By Ben Deatherage
(10/23/23 ) Bakersfield, California … The 900+ horsepower winged 410’s of the NARC Sprint Car Series, presented by NAPA Auto Parts, will be making their lone 2023 appearance at The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park on Saturday, October 28th for the highly-anticipated Halloween Spook-tacular. This will be your only chance to see the cars and stars of the NARC tour kick the clay up at the action-packed 1/3-mile clay oval.
“Kern County is such a nice facility and a fast little place,” says Justyn Cox, driver of the Bates-Hamilton Racing #42X entry, “I remember last year it was a little heavy but slick in some spots, but you could pass cars so nothing wrong with that.”
Despite traveling to KCRP in 2017 for the first time, there have been some pretty good races over the years when the NARC 410 Sprint Cars have come to town. Fremont’s Shane Golobic has notched up an incredible win tally with three trips to victory lane, including last year.
Companion divisions for the evening include the W.R.A. Vintage Cars and Southern California Dwarf Cars. Children wearing Halloween costumes (accompanied by a parent) will be admitted at no charge. In addition, there will be hayrides through the pit area and a special trick-or-treat session during opening ceremonies at 6:00 p.m.
The weather is predicted to be in the high 70s for the day and low 50s at night, which makes for a perfect fall Saturday to enjoy racing, and with the track conveniently located right next to Interstate 5, there’s no reason you should make the trip with all your family, friends, and acquaintances!
Who to Watch
Current NARC 410 Sprint Car Series point leader Corey Day is looking to nab his first career KCRP triumph and will be among the favorites to watch. The Clovis sensation carries a 28-point advantage in the points table, piloting the Meyers Racing #14 entry with just two races left.
Justin Sanders, from Aromas, is the man who trails Day in the current standings. Sanders, aboard the Mittry Motorsports #2x machine, won his lone victory at the facility in October of 2021. He enters the race as the driver who won the last NARC points-paying portion of the Morrie Williams Memorial and overall champion of that event a few weeks ago in Hanford.
Dominic Scelzi has managed to collect two wins at Kern County. The two-time defending series champion from Fresno swept the pair of visits the tour made in 2019 and is anticipating a third trophy to the case.
Cox has a lone start at KCRP, and that came last year when he was called up by the BHR that October. It was an eighth-place finish, and no doubt the Roseville racer is looking to build off that statistic.
Campbell pilot Bud Kaeding will be back in the familiar all-black BK Racing #69. The 2017 NARC champion has an incredible record at Kern, with no finishes outside the Top 10 and a second-place effort in 2019.
Chase Johnson may not have won a NARC show at Kern County, but he’s got the most victories of the drivers above. The Penngrove, CA driver has five total wins at the track, including three with the USAC-West Coast 360 series and two with the Bay Cities Racing Association Midgets. His most recent win at KCRP was on October 7th of this year.
Other NARC 410 Sprint Car Series regulars to expect are Dylan Bloomfield from Oakley, Benicia traveler Billy Aton, and Tucson, Arizona native and rookie of the year candidate Nick Parker.
Other Central Valley drivers to look out for are Lemoore’s Cole Macedo, Hanford natives Gauge Garcia and 2019 NARC title winner D.J. Netto, Easton teenager Caeden Steele, and many more.
Some national caliber talent planning to attend are two-time defending USAC-National Midget champion Michael “Buddy” Kofoid from Penngrove and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma’s Ryan Timms.
Fan & Competitor Info
The Dirt Track at Kern County is located at 13500 Raceway Boulevard Interstate 5 and South Enos Lane in Bakersfield.
Ticket prices are $25.00 for Adults, $10.00 for Juniors (6-10), and Kids (5 and Under) are FREE. Kids in costume will be admitted for FREE.
Pit Gates open at 2:00 pm, Front Gates at 4:00, Hot Laps at 4:40, and Racing is scheduled to kick off around 6:00.
Additional information is available at www.kernraceway.com.
The NARC racing format includes qualifying, four 10-lap heat races, an exciting six-lap trophy dash, a 12-lap last chance race, and a 30-lap NAPA Auto Parts-sponsored main event.
The NARC 410 Sprint Series, presented by Napa Auto Parts, is the leading 410 Sprint Car tour west of the Rocky Mountains. Since 1960, they have enthralled countless thousands of fans from tracks up and down the Pacific Coast. For more information, visit their website at www.narc410.com or social media pages.
The event at The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park can be viewed live on Floracing.com, along with every NARC 410 Sprint Car Series race.
The NARC 410 Sprint Car Racing Series is also sponsored by Hoosier Racing Tires, Floracing.com, and NAPA Auto Parts. Associate and product award sponsors include Automotive Racing Products (ARP), Beacon Wealth Strategies-Raymond James Financial, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bullet Impressions, D & D Roofing, Diversified Machine Inc., Johnstone Supply, Kaeding Performance Center, Kimo’s Tropical Car Wash, KSE Racing Enterprises, Lifeline LLC, Maxim Racing Products, Mettec Titanium, Pyrotect, Safecraft Safety Equipment, Saldana Racing Products, Schoenfeld Headers, Scelzi Enterprises, SCI Racing Products, Starr Property Management, Sunnyvalley Bacon, System 1 Ignition, Ultra Lite Brakes, Williams Roofing, Wilwood Disc Brakes, and Winters Performance Products.
NARC 410 SPRINT CAR SERIES
CHAMPIONSHIP POINT STANDINGS
(AFTER 18 EVENTS IN 20-RACE SERIES – 10/23/23)
Corey Day, Clovis – 2362
Justin Sanders, Aromas – 2334
Dominic Scelzi, Fresno – 2315
Justyn Cox, Roseville – 2304
Bud Kaeding, Campbell – 2290
Dylan Bloomfield, Oakley – 2228
Chase Johnson, Penngrove – 2166
Billy Aton, Benicia – 2160
Nick Parker, Tucson, AZ (R) – 2143
DJ Netto, Hanford – 1581
Cole Macedo, Hanford – 1487
Tanner Holmes, Central Point, OR – 1483
Joel Myers Jr., Sebastopol – 1465
Shane Golobic, Fremont – 1381
Burt Foland Jr., San Jose (R) -1220
Colby Copeland, Roseville – 1207
Kaleb Montgomery, Templeton (R) – 1146
Joey Ancona, Concord (R) – 1023
Karl Hoffmans, Australia – 816
Andy Caruana, Australia – 799
Upcoming Events:
November 4th – Stockton Dirt Track – 40th Annual Tribute to Gary Patterson
November 5th – Championship Celebration at the Brookside Country Club in Stockton, CA.