CRATE SPORTSMAN TO BECOME WEEKLY DIVISION AT FIVE MILE POINT SPEEDWAY IN 2016. $500 TO WIN WEEKLY FOR THE WEEKLY CRATE SPORTSMAN THIS SEASON.

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CRATE SPORTSMAN TO BECOME WEEKLY DIVISION AT FIVE MILE POINT SPEEDWAY IN 2016. $500 TO WIN WEEKLY FOR THE WEEKLY CRATE SPORTSMAN THIS SEASON.

KIRKWOOD, NY…The 602 Crate Sportsman teams will have a new home in the southern tier as Five Mile Point Speedway will run the division weekly in 2016. During the past two seasons the speedway has paid lucrative bonuses for the top three finishing 602 Crate Sportsman teams while they competed with the Open Sportsman. In 2016 they will have their own class paying $500 to win weekly. In addition, a driver in the final top ten in points will walk away with a brand new HFC Chassis courtesy of Jerry Higbie, Jr.

Over the past two years the 602 Crate Sportsman teams were recognized in victory lane as the top finisher in the combined class and independent Track Championship honors were awarded. The 2014 602 Crate Sportsman Champion was Gregg Turner and in February Jordan Siri will be honored as the 2015 602 Crate Sportsman Track Champion. The weekly Crate Sportsman division will race for the same purse as the Open Sportsman class did last season making it one of the most lucrative in the northeast.

The move will provide the crate teams an opportunity to race as their own weekly division for the upcoming season. Five Mile Point Speedway Track Owner Andrew Harpell commented on the addition of the crate class, “We have combined the crates with the open Sportsman the past few seasons and they were competitive together. The problem was that despite the on track competitiveness the perception remained that the crate teams could not compete.” He added, “That perception would never allow the crate option to grow unless we provided their independent class.”

Harpell also remarked, “Our local economy is proven as one of the worst in the United States. We need to provide economical racing options for our teams and the crate program will certainly be the way to go for years to come.” “We have had a number of teams that said they would commit to the program if they could run as their own class. We fully expect a very solid field right from day one.”

Harpell purchased the speedway in 2004 and since that time there has been little change in the weekly rules or classes that have run at the popular quarter mile oval. Harpell commented, “We are going to be making some changes entering 2016 as quite honestly our on track program had become stagnant. To continue to run divisions with no growth potential just doesn’t make any sense.”

The Open Sportsman teams will be blended with the Big Block/Small Block Modifieds with bonuses being posted weekly. The top finishing driver with a Sportsman motor on either a 4 barrel carburetor or 2 barrel carburetor will earn a $150 bonus. The second and third finishing drivers across the line with a Sportsman motor will earn $125 and $100 respectively.

Harpell stated, “We are fortunate at Five Mile Point Speedway that the size and layout of the oval allows us to blend rules with weight to make different cars competitive.” In 2014 four crate powered Sportsman qualified for the Modified Southern Tier 100. This past fall Open Sportsman driver Mike Austin qualified for the Modified 65 lap Southern Tier Modified finale. He did so by beating American Racer Cup Overall Modified Champion Rick Laubach in his qualifying heat race.

“We know that the Open Sportsman teams can be very competitive in our weekly Modified division without any doubt. Our ultimate goal is that teams would be willing to try it with the posted bonus money before discounting it,” Harpell said.

Lastly Harpell remarked, “To be blunt there aren’t many people that have worked as hard as we have to promote and support the Open Sportsman division. With all of our efforts with the RoC Sportsman Tour and the travel and planning involved in the past years we know what has gone in to helping to grow the class.” He added, “During the Five Mile Point season we have always paid one weekly $1,000 to win show along with the richest Sportsman purse in the northeast in our fall finale. We need to move forward and want to be able to work with our Open Sportsman teams with that process.”

The Annual Five Mile Point Speedway Awards Dinner will take place on Saturday, February 6th at the Claude Garrison Memorial, Inc. American Legion Post 1645. For more information please phone the Five Mile Point Speedway offices at 607-775-5555 or log on to www.5milepointspeedway.com.

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