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The King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series sanctioned Jimmy Sills Classic takes to the Stockton Dirt Track this Saturday June 18
By Gary Thomas
Stockton, CA – June 13, 2016…This Saturday June 18 the Stockton Dirt Track will continue its season of honoring racing legends & Hall of Famers, as the King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series ventures to the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds for the Jimmy Sills Classic.
In his storied career Jimmy Sills tallied a number of major accomplishments including six wins at the Skagit Speedway Dirt Cup in Washington, which ranks number one all time at the prestigious event. One of his more revered wins at the race came in 1980 when he ran the alphabet soup from the D-main to beat out the late great Gary Patterson for the victory.
In addition to that and his three USAC Silver Crown titles, the “Professor” has also scored wins at the Mini Gold Cup, the Oval Nationals, Grand Annual Sprint Car Classic, the Jayhawk Nationals, Ohio Speedweek, the Dave Bradway Jr. Memorial, Tribute to Gary Patterson and countless other major events. In 1983 he captured a preliminary night at the prestigious Knoxville Nationals and went on to finish fifth in the Saturday finale.
Sills was also the all-time leader in victories at the now defunct Baylands Raceway Park and throughout the years has claimed wins in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. All in all the Elverta, California resident has been one of the most respected short track racers to ever come out of the Golden State and we look forward to honoring him this Saturday night. Sills was bestowed one of the highest honors a driver can receive when he was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2006.
“I remember Jimmy Sills being almost untouchable at Baylands Raceway when I was an announcer there,” commented past operations manager with the King of the West Series George Hague. “He practically owned the place and had so many wins in that Bailey Bros 01. Watching him get around Baylands was quite simply a thing of beauty. What he accomplished in the USAC Silver Crown Series was also something special. When you think about legendary drivers to come out of California you certainly put Jimmy Sills near the top in that category.”
The multiple-time World of Outlaws winner was also owner & operator of the Jimmy Sills School of Open Wheel Racing at Marysville Raceway and helped train many of the Sprint Car drivers still competing today. Showing skills early on in his career, the man also known as “Buckwheat” was the first rookie driver to win a main event at Sacramento’s famed West Capital Raceway in 1973. That triumph came in just his sixth career super modified start.
Sills will have event shirts for sale & will be available for autographs under the main grandstand on Saturday. In addition to the King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series the new IMCA All Star Modified Tour will also be in competition this Saturday. Like KWS the traveling dirt modified circuit is held under the Prentice Motorsports Group banner and has put on a couple of great shows to begin the season in Tulare & Merced.
This weekend’s Jimmy Sills Classic is also a part of the San Joaquin County Fair. With paid admission to the fair, upper deck grandstand tickets cost just $10 & lower deck tickets are only $5. Pre-sale race tickets to be held at will call & picked up on day of race can be purchased by also calling 916-370-9417. The front gate opens at 4pm, with first heat scheduled for around 7pm.
Adult fair admission is $10, kids 6-12 will be $5 and children 5 & under are free. Seniors, students & military with id cost $7. Fair admission can be pre-bought at https://sanjoaquinfairgrounds.com/fair/ & features a $2 discount until June 14 using the code 2off at checkout.
The Stockton Dirt Track is a lightning fast 3/8 mile clay oval located on the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds in Stockton, California. The physical address is 1658 S Airport Way, Stockton, CA 95206. For information on the speedway visit http://www.stocktondirttrack.com
Info on the King of the West 410 Sprint Car Series can be found at http://www.racepmg.com
Upcoming King of the West Series events
Saturday June 18: Stockton Dirt Track (Jimmy Sills Classic)
Friday June 24: Ocean Speedway – Watsonville (Pombo/Sargent Classic)
Saturday June 25: Calistoga Speedway (Wine Country Classic)
Saturday July 9: Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds– Hanford, CA
Sunday July 10: Stockton Dirt Track (Salute to LeRoy Van Conett)
www.sprintcarchallengetour.com
www.placervillespeedway.com
www.stocktondirttrack.com
www.thunderbowlraceway.com
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