Hustling Through the Husker State: Reviewing Norfolk and Arlington
Staring down the barrel of a pair of loaded storms, we stood tall like the Outlaws we are, and didn’t let the weather scare us off. The forecasts for both Friday and Saturday were gloomy, but the storms parted, the rain held off, and the thunder rumbled down the track, instead of the sky. The previous weekend found us in back to back dates in the great state of Nebraska. Perhaps we should call the beginning of our season the Cornhusker Cruise, as all of our hooks have taken place here, thus far. Between the two sessions in the neighboring towns, we laid eyes on eight total classes, four of which hooked at both venues.
Friday night’s show took place in front of a packed and raucous crowd at the Off Road Ranch Motorsports Complex in Norfolk. Six classes were tucked in snuggly on a coal-black dirt single track setup. The light limited modifieds, light limited pro stocks, and super farms all made their second hook of the year; while the naturally aspirated two wheel drive trucks, regional limited pro stock tractors, and national level super fields made their first passes of the year. Defending points champion, Blake Otte found himself back in the winners circle in the light limited modified class, with a beautiful A to B hook on a track that was taking many straight towards, and even over the out of bounds chalk marker. Brady Goslar, “The Wizard of Goz,” continued to work his magic as he won his second consecutive hook in the light limited pro stock class, piloting Spare Time to a distance of over 350 feet. The super farm class gave us an incredibly tight competition with the top three finishers dragging the Outlaw sled to within two and a half feet of each other. Ultimately it was Chad Weitzenkamp in the beautiful ride he calls Someday finishing first. David Gemes won himself a 2023 points championship with the two wheelers. He wasted no time launching his victory tour in 2024 starting the season with a picture perfect win. Casey Asmus in Deere Cruiser grabbed a victory in the super fields, and Justyn Deck took the “W” in regional limited pro stock action to round out the Friday night winners.
Saturday morning was pulling of a different variety. Pulling toters, gear, and motorhomes out of the mud after an aggressive early morning rain storm. Off to dry roads and high ground en route to Arlington where the forecast promised a certainty of rain. It would take more than a few water droplets to scare the Outlaws off, and along with a lot of luck and hard work, the track stayed dry and the show went on. The two wheel drive trucks and super fields took the night off, and were replaced by our friends in the light super stock ag division, and pro stock four wheel drive trucks to make for another six class show in Arlington. Situated in front of the RVR Bank Arena, this track created one of the most unique venues I had seen.
First to the track were the light limited pro stocks. For the first time we had a new champion at the end of the night. It was Andrew Meister in the Dirtslingin’ Demonstrator to knock Brady Goslar off the summit, taking the win by over five feet. The light super stock ag class gave us one of the most entertaining things in sports- the walk off win. Still Goin’ For Broke saddled by Don Jr. Scholting was the final hook of the class, and gave us probably the truest run of the weekend to take home the gold in his awesome alcohol powered 1066. The pro stock four wheel drive trucks provided an amazing show to fans, albeit with no new surprises. If you guessed Keith Hammons came out on top, you would be correct. The dedicated track reader parked Bi Polar squarely in the winners circle. Dave Rozeboom missed the mark on Friday night, but found himself in victory lane for the second time in as many Saturdays grabbing his second first place finish of the year driving his super farm he calls Red Rock. Blake Otte was a man on a mission this weekend. Earning his frequent first atop his light limited modified he calls Frequent Flyer, cranking an Allison aircraft engine as aggressively as this analyst has ever heard. The final class of the weekend gave us six hard charging regional limited pro stocks. National Farm Machinery Show invitee, Gary Behrendt, was thirsty for a victory after missing the mark in his hometown pull the weekend prior. He quenched that thirst with a crisp and refreshing first place finish in High Stakes Horsepower to round out the weekend.
The Outlaw family was all smiles all weekend long. It took a major team effort and a very positive mental disposition to stay focussed in the heat of ever changing forecasts. The pulls, we are proud to say, were top-tier shows. Congratulations to all our winners. We will be back at it Saturday, June 22nd in Manilla, Iowa.
Pullin’ is fun.
Mike Eitel
Engagement Specialist
Beer Money Pulling Team
660.342.0206
michael.eitel.bevier@gmail.com
