The XR Workin’ Man Series wants to live up to its name. If you’re a late model racer who runs a non-open engine, hauls with an open trailer, and likes to pass cars, the tour wants to reward you with money.
“The open trailer is old-school advertising for racing,” XR’s Barry Braun said. “We incentivized it. The open trailer bonus was something we tried on the IMCA Dakota Classic Modified Tour. The open trailers came out, and even Ricky Thornton came with one. He added to his winnings because of it.”
For $10,000-to-win events, XR plans to pay the top three finishers with open trailers $1,000, $500, and $250, respectively. Likewise, the top three with non-open engine will receive $1,000, $500, and $250.
“Our tech guys will be putting out a bulletin with crate, steel block, and CT525 engines that can qualify for a bonus,” said Braun. “We’re not going to give all the money to guys with the expensive motors. We need to reward the racers all the way back to the B-mains — those are the racers being overlooked.”
For racers who start deep in the field, but put on a show on their way to the front, the series will reward that as well. The first Hard Charger earns $750, the second $250.
Other bonuses include payouts for heat race wins ($200), the longest tow ($200), pole award ($200), and hard luck award ($100).
“Unlike NASCAR, we’re not going to reward racers just for showing up,” Braun said. “We want these racers to bust their asses and race.”
The additional monies are just the icing on the cake. The $10,000-to-win events pay $1,000 to start. The $5,000-to-win events, which feature smaller bonuses, pay $500 to start.
The first race for the 17-race XR Workin’ Man Series takes place on Tuesday, April 11, at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tennessee.
“A local hot shoe with a 604 crate, who has the setup to make the field, could make $1,000 for an open trailer, $1,000 to start, $1,000 for a non-open motor, and get a $750 hard charger award,” said Braun. “We’re going against conventional wisdom. We’re spreading the money — distributing it into different racers’ pockets.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
