DAN HARPELL OPTS OUT OF CONTRACT RENEWAL, CHOOSES NOT TO RETURN AS PENN CAN PROMOTER AFTER TWO SEASONS
Story By: REED MILLER / PENN CAN SPEEDWAY MEDIA
Photos By: DAVE DALESANDRO / RACERSGUIDE.COM
SUSQUEHANNA, PA –November 2, 2016- After two years at the helm of Penn Can Speedway, Dan Harpell has opted to not renew his contract and thus has chosen not to return as Promoter in 2017. Racing will take place in 2017 with a new Promoter to be announced in the near future.
“After giving it a lot of thought and consideration I have decided not to renew my contract and will not return as Promoter of Penn Can Speedway in 2017”, said Harpell. “I notified (owner) Al Beavan to let him know of my intentions and to thank him for the opportunity. I assured him that I will be happy to work with the new Promoter to ensure a smooth transition”, he added.
“I am sorry to see Dan leave”, said Beavan. “I have enjoyed working with him and I appreciate the effort that he put in at Penn Can. We have enjoyed a great working relationship and his passion for the sport is clearly evident. He has a great family that supported him throughout and I wish him nothing but success in the future”, added Beavan.
Penn Can recently finished out the 2016 season with the running of the King of the Can Weekend, ending Harpell’s tenure as Penn Can Promoter on a high note. More than 220 cars were in competition during the two day show.
History has always been important to Harpell and during his two years at the track he initiated a Memorial tribute to track founder LeGrande “Pappy” Beavan to coincide with the Legends of Penn Can Night. He also paid tribute to the late Seward Rice, the very popular former Penn Can Promoter. Harpell and Rice had a strong working relationship in the late 1980’s and early 90’s when Harpell was the Promoter at Five Mile Point and Rice was at the helm of Penn Can, and became good friends in the process.
For Harpell, who has been involved in the racing business for 32 years, his decision to leave was not something he took lightly.
“I have been going to Penn Can for many years and respect and appreciate its historic value. I have always had the best interest of the track in mind. We had some great shows during our tenure at the track and often heard from fans on how great the racing was. We worked hard to keep the track going and now the time is right to move on and pass the torch to the next regime so they can keep Penn Can moving forward into the future”, said Harpell.
In making the announcement Harpell thanked many people for their contributions.
“First and foremost I would like to thank my three sons Tyler, Tanner and Tucker for their hard work and dedication as well as my great staff, who had my back every step of the way. It’s a big commitment for people to give up their Friday nights for an entire summer and I really appreciate their loyalty and the great job that they all did. I would also like to thank those drivers and fans that supported us over the past two seasons”, he added.
Although Harpell is leaving Penn Can that doesn’t mean that he is done with racing.
“I would like to stay involved in racing. I have given my entire life to this sport and it is my passion. There isn’t anything that I haven’t done in racing and I certainly have a lot more to offer to this sport”, he added.
Look for an announcement in the coming weeks as to the identity of the new Promoter for 2017.
