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LOTS
OF EXCITEMENT ABOUT USAC/CRA SERIES AS
SPRINT CARS RETURN TO PERRIS!
By Scott
Daloisio
(Perris, CA, April 10, 2019) The
#1 sprint car series west of the
Mississippi, the Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint
Car Series, returns to Perris Auto
Speedway this Saturday night, April 13th,
for the annual Sokola Shootout. The race
salutes original CRA car owner and series
president Gary Sokola and his son Mark.
This year’s edition of the event comes
with renewed enthusiasm in the series and
an old school feeling to the racing.
Spectator gates will open at 5:00 P.M. on
Saturday and the first race will be at
7:00.
New USAC/CRA Race Director conducting
business at the March 30 pit meeting at
The PAS. Doug Allen Photo.
The
renewed enthusiasm and old school feel
mentioned above are being generated by a
pair of sources. One was the naming of
Tony Jones as Racing Director of the
USAC/CRA Series and the other is the USAC
Southwest Sprint Car Series switching from
360 to 410 cubic inch engines. Both
developments took place over the winter
and have met with favorable reviews from
PAS fans.
Jones, who won the Oval
Nationals in 2000 and the USAC/CRA
championship in 2007, is arguably the most
popular driver to ever compete at The PAS.
A tremendous racer on the track, the
48-year-old Orange, California resident
was extremely fan friendly. And, he was
never afraid to voice his opinion on
racing and the way it should be run. That
makes him a perfect fit for his new job.
“I am trying to get more racers on the
racetrack, which will mean more fans in
the grandstands,” Jones said over the
phone on Sunday night. “If we can do that,
it can mean more races, bigger purses for
the drivers and larger profits for the
promoters. It starts with getting the
drivers excited which in turn will get the
fans excited. I think so far we are doing
that.”
One of the ways Jones is
trying to get drivers excited is by
getting more sponsors involved in the
series either with added money or
contingencies. For example, some of the
sponsor money goes to a drawing that
awards one team a rear tire (over $200.00
in value) at every pit meeting.
“I
do not want to see this sport die,” Jones
stated. “I did this (raced sprint cars),
so I can relate to the racers. That is
what made me interested in this job. We
want to put on a good, fast-paced show.
That includes getting the fans in and out
of the races without them having to stay
there all night long and having their kids
get tired and bored. We want the kids to
tell their parents that they want to go
back to the races.”
While Jones
wants to help the racers, he is also
showing them and wants them to know, there
is a rule book and he plans on sticking to
it. Like Gary Sokola, who ran the original
CRA in one of its golden eras from 1977
through 1987, Jones wants competitors to
know they are all racing from the same
rule book and the rules will be followed.
At the first race of the season last month
in Arizona, he served notice when he
penalized over ¾ of the field for
presenting their cars late for the main
event. In the subsequent two races, not
one team has been late.
“We are
going to stick to the black and white
rules in the rule book,” Jones explained.
“I want to run it (the show), the way it
should be run. We do not want a bunch of
people unhappy and complaining. That
includes not only drivers, but also fans,
officials and the promoters. It needs to
be happy and fun for everyone involved.
That is the goal.”
The other part
of the equation is the previously
mentioned USAC Southwest Series moving
from 360 to 410 engines. When Manzanita
Speedway in Phoenix closed its doors in
April of 2009, it essentially brought a
halt to regularly scheduled 410 sprint car
racing in the Copper State. Since then,
sprint car racing in Arizona switched
predominately to 360 racing with first
ASCS and then USAC. When it was announced
over the winter that the Southwest Series
was switching back to 410 racing, it
brought hope for increased fields for both
the Southwest series and USAC/CRA. The
first race of the season at The PAS bore
that out with a fine 27-car field that
included six Arizona cars in the pits.
“Everybody was excited when word came
out that Tony had the job of race
director,” Perris promoter Don Kazarian
said. “Everybody likes him, and they
expect him to do a great job. And, the
announcement of the Southwest Series going
to 410s has gotten people pumped up as
well. The drivers in Arizona are tough. We
had a good turnout of them on opening
night and we hope those numbers continue
to grow. It is going to make the
competition a lot tougher and the racing a
lot better. It will be like the old days
in the original CRA when there was such a
great rivalry between the California and
Arizona drivers. There is a lot to be
excited about in 410 sprint car racing in
the southwest and on the west coast these
days.”
In addition to the USAC/CRA
Sprint Cars, The PAS Senior and Young Gun
Sprint Cars will also be in action.
Tickets for Saturday’s race are $25.00
for adults. Seniors 65 and over get in for
$20.00. For active military with proper id
and their spouse or date, it is $5.00
each. Teens 13-18 with their school id and
kids 6-12 get in for $5.00. Children 5 and
under are free. Parking on the fairgrounds
is $8.00.
Camping on the
fairgrounds opens at noon on Friday.
Tailgating on the grassy area outside of
turn four begins at 1:00 P.M. on Saturday.
Advance tickets for all Perris
Auto Speedway events are available
24-hours a day online at
https://bit.ly/2Aa50Lj or by calling
1-800-595-4849. If you do not wish to buy
tickets in advance for any race, there
will be plenty of tickets for everyone at
the ticket window on race night.
Perris Auto Speedway is conveniently
located on the SoCal Fair and Event Center
(home of October’s Southern California
Fair), approximately one hour east of Los
Angeles and one-hour North of San Diego.
To get to the track, take the 215 freeway,
on the Ramona Expressway and go three
miles east to the fairgrounds. For
directions on MapQuest, the address to
enter is: 18700 Lake Perris Drive and the
zip code is 92571.
Perris Auto
Speedway wants to thank its corporate
partners for the 2019 season. All Coast
Construction, Austin Hutchinson Realtor,
Battery Systems, Brass and Bass Firearms &
Fishing Supplies, Budweiser, Bud’s Tire
Pro, Chris’ Hauling, City of Perris,
Daytona Boat & RV Storage, Ed Moore Bullet
Proof Driveshaft, Flowdynamics, Harley’s
Custom Cycles, HD Industries, Hoosier
Tires, Inland Rigging, K2 Displays, Living
Water’s Hospice, LKQ Pick Your Part,
Luke’s Transmission, Pepsi-Cola, Pole
Position, Precision Engine of Temecula,
PrintItNow.com, Rainbow Bolt & Supply,
Shaver Specialties, Square H, Sunoco Race
Fuels, Sunstate Equipment, Trench Shoring,
Varner Construction, VIA RV Service and
Vista Paint.
To keep up with all
the latest Perris Auto Speedway news,
photos, gossip and receive special offers,
please use the following links:
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Perris-Auto-Speedway/113876798686480?ref=hl
Twitter: Perris Auto Speedway on
Twitter.
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/perrisautospeedway/
Website:
http://perrisautospeedway.com/
Video and DVD productions of all racing
sprint cars events at Perris Auto Speedway
are available from Loudpedal Productions.
For more information on these productions
you can contact them by calling (805)
844-3854, E-mailing
mailto:trtruex@gmail.com or you can visit
the website LoudPedal Productions.
DVD’s of all the PASSCAR/IMCA racing and
Nights of Destruction at The PAS are
available from Fourvideos. For more
information call (714) 225-9500.
racesatthepas@aol.com is the only
authorized Internet address to issue
official media news released from The
Perris Auto Speedway or Oval
Entertainment.
2019 Perris Auto
Speedway Schedule
April 13th
“Sokola Shootout” Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint
Cars, PAS Senior Sprints and PAS Young Gun
Sprints
April 20th PASSCAR Super
Stocks, Street Stocks, American Factory
Stocks and IMCA Modifieds
April
27th LKQ Pick Your Part Presents Night of
Destruction II: Demo Cross, Figure 8’s,
Trailer Figure 8’s, Mini Stocks, Double
Deckers, Formula X Autocross and Cross
Karts American Cancer Society Night
Benefiting the “Up Down ‘n Dirty 4 a Cure
Mud Run
May 4th PASSCAR Super
Stocks, Street Stocks, American Factory
Stocks and IMCA Modifieds
May 25th
“Salute to Indy” Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint
Cars, PAS Senior Sprints and PAS Young Gun
Sprints American Cancer Society Night
Benefiting the “Up Down ‘n Dirty 4 a Cure
Mud Run
June 1st LKQ Pick Your Part
Presents Night of Destruction III: Demo
Cross, Figure 8’s, Trailer Figure 8’s,
Mini Stocks, Double Deckers, Formula X
Autocross and Cross Karts American Cancer
Society Night Benefiting the “Up Down ‘n
Dirty 4 a Cure Mud Run
June 15th
PASSCAR Super Stocks, Street Stocks,
American Factory Stocks and IMCA Modifieds
June 29th Amsoil USAC/CRA Sprint Cars,
PAS Senior Sprints and PAS Young Gun
Sprints
July 4th FIREWORKS
SPECTACULAR LKQ Pick Your Part Presents
Night of Destruction IV: Demo Cross,
Figure 8’s, Trailer Figure 8’s, Mini
Stocks, Double Deckers, Formula X
Autocross and Cross Karts American Cancer
Society Night Benefiting the “Up Down ‘n
Dirty 4 a Cure Mud Run
July 13th
Amsoil USAC/CRA & USAC Southwest Sprint
Cars, PAS Senior Sprints and PAS Young Gun
Sprints
July 20th PASSCAR Super
Stocks, Street Stocks, American Factory
Stocks and IMCA Modifieds
July 27th
LKQ Pick Your Part Presents Night of
Destruction V: Demo Cross, Figure 8’s,
Trailer Figure 8’s, Mini Stocks, Double
Deckers, Formula X Autocross and Cross
Karts
August 17th “California
Racer’s Hall of Fame Night” Amsoil
USAC/CRA & USAC Southwest Sprint Cars, PAS
Senior Sprints and PAS Young Gun Sprints
August 24th PASSCAR Super Stocks,
Street Stocks, American Factory Stocks and
IMCA Modifieds
August 31st LKQ Pick
Your Part Presents Night of Destruction
VI: Demo Cross, Figure 8’s, Trailer Figure
8’s, Mini Stocks, Double Deckers, Formula
X Autocross and Cross Karts
September 14th PASSCAR Super Stocks,
Street Stocks, American Factory Stocks and
IMCA Modifieds
September 21st
“Glenn Howard Classic” Amsoil USAC/CRA
Sprint Cars, PAS Senior Sprints and PAS
Young Gun Sprints
September 28th
LKQ Pick Your Part Presents Night of
Destruction VII: Demo Cross, Figure 8’s,
Trailer Figure 8’s, Mini Stocks, Double
Deckers, Formula X Autocross and Cross
Karts
November 6th Budweiser Oval
Nationals Presented by All Coast
Construction Practice Session
November 7th Budweiser Oval Nationals
Presented by All Coast Construction USAC
National, CRA and Southwest Sprint Cars
November 8th Budweiser Oval Nationals
Presented by All Coast Construction USAC
National, CRA and Southwest Sprint Cars
November 9th Budweiser Oval Nationals
Presented by All Coast Construction USAC
National, CRA and Southwest Sprint Cars
November 16th “Champions Night”
PASSCAR Super Stocks, Street Stocks,
American Factory Stocks and PAS Modifieds
*** Schedule Subject to Change |
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