Gabe Sommers Racing took part in a pair of races across two states this past week, kicking it off with the prestigious 46th Annual Slinger Nationals at Slinger Super Speedway on Tuesday, July 8.
The first practice on raceday went off without a hitch, with Sommers sitting at a comfortable spot of eleventh in a thirty two car field, less than a tenth of a second off of quick time. A few changes were made before the second and final practice session, where not much changed. Gabe would still remain in eleventh place, now barely a tenth of a second off of the fastest posted lap. With the team feeling good about their qualifying pace, they looked to time trials for their next round of track time. Ultimately, the No. 15 would lose some speed and find themselves in the 26th spot of 31 that took time, a rare misstep for GSR. No matter, Gabe elected to use a provisional that allowed him to skip the last chance qualifier and start from the rear of the field in the 200 lap feature.
Rolling off from the 23rd position, in the final row of the grid, Gabe would pick his way slowly through the back of the field, finally breaking into the top twenty on Lap 19/200. Continuing to slowly pick his way up the order, Sommers would manage to rally up to seventeenth by the time the first caution flag slowed the field. Storm clouds quickly began to move in and surround the speedway, with rain looking like a sure thing during the 46th Annual Slinger Nationals. Waiting for the impending storm, the No. 15 would drop back and ride around at the tail of the main pack, giving GSR an out if cars scattered as the skies opened. Luckily, a multi car pileup would ensue on Lap 45/200, giving Sommers and his Ford Mustang a handful of free spots as the threat of precipitation continued to loom. The speedway would fall under red flag conditions for cleanup for about fifteen minutes, putting a hurry on many teams’ plans for the remaining 75% of the race. After just about ten laps back green, the caution would fall once again on Lap 60/200 for precipitation on the racing surface.
After over an hour and a half of wet weather and the following track drying efforts, the field would roll back to the green flag. The drivers would be treated to a long green flag run, allowing Gabe to roll from nineteenth to twelfth in just twenty laps time. A solo spinner would slow the field after ninety laps, with the No. 15 Ford Mustang sitting quietly in P11. With now under seventy laps to go, Sommers would roll into the top ten for the first time all night. Avoiding a stackup off of turn four around Lap 135/200, GSR would move up into ninth place and set out on working their way even further up the scoreboard.
Another solo spinner with just fifty five laps to go would re-rack the field as it hit “go time” for many of the drivers up in the pack. Only two laps would go by before a stalled car would again bring out the yellow flag, with Sommers backed up to the tenth spot. Heading back green, the top side was the place to be while the cars got back up to speed. Stuck on the bottom, Gabe would receive a hard door shot from an out of shape car on the high side, sending him through the infield and back out into the racing groove. Now back to sixteenth, with no yellow to recoup lost spots, it was time to hold nothing back. Cruising back into the top fifteen and hunting down
the lead pack, GSR caught a lucky break when the same car that sent them off course spun another car, bringing out the caution with just thirty laps to go.
After the re-line, the No. 15 would restart in eleventh, and headed right back to moving and shaking up through the pack. By Lap 181/200, Gabe picked up a trio of spots as cars came together and parted the seas. With the top five runners free and clear, Sommers stuck tight to the back bumper of a pair of warring racecars separating him from the leaders. The laps continued to click down with no opportunity to make it any further forward, and when the checkered flag fell the No. 15 Ford Mustang would be officially scored in eighth place, gaining fifteen spots while fending off some of the best of the Super Late Model community’s hard nosed competitors.
After loading up Tuesday night, and a few days of work in the shop, it was soon again time to tackle another racetrack, with Hawkeye Downs in plain view for Gabe Sommers Racing. One hundred laps of action around the high speed half mile awaited the crew, ready to go up against the stars and cars of the ASA Midwest Tour.
Unloading in Cedar Rapids, Iowa at the lone weekly asphalt short track, Sommers and company felt like they had just as good of a shot to win as anyone. After all, they did win the 2024 edition of this very race. Practice One seemed to have a telling effect on their package, running second of eighteen on the time charts after turning just six laps. Working on race pace, GSR would drop from second to sixth in the standings during the final practice, due in part to some teams mocking up for qualifying.
Now ready for time trials, Sommers would look to continue his recent string of successful qualifying runs in Midwest Tour competition. Per what’s been considered the norm for the team as of late, Gabe would rip off a pair of extremely fast laps, his best being his second, an 18.396 second circuit that would be good enough to land the fast time award by over a half tenth of a second. A mandatory qualifying heat race would soon follow, worth nothing more than a simple shakedown in race trim in preparation for the feature event later on in the program. Gabe would save tire and racecar by rolling around to a fifth place finish while remaining aware of the big picture.
Starting from the ninth position, Sommers would begin the tedious process of working through the field at the tricky speedway, known for being tough on tires. Snaking their way up through the pack, the No. 15 team made it a couple spots up the order by the time the quarter mark of the race had passed. After a brief battle for sixth place, Gabe had no problem placing himself inside of the top five, now running in the fourth position after just forty laps under green. Making his presence known to the podium runners, Sommers hounded them around Hawkeye Downs, ready to strike. The halfway signal came from the flagstand as the No. 15 popped up in the third position on the scoreboard. Not much would change outside of a spirited battle for second for a half dozen laps around Lap 70/100. After settling back into third, Gabe would regroup and prepare for another strike on the car in front of him. This time, it would prove successful, now just one spot behind both the points and race leader with only ten laps to go. A quick yellow
would set up a five lap sprint to the finish, a duel between the two heavy hitters for all the marbles. Restarting single file, Sommers would make an unsuccessful move to the inside in turns one and two, just barely missing out on staying inside of the leader down the backstretch. That attempt would prove to be his last shot on the night, settling for a strong second place finish, just one spot short of a perfect night for Gabe Sommers Racing.
Continued strong runs will certainly help GSR stay motivated as they roll into the busiest stretch of the Midwest Tour season, with four events in six weeks on deck at four very different racetracks. First up will be Madison International Speedway on July 25 for the Bytec Cheeseland Howie Lettow Classic 100. You can purchase tickets online or at the gate, just make sure to find a seat by 6:15 PM CST for qualifying, or tune in on TrackTV.com!