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ASA Midwest Tour Enhances Staff With Addition Of McKarns To Advisory Board
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (October 31, 2006) – The ASA Midwest Tour continues to
add to their all-star roster of administrative staff with the announcement
that John McKarns has been added to the consulting advisory board for the new
series.
“John is going to be able to offer the ASA Midwest Tour a ton of relevant
short track experience and will be able to help us get this program up and
running quickly as he was the founder and owner of the ARTGO Series,” said
Dennis Huth, owner of the ASA Racing program which will sanction the events.
“He knows the Midwest racing scene, the tracks and people involved. John is
well-respected by everyone in the short track community and he will be very
valuable in the formation of the ASA Midwest Tour.
“And on a personal level, I am glad to be working alongside John once
again. We have had a number of occasions to pool our talents, such as putting
the deal together for ARTGO to become part of the NASCAR family, so this is
exciting to have him back on our team once again,” added Huth.
With knowledge and experience in short track racing that spans several
decades, McKarns has a lengthy career that is highlighted by his founding of
the former ARTGO Challenge Series in 1975. He completed a purchase of the tour
in 1979 and successfully held 330 events under the ARTGO name before licensing
the series to NASCAR in 1998. The name was later changed to the RE/MAX
Challenge Series once under the NASCAR Touring Series umbrella.
In his role, McKarns will work closely with ASA Midwest Tour series
administrators Tim Olson, Steve Einhaus and Huth.
The announcement further proves that the ASA Midwest Tour is taking a fresh
look at short track racing by enrolling experienced staff familiar with track
operation, competition, rules, and event promotion.
As previously announced, the new ASA Midwest Tour will be designed so that the
local drivers, and fan favorites, will be able to compete against the touring
stars as they pull into town. The rules package, which is still under
development, will use the policies from the Upper Midwest Super Late Models
paired with the crate engines as outlined at Madison (Wis.) International
Speedway.
It is anticipated that the series will run a 10 to 12 event schedule,
comprised of tracks in upper Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and
Minnesota. The racing format will consist of qualifying, heat races,
qualifying races (a last chance event, if necessary), and a 100-lap main
event. It is expected that the season will start in April and run through
October, culminating in a Championship Invitational with the top ASA Midwest
Tour drivers and, potentially, some other track or series champions.
Rules differences between the local tracks and the ASA Midwest Tour will be
equalized through weight changes. Teams will be able to purchase four fresh
tires for each event, but they will be required to use them for all qualifying
events, heat races, and feature events.
“I have agreed and am honored to serve on an advisory board for the ASA
Midwest Tour and have already supplied Tim Olson and Steve Einhaus with many
details about the way we ran the races during my ARTGO days,” said McKarns.
“This includes a lot of information about race procedures, the point system
and the order of events. I think that some of this can be utilized in some
form with the ASA Midwest Tour.
“If everything comes together as planned, their special events at each paved
track will be ‘the one big race you don’t want to miss.’ I know the fans
will like seeing the out-of-town Super Late Model stars race up against their
local heroes.”
The ASA Midwest Tour has a “clean sheet of paper” approach to the program
and taking the time to listen to anyone interested in Midwestern racing,
including drivers, owners, track operators, and fans themselves, is very
important. The new advisory board for the series is comprised of some of the
most knowledgeable individuals in the short track industry charged with
developing a variety of fresh ideas to help keep the sport at the forefront
and fun for participants and fans.
“At this point, there are no bad ideas,” said Tim Olson. “We are
listening to everyone and working with everyone. The ASA Midwest Tour is going
to be very innovative in its approach to the sport and we are taking our time
and doing our very best to come up with the best approach possible for all
aspects of racing – including the competition side, track operation, event
promotion, and fan enjoyment.
For more information about the ASA Midwest Tour please contact the ASA Midwest
Tour series office by telephone at (608) 884-0388 or by e-mail. Contact Tim
Olson at tim@asamidwesttour.com or Steve Einhaus at steve@asamidwesttour.com
or visit the web site at www.asamidwesttour.com.
To learn more of the Daytona Beach, Fla.-based ASA Racing Member Track and ASA
Regional Racing programs, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com.
For news and information from all the racetracks and regional tours involved
in the ASA, visit www.asa-racing.com.
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