Gronwold prevails in Midwest Mods, Super Stocks features
Kerry Collins, The Forum
Published Saturday, August 2, 2008

The experience of running up front in all of those Midwest Modifieds races paid off for Brock Gronwold in a different way on Friday. Shortly after coming from dead last to win the Midwest Modifieds feature, Gronwold took the checkered flag to win the Super Stocks at Red River Valley Speedway.

“Both of them were kind of a surprise to me,” Gronwold said. “I knew the Super Stock would be good, and it’s nice to win (in the Midwest Mods) when you’re that far back.”

The Super Stocks feature was a wild one. Gronwold – in just his second night driving a Super Stock this season – took the lead with three laps to go, and then stayed in front despite having Todd Carter right on his bumper the rest of the way.

“I didn’t know he was there,” Gronwold said. “All kinds of people said they were waving their arms
trying to tell me where he was, but I’m just driving.”

Gronwold started in the last position of the 21-car Midwest Modifieds field at Red River Valley Speedway on Friday, but the back of the pack was the safest place to be. Only eight of the 21 cars finished the caution-filled Midwest Modifieds feature, and Gronwold survived to take the checkered flag from the back of the pack.

“Starting back there was a blessing in disguise,” Gronwold said. “It was one of those times where you just get lucky."

It was the second time in the last three weeks that less than half the cars that started the Midwest Modifieds feature took the checkered flag. Only a couple of cars dropped out of the Street Stocks feature, but they were the right ones for Jason Babcock. The Horace, N.D., driver won Friday’s feature, and it gave him some breathing room in the standings. Babcock started the night tied for the lead with Fargo’s Rick Schulz, and West Fargo’s James Tandeski was just two points behind in third. Schulz won the lone heat race, but didn’t start the feature because of car trouble before the green dropped.

Two laps into the feature, Tandeski also had to drop out with trouble. Matt Aukland rolled to the checkered flag in the Late Models feature for the second week in a row. Dev Malmlov scored his first RRVS win of the season in the Modifieds, and Corry VanMil also scored his first Mod Fours win of the season at the West Fargo track.

Street Stocks

Heat one: 1, Rick Schulz, Fargo. 2, Jason Babcock, Horace, N.D. 3, Scott Paulson, Kimball, Minn. Feature: 1, Babcock. 2, Royce Jawaski, Horace, N.D. 3, Paulson. 4, Robert Banish Jr., Milnor, N.D. 5, Ryan Pommerer, Oriska, N.D.

Heat two: 1, Shayne Laske, Moorhead. 2, Corry VanMil, Lake Park, Minn. 3, Josh Abrahamson, Moorhead.

Feature: 1, VanMil. 2, Laske. 3, Tyler Elser, Fargo. 4, Steve Stanton, Alexandria, Minn. 5, Abrahamson

Midwest Modifieds

Heat one: 1, Brian Krog, Fergus Falls, Minn. 2, Ryan Restad, Fargo. 3, Chris Tuchscherer, Fargo.

Heat two: 1, Tony Johnson, Kindred, N.D. 2, Randy Klein, Fargo. 3, Bryce Borgen, Perley, Minn. Heat three: 1, Travis Saurer, Elizabeth, Minn. 2, Rich Pavlicek, Casselton, N.D. 3, Scott Jacobson, Fargo.

Feature: 1, Brock Gronwold, Fergus Falls, Minn. 2, Borgen. 3, Jason Corell, Jamestown, N.D. 4, Dennis Swanson, Moorhead. 5, Cale Arneson, Fargo

Super Stocks

Heat one: 1, Brock Gronwold, Fergus Falls, Minn. 2, Ty Hanten, West Fargo. 3, Brian Bernotas, Wahpeton, N.D.

Heat two: 1, Justin Thompson, Horace, N.D. 2, William Wadeson, Alice, N.D. 3, Jeff Hapala, Fargo.

Heat three: 1, Todd Carter, Lisbon, N.D. 2, David Shipley, Fargo. 3, Blake Jegtvig, Hawley, Minn.

Feature: 1, Gronwold. 2, Carter. 3, Jegtvig. 4, Norm Olson, West Fargo. 5, Kevin Robertson, Enderlin, N.D.

Modifieds

Heat one: 1, Bob Sagen, Arthur, N.D. 2, Dale Kraling, Fargo. 3, Corey Seckerson, Jamestown, N.D.

Heat two: 1, Scot Danzeisen, Herman, Minn. 2, Corky Thomas, Fargo. 3, Michael Greseth, Harwood, N.D.

Heat three: 1, Ross Romdalvik, West Fargo. 2, Dev Malmlov, Moorhead. 3, Ryan Cannon, Clearwater, Minn.

B-main: 1, Blake Jegtvig, Hawley, Minn. 2, Randal Hanson, West Fargo. 3, Scott Tofte, Madison, Minn.

A-main feature: 1, Malmlov. 2, Greseth. 3, Matt Aukland, Moorhead. 4, Jegtvig. 5, Sagen.

Late Models

Heat one: 1, Justin Olson, West Fargo. 2, Jeff Hinkemeyer, St. Cloud, Minn. 3, Blake Jegtvig, Hawley, Minn.

Heat two: 1, Steven Pfeifer, West Fargo. 2, Greg Meyer, Wahpeton, N.D. 3, Mitch Johnson, Hickson, N.D.

Feature: 1, Matt Aukland, Moorhead. 2, Meyer. 3, Pfeifer. 4, Myron Tschakert, Kent, Minn. 5, Hinkemeyer.