NASCAR released its 2013 Truck Series schedule this week and as the Observer first reported on Nov. 12, the 22-race schedule will include a stop at the half-mile dirt track at Eldora Speedway near Rossburg, Ohio.

The dirt race is set for Wednesday, July 24, before the Brickyard 400 weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race is expected to feature four heat races and a 100-lap main event, sources said.

The race would be the first on dirt for any of NASCAR’s three national series – Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Trucks – since a Cup series event in 1970 in Raleigh.

The track, owned by Cup driver Tony Stewart, does not have energy-absorbing SAFER barriers installed and no permanent medical facility on property, nor does it have a pit road. Changes will be made to the track for safety purposes, but the barriers will not be required, Stewart said.

The Truck series will also compete in Bowmanville, Ontario in 2013 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

Notes:

Earnhardt Jr. most popular: For the 10th consecutive season, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was named the winner of the National Motorsports Press Association's Most Popular Driver award.

Earnhardt received the award during a ceremony Thursday in Las Vegas. Earnhardt's 10 straight wins ties the record held by former driver Bill Elliott. Elliott won the award a record 16 times overall.

Jeff Gordon received the second-highest number of votes, followed by Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Bobby Labonte.

Gordon recognized: Four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon was the recipient of the NMPA's Myers Brothers Award, which recognizes individuals and/or groups who have provided outstanding contributions to the sport of stock car racing.