2016 Thunderstruck93 preview

September 23, 2016 - Elko, MN

By Jason D Searcy

The Thunderstruck93 event is Saturday September 24th at Elko Speedway.  This event has a long history at Elko, it's the 9th annual race in honor of Dan Ryan and in support of "a race worth winning" a nonprofit organization set up to support families who are dealing with A.L.S.  Ryan was a long time racer and car owner, he is member of the Elko Speedway Hall of Fame.  Dan Ryan died of the disease in January of 2009.  His car was number 93 and he loved the song Thunderstruck, hence the name Thunderstuck93.

The Finale of this event is our local MN Corn Growers Super Late Models racing with the ARCA Midwest tour series.  They will race a 125 lap event with a ten minute break in the action at lap 93.

In the seven years of this race only four different drivers have won.  Danny Fredrickson #36 from Lakeville (MN) has four wins (2010, 2011, 2012, 2014).  Fredrickson was the Elko Speedway Late Model Champion in 2003 who also went on to win three Championships in the Midwest Tour.

Jacob Goede #72 from Carver (MN) won the inaugural event in 2009.  Goede is the three time defending Super Late Model Champion at Elko Speedway.  He also has won big touring series events at Iowa Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway.

Andrew Morrissey #39 from DeForest (WI) was the Midwest tour Champion in 2011 and he won the Thunderstruck93 in 2013.

Ty Majeski #91 from Seymour (WI) won this race in 2015, he is the two time defending Champion of the ARCA Midwest tour, he was declared the Kulwicki Driver Development Champion last year and is currently in a developmental deal signed with Roush-Fenway racing in NASCAR.

Nick Murgic from Rosemount (MN) is another driver to watch, he has competed in every Thunderstruck93 event finishing third two different times and coming in second in 2010.

One of the most unique aspects of this race is the much desired electric guitar trophy presented to the winner by the Ryan family.  This guitar was named one of the best trophies in racing by Speed51. 

New Thunderstruck93 logo apparel will be available for sale on raceday at the track and thanks to a donation from Country Joe Homes the full sales amount will go to help those living with ALS.

One of the most spectacular finishes in Super Late Model history in the 51 years of racing at Elko Speedway happened during Thunderstruck93 in 2015.  Dan Fredrickson and Jacob Goede had an intense side by side battle for the lead that seemed to go on forever, but then Ty Majeski came from the back of the pack to pass both Fredrickson and Goede during the final three laps and won by just .054 seconds.  The crowd was stunned at the result and thrilled with such great racing throughout the field.

In addition to the 125 lap Midwest Tour race, the Big 8 Late Model series will race with the Elko Hiway Federal Credit Union Big 8 cars.  Elko Speedway has one of the strongest and largest fields of Big 8 cars in the nation.  In NASCAR Whelen All American Series Div II points eight Elko Speedway drivers finished in the TOP 20 in the National Standings including National Champion hopeful #18 Michael Ostdiek from Lakeville (MN) who is second in their point standings to #2 Michael Bilderback from South Beloit (IL).

Fans also saw an incredible finish to the Big 8 Championship race at Elko Speedway last weekend, #54 Dylan Moore came back from a mid-race wreck and tied #17 Jon Lemke for the Championship with Moore winning on the tie-breaker.

One of the most fan friendly parts of the Thunderstruck93 is the on-track autograph session, it will take place at 3:10pm and conclude just before action begins on the track at 4pm.  Fans can meet their favorite driver, get autographs and photos on the race track.  Spectator gates open at 3pm.

Get more information by going to ElkoSpeedway.com or follow Elko Speedway on Social Media or download the free ELKO Racing app.  Elko Speedway is a 3/8th mile progressive banked asphalt oval located in Elko (MN) 30 minutes South of Downtown Minneapolis just off of I-35 and County Road 2.

Elko Power Stock/Thunder Car Championship

 September 22, 2016 - Elko, MN

 

By Jason D Searcy

The Thunderstruck93 is Saturday September 24th at Elko Speedway.  The Finale of the long day of racing is the 125 Lap ARCA Midwest tour race and the exciting 58 lap Big 8 Late Model series race.

Elko race fans are also eagerly awaiting two other races being held on that same night.  It's Championship night in the Genz-Ryan Thunder Cars and the Pepsi Power Stocks.

The Genz-Ryan Thunder Car title is up between two heated rivals.  Jeremy Wolff #32 from Chaska (MN) and Brent Kane #99 from Lonsdale (MN). 

 

Jeremy Wolff has been racing since 1989, he started out on dirt racing a Hobby Stock at Arlington Raceway (MN) for four years.  Wolff then moved to the asphalt when the Hobby Stock division began at Raceway Park in 1993.  Wolff drove a Late Model for a few years from 1997-2001 and did quite well, winning races and finishing in the TOP 5 in points.  He then moved back into his familiar Hobby Stock class winning the Championship at Raceway Park in 2008.

This is the third year of racing full-time at Elko Speedway, Wolff has been close to a Championship at Elko, he has finished second the previous two years.  He has had an incredible season, winning five features and leading by 31 points coming into Championship night during Thunderstruck93.

 

The main contender for Wolff is Brent Kane, he is known as the "King of the Thunder Cars" winning Championships at Elko Speedway in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2015.  They have similar stories, Kane also raced Late Models for a short time and then moved back to the Hobby Stock/Thunder Car division.  Kane started racing full time in 1999 and won the Hobby Stock Championship at Raceway Park 3 times.  He has an amazing total of 95 career feature wins.

The Thunder Cars are scheduled to race both a heat and a feature event during Thunderstruck93.  So the heat race is very important for points, a driver can earn 21pts for a heat race win, 18 for second, 16 for third, 14 for fourth, 12 for fifth, 10 for sixth, 8 for seventh, 7pts for eighth, 6pts for 9th, 5pts for tenth and 4pts for eleventh and 3pts for all other drivers.

So, with a 31 point lead, Jeremy Wolff can wrap up the point title if he can stay within 4 points of Kane during the heat races.  The last place finisher in the feature earns 24pts and the winner earns 51pts so as long as Wolff can stay 27 points ahead of Kane coming into the feature event he should win the Championship.  Wolff currently has the tie-breaker which is number of wins (5 to 1).

If he were to win, it would be the first career Championship for Jeremy Wolff at Elko Speedway.  Both of these drivers have and large and vocal fan base and they are sure to be loud on Saturday night no matter who comes out on top.

The Pepsi Power Stock Championship is sure to come down to the final race.  The point leader is #62 Tom Doten a veteran driver from St Paul (MN) and second place is a rookie from Lakeville (MN) #37 Bryce Blohm.  They are separated by only 6 points coming into their Championship night at Thunderstruck93.

The Power Stock division has had 11 different winners this year and Bryce Blohm has garnered the most wins at 5.  Tom Doten only has 1 win but has scored the most TOP 5 finishes in the division.

Bryce Blohm is a rookie but he has watched his father score two Thunder Car titles at Elko Speedway (2000, 2009) and he has spent years planning for a night such as this to claim a title of his own.

 

Tom Doten is on the other end of the spectrum, he has raced since about 1990 and off and on at Elko Speedway since 1995.  He was very close to winning the Power Stock Championship in 2013, Jon Lebens was ahead by 2 points coming into the final night of racing and then the season ended with a rain-out.

Thunderstruck93 is sure to be an eventful night of racing.  It all begins at 3pm with a unique on-track autograph session where you can walk the track, talk to the drivers, get autographs and photos before the action begins at 4pm.  The Hornets and Great North Legends will also be racing during Thunderstruck93 and event in honor of Dan Ryan and to support families who are fighting A.L.S.

Get full details by going to ElkoSpeedway.com follow Elko Speedway on Social media or by downloading the free ELKO Racing app.

Elko Speedway is a NASCAR sanctioned 3/8th mile progressive banked asphlat oval racetrack in Elko (MN) located 30 minutes South of Downtown Minneapolis just off of I-35 and County road 2.

Majeski wins #Thunderstruck93

By Jason D Searcy

September  26, 2015 - Elko, MN

With one of the most improbable moves ever seen at Elko Speedway Ty Majeski from Seymore (WI) passed both Dan Fredrickson and Jacob Goede in the last three laps to win the 7th annual Thunderstruck93 ARCA Midwest tour race presented by NAPA Auto Parts.

Dan Fredrickson won fast time in qualifying with a lap of 13.595 seconds, Fredrickson is a four time winner of this event, and a two time Midwest tour Champion.  Jacob Goede is the 2009 winner of this event and he dominated racing at Elko Speedway this summer, scoring 10 wins in route to his second MN Corn Growers Super Late Model title. 

Front row starters Steve Apel and Matt Goede battled for the top spot early, but then a spin by Paul Paine brought out the caution at lap 20 of this 125 lap race.  Majeski was involved in the accident and put to the back of the 26 car field.  "I dug myself in a hole early, I had some contact with the 27 car (Paine), just one of those racing deals," said Majeski "I tried to methodically make my way up through the field and I tried not to use too much tire, I knew the two guys I had to beat were up front already."

Dan Fredrickson and Jacob Goede were in the familiar position of racing each other for Thunderstruck glory.  In the 2012 race these same two guys battled throughout and then had contact on the last lap with Fredrickson pulling out the victory. 

Fredrickson took the lead from his 10th starting spot just after the restart on lap 20, he and Goede then swapped the top spot numerous times with frequent side by side and close racing for the lead.

The traditional 10 minute break in the race is at lap 93, the number used by Dan Ryan, an Elko Speedway Hall of Fame member who died from A.L.S (Lou Gehrig's disease) in 2009 and who this race is a memorial for.

At the break and with 32 laps to go Dan Fredrickson was the leader with Jacob Goede second, Ty Majeski had made his way back up to fifth on the board.  On the restart Goede shot to the lead and the battle with Fredrickson continued.

Meanwhile Majeski was ready to pounce "When I got into third they were at least a straightaway in front, I didn't know if I would have enough time to get them but they started battling, they got into lapped traffic and I was able to make some ground up and make the move for the win" said Majeski.

Fredrickson and Goede raced so hard for the lead that they both wore out their tires and that opened up the door for Majeski to make one of the most epic runs to the front ever seen at Elko Speedway.  "I saw the top two were sliding each other up in the 3rd and 4th groove and I got underneath Fredrickson and cleared him and then got a good run on Goede, I got to the inside of him, trying to get at least even with him, I used him up a little bit in 3 and 4 and it was enough at the line" said Majeski.

It was the closest finish in Thunderstruck93 history, Majeski beat Jacob Goede by only .054 seconds with Fredrickson a car length behind rounding out the podium trio.

"I've wanted this guitar (trophy) for a while, I almost had it last year and really wanted it this year," said Majeski "I'm really thankful for the Ryan family, its really special to win on this night, it means a lot to me for sure."

Here is a YouTube video of the wild final few laps of #Thunderstruck93 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLCe-bxDGSI

Here is the audio interview with Ty Majeski after the races https://soundcloud.com/speedtalkon1360/ty-majeski-wins

Chris Weinkauf had a consistent run finishing 4th with veteran racer Tim Sauter in 5th and Jonathan Eilen finished 6th even though he had a tire slowly going down.

Full results can be found at www.arcamidwesttour.com

Austin Nason from Roscoe (IL) won the 68 lap BIG 8 Late Model series race at Thunderstruck93 he took the lead on lap 26 and held off numerous charges from Elko Speedway Hiway Federal Credit Union 12 time winner and BIG 8 Champion Chris Marek for the win.  Michael Beamish finished third in this impressive 23 car field.

Full results can be found at www.Big8series.com

#99 Brent Kane from Lonsdale (MN) held off a great challenge by Jeremy Wolff to win his fourth Genz-Ryan Thunder Car title at Elko Speedway.

Both drivers won their heat races, Wolff won his heat in spectacular fashion, going three wide in the closing laps not once but twice bringing the large Thuunderstruck93 crowd to its feet.

The two drivers started the feature side by side in the fifth row.  Kane had a 9 point cushion so Wolff had to get to the front and hope that Kane had problems.  Wolff did his part, weaving through traffic and passing cars left and right, but Devin Schmidt from Belle Plane (MN) ran away from the field, took a big lead, and won his second feature of the year by 1.978 seconds.

Wolff finished second and Kane did the smart thing, held his position, finished 6th and won the Championship by 5 points.  Kane was emotional in victory lane thanking his crew, sponsors and all the people who had helped him win 9 races in 2015. 

Eric Campbell finished third, Tina Davis fourth and Dillon Sellner fifth in points.

15 year old Grant Brown from Prior Lake (MN) won his first ever Pepsi Power Stock Championship at Elko Speedway.  Brown finished the feature in second place and won the title by 56 points over Tom Doten with Taylor Goldman third, Brandon Peterson finishing fourth and Paul Hamilton fifth.

The 20 lap and 22 car feature had a wild ending.  Joey Prusak from Hopkins (MN) was declared the winner.  Paul Hamilton led most of the race, he was caught by Brandon Peterson on the last lap and the two had contact through turns 3 and 4.  Hamilton ended up with heavy damage and into the wall and Peterson was disqualified giving Prusak his first ever win at Elko Speedway.

It has been a challenging season for Prusak who has struggled with mechanical problems and bad luck all year long, but his luck changed at the right time.  "I told my dad that I didn't care if I won a race all year long just as long as I win Thunderstruck93!" said Prusak.

It was a big week for #14 Grant Brown who got a phone call from NASCAR telling him he was declared the National Champion in Division 4.  "I didn't know until Friday, during my fourth hour biology I got the call from NASCAR that I had won."  Grant and his crew will be honored by NASCAR as National Champions at the awards banquet in Charlotte (NC) this winter.

Derek Lemke from Shakopee (MN) won his 4th Great North Legends feature of the year, he beat 16 year old Wil McCully by 2.044 seconds at the line, it was a career best finish for McCully.  Shon Jacobsen finished third, Brady Fox-Rhode fourth and Jaycen Brockhouse fifth.

With the win Lemke extended his lead to 25 points over Brockhouse in the race for the Championship.  The Great North Legends will crown their Champion next Saturday night October 3rd at Elko Speedway.

Matt Suhl from Richfield (MN) won his second Hornets feature of 2015.  Suhl started up front and stayed there the entire 15 lap race.  Alex Vincent gave Suhl a good run but Suhl ended up winning by .226 seconds with Craig Allers finishing third and Ashley Bell fourth.

Justin Schelitzche finished the race in 7th but still has a sizeable lead in the race for the Hornets Championship.  Schelitzche leads Ashley Bell by 49 points going into the final night of racing next Saturday October 3rd.

For full results and point standings go to www.ElkoSpeedway.com/results

The #Thunderstruck93 event saw a great turnout for the on-track autograph session, over 100 cars participated before the racing began at 4pm.  Thunderstruck93 is in memory of Elko Speedway Hall of Fame racer Dan Ryan who passed away in 2009, it has raised thousands of dollars to help fight ALS, to donate go to www.araceworthwinning.org

Up next at Elko Speedway is the final race of the 2015 season and Eve of Destruction presented by Leo's South on Saturday October 3rd.  Champions will be crowned in the Hornets, Great North Legends and Bandoleros divisions plus entertainment by the Green Mamba Jet car, Burn out contest, the world famous Figure 8 trailer race and much more.  The evening will conclude with a huge Rock n Roll Fireworks show.  Gates open at 5pm, action begins at 6pm.

Elko Speedway is located 20 minutes South of the Twin Cities just off of I-35 and County Road 2, get more information by calling (952) 461-7223, go to www.elkospeedway.com or follow Elko Speedway on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Fredrickson wins Thunderstruck93

Dan Fredrickson from Lakeville (MN) was the class of the field on a stormy night in the ARCA Midwest tour Thunderstruck93 event presented by NAPA Auto Parts at Elko Speedway. 

The 6th annual Thunderstruck event is in memory of Elko Speedway Hall of Fame member Dan Ryan who died of ALS.  To Dan Fredrickson this race has special meaning "my buddy Dan died of Lou Gehrig's disease, its really a tough deal to experience and I think about him a lot," said Fredrickson who has now won 4 of the 6 Thunderstruck93 races and its trademark guitar trophy.

Here is an emotional interview with Dean Reller and Danny right after the race 

Fredrickson is both a former Elko Speedway track Champion in 2003 and two time ARCA Midwest tour champion in 2008 and 2013.  Dan took most of this year off from racing but came back to racing at Elko Speedway a few weeks ago to get his car ready for Thunderstruck93.  "It payed off," said Fredrickson "the car was pretty good, much better than last year."

Fredrickson was fastest of the 32 cars in Time Trials with a time of 13.700 but the 12 car inversion for the 125 lap feature after a short rain delay put him back in the 6th row to begin the race.  Brad Keith from West Bend (WI) lead the race early but fell back after Hampton (MN) driver Jonathan Eilen shot to the lead on lap 6.  Fredrickson passed Eilen on lap 24 and never gave up the lead even though he got loads of pressure late in the race from Ty Majeski from Seymore (WI).  "We thought it might rain, so I worked my tires a bit too hard early in the race" said Fredrickson.  Majeski who was 2nd in ARCA Midwest tour points moved to second on the track by lap 100 and raced side by side with Fredrickson for the lead the rest of the race "I gave him the bottom a couple times, I was nervous that I might miss a corner here or there, but it was a really good race," said Fredrickson.

19 year old Majeski (photo above) finished second by only .326 seconds and moved into the Midwest tour point lead.  Here is an interview with Dean Reller and Ty after the race

Rosemount (MN) driver Nick Murgic (above) finished 3rd.  Here is Dean Reller an interview with Nick immediately after the race



ARCA Midwest tour point leader Nathan Haseleu from Marshall (WI) finished 4th and Elko Speedway MN Corn Growers Super Late Model Champion Jacob Goede from Carver (MN) rounded out the top 5.  Veteran racer Tim Sauter 6th, TUNDRA Champion Nick Panitzke 7th, Jason Weinkauf 8th, Chris Weinkauf 9th and MN Driver Joel Theisen got his first ever Midwest Tour Top 10 finish.

The Big 8 Late Model series appeared in Minnesota for only the second time ever at Thunderstruck93 and it was 18 year old Austin Nason from Roscoe (IL) who won.  Nason started the 58 lap race 10th but worked his was to the lead by lap 18, he passed Joe Neisius from Rosemount (MN) on the high side for the top spot.  Nason then had to hold off Elko Speedway Big 8 Champion Chris Marek and then Big 8 point leader Casey Johnson from Edgerton (WI) for the win.  Nason won by only .203 seconds at the finish line with Johnson 2nd, Marek 3rd another Minnesota driver Jon Lemke in fourth and Neisus dropped to 5th in the 24 car field.

The 11th annual Genz-Ryan Thunder Car Nationals race also took place at Elko Speedway during Thunderstruck93.  It was Dillion Sellner from Farmington (MN) leading the 25 car field the entire 50 lap race.  Sellner was challenged numerous times during the race by Ted Reuvers from Dundas (MN) and then it was Tina Davis from Rosemount (MN) putting on the pressure late, Sellner won by .240 seconds.  Scott King finished 13th, he and his bride Tracy (Photo below) were married at the track just before opening ceremonies.

The Mid American Stock car series raced a 50 lap feature at Thunderstruck93.  Lyle Nowak from Wausau (WI) started on the front row, took the lead and then fought back a hard charging Scott Dunning from Bolingbrook (IL) for the win.  Dunning started fourth row outside, made some bold moves diving down low early in the race and ran his way up to second place by the half-way mark, he closed the gap but could get no closer, he finished second by .267 seconds behind Nowak.  Jeremy Spoonmore finished third and picked up a few points on Championship leader Jeff Holtz who finished 5th.

Tim Brockhouse from Prior Lake (MN) won the 20 lap Great North Legends main event, he had a furious battle with Dirk Henry from Sauk Centre (MN) as the two went side by side for much of the race, swapping the top spot.  "It was really cool, Dirk and I must have rubbed 7 or 8 times, he raced me clean though and we didn't crash and he was the first one to shake my hand in victory lane," said Brockhouse.  Point leader Derek Lemke from Shakopee (MN) broke a gear mid-race and finished 15th in the 19 car field, Brady Fox-Rhode finished 8th and closed the gap in the point standings.  Lemke has only an 8 point lead over Fox-Rhode going into the final race night.

Ridge Oien from Bloomington (MN) won the 20 lap Mini Stock race, Oien lead the entire way for his first win of the year.  Brandon Olson who won last week finished second, Ashley Bell third and point leader Brian Adams coming in 4th.  Adams increased his point lead over Michael Wachs Jr to 57 points going into the final race night at Elko Speedway.


Listen for full coverage of the Thunderstruck93 event on Speed Talk on 1360 radio Saturday morning 10-11am on www.krwc1360.com

Fredrickson and Goede battle for Thunderstruck

By Jason D Searcy

The fourth annual Thunderstruck 93 ASA Midwest tour race at Elko Speedway had a wild finish with #36 Danny Fredrickson finishing just ahead of Jacob Goede for his third consecutive Thunderstruck win.

ASA Midwest Sportsman crowned at Elko

Oct 2 2010

Chris "cruiser" Marek won the first ASA Midwest Sportsman tour championship after finishing third at Elko Speedway on Saturday (Oct  2nd).

Marek was leading the point standings over Jay Kalbus by only 26pts going into the final race of the season.  Kalbus did not enter the race at Elko, "I was let down that Kalbus wasn't here, I wanted to try and beat him the right way" said Marek.

Chris Marek had a fantastic season with 4 wins and 9 "top10" finishes during the ten race schedule even though he had never raced at any of the tracks except Raceway Park and Elko Speedway.  "I was really surprised to do so well, to go in blind and come through that successful was a huge surprise to me" said Marek.

The Thunder car nationals ASA Midwest Sportsman event was won by Brent "freight train" Kane who won the 40 lap race by four car lengths after taking the lead on lap 14.  It was his 19th feature win this season.  "The car was awesome, I know everyone says that in victory lane, but it really was awesome" said Kane.

The entire race evening was a memorial to Elko "hall of fame" member Dan Ryan who recently died of A.L.S.  "It was emotional because of Dan Ryan," said Kane "I had a tear in my eye, and saluted him in corner number two."  Kane won the race, Steve Anderson drove the #15 car to a second place finish, Marek got third and Ted Reuvers finished fourth.

Danny Fredrickson won the post-poned Thunderstruck 93 lap Super Late Model event dedicated to Dan Ryan.  Fredrickson started seventh of the seventeen cars that took the green flag, it only took him twelve laps to move into the lead.  Fredrickson held off Nick Murgic and defending Thunderstruck 93 winner Jacob Goede to win by six car lengths.  Fredrickson told of how much he admired Dan Ryan in an emotional victory lane interview and celebration.   

get more informaton at http://www.asamidwesttour.com/