Beech Tree News Network

The tracks at Beech Bend Raceway Park have been open almost a month, but the action shifts into high gear for the first week of April.

On Friday, April 5th the oval track will roar back to life with the opening of the 2013 stock car racing season. The 2013 season will feature 15 Friday night sessions with action in 5 classes; Late Models, Sportsman, Chevettes, Front Runners, and Front Runner Figure 8. There was speculation in the off season that the Oval Track at BBRP wouldn’t open in 2013, but after meeting with several owners and drivers it was decided to move ahead with another full season of stock car events.

Broc Porter, Beech Bend’s track manager, said that stock car racing has been in decline for several years in the region, but he thinks 2013 might begin an upswing for the sport. “We’ve had several cars already practicing this year, and I think interest is higher this year than it has been in a while.”

Gates open for stock car racing at 5 p.m. with racing at 7 p.m. Admission is $10.

Along with the regular slate of stock car action this season the International Outlaw Figure 8 Series will roll into Bowling Green on Friday, May 10th. The IOF8 series travels throughout the Midwest and Southeast, racing on both asphalt and dirt figure-8 tracks. They will make stops at famous racetracks such as Salem Speedway, North Wilkesboro Speedway, and the dirt tracks at Talladega and Charlotte.

A new racing phenomenon made a limited appearance at BBRP in 2012 and returns for a full slate of action in 2013. Drifting is the art of driving a car through a road course with the car in a constant skid, and the back tires spinning and bellowing smoke. Drifting is a timed and judged event where participants are scored for the amount of sliding they do through the corners—the more the better—and the amount of smoke from the tires, as well as how closely they follow the line of the lead car in front of them. Tennessee Drift will appear at the track on June 8, July 20, September 14, and October 26.

On Saturday, April 6th the racing will start early in the morning and run late into the night. On Saturday morning a score of Mopar powered machines will invade Beech Bend for an 8-hour event called Challenger Fest 4.  CF4 is a one-day meet comprised mostly of the new Dodge Challenger, along with classic Mopar vehicles, and a smattering of other newer model muscle cars such as the new Camaros and Ford Mustangs.

The event is put  on by an internet club that trades messages and taunts for 51 weeks a year, then uses the first Saturday in April to invade Beech Bend and settle all the online trash talk. Emotions sometimes run as high as the RPM when antagonists finally get a shot at going side by side on the quarter mile dragstrip. Gates open for Challenger Fest at 8 a.m. and admission is $10.

On Saturday night the Saturday Night Shootout series will make its 2013 as part of O’Reilly Saturday night fun facing. The Shootout Series is contested on the ¼ mile and features street legal cars on DOT tires with mufflers. Defending series champion Jason Haley will be attempting to defend his title against a tough slate of local racers including Ronnie ‘Tator’ Meredith, Larry Key, and Earl Talley.

Fun night racing isn’t just limited to the Shootout however. Everyone driving through the gate has the option to buy a tech card for an additional fee that allows them to make unlimited time trials down the dragstrip to find out what their car will do. But the time trials aren’t limited to just cars. Motorcycles, dragsters, jr. dragsters, and even diesel trucks go side by side throughout the evening for fun and bragging rights. Admission is $10 with an additional fee to make time runs. Gates open at 5 with racing at 6 p.m.

Sunday will see Round Two of the 2013 NHRA Bracket Racing Season contested at BBRP. Sunday afternoon bracket racing is contested on both the ¼ and 1/8 mile, and features everything from 1,000 hp dragsters to vintage cars and trucks, and even daily drivers. Drivers compete over the course of several months with champions winning money and prizes, along with the coveted BBRP Championship jacket. Classes include Super Pro, Pro, Sportsman, Jr. Dragsters—for kids ages 8-18, and ¼-Mile Trophy. Gates open at 11 a.m. on Sundays, and admission is $10.

The month of April will close with one of the biggest events of the season, the AMRA Spring Harley Drags and Rally. Rescheduling the Spring Harley event means that the fastest of the fast—the top fuel and funny bikes—will be on hand for all three Harley events in 2013. Track conditions should be perfect to see speeds in excess of 235 mph, from some of America’s elite motorcycle racers including NHRA regulars Douglas Horne and Tracy Kyle. As always the event will feature music, swap meets, bike shows, and plenty of after-hours entertainment, all for a price of just $40, which buys a pass for all five days and nights of the event.

Stay tuned to WLBQ 1570 AM for your chance to win Harley Drags All Access passes, along with tickets to other racing events and tickets to Beech Bend Park and Splash Lagoon, which open the first weekend of May.

Story by Joe K. Morris, Beech Tree News

Photos by Jim Baird, Beech Tree News