Category: Motorsports
Posted by Doug Guthrie (The Detroit News) on Thu, Jun 11, 2009 at 4:10 PMRain washes out ARCA qualifying at MIS
ARCA's stock car drivers are getting used to this.
Steady rain scrubbed today's 3 p.m. qualifying for the ARCA RE/MAX series at Michigan International Speedway.
This is ARCA's fourth race in a row where the starting lineup had to be set by current owner's points due to rain. In what might be a strong argument for the effects of global warming, ARCA's Menard's Pole qualifying washed out at Kentucky, Toledo, and Pocono. This is the first time in the 57-year history of the series that four consecutive qualifying sessions have been cancelled.
The weather report is ideal for Friday's 5 p.m. race which follows the 3 p.m. qualifications for NASCAR's Sprint Cup series.
ARCA's Wildlife 200 will be broadcast live on SPEED TV. Live timing and scoring will be available during the race at ARCA's web site .
NASCAR's Camping World Truck series is set to race at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Michigan International. The Sprint Cup stars of NASCAR's top series are to practice at 11:30 a.m. Friday and Noon on Saturday. The Sprint Cup race will start at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
Track and series officials today still were hoping the weather would clear enough over ther 2-mile track near Jackson to allow ARCA and truck practice. Rain showers have plagued the area most of the day.
The National Weather Service predicts the rain will end overnight. The forecast calls for mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the low to mid 70s Friday and Sunday. There is a chance of thunderstorms predicted for Saturday.
Worse than the weather, the effects of the economy also have impacted the racing itself. The truck series' defending champion, Michigan's Johnny Benson, lost his ride on the eve of his home race due to lack of sponsorship. Red Horse Racing announced it was shutting down the team last week, following the race Texas Motor Speedway that ran three trucks short of a full field.
Yesterday, the team announced it would race with a new driver, Timothy Peters, who happened to bring a sponsor along with him.
In racing, nothing goes faster than money.
"It certainly is effecting us," said Ron Drager, president of ARCAs RE/MAX series. "We are sharing the same pain that everyone else is. Anybody who makes it through this will be stronger for it after the recovery."
The ARCA series has 41 race cars on hand to qualify at Michigan, which constitutes a full field for the series. "Previously we've always had more than a full field show up to qualify, so you have to use your own measuring stick to determine how it is impacting you."
Tickets remain available at the Michigan International Speedway box office for all of the weekend's events, including Sunday's normally sold-out Sprint Cup race. Tickets for the ARCA race are just $15, the truck race, $40, and there still are seats available in every grandstand for the Cup race, ranging from $40 to $110.
And once the skies clear, the still available spaces at the campgrounds surrounding the big speedway are going to look very inviting.
