‘Common’ Yet ‘Varied’ Are Key Words For Season Closing UNOH Sprintacular
3 min read
ROSSBURG, OH (October 10) – For Saturday’s (October 12) season-closing UNOH Sprintacular at Eldora Speedway there is one common element, Sprint Car, but from thereon ‘common’ switches to ‘variety’.
From aerodynamic wing permission, to engine size, to tire rules, to weight limits and right on down to race format each of the competing sanctioning bodies will present their version of Sprint Car racing Saturday night. Participating in the Sprintacular will be the All Star Sprints, NRA Sprint Invaders and BOSS (Buckeye Outlaw Sprint Series), as they each close out their 2013 racing season as well.
Top mounted aerodynamic wings of up to 25 square feet are permitted by All Star and NRA guidelines, but the BOSS group remains wingless, opting to go with the oft-referred to ‘traditional’ status. Winged race cars were unheard of until 1958, when Ohio’s Jim Cushman began racing with his homemade version at Columbus Motor Speedway. Since then, the majority of the nation’s Sprint Car organizations have adopted them; however, BOSS and a select few other sanctioning bodies have remained true to the roots of the Sprint Car racing.
When it comes to engines, none of the three groups share common ground. The All Stars have a 410 cubic inch restriction and NRA competitors are limited to 360 cubic inches; however, the BOSS group places no restrictions on the engine, other than it must be a small block.
With their abbreviated rule book, the BOSS fraternity has no tire rule in place. Such is not the case for the All Stars and NRA. They each have contracted with Hoosier Racing Tire for individual tire specs, with applicable tire compounding and/or stamped tires.
All Star Sprints have a minimum weight requirement of 1375 pounds with the driver and the NRA standard is 1475 pounds; but again, the abridged BOSS rule book places no weight restrictions upon the competing car and driver.
Beyond the car construction, Saturday’s diversity carries over to the race format; allowing the fans multiple opportunities to witness the unfolding of race line-ups throughout the evening.
Each group goes about determining race line-ups in different ways. The All Star Sprints utilize single-car, two lap time trial runs, while the NRA Sprint Invaders use their ‘hot lap’ session as multi-car qualifying sessions; four cars at a time on the track recording lap times. A fan favorite pre-race draw of numbers is how the BOSS Sprints are lined up.
Common, yet different, every car competing Saturday evening on Eldora’s legendary .500-mile clay oval will be classified as a Sprint Car; running under the guidelines of their respective organization.
Of note to the race fan is the earlier starting time for Saturday’s end to the 60th year of racing at Eldora. Because of the cooler seasonal temperatures, the hot lap sessions take to the track at 4:30 p.m. with the first green flag of competition scheduled to drop at 6 p.m.
Complete event and ticket information for the UNOH Sprintacular may be obtained by visiting the track’s website www.EldoraSpeedway.com, or by calling the speedway office at (937) 338-3815. Additionally, race fans and race teams can get behind-the-scenes access by following @EldoraSpeedway on Twitter, hitting ‘Like’ at Facebook.com/EldoraSpeedway and view video highlights at YouTube.com/EldoraSpeedwayInc. The Eldora Speedway app for the iPhone, iPad and Android is available for download via iTunes and Google Play.
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