Malta, NY – The Albany-Saratoga Speedway opened the gates for the first time in 2016 with the running of the annual practice and inspection day. A large crowd and packed pit area greeted everyone on what was a beautiful mid-April afternoon in Saratoga County.

The day was open to any and all divisions. In addition to the five weekly divisions (DIRTcar Modifieds, Sportsman, DIRTcar Pro Stocks, Limited Sportsman and Street Stocks), drivers representing full sized Sprint Cars, Lightning Sprints, Trucks and the Greg’s Towing and Repair Four Cylinder divisions were on hand.

In all more than 125 drivers took laps around the Great Race Place on Sunday afternoon. The Sportsman division led the way with nearly 50 drivers pulling through the pit gates.

Neal Stratton turned the quickest lap time in the DIRTcar Modified division. The son of the father-son duo turned the fast, four tenths of a mile oval in 16.588 seconds. In the Sportsman division Robert Bublak, Jr. turned the quickest lap with a 16.467 lap while Kim Duell did the same in the DIRTcar Pro Stock division with a lap of 18.252 seconds.

The crowd on both sides of the fence noticed some upgrades to the Route 9 facility including a new wall and billboards on the outside of turn two and a beautiful new eating and picnic area next to the grandstand concession stand.

The Albany-Saratoga Speedway will kick off the 2016 season with the 51st season opener this Friday night April 22nd. All weekly divisions will be in action plus the Greg’s Towing and Repair Four Cylinders. The DIRTcar Modifieds will be competing for a $3,000 top prize. Racing is set to begin at 7pm with grandstand gates opening at 5pm and pit gates opening at 4pm. For more information about Albany-Saratoga Speedway and the 2016 season, including the detailed schedule please log on to www.albany-saratogaspeedway.com.