Newberrytown, PA – Entering the 10th year of ownership under Todd and Rhonda Fisher, the 2013 season opener at the Susquehanna Speedway Park will be on Saturday, April 6, with the Late Models, Street Stocks, Super Sportsman and Classic Cars. The pit gates will open at 3:30 p.m. for the season opener. Grandstand gates will open at 4:00 p.m. Warm-ups begin at 5:30 p.m. with qualifying races at 6:00 p.m. followed by consolation races and feature events.
After purchasing the struggling speedway during the winter of 2003, the Fishers have produced 269 races over a nine year span through 2012. Out of the 335 race events scheduled, 66 events were postponed or cancelled due to rain with the exception of an early snowstorm during the last week of October in 2011 that postponed the seventh edition of the J&K Salvage Candy Bowl. Under the Fishers’ ownership, the speedway has seen many changes that include removal of the frontstretch and turn inside guardrail, introduction of the popular front pit area behind the main grandstand and the construction of the “Outback Track” for racers as young as five years old. The Outback Track has had 72 events since its opening on June 7, 2008.
The schedule of SSP has seen various weekly nights that included Thursday, Friday and Sundays, but the Fishers’ settled on Saturday nights as its choice in the most recent years. Since mid-2007, the phrase “Stock Car Saturday Night” was coined and has been the main focus of the speedway featuring Late Models, Street Stocks and Xtreme Stock Cars. Various touring groups such as Classic Cars, PENNMAR Vintage Cars and Legends Cars have joined the stock cars on Saturday Nights.
Open wheel Sprint Cars ranging from 600cc Micro Sprints to 410 Super Sprint Cars and everything in between have spattered the schedule over the last nine years with many open wheel races scheduled for 2013. The 410 Super Sprint Cars have five races on tap in 2013, the most since 2006.
The popular Steel Block Bandits Late Model Touring Series will make three stops to SSP in 2013. Dover’s Gene Knaub claimed both Steel Block Bandits features in 2012 at SSP but not easily with some of the top competitors on the east coast in the fields including 2012 Steel Block Bandits Champion Andy Fries of Mercersburg. The series will visit the track on May 18, June 29 and August 31.
On Saturday and Sunday, May 4 and 5, 2013, the largest 2-day karting event will take place on the “Big Track” at the Susquehanna Speedway Park in its 58 year history when the Pennsylvania Elite Dirt Kart Series visits. The PEDKS is sanctioned by the World Karting Association (W.K.A.) based in Concord, North Carolina. More than 400 entries from across the United States are expected each day. Each raceday will be a complete and separate schedule featuring practice, qualifying and feature races for the 23 different classes of competition. Information about classes can be found atwww.elitedirtkart.com.
The famed oval will also see the “Return of Great American School Buses” on Sunday, August 25 as the yellow monsters of speed join the 410 Super Sprint Cars and Late Models in racing action. The last school bus race was held in 2007 however, fans still speak of the bus racing as if it was held last week.
The non-stop action of Figure 8 Racing featuring front-wheel drive four cylinder cars was introduced to SSP fans in 2012 and will continue on five selected nights in 2013 with Saturday, April 20 being the first of the season.
SSP will begin its pre-season with three open practice sessions for any type of racecar on Wednesday, March 27; Saturday, March 30 and Wednesday, April 3. The gates will open at 5:00 p.m. with practice sessions rotating for each class from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. During the season, SSP will also host fifteen more Wednesday Night Test & Tune Sessions through Wednesday, October 23. All Wednesday night practices will run from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. as well.
Carlisle’s Carl Billet will attempt to earn his eighth Late Model Track Championship in 2013. Billet leads the speedway’s All-Time Feature Winner’s List with 57 trips to victory lane. At the end of the season, SSP will crown eleven-(11) track champions in their respective classes. Track championships are based on classes with a minimum of three races per season. The SSP track championship point season schedule features 20 point races for the Late Models and 18 point races for the Street Stocks as well as 16 point races for the Xtreme Stock Cars not including their respective season ending special events. The popular entry level Road Warrior and Mini Van divisions will compete 14 each respectively. Also competing for track point championships will be the PA Sprint Series (6 events), Sidewinder Sprints (5 events), Classic Cars (6 events), PENNMAR Vintage Cars (6 events), Super 410 Sprint Cars (5 events) and 358 Sprint Cars (3 events).
The Super Sportsman (Sat. April 6 and Sat. July 20), 600 Micro Sprints (Wed. July 3 & Sat. Oct. 26), Legends Cars (Wed. July 3 & Sat. Oct. 26), Sportsman Modifieds (Wed. July 3 & Sat. Oct. 26), ARDC Midgets (Sun. June 9 & Sat. Oct. 26) and Lincoln Thundercars (Saturday, October 26) also make their way to SSP in 2013.
On Sunday night, April 15, the Super Sprint Cars will return to SSP for the Sprint Car Spring Classic IV. They 410 cubic inch powered cars will be joined by the 358 Sprint Cars. The pit gates will open 3:30 p.m. Grandstand gates will open at 4:00 p.m. Warm-ups begin at 5:30 p.m. with qualifying races at 6:00 p.m. followed by consolation races and feature events. The Super 410 Sprint Cars will make five visits to SSP in 2013.
The Susquehanna Speedway Park is located off I-83 to exit 32, then 1.4 miles NW on SR382 to York Road, then 1.3 miles south. For more information, contact the speedway offices at (717) 292-1696 or visit online at sspracing.net. On raceday, use the track phone at (717) 938-9170 for up-to-date information.