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Red Miley Rumble Opens PPMS Season on Saturday

Imperial, PA (April 26)  The beginning of the 2017 racing season is here!  Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway will open the new season of racing on Saturday, April 29, with the running of the 11th Annual Red Miley Rumble.  Presented by Diehl Automotive, the opening night Super Late Model special event will feature the Zimmer’s Service Center United Late Model Series.  Though the theme of the Red Miley Rumble is the number 53, the lap count will be 35 laps, or 53 backwards.  The winner will earn $3553, with all starters earning at least $353.  Moving from its traditional August date, the Red Miley Rumble will now start the season of point competition.  Joining the card on Saturday’s program are the Precise Racing Products RUSH Late Models, Sportsman, Hobby Stocks, Young Guns, and Open Fours.

Previous winners of the Red Miley Rumble include Josh Richards, who was the inaugural winner in 2007.  Steve Baker won the event in 2008, with Bart Hartman winning in 2009.  Richards is the only two time winner of the event, adding a second score in 2010.  The 2011 winner was Davey Johnson, with Jared Miley winning in 2012.  Gregg Satterlee won the event in 2013, as John Mollick took the victory in 2014.  Keith Barbara won the 2015 event, and Michael Norris is the defending event champion.

Besides carrying weekly track points, the Red Miley Rumble is the first race in the four event Diehl Automotive Super Series for Super Late Models.  The four events will carry a separate point series using the track’s ultra competitive point system, designed to reward attendance.  The Series champion will be crowned following the fourth and final event, and the highest point car in the Series that does not qualify for the 29th Annual Pittsburgher 100 on October 6-7 will receive a guaranteed starting position in the event.

Race teams are reminded that a new registration procedure is being implemented this season.  There will still be a random draw for heat race starting positions, and feature lineups will be calculated as they have been in the past.  However, the manual draw for numbers is being replaced by a computerized random draw.  The registration program constantly shuffles the draw numbers, and when the registration process has been completed, a final shuffle will take place and the heat race lineups will be instantly set.  Lineups will be immediately posted at the pit booth, and will also be posted on the track’s Twitter account for all to view, as will footage of the final shuffle.  This will greatly streamline the check in process, and eliminate any possible flaws in the pill draw system.

New this season for drivers in the Hobby Stock, Young Gun, and Open Four divisions, is that after opening night, all of their events will be calculated by Handicap Points.  In this system, points are earned for feature finishes with each feature winner earning 40 points, with a one point drop per position.  Drivers that are in attendance but fail to start a feature event will earn one point less than the last place finisher, and drivers that are not in attendance for a race night will earn 41 points.  As the season progresses, handicap points will be utilized for the last three race nights.   All events will be lined up by handicap point totals, with the lowest handicap point totals starting at the front.  Handicap point totals will be posted in advance of each race night on the track website.

The top drivers from the 2016 season will be honored on Saturday, May 13, as K&N Air Filters presents Hoosier Racing Tire Champions Night.  During intermission, a brief ceremony will take place as the 2016 division champions will be interviewed and receive their championship ring, championship trophies and championship jackets.  2016 division champions were Brandon Burgoon for the second time in the Super Late Models, and first time champions John Mollick in the RUSH Late Models, Dave McManus in the Sportsman, Casey Grumling in the Hobby Stocks, and Ben Anton in the Young Guns.  The top ten in points from 2016 will receive trophies for their accomplishments, the top six in the Young Guns, as the drivers must be present.  The prestigious “Sportsman of the Year” will also be announced, and all first time feature winners from 2016 will also receive a trophy.

For all racing programs, the gates open at 5:00, with warm-ups at 6:00 and racing at 7:00.  Follow us on Facebook at @PAMotorSpeedway or on Twitter at @PAMotorSpeedway for timely information updates.  The Twitter account is used extensively on race nights for live updates.  Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway is located west of the city of Pittsburgh, just south of the Noblestown exit of U.S. Route 22, or 170 Kelso Road in Imperial, PA, for GPS purposes.  The track phone is 724-695-3363 on race days, or call 412-279-RACE.  For complete information including ticket information, please visit the track website at www.ppms.com.

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