RIVER CITIES RECAP: HUNTER AND RAMSRUD COLLECT MIDSEASON TITLES

Mike Greseth wins NLRA feature; Dvergsten and Hron win sprint specials

Five classes were in action last Friday night in another night of close racing at River Cities Speedway with Austin Hunter and Weston Ramsrud adding their names to a long list of Mid-season track champions at the Bullring. Mike Greseth and Dexter Dvergsten remained strong in NLRA and POWRi Minn-Kota Lightning Sprint competition, while Ken Hron scored one for the Iron Rangers over the Western Renegade Non-Wing Sprints.

Nate Raasakka and Austin Hunter paced the 20-lap Happy Harry’s Midwest Mod Midseason championship at the drop of the green.
 
Hunter took the lead at the start with Jamie Dietzler completing the top three at the end of the first lap.

Dietzler pulled to Raasakka's inside on the fifth lap in the battle for second. The pair remained close as Hunter pulled away.

Taylor Jacobson had reeled in the top two before a caution with 12 to go. Jory Berg entered in a four-car battle for the second through fifth spots, moving up to third before a caution on the following lap. 

Berg then pulled inside of Dietzler's for the second spot at the halfway point. Dietzler held off Berg, however, and reeled in Hunter to battle for the lead.

Hunter was preparing to come off of turn four to take the checkers when a couple of lapped cars spun in front of him. Hunter avoided disaster, checking up just before making contact with them. 

Hunter led the final two circuits of the green-white-checkered restart to take the win.

Jamie Dietzler was second with Taylor Jacobson third, Jory Berg fourth and Nate Raasakka rounding out the top five.

Tucker Pederson and Weston Ramsrud brought the 20 -lap Big Al’s Construction Street Stock Mid-Season champion feature to the stripe to start.

Pederson took the lead down the back stretch and brought John Halvorson with him into the second spot.

John Halvorson pulled to the inside of Pederson off of turn two on the three circuit, taking the lead at the end of the lap, while one could throw a blanket over the top three for the top spot.

Seth Klostreich followed. Ramsrud and Halvorson to complete the new top three on the fourth lap. Halvorson and Ramsrud remained side-by-side for the top spot as the first caution flag flew on the fifth lap.

The battle for the lead remained close as Pederson drove over the top of turn four with mechanic issues on lap seven.

Ramsrud continued to lead Klostreich and Halvorson at the halfway point of the 20-lap main event.

After the third caution of the race, Halvorson took second and set his sights again on Ramsrud for the lead. Pulling to his inside coming off of turn four coming to seven to go, Halvorson took the lead with seven to go.

Ramsrud remained close as the pair prepared to work traffic with four laps left. Ramsrud drove off the bottom of turn four in lapped traffic to take the lead with three to go.

Ramsrud held the lead on a green-white-checkered restart to score his second win of the season.

Seth Klostreich was second with John Halvorson third, Scotty Messner fourth and Josh Barker completing the top five.

Brad Seng and Dustin Strand led the 25-lap NLRA Cirrus Aircraft Late Model feature to the green flag. Seng and Strand went door-to-door for the lead at the start with Strand leading off of turn four to lead the opening lap.

The lead pair remained side-by-side for a couple more laps before Strand started to build a lead.

Strand was about to start working lap traffic when a caution flag flew on the sixth lap.

Mike Greseth started to the outside of Seng, eventually taking the second spot after the green flag flew again.

Strand closed in on lap traffic for the second time with ten laps complete allowing Greseth to pull to Strand’s spoiler in a battle for the lead.

The leaders were in thick lap traffic again before a caution at the halfway point. Greseth held off Seng on the ensuing restart, then caught back up to Strand two laps later.

Greseth pulled to Strand’s inside off of four with ten laps to go, taking the lead on the following lap.

Greseth used lapped traffic to his advantage, eventually putting two cars between himself and Strand with three to go.

Greseth led the closing circuits to pick up his first win of the season at the Bullring. Tyler Peterson was second with Brody Troftgruben third, Brad Seng fourth, and Shane Edginton fifth.

Kate Taves and Dylan Langevin led the POWRi Minn-Kota Lightning Sprints feature at the start of their 20-lapper.

Langevin took the lead on the start. But it was Dexter Dvergsten that charged from fourth to move around Langevin's outside to take the lead off of turn four to lead the opening lap.

Following a red flag for Loki Bjerke who emerged unscathed following a flip off of turn two, Dvergsten continued to lead on the ensuing restart.

Alex Truscinski became the new runner-up after passing Langevin for second while Dvergsten continued to pace the field.

Dvergsten worked lap traffic at the halfway point with Matthew Taves moving past Langevin before the final caution with six to go.

Taves pulled to Truscinski’s inside in an attempt at the second spot. Truscinski took Taves’ line on the bottom of turn one with four to go, as Dvergsten pulled away.

Dvergsten continued on for his fourth Bullring win of the season with Alex Truscinski finishing second ahead of the Taves siblings Matthew and Kate who finished third and fourth respectively. Langevin finished fifth.

Myles Tomlinson and Jeremy Lizakowski made up the front row at the beginning of the 20-lap Western Renegade Non-Wing Sprint feature.

Tomlinson led at the start with Tee Young and Lizakowski battled for second on the opening lap.

Ken Hron moved into third off of turn two on the following lap then ran the cushion to take second off of turn four on at the end of the third lap.

At the conclusion of lap three, Hron took the lead just as he had taken second one lap prior. Hron led until a caution just before the halfway point allowing Tomlinson to make another attempt at the lead.

Tomlinson pulled ahead on the back stretch with nine to go, starting a five-lap battle between the pair which also became a three-car battle for the lead with Lizakowski with five to go.

Hron pulled away in the closing laps to win his second career non-wing feature at the ‘Bullring.’

Tomlinson was second with Lizakowski third, Chris Lewis fourth, and Eric Guyot fifth.

Racing action resumes this Friday night with the speedway's annual Hall-of-Fame night with five new members joining the elite club. Engine builder Ben Adams, Hobby and Super Stock driver Rick Kemnitz, Fire Crew head Scott Nelson, former NLRA champion Troy Olson, and Hobby Stock and Late Model driver Terry Sannes will be inducted.

WISSOTA Late Models, Modifieds, Midwest Mods, and Street Stocks will all be on hand, with racing starting at seven.