New owners and plenty of changes at Hilltop Speedway
As the 2009 season ended, the future of Hilltop Speedway was uncertain until early January, when Jesse and Tracy Wardell purchased the speedway in southern Holmes County. Since then, the Wardells have been busy getting things ready for the upcoming race season.The first move was to switch to Saturday night racing with Super Late Models, Tri State Modifieds, Street Stocks, Mini Stocks and the Circle Track Mini Trucks as the regular divisions.The 410 Sprints will make three appearances during the year: April 17, July 17, and August 14. The OReilly All Star Sprint Speedweek show will be back on Tuesday, June 22, and for the first time the OReilly All Star Late Models will take on Hilltop Speedway on Friday, May 15, with $4,000 to win show.A couple of new perks for the racers this year will be Dash for Cash races that will be for all the feature winners in a winner-take-all format. The Super Late Models will go 10 laps for $500, Tri State Modifieds 10 laps for $250, Street Stocks eight laps for $100, Mini Stocks and trucks each will go six laps for $50. These races will be contested on May 22 and July 31.Also for the Late Models, if a driver wins at Lakeville Speedway on Friday night and comes to Hilltop and wins on Saturday night, he will receive a $500 bonus.Each division will have a big race night with the Modifieds coming on May 8, the trucks on July 10, Street Stocks on July 24 and the Mini Stocks Sept. 10-11. The Ohio Outlaw Motorsports will have bike and quad races plus enduros, live music and more events in the works for the 10 season.For the fans this year, they will have a chance to win $100 a night in the Pick-N- Win game by correctly picking the top five finishers in order of the Super Late Model race. Season passes for the general admission are now on sale for $200 and for students age 6-12 for $50. Reservations for picnic tables for the year are now available for $150 a half table.Pit passes for the season for $550 can be ordered now as can pit stall reservations for all regular Saturday races at $100.You can purchase any of the above by sending the amount to Hilltop Speedway, 4518 Graber Rd., Fredericksburg, or by calling the track office at 330-763-1481. For more information on rules, schedule or any of the above, check out www.hilltopspeedway.org.Opening night is set for Saturday, March 27, with a practice night on Wednesday, March 24, from 5-9 p.m.
