3/17/2021
Josh Walter
After unusual 2020, Walter looks forward to new season
(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) March 17, 2021 – Following a shortened 2020 season, which featured a mix of impressive performances and disappointing mechanical setbacks, Josh Walter and the members of the Torque Racing team have turned their attention toward a promising 2021 season.
The team is currently putting together a tentative schedule of races for 2021, which will kick off with a Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association Sprint Car Series event at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Saturday, April 24.
In addition to competing in several IRA events near its Plymouth, Wis. home base, the team is also planning to visit a few of dirt track racing's most legendary tracks during the 2021 campaign.
“Where we decided to race last year was mostly on a whim with a few races set in stone,” Walter said. “That's what we plan on doing again this year. All the races are on the calendar and we may end up shooting darts at it. We will be racing April 24th at Beaver Dam Raceway, May 8th at Knoxville Raceway, June 11th at Williams Grove Speedway and June 12th at Port Royal Speedway, weather permitting of course.
“We plan on running the local Plymouth shows, Dodge County and Antigo races too,” he said. “The rest of the schedule is up in the air.”
The annual Torque Racing Brat Fry will get things rolling for the season Saturday, March 20 at Lakehouse Bar and Grill, located at W6547 County Road C in Plymouth, Wis. on Crystal Lake, beginning at 11 a.m.
The brat fry will give fans and supporters the first look at the 2021 Josh Walter-Torque Racing 410 Sprint Car.
Due to COVID-19, the brat fry will include two 40 foot by 20 foot tents outside for those who'd like to distance themselves. Drive-thru orders will be accommodated as well.
Although their 2020 schedule turned out to be nothing like originally anticipated, Josh Walter and the Torque Racing team made the most of their limited racing opportunities by stringing together a number of impressive late-season performances in Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series action.
Walter originally planned to run several different “bucket list” tracks during the 2020 season, including Eldora Speedway in Ohio and Knoxville Raceway in Iowa, as well as Williams Grove Speedway and Port Royal Speedway in Pennsylvania, to go along with a handful of IRA events in Wisconsin. However, the COVID-19 pandemic derailed those ambitious plans and kept the team racing close to its Plymouth, Wis. home throughout the season.
In all, the team competed in 11 IRA, NOS Energy Drink World of Outlaws and Ollie's Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions 410 Sprint Car Series sanctioned events in 2020, compiling three top-10 A-main finishes, one heat race victory, one dash victory and six dash appearances.
Walter ended up 24th in the final IRA point standings after competing in nine of 20 events.
“Last year was a different year for everyone and it really benefitted our team,” Walter said. “Last year we started a little rough, but we really gathered things together the last half dozen nights or so. The team never gave up, but there was a point that we felt we were going about things a little wrong.
“We rallied at the end with the realization and recognition that if we want to win, we need to look at our team strengths and capitalize on those,” he said. “We took the stress out of our season during the last half, running where we wanted, when we wanted and without any outside bearing on our decisions. If our family had stuff going on, or if we just wanted to watch the races on Flo and have a team cook out and eliminate running a percentage of races or for points, we did that.”
After a nearly two-month delay to the start of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 restrictions, Walter opened the season with a NOS Energy Drink World of Outlaws Series doubleheader at Beaver Dam Raceway in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, June 5 and Saturday, June 6.
Although he failed to qualify for the A main on either night, Walter used the two events as a test and tune session for the upcoming IRA season.
Due to some adverse weather conditions, the Torque Racing team was out of action for the next month before opening its 2020 IRA schedule at the 141 Speedway in Francis Creek on Sunday, July 5.
The evening proved to be an eventful one as Walter qualified sixth in the 29-car field and placed second in his heat race to earn a spot in an IRA dash and eventually the eighth starting spot in the 30-lap A main. After getting hit with a rock and contacting the wall and being involved in an incident in turn two in the early going, Walter battled back from the rear of the field to salvage a 15th-place finish.
After turning in a 20th-place finish in an IRA event at the Plymouth Dirt Track on July 18, Walter failed to advance out of the C main in the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions-IRA co-sanctioned Rayce Rudeen Foundation event at The Plymouth Dirt Track on July 30.
The following night, Walter made a late decision to compete with the IRA at the Langlade County Speedway in Antigo, where he qualified seventh and won the first IRA dash to earn the pole for the A main. However, an electrical issue prevented Walter’s 12W car from firing for the A main.
After nearly a month off, Walter returned to action with the IRA at Beaver Dam Raceway on Aug. 29, where he qualified sixth and finished 17th after a late-race spin.
The highlight of the season came less than a week later, when Walter qualified second and came home a season-best seventh in an IRA A-main at the Dodge County Fairgrounds in Beaver Dam, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 4.
The team had planned to compete the following night in IRA action at The Plymouth Dirt Track, but a faulty push rod in the engine compartment detected during pre-race maintenance sidelined the team for the evening.
Walter then posted his second top-10 finish of the season with a ninth-place showing in an IRA event at the Outagamie Speedway in Seymour, Wis. on Friday, Sept. 11.
After placing 12th in the IRA A-main at the Dodge County Fairgrounds on Friday, Sept. 25, Walter closed out the 2020 campaign with a solid eighth-place A-main finish in the season finale IRA event at The Plymouth Dirt Track on Saturday, Sept. 26.
“The last half of the 2020 season has us excited for 2021,” Walter said. “We had some top-10 finishes and I believe we made the dash in six out of the last seven nights. Our qualifying and speed is there, but I feel I owe it to my team to race better and a little more aggressive.
“If I'm not racing for points, I really have nothing holding me back from being more aggressive,” he said. “However, I still need to drive smart and keep the car in one piece.”
Torque Racing sponsors for the 2020 season included JDV Lawncare, Brittany's School of Dance, Sheboygan by Owner, Plymouth Tap, SCA Inc., Doug's Quality Beef, Cow Pies, Full Throttle Ink, Lakehouse Bar & Grill, Home Transitions, Oostburg Concrete Products, RC Custom Design and Pedal Down Promotions.
Additional information about the team's 2021 tentative schedule and sponsors will be released in the coming weeks and throughout the season on the Torque Racing Facebook and Twitter pages, as well as the Pedal Down Promotions website and social media pages.
Torque Racing Sponsor Showcase – Oostburg Concrete Products
The Torque Racing team is pleased to have Oostburg Concrete Products of Oostburg, Wis. on board as a sponsor.
In 1946, six partners joined hands to form Oostburg Concrete Products. The original owners purchased special equipment to manufacture a wide range of concrete items, which they used during the summer months for construction work.
Oostburg Concrete Products’ recent investment in equipment allows the company to pour concrete through most of the winter months.
One of the original owners, Gordon Veldboom Sr. became the sole owner in 1959. Today, the company is owned and operated by Gordon J. Veldboom Jr., his wife, Helen, and their son, John.
Oostburg Concrete Products offers a complete line of concrete and masonry services, including footings, poured concrete walls, concrete floors, driveways, sidewalks, flatwork, fireplaces and exterior brick in stone.
Oostburg Concrete Products crews cover a large territory, including jobs in Brown, Calumet, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Jefferson, Kenosha, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Sheboygan, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha and Winnebago counties.
For more information or to inquire about services, call Oostburg Concrete Products at 920-564-3341.
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For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromo.com or call 920-323-7970.
Final 2020 Josh Walter-Torque Racing
By The Numbers
Total Events – 11
IRA events – 9
World of Outlaws events – 2
A-Main Victories – 0
B-Main Victories – 0
Top Five A-Main Finishes – 0
Top 10 A-Main Finishes – 3
Heat Race Victories – 1
Dash Victories – 1
Dash Appearances – 6
IRA points finish – 24th
2021 Josh Walter-Torque Racing
Tentative Upcoming Schedule
(Additional dates to be announced)
Saturday, April 24 – Beaver Dam Raceway, Beaver Dam, Wis. (IRA)
Saturday, May 8 – Knoxville Raceway, Knoxville, Iowa (Weekly)
Article Credit: Jeff Pederson-Pedal Down Promotions
Submitted By: Jeff Pederson
