watch as he took over the third podium spot from Lockington. With five laps remaining Moore suddenly slowed down the front straight and pulled into the pits with a mechanical issue. Cleveland barely made a dent in Robinson’s lead over the final five laps and the Rockford veteran got the ring the Victory Bell in TACU Credit Union Victory Lane.
The Hornet feature saw Jordan Finch outrun Matthew Drazkowski to the first turn for the lead. Adam Moore had a fast race car as he passed both Matthew Heim and Brandon McCarthy to jump from fifth to third by the end of lap one. Moore would zoom past Drazkowski to settle into second on lap two. Moore quickly caught Finch and drove around her on the outside to take the number one position on lap three. Tristan Drazkowski and fast qualifier Jamie Pearson would begin to make their presence known as they powered by both Heim and McCarthy to crack the top five on lap four. A lap later Draz Jr. shot past dad Matt to break into the top four, while Pearson wrestled fourth away from Draz Sr. They both dove under Finch to take over second and third on lap six. Contact on lap eight between McCarthy and Tristan Finnegan resulted in McCarthy tagging the front straight wall. Moore quickly pulled away from the field on the restart, while Tristan Drazkowski and Pearson began their fight to see who could challenge Moore for the race lead. With four laps to go, Pearson got an opening to power under Draz Jr. in turns one and two to take over second. Moore built up a sizable lead that Pearson could not close down over the final laps to see the checkered flag first.
Dustin McCracken found himself in a rare position at the start of the TACU Credit Union Six Shooter feature. McCracken started on the pole and surged past newcomer Christopher Neal for the lead. Ryatt Dobbratz, last year’s High School Racing Association champion, powered by Chris Brown for third on the opening circuit. Two laps later Neal would surrender the runner-up position to Dobbratz. Taylor McMullen had a very fast race car as he powered by both Brown and Neal to take over third position on lap four. Dobbratz and McMullen would throw everything they could to catch McCracken while getting into a tight battle for the runner-up spot. McMullen would power under Dobbratz to become the new second place runner as the crossed flags were displayed. Dobbratz would battle back around McMullen on the outside to take back second place on lap nine. With five laps left to run, the see-saw battle for second ended as McMullen zoomed back around Dobbratz and opened up a little daylight on the Elroy driver. There was just too much ground for McMullen to make up as McCracken had an easy Sunday drive on a Friday night as he scored the division’s first checkered flag of the new season.
The new Crown Vic division made its debut at Tomah as Cole Scholze introduced race fans to the new entry level class popular down in Florida. Scholze ran with the Hobby Stocks in their heat and feature. Despite retiring after only two laps, Scholze was crowned the winner of the first-ever feature for the Crown Vic class.
Action continues next Friday, May 10 as the INEX Great North Legends make their season debut at Tomah-Sparta and join the Sportsmen, Hobby Stocks, Hornets and Six Shooters. Make sure to bring the kids out to the races early for the first Kids’ Rides of the year after qualifying. This is always a memorable event that the kids will never ever forget. Gates open at 6, group qualifying goes live at 6:15 and the close quarters racing steps on the gas at 7:30.
Call the track office at 608-461-1920, visit our website at tomahspartaspeedway.com or like the track’s Facebook page for the latest information on Tomah-Sparta Speedway and the 2024 schedule of events.
RESULTS
Sportsmen
Feature (15 laps): 1. Mark Challet, 2. MIchael Gilomen, 3. Charles Vian, Jr.
Heat #1 (8 laps): 1. Mark Challet, 2. Michael Gilomen, 3. Charles Vian, Jr.
Qualifying: 1. Michael Gilomen 16.450, 2. Mark Challet 16.525, 3. Charles Vian, Jr. 16.963
Hobby Stocks
Feature (15 laps): 1. Robby Robinson, 2. Matthew Cleveland, 3. Shelby Lockington, 4. Seth Gnewikow, 5. Mike Stoer, 6. Scott Mahlum, 7. Mike Gratz, 8. Bryan Schott, 9. Andy Moore, 10. Landon Lockington, 11. Grant Witcraft
Heat #1 (8 laps): 1. Mike Gratz, 2. Seth Gnewikow, 3. Grant Witcraft, 4. Landon Lockington, 5. Scott Mahlum, 6. Bryan Schott
Heat #2 (8 laps): 1. Shelby Lockington, 2. Matthew Cleveland, 3. Andy Moore, 4. Mike Stoer, 5. Robby Robinson
Qualifying: 1. Andy Moore 17.830, 2. Matthew Cleveland 18.056, 3. Mike Stoer 18.174, 4. Robby Robinson 18.224 5. Shelby Lockington 18.344, 6. Seth Gnewikow 18.633, 7. Grant Witcraft 16.873, 8. Mike Gratz 18.874, 9. Scott Mahlum 19.300, 10. Landon Lockington 19.517, 11. Raymond Hardy 19.523, 12. Bryan Schott 20.843
Hornets
Feature (15 laps): 1. Adam Moore, 2. Jamie Pearson, 3. Tristan Drazkowski, 4. Jordan Finch, 5. Glen Bush, 6. Tristan Finnegan, 7. Matthew Drazkowski, 8. Caleb Uksas, 9. Aubrey Leis, 10. Ashton Quinnell, 11. Matthew Heim, 12. Brandon McCarthy
Heat #1 (8 laps): 1. Tristan Finnegan, 2. Jordan Finch, 3. Glen Bush, 4. Caleb Uksas, 5. Ashton Quinnell, 6. Aubrey Leis
Heat #2 (8 laps): 1. Adam Moore, 2. Jamie Pearson, 3. Matthew Heim, 4. Tristan Drazkowski, 5. Matthew Drazkowski, 6. Brandon McCarthy
Qualifying: 1. Jamie Pearson 18.787, 2. Tristan Drazkowski 19.187, 3. Adam Moore 19.588, 4. Brandon McCarthy 19.655, 5. Matthew Heim 19.720, 6. Matthew Drazkowski 19.724, 7. Jordan Finch 19.917, 8. Glen Bush 20.037, 9. Ashton Quinnell 20.392, 10. Tristan Finnegan 20.449, 11. Caleb Uksas 22.516, 12. Aubrey Leis 23.404
TACU Credit Union Six Shooters
Feature (15 laps): 1. Dustin McCracken, 2. Taylor McMullen, 3. Ryatt Dobbratz, 4. Greg Brown, Jr., 5. Tim Murphy, Sr., 6. Chris Brown, 7. Christopher Neal, 8. Alex Lueth, 9. Zachary Morgan
Heat #1 (8 laps): 1. Dustin McCracken, 2. Christopher Neal, 3. Devin Glass, 4. Alex Lueth, 5. Zachary Morgan
Heat #2 (8 laps): 1. Ryatt Dobbratz, 2. Taylor McMullen, 3. Tim Murphy, Sr., 4. Greg Brown, Jr., 5. Chris Brown
Qualifying: 1. Greg Brown, Jr. 19.480, 2. Tim Murphy, Sr. 19.501, 3. Taylor McMullen 19.666, 4. Ryat Dobbratz 19.706, 5. Chris Brown 19.761, 6. Christopher Neal 20.113, 7. Dustin McCracken 20.337, 8. Devin Glass 20.486, 9. Zachary Morgan 20.630, 10. Alex Lueth 22.729
Crown Vics
Feature (15 laps): 1. Cole Scholze
Heat #1 (8 laps): 1. Cole Scholze
Qualifying: 1. Cole Scholze 20.146
