CRA to Take on the High Banks of Winchester Speedway in the Traditional Labor Day Weekend World Stock Car Festival
Several ARCA/CRA Super Series Teams Tuning Up for the Winchester 400
August 27, 2013
Salem, Indiana (August 27, 2013) – Champion Racing Association will be taking on the famous High Banks of historic Winchester Speedway this weekend with the famous Labor Day Weekend World Stock Car Festival, one of the biggest stock car events held each year in Central Indiana. The weekend will feature exciting racing action from the ARCA/CRA Super Series Powered by JEGS, Top Speed Modifieds, Top Speed Fabrication CRA Late Model Sportsman, Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks and the Vores Touring Compacts. This traditional weekend will have a new addition for 2013 as the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by Chevrolet Performance has also been added to the potent line-up of racing action. Camping will be available all weekend and there will also be the annual Sunday night party in the pavilion featuring live music.
The ARCA/CRA Super Series has had 37 events to date at Winchester Speedway. Three time ARCA/CRA Super Series Champion Johnny VanDoorn is now the series all-time winner at Winchester Speedway with four wins, two of those came last season including this event. VanDoorn is entered for this weekend’s event as he prepares for the upcoming 42nd Annual Winchester 400 were he has a chance to claim the JEGS/CRA Super Late Model Triple Crown and it’s $100,000 cash bonus if he can win the Winchester 400. VanDoorn won the first two legs in the Triple Crown which were the June 15th Berlin 251 and the Redbud 300 at Anderson Speedway on July 20th.
Three time series Champion Scott Hantz is tied with former two time series Champion Brian Ross and Bull Baker for second most series wins at Winchester with three apiece, Hantz is entered for Monday’s event. Other former series winners at Winchester who are entered for this weekend’s event includes two time winners Tommy St. John and Jeff Fultz , both of Fultz’s victories at Winchester have come on Labor Day Weekend. Single event Winchester winners entered include Rick Turner, Evan Jackson and Travis Braden, the current series point’s leader and winner of the June 29th series event on the High Banks.
Other top CRA regulars who are entered include Kenny Tweedy, Terry Fisher Jr., Jay Nieweik, Nick Gullatta, Jason Dietsch, Eddie Van Meter, JR Roahrig, Damon Ecoff, and Derrick Griffin. Top Boyne Machine Company rookies who are entered include current rookie point’s leader Ali Kern and Brandon Oakley, currently second in rookie points, as well as 15 year old Anderson Bowen, who was leading the rookie points before he had to miss several races after a leg injury. This will be Bowen’s first series event since the June 29th Winchester Speedway event.
This event always attracts late model teams from around the country looking to get laps on the High banks prior to the Annual Winchester 400. Several of the top drivers from the South have entered including 15 year old Kyle Benjamin from Easley, South Carolina. Benjamin became the series youngest winner ever last July at Lucas Oil Raceway and this past Sunday became the youngest winner in ARCA Racing Series history with his victory at Madison International Speedway. Other South drivers entered include, Oklahoma racer Donnie Wilson and North Carolina ace Daniel Hemric, the 2012 JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Champion, who is competing full-time with the Southern Super Series this season. Also Maine driver Austin Therault and the Brad Keselowski Racing Team will be at Winchester this weekend preparing for the Winchester 400.
JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour three time winner Trent Snyder will jump behind the wheel of Tim Bennett’s #21 Super Series car this weekend as he pulls double duty by also competing in the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour event. JEGS Tour rookie Jake Griffin will also jump behind the wheel of his Super Series car this weekend to do double duty. Other drivers doing double duty include Brandon Oakley and Anderson Bowen.
JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour current point’s leader Cody Coughlin tops the list of CRA regulars entered for Sunday night’s JEGS Tour event. Coughlin leads the series in wins so far in 2013 with two. Other top series competitors who are entered include Dan Leeck, Thomas Woodin, Jerrod Foley, Wes Griffith Jr. and Jordan Miller. A large group of Howie Lettow Rookie of the Year Presented by Howe Racing candidates is also entered including current rookie point’s leader Corey Deuser, as well as fellow rookies Kody Evans, Jake Griffin, Kyle Crump, Marc Jacobs, Dominique Van Wieringen, Hunter Baize and Jaxson Jacobs.
Pensacola native and current NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Johanna Long will jump behind the wheel of the Scott Neal Racing #77 car for this weekend’s event. Long, a former Snowball Derby winner, is looking to try and put something together to compete in the Winchester 400 this year. With Long, the double duty drivers that are entered and the series regulars, Sunday nights JEGS Tour race is shaping up to be a very competitive race!
To date Jason Atkinson tops the Top Speed Fabrication CRA Late Model Sportsman with three wins, including wins at Baer Field Speedway, Anderson Speedway and one in the 2013 season opener at Lucas Oil Raceway. Trey Craig has two wins, both at Anderson Speedway while Mark Lambert and 13 year old Chris Hacker have one win a piece. Lambert’s win was at Winchester on August 18th, the series last event.
Lambert comes in to this weekend’s event with a slim 12 point lead in Season Championship points over 2012 series Champion K.C. Spillers. Atkinson is in third place in points, in a season that seems to be wins or DNF’s so far. Atkinson is 44 points out of first place. Chris Hacker is in fourth place in points and is the leading Rookie of the Year in points. David Campbell is currently fifth in points.
Atkinson is also the season leader in wins for the Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks with two wins, both at Anderson Speedway heading into this weekend’s event. Single event winners include Dave Bice at Lucas Oil Raceway, Dustin Burge and Josh Poore at Anderson Speedway. Monday’s event will be the first of two on the High Banks of Winchester Speedway for the series in 2013.
Burge sets a top the Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stock owner point standings with a 40 point lead over J.J. Schafer. Josh Myers is in third place, six points behind Schafer. Calvin Parham is in fourth place, he is only one point behind Myers. The #31 Todd Marsh owned machine is in fifth place with drivers Tyler Marsh and Wes Russell Jr., they are 13 points behind Parham.
There will be an open practice for all divisions on Saturday, pits open at 10am, and rotating practice will go from 1pm until 5pm. There will be security at the track all weekend so teams can leave their equipment in the track. Pits open on Sunday at 7:30am, practice will begin at 10am with qualifying starting at 3pm. Racing action on Sunday will begin at 6pm and will include heat races for the Top Speed Modifieds, Top Speed Fabrication CRA Late Model Sportsman, Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks and the Vores Touring Compacts. The Winchester 100 Presented by JEGS.com for the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour will be the first feature of the night and will be followed by a 20 lap feature for the Vores Touring Compacts. The traditional Sunday night party will begin after the racing is completed.
Pits open on Monday at 9am, there will be a short warm-up session for all cars starting at 11am. Any last chance races will be ran at 12noon. The first of four feature events will start at 1pm with the 40 lap Top Speed Fabrication CRA Late Model Sportsman feature that will be followed by the 100 lap ARCA/CRA Super Series Powered by JEGS feature, the 50 lap Top Speed Modifieds feature, with the 40 lap Stealth Trailers CRA Street Stocks feature ending the day. Additional track and event information can be found at www.winchesterspeedway.com
More information on all the CRA Series is available at www.cra-racing.com
