Ohsweken Speedway to feature weekly Sprint Car races in '08 .. track cuts ties with DIRT

OHSWEKEN, ON – One of the worst kept secrets on the Ontario racing scene is a secret no more. After months of deliberation, the Styres family owned Ohsweken Speedway has made a decision that will reshape their future.

"It has always been my dream and now Ohsweken Speedway will headline "Outlaw 360 Sprints" on our regular weekly racing program during 2008" track promoter Glenn Styres has declared. "We have analyzed a number of factors based on the program that we currently offer weekly including a downward spiraling trend in attendance" Styres stated. "We reached a decision that we could not continue to operate without making adjustments in what we are offering to the race fans. Our statistics show that the largest support comes from our fans when the sprints are on the card. The Canadian Nationals has become very successful and with the World of Outlaws confirmed once again for 2008 we see an opportunity to commit to a weekly sprint car show in hopes of attracting new fans as well as giving our current fans a chance to see this type of racing on a consistent basis" Styres went on.

Over the last couple of seasons the crowds have been declining at Ohsweken when the sprints are not on the program. While the Mini Stock division remains strong, the Thunder Stocks and the DIRT Sportsman class which headlines the weekly show have not been able to draw full feature fields. "Sprint cars seems to be what our fan base wants and that is what we intend to give them" exclaimed Styres.

In order to make room for the sprint cars, one of the current regular divisions will be eliminated. "The Thunder Stocks offer us an opportunity to maintain an eight cylinder stock car class and will remain on the weekly program. We don't feel that a second premier division is in our best interest and the DIRT Sportsman division will not be in our plans when the gates open on May 23rd for our 12th season. Coinciding with the elimination of the Sportsman as the feature division, the long term relationship with DIRT Motorsports will be severed," Styres continued.

Schedule, purse structure, point fund, rules package, and procedures are currently being finalized with expectations that they will be released within the next couple of weeks. Styres emphasized that "I don't see much of a difference in rules from those that we currently utilize for the "Canadian Sprint Car Nationals". We plan to pay a weekly purse that will see the winner collect $1,200 along with a respectable point fund. We also still plan to run special events for the Empire Super Sprints, Patriot Sprint Group, Sprints On Dirt, and of course the Southern Ontario Sprints throughout the season, much like we have the past few years. And the "Canadian Sprint Car Nationals" will remain as the season closer and our premier event for the year. There is a lot of work to do to make this happen but I believe the future of Ohsweken Speedway depends on this" Styres emphasized.

Ken Pelkie, who has been instrumental in organization and development of the "Canadian Sprint Car Nationals" and "Six Nations Showdown World of Outlaw" events will head up the transition to the weekly sprint car show and oversee its implementation. Any and all questions regarding sprint cars and their programs should be addressed through Ken at our new toll free number -1-877-445-RACE (7223) or pelkiekj@ebtech.net

For Immediate Release - Ken Pelkie, for OHSWEKEN Speedway