By Gary Thomas
Calistoga, CA – February 9, 2015…One of the most anticipated weekends of racing this spring in Northern California will fire off the season at the famed & picturesque Calistoga Speedway when the World of Outlaws & more invades the half-mile on Saturday & Sunday April 11 & 12 for the Wine Country Outlaw Showdown.
For the first time the King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series will be co-sanctioning both nights of action with the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series at the track. California based Prentice Motorsports Group is set to be well represented during the weekend, with the Civil War 360 Sprint Car Series presented by Flowmaster competing on Saturday & the Joe Hunt Magnetos Wingless Sprints on hand Sunday. KWS, Civil War & the Hunt Series are all run under the PMG banner.
Racing on Sunday night is scheduled to begin an hour earlier than Saturday. Opening ceremonies are expected to begin at 7pm on Saturday, while Sunday will see opening ceremonies at 6pm to help get everyone on the road at a decent hour. The main gate for spectators will open at 3pm each day, with Will Call & the Ticket Window opening at noon both days. Two-night weekend tickets and single night tickets are available by visiting http://dirtcar.ticketforce.
“We are thrilled to bring a show of this magnitude to the Calistoga Speedway in April,” said Chris Morgan of Motorsports Ventures. “Having the World of Outlaws & King of the West Sprint Car Series co-sanction the weekend should give us one of the best fields of Winged 410 Sprint Cars we’ve seen in some time at Calistoga. Adding in the Civil War Series & the Hunt Series is icing on the cake so we hope the fans are excited, because I know we are.”
Over the last couple years Calistoga Speedway has seen a total transformation, with immense work going on at one of California’s most famous dirt ovals. In addition to the various facility upgrades that include a new catch fence all the way around the track, a booming new sound system & new scoreboards, lots of work went into the racing surface, which is now wider and features a better degree of banking, with smoother transitions into the corners. The racing has benefited and has been given a big thumbs-up by all involved.
“The amount of work that has gone into Calistoga Speedway has been simply amazing,” commented Morgan. “All the support that the track has received is pretty special and with the effort they’ve put into this place it’s launched it right back up there with the best dirt track facilities we have on the west coast. If you haven’t had the chance to visit Calistoga since all the work, we truly encourage you to come and check it out. Last year’s World of Outlaws weekend was great and it will be even better this time around.”
The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series double header last season was swept by Kasey Kahne Racing teammates Brad Sweet & Daryn Pittman. The victory for Sweet, a native of Grass Valley, CA, was his first career triumph at the Calistoga half-mile. Pittman’s victory during the finale led a podium sweep by KKR, with Sweet coming home second and Red Lion, Pennsylvania’s Cody Darrah in third. The all-time Calistoga Speedway track record also fell during the weekend, with the first sub 16-second laps recorded in track history. Brownsburg, Indiana’s Joey Saldana set the mark on opening night at a blistering 15.731.
The King of the West Sprint Car Series competed at the track last June and local favorite Rico Abreu from Rutherford scored victory in the Wine Country Classic. Even more track work had gone on prior to the event and what transpired was some of the best Winged Sprint Car racing seen at Calistoga. Passing was prevalent all night long and Abreu captured a great main event over Chico’s Jonathan Allard & eventual KWS champion Kyle Hirst. The King of the West 410’s will once again compete in the Wine Country Classic on June 27 of this year.
After recently winning the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals & announcing his intention to run the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Abreu will return to Calistoga Speedway on April 11 & 12 looking to add a World of Outlaws win at his home track. The now 23-year-old last season captured the Louie Vermeil Classic with the USAC/ CRA Series in August and also won opening night with the USAC Western Midgets. Abreu also tallied a pair of top-five finishes with the World of Outlaws at the Napa County Fairgrounds facility last April aboard his familiar Abreu Vineyards No. 24 machine.
The Saturday April 11 appearance at Calistoga by the Civil War 360 Sprint Car Series presented by Flowmaster will mark the first race at the track for the tour since Princeton’s Mason Moore picked up the victory in August of 2012. The series will be led into town by defending champion Shane Golobic of Fremont, who earned his first ever Civil War title last season. Sunday April 12 marks the debut of the Joe Hunt Magnetos Wingless Sprint Series and is the first of two Calistoga appearances, with the second coming in conjunction with the King of the West Sprint Car Series’ Wine Country Classic.
“The Calistoga Speedway is quite simply a special place,” said Prentice Motorsports Group President John Prentice. “We are beyond excited to have the King of the West Series, Civil War Series and the Hunt Series as part of the April 11 & 12 weekend with the World of Outlaws. It will certainly give all three of our series’ a lot of extra exposure to compete in front of what should be packed house. What they’ve done with the venue has been phenomenal to see and the April weekend should be on every California fan’s radar. Our KWS show last season was excellent in Calistoga. We can’t wait to see what is in store on April 11 & 12.”
The Calistoga Speedway is located on the scenic Napa County Fairgrounds in Calistoga, California at 1435 North Oak Street and has been in existence since 1937. For more information on the half-mile log onto http://www.calistogaspeedway.