Super Trucks make Jamestown debut

The Jamestown Speedway will be hosting something unique for race fans on Saturday night.

Coming all the way from Winnipeg, Man., where they run regularly at Red River Co-op Speedway, Super Trucks will be the featured event when the green flag flies at 7 p.m.

And, these are not the garden variety, run to the store pickups.

Super Trucks are 400-horsepower, fire-breathing racing machines that reach in the neighborhood of 90 mph on Winnipeg’s half-mile dirt oval.

The Jamestown Speedway frequently brings in different classes of cars to compete along with its regular lineup of WISSOTA Modifieds, WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds, WISSOTA Street Stocks and Bombers. But normally those classes include familiar late models or sprint cars.

The Super Trucks have been a staple at Red River Co-op Speedway over the past few years, and never before has the series visited Jamestown.

“It’s something different that we’ve never had in Jamestown before,” said Jamestown Speedway general manager Joanne Dieterle. “They look just like the NASCAR Craftsman series trucks. A lot of people have been asking about them.”

Super Trucks have a minimum weight of 2,800 pounds with a maximum engine size of 360 C.I.D. The trucks are allowed a high-rise aluminum intake, but are limited to a 500 CFM two-barrel carburetor.

Super Trucks are similar to WISSOTA Super Stocks because of their engines and all tubular chassis, but have suspension rules similar to WISSOTA Late Models. The chassis itself can be any American car frame, and bodies must be a 1995 or newer standard cab truck.

According to Winnipeg’s Jerome Guyot, driver of the No. 48 2010 GMC truck, the truck bodies comprise of aluminum doors and quarter panels, a fiberglass roof and hood, and plastic bumpers.

The trucks have an open tire rule, and can run on any seven- or eight-inch Hoosier or American race tire.

“We’re just happy to go race somewhere besides Winnipeg,” said Guyot, who was sitting second in points at Red River Co-op Speedway in the series this week. “We’ve got nine trucks coming for sure, and a 10th driver 90 percent sure he’s coming. We’ll probably have two heats of five trucks.”

There are 13 trucks listed in the point standings north of the border, and Guyot has a few familiar faces out on the track with him in Winnipeg. Guyot’s father, Don Guyot, and his brother, Eric Guyot, co-drive a truck each week.

“There’ll only be 10, but anyone can win. We’re all very competitive,” the 21-year-old Jerome Guyot said. “It’s a totally different, neat class.”

Guyot, who’s in his first year behind the wheel of a Super Truck, also said he’s no stranger to the type of racing Jamestown has to offer.

“I raced their last year with my street stock,” Guyot said. “(Jamestown) has the nicest track I’ve ever been to — bar none.”

Guyot said the rest of the Super Truck series drivers are fired up to turn circles tonight at the speedway as well, and Dieterle said she’s hoping a good crowd of fans turn out to see a show they’ve probably never seen before.

“We’re hoping that people will enjoy something different and come out and see what it’s all about,” Dieterle said.

Sun sports writer Michael Savaloja can be reached at (701) 952-8461 or by email at mikes@jamestownsun.com

Tags: auto racing, sports, trucks, speedway