King of the West Sprint Car Series unveils fully loaded 2013 Schedule
By Gary Thomas
Rio Vista, California – January 6, 2013…The King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series office has unveiled a 2013 slate of events that is truly fitting of a “Western King” and encompasses 27-dates at 11 different tracks in California and Nevada.
“The upcoming season is looking to be one of the best in recent memory for 410 Sprint Car racing on the West Coast,” commented KWS Operations Manager George Hague. “We are looking forward to having some new faces join KWS and many familiar ones returning as well. We’re also excited to welcome Hoosier Racing Tires into the King of the West family and building a great relationship with the company.”
The 2013 racing season kicks off on Saturday April 20 with the traditional KWS opener at John Soares’ Antioch Speedway located on the Contra Costa County Fairgrounds. Quickly gaining a reputation as one of the raciest tracks in the West; the one-third mile clay oval will also host the King of the West 410 Sprints on Saturday July 20.
The high-banked quarter-mile bullring of Placerville Speedway will host the King of the West Series on two occasions once again this season. The first of those will be Saturday April 27 and the second is slated for Saturday June 29. The lightning fast track is a favorite among fans for its distinctive red clay and close action. The all-time KWS track record at Placerville is a blistering 9.913 shared by Tim Kaeding & Evan Suggs.
The always exciting Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway will play host to three nights of action in 2013, which will be anchored by a double header outing during Memorial Day weekend on Saturday & Sunday May 25 & 26. The King of the West 410’s will then return to the lightning fast one-third mile clay oval for a single night showing on Saturday September 21.
The famed Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico will hold one King of the West event this season and it happens to be the 23rd annual “Dave Bradway Jr. Memorial” on Saturday May 4. The event has been a cornerstone for the series and always features extra money and awards packed into the night. Expect a huge show as fans will get to see the KWS Series at SDS one time only in 2013, so don’t miss out on what is sure to be a definite special event on Saturday May 4.
Also hosting single events this season will be the Merced Speedway on Saturday May 11, the Ocean Speedway in Watsonville on Saturday July 13, the new Stockton 99 Dirt Track on Saturday August 3, a return to the Santa Maria Speedway on Saturday July 27 and the 28th annual “Cotton Classic” at Kings Speedway in Hanford on Saturday October 12.
The Merced outing on May 11 will be the first KWS event at the track and also marks the lone 410 Sprint Car race for the facility in 2013. The event at Ocean Speedway on July 13 is the third annual “Howard Kaeding Classic,” which has become a very big event over the past two years at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds bullring. The “HK Classic” is part of an exciting two night weekend that also features USAC Sprints & Midgets during the Friday portion.
The Santa Maria Speedway visit on July 27 will mark the first KWS appearance at the track since 2011 and the Stockton event on August 3 will be the inaugural appearance for the series at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds track. The prestigious “Cotton Classic” on October 12 will mark the lone 2013 appearance at Hanford’s Kings Speedway and will be a huge event as always, with the USAC West Coast Wingless Sprints also competing that night.
Friday & Saturday May 17 & 18 will be the first of five weekends of competition at the newly refurbished Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway in Fernley, Nevada. During the off-season KWS Managing Director Dan Simpson became promoter of the track known as “Racings Field of Dreams” and is bringing 410 Sprint Car racing back to it for the first time since 2006.
In addition to May 17 & 18 the King of the West 410 Sprints will also invade the three-eighths mile oval on July 5 & 6 for the “Cherry Bomb Classic,” August 9 & 10 (during Hot August Nights in Reno), September 13 & 14 (during the Reno Air Races) and for the KWS season-finale on Friday & Saturday October 25 & 26. Stay tuned for all the exciting plans that are being put in place for RTF Speedway.
Another track located in Northern Nevada that joins the mix in 2013 is Rattlesnake Raceway in Fallon, hosting a pair of events with the first occurring on Friday & Saturday June 7 & 8. The two-night show is part of the town’s annual “Octane Fest” that features drag racing, monster trucks, tuff trucks and more. KWS will then return to Rattlesnake on Saturday & Sunday August 31 & September 1 during the “Cantaloupe Festival” in Fallon.
“The community support has been phenomenal up here in Northern Nevada and we’re excited to bring our style of sprint car racing to the many fans in the area,” said KWS Managing Director Dan Simpson. “The majority of our events in Nevada are held with major festivals & that will give all our great supporters something fun to do when they visit Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway and Rattlesnake Raceway.”
The amount of money on the line for teams this year with the King of the West Series during the Northern Nevada dates will be inflated as well, with each event at Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway & Rattlesnake Raceway paying $3,500 to win the A-main and a very stout $1,000-to-start. The purses are focused on paying down solidly to make sure all teams in competition have a piece of the pie.
“When you add up our nightly purses, contingencies and point fund we’ll be racing for more money & awards than we have in many years out here,” said Simpson. “Each season we continue to build the KWS brand and look for new things to do with the series. I think we’re in for a very exciting 2013 season and can’t wait to get it started. We’ll have even more to announce in the weeks to come so stay tuned.”
More information on the traveling King of the West Sprint Car Series can be found online at www.kwssprints.com
Be sure to like us on the KWS Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/kingofthewestsprints and become a member of our Twitter community at https://twitter.com/KwsSprintRacing along with subscribing to us on You Tube by checking out http://www.youtube.com/user/kingofthewestsprints?feature=mhee
You can also follow us on Instagram by searching “kwssprints” and contact us via phone at the King of the West office (707) 374-2222. For questions or comments please don’t be hesitate to shoot us an email at kwsseries@yahoo.com
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King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series 2013 Schedule
Saturday April 20: Antioch Speedway
Saturday April 27: Placerville Speedway
Saturday May 4: Silver Dollar Speedway (23rd annual Dave Bradway Jr. Memorial)
Saturday May 11: Merced Speedway
Friday May 17: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway
Saturday May 18: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway
Saturday May 25: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway
Sunday May 26: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway
Friday June 7: Rattlesnake Raceway (Octane Fest Fallon, NV)
Saturday June 8: Rattlesnake Raceway (Octane Fest Fallon, NV)
Saturday June 29: Placerville Speedway
Friday July 5: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway (Cherry Bomb Classic)
Saturday July 6: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway (Cherry Bomb Classic)
Saturday July 13: Ocean Speedway (3rd annual Howard Kaeding Classic)
Saturday July 20: Antioch Speedway
Saturday July 27: Santa Maria Speedway
Saturday August 3: Stockton 99 Dirt Track
Friday August 9: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway
Saturday August 10: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway
Saturday August 31: Rattlesnake Raceway (Fallon Cantaloupe Festival)
Sunday September 1: Rattlesnake Raceway (Fallon Cantaloupe Festival)
Friday September 13: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway (Reno Air Races)
Saturday September 14: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway (Reno Air Races)
Saturday September 21: Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway
Saturday October 12: Kings Speedway (28th annual Cotton Classic)
Friday October 25: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway (Championship Weekend)
Saturday October 26: Reno Tahoe Fernley Speedway (Championship Weekend)