From Mike O’Leary
Bloomington, IN — (September 23, 2014) — With an eye toward the future, Bloomington Speedway plans to debut a new sprint car division at the quarter-mile oval next spring. The RaceSaver 305 sprint cars will be a regular part of the track’s traditional Friday night racing program. To introduce these machines, a demonstration is scheduled during this week’s World of Outlaws sprint car event.
The innovative RaceSaver series has grown dramatically since its birth, 14 years ago, and Speedway management is confident it will quickly become successful in Indiana. The premise behind the RaceSaver approach is making sprint car racing more affordable for those who want to compete, while maintaining the close, wheel-to-wheel competition and emphasizing the racer more than the race car.
Racing veteran French Grimes developed the concept and founded the RaceSaver organization in order to generate interest in sprint car competition in areas that had little knowledge about it, and to rekindle sprint cars racing where it had dwindled or disappeared. The basis is using a common engine head that is only available through RaceSaver, and strict adherence to a fairly simple set of rules. Importantly, the RaceSaver head limits the engine’s horsepower, thus controlling costs while at the same time promoting close racing.
Grimes estimates the entry cost to be as little as $7,500 – $10,000 for a car that could be competitive under the RaceSaver rules. Since a regular sprint car chassis is used and there are few rules governing the chassis, many competitors are saving money by making use of used cars. Likewise, there aren’t many rules for the engines, other than the required RaceSaver components, so there is flexibility in employing older engines also. Another benefit of this approach is that the engine components last longer, again yielding a significant long-term cost savings over other types of racing.
Who will fans see competing in the RaceSaver division at Bloomington Speedway? This approach puts weekly racing within the budget of many more people. For example, a long-time fan could start their own racing team and become a regular on the clay oval. It is also ideal for entry-level drivers with an interest in graduating to more powerful racing machinery after they gain valuable seat time in open wheel cars on the dirt. At other tracks well-known racing veterans, who have cut back their racing because of finances or other reasons, have been getting back on the track in the RaceSaver cars. Bloomington’s racing division is likely to include participants from all of these groups on the track at the same time.
Since 1997, the RaceSaver formula for 305 sprint cars has been the most consistent in its rules and in enforcement. Currently, ten regional organizations compete in different geographical areas, and the series has also become very popular at tracks in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Nebraska and several other states. In its 14th year of competition, the season-ending RaceSaver Nationals is attracts cars, drivers and fans from all areas. Much more information about the rules, the cars, national activities and videos of the series in action is available at www.racesaver.com.
To help familiarize Bloomington’s fans with the new racing division, a RaceSaver sprint car that competes at Nebraska’s Eagle Raceway will be on hand at Bloomington Speedway for this Friday’s World of Outlaws race, and an on-track demonstration is planned.
Bloomington Speedway is on the web at www.bloomingtonspeedway.com; and phone 812-824-7400.