Score to Settle with the Winter Showdown
Preston Peltier has a score to settle with the Winter Showdown and Kern County Raceway. The Brighton, CO driver has attended all five “Showdown” events, but has yet to take home the coveted trophy, and winner’s share of the booty. For the sixth annual affair, Peltier hopes the stars will align, and the winner’s bounty will be his to plunder. But this time he will return to his new Captains Quarters in Las Vegas, NV, as he now endeavors to lead a new armada into battle.
Entering the Sixth Annual Winter Showdown, on March 21st, a new adventure is on the horizon, for the 2010 PASS South and PASS National Super Late Model Series Champion. In 2020, it has been announced that he will be teaming up with Joe Farre’, and Sigma Performance Services (SPS). He will also be maintaining a strong relationship with his current car owner Eddie Vecchiarelli. It is an exciting new chapter in the tale of the five-time Hickory Motor Speedway (NC) Easter Bunny 150 winner. The saga on the track begins in about three weeks, with Peltier behind the wheel of the Rowdy Manufacturing Super Late Model he drove to a second-place finish in the All-Star Showdown.
“I will be in the 48-car, with Fire Alarm Services Inc. and Sigma Engineering”, Peltier told the Spears Srl Southwest Tour Series. “I will compete under the SPS banner for Joe (Farre’) and Ed (Vecchiarelli). This really is a partnership between Ed, Joe, and myself.”
The World Crown 300 winner, from Gresham Motorsports Park (GA), is looking forward to the opportunity to return to Kern County Raceway, with the new team structure. Despite being winless at the facility, he has had some strong runs, which he hopes will lead he and his new team to victory.
“I love racing at Kern. We’ve had some good runs there, and I feel like we have been close to a victory a few times. You’ve got to have a car that turns good. If it turns and has speed, and we can keep from blistering tires, we can pull off a win. Maybe this is the time we will break through.”
The Winter Showdown will be the first opportunity to assess the changes to the team. Peltier feels the new relationship will be a win-win for all parties involved. It will fortify both the SPS organization as well as the Vecchiarelli team, making both teams all the more competitive.
“My relationship is strong with the Vecchiarelli’s, and I feel that this new deal with SPS will give them some resources they didn’t have before”, Peltier conjectured. “With Joe’s help, and the help of the guys he has assembled, I will still take care of the 48 and 18 out of Joe’s shop in Vegas. Our goal is to grow this company and bring up some new talent, as well as help some other teams get there programs up to speed.”
Farre’ is also excited about the new arrangement, as it is a culmination of the hard work he has put into his racing organization, over the last several years.
“We feel that Preston helps put the “finish coat,” on a project that has been under development for the past three years, here at Sigma Performance Services (SPS)”, Farre’ began. “We have worked hard to put the infrastructure and people in place to field five to seven cars out of our Las Vegas base. Preston will add the finishing touch to our set up and operational procedure, while widening our customer base and geographic market base, through his strong and deep relationships throughout the U.S.”
Farre’ continued, “This is something the SPS lacked with our strong focus on West Coast racing. Preston will change that to be more of a Coast-to-Coast performance territory instead. We are very excited about his strong addition to the team!”
With this strong addition, Farre’, Peltier and Vecchiarelli will be players to be watched, as they chase the winner’s treasure at the Winter Showdown and beyond.
The 2020 Winter Showdown, from Kern County Raceway, is entering its sixth season of competition. The previous winners of the event include Bubba Pollard Fan Page (2015, 2016), Derek Thorn (2017), Kyle Busch (2018) and Ty Majeski (2019). The previous Feature Events have included several formats, with distances of 250 laps (2015 – 2017), 300 laps (2018 – 2019) and this year’s 200-lap version. 2020 will feature a halfway break, where half of the purse money will be awarded based on its’ result. The completion of 200 laps will wholly determine the final championship event finish, with the second half of the purse payout. Drivers eligible for the Spears Manufacturing Frequent Flyer Program will receive a minimum of $1,400 to start the feature. If required, eligible drivers who do not transfer from the Last Chance Qualifier will receive $1,000.
The SPEARS Southwest Tour Series Super Late Models will be joined by the Spears Modified Series, as well as the Kern County Raceway Super Stocks. The SPEARS Modifieds will be racing for $4,000-to-win. The event will be Nationally televised on MAVTV, at a date to be named later, and Live-Streamed on https://spearsracing.tv/ .
Celebrating its twentieth season in 2020, the SPEARS Southwest Tour Series is a regional stock car series competing on paved ovals in the southwestern portion of the U.S. “The SPEARS Southwest Tour Series…Where the Champions Race”.
