ARCA RE/MAX Series at Pocono Chalk-Full of Flavor and Quality
By Dino Oberto ….. “Keeping Track”
Most times at a NASCAR Nextel Cup event there is the accompaniment of a second NASCAR touring division, be it the Busch or Truck Series or perhaps a regional tour group such as the NASCAR Modifieds.
But since 1983 at Pocono Raceway the lead-in race to both annual NASCAR 500’s has always been the ARCA RE/MAX Series and on August 4 it will be the 45th running for the ARCA cars at the 2.5-mile Long Pond triangle. ARCA actually made its first appearance at Pocono in 1969 on the defunct ¾-mile inner oval.
Dr. Joe Mattioli, Pocono’s CEO, remains a strong supporter of ARCA. He has often stated that it would be no problem to bring in another NASCAR series but having instead a great relationship with ARCA over the years there are no plans to change.
“These guys, (ARCA) have been running here since 1969 and I wouldn’t get rid of them for anything. I mean I can try to make more money if I went with a Busch race or something like that but these ARCA people are very important to us and to NASCAR and it’s to our advantage to keep them,” said Mattioli.
ARCA is the second oldest professional stock car organization in the nation, second only to NASCAR and dollar-for-dollar and lap-for-lap fans are treated to an equal dose of top shelf stock car action.
“To tell the truth I don’t know where exactly we rate on the ricketier scale in terms of one-two-three-four-five. There’s no doubt the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series is number one as it should be. It is not our goal to be number one. That’s NASCAR’s right and they earned the right to always be number one in our book,” said ARCA Media Director Don Radebaugh.
“Our niche in the industry really has been a steppingstone series. It’s a good place to come and hone your superspeedway skills with hopes of moving on someday. If that makes us number two so be it. I don’t think we strive to position ourselves on top of the charts. We just try to be the best we can be in what we do and one of the things we do is train young up and coming drivers who want to make a career in the NASCAR ranks.”
ARCA does provide that necessity for upstart drivers to gain big track experience but it also gives others who may not be so fortunate to move up at least the chance to race on a big league scale from time-to-time. Case in point comes this weekend at Pocono when a few of the local and regional short track drivers will get the chance to compete. There’s also a number of NASCAR developmental teams entered as well.
ARCA is a tradition rich series just as NASCAR but they reflect further on their roots while continuing to forge ahead.
“A lot of times change is good but in some respects part of our secret to our success has been as much as things change, keep things the same,” said Radebaugh.
“Go back and look at the dirt tracks. We were born on the dirt in 1953 and we still race on the dirt. Its nose to the grindstone, mind your own business and promote your product as best you can and go down the road from there.
“But as much as we want to change to make our sport better which we’ll strive to do and whatever those changes may be, there are many aspects to our series which we want to keep the same.
“I think we are doing well and want to continue to do well for our fans, drivers and sponsors just the same as we always have with an eye on improving wherever and whenever we can.”
Saturday’s ARCA Pennsylvania 200 will feature drivers from three countries and 19 states as the entry list is chalk-full of flavor, quality and talent. At present, 47 teams will be competing for the 41 available starting positions.
Development teams entered include Hendrick Motorsports, Roush Fenway Racing, Bill Davis Racing, Brewco Motorsports, Eddie Sharp Racing/Michael Waltrip Racing, Cunningham Motorsports/Dodge Development and Evernham Motorsports.
From the series regulars, eight-time champion and current point leader Frank Kimmel leads the charge over runner-up point’s driver and Rookie of the Year leader Michael McDowell. McDowell is fresh from his career-first series victory at Kentucky Speedway on July 13th.
Meanwhile Lebanon, Pennsylvania veteran and five-time Daytona winner Bobby Gerhart comes to Pocono third in points still in search of his first Pocono win.
International drivers entered include Julien Penaruiz, from Paris France, and Terry Jones, from Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada.
In the past few years alone there has been some very exciting done-to-the-wire finishes and Saturday’s 200 should be yet another great episode in the storied history of ARCA at Pocono.
A full weekend of on-track activity begins with ARCA RE/MAX Series practice scheduled for Friday, August 3rd beginning at 10:15 am, SIM Factory Pole Award Qualifying slated for 1:45 pm and the Pennsylvania 200 at 1:00 pm Saturday afternoon.
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