Sprint Invaders, car show, test and tune provide busy opening weekend at Independence
INDEPENDENCE, Iowa (March 25, 2013) – The 2013 season at Independence Motor Speedway will kick off in grand fashion the weekend of April 19-20.
Along with a rare Friday night special that includes the first appearance of Sprint Cars at the speedway in 20 years, the annual car show and test and tune session will be held the following day.
The first action on the track in 2013 will be held on Friday night, April 19, during the Open Wheel Shootout. The first-time event at the speedway will also be the first-ever visit by the Brockway Mechanical & Roofing Sprint Invaders Series. The series features touring 360 Sprint Car drivers from southeast Iowa and western Illinois. The event will mark the first time since the 1990s that Sprint Cars will compete on the Independence oval.
In addition to the $1,200-to-win 360 Sprints, $500-to-win Modifieds and $300-to-win SportMods are scheduled to compete. Both of those divisions will compete under weekly track rules, however will not be sanctioned.
Grandstand admission prices are $15 for adults and $13 for seniors (62+) and students (12-17). Kids 11 and under will be admitted free if accompanied by a paid adult. Pit passes on April 19 will be $30.
Grandstand and pit gates both open at 5 p.m., with a drivers meeting scheduled for 6:30, hot laps at 6:45 and racing to follow.
The annual Independence Motor Speedway car show will be held the following morning on Saturday, April 20. Again this year, cars will be on display on the streets of downtown Independence.
Driver registration will begin at 9 a.m. with the car show held from 10 a.m. until noon. A number of streets in the downtown area will be blocked off to give race fans the opportunity to get a close-up view of this season’s competitors and to meet their favorite drivers. Downtown areas that will be restricted to race cars and foot traffic include 1st St. East from 2nd Ave. NE to 3rd Ave. NE, along with 3rd Ave. NE from 1st St. East to 2nd St. NE.
Competitors in each of the six weekly divisions are invited to attend – IMCA Late Model, IMCA Modified, IMCA Stock Car, IMCA SportMod, IMCA Hobby Stock and IMCA Sport Compact. At around noon, awards will be presented to three drivers – Best of Show (as voted by a panel of judges), Fan Favorite (as voted by fans in attendance) and Most Unique Graphics (as voted by fans in attendance).
Area youngsters are also invited to display their go-karts at this year’s show.
Following the awards, a parade of car show entrants will make its way through the streets of Independence to the fairgrounds for the annual test and tune session. The practice session will run from 2 to 5 p.m., weather permitting. Fans will be admitted free into the grandstands for practice. Pit passes are $10 each.
Each driver who displays his/her car at the car show will be given two free pit passes for the test and tune session.
Weekly racing at Independence is set to begin on Saturday, April 27, for the first of a scheduled 18 consecutive Saturday nights. A number of other specials, including a pair of Deery Brothers Summer Series for IMCA Late Models events, the World of Outlaws Late Model Series and the return of the JR Motorsports Hawkeye Dirt Tour for IMCA Modifieds, are also scheduled for 2013. Visit the track’s web site, www.independencemotorspeedway.com, for the latest information.
Category: Iowa
