Shakopee's Raceway Park Kicks Off Season Sunday

 will kick off a season of full-power stock car fun on Sunday, April 29.

Starting at 10 a.m., the pits will be hustling as drivers from around the area bring their cars in for “Test and Tune.”  This is the first chance of the season for race teams to bring their cars to the track for practice, on-track testing, and to have their racecars inspected by track officials for the upcoming weekly NASCAR action.

While testing is underway, the parking lot will be busy as the IMCA Old-Timers will be holding their annual swap meet on the Raceway Park grounds  from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. This event will feature plenty of former Midwest drivers from years past, including many top drivers from Raceway Park’s 56 year history, selling and swapping speed parts for vintage racecars. 

When NASCAR inspection ends at 1 p.m., the pits will be cleared, and at 3 p.m. the program gets under way with Mini-Stocks, Thunder V-8s, Flagpole Racing, the Wild’n’Crazy Figure-8s, and a Kidney Bean Race, which has drivers maneuvering their racecars through a tight 90-degree right turn in the center of the track instead of rocketing down the back straightaway. Spectator Drags are also planned where race fans can bring their daily-drivers to the track for a one-on-one drag race to see who has the fastest grocery-getter.

After the action on April 29, the attention shifts to the kick off of the highly anticipated local NASCAR motorsports season with the return of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series to Raceway Park in Shakopee on Sunday, May 6, starting at 6pm.  For updates and ticket information, contact Raceway Park at 952/445-2257 or check the website atwww.goracewaypark.com.