GREEN BAY, Wis. (May 10, 2022) – Nothing feels better than getting a season started off on the right foot. That’s exactly what a field full of former Champions will be looking to do as they contend for the biggest winner’s share in TUNDRA Super Late Model Series history this Saturday in Great Lakes Testing Round One at Wisconsin International Raceway.
The Bear 66 Presented by Les Stumpf Ford will pay $3,066 to the winner. Whoever is to grab that prize most certainly will have earned it by fending off a field full of heavy hitters.
Leading the charge will be three former TUNDRA Champions. Four-time series Champion Casey Johnson scored fast time and a win in the series lid lifter in 2021. Three-time series titlist Dalton Zehr won the first ever TUNDRA race at the famed half-mile. Kulwicki Driver Development Program Finalist and 2021 Champ Riley Stenjem set fast time in his first ever visit to the facility. All three drivers are sure to be in contention for the win and potentially a cash bonus from Ken’s Sports for quick time.
Beyond those drivers, fans should pay attention to some very hungry TUNDRA regulars who will be looking to put themselves in good positions for a 2022 Championship run. Jordan Thiel has secured multiple top tens at what he considers his home facility. Two-time Golden Sands and State Park Speedway Champion Justin Mondeik had a strong run early last year until he experienced mechanical failure. Brock Henrich and Colin Reffner have multiple Top Fives at the facility. Jordan DeVoy enters having won the last two TUNDRA races of 2021 and scoring a win in the Dells Raceway Park IceBreaker this past April. Look for them all to be a factor in the 66-lap main event.
Traveling racers will be contested by some local flavor looking to score a win for the WIR locals for the first time in nine tries. Among those drivers are former track Champions Jeff Van Oudenhoven, Lowell Bennett, Bobby Kendall, and Andy Monday as well as former Red, White and Blue Champion. Jesse Oudenhoven. What’s more, both Grant Griesbach and Sawyer Effertz will be looking to snag the prize – both drivers came within an eyelash of winning the last two weekly Fox River Racing Club Championships.
The talent and Championships don’t stop there. Other former Champions in the field include Norway Speedway Champion Chad Butz, former KDDP and Slinger Champ Alex Prunty, former Rockford Speedway titlist Max Kahler, multiple-time WIR Late Model Champions Braison Bennett and Brent Strelka, and former Slinger Late Model Champion Jacob Nottestad. Fans may remember Nottestad (also a member of the 2022 KDDP class) picked up a win in his first and only TUNDRA start at Jefferson last year.
The field will also have some new faces as well as some returning. Lou Goss, and EPYK Media Rookies Barrett Polhemus and James Storey will make their series debut. Kole Guralski will also be in the mix of the TUNDRA Rookie battle, having made his actual series debut two seasons ago at Jefferson. Returning to the fray will be Terry Schoppenhorst, who scored the first ever checkered flag in the dash of the first Alive for Five race in 2011, Minnesota pilot Michael Ostdiek, and veteran racer Darek Gress.
TUNDRA will be joined by the WIR ¼-Mile Late Models, Wisconsin Sport Trucks, and the Figure 8s. Fan gates open at noon, qualifying is at 12:30, and racing begins at 2 PM.
The fun doesn’t stop after the checkered flag during Great Lakes Testing Round One. Fans can join racers and teams while rocking out to the band Liquid Courage in the pits. There is also free on-site camping available for those who would like to make a weekend of the event.
Wisconsin International Raceway is located just past the intersection of Highways 55 & KK outside Kaukauna, Wis. For more information visit http://www.wirmotorsports.com
Great Lakes Testing Round One and The Bear 66 Presented by Les Stumpf Ford Wisconsin International Raceway Saturday, May 14, 2022 Expected Entries (29) as of 5/10/21 # – Driver, Hometown 1 – Jesse Oudenhoven, Kaukana, Wis. 2 – Sawyer Effertz, Darboy, Wis. 2 – Jordan Thiel, Darboy, Wis. 2 – Lowell Bennett, Neenah, Wis. 5 – Casey Johnson, Edgerton, Wis. 6 – Andy Monday, Appleton, Wis. 8 – Chad Butz, Green Bay, Wis. 11 – Bobby Kendall, Montello, Wis. 11 – Alex Prunty, Lomira, Wis. 12 – Terry Schoppenhorst, Berlin, Wis. 17 – Max Kahler, Caledonia, Ill. GT17 – Grant Griesbach, Pewaukee, Wis. 18 – Michael Ostdiek, Lakeville, Minn. 31 – Corey Jankowski, Tomah, Wis. 36 – Lou Goss, Green Bay, Wis. 38 – Jordan DeVoy, Lake Geneva, Wis. 44 – Justin Mondeik, Gleason, Wis. 45 – Jeff VanOudenhoven, Kimberly, Wis. 47 – Braison Bennett, Neenah, Wis. 52 – Brock Heinrich, Wausau, Wis. 52 – Brent Strelka, Freedom, Wis. 56 – Kole Guralski, Wausau, Wis. [R] 66 – James Storey, Burlington, Wis. [R] 77 – Riley Stenjem, Utica, Wis. 79 – Barrett Polhemus, Tomball, Tex. [R] 87 – Colin Reffner, Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. 97 – Jacob Nottestad, Cambridge, Wis. 107.5 – Darek Gress, Neillsville, Wis. 119 – Dalton Zehr, Verona, Wis.