Racing Nuggets

Derek Kraus started as a go-kart racer from Stratford, WI, and has been chasing his racing dreams with his family for quite some time now. Having tasted success in the ARCA West Series, enjoyed some solid runs in the NASCAR Truck Series, had a few starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series--and now, thanks to Kaulig Racing--will be making a handful of starts in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2024. We catch up...

This week on the Racing Nuggets Podcast, we sit down with the 2023 ASA Midwest Tour Rookie of the Year, Bryan Seyer-Keske. Bryan is a Minnesota racer who got to test drive an ARCA car at Daytona as part of his Rookie of the Year honors. He took his dad with him for that experience, which was a trip of a lifetime for them both. 

Todd Thelen, the owner and promoter of Slinger Super Speedway, has breathed new life into the Fastest 1/4-Mile in the World. He's been steering the track in the direction that reinvigorates the signature event, the Slinger Nationals, and the weekly race program. Thelen started as a racer himself. That experience and his business acumen give him solid footing to continue to steer Slinger Speedway i...

Have microphone, will travel. Eric Huenefeld, announcer for various tracks and series across the Midwest and pit reporter at several national series events, joins us on the Racing Nuggets podcast this week. 

Fresh off his second Snowball Derby win, Ty Majeski, a super late model hotshoe and NASCAR Truck Series driver for ThorSport Racing, joins PJ and Dan in this episode. 

Ben Rhodes, two-time (and current reigning) NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion, joins us on this episode and shares some stories from his personal and professional life behind the wheel of the #99 ThorSport truck. 

Toby Nuttleman started his racing career with Steve Holzhausen and has worked with many notable drivers over the course of nearly 50 years in the sport at the time of this recording. He just came off his most recent successful run with Ty Majeski, where they picked up their second Snowball Derby win in four years. Toby shares some insights and stories from recent times and days gone by.  

Twenty years ago, Travis Kvapil captured the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship. Here we are today, and Travis is helping usher his boys, Carson and Caden, into the racing world. Carson has already nailed down two CARS Late Model Stock Car Tour Championships, and Caden has grabbed the CARS Pro Late Model Tour Championship this season. The boys talk about the upcoming Snowball Derby and the...

Kenny Schrader is an American treasure. He's raced his entire life and has had incredible success behind the wheel. Whether it's dirt or asphalt, Kenny is a wheelman. His wife, Ann, also joins in the conversation, and together, they share some great stories of their history in racing. 

Brent Kane and Dillon Sellner are both accomplished short-track racers. Friendship has taken their racing to new heights. From Oktoberfest RAce Weekend at La Crosse Speedway, where they got to know each other, to running door-to-door at Elko Speedway, the pair have forged tremendous respect for each other as they developed their race craft. 

Drew Kreibich started attending races as a youngster, modeling his dad in the La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway flag stand. That passion for racing continued to grow as his journey in motorsports developed into a full-fledged career. Today, he is the Series Director for the Midwest Trucks and handles social media for many other entities. Listen to this episode to learn more about Drew's background an...

Chris and Craig Johnson are brothers who have been involved in racing for about 30 years--much of that together--working on other people's cars and helping them get to Victory Lane. Drivers like Steve Carlson and Ty Majeski have enjoyed tremendous success due in part to the hard work of this pair of brothers. 

David Deery spends some time with PJ and Dan on this Racing Nuggets episode to chat about the final countdown at the historic Rockford Speedway in this final race season. While many eyes are on the National Short Track Championships, several other events are slated into October, providing more opportunities for racers to turn laps at the track before it is gone for good. 

Jerry Mueller and his wife, Elaine, have been involved in auto racing for decades--helping Wisconsin drivers move up through the ranks and making friends and connections on the NASCAR scene. Listen to some great stories from the heyday of auto racing in the Midwest and NASCAR. 

Two young women racers from Minnesota--Taylor Goldman and Julie Jorgenson join us on the Racing Nuggets podcast this week. Busch Light Beer has selected both ladies to be a part of their "Accelerate Her" program. They both come from racing families and they are extremely close friends who cheer each other on and support one another at the track. Get to know these two up-and-comers who are sure to...

This week on the Racing Nuggets Podcast, PJ and Dan catch up with Jacob "Jake" Nottestad and get to know him better. He's a young, up-and-comer who is a bit of an "old school" racer, implementing a conventional set-up in his race car and holding his own against many of the super late model teams. 

Canada's Cole Butcher is this week's guest on the Racing Nuggets Podcast. Driving primarily for Donnie Wilson Racing, Cole has continued to have success and grab checkered flags. Learn a little more about this quiet wheelman from the north along with PJ and Dan. 

PJ and Dan sit down with the semi-retired, former General Manager and Promoter from La Crosse Speedway, Chuck Deery, to hear some stories about growing up as one of Hugh and Jody Deery's kids at Rockford Speedway. He also shares some insights on what the future of auto racing might look like as he hangs up his hat from managing operations at La Crosse Speedway--and what is next in his life. Hint:...

In this episode of the Racing Nuggets Podcast, Dan and PJ chat with Wisconsin's Robbie Reiser. He was a former racer, crew chief for Matt Kenseth, a mastermind of racing strategy, and his most important role that he continues to relish: DAD. Robbie shares stories, some laughs, and his love of Slinger Speedway. Will he make a pick for who will win the Nationals this year? Listen and find out!

This week on the Racing Nuggets Podcast we sit down with Minnesota Young Gun, William Sawalich who is incredibly busy running four different divisions this year, including full-time with Joe Gibbs Racing in the ARCA Menards Series. We learn about his adventures as he starts to climb the racing ladder, who in the racing world are his friends (and which one of them is dating his sister.) He truly is...

This week on the Racing Nuggets podcast, PJ and Dan catch up with the new promoter at La Crosse Speedway--Austin Wells. This guy was practically born at Madison Speedway and has a boatload of experience he is bringing to La Crosse as he takes over the reins from Chuck Deery, who retired last year from promoter duties at the track. Take a listen and get to know Austin Wells a little better. 

We have an announcement, and then we're just gonna BS. This is a "splash and go" pitstop for this week's Racing Nuggets Podcast. 

This week PJ and Dan catch up with dirt and asphalt hot shoe Brad "JJ" Mueller. He grew up around the icons of short-track racing in Wisconsin and shares stories from them and interesting nuggets of recent years. We are not responsible if you blow your beverage out your nose laughing while listening to this episode!

Rich Bickle Jr. is the ultimate storyteller and guest on the Racing Nuggets podcast. A racer from the heyday of Wisconsin short-track racing, he has stories for days that will make you laugh, cry, and pine for those days gone by. We definitely needed more than an hour and will have him back on to share more stories in the future--and who knows? Maybe he'll be sliding back behind the wheel again be...

This week on the Racing Nuggets podcast, PJ and Dan sit down with Jerry Gille, the multi-champion title holder--who also has oodles of 2nd place finishes in championship battles at Rockford Speedway. Jerry is recovering from a torn shoulder but hopes to get back behind the wheel before this final season at Rockford Speedway comes to a close. He also shares some incredible stories of growing up aro...