2015 Racing on the Radio "Best of Best"

So as the 2015 dirt track season has effectively came to a close, I feel now would be a good time to make mention of some of the best moments, drivers, races, and anything else that I feel deserves a high five, fist pound, thumbs up, or even standing ovation. Essentially it’s my way of pointing out things or people that deserve a little credit this season. Of course, these are my opinions based on my observations based on races I attended. There’s probably lots of stuff that I missed, so feel free to comment and add what you think deserves recognition.

First off on a lighter note:

Best Nachos: Gotta give this one to River Cities Speedway and their Bucket of Nachos. Taco Beef or shredded pork with nacho chips, nacho cheese, shredded cheese, salsa, jalopenos, and more! Best $7.50 I ever spent. And I did so on multiple occasions. Even their regular Nachos were loaded with extra cheese.

Best Hamburger: Norman County Raceway. I never actually had one, but if Jake Pommerer, Mike Spieker, and Corey Litton tell you that it’s the best around….it has to be true.

Best overall concessions: North Central Speedway in Brainerd gets the nod here. Very affordable prices and lots of unique options like the Pit Fries (fries loaded with BBQ’s and Cheese).

Pit Fries from North Central Speedway

My favorite race track of the year: I will exclude NCR because of my bias. I still didn't make it to as many tracks as would have liked, but I will give the nod to Buffalo River Race Park. Great fans, great affordable place to watch a race. Indoor seating. Great hospitality too. Races move quickly.

Other notables: I-94 Speedway in Fergus was a close 2nd. Love the seating. Cheap ticket. North Central Speedway is also a very affordable and family friendly race track.

On to some actual racing things…..

Modified Driver of the year: Can you give this to anyone besides Mr. Excitement, Dev Malmlov? I have never seen anyone driver a car like he did the 2^nd half of the summer.

Other notables: Justin Jones (He did win like 2 or was it 3 track championships), Alex Englestad, Dustin Strand, Mike Johnson

Dev Malmlov #91B

Late Model Driver of the Year: Gotta give it to Dustin Strand. The “Kid” proved this year he is a top contender in the Late Model field. Won the NLRA points championship.

Other notables: Ricky Weiss had a tremendous year but didn’t make any new friends by the sound of it. Don Shaw, Brad Seng, and the usual suspects.

Dustin Strand #71

Midwest Modified or Sport Modified Driver of the Year: Jason Strand was untouchable in a Midwest Mod. Swept the B-mod Blitz.

Other notables: Andy Wagner made a ton of progress this year. Brock Gronwold is still fast. Travis Saurer isn’t cheating after all. Matt Schow finished strong. Scott Jacobson still has it.

Jason Strand #E85

Biggest Surprise of the Year: We all knew Rob VanMill would probably win a race or at least be competitive, but I don’t think anyone predicted he would have more than 5…which he did. (He won 7) Rob clearly has great racing sense. Should be a dominant force in the future.

Other notables: Bill Mooney had some very bright moments this year. Bill Yonke won a few races and also may have exposed one of the biggest conspiracy theories I’ve heard in recent dirt track history.

Rob VanMill #4D

Drivers to Watch in 2016: Brady Petermann was close to his first win in his rookie year in a mod. Definitely has the car. Tyler Hall is close. Jesse Skalicky will keep winning more races. Cole Schill looked very confident this year.

Best Race of the Year: Personally the John Seitz Memorial Race was the top choice for me. 92 laps of close racing. Lots of lead changes plus tons of drama and story lines to go with it.

Other notables: Sander's Mod Challenge was a great experience, and literally every Street Stock race ever this summer.

Biggest Rivalry: Ryan Satter vs Travis Robertson. It was a friendly rivalry, but those two battled hard many nights together. Good kids, cool heads, great race car drivers. 

Other notables: Andy Wagner vs the Jacobsons. Actually come to think about it...nobody made any friends in the sport mod class this year. 

Tough luck Award: Compared to her tremendous 2014 campaign, Tailin Tommerdahl had a pretty rough go of things this summer. Besides her scary roll over at Norman County Raceway, it was just was one of those years where she couldn’t get things to click. She has a ton of potential in the sport and I’m really looking forward to seeing her start fresh in a Modified in 2016.

Favorite Driver to Interview/Speak to: Tom Cummings. Let's be honest this is probably the only award he had a shot at winning. Just a quality individual though. Always smiling. Funny as hell. Smarter than I ever imagined.
Other notables: Billy Vogel is a character. Brad Seng is a goofball, but super nice too. Dustin Strand tells it like it is. 

All Photo Credit (with the exception of the food one) goes to Mike Spieker of Speedway Shots.