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| Press Release |
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PERRIS
AUTO SPEEDWAY CELEBRATES 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF CRA! |
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(AUGUST
29, 2006, PERRIS, CA) It all began
for CRA 60 years ago this weekend. When
Temecula Valley Pipe & Supply presents the USAC/CRA Sprint Cars in the Jeff
Bagley Classic at Perris Auto Speedway this Saturday night, the track will also
be honoring the legendary racing club. In
addition to the modern day USAC/CRA Series, the Western Racing Association will
be on hand to entertain the fans with more than 20 beautiful vintage sprint
cars, midgets and roadsters. Spectator
gates will open at 5:00 PM with racing at 7:00. Wally
Pancratz won the initial race for CRA, which then stood for “California
Roadster Association,” on September 1, 1946.
The next day Billy Cantrell took the checkered flag and the organizations
legendary run was underway. Sprint
cars eventually replaced roadsters and the name was changed from the California
Roadster Association to the California Racing Association in 1957.
CRA was regarded as one of the top racing groups in the nation and ran
continually from 1946 through 1993 before folding early in the 1994 season.
The CRA name returned in 2004 when the USAC/CRA series was born.
In a little over two years since, it has once again become one of the
strongest racing organizations in the nation. This
Saturday night, some of the most beautiful cars from a bygone era will be on the
modern day Perris Auto Speedway half-mile clay oval.
The swoosh of Offenhauser engines will again fill the air, along with the
sounds of several other vintage racing cars. Heading
the list of drivers for the WRA will be 83-year old Walt James of Acton.
A
21-year president of the original CRA, James was inducted into the National
Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1993. A
look at the original CRA yearbook from 1946 shows James as the driver of Ray
Vanyan’s #125. He was there when
it began and he will be there this Saturday night.
James has truly earned his nickname as “Mr. CRA.” Advance
tickets are on sale 24 hours a day by calling 1-800-595-4849.
You can also order advance tickets on the Internet at tix.com or
perrisautospeedway.com. Saturday
night’s affair on Riverside County’s only clay half-mile oval will be
preceded by Friday’s drag racing action on the Diamond Valley Honda Street
Legal Strip at The PAS Drag Strip. Gates
at the drag strip open at 5:00 PM with racing at 6:00.
The drag strip is also located on the Lake Perris Fairgrounds. Perris Auto Speedway is located on the freeway close Lake Perris Fairgrounds, home of the Southern California Fair, approximately one hour east of Los Angeles and one hour North of San Diego. To get to the track, take the 215 freeway, exit on the Ramona Expressway and go two miles east to the fairgrounds. Anyone wishing more information can contact Perris Auto Speedway at (951) 940-0134. racesatthepas@aol.com
is the only authorized Internet address to issue official media news released
from The Perris Auto Speedway or Oval Entertainment USAC/CRA
POINT STANDINGS 1.
Damion Gardner - Concord, CA - 1316 2.
Cory Kruseman - Ventura, CA - 1303 3.
Mike Spencer - Temecula, CA - 1092 4.
Tony Jones - Norco, CA - 1090 5.
Danny Sheridan - Santa Maria, CA - 1019 6.
Rip Williams - Yorba Linda, CA - 874 7.
Rickie Gaunt - Torrance, CA - 720 8.
David Cardey - Riverside, CA - 698 9.
Josh Ford - Camarillo, CA - 694 10.
Charles Davis Jr. - Buckeye, AZ - 682 11.
Blake Miller - Yorba Linda, CA - 634 12.
Mike Kirby - Torrance, CA - 596 13.
Evan Suggs - Scotts Valley, CA - 569 14.
J Hicks - Torrance, CA - 414 15.
Bobby Cody - Costa Mesa, CA - 396 16.
Johnny Rodriguez - Elk Grove, CA - 394 17.
Alan Ballard - Bakersfield, CA - 351 17.
Davey Pombo - Kerman, CA - 351 19.
Seth Wilson - San Clemente, CA - 294 20.
R.J. Johnson - Phoenix, AZ - 254 |
