NASCAR WHELEN ALL-AMERICAN SERIES TRACKS SET TO CELEBRATE INDEPENDENCE DAY

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- The Fourth of July is marked by celebration.

For some NASCAR Whelen All-American Series tracks, it’s also a chance to have fireworks on the track as well as off.

South Boston (Va.) Speedway will get the racing week started Tuesday, July 3 with its Bailey’s 200 Late Model event. Several tracks around the country will follow suit with special early week shows, like the Miller Lite American Celebration at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine, and the Sprint Invaders & Late Model Firecracker 50 at West Liberty (Iowa) Raceway.

Drivers in Iowa, led by state points leader Jeremiah Hurst, will also run the Firecracker 40s for the Late Models at Farley Speedway July 6 and Dubuque Speedway July 8.

Shasta Raceway Park in Anderson, Calif. and Magic Valley in Twin Falls, Idaho are also scheduled to run July 3.

On July 4, Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, N.C. will hold the Rusty Harpe Memorial 250. The evening, which features a 150-lap Late Model race, is being held in honor of former Caraway Limited Late Model champion John Russell “Rusty” Harpe, who passed away earlier this year after a farming accident. More than 50 competitors are expected for the race, including Jamey Caudill, Speedy Faucette and Deac McCaskill.

Caudill from Southern National Raceway Park in Kenly, N.C., is currently third in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series with 532 points. Ace Speedway’s Faucette, 51st in the standings, has 10 wins in 16 starts this season. And McCaskill is 12th in the nation.

Other regional drivers, including those from South Boston, may also run the July 4 race at Caraway depending on how they get through Tuesday night’s race.

Jean Francois Bouvrette of Autodrome St. Eustache in Quebec jumped to the top of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series standings with 548 points, and Guy Jubinville, also of Autodrome St. Eustache, is second at 536.

Some tracks, like the historic Bowman-Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem (N.C.) will take the Independence Week off. Bowman-Gray will return July 14 with the Craftsman 100 for its Modified division.

Others, like Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway will run enhanced programs on the weekend. Stafford’s Friday night show will be its 13th Annual DiGiorgi Roofing & Siding Late Model 100. The night will also include its regular 40-lap race for the track’s top division, the SK Modifieds. Which just means even more racing opportunities for Connecticut driver Woody Pitkat.

Pitkat moved up to fifth in the national standings – one spot behind Stafford’s Kerry Malone. Both run Modifieds at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway and Stafford. Pitkat is also Stafford’s defending Late Model champion. He is third in Late Model points at Stafford this season, fourth in SK Modified points, and made his second start in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour this past weekend at New Hampshire International Speedway, where he finished 14th.

Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway will host the Auto Club Late Model Firecracker 100 July 4, in addition to the NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series event. Colorado National Speedway in Erie, Colo. will headline its July 4 card with a 100-lap Late Model race, and Georgia’s Lanier National Speedway will have a 100-lap race for its Pro Late Models.

Under the simplified point structure for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, the race winner will receive two points for every car in the event up to 25 cars. Second place will receive two fewer points, and so-on through the field. For example, if there are 25 cars, the winner receives 50 points, second gets 48 and third 46. If there are 15 cars, the winner receives 30 points, second gets 28 and third 26.

Competitors will count their 18 highest point finishes through Sept. 30. The national champion will earn a reserved spot in the 2007 NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway in October.