Two new tracks and a 14-race schedule highlight the Silver Anniversary season for the National Championship Racing Association of Park City, Kansas, presented by Precise Racing Products sprint car division.

The 25th season for the tour will kick off huge with the fourth annual “Air Capital Shootout” at 81 Speedway in Park City on March 29. This event will pay $5000 to the night’s feature winner while drivers just starting the 20-car feature will earn $500.

From there the tour heads to the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, Kansas, on April 19.
Two consecutive weeks will see two tracks host their first CRA sprint show with the first coming at the Butler County Speedway in Rising City, Nebraska, on May 10. One week later the newest track that has been built in Oklahoma, Longdale Speedway in Longdale will host the series May 17.

It will be a “Hoosier Daddy” Father’s Day annual event on June 15 as the tour heads to 81 Speedway.

Then a huge sprint car doubleheader weekend takes place on June 28-29 as the tour joins forces with the American Sprint Car Series Sooner Region. It all starts that Friday night at the Tommie Estes Jr. promoted Dodge City Raceway Park in Dodge City, Kansas. From there both tours head to 81 Speedway in Park City.

Butler County Speedway will host the tour once again, this time on July 12.

The annual O’Reilly Auto Parts Hutchinson Grand Nationals is set July 25-26 atop the Kansas State Fairground in Hutchinson.

The annual Labor Day weekend trip to the Belleville High Banks Speedway in Belleville, Kansas, will take place August 31.

For the second year in a row, Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Nebraska, will host the tour on Sept. 6. Races at Longdale Speedway (Sept. 13) and 81 Speedway (Sept. 27) conclude the season.

NCRA Sprint Car Schedule:


March 29 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

April 19 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

May 10 Butler County Speedway Rising City, Neb.

May 17 Longdale Speedway Longdale, Okla.

June 15 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

June 28 Dodge City Raceway Park Dodge City, Kan.

June 29 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

July 12 Butler County Speedway Rising City, Neb.

July 25-26 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

August 31 Belleville High Banks Belleville, Kan.

Sept 6 Junction Motor Speedway McCool Junction, Neb.

Sept 13 Longdale Speedway Longdale, Okla.

Sept 27 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

The 31st season for the NCRA late model division will see a bit of a different schedule this year with a couple tracks back on the schedule and one annual event that will no longer take place.

The season kicks off one month earlier than normal as the Kansas State Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, Kansas will host the tour on Saturday night, April 19th.

The tour will then join forces with the MARS DIRT car late model series and head for a doubleheader weekend, kicking off on Friday night at Dodge City Raceway Park in Dodge City, Kan. Both tours will then load up and head to 81 Speedway in Park City for a Saturday night event at the home of the series.

81 Speedway will host the tour again on the annual “Hoosier Daddy” Father’s Day special on June 15.

The annual 4th of July weekend trip to the Belleville High Banks Speedway in Belleville, Kansas will take place July 5.

The beautiful Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb., will host the tour on July 12.

What would normally be the annual NCRA Late Model Nationals during the last weekend of July will not be taking place as Mid-Nebraska Speedway in Doniphan, Neb., has closed its doors. Instead the gladiators of the series will be part of the annual O’Reilly Auto Parts Hutchinson Grand Nationals July 26 atop the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, Kan.

Then it is off to the event that keeps getting bigger and bigger as the 11th annual “King of the Hill Late Model Shootout” at Junction Motor Speedway will greet not on only the NCRA but MARS and MLRA late model series Aug. 8-9.

Labor Day weekend means yet another trip to the Belleville (Kan.) High Banks Speedway Aug. 31.

For the third year in a row the tour will close out its season at the Salina (Okla.) High Banks Speedway Sept. 27.

NCRA Dirt Late Model Schedule:


April 19 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

May 3 Dodge City Raceway Park Dodge City, Kan.

May 4 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

June 15 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

July 5 Belleville High Banks Belleville, Kan.

July 12 Junction Motor Speedway McCool Junction, Neb.

July 26 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

August 8-9 Junction Motor Speedway McCool Junction, Neb.

August 31 Belleville High Banks Belleville, Kan.

Sept 27 Salina High Banks Speedway Salina, Okla.

NCRA also released schedules for the NCRA Southern Sport Mod class and the modified division.

NCRA Southern Sport Mod Schedule:


May 4 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

May 31 Route 66 Motor Speedway Amarillo, Texas

July 4 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

July 25-26 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

August 16 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

September 13 Salina High Banks Speedway Salina, Okla.

September 27 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

NCRA Modified Schedule:


April 11-12 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

April 19 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

June 14 Salina High Banks Speedway Salina, Okla.

June 19 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

July 4 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

July 5 Belleville High Banks Speedway Belleville, Kan.

July 25-26 Kansas State Fairgrounds Hutchinson, Kan.

August 23 Route 66 Motor Speedway Amarillo, Texas

August 31 Belleville High Banks Speedway Belleville, Kan.

October 11 81 Speedway Park City, Kan.

Racing Electronics President and CEO Bruce Silver announced that RE has partnered with Energizer.  

“Battery technology has advanced so much in the last few years," said Silver,  “and Energizer has clearly stayed out in front of it. We are thrilled to announce to our customers that Energizer’s  technology will power all of our products in 2014, beginning with the Daytona 500, giving them peace of mind. This kind of commitment is what keeps us the number one supplier of race communications with race fans.”

Not only will Energizer batteries be the power source for all Racing Electronics products, but some fun marketing initiatives were announced as well.  Race fans might just see The Energizer Bunny at select races.  Social media outreach via “The Digital Energizer” will begin, starting with The Daytona 500, directing fans to RE trailers for special promotions. Coupons and promotional items will be given away at select events. And, at other select events, customers will be able to exchange their batteries for a fresh set of complimentary Energizer batteries.

“Energizer is excited to be the official battery supplier for Racing Electronics. This partnership is a natural fit for both companies which will provide teams and race fans with a high quality and long lasting listening experience while at the track,” said Brad Harrison, Vice President of North America Marketing, Energizer Household Products.

Team Penske has announced that Hawk Performance Products Group, a division of Carlisle Companies, will sponsor the No. 2 Dallara/Chevrolet driven by former Indianapolis 500 winner, former CART Series champion and former Formula One (F1) race winner Juan Pablo Montoya in the 2014 IndyCar Series.

Hawk Performance will serve as primary sponsor for the No. 2 Team Penske IndyCar at two events and three races in 2014—the dual race weekend on the streets of Toronto, Ontario, July 19-20 and the series race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on August 3. The high-performance friction product manufacturer will also be an associate sponsor for the balance of the season and the company’s logo and branding will be featured on the front wing of the Team Penske machine driven by Montoya for the remaining 15 races that make up the 18-race IndyCar Series schedule in 2014.

While this marks the first primary sponsorship opportunity with Team Penske for the company that designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of products, Carlisle has been a member of the organization’s partner lineup since 2011.

“Carlisle Companies is a well-established global brand that has become integrated into Team Penske over the last several years,” said Roger Penske. “We are pleased to grow the partnership to include their Hawk Performance brand as both primary and associate sponsors of the No. 2 IndyCar. Our race cars already feature many of the products manufactured by Carlisle so this is the type of collaboration we are very proud of at Team Penske.”

The Colombian-born Montoya, the 1999 CART champion and 2000 Indy 500 winner, makes his return to American open-wheel competition this season after competing in NASCAR and F1 for the last 13 years.

“This continues to be a dream situation for me as I move back to IndyCar,” said Montoya. “My goal was just to race for Roger Penske but to have great companies like Carlisle and Hawk Performance come on board to support our program is very humbling. I will be working very hard to get them to victory lane this season.”

“We are excited to be able align the Carlisle performance brake brand with such a successful program as the Team Penske IndyCar Series team,” said Carlisle Chairman Dave Roberts, a racer himself that competes in sports car and off-road racing. “The Penske relationship has been quite impactful thus far. With the addition of a driver the caliber of Juan Pablo Montoya we are confident that we will continue to compete for race wins in 2014.”

Allen Bestwick has agreed to a multi-year deal with ESPN and will become the lap-by-lap announcer for the network's coverage of the IndyCar Series.

He'll call the Indianapolis 500 and four other IndyCar races on ABC. ABC will televise the Indy 500 for the 50th straight year. He'll work in the booth with Scott Goodyear and Eddie Cheever.

Bestwick has been part of ESPN's NASCAR coverage since 2007. He'll continue to anchor the network's NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series telecasts in 2014, the final year of ESPN's contract to televise live NASCAR racing.

Bestwick will add play-by-play on college football telecasts for ESPN, a variety of collegiate sports on the upcoming SEC Network, and other duties to his racing coverage in 2015.

Bestwick has anchored ESPN's NASCAR coverage since July of 2011. He previously was host of the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program from mid-2007 through mid-2011 while also calling selected races from the booth, and was a pit reporter for part of the 2007 season.

The recently formed Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA) named VP Racing Fuels as the “Official Fuel Supplier” for the all-eighth-mile drag racing series. In addition, VP Racing Fuels will sponsor a Low Qualifier award for Extreme Pro Stock at each of eight scheduled PDRA events this year.

“We’re very happy to be associated with the PDRA,” VP Racing Fuels Director of Marketing Steve Scheidker stated. “We’ve been a longtime supporter and fuel supplier for eighth-mile outlaw doorslammer racing and this relationship with PDRA further demonstrates our commitment to this important segment of drag racing.”

PDRA race teams also can look forward to seeing a VP Racing Fuels truck providing exclusive on-site sales at each PDRA event.

“VP offers the best fuels on the market for racing on the ragged edge while still providing the best protection for high-dollar, high-performance drag racing engines,” said Jason Rueckert, VP’s Regional Manager-Midwest. “So we feel it’s vitally important to actually be at the track and make these fuels available to PDRA teams. We also encourage racers to take advantage of our full-time professional tech support staff, who can advise them on fuel selection and tuning.”

PDRA Race Director Bob Harris said VP Racing Fuels also will provide spec fuels this season for the Extreme Pro Stock class, though specific blends have not yet been confirmed.

“We are thrilled and thankful to have an industry leader like VP Racing Fuels throw its support behind the PDRA in our inaugural year,” Harris said. “Most importantly, though, I think VP’s involvement will greatly benefit our race teams, which remains our first priority.”

Clevite engine bearings, a product of MAHLE Aftermarket, will join Engine Pro as a marketing and performance partner with Must See Racing Xtreme Sprint Series (MSRXSS ) for 2014.

The winged sprint series starts its fifth year of racing April 11, 2014 on some of the best circle tracks in the nation including Anderson Speedway, Lucas Oil Raceway and Berlin Raceway.

Ted Hughes, Marketing Manager for MAHLE Aftermarket Inc. said, "Must See Racing is about racers pushing their cars to the limits, and since MAHLE Aftermarket manufactures performance parts capable of withstanding those limits, this sponsorship is a natural fit."

Engine Pro president Don Weber added, "Must See Racing represents the future of automobile racing. MSRXSS presents competition that is exciting, professional and fun to watch, whether you're a die-hard race fan or a casual enthusiast.” Weber says that Engine Pro’s sponsorship of the series makes sense because Engine Pro manufactures and distributes engine parts for every vehicle from the family mini-van to ultraperformance racing cars.”

Along with MAHLE Aftermarket and its Clevite engine bearing brand, several of Engine Pro’s key suppliers are also participating in MSRXSS programs in 2014 including ARP, Dura-Bond, Ferrea, Hastings Manufacturing, MAHLE Motorsports, Melling Performance and Rollmaster/Romac.

Jim Hanks of Must See Racing concluded, “We always welcome our sponsors’ passion and support for short track racing. Engine Pro and its key suppliers are a great asset for our teams on the race track and a major supporter of the MSRXSS television programming including replays appearing on MAVTV & other national networks. We are excited to bring the “World’s Fastest Short Track Cars” into the homes of race fans worldwide.”

A new series, the US Prototype Championship (USPC) has been launched by the North American Road Racing Association (NARRA). Akin to popular European series such as the French V de V Championship, it is open to a wide range of prototype sports cars, including makes such as West, Wolf, Élan and Stohr. Up to three "exploratory" events will be held this year, including next month at NOLA Motorsports Park, March 21-23, in preparation for an inaugural championship commencing 2015.
 
While open to all prototypes, the series is particularly aimed at attracting:   
 
• West and Élan IMSA Prototype Lites sports cars in current and former specs
 
• Popular SCCA CSR and DSR cars (now P1 and P2) such as the Stohr
 
• FIA CN homologated cars from Wolf, Tatuus, & Ligier
 
• European V de V Championship and SPEED EuroSeries eligible cars
 
• Trackday cars like Caterham SP/300R and Praga R1
 
• Radical Sportscars ineligible for Radical Cup USA.

The US Prototype Championship aims to complement the NARRA sanctioned Radical Cup spec series and promises a simple classing structure akin to the power-to-weight classes of NARRA's successful US GT Championship and Whelen US TimeTrial Championship.


"NARRA has had the concept of the US Prototype Championship for a few years. However recently we were approached by both manufacturers and local agents expressing their desire to see an entry-level national championship for the cars they sell. That level of interest has been the catalyst, and signals the potential such as series can have," commented NARRA General Manager Aaron Hmel.



"While the Radical Cup USA offers an unrivaled spec series option, the US Prototype Championship creates a place for a number of manufacturers to play, and more importantly a home for the owners of all sorts of existing cars, who essentially have no race series to call their own," he added.



"The events this year will be exhibition races, exploratory events so we can see the cars in question and see how they perform against each other. With this data we will then devise a set of rules that creates strong competition while being flexible enough to allow all to compete, ready for 2015."



The first US Prototype Championship exhibition race will occur at NOLA Motorsports Park, Louisiana, March 21-23. The event will also feature the US GT Championship, open to all GT racing cars, the Whelen US TimeTrial Championship time-attack series and a SOLO run group allowing owners to track their road cars during a real race meeting. Interested participants can enter at NARRAonline.com .

The CBS Sports Network will televise at least three live ARCA Racing Series events this year.

CBS Sports Network’s coverage, part of its CBS Sports Spectacular programming, begins with the Akona 250 on June 21 from Elko (Minnesota) Speedway. In addition, CBS Sports Network will televise races from Winchester (Indiana) Speedway on July 6 and Madison International Speedway in Oregon, Wisconsin, on August 24.

“We are pleased to provide additional exposure of the ARCA Racing Series on CBS Sports Network,” said Mark Gundrum, ARCA vice president for business development and corporate partnerships. “This opportunity is great for the teams, sponsors and fans of the series.”

CBS Sports Network’s coverage will include some of the series’ best short-track races.

“The ARCA short-track race events are some of the best each year and we’re excited to bring the side-by-side action to CBS Sports Network’s viewers,” Gundrum concluded.

Toy maker TONKA has become a partner with Team Lucas for the 2014 Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series and the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League.

TONKA, manufactured and licensed by Funrise Toy Corp., under license from Hasbro, made its debut in the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series last year, sponsoring Pro 2 driver Myan Spaccarelli of Simi Valley, California.

“We decided to sponsor Myan Spaccarelli to explore the program and experienced such amazing success and welcoming reactions from the racing public that it made sense to partner with Team Lucas in 2014 to expand our presence,” Funrise Vice-President of Marketing Kathy Hawk explained. “We want to continue to be the destination for kids in setting up TONKA fun zones at each race, where they can come play and get hands on with TONKA toys in our sand pits.

“In addition, we are sponsoring each off-road race track’s five safety team vehicles, which will carry TONKA branding, and the crews, who will be wearing TONKA-branded fire suits.”

TONKA also has created a 15-foot inflatable dump truck that will be stationed on the track and will be selling off-road merchandise-t-shirts, hats, etc., at all events.

“The off-road program is only on the West Coast and we wanted to be involved in something that reached our fans in the Midwest,” Hawk said. “Pro Pulling was the obvious choice for TONKA. It just fits the brand and it resonates with hard-working families.”

TONKA will be sponsoring the Sullivan Racing modified tractor team in the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League.

TONKA will consider jumping into more events offered in the Team Lucas portfolio during the 2014 season.

“We’re definitely open to being a part of events as they come up,” Hawk said. “We are always happy to be able to provide a destination for kids and parents to come play with TONKAs in-between races. They always leave with a smile.”
 

A.E.D. Motorsport Products welcomes Megan Huckaby to the team as part of a new effort to increase social media coverage and customer interaction.

“With two new product lines, Custom Streamline Tube and Docol R8 tube, Megan will be a great asset in promoting to new, and existing customers,” A.E.D. President Al Lowe said. “The world is evolving and our global business continues to expand – so we need to adjust our online presence accordingly.”

Huckaby will take control of the A.E.D. Facebook (facebook.com/pages/AED-Motorsport-Products) and Twitter (@AEDMtrspt) accounts to better interact with customers and even help promote them at times. She also will help A.E.D. with marketing, website maintenance and any other forms of social media that can be useful. A.E.D. is committed to providing the best experience for its clients.

“I am ecstatic to be working with A.E.D. and their clients,” she said. “I hope to give them an advantage in the world of social media. A strong campaign is important, especially in motorsports, where sponsorship and exposure is key. Even a behind-the-scenes player like A.E.D. can benefit from the right strategy.”

Huckaby is a 2012 graduate of the University of Arkansas. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and began her career in Mississippi as a news reporter. In June 2013 she moved to Indianapolis and began work as the Communications Manager with the Indiana Motorsports Association.