By Dave Noelke
August 19, 2014 West Salem, WI. – Officials from LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway today released the schedule for the 45th Oktoberfest Race Weekend.
Oktoberfest Race Weekend is set to begin Thursday, October 2nd and run daily through Sunday, October 5th. “We have a great lineup of events not only on the track, but off the track as well for this year’s Oktoberfest,” commented Speedway President Gregg McKarns.
“The major change this year is that there will be a 200 lap championship finale for the ARCA Midwest Tour. It’s been quite a long time since we have run a race over 150 laps at Oktoberfest,” continued McKarns. The longer race seems to be much more of a spectacle in the eyes of both race teams and fans. For the drivers, it is a big deal not only to qualify for and get to race in, but the winner will receive quite the accolades,” McKarns said.
“We have tweaked the schedule of events with a few minor changes, but in general,fans can expect a schedule similar to what they have enjoyed in recent years. We are planning on several things this year to enhance the fan experience, and as ‘Fest approaches, they will begin to notice them.”
The Oktoberfest Race Weekend will kick off on Monday, September 29th, with the opening of “Camper Village” at Noon. Campers are allowed to park on site for up to a week in the reserved and un-reserved areas. The first on-track activity will take place with an open practice on Wednesday night, October 1st, and then racing each night on Thursday, Friday & Saturday, with the big ARCA Midwest Tour 200 lap finale on Sunday afternoon.
“The traditional Oktoberfest Fan Guide Newspaper is headed to press, and many fans and racers will receive one via our many mailing lists. But we also have a crew headed out to the area short tracks in coming weeks. We look forward to saying hello and extending a free copy of the guide to them,” concluded McKarns.
To view the entire 2014 Oktoberfest schedule of events, please visit www.oktoberfestraceweekend.com.
Be sure to follow @RaceOktoberfest on Twitter and feel free to share your experiences about Oktoberfest with the hashtag #FestIsBest.
For more information about the LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway or Oktoberfest Race Weekend, please visit www.lacrossespeedway.com, www.oktoberfestraceweekend.com, email lacrossespeedway@yahoo.com, or call the office at 608-786-1525.
LaCrosse Speedway is the only paved oval track in Wisconsin as part the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, a proud NASCAR Hometrack.
Oktoberfest Race Weekend Tentative Event Schedule:
Wednesday, October 1st – Open Practice 4:00-7:30 Open to All divisions competing at Oktoberfest
Thursday, October 2nd – Qualifying at 3:25, Racing at 6:00- Futures Super Late Models, LaCrosse Divisions: Late Models, Sportsmen, Thunderstox, Hornets, Outlawz, plus Double-O
Friday, October 3rd – Qualifying at 2:25, Racing at 5:00 – Dick Trickle 99 Super Late Models, Great Northern Sportsmen, Midwest Trucks
Saturday, October 4th – Qualifying at 2:05, Racing at 5:00 – Big-8 Late Models, Mid-Am Stock Cars, ARCA Midwest Tour, Midwest Dash Cars
Sunday, October 5th – Racing at 12:00 – ARCA Midwest Tour 200, Big-8 JMCK 63, Vintage Cars