As we head into the middle part of January already, it won’t be long until the green flag waves here in Central Pennsylvania.

But of course the pressing question is what will Mother Nature have in store for us when racing is set to begin.

After last week weekend’s gorgeous weather with temperatures in the 60’s, does Mother Nature have something brewing down the line? Only time will tell.

Lincoln Speedway is scheduled for a Saturday, February 25 opener for the Icebreaker 30 for 410 Sprints and then other area tracks will slowly begin to open the gates for their 2012 racing seasons following Lincoln’s standard opener.

Selinsgrove Speedway will host the 410 Sprints for its season opener on Sunday, March 11 while Port Royal Speedway will kick off its season on Saturday, March 17 with 410 Sprints and 358 Sprints.

Williams Grove Speedway will throw the green flag on Friday, March 23 with the 410 Sprints and 358 sprints.

Trail-Way Speedway opens its micro sprint season on March 17 and then the lid lifter for the 358 sprint cars will be Friday, April 6.

Hagerstown Speedway will have its season opener on March 24 featuring a regular show of late model, late model sportsman and pure stocks.

ODDS AND ENDS

Looking over the Lincoln schedule for 2012 and one of the first events that stands out is the ninth annual Weldon Sterner Memorial for 410 Sprints which is scheduled for August 11, the final night of the Knoxville Nationals. While Lincoln doesn’t normally loose many cars to Knoxville, this is one of a few extra paying events each season on the track’s schedule and with most of the top teams out of town that weekend, it takes away a decent paying race for them and an event that many fans enjoy as well. Many of those fans are also in Iowa that weekend.

Lincoln also has not scheduled the URC Sprints this season and only boasts a single All Star Circuit of Champions event, despite the All Stars going head to head with the track opener on February 25. The All Stars will still be in Florida that day.

Williams Grove Speedway hosts the World of Outlaws six times in 2012 and will see the All Stars in action two times at the Monroe Township track.

If I counted them right, there are 12 fireworks displays planned for 2012 at Williams Grove and its great to see the Saturday Night Series support continuing again this season with a nice slate of races scheduled.

Hagerstown Speedway will have the return of the World of Outlaw Sprints to its ultra smooth speedway on May 20. Many fans complain about Hagerstown but drivers love the place and night time races are generally pretty entertaining.

Speaking of Hagerstown, we told you last season that the Octoberfest would be no longer at the track and sure enough, the event has been replaced by the Brawl in Fall, a scaled back version of the long running Octoberfest. Only three divisions are on the program with shorter feature events. However, the event is still a two day show.

Port Royal and Selinsgrove Speedway have joined forces this season forming a weight rule for the late model class in an effort to bring the class in line with other late model series in the area.

Speaking of Port, the track will honor its 2011 champions at its banquet coming up on January 28.

Look for Port Royal to have a few races on the schedule this season after its normal season ending Tuscarora 50. Track promoters are looking to take advantage of some good fall weekends.

Chad Trout will be going URC 360 Sprint car racing in 2012 with his own No. 7c sprint car team. Trout has been a top 358 sprint car driver on the local scene for many seasons and should do well with URC and possibly make a run at the championship, especially with the likes of Curt Michael not running for URC points and the Palladino Motorsports team possibly not chasing points as well.

The Central PA Legends Cars will have a guaranteed point fund for the local region in 2012. A total payout of $5,000 will see the point champion take home $1,000 and the top 20 drivers in final points will take a share of the point fund. The Legends season opener will be March 24 at Trail-Way Speedway.