March 26, 2022, St. Louis — World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois, will present the NHRA Jr. Street program on select Wednesday nights. NHRA’s Jr. Street youth racing program for teens 13-16 years old will give boys and girls the opportunity to race against their peers in full-bodied street vehicles. The teen racers will be accompanied by an adult co-driver. Both driver and parental guardian will be required to wear helmets and their vehicle must pass a safety inspection.
The NHRA Jr. Street program is slated for nine Wednesday evenings over the 2022 season: April 6, April 20, May 4, May 18, June 29, July 6, July 27, August 8 and August 31.
Driver entry fee is $30 per night. Parental guardian admission is $15. WWTR is offering a significant discount: A Jr. Street driver can save money by purchasing a one-time pass for $50 that will allow them to compete in all nine events.
“The NHRA Jr. Street program gives a teen the opportunity to sit in the driver’s seat and experience a whole new world,” said Tim Seibel, NHRA Jr. Street coordinator at WWTR. “With a parent in the front seat with the young racer, the driver can experience the excitement of drag racing in a safe environment. The vehicle the family brings to the track to compete in Jr. Street is, in most cases, the family’s daily driver. We see pickup trucks, front-wheel drive sedans, crossovers – whatever the family may be driving every day – to slightly-modified Mustangs going down the track in Jr. Street. And having a parent next to the novice driver gives the teenager as sense of security, and knowledge on how to guide the vehicle down the track.”
The Jr. Street driver’s vehicle cannot be modified to run quicker than 9.00 seconds in the eighth-mile. For perspective, a new Camaro SS with the most powerful engine available from the factory covers that distance in approximately 9.30 seconds. And a new pickup truck may cover the 660-foot designated race distance in 10.00 seconds.
“We are pleased to have Tim supporting this important program,” said Nettie Damron, WWTR Facility and Event Operations Administrator. “The Jr. Street program offers young drivers an affordable opportunity to learn all facets of drag racing in a safe, supervised and comfortable environment.”
For more information about the NHRA Jr. Street program at WWTR, please call or text Seibel at (618) 973-9269 or see him in the drag strip staging lanes during Wide Open Wednesdays.
Complete rules are available at http://www.nhraracer.com/Files/Tech/2019_NHRA_Rulebook_JrStreet.pdf
For more information on WWTR, please call (618) 215-8888 or visit www.wwtraceway.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
About World Wide Technology Raceway
World Wide Technology Raceway (WWTR) is the home of NASCAR, INDYCAR, and NHRA racing in the St. Louis region. Located just five minutes from downtown St. Louis and covering more than 600 acres, WWTR is the largest outdoor entertainment facility in the area. WWTR’s facilities include a 1/4-mile drag strip, 1.25-mile superspeedway, recently expanded 2.0-mile road course, the Gateway Kartplex (a state-of-the-art karting facility), and the adjacent Gateway National Golf Links. WWTR and owner Curtis Francois have been recognized with several awards, including: 2021 Comcast Community Champion of the Year; 2021 Jack Buck Award; 2020 NASCAR Drive for Diversity Track Award; 2018 Innovator Award from the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission; 2017 Outstanding Facility of the Year Award from the Race Track Business Conference; and the 2017 Spirit of St. Louis Award from the St. Louis Attractions Association.
