(TOLEDO, Ohio) – The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will soon be making its annual trek to southern Illinois for some good old-fashioned fairgrounds dirt track racing. And not just any old dirt track racing – this year represents a milestone marker for the 91st annual DuQuoin State Fair with the 60th running of the Southern Illinois 100 presented by Federated Car Care Labor Day Monday, September 2.
“The State Fair dirt venues in Illinois are vitally important to the character and identity of the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards,” said ARCA President Ron Drager. “It’s a conscious effort on our part to continue to recognize the role non-pavement tracks played in the development of our series, and motorsports as a whole, and the role dirt racing continues to play today.”
In fact, much of ARCA’s rich history played out on dirt tracks across America. For instance, the 2013 Southern Illinois 100 marks the 348th ARCA race on a dirt track since the series’ inception in 1953.
The Southern Illinois 100 at DuQuoin, born in 1950, is one of two dirt-track venues on the annual ARCA Racing Series schedule, the other being the Allen Crowe 100 in Springfield during the Illinois State Fair in late August.
Expected entries for DuQuoin include five-time Southern Illinois 100 winner Frank Kimmel, two-time winner and NASCAR veteran Ken Schrader, and 79-year-old James Hylton, making his final appearance at DuQuoin in his farewell tour.
Kimmel is the most recent ARCA winner on dirt, having won last year’s Allen Crowe 100 at Springfield.
Kimmel could also secure another milestone at DuQuoin with what would be a record sixth victory there. Currently, Kimmel is tied with the late Dean Roper in all-time Southern Illinois 100 wins – each having five victories in the prestigious stock car classic.
Kimmel, as of August 9, is currently tied with Iggy Katona in all-time ARCA wins, each with 79.
The past winners list of the Southern Illinois 100 includes some of the most widely-recognized names in American motorsports. Jay Frank won the inaugural Southern Illinois 100 in 1950. Just some of the winners who would follow include Marshall Teague, Indy 500 winners Jimmy Bryan and AJ Foyt, Fred Lorenzen, Don White, Norm Nelson, Jack Bowsher, NASCAR champions Rusty Wallace and Tony Stewart, Bob Keselowski, Billy Thomas, Ken Schrader, Parker Kligerman, and most recently, Chris Buescher in 2011.
Practice for the September 2 Southern Illinois 100 presented by Federated Car Care is scheduled from9:00-10:00 a.m. with Menards Pole Award Qualifying presented by Ansell following at 11. The 60th annual Southern Illinois 100 starts at 1 p.m. All times are local.
The event will feature live timing and scoring for all on-track activity at ARCAracing.com, as well as live flag-to-flag audio coverage for the race.