Latemodelracer.com http://www.latemodelracer.com/cgi-bin/yabb3/YaBB.pl LATEMODELRACER >> NORTH REGION >> Record 25-race Schedule on tap for Fastrak Northeast Touring http://www.latemodelracer.com/cgi-bin/yabb3/YaBB.pl?num=1328227096 Message started by LMR on 02/02/12 at 5:58pm

Title: Record 25-race Schedule on tap for Fastrak Northeast Touring Post by LMR on 02/02/12 at 5:58pm FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 2, 2012 BLOCKBUSTER 2012 FASTRAK NORTHEAST L.M. TOURING SERIES RECORD 25-EVENT SCHEDULE RELEASED; SUPER NAT’S, SPEEDWEEK, MFG NIGHT & MANY OTHEREXCITING CONCEPTS HIGHLIGHT SLATE By Mike Leone (Pulaski, PA)…The FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series is excited to unveil its long-awaited and highly-anticipated 2012 schedule of events. Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance is back for a second year as the title sponsor and will present this record 25-event slate in addition to national events and the Grand Nationals and World Challenge. “We really worked hard during the offseason to put together our biggest and richest schedule yet,” said sixth year Northeast Co-Director Vicki Emig. “Our goal is to make these shows more than just typical races, but to tie more and more concepts around them making them unique and special in their own way. We should never forget that none of the great things that have happened in the Northeast would be possible without the racers’ great support and the tracks’ continued belief in the FASTRAK concept.” The Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance FASTRAK Northeast Touring Series is coming off a record 2011 season, which saw 24 Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Northeast Touring events scheduled with 19 of those being completed. A record 189 different drivers competed in those 19 events with a record car count average of 35 per event! Eleven different drivers were victorious with five of them capturing their first career Touring Series wins. Looking ahead to 2012, Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex has stepped up to be a huge player in this year’s schedule with four events on tap. For the first time ever, they’ll start the season off with not only the opener, but the first two shows! On March 31 and April 1, the new “Super Nationals” event will take place. Part I will include a $3,000 to-win event on Saturday- the richest ever in Roaring Knob history, but not only that, the “Wheelman” B Feature will pay $1,200 to-win, $150 to-start and if necessary, a C Feature paying $500 to-win will also be on the card. This means at least 48 races will have the opportunity to race for a Touring Series purse on this night! After again being part of the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series event on Friday April 20, the Tour will head to Dog Hollow Speedway on the following Friday. This will be the earliest Touring event ever scheduled at Jim Michny’s 4/10-mile facility! Dog Hollow has consistently drawn full fields of cars every Friday night for the last several seasons for their weekly FASTRAK action. Eriez Speedway returns for the second straight year allowing FASTRAK teams the ability to race on Sunday nights. This year, Eriez has scheduled an early event on Sunday, May 13 and with no other racing going on this night, should ensure a strong field of cars. Track owner Bobby Rohrer’s son also named Bobby will be entering his second season of FASTRAK competition and is expected to follow the entire 2012 Touring Series schedule! Eriez has graciously given FASTRAK teams the night off to support the second annual FASTRAK “Canadian National Championship” on Sunday, May 20 at Humberstone Speedway. Like Eriez, Humberstone is back for a second consecutive year running FASTRAK weekly, but this event will take part the night before the Victoria Day holiday. Last year, 16 teams made the trip across the border for the first ever International Touring event in FASTRAK history with many more expected to attend this year’s $2,000 to-win show. Ten Touring teams that didn’t attend last year’s event will be paid an additional $150 for financial support to obtain their passports. For the first time in what will be the sixth season of the FASTRAK Northeast Touring Series, back-to-back Tour races will be held at the same speedway. The first of two occurrences in 2012 will take place at Sharon Speedway over the Memorial Day Weekend holiday on Saturday and Sunday, May 26 & 27. Both “Bill Emig Memorial Wild Card Weekend” events will pay $1,500 to-win! On top of that, racers will draw a card each night with the cards’ face value added to their point totals, which will determine the $1,500 “Wild Card Weekend” point fund. McKean County Raceway is again a strong part of this year’s Touring schedule hosting a record five events. Their first show comes on Saturday, June 16. One week later, Sharon Speedway will be the site of the “Gary Knollinger Memorial” for the second straight year on June 23. Defending race winner, Max Blair, will have his sights set on the $2,000 prize. Knollinger was a 2010 Touring Series winner at Sharon. Racers have the option of heading to Eldora Speedway on Saturday, June 30 as FASTRAK returns to the “Big E” for the first time in two years for a National Event paying $5,000 to-win. Always a strong contingent of Northeast racers makes up the field. Mike Pegher, Jr. is the defending 2010 race winner. The summer’s busiest stretch takes place in July with 7 events 17 days in western Pa. and eastern Ohio. It all begins on the Fourth of July at Expo Speedway with the kickoff of the second annual “Cross the Borders” Speedweek. The five straight nights of action will include the same five great speedways as last year beginning with the $2,000 to-win annual event at the Trumbull County Fair in Cortland, Ohio on Wednesday night followed by a return to McKean on Thursday night. Friday and Saturday’s shows at Raceway 7 and Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway will be the Tour’s only visits of the season to those two tracks. Speedweek ends on Sunday at Eriez for the $2,000 finale that will determine the $3,000 Speedweek point fund. For the first time in two years, Mercer Raceway Park will hold a Touring event on Saturday, July 14! Sharon Speedway was gracious enough to drop FASTRAK on this night to allow racers to compete at the nearby 3/8-mile oval about 25 miles away. Mercer was home to the FASTRAK Late Models from 2008 through the 2010 season. Mercer has held five Touring events with no repeat winners as Dick Barton, Frank Guidace, Max Blair, David Scott, and Mike Pegher, Jr. have all been victorious. Mercer was also the site of Night 1 of the Grand Nationals during that period with Blair winning two and Pegher one. Sharon though will hold its third event one week later on July 21. Not only will it be $2,000 to-win, but it’s Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Night as they give away a new GM 604 engine valued at nearly $5,100 for the second consecutive year! Participating drivers receive one to three chances on the engine; one for participating and additional chances for being FASTRAK Weekly and/or Touring members. Last year, a season high 48 cars were on hand as Ben Black, who is looking for his first career FASTRAK win, was the engine winner with just one chance! For the first time in two years and just second time ever, the Touring Series will hold an event in the state of New York on Saturday, August 11. Black Rock Speedway will be the site of the richest Crate Late Model event in the history of the state for the $3,000 to-win “Empire State Classic”. This will be during the NASCAR Watkins Glen Weekend, which is just 12 miles down the road. The 10 top Touring teams that attend will receive an extra $150 travel money. Five days later the northern part of the region will host another Touring event when the cars and stars of FASTRAK convene on McKean during the annual fair race on Thursday, August 16. This is the second straight year FASTRAK has been part of the longstanding race night. Last year, a packed house saw Josh Holtgraver capture his career first victory at the track, while a severe thunderstorm just missed the speedway. A new event comes to Sharon Speedway two days later on August 18. The inaugural “Manufacturers Night” will see some $15,000 in products given away to participating FASTRAK teams in addition to the $1,500 to-win feature. Companies taking part in the event to date include Beyea Custom Headers, Genesis Shocks, H&H Racing Equipment, Hyperco, and Wylie Race Cars. The season’s longest break will take place following the Sharon race as nearly a month separates the next Touring event, which will again be at Sharon on Saturday, September 15. The annual “Apple Festival Nationals” will also include a Weekly Series event on Friday night paying $1,000 to-win. This event kicks off a stretch of seven events in seven weeks including the Grand Nationals and World Challenge. The season’s second back-to-back events at the same speedway will occur at McKean on September 21-22. Friday’s race will pay $1,200 to-win followed by a $1,500 to-win event on Saturday night all part of the traditional “Fall Classic”. The goal is to have a mini point fund around this weekend as well. The new Grand Nationals and Weekly Racing Series “World Challenge” will all take place over October 5-6 at a location to be announced. The new “Super Nationals” concept will conclude on October 19-20 at Roaring Knob. Part II will feature an identical format as Part I with time trials and heat races on Friday night followed by the $3,000 finale, the $1,200 to-win “Wheelman” B Feature, and the $500 to-win C Feature. All of the events will carry points to determine the inaugural “Super Nationals” champion and point fund. For the first time ever, FASTRAK will be part of the “Steel City Stampede” at Lernerville Speedway. This year’s event will take place on October 26-27. Friday night will include heat races followed by last chance races, the $2,000 to-win feature, and the non-qualifier event on Saturday night. The event will determine the 2012 Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series Champion! “We’re really proud of this year’s schedule,” expressed sixth year Northeast Co-Director Mike Leone. “It came together real nice. Nearly 60% of the events pay between $1,500 and $3,000 to-win. We’ll be visiting 12 different speedways this year. It’ll be good to go back to Mercer as numerous drivers have asked for this, and I know a lot of new York racers are highly anticipating the huge Black Rock race! We’ve gotten a lot of requests for our schedule from new racers and several others have expressed interest in running the entire Tour. We expect strong car counts and great competition all season long.” When 30 or more cars are at an event, the “Wheelman” Bonus Event Challenge Series Non-Qualifier racers are run. These events allow racers valuable track time and to go home with more than tow money in addition to tallying points toward the “Wheelman” Championship. Amazingly since the program started in July 2010, there have been 15 different winners in 17 races with many of these drivers taking their first checkered flags! Past champions include Justin Kreider (2010) and Shane Weaver (2011). There have been 73 Northeast Touring Series races contested with 30 different winners all-time. Mike Pegher, Jr. leads the way with 13 victories to Max Blair's 12 followed by Dick Barton, Bobby Powell, John Lacki, and David Scott with four, Steve Dixon and Josh Holtgraver at three, Alan Dellinger, Dan Angelicchio, Joe Martin, and Robbie Blair with two, and Todd Andrews, Kyle Drum, Frank Guidace, Butch Lambert, Carl McKinney, Dennis Lunger, Jr., Tom Snyder, Jr., Chris Meadows, Jim Frank, Mike Blose, Jonathan Davenport, Gary Knollinger, Dusty Hamrick, Bud Watson, Russell King, George Kowatic, Ryan Montgomery, and Wayne Robertson with one victory. Past Northeast champions include Alan Dellinger and car owner Bob Williams in 2007, Max Blair in 2008, David Scott and car owners John and Janet Powell in 2009, and again Blair in 2010 & 2011. Membership to join the Touring Series is again $100 for the season. Though membership is not required, it is highly recommended to earn all possible points and make one eligible for the point fund. Each event has a $50-$100 entry fee depending on the payoff. 2012 FASTRAK Northeast marketing partners include Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance, Hoosier Tires, Utsinger’s Towing, Original Pizza Logs, Beyea Custom Headers, Genesis Shocks, H&H Racing Equipment, Hyperco, and Wylie Race Cars. You can reach co-directors Vicki Emig and Mike Leone at the FASTRAK Northeast office at 724-964-9300. E-mail to info@fastraknortheast.com and snail mail to 4368 Route 422, Pulaski, PA 16143. The office is open daily late mornings and after 1:30 p.m. For more information, check out the FASTRAK Northeast website at www.fastraknortheast.com. Become our fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/fastraknortheast. 2012 FASTRAK Northeast Late Model Touring Series Schedule* Presented by Sweeney Chevrolet Buick GMC Pace Performance • Sat & Sun, Mar 31-Apr 1 Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex, Markleysburg, PA ($3,000 to-win “Super Nats” I plus $1,200 to-win B & $500 to-win C) • Friday, April 20 Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex, Markleysburg, PA ($1,200 to-win with Lucas Oil Late Models) • Friday, April 27 Dog Hollow Speedway, Strongstown, PA ($1,200 to-win) • Sunday, May 13 Eriez Speedway, Erie, PA ($1,200 to-win) • Sunday, May 20 Humberstone Speedway, Port Colborne, ONT, Can. ($2,000 to-win “Canadian National Championship”) BILL EMIG MEMORIAL “WILDCARD WEEKEND” • Saturday, May 26 Sharon Speedway, Hartford, OH ($1,500 to-win) • Sunday, May 27 Sharon Speedway, Hartford, OH ($1,500 to-win Plus “Wildcard Weekend” point fund) • Saturday, June 16 McKean County Raceway, East Smethport, PA ($1,200 to-win) • Saturday, June 23 Sharon Speedway, Hartford, OH ($2,000 to-win 2nd Annual “Gary Knollinger Memorial”) “CROSS THE BORDERS” SPEEDWEEK • Wednesday, July 4 Expo Speedway, Cortland, OH ($2,000 to-win Trumbull County Fair Race) • Thursday, July 5 McKean County Raceway, East Smethport, PA ($1,200 to-win) • Friday, July 6 Raceway 7, Conneaut, OH ($1,200 to-win) • Saturday, July 7 Pittsburgh’s PA Motor Speedway, Imperial, PA ($1,200 to-win; “Stars & Cars” autograph session) . • Sunday, July 8 Eriez Speedway, Erie (Hammett), PA ($2,000 to-win) Plus $3,000 Speedweek point fund • Saturday, July 14 Mercer Raceway Park, Mercer, PA ($1,200 to-win) • Saturday, July 21 Sharon Speedway, Hartford, OH ($2,000 to-win plus Sweeney Chevrolet GM 604 engine giveaway) • Saturday, August 11 Black Rock Speedway, Dundee, NY ($3,000 to-win “Empire State Classic” part of Watkins Glen NASCAR Weekend) • Thursday, August 16 McKean County Raceway, East Smethport, PA ($1,200 to-win for McKean County Fair Race) • Saturday, August 18 Sharon Speedway, Hartford, OH ($1,500 to-win “Manufacturers Night” with $15,000 of product giveaways) • Saturday, September 15 Sharon Speedway, Hartford, OH ($1,200 to-win “Apple Festival Nationals”) “FALL CLASSIC WEEKEND” • Friday, September 21 McKean County Raceway, East Smethport, PA ($1,200 to-win) • Saturday, September 22 McKean County Raceway, East Smethport, PA ($1,500 to-win) Plus possible point fund • Fri & Sat, September 28-29 Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex, Markleysburg, PA (“Spectacular Fall Fest” with heats Friday & $2,000 to-win Saturday) • Fri & Sat, October 19-20 Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex, Markleysburg, PA ($3,000 to-win “Super Nats” II plus $1,200 to-win B & $500 to-win C) (Plus “Super Nationals” point fund) • Fri & Sat, October 26-27 Lernerville Speedway, Sarver, PA (“Steel City Stampede” with heats Friday & $2,000 to-win Saturday) Also National Event • Saturday, June 30 Eldora Speedway, Rossburg, OH ($5,000 to-win) Grand Nationals & World Challenge • Fri & Sat, October 5-6 Location TBA *Tentative – Schedule subject to change; additional dates may be added

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