By Jeff Pederson
Pedal Down Promotions
(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) June 12, 2020 – After a 23-year hiatus from the driver’s seat, the lure of dirt track racing has once again reeled in Sheboygan Falls Late Model racer Chad Ludwigson.
Following an eight-year run with Eastern Wisconsin Stock Cars at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth in the early to late 1990s, Ludwigson ended his two-decade long retirement late last year with a couple of shakedown appearances in the Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model division.
This year Ludwigson is back in full force as a rookie competitor in the PDTR Late Model ranks at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds third-mile dirt track facility in Plymouth.
Like most racers, the attraction to speed hit Ludwigson at a young age.
“I got interested in racing as a kid,” Ludwigson said. “My parents would go occasionally to the races and my brother and myself would go along. I also was fascinated by Formula One, NASCAR and Indy cars, which I watched on TV.”
From there, Ludwigson made the big leap from spectating in the stands to dueling for position on the track.
“I guess I really started my racing as a kid, dabbling in racing BMX and then motorcycles and 4-wheelers,” Ludwigson said. “I started racing dirt track cars in 1991 after purchasing a car from Mark Zimmermann. I competed initially at Plymouth in what was then the Sportsman class. which later changed to Limited Late Models.”
While operating a small team with modest resources, Ludwigson was still able to taste some success in his first stint behind the wheel.
“I had multiple heat wins in my initial years including five in one season along with a couple of B-main wins,” Ludwigson said. “My greatest racing memory was opening night in probably 1996 or 1997. We had purchased a car from Steve Hoffman over the winter. We used to have to qualify for the features back then. On opening night, we were about three quarters of the way back in the qualifying lineup order.
“I went out and entered the car into turns 1 and 2 and the car stuck like glue, taking everything our engine could give it,” he said. “Corners 3 and 4 were the same way, and after crossing the start-finish line, I looked up and saw the time of 15.504, which a clear half second better than I had ever done. The announcer yelled ‘fast time.’ I could hardly believe it. After years of struggling with my previous car to qualify for the feature, this car right out of the box was on. We ended up qualifying third that night and qualified ahead of Hoffman from whom we purchased the car. I remember Kerry Scribner coming up and patting my back and saying, ‘Good job, I knew you could do it.’ With being a small team with limited resources, victories come from different places than necessarily finishing first. Our goals and milestones need to be realistic.”
As life circumstances changed, Ludwigson withdrew from racing as an active participant later in the 1997 season and remained away from the scene for the better part of 22 years.
“I ran a little in 1997 and then hung up my racing shoes,” Ludwigson said. “My kids were getting bigger and racing felt more like a full-time job than fun. Several buddies that helped out got married, had kids or moved elsewhere.”
However, as the years passed, Ludwigson found himself drawn back into racing.
“After selling the car and stepping back from racing altogether, I started to go back to the tracks after several years of sitting and wondering how these newer cars drove and missing the feel of the power,” he said. “My wife and I made the decision to purchase a car. It is a funny story after a year or two of talking about getting back into racing, my wife presented me with a Matchbox Dale Earnhardt car while we were out with friends. I don’t think she was prepared for my response when I thanked her and told her I was going to put it in the garage and add Miracle Grow and it was going to get bigger. Three months later, we were the new owners of a Late Model.”
Still utilizing an old-school open trailer to transport his Late Model machine, Ludwigson enjoys the natural interaction spurred by the site of a race car.
“When it comes to what I enjoy about racing, I probably enjoy the fans the most,” Ludwigson said. “Pulling our race car hauler into a gas station and seeing heads turn and people coming up and asking questions, especially the kids. We pull our race care with an open trailer, so going down the road you definitely get noticed.”
Entering his rookie season in the highly competitive Late Model division, Ludwigson is focused mainly on savoring the thrill of the ride.
“My goals for 2020 are simple…to have fun,” Ludwigson said. “I got back into racing to enjoy the experience.”
Ludwigson’s 2020 sponsors include: Even’s Pest Control , Rick’s House of Flowers and Chad Olson Graphics.
“We have room available for more sponsors, if anyone would like to come advertise with us,” Ludwigson said.
Ludwigson’s pit crew includes Cliff Babak, Brian Buckman, Matt Buckman and Jason Bednarski.
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This week’s PDTR racing program on Saturday, June 13, featuring 360 Sprint Cars, Late Models, Grand Nationals and B Mods, will again include limited attendance. Tickets will be available at the track up to the 50-percent grandstand capacity limit established through the Sheboygan County Safe Restart guidelines in response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) public health emergency.
Fans can also purchase advance general admission grandstand tickets in person at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds office through 4 p.m. on Friday, June 12. The remaining tickets will be available prior to the races on Saturday.
Mayer Automotive is the presenting trophy sponsor.
Grandstand gates open at 4:30 p.m. with hot laps at 5:30 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m.
The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds is located at 229 Fairview Drive in Plymouth, Wis. For more information, visit www.plymouthdtr.com or check out Plymouth Dirt Track Racing on Facebook.
Pedal Down Promotions is a full-service public relations and media services company devoted to helping clients effectively communicate with targeted audiences through a diverse array of promotional strategies and methods, including press releases, newsletters, profile and feature articles, website and social media content development, printed media, editing and layout, graphic design and book publishing services.
For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, email pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com, visit www.pedaldownpromotions.com or call 920-323-7970.
