CRA: CRA to sanction 2005 Short Track Championships

CRA Super Series To Sanction 40th Annual National Short Track Championships at Rockford Speedway

Salem, IN (January 7, 2005) -- CRA Super Series officials and Rockford Speedway officials have announced that the CRA Super Series will sanction the 40th Annual National Short Track Championships 250 lap main event at Rockford Speedway again in 2005. This will be the series third appearance at the historic ¼ mile facility, and the third consecutive appearance in the National Short Track Championships at Rockford Speedway, located in Rockford, Illinois. The CRA Super Series will practice and qualify on Saturday, September 24th. The 40th Annual National Short Track Championships 250 lap main event will take place on Sunday, September 25th.

Last seasons National Short Track Championships saw a record number of CRA Super Series cars participate as 40 competitors took qualifying times with Nathan Haseleu capturing the Corteco Fast Qualifier Award. The field of 28 competitors was set through very tight qualifying, qualifying races and an exciting 25 lap last chance event that saw Kenny Tweedy race to the front and grab the lead and then hold off a hard charging Scott Baker after he lost his brakes over the last two laps to get the victory and a chance to start in the 250 lap main event.

On a beautiful September afternoon, Brad Mueller started on the outside of the front row jumping out front to lead the first 220 laps. Fast Eddie Hoffman was working his way through traffic picking off the cars in front one by one. On lap 177 he took over second place moving around Justin Diercks while avoiding a lapped car on the low side and moved cleanly up before Diercks could get to the spot. Hoffman then passed Mueller using the lapped cars very carefully to his advantage on lap 204. Mueller was given another chance when an accident behind the leaders caused the field to revert to the previous lap again when the yellow flag came out putting Mueller back in the lead.

After the restart Hoffman followed Mueller until he found an opening, going under Mueller, who was running a high line in the corners, Hoffman took the lead for good on lap 220. Mueller slipped up into the wall lightly and moved from first to seventh on that lap, before finishing sixth. Hoffman got the win, his close friend Steve Moenck finished second, Brian Hoppe third, Steve Rubeck fourth and Brian Johnson, Jr. rounded out the top five in one of the most exciting National Short Track Championships 250 lap main events ever.

More information on Rockford Speedway is available at www.rockfordspeedway.com. Additional information on the CRA Super Series can be found at www.sunocosuperseries.com.

-cra-