Weekly Notebook presented by FK Rod Ends
Notes: Minnesota rookie touts Swingarm Nation
By Todd Turner
DirtonDirt.com managing editor
Johnny Broking (highsideraceshots.com)
Third-generation driver Johnny Broking is a racer's racer, the kind of guy who gets his kicks by climbing behind the wheel of a race car, no matter what he's driving.
"I mean, just being in a race car is fun," said the 29-year-old from Grand Rapids, Minn., a standout competitor in the WISSOTA modified division for many years. "I don't think it matters if you're in a hornet, I think you're gonna have a good time. I just like being a racer."
So when Pat Kapella, the local race team owner, support and event sponsor of Kapella Machine Electronics, asked Broking if he'd like a shot to compete in the Late Model division, Broking's answer was no surprise.
"Last year he came up to me and asked me if I wanted to race for him next year," Broking recalled." And I said, ‘Darn right I wanna race for you. I wanna try a Late Model.’ So we jumped behind the wheel and we're having some pretty good success with it.”
Darn right Broking's having some success with it, tallying five victories through July, including last weekend's season-best run at Hibbing (Minn.) Raceway for a $5,000 payday from a purse boosted by Kapella and KME. That's put him atop DirtonDirt.com's Weekly Notebook presented by FK Rod Ends with more special events on the horizon, including Structural Buildings WISSOTA Challenge Series action Aug. 5-10 during the XR Northern Storm that includes stops at Broking's regular haunts of Hibbing, Proctor (Minn.) Speedway and Gondik Law Speedway in Superior, Wis., where he grabbed a $2,500 victory over a 36-car field earlier this season.
Broking's grandfather John started the family's racing tradition and Johnny's father Bob still competes in the modified division. The older Brokings have also stayed connected to racing through promotions with John Broking operating their hometown Grand Rapids Speedway years ago and Bob Broking promoting it in recent years.
Johnny Broking got his start in the modified division as a 16-year-old and has become one of Minnesota's steadiest winners in the division, piling up more than 110 victories including a dozen or more three of the past five seasons. While he's focusing on his rookie campaign in the Late Model, he's also got four modified victories this season in limited starts.
“When Pat gave us the (Late Model), how do you turn that down?" Broking asked rhetorically. “You gotta take advantage of that and prove that you deserve to be there at the same time, you know?”
He's proved himself by matching or exceeding the success of Kapella's other drivers that include Harry Hanson, Danny Vang and Derek Vesel.
"It's different," Broking said of driving a Late Model. "Like the mod, I feel like you can get away with kind of just driving it really hard where, I mean, you gotta drive a Late Model hard, too, but it's different hard. You gotta keep the Late Model straight, you can't get them bent. I mean, if it's tacky you can, but like when it's slippery, you can't wear a mod, I feel like I can bend it a little bit and be OK.
“The speed factor was a thing, a big difference for me. The corner speed. A mod, you slow down quite a bit just because we got smaller tires and stuff and Late Model, you don't really slow down, you just keep your momentum going.”
Along with adjusting to a new division, Broking is adjusting to a new suspension altogether. He's piloting a Domination Race Car from Ohio chassis builder and driver Rusty Schlenk, a switch from the four-bar suspension he's familiar with.
"We work with Rusty Schlenk there at Domination a lot and he just kept pointing us in the right direction. We were good, and then we made it bad, and then we made it good again. We went back to where we were at, and we've been pretty stout for about a month here," said Broking, who inherited a car that Hanson found didn't fit his driving style. "It was sitting in his garage and (Kapella) said this is what you're getting. And I said, ‘OK.’ ”
Broking can't compare his Late Model to a traditional four-link suspension, but the swingarm-style Domination car — using a suspension most popularly used by vintage C.J. Rayburn Race Cars successfully many years ago — has suited him well.
"I love being in the Domination. Swingarm Nation," Broking said. “When we got that deal I was looking at it, scratching my head going 'What is this?’ I'd seen it, but when I was a little kid, my dad used to do it in the modified stuff back in the day. I've always ran a four-bar car in the modified and anything I ran. So when we got this it was a definitely different, but it seems to be working pretty good.
"We're definitely raising some eyebrows. A lot of people have been asking me how we're getting it to work. Nobody's really seen it for 20 years around here, so it's pretty cool when you got the only car and you can win with it, the only kind of brand and only setup like it is, there's nobody else around here like that.”
Broking is glad that his success is giving Schlenk's brand a good name in the Upper Midwest.
“We try to make him look good," Broking said. "We wanna sell him race cars. Rusty’s a good dude. If we can get people to buy them around here because we're doing good, I think that means stuff is going right.”
Swingarm-style cars have traditionally struggled on slicker surfaces, but Broking said he's been able to find traction in virtually any condition.
"I never drove a Late Model before this year. And so this is what I know," Broking said. "But it seems like it's got good traction and, even when it's slippery, we won a big race up (in Superior) a couple weeks ago and that was bone dry top to bottom, no traction in the track at all.
"Actually there was a hole and coming out of (turn) four and I must have hit it wrong and a chunk of mud came up and hit my spark plug wire and made the No. 4 wire fall off. So I ran like 15 laps with only seven cylinders and still won. That's how slippery it was."
Broking's success would normally guaranteed him WISSOTA Rookie of the Year honors in the division, but he's run into a buzzsaw with another standout rookie and fellow Minnesotan Shane Sabraski, a 10-time Late Model winner while continuing his long-running success in super stocks and modifieds by cracking the 900-victory mark for his career. Broking is 10th in overall WISSOTA points while Sabraski, recently sidelined after a mild heart attack, is second just behind reigning champ and current points leader Tyler Peterson of Hickson, N.D., yet another modified product.
Broking, Sabraski and Peterson are among the latest generation of drivers joining the revived WISSOTA Late Model division.
"I would say five or 10 years ago, it did not look good for Late Models around here. I mean, everybody that did, it was an older, and there wasn't any younger guys doing it," Broking said. "I think the whole deal is, like a lot of guys that are moving up, they look at like a modified to a Late Model, and they're not really cost effectively different anymore. I mean, they're a little bit more, but they race for more money. So they just choose to go that direction. ...
"Tyler Peterson moved up and he's a strong runner. I raced a lot with him in a mod and he ended up winning the national points in his rookie year. I mean, that's pretty impressive in its own. And, like this year, me and Shane Sabraski, I mean, that guy's got 900 feature wins and he's a rookie in a Late Model this year. There's a lot of tough competition, definitely moving up, that's for sure."
Weekly highlights
• Scoring a Michigan weekend sweep, Greg Gokey of Buckley, Mich., picked up July 26-27 Super Late Model victories at Auburn's Tri-City Motor Speedway and Lake City's Merritt Speedway.
• With Dacotah Speedway hosting Late Models at the Governors Cup for the first time since 2017, Mike Greseth of Harwood, N.D., swept both $2,000-to-win events. Both features were held July 27 after rain postponed the opening night’s main event.
• Capturing the Dick Litz Memorial, Mike Knight of Ripley, N.Y., earned $2,900 for his July 28 Super Late Model victory at Eriez Speedway in Hammett, Pa.
• Scoring a two-victory Super Late Model weekend, Tyler Carpenter of Parkersburg, W.Va., won July 26 at Ohio Valley Speedway in Washington, W.Va., and July 27 at Elkins Raceway in Kerens, W.Va., where he pocketed $5,000 in the 68-lap Tim Hitt Memorial.
• Winning the $3,700 Gary Martz Memorial for Super Late Models, Matt Sponaugle of Wiley Ford, W.Va., narrowly outran Kyle Lee at Bedford (Pa.) Speedway.
• Kyle Hardy of Stephens City, Va., won twice July 26-27, first in Crate Late Model action at Potomac Speedway in Budds Creek, Md., then at Winchester (Va.) Speedway in the Super Late Model division where he earned $5,075 in the Junior Boone Memorial.
• Veteran Crate Late Model racer Chad Homan of Penfield, N.Y., notched his 100th feature victory in July 27 action at Brighton (Ontario) Speedway. He earned $1,500 in the Vanderlaan Northeast Alliance event.
• Kyle Moore of Mansfield, Ohio, won twice on July 26-7 and has weekly streaks of victories at Attica (Ohio) Raceway Park (three in a row) and Wayne County Speedway in Orrville, Ohio (nine in a row) along with 14 victories overall.
First things first
Recent first-time occurrences at the dirt track:
• Winning July 27's feature at Stateline Speedway in Busti, N.Y., Kyle Bedell of Randolph, N.Y., grabbed his first Super Late Model victory. The 38-year-old is in his ninth season in the division.
• Rusty Smith of Toledo, Ohio, on July 27 won his first Super Late Model feature by leading all the way at Oakshade Raceway in Wauseon, Ohio. The 41-year-old Smith, a two-time sportsman champ at Oakshade (2020-21), was the track's Super Late Model Rookie of the Year in 2022.
• Hometown driver Jeremy Castro notched his first Late Model feature victory July 27 at Big Sky Speedway in Billings, Mont., outrunning Ty Hample, the previous night's winner.
Weekly news briefs
• Latrobe (Pa.) Speedway dedicated July 27's racing program to Vince Masi Sr. of Uniontown, Pa., a former Late Model racer who for the past 15 seasons has owned his son Vince Masi Jr.‘s Crate Late Model. He was 77. The elder Masi began his career as a 15-year-old, racing on and off while serving in the U.S Army as a young man. He competed in the Semi and Late Model divisions through the 1980-90s. He worked at National Ford and later as service manager at Garry’s Auto Sale and Service. His son took the mic to speak before the races, talking about “how many people knew and loved my dad and how important it was to him that we raced as a family,” Vince Masi Jr. told DirtonDirt.com. “How he would help everyone. Everyone loved him as much as he loved everyone. And we were the lucky ones to be able to call him dad. He was the best owner, crew chief, dad and friend.”
• The winning purse for Aug. 10's final Seubert Calf Ranches Super Six Late Model event at Plymouth (Wis.) Dirt Track has been raised to $2,700-to-win, the track announced. Brad Mueller of Random Lake, Wis., holds a four-point edge on Taylor Scheffler of Waukesha, Wis., heading into the finale.
• Leading WISSOTA Late Model rookie Shane Sabraski of Rice, Minn., the winner of 11 feature races and points leader on the KME miniseries at Gondik Law Speedway in Superior, Wis., has been sidelined after suffering a mild heart attack over the July 25-28 weekend when he won seven multidivision features, his wife Katie Sabraski announced July 29. The 45-year-old Sabraski, an 11-time WISSOTA champion among three divisions with more than 900 career feature victories, was admitted into a hospital Sunday night and underwent a procedure to place a stent in his right coronary artery. The owner-operator of JTC Transport scored a July 25 Late Model victory at his hometown track and a July 27 triumph at Ogilvie (Minn.) Speedway, his 10th and 11th Late Model feature victories of the season.
• Because of conflicts with area tracks, Skyline Speedway in Stewart, Ohio, elected to postpone July 27 and Aug. 2 events with plans to restructure the track's remaining schedule, choosing dates to avoid such conflicts. Skyline is also considering the possibility of adding seating before September's Harvest 50 after having large crowds for its previous three events.
• Grand Rapids (Minn.) Speedway on Aug. 1's Hall of Fame Night will honor Deb Colwell, Gene Roth, Larry Bishop and Pete Nelson.
• Pine Ridge Speedway in Guntown, Miss., has hired Tracy Pickering to serve as chief technical inspector starting with Aug. 3's event. The Charles Moudy-owned track is retaking the reins at the track after Brian Mitchell Promotions assisted with the track's reopening through midseason.
• Outlaw Motor Speedway official starter Carl McCann Jr. is set to return to the flagstand Aug. 9 after an episode while flagging the July 19 event at the Oktaha, Okla., track. McCann’s blood pressured bottomed out and he went down to a knee, according to his wife, then was taken to Saint Francis Hospital Muskogee for a few hours before heading home, where he felt much better. "It was very scary but we are on the mend," Debbie Sas told DirtonDirt.com, adding that doctors have adjusted his medicine to address his blood pressure. The track was set to return to action Aug. 2 but racing was postponed because of a death connected to track promoters.
• Toccoa (Ga.) Raceway has postponed its $10,000-to-win Stephen Wragg Memorial for Limited Late Models to Sept. 1 to allow more drivers a chance to participate in a Memorial Day weekend event. More details will be announced for the race originally scheduled for Aug. 3. The highest finisher from Aug. 3's $2,000-to-win Limited Late Model race who fails to transfer the Sept. 1 lineup will be added to the Wragg Memorial lineup.
• Former Crate Late Model racer Al Brewer of Belfast, N.Y., had his 2024 season cut short by shoulder surgery this week. He's expected to be back in his No. 71 modifed and pro mod next season.
• Camping spots and pit stall reservations are open for the Speedway Motors WISSOTA 100, scheduled for Sept. 11-14 at I-94 EMR Speedway in Fergus Falls, Minn. Visit wissota.org/wissota100/tickets/.
Weekly points
DIRTcar (Supers): Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., has 1,925 points to lead Tyler Erb (1,742) and Rusty Schlenk (1,709).
IMCA (Limiteds): Cory Dumpert of York, Neb., has 775 points to lead Evan Miller (755) and Andy Nezworski (746).
POWRi (Limiteds): Tucker Cox of Jefferson City, Mo., has 5,400 points to lead Alan Westling (5,130) and Kyle Graves (4,540).
USRA (Limiteds): Matt Larson of Lake Elmo, Minn., has 4,121 points to lead Cade Nelson (3,919) and Jason McFadden (3,393).
WISSOTA (Limiteds): Reigning champ Tyler Peterson of Hickson, N.D., has 2,185 points to lead Shane Sabraski (2,089) and Jeff Massingill (1,981).
American All-Stars (Crates): Brandon Fouts of Kite, Ky., has 592 points to lead A.J. Hicks (564) and Gunner Johnson (546).
Crate Racin’ USA (602 Crates): Colby Ponds of Caledonia, Miss., has 681 points to lead Josh Parkerson (680) and Ellie Hughes Callahan (624).
Crate Racin’ USA (604 Crates): David Williamson of Seminary, Miss., has 678 points to lead Sid Scarbrough (622) and Shannon Lee (572).
DIRTcar (Crates): Dakota Ewing of Warrensburg, Ill., has 1,245 points to lead Chase Osterhoff (1,229) and Colby Eller (1,031).
Fastrak (Crates): Braeden Dillinger of Dawson, Pa., has 618 points to lead Brent Trimble (614) and George Casto III (606).
RUSH (Crates): Jeremy Wonderling of Wellsville, Pa., has 1,329 points to lead Breyton Santee (1,241) and Austin Hauser (1,224).
Upcoming weekly specials
Among non-touring and independent special events coming up for Late Models at dirt tracks around the country:
Georgetown (Del.) Speedway (Aug. 1): The Camp Barnes Benefit Stock Car Race pays $5,000-to-win for the Super Late Models division. Crate Late Models are also in action and Hall of Famer Kenny Brightbill will be on hand signing autographs.
Freedom Motorsports Park, Delevan, N.Y. (Aug. 2): The ninth annual Mike DuClon Memorial pays $3,058-to-win for Super Late Models and $2,058-to-win for Crate Late Models. Five other divisions are in action.
Hidden Valley Speedway, Clearfield, Pa. (Aug. 2): Super Late Models are on the card along with 600 micro sprints. No purse details were publicized.
Merritt Speedway, Lake City, Mich. (Aug. 2-3): The 36th annual Ed Vanduinen Wood Tic and Dan Salay Memorial pays $36,000-to-win for Super Late Models with a $3,000-to-win prelim feature on opening night.
Port Royal (Pa.) Speedway (Aug. 3): The second annual Ron Zimmerman Tribute presented by Zimmerman Truck Repair pays $6,000-to-win for Limited Late Models (with Super Late Models also on the card).
Elkins Raceway, Kerens, W.Va. (Aug. 3): The fourth annual Jim Stout Memorial carries a Super Late Model payoff of $3,037, $2,037 and $1,537 for the top three finishers along with a $250-to-win dash. Crate Late Models are also on the card.
Muskingum County Speedway, Zanesville, Ohio (Aug. 3): Super Late Models will battle for a $2,000-to-win purse on the undercard of a sprint car show with Crate Late Models also in action.
Dothan (Ala.) Motor Speedway (Aug. 3): The Back to School Bash includes a six-division program with $1,500 going to the 604 Crate Late Model winner.
Lake Cumberland Speedway, Burnside, Ky. (Aug. 3): The Back to School Giveaway night is topped by a $2,000-to-win Crate Late Model program. Kids receive free school supplies.
East Moline (Ill.) Speedway: The Ron Gustaf Memorial for IMCA Late Models pays $1,190-to-win. Several cash bonuses are also up for grabs.
Monett (Mo.) Motor Speedway (Aug. 4): Super Late Models top the six-division program with a $1,500-to-win, $400-to-start purse.
Bradford Speedway, Rew, Pa. (Aug. 4): The Mike "Mountain Man" Reed Memorial is for Crate Late Models. The track announced that the payout depends on car count.
