From James Allen
Alger, Washington- The time is near as the 900+ horsepower pilots of the NARC 410 Sprint Car Series gear up to take on their biggest paying weekend of the 2024 season at Skagit Speedway for three nights of action at the Jim Raper Memorial Super Dirt Cup.
It kicks off on Thursday, June 20th, and wraps up on Saturday, June 22nd, as the Skagit Valley will roar with nonstop thrills and heart-stopping clay-shredding action on the historic 3/10-mile clay oval.
“Skagit seems to suit my style, and I like the racetrack, so I’m looking forward to getting back,” commented the defending champion of the race Justin Sanders. “To win the Dirt Cup, it’s all about putting yourself in the right position in the prelim night and qualifying good and passing a lot of cars, you to be 110% every time you hit the racetrack. We’ll be looking to do that and make it two in a row.”
Car counts are expected to be in the 45-plus range as teams from all over the Western United States and Canada converge on the Alger 3/10-mile clay oval. Thursday and Friday are reserved for preliminary nights to help determine who gets locked into the big dance on Saturday.
The Northwest Focus Midget Series will be the companion division for the entire weekend.
On Wednesday morning (6/19), there will be a Super Dirt Cup Scramble Golf Tournament at Avalon Links Golf Club in Burlington, benefiting the NARC Benevolent Fund and Rayce Rudeen Foundation. Later that night, Railroad Pub and Pizza will host a pre-race party from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM.
Saturday morning (6/22), there will be a Fan Fest at the track featuring cars, a live band, food, and more from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
The Format
The two preliminary nights will emphasize lineup inversions, and accumulated points will establish the final Saturday night lineups. Thursday will be a 30-lap feature, while Friday is a 35-lap contest.
On Thursday and Friday, points will be immediately earned in qualifying. The Fast Qualifier will earn 200 points with a two-point drop for each subsequent position. The heat races will be lined up with an eight-car inversion.
The heat races will award 100 points to the winner, with a three-point drop for each subsequent position. The Top 20 in points after qualifying and heat races will be locked into the prelim features. Those outside the Top 20 will be positioned in the C-main and B-main, with the C sending the Top 4 finishers to the B and the B sending its Top 4 finishers to the feature. The Thursday feature will invert the Top 16 in points while Friday will be the Top 18.
The feature winner will earn 200 points with a two-point drop for each subsequent position. The first criteria tiebreaker is the best finish in the respective main event, the second is rank in qualifying, and the third is the time of the second qualifying lap. Other tiebreaker criteria may be implemented if needed. A perfect score on a preliminary night is 500 points!
The Top 18 in overall accumulated points from Thursday and Friday will be locked into Saturday’s feature. The Top four of those 18 are locked into the Pole Shuffle, while four more drivers will get in the race by winning a qualifying heat. The finish of the Pole Shuffle will set the first four rows of Saturday’s feature. The B-main will line up straight up on points and transfer the Top 4 finishers to the feature. Two cars will be added to the finale via a fan’s and promoter’s choices, totaling 26 cars.
Money, Money, And More Money
On top of paying a whopping $62,000 to win, drivers will have plenty of other ways to earn stout paydays. The runner-up will collect $26,000, while the third and fourth get paid $18,000 and $11,000, respectively. Fifth place pays $6,000, and simply making Saturday’s main event will be worth $3,000.
Courtesy of generous supporters, each lap in Saturday’s 40-lap main event will award an extra $1,000, paid out $500-$300-$200 to the top three cars on every lap.
Winning a prelim night will be no small payday, as Thursday and Friday pay $5,000 to win.
Who To Watch
Not only does Sanders return as the reigning Dirt Cup champion, but the Aromas ace has also been one of the toughest to beat on the NARC 410 Sprint Series roster. Dialing in a new chassis with their engine package has paid big dividends, as he has been lights out fast at many shows this year.
Zeb Wise is undoubtedly hoping to park the famed Rudeen Racing #26 in victory lane on the last night of action. The Angola, Indiana native threatened eventual winner Sanders during the grand finale. It would no doubt be a massive win for the young man’s career.
Trey Starks is undoubtedly one of the local favorites for Dirt Cup yet again. Hailing from Puyallup, Washington, the two-time defending 410 champion has managed to win three out of five features at Skagit and has yet to finish outside the Top 5 at the facility this year.
Last year’s polesitter, Dominic Scelzi, is hungry to add a 410 Dirt Cup to his resume. The Fresno racer and two-time NARC champion has a lot of laps at Skagit, including some this year when he made a rare cameo on June 8th during a local 410 show.
Fresno’s Corey Day will look to finish what he started last year, winning the Dirt Cup for the Jason Meyers Racing team. The 2023 NARC champion, who also races full-time with the High Limit Series, won both prelim nights and almost pulled off the rare feat of sweeping the entire three-weekend weekend. The last driver to win all three nights of the Dirt Cup was Brent Kaeding in 1996.
Jason Solwold is another top choice. The Burlington, Washington veteran has a lot of experience at Skagit and will hope to finally get a 410 Dirt Cup trophy to rack for himself and Shaylen Raye Motorsports car owner Mike Anderson.
Cole Macedo’s 2024 season has been impressive. Not only did he win the first two rounds of the NARC 410 Sprint Series, but the Lemoore, California pilot has also spent a lot of time in the Midwest with the High Limit Series and the World of Outlaws. He claimed the Fastest Five Days in Motorsports title last week.
Leduc, Alberta driver Skylar Gee will be back home at a place where he and his father, Tim, have spent a lot of time. Spending the last few years living in the Midwest, Gee was very impressive last season at Attica Raceway Park and Fremont Speedway in Northwest Ohio.
Robbie Price is another notable to be on the lookout for. The Cobble Hill, British Columbia native, racing for Rob and Lee Leighton, has had some great runs at Skagit in 2024 and is second in the 410 points. He captured his first ever NARC-sanctioned feature at Willamette Speedway on Saturday.
Tanner Holmes will be among the young drivers to watch for the weekend. Making the journey from Jacksonville, Oregon, Holmes was the runner-up in the Friday prelim and never finished outside of the top five finishes all three nights.
Colby Thornhill is a name on the rise regarding 410 racing in the Pacific Northwest. The Enumclaw, Washington teenager scored an incredible win at Skagit this season and is third in the 410 points table.
Other California NARC regulars expected to be on hand are Campbell’s Bud Kaeding, Fremont driver Shane Golobic, Justyn Cox from Roseville, Lincoln’s Tanner Carrick, Chase Johnson of Penngrove, Billy Aton representing Benicia, Oakley Teenager Dylan Bloomfield, and Tucson, Arizona transplant Nick Parker. A collection of NARC rookie drivers are also in the mix including Fresno’s Caeden Steele, Lemoore’s Gauge Garcia, and Dominic Gorden from Clovis.
Other Pacific Northwest drivers to be on the lookout for will be Mill Creek’s Cam Smith, Burlington natives Justin Youngquist and Greg Hamilton, Jesse Schlotfeldt of Arlington, and Whannock, British Columbia’s Luke Didiuk. Harrisburg’s Tyler Thompson and Kinzer Cox of Creswell will also represent Oregon.
Australia will be represented in the field with Jessie Attard of Penrith, New South Wales.
Fan & Competitor Info
The pit gate will open at 1:00 p.m. each day, with the front gate following at 5:00 P.M., Racing will begin around 7:00 P.M.
On both Thursday and Friday, General Admission tickets will be $40. Juniors, Seniors, and Military will be admitted for $35. Children (ages 3-6) will be admitted for just $10. Saturday General Admission tickets are $50. Juniors, Seniors, and Military will be admitted for $40. Children (ages 3-6) will still be admitted for $10.
Tickets can be purchased at the gate or online via the following link: https://skagitspeedway.showare.com
Skagit Speedway is located at 4796 Old Highway 99, North Burlington, WA 98233. For more information, visit skagitspeedway.com or call 360-724-3567.
All three nights of the Jim Raper Memorial Super Dirt Cup can be viewed live on floracing.com, along with the entire NARC 410 Sprint Car Series schedule.