Summit Motorsports Park
Top Fuel Driver Dixon to Dive into Top Alcohol Funny Car at Cavalcade of Stars
While Larry Dixon drove to three NHRA championships in a Top Fuel dragster, he’s readying to rumble in a Top 
Alcohol Funny Car at the 11th Annual Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser, May 19-21, 2017 at Summit Motorsports Park.
The Hussey Performance-sponsored car is owned by Tony and Michael Bartone and packs a lot of punch with its blown and injected Brad Anderson bullet.
“When I saw the car at McKinney Corp, I asked the chassis builder about it and he said it’s a really good car but that Tony, who drives it, was having back trouble and was looking for a driver because he loves the sport and wants to be involved in it,” said Dixon, who has known the Bartones for 20 years. “I gave Tony a call, and he said they were planning to run the Charlotte NHRA race in late April with Sean Bellemeur driving, and that they would stay a day later so that I could get in the car, make some laps, try to get a license and see how it goes.”
With that mission accomplished, Bartone invited definite fan-favorite Dixon to drive his car in Top Alcohol Funny Car, which features 270 mph-plus vehicles, at the 11th Annual Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser at Summit Motorsports Park. The event is poised to welcome the largest audience on the annual NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series North Central Division tour.
Cavalcade of Stars to Converge at Summit Motorsports Park
Sportsman racing will reign at the 11th Annual Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser, May 19-21, 2017 at 
Summit Motorsports Park.
The exciting event which traditionally welcomes the largest audience on the annual NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series North Central Division tour boasts captivating categories, including Top Alcohol Dragster and its 285 mph-plus vehicles, Top Alcohol Funny Car and its 270 mph-plus vehicles, Top Dragster, Top Sportsman, Comp Eliminator, Super Stock, Stock Eliminator, Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street. Pro Stock Snowmobile also is scheduled to be in the spotlight.
“The Cavalcade of Stars is without question one of my favorite events of the year,” said Bill Bader, Jr., Summit Motorsport Park president. “Great racing, great fans and the official kickoff of summer!”
Titus Performance Cleveland Shootout Added to Fun Ford Reloaded 2
The Titus Performance Cleveland Shootout has been added to an already action-packed Trick Flow Specialties Fun 
Ford Reloaded 2 at Summit Motorsports Park.
The event specially designed for Ford fans is July 7-9, 2017, and the Titus Performance Cleveland Shootout, open to competitors in all categories who run a Cleveland engine built around a Cleveland block, will take place during time-trials on July 8.
The driver with the quickest elapsed-time will receive $300 and a trophy from Titus Performance, while the second place finisher will receive $200 and a trophy and the third place finisher will receive $100 and a trophy.
Summit Motorsports Park & Ohio Dept. of Transportation Agree to Work Together
Summit Motorsports Park and the Ohio Dept. of Transportation have agreed to fund a study to look at possible 
solutions involving three light poles on the park’s property that are in proximity to the Huron County Airport.
As an immediate step, both parties have agreed that the poles will be marked with red beacons and striped with reflective tape to ensure visibility for pilots approaching the Huron County airport. One of the poles has been in place for nearly 20 years, while the other two poles were part of a $400,000 lighting upgrade at the park last year.
All Systems Go for Spring Warm-Up at Summit Motorsports Park
Summit Motorsports Park is ready to rocket into the new race season with the 36th Annual Spring Warm-Up. 
During the event on April 15, drivers can test and tune, learn about and register for the Edelbrock Super Series, which boasts $53,100 in cash prizes, and the Finish Line Club, which boasts nearly $500,000 in cash and prizes, and receive an NHRA chassis inspection.
They can also have their wheels fitted with tires free of charge with the option to purchase them through the Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels Try and Buy program, plus peruse a swap-meet with everything from hubcaps to high horsepower engines.
Students Shine in Summit Motorsports Park Racing to Read Program
For the second year in a row, Summit Motorsports Park offered a Racing to Read program to students in 
kindergarten through sixth grade at select schools, and participation was plentiful for the three-week race-themed program which recently wrapped up.
Colorful bookmarks, keychains, pencils and erasers were among the prizes presented to students as they read – and recorded how much they read – during the at-home program. Recognized as Top Readers for having read the most when the program came to a close were Cody Miller of Maplehurst Elementary, Brooklyn Younce of Pleasant Elementary, Melissa Isais of League Elementary and Ryan Mortus of Norwalk Catholic Elementary, all in Norwalk, Ohio.
For their exceptional efforts, they each will receive a Fire Kids Edition Tablet, a certificate of achievement and two adult and two children’s tickets for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, June 22-25 at Summit Motorsports Park.
Super Summit 2017 to Showcase Beautiful Cars and BIGFOOT
The spotlight will be on cars shined up to show and souped up to go at Super Summit 2017 presented by Summit 
Racing Equipment, June 9-10 at Summit Motorsports Park. Admission is free for participants and spectators.
Super Summit 2017 will feature a non-judged cruise-in, and participants can make fun-runs down the same track Summit Racing Equipment-sponsored Pro Stock drivers Greg Anderson and Jason Line and other famous drivers compete on.
The event also will include an autocross course.
“We have seen interest grow in autocross activities, and this is a chance for our customers to try it in a non-competitive format,” said Jim Greenleaf, Motorsports and Events Manager for Summit Racing Equipment, headquartered in Tallmadge, Ohio. “Instructors from Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will be on hand to coach people, and cars from top autocross suppliers like RideTech will also be there.”
Summit Motorsports Park Seeks Alternative to Ruling to Remove Light Poles
As the president of a motorsports venue that annually welcomes more than 500,000 fans for sportsman and 
professional drag racing, Bill Bader, Jr. was proud to announce the installation of a state-of-the-art lighting system in 2016 to illuminate both sides of the track surface at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.
Designed by Musco, it cost $400,000 and features 15 steel poles on the Budweiser side of the park from the head of staging to the sandtrap, where an additional pole is located on the Summit side of the park.
The lighting vastly improves driver and fan experience at the park, which the Baders have owned for nearly 45 years and which has been named Track of the Year seventeen times by the National Hot Rod Association, National Muscle Car Association and International Hot Rod Association and received the Greater Ohio Showmen’s Association’s Best Special Event Award in 2016.
Hall Sets Sights on Success at Summit Motorsports Park in 2017
Dennis Hall has celebrated many accomplishments since he began racing at Summit Motorsports Park in the early 
1990s, but the Mansfield, Ohio resident said none have been as impactful as the most recent.
He was named the 2016 Bill Bader Sportsman of the Year during Summit Motorsports Park’s 43rd Accel Banquet of Champions in January 2017 at Sawmill Creek Resort in Huron, Ohio, and was welcomed to the stage by previous Sportsmen of the Year as hundreds in attendance applauded.
“I was honored beyond belief,” said Hall, an engineer for Warren Rupp, Inc. in Mansfield, Ohio. “I appreciated every hug and every handshake as I made my way to the stage, and once I got there, it was very humbling to be standing alongside people who had been named Sportsman of the Year before me. It’s a great group of people.”
Track Rentals Available at Summit Motorsports Park
Track rentals are now being scheduled for mid-April through October, 2017 at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.
Track manager Sam Lance and the committed track crew will provide custom track preparation for sportsman and professional drivers in street-tired, slick-tired and drag radial-tired vehicles of all horsepower levels.
They’ll also professionally and promptly run the program, which is popular for drivers who want to make repeated passes to dial in combinations or chassis, drivers who want to test privately and members of car clubs.
