Though he's only 22, Jonathan Jorgenson says he's been waiting for this opportunity for quite a while now - a chance to race in the Jim Raper Dirt Cup at Skagit Speedway.

Jorgenson and some of the best dirt track sprint car racers from up and down the West Coast will get their shot over the next three nights, when the three-tenths-mile high-banked clay oval hosts its summer showcase event for the 41st straight year beginning on Thursday, June 14.

"To race with a number of guys I grew up looking up to, it's definitely going to be an honor," Jorgenson said in a phone interview.

Though he grew up in Auburn and cut his teeth in the midgets division at Grays Harbor Raceway, Jorgenson said he's had his eye on racing Dirt Cup for quite a while.

Despite that hunger, Jorgenson decided to stay away last summer, even though he had made his move to the Alger track earlier in the season.

"Last year, we were working on setup quite a bit," Jorgensen said of the decision. "We didn't feel comfortable enough to compete. We didn't want to tear our stuff up. Last year, there was definitely a learning curve for us. It took us a while to lock in on a setup and get everything clicking."

Now that he's got things running right Jorgenson, who's racing in both the 410 Sprints and 360 Sprints, has seen the results on the track.

Jorgenson currently sits seventh in the 410 season points standings and 11th in the 360 points.

"It's been pretty good this season," he said. "We're still running into a lot of stuff failing mechanically. But on nights when nothing breaks, we're finishing pretty well. I think we've had a couple of top 5s. We're really working on our qualifying times to get better starting spots."

Jorgenson, who now lives in Bellingham, is a junior engineering student at Western Washington University and works in the T-Mobile calls center, said qualifying will once again be a primary focus, as he enters with modest expectations.

"To make the A-Main on any of the three nights would be awesome," he said. "I'd really love to qualify good and have a strong finish. We're not expecting to go out and win the whole thing, but to race in the A-Main on Saturday would be a dream come true."

Jorgenson, who races a car owned by his father and Jorgenson Manufacturing and sponsored by Shareway Industries, is not the only one with that dream, though, as Dirt Cup brings a guaranteed purse of $160,000, including a $25,000 winner's share.

Included among the potential suitors for the championship is defending winner Jonathan Allard, whose wire-to-wire A-Main victory on Saturday last year gave him three Dirt Cup victories in his career.

The Chico, Calif., racer is not the only top driver making the trip from out of the state. San Jose native Tim Kaeding finished second to Allard last year and is seeking his first title, while National Sprint Car Hall of Famer Jac Haudenschild, who finished third last year, also returns.

Joining last year's top three will be former ASCS National and Knoxville 360 National Champion Shane Stewart, who won both preliminary nights last year and the 2010 Dirt Cup crown, and Former World of Outlaws star Jason Solwold. Other notable drivers expected to make the trip are 2008-09 Dirt Cup champion Jayme Barnes, former ASCS National Champion Travis Rilat, World of Outlaws winner Sam Hafertepe and current Skagit Speedway 410 points leader Eric Fisher.

Thursday's and Friday's preliminary races are all about earning points by qualifying well, passing cars and finishing strong to earn a good starting spot for championship night on Saturday, June 16.

"I think it's really exciting," Jorgenson said. "We've been waiting for this opportunity for quite a while. We finally feel like we've got the car to the point where we can compete. We've worked out a lot of the kinks and fixed a number of the problems we've had, and now we're excited to see what we can do."

Reach David Rasbach at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or 360-715-2271.

41ST ANNUAL JIM RAPER DIRT CUP

When: Thursday through Saturday, June 14-16

Where: Skagit Speedway, Alger

Grandstands open: 5 p.m.

Racing starts: 7 p.m.

Tickets: Adults (18-64) $23 Thursday, $24 Friday, $28 Saturday; Juniors (7-17), Seniors (65 and older) and Military $18 Thursday, $19 Friday, $22 Saturday; Child (6 and under) free Thursday and Friday, $7 Saturday.

PAST DIRT CUP WINNERS

Year Winner

1972 Ross Fontes*

1973 Gary Patterson

1974 Jimmy Sills

1975 Jan Opperman

1976 Jimmy Boyd

1977 Jimmy Boyd

1978 Doug Wolfgang

1979 Doug Wolfgang

1980 Jimmy Sills

1981 Leeland McSpadden

1982 Jimmy Boyd

1983 Tim Green

1984 Leeland McSpadden

1985 Jimmy Sills

1986 Tim Green

1987 Jimmy Sills

1988 Jeff Swindell

1989 Jimmy Sills

1990 Jimmy Sills

1991 Brent Kaeding

1992 Bobby Burrow*

1993 Tim Green

1994 Steve Kent

1995 Kevin Pylant

1996 Brent Kaeding

1997 Randy Hannigan

1998 Randy Hannigan

1999 Brent Kaeding

2000 Ronnie Day

2001 Steve Kent

2002 Kasey Kahne*

2003 Kasey Kahne*

2004 Shane Stewart

2005 Jonathan Allard

2006 Jonathan Allard

2007 Brandon Wimmer

2008 Jayme Barnes*

2009 Jayme Barnes*

2010 Shane Stewart

2011 Jonathan Allard

*Washington State driver

Reach DAVID RASBACH atdavid.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2271.