Tomkins Begins Rolling Wheels Title Defense In DIRT Challenge Cup On May 7

Elbridge, NY – May 1, 2006 – By Tom Skibinski, DIRT NorthEast PR Director

When the gates at Rolling Wheels Raceway swing open on Sunday, May 7 for the 38th consecutive season, Gary Tomkins will be right where he wants to be, riding a two-race win streak at the ‘Fast Track’ and coming in as the two-time defending Rolling Wheels points champion. Maybe the biggest confidence booster was the last-to-first victory lane march last Saturday at Canandaigua Speedway that resulted in his first big-block feature win of the season.

“Winning at Rolling Wheels really means a lot, every time you sign in you’re going up against the best,” said Tomkins, 40, who closed out the ’05 RWR campaign with a 100-lap triumph on Labor Day and a command performance in the 200-lap Mr. DIRT Championship just two weeks later. The Clifton Springs speedster edged touring rivals Tim Fuller and Billy Decker by less than 10 markers in the final point standings. “We won two races and were more consistent last year but the most rewarding part was that we earned the championship, it wasn’t given to us.”

Tomkins begins his title defense Sunday afternoon in the 26th Annual DIRT Challenge Cup which stands as round two of the Advance Auto Parts Super DIRT Series. The 2006 edition, presented by the Stafford Auto Group, Bonnie’s Custom Creations, Marietta Diesel and WeCare Organics, will mirror the twin 50-lap feature format utilized in 2002, with Tomkins and Brett Hearn splitting the $3,000-to-win main events. A twist has been added this year as the winner of the first 50 will roll a large pair of dice on the front straightaway to determine how many cars are inverted for the nightcap.

Joining the DIRT big-block Modifieds will be the DIRT Sportsman in a 20-lap main event plus a 15-lap feature for Street Stocks. Adult general admission tickets are $20 each, Senior Citizens (60 yrs. + over) $18, Students (11-18 yrs) $10 and Children (10 yrs. + under) Free. Warm-ups are scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. followed by Integra Shocks Modified time trials, with qualifying heats starting at 2 o'clock. Pit gates will unlock at 10am and the main grandstands open at 11 o'clock. Kicking off the May 7 activities is a special Meet & Greet autograph session that has been scheduled for 12noon on Sunday behind the main grandstand. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to mingle with headliners such as committed tour stars Vic Coffey, Stewart Friesen, Justin Hears, Brett Hearn, Alan Johnson, Steve Paine, Jimmy Phelps, Matt Sheppard and Pat Ward along with Tomkins, Decker and Fuller.

“There’s only a few races to get the job done at Rolling Wheels so every lap is important from day one. You’re never sure what the track conditions will be, they’re always different from race to race in some respect even though we normally only make a few changes after qualifying. As long as its not too rough or dusty we’ll be okay, its just not much fun on a tough surface at such high speeds,” said 2002 DIRT Challenge Cup winner Tomkins, who finished third in last year’s RWR opener, sandwiched between winner Brett Hearn and runner-up Pat Ward with Tim McCreadie and Matt Sheppard filling out the front-five.

Hearn captured the Advance Auto Parts SDS opener at Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway on March 25, outlasting Alan Johnson, Decker, Kenny Tremont and Frank Cozze to collect the $6,000 top prize. Tomkins, a two-time Hagerstown tour winner, suffered a shredded right rear tire after rallying from 25th to 14th before finishing 16th in owner Doug Dulen’s no. 1 Honeoye Auto-Pillsbury machine. “We’ve got good equipment again this year, just need some breaks to put it all together again,” added Tomkins, who garnered the overall Hoosier Tire-Sunoco Race Fuels Mr. DIRT Championship in 2004 for car owner Jim Bechy, still a supplier of the primary motor used for series competition. “We got a bad break starting out at Hagerstown but there’s a lot more ground to cover. We just have to take it one race at a time and keep plugging away.”

Rolling Wheels leads off with warm-ups for all divisions on Wed., May 3. Pit gates open at 4 p.m. with practice slated to start at 5 o’clock. General admission is free to the public and the cost for pit entry is $10.

Rolling Wheels Raceway is located between Auburn and Elbridge, New York, on Route 5. The track can easily be accessed using Exit 40 of the New York State Thruway. For more information contact DIRT NorthEast Headquarters at 315/834-6606 during the week, on raceday call the track 315/689-7809 or anytime on the internet log into www.rollingwheelsraceway.com.

The DIRT MotorSports™ Advance Auto Parts Modified Series is brought to fans across the Northeast by several sponsors and partners, including series sponsors Advance Auto Parts, Hoosier Racing Tire and Sunoco Race Fuels. Promotional partners include AMB i.t. and the University of Northwestern Ohio and the contingency sponsors are Bert Transmission, Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein Shocks, Brodix Cylinder Heads, DART Machinery, Holley HP Carburetors, Integra Shocks, MSD Ignitions, Miller Electric Manufacturing Company, Penske Shocks and Wrisco Industries.