From Greg Parent
Mounds View, MN — (January 28th, 2012) — The Upper Midwest Sprintcar Series (UMSS) celebrated their 2011 season and honored the top drivers at its annual awards banquet at the Mermaid Entertainment and Event Center in Mounds View, MN on Saturday night January 28. The multi-purpose facility provided a great venue for the UMSS banquet with well over 100 people in attendance. Several drivers were honored with various awards in both the winged and the new non-winged sprint car divisions.
The third champion of the UMSS was crowned, as Jerry Richert, Jr. from Forest Lake earned the 2011 title. Richert, often referred to as Sonny by his friends and family, had an incredible 2011 season with 3 wins, 16 top five finishes, and 18 top ten finishes during the 19-race campaign. With over 30 seasons of sprint car racing experience dating back to his first win at Centuria, WI in 1981, Sonny continues to add impressive accolades to his famous racing family’s accomplishments and advance his own already stellar racing career.
The travelling Barry Kettering Memorial trophy for the UMSS now includes the names of Leigh Thomas, Cody Hahn and Jerry Richert, Jr. as the first three series champions. Jerry thanked his family, crew, co-owner Joe Kouba, and his many sponsors for their support. Sonny stated, “My dad would have been especially proud tonight.” Richert’s famous father earned numerous championships throughout his racing career and is still thought of as one of the best to hail from the Upper Midwest. Presenting the Barry Kettering Memorial trophy this year to Jerry Richert, Jr. was Warren Kettering from Thunder Bay, Ontario.
The inaugural champion in the new upstart Traditional Sprint Car Series (TSCS) was a rookie in the sprint car ranks in 2011. Kevin Bradwell moved up from the hornet and pure stock classes to try his hand at sprint car racing in 2011. When the 15-race TSCS season had concluded, Kevin Bradwell earned an impressive first championship title. A brand new travelling trophy was unveiled at the awards banquet and will be for the TSCS division champion to hold each year. Recognizing another great name from Minnesota sprint car racing, the first nameplate on the John Stevenson Memorial trophy for the UMSS Traditional Sprint Car Series will be Kevin Bradwell. John Stevenson began his racing career back in the latter 1960s in the non-winged sprint cars and when the final checkers had waved, John had won numerous championships and countless races throughout the Upper Midwest. It is a privilege and honor for the UMSS to be able to name this new travelling trophy in John’s memory just as it was three seasons ago to honor another true champion, Barry Kettering.
Following the buffet dinner, UMSS announcer and emcee for the evening, Justin Zoch, got the awards portion of the gala affair underway. Series CDO Ron Bernhagen thanked the drivers, car owners, crew members, families, fans, track promoters and series sponsors for their participation and support of the UMSS. Ron provided an update on the upcoming 2012 season for both the winged and non-winged sprint car divisions and distributed a tentative 2012 schedule. Ron then presented UMSS co-founder and long-time sprint car driver/owner Joe Kouba with a special Dedication to the Sport Award. UMSS Media Director, Greg Parent, then presented Appreciation Awards to UMSS videographer Mark Meeks and UMSS push vehicle operators Mark Meissner and Chuck Priefer. Receiving the 2011 UMSS Sportsmanship Award was TSCS driver and elder statesman of the group, Jack Clark.
The UMSS then honored its top drivers and champions. Drivers outside of the top five were recognized in each division. In the Mora Motorworks Traditional Sprint Car Series, trophies were awarded to the top five drivers in the point standings. Receiving hardware along with photos from Vince Peterson at Track Rat Photos were Kevin Bradwell, Tom Kamrath, Rob Caho Jr, Johnny Parsons III, and Jack Clark. Hoosier Racing Tire also provided a jacket for the inaugural champion Kevin Bradwell.
The program continued with the 2011 GRP Motorsports/BP Trading Company Rookie of the Year Award for the UMSS winged sprint cars. With money and trophies for the top three contenders, third place Kevin Bradwell received $100 while the two co-rookies of the year, Anna Kouba and Chad Patterson each received checks for $500. Hoosier Racing Tire provided jackets for both Anna Kouba and Chad Patterson. The battle for the top spot and rookie honors came down to the final race of the season with Kouba and Patterson tied going into the weekend at the Elko Fall Dirt Nationals. With neither driver able to better their lowest scores, they ended up tied for the title and both were most fittingly recognized as co-rookies of the year. Greg Parent thanked Brian Madsen and BP Trading Company for being on board for the second year to help sponsor the award. Brian has been a long-time supporter of area sprint car racing as an owner, driver, mechanic and promoter.
It was then time to recognize and honor the top five drivers in the UMSS 2011 GRP Motorsports High Five point standings. Each driver received a trophy, a check from GRP and photos provided by Stan Meissner and Vince Peterson. Finishing in fifth place was Brad Barickman with Scott Broty accepting on his behalf. Due to a previous commitment, fourth place finisher and 2010 UMSS Champion Cody Hahn was not able to attend. Chad Patterson accepted on his behalf. On the final night of the season at Elko, Scott Broty was able to move up to third in the final point standings and received $500 in addition to his hardware. In his first full season of competition and also earning his first-ever sprint car feature win, Andy Jones rode home in second place in the standings and received $1,000. Andy also recognized and thanked his car owners, Mastell Racing, by presenting them with a nearly identical second place trophy. Capping off the awards presentation was the crowning of the 2011 UMSS Champion Jerry Richert, Jr. Sonny received two trophies, including the Kettering Memorial trophy, a champion’s jacket from Hoosier Racing Tire, photos, and a check for $2,000 from GRP.
With three solid season’s in the books and a strong foundation in place to build upon, the outlook for 2012 for the UMSS and area sprint car racing is great. The new Traditional Sprint Car program is really gaining in popularity, as car counts are expected to increase substantially in their second year of existence. A good share of the TSCS shows will be on Friday nights at their home track, St. Croix Valley Raceway. Also with a home track on Friday nights, the Micro Sprint League has several cars that have already been purchased and will essentially will be in their first season under the UMSS banner. This feeder series has great potential for young drivers to race and gain experience in this area. The UMSS is looking forward to another successful season in 2012. To view the tentative schedule for 2012 or obtain more information on the UMSS, please visit our website at www.umsprints.com or check out the UMSS Facebook page.