August 26, 2026

$10,000-to-Win Survive the 55 Returns to Skagit Speedway Sept. 25-26

By Ben Deatherage

ALGER, Wash. (Aug. 26, 2026) — One of the biggest Karl Kustoms IMCA Modified events in the Pacific Northwest returns to Skagit Speedway Sept. 25-26 when Survive the 55 puts $10,000 on the line for the winner of its signature 55-lap main event.

The two-day event will bring Modified competitors back to the Washington speedplant for the fifth running of Survive the 55, with Speedway Motors IMCA Weekly Racing National, DeVilbiss Racing Chassis Western Region, and Washington State points on the line. The winner will also earn eligibility to attempt to qualify for the 2027 Fast Shafts All-Star Modified Invitational during the Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s.

Four different drivers have visited victory lane in the event’s first four runnings.

Jon DeBenedetti captured the inaugural Survive the 55 in 2022 before Grey Ferrando added his name to the winner’s list in 2023. Tom Berry Jr. took the victory in 2024, while Bricen James became the fourth different winner in 2025.

The 2026 edition will once again culminate with 55 laps around Skagit Speedway and a big payday awaiting the winner.

Pre-registration for Survive the 55 will open through MyRacePass in the coming weeks.

Additional information, including registration details and the weekend schedule, will be available in the coming weeks on the Skagit Speedway website and social media pages.

SkagitSpeedway

Westergard Prevails Late in Skagit Season Opener

By Ben Deatherage ALGER, Wash. (Apr. 26, 2025) — Jeff Westergard kicked off the 2025 Friesen Performance IMCA Modified campaign at Skagit Speedway in style, overcoming early traffic and late-race pressure to earn his first Shaw Race Cars Western Region victory of the season. Adam Holtrop jumped to the early lead in the 25-lap main event before a flurry of mid-pack battles began to unfold. On a restart, Vancouver Island’s Geoff Morris, the 2023 Skagit Speedway track champion, powered into second before being shuffled back by James Bundy and Westergard. Bundy closed on Holtrop before a lap eight caution slowed the field. On the ensuing restart, Morris flipped in a multi-car tangle in turn four, bringing out the red flag. Westergard capitalized on the next restart, moving into second and then methodically pressuring Holtrop over several laps. Westergard finally found daylight on lap 16, slipping past Holtrop to take the lead. From there, the Sedro-Woolley driver pulled away, with only a late caution threatening his advantage. He held on through the final restart to claim the [Read More]

Berry survives, thrives at Skagit IMCA special

ALGER, Wash. (Sept. 28, 2024) – He was in racing a borrowed car at a track he’d never been to before, but his Saturday night results were familiar to Tom Berry Jr. Berry returned to his Pacific Northwest roots, topping the $10,000 to win Skagit Aggregates Survive the 55 main event for Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds at Skagit Speedway. “It was nice to get back and see a lot of people I haven’t seen for a while,” said the Oregon native, who raced out of North Dakota before moving his dirt track operation to Central Iowa eight year ago. “The facility is very nice and I got to race against a lot of different cars.” “This is the third time I’ve won a race that paid $10,000,” continued Berry, who took home the same amount for winning the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s in 2022, “so this has to rank right up there. There were a lot of tough cars here.” Berry fell back to fourth early in the 55-lapper before starting [Read More]

Survive the 55 Offers $10,260 to Win and More at Skagit Speedway on Sept. 26–27

By Ben Deatherage ALGER, Wash. (Sept. 18, 2025) — One of the premier fall specials on the Speedway Motors IMCA calendar returns as the Survive the 55 brings two nights of Friesen Performance IMCA Modified racing to Skagit Speedway on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 26–27. Drivers from across the Shaw Race Cars Western Region will chase a lucrative purse, with the 55-lap A Main paying $10,260 to win and $500 to start. In total, more than $30,000 will be awarded across A, B, C, and D features. Friday’s program will feature a two-heat format, with each driver competing in two eight-lap heats — the first lined straight up from pill draw, and the second fully inverted. Points from both heats will determine lineups, with the top 12 earning the option to run a fully inverted, 20-lap dash. Saturday’s finale locks the top 18 in accumulated heat race points into the Survive the 55 main event, with the top 8 redrawing for their starting positions. Drivers ranked 19–32 will line up for the 15-lap B Main, 33–46 [Read More]

Events

$10,000-to-Win Survive the 55 Returns to Skagit Speedway Sept. 25-26

By Ben Deatherage ALGER, Wash. (Aug. 26, 2026) — One of the biggest Karl Kustoms IMCA Modified events in the Pacific Northwest returns to Skagit Speedway Sept. 25-26 when Survive the 55 puts $10,000 on the line for the winner of its signature 55-lap main event. The two-day event will bring Modified competitors back to the Washington speedplant for the fifth running of Survive the 55, with Speedway Motors IMCA Weekly Racing National, DeVilbiss Racing Chassis Western Region, and Washington State points on the line. The winner will also earn eligibility to attempt to qualify for the 2027 Fast Shafts All-Star Modified Invitational during the Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s. Four different drivers have visited victory lane in the event’s first four runnings. Jon DeBenedetti captured the inaugural Survive the 55 in 2022 before Grey Ferrando added his name to the winner’s list in 2023. Tom Berry Jr. took the victory in 2024, while Bricen James became the fourth different winner in 2025. The 2026 edition will once again culminate with 55 laps [Read More]

Feature

Brendon LaBatte: From the Gridiron to the Dirt

By Ben Deatherage WEYBURN, Sask. (Aug. 12, 2026) — The airplane lifts away, its engine growing quieter until eventually there is nothing left but the water, the wilderness and silence. Brendon LaBatte stands on a dock hundreds of miles into northern Saskatchewan. There are no roads leading back to civilization. No help waiting around the corner. For someone who spent 14 seasons battling 300-pound linemen in the Canadian Football League and now wrestles a homebuilt Sunoco IMCA Stock Car around dirt tracks on both sides of the border, even this can get the adrenaline flowing. “It’s such a different feeling when that plane takes off and you’re left standing there on the dock,” LaBatte said. “I’ve been out there all alone and you think, ‘Oh man, I’m really doing this.’ It’s always a rush and an adventure.” Competition and adventure have been constants throughout LaBatte’s life. The Weyburn native went from racing as a teenager to becoming the sixth overall selection in the 2008 CFL Draft. He spent four seasons with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before [Read More]

2026 Super Nationals

All-Star Invitationals Bring 30-Car Fields and Big Awards to Super Nationals

By Ben Deatherage BOONE, Iowa (Aug. 25, 2026) — Thirty drivers in both the Karl Kustoms IMCA Modifieds and Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars will take center stage during America’s Racin’ Vacation at the Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s when the Fast Shafts All-Star Modified Invitational and B&B Racing Chassis All-Star Stock Car Invitational return to Boone Speedway. Drivers earned eligibility for the invitationals by winning designated All-Star qualifying events paying a minimum of $1,000 to win during the season and last fall. Two rounds of group time trials during Super Nationals week will determine the majority of the 30-car starting fields. The B&B Racing Chassis All-Star Stock Car Invitational is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 10, with qualifying Wednesday, Sept. 9. Round one of Stock Car group qualifying will advance five drivers from both the EQ Cylinder Heads Northern Region and Southern Region for 10 total qualifiers. Stock Car drivers who won IMCA-sanctioned events paying $5,000 or more to win are guaranteed starting positions in the Invitational. The remainder of the 30-car field will [Read More]

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