NASCAR Elite Series Cancellation - Have Car, Will Race

At times, promoters have asked Varney and his group how to do what they have done. For example, five ovals in Western New York and Western Pennsylvania have cooperated to create the new Mid-Atlantic Asphalt Racing Alliance (MARRA) and established a five-race championship series this season.

While the series isn't part of Varney's program, it uses the ASA Late Model concept and rule book as a template.

"It is all cost containment," Haun says. "Put drivers in good cars they can afford to race, and stock car racing has a great future. Make it too expensive and it has none."

The heart of the ASA Late Model Series is the car. The ASA requires an ABC body covering a 400hp sealed crate engine available from the manufacturer or authorized engine builders, low-cost brake calipers, standard-issue gearboxes, and only one set of tires for qualifying and racing.

The series contains costs by making drivers prove they can buy the gearbox in their car for $1,850 or less and that they spent no more than $275 each on shocks and brake calipers.

"It means you can build a car and be ready to race at the local oval for about $25,000 to $30,000," he says.

Starting pays $500, and a win is good for $2,500.

"No one's going to get rich," Haun says, "but between the money and all the contingencies available, it sure helps pay some of the bills."

GM Performance Parts is the series' title sponsor.

The series also uses a double points system that puts non-qualifiers in a showdown and awards championship points based on their finish in the 25-lap heat race. And the series is serious about preventing drivers from fudging up the rules.

"Because the rules are so limited, we know exactly what can and can't be done," Haun says. "And drivers figure out pretty quickly that we aren't as dumb as we look."

He says the specs prevent builders from spending money they don't need to spend.

"You could spend a lot more money on brakes," he says. "But the cars weigh only 2,700 pounds, and they might hit 130 to 140 on the straight. The best drivers are going to roll off the throttle and corner at 80 or 90 mph. The guys who come in too fast and then pound on the brakes are just going to learn to be better drivers."

He says the key to success is the engine builders.

"The folks building the engines are the real heart of a series like this," Haun says. "The success of a crate engine class lies in the honesty and integrity of the engine builders. We know there are things they can do to 'cheat up' a crate motor, but if they start building cheater motors, they'll kill racing's future."

Tomlinson says he finished 2005 with the same engine he put in the car at the beginning of 2003.

"We got two full seasons from the motor before we freshened it," he says. "We took good care of it. The engine was getting a little tired, but it was really in good shape."

The cost of the rebuild was about $2,000, he says.

There are very few gray areas in the rule book, available on the ASA Late Model Web site, along with Haun's phone number. No one can say they can't get an answer to a technical question.

"And as interest grows, the phone rings all the time," Haun says.

This year the ASA Late Models will compete in three divisions.

"We really weren't looking to expand so much, as we had tracks contact us about moving into their areas," Haun says.

The geography of the 13-race Challenge Series-the original series-ranges from San Antonio Speedway in Texas to Oswego Speedway in upstate New York. It includes stops at such tracks as the legendary Milwaukee Mile and the I-70 Speedway in Odessa, Missouri.

The new Late Model North series includes stops in eight states, with tracks as far-ranging as Erie, Pennsylvania, to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The series also includes visits to tracks such as Lake Geneva Speedway in Wisconsin, Jennerstown Speedway in Pennsylvania, and Michigan's Berlin Speedway.

Drivers in the Southern series get a crack at some of the tracks that nurtured stock car racing in its early days. The schedule includes races at legendary North Carolina tracks in Hickory and North Wilkesboro, along with tracks as far south as Bronson and Pensacola, Florida, and as far north as Bowling Green, Kentucky.