Local talent once again had the opportunity to impress the spectators on the weekend during the first doubleheader program of the season at the Estevan Motor Speedway.
The races were scheduled to happen on Friday and Saturday night, but the Friday program had to be called off due to the rain that the Estevan area received in the 24 hours prior to the scheduled start time, coupled with the winds that were forecasted for Friday night. So the races went off on Saturday and Sunday instead.
Nearly 60 vehicles were entered each night. Virtually all of them were from the southeast region.
The modified feature was a battle of attrition, as nearly half of the field didn’t finish the race. Tyler Wagner led for much of the feature but dropped out after bumping one of the infield tires.
Les McLenehan, who was sent to the back of the field following an early incident, fought his way back to the front and won. Joey Galloway was second, Derrick Lisafeld was third and Tyson Turnbull was fourth.
Chris Hortness won the stock car feature, finishing ahead of JJ Barnstable, Jeremy Swanson and Gregg Mann. Hortness passed Barnstable late in the feature and pulled away in the final laps.
Justin Fichter won the sport mod feature, finishing ahead of Dan Blackburn. Leevi Runge was in contention on the final lap, but spun out. Adrian Dickie was third and Keenan Glasser was fourth in what was an entertaining feature.
In the hobby stock feature, Kruz Wilson led for the first half of the feature, but dropped out after a caution halfway through the race. Kayden Hjorteland took the lead and never surrendered it, finishing ahead of Dexter Saxon, Connor Hansen and Kaiden Tuchscherer.
Ryder Raynard won the slingshot feature, taking the lead early from Cash Saxon. Jagger Ashorth was third and Jace Emmel was fourth.
As for Sunday’s program, Kody Scholpp was the winner in the modified class. He moved up from fifth on the starting grid to finish ahead of Kale Peterson, Turnbull and Wagner.
Mann claimed the checkered flag in the stock car race, with Hortness in second, Devon Gonas in third and Swanson in fourth.
Kyle Scholpp was the winner in the sport mod division, moving up from the last spot on the grid to take the checkered flag. Rylan Raynard, Runge and Keenan Glasser were second, third and fourth, respectively.
Landon Runge was the winner of the hobby stock feature, finishing ahead of Wilson, Tuchscherer and Michael Wilson.
Finally, in the slingshot class, Ryder Raynard continued his mastery of the division with his third consecutive victory this season. Saxon was second, Emmel was third and Ty Blackburn came in fourth.
Three race programs into the season, the standings are tight atop most of the divisions. Ryder Raynard has the lead in the slingshot class as he seeks his fourth consecutive championship. He has 120 points, five more than Saxon. Ty Blackburn is third at 109 points and Jacek Ashworth is fourth at 108.
Landon Runge is the leader in the hobby stocks with 116 points, four more than defending track champion Connor Hansen. Dexter Saxon is third at 108 points and Hjorteland and Michael Wilson are tied for fourth at 105.
Kyle Scholpp is the leader in the sport mods with 115 points, four clear of Fichter, Glasser and defending track champion Leevi Runge, who is fourth at 111 points.
There is a tie for the lead in the stock car class, with Swanson and Hortness sitting at 116 points, and Gregg Mann at 115 points. JJ Barnstable is fourth with 109.
McLenehan has the lead in the modified class, two more than Tyson Turnbull. Kody Scholpp is third with 109 and Ed Turnbull sits fourth with 107.
The next action at the speedway will be another double-header on July 2 and 3. Races start at 7 p.m. each night.
