The first annual Bedford Keystone Cup will be the biggest race in Bedford Speedway’s 82 year history and is the largest unsanctioned Late Model race in Pennsylvania this year. The Late Models will be racing for $15,000 to win, out of a Late Model purse of over $56,000. The 60 lap Late Model main event will pay $1000 just to take the green flag. Joining the Late Models in action will be Friday night shows for the Semi Lates and Pure Stocks, and Saturday night shows for the Late Model Sportsman and Modifieds.
When is it? Friday & Saturday, September 28th & 29th 2018. Friday gates open at 5:00, warmups at 7:00 with racing at 7:30. Saturday gates open at 2:00, warmups at 6:00, racing at 6:30
Where is the track located? Bedford Speedway is located on Business US Route 30, one mile west of Bedford, PA. The GPS track address is 702 W. Pitt St. Bedford, PA 15522.
Are tickets available? Friday night spectator tickets are available for $15, and Saturday night spectator tickets are available for $30. Kids 12 and under are admitted free to the grandstands. Advance tickets can be ordered by calling the speedway office at 814-623-0500. Tickets will be available for purchase at the track on the day of the event. Pit tickets will not be sold in advance and are only available at the track.
Is Reserved Seating available? Yes. Reserved seating is available in the main grandstand. Reserved seats ordered in advance are $5 for the weekend, and can be ordered by calling the speedway office. The speedway seating chart can be viewed here: http://bedfordspeedway.com/seating.pdf
Is camping available? The speedway has plenty of camping spots available both with electric and water hookups and without. Camping spots with hookups are available for $50 for the weekend, and can be reserved until they sell out. Dry camping is available at no charge and no reservation is needed.
Racer bonuses: As is policy for Bedford events, there are no entry fees for competitors. The overall fast timer on Friday night will win $200 courtesy of DirtonDirt.com. The Turn 5 Turn Around racing show will be sponsoring the $200 Hard Charger award for the main event. Additional bonuses for racers will be announced as the event nears.
What is the format? On Friday night the Late Models will qualify via time trials and also run their Semi Features and a Dash. Saturday night will be Late Model B-Mains followed by the 60 lap, $15,000 to win main event.
Drivers will draw for time trial position and the field divided into at least two groups, with driver’s time trialing only against the drivers in their group. The fastest drivers (1 or 2 in each group depending on car count) in each group will automatically transfer to the Dash.
Following time trials, drivers will race in 16 lap Semi Features with the lineup set directly from the time trial order of each group. The winner of each Semi Feature, along with the fastest timers in each group will then race in a 6 car/ 6 laps Dash to determine the top 6 starting positions in the A-Main.
The next top finishers in the Semi Features will transfer in order to the A-Main, with the remainder going to one of Saturday night’s B-Main features for a last chance to qualify.
The starting field will consist of 24 starters from qualifications with the 25th starter being the highest Bedford point driver not qualified, and spots 26 to 28 reserved for the winners of the various qualifiers if they are needed.
The Late Model Purse: 1) $15,000 2) $6,000 3) 3,500 4) $2,800 5) $2,200 6) $1,800 7) $1,600 8) $1,500 9) $1,400 10) $1,350 11) $1,300 12) $1,250 13) $1,200 14) $1,150 15) $1,125 16) $1,100 17) $1,075 18) $1,050 19) $1,025 20) $1,000 21) $1,000 22) $1,000 23) $1,000 24) $1,000 25) $1000 Tow- $100
What else is going on? On Friday night, the Semi Lates and the Pure Stocks will each be competing in a full racing program. The Semi Late will be racing 15 laps for $350 to win and the Pure Stocks 15 laps for $250 to win. On Saturday the Late Model Sportsman will be racing 20 laps for $800 to win and the Modifeds will be also be racing 20 laps for $800 to win as well.
On Saturday afternoon the speedway will be very busy before the evenings racing action commences. Drivers will be able to have their merchandise available on the midway behind the grandstands. There will be vintage cars on display, driver interviews, drivers autograph session, and kids events. The Turn 5 Turn Around internet show will be broadcasting live from the Bedford infield stage on Saturday afternoon as well. Additional events and activities will be updated as they become available.
If you can’t make it? Speedshift TV will be broadcasting both nights racing action online. Visit SpeedShiftTV.com for more information.
Don’t forget the URC Sprints: After discussions with the United Racing Club regarding finding a date to run their rained out feature from a few weeks ago it has been agreed that the series will run their makeup feature along with a regular feature on their next Bedford visit. The full fall racing schedule means that there is no opportunity to bring them back to Bedford this season, URC will return on Friday night, May 10th 2019 with a two feature program. The show will begin with their already qualified makeup show before going into their regular racing program.
Bedford Speedway hosted its first auto race on September 5th 1936, with Depression-era star Billy Winn taking the win. Over the past 82 years the track has hosted some of the greatest names in racing history. The speedway is located at the intersection of I-99 & US 30, with easy access from PA Turnpike exit 146, just blocks from beautiful downtown Bedford, PA.
Additional information on events at Bedford Speedway is available by calling the speedway office at 814-623-0500,at bedfordspeedway.com, or by checking out the speedway’s Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages.
