by Justin Zoch

ARCADIA, Wis. (June 22, 2001) - Roger Rager cruised to victory in the first race of the 2001 Midwest Sprintcar Series season held at the brand new Fox Ridge Speedway in Arcadia, WI. The two-time and defending MSS champion raced past Jimmy Kouba in turn 3 of the first lap and streaked to take the win by holding off a late race charge by Kent Winters.

Jimmy Kouba jumped off to the early lead from the pole, which he obtained by winning the Fast Wings Fast Dash. But Rager, who started second, slid beneath Kouba in turn 3 and took the lead. Kouba would chase Rager for the next 17 laps as the pair worked lapped traffic on the scenic 3/8 mile speedway. Lap 17 saw Alan Gilbertson lose his steering in turn 2 and shoot over the embankment, over the railroad tracks, down a ravine, and eventually flip into a grove a trees over the backstretch. Gilbertson was uninjured.

Following a lengthy delay to recover the Gilbertson sprinter, Rager again took the lead but had to withstand a charge from Kent Winters who slipped past Kouba for second on the final restart. Jimmy Kouba, Kurt Davis, a MSA competitor with steel heads, and Joe Kouba rounded out the top five spots.

Heat races for the 17 MSS competitors were won by Joe Kouba, Rager, and Davis.

RESULTS

A Feature: 1.Roger Rager; 2. Kent Winters; 3. Jimmy Kouba; 4. Kurt Davis; 5. Joe Kouba; 6. Ehren Layton; 7. Mike Sargent; 8. Tony Hargrave; 9. Rob Caho; 10. Joseph Kouba; 11. Spike Lempelius; 12. Greg Kamrath; 13. Tom Kamrath; 14. Alan Gilbertson; 15. Johnny Parsons III; 16. John Nelson; 17. John Jacob (DNS).

Fast Wings Fast Dash: 1. Jimmy Kouba, 2. Rager, 3. Winters, 4. Davis, 5. Joe Kouba, 6. Sargent.

Heat 1: 1. Joe Kouba, 2. Sargent, 3. Joseph Kouba, 4. Hargrave, 5. Caho.

Heat 2: 1. Rager, 2. Jimmy Kouba, 3. Layton, 4. Gilbertson, 5. Lempelius.

Heat 3: 1. Davis, 2. Winters, 3. T. Kamrath, 4. Nelson, 5. G. Kamrath.