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Canandaigua To Crown Newest USAC Sprint Car Winner In New York State Canandaigua, NY ... By Tom Skibinski, DIRT NorthEast PR Director The United States Auto Club has sanctioned 73 races in New York State. USAC’s ‘Golden Anniversary’ celebration, 1956-2006, will continue on May 6 as Canandaigua Speedway becomes just the fifth track to host a national championship event for its Sprint Car division. Joining the wingless USAC Sprint Cars in series race number eight, a $4,000-to-win 30-lapper at the "Land of Legends," will be a DIRT doubleheader featuring a full show of big-block Modified and Sportsman action. Adult general admission tickets for the national points event are $25 each with $27 reserved seats also available by contacting the DIRT MotorSports NorthEast office at 315/834-6606. Gates open at 5 p.m., Sprint Car time trials start at 6:15 and racing begins promptly at 7 o’clock. In addition, fans can join in a special Meet & Greet session on Saturday with USAC drivers scheduled to appear at 5:30 p.m. behind the main grandstand. While USAC was officially established in 1956, its first organized sprint car event in New York was staged at Lancaster Speedway four years later. Parnelli Jones captured the 30-lap feature at the Western N.Y. half-miler that was designated as an Eastern Sprint Series points race. USAC merged its Eastern and Midwest series to recognize a single National Sprint Car champion in 1961. Canandaigua’s stop will be the first for sprint cars in NYS since Greg Leffler won at the Erie County Fairgrounds in Hamburg in 1978, although most recently USAC brought its premier Champ Car Series to the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse during Super DIRT Week ‘03. Along with Lancaster and the Syracuse and Hamburg ovals, Oswego Speedway is the only other track in the Empire State to promote the USAC Sprinters. The list of USAC Sprint Car winners in New York is headlined by Mario Andretti (3) and Gary Bettenhausen (3), followed by Jim Hurtubise (2), A.J. Foyt, Mike Mosley, Sammy Sessions, Johnny Capels, Bill Puterbaugh, Rollie Beale, Tommy Astone, Jones and Leffler. Current divisional point leaders ready to gain membership into this exclusive club are Josh Wise-285, Levi Jones-267, Bud Kaeding-257, Jerry Coons Jr.-247, Bryan Clauson-241, Mat Neely-221, Jon Stanbrough-217, Jay Drake-206, Darren Hagen-199 and Dave Darland-193. Jones from Olney, Ill. is the defending National Champion and is a teammate of USAC Midget Champion Wise of Riverside, Calif., with both drivers competing in open-cockpit entries fielded by former USAC Triple Crown and two-time Nextel Cup points champion Tony Stewart. The youthful cast of players in the overall point standings includes nine drivers under the age of 24 years. Date Laps NYS Track/USAC Sprint Car Winner A total of 16 tracks in New York State have already run USAC events since 1956 with Watkins Glen International topping the list with 19. Current DIRT MotorSports affiliates Syracuse (18), Cayuga County Fair Speedway (2), Fulton Speedway (2), Lebanon Valley Speedway, Orange County Fair Speedway and Brewerton Speedway, along with Erie Co. (6), Oswego (6), Five Mile Point Speedway (6), Lancaster (4), Islip Speedway (3), Ithaca-Dryden Speedway, Albany-Saratoga Speedway, Airborne Park and Black Rock Speedway have included Silver Crown, Grand-Am, Formula 2000, Midget, Sprint Car, Formula 5000, Road Racing and Championship events in their own USAC specials during the past half-century. In 2006 the USAC Sprint Car Series encompasses 44 races, with 37 offering points. Canandaigua's inaugural event runs in conjunction with a rare USAC appearance at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa. on May 5. Date Track/Winner April 1 Eldora (Oh.) Speedway/Jerry Coons, Jr. April 9 Anderson (Ind.) Speedway/Dave Darland April 22 Lawrenceburg (Ind.) Speedway/Jon Stanbrough April 23 Winchester (Ind.) Speedway/Bryan Clauson April 28 Gas City (Ind.) I-69 Speedway/Shane Cottle April 29 Eldora (Oh.) Speedway/Rob Chaney May 5 Lernerville (Pa.) Speedway May 6 Canandaigua (N.Y.) Speedway USAC NATIONAL SPRINT CAR SERIES ENTRY LIST - CANANDAIGUA SPEEDWAY, MAY 6 Canandaigua Speedway is located on County Road10 at the Ontario County Fairgrounds, just 1-1/2-miles north of Routes 5&20, and is easily accessible from the NYS Thruway (I-90), taking Exit 43 from the west or Exit 44 from the east. Additional information can be obtained by calling 585/394-0961 on raceday or during the week by dialing General Manager Jeff Farney at the track office 315/730-4345. Log into canandaiguaspeedway.com on the internet any time for the most updated rosters, results, point standings and race reports as the season swings into high gear. The DIRT MotorSports™ Advance Auto Parts Modified Series is brought to fans across the Northeast by several sponsors and partners, including series sponsors Advance Auto Parts, Hoosier Racing Tire and Sunoco Race Fuels. Promotional partners include AMB i.t., F.X. Caprara Car Companies and the University of Northwestern Ohio and the contingency sponsors are Bert Transmission, Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein Shocks, Brodix Cylinder Heads, DART Machinery, Holley HP Carburetors, Integra Shocks, MSD Ignitions, Miller Electric Manufacturing Company, Penske Shocks and Wrisco Industries. |