Florence Speedway's Spring 50

My favorite Spring 50 memory?  With a stellar field of 57 cars on hand for the 2009 race, Jeep Van Wormer rallied from his 20th starting spot to get the win over Steve Francis and Darrell Lanigan.  Why did Van Wormer have to start 20th, you ask?  A flat tire knocked him out of his heat and forced him to started 14th in the second consolation race, which he also won.

As I look at the Intellicast.com weather forecast for Union, KY next week, I see highs in the 60s and 70s every day.  This HAS to get people amped up for Florence Speedway's $5,000-to-win Spring 50 coming up next Saturday, March 17th.


The Spring 50 is usually high on everyone's priority list for a number of reasons. Unless you've ventured to Florida for Speedweeks, this is typically the first race of the year for a lot of people.  That alone is enough to get race fans and drivers from as far away as Iowa and Wisconsin to gather at the 1/2-mile oval.

What's the other reason the Spring 50 is so popular? The quality and diversity of drivers (for a $5,000-to-win show) is unbelievable.  Take a look at the drivers who entered last year's race: Don O'Neal, Scott James, Chad Simpson, (race winner) Eddie Carrier Jr., Rusty Schlenk, John Gill, Bobby Pierce, and Rod Conley just to name a few. Talk about a wide range of wheelmen!

The drivers who entered the 2010 Spring 50 were even more diverse with Matt Miller, Jeep Van Wormer, Brian Shirley, Jason Feger, Dan Schlieper, and Mike Marlar among the drivers added to the majority of the group listed above.

In short, if the mild winter and recently warm temps have you itching to get out of the house and take in some good racing, may I recommend Florence Speedway's Spring 50 next Saturday, March 17th.  My family and I will be there.