Bunke Brothers Sweep PRO Classes at Season Opener
Gerald Dyrdahl Pine Lake 200
Roseau, Minn. (January 15th, 2024) –Bunke Racing claims consecutive podiums with all three drivers at the historic Gerald Dyrdahl Memorial Pine Lake 200 in Gonvick, MN.
Pine Lake once again brought bone chilling negative temperatures all weekend long. The racers and fans welcomed the cold temperatures to finally have a weekend of snowmobile racing after two postponed race weekends due to warm temperatures and lack of ice.
Saturday would kick off with the Pro Open qualifier. It was a crisp morning with temperatures sitting around -6 Fahrenheit. #874 Boe Bunke was aboard the new “Mini Mod” which is a Soo chassis with an F-III power plant, while #14 Taylor Bunke piloted his Stock Polaris Matryx 600 to get seat time for Sunday’s Pro stock class. This was Boe’s debut weekend in the Pro class and he proved he could hang with the big dogs and landed himself a spot in the front row after the two-lap qualifier. Taylor held his own on his stock machine and snagged a second-row spot in the modified class.
The Final was under much anticipation to see if this new machine could handle the grueling conditions and 100-mile course. Chad Dyrdahl announced at the riders meeting right before the start of the final that new this year was a $10,000 check for the winner! Boe came off the line fifth and after three laps he found his groove and made his way to the front of the pack! #14 Taylor was in the middle of the field battling with #101 Dan Revering on Polaris and #312 Zach Herfindahl aboard his brand new Arctic Cat Catalyst all three riding stock machines. After mandatory fuel stops #874 Boe came out behind #28 Justin Tate and #173 Paul Brown. Going into lap eight Boe made his move and passed both riders to clinch the lead again! He was able to hold the competition off the last two laps and he came out victorious on his debut weekend in the pro class! #14 Taylor remained consistent and finished in the ninth position out of 25 racers.
Bunke Racing’s women’s driver, #854 Reese Novacek, also had her debut weekend in the Pro Division! She had three laps on Saturday and three laps on Sunday for a combined overall score for the weekend. Saturday she lined up against five other drivers and she snagged herself the hole shot! After a few battles in the corners, she settled into third position behind #42 Mckenna Cloose on her Arctic Cat and #144 Unity Gausen on her Polaris. After three laps she remained in third place going into Sunday’s race. #854 Novacek got second on the hole shot for Sundays three laps. She went back and forth with a few drivers and ultimately was able to hold her position and landed herself on the Podium in third place for the weekend behind #236 Gabby Hallstrom on a Ski-doo and #144 Unity Gausen taking home first on her Polaris.
Sunday’s races dropped to even colder temps reaching -15 degrees Fahrenheit. The featured race of the day would be the Pro Factory 600 with a payout of $12,000! With a stacked field of drivers having a good qualifying run is crucial. #874 Boe Bunke was in the first flight with seasoned racers #312 Zach Herfindahl and #17 David Brown on their Arctic Cat Catalyst machines. He battled with them for two laps and finished third which placed him in the second row for the final. #14 Taylor Bunke was in the second flight of drivers and he had a battle with #15 Wes Selby on a Ski-Doo to come in a close second placing both drivers in the front row for the final.
At 1:46pm the green flag dropped and the machines took flight with heavy snow dust behind them. Out front were the #312 and #17 Arctic Cats with #14 Taylor Bunke right on their tail. # 56 Gunnar Arlaud was close behind on his 4-stroke Arctic Cat. #874 Boe Bunke was in the 2nd row and he had a good start right behind #188 Evan Peppel on his Polaris. After the first few laps it was a battle between #56 Arlaud in first, #173 Paul Brown on a Catalyst in second and #14 Taylor Bunke in third. Going into Lap three #14 got around #173 as he chased down the #56 4-stroke. Bunke and Arlaud started checking out from the rest of the field. #874 Boe Bunke took fuel on the third lap but then remained stuck in terrible snow dust for the majority of his race.
After swapping for the lead on lap five Arlaud took fuel on lap six along with many others leaving clean air for Bunke out front. Bunke came in for fuel at the end of lap seven as the crowd fell silent in anticipation to see who would take the lead going into lap eight. As #56 Arlaud rounded the last corners, Bunke tightened his fuel cap and ran his machine out of the fuel area just seconds before Arlaud came through the line. A flawless lap and fuel stop by Bunke and his crew kept him in the lead for the remaining two laps. Arlaud trailing just a few seconds behind kept the crowd on their toes as they waited to see whose headlight would come out of the cattails on the final straight away. Soon enough they would see that #14 Bunke held off the #56 Arlaud on his 4-stroke and managed to clinch his second victory at the historic track! An emotional Bunke family waited patiently track side to celebrate a clean sweep by the brothers in the Pro Divisions.
Next up Cor Powersports season opener in Park Rapids, MN on January 27th.
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