The Scoop
BROCK HEINRICH – “IF YOU CAN RUN WELL AT WAUSAU, YOU CAN RUN WELL ANYWHERE”
Posted on: Thursday August 10, 2023
Wausau’s Brock Heinrich is hoping to parlay a home field advantage into victory at the TUNDRA series ‘Rib Mountain Rumble’ at State Park Speedway in Wausau August 13. (T.J. Harron photo)
Brock Heinrich knows State Park Speedway like the back of his hand.
The 25-year-old super late model racer from Wausau, WI knows every nook and cranny of the gritty, quarter-mile, paved bullring located in Rib Mountain, Wisconsin. Heinrich is hoping to parlay that intimate knowledge of the racing surface into a victory in the upcoming TUNDRA super late model series event dubbed the “Rib Mountain Rumble” Sunday, August 13.
Heinrich is heading into the Sunday event with some big momentum. Last month Heinrich was in the right place at the right time and wound up winning the prestigious Larry Detjens Memorial Midwest Tour event at Wausau. The race honored the short track standout and Wausau native whose life was taken tragically on August 1, 1981 in a crash at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna.
In that race at State Park Speedway, Heinrich was running behind Gabe Sommers and John Beale when the pair tangled, and both were sent to the tail of the field. “We had some luck on our side in that race I’ll admit,” Heinrich said. “But we had a strong car and put ourselves in a good position to be there, too.”
Brock Heinrich was the 2020 TUNDRA series rookie-of-the-year. (T.J. Harron photo)
State Park Speedway is an oval that has seen some of the best in stock car racing ply their craft on their way to NASCAR throughout the decades. Names like Trickle, Reffner, Marcis, Allison and Wimmer are just a handful of the big names who’ve earned their stripes over the decade at the tight oval.
“I’d compare driving the track at State Park sort of like running a Monster truck around a moto cross course,” Heinrich admitted. “It’s got true character. It’s real rough and bumpy. You almost need a mouthguard to go around 3 and 4. But it fits my style. Wausau is a track that you must be aggressive with. I love passing on the top. It’s also a track that takes a lot of finesse. If you can run well at State Park, you can run well anywhere in my opinion.”
According to Heinrich the Rib Mountain oval is one you have to talk to yourself to get around there. “(State Park) is the most challenging one on the TUNDRA schedule,” Heinrich confessed. “There is very little grip there. It’s small. It’s tight. As far as I’m concerned, the more challenging track, the better. It’s a real challenge to get around that place. That gives us an upper hand I think.”
Heinrich got his start in motorsports riding kiddie kat snowmobiles while still in kindergarten. Later he would switch to karts, dominating action for several seasons at the now defunct karting oval in Ringle, Wisconsin called Ringle Brickyard Speedway. In fact, Heinrich was so dominant early on many parents of his fellow competitors demanded Heinrich move up. “I was too fast for rookie box stock, so I had to move up right away to the regular box stock division,” Heinrich pointed out. “Those years we spent there were fun, though. We spent a lot of Saturdays out there.”
Eventually Heinrich, with his dad Mark Heinrich and Grandpa Bob Heinrich would travel all over the state – spreading their ‘wings’ so to speak and race the kart anywhere and everywhere they could get valuable seat time.
The next logical step was a full-sized car. Enter the pure stock division. “We had to take a season off in 2014 but the following year we hooked up with Clint Sillars,” Heinrich said. “We rented a car from him and learned how to pavement race.” Then in 2016 Heinrich bought his own car with setup help from Sillars. It was also a year Heinrich spread his wings more and started running Golden Sands Speedway in Plover.
The next two seasons saw Heinrich bump up to the limited late model division. It was a car Heinrich financed through Jerry Brickner. Tom Ress – who’s been in Luke Fenhaus’ corner in recent years – showed Heinrich the ropes of racing late models at SPS. A couple of track titles and feature wins were the result.
It wasn’t until 2020 that Heinrich entered what he called the ‘modern era’ of late model racing on pavement. Heinrich discovered and started running the TUNDRA series. Heinrich took a liking to running different tracks and wound up the series rookie of the year. His current Tobycar is nicknamed ‘Velocity.’ “We’ve learned a lot driving this car working with Toby (Nuttleman), Darren Seubert and Wes Coon. You’ve gotta drive those cars a lot harder. Initially it was a hard habit for me to pick up. I simply learned how to adjust as I went along.”
The nickname thing was just limited to Heinrich’s car, either. During driver introductions one year at Dells Raceway Park, Panure called Heinrich “Brockstar,” and that moniker has stuck ever since.
Heinrich, shown here in action at WIR in Kaukauna, continues to sport the number 52 in late model racing action. (T.J. Harron photo)
Like every race car driver, the number they sport on their race car has a story behind it. Heinrich is no exception there. “I was playing a NASCAR Playstation 2 game in 2006 and when I designed my car for that I picked the number 52,” Heinrich said. “That number stuck.”
As fate would have it Heinrich’s dad worked with Flip Merwin, the Wausau snowmobiler and vinyl graphics guru who passed away in an accident in 2003. Flip ran the number 525 racing snowmobiles. According to Heinrich, Flip was going to run a stock car the following season and had planned on running as number 27. “Flip was a great guy and I kind of aspired to be the kind of person he was,” Heinrich recalled. “He’d drop everything at once to help anybody out. He did graphics which is what I also do.”
Heading into Sunday’s TUNDRA race Heinrich sits 2nd in the points behind the team of John Beale and Dalton Zehr. Heinrich teams with Travis Volm. TUNDRA allows team driving for the points chase.
“The Brockstar” is the type of personality that drives short track racing,” said TUNDRA series promoter and announcer Panure. “He is in it to have a good time while being competitive. The entire team is full of great people who are dedicated to going fast, but still take the time to enjoy what they are doing. After a season of bad luck last year, they’re on their game this year and are serious contenders for wins at the title.”
The TUNDRA show at Wausau was rained out the last two years, so the TUNDRA teams and staff are anxious to return to the historic paved oval rich in central Wisconsin racing history.
“The event itself is always one of the most fun and competitive on our calendar,” Panure admitted. “There will be at least 8 to 10 drivers who will be a serious threat to win.”
When he’s not racing, Heinrich makes his living working as a maintenance mechanic at a hospital.
The team’s pit crew members include both Heinrich’s dad and grandpa, along with Wade LaFave, Kole Ferge, Brandon Normand, Mitch Thomsen, Heinrich’s mom Kari, crew chief Cody Schoenborn, Paige Oakes, Jay and Melody Schoenborn, Tannen Taylor, Jake Zellmer, Maclain Hammond, Todd Nest and Kevin Niewolny.
Heinrich’s team of marketing partners includes Northern Trail Express, United Structures, Zilisch Asphalt – Paving & Maintenance, PGA Inc., Re ViDesign, B & D Plumbing, Joe Rader Towing, TLD LLC, Grandpa and Grandma Heinrich, Todd’s Tap Service, Wausau Mine Company, Sprinkler Pete, Charlie’s Bar, Krasowski Dental, Ralph Merwin/Wausau 525, Ritchie Oil & Propane, Beyond Paint & Design, North Advance Auto, FSS Business Systems, Hayes Graphics, Jeff’s Auto, El Tequila Salsa, Pat and Mary Betzner, Wesdon Automotive, JV Smith Limited, Grandma Carol Fritz, Crystal Finishing Systems Inc., Fastenal, MWSCO Mississippi Welders Supply Co, Glen-ray Radiators, Whiskey River, Paige Marie Photography, Kim’s BS Sauce, NAEF’s Sugar Bush and Mom and Dad.
RIB MOUNTAIN RUMBLE NOTEBOOK – Joining the TUNDRA racers Sunday will be the WIR 1/4 mile late models, Dairyland Vintage racers and the Wisconsin sport trucks. Spectator gates open at 1 p.m. Qualifying begins at 1:30 p.m. with the first green flag flying at 3 p.m.
The GPS address for State Park Speedway is 147711 N Mountain Road, Wausau, Wisconsin 54401. You can also check tundrasuperlates.com for further information on the TUNDRA series.