Top USAC All-Pro SpeedSTR Drivers To Headline Bloomsburg Fair Raceway In ’23: Tobias Joins Promotion Team

Story By: DINO OBERTO / BLOOMSBURG FAIR RACEWAY – BLOOMSBURG, PA – The 2023 season at the Bloomsburg Fair Raceway is taking shape and when the green flag drops on April 20 to begin the third year of racing located inside the historic Bloomsburg Fairgrounds, fans will get their first taste of watching modern day cowboys such as “The Wheel Master General” Timmy Buckwalter, “The Kid’s Kid” Billy Pauch Jr., and Briggs Danner as they go slinging through the corners and lashing their way down the shoots against a bevy of other star-studded wheelmen over the spring and summer competing in the headline USAC All-Pro SpeedSTRs.

Buckwalter, Pauch and Danner all know their way to Victory Lane at the 3/8-mile oval and they’ll be looking to add more stops there this season but indeed will have their hands full in the pursuit of additional checkered flags as they face off race against the amazing competition within the SpeedSTR ranks.

The SpeedSTRs division will be joined regularly by the Crate 602 Modifieds, 4-Cylinder FWD Stocks run under SCRDA rules and Slingshots.

“It’s part of working to grow on a multi-year plan to present good, quality racing and conduct it within a reasonable time frame. With this regular line-up plus at times bringing in other touring groups we’re looking at a nice diversified program to offer our fans,” said Rich Tobias, who has come onboard for the 2023 season as a member of the operations team.

Tobias is part of the highly touted promoting group that oversees the Wednesday evening shows at Championship Energy Action Track USA in Kutztown. He’s been tapped to bring his talents to Bloomsburg and will be working with Steve O’Neal in a combined role as Race Organizers on behalf of the Fair Board.

“Bloomsburg is an awesome facility and these divisions will compliment this awesome facility. We’re going to be mimicking the way we do things at Action Track which works each week with up to at times 120 cars and there’s no reason that along those same lines we’ll make it work here at Bloomsburg too,” said Tobias.

“We’re already looking at adding fresh clay that will enhance the banking contour. We need to give the racers a good track to compete on and keep it that way for all classes during the night. We’re in the business of entertaining and that’s the main focus, to present good, family fun entertainment value to our fans.”

The 2023 schedule of events are currently in the final stages. A pre-season practice night is slated for Thursday, April 13 and will be open to any and all classes that expect to compete this season.

The choice to stick with Thursday evening was a group decision based on working with other area tracks and touring groups in an effort to not be in direct competition for the same night.

“Thursday will be the new norm for Bloomsburg. That’s the night we’ll be doing our racing which we feel will be the best night for everyone. The one thing we don’t want to do is conflict with other tracks because it’s important that we show our support to them and in doing so we hope that the fans and racers return the same to Bloomsburg,” added Tobias.

One week following the open practice, the season official gets underway on April 20. For the most part events will be held twice each month and conclude during the 168th Bloomsburg Fair.

Tobias also noted that additional groups will also see action and is confirming dates that will be favorable for all parties.

“We’re in the process of firming up things and will have the complete schedule out in very short order. I’m confident everyone will like what we have to offer,” said Tobias.

The track will mandate mufflers for any cars that race. A 6:00 pm start time will be in place as well. More details are forthcoming.