Ashley Iwanski
Saturday, September 6, 2008 (West Salem, WI) – The stands were filled to capacity Saturday night for La Crosse Speedways Eve of Destruction. The night was filled with excitement and provided tons of entertainment to the fans even through a power outage that darken the track.

The destruction began with three Features Sports Bar and Grill Hornet heats. Each driver was trying as hard as they could to get into one of the feature races later that night, but due to the power outage and time constraints the Hornets feature was the only event cut from the night.

Photo Highlights
One of the biggest attractions of the night was the Monster Trucks. The Felon beat Mechanical Mischief during the Monster Truck challenge. He pulled out of the pits and quickly went to work smashing the five cars out on the track. By the time he was done pouncing on the cars there didn’t appear to be much left for Mechanical Mischief to destroy. But he was able to surprise the fans and practically pancaked what was left of the cars.

Another of the main attractions was the Green Mamba Jet Car. The first of its events was the Mamba Fire Show. It rode around the track shooting fire out of the back engine. The first burst of fire left you seeing spots and even from 50 yards away you could feel the heat coming from the car warm your face. Each eruption was also accompanied by a mini-earthquake that shook the tower. The fans got even more of the Green Mamba during the power outage. It sat in the middle of the infield with a car attached to the back. The first burst of fire sent a few sparks flying off the attached car. Shortly after there were sparks, smoke and chunks of metal flying off of the quickly melting car. In the end, when the smoke cleared, all that was left was a big chunk of deformed metal that used to be a car.

Racing wasn’t just left to the small cars though. The night also hosted a Bus Jump and a Trailer Race of Destruction. The Bus Jump consisted of a school bus hitting a ramp and jumping over 8 cars. When the bus landed pyrotechnics went off taking out the power, but when the track was finally lit up again it was time for the real demolition to take place. The Trailer Race of Destruction was once again chaotic and brutal. It didn’t take long for most trailers to be piled up and stuck in turn two. The destruction didn’t just stick to the trailers though. The race was red flagged when a car drove, not over, but through the turn three wall taking out about 15 feet of the barrier. After the wall was temporarily closed up the racing restarted. As expected there were only a few trailers left in the end. Deciding the winner was left up to the fans and the fan favorite was John Ratz.

Motorcycle stuntmen Joe Beavers and Ryan Suchanak returned to La Crosse speedway to amaze the crowd with wheelies, burnouts, standing and balancing on the seat of their motorcycles and a multitude of other gravity defying stunts. Not even a year ago Suchanak lost one of his legs due to a motorcycle accident on his way home from work. Now he rides with a prosthetic leg, but the crowd could never tell.

Some of the smaller, but still as exciting, events of the night were the Steel Wall Crash when Ben Allen sent a car flipping through the air. Allen sped down the front stretch and slammed into a car that was standing vertically sending it flying through the air and smashing to the ground. The Gauntlet of Doom is another fan favorite and one of the most daring events for a driver. Daredevil Brad Warthan accepted the challenge with a smile. Warthan came flying down the front stretch and ran straight into a pile of cars sending the car on top smashing to the ground. Warthan also participated in the roll over contest, launching his own car into the air this time. He was able to flip his car but came in second to Dakota Miller.

The Skidders were also in attendance to do a little racing of their own. The cars, which have metal plates welded onto the back tire rims, were dancing around the track. For every lap that went by a new leader was present. But, it was Kyle Swenson who was able to maneuver himself into the lead to take the checkered flag.

Friday, September 12th another exciting night of Friday Night Street Drags will take place. Brackets include Pickup Trucks, Motorcycles, Tuner Cars, Domestic Cars, Detroit Iron (Muscle Cars), Open and Pros; plus a Burn-Out contest. Gates open at 6:00, practice runs at 6:30 and Drags begin at 7:30. October 2nd – 5th is La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway 39th Annual Oktoberfest Race Weekend. Throughout the 4-day event filled weekend there will be 15 different divisions of racing including the ASA Midwest Tour, ASA Late Model North, Wisconsin Late Models, La Crosse Late Models, USST North Trucks, Super Sportsmen, Thuderstox and many more! For more information about La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway and Oktoberfest Race Weekend visit www.lacrossespeedway.com or call the office at (608) 786-1525.

LA CROSSE FAIRGROUNDS SPEEDWAY

Features Sports Bar Hornets
Heat 1 — 1, Mike Peters; 2, Steve Bornitz; 3, Jay Raines; 4, Brandon Cody; 5, Jerry Lemke.
Heat 2 — 1, Nate Towner; 2, Chris Swenson; 3, Adam Moore; 4, Jonathan Eckelberg; 5, Chris Sampson.
Heat 3 — 1, Ron Amann; 2, Wade Elliot; 3, Joey Johnson; 4, Matthew Moore; 5,

Skidders
Feature 1 — 1, Kyle Swenson; 2, Steve Bornitz.
Heat 1 — 1, Kyle Swenson; 2, ; 3, Matt Moore; 4, Mark Bornitz; 5, Adam Moore.