Mike McKinney
02-26-2011, 02:32 PM
Izzo Family's Quarter-Mile Oval Hosts World of Outlaws Late Model Series Event For First Time In 2011
By Kevin Kovac, WoO LMS P.R. Director
LASALLE, IL – Feb. 25, 2011 – The Illini 100 is coming to LaSalle Speedway on April 1-2.
And now fans can reserve their seats for the blockbuster $20,000-to-win World of Outlaws Late Model Series event, which this season will light up the Izzo family's high-banked, quarter-mile oval in north-central Illinois for the first time in its sparkling four-year history.
Tickets for the Illini 100 weekend can be purchased on-line at www.worldofoutlaws.com/tickets. Both reserved and general admission options are available to fans, who have until March 29 to take advantage of a discounted price on two-day and single-day reserved seats for a show that is expected to usher in LaSalle's 20th season of competition with a packed grandstand.
The Illini 100 spectacular, which shifts to LaSalle in 2011 after being run the last three years at Farmer City Raceway, features time trials and qualifying heat races on Fri., April 1, followed by B-Mains and the 100-lap A-Main on Sat., April 2. It will mark the first WoO LMS appearance at LaSalle since 2007.
"The Illini 100 has quickly become well-known as one of the most intense, fast-paced 100-lap events in dirt Late Model racing," said WoO LMS director Tim Christman. "That no-holds-barred action with big money on the line will undoubtedly continue this year at LaSalle Speedway."
A collaborative effort between the Izzo family, Tru-Speed Enterprises promoter Don Hammer and the World Racing Group, this year's edition of the Illini 100 will once again stand as the richest race of the season contested in the dirt Late Model hotbed of Illinois. The Illini's reputation for memorable racing – dirt-track legend Billy Moyer of Batesville, Ark., won down-to-the-wire thrillers in 2008 and 2010 and Shane Clanton of Fayetteville, Ga., pulled off a late-race pass to capture the 2009 event – is also expected to roll on at its new site.
"You wanted to go to a place that's known for good racing," Hammer, a former promoter at Farmer City and current director of the Monster Midwest Series, said of his decision to relocate the Illini 100 to LaSalle due to uncertainty surrounding Farmer City's operation. "LaSalle definitely fits the bill. There have been a lot of great races there over the years and it's a great facility where we can continue to build a crowd for the Illini."
LaSalle's management group, meanwhile, is looking forward to showcasing their racetrack with a major event that has become a highly-anticipated kickoff of the Midwest's racing campaign for full-fender fans and teams.
"Everyone here at LaSalle Speedway is pumped up to host the Illini 100," said Tony Izzo Jr., the operations promoter of the track that last year drew a standing-room-only crowd for a Kasey Kahne-promoted World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event. "It's something that's really exciting to have come our way. We have one of the best facilities in Illinois and we're honored to have the opportunity to step up and host a big national event like this.
"We're really excited about how much interest the race is generating from our local fans and racers as well as the whole racing community. To hear the excitement in the voice mails and phone calls I'm getting daily about the Illini – man, it's real encouraging."
Izzo and his staff are ready to do their part to provide Illini 100 attendees an enjoyable weekend experience – both on and off the track. Preparation of the LaSalle racing surface and grounds has taken on extra importance for Izzo with the Illini 100 serving as a huge season opener for the track, and he's planning to entertain fans and racers with a post-race party following the qualifying program on Fri., April 1, that includes a bonfire and live band.
"People who have been here to LaSalle know what they're in store for with the racing and the atmosphere," said Izzo, "and people who will be coming for the first time will be pleasantly surprised. There are a lot of people working very hard to make the Illini 100 an event to remember."
A star-studded field of dirt Late Model drivers is expected to compete in the $100,000-plus Illini 100 weekend, led by WoO LMS regulars (and former tour champions) Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., and Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y. The Outlaw standouts will battle dozens of other well-known competitors, including many top talents from the DIRTcar UMP circuit.
Advance-sale two-day reserved-seat tickets (Friday-Saturday) for the Illini 100 cost $40 for ages 16-and-over – a savings of $5 from the $45 weekend price at the track.
Single-day tickets are available in advance and on race day. Reserved seat and general admission tickets purchased on-line before March 29 are $15 for Friday and $30 for Saturday. On race day reserved seats (if still available) are $15 (Friday) and $32 (Saturday), and general admission prices are $15 (ages 16-and-over) and $5 (children 6-15) for Friday's program and $30 (ages 16-and-over) and $10 (children 6-15) for Saturday's finale. Kids 5-and-under will receive free general admission both days.
All advance tickets can be purchased on-line by visiting www.worldofoutlaws.com/tickets and clicking the "Buy Tickets Now" button next to the 'Illini 100' event information. A ticket hotline is also available by calling 877-395-8606.
Pit passes will be sold only at the track for $25 on Friday, $40 on Saturday and $60 for a two-day pass. DIRTcar members will receive a $5 discount on pit admission.
The Illini 100 weekend will kick off on Thurs., March 31, with an open practice session from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. CST. (Gates open at 3 p.m.) Pit admission will be $20, and fans will be permitted to enter the grandstands free of charge to watch the practice circuits.
On Fri., April 1, pit gates will open at 12 noon and spectator gates will be unlocked at 4 p.m. Hot laps are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. with racing at 7 p.m.
The schedule on Sat., April 2, calls for pit gates to re-open at 12 noon, with the front gates opening at 3 p.m. Practice will begin at 5 p.m. and racing is set to get the green flag at 6 p.m.
Other divisions on the weekend program are DIRTcar UMP Modifieds and DIRTcar Stock Cars. The UMP Modifieds will compete in separate events paying $500 to win (Friday) and $1,000 to win (Saturday), while the Stock Cars will be in action on Friday night.
La Salle Speedway is located 60 miles west of Joliet, 80 miles east of the Quad Cities, 70 miles south of Rockford and 60 miles north of Bloomington. It is on U.S. Route 6 just 1.5 miles east of Interstate 39 Exit 57.
More information on the Illini 100 weekend at La Salle Speedway – including details on a limited number of reserved camping spots for the event – can be obtained by calling the track at 815-223-6900 or 815-223-6939 or logging on to www.lasallespeedway.com and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Illini-100.
By Kevin Kovac, WoO LMS P.R. Director
LASALLE, IL – Feb. 25, 2011 – The Illini 100 is coming to LaSalle Speedway on April 1-2.
And now fans can reserve their seats for the blockbuster $20,000-to-win World of Outlaws Late Model Series event, which this season will light up the Izzo family's high-banked, quarter-mile oval in north-central Illinois for the first time in its sparkling four-year history.
Tickets for the Illini 100 weekend can be purchased on-line at www.worldofoutlaws.com/tickets. Both reserved and general admission options are available to fans, who have until March 29 to take advantage of a discounted price on two-day and single-day reserved seats for a show that is expected to usher in LaSalle's 20th season of competition with a packed grandstand.
The Illini 100 spectacular, which shifts to LaSalle in 2011 after being run the last three years at Farmer City Raceway, features time trials and qualifying heat races on Fri., April 1, followed by B-Mains and the 100-lap A-Main on Sat., April 2. It will mark the first WoO LMS appearance at LaSalle since 2007.
"The Illini 100 has quickly become well-known as one of the most intense, fast-paced 100-lap events in dirt Late Model racing," said WoO LMS director Tim Christman. "That no-holds-barred action with big money on the line will undoubtedly continue this year at LaSalle Speedway."
A collaborative effort between the Izzo family, Tru-Speed Enterprises promoter Don Hammer and the World Racing Group, this year's edition of the Illini 100 will once again stand as the richest race of the season contested in the dirt Late Model hotbed of Illinois. The Illini's reputation for memorable racing – dirt-track legend Billy Moyer of Batesville, Ark., won down-to-the-wire thrillers in 2008 and 2010 and Shane Clanton of Fayetteville, Ga., pulled off a late-race pass to capture the 2009 event – is also expected to roll on at its new site.
"You wanted to go to a place that's known for good racing," Hammer, a former promoter at Farmer City and current director of the Monster Midwest Series, said of his decision to relocate the Illini 100 to LaSalle due to uncertainty surrounding Farmer City's operation. "LaSalle definitely fits the bill. There have been a lot of great races there over the years and it's a great facility where we can continue to build a crowd for the Illini."
LaSalle's management group, meanwhile, is looking forward to showcasing their racetrack with a major event that has become a highly-anticipated kickoff of the Midwest's racing campaign for full-fender fans and teams.
"Everyone here at LaSalle Speedway is pumped up to host the Illini 100," said Tony Izzo Jr., the operations promoter of the track that last year drew a standing-room-only crowd for a Kasey Kahne-promoted World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event. "It's something that's really exciting to have come our way. We have one of the best facilities in Illinois and we're honored to have the opportunity to step up and host a big national event like this.
"We're really excited about how much interest the race is generating from our local fans and racers as well as the whole racing community. To hear the excitement in the voice mails and phone calls I'm getting daily about the Illini – man, it's real encouraging."
Izzo and his staff are ready to do their part to provide Illini 100 attendees an enjoyable weekend experience – both on and off the track. Preparation of the LaSalle racing surface and grounds has taken on extra importance for Izzo with the Illini 100 serving as a huge season opener for the track, and he's planning to entertain fans and racers with a post-race party following the qualifying program on Fri., April 1, that includes a bonfire and live band.
"People who have been here to LaSalle know what they're in store for with the racing and the atmosphere," said Izzo, "and people who will be coming for the first time will be pleasantly surprised. There are a lot of people working very hard to make the Illini 100 an event to remember."
A star-studded field of dirt Late Model drivers is expected to compete in the $100,000-plus Illini 100 weekend, led by WoO LMS regulars (and former tour champions) Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky., Steve Francis of Ashland, Ky., and Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y. The Outlaw standouts will battle dozens of other well-known competitors, including many top talents from the DIRTcar UMP circuit.
Advance-sale two-day reserved-seat tickets (Friday-Saturday) for the Illini 100 cost $40 for ages 16-and-over – a savings of $5 from the $45 weekend price at the track.
Single-day tickets are available in advance and on race day. Reserved seat and general admission tickets purchased on-line before March 29 are $15 for Friday and $30 for Saturday. On race day reserved seats (if still available) are $15 (Friday) and $32 (Saturday), and general admission prices are $15 (ages 16-and-over) and $5 (children 6-15) for Friday's program and $30 (ages 16-and-over) and $10 (children 6-15) for Saturday's finale. Kids 5-and-under will receive free general admission both days.
All advance tickets can be purchased on-line by visiting www.worldofoutlaws.com/tickets and clicking the "Buy Tickets Now" button next to the 'Illini 100' event information. A ticket hotline is also available by calling 877-395-8606.
Pit passes will be sold only at the track for $25 on Friday, $40 on Saturday and $60 for a two-day pass. DIRTcar members will receive a $5 discount on pit admission.
The Illini 100 weekend will kick off on Thurs., March 31, with an open practice session from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. CST. (Gates open at 3 p.m.) Pit admission will be $20, and fans will be permitted to enter the grandstands free of charge to watch the practice circuits.
On Fri., April 1, pit gates will open at 12 noon and spectator gates will be unlocked at 4 p.m. Hot laps are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. with racing at 7 p.m.
The schedule on Sat., April 2, calls for pit gates to re-open at 12 noon, with the front gates opening at 3 p.m. Practice will begin at 5 p.m. and racing is set to get the green flag at 6 p.m.
Other divisions on the weekend program are DIRTcar UMP Modifieds and DIRTcar Stock Cars. The UMP Modifieds will compete in separate events paying $500 to win (Friday) and $1,000 to win (Saturday), while the Stock Cars will be in action on Friday night.
La Salle Speedway is located 60 miles west of Joliet, 80 miles east of the Quad Cities, 70 miles south of Rockford and 60 miles north of Bloomington. It is on U.S. Route 6 just 1.5 miles east of Interstate 39 Exit 57.
More information on the Illini 100 weekend at La Salle Speedway – including details on a limited number of reserved camping spots for the event – can be obtained by calling the track at 815-223-6900 or 815-223-6939 or logging on to www.lasallespeedway.com and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Illini-100.