FOUNTAIN CITY, Wis.—The 2016 season is in full rush! The action continues to be hot, and the days and nights of the approaching summer continue to get hotter!

A picture perfect Friday night greeted race fans and racers alike at Mississippi Thunder Speedway to celebrate the return of NAPA Night. Prizes, awards, fun, & competition were all on the menu for this beautiful Friday evening of dirt-track action!

HENSEL HAPPY WITH DIRT-DUELLER

Adam Hensel has made a name for himself in the racing community as the type of driver who can strap himself into a race car—any race car—and make it go fast! Whether it's an open Late Model, a WISSOTA Modified or, as he showed Friday during NAPA Night at Mississippi Thunder Speedway, a Dirt-Dueller USRA Modified, he's proven that he's got the chops needed to take a car to the front of the field!

And that's exactly what he did when successful racer and race car builder Les Duellman called him and offered him a ride behind the wheel of his very own Les Duellman Racing Dirt-Dueller #0; Hensel took that car to the front of the field!

After using the second heat race of the evening to get comfortable, Hensel battle a nice group of hard chargers to get at, and stay at, the front of the field during Friday's NAPA 25-lap feature. Second heat race winner Jake Timm, Keith Foss, Dustin Sorensen, 2009 track champion John Doelle and 2011 track champion Bob Timm all battled at, or near, the front in an effort to challenge for the lead and eventual win... but Hensel was not to be denied.

After taking the checkered flag, the Baldwin racer headed for victory lane and a celebration with LDR's Les Duellman.

With a smile that could be seen from the furthest occupied seat in the grandstands, Hensel leapt from the car with his arms thrust in the air and let loose with a celebratory cheer that showed his true enjoyment of the moment.

"When Les and the guys from LDR called me and asked if I wanted to drive their car here... well, I mean, how could anyone turn down an offer like that," Hensel explained, "I mean, this car drove like a dream. A huge thank you to Les and the group at LDR, a big big thank you to you fans for coming out to cheer and have a good time, and thank you to NAPA for their involvement here at Mississippi Thunder Speedway!"

Jake Timm held on for a second place finish in the feature, followed by Keith Foss and Erik Kanz, who raced from a dead last starting spot up to his fourth place finish.

HOFER NABS FIRST FEATURE WIN OF 2016

Lance Hofer comes from a family of racers; and not just any family of racers—a winning family of racers. His father, his uncles, his brother have all been successful, and race winning, racers. The Cochrane native enjoyed success from the first few efforts behind the wheel, continued that success and his winning ways up into the Modified ranks... but, when he slipped into the driver's seat of an all new USRA Limited Late Model at Mississippi Thunder Speedway his winning was supplemented by another noticeable item: a huge smile.

"This style of Late Model racing is everything this sport needs," Hofer explained in a recent radio interview, "They really are fun to drive, they really are fast, the fans enjoy the action and the speeds exactly like the so-called open Late Models; But, most importantly, they are affordable. There's no downside to this class."

We don't know if his new found smile is a result of the affordability, the fun or the winning, but it fits his personality well.

That smile was in attendance again Friday night after finally picking up his first feature win of the young 2016 season. After winning the 2015 track championship in this division, many thought that he might come right out of the gate winning on opening night—three events, though, is really not too long to wait.

"This class is pretty competitive," Hofer said from victory lane after winning Friday's 20-lap NAPA feature. "(Justin) Sass and (Tony) Bahr, Shaun (Mann) and (Troy) Langowski—really the entire field—is pretty strong. So to race to this win tonight makes me feel like we're turning things around, the way we want them."

Mann finished the evening's feature just behind Hofer, followed by week #2 feature winner Justin Sass and first heat race winner Troy Langowski.

WILLIAMSON WINS

Alex Williamson battled from a starting spot outside of the third row, past a multitude of proven talent, and made his way to victory lane after winning his first Black Horse Bar & Grill USRA B-Mod feature of 2016.

After four qualifying heat races, and a last chance B-Main, it was Williamson and his #15W sitting in the Dahl Chevrolet Victory Lane celebrating the win.

"A big thank you to my mom and dad, my girlfriend, everyone who helps out on the car, all of these sponsors you see on this car... They all—every one of them—help me get to this point. Without them I wouldn't be here in victory lane," smiled Williamson after the win.

Pole-sitter and fourth heat race winner Jon VanMinsel finished second ahead of young J.T. Wasmund, who enjoyed his best-ever finish at Mississippi Thunder Speedway.

BECKER BACK IN VICTORY LANE

After claiming the 2015 track championship in the Sportsman division, Jordan Becker appears ready to control the all new Jailhouse Saloon USRA Hobby Stock division in 2016. Becker raced to his third straight feature win in three nights of racing at Mississippi Thunder Speedway.

Jeremy Oakes, Derek Sutton and "Crazy" Phil Wernert finished behind Becker's #4J as the checkered flags waived.

Racing resumes next Friday night, May 27, with another complete night of dirt-track action including the Sunshine Refuse Slingshots on The Lightning Speedway with the first green flag of the evening actually waiving at 5:45 for those Slingshot racers.

Action on the big 1/3 mile resumes immediately following the 6:40 p.m. opening ceremonies with the first green flag at 6:45 to start on-track action provided by the Rivercity Manufacturing USRA Modifieds, Centerville Welding & Repair USRA Limited Late Models presented by Big Toy Storage, Black Horse Bar & Grill USRA B-Mods, Coordinated Business Systems WISSOTA Super Stocks, Jailhouse Saloon USRA Hobby Stocks and Harmston Trucking MTS Hornets.

The pit gate opens at 4 p.m. General admission grandstands open at 5.

Family-friendly general admission prices continue with all students 23 years old and younger with current valid student ID, and children 17 and under are admitted absolutely free.

The Mississippi Thunder Speedway is located 3.0 miles north of Fountain City on SR 35. For more information, call (608) 687-3282 or visit www.MississippiThunder.com on the World Wide Web.

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OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States RAcing Association
USRA Weekly Racing Series
Mississippi Thunder Speedway, Fountain City, Wis.
Friday, May 20, 2016

USRA MODIFIEDS
1. (2) 0XX Adam Hensel, Baldwin
2. (4) 49JR Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
3. (1) 95 Keith Foss, Winona, Minn.
4. (10) 23K Erik Kanz, Winona, Minn.
5. (3) 19 Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
6. (7) 94JR John Doelle, Arcadia
7. (6) 49 Bob Timm, Winona, Minn.
8. (5) 6T7 Brian Albrecht, Winona, Minn.
9. (9) 44X Leroy Scharkey, Rochester, Minn.
10. (8) 99 Josh Angst, Winona, Minn.

USRA LIMITED LATE MODELS
1. (8) 11 Lance Hofer, Cochrane
2. (10) 01 Shaun Mann, Buffalo City
3. (9) 24 Justin Sass, Alma
4. (3) 88 Troy Langowski, Winona, Minn.
5. (6) 6 Nick Herrick, West Concord, Minn.
6. (12) 99 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
7. (2) 13 Ryan Konkel, Winona, Minn.
8. (5) 22J Josh Crary, Elgin, Minn.
9. (7) 97 Bob Fort, Fountain City
10. (11) 17M Matt Laduke, Cochrane
11. (1) QQ Tony Bahr, Haugen
12. (13) 10 Bob Schoenfelder, Grand Meadow, Minn.
13. (4) 9 Doug Herrick, West Concord, Minn.

OUT-PACE USRA B-MODS
1. (6) 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn.
2. (8) 1 Jon Van Minsel, Spring Grove, Minn.
3. (15) 51W J.T. Wasmund, Pine Island, Minn.
4. (4) 85 Ben Moudry, Hastings, Minn.
5. (7) 12K Casey Knutson, Spring Grove, Minn.
6. (3) 21 Ryan Olson, Strum
7. (2) 90 Tyler Creeley, Winona, Minn.
8. (10) 32 Taylor Skauge
9. (1) 35X Phillip Dunbar, Rushford, Minn.
10. (19) 43 Zach Brom, Winona, Minn.
11. (17) 54 John Feirn, Chippewa Falls
12. (9) 19 Nick Wagner, Winona, Minn.
13. (11) 20J Jackson Hale, Grand Meadow, Minn.
14. (16) 2 Nathan Butterfield, Galesville
15. (14) 95X Shaun Walski, Winona, Minn.
16. (5) 00R Chad Rosendahl, Houston, Minn.
17. (18) 99 Bill Engler, Hixten
18. (13) 4K Brian Kunda, Winona, Minn.
19. (12) 44 Brandon Reutzel, Winona, Minn.
20. (20) 11 Seth Scholl, Holmen

USRA HOBBY STOCKS
1. (2) 4J Jordan Becker, Caledonia, Minn.
2. (8) 54 Jeremy Oakes, Spring Grove, Minn.
3. (4) 33 Derek Sutton, Fountain City
4. (3) 86 Phil Wernert, Galesville
5. (1) 97 Bobby Fort Jr., Fountain
6. (7) 18 Cody Rollinger, Minnesota City, Minn.
7. (6) 11 Levi Sand, Caledonia, Minn.
8. (5) 1 Brian Scholl, West Salem