Posted by Langley Austin on October 11, 2007, 11:00 pm
Message modified by board administrator October 12, 2007, 2:18 am

THREE BIG RACES -- ALL ONE DAY ... SUNDAY Is this Stupid ... Or Will It Even Make A Difference??? Commentary by: Langley Austin/RACE22.com Wytheville, VA ~ Big Race Season for Late Model Stock Cars is always my favorite time of the year ... when the haulers begin to roll into Martinsville Speedway for the week before the Bailey's 300 test session, I get excited, but this weekend makes for a hard choice. This weekend on Saturday, October 13th and Sunday, October 14th three of the biggest Late Model Stock Car races will happen on the same day with qualifying on Saturday and racing on Sunday at all three venues. The three venues that Late Model Stock Cars will take to the asphalt on this weekend is; Friendship Motor Speedway in Elkin, NC, Hickory Motor Speedway in Hickory, NC and the Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, NC ... all with in a one and half drive of each other. Having three big races at three different tracks all on Sunday afternoon seems on the surface to be a bad idea, it seems that maybe they would each fare differently if they fell on a different day or weekend, but maybe that isn't the case at all. I'm not speaking from facts as I do not have the entry lists or race results from last years events at each track(note: Friendship and Hickory raced on the same day last year as well), but I would venture to say that not more than five drivers that go to one track or the other this weekend would race in the opposing races even if they didn't happen to fall on the same day or weekend. One exception to that rule would be BJ Mackey of Rock Hill, SC who is expected to compete in the Mid-Atlantic Championship 250 at Caraway Speedway this weekend. Mackey won the Late Model Truck championship at Caraway Speedway last season, but was also the 2006 winner of the Fall Brawl 250 at Hickory Motor Speedway, the same race being held there this weekend. Mackey has spent most of the 2007 season on the UARA-STARS Late Model Stock Car touring series, but also competed in the Rusty Harpe Memorial at Caraway in July and the Bobby Isaac Memorial 200 at Hickory on Labor Day ... so his choice has to be a tough one. Other drivers having to make a choice this weekend would be the other UARA-STARS regulars, who are off this weekend in preparation for next weeks visit to the Concord Motorsport Park. A couple of the other regulars like Mackey made a visit to the Bobby Isaac Memorial 200 such as early season Hickory winner, Lucas Ransone and Jake "The Snake" Crum, who won his first UARA race earlier this season were both at Hickory on Labor Day. Both drivers are expected to be at Caraway Speedway on Sunday and plan to use the Mid-Atlantic Championship at Caraway this weekend as a test session to help them prepare for the November 3rd trip to the 4/10 mile track for the season finale in the UARA-STARS series. Other UARA regulars such as Mark Setzer and young, Darrell Wallace, Jr. are expected to compete in the Fall Brawl at Hickory on Sunday leaving me to believe that both Caraway and Hickory have more to lose than Friendship Motor Speedway, who will host the Fall Final 150. Friendship has it's own group of drivers and teams, that compete their off and on during the season and the track regulars. I honestly don't believe that Friendship, car count wise will be hurt by the other two races, maybe a few fans will go somewhere other than where they normally would, but I don't really think it will make much of a difference either way. One of the biggest names to decide on a race to compete in was former NASCAR Busch Series driver, Shane Huffman who will pilot the Long Brothers owned number 22 car, that Dennis Setzer piloted to victory lane at Martinsville Speedway in the Bailey's 300 a couple of weeks ago. That gives the Hickory event a big boost as well as the addition of Jarit Johnson, brother of NASCAR Nextel Cup defending champion, Jimmie Johnson to the Late Model Stock Car field for the Fall Brawl 250. I think that Caraway Speedway made a poor choice moving their big race to the same weekend in which was already shared by Hickory and Friendship, but they did it in a smart way taking a typical $5,000 to win Mid-Atlantic Championship event and turning it into a $10,000 to win race, which will likely draw them a handful of cars out of Virginia and may sway some of the drivers on the fence about whether to go to there or to Hickory. Of course Caraway's normal big race date on the final Sunday in October was overshadowed by the Saturday night show that South Boston Speedway will host with the SoBo Invitational 300, a race usually held the second Saturday in Novemeber. I know I'll be making the trip to the Hickory Motor Speedway this weekend for the Fall Brawl 250, but I might make a stop in Elkin, NC on the way back home on Saturday evening to watch the very unique qualifying procedure used at Friendship for the Fall Final 150 and I'll be keeping an eye on what's going on at both Caraway and Friendship all weekend as well. RACE22.com is planning to have triple coverage of the races this weekend! On Saturday, Sunday and into Monday evening with all the photos, audio and video we can get this weekend ... so stay tuned to RACE22.com all weekend long for "All Late Model Stock Cars, ALL THE TIME!"