Strand wins 40-lap feature

Shawn Strand wasn't overly pleased with the hand Lady Luck dealt him on Saturday.

On the final night of racing this season, the IMCA Modifieds ran two 20-lap features with the driver with the best average finish taking home the $750 prize in front of a sparse crowd of fans at the Southwest Speedway.

Strand, a native of Bismarck, started fifth in the first feature and ninth in the second feature. The second feature had only 13 drivers and order was determined in a random drawing.

"I was hoping to have a little better number," Strand said.

In the end, it really didn't matter.

Mathematically, Strand made it an easy night for fans, winning both feature races.

"The car was fast tonight," said Strand, who also won the feature on Friday. "The whole weekend ... it worked well anywhere."

In the first feature, Strand moved up and stole the top spot from Dickinson's Eric Paul with six laps remaining. Paul is fresh off winning the Modifieds season points championship last weekend at the Southwest Speedway. This time around, Paul finished second to Strand while Jarrett Wold of Arnegard came in third.

The second race was a dogfight between Strand and Hettinger's Randy Burwick in the final 12 laps. Burwick started on the pole, but Strand had to come all the way back from his ninth spot. Strand said numerous cautions didn't hurt, either.

"It helped with the double-file restarts," Strand said. "A couple of restarts and I got to where I wanted to be."

Strand overtook Burwick with seven laps to go and forced Burwick to settle for second place. Bauer took third, giving him second place in the overall.

Randy Meyer of Bismarck didn't mess around in the Wissota Street Stocks class.

Meyer started on the pole and while he didn't run away with the race, he held off Plevna, Mont., native Bill Miller to win his second feature of the season at the Southwest Speedway.

"I was lucky. I got to start up front," Meyer said. "I'll take it."

Meyer stayed on the bottom for most of the race and was threatened by other drivers often, eventually holding off the pack. John Feist, Travis Ulmer and Josh Olheiser rounded out the top five.

Meyer finishes his Southwest Speedway experience this season with five appearances, also taking home two runner-up finishes and fourth-place honors.

Meyer said dust rising on the track probably made it more difficult for everyone else.

"You definitely wanted to be out front," Meyer said.

The Pure Stocks had, arguably, the strongest finish of the race classes.

On the final turn, Deen Brecht of Golden Valley rode the outside past Dickinson's Travis Olheiser, this year's season champion who had led the entire race after starting on the pole.

"I was trying pretty hard; that was my last chance," said Brecht, who picked up his fourth feature win of the season. "This was a good way to finish the season."

Olheiser had a sizeable lead, but two cautions in the final five laps allowed Brecht to inch closer, setting up the final turn in which Olheiser got turned a little too sideways.

"I had a good run off the corner," Brecht said. "I was able to keep my speed more up at the top. ... I nosed ahead of him."

Olheiser finished second, followed by Chad Jahner, Greg Wheeler and Leevon Pinnow.

The night of racing, scheduled to start at 4 p.m., began a half-hour late and finished up just before 9 p.m.

IMCA Modifieds

Overall: 1, Shawn Strand, Bismarck. 2, Darrell Bauer, Mandan. 3, Randy Burwick, Hettinger. 4, Eric Paul, Dickinson. 5, Troy Heupel, Williston. 6, Dale Burwick, Dickinson. 7, Jarrett Wold, Arnegard. 8, Pete Bradley, Williston. 9, Steven Kuntz, Bismarck, 10, Allan Frederick, Hebron. 11, A.J. Davenport, Bismarck. 12, Jamall Wold, Arnegard. 13, Dwight Burwick, Dickinson. 14, Josh Jones, Dickinson. 15, Guy Kolberg, Glendive, Mont.

First feature: 1, Strand. 2, Paul. 3, Wold 4, Dale Burwick. 5, Bauer. 6, Heupel. 7, R. Burwick. 8, Kuntz. 9, Bradley. 10, Frederick. 11, Davenport. DNF: Jamall Wold, Jones, Dwight Burwick, Kolberg.

Second feature: 1, Strand. 2, R. Burwick. 3, Bauer. 4, Heupel. 5, Bradley. 6, Dale Burwick. 7, Paul. 8, Kuntz. 9, Jarrett Wold. 10, Allan Frederick. 11, AJ Davenport. 12, Jamall Wold. DNS: Dwight Burwick, Jones, Kolberg.

Heat 1: 1, Paul. 2, Randy Burwick. 3, Strand. 4, Bauer. 5, Jones. 6, Jarrett Wold. 7, Frederick. DNF: A.J. Davenport.

Heat 2: 1, Kuntz. 2, Jamall Wold. 3, Bradley. 4, Dwight Burwick. 5, Dale Burwick. 6, Heupel. 7, Kolberg.

Wissota Street Stocks

Feature: 1, Randy Meyer, Bismarck. 2, Bill Miller, Plevna, Mont. 3, John Feist, Bismarck. 4, Travis Ulmer, Dickinson. 5, Josh Olheiser, Dickinson. 6, Geoff Hellman,Mandan. 7, Zach Frederick, Hebron. 8, Ryan Hugelen, Belfield. 9, Shawn Volk, Bismarck. 10, Rick Johnson, Bismarck. DNF: Travis Sadowsky, Dickinson.

Heat 1: 1, Bill Miller. 2, Ulmer. 3, Johnson 4, Feist. 5, Meyer.

Heat 2: 1, Hugelen. 2, J. Olheiser. 3, Volk. 4, Hellman. 5, Sadowsky.

Pure Stocks

Feature: 1, Deen Brecht, Golden Valley. 2, Travis Olheiser, Dickinson. 3, Chad Jahner, Dickinson. 4, Greg Wheeler, Baker, Mont. 5, Leevon Pinnow, Dickinson. 6, Zach Frederick, Hebron. 7, Schaun Olheiser, Dickinson. 8, Monte Gawryluk, Dickinson. 9, Mark Selle, Dickinson. DNF: Brian Miller, Baker, Mont., Brandon Deavy, Dickinson..

Heat 1: 1, Travis Olheiser. 2, Frederick. 3, Gawryluk. 4, Deavy. 5, Wheeler. 6, Pinnow.

Heat 2: 1, Brecht. 2, Miller. 3, Jahner. 4, Schaun Olheiser. 5, Selle.

Mini sprints

Feature: 1, Ryder Olson. 2, Lyndon Bolt. 3, Grant Bolt. 4, Randy Blotsky. 5, Don Benth. 6, Clint Hudkins. 7, Andee Bierlee. DNF: John Garrigan Jr., Mort Blotsky, Rich Klinger, Paul Kaupp, Ross Unruh, Joe Hudspeth.

Heat 1: 1, Bierlee, 2, Hudkins. 3, Benth. 4, Kaupp. 5, Garrigan Jr. 6, Mort Blotsky. 7, Rich Klinger. 8, Joe Hudspeth.

Heat 2: 1, Garrigan Jr. 2, Grant Bolt. 3, Olson. 4, Randy Blotsky. 5, L. Bolt. 6, Ross Unruh.