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HAVASU 95 SPEEDWAY PRESENTS A THANKSGIVING BOUNTY OF RACING THIS SATURDAY BY DAVE GRAYSON The Havasu 95 Speedway will be spending their Thanksgiving weekend treating their fans to some red hot ASA sanctioned racing. The most scenic asphalt oval in the southwest, located in the Sara Park complex in Lake Havasu City-Arizona, will drop the green flag on this Saturday afternoon of racing featuring the Gene Price Motorsports Late Model River Series, along with their modified and factory stock divisions. The Gene Price Motorsports Late Model River Series features eight championship points events hosted equally by the Havasu 95 Speedway and the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway located in Blythe-California. The series title sponsor is a famed facility, located in Parker-Arizona, that is the headquarters of a racing team, a race car fabrication facility and a racing parts retail center. They in turn are joined by a merchandise associate sponsorship from Mac Tools. The ante for the series race this Saturday night has been raised. The normally scheduled 50 lap feature race has been raised to 75 laps. The normal winner's purse valued at $500 has been raised to $1,000. There's one other aspect to the series that has also been raised. That would be the level of competition. That's due to series defending champion, and current championship points leader, Austin Murphy. The young Lancaster-California driver, in the series' first three races, has accumulated two feature wins and a second place finish along with 148 championship points. But Murphy will have to keep a sharp eye on the presence of Mark Schriner, the former Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway track champion, who is second and just 20 markers away from the points leader. In turn Schriner will have to maintain an awareness of who's behind him and how close they are. Mike Sutterfield is only two points behind Schriner while Bobby Keirns is four points away from second and Shelby Orozco is eight points away. With a possible shake up in the points, combined with a $1,000 winner's check, Saturday night's late model race could get very intense. Those thunder making, ground shaking, modifieds will also be a big part of the Havasu 95 Speedway program this Saturday night. Riverside-California's Jim Mardis is expected to cross the Arizona state line again to try to put some padding on a very slim division points lead. Mardis has 98 points based on a feature win and a second place finish. However reigning track champion Chris Gerchman, with a win and a third place finish, is only two points behind him. The remainder of the Lake Havasu City racing Gerchman family is lined up right behind the two drivers. Larry Gerchman holds down third and is only 12 markers away from first while David Gerchman is in fourth 20 points away from the leader. For quite some time now the factory stock division has been a fan favorite and the Havasu 95 Speedway has one of the best factory stock programs in the southwest. 26 teams are registered for the current winter racing series. Lisa Snell leads the points standings going into Saturday night with 174 points based on a feature win, two top fives and two top tens. However that's only a four point lead over former division champion Scott Allen who has a consistent three top five finishes and a top ten. Shawn Deitch, who also has a feature win this season, is third in the standings and only six points away from the leader. Chris Blackwell holds down fourth in the standings just eight points away from the top. Not to be overlooked here is the presence of Monica Lisbony who won the division's last feature race back on November 14th. The racing weekend at the Havasu 95 Speedway actually begins on Friday night with a test and tune session for the racing teams from five to eight pm. This practice session is free of charge to spectators. On Saturday race day the spectator gates will open at 12 noon with the racing getting underway at 2 pm. Tickets for adults are $12 and $10 for seniors 55 plus, military personnel and the handicapped. Kids tickets, ages six to 16, are $6 while kids five and under are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. The speedway also offers a family package for $25 which admits two adults and two kids. Fans can also enjoy the special amenities of the speedway's VIP section, featuring the best seats in the house, for $25. For out of town race teams and fans the Days Inn is the official motel of the Havasu 95 Speedway. They offer beautiful and spacious rooms at very affordable rates. Call 928 855 7841 or toll free at 800 835 2410 for reservations which can also be made on line. |