USAC’s Silver Crown Series presented by K&N Engineering is scheduled to test its pavement cars at Darlington Raceway on March 1-2 to explore the possibility of a race during the Dodge Avenger 500 weekend in May.
The cars will test Thursday and Friday at the notoriously challenging egg-shaped oval. The test will determine whether the Silver Crown Series will attempt to race at the 1.366-mile speedway, known as the track “Too Tough To Tame. â€
USAC has a limited history in South Carolina, and more specifically at Darlington, but neither with the Silver Crown Series. Only three USAC races have been conducted in the Palmetto State, the most recent being a Carolina/Virginia Ford Focus Midget Car Series race in 2005 at Florence Motor Speedway in Timmonsville, just a few miles from Darlington.
But the first USAC race at Darlington Raceway came during the series’ inaugural season, when Pat O’Connor steered the Chapman Root-owned “Sumar Special†to a Championship Car (later called IndyCar) victory on July 4, 1956. Forty-eight years passed before USAC returned to South Carolina, with Chase Scott winning at Anderson Motor Speedway.
“When it first became apparent that USAC was considering taking the Silver Crown Series to Darlington, the interest level skyrocketed, †USAC president and CEO Rollie Helmling said. “Race fans and Silver Crown teams are both looking forward to a potentially exciting and challenging event. It is amazing to us how much enthusiasm there is for USAC to return to Darlington. â€
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