JULY 13 AT THE SPEEDWAY ... LUCKY!

FOOTHILL INDEPENDENT BANK PRESENTS:
AUTO CLUB LATE MODELS, VISTA PAINT SUPER STOCKS,
ULTRA WHEEL SUPER TRUCKS, & PICK-YOUR-PART FIGURE 8's
SATURDAY NIGHT, JULY 13, AT IRWINDALE SPEEDWAY



Irwindale, Calif. - - Who says that the number 13 isn't lucky?  Just take a gander at the show which lucky racing fans are invited to view this Saturday night at Irwindale Speedway …

Three divisions of hot stock car and truck racing and a wild, raucous Figure 8 event plus Irwindale's own King Taco On-Track Autograph Session at 6:00PM when fans are invited right down onto the racing surface to meet drivers, crews and get a close-up look at every machine that will be racing that night. 

There's a whole new perspective to be gained from standing on the Start/Finish line on "LA's Half-Mile Super Speedway" where so many epic racing battles have been fought.  Early-arrivals will also be able to enjoy the live band that holds forth from Irwindale's Entertainment Stage from 4 to 6PM and maybe even get Mimi the clown to paint their faces with their favorite racer's car number.

The Irwindale Figure 8 course is one where competitors fly around a crazy criss-cross course, blasting full bore through a busy intersection (with no traffic lights!) every lap with engines wide open and (some might think …) eyes shut tight.

There's a certain set of skills needed to drive the Figure 8 … Steel nerves, stout car, anticipation, good peripheral vision, perhaps a lack of a vivid imagination might help (" … If we ever stopped to think about what would happen [to us] if we ran into at a tree at these speeds, we would never get into the car …" - Jean Paul Sarti - 'Grand Prix'.). Most likely success in this eight-shaped endeavor requires some weird alchemist's combination of "all of the above". One thing that everyone should remember, is that all of the Figure 8 drivers always report that they're having even more fun than the fans … 

Riverside car-builder (actually he builds racing cars in nearby Monrovia) Todd Burns leads the Automobile Club of Southern California Late Models into Irwindale with a lean points lead over Tim Huddleston of Agoura Hills (408 -396).  Burn's is Irwindale's all-time race winner and Huddleston set a new track record in the division last time out. Last year's champ, Dave Hessing, has had a slow start this season, but is starting to gain speed (and points) as the series reaches the half-way point. The Canyon Country driver has 354 and counting.

Darren Cheek leads the Vista Paint Super Stock point parade, the Phelan driver getting car set-up advice by cell-phone from his dad and uncle, both pretty formidable racers in their day.  Another second-gen driver Andrew Phipps currently runs second with Brian Harrell in third.  Hometown and points follow:
Phelan/366, Simi Valley/298, and Bloomington/284.

#89 Carson Woods, Jr. (685) leads the Ultra Wheels Super Truck points at Irwindale, with #03 Rich Geisler (655) in second, #50 Mark Laeger (640) in third, #12 Ryan Arciero (635) in fourth, and #77 Greg Adler in fifth. Woods and Arciero are both fast-running Rookies.  These machines are all technically identical with driving and set-up skill being paramount to producing racing wins (as opposed to say ... bankroll size).

Tickets for this "Lucky 13th" night of racing are on sale on-line (secure connection) at www.irwindalespeedway.com, by phone at (626) 358-1100, and in person at the track's box office.


ATTACHED:  Harold Osmer and Neil Nissing's superb cover  for 13 July (they do one every week for Irwindale like this ... check out the rest at www.hopublishing.com) THANKS!