From Lance Jennings
Santa Maria, CA — (June 29, 2013) — On Thursday, July 4th, race fans in Southern California will celebrate Independence Day in style at Perris Auto Speedway. The cars and stars of the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will return to their “home track” for the annual “Firecracker 30 & Sky Concert.” “The Power of Purple Night” benefiting the City of Perris Relay For Life and the American Cancer Society will also feature the PAS Senior Sprint Cars, California Lightning Sprints, and PAS Young Gun Sprint Cars presented by The Sprint Car Driving Experience. The spectator gates will open at 3:00pm, an autograph session is set for 3:15pm, games on the front straightaway with kids and drivers will be at 3:45pm, and live entertainment is also planned. Racing at “America’s Premier Dirt Track” will start at 7:00pm and the facility will host one of largest and best fireworks shows in California.
The annual “Firecracker” race has been a Southern California tradition going back to the legendary Ascot Park in Gardena. Howard Gardner won the 1957 event and other winning drivers include Bob Hogle, Billy Vukovich, Jimmy Oskie, Dean Thompson, Bubby Jones, Rip Williams, Brad Noffsinger, and Ron Shuman. When Perris Auto Speedway opened their doors in 1996, the Riverside County oval kept the tradition alive and “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman scored the second of his record six event wins. Mike Spencer will be going for his third straight “Firecracker” victory and a talented roster of drivers will be looking to win the Independence Day Classic.
After claiming wins at Watsonville and Santa Maria, Concord’s “The Demon” Damion Gardner is the hottest driver on the circuit. Racing Mark Alexander’s #4A Scott Sales Company / Advanced Racing Suspension Spike, Gardner has a 51 point advantage over the competition. To date, the 2005 Champion has five feature wins, four Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, four heat race victories, one dash win, eleven top-10 finishes, and 91 feature laps led. “The Demon” won the “Firecracker” in 2004 and will have his sights on adding Thursday’s race to his win list.
Gardner’s teammate, Nic Faas of Huntington Beach is second in the point chase. Driving Mark Alexander’s #4 Scott Sales Company / Competition Suspension Inc. Spike, Faas scored third at Watsonville and fourth at Santa Maria. Currently, the former USAC Western Midget Champion has one feature win, one heat race victory, eleven top-10 finishes, and 33 feature laps led on the season. Nic will be looking to win the “Firecracker” and gain valuable championship points.
Campbell’s Bud Kaeding has climbed to third in the point standings. Piloting Junior Bowman’s #29 Buster & Ziggy Enterprises / Kaeding Performance Bullet, Bud claimed second at Watsonville and eighteenth at Santa Maria. Entering Thursday’s race, the 3-time USAC Silver Crown Champion has one dash win, one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main win, nine top-10 finishes, and 25 feature laps led on the year. Kaeding will have his sights on joining the winner’s list of the popular “Firecracker 30.”
Sitting fourth in the USAC/CRA standings is Mike Spencer of Temecula. Driving Ron Chaffin’s #50 Grubstake Mini Storage / Madera Produce Maxim, Spencer placed twentieth at Watsonville and seventh at Santa Maria. To date, the five-time USAC/CRA champion has one feature win, two Woodland Auto Display Fast Time Awards, four heat race victories, one Keizer Wheels / Racing Optics Hard Charger Award, eight top-10 finishes, and 17 feature laps led. At Perris, Mike will be looking to return to victory circle and celebrate his 35th USAC/CRA victory.
Yorba Linda’s Matt Mitchell has moved to fifth in championship points. Piloting his #37 MPD Racing / A.R.T. Enterprises entry, Mitchell scored fourth at Watsonville and fifth at Santa Maria. Matt won his second “Salute to Indy” at Perris on May 25th and has two heat race victories, one Competition Suspension Inc. / Rod End Supply Semi-Main win, seven top-10 finishes, and 30 feature laps led to his credit. Mitchell will have his sights on his first “Firecracker” win on Thursday night.
Among the other drivers expected to be in action are “The Cadillac” Cody Williams, Austin Williams, Brody Roa, Ryan Bernal, Richard Vander Weerd, R.J. Johnson, “The Ripper” Rip Williams, “Dynamite” David Cardey, Seth Wilson, “Super” Rickie Gaunt, Jace Vander Weerd, “The Kruser” Cory Kruseman, and many more. Local 360 iron-block powered Sprint Cars are welcome to race with USAC/CRA. The 360s can run their local approved Hoosier tires, but must meet series tech standards and race track muffler rules.
Perris Auto Speedway is located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds at 18700 Lake Perris Drive in Perris, California. Reserved Adult tickets are $30 and Children (6-12) are $10. General Adult tickets are $25, Senior tickets (65 and over) are $20, and $5 for Children (6-12). For more information, visit www.perrisautospeedway.com or call (951) 940-0134.
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 live pay per view feed at www.circletracknetwork.com. The live feed is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm PST.
The Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series would like to thank Hoosier Tire, BR Motorsports, Circle Track Performance, Competition Suspension Inc., DJ Safety, Extreme Mufflers, Huntington Beach Glass & Mirror Inc., Kaeding Performance, Keizer Wheels, King Racing Products, Racing Optics, Rugged Radios, Rod End Supply, SBI Fuel Systems, Saldana Racing Products, Weld Racing, and Woodland Auto Display for their support. If you or your company would like to become part of the series, email PR Director Lance Jennings at lwjennings@earthlink.net.
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-