By Steve Inch
SELINSGROVE, Pa. – A stellar cast of race car drivers from the 358, 360,
and 410 sprint car divisions is expected to converge at Selinsgrove
Speedway this Saturday, Sept. 4, to vie for the lucrative $36,500-plus
purse that has been posted for the Tenth Annual NRG Controls North National
Open for 358-360 sprint cars.
The 35-lap Open will pay $8,000 to win and $500 to start. The top five
positions combined will pay out more than $22,000, with $1,000 to finish
tenth. Mach I Chassis will pay a $500 bonus to the highest-finishing 358
sprint car driver in the A-main as well as a $1,000 B-main purse for
non-qualifiers.
The event’s fast qualifier will earn a $100 bonus for the Fast Tees Fast
Time Award in Memory of Jim Nace as well as a Hoosier racing tire from
Miller’s Racing Parts of Camp Hill. The Middleburg IGA will sponsor the
60-inch tall championship trophy. All heat race winners will receive $100
certificates toward the purchase of a set of sprint car wings from Wings
Unlimited and Sprint Aces will sponsor the $200 hard charger bonus.
Track gates will open at 5 p.m., with qualifying slated to begin at 7 p.m.
The rain date, if needed, will be Sunday, Sept. 5, at 7 p.m. over the Labor
Day holiday.
The 358-360 Open will be a tribute to the speedway’s late five-time sprint
car champion Jim Nace, who was instrumental in helping to establish the 358
sprint car division as the track’s weekly headline open wheel division in
2001. Nace, who campaigned his popular Fast Tees No. 6 as both a driver and
car owner in recent years, died last November following a seven-year battle
with cancer.
Tentatively, the qualifying format for the race will include time trials,
heat races, and a B-main; however, the format will ultimately be determined
by the number of entries for the race. The race will be an open tire event
and both 358 and 360 legal sprint car wings will be permitted on either
race car. Additional technical specifications for this event can be
reviewed on selinsgrovespeedway.com.
Daryn Pittman of Owasso, Okla., a two-time 410 sprint car winner at
Selinsgrove this season, announced his intentions to compete in this
weekend’s race along with Mark Smith of Tower City, who just last weekend
scored the victory in the 358-360 challenge event at Williams Grove
Speedway and has several wins in 410 sprint car competition this season.
In 358-360 sprint car National Open history at Selinsgrove Speedway, nine
races have produced six different winners. TJ Stutts of Liverpool, who won
the 358 sprint car season opener in March, will be seeking his third career
victory in the Open, having won the 2001 and 2003 events.
Blane Heimbach of Selinsgrove, who won the 2009 edition of the Open in
April of this year when it was rained out last fall, was also a winner of
the event in 2005. Heimbach has a 358 sprint win at both Selinsgrove and
Williams Grove Speedways in 2010 and recently took the 360 sprint car win
in the United Racing Club-sanctioned event at Selingrove.
Central Pennsylvania’s 14-time 358 sprint car winner Pat Cannon of Etters
won the Open in 2007 and 2008. Cannon, who is the points leader at
Selinsgrove, Williams Grove, and in the Hoosier Tire Mid-Atlantic overall
central Pennsylvania 358 sprint car series, has nine wins at Selinsgrove.
Adrian Shaffer of Hallam was the Open champion in 2002. Defending track
champion Nate Snyder of Halifax, who has two wins this season, won the 2004
race. Phil Walter of McClure, celebrating his 25th season in auto racing
this year, took home the trophy in 2006.
Joining the 358-360 sprint cars on Sept. 4 will be the pro stocks in a
complete series of heat races and a 15-lap main event.
Title sponsor NRG Controls North, Inc. is a full-service commercial
controls company and systems integrator specializing in automated building
controls and security systems for both the public and private sectors,
including hospitals, universities, public schools, prisons, office
buildings, and manufacturing facilities, to name a few.
2010 358/360 Sprint Car Open Purse: 1) $8,000 2) $5,000 3) $3,400 4) $3,100
5) $2,550 6) $1,600 7) $1,450 8) $1,300 9) $1,225 10) $1,000 11) $650 12)
$600 13) $550 14-25) $500
Admission Prices For Sept. 4, 2010: Adults $15; Students (12-17) $12; Kids
11 & Under Free; Pit Passes $25
Rain Date: Sunday, Sept. 5, 7 p.m.