Rain or Shine in Menomonie
This is another installment in the Watercross Series. To read the other articles in this series, please check out the category: Watercross 2017 Season.
We joined Team Yard Ape in Menomonie, Wisconsin today as they battled through finals at the first annual Lake Menomin WaterX. The Lake Menomin WaterX is brand new to the IWA racing series and they provided excellency all across the boards as a host site; a beautiful lake, an organized pit area, vendors for both racers and fans, and an active and excited crowd provided a wonderful turnout for their first year with the IWA. The event was quite literally rain or shine this Sunday as the show went on despite a few showers from rain. Today, we caught up with the Apes and learned that for some of them, they either chose to wait out the figurative storm or chose to battle onward in the quest for points and placement.
For some of the Apes, like #813 Aaron Godeen, #8 Jerry Tongen Jr, #411 Salesse Tongen, #223 Aaron Vowles, and #127 Rocky Vowles they chose to wait out the storm and prep for the bigger races remaining in the season. Godeen and Tongen Jr. both explained that they wanted their sleds in tip-top shape for Grantsburg and with how packed June has been for the race schedule it has been difficult to keep their sleds maintained at the level they want them to be at or know they can be at. Other racers like #223 Aaron Vowles kept himself very busy this weekend despite opting out of racing to prep his sled; Aaron picked up the odds and ends of the race weekend posing as a pit crew member, a retriever for fellow teammates that had sunk, and as an announcer for the races.
Aaron's ability to identify with each racer that came to the starting line and ability to really describe what a racer was doing was a key factor in keeping the group so excited and entertained throughout the race day. #120 KJ Johnson braved the storm but fell short of qualifying for the finals because of mechanical issues. While #508 Mike Popowitz debuted for the 2017 season today, he ran into issues during his second race and was forced to exit the race early because his goggles fogged up and he could no longer see the track. We're confident all of these Apes will be prepped and ready to go by Grantsburg and will have tuned in their sleds.
For other Apes, the sun shined through the clouds today. Team Yard Ape's powerhouse couple #999 Ben Eastman and #913 Court Klaphake both qualified for finals in their individual drag classes today; Court went on to compete with #721 Emma Godeen in the 600 Drag Class, both showing promising signs of fierce competition despite both being in their rookie seasons. #471 Corey Huls and #188 Ian VanVickle continued to zone in on their sleds and both advanced through the final's bracket and onto the final race for the Semi Pro Open Class placing 5th and 6th.
#524 Scott Martinson of the team "Won for All" worked very hard in the Open Drag Class and fought off the line and powered down the strip to earn his spot in the final race. #128 Jacob Champa also worked to get his sled into the finals on Sunday and competed vigorously but did not make it into the final race of Sunday's Semi Pro Open Class.
#18 Adam Vowles battled hard through the rain today and his sled looked faster than ever as he stayed out in front of his opponents for most of his races. Adam's determination and smart racing led him through the quarterfinals, semi-finals, and onto the final race to win and take home the checkered flag in the Semi Pro Stock Class.
No doubt, this weekend started a bit shaky for some of the Apes, but they looked on the horizon and searched for that sunshine and for many of them, they found it. Stay tuned over the next few weeks as we attend practices in preparation for the biggest race of the season: Grantsburg. Join us, and the rest of Yard Ape, July 21st, 22nd, and 23rd for the 41st Annual Grantsburg World Championship in Grantsburg, Wisconsin.
Stay tuned for a preview from our co-photographer Taryn Hollenkamp at her Facebook Page: Elephant Tiptoes Photography.