News Director 
Story By: STEVE PADOS / DIRT TRACK HEROES – PHILLIPSBURG, NJ – The Quaker Steak and Lube Tenth Annual Dirt Track Heroes Show kicked off on Sunday to a record breaking start as 161 cars filled the Mall walkways and the great momentum of the event carried into Monday evening as day two of the week long journey into racing featured a salute to the Drag Racing history in the Tri-County area and beyond.
A solid group of drag racers from the straight line racing community have become a core part of the Mall Show and a variety of drag racing cars dot the Mall walkways. Alex’s Tire/Breidingers Speed Shop located in Stockertown, PA and and Murante’s Auto Repair located in Nazareth, PA sponsored the Monday evening show.
Straight line fever became the main topic of discussion and operating drag racing facilities such as Island Dragway, Englishtown, Maple Grove and Atco along with long closed facilities such as Harmony, Old Bridge, Vargo, Flemington and Mountain View (The Sticks) were highlighted in a fun night of great story telling and fantastic racing memories. The diverse show schedule has something different planned for each night of the show and the Friday events on March 10th will feature two shows going back to back with the Legends of Racing taking place at 4 PM honoring the Grand Marshal of the event, Sammy Beavers, and the evening show paying tribute to the open wheel divisions of racing. The show closes on March 11th with Flemington Speedway Historical Society putting together a tremendous celebration to all of the great open wheel racing that took place at the famed Flemington Fair Speedway. A solid group of open wheel legends is expected in for the closing day of the show.
With the eclectic Quaker Steak & Lube Restaurants the lead sponsor of the event, the excitement and the pulse for the week long show quickens with each day as the diverse schedule of the week long show offers a bit of everything to all racing fans. The 55 stores making up Quaker Steak & Lube annually sell more than 80 million wings per year and “The Lube” is recognized as “The best wings in the USA.” The Phillipsburg location has been dubbed “The Official Restaurant of the Dirt Track Heroes” show. To contact the restaurant, call: 908 454 2900 or check out their website at: www.thelube.com Before or after the show head to Quaker Steak & Lube and get recharged and refueled in a great sports setting. Request a table underneath the Bob Pickell number 300 Modified for an additional racing experience.
The 10th annual edition of the show has amazing sponsorship support through headline sponsor Quaker Steak and Lube restaurant chain and associate sponsors IRCO Community Federal Credit Union, Enterprise Car Sales, Premio Foods, Smith Fabrications/Stage One Modifieds, Jeff’s Automotive, Alex’s Tire/Breidingers Speed Shop, Adams Brothers Used Auto Parts, Hamlin Speedway/S&S Speedways, Searock Fabrication and Speed Supplies, R&F International Muffler and Brake, Murante Auto Repair, Martocci Automotive, Chrin Automotive, Dean Autosports, Carl’s Auto Repair, Huston’s Automotive, Ralph’s Radiator and Persa’s Auto Repair. Nightly driver interviews and race cars of all types provide the race fan a full appetite of racing fun before the regular racing seasons begins. The Phillipsburg Mall, located on Route 22 East in Phillipsburg, NJ, has proven to be a popular setting for this special event and offers a multitude of race cars, racing memorabilia, collectibles and photos on display throughout the course of the show. The show continues to be FREE of charge to the mall traffic and the 2017 edition of the show is the trend setter and show stopper of the many shows that are scheduled during the year.
Tuesday night’s show will feature “The Stars of Tomorrow” as the quarter midget drivers will be on hand to chat about their budding racing careers and many of them will be giving their first ever interviews to a sizeable crowd. The evening is sponsored by Adam’s Brothers Used Auto Parts located in Allentown, PA and the number to reach them is: 610-264-2334 and Persa’s Auto Repair located in Bath, PA with a number to reach them at: 610-837-7800.
Round tabling the drag racing discussions on Monday night were Ed Beers, Don Knoblick, online radio show host Kelli Barbato, sponsors Alex Cortezzo and Lou Murante, Ralph Murante, Pete and Patti Linsky, Joe Opitz, Lou Horvath and special appearance from drag racing legend Carl Ruth. Tri State Memorabilia had Wyatt Jacobus on hand to talk about the close cross sectioning of the circle track and drag racing community.
The great fan base of racing can come out to this grand Mall event and be transported back to a time when they could hop into their family jitney and travel less than a half hour to witness the excitement of a night at the races. All historical racing groups including Reading, Flemington, Harmony through Greg Collins, Tri State, Remembering Nazareth, Bob Snyder Photos and Snyder Video, Mike Ritter Photos and Mocatek Memories through Justin Beltrame have their memorabilia on display and their many scrapbooks open for the fans to take another long look at the glory years of racing and possibly find a picture or two they want to purchase as a keepsake from past glory or racing exploits. More information is available regarding the show by calling: 443-513-4456.
On display at the Mall include big and small block Modifieds, Sportsman, Micro-Sprints, Midgets, 360 and 410 Sprints, Wingless Sprints, Late Models, go-karts, quarter midgets and a broad variety of vintage and restored race cars and drag racing cars. Hamlin, Snydersville, Mahoning, New Egypt, Grandview, Big Diamond, Bridgeport, Oreville and Accord, will again be among the many speedways involved with the 2017 show.
The Quaker Steak and Lube Dirt Track Heroes Car Show has a must have event T-shirt done exclusively for the show. The great keepsake event souvenir program book has many great articles regarding our racing heroes and how the Dirt Track Heroes became a reality. The Phillipsburg Mall is open Sunday 11 AM to 6 PM and from Monday through Saturday from 10 AM to 9 PM. The event offers race teams a great opportunity to promote their sponsors and announce their racing plans for the upcoming 2017 racing season.
