KASSON, Minn. – The rides, exhibits, smell of fair food and big crowds are all signs that it is fair season in Southern Minnesota.

The traveling stars of the USMTS Casey’s General Stores National Tour will invade the historic Dodge County Fairgrounds on Wednesday, July 14, as the 153rd Dodge County Free Fair starts its five-day run in Kasson.

The mud-slinging USMTS Modifieds will highlight the racing classic “Thunderbird Open” that will pay $2,000 to the winner.

The “Thunderbird” was started as a late model race in 1977 and ran with that class through 1986. In 1987, a decline in late model cars forced the event to a WISSOTA-sanctioned modified show, which ran until 1995 and then took a hiatus until the event returned as a late model race in 2002.

The tumultuous history of the “Thunderbird” continued when the event was dropped from the schedule once again in 2004, but the event was brought back as an unsanctioned race in 2009 after a five-year absence.

This year the show will be under USMTS sanction and will attract some of the best Modified drivers in the country.

The USMTS has appeared at the Dodge County Speedway 25 times since 2001. Nine-time and defending USMTS national champion Kelly Shryock of Fertile, Iowa, leads the way with four wins. Tommy Myer of Blooming Prairie and Jason Hughes of Westville, Okla., each have three wins.

Dan Chapman, Brad Waits and Todd Scharkey have two wins apiece at Kasson while Mike Chasteen, Chris Spieker, Scott Megonigle, Nate Wasmund, Corey Dripps, Jon Tesch, Mike Sorensen, Mike Hejna and Tim Donlinger each have one win to their credit.

Myer was the most recent USMTS winner at Kasson, topping 37 other drivers at the Memorial Day Weekend “Stars & Stripes Shootout” on May 30. Myer also has a “Thunderbird Open” title, winning the event in 1995.

Going back in history, LeRoy Scharkey won the first “Thunderbird” for Modifieds in 1987. Ron Jones won in 1988 and 1990, Mike Sorensen prevailed in 1989 and Mark Noble won back-to-back in 1991-92. Jay Anderson was the champ in ‘93 and Ron Schreiner won in 1994. Brad Waits was the winner when the event returned in 2009.

Wednesday’s show at the Dodge County Speedway will be the seventh of 11 events scheduled for the ultra-competitive Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region. The sixth event will take place 24 hours earlier on Tuesday, July 13, at the Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis.

Shryock is the current Yeager Machine Upper Midwest Region points leader with a nine-point advantage (502 to 493) over Myer. Ryan Gustin is third with 479 markers, followed by Donlinger (448), Jason Krohn (439), Tesch (418), Johnny Scott (390), Rodney Sanders (382), Steve Wetzstein (369) and Doug Hillson (364).

Also on the card will be WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds and USRA Karl Performance Parts B-Mods. Pit gates will open at 4 p.m. and the grandstand gates will open at 5. Draw cut-off for competitors is 6:30 and the first green flag will fly at 7 p.m.

On race day, fans can pick up discount coupons worth $2 off adult admission at Casey’s General Stores locations in Austin, Mantorville, Owatonna, Rochester, Stewartville and West Concord. To find the location nearest you, check out www.caseys.com on the Web.

So sneak out of work early and head to Kasson on Wednesday. Take in the midway, ride some rides and pig-out on some of that classic fair food. Then find your favorite seat in the grandstand and witness some exciting dirt track racing during the Dodge County Fair.

The Dodge County Speedway is a 1/3-mile semi-banked clay oval located 1.1 mile north of US 14 on SR 57 (at the Dodge County Fairgrounds). For more info, call 651 226-3706 or 507 634-6400 on raceday or visit www.dodgecountyspeedway.com online. For more information on the Dodge County Fair go to www.dodgecountyfreefair.com.

To learn more about the United States Modified Touring Series, visit www.usmts.com online or call 515-832-7944. You can also follow the USMTS on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube.

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USMTS TITLE SPONSORS: Casey’s General Stores, Castle Rock Recruiting.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, AwesomeRacesuits.com, GoPro, Intercomp, Karl Chevrolet, Kevko Oil Pans & Components, New Vision Graphics, Nitroquest, RACEceiver.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Allstar Performance, Arnold Motor Supply, ASi Racewear, Bad Boy Mowers, Bear Tire, Big Dog Chassis & Fabrication, BRODIX Cylinder Heads, Cagle Motorsports, DandyLand Farms, Day Motor Sports, Dirt Track Racing School, Dirthead.com, DirtKnights.com, Falcon Wind Power, Farm Boy BBQ Sauce, Gressel Oil Field Service, Intensitee Custom Racewear, Just Say Yes, Karl Performance Parts, Olympic Fire Protection, Ramirez Race Cars, Ruter Farms, WIX Filters, Yeager Machine.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AFCO Racing Products, Ai-Racing, Belleville Motorsports, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, COMP Cams, Dart Machinery, Dynatech Racing Exhaust, Eibach Springs, Fast Shafts, Forty9Designs.com, GRT Race Cars, Hooker Harness, Hypercoil Springs, Isky Racing Cams, KSE Racing Products, Marsh Racing Wheels, Out-Pace Racing Products, PBM Performance Products, Quarter Master, QuickTime Inc, Real Racing Wheels, RHS – Racing Head Service, Schoenfeld Headers, US Brake, Willy’s Carburetor & Dyno Shop, WIX Filters.