Parade, forecast prompt officials to move finale to Sunday, October 26 at 1:00 p.m.
WEST HAVEN, VT – Devil’s Bowl Speedway officials have announced that the facility’s final dirt track stock car race of the season will have to wait for one additional day. The Autosaver Ford/Springfield Buick-GMC “Vermont Freedom & Unity” event was postponed by rain last week and was initially rescheduled for Saturday; however, the makeup date has been reset to Sunday, October 26 at 1:00 p.m.
Two major factors contributed to the date being readjusted: another unfavorable weather forecast, and the 55th annual Rutland Halloween Parade in Downtown Rutland, VT. The parade is one of the area’s largest and most enjoyable community gatherings each fall, and is scheduled for Saturday, October 25.
“Many of our race fans, competitors, and officials attend and even participate in the parade every year, including those that help us with our annual Devil’s Bowl Speedway float,” track co-owner Alayne Bruno said. “Running our race on the same day as the parade would have forced some people to choose between the two, and we want everyone to be able to enjoy both events.”
Track co-owner Mike Bruno agreed, adding that a predicted four consecutive days of rain during the week would have made running on Saturday tougher.
“The Rutland community has been good to Devil’s Bowl, and we have fun supporting the parade, so it was a pretty easy decision,” Mike Bruno said. “We also learned a big lesson a few weeks ago about how the clay on our new track surface holds water after rain, and waiting until Sunday will give us one extra day to dry it out so we can put a nice surface together.”
Officials also said that should the October 26 date be postponed again for any reason, the final attempt at running the event will be on Saturday, November 1 at 1:00 p.m. The tentative November 1 date is also contingent upon ground conditions and forecasted weather and temperature patterns.
The Autosaver Ford/Springfield Buick-GMC “Vermont Freedom & Unity” event on Sunday, October 26 will feature a 100-lap Sportsman Modified race, the winged Sprint Cars of New England tour, a special event for the Bear Ridge Speedway Sportsman Coupe division, and Renegades and Mini Stocks.
Grandstand general admission is $20 for adults and free for kids 12 and under, with pit passes at $40. Pit gates will open at 9:00 a.m., with the grandstands open at 11:00 a.m. Hot laps will begin at 12:00 noon, followed by Sportsman time trials at 12:30 p.m. Green flag racing action starts at 1:00 p.m.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, VT, four miles north of Exit 2 on U.S. Route 4. For more information, visit www.DevilsBowlSpeedwayVT.com or call (802) 265-3112. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at facebook.com/DevilsBowlSpeedway and on Twitter and Instagram at @DevilsBowlSpeed; follow the action using the #DevilsBowl and #BattleAtTheBowl hashtags.
PHOTO: Josh Sunn (#11) and Vince Quenneville, Jr. (#78) are among the top Sportsman Modified drivers expected for the Devil’s Bowl Speedway season finale on Sunday, October 26. (MemorEvents photo)