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 UNION,
KY (April 10) -- Tennessee's Scott Bloomquist added another win to his
already lengthy resume after capturing the North American Racing
Association's first-ever event. Bloomquist won Saturday night's
inaugural "Spring 50" after leading the final 18 laps of the
50 lap race. The Hall of Fame driver collected $10,000 for the win
while competing on Hoosier racing tires.
Sixty-seven cars filled the pits with 60 of them
mounted on Hoosiers. Brian Birkhofer set fast time of the night with a
lap of 17.504 seconds. Birkhofer set the top mark using Hoosier
tires.
All six heat race winners ran on the Hoosier brand
with Mike Balzano claiming the first heat and Scott Bloomquist, Earl
Pearson, Jr., R.J. Conley, John Gill and Steve Francis taking the
checkered flag in heats two through six, respectively.
In the main event, 20 of the 24 race starters rode on
Hoosier tires. Earl Pearson, Jr. took the lead at the outset with
Scott Bloomquist following closely in tow. Pearson led until lap 33,
when Bloomquist made a move for the lead. Once out front, Bloomquist
extended the distance between first and second place until the
checkered flag dropped after 50 laps. Pearson finished in second place
followed by Steve Francis. All three drivers used a new Hoosier *D55*
left rear tire and a D55 right rear.
Other top-ten finishers on Hoosier were Rick Eckert in
fifth place followed by Mike Balzano in sixth. R.J. Conley crossed the
finish line in eighth and Brian Birkhofer in ninth.
With the win, Scott Bloomquist will now forever go
down in the history books as the first-ever NARA Series winner.
The race had just one caution flag and took 21 minutes
to complete.
Hoosier Late Model Dirt Product Manager Shanon Rush
attended the historic race and reported the details of the event.
Rush commented, "With the threat of rain on
Saturday, Florence Speedway and NARA officials did a great job pushing
the show along." Rush added, "These are the types of
organizations Hoosier is proud to be associated with. We are extremely
pleased that Hoosier tires crossed the line first in the NARA Series
debut."
The second stop on the NARA Series schedule is at
Brownstown (IN) Speedway, April 17, for the "21st Hoosier Dirt
Classic".
For more information on the race you can visit www.naradirtcar.com.
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