By Lance Jennings
SANTA MARIA, CA – JULY 24, 2012… This Saturday, July 28th, the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will return to Perris Auto Speedway for the “California Racers Hall of Fame Night.” The event not only honors those that have contributed to Sprint Car Racing in Southern California, it will offer several bonuses to an already exciting program.
Led by the efforts of Perris and Ascot infield announcer Chris Holt, the “California Racers Hall of Fame Night” starts off with the “Billy Wilkerson Fast Time Award.” Thanks to the Wilkerson Family, $500 cash will be awarded to the driver that sets fast time in qualifications. Earlier this year, Nic Faas broke the nine year old track record and Mike Spencer became the third driver to join the “15-Second Club.”
The “Walt James Last Man Standing Trophy Dash” will showcase the four fastest qualifiers that wish to compete. The format for the $1000-to-win event is simple and eligible drivers can enter a USAC/CRA legal backup car. With an inverted start (Billy Wilkerson Fast Time driver starts last), the four cars will run a 4-lap dash. Once completed, the fourth place driver is eliminated and the 3 remaining cars will battle in a 3-lap shootout. The third place car will be retired, followed by a five minute red-flag.
During the break, the leader will draw an envelope. If a “1” is pulled, that driver can select the high or low line to start the final segment. If a “2” is drawn, it will be up to the second place driver to make their choice. The final round will be a 2-lap sprint for the $1,000 top prize. Last season, Faas scored “Last Man Standing Dash” wins at Santa Maria on June 18th and July 30th at Perris. Spencer won the final LMSD of 2011 at Santa Maria on August 13th.
Afterwards, the dash winner will pick one of four envelopes to select the “Aggie Award” winning driver. The three sons of J.C. Agajanian (Cary, J.C. Jr., and Chris) have donated $98 each in honor of their legendary father.
In addition, the hard charger of the 30-lap main event will earn $100 for their efforts. When USAC/CRA last raced at Perris on July 4th, Faas had a second place run after starting twenty-second.
There are more potential awards available to help boost the “California Racers Hall of Fame Night.” As this writing goes to press, more than $5,000 has been raised and interested parties can email Chris Holt at MrChrisHolt@aol.com.
Holt would like to send a special thank you to Anne Wilkerson, “Dirtface,” Ron Schwarze, Friends of Danny P, Linda Halibrand, Nancy O’Toole, Redican/Simpson, Steve Stroud, Surf N Sprint, Don Flanders, Walt James Family, Parker Stores, Agajanian Family (Cary, J.C. Jr., and Chris), MJF Equipment Transport, NNJFI, The Wheelcover Man, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror, Joe Godoy, Rick Gaunt Family, James Harland, David Pease, Lubrication Equipment & Supply, and Tracy Forrester Johnson for their contribution.
To catch all of the action of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series at Perris Auto Speedway, Mike Truex’s Loudpedal Productions has DVD videos available for purchase. For more information, call (805) 407-7229 or visit www.loudpedalvideo.com. In addition, Perris Auto Speedway offers a pay per view feed of every event at www.circletracknetwork.com.
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Diversified Machine Inc., Extreme Mufflers, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Integra Racing Shocks, Keizer Wheels, LRB Inc. Race Products, Ringers Gloves, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saldana Racing Products, and Sander Engineering for their support.
For more information on the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, visit www.usacracing.com/cra or follow the series on Facebook (www.facebook.com/pages/USAC-CRA-Sprint-Car-Series/167535183297971) or Twitter (www.twitter.com/#!/USAC_CRA).
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AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT POINTS:
1. Mike Spencer 609; 2. Nic Faas 535; 3. Austin Williams 480; 4. Matt Mitchell 461; 5. Ryan Bernal 458; 6. Brody Roa 419; 7. Cory Kruseman 375; -. Rip Williams 375; 9. Seth Wilson 313; 10. Cody Williams 308; 11. Richard Vander Weerd 221; 12. David Bezio 213; 13. David Cardey 210; 14. Jace Vander Weerd 180; 15. Greg Alexander 142; 16. Jake Swanson 117; 17. Josh Ford 99; 18. Tony Everhart 68; 19. Josh Pelkey 51; 20. Billy Blinn 31.
2012 AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE
DATE – TRACK – LOCATION
July 28: Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, CA (California Racers Hall of Fame Night)
August 10: **Ocean Speedway – Watsonville, CA
August 11: **Santa Maria Speedway – Santa Maria, CA
August 18: Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, CA
August 19: Route 66 Motorplex – Victorville, CA
September 1: **Calistoga Speedway – Calistoga, CA (Louie Vermeil Classic)
September 2: **Calistoga Speedway – Calistoga, CA (Louie Vermeil Classic)
September 5: **Silver Dollar Speedway – Chico, CA (Non-Points)
September 15: Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, CA
October 6: Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, CA (Southern California Fair)
October 26: *Canyon Speedway Park – Peoria, AZ (Hall of Fame Classic)
October 27: *Canyon Speedway Park – Peoria, AZ (Hall of Fame Classic)
November 2: *Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, CA (Budweiser Oval Nationals)
November 3: *Perris Auto Speedway – Perris, CA (Budweiser Oval Nationals)
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* = Co-Sanctioned Event With USAC National Sprints.
** = Co-Sanctioned Event With USAC Western Classic Racing Series.
This schedule is subject to change.