By Rich Vleck
ROCHESTER, NY, (April 23, 2013)- Mother Nature has postponed the start of the 2013 Patriot Sprint Tour opener, but in doing so she has set the stage for a new event that is sure to heat up things.
This Saturday, April 27, the Merrittville Speedway plays host to the Patriot Sprint Tour for the “Spring Sizzler”, an event that will start the 10th Anniversary Season of action for the Patriots, it will also begin the second season of the PST Canada Series. The Southern Ontario facility has played host to three prior Patriot races in the past, with the checkered flag on each occasion going to drivers that now have series championships.
Scott Kreutter, the defending PST America Series Champion from Alden, NY, scored his first career PST win at the d-shaped oval back in 2009. After pulling off the shocking upset to claim the title last season, and the $10,000 that went along with it, Kreutter will have a target on his No. 52 all season in both series.
Bryan Howland, the four-time Patriot Champion from Auburn, NY, won the first Patriot race at Merrittville in 2006, as well as the most recent winner there when the PST last visited the Bicknell/Williamson-Owned facility in 2011. On that night, Howland had to hold off a hard-charging Jared Zimbardi, another former series champion looking to get 2013 starting off on the correct foot.
PST America regulars that will be traveling north include George Suprick, Clint Ide, Brandan Warner, Don Adamczyk, Steve Collins, Steven Hutchinson Jr., Tommy Wickham, Todd Hoddick and Kevin Ward Jr. PST Canada regulars Glenn Styres, Keith Dempster, Jamie Collard, Alain Bergeron, Steve Poirier, Lee Ladouceur, Patrick Vigneault, Jason Barney, Chris Jones and Michael Parent are also names expected to be on hand.
Of course a race at Merrittville would not be complete without the groundswell of local teams that circled this date on their schedule early on. Travis Cunningham, Mikey Kruchka, Chris Steele, Tom and Jim Huppunen, Stan Zanchin, Zach Zumpe, Conor Mahoney, Jamie Turner and Brad Malloy just scratch the surface of names that could be present this weekend.
Pit gates for this special event will swing open at 3:00 P.M., with heat racing getting underway at 7:00 P.M. Stay up-to-speed with all that his happening this Saturday by following the Patriot Sprint Tour on Twitter or liking the Patriots Tour on Facebook. For additional information, visit www.PatriotSprintTour.com.
Patriot Sprint Tour History at Merrittville
Races: 3
June 24, 2006- Bryan Howland
August 1, 2009- Scott Kreutter
June 18, 2011- Bryan Howland