Mid-Season title is tight in Street Stocks

Bill Miller is chasing his first racing championship tonight at the Southwest Speedway. And he's not about to let Eric Paul or Randy Meyer catch him.

"I want that Mid-Season championship," Miller said. "I've never had it before. That's what I'm going after."

Miller is just four points ahead of both Paul and Meyer in the Speedway's WISSOTA Street Stocks point standings heading into tonight's Mid-season Championship races. Miller has 208 points so far this year, but is walking a thin line trying to keep Paul and Meyer away from him.

"I'm not going to push any issues," said Miller, a Plevna, Mont., driver. "Probably be a little more cautious than usual. ... Four points is a mountain compared to how tight we are all the time."

He's not joking.

The Street Stocks have provided the tightest competition at the track this season. Paul, a Dickinson driver, said lucky breaks have had a lot to do with how some drivers - including himself - have finished this season.

"The whole class is really tight and competitive class," Paul said. "It comes down to luck more than anything sometimes. If you have one bad night or break, it'll put you out of the running."

Paul and Meyer are at 204 points while Miller's stepbrother, T.C. Shelhamer is in fourth at 188 points.

Travis Ulmer (186), Ryan Hugelen (185) and Josh Olheiser (180) all have shots at the Mid-Season Championship, but would need for several cars ahead of them to encounter problems.

"It seems like everybody, every year, keeps stepping their game up more and more," Miller said.

The Street Stocks points leader said he plans to race calm and "not push any issues."

"I'll try not to do anything stupid," Miller said. "But when you're out there and your adrenaline is going, it's tough to hold back."

Pure Stocks

Terry Zastoupil figures that, eventually, he'll again swap the Pure Stocks points lead with the South Heart racing team of Jerry and Cal Praus.

He just hopes it doesn't happen today during the Midseason Championship.

"On our end, we're in good position going into midseason," said Zastoupil, a Dickinson racer who has 229 points after four races. "But I've been racing long enough to know that anything can happen."

The Praus cousins are in second place with 219 points. They were fueled by back-to-back feature wins by Jerry Praus on June 2 and June 9.

"When you've got Terry Z in front of you, he's going to be hard to catch," Cal Praus said. "We're going to need another 3-for-3 night to get close to the Midseason."

Cal said Jerry will likely take the wheel this weekend and it may be the last time he gets a chance to race this summer due to work conflicts.

Dickinson's Jeremey Binstock is a close third with 215 points. Hebron's Zach Frederick is still in the chase with 197 points.

"Any one of three or four drivers can take midseason. We absolutely do not have it locked up," Zastoupil said. "It's too close for comfort. Anything can happen, we won't know where we are until that checkered flag flies at the end of the feature."

IMCA Modifieds

Mandan driver Darrell Bauer has an eight-point lead on veteran Marlyn Seidler in the IMCA Modifieds class.

However, Seidler is looking for his second consecutive Midseason Championship at the Southwest Speedway and knows what he needs to overcome the deficit.

"If you hunt around the front, if you're a little bit consistent and race around the front, those things comes your way," Seidler said. "You've kind of got to hunt around the front and be consistent. You can't be DNFing (not finishing). That'll cost you."

Seidler, who won the Season Championships at Dickinson, Mandan and Minot last summer, said he has driven into some unlucky breaks this season. He won the first two Southwest Speedway features of the season before a DNF on June 9 and a fourth-place finish on June 16.

Meanwhile, Bauer has remained consistent. He finished all four features this season in the top six and has two second-place finishes.

"It's been a real consistent year," Bauer said. "Dickinson's been consistent for me."

Bauer is looking for his second Midseason Championship at the Speedway. His last came in 1997 when he also won the Season Championship.

Although Bauer is at the front of the points lead, he admitted he probably won't be racing conservatively.

"We might go for the win," Bauer said. "I like to go for the win, if the championship comes with it, that's just a bonus."