Officials from five prominent Central New York tracks, with support from FX Caprara Car Companies, are excited to announce the formation of the FX Caprara Car Companies Upstate Sportsman Alliance (USA), a cooperative initiative designed to organize sportsman racing events within the region. Track promoters Jimmy Phelps (Weedsport), Jeremie Corcoran (Canandaigua) and Bill Shea (Utica-Rome), in conjunction with Fulton Speedway and Brewerton Speedway Marketing Director Cory Reed agreed to this new program recently after several months in the planning.
The FX Caprara Upstate Sportsman Alliance will track all sportsman racers within the region under a common points system combining points earned in ‘weekly race events’ at each track, plus points earned in a ten-race ‘Championship Tour’. At season’s end, a minimum point fund of $10,000 will be distributed. Each of the top ten finishers will receive an identical $1000 payoff. Additional prizes and awards will be distributed to additional point positions as they are determined.
Weekly Points
A driver’s best 15 finishes in weekly races from the start of the season to Labor Day will be scored. These finishes can be obtained at any of the five participating tracks on any race night and are not restricted to a driver’s home track. After a driver reaches 15 starts within the region, his/her poorest finishes will start to be eliminated. Driver’s that make more starts will have more opportunities to eliminate worse finishes. The DIRTcar weekly points system will be in effect, with 60 points awarded for a win, 56 for a second, etc. The maximum number of ‘Weekly Points’ attainable toward the Championship is 900, (15 wins x 60 points each).
Ten (10) Championship Tour Events
Points earned on a ten race Championship Tour Schedule will be added to a driver’s weekly points. Championship Tour Events are each track’s most prominent Sportsman events and are spaced out from April through the end of October. All Championship Tour events will be scored and may not be dropped. The DIRTcar 100-point schedule will be used to track these points (ie. 100 points for a win, 40 to start. Driver’s failing to qualify for any Championship event will still earn 20 points).
The Championship Tour schedule begins at Canandaigua Speedway with the Cabin Fever 64 in Saturday, April 19. Utica-Rome hosts the second tour event on Monday, May 25 in conjunction with their annual Victoria 200.
Brewerton Speedway hosts the first of three July tour events on Wednesday, July 1 alongside the first night of ESS Speed Week. Sunday, July 5, Weedsport will host the 2nd Annual Sportsman Classic presented by Industrial Tire of CNY. With Canandaigua off for the Ontario County Fair, Fulton Speedway will close out the month with an Industrial Tire of CNY Sportsman Shootout Qualifier on Saturday, July 25.
After being idle in August, the tour will race three consecutive weekends in September. Utica-Rome will play host to the tour on Sunday, September 6 as part of The New Yorker Weekend. A second visit to Canandaigua on Saturday, September 12 and a $1,500-to-win, Industrial Tire of CNY Sportsman Shootout Qualifier at Brewerton on Friday, September 18 complete the month.
The championship tour will come down to two big events in October. The 30th Outlaw 200 Weekend at Fulton Speedway is the setting for the 9th round of the tour on October 2 and 3 with the running of the 50-lap Industrial Tire of CNY Sportsman Shootout. Just three weeks later, the first ever United Sportsman Alliance Champion will be crowned at Weedsport Speedway at the Upstate Sportsman Championship on Saturday, October 24. Point fund details and other awards will be released as they become available.
Participating track promoters have entered into this program with the betterment of Sportsman racing in mind. Each participating track promoter has been instrumental in the development of this program.
“The idea isn’t to build another travelling series but to simply link our existing big events to give sportsman racers within the region something a little bigger to shoot for,” Reed said.
“Weedsport Speedway has been committed to showcasing the talents of today’s Sportsman division from the start. The strength of the division is integral to the future of dirt modified racing. And we are proud to be part of the Upstate Sportsman Alliance series,” said Phelps, in his second year of promoting racing at the newly renovated Weedsport Speedway.
“Crate Sportsman racing is a fantastic and affordable racing venue,” said Shea, who is entering his first season of promoting Utica-Rome Speedway alongside wife Kim. “It’s important that we work together to ensure consistent rules and treatment of the racers when they come to our tracks. This alliance starts helps us do that.”
“The fastest growing class in the Northeast is crate Sportsman, and Central New York is a hotbed,” said Corcoran, who has led a successful resurgence of the Canandaigua Motorsports Park the past four years, “taking the steps to organize our races to create more opportunities was an easy decision.”
Family owned and operated, the FX Caprara Car Companies has been a leader in the new and used auto industry for decades. Through that time, they have extended their support of auto racing in many capacities. From car sponsorships and ownerships, track sponsorships, track ownership and racing themselves, the Caprara family has done it.
With locations in Watertown, Pulaski and Alexandria Bay, FX Caprara Car Companies features an extensive selection of New Car brands include Kia, Volkswagen, Fiat, Dodge, Ram, Chrysler, Jeep, Chevy, Ford and Buick vehicles. Their used vehicle inventory consists of cars, vans, trucks, SUVs and crossover vehicles all in clean and reliable condition.
The FX Caprara brand crosses over to Harley Davidson and Honda Motorcycles in their Adams Center location in addition to their Caprara Brothers Outdoor Toy Store in Pulaski. Whether it’s a car, truck, motorcycle, snowmobile, ATV or trailer, FX Caprara has you covered.
Product and associate sponsorship opportunities with the FX Caprara Upstate Sportsman Alliance are available. Groups or companies interested in being involved should contact Cory Reed at (315) 374-1168 or e-mail upstatesportsmanalliance@gmail.com. Or contact your participating track promoter.
Check out the Upstate Sportsman Alliance Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/upstatesportsmanalliance) and Twitter (@USASportsman) pages to keep up to date with series information as it becomes available.