RICE LAKE, Wis. – Pat Doar swept by Derek Vesel with a three wide move on lap 26 and then led the final 14 laps as he won the Trackside Collectibles 40 Saturday night at Rice Lake Speedway.
Doar earned $2,000 for his win in the WISSOTA-sanctioned event.
Doar was the third different leader of the race after starting in the second row and watching Minnesota Iron Range drivers Jeff Massingill and Vesel swap the lead back and forth several times until Doar got his chance following a yellow flag slowdown for a spin.
The Iron Range drivers started side-by-side in the front row and Massingill got the early jump, leading the first three laps before Vesel edged past him out the outside to take the lead. Vesel continued to hold the top spot but Massingill was right on his bumper, occasionally dropping inside him in the turns to challenge.
Vesel, who had never raced a late model at Rice Lake before, continued to hold the point but Massingill was right with him as Doar also closed up on the leaders. However, A.J. Diemel and Chad Mahder were also on the move and when the first yellow waved with 21 laps completed, Doar had slumped back to fifth with those two drivers having passed him while Massingill had edged back past Vesel to be scored the leader of the race.
However, Doar made a great move on the restart as he swung to the cushion and was able to pass both Diemel and Mahder and move into third once again when the yellow flew for another spin as Vesel had once again passed Massingill as the two Minnesota drivers put on a classic battle.
But Doar got the outside for the double file restart and as Massingill got beside Vesel one more time, Doar made a bold move off turn four, squeezed outside the leaders up against the wall and burst into the lead. Only one lap later, a final yellow bunched the field one more time but on the green, Doar pulled away to lead those last eleven laps and take the checkered.
Following the final restart, Mahder was the showstopper. Earlier he had charged up from ninth into fifth but had two bad restarts where he got stuck on the bottom lane and lost ground. Finally he was able to get back to the cushion and he set a torrid pace as he thrilled the crowd with his free wheeling style and in the waning laps he was able to drive by both Massingill and Vesel and take over second.
He made a big push in the final few laps and was able to close to within three car lengths of the winner, but Doar was able to drive home for the triumph.
It was heartbreak for Massingill however, as while he and Vesel were still battling side by side for now the third position, Massingill’s car broke on the last corner and he shot up to the wall and rested there as the checkered flag waved. Diemel then came home fourth while Steve Laursen completed the top five.
For Doar, it was his first late model feature win at Rice Lake since the 2003 racing season.
In other action, Austin Ellis topped the WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds, Parker Anderson won the 15-lap WISSOTA Street Stock feature and Mike Schnider was the winner of the WISSOTA Pure Stock main event.