OPTIMA^® Batteries announces 2013 ultimate street car qualifying events

January 23, 2013 (MILWAUKEE) – OPTIMA^® Batteries, a worldwide leader in high-performance batteries, today announced the first nine approved qualifying events for the 6^th annual running of the OPTIMA^® Ultimate Street Car Invitational event, held directly after the SEMA show in Las Vegas, NV.

These regional qualifier events encompass a wide range of performance disciplines, from open road racing to autocrossing and drag racing. They also share much in common, such as being open to street-legal and licensed vehicles, which is a requirement of the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational. The regional qualifying events are also strategically located all over the country to give enthusiasts nationwide the chance to compete.

As has been done previously, the winners of the qualifying events will be invited to the SEMA show in Las Vegas, and then they will compete against each other in a series of measured performance tasks and also be judged for quality of design and execution. The participant with the best overall performance and design will be crowned the “Ultimate Street Car” for the year.

The 2013 OPTIMA Invitational regional qualifying events include:

• Run to the Coast – Irvine, CA  (February 23-24)
• Detroit Speed Southern Slam – Kershaw, SC (April 19-21)
• Faceoff at Road America – Elkhart Lake, WI (June 22-23)
• GoodGuys Des Moines – Des Moines, IA (July 5-7)
• MotorState Challenge – Watersvilet, MI (July 25-27)
• Sandhills Open Road Challenge – Arnold, NE (August 7-11)
• Holley LS Fest – Bowling Green, KY (September 6-8)
• Silver State Classic Challenge – Ely, NV (September 11-15)
• GoodGuys Fort Worth – Fort Worth, TX (October 4-6)

“Competitors have a lot to look forward to with a year of thrilling events across the country. Each of these qualifier events have been selected because they align with the spirit and concept behind the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational,” said Cam Douglass, director of product development and marketing for OPTIMA Batteries. “2012 brought close competition and a more diverse showing of vehicles with nearly 20 percent of the field falling into the import category. We can’t wait to see what this year will bring.” Additional qualifying events will be announced as the season continues. The OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational is open to vehicles of all makes, models and years of manufacture.

Visit www.optimainvitational.com for the latest information about the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational.