It's been two years since sprint cars have turned circles at Jamestown Speedway.
That streak will end on June 10, when the Northern Outlaw Sprint Association is scheduled to be back in Jamestown. The date is just one in a loaded, 17-night 2017 schedule released by the speedway.
The track's annual test and tune commences April 29th, with opening night to follow on May 6.
"We're concentrating on a good, hardcore racing program this year," Jamestown Speedway owner Keith Veil said. "We're very serious about our program, and we're planning on focusing hard on the track, our fans and our sponsors."
The speedway rebounded in the final three weeks of 2016, after a combination of weather-related events and experimentation with dust control agents produced heavy track conditions substandard to Jamestown Speedway's reputation.
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Veil said he's confident, with the help of Mother Nature and lessons learned, the track's surface will again lend itself to multiple-lane racing. Rain events during the week last summer disrupted track prep for Saturday night's green-flag action again and again.
"We made a lot of mistakes on the track last year, but Mother Nature wasn't very kind to us either," Veil said. "We were aware of that and worked on it. The last three races of the year, the track was phenomenal."
Dust should remain under control, Veil said, but not completely eliminated.
"The wetting agent isn't a cure-all," Veil explained. "What it does is bind dirt together and will take care of 50 to 60 percent of dust issues. But we learned some things at the end of last year and we're anxious to put it into practice."
Plenty of big nights dot the speedway's schedule, starting with the NOSA sprints in the second week of the June. Grand Forks' Austin Pierce was the NOSA feature winner here in July of 2014, the last time the sprints were featured.
Just 13 sprint cars, however, raced in Jamestown that evening.
"They're excited about being here and promised they'd put on a good show," Veil said. "We made room for them this year."
The speedway will host a Dakota Legends' tour race on June 17, and will once again open the six-night IMCA Dakota Classic Modified Tour on July 8. The tour brought 99 modifieds to Jamestown last July, but the feature was rained out.
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"We have a lot of big nights planned this year, and that promises to be a big, big night of racing," Veil said. "And, we have the Sanders Modified Challenge, another IMCA tour, coming to the track Aug. 19."
In between, the Northern Late Model Association will visit on Aug. 5. Jamestown Speedway will also be in action on July 4, a Tuesday, as part of the annual Fireworks Spectacular.
The season wraps up with track championship night Aug. 26, followed by the 46th annual Stock Car Stampede on Sept. 22-23.
The weekly lineup will again include IMCA Modifieds, WISSOTA Midwest Modifieds, WISSOTA Street Stocks, Central Dakota Pure Stocks and Slingshots. Veil said efforts to be wrapped up by 10 p.m. will be amplified this season.
"That's going to be the main target we'll be shooting for," Veil said. "People want it to be a three-hour show."
Jamestown Speedway
2017 Schedule
APRIL
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29th: Test and tune
MAY
6th: Opening night
13th: Points race
20th: Points race
27th: No races
JUNE
3rd: Points race
10th: NOSA Sprint Cars
17th: ND Legends Tour Race
24th: Points race
JULY
1st: No races
4th: Fireworks Spectacular
8th: Dakota Classic Modified Tour (opening night)
15th Points race
22nd: Points race
29th: No races
AUGUST
5th: NLRA Late Models
12th: Points race
19th: Sanders Modified Challenge
26th: Season championship
SEPTEMBER
22nd-23rd: 46th Annual Stock Car Stampede
