December 2019 – Adventures in Driftlessness

New Glarus Oktoberfest

Editor’s Note: Yes, we know October, and fall generally, are long gone. But we still enjoy a good beer and a memory, and loved this story by local writer Justice Hendrick! Maybe you can road trip to New Glarus next fall…

Autumn. The leaves turn to tumbling amber, covering the greyish-brown landscapes with the last inklings of light and color as the winds speak in a restrained whisper with chilly tones, announcing the coming winter. One can only balk at the prospect of another chilly Wisconsin winter and pray it takes its time to arrive, but what’s the point in worrying over the inevitable when you could pass the time having fun with friends and family?

These good times are guaranteed at the annual Oktoberfest festival in rural New Glarus, Wisconsin. This festival leads attendees through a traditional Bavarian celebration of marriage, specifically the marriage of Prince Ludwig I of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen (say that five times fast!) in 1810. What else could there be to do with such a joyous occasion but to participate in a merry mixture of song, drink, and dance? Despite the inevitable changes that have occurred since, the original celebration’s main features have stayed true over two centuries onward. There’s something to find for everyone, even if it’s as simple as sitting in the festival tent with friends all day, listening to music, and enjoying yourselves as the tent keeps out the weather.

Oktoberfest1 — Walking into downtown where the festival was held. I was shocked by how beautiful their downtown is!

A rural village founded by Swiss immigrants in 1845, New Glarus predates the statehood of Wisconsin itself by three years. The village has ever since prospered by continuing the traditions of its sister city and mother country, acting as a little slice of Glarus, Switzerland to those who would choose to stay a while. This emphasis on history and tradition has also translated into the design of the village, its downtown a gorgeous display of 1800s Swiss architecture that left me feeling immersed in the rustic feel of the setting as the festival ran its course. Even if you’re not an architecture buff, there’s still a lot to appreciate there, and I’d argue the village is worth visiting any time of the year just to walk through the downtown area, but we’re talking Oktoberfest here. What do they have to offer?

Standing far above the downtown is a massive cathedral, completing the appearance of a booming 19^th century city.

You won’t have to worry about packing a picnic lunch or bothering with cold cuts for your outing here: local food vendors are at the ready to provide anything from brats to homemade grandma-style pizza, massive Bavarian soft pretzels and more. Most of it is just festival food, but there are some definite standouts you’re absolutely going to want to try. Apple brats are absolutely recommended. They’re grilled over a bed of – you guessed it – apples and absorb a lot of the tangy flavor as a result. Nothing really compares to that flavor, and it’s something I’ve truly never seen offered at a festival before, especially with the vendor’s impressive selection of toppings that included 50 different kinds of mustard. If you ever wanted to try mittlescharfer, a spicy brown mustard popular in Germany, or some other variety you’ve never heard of or tried before, now’s your chance.

Some of the better dressed King and Queen’s Contest contestants. I love their outfits!

The band — The local Bavarian band that plays the festival every year. What they play has kind of a funky beat if you’re from the 1800s I guess

Events are numerous and run throughout the entire weekend. If you’re feeling bold, you can strap on your lederhosen and participate in the king and queen contest, where the best dressed attendees receive prizes and recognition for their dedication to the celebration. You can also take a comfortable tour around the village as horse-drawn carriage rides run Saturday and Sunday, free for attendees of the festival. For those rough and tumble types who love to see a good brawl, an internationally recognized tug of war goes on all of Saturday, with members hailing from all corners of the earth coming in to compete. There are many others, but my personal favorite event had to be the live music playing all day in the festival tent. In the late morning they began with some traditional Oktoberfest tunes, and transitioned over time to local Wisconsin folk and country bands. Normally I’d skip over this kind of music, but with how immersed I felt in the festival, I was happy to just let it play on.

Taking place in the heart of downtown New Glarus, you can also enjoy the best of mom and pop shopping as local businesses open their doors to attendees. From antiques to artisan cheese, there’s a shop in New Glarus’ downtown that’s sure to have what you’re looking for. In my opinion, the highlights worth seeing include anything that shares some touch of local flavor, such as the legendary Edelweiss Cheese Shop or Maple Leaf Cheese & Chocolate Haus. These stores pride themselves on selling the best in local flavors when it comes to their wine and cheese. I feel like these businesses really show a lot of pride in what Wisconsin has to offer, even Hook’s cheese, an award winner that’s made in my hometown of Mineral Point, Wisconsin. When you’re not enjoying the festivities or shopping, feel free to take a load off and enjoy an ice cold brew in the festival tent, hailing from the village’s own New Glarus Brewery. Their traditional Octoberfest Staghorn bräu is made in the spirit of this celebration, and like its namesake features a strong amber body and spiced tones to fit the turning of the seasons. If that’s not your particular flavor, don’t worry: the brewery also features most beers from their main lineup at the event. You won’t know unless you try it, of course, but I will absolutely recommend their Spotted Cow, a farmhouse ale meeting with these orange notes that really add a lot of character and flavor when they’re included.

Stein — My dad’s friend Jeff having a pint in one of the steins they sell at the festival. What an authentic way to experience it!

For those curious to see where it’s made, the New Glarus Brewery is only a couple of miles away on WI-69 S, tucked into the lovely countryside the village is surrounded by.

Nearby, you can visit the New Glarus brewery, and “drink indigenous.”

Here, you can take a free walking tour of their brewing facility, from the original fermentation to processing, bottling, canning, and more. It’s certainly something else when the machinery is all in motion, and a sight to behold. Turning away from the technical side, the beer garden is lovely to look at, with architecture that combines the gorgeous landscapes mentioned before with the still-standing walls of the old village ruins converted into areas for people to drink and be merry. Tastings run throughout the day, and if you buy a beer ticket, they’ll pour yours into a glass you get to keep when you’re finished, printed with the brewing company’s logo. On the way out, you can visit the bottling center and create your own 4 or 6 pack of any of the beers that the brewery is currently busy working on. I myself grabbed a mixture of their basic brews, but they also offer specialty brews that are hard to find anywhere else, such as the Spotted Cow (Grand Cru), an even smoother version of Spotted Cow with a more noticeable orange flavor. For anyone who loves the craft brewing scene and wants to get a look at how it’s made, it’s definitely worth taking some time out of your day out and giving it a look.

This clocktower stands proudly above the brewery’s beer garden

When it’s all said and done, I’d overwhelmingly recommend New Glarus’s Oktoberfest as one of the best festivals to attend in southern Wisconsin. The touches of personal flavor that the village provides all add to the experience feeling like more than just an excuse to get sloshed with friends and family. From its architecture to events to food and drink, the festival feels like it encompasses (for the most part) the experience one would have if they were celebrating somewhere in the Swiss countryside. No matter what day you choose to attend, there’s surely something to keep you occupied, from the tapping of the first keg to the closing ceremonies.

Will You Be Mine? (Bevans Lead Mine and the Rollo Jamison Museum)

What’s the first thing you think of when you hear the word “mine”? Is it District 12 from the book series The Hunger Games? Do you think about a cheesy phrase that some people say on Valentine’s Day? Or, by chance, do you think of the wonderful city in Southwest Wisconsin that is Platteville?

Something that makes Platteville unique to the rest of Wisconsin is its immense history with the mining industry. This city stands out with its 200+ foot high “M” on Platte Mound, and it shows miner pride through the University of Wisconsin-Platteville’s mascot, Pioneer Pete. However, perhaps one of the greatest features of this city that showcases its mining history is The Mining & Rollo Jamison Museum, a year-round tourist attraction that I had the privilege of visiting.

Told to wait a while until the tour would start, I decided to meander through the small portion of the museum dedicated to the mine. The other section, situated in the upstairs portion of the building, is the Rollo Jamison section of the museum. But I’ll discuss that topic later on in this blog post.

Railroad and sign — An informational poster titled “Rails Reach Platteville” next to a railway signal.

A visitor can see informational posters littered around the mining portion of the museum that deal with topics such as the history of Platteville, the element of zinc and its uses, early forms of mining, and transporting lead once it had been mined. Many tools, such as shovels, pickaxes, hammers, and helmets, can be found, as well as minerals from the Mississippi lead and zinc district. They are all so eye-catching that I wouldn’t be surprised if they were used in jewelry nowadays. Miniature replicas of the empire mine, the mill, and the roaster to show how they work exist here, as well. And one of the coolest relics in the museum, in my opinion, is the sextant on a tall, wooden tripod, which was used to read the stars in order to navigate. It sits in a replica of an office, possibly one used by Lorenzo Bevans, the man who founded the mine.

The mine itself is 50 feet underground, and when there has been a lot of heavy rain, it can often times flood in the lowest sections, which I got to experience. Yay, Midwest weather! The mining museum provides the hard hats.

There are no elevators to get you up or down, of course, so you have to use many many stairs to get in and out. And if you have asthma, good luck…

Into the mine — These are the many, many stairs that lead down to the mine.

Back in its hay day, the town used this big hole in the ground to mine for lead and zinc. Miners would often work in groups in order to get work done. One example is that one man would hold a large metal spike to a wall of the mine, and another man would hammer at the chisel, creating a hole in one of the walls. Once sufficiently large enough, a miner would use gun powder as a type of explosive to form an even larger hole in the wall. Before lighting the explosive, he would yell “fire in the hole,” which is where the famous phrase came from, or so I was told by my tour guide, and the other miners near him would have to get a short distance away from the explosive.

After new technology had been invented, not only did miners get to use types of drills instead of chisels and hammers to form holes in the mine walls, but they were also able to use real dynamite instead of simple gun powder. However, before lighting the dynamite, every man would have to evacuate the mine entirely, and the miner, who would actually set fire to the explosive, would have to run quickly before it exploded. After the dust had cleared, it was one man’s responsibility to go back into the mine before anyone else to move some of the smaller stones to create a path and to ensure that no other rocks would fall from the ceiling. This man was paid the most out of all the other miners because of his very risky job and the fact that helmets were not really a thing just yet.

Due to the mine’s depth within the earth, the miners came up with a few solutions to deal with scarce lighting. Originally, they tried to keep a few candles on the floor of the mine in order to see. But as they would keep moving into new spaces, they found that this did not work so well. Later, they came up with a fire hazard of a solution: attaching candles to their cloth hats. Though this was rather dangerous, it provided some light in their immediate area so that they could work. Eventually, however, lamps were invented, and they were used on the floors and hung from the ceilings, too, providing exceptionally more light for the workers.

After the tour of the mine and the mill, I explored the Rollo Jamison portion of the museum. Jamison was not the man who founded the mine, but rather he was simply a man who collected a lot of things throughout his lifetime. So the two separate museums ultimately do not have a connection beyond sharing nearly the same space.

A poster titled “Jamison’s Museum” introducing basic information about the museum’s history

Among many of the fascinating things in his museum, Jamison collected arrowheads that started his collection in 1905, a picture of the Oscar Mayer Co. workers in 1914, women’s rights posters, 19^th century bronze, Japanese horseman, medical instruments, war memorabilia, and even the famous stuffed, boxing squirrels. Additionally, in his collection is a piano that can not only be played normally, but also by pumping the pedals it plays a specific song all by itself. There are also recordings of interviews with soldiers and different musical genre records that can both be selected and played by visitors.

A picture of a very old camera taken by an iPhone camera

Even if the mine floods in certain areas and leaks from the ceiling when it rains, even if there are a lot of stairs to climb for the mine and Jamison’s museum, The Mining & Rollo Jamison Museum is a must see when you’re visiting Southwest Wisconsin.

Folklore Village: Dance Yourself into the Past

Based outside of Dodgeville, Wisconsin, what Folklore Village is can be partly deduced by the name: not a village, but a center based around folk arts and culture. Jane Farwell, a native Wisconsinite from nearby Ridgeway who specialized in Scandinavian dancing, founded the establishment in 1968. She wanted a place where she could recreate the music, dance, food, and folk customs from all over the world.

Starting with just a small one-room schoolhouse, Folklore Village has since expanded to include a large barn (named Farwell Hall after the founder), a small house, a historic church (which was moved from near Mineral Point, Wisconsin), and a shed used for blacksmithing. They offer different classes (including blacksmithing, fiddle lessons, wooden spoon carving, soap making, and more), festivals (including New Year Festivals, Scandinavian Weekend, and Cajun Music Weekend), and monthly barn dances.

“Folk dancing is one of those rare activities from which people of all ages and walks of life can readily gain a large measure of satisfaction. In the beginning, most stand outside the fringe of those who ‘belong’ until someone extends a smile and a beckoning hand… we have no chance to wonder what this power is that so swiftly makes friends of strangers, yet we have a good time and the very important feeling of really being included. We realize that the spirit of the people we are with is more important than our own skill in dancing.”

-Jane Farwell, “The Makings of a Good ‘Saturday Night’”

Although FLV was founded for all of these purposes and continues to uphold them, I want to talk about what it is underneath all of that- A place of community and acceptance. I have asked some people around me “What is Folklore Village to you?” in order to give a better understanding of just how deep the connections and sense of community goes.

What is Folklore Village to You?

My mom, Bren Radtke, stated, “Folklore Village is a community for lovers of dance and culture. It is the foundation of how my family emerged and evolved.” This statement helps to clarify my history with the place. It’s where my parents met. It’s where they got married. And it’s where they spent a good portion of time raising us.

My family has even more history embedded in FLV, though. My dad, Steve Sprain, was a member of the original performing dance group and has been attending since the first event. My grandmother was friends with Jane Farwell, and they lived right down the street from the one-room schoolhouse where it all started. On April 30^th, 1969, Jane held an open house and invited all of the immediate neighborhood to join in, and so began my family’s unwavering involvement in FLV. On several occasions in these early days, they wouldn’t have enough people to complete a square for the square-dances, and my father would walk down to his house and bring back my grandparents to finish the set. More than once, he woke them when doing so, but not once did they hesitate to get out of bed and join in.

Wedding — My parents, Steve Sprain (left) and Bren Radtke (right), on their wedding day with Folklore Village founder Jane Farwell (middle).

I was eager to hear what my dad’s first thought was when I asked him “What is Folklore Village to you?”

He told me, “It doesn’t matter what you do or who you are, when you’re there, we’re all the same. Nobody is better than anyone else; everyone is accepted for their own talents.”

FLV is a setting where people of all backgrounds and occupations come together, with no suppositions that any one lifestyle is “better than” another. People from numerous backgrounds can feel at home. There are doctors and lawyers, farmers and truck drivers, astrophysicists and machinists, TV producers and circus performers, professional musicians and those who can’t play a note. Every day we’re defined by these titles, but at FLV, they’re irrelevant.

Dancing of the Franciase at Folklore Village on New Years Eve.

Similarly, my sister Lydia responded, “A place where all are accepted to rejoice in the sound of music and art of dance.” Lydia is wheelchair-bound, and I think the fact that someone who is unable to physically dance like everyone else still feels so included really says a lot. There are simply no barriers (physical, mental, or emotional) between who is allowed to participate and who isn’t.

My brother, Micah, simply described it as, “A place where you can be you without judgement.” Micah has always been “a goofball”, and many environments tend to suppress those with silly tendencies (intentionally or not). At FLV, my brother and everyone else can feel free to be themselves without the fear of judgement or social penalty. If anything, uniqueness and creativity are encouraged, in whatever form they may come in.

Lastly, our family friend Paige Rice stated, “It’s a place where people of all backgrounds can come together and be a community. A place where different cultures and arts are appreciated and celebrated. It unites different ages, races, and backgrounds. There are times I would almost describe as magical; in its serenity and welcoming environment…Though I haven’t been going there as often as others, it has still become somewhere I cherish and keep close to my heart.” Paige was introduced to FLV through my family and is most familiar with the annual New Year Festival. I believe this is what she is mainly referring to when she describes the serenity of the place.

New Year Festival

I have been attending FLV’s New Year Festival since I was born, and I have yet to spend the holiday in any other way. This festival is a fun-filled, event-packed, 4-day celebration. Every year, the classes, workshops, skits, and food are different; but, some things stay the same. There are some traditions for the night of New Year’s Eve that are customary (and some might even argue necessary at this point).

Every year we dance The Heilsberger Dreieck (a traditional German piece) and The Francaise (a 5-part quadrille which was traditionally danced by “higher-ups” in Europe and is still danced there on New Year’s Eve today). We sing in the small church on the property, we gather around a bonfire at midnight, and we then return to Farwell Hall to bring in the new year with peace, love, and togetherness. After some time spent quietly and on reflection, we celebrate with homemade tortes (which are very rich cakes), snap-dragon (a game from the 16^th century- raisins in a bowl of brandy which is set alight, and they are eaten still flaming), and, of course, more dancing.

Barn Dances

Barn dances are held once a month. The nights begin with a potluck where everyone is invited to bring a dish to pass. These nights are often not based on a theme, but rather filled with square dances, contra dances, waltzes, and any requests one might have. An example of a request I often made as a child is the Fox Dance. This dance is a favorite of kids who frequent FLV. One person is picked as the “fox” who “sleeps” in the middle of a circle made by the other dancers. The others do a simple dance around the fox that includes taking a couple steps in and taunting the sleeping fox. After two rounds of these harmless taunts, the fox slyly “wakes up” and catches someone else to be the next fox. Although there are more complex dances (usually saved for the New Year Festival), most of the dances taught at barn dances are simple and easy to follow. This allows everyone to feel included and welcome to join in.

Sword Dance — A traditional sword dance, with Bob Walser on the accordion.

Folklore Village founder Jane Farwell passed away in 1993, but her spirit stays with the place. Her ashes are buried under the wooden star that is placed in the middle of the dance floor.

Folklore Village has a lot to offer, but it’s so much more than just classes and festivals. In one of her many diaries, my grandmother wrote, “We went to pick up Steve from Folklore. And we stayed.” Folklore Village is a lot of things- a place for dance, traditions, art, and expression; but more than all of that, it’s the type of place you can’t help but to stay.

Potosi Point

If you’re already taking a trip to Potosi, maybe to the Potosi Brewery as written about in our last article, why not keep going and drive out on to the Mississippi? I mean that literally: Potosi Point, one of my favorite places to go for some beautiful views, peace, and quiet, is less than a mile outside of town.

How do you get there from the Potosi main drag?

Just keep driving down South Main Street, and the road will literally take you out to a boat launch on the Mississippi. The trick is, you have to take a little jog in the road as it goes out of town.

You’ll see some railroad tracks running along the river, and need to take a left off of State Road 133 (which was the same as Main Street, but now separates off to the north.) Drive under a little culvert, which as you can see from the photo sometimes gets flooded) and be careful to watch for water. On the other side of the culvert, you’ll be on road that runs right out into the river.

By late fall, beavers will be building dams on either side of the road. It’s also a good place to view cranes and other sea birds.

If you follow the road to the end, you’ll be at a little boat launch and viewing spot in the Upper Mississippi Wildlife Preserve called Potosi Point.

Enf of the point — At the end of the road, you’ll be several hundred yards out into the Mississippi, near the main channel.

That’s all there is to it. Oh, and if you want some shade or forgot binoculars, there’s a nice little viewing pavillion where you can look downstream. Enjoy your trip!

The Potosi Brewery

Wisconsin is known for beer. Part of what makes our beer so great is the expertise of the brewers who came here, but, as those brewers have said in many places, another reason is the purity of the water and the way its filtered through the unique geography of the area. It also doesn’t hurt that the same properties that make the area’s rolling hills also make it easy to store and chill beer barrels in the many caves throughout the area.

We have breweries all over, but there is one that really stands out as a pillar of the community its a part of: the Potosi Brewery. that is, unless you don’t find brewing for charity, town-wide taste testing, or beer raining from the sky terribly interesting! If you’re like most Wisconsinites, I know you’ll enjoy Potosi Wisconsin and their brewery.

The brewery began in 1852 by Gabriel Hail Sr. and his sons, Gabriel Jr. and John. Though they were brewing in 1852 they didn’t have an actual brewery building until 1854 when they had one built. Potosi was a perfect place to start a brewery back before refrigerators and modern transportation for several reasons. The building was built with direct access to the inside of a cave that was naturally around 46 degrees. It was a perfect place to store the beer. Potosi also has a stream of spring water that they could use for brewing. They stopped using the spring water several years ago and then they switched back and people have said that the beer is crisper and more flavorful. In addition to all of those amenities for brewing, Potosi is also very close to the Mississippi River which allowed them to ship their beer easier back when the brewery was starting up thanks to the Potosi steamboat.

World's largest beer — The “world’s largest beer” in Potosi, Wisconsin, located across the street from the pavilion in the preceding photo.

The brewery changed owners around 1882, it was then bought by Adam Schumacher in 1886 and exploded in popularity due to his skills in brewing German lager and it officially became “The Potosi Brewing Company”. The brewery went through prohibition, and then some growth and changes until sadly in 1972 they closed their doors. That wasn’t the end however, in 2008 they reopened their doors thanks to the hard work and dedication of the citizens and now it stands as a major tourist attraction and home to the “National Beer Museum”. They also donate their proceeds to charities such as a Platteville scholarship fund, local boy scout troops, and other organizations.

A photo of my father and I before the tour started. Photo by Lauren McMicking.

One weekend this fall, I decided to invest a mere $13 to take a tour. As soon as my father heard about it I was obligated to bring him along! Then my brother heard and encouraged his girlfriend to also come with so he could have the house to himself and enjoy his new video game without interruption. So then, after having paid for both of them and myself, we set off. Lauren brought her camera and my father brought his winning smile.

Tours are every weekend and include a look at the production facility, town history, and most importantly…free beer. For the responsible adults there was a fine selection of craft beers to choose from and you could responsibly sample a few. However of course, we were irresponsible adults with no need to be anywhere for the rest of the day so we decided before we even got there that we would try everything we could see. Then we were given a free pint of whatever we wanted to take with us on the tour and they shoved us on the tour so we wouldn’t drink them dry.

Potosi’s long history meant there were plenty of fun and interesting facts. For instance, in 2007 before they reopened, they had a small but important problem. The facilities had burned down and the recipes were lost. So, the town bravely banded together and drank from batch after batch until they had settled on what they believed was the original recipe. The beer in question is called “Good Old Potosi”, which is described as “a Golden Ale with a delicate malt flavor and sweet finish. Light in body, full in flavor.”. In my opinion it’s a fairly boring beer but it tastes just like an old beer should. One of my favorites was the Steamboat Lemon Shanty which has a light color and crispy lemon flavoring.

We also learned that it wasn’t always a cake walk working in the brewery. They used to have a pipe to send the beer from the production facility to the bottling facility (both original facilities are now re-purposed for other things) and this pipe spanned over the street. However, the beer sometimes had trouble staying in the pipe. When semis rolled through town they would hit the pipe and cause it to burst, sending a shower of beer down on the town.

There’s a lot more to Potosi than just beer. There’s beautiful scenery, great people, and …. there’s wine.

A painting by a Kingfisher by Wes Hilmick.

They’re also home to the Whispering Bluffs Winery. The winery is located in what used to be the bottling plant of the old brewery before it was renovated and reopened. All their wines are made in Wisconsin, from Wisconsin grapes. All the wines are inspired by local birds. The painting on the left is the same as the picture on the bottle of wine. The painting itself was done by the owner of the winery, Wes Hilmick.

Just down the hall from winery is a woodworking shop called Bright Idea. The shop is also located in the old bottling plant. Lining the walls of the hallway between are framed articles of the local paper that tell the history of the brewery. Bright Idea is owned and operated by a father and son carpentry team, Gary and Tyler David. They sell tables, candle holders, and other beautiful work that they hand crafted themselves. They own their own sawmill and harvest all of their lumber locally. Bright Idea has a website, as well as Facebook and Instagram where they promote and sell their products as well as tell their interesting, Wisconsin grown, story.

Kingfisher wine, featuring the same painting by Wes Hilmick

Potosi is home to a brilliant brewery, winery, and a carpentry shop. In my opinion, a small town doesn’t get much better than that. They have a fun tour of the brewery where you have plenty of chances to try their specialty beers. Then you can enjoy wonderful food at the attached restaurant. The bottom line is, if you’re looking for something fun to do in Southwest Wisconsin Potosi is the place to be and best of all it’s all local, local ingredients, owners, products, and it helps Wisconsin thrive. Schedule tours or look at the craft beers here at the Potosi Website.

Road America: The National Park of Speed

Road America: what is there not to say about this historic track?

Since the 1950’s, this monster 4.084 mile and 14 turn road track has been tucked in the hills (giving it the name National Park of Speed) of Elkhart Lake, WI; right in between Green Bay and Milwaukee. This track is a whole new kind of test for racers. When it first opened in ‘55, the track was known as Elkhart Lake Road Races before being changed five years later to Road America. Every year RA hosts over 400 events including nine major race events, giving a little something for everyone. Some of the big-name weekends that everyone looks forward to, including the employees, include MotoAmerica, IndyCar Series, IMSA, and NASCAR Xfinity. Each one bringing a different experience to the table.

So how did Road America come to be?

Road racing began to gain popularity after World War II in the late 1940s due to a major influx of sports cars in America. Formed in 1944, the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) was the main organizer of these types of races and with the help of the Chicago region of the SCCA and the village of Elkhart Lake, the first races were formed where Road America stands now.

Recent motorcycle competition from the Superbikes competition at Road America. Photo by Grace Daehling.

In 1950, the track from start to finish was only a 3.3-mile track and took the drivers around different county roads in the area. However, the next two races, in 1951 and 1952, took the drivers on a different route, being 6.5 miles long and still driveable to the public today. This course is the one inducted into the National Register of Historic Places in November of 2006 with signs marking significant parts of the track.

After a tragedy in 1952 at Watkins Glen when a child was killed, the United States ruled to discontinue motorized racing on public roadways which sparked the movement to privatized race tracks. Since then, many races have come and gone from the track. Some of the most recognized being: NASCAR Grand Nationals in 1956 and the Xfinity series since 2010, The Stadium Super Trucks since 2018, IMSA GT Championship, IndyCar series since 2016, and the Superbike series with MotoAmerica.

One of the cars from the IndyCar series. Photo by Grace Daehling.

Road America is so much more than racing though. The track offers great food, wonderful camping with each spot having a unique view of the track, and frisbee golf across the property. The people that come to the track will always have smiles on their faces, making each event worth attending. Strangers come together and bond into a community over different racers. Even though the person sitting next to you in the stands might be cheering on your rival racer, fans still find a way to put that aside and enjoy a good competitive race. People aren’t at each other’s throat over a pass or over a collision, but are rather understanding of what good racing really is. Another thing that Road America is amazing at is bringing a new demographic of people to each event.

I can’t even come up with enough ways to explain how magical this really is. Being an employee of the track rather than just a spectator I have the advantage of seeing all of this behind the scenes. Let’s try explaining this in a way I actually know how. Imagine this…

Driving around the property to different turns with cameras in hand and my eyes weighing down at 7:30 in the morning. There’s always the smell of bacon cooking mixed with early morning fuel from the track to really wake you up.

Very few people are awake and those that are cooking their family breakfast and ready to get the race day started. As part of the media crew, we begin filming campsites that are all competing to win the theme of the week and people offer us a coffee to go. This particular morning was going to be different. It was something I could just feel. All day the racers are warming up on the track and fans are finding their spot and everyone is ready for the main event to start. As the day moves on, the hopes of an on time race is starting to look slimmer and slimmer as the storm clouds roll in from the distance.

As my friends Josh, Wolf (“Wolf”‘s name is also Josh, so we always called him by his last name), Ben and I were about to split off the skies open up and the rain begins. We quickly take cover in winners circle to make sure our equipment stays dry and it doesn’t get damaged. I soon got a text from my boss telling us that the race is going to be delayed due to lightning and heavy amounts of rain.

As with any outdoor sport, rain isn’t a big concern; however, as soon as lightning comes into the picture, we have to wait at least a half hour from the last strike to resume anything. This rain wasn’t letting up anytime soon and was in fact getting worse.

The crew who works at Road America makes magical moments like this possible. Photo by Grace Daehling.

The four of us and about ten other people stayed in this small room waiting to receive news on when the race was going to take place and about two hours later, we got word that the storm was soon to pass. We had a half hour until the racers would take to the track. We all turned to each other to figure out a new game plan. We didn’t have any rain gear for the cameras, and we knew that the rain wasn’t done for the day. Eventually we came to the much dreaded conclusion that one of us was going to have to sacrifice the dryness of our hideout and run and grab all the gear. That conclusion came to me.

I ran from the room we were in all the way to the media center and my car to grab anything and everything I could. I had both camera covers, three rain jackets, two SD cards that I had to switch out, and two batteries when I came back. From there we figured out were the two groups were going to split up and shoot.
“Josh and I are going to hit the catwalk for start and finish, the end of pit row, and try to get to turn five if we have time. We also have to set up for post-race press conferences so we’ll see if we get there.”

Ben thought for a second before replying with, “Let us get turn five. That way we can possibly get kettle (another turn on the track) and turns twelve and thirteen. It makes it easier for everyone. We have to go to winners circle anyway.”

Josh and I waited till the last minute to race up to the catwalk to set up for the start. Within a minute of us getting up there, the racers are signaled for crews to leave pit row and for racers to start their engines.

The pur from the horsepower these cars are producing can be felt through every molecule in your body. Each racer takes off from their pit spot after the pace car ready to warm up their tires and get in pull position. They make their way back to the start and wait for the red light to turn green. Everyone inside the track is ready to sit on the edge of their seats for the next three hours.

Three… Two…. One… Green… The flags start waving, and the racers take off from zero to one hundred in the blink of an eye. The horsepower pushing through every ounce of your body, the feeling is so intense it’s almost as if your heart won’t be able to take it. The sound so loud it makes our voices sound as if they are a whisper in the void of space.

The next couple of laps go by and we move to a new spot on the track every half hour or so. The lead has changed so many times it’s hard to know who really has it, but we manage to keep track. As much as we didn’t want to be out in the rain, it was a long race, so it gave us a chance to screw around and try new shots and more artistic shots. The race comes to the last 45 minutes and Josh and I make our way back to the media center to change out batteries and set up for post-race driver interviews and to get some water.

“How are things out there?” our boss asks as we come rushing into the office.

“Couldn’t ask for better weather out there right now,” Josh said sarcastically he clips in the almost dead battery. “The rain is getting heavier and we still have to get the finish.”

Once we change everything out and get our mic checks done, we headed back out to the catwalk. At this point there was about fifteen minutes left in the race and we just watch the race for as long as we can before having to step back into the rain.

We come to see that the race had come to a yellow flag causing the racers to line up as they make their way around the track. Lidell, who was in 14th position with 20 minutes left in the race, made his way up to a 4th place reposition while Wittmer repositioned in 2nd place. They round turn 14 to see the green flag waving allowing the racers to take off in a frenzy. Along with the green flag giving the go, they also had a white flag signaling the last lap of the race.

The Road America track. Graphic courtesy of Will Pittenger, Wikimedia Commons.

Wittmer quickly takes the lead going into turn 3 as he almost trades paint with the racer he was passing. Coming into turn 5, two cars are out of the race as they slide off the slick tack; however, Wittmer is doing anything he can to keep his lead. They make it past turn seven, whip around turns eight and nine and head into the carousel. The front four of the field is holding steady. Coming out of carousel and going into turns 11,12, and 13, the front runner takes off and pulls the lead by inches. Lidell, who was still in fourth, had something else in mind and wasn’t going to settle for a no-podium finish.

Going into Canada Corner, turn 12, Lidell comes to the outside of third place and quickly drifts around the outside to take over both the second and third place racers. A bold move to do on a dry track in the best weather, let alone on a track with standing water. He pushes to catch up to Wittmer when they reach turn 14.

Racing up the back straight away, Wittmer has about 50 meters left and his team cheering for his win when his car stalls. The fans all bust out in shock of what just happened. Was he out of gas? Did his engine fail? The fans were left in suspense as the driver began everything in his power to just coast past the finish line before Lidell has a chance to catch up and pass him just before the finish. However, all his efforts came to nothing. He tried turning his car and blocking Lidell from passing him knowing he would be risking his car and disqualification in front of a 200-mph running beast coming at him.

At the last second, first place was captured by the driver who raced smart and took advantage of a malfunction on another teams’ part. The finish was the most devastating yet thrilling end to a three day build up, three-hour race with a win margin of only 0.070 seconds. You could feel the fans adrenaline pumping through their veins and hear their hearts drumming out of their chests.

This is what Road America is about. I could sit here and type the facts and what the track features, but without experiencing the magic of the track itself, there is no way to comprehend what it is that everyone at the track is so obsessed with. So, what is Road America? Well that is an experience for you to find out yourself.

If you would like to watch the last lap of that race, visit this page and watch the most amazing take over in racing history happen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GFmcNJbgjg

UW- Platteville Pioneer Football

If you live in southwest Wisconsin then you’re used to everyone asking you what there is to do or complaining about how it’s full of corn fields and nothing else, you might suspect that they’ve never been outdoors. Not only is this a beautiful place for fall sports, but there are also plenty of local teams to enjoy for a fraction of the price you’d spend in larger cities.

Although I enjoy going to numerous sporting events, the ones I enjoy the most are the UW-Platteville Pioneer Football Games. Like many Wisconsin natives, I grew up from the time I was a little girl with sports on the TV at home: mainly Packers or Brewers games, and I was lucky enough to attend a number of those growing up. It always made me sad that I wasn’t athletic enough to partake in most sports when I grew up but being able to go to these events helped fill that void. There are many great things about going to Pioneer football games, hopefully by the end of this post you’ll want to go, even if sports isn’t really your cup of tea.

Sophmore, Running Back, Evan Gates receives the handoff from Sophomore, Quarterback, Caleb Hanson. — Sophomore running back Evan gates receives the hand-off from sophomore quarterback Caleb Hanson during a fall 2019 UW-Platteville game. Photo by Grace Daehling.

The University of Wisconsin- Platteville Pioneers are a part of NCAA Division III and the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference which also includes, Whitewater, Stout, Stevens Point, River Falls, Oshkosh, La Crosse, and Eau Claire. The official season starts in the beginning of September and ends mid-November. Platteville started off the season strong with a 38-30 win against East Texas Baptist, and continued as undefeated for several games. They dominated Thomas More 41-10, then moving forward they crushed Lakeland College during their first away game, 55-28.

The team is averaged 37 points per game and this season went undefeated at home. Currently the team is led by head coach Mike Emendorfer. He is assisted by Ryan Munz, Jason Wagner, Dan Bauder, Patrick Sheehan, Donavon Nathaniel, Brody Dell, Ryley Bailey, and Justin Blackburn.

Coach Justin Wagner stands on the sidelines with the players. Photo by Grace Daehling.

There are many players making great stats this season, but football games aren’t just enjoyable because of the football. One the sideline we can find some pretty great folks cheering on our Pioneers all while they’re doing some amazing stunts. Then we look to the stands and have our fantastic marching band playing whenever they can: whether it’s during a time-out or a kick-off you can hear them doing what they do best. Then those two are joined on the field during the halftime show by the talented dance team. These halftime shows are a real treat to watch.

This year’s season is over, but hope we can see you next year!

Fall’s End

Greetings, Driftless readers! As we wind towards the end of fall, I thought I’d publish a few more stories on fall sports, just to give us something to look back on during the cold winter!

Thanks to local writer Adam Smith for his excellent article on rugby. On tap, we have two more stories focusing on fall sports: Samantha Graetz, writing on UW-Platteville Pioneer football, Grace Daehling (an excellent sports photographer, whose photos also appear in Sam Graetz’s piece).

After that, we’re going to move on to another favorite Driftless area recreation: beer!