Sports : IMCA following record-setting 100th season with bigger, better 2016

After as record-setting centennial season, the International Motor Contest Association is on track for even bigger and better things this year.

The oldest automotive racing sanctioning body in the country, IMCA will provide rules and procedures used at dirt track events in more than 30 states and Canada.

Over 9,000 drivers will compete at IMCA events held at more than 200 different race tracks in 2016. This fall, point fund checks totaling approximately $700,000 and based on national, regional, special series and local track standings, will be mailed from the company’s home office in Vinton.

“IMCA has called Vinton home for more than 40 years and that’s something we’re very proud of,” Company President Brett Root said. “Our goal from the very beginning has been keeping the sport affordable and safe for the Saturday night-type racer. There’s no question IMCA has set the standard in the industry for doing just that.”

Eight divisions run under the IMCA banner again this season, most notably the Modified. The open-wheel class of race car was introduced in 1979 at Benton County Speedway and is now the biggest and arguably most popular at dirt speedways across the nation.

Regular weekly, series and special events are also scheduled for Late Models, Sprint Cars, Stock Cars, Hobby Stocks, Northern and Southern SportMods, and Sport Compacts.

“Weekly racing has been our foundation since the introduction of the Modifed. Strong weekly race programs mean better car counts and better grandstand attendance,” explained Root. “Special series, like the Deery Brothers Summer Series for Late Models and the Hawkeye Dirt Tour for Modifieds, and special events like the Hogan Memorial (at Benton County July 10) complement our weekly events.”

While each class has its own distinct look and fan following, their economics and common sense rules make IMCA divisions popular with drivers and promoters alike.

New weekly sanctions already announced for 2016 include Jamestown Speedway and Red River Valley Speedway in North Dakota; Park Jefferson Speedway in South Dakota; Junction Motor Speedway in Nebraska; Atchison County Raceway and Heartland Park Topeka in Kansas; I-96 Speedway in Michigan; and Southern Oklahoma Speedway.

Also new to IMCA sanctioning this season are the Kansas-based United Rebel Sprint Series and the Sprint Series of Oklahoma.

While the biggest increase in membership numbers-wise in recent seasons have been in the Modified and Northern SportMod divisions, the biggest percentage increase clearly came in the Sprint Car class.

That growth, notes Root, is a result of the 2014 partnership agreement with RaceSaver, which provides a nation-wide set of rules for the division. IMCA, in turn, administers point standings and point funds. IMCA membership also provides insurance coverage to all licensed members.

More than 100 of the winged cars will converge on Eagle, Neb., Raceway for the Sprint Car Nationals Sept. 1-4. The biggest event in dirt track racing begins the next day at Boone Speedway when the first green flag flies for the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s.

Car count for the 34th annual event is expected to approach 900 as champions are crowned in seven divisions from Sept. 5-10. Southern SportMods are new to Super Nationals this year while the 13th annual Fast Shafts All-Star Modified Invitational highlights the Friday program at Boone.

“There isn’t another dirt racing event that measures up to Super Nationals,” Root said. “We promote it as America’s Racin’ Vacation and it’s become a must-attend event for hundreds of drivers and thousands of fans coast to coast and border to border.”