Estey Scores Big Triple Win Bonus, Carlton’s Loucks Wins Third Feature of the Season

Click here for the complete race results

July 10

By Jerry O’Brien

PROCTOR – It was a huge payday for Midwest Modified driver Skeeter Estey Sunday at the Proctor Speedway. Estey won the 20 lap Midwest Modified feature Sunday night, which was worth $1400 to the Kelly Lake, MN driver. There is a bonus put up by the area tracks that pays a driver who is able to win three feature events at three different tracks in the same weekend. The bonus is cumulative and keeps getting bigger when no one is able to pull off the three feature wins.

Estey had already won at AMSOIL Speedway and Hibbing Raceway and was looking for the third win, his last chance of the weekend. After a heat win, Estey was looking to complete the division sweep and grab the huge paycheck. Estey found himself starting the 20 lap feature on the outside of the fourth row. Jeff Lien, Jr. and Dan Larsen led the pack to the green flag; three times as it turned out before a complete lap could be turned. All three tries saw Dan Kingsley shoot from the second row to the lead and when more than one lap could be completed, extend it out to several car lengths. Running in second was Larsen while Lien and Deven Van House battled for third.

Estey had advanced to fifth in the early going and was on the move quickly taking third. The caution flag again flew when Kingsley slid off the top of turn one. The restart put Larsen in the lead and Estey second.

On the restart Kingsley again spun in turn two. This try at a restart saw synchronized spinning by Lien and Kingsley in turn two. Larsen led the field now restarting single file. At the green flag Estey wasted no time moving past Larsen for the lead and set his eyes on the dollar sign. Estey raced off to a huge lead leaving Larsen to defend himself against Van House, Tommy Turcotte, Glenn Dammer and Andrew Inman as the field was strung out around the track. Estey easily ran to the win. Larsen, Van House, Turcotte and Dammer were top five finishers.

23 cars answered the call for the 15 lap Pure Stock feature. Dustin Follett blasted from his third row outside starting spot to lead Mark Korte by a half car length the first time by. Justin Bassa, Craig Horak and Austin Blom were close behind Korte as the caution flag flew for Doug Willis, who was forced off the back stretch. Follett continued to lead at the restart and the next seven ran single file. Behind the front eight it was a mob scene for ninth. Follett ran out to a ten car length lead but that all went away when Jeff Engelmeier stalled on the front stretch.

Joining Follett in a battle for the lead on the restart were Josh Loucks and Blom in a three car battle for the win. Jon McKinnon and Bassa battled for fourth and a pack of cars battled for fifth. Follett held on for the win, but only as far as the tech area where he was disqualified for reportedly illegal front springs, giving the win to Loucks. Blom, Horak, McKinnon and Dale Soumala finished in the top five.

There was also a $200 bonus on the line in the 20 lap Super Stock feature for outside pole starter Mike Bellefeuille. This bonus is paid to any driver that can win feature events at AMSOIL Speedway on Friday and Proctor Speedway on Sunday. Bellefeuille was half way there already having won Friday night. Bellefeuille used his starting spot to advantage as he grabbed the lead right off the bat over pole sitter Kevin Salin. Salin fell into the clutches of a pack of cars but popped out to take second. Jeff Tardy, Zach Wohlers and Pat Heikkinen battled for third. That skirmish settled in with Wohlers third, Tardy fourth, and Scott Lawrence in fifth.

The caution flag flew for Sam Skalsky who had problems and retired to the pits. On the restart Ronnie Malecki and Jay Kuras went for the same piece of real estate resulting in a tangle that brought out the yellow flag. On the restart Tardy seemed to lose rear traction and was thumped by Heikkinen and Lawrence. Heikkinen left on the hook and Lawrence was able to continue after a trip to the work area. Tardy headed to the back of the field for the restart.

Ahead of all these problems, Bellefeuille maintained his aplomb and his lead over Wohlers and Salin. Yet another flashing of yellow caution lights signified a spin by Kevin Burdick on the tricky slick track. All this aforementioned action had netted only two complete green flag laps. At the restart, behind the cool Bellefeuille, Tardy found his way to second past Wohlers and Al Rapp as four cars waged war over third place. Burdick won that battle over Lawrence in fourth and Wohlers who had slipped to fifth. The final circuits were run in line astern formation as no one could gain any advantage. Bellefeuille found another $200 in his paycheck, bonus money for the two wins. Tardy, Burdick, Lawrence and Wohlers were top five finishers.

A dozen WISSOTA Late Models rolled onto the speedway for their 25 lap go. 25 laps later without the dreaded yellow laundry flying once, Harry Hanson stood in victory lane with his first feature win of the season at the speedway. At the starting green flag, pole sitter Aaron Lillo went to the bottom and outside starter Don Copp went high. Lillo had the lead as the bottom groove was a little faster at this point. Caley Emerson, Joey Ogston and Hanson went at it for third.

Hanson clicked off passes on both of them as well as Lillo and set his sights on Copp who had taken the lead. It didn’t take long for him to reach Copp and get by for the lead. Darin Meierotto blew between Ogston and Emerson and took fourth as Lillo still held on to third. Lillo faded back as Meierotto closed in on Copp for second while facing a challenge from Ogston. Further back Darrell Nelson arrived in the top five from eighth and Kevin Carlson ran sixth from his 11th starting spot. Nelson finished in third after a pass on Copp while Carlson got by Ogston to finish fifth.

The final event of the evening was the WISSOTA Modified feature set for 20 laps. The green flag flew at 8:18 with Jayme Lautigar taking the lead battling with Kelly Estey. Estey soon took the lead and Darrell Nelson grabbed second up quickly from the third row sliding ahead of Lautigar. E. J. Hietala made his move from ninth to run fourth, ahead of Jody Bellefeuille.

The only caution flag of the event flew when Nick Lavato, John Sertich and Jad Carlson tangled in turn three. On the restart Estey still led Nelson, Heitala, Lautigar and Bellefeuille. Heitala muscled his way inside Nelson in the first turn to run second but Nelson returned the favor in the same spot and retook second. Estey had eight car lengths on Nelson, who had the same on Hietala. At the mid-point the order was Estey, Nelson, Heitala, Lautigar, Bellefeuille, Lavato, Scott Heikkinen, Sertich and Jacob Morinville. The rest of the way there was little order change and little challenges for position on a truly slick track. Estey went on to take the win over Nelson, Hietala, Bellefeuille and Lautigar in the top five.

Comments can be sent to sports@northlandsportsonline.com