WHITECOURT, AB – For the third time in four weekends a contingent of competitors from the Northern Provincial Pipelines Late Model Series will be at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Although many will be in attendance as spectators, several will be directly involved in the inaugural Lucas Oil Sprint Car Nationals event. Whitecourt ,Alberta’s Paul Grundberg, the first NPP Series driver to win a Feature event in the United States, is sponsoring the Sprint Car that four-time World of Outlaws Champion Donny Schatz will be competing in. “I started out racing a Sprint Car (Rookie of the Year in Edmonton – 2002) before coming over to the NPP Series (2007),” says the owner of Carlan Oilfield Services in Whitecourt, “I still have a bit of a soft spot for these open wheeled race cars.” The Sprint Car that Schatz will drive is part of a two-car team owned by Whitecourt, Alberta’s Richard Saumure.

“Richard is a huge supporter of racing so it’s nice to be able to help him out. He always runs the best equipment. Having a high profile driver like Schatz behind the wheel is a bonus.” In September, Sprint Car driver Jason Solwold helped Saumure become the first Canadian car owner to win the 2010 American Sprint Car Series Northwest Championship.

2010 LUCAS OIL SPRINT CAR NATIONALS
> FRIDAY, November 26th
SCHATZ / SOLWOLD
3rd – Heat race #1 / 5th – Heat race #2
10th – ‘A’ Feature 6th / 3rd ‘B’ Feature
Tony Stewart wins ‘A’ Feature

> SATURDAY, November 27th
SCHATZ / SOLWOLD
2nd – Heat race #4 / WIN – Heat race #7
10th – ‘A’ Feature / 11th – ‘A’ Feature
Joey Saldana wins ‘A’ Feature (Stewart finished in 5th)

NOTE: Edmonton Alberta’s David Miller also competed in Las Vegas in a Pat Beck powered ‘360’ Sprint Car. Miller was 5th in ‘360’ points at Castrol Raceway in 2010. NIGHT #1: Miller Finished 7th in Heat race #6 and Finished 13th in third in the ‘B’ Feature. NIGHT #2: Miller Finished 7th in Heat race #7 and Finished 11th in first ‘B’ Feature.

NPP’ NOVEMBER VISITS IN VEGAS
Darrell Midgley, the 2009 NPP Series Champion, competed at the 2010 Open Comp Weekend in his NPP sponsored pavement Late Model and Super Late Model on November 5th & 6th at LVMS. Midgley qualified 6th in the Late Model and 11th in the Super Late Model on Friday then finished 3rd in the LM Dash and 4th in the SLM Dash. Midgley finished 24th in the Super Late Model Feature Saturday night after being involved in a 2-car crash with 93 laps to go. Midgley did not start the Late Model Feature.

One weekend later, Jason Beaulieu, the 2007 NPP Series Champion and 2008 NPP Series Champion Brian McCaughan raced their IMCA Modifieds at the 13th annual Duel in the Desert November 12th – 14th. Both Beaulieu and McCaughan did not transfer to the big Sunday night race.