Start times moved to 7:00 p.m.; kids’ bike giveaways highlight two nights of action
WEST HAVEN, Vt. – Devil’s Bowl Speedway promises to be the site of Southern Vermont’s biggest, loudest, and most exciting holiday celebrations during the annual “Firecracker Weekend” on July 2-3. The two-night spectacle will keep Rutland County rumbling on both Saturday and Sunday with NASCAR Whelen All-American Series stock car racing on asphalt and dirt, kids’ bicycle giveaways, a pair of smash-‘n’-crash Enduro races, and the region’s biggest Independence Day weekend fireworks shows.
Both events have new start times of 7:00 p.m. in order to give fans and racers a little more time to relax during the day and enjoy holiday weekend activities. The change also allows the sun to set a bit lower and will let temperatures cool off some before the racing begins.
Firecracker Weekend racing action begins with Coca-Cola Night on the half-mile Asphalt Track on Saturday, July 2. The ground-pounding Bond Auto Parts Sportsman Modified and the sleek and modern Central Vermont Motorcycles Late Model divisions will each run special 44-lap feature races. The old-school Rosen & Berger Renegades and the entry-level Portland Glass Mini Stocks will also be on the bill.
On Sunday, July 3 at 7:00 p.m., WhistlePig Rye Whiskey presents racing on the 3/10-mile Dirt Track with the Sportsman Modified, Renegade, and Mini Stock classes. The winged, alcohol-burning, lightning-fast Sprint Cars of New England will also be on hand for their second appearance of the year.
Both nights will see the Enduro Series in all of its wild-and-crazy glory, featuring not-quite-street-legal vehicles with only safety modifications, and amateur drivers racing in 50-lap “survival of the fittest” events that always produce plenty of bent metal. Races are run without caution periods and are only red-flagged in emergency situations – otherwise disabled cars are left wherever they come to rest.
Each night features a kids’ bicycle giveaway presented by Thomas Dairy. Race drivers from all divisions will donate new bikes of all sizes, and kids will to sign up to win them absolutely free. The finishing touch on each night, of course, will be Devil’s Bowl Speedway’s massive annual holiday fireworks show.
Special general admission at each event is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors (62+) and students (13-17), and free for kids age 12 and under. Gates open at 5:00 p.m. and racing starts at 7:00 p.m. both nights.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, Vt., four miles north of Exit 2 off of U.S. Route 4 and just 20 minutes from Rutland, Vt. 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 hashtag.
(Photos by Devil’s Bowl Speedway, T.J. Ingerson, Alan Ward)