The Vault
1982 SEYMOUR SPEEDWAY REOPENS AFTER FOUR YEARS – MCBRIDE & STEUDING TIE
Posted on: Saturday November 27, 2021
SEYMOUR SPEEDWAY’S ’82 REOPENING AND A TIE AT 1:30 A.M.
On July 4, 1982, Seymour Speedway reopened after being closed for more than four years.
As a teenager who had began to soak in the sport of short track racing like a sponge I anxiously awaited this night for weeks. Seymour had been our family’s “go to” track we seldom, if ever missed a race on when the half-mile, clay oval located at the Outagamie County Fairgrounds hosted Sunday night races in 1975 and 1976.
We’ll detail veteran Checkered Flag Racing News correspondent Dave Panske’s recap of the nights events. I’ll throw a few random tidbits from that night I remember vividly.
Leon Plank from Mondovi was one of the only drivers to run the top line the entire race. Plank finished third. On the ride home I asked my dad why he was doing that. Dad’s response “Leon was running the top when nobody else did. The track came around in the last 15 or 20 laps and he started passing cars.”
It was the first time and likely the only time I had watched Phil Prusak race. Prusak, from Eau Claire, would tell me earlier this year in interviews for the upcoming book “5-10-32 McBride, Parker & Anvelink” that that show was his only appearance ever at Seymour.
That night in ’82 was also the first time I’d see Wausau’s Doug Herbst race. Herbst won the first heat with his Corvette bodied racer. Later on Herbst would have a very successful career in pavement late model racing.
The 50 lap late model feature, which wrapped up roughly at 1 a.m., wound up in a tie between Shawano’s M.J. McBride and Altoona’s Tom Steuding, another hot dog from western Wisconsin. McBride appeared to have the race in the bag when a hood pin popped on the final circuit, allowing “The Altoona Antelope” to pull up alongside for the “tie.”
One of the reasons for the late night (from what I recall) was a flurry of yellow flags in the sportsman division heat races and features. So many in fact that track announcer that night Paul Kaczrowski, as frustrated as the crowd was with “yellow fever” that was going around, said over the p.a. “It appears some of you sportsman drivers better get your shit together” which drew one of the loudest roars from the crowd in the night.
The event was a coming out party of sorts for Shawano’s Chuck Buckbee. The future late model champion fought off a pair of fellow future late model pilots – Doug Blashe and Chad Paul to win the caution plagued sportsman feature.
Since the track was closed for four years it wasn’t much of a surprise during time trials that nine different drivers shattered Steuding’s 25 second track record lap (from 1975) in the late models.
So…..the following is the report from Panske which appeared in the July 8, 1982 edition of the Checkered Flag Racing News. Enjoy!
Veteran dirt trackers M.J. McBride (left) and Tom Steuding pose with an unidentified trophy girl after the pair raced to a tie at Seymour Speedway July 4, 1982. It was the first race at the half-mile, clay oval after being shut down for four years. (photo credit unknown from the Marilyn McBride collection)
MCBRIDE & STEUDING SHARE SEYMOUR LM PRIZE
by Dave Panske
SEYMOUR, WI, JULY 4 – M.J. McBride of Shawano and Tom Steuding of Altoona shared the spotlight Sunday night by racing to a dead heat finish in the Firecracker 50 late model feature, as the Seymour Speedway reopened for the first time in four years.
A near capacity crowd watched as the fastest 20 cars took the green flag with Ted Dolhun of Brookfield jumping into the early lead. The race was just one lap old when Pete Parker of Kaukauna got too high out of turn two and ended up on top of the guardrail near the pit entrance. Parker was not hurt but his car sustained heavy front end damage.
When racing resumed Dolhun held on to the top spot for less than one lap when McBride slipped under him in turn three to take the lead. With McBride in command, Dolhun had to contend with Green Bay’s Scott Hansen, fast qualifier Leon Plank and Steuding, both from Eau Claire. On lap 10 Hansen got by Dolhun and started to close in on McBride. His lead was erased by lap 12 when a spin by Random Lake’s Mike Melius brought out a caution. Two laps later the caution flew again this time for Terry Anvelink, Lowell Bennett and Steve Lurvey who got together in turn one.
On the restart Dolhun drifted high in the west turn, allowing Plank, Steuding and Mike Kelly to get by. The next 15 laps were all flat-out racing, with the five car freight train flying around the ½ mile clay oval. The running order remained the same as no one could get an advantage to move up. With McBride still in command the final caution flew on lap 35 when Ed Kulka of Beaver Dam and Jim Boehles spun in turn four.
As the cars were coming in for the restart Hansen had to pull into the pits with a flat tire which moved Plank, Steuding, Dolhun and Kelly right on McBride’s rear bumper. Plank tried several moves on McBride over the next ten laps, but he could not get by.
With just five laps remaining Plank drifted wide in turn two, a slip that led Steuding slip by to challenge for the lead. Steuding could pull up on the straights but McBride had the edge in the turns. As the pair received the white flag it looked as if McBride would be able to hold him off, but as they came through turn four, a hood pin broke loose of McBride’s car that caused him to slow down enough to allow Steuding the chance to pull alongside, as they raced to the finish. The two veterans raced side by side to the checkered flag to a dead heat that had the crowd on its feet. Following the leaders to the line were Plank, Dolhun, Mike Melius and Mike Kelly.
After the race both drivers congratulated each other on a clean race but did not really like the idea of sharing the winner’s portion of the $6,500 plus purse with the other. This should provide some interesting racing for the second race of the series to be run on Sunday night, July 25.
Earlier in the evening Plank broke the track record with a 23.918 time. The old record of 25.050 was set on August 17, 1975 by Steuding. In all, nine different drivers timed in under the old mark.
The local sportsman drivers were also part of the program, with Chuck Buckbee of Shawano having the best night of his career, as he made a clean sweep of the action. He started the evening by out-qualifying the 33 car field. In the fast heat he passed Doug Blashe with one lap remaining to pick up the win. In the feature he survived five early race cautions to post a commanding straightaway victory. Following him in the 25-lap main were Blashe, Chad Paul from New London and Wally Blank from Menasha.
SUMMARY
Sportsman
Fast Qualifier: Chuck Buckbee, Shawano
First Heat: Charlie Kerneen, Waupaca; Paul Thorpe, New London
Second Heat: Ron Conradt, New London; Chuck Gordon Jr, Shawano
Third Heat: Buckbee; Doug Blashe, Marion
Semi: Conradt; Gordon Jr; Larry Faucher, New London; Ralph Aschenbrenner, De Pere
Feature: Buckbee; Blashe; Chad Paul, New London; Wally Blank, Menasha; Ed Vincent, Green Bay; Tim Miller, Bear Creek
Late Model
Fast Qualifier: Leon Plank, Mondovi 23.918 (NTR)
First Heat: Doug Herbst, Wausau; Chris Kollross, Green Bay
Second Heat: LeRoy Schneiderman, Woodstock, Il; Cliff Ebben, Appleton
Third Heat: Ted Dolhun, Brookfield; Phil Prusak, Eau Claire
Semi: Roger Van Roy, Little Chute; Herbst: Don Mochenick: Kollross; Les Yaeger, Green Bay
Feature: M.J. McBride, Shawano and Tom Steuding, Altoona in a tie; Plank; Dolhun; Mike Melius, Random Lake; Mike Kelly, Green Bay