Local Headlines

by BJ Cavin- VSP Media

BARBERVILLE, FL- After nature put a damper on the festivities and forced the postponement of the Jack Miller Memorial "Holy Cow 25" last month, Volusia Speedway Park will welcome Florida's top Sprint Cars, sponsored by Bruce Rossmeyer's Daytona Harley-Davidson, as they gather to take on each other and the World's Fastest Half Mile. The Saturday, July 9th event will also feature action from the Florida Mini Sprint Association, plus fans will see the first appearance of the Daytona Antique Auto Racing Association at VSP in 2011. And as if that were not enough, four of Volusia's regular racing divisions will be in action as well.

As was the case when weather previously postponed the main events, everything will kick off on Friday night at 7:30PM at Destination Daytona, as Saints & Sinners will host another pre race meet and greet session. Not only will the top racers be on hand along with their machines, but so will many of the speedway officials, plus loyal and dedicated fans as well. The event is open to the public and will take place rain or shine. Fans and racers will also enjoy the Saturday Car Show and Swap Meet, beginning at 10AM on the front lawn of Volusia Speedway Park and lasting until the pit gates open at 4PM.

Bruce Rossmeyer's Daytona Harley-Davidson is once again thrilled to sponsor the most exciting Sprint Car Division in Florida as the top racers gather to honor the legacy and memory of Sprint Car Hall of Fame Announcer, Jack Miller. And as the racers take their places to run the "Holy Cow 25" this Saturday night, all will be focused on breaking the domination of Danny Martin Jr, who has managed to win every race so far in 2011 that he has participated in. To say that Martin is fast is an understatement, as he has used long green flag runs earlier in the year to build huge leads and lap his way into the top three in previous races. But Martin is not unbeatable, and now that nature is providing more changeable track conditions on race nights he has not managed to look quite as powerful. This event will offer even more motivation for others to step up and get past Martin, as everyone will want their name to be the first on the list as having won this prestigious event.

The supposed secret is out when it comes to the Florida Mini Sprint Association. Although their website still headlines the FMSA as "the best kept secret in Florida," the fans know that the secret is that when ever they are on the schedule, that the action will be fierce and the competition close. Their last appearance on the big half mile saw Steve Crabtree work his way from last up to third place while David Pleaugh scored his first win at VSP. The door will be wide open for another driver to step up and get a celebration in the Destination Daytona Victory Lane, so this week's race will again feature the same sort of excitement as fans have come to expect.

The Daytona Antique Auto Racing Association are no strangers to the fans at Volusia Speedway Park, but the vintage cars from the DAARA ranks have been MIA from the VSP schedule so far in 2011. They return this Saturday night and will turn their classic machines loose on the big half mile, sporting everything from stock cars, to modifieds, to sprint cars and midgets. History buffs will be thrilled with the show, and it will offer a prime opportunity for the new generation to see how it used to be at tracks all over the United States.

Despite some recent hiccups, Blaise Hetznecker still has the top spot with the Daytona Machine Shop Sportsman Division, and a couple of weeks off thanks to nature might have offered his team a chance to work some of the bugs out going into this week's race. But as the fans already know, it is the 11 machine that was stealing the show each week before things got wet, and no matter which driver is at the controls that car will be heading toward the front at the drop of the green flag. Paul and Steve Shead have been strong as of late, and Kyle Chappell has been competitive as well, so after a couple of weeks of sitting around you can bet that all will be out to win this weekend.

Recent history also shows that the more Philip Brown competes with the Daytona Sportswear Street Stocks, the more wins he collects the bigger his points lead gets. But before nature interrupted the action, Grady Christian had put Brown on a short leash and was serving notice that while Brown's points lead may be impressive, that doesn't make him invincible. Christian was all over Brown in their last meeting but failed to seal the deal, so expect sparks to fly this Saturday night.

Tom Hughes and Alan Peacock have got a score to settle between themselves in Volusia Speedway's Thunder Stock Division, and nature's two week interruption of their battle has not manage to wet down the fiery competition between them. Hughes holds the points lead with Peacock chasing him for the title, and Donnie Birdwell is still in the mix as the spoiler just waiting for a chance to make both frontrunners focus on something other than each other. And now another player has entered the fray as Brad Fender had the 69 in the top four back on June 11th and is well within reach of upsetting any of the top three.

The fans will have zero problem spotting the top man in the Sparkle and Shine Car Wash Challenger Division on Saturday night, as the new points leader has used his two week weather time out to put a rather eye catching paint job on his 004 machine. RJ Glaser took over the top spot from Casey Feaster before the rains came, and he is more than ready to make sure that things stay that way. Meanwhile Feaster now has his work cut out for him if he wants another points championship at Volusia Speedway, and if he wants to get back in front of Glaser in the points race the first step will be to actually be there to race, and then beat the 004. And after nature has rained on Denica "Rowdy" Hetznecker's attempts at debuting her new ride, this Saturday will offer another shot for "the beauty" to take on "the beasts" once again.

While the grandstand gate will open at 5:30PM this Saturday night, everyone is reminded to come early to allow time to enjoy the Car Show and Swap Meet taking place in front of the speedway. Racing action will begin at 7PM, and fans and racers holding either ticket stubs or wrist bands from the previous two rainouts will be able to redeem those for admission this weekend. Remember, rain passes are only good for two weeks after the date of issue, barring any further weather postponements that may happen in the meantime. For more information on this weekend's schedule, or any upcoming events at the World's Fastest Half Mile, please visit www.TheVolusiaspeedway.com.