News Director 
Story By: JOHN TIFF / UTICA-ROME SPEEDWAY – VERNON, NY – The Utica-Rome Speedway is set for two big motorsports events this week with the Shootout Productions truck pullers presented by Clinton Tractor invading the speedway on Friday night before the “The Wild 100” Ultimate Sportsman Showdown highlights Sunday’s full racing program presented by The Wild, Turn I LLC and the Kotary Family.
On Friday, August 23 Clinton Tractor and Implement presents Shootout Production truck pullers. Several divisions of trucks are slated to pull down the front straightaway. Gates open on Friday at 5 p.m. with pulling scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. General admission for adults is just $12, senior/students/military members are $10 and kids 16 and under are just $5. Pit passes are available for $15. For full information about the pulling event visit www.shootoutproductionsinc.com.
On Sunday racing action returns to the half-mile after a one-week hiatus. The highlight of program is The Wild 100 Ultimate Sportsman Showdown presented by The Wild Animal Park and Turn I LLC for the Broedel Fuel Group DIRTcar Sportsman.
The winner of the 100-lap A-Main will receive $2,500 for their efforts with $250 going to all main-event starters. Qualifying for the feature race will include timed group warm-ups, heat races as well a D, C and B-Main to lock cars into the A-Main.
Show up points will be awarded to all DIRTcar Sportsman drivers in attendance. Heat race winners for Sunday night’s The Wild 100 Ultimate Sportsman Showdown will receive $25 bonus courtesy of www.DirtTrackDigest.tv.
Also on the card is the Gene Kotary Memorial for the Ted’s Body Shop DIRTcar Pro Stocks. For the third year in a row, the Kotary family is honoring the memory of Gene Kotary with a huge event for the Pro Stock division. The race will pay $1,300 to the winner of the 30-lap main event with each qualified car receiving a minimum of $100 to start. The $300 bump in winner’s purse is courtesy of Welch Motorsports. This will be a heat draw and feature redraw format with show up points only given to all who attempt to qualify.
Gene Kotary was a competitor at Utica-Rome Speedway near the end of the asphalt era. He collected 10 wins between 1975 and 1978 while also grabbing the 1978 track title in the Asphalt Charger/Street Stock division. Kotary also had successful endeavors at the Fulton Speedway. He passed away on October 23, 2016.
The DirtTrackDigest.com DIRTcar 358-Modified division will crown a champion at the end of their 30-lap main-event on Sunday night. Currently Erick Rudolph leads the points standings on the back of five feature wins in 2019. Defending champion Billy Dunn is in pursuit but sits 26 points behind. Pat Ward, Billy Whittaker and Lance Willix complete the top five in the overall points chase.
The Bernie’s Extreme Performance Parts Rookie Sportsman round out the racing card with a 15-lap feature.
The Wild Animal Park is open daily and located in just north of the Village of Chittenango, N.Y. The Wild Animal Park is a zoo that provides a unique opportunity for visitors to learn about a variety of animals. For more information you can visit their website at https://www.thewildpark.com/.
Clinton Tractor has been a family owned and operated business for the last 66 years. Their motto has been to make sure your construction and agricultural equipment needs are met with little to no down time! With the family’s history in providing and maintaining one of the largest parts inventories in the area, it is no wonder they are considered the “Leader in Service”. Not to mention they have some of the best trained service technicians in the industry. Clinton Tractor also has the ability to offer on and off-road tire service! Visit them online at www.clintontractor.net or give them a call at (315) 853-6151.
Adult general admission for Sunday’s event is set for $13, Senior/Military/Students are $10 while kids 16 and under are free. Pit admission for the night is $30 for DIRTcar members and $33 for non-members.
