Scott Owen, Leader Columnist
Much to the chagrin of area racing fans, Mother Nature put a halt to the first scheduled week of the 2017 racing season. Though this is certainly not uncommon for this time of year, it is still disappointing to the fans and drivers who have longed for racing since last fall.
Being that there was no racing, I felt that this week presented an appropriate time to look back at some history from the Shawano Speedway. In particular, some of the unsung drivers in the last 25 or so years. One driver who for many years seemed to be in line for a feature win or two, whether it was in an IMCA Modified or a Late Model, was Appleton’s Cliff Ebben.
Ebben has not raced at Shawano in many years, but in the late 1980s and early 1990s, he was often a contender for a win. He is still out there racing and winning. Ebben turned 65 earlier this year and celebrated his birthday by picking up a win in the prestigious Trans Am Series at Sebring International Raceway in Florida. The win was Ebben’s sixth career victory on the road racing circuit.
Another driver who seemed to be good for a win a year was IMCA Modifieds pilot Dan Ratajczak. “The Frog Station Flash,” as he was known, is currently one of the partners involved in owning and operating the 141 Speedway.
Another one of the front-runners who never won a track championship is former Modifieds and Late Models standout Brad Rohloff. As I mentioned in last week’s article, Rohloff is making his return to racing this season in an IMCA Stock Car. Rohloff was indeed at practice last Friday, along with 76 other racers, with his new ride and looked back at home on the historic half-mile.
Another former front-runner still involved in racing is Bear Creek native Rocky Miller. Rocky, the son of former Sportsmans track champion TM Miller and grandson of Shawano Speedway Hall of Famer Cliff Miller, currently works as a crew member for one of the top dirt racers in the country, Terry Phillips, of Springfield, Missouri.
Former Sportsmans and IMCA Modifieds driver Jeff Teske is another former contender still involved in racing. Teske often is at work at the Shawano Speedway on Saturday nights and now also watches his grandson Jeffery compete on the area go-cart tracks, where he is one of the top guns.
With today’s lesson over, let’s hope we get to go racing this Saturday. See you at the speedway.