ES: Series annouces 2011 schedule

NASCAR Announces 2011 K&N Pro Series East Schedule Four New Tracks Join Series' Staples

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Nov. 26, 2010) - NASCAR has announced the 2011 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East schedule, which features 12 races in eight states.

A marquee addition to the K&N Pro Series slate for its 25th season of competition will be the inaugural event under the lights at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. Also new to the schedule will be a trio of historic NASCAR short tracks: Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C., Columbus (Ohio) Motor Speedway and Langley (Va.) Speedway.

Richmond will welcome the K&N Pro Series East at the .75-mile D-shaped oval on April 28 as part of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race weekend.

An auto racing icon in the south for six decades, Bowman Gray Stadium has a rich history that includes 29 Sprint Cup Series races from 1958-71, and the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour has held races at the flat quarter mile since 2005. The inaugural K&N Pro Series East event will take place on June 4.

Also new to the slate in 2011 will be Columbus and Langley, who like Bowman Gray, are longtime members of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series program. The K&N Pro Series East will head to the Ohio .333-mile oval for the first time on July 23 while the inaugural event at Langley - a .4-mile circuit - is slated for June 18 in Hampton, Va.

A fixture of the K&N Pro Series East schedule for more than 20 years, New Hampshire Motor Speedway will once again feature NASCAR's top development series twice in 2011 during NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekends. With the shifted schedule next year, the first appearance at the "Magic Mile" in Loudon, N.H. will be on July 15 and the return trip is slated for Sept. 23.

For the fourth time in series history, Dover (Del.) International Speedway is scheduled to hold the season finale on Sept. 30. Ryan Truex has celebrated K&N Pro Series East championships in each of the last two seasons at the "Monster Mile."

The prestigious combination race at Iowa Speedway with the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West is once again on the calendar for May 21. This will be the fifth edition of the event at the .875-mile facility in Newton, Iowa.

"NASCAR is excited to announce the 2011 NASCAR K&N Pro Series schedule that includes some of the finest racing facilities the short-track racing community has to offer," said George Silbermann, NASCAR managing director of racing operations. "We welcome the additions of Richmond, Bowman Gray, Langley and Columbus to a slate that already included historic and successful venues up and down the Eastern Seaboard."

Other 2011 schedule highlights include:

* Five of the 12 races will be companion events with NASCAR's national series: Dover, Iowa, New Hampshire (twice) and Richmond.

* For the sixth year in a row, Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway will play host to the K&N Pro Series East season-opener on March 27. For the first time, however, GPS will have a second date on Monday of Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5.

* South Boston (Va.) Speedway is on the schedule for the fifth consecutive season. The K&N Pro Series East will once again compete on the same race card with the Whelen Southern Modified Tour.

* The combination race at Iowa, contested on Sunday in its first four editions, will run on Saturday in 2011 with the NASCAR Nationwide Series on the weekend bill for the first time.

* After a highly successful inaugural trip to Gresham Motorsports Park in 2010, the K&N Pro Series East will return to the Jefferson, Ga., half-mile on June 11.

<pre> 2011 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Schedule

Date            Track                           (Length)        Location
Sat., March 26  Greenville Pickens Speedway     (.5-Mile)       Greenville, S.C.
Sat., April 16  South Boston Speedway           (.4-Mile)       South Boston, Va.
Thu., April 28  Richmond International Raceway  (.75-Mile)      Richmond, Va.
Sat., May 21    Iowa Speedway                   (.875-Mile)     *Newton, Iowa
Sat., June 4    Bowman Gray Stadium             (.25-Mile)      Winston-Salem, N.C.
Sat., June 11   Gresham Motorsports Park        (.5-Mile)       Jefferson, Ga.
Sat., June 18   Langley Speedway                (.4-Mile)       Hampton, Va.
Fri., July 15   New Hampshire Motor Speedway    (1.058-Mile)    Loudon, N.H.
Sat., July 23   Columbus Motor Speedway         (.333-Mile)     Columbus, Ohio
Mon., Sept.5    Greenville Pickens Speedway     (.5-Mile)       Greenville, S.C.
Fri., Sept. 23  New Hampshire Motor Speedway    (1.058-Mile)    Loudon, N.H.
Fri., Sept. 30  Dover International Speedway    (1 Mile)        Dover, Del.

* Combination race with the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West All dates subject to change

-source: nascar