By Steve Inch
SELINSGROVE, Pa. – Selinsgrove Speedway’s historic 75th Anniversary Season will culminate with the track’s crown jewel open wheel race, the Jim Nace Memorial 39th Annual National Open for 410 sprint cars presented by River Valley Builders, at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 25.
Joining the Lelands.com 410 sprint cars will be the Apache Tree Service PASS/IMCA 305 sprint cars in the season finale. Advance ticket holder and pit gates will open at 4 p.m. with all general admission gates opening at 4:30 p.m.
The winner of the prestigious 40-lap National Open will earn $20,075, the East’s highest winner’s share for a non-sanctioned sprint car race! Second-place will take home $6,075 with third-place offering $4,075! The 2021 increased purse will pay $675 to start the main event out of the $52,000-plus purse!
The race format will include time trials, heat races, and a B-main. The Nace family will be sponsoring the $300 Fast Tees Fast Time Award. The rain date, if needed, will be Sunday, Sept. 26, at 6 p.m.
For the 12th consecutive year, the National Open will honor the life and memory of the track’s only five-time sprint car champion Jim Nace of Thompsontown, who died in November 2009 following a seven-year battle with cancer.
Anthony Macri of Dillsburg is the defending Jim Nace Memorial National Open champion. He became the 20th different driver to win the race since it started in 1983, with the late Maynard Yingst of Linglestown scoring victories in the first three Opens.
Fred Rahmer of Salfordville is the event’s only five-time winner. Rahmer’s son, Freddie, has finished second in the race the past three years and will be gunning for his first Open victory.
Other past National Open winners include Don Kreitz (2) of Sinking Spring; Dave Blaney of Cortland, Ohio; Keith Kauffman of Mifflintown; Doug Wolfgang of Sioux Falls, S.D.; Sammy Swindell of Cordova, Tenn.; Johnny Mackison of York; Todd Shaffer (4) of Millerstown; Greg Hodnett (4) of York; Lance Dewease (3) of Fayetteville; Stevie Smith of Broken Arrow, Okla.; Lucas Wolfe of Mechanicsburg; Chad Layton of Harrisburg; Pat Cannon (3) of Etters; Danny Dietrich of Gettysburg; Brian Brown of Grain Valley, Mo.; Ryan Smith of Kunkletown; and Logan Wagner of Harrisonville.
This season’s 410 sprint car feature winners at Selinsgrove include Brent Marks of Myerstown (April 25 Tilley Classic and July 4 PA Speedweek), Dietrich (July 20 75th Anniversary Race), Chase Dietz of York (July 24 Summer Championship), and Macri (August 28 Gunn Memorial).
In the Lelands.com 410 sprint car standings, Blane Heimbach of Selinsgrove holds a 110-point lead over Dietrich for the series championship. Jason Shultz of Carlisle sits in the third spot, trailing the leader by 190 points.
The Apache Tree Service 305 sprint cars will compete in their seventh and final event of the season at the track. Three-time winner Garrett Bard of Wells Tannery has a mere 90-point lead over Ken Duke of Selinsgrove. Doug Dodson of Middletown is in contention for the series championship in the third position.
In addition to Bard, Nick Sweigart of Myerstown; Justin Mills of Bloomingburg, N.Y.; and most recently Domenic Melair of Warrington have scored single 305 sprint car wins at Selinsgrove this season.
Title sponsor River Valley Builders, located just two miles from Selinsgrove Speedway at 70 Paramount Road in Selinsgrove, is the region’s premier modular homebuilder offering standard home plans to complete customization options. Visit rivervalleybuild.com for additional information.
For fans who can’t attend in-person, the race will be available to purchase as a live PPV event on sprintcarunlimited.tv.
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY: A Motorsports Tradition for Generations
Selinsgrove Speedway’s grand motorsports tradition began July 20, 1946, when Bill Holland of Philadelphia won the first race. Since that historic day, Holland went on to win the 1949 Indy 500, and many of motorsports’ most famous drivers have turned laps at the iconic half-mile dirt track designed by legendary Hollywood stuntman and race car driver Joie Chitwood. The speedway, celebrating its momentous 75th anniversary in 2021, will continue its legacy of rip-roaring open wheel and stock car racing this season and for future generations!
For a complete schedule, the latest news, results, and race status, visit selinsgrovespeedway.com or follow the track on Twitter and Facebook. The speedway office can be reached at 570.374.2266.
SELINSGROVE SPEEDWAY RACE INFORMATION FOR SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2021:
RACING:
410 Sprint Cars (Jim Nace Memorial National Open)
305 Sprint Cars
QUALIFYING: 7PM
GATES:
Advance Ticket Holder & Pit Gates: 4PM
All General Admission Gates: 4:30PM
ADMISSION:
Adults: $30
Students (12-17): $15
Kids 11 & Under Free GA
Reserved Seats Add $2
Pit Passes: $40
2021 JIM NACE MEMORIAL 39th ANNUAL NATIONAL OPEN PURSE: 1) $20,075 2) $6,075 3) $4,075 4) $2,575 5) $2,075 6) $1,775 7) $1,475 8) $1,375 9) $1,275 10) $1,175 11) $1,075 12) $875 13) $775 14-24) $675
TOW: $150
RAIN DATE: Sunday, September 26 6PM