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63-454: The sanctioning body was formed by Hooters owner Robert Brooks . Brooks created the organization to honor the memories of four people who died in an April 1, 1993 airplane crash: Brooks' son Mark Brooks, reigning NASCAR champion Alan Kulwicki , Dan Duncan, and pilot Charlie Campbell. The sanctioning body started as the Hooters Cup late model series in 1995. Brooks decided to stop sanctioning

126-508: A Navy SEAL Senior Chief Petty Officer, was killed during a training exercise February 13, 2008. He left behind his wife, Christina, and two young children. Hooters established a fund in Valentine's name through Operation Homefront. Hooters is involved in the sports world. Previous sponsorships include the Miami Hooters , a now defunct Arena Football League team. Hooters formerly sponsored

189-855: A heart attack . Brooks's will gave most of Hooters of America Inc. to his son Coby Brooks and daughter Boni Belle Brooks. The Hooters Casino Hotel was opened February 2, 2006, off the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada , adjacent to the Tropicana , across the street from the MGM Grand Las Vegas . It became the Oyo Hotel & Casino in 2019, though the Hooters restaurant on the property remains open. As part of their 25th anniversary, Hooters Magazine released its list of top Hooters Girls of all time. Among

252-605: A plane crash near Bristol, Tennessee . They were flying back to the track for Sunday's race after making a sponsor appearance at a Hooters in Knoxville, Tennessee . Hooters remained in the sport, sponsoring drivers like Loy Allen Jr. , Rick Mast and Brett Bodine before ending their involvement in 2003. The restaurant returned to NASCAR in 2007 to sponsor a Craftsman Truck Series team led by Jason White , Derrike Cope and Brad Keselowski . Six years later, Hooters sponsored Nationwide Series driver Nelson Piquet Jr. 's car. For

315-606: A "southern division" that race separately. After the regular season, the top drivers from each division participate in a five-race playoff series called the Four Champions Challenge. Winners of the respective division are awarded a 25-point bonus for the playoff and a cash bonus as regular season champions. The driver who gets the most points in the Four Champions races, and the seeding points, (four races in 2001, five races from 2002 until 2005, six in 2006, 5 races in 2007)

378-549: A "toy Yoda " instead, claiming the contest was an April Fool's Day joke. Berry filed a lawsuit against Gulf Coast Wings, the local franchisee, and later reached a settlement. In 2004, it was found that job applicants to a Hooters in West Covina, California , were secretly filmed while undressing, prompting a civil suit filed against the national restaurant chain in Los Angeles Superior Court. The company responded to

441-511: A Korean American immigrant who placed a takeout order at a Hooters in Queens, New York, sued the restaurant chain for racial discrimination after noticing a racial slur printed on a cash register receipt by a hostess who later confessed and subsequently resigned. The case was dismissed in 2013. On April 2, 2015, former employee Farryn Johnson was awarded $ 250,000 after an arbitrator found that racial discrimination contributed to her termination. Johnson

504-507: A campaign in support of breast cancer research, with awareness of the issue being spread through the Kelly Jo Dowd Fund. By 2010 the chain raised over $ 2 million for the cause. In 2009, Hooters partnered with Operation Homefront to establish The Valentine Fund in honor of fallen soldier SOCS Thomas J. Valentine. The fund supports the families of US Special Forces service members and other military families. Thomas J. Valentine,

567-494: A certain group of people was considered as racial discrimination. A statement from Hooters of America by Ericka Whitaker (Hooters of America senior brand manager) stated that she had no issue of having blonde highlights as a Hooters Girl prior to becoming a brand manager and the company will continue to diversify its employees, from the restaurant to the annual Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant. On September 11, 2017, former Philadelphia -area Hooters waitress Jade Velez filed

630-522: A competition of Hooters Girls from around the world; in 2010, this event took place in Hollywood, Florida . An African-American woman won the Miss Hooters pageant for the first time in 2010: LeAngela Davis of Columbus, Ohio . Hooters has been criticized for objectifying women. However, others have argued that feminism is about having a choice and that being able to work as a woman in whichever industry

693-520: A lawsuit against Hooters alleging she was a victim of workplace sexual assault by a former kitchen employee. The lawsuit named the employee, three former managers at the Northeast Philadelphia Hooters restaurant where she worked, and Hooters of America, LLC et al as defendants. As of July 2020, the outcome of the case was still pending. On July 16, 2019, Scott Peterson, who was one of two men who alleged they were sexually harassed by

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756-648: A lawsuit was filed against Hooters in Michigan after an employee was given a job performance review and was told that her shirt and short size could use some improvement by two women who held positions at the headquarters in Atlanta. Michigan is the only state that includes height and weight as bounds for non-discrimination in hiring. The plaintiff alleges that she was made the offer of a free gym membership and told that if she did not improve in 30 days, her employment would be terminated. The company denied that they threatened to fire

819-614: A male boss while working for Hooters in the Los Angeles area, reached a settlement with the restaurant chain in the Los Angeles Superior Court , though terms of the settlement were not publicly revealed. The other plaintiff, Paul "PJ" Cagnina, obtained a settlement in May 2017. On August 22, 2024, Hendrick Motorsports of NASCAR announced that they would sue Hooters for unpaid sponsorship fees. In employment discrimination law in

882-422: A play on UNICEF . It has provided money and/or volunteers to charities such as Habitat for Humanity , The V Foundation for Cancer Research, Operation Homefront, Make-A-Wish Foundation , Special Olympics , Muscular Dystrophy Association and Stop Hunger Now . In addition, after the 2007 death of Kelly Jo Dowd, a former Hooters Girl, Hooters calendar cover girl and later restaurant general manager, Hooters began

945-519: A reduction in menu items and employment of both male and female servers who are modestly dressed in t-shirts and khakis. The appearance of the waitresses is a main selling feature of the restaurant. A Hooters Girl is a waitress employed by the Hooters restaurant chain, and they are recognizable by their uniform of a white tank top with the "Hootie the Owl" logo and the location name on the front paired with short nylon orange Dolphin shorts . The remainder of

1008-625: A regional and national basis. In 2021, the Late Model Stock Tour had plans to once again visit Rockingham Speedway, formerly known as "The Rock" during its NASCAR days, reviving the dormant track for a second time under new ownership and management. Starting in 2022, the CARS Tour will discontinue the Super Late Model Division and replace it with a Pro Late Model Division in an attempt to draw more competitors. On January 9, 2023,

1071-555: A similar lawsuit in Maryland received $ 10,350 each. The settlement allows Hooters to continue gender-restricted hiring in its wait staff; the chain agreed to create other support jobs, like bartenders and hosts, that must be filled without regard to gender. In 2000, a federal jury ordered Hooters to pay $ 275,000 to former waitress Sara Steinhoff, who claimed in her lawsuit that she was the target of unwanted sexual advances, demeaning behavior and recrimination from managers while she worked at

1134-653: Is a late model stock car racing league operating since 2001. The series is a continuation of the Tri-Track Challenge run in California between 1997 and 2000. The series is also connected to the former Supermodified Racing League , previously headed by Davey Hamilton . Through the years the series expanded its racing calendar as well as racing series adding spec late model series and Legends car racing . Starting in 1997 Madera Speedway , Stockton 99 Speedway and Altamont Motorsports Park started cooperating to form

1197-485: Is declared the USAR champion. At the end of the season, each of the top 30 teams that competes in at least half of the series' regular season races in their division is given entry points based on the number of points one competitor can earn for finishing in that respective position in a race. Beginning in 2006, the top 15 in each division automatically qualified. Each driver collects points for each race they participate in during

1260-467: Is our Hooters Girls who make our concept unique. Hooters offers its customers the look of the "All American Cheerleader, Surfer, Girl Next Door." Female employees are required to sign that they "acknowledge and affirm" the following: In 1997, three men from the Chicago area sued Hooters after being denied employment at an Orland Park, Illinois , restaurant. Each of them was awarded $ 19,100. Four men who filed

1323-701: The 2016 Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway , Hooters made a comeback in the Cup Series with a one-off paint scheme for Greg Biffle . Hooters most recently sponsored the No. 9 of Chase Elliott from 2017 to 2024. Hooters has sponsored the Major League Eating -sanctioned "Hooters Worldwide Wing Eating Championship" since 2012. Hooters has also licensed its name for the Hooters Road Trip PlayStation racing game. Furthermore, Hooters licensed

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1386-674: The NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway and the Cook Out Southern 500 (the CARS Tour race is held at Florence Motor Speedway, 13 miles from Darlington Raceway ). The winner of the Cook Out 225 feature at Florence will again earn pole position for the 33rd Charlie Powell Memorial 400 in November. On November 15, 2024, the CARS Tour announced the 2025 West Tour schedule. The current Pro Late Model division will be rebranded to

1449-622: The Tampa Bay Area , Chicago metropolitan area , and one in Manhattan , while all other locations were under the aegis of Hooters of America, which sold franchising rights to the rest of the United States and international locations. Under Brooks's leadership, the collective Hooters brand expanded to more than 425 stores worldwide. Brooks died on July 15, 2006, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, of

1512-661: The USAR Hooters Pro Cup , an automobile racing series, and the NGA Pro Golf Tour , a minor league golf tour. In 1992, Hooters sponsored NASCAR driver Alan Kulwicki as he won the Winston Cup Championship, beating Bill Elliott by ten points, the closest margin in NASCAR prior to The Chase era. On April 1, 1993, Kulwicki, along with several others including Hooters Chairman Bob Brooks' son Mark, were killed in

1575-552: The United States Virgin Islands , Guam , and 28 other countries. Hooters also had an airline , Hooters Air , with a normal flight crew and flight attendants and scantily clad "Hooters Girls" on every flight. Hooters, Inc., was incorporated in Clearwater, Florida , on April 1, 1983, by six Clearwater businessmen: Lynn D. Stewart , Gil DiGiannantonio, Ed Droste , Billy Ranieri, Ken Wimmer and Dennis Johnson. The date

1638-432: The owl ). The waiting staff at Hooters restaurants are primarily young women, usually referred to simply as "Hooters Girls", whose revealing outfits and sex appeal are played up and are a primary component of the company's image. The company employs men and women as cooks, hosts (at some franchises), busboys , and managers. The menu includes hamburgers and other sandwiches , steaks, seafood entrees, appetizers, and

1701-418: The 2015 season, with car counts averaging 55 cars per stop in the ten-race tour combined. The sanctioning body once again broke the mold in 2015 by becoming the first asphalt tour to carry its own streaming and broadcast service, CARS Tour TV, a division of Pit Row Media and their Pit Row TV brand. For the first time in asphalt late model history, an entire tour's schedule was broadcast online and has been since

1764-548: The ARCA/CRA Super Series, ARCA Midwest Tour, SRL Southwest Tour and the Southern Super Series for a common Super Late Model rules package to establish teams in any of the major tours can run all series with few changes. After three seasons with the format, CARS split the two divisions on selected weekends beginning in 2018, in order to prevent conflicts with major Super Late Model and Late Model Stock races from

1827-650: The CARS Tour was acquired by a consortium of four companies: DEJ Management , Jeff Burton Autosports, Inc. , Kevin Harvick Incorporated , and Trackhouse Racing Team . All four are NASCAR-related, with two current national series team owners, a Cup Series champion, and a Cup Series veteran. FloSports will have media rights in 2024, and the North Wilkesboro Speedway races (one on NASCAR All-Star Race week and one in September) will be two-day events while

1890-469: The Championship Series, adding to their entry points collected from their regular season finish. A ten-point bonus is awarded for every driver who attempts to qualify at every race, although driver must race three of the six races to qualify for postseason bonus prizes. Cash bonuses are available for winning four, five, or all six postseason races. In 2003, Shane Huffman won a bonus for winning three of

1953-523: The Hooters Calendar for Hooters Calendar Girl , a mobile wallpaper application, and Hooters Calendar Girl Tubin' , a mobile game , both by Oasys Mobile . It was also one of several real world brands that appeared in the 2011 video game Homefront . Since 1986, the restaurant has issued a calendar featuring Hooters Girls, with signings taking place in some of their restaurants. Since 1996, Hooters has held Miss Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant,

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2016-663: The Hooters Girls uniform consists of the restaurant's brown ticket pouch (or a black one with the black uniform), tan pantyhose , white loose socks , and clean white shoes. Men who work at Hooters wear Hooters hats, T-shirts with long pants, Bermuda shorts , or attire more suitable for kitchen use. An older version of the Hooters Employee Handbook (prior to October 2006), published in The Smoking Gun reads: Customers can go to many places for wings and beer, but it

2079-587: The Hooters in Newport, Kentucky , between October 1996 and October 1997. In 2001, a jury determined Hooters of Augusta Inc. willfully violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by sending unsolicited advertising faxes. The class-action lawsuit, brought in June 1995 by Sam Nicholson, included 1,320 others who said they received the advertising faxes from Hooters. Atlanta-based Hooters of America Inc.,

2142-516: The Limited Pro Late Model (LPL) running Hoosier 980 slicks. The new Pro Late Model divisions rules and regulations will be exactly like the East Tour's Pro Late Model division. The West Tour will also introduce a Super Late Model and Legends division. The following drivers won the Four Champions playoff series after the series was split into two divisions: Hooters Hooters is

2205-796: The S2 class) is a class for spec racing late model stock cars. The cars ar built by the Racecar Factory based in Irwindale, California . The tube chassis is slightly smaller than a regular (super) late model car. The body is provided by Fivestar RaceCar Bodies and is similar to the ones used in the Mid-American Stock Car Series and the NASCAR PEAK Mexico Series . The spec engine is provided by General Motors . The Chevrolet Performance CT350 crate engine produces 350 hp . The engine

2268-799: The SRL Southwest Tour was formed in affiliation with the ASA . After the announcement that the NASCAR Elite Division would be disbanded after the 2006 season the NASCAR organisation encouraged the Elite Division teams to join the SRL series. Legends car racing was introduced in the SRL series in 2010. With spec legends cars built by US Legend Cars the series was run following the INEX regulations. Cale Kanke won

2331-479: The Tri-Track Challenge for their late model racing classes. Eric Holmes raced in the series in 1998. The 1999 season was won by Burney Lamar , despite only winning a single race at Stockton. Terpstra , Fensler , Holmes and Tucker completed the top five. After the 2000 season, won by Jim Pettit, II , the series was disbanded. The main reason being Stockton 99 Speedway not wanting to continue to support

2394-566: The United States , employers are generally allowed to consider characteristics that would otherwise be discriminatory if they are bona fide occupational qualifications (BFOQ). For example, a manufacturer of men's clothing may lawfully advertise exclusively for male models. Hooters has argued a BFOQ defense, which applies when the "essence of the business operation would be undermined if the business eliminated its discriminatory policy". Hooters has actively supported charities through its Hooters Community Endowment Fund , also known as HOO.C.E.F. ,

2457-482: The best-known were Lynne Austin (the original Hooters Girl), the late Kelly Jo Dowd (the mother of the golfer Dakoda Dowd ), Bonnie-Jill Laflin , Leeann Tweeden , and Holly Madison . After Brooks' death in 2006, 240 buyers showed interest in Hooters of America Inc., and 17 submitted bids, with that number being reduced to eight, and then three, before the selection of Wellspring Capital Management . Chanticleer Holdings LLC of Charlotte, North Carolina , which had

2520-669: The end of the 2014 season, with the demise of the UARA-STARS Tour after a year's suspension, CARS effectively transitioned the Pro Cup into the CARS Tour which effectively absorbed the former UARA tour by adding a division for Late Model Stocks (the perimeter style cars run at places like Martinsville and most tracks in the southeast) and Super Late Models (the types of cars run in the Snowball Derby, Winchester 400, Oxford 250, among other races nationally). The new two-division format started in

2583-511: The expansion of the tour part of his goals. CARS West will use the same Pro Late Model rules but will be a separate series for West Coast drivers, with races in California and Nevada. The new West Tour races will be broadcast live on TrackVision TV, which is a partnership with local west coast racing broadcaster Low Budget TV and Speed Sport . On November 4, 2024, the CARS Tour announced the 2025 East Tour schedule. The 15-race Late Model and 13-race Pro Late Model schedule will feature events with

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2646-458: The final years of the season, during the 2014 playoff (only ten cars were entered at some races during the season with a low of four cars at Coastal Plains Raceway in Jacksonville, NC), CARS began to transition the series into a Late Model Stock Car series. Late Model Stocks (which use perimeter chassis, not to be confused with offset chassis Super Late Models) were permitted in selected races. By

2709-554: The first two editions of the race. The main series is a super late model stock car based class, with cars similar to those used at major Super Late Model races such as the Snowball Derby , All American 400, Anderson 400, and other such major events on the short track racing scene. The series is open to any chassis fabricator such as Lefthander , LFR or Howe . The bodies, based on late model cars by Chevrolet , Ford , Dodge or Toyota . The spec late model class (also known as

2772-477: The first two seasons before graduating into the Southwest Tour in 2015. In 2011 Sean Rayhall and Ben Rhodes were some of the guest starters in the series. Despite attracting large grids, the series was discontinued after the 2015 season. For 2013 the S2 class was introduced, later renamed as the spec late model class. The series focused on young drivers coming from go-karts or legends racing. The first season

2835-505: The five races. The success of this series led to NASCAR devising its own playoff system in 2004. The sanctioning body's owner, Robert Brooks, who also owned the Hooters restaurant chain, died in July 2006, leading to the eventual sale of the series and the restaurant chain's disassociation. USAR officials combined the Northern and Southern divisions in 2009. Hooters dropped its sponsorship of the series

2898-661: The incident with additional employee training. In 2009, Nikolai Grushevski, a man from Corpus Christi, Texas , filed a lawsuit because Hooters would not hire him as a waiter. Grushevski and Hooters reached a confidential settlement on April 13. In September 2009, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against a North Carolina charter airline (formerly Hooters Air, owned by Hooters of America) on behalf of Chau Nguyen, an Asian flight attendant fired three years prior after complaining only white workers were being promoted. In May 2010,

2961-427: The individual woman in question chooses along with the ability for women to make their own money is empowering. Hooters in response to such criticism have said the company regularly donates to charities that help promote women's entrepreneurship and often promote Hooters Girls to management positions. 40% of Hooters restaurants managers are reportedly female. SRL Southwest Tour The SRL Southwest Tour Series

3024-578: The late model series in favor of the Pro Cup series while at the September 1997 race at the Milwaukee Mile . Brooks wanted to move to steel-bodied racecars much like those raced in the NASCAR Busch Series (now NASCAR Xfinity Series) and ARCA Racing Series at the time. There were eleven races in 1997. The series was expanded to twenty races in 1998. In 2001, the series devised a "northern division" and

3087-463: The local restaurant's parent company, paid out $ 11 million. The jury determined that six faxes were sent to each plaintiff. With a $ 500 fine for each, that amounts to a $ 3,000 award per plaintiff. Also in 2001, Jodee Berry, a waitress at a Hooters in Panama City Beach, Florida , won a beer sales contest, for which the promised prize was a new Toyota automobile. However, the manager awarded her

3150-727: The others are one-day events. A new title sponsor deal with zMAX was revealed on November 27, 2023. In addition, the winner of the Cook Out 225 as part of the Prelude to the Southern 500 in Florence will determine pole position for the Charlie Powell Memorial 400 (a non-championship race) in November at the circuit. On January 5, 2024, the CARS Tour announced that Pro Late Models will be split into an East and West Tours. Co-owner Kevin Harvick made

3213-522: The plaintiffs, and the suit was settled out of court. In 2011, a number of former Hooters executives left to start the Twin Peaks franchise group. Hooters filed suit and alleged that former Hooters executives stole trade secrets and management documents as part as their move to the new restaurant chain. In 2012, former employee Jheri Stratton filed suit after catching the airborne disease tuberculosis from one of her managers. Also in 2012, Kisuk Cha,

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3276-492: The registered trademark used by two American restaurant chains: Hooters, Inc. , based in Clearwater, Florida, and Hooters of America, Inc. based in Atlanta, Georgia, and owned by the private investment firm Nord Bay Capital (with TriArtisan Capital Advisor as its advisor). The Hooters name is a double entendre referring to both a North American slang term for women's breasts and the logo (a bird known for its "hooting" calls:

3339-449: The restaurant's specialty, chicken wings . Almost all Hooters restaurants hold alcoholic beverage licenses to sell beer and wine, and where local permits allow, a full liquor bar. Hooters T-shirts, sweatshirts, and various souvenirs and curios are also sold. As of 2016 , there were more than 430 Hooters locations and franchises around the world and Hooters of America LLC. owns 160 units. In 2012, there were Hooters locations in 44 US states,

3402-498: The right to block the sale after a $ 5 million loan made in 2006, did so in a December 1, 2010, letter to the court. As a result, Chanticleer and other investors bought the company from the Brooks family. In January 2011, Chanticleer and others completed the purchase of Hooters of America Inc. from the Brooks family. As of July 2013 , Hooters of America owned 160 restaurants and operates or franchises over 430. On July 1, 2019, Hooters

3465-432: The same season, and the series later re-branded itself as the USARacing Pro Cup Series . On August 25, 2011, Series Director and Owner Jack McNelly announced that the series would be operating under the name "Championship Auto Racing Series" (CARS Pro Cup). The series picked up title sponsorship from Revolution Oil, renaming the series the Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series through the 2013 season. After entries began dropping through

3528-414: The series. In January 2001 the promoters of Altamont and Madera tried to found a series the same rules as the existing NASCAR Elite Division . Davey Hamilton and Rick Gerhardt, promoting a California-based supermodified racing division under the Supermodified Racing League sanctioning body offered to sanction the new late model series under their umbrella. The SRL Wild West Shootout Late Model Series

3591-446: The tour's re-inception in 2015. Pit Row Media has a long-term agreement with the tour to produce and carry event broadcasts, including syndication agreements to REV TV in Canada, SPEED SPORT on MAVTV in the USA, and other networks and distribution partners. The new format consisted of a 100-150 lap race in each division. The Super Late Model Tour has a working relationship with the United Super Late Model Rules Alliance, which consists of

3654-501: Was an April Fools' Day joke because the original six owners believed that their prospect was going to fail. Their first Hooters restaurant was built on the site of a former rundown nightclub that had been purchased at a low price. So many businesses had folded in that particular location that the Hooters founders built a small "graveyard" at the front door for each that had come and gone before them. The first restaurant opened its doors on October 4, 1983, in Clearwater. This original location

3717-436: Was decorated with memorabilia from Waverly, Iowa , hometown to some of the original Hooters 6. In December 1984, Hugh Connerty bought the rights to Hooters from the Original Hooters 6. Robert H. Brooks and a group of Atlanta investors (operators of Hooters of America, Inc.) bought out Hugh Connerty. In 2002, Brooks bought majority control and became chairman. The Clearwater-based company retained control over restaurants in

3780-400: Was founded for the 2001 season with Altamont and Madera running six races each. Stockton returned on the calendar for the 2002 season. Gerhardt sold his interest in the series at the beginning of 2004 to Steve Fensler. For 2005 the supermodified division was sold to form the Western States Supermodified Racing League . The late model series continued under the management of Fensler. For 2006

3843-413: Was sold to Nord Bay Capital and TriArtisan Capital Advisors. In June 2024, Hooters abruptly closed approximately 40 locations that were deemed underperforming, blaming rising costs and a decline in sales as part of the decision. In response to declining sales, in 2017 the company launched a fast casual spinoff of its format called "Hoots". Hoots is distinguished from its original concept primarily by

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3906-463: Was terminated in August 2013 after her store manager (from the Hooters in Baltimore, Maryland) told her that she could not have blonde highlights in her hair. Johnson filed a civil rights complaint with the State of Maryland Civil Rights Division where her attorneys stated the applicability of the dress code for Black Americans and everyone else (e.g. non-Hispanic Whites, Hispanic/Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander American) where one set of policies pertains to

3969-455: Was won by Ryan Cansdale who later graduated into the main Southwest Tour. The 2014 season was won by Brandon Weaver. A pre-season non-championship race, the SRL Winter Showdown, was introduced in 2015. The race at Kern County Raceway Park invited many non-SRL racers to compete for the crown. New to the SRL series were Dustin Ash , Preston Peltier , Dalton Sargeant among others. South-eastern based short track specialist Bubba Pollard won

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