MAYETTA, Kan. — The Hunt for the O’Reilly USMTS National Championship begins Thursday, Aug. 9, at the Thunderhill Speedway in Mayetta, Kan. — the first of 16 events in 32 days, culminating with the crowning of the 2007 O’Reilly USMTS National Champion at the 9th Annual Featherlite Fall Jamboree at the Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minn., Sept. 6-8.

With an elite field of 27 drivers from 11 different States, this year's title battle promises to be the most thrilling and competitive ever.

THE SCHEDULE:

Thu Aug 9 … Thunderhill Speedway, Mayetta, KS ($2,000 to win)
Fri Aug 10 … Bolivar Speedway USA, Bolivar, MO ($2,000 to win)
Sat Aug 11 … Lebanon I-44 Speedway, Lebanon, MO ($2,000 to win)
Sun Aug 12 … Monett Speedway, Monett, MO ($2,000 to win)
Tue Aug 14 … Farley Speedway, Farley, IA ($2,000 to win)
Wed Aug 15 … Echo Valley Speedway, West Union, IA ($2,000 to win)
Thu Aug 16 … Steele County Fairgrounds, Owatonna, MN ($2,000 to win)
Fri Aug 17 … Cresco Speedway, Cresco, IA ($2,000 to win)
Thu Aug 30 … Highway 3 Raceway, Allison, IA ($2,000 to win)
Fri Aug 31 … Chateau Raceway, Lansing, MN ($2,000 to win)
Sat Sep 1 … Deer Creek Speedway, Spring Valley, MN ($2,000 to win)
Sun Sep 2 … Kasson Speedway, Kasson, MN ($2,000 to win)
Mon Sep 3 … Steele County Fairgrounds, Owatonna, MN ($2,000 to win)
Thu Sep 6 … Deer Creek Speedway, Spring Valley, MN ($2,000 to win)
Fri Sep 7 … Deer Creek Speedway, Spring Valley, MN ($4,000 to win)
Sat Sep 8 … Deer Creek Speedway, Spring Valley, MN ($6,000 to win)

THE STANDINGS:

1. 3 - Kelly Shryock -- Fertile, IA … 60 pts.
2. 33z - Zack VanderBeek -- New Sharon, IA … 51 pts.
3. 12 - Jason Hughes -- Colcord, OK … 45 pts.
4. 7 - Al Hejna -- Ventura, IA … 43 pts.
5. 02 - Tommy Weder Jr. -- Woodward, OK … 35 pts.
6. 27 - Greg Skaggs -- Bixby, OK … 26 pts.
7. 49x - Jay Poidinger -- Somerset, WI … 23 pts.
8. 25 - Scott Green -- Derby, KS … 22 pts.
8. 14 - Jon Tesch -- Watertown, SD … 22 pts.
10. 5t - Randy Timms -- Wheatland, OK … 14 pts.
10. 5 - Steve Holzkamper -- Gentry, AR … 14 pts.
12. 12b - Johnny Bone Jr. -- Pea Ridge, AR … 12 pts.
13. 32 - Donovan Lodge -- Moline, IL … 10 pts.
14. 20 - Rodney Sanders -- Happy, TX … 8 pts.
14. 1f - Jason Friesen -- Sutton, NE … 8 pts.
16. 19 - Jamie Burford -- Keatchie, LA … 7 pts.
16. 7k - Jason Krohn -- Slayton, MN … 7 pts.
18. 65 - Tommy Myer -- Blooming Prairie, MN … 6 pts.
18. 21m - Dean Mahlstedt -- Clear Lake, IA … 6 pts.
18. 31j - Jeremy Rasmussen -- Bentonville, AR … 6 pts.
21. 11 - Brandon Morton -- Coweta, OK … 5 pts.
21. 4x - Bobby Malchus -- Red Oak, TX … 5 pts.
21. 54 - Dena Wilson -- Coweta, OK … 5 pts.
21. 58 - Scott Vesely -- Mosinee, WI … 5 pts.
25. 31 - Corey Dripps -- Reinbeck, IA … 3 pts.
25. 19r - Ryan Gustin -- Marshalltown, IA … 3 pts.
27. 19g - Richie Gustin Jr. -- Gilman, IA … 2 pts.

HOW IT WORKS: ‘The Hunt’ will be comprised of the final 16 races of the season, with qualifying through 40 prior regional events and a dozen USMTS Southern Series races. The USMTS points system is used at all regional events, with the top-10 in the final standings of each region earning 10 points for first place, 9 points for second place and so forth, descending to 1 point for the 10th-place finisher in the region. In addition, each driver who attended all events in a region earned 5 bonus points. The total points earned for all regions will serve as the base points that each driver will start ‘The Hunt’ with. USMTS Southern Series drivers are also eligible to qualify for ‘The Hunt’. Drivers may use their best points combination from the four National Event regions or a combination of three regions and the USMTS Southern Series as their base points. Once ‘The Hunt’ begins, the USMTS points system will be used at the remaining events for the drivers in ‘The Hunt’ to determine the 2007 O’Reilly USMTS National Champion. Qualifying at all events will be done via Home Pride Passing Points in the Heat Races and Real Racing Wheels “B” Mains.

WHY IT WORKS: Created for the fans, the ‘The Hunt’ serves as a “playoff” for the O’Reilly USMTS National Championship. While handicapping gives a slight advantage to the drivers that compete on the entire National Events circuit, each of the top-10 drivers in any of the four regions or the USMTS Southern Series has a legitimate shot at capturing the O’Reilly USMTS National Championship.

TOP DOG BONUS: Beginning with Thursday's kick-off event, all drivers in the top-10 points of ‘The Hunt’ are guaranteed a minimum $400 against their winnings. So, stay in the top-10 and you're going home with at least $400 every night. If you're absent from just one (1) race, however, the guarantee is out the window.

PRVISIONALS: All provisionals awarded during ‘The Hunt’ will now come off of points in ‘The Hunt’ -- which means only these elite 27 drivers may qualify for a provisional starting spot from Thursday forward. The USMTS will continue to award two (2) provisionals for each main event. Each “Hunter” gets one (1) provisional to start ‘The Hunt’ and then another one (1) provisional after his/her fifth race. If a situation occurs where every driver in ‘The Hunt’ is already in the main event or unable to race, the next highest finisher(s) in the Real Racing Wheels “B” Mains will get the spot.

To learn more about the O’Reilly Auto Parts United States Modified Touring Series, call (515) 832-7944 or visit www.usmts.com online.

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USMTS TITLE SPONSOR: O’Reilly Auto Parts.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Race Tires, AMSOIL, Arizona Sport Shirts, BRODIX, Fast Company Performance, Holley Performance Products, Home Pride Companies, Intercomp, KEVKO Oil Pans & Components, Marsh Racing Wheels, Nitroquest Web Solutions, Olympic Fire Protection, Real Racing Wheels, Rookies Rockin’ Sports Bar, Yeager Machine.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: Boom Drilling, Borco LP, Day Motor Sports, Gressell Oil Field Services, Hughes Racing Chassis, KraftKar Race Cars, McVicker Oil Fields, Rinehart Trucking.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AFCO Racing Products, Belleville Motorsports, Bilstein Shocks, Boyer’s Engine Development, Dynatech Racing Exhaust, GRT Race Cars, Hawk Performance, Hyperco, Isky Racing Cams, KSE Racing Products, Quarter Master, QuickTime Performance Race Parts, Racer’s Choice (RCI).