Scott and Chris Wimmer set out Tuesday, both with the same goal – to bring home the Larry Detjens Memorial Trophy from the annual Miller Lite Nationals at Slinger Super Speedway. The trophy holds special meaning as it is named in honor of their uncle who lost his life in a tragic accident at Wisconsin International Raceway. Despite having strong cars, both brothers fell short of the honors this year with Scott finishing 15th in the Late Model Feature race, and Chris taking 4th in the 35-lap Semi-Feature after failing to qualify for the main event.
Setting the field for the Miller Lite Slinger Nationals was a unique process and very unlike the qualifying that the Wimmer brothers are accustomed to in the NASCAR series. 43 cars attempted to make the 24-car field Tuesday night. Each car made a qualifying lap and the fasted 16 cars made the first cut. Following qualifying was the opportunity to race into the feature event, with the top 4 cars from the heat race lining up behind the 16 cars that made it into the feature on time. The final four spots were filled with the promoter’s choice, typically given to a visiting NASCAR drivers or local racers who compete each week who didn’t qualify on time or in the heat race.
Both Wimmer brothers laid down fast qualifying laps. Scott, with an 11.568 second lap, qualified in the 15th position, guaranteeing himself a spot in the 250-lap feature race. Chris tied in the 17th position (11.582 sec) with Lowell Bennett and would have to try to race his way into the feature event. Bennett would go on to win the Late Model Feature Race.
In the 30-lap Qualifying Race, Chris was running solidly in the 3rd position with a 10-car lead over the 4th place car when a caution came out on lap 22. Following the restart, Wimmer held onto 3rd until the No. 77 of Todd Stapleman challenged him for the position. Chris was pushed up and sideways, losing two spots and finishing 5th, one spot out of making the main event.
“I want to thank Burton Brown for letting me use his car tonight on such short notice, ” said Chris. “There were problems with the original car I was supposed to race here so we called him last night at 7:00 and he said ‘come and get it’. We worked at his shop until 5:00 a. m. getting it set up. I wish we would have had a little more time working on it and I’m sure we could have made the feature on time. We were so close. But the times here are so close during qualifying that you have to be right on right from the start. ”
This year, Chris would have to watch older brother Scott in the 250-lap feature instead of racing him for the trophy. Chris competed in the 35-lap Late Model Semi-Feature and finish in 4th place.
Scott started the 28th Annual Miller Lite Slinger Nationals in the 15th position. He quickly moved up to the 9th position when there was contact between him and the No. 1 car as both drivers worked to avoid a spinning car ahead of them. Wimmer pitted to work on the body damage resulting from the altercation.
Returning to the track, Scott started from the back of the pack and worked his way to the 6th position. The mandatory caution flag came out on lap 125 for the 10-minute mid-race break. Scott would not return to the track for the second half of the race. While in the pits, Scott’s crew began to work on the car and change tires. They discovered an engine problem that would sideline him for the remainder of the race, ending his chance of winning this year’s Miller 250 and the Larry Detjens Memorial trophy.
“We really thought we had a chance of winning tonight, ” said Scott, following the race. “The car was good and fast, but unfortunately we had engine problems. Hopefully we can come back next year and try again. My crew had been working hard to have the car ready for me and it was fast right from the start. ”
“I really enjoy coming back to race in Wisconsin and racing with the guys that I raced against in my short track days, ” the elder Wimmer stated. “It’s always fun to race against the legendary Dick Trickle, who has been a friend of my family for many years. We also got to catch up with a lot of family and friends. ”
Chris, who will have to wait another year to challenge his older brother on the ‘Fastest ¼ Mile Oval’, added that “I was looking forward to racing against my brother Scott again and maybe beating him. Next time. ”
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