Month: March 2023

Ford 4.6 Beach Cruisers

We are pleased to announce that the Ford 4.6 Beach Cruisers have become a reality on Thursday Nights at Grand Bend Speedway and Festival Center for 2023.

The wildly popular division idea was asked about on our Speedway Director’s Facebook page with great response, since then we have adopted the rules package from a bunch of speedways South of the Border plus utilizing our Thursday night platform as an opportunity to build the uniquely economical class for drivers both new and established.

The idea to bring the Ford 4.6 Beach Cruisers not only was a good opportunity to showcase the full-size Crown Vics, Mercury Grand Marquis and Lincoln Town Car class on Thursdays but another equally appealing chance to add a chained car to the back and race against the Crazy Trains which come once a month during 2023 on Saturday Nights.

Grand Bend Speedway & Festival Centre Set for 2023

Fierce on-track competition, driving experiences, special events, touring classes, and an all-new party bar highlight Grand Bend Speedway & Festival Centre’s 2023 schedule. In total, the schedule features 32 racing events with competition taking place on Saturday nights starting at the end of May and, new in 2023, an extra night of racing on Thursday evenings starting in mid June.

Weekly competition in 2023 is spread across two different nights of racing with each night of racing having its own points championship. Thursday evenings are driver-development focused with $10 admission for spectators entering through the competitor entrance. Saturday’s races are a full program featuring the full-size cars and development classes, track announcers, special events and touring classes, and the new Outside Groove Party Bar. The Outside Groove will be open until 2am with live bands playing on the New LandShark Stage once competition concludes for the evening. On both Thursdays and Saturdays the Around the Bend Driving Experience will be offering two-seater rides after the races.

On-track competition this season includes a mix of full-size vehicles and 1/2-scale competition. For the full-size vehicles the Late Models, V8 Stocks, Mini Stocks, and Bone Stocks will be in competition. A new Kid Stock class runs on Thursday nights. 9HP Sprints, Junior Sprints, Junior Late Models, and Mini Trucks make up the lineup for half-scale competition. Fans will also catch the new Pro Midget Class which includes 440 Midgets, Outlaw Midgets, and Pro Sprints.

The all-new Grand Bend Ribfest (July 13-16) is the featured event this season with two big races, Thursday, July 13 for the Brad Clarke Memorial & GBS Reunion and Saturday, July 15 featuring a packed racing lineup, half-price spectator admission on Saturday, and, of course, awesome ribs.

Novelty events on the year include Crazy Trains (May 27, June 10, July 8, Aug 5), Power Wheels races (July 1), the return of King of the Hill Spectator races (May 20, June 3, Aug 12).

For visiting classes the Great Lakes Legends Series will thrill three times: June 24, July 15, and August 19. The Southern Ontario Modified Association will hit the track with their open-wheel racing on June 17, July 15, and Aug 26. The Outlaw Midgets visit on July 15 and the Can Am Midgets one-night only event headlines the schedule on July 22.

The Around the Bend Driving Experience continues to give fans the chance to ride or drive a real 400+ horsepower Late Model race car with bookings available during the week or on weekends throughout the year.

The 2023 Season Opener is set for Saturday, May 20 at 7:00 PM for the Victoria Day Weekend. Racing features Junior Sprints, Junior Late Models, Bone Stocks, Mini Stocks, V8 Stocks, and a King of the Hill Spectators Race. The Outside Groove Party Bar will continue to stay open after the races with the Creekie Beaver Boys taking the Landshark stage.

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