With the area racing season ready to shift into high gear, teams are making their plans known for what appears to have the makings of a very busy and highly competitive season for area fans and racers.
Those teams making plans known include:
• Team Apex USA Racing — Since appearing on the scene only two seasons ago, this Terre Haute based road racing operation has been a major player in the Formula BMW series.
Scoring major wins at many of North America’s premier road circuits, the team hopes to continue their successful ways. Among the stops will be Indianapolis and appearing on the same card as the US Grand Prix. Their driver this season will be Lindsey Adams of Dallas.
• BWB Racing -- Car owner Bill Biddle has once again assembled an attractive slate for his open wheel racing stable. Look for the BWB colors in both USAC and Premier Racing Association sanctioned events this season.
Ron Gregory will be behind the wheel the team’s champ car and will run all PRA shows. A second car will be handled by Marc Jessup on a race-to-race program. The team will do all USAC champ dirt shows with a driver yet to be announced.
Gregory will handle the teams USAC sprint pavement car and a driver for team’s half mile USAC dirt USAC sprint effort is also in the TBA status.
• Carmichael Racing -- Based out of North Terre Haute, this team will be one the most active of area operations. Kenny Carmichael and his son Kenny Carmichael Jr. will be competing in both sprints and stocks throughout the summer.
Carmichael Sr. is the defending champ in both the sprint and street stocks at Lincoln Park Speedway. He’ll be back to defend his crowns while splitting time between Bloomington and Danville, Ill., on Friday nights in the sprints.
He’ll drive a UMP modifieds for Hall Motorsports while Jr. will compete in sprints and street stock at LPS on a weekly basis. A few selected USAC appearances might also be in the picture for the father-son team.
• Blake Fitzpatrick Racing — Already off to fast start, this 15-year-old West Terre Haute open wheel racer won the USAC midget show at Columbus, Ohio, back in January.
The team plans to run the full 31-race USAC Keynon Midget series, selected sprint shows at Bloomington, Lawrenceburg and Lincoln Park.
• Grayless-Auler Racing — Look for this team to be a familiar fixture on the area UMP Modified scene. Harold Grayless and Mark Auler will combine their effort as the two short veterans will compete at Charleston, Danville and Lincoln Park Speedway.
• Gardner Racing — Dennison, Ill. businessman Albert Gardner will field a UMP Modified effort for West Terre Haute’s Jeff Wellum who plans to make the entire 19-race Wolfpack Challenge series.
In addition to campaigning the Wolfpack Challenge, the “Racing Doctor” hopes to run selected ovals throughout the area, including any races at the Terre Haute Action Track that don’t conflict with the Wolfpack events.
• Heramb Racing — Travis Heramb a familiar face at Lincoln Park Speedway in recent years is expected to expand his street stock efforts this season venturing to events at Illinois dirt ovals near Danville and Charleston.
• Jordan Racing — Terre Haute racer Ritichie Hawkins won the bomber class title at Putnamville a year ago and will move up to the faster Super Stocks. He’ll also field a bomber for long-time crew member Darrell Richardson.
• Krockenberger Racing — Local fans may think they’re seeing double when the sharp liveried No. 21 sprint cars appear on area dirt track ovals. Those look-alike sprinters belong to the racing brother efforts of Krockenberger Racing.
Eric Krockenberger will join brothers Shawn and Daren in the sprints this summer after a successful run in kart racing. Daren’s 16-year-old grandson Kyle is also expected to make his debut in the sprints during the upcoming season.
• L&R; Racing — West Terre Haute businessman Larry Rowley will field a Super Stock for Kenny Carmichael Jr. and UMP modified for Wil Fagg this summer competing at several area short tracks.
• Paul May Racing — The area’s lone full-time winged sprint car racer continues to recover from injuries suffered at Lincoln Park last Fall to compete on the demanding Club All-Star Sprint circuit.
A schedule that included over 50 shows in 06. He will also be competing on the Midwest All Star Sprint tour at selected tracks.
• Marietta Racing — With his operation based out of Brownsburg, Mario Marietta of Clinton is expected to run USAC Regional midgets and selected pavement sprint car shows.
• Jim Mills Motorsports — Look for the Marshall, Ill. racer to run sprints of Paragon on Saturday nights with limited modified appearances at Putnamville.
• RAM Racing — Without question the “dean” of Wabash Valley open wheel racers. Clinton’s Dave Peperak will once again be behind the wheel of his familiar No. 77 RAM Racing sprinter.
Look for the likable driver to compete on a regular bases at Bloomington, limited visits to Paragon and selected USAC shows.
• Harry Shephard Racing — This Terre Haute competitor, with 27 years of racing under his belt, will be back again this season and will focus on everything from late models, modifieds and stock cars at selected Indiana and Illinois tracks throughout the year.
• Stockton Family Racing — No longer a new kid on the block, young Chase Stockton will be an active racer in the sprints campaigning full-time on the Midwest Sprint Car Series circuit, selected shows at Paragon, and all five of the Danville Bell Helment Shootout events. The Sullivan racer finished third in points in the series a year ago.
• Tri-American Motorsports — This Farmersburg-based team will field UMP modifieds for a trio of drivers that include veteran area racer Glenn Andrew, his son Brett Andrew and Terre Haute South High School teacher Josh Speer.
While the team will field cars for the dirt ovals, frequent visits to selected pavement shows on the O’Reilly USA Midwest Series remains a strong possibility.
• Van Sant Racing — Veteran short racer Phil Van Sant will have a new Bob Pierce modified chassis to competed at Lincoln Park. Danville and Action Track.
The full-time Terre Haute city fireman finished fourth in LPS points and in the top 100 of UMP modified points a year ago.
• Walls Racing — With goals of continuing his winning and championship ways, Lloyd Walls will once again be regular in the stocks at LPS this season.
• Dusty Wright Motorsports — This Seelyville-based sprint car team, with driver Dusty Wright, will once again challenging area short tracks.
Look for the newcomer to compete on a regular basis at the newly revamped weekly card at Paragon, where he scored a feature win a year ago. The team will also make all non-USAC sanctioned non-wing sprint shows at the Action Track.
• Wright Motorsports — One can expect Mike Wright to be more than a casual observer of the racing at Lincoln Park Speedway on Saturday nights.
He’ll will be kept busy following the efforts of sons Paul and Mike in the track’s Super Stocks division, and grandsons Jacob also in Super Stocks and Michael in the bombers. Paul will make limited appearances at Bloomington Motor Speedway.
Tribune-Star auto racing columnist Joe Buckles can be reached at jbuckles@verizon.net.
Trackside
Trackside: Race teams ready for busy season
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