LIMA — Certain races are easier for drivers to get excited for than others. This will be one of those races that drivers push the pedal to the metal for. Area drivers as well as drivers from all over will be competing Friday night in the Run for the Rabbit — Presented by: Lima Cadillac & Chevrolet at Limaland Motorsports Park.
Run for the Rabbit honors the late Travis Miller, who competed in the 360 sprint car circuit at Limaland. This will be the 19th year of this race.
Tim Allison is one of the drivers who really gets excited to honor his close friend in this memorial race. Allison competed against Miller at Limaland and is a close friend of the Miller family.
“Our connections go back to our early days of sprint car racing,” Allison said. “We had a lot of fun on and off the track in the good old days. Keith, who is Travis’ dad, Travis, Travis’ wife and I would go out and have fun during the offseason. We had a lot of good times. He was a really close friend. He was a good old boy and a heck of a guy.”
Allison won the first annual Run for the Rabbit and won it one other time as well. He tries to honor his friend every year at this race and even has made his sprint car look like Miller’s old sprint car in the past.
“Travis was a good young man,” Allison said. “His dad and he both loved racing. They always kept their stuff nice. They kept up with their program and always made sure that their car never had a failure. He was a local hometown kid and the fans loved him. The kids adored him. He was so funny. His dad is the same way. They’re a down to earth family.”
Being such a close friend and winning the inaugural memorial race to honor him is something that Allison still holds near to his heart.
“I still have the plaque to this day hanging in my family room,” Allison said. “It’s been there forever. It has a rabbit and his (Travis’) number hand carved in it. I’ll cherish it forever. I won it a couple of years later too. I would love to win it one more time. You have to have one of those perfect nights to win it though. I still say to this day that he was in the car with me that first night.”
There aren’t as many 360 races at Limaland as their used to be. Allison would enjoy to see the fans fill the stands for this great race.
“It’s a big race to win and a lot of people want to win it,” Allison said. “The 360 sprint car competition is tough. Everybody has good stuff and good equipment. We’ve had several races so far this year and we’ve had a different winner each time. I believe that the 360 class is what made Limaland what it is. The fans of Lima come to watch sprint cars. We invite everybody to come out and support local racing and to honor Travis’ race.”
For complete results of Run for the Rabbit, check out the Sunday edition of The Lima News.
Blue-Collar Showcase
at Waynesfield Raceway
WAYNESFIELD — Waynesfield Raceway Park will return back to action Saturday night with the Blue-Collar Showcase. This event will include the return of the Satellite Connections UMP Modifieds, the AMSA Mini Sprints, the Block Insurance Agency Tough Trucks, and the Indian Lake Outfitters Compact divisions. This will be the return of the Tough Trucks since opening night following two rainouts during the past month, and the return of the Mini Sprints since the beginning of May.
After being forced to postpone two weeks ago, the Tough Trucks will proceed to run the Jeff Augustine Memorial Truck Race. Augustine, who passed away during the winter, was a 10-year sponsor on the 37j truck of Roy Miller, who wanted to honor his longtime friend and supporter. While he never made it to Waynesfield to watch a race with farming season being the same as racing, Augustine never failed to call Miller or stop over following a night of racing.
Adult general admission is $12. Youngsters ages 11-15 are admitted for $6 with those under the age of 10 admitted for free. Pit access is available for $25.
For more information go to waynesfieldracewaypark.net.
