Previewing the regional Dirt Late Model series
By Todd Turner
DirtonDirt.com managing editor
With the national tours getting their wheels on the ground during Florida Speedweeks, now it's time for the regional Dirt Late Model series to get cranking with several scheduling their debuts for the first weekend in March. DirtonDirt.com checks in with nearly every series throughout the country to see who's traveling to new tracks, who's instituting new rules and who's making changes with purses. Check out complete capsules for each series for the North, South, Midwest and West with these links, and get a preview below of regional highlights:
Midwest
WISSOTA's Dart Challenge Series is gunning to schedule a series-high 20 races. ... Iowa's Dart Corn Belt Clash has taken the challenge of trying to replace the defunct World Dirt Racing League as it focuses on open-competition Late Models. ... The 25th anniversary of IMCA's Deery Brothers Summer Series is the richest ever and plans three special events for past and current champions. ... The Lucas Oil Midwest LateModel Racing Association adds the $25,000-to-win Silver Dollar Nationals at I-80 Speedway to its schedule. ... Terry Phillips is gunning for an unprecedented fourth consecutive championship on the MARS DIRTcar Series. ... More Oklahoma races are scheduled on the Midwest DIRTcar Late Model Series this season. ... Monster Midwest Series founder Don Hammer has sold half of the series to Gerald Newton of Arizona Sport Shirts. ... The National Championship Racing Association has added an offshoot miniseries with the Great Plains Region. ... The Northern Allstars Late Model Series is again anchored by the Tri-Track Challenge, which opens in Highland, Ill. ... The Northern LateModel Racing Association has eight straight days of action scheduled for mid-August. ... The Race Brothers Show-Me Racin' Series has new owners in Bill and Cathy McMurtrie. ... The Sunoco American Late Model Series season plans a three-wide start at Eldora. ... Nebraska's Super Late Model Racing Series heads to Dawson County Raceway for the first time. ... The UMP DIRTcar Summernationals considers new rules for provisional starters.
North
The third-year CenturyLink Appalachian Mountain Speedweek drops Selinsgrove, adds Roaring Knob. ... The D&D Auto Recycling Steel Block Bandits get a new title sponsor and make a trip to Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway for the Greg Kerr Memorial. ... Looking for unique restarts? The Northern Tier United Late Model Series plans to go with "Double Delaware" double-file restarts with the top two cars single-filed out front. ... After losing four potential races, the Ontario Dirt Late Models circuit is down to four races, including its first-ever at South Buxton Raceway. ... The O'Reilly All Star Late Model Series cuts the total purse to $26,000 from $32,000 in looking for a sweet spot between bigger and smaller series. ... The Three State Flyers add a point fund for the first time. ... The Pennsylvania-based UFO Race Championship shares engine and body rules with nine regional tracks to help streamline tech inspection.
South
The Carolina Clash Super Late Model Series makes its first trip to Tennessee with two races at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn. ... The Mid-South Racing Association is christened the Comp Cams Super Dirt Series after a three-year agreement with the Memphis, Tenn.-based company. ... The Hedman Hedders National Late Model Series cuts back to 14 races on the initial schedule. ... The Mississippi State Championship Challenge Series loses the site of its traditional opener. ... Two trips to Texas Motor Speedway highlight the O'Reilly Southern United Professional Racing schedule, including for the opener. ... The Promoters Racing Organization Dirt Car Series lands sponsorship of the $7,000-to-win Gumbo Nationals in Greenville, Miss. ... The age-old Southern All Stars have fewest races scheduled in more than 20 years. ... The Ray Cook-promoted Southern Nationals Series is hoping negotiations with a potential title sponsor are fruitful. ... Under new direction, the Southern Regional Racing Series hits five new tracks. ... The STARS Midwest Dirt Racing League debuts running most of its races outside the Midwest. ... Its sister STARS Volunteer Racing Series has its biggest event at Wartburg (Tenn.) Speedway. ... The future of the Clash South Tour is uncertain. ... The first-year Ultimate Super Late Model Series tries to blend a variety of engine combinations in merging the Southern All Star East and Fastrak organizations. ... Fewer than a dozen races are scheduled on the Florida-based United Dirt Late Model Challenge Series.
West
The Championship Late Model Association DIRTcar Series drops "Colorado" from its name and for the second year in a row doesn't run a single race in the state. ... The second-year Mountain States Late Model Tour joins CLMA for Fourth of July weekend at Aztec (N.M.) Speedway. ... The Northwest I-5 DIRTcar Late Model Series returns after a one-year hiatus with nine races among three tracks. ... The Arizona-based Total Seal Late Model Dirt Racing Series returns to USA Raceway in Tucson for several events. ... Lucrative Memorial Day weekend event at Santa Maria (Calif.) Speedway highlights the West Coast Late Model Shootout schedule. ... Like its sister series in the Pacific Northwest, the Western Allstars DIRTcar Series is revived with 14 races at eight tracks in California and Nevada.
