It’s time for our weekly Friday morning tour around the racing world. From hot laps to the main event, here’s what’s on our mind this week.
Hot Laps: Patriotic Weekend
Among the patriotic race names taking place this coming weekend are the Born Free 40, Independence 40, Red, White & Blue Special, Freedom Fest, Firecracker Special, Freedom Cup, Red, White & Boom and the Freedom Nationals.
Qualifying: Private Security
Published reports indicate that NASCAR has hired more than 900 private security guards to work this weekend’s Chicago Street Race and that teams and drivers have hired security of their own. We wonder how many private security personnel are hired for the longstanding NASCAR event at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) Int’l?
First Heat: It’s Not The First
By the way, it’s not the first street race in the history of NASCAR. The NASCAR Winston West Series raced on the streets of Spokane and Tacoma, Wash., in 1987 and 1988. To learn more, click here.
Second Heat: Top Fuel Parity?
While point leader Justin Ashley has won four of the nine NHRA Top Fuel races this season, six drivers (Ashley, Mike Salinas, Antron Brown, Austin Prock, Clay Millican and Leah Pruett) have earned victories this season.
The two most recent Top Fuel champions — Brittany Force and Steve Torrence — are winless.
Third Heat: Hall Of Fame Style
Five drivers already enshrined in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame have won 410 winged sprint car features this season. Pennsylvania veteran Lance Dewease has won three features, while Dave Blaney and Sammy Swindell have two victories.
Dale Blaney and Tim Shaffer have each won once. Fellow Hall of Famers Terry Gray and Terry McCarl have won 360 sprint car races this season.
Another recent inductee, Tony Stewart, won a TQ midget race earlier this week.
Dash: PA’s Big Winner
Who is the winningest driver in the history of PA Sprint Speedweek, which is celebrating its 33rd running this week? Lance Dewease with 31 victories, which is one more than Fred Rahmer’s 30.
Fred’s son, Freddie, won Thursday’s Speedweek round at Lincoln Speedway.
B Main: 57 Years
The ASA STARS National Tour will open the second half of its 10-race season with the 57th running of the Redbud 400 July 15 at Anderson (Ind.) Speedway. The race will be run under the ASA umbrella for the first time since 1999.
Legendary Iggy Katona won the first Redbud 400 in 1967 and other winners have included Mark Martin, Alan Kulwicki, Bob Senneker, Mike Eddy, Dick Trickle and Kyle Busch.
The 50th anniversary ASA Racers Reunion is being held in conjunction with the race.
Feature: Daytona Beach Memories
It’s been a few years now since NASCAR has raced at Daytona Int’l Speedway on Fourth of July weekend. Still, we’ll never forget how much fun the race that we’ll always refer to as the Firecracker 400 was to attend.
The race began in the morning and was early afternoon and the participants, fans and media made their ways to the beaches, pools and bars of the Daytona Beach area with plenty of daylight still to burn.
And as a kid, I remember the MRN radio broadcast being the center of the annual backyard cook-out. Who could forget Greg Sacks winning the Firecracker 400 or Richard Petty’s 200th victory.
Big memories of NASCAR, Independence Day and Daytona Int’l Speedway.
Parting Shot: Remember The Name
Remember the name Drake Troutman.
The 18-year-old dirt-track racer has won numerous modified features since making his class debut at the tender age of 11. Now, the Pennsylvania native is racing dirt late models on the DIRTcar Summer Nationals tour, and has narrowly missed victory on several occasions. He’s one to watch.