By Brandon Aschenbrenner
Special to the City Times

WISCONSIN RAPIDS — June 9 at Golden Sands Speedway could have been called First Time Winner night.

Greg Matthews, Wyatt Brooks, Mitch Stankowski and Brett Breitenfeldt all won their first features at Golden Sands Speedway.

(Photo: Jeff Blaser Photography)

In Super Stock action, Greg Back (6) took fast time after getting a transponder to read correctly. In the heat race, Greg Matthews (8) took the win. In the feature, Lucas Betro (1) and Brad Scholze (87) both took turns leading some laps until Matthews was able to take it away. Back was closing in on the lead, but with five laps to go, the engine expired on his car. That would allow Matthews to hold on for his first feature win. Travis Volm (76) took second with John Zuch (8), Scholze and Matt Komatz (33) finishing top five.

The Back 40 Wraps Super Late Models had Mark Eswein (71) capture fast time. Steve Lichtfeld (32), Colin Reffner (87) and Ernie Schlough (7-11) all took heat wins. The third heat is where contact between Mike Olson (64) and Darren Jackson (2) at the start of the race caused a lot of damage and Olson would not be able to complete the night. In the feature, Reffner was able to lead early and ran away from the field. Caution came out when contact between Mike Lichtfeld (44), Darren Jackson and Rene Scheinoha (5) would all be involved. On that restart, more damage was done when Jerry Brickner (9) and Frank Nitzke (18) touched and Eugene Gregorich III (14), Haley Kapp (32) and Tyler Radovich (13) all got collected and would not be able to continue. After two green laps were run, another caution flew when Schlough spun after contact with Jake Capek (81). Wyatt Brooks (25) began to challenge Reffner when the green went back out and Brooks took the lead. Brooks’ teammate Jordan Theil (2) would then challenge for the top spot as well. On the white flag lap, Mike Lichtfeld was able to steal second when Theil slipped high out of turn two. It would however finish with Brooks who picked up his first Super Late Model feature win. Lichtfeld and Theil took second and third, with Eswein and Nitzke rounding out the top five.

(Photo: Jeff Blaser Photography)

The Pure Stocks would be paced by Mark Kalata (75x) who took quick time. Mitch Stankowski (19) took the win in the heat race. The feature would see the same as the heat with Stankowski picking up the feature win, his first at Golden Sands Speedway. Kalata took second, Louie Merriam (17) third, Brandon Knoblock (71) fourth and Hunter Cramer (66) fifth.

The Modified Four-Cylinder class saw Scott Ciesielski (21) take fast time. Ian Arneson (14) snagged the win in the heat. In the feature, Arneson used the outside to make a three-wide pass to get to the lead and he would hold off Ciesielski and grab the win. George Seliger (06), Charlie Nickel (12) and Josh Klopotek (181) rounded out the field.

The Stock Four-Cylinder class found Brett Breitenfeldt (14) fastest in qualifying. Brandon Polansky (287) made it to victory lane in the heat race. In the feature event. Breitenfeldt was able to get away from the pack early and looked to have it easy, but lap traffic allowed Shawn Kemnetz (24) to close up to his bumper. Breitenfeldt was able to hold him off by going three wide around the lap cars and picked up the feature win. Kemnetz held onto second, Polansky third, and two ladies, Nikki Coulthurst (17) and Amanda Rowe (14) finished fourth and fifth.

The Two-man Cruiser division was back in action as well and usual suspects Kuhn and Mancil (126) won the race with Ciesielski and Ciesielski (73) taking second.

The next event at Golden Sands Speedway is Friday, June 23. It’s CWRA Super Late Models night and fireworks.