25 years ago: 1981- Fredenberg tops 30-race season taking Badger crown
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| 1981 Badger Midget Championship Team |
One of the largest schedules in Badger history highlighted the 1981 season.
During an era when one car could run both dirt and pavement, the series ran 30 events at ten different tracks. A total of 23 dirt events and seven pavement events were run.
After finishing fourth in points the previous two seasons Dan Fredenberg used two feature wins and five second place finishes to win the championship 25 years after his late father Al Fredenberg Sr. won the title. It made the duo the first father-son champions in Badger history.
The season kicked off at Hugh Deery's Rockford (Ill.) Speedway on April 24, Bruce Field put on a last lap pass of Bob Richards to win the feature. Fredenberg, Gary Billings and Jim Mahoney completed the top five.
Dave Wunrow became the fifth different leader during the 50-lap feature at Golden Sands Speedway (Plover, Wis.) on May 10 easily leading the final 33-laps to record the victory.
One week later Angell Park Speedway (Sun Prairie, Wis.) opened and Wunrow made it two in-a-row passing Don Boorse for the lead on lap six, cruising to an easy victory. John Komppa Jr. the Badger Car Owner
Champion the previous two years, suffered two broke ribs when he flipped during qualifying landing outside the track.
Stan Fox easily won the Terry Vaughn Memorial race the next week, marking car owner Steve Lewis's first victory at the track.
Fredenberg scored his first feature victory of the season on May 31 at Angell Park. Fredenberg took the lead on the seventh circuit and nipped 1978 Badger Champ Dave Ray by one-car length at the finish. Greg Nelson escaped injury when he flipped on the fifth lap of the feature crashing through the plywood wall in turn three.
Fox avoided a six-car opening lap accident on June 7 at Angell Park, and took the lead from Pennsylvania's Leigh Earnshaw with ten laps remaining for his second win of the season.
Rain showers hit Capital Speedway (Oregon, Wis.) during heat race action wiping out the June 12 event. Two days later at Angell Park defending Badger champion Eddie Loomis steered clear of three yellow flags and one red to win the 25-lap feature.
A special Wednesday Night race at Slinger (Wis.) Super Speedway saw Wunrow easily top the field in the 50-lap feature finishing ahead of Les Scott and Ken Biertzer. Forty-eight hours later saw Paul Clark driving the Pete Lahm owned Fitchburg Plumbing sponsored VW to easily win the 25-lap feature at Sheboygan
County Fairgrounds (Plymouth, Wis.). Rain showers cancelled the Angell Park event on June 21.
The June 28 Angell Park event featured a remarkable victory by California’s Ron "Sleepy" Tripp talked about by historians nearly three decades later. The victory was the fifth midget feature win for Tripp in three days. Tripp won on Friday Night at Sycamore (Ill.) Speedway, the next day he won both WOOM sanctioned features at Joliet (Ill.) Stadium. Sunday afternoon Tripp topped the field at Grundy County Speedway (Morris, Ill.), then made the three hour ride to Angell Park.
After qualifying Tripp and his crew changed the engine in 40 minutes before racing began. Tripp led the final five laps topping Charlie Ford Jr. and Clark.
Three straight nights of Badger racing kicked off on July 3 with Ford avenging his second place finish, taking the 25-lap feature at Wilmot (Wis.) Speedway. Clark pulled into victory for the second time of the year taking the Independence Day event at Beaver Dam (Wis.) Raceway. Loomis and Fox trailed Clark at the finish.
The next day Fox scored Angell Park feature win three of the season passing Wunrow for the lead with five laps remaining. Fredenberg took runner-up honors.
After setting a new track record in qualifying Fredenberg easily won the 50-lap feature at Golden Sands Speedway finishing ahead of Ford, Wunrow, Gary Billings and Clark.
Loomis set a blistering pace on July 19 lapping all but the top five finishers in capturing the 50-lap mid-season event. Fredenberg took his fourth second place finish of the season in the event stretching his point lead to 187 markers over Loomis.
The following week Tripp appeared headed for another feature win but suffered a flat tire on the final lap and was passed by Marty Davis exiting turn four. It was the first Angell Park win for the Racine, Wis. driver. Tripp limped across in second followed by Loomis, Biertzer and Fredenberg. Rain forced cancellation of the Aug. 2 event at Angell Park.
The following week Dean Erfurth scored his first career Angell Park victory topping the Al Fredenberg Memorial, which saw four different leaders during the 50-lap feature. The evening was over shadowed by an accident, which claimed the life of 22-year old Rick Hall.
The Marion, Iowa driver flipped on the second lap of the semi-feature, crashing through the third turn wall, landing 46 feet outside the track. Hall ran a limited number of events since joining Badger in 1978.
Loomis snagged win three on Aug. 16 at Angell Park, finishing ahead of Clark and Ford. Kevin Olson broke into victory lane taking the 25-lap feature at Hales Corners Speedway (Franklin, Wis.) five days later. Olson outdistanced Larry Hillerud and Tim Pangborn for the victory.
The Aug. 29 event at Dodge County Fairgrounds (Beaver Dam, Wis.) was rained out and rescheduled for Sep. 12. The next day Erfurth driving the Mark Wilke owned VW finished ahead of Clark by one second for his second Angell Park win in four events.
A pair of twin 30-lap features was slated for the Angell Park finale. In the first race Fox finished nine seconds ahead of Tripp for the victory. Fox suffered engine problems leading the second feature, retiring on the 19th circuit giving Tripp an easy victory, and the overall two-race title. Al Fredenberg was involved in one of the most dramatic accidents in several years during a heat race. Dan's older brother escaped injury after making contact with another car entering turn one and flipped clearing both fences and landing on the steps of the Angell Park Pavilion.
Tim Pangborn snapped a three-year Badger victory drought edging Jim Hill by one-car length to win the 15-lap feature at Dodge County Fairgrounds. John Hartwig, Ford and Clark completed the top five.
Loomis running third behind leaders Nelson and Don Tyler inherited the lead when the pair tangled during the Sep. 19 event at Wilmot Speedway. On the restart
Loomis cruised away from the field scoring the victory ahead of Clark and Hillerud.
Rain on Saturday Night Sep. 26 at Rockford Speedway moved the event to Sunday afternoon. Wunrow appeared headed for his fifth series victory of the season but spun on lap 23, giving the lead to Brad Hulings. The Michigan driver held off Field and Olson for the remainder of the 50-lap feature for the victory.
Two weeks later in the season finale at Capital Speedway Wunrow was flawless winning the feature over Fredenberg and Bill Thelaner.
A record $4,150 point fund was handed out at the Oct. 31 banquet held at the Red Carpet Hotel (Milwaukee, Wis.). Fredenberg received his driver and car owner championship trophies and was also given the trophy his father Al Sr. won for the 1956 Badger title. Chris Maxson finished with Rookie of the Year honors, while Randy Koch was named Most Improved Driver. Trailing Fredenberg in the final point standings was: Clark, Loomis, Ford, Olson, Wunrow, Joe Corrigan, Hillerud, Erfurth and Gary Billings.