End Of Fingerlakes Mall DIRTcar Racing Review Means Start To ’07 Season

Weedsport, NY – March 25, 2022 – By Tom Skibinski, DIRTcar Racing PR Director

As soon as the last car filed out of the Fingerlakes Mall on Sunday evening, the countdown officially began to the start of the 2022 race season in Central New York. Just one more week now remains before the green flag flies for the first time to open DIRTcar Racing’s 32^nd season of short-track racing in the Northeast.

“We had a great turnout of racers and fans over the weekend and we’re looking forward to having them back at all our tracks in the coming weeks,” said Cayuga County Fair Speedway General Manager Jack Deery, who spearheaded DIRT’s return to the Fingerlakes Mall in Auburn, New York for the 2022 DIRTcar Racing Review held March 23-25. The final pre‑season event in the area featured more than a dozen open-wheel and full-fender cars showcasing those divisions signed up for competition at Cayuga County during the upcoming race season. Focused on local short-track stars and their cars, this three-day show gave every participant a great opportunity to show off their sponsors and new paint schemes before they go trackside for the area openers.

Heading the Big-Block Mod squad was driver of the ‘X’ car Chad Phelps and ’07 Rookie of the Year contenders Russ Hefti and ‘Kid Troyer’ Rob Bellinger. The list of Sportsman entries spotlighted Tim Currier, Tom Juhl, Eric Giguere, John Juhl II and Earl Rudy while Bryan Howland (Patriot Sprint) and 14 year-old Sierra Lister (CNY Mini Sprint) further showcased the open-wheel ranks. Teenage Pro Stocker Mike Vaughn and Street Stock veterans Steve Woodworth and Nate Peckham were joined by Enduro regular Andy Burtless along with Midstate Vintage Stock Car Club president Brad Litzenberger, who displayed his restored and race-ready 1939 Ford Coupe.

Accompanied from Dexter, N.Y. by his father John, 17 year-old Bellinger’s flaming yellow no. 8 Lake Ontario Realty-JT Construction/Troyer Modified was selected as ‘Best of Show’ and all show exhibitors were rewarded with custom framed shots of their cars courtesy of official Canandaigua Speedway photographer Mark Marquart. For donating their time and equipment to help make the ’07 DIRTcar Racing Review a successful event, GM Deery also offered all teams additional complimentary passes to the early season ‘Sponsor Night at the Races’ slated for Saturday, April 21 at Canandaigua and Sunday, April 22 at Cayuga County.

In special contests enjoyed during the final full weekend in March, those fans in attendance cast hundreds of votes for their favorite Central New York track logo ---Cayuga County Fair Speedway, Rolling Wheels Raceway and Canandaigua Speedway--- and a new name for Cayuga County’s Enduro division that will help fill the weekly card each Sunday at the popular Weedsport, N.Y. dirt track. The results will be tallied in the days ahead and the winning track logo and division name announced soonafter.

DIRT staffers at Cayuga County now turn all their attention to the Sunday, April 1 season-opening ‘No Foolin’ 188’ Enduro that leads off the 53^rd year of auto racing at the historic Weedsport oval. A special ‘Media/Practice Day’ has been scheduled on Saturday, April 7 and fans are invited to enjoy the free grandstand admission when the cars take to the high-banked 3/8-miler for hot laps from 1-5 p.m. The Fairgrounds will be dark on Easter Sunday while a full show of Big-Block Modified, Sportsman Modified, Street Stock and Enduro racing fills the April 15 card.

The DIRTcar 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, Holley HP Carburetors, MSD Ignitions, Miller Electric Manufacturing Company and Wrisco Industries.