Lancaster, NY- Last year at this time Buffalo, NY was on the verge of losing its Speedway and Dragway. Now, a year later Lancaster National Speedway and Dragway is about to put on its biggest drag race ever and will follow that with a Saturday night 110 lap Race of Champions Asphalt Modified Memorial Race to honor Tommy Druer and Tony Jankowiak.
Pro Mod-A-Palooza has grown beyond its original concept and has quickly become the biggest most important drag race in the history of the 50+ year old facility. Earlier this season Kozak Motorsports Marketing and Lancaster National Dragway hosted an 8 car Pro Mod Event that drew 14 cars and thousands of fans on a Tuesday night. The success of the event along with prodding from both the Pro Mod Teams and the fans became the genesis behind Pro Mod-A-Palooza.
“I knew the last event was going to be a hit. It’s not the first time I was involved with putting on a weekday Pro Mod Race at the facility. I think it was 1999 when we talked the track into running a Pro Mod Race a few days before the IHRA Empire Nationals. It was a big hit. So, when I looked at all the PM events for this summer I chose the Tuesday before the NHRA event in Englishtown, NJ in hopes of grabbing some of those teams traveling through the area. It worked; we had 14 cars show up for 8 spots. The spectator lines were unreal. I mean people were standing in lines almost a quarter mile long trying to get in. The traffic outside the facility was as far as you could see. It was really special. So, not minutes after Bruce Boland took the win with his 4.14 elapsed time I had people asking me “When’s the next one?”. I then went to Englishtown for the NHRA race and several racers and crew, Pro Mod, Funny Car, and Top Fuel congratulated me on what I did. That blew me away. I didn’t realize the attention we grabbed. One crew chief from a fuel team said “Do you realize that was probably the biggest drag race in history to be on a Tuesday; outside of a rain delayed U.S. Nationals?”. Again, blown away! I stayed the weekend in Englishtown and was asked by several people, mostly strangers, if we were going to do it again. I had no choice, it had to be done. So, I went back to the track management team and proposed what I would later name Pro Mod-A-Palooza,” said Kozak.
The crowd on a work night in blue collar Buffalo, NY was outstanding! Known for its heavy snowfall, chicken wings, hard working mentality and a love for Vodka and Sweet Tea; Buffalo showed the world its love for fast doorslammers. It’s not unexpected since guys like Jim Oddy, Fred Hah, Mike Stawicki, Jim Salemi, and Mike Janis have called Lancaster National Dragway their home track for decades. With Pro Mod-A-Palooza set for a Friday night it’s expected that the spectator count will rise significantly; like the entry list for this event has.
Originally scheduled for an 8 car shootout the event has drawn so many cars that a second 8 car field has been added. Group one will run for the $10,000 purse broken down as $5,000 to win, $2000 runner up, $1,000 semi-finals $250 first round loser. Group Two will be asked to pay a $150 entry fee. The total Purse fro group two with 8 cars will be $3200. $1,550 to win, $550 runner up, $250 semi-finals, and $150 first round loser. Also up for grabs is a $1,000 bonus for the first Pro Mod to break the three second barrier at Lancaster. The track record of 4.10 is currently held by Fred Hahn.
The Entry list as of August 8th included 21 names with teams coming in from Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, and Canada.
The Hot Pits will be open for parking at 12 PM. There will be a parking attendant at Gate 3 to assist teams in parking. Driver plus five crew receive free entry.
Drivers Meeting set for 4PM at G-Force Trailer
Each Team will be afforded two qualifiers.
Qualifying order is to be determined by drawing numbers from a hat. Number one will face two and so on. Odd numbers in lane one, even numbers in lane two. The order will be reversed in round two as will the lanes. Ex: cars 19 and 20 will go out first and odd numbers will move to lane two and even numbers to lane one. Qualifying Pairings, Round Sheets and Ladder will be placed on the back of the G-Force Trailer. Rob Kozak and RayThurston will pair cars and run the lanes.
Q1 at 5:30PM
Q2 at 7PM after National Anthems
Eliminations will be two 8 car field based on a Pro Ladder, quicker elapsed time by round receives lane choice.
First Round of Eliminations at 8:30
Round 2 at 9:45PM
Finals at 11PM
ALL TIMES SUBJECT TO CHANGE
