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(8/28/2015) UPIR Races into the Night at the Fair Saturday night was race night at the UP State Fair, as the drivers of UPIR took to the dirt track. The Island Resort and Casino sponsored grandstand entertainment during the fair. The stands were packed as festivities began with the national anthem, sung by State Representative Ed McBroom during the Parade of Flags. The U.P. State Fair awarded trophies to each feature winner and each driver in the Riverside Auto Junior Micro-Sprints. The Sportsmen Micro Sprints started the racing show. Heat one was won by Logan Getzloff, followed in second by Jacob Zellner (New Franklin, WI.) and third by Dave Hosking. The second heat was won by frequent UPIR Victory Lane visitor Gabriel Zellner (New Franklin, WI.). Second place would be taken by Jesse Liss, with Michael Ault third. The 600 Micro Sprints would come out next for three heats. The top three in order from heat one were Christian Groleau, Jeff Ives, and John Mathias. The second heat was won by Scott Ruleau (Menominee, MI.) claiming his first heat win of the season. Second place would go to Jamie St. Jacques, with Gary Gregory third. The third, and final, heat would be claimed by Bart Kostreva (Crivitz, WI.), who would then watch son Tristan race from victory lane. Second place was Roger Bridges with Jim Groleau third. The Junior Micro Sprints sponsored by Riverside Auto, would run third on the card. Avry Corrigan would hold off the field as cars spun behind him on the last lap. Second place would go to Brett Labre with Tristan Kostreva (Crivitz, WI.) in third. Haden Frazer, Elliot Corrigan and Joey Stankowicz followed in that order. A special exhibition race for the vintage modifieds would be run next. Dan Lambert would claim the win. Second would be Bob Iverson, followed by Don Benoit and Herb Iverson. Up next on the card were the Modifieds, who would run two heats. The first of the heats was won by Randy Theys (Algoma, WI.). Second would go to Jason Holmes (Kenosha, WI.), with Chris Lassila (Vulcan, Mi.) in third. The second heat would be won by Fran Berube, with points leader Lonnie Dalgord second. Rounding out the top three was Russell Franks (Oconto, WI.). After the Modifieds, the Street Stocks ran three heat races. Heat number one would be won by Greg Bruce, holding off Corey DeGrave in second. Following the top two in third was Ron Jenshak. The next heat was won by Paul Wagner, in second was Jon Pepin, and in third Matt Adams. The final heat was won by Max Constantino, who beat Jeff Sullivan and Jared Demeuse in second and third. The final heats of the night would be run by the Bink’s Coca-Cola Sport Fours. Points leader Tyler Corwin would take the first heat win. Following him in second and third were David Martin and Kyle Johnson. Heat two was won by Craig Klotz, winning his second ever heat race. Second place was Randy DeGrave, with David Tovar, driving for his first time in the class, in third. The final heat for the night was won by Ryan Mathieson, second was Dan Mathieson, and third Joseph Williams. As always, intermission was held after the conclusion of the heat races. Two bikes donated by Sayklly’s Candies were won by two lucky kids. Other intermission fun included musical chairs, with winners receiving tickets to the Island Resort and Casino event Ballroom Twist. Also, with help from Jon Pepin and his t-shirt cannon, several fans went home with shirts from his sponsor Race 2 Cure. Hats and stickers from Boss Snow Plow and Jeff Ives were also given out. The feature racing for the night was kicked off with the Riverside Auto Junior Micro Sprints. Once again, it was Avry Corrigan taking the win. Following Corrigan in second place was Brett Labre, with Elliott Corrigan in third. Tristan Kostreva, Joey Stankowicz and Haden Frazer rounded out the finish. The Sportsmen Micro Sprint Division rolled out next for their feature. For the second time in the night, UPIR saw a double winner, with Gabriel Zellner taking the win. Jesse Liss would follow Zellner in second place. Third was Austin Berg. The next feature to run was for the 600 Micro Sprint division. Several drivers fell out of contention due to either mechanical issues, or crash damage. Bart Kostreva and Jeff Ives were among these drivers. Kostreva and Ives came together in turn two. Ives continued on before mechanical issues took him out, Kostreva was unable to continue. Another driver with issues was heat winner and championship contender Christian Groleau. One driver to not have issues was points leader Matt Peterson, who would win the feature. Second place was taken by Scott Richer, third was Jim Groleau. For the second time, the vintage modifieds came out to run another exhibition race. After several laps, the field had spread out, with Dan Lambert in the lead. Eventually, Bob Iverson would begin to close in on leader Lambert. On the final lap, Iverson sent the car flying into turn three trying to get around Lambert for the win. The two cars slammed together, sending Iverson airborne. Both drivers were ok, with Lambert crawling across the finish line first. Iverson limped to second. The Modified division ran their feature race next, and it was a truly thrilling race. Lap after lap, the lead was swapped back and forth. Eventually Lonnie Dalgord took the lead. After holding off Randy Theys for several laps, Lonnie took the checkered flag. Theys came home in second. Third place would belong to Russell Franks. After the thrilling Modified feature, the Street Stocks came out to try and top the show put on by the Modifieds, and they sure came close. A race filled with several crashes, and almost nonstop contact between cars also saw great racing for the lead. When the checkered flag fell, it was Matt Adams coming home with the win. Steve Constantino and Brandon Mannikko (Houghton, MI.) finished out the podium in that order. The final feature to run was the Bink’s Coca-Cola Sport Fours. Usually the roughest division at UPIR, the Sport Fours ran the cleanest out of everyone, without a single O’Reilly Auto Parts Caution Flag flying. However, a lack of cautions does not mean a lack of great racing action. The final laps saw an intense battle between Tyler Corwin and Craig Klotz for the win. Weaving in and out of lapped traffic, the two drivers raced cleanly with one another in spectacular fashion. For only the third time ever, and first in a feature, Craig Klotz won the race. Tyler Corwin followed in second. Third place was Randy DeGrave. UPIR wraps up its championship season next weekend on Saturday night, August 29. Gates open at 4 PM EST, with racing starting at 6 PM EST. Fans can expect to see one heck of a show, as many divisions’ titles are still up for grabs. UPIR wants to thanks all of the sponsors, fans, volunteers, and racers, without whom there would be no racing in Escanaba. Join us next week for more intense racing action. Check out www.upirtrack.com and Facebook for updates. Written by UPIR Race Reporter and Co-Announcer Todd Rose

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