By Gary Thomas
Placerville, CA…The Placerville Speedway will put a bow on the Hoosier Tires championship point season by hosting “Legends Night” this Saturday at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds quarter mile.
Several names from the days gone by will be in attendance with numerous vintage cars on display Saturday. The restored machines will also take some laps on the red clay for old times sake. As previously announced, long-time World of Outlaws regular Paul McMahan is set to be in action for the final start of his Sprint Car career during the night.
The “Last Call for Paul” will come aboard the familiar Tri-C Machine No. 3c that he piloted to so many wins and strong runs in the mid 90’s. Brother Bobby, the 1982 Rookie of Year at Placerville Speedway, is also slated to be aboard the Soares Motorsports No. 12 for his final Sprint Car start.
The can’t miss night of grass roots dirt track racing will showcase the Thompson’s Family of Dealerships Winged Sprint Cars, the Red Hawk Casino Pure Stocks, BCRA vs California Lightning Sprints and Vintage Hard Tops. It should be an outstanding evening as long-time friendships rekindle in Old Hangtown.
Happy Hour pricing on Coors Light and Coors Banquet Beer will occur from 3-6pm, while Patrick Walsh provides live music from 4-6. Legends Night is the perfect opportunity to break out all those vintage shirts you have hanging in the closet to help commemorate the event.
Auburn’s Andy Forsberg eyes a ninth title with the Thompson’s Winged Sprint Cars on Saturday. “Mr. Excitement” captured the win on Legends Night last season and would love nothing more than to add another to cap off a title. Forsberg brings a 32-point lead over Roseville’s Jodie Robinson into the final point race of the year. Shane Hopkins, Bubba Decaires and Michael Ing will also look to lock-down top-five point finishes this weekend.
Oakley’s Nick Baldwin will wrap up his fourth career Red Hawk Casino Pure Stock title on Legends Night. Baldwin has accumulated five victories this season but as of press time it was uncertain if he’d be able to run the final point race due to a blown engine last time out. Completing the top-five in the standings going into the championship finale are Kevin Jinkerson, Michael Murphy, Ryan Murphy and Jason Poppert.
A solid field of Lightning Sprints are expected to take part in the event as BCRA and CLS contest a “Civil War” battle on the red clay bullring. It will be the final time they compete at Placerville Speedway this year with wings atop the car, as they shed the lids for the November running of the Hangtown 100.
Adult tickets for Legends Night on Saturday August 27th cost $18 while seniors 62+, military and juniors 12-17 will be $16. Kids 6-11 cost $8, while ages 5 and under are free. Purchase tickets online at https://www.eventsprout.com/event/points-race-16 or at the gate on race day.
Grandstand seating is general admission at each event, except for the reserved seats marked for season ticket holders. Please note if patrons sit in a reserved seat, they may be asked to move. Pit passes can be purchased at the pit gate or on Pit Pay to take advantage of the expanded seating area on the hill. For those who can’t make it Flo Racing will be providing live coverage.
The pit gate will open at noon on Saturday, with the front grandstand gate opening at 3pm. The pit meeting will be held at 4:30pm with cars on track at 5:15. Hot laps, ADCO Driveline qualifying and racing will follow.
The Placerville Speedway is located on the beautiful El Dorado County Fairgrounds in Placerville, California. Take Hwy US-50 to Forni Road/Placerville Drive exit. Then go north on Placerville Drive to the Fairgrounds. The physical address is 100 Placerville Dr., Placerville, CA 95667. For more information on the Placerville Speedway log onto http://www.placervillespeedway.com
Join over 16,000 followers of Placerville Speedway on Facebook, where you can keep abreast of updates for the 2022 season. You can also find Placerville Speedway on Twitter by following us https://twitter.com/pvillespeedway – In addition, Placerville Speedway is also on Instagram. Please follow us @PvilleSpeedway.