Three Full Days of ARCA Fest Begin This Friday, June 6th
by Kari Shear-Carlson
June 2, 2014 – “Racing at the Milwaukee Mile is awesome!” said James Swan, ARCA Midwest Tour presented by Scag Power Equipment Touring Star, and driver of the #97 Hankscraft sponsored Chevy.
When Swan rolls into the Milwaukee Mile on Friday morning, June 6th in preparation for Sunday, June 8th’s The Swiss Colony Howie Lettow Memorial 150 presented by RaceTeamGear.com, he will be looking for some redemption, but not the kind of redemption you might think of. The redemption he’ll be looking for is from a group of sand barrels. “The wreck last year was a big one. It looked worse than it was though.” said Swan.
Swan crashed hard into the sand barrels that protected the opening of the pit road wall. “I wasn’t hurt at all, but I hope I never have to go through that again. Pathfinder Chassis built a safe car and the sand barrels softened the impact. In fact, the chassis was straight and we were able to make it to Grundy nine days later with the help of my friends and other teams,” said Swan.
James, along with close to 50 other teams, will be at the Milwaukee Mile in honor of the late Howie Lettow, whose life impacted so many people in the racing community. For Swan the event has a lot of personal meaning. “My dad was friends with Howie Lettow from working on Pat Schauer’s crew in the late 70’s, before Pat was taken from us. Not only that, but my parents used to take me there (Milwaukee Mile) for my birthday when I was really young, and I always wanted to race there.”
Swan has not only raced at the Mile, but he even has a win in the Mid-Am series, in which he had the opportunity to race six times at the track. Two years ago, Swan raced in the Midwest Truck Tour and last year was his first year racing at the track in a super late model.
He admits that the experience in other series doesn’t really carry over much to a super late, other than being familiar with the track itself. “Super late models are so much faster. We have learned so much over the last year that I think we will be competitive this year. It’s going to take good pit stop strategy and fuel mileage along with a fast car to win.”
When drivers in the ARCA Midwest Tour race at the Milwaukee Mile they are not only dealing with higher speeds and additional competition than the rest of the tracks on the Tour, but it is a unique track in and of itself. “It is a track all it’s own because of it’s size and flatness. Illiana and La Crosse compare slightly, but that’s about it,” said Swan.
The goals for this event are no different than any other race for Swan and his team. “Our team goal is to qualify in on time, complete all 150 laps, and have a chance to win.”
The strategy for a race as big is this plays a big role in making sure all those things happen.
“The pit stops this year have my crew chief, Adam Berge, thinking in overtime! Between when to stop, when to change tires, and fuel mileage, it will make it very exciting for us and the fans!” added Swan.
Most of all, Swan and his crew are looking forward to putting on a great show and appreciate all that it means to be a part of an event of this caliber. “It is an honor to be a part of the ARCA Midwest Tour at the famed Milwaukee Mile in front of thousands of fans remembering Howie. We couldn’t be there without Brian Holtz, Hankscraft, along with all of our sponsors, friends and our team. It also means a lot to be able to help benefit the MACC Fund.”
All of the weekend’s events will kick-off on Friday with an all-division practice, leading up to a full schedule of racing on Saturday and The Swiss Colony Howie Lettow Memorial 150 presented by RaceTeamGear.com on Sunday afternoon. The CRA JEGS All-Stars will also race a 100 lap feature event on Sunday.
You also don’t want to miss the Hot Rod Show and Shine on Saturday from 8am-8pm and the Monster Truck Summer Nationals Saturday night at 6pm.
For more information and to purchase tickets, log on to www.arcafest.com.
WHO: ARCA Midwest Tour
WHAT: ARCA Fest featuring The Swiss Colony Howie Lettow 150 presented by RaceTeamGear.com. The weekend will also include the CRA JEGS All-Stars 100, Mid-American Stock Cars, Midwest Trucks, and Vintage Stock Cars, as well as a Hot Rod Show & Shine and Monster Truck Summer Nationals.
WHERE: The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, WI
WHEN: Friday-Sunday, June 6th-8th
TIMES: Friday: All-division practice from 10:00am-6:00pm. Saturday: qualifying begins at 2:30 with racing to follow at 4:00pm. Sunday: qualifying begins at 9:00am with racing slated to begin at 2:00pm
Hot Rod Show & Shine will be from 8am-8pm on Saturday. The Monster Truck Summer Nationals will begin at 6:00pm on Saturday.
TICKETS – Friday is ARCA Fest Fan Appreciation Day with FREE General Admission. Saturday General Admission prices are $21 for ages 13+ and $11 for ages 3-12. Children 2 and under are FREE. Sunday General Admission for ages 13+ is $26 and $11 for ages 3-12. Reserved Seats are $32-$36. General admission Pit Passes are $50 per day.
Reserved Ticket Bundles are also available for $153-$157. General Admission Pit Pass Bundles are also available for $139 and General Admission Seating Bundles are $52 for ages 13+ and $34 for ages 3-12.
Infield camping spots are also on sale now! Email arcafest14@gmail.com or call 262-607-6266.
For reserved seating ticket information, visit www.arcafest.com or call 262-607-6266.
Be sure to follow the ARCA Midwest Tour on Facebook (midwesttour) and Twitter (@midwesttour).
To learn more about the Automobile Racing Club of America Midwest Tour, log on to arcamidwesttour.com. For questions call the ARCA Midwest Tour office at (262) 729-4111 or Tim Olson at (612) 327-5831 or Steve Einhaus (630) 212-6022 at or e-mail Tim Olson at tim@arcamidwesttour.comor Steve Einhaus at steve@arcamidwesttour.com.
The Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is among the leading auto racing sanctioning bodies in the country. Founded in 1953 by John and Mildred Marcum, the organization administers more than 100 events each year in multiple racing series, including the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, the ARCA/CRA Super Series, the ARCA Truck Series and the ARCA Midwest Tour, plus weekly racing at Toledo and Flat Rock Speedways.
