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Kellen Burns
CONCORD, N.C. (March 20) - Only a week remains until the Gary Jacob Memorial on March 28 at Kings Speedway launches the DIRTcar Western Allstars Late Model Series exciting 2009 season in Hanford, Calif.
"We can't wait to get to Kings Speedway next week," said DIRTcar West Region Director Chris Morgan. "Racing already has started in many places around the country so I'm thrilled to finally get the season going out here on the Pacific Coast with a great schedule for 2009, and in a race that honors a person who dedicated his life to spreading the word about our sport."
The event is special to many in the motorsports community because it's named for Gary Jacob, a legendary motorsports writer who documented the efforts of many racers who competed on the West Coast and described all of the action at tracks where they competed.
For tickets and other information on the Gary Jacob Memorial, visit http://www.kingsspeedway.net or call 559-587-1111.
The tour currently boasts 13 dates with at least four additional dates to be announced later. The 2009 edition of the DIRTcar Western Allstars shows a healthy variety of tracks ranging from a quarter-mile bullring like Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif., to the 3/8-mile Kings Speedway, where the tour will compete twice in '09.
Defending champion Chris Shannon of Merced, Calif., geared up for his title defense by racing last month in Florida. To win another title he'll have to conquer the best Dirt Late Model drivers in the West, including the likes of Bobby Hogge IV of Salinas, Calif.; A.J. Kirkpatrick of Castroville, Calif., who claimed 5 wins during the 2008 DIRTcar Western Allstars season; and a California-based family of racers in Bill, Nick and Ron Bartels.
Highlights of the '09 Western Allstars season will include:
* The addition of Chowchilla Speedway, which will be part of the series for the first time this season. A one-third-mile oval situated 40 miles northwest of Fresno, Chowchilla will host a pair of Saturday-night dates, on April 18 and Oct. 17.
* A doubleheader at Silver Dollar Speedway (June 19) and Antioch Speedway (June 20) built around the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., which is located 150 miles from Silver Dollar and just over 50 miles from Antioch. Both tracks return to the series for the second consecutive year. The event at Silver Dollar Speedway will be part of the quarter-mile oval's regular Friday night program after last year's inaugural Western Allstars show there ran on a Saturday night.
* Trips to Santa Maria Speedway (May 9 and July 18) and Bakersfield Speedway (Aug. 15), two one-third-mile ovals that are the most southern California tracks on the '09 schedule. Santa Maria held its first Western Allstars event in 2008, while Bakersfield, which hosted the entire inaugural Western Allstars slate of eight races in 2006, is the only track that has run at least one event in each year of the tour's existence.
* A visit to Marysville Speedway for the second year in a row. The quarter-mile oval located 40 miles north of Sacramento has been widened for the 2009 season, building anticipation for the tour's return on June 6.
* A pair of trips to Nevada for special two-day programs - July 10-11 at Great Basin Raceway (450 miles east of Sacramento) and Oct. 2-3 at Reno-Fernley Raceway (165 miles northeast of Sacramento). Both tracks are back on the Western Allstars Series after hosting non-points events in 2007 and promise to add more big-show atmosphere to the 2009 trail.
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