The Traxxas TORC Series headed to Crandon, WI, for Round 5.

Sunny skies and drier air greeted Saturday morning at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway after the sticky air cleared out overnight. In the spirit of the times, change at Crandon was in swing.  In the off season, several new wrinkles were added to the track.  The Gravel Pit turn received a small berm on the outside to add another line through the corner. The final turn out of the Argonne Loop received a berm or two for multiple lines through the corner, but following practice the berms were cut out after driver input.  The Argonne Loop itself was cut a little shorter and wider. The final change was the addition of two more jumps after the start/finish line that created a small rhythm section. All the new changes were planned to spice up the racing and create a better show for the fans and a new look for the drivers.

Jeff Kincaid shot to the lead from the fourth position in the 2x2 start of the Pro Light race. Marty Hart and Randy Eller followed in second and third, respectively, followed by Chad Hord in fourth. On lap one, Hord powered by Eller down the front straight and moved into third. Hord closed in on Hart on lap two taking the second position with a move to the inside of the Gravel Pit. Hart battled right back and passed Hord on the inside of Calamity Corner. This battle allowed Eller to close back in and fight for third on the following lap. Coming into the Gravel Pit, Eller made contact with Hord and pushed him over the berm. Hord dropped back to fifth by the time he got back on the track.

Marty Hart battled his way to the Pro Light Truck victory.

Two laps later, race leader Kincaid slowed up dramatically in the Gravel Pit with a loss of power steering. Hart passed for the lead going into the competition yellow, while Kincaid limped to the line in second. Eller regrouped and held the third-place position. When the racing got back underway, Kincaid let the field run by giving second to Eller and third to Hord. Hord repassed Eller on the inside of the Gravel Pit taking the position for good. Two laps later, Eller slowed up in the Gravel Pit  with overheating issues. Steve Federico motored by claiming third. Over the final two laps, Hord closed up to Hart but did not have anything for him. Hart took the win followed Hord in a close second. Federico followed to the line in a distant third. Chad Hord claimed the Oakley Bomb Run after laying down the fastest lap of the race.

Rob MacCachren won the duel with Todd LeDuc to take the win in Pro 2WD

The Pro 2WD class featured plenty of action from the stacked field. Todd LeDuc had the right setup jumping out to the early lead. Mark Oberg and Rob MacCachren followed in second and third, respectively, going into the opening lap. Mark Oberg lost the handle in the Argonne Loop, allowing a close following MacCachren and Dan Vanden Heuvel to slip by for second and third.

The leaders ran in order through the next two laps until a shakeup on lap four. Vanden Heuvel also lost the handle in the Argonne Loop allowing Ricky Johnson to move into third. Mark Jenkins ran into the wall after the Barn Jump destroying the right front of his truck and bringing out a red flag. The red flag was changed to the competition yellow one lap early and the race turned into a five-lap shootout. On the restart, LeDuc and MacCachren got away clean.  Johnson had his hands full battling Vanden Heuvel and lost third position over the Barn Jump. Vanden Heuvel’s hold on third was short lived, however, as Evan Evans passed him in Calamity Corner to move into third. MacCachren finally set up LeDuc on lap six passing him in the Gravel Pit on the outside line. MacCachren slowly stretched a lead on LeDuc over the final several laps for the win. On lap seven, Evans pulled off the track with mechanical issues giving third back to Johnson. MacCachren’s win was his 11th consecutive win at Crandon and his first 2WD win of the year. LeDuc finished in second and Johnson finished in third. Johnson won the Oakley Bomb Run award with the fastest lap.

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Mark Steinhardt cruised to victory in 1600 buggy.

The 1600 buggy race got off with Mark Steinhardt pulling the holeshot. Steinhardt ran strong from start to finish taking his first win of the year and leaving the rest of the field to fight for second. Michael Seefeldt chased in second and Terry Fitzgerald followed in third. At the halfway point, Jeff Villemure made the charge to pass Fitzgerald for third.  Villemure kept marching forward and made a last lap pass for second. Seefeldt crossed the line for the final podium position in third. 

Shawn Morris came from Colorado to win his first Super Buggy race.

The Pro Super Buggy class rocketed off the line led by Shawn Morris through turn one. Tim Lemons and Scott Schwalbe led the chase at the front of the pack. On lap two, Doug Fortin caught Schwalbe in the Argonne Loop.  After pulling even, Fortin powered through for third position. On the move, Fortin set his sights on second-place racer Lemons. Fortin used an outside-in move on Lemons in the Argonne Loop on the following lap to move into second.  One lap later, Fortin powered by Morris on the front straight after light contact but suffered a flat right rear tire.  Morris looped off the first front straight jump but got underway in second just ahead of Lemons and Schwalbe. On lap five, Fortin pulled off to change a tire giving the lead back to Morris. Morris led a nose-to-tail pack over the final four laps, holding off Lemons to earn his first win at Crandon International Raceway.

Rick Huseman continued his hot streak taking another win in Pro 4x4.

The Pro 4x4 class was actually the first Pro truck class to hit the track for Round 5. Kyle Leduc shot out to the early lead followed by Steve Barlow and Curt LeDuc.Going into the Gravel Pit, Barlow got mixed up and Curt LeDuc and Johnny Greaves powered by for second and third, respectively.  The top three ran in order for the first three laps until lap four when Rick Huseman made the move by Greaves in Argonne Loop.

On lap five, Curt LeDuc bobbled coming over the Barn Jump and ran off the track, which allowed Huseman and Greaves to slide by into second and third going into the competition yellow. When racing resumed at lap six, Huseman had his sights on Kyle LeDuc. Huseman took a strong run into the Gravel Pit utilizing the small berm on the outside to power by LeDuc, but LeDuc countered on Calamity Corner by diving to the inside but Huseman was able to hold on for the lead.

Two laps later, Curt LeDuc got by Greaves in the Argonne Loop moving back into the top three. The final several laps showcased close action racing with the leaders all holding their positions. In the end, Huseman held on for his fourth win of the season. Son-and-father duo Kyle and Curt finished in second and third, respectively, to round out the podium. Rick Huseman won the Oakley Bomb Run award for the fastest lap in the race.

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Dan Beauchamp took a wild ride in his stock truck at Crandon.

The Stock Truck classed toed the line for the first-ever Mole Lake Casino Stock Truck Cup race. Dan Beauchamp took the early lead and led for the first five laps. On lap five, Beauchamp hooked a rut in turn one violently rolling several times. Beauchamp emerged unhurt but was finished racing for the day. Mitch Dorr, who was running in second after trading positions with Craig Metz early in the race, took over the lead. Metz closely pursuing Dorr moved into second while Don Demeny inherited third despite driving a wounded truck. Dorr edged away from Metz over the final four laps to win the first-ever Mole Lake Casino Stock Truck Cup race. Metz finished with a solid second-place finish, and Demeny limped to the finish line to finish in third.

Mitch Dorr won the Stock Truck Chairman's Cup race.

Six trucks toed the line for the start of the Classix race. Dale Chestnut took the win after chasing Rob Weiland through the first half of the race. Weiland pulled off the track with mechanical issues and was forced to forfeit the lead. Dale Anderson was the second-place finisher and the last car running. Eric Chernetski made it the furthest of the non-running cars placing third.

Keith Steele fought his way to the front in Sportsman Limited.

The field doubled for the Enduro truck race with a dozen trucks. Jesse Wagner held off all challengers by leading wire to wire to finish with the win. Matt Dale finished second and Shaun Bruski raced to a third-place showing after a slow start. The Formula 4x4 race was a hard fought race. Dave Demaegd emerged with the win over second place Brad LaMarche. Chuck Holtz finished in a distant third claiming the final podium position. 

Familiar faces were at the head of the class in the SRT limited race. Don Williams took the holeshot but was unable to hold the lead. Keith Steele moved into the lead on the first lap and never looked back, as he went on to take the win. Ross Hoek moved into second on the opening lap and gave a valiant chase but was unable to close the gap and finished in second. Williams settled into third after the opening lap and finished in the final podium spot.

Wes Frehse ran away with the win in 1600 Lite Buggy.

Wes Frehse took the holeshot in the 1600 Light buggy race and dominated the class leading wire to wire. Craig Paitl led the chase pack, held off all challengers and finished in second. Vincent Lofquist battled his way to third in the middle of the race and held on to claim a third-place finish.