Few classes are more polarizing than the Super Stock 4×4, and within the WTPA, not many classes stack up to the whirlwind this group saw over the last year. The Super Stock 4×4 class was looking healthy once again last spring as they entered the season, looking to put on a show. Your two time defending champ Dan Horel was once again the guy to beat with a tough group ready to get after him.
Their season kicked off at a familiar venue for trucks, yet a new stop on the WTPA schedule, Stanley. It should be a surprise to few that a Horel got off to an excellent start to the 2025 season with a win, but it wasn’t Dan this time. Tony (the older and wiser brother) took home the win en route to a very successful pulling campaign that saw him win three more times which would top all pullers in the class. The weekend was far from over as the guys moved across the state to the top dog of regional pulling, Ellsworth and the Showdown in Curdtown. This event saw maybe their biggest crowd ever and they were treated to one of the better Super Stock 4×4 hooks in recent memory. The class was loaded with 14 of the best trucks but it was heavily dominated by the Wisconsin pullers on this day. Dan Horel (yeah, that guy) topped the field for one of his two wins on the season. Close behind was Wayne Vaughan and new comer Peyton Berg (top three finish in front of home crowd). Sadly, this is where we lost Mark Welke Jr. and the Bounty Hunter II for the season (top 3 finish in 2023) but we know he will be back. Suddenly, it was feeling like another Horel-ish season for this class.
(The 2025 champ getting his first win at the first hook of the season)
We proceed to Ettrick, WI where the rain was in full force all over the state, with the exception of Ettrick, WI. I drove through rain for two hours getting to this hook, only to come out dry at the other end. This no doubt dampened the field a little bit but the top runners were there in what quickly became a tight race. We saw six trucks run with Tony picking up his second win in just three early hooks. Right behind him was Cam (more well known as Peyton’s dad) and, you guessed it, Dan Horel. What can I say, when you’re on, you’re on. This group was running well and they continued that dominance much of the 2025 season. It was worth mentioning here that the rain that had been hanging around nearby all day showed up at the end of the night and washed out the last class, go figure.
A long mid-season break in the schedule for this class fast forwards us all the way out to the next new hook of the season, Eagle Valley Speedway. Enter the rain again, tired of that topic yet? A venue built to handle some rain was mostly unbothered all day, minus the most important piece, the track. A brand new track with an excellent track crew out of Loyal worked all day and evening to make things happen. Things did happen, just not quite as we had hoped. The pull went on as advertised but the track was soft. Nevertheless, the pullers did all they could to protect machines and still put on a show. Once again, your top three, Dan, Cam and Tony. We have heard this before. Not far back were such guys as Fred Fredrickson, David VanderWeyst and Derek Vaughan. Never a night where you’d say anyone in this class was out of it.
Next up, the ever growing regional hook, Smoke N Thunder by the Kinni in River Falls, WI. Once again, you see a tough class get twice as big with the Minnesota guys coming over to play. We saw 14 trucks earlier in Ellsworth, on this day it was 14 trucks as well. Tim Carda (defending NTPA Region 3 champ) got some revenge for the Minnesota guys as he came out on top. You guessed it, Dan followed by Tony, were next up at 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Cam wasn’t far back in sixth place. The class tightens, the numbers are all right there. Your two time defending champ, Dan Horel, leads but he knows the guys around him want to knock him off the top spot. We push on.
(Seen here is the rising star Peyton Berg, who helped her dad Cam achieve a 2nd place finish)
Up next is normally one of the biggest hooks of the year, Pulling for a Purpose in Colby but once again, rain won the day. So that pushes us ahead to Jim Falls once again, this time at the hallowed venue operated by the Jim Falls Lions Club. This place is a mecca for trucks, has been that way for a long time. 2025 was a bit of an anomaly for the class here as numbers dropped down a bit. The bigger story here may be that our two time defending champ was now out of commission for the year. See, the thing about pullers is, they want to pull. When one event drops off (Colby), you tend to find another to fill the void. Dan did just that in Cumberland, WI where his engine had catastrophic failure, putting him on the shelf for the remainder of the season. Suddenly, just like that, the WTPA Super Stock 4×4 narrative had changed. The story that had remained mostly the same the previous two seasons, was now assured to have a new ending.
Now the class was really down to three trucks. With the class being smaller, there was just wasn’t enough spacing available for other contenders to jump in and gain ground. With that said, two trucks were standing out with just Jim Falls and Marshfield remaining. The defending champ unfortunately goes down, meaning we now need someone else to step up. The competitors didn’t disappoint. Tony set himself up in a big way, taking home yet another win. Coming in close behind were Derek Vaughan and Cam Berg. That could only mean one thing for this class heading into the final hook…drama!
Okay, I was just setting you up. Drama was all but non-existent as we reached Marshfield and the final hook of the season for this class. It was pretty simple math. If the top guys hooked, the points were all but a distant memory at this point. Speaking of what feels like a distant memory, some of you may not know this (most do because Dan likes to talk) but just a few years back, Dan and Tony actually tied atop the leader board. Dan would go on to win based on a tie-breaker. Well, now was finally Tony’s time. He came into the day leading the points and he wasn’t looking back. He would go on to win in, dare I say it, dramatic fashion. Winning the final two hooks meant he was the top dog and the points championship that followed cemented his outstanding season. The guy who started the season off with a win, finishes with a win and enters 2025 as your defending champ. Congratulations Tony Horel.
(Tony Horel showing some love to the camera, always the classy guy)
And I tell you what, a champ is only as good as the competition he beats and the WTPA has no shortage of those men and women. Here is a look at how they all finished the 2024 season:
1. Tony Horel……………………..203
2. Cam/Peyton Berg……………197
3. Derek/Wayne Vaughan…….193
4. Fred Fredrickson……………..177
5. David VanderWeyst………….157
6. Dan Horel……………………….144
The 2025 WTPA season gets underway on Friday, June 6th, 2025 in Stanley, WI.