TOLEDO, Ohio (March 28, 2016) – The countdown to 100 is on; in fact, the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will be making its 99th appearance at Salem Speedway Fueled by the Hoosier Lottery Sunday, April 24 for the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200.
The 64-year-old stock car tour has been racing at Salem since 1955. That said, no track has appeared on ARCA’s annual schedule more than Salem.
Defending winning team Ken Schrader Racing already has a jump on this year’s competition, testing at the track last week with driver Matt Kurzejewski. Kurzejewski, from Mansfield, Pa., had never seen the place before.
“Interesting place,” Kurzejewski said first. “When I came in after our first run, Kenny (Schrader) said, ‘What do you think?’ I said, ‘This place is breathtaking.’”
Kurzejewski quickly added, “I like it…it’s right up my alley.”
He also found out that to go fast through turns three and four, you have to get comfortable right up next to the wall.
“Actually, I was much more comfortable next to the wall in three and four than I was away from it in one and two. The paving’s different and rougher down there in one and two. I really had to fight it down there more than right up next to the wall at the other end.
“Overall, it went very, very smooth. I was very comfortable in the long runs…that’s what we focused on. Having a car that’s comfortable, even after the tires fall off, is key there, from what I could tell.
“We put stickers (new tires) on it too…no mock qualifying runs though…but we did that so I could get a feel for what it’s like when the tires fall off, especially after all the heat cycles the tires go through.”
Kurzejewski is the defending General Tire Superspeedway Challenge champion.
More ARCA Testers coming:
More ARCA teams are on the way to Salem for the opportunity to test ahead of the race, including Venturini Motorsports scheduled for Tuesday, March 29. Also tentatively on the test schedule are Lira Motorsports (April 13), Cunningham Motorsports (April 14) and Athenian Motorsports (April 15).
The 99th ARCA race at Salem sets the stage for the much-anticipated 100th race coming September 10.
Past ARCA Racing Series winners at Salem include NASCAR Cup champions Bobby Allison and Benny Parsons, 1952 Indianapolis 500 winner Troy Ruttman, six-time ARCA champion Iggy Katona, Ken Schrader, 10-time ARCA champion Frank Kimmel (9-time Salem winner), and three-time ARCA champions Jack Bowsher and Tim Steele. NASCAR drivers Justin Allgaier, Brian Keselowski, Chris Buescher and Brennan Poole have also visited victory lane in ARCA competition at Salem.
The Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 will spread out over two days, Saturday and Sunday, April 23-24. Practice for the race will include two sessions Saturday afternoon from 12:00 noon to 12:45 and final practice from 1:15 to 2:00, with Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell at 3:30. Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 raceday festivities get underway with an on-track driver autograph session from 11:30 to 12:30 followed by the Great American Stock feature event at 1:00. Pre-race ceremonies, ARCA driver introductions and the Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 follow.
For ticket info, visit SalemSpeedway.com.
About Automobile Racing Club of America:
The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards features 20 events at 18 tracks on its 2016 schedule. The series has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 racetracks in 28 states since its inception. The series tests the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, annually visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as left- and right-turn road courses.
