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By Rick HumphreyGazette Sports ReporterGASTONIA — Charlie Gunn is already calling it the biggest race to ever come to Carolina Speedway.And he’s got a good reason to.Wednesday night, some of thebest dirt track racers in theSoutheast will converge on the 4/10-milc speedway as the Ilav-A-Tampa Southern All Star Dirt Racing Series comes to town.Wednesday night’s 50-lap Super Late Model feature is the first of four in the Car-olinas in a four-day stretch. I-85 Speedway in Greer, S.C., will host the series Thursday night, followed by Sunset Speedway in Charlotte on Friday night. The series will be run at Cherokee Speedway Saturday night“This is going to be the most cars and a better class of carsas we’ve ever had here,’’ said Gunn, promoter of Carolina Speedway for the last eight years. “It’s going to be a good show.”Among the many entrants in the $3,000-to-win event is Buck Simmons, who drives for Gastonia car owner Wade Hegler.Simmons, of Baldwin, Ga., is currently leading the circuit’s point standings, despite not having won a race this season.Simmons has started on the front row six of the first 10 races and on the pole at four$10,000-to-win races. But little things, such as a flat tire on the last lap while leading, have kept the team winless.“We’re running good, we just can’t get the breaks,” saidHegler. “The biggest discouragement is the damage to the pocketbook. We’ve lost a lot of races before. It’s not losing that’s so bad, but we’ve won$10,000 and we feel like we should’ve won between $40-$50,000.”Simmons will have to contend with the likes of Scott Bloomquist, Ronnie Johnson, Clint Smith, Mike Duvall, Bill and Frank Ingram and many others Wednesday night. The top three finishers in the event qualify for September’s Hav-A-Tampa Shootout at Dixie Speedway in Woodbridge, Ga.Local drivers will also have the opportunity to shine in front of the crowd Wednesday night.Also on the schedule are features for the Limited Late Model, Thunder and Lightning, Superstock, Modified 4-cylinder and Stock 4-cylinder divisions.Gates open at 3 p.m. and racing begins at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $10 for the grandstands and $15 for the pits.
Newspaper Details
The Gaston Gazette
Gastonia, North Carolina, US
Tue, Apr 13, 1993
Page 18
Full Page
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NC, USA 28 Sep 2020
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