Pit fee: $25 each night
Grandstand:
2-day passes: Adults: $25; jr/sr $22
Friday: Adults $12; jr/sr $11
Saturday: Adults $15; jr/sr $14
Kids 12 & under FREE
RACING STARTS AT 7pm BOTH NIGHTS!
Gate opens @ 5:30
**NO BLANKETS ALLOWED TO BE PUT DOWN UNTIL GATE IS OPEN BOTH NIGHTS**
**BLANKETS MUST BE REMOVED FOLLOWING THE RACES FRIDAY NIGHT...ANY BLANKETS REMAINING WILL BE REMOVED.  ANY BLANKETS PUT DOWN BEFORE GATE OPENS SATURDAY WILL BE REMOVED.** 

Drivers: Click here to download the 2011 Supernationals Entry Form. The entry deadline is Sept. 7th. Entries after Sept. 7th have a $15 penalty. 

Congratulations to the 2011 Gallatin Speedway Points Champions:

Street Stock: 00 Beau Brown, Deer Lodge

Super Stock: 32m Jeremy Meirhofer, Belgrade

Modified: 52 Erin Shane, Bozeman

In the main event Roger Crockett utilized his outside pole position to get around pole sitter Joe Ramaker of Choteau for the lead. With twenty-three cars starting the tail end of the lead lap field was hit early and provided some great racing as the top five separated from the field. Crockett held a firm grasp on the lead but Smokin' Joe Ramaker made a race to the end with Roger Crockett holding on to win in his first visit to the Western Montana race track.

Joe Ramaker's undefeated streak for 2011 at the track fell unfortunately that night but held his head up high afterwards knowing his car was fast and posted his best finish in the second race of the Showdown In Big Sky Country. Jason Solwold of Burlington, WA who was not in the dash went from seventh to third in the matter of a couple of laps to put himself in contention and would finish in a strong third for the team based out of White Court, AB. Colin Baker of Cottage Grove, OR and Canadian Kelly Miller of Stirling, AB rounded up the top five while the top five consisted of David Hoiness of Billings, Cameron Park, CA's Stephen Allard, Jesse Dakus of Beaumont, AB, Jeff Delte of San Jose, CA (subbing in for Craig Smith who suffered a mild heart attack after Wednesday night's race but is recovering nicely), and Trevor Kirkland from Helena.

"It's been nice we've been back east and getting some laps while hearing of some different winners back home which is cool so it's nice to make it here and run with this series and pick up a win and looking forward to tomorrow in Great Falls," said main event winner Roger Crockett, "We got done with the races (in Wisconsin) a bit late there and drove till about 4:30 AM and slept for about four hours and kept on trucking today I'm the only one that can drive the truck so it was a long driver with not a lot of sleep and we had a ton of work to do when we got here while the first heat was going and switched engines from the 410 to the 360 and the only time I got hot laps was in my heat race it's great to come here and put on a show for this huge crowd."

"After winning the heat race and winning the dash I was hoping to sweep it but I chose the wrong line in the first couple of laps and let Roger slip on by me then track started to take rubber it's really hard to pass anybody even the lapped cars when the tracks rubbered down its very fast and this place is notorious for doing that and I knew it was going to happen it was just wrong place wrong time I'm looking forward for tomorrow night thou," said runner-up finisher Joe Ramaker.

With no qualifications as previously mentioned a random pill draw lined up the heat races with passing and finishing points awarded the top six point earners going on to the six lap trophy dash which would finalize who would start where in the twenty-five lap feature in the first three rows. The winners of the three ten lap heat races were Phil Dietz of Billings, Joe Ramaker, and Roger Crockett.

The series takes returns to the place where the Showdown In Big Sky Country began on Weds day night for the conclusion of the NSA Shootout at the Electric City Speedway in Great Falls on Saturday night on what should be a packed house. In five NSA Shootout races there have been five different winners in the 2011 revival season after a fifteen year hiatus and so far has seen extremely positive reviews with promoters, fans, and teams and look forward to a return in 2012.

By Ben Deatherage

NSA Shootout Statistical Report; Gallatin Speedway; Belgrade, MT, August 19th, 2011

Winners- There has been four races for the NSA Shootout this season. The winners include Kyle Larson-1 (Siskiyou Motor Speedway on August 12th), Jayme Barnes-1 (Southern Oregon Speedway on August 13th), Chadd Noland-1 (Cottage Grove Speedway on August 14th), Stephen Allard-1 (Electric City Speedway on August 17th), Roger Crockett-1 (Gallatin Speedway on August 19th)

Heat One (10 Laps): 1. 72-Phil Dietz, Billings [3]; 2. 33-Stu Selby, Lethbridge, AB [1]; 3. 12-Josh Ostermiller, Billings [6]; 4. 2B-Trevor Kirkland, Helena [7]; 5. 75-Jesse Dakus, Beaumont, AB [4]; 6. 0J-Jeremy McCune, Billings [8]; 7. 77-Russ Yeager, Rock Springs, WY [2]; 8. 5-Chauncey Filler, Woods Cross, UT [5]

Heat Two (10 Laps): 1. 98-Joe Ramaker, Choteau [2]; 2. 39C-Jason Solwold, Burlington, WA [3]; 3. 27DD-David Hoiness, Billings [5]; 4. 23-Colin Baker, Cottage Grove, OR [8]; 5. 49-Mike Monahan, Sparks, NV [6]; 6. 130-Stephen Allard, Cameron Park, CA [7]; 7. 7X-Paxton Lambrecht, Shepherd [1]; 8. 38-Jerry Brown Jr., Helena [4]

Heat Three (10 Laps): 1. 11-Roger Crockett, Medford, OR [8]; 2. 44-Kelly Miller, Stirling, AB [6]; 3. 28-Joe Perry, Billings [1]; 4. 39-Jeff Delte, San Jose, CA [7]; 5. 63-Ivan Worden, Cotati, CA [4]; 6. 35-Chip Roe, Big Timber [5]; 7. 33X-Loren Rogers, Williston, ND [2]; 8. 44M-Damon McCune, Billings [3]

Dash (6 Laps): 1. 98-Joe Ramaker; 2. 11-Roger Crockett; 3. 44-Kelly Miller; 4. 72-Phil Dietz; 5. 12-Josh Ostermiller; 6. 23-Colin Baker

A Main (25 Laps): 1. 11-Roger Crockett [2]; 2. 98-Joe Ramaker [1]; 3. 39C-Jason Solwold [7]; 4. 23-Colin Baker [6]; 5. 44-Kelly Miller [3]; 6. 27DD-David Hoiness [8]; 7. 130-Stephen Allard [17]; 8. 75-Jesse Dakus [15]; 9. 39-Jeff Delte [10]; 10. 2B-Trevor Kirkland [9]; 11. 28-Joe Perry [12]; 12. 0J-Jeremy McCune [14]; 13. 63-Ivan Worden [16]; 14. 33-Stu Selby [11]; 15. 35-Chip Roe [18]; 16. 38-Jerry Brown Jr. [23]; 17. 44M-Damon McCune [24]; 18. 49-Mike Monahan [13]; 19. 12-Josh Ostermiller [5]; 20. 72-Phil Dietz [4]; 21. 77-Russ Yeager [19]; 22. 33X-Loren Rogers [20]; DNS 7x-Paxton Lambrecht [21]; DNS 5-Chauncey Filler [22]

Lap Leaders: Roger Crockett (1-25)
Cautions: 2
Red Flags: 0
Hard Charger: Stephen Allard +10

Gallatin Speedway was holding the annual "Kids Night". During intermission the cars from every class line up on the front stretch and mingle with children and parents. After the intermission was over, and the fans took their seats, the beating and banging began. The first class that was slated was the Wissota Super Stocks.

14 men were ready to do battle. 14 machines were in prime running order. Carmi Wells would start on pole, with Billings driver Jason Martin to his outside. The initial green flag resulted in a 5 car pileup in turn 3, and needed a complete restart. The green flag waved again, and Carmi Wells took his number 7 to the lead. Troy Hyde didn't want Wells to get away and immediately challenged low. Wells kept him at bay for lap after lap. A tiny slip up by Hyde let Cal Rossner catch him and challenge for the second. While the race for second was heating up, Jeremy Meirhofer waited on the low line and as he took third, the caution flag flew. The green flag came out and Meirhofer challenged Carmi Wells for the lead. The race raged for first and yet they still distanced from the third and fourth place. Wells ran a spotless race until a slip up in turn 1 and 2, let Meirhofer inherit a massive lead. Troy Hyde was then in second, and tried to catch Meirhofer. With only a few laps left Hyde was at the bumper of the 32 car, white flag was in hand and Hyde never gave up. Through 3 and 4 Hyde ran the low line and was beside Meirhofer. At the line Meirhofer edged Hyde by half a car. Third position went to Ty Clemens, fourth place was seized by Cal Rossner and Carmi Wells came back from an off track experience to finish in fifth.

Wissota modified driver Chad Mcfadden would start in first for the main event with Joey Price to his outside. Mcfadden got a great start but Price got a perfect one. Joey Price had the lead but the 3J car of Chad Johnson stole second and wanted first. Johnson set his car on the low line and gave the race his everything to get the lead. For the time being Price held him off. The race for third was a 3-way war between Dale Neitzel, Chad Mcfadden, and Erin Shane. Shane prevailed and took third. He then ran down the lead two drivers. The two wide race for the win became a 3 wide fiasco. Erin Shane set his car to the low line and took the lead, and Chad Johnson followed him through. Erin Shane ran away and navigated lapped traffic with ease to capture yet another victory on this 2011 season. Chad Johnson crossed the line second, Emory Wells in third, Mark Fowler in fourth and Dennis Hurd came home with fifth position.

Rod Lorenz hauled from Billings and took the pole for the main event with Belgrade's own Dan Bowlin to his outside. Rod Lorenz got the early lead and Dan Bowlin slid in line behind him. Paul Lease has had absolutely horrible luck all season at Gallatin Speedway, and challenged Bowlin for second. He quickly took second and was on Lorenz's rear bumper. Loopin' Lyle Imberi began to show his face as he lurked in third position. The 07 of Paul Lease looked low and Lorenz closed the door. Again Lease looked low and got a run, Rod Lorenz threw everything but the kitchen sink at Lease but Lease prevailed and took the lead. Lapped traffic slightly slowed Lease and that's all Lorenz and Imberi needed to catch him. Right as the race for the win heated up a caution came out. On the restart the 07 of Lease got a fantastic restart and built a large lead. Out of turn two came a hard hit for drivers Aaron Amundson, and Jordon Tocci. After the restart Lease got another great start, and ran away to take the checkered flag at Gallatin Speedway. Rod Lorenz crossed the line second with Nick Hunter in third, Brian Barnhardt in fourth and Beau Brown in fifth.

Kids night at Gallatin Speedway concluded with a great street stock race and next week the California Sprint Tour comes to town. Excitement is at a high, tension is even higher, and the points battle is raging. You can follow Gallatin Speedway on facebook or go to Gallatinspeedway.com for more information. Thanks for reading, and we will see you next week!

Andrew Brown

The topless Street Stock drivers were first to entertain the packed house. Rod Lorenz started on pole and took the lead into 1 and 2. On the backstretch the battle went to three wide and Deer Lodge driver Paul Lease capitalized using the low line. Ron Weber came out of nowhere to take second. Lease tried to extend his lead but destroying his hopes was a caution flag. After the restart Brian Barnhardt took his 17B car to battle for the first position. The battle didn't last long as Barnhardt made quick work of Lease, and took point. Dwayne Fowler is building a name for himself as coming on very strong at the end of the year and tonight he was making his presence known. Fowler was in second challenging Barnhardt for the lead, and when the 17B of Barnhardt bobbled the 12 of Fowler capitalized and took the lead. Following Fowler though was Nick Hunter. The battle for the win was between Hunter and Fowler. A caution came out as the two drivers were side by side and the lead was credited to Hunter. On the restart both Fowler, and Hunter knew they had to get a great restart to win. They went into one and two side by side for the win. They each took turns leading laps. But the one lap that mattered was looming, and everyone knew it. The white flag waves and Fowler lead. Checkered was in hand and Fowler took his first feature win at Gallatin Speedway after coming so close, so many times. Nick Hunter ran second, Brian Barnhardt held on for third, Beau Brown fourth and Ron Imberi came across fifth.

Rock Degele started on pole with his mystery machine, and was trying to defeat the heavy favorite Kelly Hampel. On the green Degele took the point and tried to build a lead. The 36 of Hampel was on Degele's back bumper and then he began challenging. Hampel got a wicked run and took the lead. From then on he set sail and ran away. The battle was for second. By that time everyone had moved to the high side and were bouncing off the cushion. As Hampel caught lapped traffic he was left with the decision of whether to run the low line or high line. Hampel chose the high line as did the lapped traffic. The only mistake Hampel made all night helped Rock Degele catch Hampel. They were bumper to bumper the white flag flew. Degele looked under Hampel on the back stretch but to no avail. Kelly Hampel wins his second feature event of the season. Rock Degele crossed the line second, Dave Freeman in third, Jimmy Zaremski in fourth and Chris Dunn stole a top 5.

Wissota Super Stock drivers took the track with Carmi Wells on pole and Kevin Scott started to the outside. The outside line was the place to be and Kevin Scott developed a absolutely massive lead in no time at all. Dave Norris moved to second and behind them the battle absolutely raged on. Ty Clemens showed his face as he was lurking in the third position. Clemens used the high line to battle for second, one tiny slip up by Norris helped Clemens claim the second position. The Track was fast and slick and that matched Jeremy Meirhofer's driving style. He began to make his charge to the front. Kevin Scott was absolutely dominating and of course a caution came out and murdered his lead. Last week must have re surfaced in Scott, and Meirhofer's minds. With only a handful of laps remaining last week, Meirhofer snuck by Scott for the lead on the high line. This week was just a re match. The green flag came out and Meirhofer challenged for the lead while Dan Guenther showed his muscle and challenged for third. The laps dwindled and on the last lap Meirhofer challenged for the win on the low line. Kevin Scott held him off and won his first feature win of the season. Jeremy Meirhofer came across second, and third went to Dan Guenther. Ty Clemens crossed fourth and Troy Hyde rounded out the top 5.

Travis Davis started on the pole in the modifieds with Paul Donnelly on the outside. Donnelly got the jump but on the backstretch the lead race went three wide. Donnelly, Emory Wells, and Travis Davis went into three and four and Donnelly prevailed. Darryn Waldo was stalking the leader and a caution came out. Positions were being traded lap after lap. One minute a driver is in third the next they fall to ninth. With only two laps left Emory Wells and Erin Shane had caught Donnelly, but when the checkered flag waved Paul Donnelly claimed his first Gallatin Speedway victory of the 2011 season. Emory Wells crossed the line second. Erin Shane third. Darryn Waldo slid to fourth and Dennis Hurd came from the rear to finish fifth.

When everyone finally caught their breath, took their trophies and chatted with the fans, they went home to prepare for next week's battle. The track championships are only a few weeks away and the battles are really heating up. Gallatin Speedway welcomes all traveling drivers, for any questions visit Gallatinspeedway.com. Thanks for reading and we will see you next week!

Dru Brown

Wissota Street Stock racing was at a premium. At the green flag, chaos!!! cars were 3 wide, 4 wide, 5 wide. Out of nowhere came Beau Brown, Vance Lorenz, Brian Barnhardt, and a whole list of others. The front starters were in the back and back cars were in the front. After a few caution flags drivers seemed to calm down and settle for a 3 wide battle. The laps wound down with Vance Lorenz leading the way. Beau Brown was on his back bumper giving him little bumps along the way. A caution flag flew and a new contender stepped into the ring, Ron Imberi would try to steal a victory with a hand full of laps remaining. Beau Brown slid underneath Vance Lorenz and held the lead until the end. Bewau Brown takes yet another victory at Gallatin Speedway. Vance Lorenz finished on his back bumper and Ron Imberi came home third. fourth place went to Dwayne Fowler. Doug Martin crossed the line fifth.

Wissota Super Stocks came out and they meant business. The track was dry slick and the veterens emerged as the only contenders. Dave "Medium-Husky" Norris, constantly stayed in contention. It looked as though Kevin Scott would run away with the victory leading lap after lap yet with less than 5 laps remaining Jeremy Meirhofer used the high groove to slip by. Jeremy Meirhofer won the Wissota Super Stock Main event. Kevin Scott came home second with Dave Norris in third.Ty Clemens nabbed fourth. Dan Gunther grabbed another top 5.

Wissota Modifieds were faster than they had been all year. Emory Wells, Travis Davis, Erin Shane and Chad Johnson all led laps but when it came down to the finish it was a last lap pass. Chad Johnson led into 1 and 2 but out of 3 and 4 on the last lap Erin Shane literally stole the main event. Chad Johnson had to have been disappointed but came home second. Dennis hurd got another top 3, Paul Leach stole 4th. Paul donnely crossed fifth.

Midwest mods were going to run their first main event at Gallatin Speedway. Dan Steber started on pole in his 227 Spongebob car. Steber lead using a high arching line, but paul leach rode the low line and came from the back of the pack to challenge for the win. The battle lasted only a few laps and the inaugural winner was about to be determined. Paul leach stole the show, and grabbed the check in the inaugural midwest modified feature at Gallatin Speedway. Dan Steber grabbed second, third went to Kelly Blixt, Sean McBee crossed fourth and Timothy McCune stole a top 5.

Yet another great night at Gallatin Speedway. There were crashes, passes, and tons of excitement. Nobody left the track bored. Gallatin Speedway welcomes all out of town drivers, please visit gallatinspeedway.com for more information.

Dru Brown

Moods were moving to optimistic while Wissota Modifieds took the green flags in their heat raes because the sun poked out. Casey Cromwell, and Erin shane took victories. Like a cold hard slap of reality the rain began pouring down as Wissota Street Stocks took the track. The cars were pulled and parked while track workers battled the rain conditions to keep the track race ready in case the rain let up.

Needless to say the rain never let up for more than a minute and everyone had to go home. Next weekend is history for Gallatin Speedway marking the first time Midwest Modifieds touh the earth there. Along with Wissota Street Stocks, Super Stocks, and Modifieds, the night promises to be stellar. Who will get bragging rights as first Midwest modified winner at Gallatin Speedway? Will Doug Martin win 3 Street Stock main events in a row? come to Gallatin Speedway July 29th to find out.

Dru Brown

Wissota Street Stocks were first on deck after a brief intermission. Ron Imberi wanted to be the second driver of the season to defeat Deer Lodge drivers and by starting on pole he had a great shot. Beau Brown lined up to the outside and the green flag waved. Instantly a 3-wide battle ensued. Doug Martin, Ron Imberi and Beau Brown looked to be the guys to beat. Nick Hunter at the beginning of the night said "I'm winning tonight" and he looked like he was going to prove it by stealing second away from Imberi and Brown. Doug Martin was beginning to develop a large lead but Hunter never gave up, that word is not in a race car driver's vocabulary. A 20 lap side by side race with Brown and Imberi kept fans well entertained. As Martin caught lapped traffic they gave him a fit and the 58 of Nick Hunter pounced on the opportunity. He showed Martin a fender but Doug Martin was too strong and added another trophy to his 2011 stack. Nick Hunter crossed the line second and Beau Brown eventually grabbed third from Ron Imberi who came home fourth. Rounding out the top five was Brian Barnhardt in his 17B car. Paul Lease, Ron Imberi and Nick Hunter won their heat races.

The Wissota Late Models and known as "ground pounders" due to the raw vibration of the engines causing stands to rumble. Tonight was no exception, and Kelly Hampel wanted to prove he was the fastest "ground pounder" of them all. Hampel started on pole with a fast Dave Freeman to his outside. On the start Freeman used to momentum of the outside lane to take the lead. Hampel fell back to second but was by no means out of the race. Jimmy Zaremski looked fast in third, and hoped to climb to his second Gallatin Speedway victory of the year but a wall of sparks appeared out of his right rear tire. In an instant Zaremski was spinning in front of a pack of snarling Late Models. A masterful piece of driving by everyone led to only a one car accident when it easily could have had 5 or 6 late models involved. Hampel took the lead on the restart using the bottom line, and looked to check out on the field. Rock Degele was in 3rd and closing fast but he had a lot of ground to make up and very little time to accomplish the feat. A red flag showed its ugly face as JD Olsen hit the outside retaining wall head on and another 5 car crash caused Bob Scott to demolish the front end of his car. When the green flag came out again Kelly Hampel rocketed away from the rest of the field and by the end of the main event he had nearly a half lap lead. Kelly Hampel won his first feature race at Gallatin Speedway of 2011. Dave Freeman came in second with Rock Degele in third, Jason George in fourth, and John Lighthizer in fifth. Dave Freeman and Jimmy Zaremski won their heat races.

Justin Rieker had the pole for Wissota Super Stocks and Cal Rossner started second. The green flag waved and Rieker showed his musle and developed a huge lead with his Brunette Chassis. A caution came out and Riekers massive lead he built on the low line disappeared. Troy Hyde was now right there and out of nowhere the 12 of Ty Clemens and the 9 of Mark Rieker made this race a 4 car instead of 2. The 9 of Mark Rieker slid up and Ty Clemens took third. At the same time Troy Hyde obtained the lead from Justin Rieker. Perhaps the most terrifying moment of the season so far happened next. Jeremy Castro hauling out of Billings was in a 3 wide battle when disaster struck on the front stretch. Castros car went airborne, twirled in the air, never going upside down, rode the wall and skidded to a stop. This was Castro's second terrifying high speed wreck on the front stretch at Gallatin Speedway, and luckily both times he walked away in scathed. The show must go on, and it did. Justin Rieker and Troy Hyde raced side by side and Ty Clemens had nowhere to go but stayed right with them. Clemens needed a rare mistake by one of the drivers but that moment never came. The last lap came and nobody knew who would win. Justin Rieker grabbed the lead down low in the first corner and Hde fought back on the outside, pinched Rieker down. That gave Hyde the edge he needed to take his second victory of 2011. Justin Rieker came across the line second, Ty Clemens in third, Cal Rossner in fourth and Jordan Tocci in fifth. Cal Rossner and Carmi Wells won their heat races.

Last but certainly not least were Wissota Modifieds. Dennis Hurd from Billings started on polewith Allen Wolf to his outside. Dennis Hurd took advantage on the start and took the lead, led a lap and out of nowhere Erin Shane came and swooped the lead away from Hurd. Gary Hill also came out of nowhere to take second. Hurd secured third place but Allen Wolf and Darryn Waldo raced in tight quarters. Eventually the 2 car of Darryn Waldo took fourth and set his sights on Dennis Hurd in third. Erin Shane began to absolutely check out on the field. A little deeper in the pack Emory Wells was dancing with the devil and flirting with the outside wall. Wells never came into contact with the wall but I'm sure more than a few people winced every time he entered the third corner. Gary Hill tried every line imaginable but nobody had anything for Erin Shane. Shane took yet another victory at Gallatin Speedway. Gary Hill crossed the line second and Darryn Waldo came home third. Dennis Hurd went by fourth and Joey Price rounded out the top 5. Erin Shane, Kenny Baumann and Gary Hill won their heat races.

The night was over and everyone was catching their breath while awards were handed out. Another amazing night of racing, next week holds Wissota Street Stocks, Wissota Super Stocks, Wissota Modifieds, and sprint cars for Monster Energy night. Gallatin Speedway invites any traveling driver to visit their track. Please visit Gallatinspeedway.com for any information you might need to obtain. We will see you all next week!

Dru Brown

Char Hurd

Super Stocks would begin the main events, with Cody, Wyoming driver Billy Allen on pole. Allen would be trying to take his wicked black racecar to victory for the first time. Dan Guenther started to his outside and after the green flag attempts the race stayed green for a little while. Allen fought on the low line but Guenther got a run on the high side. The race was for second and the battle raged. Three wide racing took the spotlight as Guenther began to check out on the field. Cars were slipping and sliding all over the track, and nobody was safe from spinning their car. Three of four past season winners went around for loops. The laps were beginning to wind down. It was go time. The 32 of Jeremy Meirhofer had caught Guenther. Meirhofer patiently waited for Guenther to slip up and when it happened Meirhofer stole the lead. Out of nowhere with very few laps remaining, Ty Clemens showed his muscle and got around Meirhofer and Guenther. When the white flag came out Meirhofer was all over Clemens' bumper in corner 1 and 2. Nobody knew what to expect at the finish line. Into corner 3, Meirhofer slapped his white car to the outside lane and got a run on Clemens. At the finish line it was side by side, nose to nose, and they crossed simultaneously. The cars pulled off the track to scale and nobody knew who won. When the call came in, it was Ty Clemens taking the victory, the fifth different winner in Wissota Super Stocks at Gallatin Speedway this season. Meirhofer came across second and Jordan Tocci in third. Troy Hyde and Justin Rieker won their heat races.

Wissota Modifieds were on track with a little sibling rivalry on the front row. Gary and Vern Hill shared the front and stayed that way for only a couple of laps. Paul Leach took his Lo N' Bro Motorsports car to the lead. An eight car wreck momentarily halted the action but when the green flag came back out the 3J of Chad Johnson jumped to the outside. Two wide racing ran on momentarily until Johnson took the point. In short time Johnson had built a massive lead while the second place battle heated up between Paul Leach, Gary Hill, and Maurice Myers. The top four drivers hadn't won at Gallatin Speedway this season but Erin Shane wanted to spoil the party for the second week in a row. A little deeper in the pack Dennis Hurd, Mike Dever, and Travis Davis battled three wide lap after lap with nearly no mistakes. Lapped traffic was giving Johnson a fit and in no time Paul Leach was on his back bumper challenging for the win. The white flag came out and Johnson stole the show. Leach finished second and Gary Hill third. Rounding out the top five positions were Maurice Myers in fourth and Erin Shane in fifth. Gary Hill and Johnson won their heat races.

The race stands were buzzing about the Wissota Street Stock main event. The word spread around that this would be the feature to watch tonight. Absolutely noone was disappointed. Paul Lease started in the first row inside, with Dwayne Fowler to his right. The green flag came out and Lease went to the front. Although Fowler had his eyes on the win, Helena's Ron Weber was giving him all he could handle in third. A very rare bobble by Lease caused the 12 of Fowler to jump to his outside and challenge for the win. Lapped traffic once again played a huge role. A gaggle of lappers caused a wreck between the 12 of Fowler and the 51 of Weber. Brain Barnhart was challenging for second with Beau Brown in tow. The 07 of Lease was leading with Barnhart rubbing his back bumper in second and beyond that was anyone's guess. Into turns three and four Barnhart seized his opportunity and took the lead from Lease. Barnhart ran on the bottom of the track and refused to move off of it. Right as Beau Brown took the second position the caution came out. Every position changed with every lap that went by. Three and four wide was becoming the norm, and a caution had to come out. On the restart Brown snatched the lead away from Barnhart and tried to run away with no avail. From the back of the pack to fifth position came Vance Lorenz. He could smell and taste the lead, but it appeared a tire rub might halt his progress. The action quickly went back to 3 wide racing and Lorenz was then challenging for the lead with Barnhart, Brown had to take evasive action and caused him to fall to third. The race was between Barnhart and Lorenz... Or so everyone thought. Brown once again moved to the bottom making the lead battle 3 wide. The white flag came out and nobody knew who would win. They rounded turn four and Brown took the checkered flag once again. Barnhart finished in second position with Vance Lorenz on his door in third. Nick Hunter fought hard and came away with a fourth place finish, and Lease raced from the back of the pack to finish fifth. Doug Martin, Jordan Tocci, and Nick Hunter won their heat races.

The only word that came to mind after tonight's races was "Wow". Everyone had a smile on their face after the show concluded. The streak of different winners in the Wissota Super Stock class continued, as well as the Deer Lodge dominance in the Street Stock class. Wissota A Mods had a new feature winner for this season and next weekend looks to be just as great. Wissota Street Stocks, Super Stocks and Modifieds will be on hand, and Gallatin Speedway invites you to come race. Please visit gallatinspeedway.com for any information you may have.

Dru Brown

The Wissota Modified drivers were first on track, with Tony Steward on pole and Darryn Waldo on the outside. Right as the green flag came out, Dennis Hurd slapped his number 99 on the outside, running high, wide, and handsome. Tony Steward and Waldo battled for the lead and Waldo stole the point. Tony Steward didn't give up, beating on Waldo's back bumper he tried absolutely everything he could, yet the DRW Performance car was too much. Waldo was fast but perhaps the driver in third was faster. Dennis Hurd was now on Steward's rear end and slid around him for second. A caution for a spin momentarily paused the scary-fast competition. The top 3 drivers didn't have wins yet this season and all looked hungry. Steward wanted revenge for a terrifying roll at the Super Nationals last year, Hurd hadn't won since BMP Speedway closed its doors, and Waldo had been in a recent dry spell. The green flag came out once again with only a handful of laps left and Emory Wells nabbed third from a fading Steward. The white flag came out and Darryn Waldo looked nearly un-beatable tonight, grabbing his first checkered flag of the 2011 season. Dennis Hurd came across a close second, Emory Wells in third, Chad Johnson in fourth and Tony Steward in fifth. On an interesting side note Billings drivers took 5 out of the top 8 spots in the evening's Wissota modified main event. (Erin Shane and Paul Leach won their heart races)

Ron Imberi lined up in first place with Ken Hunter to his outside. Both drivers wanting their first wins of 2011, after the green flag Hunter came out in front, and Dan Bowlin followed him through. Bowlin was challenging for the lead near instantly after moving into second. The leaders were fast approaching lapped traffic and Wiley veteran Bowlin chose a better line and grabbed the lead. The front two were having a fierce battle at the front, as were there two batting for third. Ron Imberi and Beau Brown raced side by side for laps and oddly enough caught second place driver Ken Hunter. 66 Ron Imberi moved into second and Beau Brown followed him through to third. A 3-wide melee for 5th place ensued. The 17B of Brian Barnhart started to get out of shape and Nick Hunter may have nudged him slightly but at those high speeds, a little mistake could mean misfortune for many drivers and it did. 4 cars total were in the pile up, and all drove away, with physical damage. Dan Bowlin had been checking out, but the caution brought him closer to the jaws of Deer Lodge driver Beau Brown. Even though the 19 of Bowlin got an amazing start, Beau Brown had a better line into 1 and 2, and moved inside for the lead. Brown got the edge but Bowlin wasn't giving up. He gave this race everything he had. Side by side racing lasted for nearly ten laps when Doug Martin came out of nowhere to challenge for the win. 3 cars, and 1 trophy, the white flag appeared and nobody knew who would win. Checkered flag and Beau Brown grabbed his second consecutive feature win at Gallatin Speedway. Doug Martin came home second, Dan Bowlin third, Ron Imberi had a strong fourth, and Brian Barnhardt took fifth. (Beau Brown, Nick Hunter, and Paul Lease won their heat races)

Wissota Late Models are a crowd favorite anywhere you go, because they put on a show, and tonight was absolutely no exception. Jason George started on pole with Jimmy Zaremski to his outside. If the previous two races said anything, the outside line was the place to be tonight. Green flag and Jimmy Zaremski checked out nearly immediately. An absolutely massive lead evaporated when a caution flag flew. Rock Degele came from mid pack to third in no time whatsoever and looked screamin' fast. Jason George set his Wissota late model on the outside and began to chew away Zaremski's lead. In true Kelly Hample style, his face wasn't even shown until money time. Hample and his "Green Machine" set his car to the outside, and flew by Dave Freeman for third. Rock Degele had second and used the low line to get there, yet Hample stayed in the outside and apprehended second place, and within a straightaway ripped into Zaremski's massive lead. Now that Hample had caught the 68 of Zaremski there was a huge problem. Both cars were running the exact same line. Hample stayed in the high line and Zaremski defended. A caution flag flew for a spin, by early speedster Jason George. Less than ten laps remaining, Rock Degele, Kelly Hample, and Jimmy Zaremski all were head and shoulders above the rest of the competition tonight. The green flag fell and Degele obtained the second position. Hample fought back on the outside. Degele had the slight edge on Hample and then took turns leading with Zaremski. Checkered flag in hand and Jimmy Zaremski won the first Wissota Late model feature event of the year. Second place went to Kelly Hample. Rock Degele fell to third, John Lightzinger came home fourth, and Jody Kropp rounded out the top 5. (Rock Degele and Jason George won their heat races)

Legend of Wissota Super Stocks, Mark Rieker started on pole and Dan Gunther on the outside. Mark Rieker took his black number 9 to the high side immediately and began building a massive lead. Ty Clemens started out the race in third, and because he has been on a hot streak nobody counted him out. Dave Norris took second from Dan Gunther, and tried to run down Rieker. Eventually Dave Norris and his blue number 67 ran down the 9 car and challenged for the lead. Although Norris gave Rieker a good battle the high line prevailed for Mark and his lead began to grow. It seemed like Norris flipped a switch, caught Rieker and took the lead on the low line. The top 10 were all running side by side, and perfection can only last so long, a spin halted the ferocious action. Immediately after the restart the action heated up, Ryan Fasching started slicing and dicing his way through the pack and reached the back bumper of Dan Gunther. That is where Fasching stayed, pushing and bumpong Gunther all the way around the track, it looked more like Talladega than a dirt track. The 21 of Fasching was warned for overly aggressive driving and he kept at it, so for the first time of 2011 the black flag waved, and Fasching pulled off the track. A little further up Ty Clemens and Jeremy Meirhoffer made their way through the pack and with less than 5 laps remaining they were in second and third respectively, trying to run down a cushion riding Rieker. The white flag came out and Rieker had an insurmountable lead, as the 32 of Meirhoffer and the 12 of Clemens battled, but a sure win for the veteran was annihilated. A green white checkered finish was in store for the last feature of the night, Rieker brought the field down at a quick pace and the green came out. Justin Rieker challenged for second yet Meirhoffer and Clemens overcame his onslaught. A 4 wide war raged for second and Rieker ran away and took the checkered flag for the first time in 2011 and Jeremy Meirhoffer ran second. Ty Clemens 3rd, Troy Hyde 4th, and hometown favorite Dan Guenther crossed the line 5th.

The evening held more than great racing. Many excellent stories arose from a freezing night. Beau Brown was Gallatin Speedway's first repeat winner of the season, Mark Rieker won in a black race car after running white and red since 1972. Darryn Waldo snapped a winless drought and the Wissota Late Models were running record lap times. Gallatin Speedway invites all drivers to compete against all their weekly runners. Please visit gallatinspeedway.com for more scheduling information, or directions. Thanks for reading and please come out next week, and watch some of Wissota's best drivers.

Dru Brown

Two by two all the way back Nick Hunter took the lead out of turn two on lap 1. Beau Brown was hot on Hunter's heels as they caught lapped traffic. When Hunter had to check up for the first lapped car, Beau Brown took a look but to no avail. With lapped traffic playing a huge role in the Street Stock lead battle, Beau Brown and Nick Hunter raced side by side mistake free, it came down to the last lap, last corner and Nick Hunter prevailed. Through a hard fought race and navigating lapped traffic at a premium the recent king of Gallatin Speedway stole the first checkered flag for the 2011 season. Beau Brown came home a disappointing second after coming within inches of victory.

Wissota Super Stocks have always had a hearty number of cars and the 17 who started the main event, did not disappoint. Kevin Scott last years' runner up in the track points started on pole with Emory Wells in second. When the green flag fell the fans knew they were in for a treat. Scott jumped out to a nearly insurmountable lead. Troy Hyde, Cal Rossner, and Dan Gunther thought differently. Hyde finally caught Scott and an epic battle raged lap after lap. Hyde squeezed by, led a lap and the caution flew for a spin. The game had been reset. Justin and Mark Rieker dawned new paint schemes and with only a handful of laps remaining they began to show their sinister faces. The laps wound down and Justin Rieker was only two car lengths back with the white flag flying. Troy Hyde gave it his all and crossed the finish line ahead of Rieker.

Hometown favorite, Emory Wells, would start on pole position for the A Mod main event. The only thing standing in front of Emory was 17 other modified drivers. A seven car battle for second place immediately took place with Wells running away with the lead. The seven car battle for second quickly escalated to a twelve car war. Then disaster struck for Gary Hill. Running in second place, a cloud of white smoke smothered the rest of the field and caused a spin. Once again Wells' huge lead evaporated. After the green, Casey Cromwell briefly challenged Wells' blue number 3, only to get out gunned into the third turn by Chad Johnson. The lead was now a battle with number 3 Emory Wells and number 3J, Chad Johnson. Once again, every leaders worst nightmare came to play, a caution flag. What was once a runaway race, was now a duel, featuring last years modified track champion (Erin Shane) and The Gibson Guitars 2010 winner, Emory Wells. Erin Shane had the lead when doom blanketed the 7 car of Tracy Wittenberg , possibly totaling his modified. After a very late crash knocked Wells out of the running, Erin Shane, stole the victory, walking away from runner up, Chad Johnson.

In conclusion opening night at Gallatin Speedway had it all. Close finishes, door to door racing, and big crashes. Absolutely no fan should have walked away with a frown. Gallatin Speedway invites all traveling drivers to come out and try to dethrone the Gallatin Speedway drivers. Visit gallatinspeedway.com for schedule, contact information, and directions.

Dru Brown

Checkout this video segment by Jeff Friedman from KTVM (NBC).

Click here to watch the video.