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Tri State Outlook
by Duane Hancock
Spring has sprung but still no racing has taken
place in the region yet. Plus, some of this weeks
events are already can celled. Man, a trip to PA's
Posseland might have to happen if the weather don't
start cooperating in Ohio. I am itching for some
racing so bad, I got tickets to Martinsville this
weekend for the NASCAR race. I know, I should be
heading to PA for some sprint cars but, got a good
deal. Plus, Shelby has never been to a NASCAR race,
its her spring break, so off we go.
Each year as the season approaches, besides the
obvious yearly bigger races, King's Royal, Ohio
Speedweek, Brad Doty Classic, 4 Crown, and so on,
there are a handful of races that just seem to catch
your attention. Some because they are new shows, some
are tracks that might not host weekly sprint car
shows, or just shows that a bunch of cars should
attend. This year is no different for me. I have found
10 shows that have caught my attention on the 2008
slate. Here they are in order by date:
1) May 4th Jack Hewitt Classic at Kokomo (IN)
Speedway. Non-wing Sprints and Midgets on the 1/4 mile
saluting one of the all-time greats of our era.
2) May 16th World Of Outlaw Late Models and regular
410 Sprints at Attica(OH) Raceway Park. This should be
a great event. After seeing the WOO late models and
WOO sprints at the season final last season in
Charlotte, this should be a must see event on the racy
Attica 1/3 mile.
3) June 14 USAC Sprints, NRA & SOD 360's at Eldora
Speedway. It should be interesting, if they qualify,
to see who turns the faster laps. I like the idea of
having non-wing sprints and another type of sprint car
for the support division. The non-wing fans will get
to see some great winged racing, the wing fans will
see some great non-wing action.
4) July 5th MSA Supers and WOMS Midgets at Angola
(IN)Speedway. It will be the first time ever for the
Supers on the tight Angola pavement. Add the Midgets
as a support class, it should be a great show even if
it is on pavement. Just kidding, I have seen some
great pavement shows as well. Keep looking, I believe
my list will contain a few more pavement shows.
5) July 24th USAC Midgets and the real USAC
Silvercrown cars at ORP in Indy. ORP seems to host
excellent midget shows, add the big cars to the event,
sounds like a classic to me.
6) July 26th The Anderson 400 for Midgets. A spin off
of the Little 500, this first year event sounds like
an instant classic. A huge purse for the Midgets and
400 laps to fight for it.
7) August 7th USAC Midgets and Non-Wing Sprints at
Union County (IN) Speedway. Tony Barhorst has moved
his Indiana Midget Week date to Union County Speedway.
Tony does a great job at promoting his events. Plus,
add the many improvements made to this facility over
the past few years, it should a great event on a track
the perfect size for a Midget shoot-out. Dang, almost
forgot, non-wing sprints are on the card as well.
8) August 9th NRA & SOD VS the Fremont 305s at Fremont
(OH) Speedway. 410 Sprints are the support division. I
am glad to see this event back on the Fremont
schedule. A huge car count has always been present. It
is a sprint car racing fans dream to see over 100 cars
pit side for a 1 night event. If history repeats
itself, this should be a must see event.
9) August 13st the All-Stars and NRA 360s at
Waynesfield. The All-Star Speedweek show and the NRA
show at Waynesfield were 2 of the best finishes in
sprint car racing I seen last season. Put the 2 on the
same card on a Wednesday night in August, it should a
slug fest. Maybe for real.
10) October 11th 360 Shoot-Out and 305s at Eldora
Speedway. A while back when Eldora hosted a 360
Shoot-Out towards seasons end, it was some decent
racing with many cars. I am glad to see this back on
the schedule and adding the 305s should make it
better. Some people have said 305s at Eldora? I say,
why not? I hope the 305 event pays good money as well.
Those guys work just as hard on their cars as others,
if not harder, so why not give them a showcase event?
Of course, these 10 events are not the only ones
that have grabbed my attention. Each and every week I
look forward to the shows in our region, no matter if
its a regular local show or a traveling series
crossing into the region. One thing is for sure, I
cannot wait for this weather to break so we can see
some mud flying in the air and smell those methonal
fumes flowing from the cars as they pass by.
The Brad Doty Classic at Limaland Motorsports Park
has just gotten bigger. If anyone competing in the
World Of Outlaws event that night pulls off a clean
sweep, quick time, and wins their heat, the dash, and
the A Main, they will receive an extra $10,000 that
night. Wow, qualifing could be worth $10,000 since you
have to be quick time of the night to have a shot at
the bonus. Talk about putting the pressure on
someone...Former Attica promotor and friend of mine,
Janet Holbrook is back in the car owners seat. Janet
will own a 360 team for 15 year old Austin McCarl, aka
AMAC. Austin is the son of former Knoxville Raceway
Champion and current World Of Outlaws regular Terry
McCarl. Look for the team to run in the Mid-West
region mostly. A few trips to Ohio are in the works as
well...The 5th annual HoserVille Ohio auction was a
huge sucess. With all of the days activities and the
donations being collected, almost $4400 was raised.
Lets hope mother nature gets the bur out of her butt
so we can go racing!
As always, feel free to contact me with any comments,
concerns of what I wrote, or just to say hey.
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