Three event-filled days in September will cap a busy 2016 at Jamestown Speedway.
The 45th annual Stock Car Stampede has been extended from a two-day show to three in order to make room for all the activities organizers are hoping to have planned, according to Jamestown Speedway track promoter Tim Baldwin.
The longest running year-end special in the area will start with heat races on Thursday, Sept. 22, and conclude that Saturday with feature events in all eight classes of cars scheduled to be in attendance.
"It will help us do justice to all the extra stuff we want to do this year," Baldwin said. "We want to pay tribute to the event it's become."
The speedway plans to invite back past promoters, officials and drivers, and a merchandise table where past winners will be autographing T-shirts is in the works. Plans also include a parade, replica retro race cars and a former popular format to the late models feature.
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Track officials are hoping fans get to see 33 cars start three-wide and complete 33 laps.
Baldwin said the third day should only enhance an already popular Stampede experience. The event drew 302 cars and drivers in 2015, which was the fourth consecutive year the Stampede surpassed a car count of 300.
Complete details will be available later in 2016.
"Trying to fit all that racing into two days was hard to begin with," Baldwin said. "We want to make sure we have the time to pay tribute to all the people who are going to be here and not short-change the racing side of it."
Jamestown Speedway's 2016 schedule includes a total of 15 weekends of racing this summer.
The Northern Late Model Racing Association (NLRA) again has a pair of dates scheduled (June 11 and Aug. 13), while the Northern Outlaw Sprint Association (NOSA) will be added when a date can be finalized.
Opening night is scheduled for May 14, which is when the IMCA Modifieds and the Slingshots will be firing up their first full-seasons at Jamestown Speedway. The IMCA Modifieds have replaced the WISSOTA Modifieds at Jamestown Speedway in 2016.
"It's probably going to bring some different cars to the track, and some drivers you wouldn't normally see," Baldwin said. "We'd like to pull some of the guys from Mandan, Glyndon and now Fargo.
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"Anytime you can bring more people-and different people-to the race track, that's always a good thing."
The annual IMCA Dakota Classic Modified Tour will start-instead of end-it's six-night event in Jamestown on July 9. The tour championship was held here the past two seasons.
The Slingshots were added full-time after appearing once in July and during the Stampede in 2015. The entry-level class is designed to help expose the sport to youths and will not pay prize money.
"It's a way to make a connection between the go-kart track and the big track," said Baldwin, who mentioned kids will receive trophies. "(Slingshots) are cheap, they don't go too fast and it's an affordable way to get kids involved in the sport."
There will be no Labor Day specials held at the speedway this fall. Baldwin explained too many other area tracks have begun scheduling specials that weekend, and that time will be used to focus on the Stampede.
"If you try to have a special without a big car count and extra things going on, it's really not a special," Baldwin said. "Rather than try to stick it out and compete with other tracks, we chose to opt out on it and let the other tracks have that date.
"We have our Stampede date that other tracks really respect. They don't schedule against it, and they also help promote it," Baldwin added. "It was a tough call, but it's in the interest of racing in the area."
Jamestown Speedway
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2016 tentative racing schedule
Saturdays, Stutsman County Fairgrounds, 7 p.m.
May 7-Test & Tune
May 14-Opening Night
May 21-Points Race
May 28-Armed Forces Night
June 4-Points Race
June 11-NLRA Late Models
June 18-N.D. Legends Tour Race
June 25-Kids Night (tentative)
July 4-Fireworks Spectacular
July 9-Dakota Classic Modified Tour Opening Night
July 16-Points Race
July 23-Points Race
July 30-No races (Governor's Cup, Mandan)
Aug. 6-No Races
Aug. 13-NLRA Late Models
Aug. 20-Back To School Night
Aug. 27-Season Championship
Sept. 22-24-45th Annual Stock Car Stampede
Weekly Classes
-- Slingshots
-- Pure Stocks
-- WISSOTA Midwest Modifeds
-- WISSOTA Street Stocks
-- IMCA Modifieds
