By Troy Hennig
The 2010 Feather Falls Casino / Riebe’s Auto Parts / Hoosier Racing Tire / Coors Light / Pepsi season kicks off this Friday night, April 2, at the Silver Dollar Speedway. The 410 sprint cars, street stocks, dwarf cars and wingless sprints are all ready to begin the season with a bang. The wingless series will appear courtesy of Joe Hunt Magnetos.
Front grandstand gate opens at 6 pm. First race of the night scheduled for 7:30 pm. Adult general admission prices are $12.00. Juniors and seniors are $10.00. Children prices are $5.00. Sprint car 410 winged qualifying is slated to start at 7 pm.
The new season brings new story line’s to the speedway. Rookies will bring new enthusiasm to the pit area. Veterans will battle for championship rights. The struggle during the summer months to keep the motivation, both financially and mentally, always play a major role in what decides the championship in late August. On track rivals will develop and give the fans a chance to picks sides on who to root for.
The 410-sprint cars will be lead by a strong local following. Chico’s Brett Miller, Robbie Whitchurch and Brad Bumgarner are all championship contenders this year. Defending champion Bobby McMahan has stated that he does not plan on repeating as championship and will look to travel more this year. That could also open the door to Auburn’s Andy Forsberg, Paradise’s John Michael Bunch or Grass Valley’s Mark Hall.
Heather Bartlett made history last year at the speedway. She became the first female track champion in the long history of the silver dollar speedway. Less than a month ago she commented that she will be back to defend her title in the division. Other championship contenders will include Phil Marino, Jake Vantol and Joe Longmire.
The Dwarf Cars always bring a strong car count and an exciting brand of racing to the race track. Traditionally, the dwarf cars bring an average of 20 cars to the Friday night shows at Chico.
The Hunt Magnetos Wingless Shootout Series will make its debut this Friday at Chico. The inaugural 12 race series will visit two other track, Placerville and Marysville. The drivers will race for a bigger purse and be eligible for contingency awards. This race will also allow drivers to earn points for the end of the year championship.
Information about the Silver Dollar Speedway is available at www.silverdollarspeedway.com