Fountain, CO – October 3, 2002 – Pikes Peak International Raceway today announced its schedule for the 2003 season. It will again feature two of the leading motorsports events in the U.S. - the Indy Racing League and the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series.
“We are really excited about the upcoming season,” said PPIR President Rob Johnson. “We couldn’t have asked for a better conclusion to the 2002 season with the Busch race and the post-race performance by Jeff Foxworthy. When you combine that with our new partnership with International Speedway Corporation we certainly can say we have a lot of momentum going into 2003.”
All season ticket packages will go on sale November 1, 2002 at 9:00 a.m. Those purchasing season tickets prior to April 15, 2003 will be entered in the “Need for Speed” Sweepstakes where a fan and his or her guest will receive an all expenses paid trip to their choice of the Indy 500 or the Brickyard 400. Any fan renewing his or her 2002 season ticket package by December 23, 2002 will be eligible an all expenses paid trip to their choice of the Daytona 500 or Indy 500. Details on the sweepstakes will be published on the new PPIR web site in November. Single event tickets will be available on December 1st.
Season tickets can be purchased by calling 1-888-306-7223 or by visiting the track’s administrative office Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Single event tickets can be purchased on line at www.ppir.com, at any front range King Soopers or by calling 1-888-306-7223. Individuals with a valid military ID are entitled to 50 percent off any single adult race day ticket.
The 2003 schedule kicks off on May 30, 31 and June 1 with the Cruise America AMA Superbike weekend. Four-time PPIR winner Eric Bostrom will be back along with brother Ben, Doug Chandler, Matt Mladin, Miguel Duhammel, Aaron Yates and the rest of the stars of the AMA Chevy Trucks Superbike Series. On Friday May 30 grandstand seating is open and free to the public.
Father’s Day Weekend (June 14 and 15) marks the return of the Indy Racing League for the Indy 225. Defending race champion Gil de Ferran will be back along with teammate and two-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves, (2001-2002) series champion Sam Hornish Jr., Michael Andretti, Dario Franchitti, 2002 Indy 500 co-rookies of the year Felipe Giffanone and Alex Barron, and Al Unser Jr. The up and coming stars in open wheel racing will also be competing in the Infiniti Pro Series which will be making its debut at PPIR. Names like Foyt and Luyendyk will be battling side-by-side to carry on the family traditions.
The July 4th holiday will see the return of USAC racing to PPIR featuring the Weld Racing Silver Crown Series, Stoops Freightliner Sprint Car Series and the National Midget Car Series. In 1997 Winston Cup driver Ryan Newman set the world record for a one-mile paved oval at PPIR when his Midget was clocked at 139.265 mph. Once the racing is over fans will be treated to a post-race concert and the largest fireworks display in the region.
The 2003 schedule concludes on July 25 and 26 when the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series returns. Hank Parker Jr. gave Dodge its first win in the Busch series at PPIR in 2002 and will be looking to make it two in a row. That same weekend the stars of the NASCAR RE/MAX Challenge Series will return for the sixth in a row.
