PLOVER, WI – Gabe Sommers Racing had a big week of racing in Wisconsin, taking their No. 15 crew to a pair of marquee events to do battle against the best of the Midwest. First up on the docket was a Tuesday night special at Wisconsin International Raceway with the ASA Midwest Tour, with 250 laps of Super Late Model action around the unique D-shaped oval. A true crown jewel in its own right, the Gandrud Auto Group 250 was a race that Gabe and the crew had circled on their calendar since the beginning of the season.
Practice started out well enough for the No. 15, rolling to second place on the time charts during the first session for the ASA Midwest Tour drivers. A very tight field of 27 drivers were on hand to attempt the show, making every lap of practice doubly important, as half a tenth on track could result in sliding down the order a half dozen positions or more. In the second practice, Gabe would fall to ninth on the leaderboard as he felt something beginning to act up in the power steering. The crew would make the call to halt their on track efforts to diagnose the issue, which resulted in Sommers missing out on the third and final practice session of the day. Qualifying would be the first true test for the repaired No. 15, and without much time at all in a mock qualifying situation, Gabe was able to slot into the ninth position when it mattered most.
With no heat or dash races on the night’s program, Gabe and the Travis Sauter led crew prepared for their 250 lap main event, ready to roll off from the outside of the second row. Being able to survive the attrition and save their equipment would be key for completing every lap and putting them into a spot to capitalize. As soon as the green flag dropped, Sommers would zip up to second place as the field would ramble through the bumpy and aged corners of Kaukauna’s premier racing facility. As the racers strung out, Gabe would dip back in the running order to fifth, letting some of his fellow heavyweights battle it out early for the lead, electing to watch and conserve. A caution just twelve laps in would slow the field, and stack them up two by two for the first restart of the night. In the ensuing short green flag run, Sommers would make it back to third place with a car that was quick to fire off, settling in as a solo spinner brought out the caution with 229 laps to go. Hurrying to get back green, an antsy field would only run another fifteen laps before a third caution would slow the field once again with just forty laps complete.
Short green flag runs seemed to be the name of the game in the 2024 Gandrud Auto Group 250, with a fourth caution halting the field with 191 laps left on the ticker, bringing some of the field down pit road to make adjustments. Gabe would stop in for fuel and adjustments, including swapping the left rear shock and some other minor adjustments. The field looked set for a long green flag run, but with another caution for a stalled car with 174 to go, it seemed it may be too much to ask from a field of aggressive and hungry drivers. More cautions with 165 and 120 laps to go would lead most of the field to stop for tires, fuel, and adjustments, but Gabe would not be one of them. A red flag with 103 to go would park the field while the track workers had to scoop up some foam that had been distributed on the backstretch due to a heavy crash in the midfield. Fortunately a fifty lap green flag run would follow, winding down the laps to just 60 to go.
Shortly after Sommers had worked his way back into the top five, the field would slow once again. He would reline in third for the restart, but carnage would ensue in the first corner as the leaders would tangle, cutting one of Gabe’s right side tires, forcing him to the pits and erasing all of his hard work. Extensive damage on the right front was attempted to be repaired, and sent back out just in time to catch the green. Rolling back from the tenth spot, Gabe would go to work and slice his way through the field, driving his way up to the third spot before a string of cautions would upset the running order, including one with just five to go between the leaders, bumping Gabe up to the top spot. The No. 15 would be able to hold off all challengers through the chaotic final few laps, crossing the line first in the Gandrud Auto Group 250. As the GSR team rolled into the tech shed, it was made evident that they were not given their one lap penalty for taking an emergency tire after cutting down one of his race tires towards the end of the race. Unfortunately, this meant that Gabe would be penalized one lap in the tech shed, sliding him back to a ninth place finish when all was and and done.
With no time to dwell on what was now the past, Gabe and the crew would turn their attention to Dells Raceway Park for the Badger State 125 with the Alive For 5 Super Late Model Series. As two time winners at DRP this season, Sommers rightfully felt like they had a shot to win the $5000 grand prize that came with the winner’s trophy. The No. 15 Ford unloaded with a ton of speed, and Gabe would turn a total of 45 laps in practice en route to claiming the top spot on the time charts by almost half a tenth. A quick turnaround would bring GSR right into qualifying where Sommers would lay down a seventh place effort, locking himself into the show with ease. Placed in the odd heat race, the mission was to roll around and save tires, which was done successfully and quietly, with the team looking towards feature racing time.
Gabe would roll off from the pole position after the invert took effect, and made sure to make the most of his luck in his starting position. Immediately checking out from the rest of the pack, Gabe would find his groove and pull away for the first 63 laps of racing action. A caution right at the halfway point made for a quick stutter in his night, losing the lead and sliding back to fifth as the bunched up field took advantage of passing opportunities. With under 25 laps to go, Sommers would make a comeback, rallying through the field and back into the second spot with the help of some restarts late in the going. Finishing just one spot shy of the win, the GSR crew loaded up happy with their night, now only three points out of the Alive For 5 Series points lead.