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2002 MSA Schedule: 29 Shows at 11 Venues
MIDWEST SPRINTCAR ASSOCIATION - News Release
April 20, 2002 - by Jay Ohman
Wisconsin's Midwest Sprintcar Association takes on it's fourth season
with a schedule and roster that continues to grow. The off-season saw
veteran sprinter Al Schlafer elected to the position of MSA president.
Schlafer took on the role with a fervor to make the MSA all that it can
be, with an amazing 29 shows at 11 venues lined up as of this writing.
With 53 drivers currently registered for the 2002 season, car
participation is expected to top the 2001 seasons' 33.5 cars per event
average, as well as the top mark of 42 cars at an event. The class
continues it's strong tradition of competitiveness as last season saw 33
different drivers claim a checkered flag over the 19 completed events.
The MSA's partnership with The Raceway at Powercom Park has been
extended to the 2002 season with at least 13 regular season events
scheduled for the home track, plus the Race of Champions and the Fall
Classic. The MSA takes to the road for 16 events starting with four
visits to Sheboygan County Fairgrounds in Plymouth for appearances with
the EWSC Winged Modifieds.
In a continuing tradition, the MSA will be appearing again with the
Badger Midgets for two shows at Hales Corners Speedway, plus a special
show at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie. Also on the schedule are
return visits to Monster Hall Raceway at Unity, TNT Speedway in Three
Lakes, and Lafayette County Speedway in Darlington.
A track not seen on the MSA schedule for a couple years is Oshkosh's
Powercom Speedzone (formerly Sunnyview Speedzone). First time visits
have been arranged at Kopellah Speedway in St. Croix for a pair of
shows, Fox Ridge Speedway in Arcadia, and Luxemburg Speedway in the
Green Bay area. Schlafer is still trying to arrange a couple more
events to extend the already impressive coverage of Wisconsin tracks.
Late breaking schedule information will be posted on the MSA website.
Schlafer has also brought on an amazing amount of sponsorships,
highlighted by the generous donation from Triton Trailers of an enclosed
trailer for tech equipment and souvenir sales. Returning as race
sponsors are Hepfner Racing Products, JB Enterprise, MPD Racing
Products, and B&B Oval Track Products. Wisconsin PC and Wireless will
continue to sponsor the fast time award, and KSE Racing Products will
award the hard charger. Over $250,000 is expected to be awarded in
purse and contingency products for the 2002 season.
For those not familiar with the Midwest Sprintcar Association, the class
adheres to a rulebook that provides excellent Sprint Car performance at
a reasonable cost and highlights the abilities of a driver and his
crew. The engine is limited to a 360 cubic inch cast iron block, the
high-performance heads are non-modified cast iron, the rims must be
steel, the wing cannot be adjusted during a race and no titanium is
allowed. Competition Director Jerry Priesgen will again head up the
thorough inspections providing the enforcement this cost-consience class
requires to achieve the success attained.
Look for 2001 champion #80 K.J. Skelton to defend his title against a
rising tide of talent. Heading up the challenge to Skelton's title will
be Lowell's #27 Frank Firari and #27L Leroy Ostrowski of Milwaukee.
Past champion and last season runner-up #6K Kurt Davis will not be
running full time with the MSA this season. Firari and Ostrowski
finished third and fourth in the standings last season and ranked with
Skelton for top 10 finishes.
The remaining top 10 in standings from last year make up a strong
contingent all capable of mounting a challenge on the top spot. These
include #7 Lance Fassbender of Rubicon, 2001 Rookie of the year #82 Troy
Hepfner from Hartland, #11 David O'Neal of Milwaukee, Sussex's #25 Danny
Schlafer, runner-up rookie #99 Michael Emme of Manitowoc, and longtime
360 sprinter Tim Haddy hailing from Lomira.
Also returning from last year are #26 Al Schlafer, #90 Lloyd Dykstra,
#35 Troy Wondra, #71s Doug Schenck, #24 Scott Conger, #9A Andy Hunt, #77
Paul Geib, #21t T.J. Luedtke, #16 Chris Wiser, and #00 Jerry Ski to name
just a few more of the ever growing list of MSA drivers.
Dark horse contenders and joing the MSA this year will be former 410
sprinters #55 Todd Lehr, veteran #12 Craig Hemmen, and #50 Russ Egan,
and successful modified driver #19 Jeremie Hedrick. Returning to the
MSA after an absense are #4 Joe Palmisano and #8 Andy Glewen.
MSA fans can browse to the MSA website at www.msasprints.com for up to
date schedule, and driver information. Results and standings are
usually updated within 1 to 12 hours after the completion of an event.
E-mail
us with your comments.
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