Release-Auto Racing Lineup for Illinois and DuQuoin State Fairs

Fairgrounds Auto Racing in Tenth Decade at Springfield, Seventh Decade at DuQuoin!

 

Track Enterprises Enters Second 

Decade of Promoting State Fair Racing!

 

Macon, IL June 30, 2003-The rich history of auto racing continues in 2003 at both the Illinois and DuQuoin State Fairgrounds, with traditional events returning and a new race on the slate.  Bob Sargent and the staff of Track Enterprises begin their second decade of promoting auto racing on the Illinois fairground miles, starting in 1992 with the first Illinois Fall Nationals event at Springfield.

 

It was on a mile long ribbon of rich, gumbo Illinois dirt that national championship auto racing first appeared in the prairie capitol ten decades ago.  Open cockpit, open wheel machinery was the first to test the Illinois State Fairgrounds clay in 1910, and Springfield became a permanent part of the national championship racing scene in 1934.  Since that time, national championship racing in many forms has been a part of the Illinois State Fair, ranging from championship cars to midgets to stock cars.  Racing immortals such as Rex Mays, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Al Unser, Butch Hartman and Dean Roper all have visited Springfield’s victory lane.

 

Fair-time auto racing kicks off during the last weekend of the Illinois State Fair in August, with the “Tony Bettenhausen Memorial 100 on Saturday, August 16 and the Allen Crowe Memorial 100 (with the Wynn’s Sportsman cars) on Sunday, August 17.   

 

Over nine feet long, weighing nearly a ton when fueled, and possessing almost 800 horsepower, the snarling dirt slingers of the United States Auto Club Weld Silver Crown series return to Springfield once again for the 43rd running of the prestigious “Tony Bettenhausen Memorial 100” presented by Corona on August 16th.  The dinosaurs known as the “monsters of the miles” are the descendants of the championship cars that once traversed the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the championship circuit before the roadsters and rear engine cars invaded during the fifties and sixties.

 

Defending Bettenhausen winner J.J. Yeley is expected to return for car owner and builder Bob East.  Yeley, the defending Silver Crown champion, won last year’s event in dominating fashion leading from start to finish after capturing the pole position.

 

The roar of engines at Springfield continues the next day, with the Automobile Club of America’s RE/MAX Stock Car series taking to the “Springfield Mile” for the 41st Allen Crowe Memorial 100.  Two-time defending Crowe winner Frank Kimmel should head the list of entries as he seeks his third consecutive ARCA crown.  Accompanying the ARCA stock cars will be the local drivers in the Wynn’s Sportsman National event, last year’s 20-mile dash was a thriller won by Buffalo’s Jeff Leka in a car owned by Springfield’s own “Jungle” Jim Davidson.

 

The focus of auto racing in Illinois shifts two hundred miles to the south, as Illinois other state fair begins with a program of auto racing for the first time in twenty years.  DuQuoin, Illinois is host to the park-like setting for the DuQuoin State Fair, now entering it’s 81st year of existence.  When fair creator Bill Hayes carved out a mile of mine clay in 1947, little did he know that DuQuoin would become one of the most important and historic stops on many national championship racing schedules.

 

DuQuoin's legendary "Magic Mile" hosted its first sprint car race in 1947, added two championship races and midgets in 1948, and stock cars in 1950.  Since then, a variety of legendary drivers have traversed the southern Illinois track, including A.J. Foyt, Rodger Ward, Tom Bigelow, Rusty Wallace and Dean Roper. 

 

This year’s DuQuoin State Fair begins with a new form of racing on the opening weekend, trucks!  For the first time, a racing truck will appear at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds, as the trucks of the Automobile Racing Club of America’s Lincoln Welders Truck Series make an appearance on Saturday, August 23 along with the Wynn's Southern Sportsman Nationals for the weekly racers.  This event has added meaning as it will be the first fair-time event under the lighting system installed last year.  A 50-lap main event for the trucks is on tap, along with the 20-lap feature event for the sportsman stock cars.

 

One week and a day later, the long tailed beauties of the USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series take to the picturesque DuQuoin State Fairgrounds for the 53rd Ted Horn Memorial 100 on Sunday, August 31st.  Last year’s pole sitter and track record holder Ed Carpenter is expected to return, as is defending Horn 100 winner and USAC National Silver Crown Champion J.J. Yeley.  Yeley chased Carpenter for the 1st half of last year’s race, before Ed faded.  Yeley went on to become 12th man in racing history to sweep both fair-time dirt car races at Springfield and DuQuoin.

 

The next day, the ARCA RE/MAX Stock Car Series rolls onto the “Magic Mile”, with the Federated-Southern Illinois 100 on tap.  NASCAR driver Ken Schrader has already indicated he will be an entrant in the event, along with defending race winner and ARCA champ Frank Kimmel.  Kimmel beat NASCAR Winston Cup champ Tony Stewart to the line in a thriller last year, and it is quite possible Stewart could return to better his string of second place finishes in the Southern Illinois 100.

 

Joining the USAC and ARCA stars over the Labor Day weekend at DuQuoin will be the United Midwestern Promoters Modified division, with heat races on Sunday, and the consolation and 20-mile Oldani Memorial on Labor Day.  Robinson, Illinois’ Brian Shaw took home the 2002 feature win and the $2000 first prize.

 

The next event on one of the Illinois dirt miles is the Illinois Fall Nationals, Sunday September 14.  The event for late models and modifieds has grown into one of the premier events for both divisions, thanks in part due to the total purse of $50,000, $12,000 of that going to the late model feature winner, with $2,000 going to the modified feature winner.  Popular Brian Birkhoffer is the defending late model winner, with Jim Shereck the defending modified winner.

 

Ticket and competition information can be obtained by calling Track Enterprises at 217-764-3200, or by visiting them on the World Wide Web at www.trackenterprises.com.  Additional websites with further information are www.usacracing.com and www.arcaracing.com.