NRG CONTROLS NORTH ANNOUNCES $15,000 PURSE INCREASE

SELINGROVE, Pa. – Through the generous sponsorship support from NRG Controls North, Inc. in Selinsgrove and in conjunction with Mach I Chassis in Camp Hill, the Tenth Annual National Open for 358/360 sprint cars at Selinsgrove Speedway on Saturday, Sept. 4, will be one of the richest-paying 358/360 sprint car races in history. The winner of the 35-lap Open will earn $8,000 out of a purse totaling more than $36,500, a $15,000 increase to the purse that was announced just last weekend.

Mr. Brian Scandle, President, and Mr. Jeff Edmunds, Vice President, of NRG Controls North, made the announcement today in hopes of attracting a stellar field of race teams to the venerable half-mile dirt track to compete in this historic race in the northeastern United States for the 358 and 360 sprint car divisions.

The top five positions combined will pay out more than $22,000 in prize money, with $5,000 to finish second, $3,400 for third, $3,100 for fourth, and $2,550 to finish fifth. The race will pay $1,000 to finish tenth and $500 to start.

The 358/360 Open will be a tribute to the speedway’s late five-time sprint car champion Jim Nace, who was instrumental in helping to establish the 358 sprint car division as the track’s weekly headline open wheel division in 2001. Nace, who campaigned his popular Fast Tees No. 6 as both a driver and car owner in recent years, died last November following a seven-year battle with cancer.

The fast qualifier for the 358/360 Open will receive $100 for the Fast Tees Fast Time Award in Memory of Jim Nace plus a Hoosier racing tire from Miller’s Racing Parts of Mechanicsburg.

Tentatively, the qualifying format for the race will include time trials, heat races, and a B-main; however, the format will ultimately be determined by the number of entries for the race.

Track gates will open at 5 p.m., with qualifying slated to begin at 7 p.m. The rain date, if needed, will be Sunday, Sept. 5, at 7 p.m. over the Labor Day holiday.