The Scoop
COY VLIES – PROVING HIS PHENOMENAL ROOKIE YEAR WAS NO FLUKE
Posted on: Monday September 30, 2024
Kewaunee’s Coy Vlies has earned nine feature wins and a pair of track championships in his second year of wheeling an IMCA northern sportmod in 2024.
Coy Vlies sophomore season proved that his phenomenal freshman year was no fluke.
The senior at Kewaunee High School is in the process of capping off a banner 2024 campaign. As of this writing, Vlies scooped up no less than nine IMCA northern sportmod feature flags – and normally against some pretty stout competition with high car counts. Vlies victories were earned at tracks in Luxemburg, Beaver Dam and 141 Speedway in Francis Creek. Vlies biggest payday came a couple of weeks ago when he won the $5,000 top prize in the Rod Wittkopf Memorial Race at 141.
Coy Vlies poses with his championship hardware after capturing the IMCA northern sportmod crown at 141 Speedway in Francis Creek. (danlewisphoto.net)
The 17-year-old picked up eight wins in his rookie debut in 2023. “After my rookie year we definitely did have high expectations coming into this season,” Vlies said. “It was sort of a mindset to set the bar high. We had our eye set on going for the track championship at 141. To me, that is the hardest track to win a title at with all the cars they get. Some nights we’d have close to 40 cars and on other nights we’d have 50 or more. So that meant a lot.”
Vlies also picked up the sportmod track crown at Luxemburg. Vlies race car he battled with this year was a 2023 Harris chassis. “It was quick out of the box and not too much different that the car I ran a year ago and we sold that one to Shane Bahr,” Vlies said. “We had a lot of 2nd place finishes early in the year. But we really hit our stride during the Clash At The Creek race in June. We found something and that really helped set us up well for the rest of the year.”
Coy Vlies (17) works the bottom groove against Taylor Haufschildt (26) in action at Outagamie Speedway in Seymour. (danlewisphoto.net)
Vlies admitted he’s got a band of classmates at Kewaunee who attend the races and often cheer him on. “I had a lot of my friends show up wherever I race and that’s pretty cool,” Vlies confessed. “A lot of them showed up at Luxemburg for championship night.”
The sportmod class locally is loaded with an interesting mix of teenage drivers, many of them out the karting ranks, combined with a mix of veteran pilots. One of the drivers he mixes it up with on occasion is his dad – Jeff ‘PePe’ Vlies. “I believe dad raced all the nights at Luxemburg except twice so we’d battle there,” Vlies said. “We did go side-by-side a few times but never had any issues. I’m not sure how much longer dad is going to race.”
Coy Vlies (17) takes the bottom groove while Cory Kemkes (07) takes the high line in three wide, sportmod action. (danlewisphoto.net)
When it comes to fellow competitors, Vlies is quick to point out at another driver who had a successful ’24 campaign – Appleton’s Cory Kemkes. The longtime pavement-racer-turned-dirt tracker had himself a great year as well, picking up eight feature wins on area ovals in ’24. “Cory and myself we ran side by side for the lead for several laps last weekend at 141 and he’s really good,” Vlies admitted. “He’s one guy who always races me clean. I always return that favor when it comes to respect with all the drivers out there. You’re always going to have some bad nights once in awhile. My dad taught me you can’t win them all and you simply have to put it in the past and move on. We all make mistakes sometimes.”
Vlies still has enough left in the tank where he’ll race two more times this year. “We plan on hitting that special at Beaver Dam Raceway this coming weekend and then the season finale at Luxemburg October 12,” Vlies said. “As for 2025, we do plan on racing in the sportmod class one more season. We’ll use this same Harris chassis that we’ve been running. We do plan on moving up to the modified class eventually, but you’ve really got to be on point when you make that move. I’m young enough yet and don’t want to make that jump until I’m ready.”
While Vlies future plans upon graduating high school are up in the air, he readily admits he wouldn’t mind racing for a living – knowing full well that it’s a longshot. “If I could somehow pull that off yes I would absolutely race for a living,” Vlies admitted. “But we’re a long ways away from that. But yes, I would do it if it were ever a legit option.”
Pit crew members who lend a hand on Vlies’ No. 17 machine include his Dad when he’s not racing, Dave Carpenter, Todd Wiese, Cory Cochart and Todd Vlies.
Vlies team of marketing partners includes Vlies Electric, SealTec Sealcoating, Concrete Finishers, PhyxTV, Tri County Heating, Woody’s Signs, Bumper To Bumper, Waterfront Bar & Grill, A Boat Time Restaurant, Belgian Delight, Bradley Gun Sales, Brookside Meats, Casco Kid’s Zone, Casco 1 Stop, Extreme Enterprises, Floors By Josh, Harris Auto Racing, Hyperco, Hunter’s Edge Archery, Jolly’s Street Pizza, KNJ Holdings, Massart’s Auto Body, Millie’s Pub & Grub, Neighborhood Auto Repair, Nick’s Carquest, Pagel’s Ponderosa Dairy, Paul J. Georgia, Performance Bodies and Parts, Prestige Custom Cabinetry, Performance Shocks, Rohr-N-Machine, Ron’s Wisconsin Cheese, Todd Wiese Realtor, Viking Electric, Vlies Custom Bodies, Waterfront Bar & Grill, Wehr’s Machine and Wisconsin Diecast.