WEST SALEM — Jimmy Gilster’s got a feeling, a great feeling, which might explain why his feet were touching the ground about every three or four steps Wednesday afternoon. He’s been close before, but never this close.

Go ahead, Jimmy, go for it. You know Dad’s watching.
Gilster finds himself part of a North Country Contractor’s Sportsman Division sandwich that should be plenty appetizing for race fans today. If you don’t know it, the Sportsman Division track championship will be decided tonight during the first of four days or jam-packed racing at the La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway. It’s called the Oktoberfest Race Weekend, and with 19 different divisions and more than 500 cars hitting the pavement over the next four days, it’s easy for the Sportsman guys to get overlooked.

Not this year.

With just 16 points separating division leader Larry Bolster, Jr., of Sparta, Gilster of West Salem, and Nick Clements of Onalaska, this is one of the tightest — and most exciting — points finishes in years. Each of the three men wants to win it badly, but none more than Gilster.

“Now is the time. I’m going out with an all or nothing attitude,” said Gilster, whose personal adrenaline tank certainly appeared to be plumb full Wednesday afternoon during a practice session. “All year long I have taken the laid-back approach, now it’s time to go for it all. Not reckless, but aggressive.”

Gilster has raced in the Sportsman Division for 11 years. He’s watched his brother, Danny, win an unprecedented four track championships in the division. He’s watched others, including Bolster, dominate at times. He’s watched Clements spend much of the season atop the points standings, seemingly on his way to a track title.

Now, he’s ready to cut loose, to lay claim to a title he would like to win for his family, his crew, and probably most of all, his late father, Bob, who was a longtime member of the La Crosse Ag Society. For those of you unfamiliar with the operation of the Fairgrounds Speedway, the Ag Society owns the facility, and leases the track to Motorsports Management Services.

Bob Gilster was active in the 50-50 drawing at the Fairgrounds Speedway for years, helping sell raffle tickets, count the proceeds, and even write the check to the lucky winner. I know all of this because Bob sat right next to me in the race tower for years. Every Saturday night we’d talk about racing, about his sons, about farming. Being a one-time farm boy myself, I could sense Bob’s love for farming — and racing.

So when Jimmy glanced up at the sky Wednesday afternoon like an NFL player does after scoring a touchdown, I knew what he was going to say.

“It means a lot to my family, to me,” Gilster said. “I want to do it for dad.”

At that moment, Gilster — one of racing’s good guys — shed his tough-guy, competitive image for a second, and revealed an emotional side. It’s been two years since Bob Gilster sat in that race tower, but it seems like he’s still there. I’m sure Jimmy feels the same way.

Bolster is driving for a number of folks other than himself, too. In fact, his story includes a man who loved racing — Harlen Lindvig — who will likely be watching from a place other than the track. The late Harlen Lindvig’s son, Jerry, owns the car Bolster is driving tonight, while his other son, Steve, built the engine.

“Harlen never got to see the car we have on the track. He saw us working on it, but never saw it race,” Bolster said of the 1998 Chevy Monte Carlo, a car Bolster jumped behind the wheel in mid-season when he was in 13th place and 76 points back of Clements. “He passed away this winter. It would be something if we won it. I’m not part of the family, but it feels like it. It seems we are both (Gilster and Bolster) racing for family.”

Bolster, Gilster and Clements desperately want a championship of their own, almost guaranteeing there will be a three-way fight during qualifying, during the heat race, and during the 20-lap feature race tonight. Bolster is a seasoned veteran, while Clements is a heady racer. Throw in the cagey Gilster, and this is going to be what racing is all about — an every point counts type of event where the best are duking it out.

“It’s all about momentum. We had it for much of the season, then lost it the last month. We need to get it back for Oktoberfest,” Clements said. “They (Bolster and Gilster) have been here forever, and they both have the momentum going into this race. Each of them has so much respect out here. I’m not looking for them to screw up.

“We just have to play it cool and do what we did all year. The last four weeks have been awful with broken axles, broken spindles, wrecks. We need to end that and turn it around. It’s exciting. It almost feels like we are living Chase for the Cup.”

In a sense, they are. Who gets to grab that Cup, er trophy, will likely feel like they’ve won the Cup — at least for a night.

“We’ve come from a long way back and would love to finish the job,” said Bolster, who has finished twice in the points before — once to Jeff Baker, and once to Danny Gilster. “It would really be something.”

And if Gilster’s the man, his first “thank-you” will likely be directed skyward.

“We’ll see,” Gilster said. “If it happens, we’ve got something planned.”

39TH ANNUAL OKTOBERFEST RACE WEEKEND

WHAT: The Oktoberfest Race Weekend is the Midwest’s largest racing event

WHEN: The action begins today, and runs through Sunday.

WHERE: The La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway is located on the La Crosse Interstate Fairgrounds in West Salem, Wis., which is five miles east of Valley View Mall.

ADMISSION: Adult admission is $20 today, and $25 each for Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Children (ages 6-11) are $5 each day.

Multi-day wristbands are available. Four-day wristbands are $90, three-day (Friday-Saturday-Sunday) are $70, two-day (Friday-Saturday, or Saturday-Sunday) are $45. Multi-day wristbands are available at the box office.

PARKING: There is no charge for parking on the Interstate Fairgrounds parking lots. Parking also is available on city streets adjacent to the track.

INFORMATION: Call (608) 786-1525, or go to www.lacrossespeedway.com

COVERAGE: For complete coverage of the event, pick up each day’s La Crosse Tribune, or go to www.lacrossetribune.com

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