MINERSVILLE, PA. -- The oldest sprint car touring series in the country makes its only appearance of the year in coal region on Friday night as the United Racing Club 360 sprint cars invade Big Diamond Speedway for the Schuylkill Mall ‘Night of Wings’.
The CJ’s Tire & Automotive Services 358 modifieds will sport sail panels, which are mandatory for this event as the four-division show will feature the Savage 61 roadrunners and and Endruo Dash 60.
Davie Franek, of Wantage, N.J. and Sunbury’s Mark Smith, have scored three wins each while Ryan Kissinger, of Bloomsburg, and Greg Hodnett, of Thomasville, have one win apiece heading into Tuesday’s night race at the Brett Deyo-promoted show at New Egypt Speedway (N.J.).
“I love it,” Franek said of racing at Big Diamond. “To be honest with you, I think it’s one of the raciest tracks we go to. It’s the prefect size for sprint-car racing. You can race the top and the bottom of the track at feature time. If you have a good car, you can get to the front.”
After getting off to a torrid start, Franek said the team has struggled the past few weeks while still maintaining the URC points lead.
“We had a flat at Utica-Rome Speedway while running fourth in the feature in our last URC outing,” he said.
Franek’s wins have come at Bridgeport (N.J.), Orange Count (N.Y.) and Delaware International (Del.) speedways. He leads Robbie Stillwaggon by 14 points going into Tuesday’s race while multi-time club champion Curt Michael is third in points, 72 points behind Franek.
Josh Weller won the URC feature last season at Big Diamond.
The gates will open Friday at 5:30 with hot laps at 7:45 and racing gets underway at 8:15. General admission is $22 while kids 12-and-under and active military with a valid ID are free.
Next Friday, June 24, the track will host the Jasen's Automotive Night as a four-division show is headlined by the Street Stock Summer Shootout 30. The feature pays $1,081 to win with an open draw for heats and a redraw for the feature. Big Diamond Speedway street stock drivers will be awarded 50 show up points with Big Diamond and Susquehanna Speedway rules applying (no strut cars). Also, a cash dash will take place for $200 to win.
The 358 modifieds, sportsman and roadrunners will round out the card on June 24.
Then in two weeks, it's the prestigious B&H Landscaping George-Georgie Stevenson Memorial on July 1. The 30-lap feature for the 358 modifieds pays $4,000 to win and $300 to take the green along with the Mark’s Service Center cash dash. The sportsman feature pays $1,000 to win. Also on the card on July 1 will be the roadrunners, 600 modifieds and fireworks. Admission on July 1 is $25 while kids 12-and-under and active military with a valid ID are free.
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