Evergreen Raceway All Set For Opening Day Action Track USA Extras Winter Thaw Sunday
Story By: DINO OBERTO / EVERGREEN RACEWAY – BUTLER TOWNSHIP, PA – Evergreen Raceway is all set to swing open the gates and begin the 2025 racing season at the paved 1/3-mile oval located in St. Johns.
It will be a unique affair too as Rich Tobias will be promoting his first race here as part of the Action Track USA Extras and the Winter Thaw.
Tobias has arranged a lease agreement with track owner Jason Makarewicz to hold four shows at Evergreen that will feature his popular ALL PRO SpeedSTRs and Slingshots and will be sharing the race card along with the 602 Crate Modifieds, Street Stocks and 4-Cylinders.
The hype has continued to grow leading up to Sunday’s event as some of the top dirt track racers in the region will be coming to Evergreen to wheel an ALL PRO SpeedSTR including such stars as Billy Pauch, Jr., Timmy Buckwalter, Dillon Stuer, Matt Janisch, Tanner Van Doren and Ryan Krachun to name but a few.
It’s been over a decade since the SpeedSTRs and Slingshots competed at Evergreen, and it lends itself to being a race day for those two classes in which there is no clearcut favorite to come away with a victory.
However, don’t think these masters of dirt racing can’t race cut a corner on pavement. Several have asphalt experience under their belts. Janisch, Buckwalter and Van Doren have won at Evergreen in TQ Midgets. Stuer, who is coming off a big win at Port Royal Speedway in a dirt Modified, has raced many times with pavement Modifieds and Late Models. Likewise, Pauch Jr., has also gotten behind the wheel of pavement Modifieds including at Evergreen. And before Krachun became a dirt Modified standout, he cut his teeth on asphalt in Late Models and earlier this year he ran a 602 Crate Modified at New Smyrna Speedway.
As for the Slingshots fans are in for plenty of high-speed thrills as these scaled down dirt Modified styled cars can get around Evergreen with rarely lifting off the throttle.
And, for the dirt enthusiasts that will be attending, it’s an opportunity to take in the cars and stars of Evergreen who always put on a close, wheel-to-wheel racing. It’s a big day for those classes as well as Sunday is the first point races of the season.
Pit gates will open at 11:30 am and grandstands at 12:30 pm. Hot laps will commence at 1:00 pm and opening ceremonies get underway at 2:00 pm. Adult grandstand admission is $15, students aged 6-12 are $13 and kids five and under are free.
