Running The Show: Drivers As Track Operators

Pitching In

Because the track is small and member oriented, the speedway offers mostly blue-collar racing that is affordable to working families. The weekly lineup includes V-8 Modifieds, Sportsman, Street Stock, Women's, and Four-Cylinder Ministocks. Entry fees are $25 or $30, depending on the class.

"We write the rules to try to keep expenses down," says Brasmer. "[For example], in the Sportsman Division, you have to run a stock front clip. In the Street Stocks, you can balance the engine, but you still have to run a two-barrel carb. We added the four-cylinder class a year ago and changed the tire rule this year so we can keep so many of 'em from going on the roof."

Brasmer says low-cost racing, good car counts, and affordable prices keep bringing back the fans, and it is the spirit of family that keeps the drivers.

"I think everyone who races here feels he or she owns a bit of the track," he says.

Call it sweat equity. While there is no requirement to volunteer, many of the drivers do, either on a weekly basis or for special projects. The jobs can be as simple as picking up trash or as big as putting down a new racing surface.

"Two years ago we needed to get new clay down," Brasmer says. "It was the middle of the season, but the track was so old that we were down to the earth beneath the surface. So we had a bunch of guys-and their bosses-who work for trucking companies volunteer to help."

The morning after the Saturday race, the old surface came up and all next week the trucks-13 of them were hauling clay at one time-rolled in with new dirt. Volunteers spread it, contoured the surface, and began packing it in.

"On the next Saturday we raced on the new surface," Brasmer adds, "and all we had to pay for was the fuel."

Everything else was volunteered or donated. It is how the track keeps the cost down and involvement up.

"About the only people who get paid are the professional folks, like the ambulance drivers or the tow truck operators," says Fast.

It isn't unusual to see the young woman selling hot dogs hang up her apron and put on a helmet to run in the Street Stock or Women's class, and then return to work at the concession stand after the race. Car count on a good weekend ranges between 100 and 130, with Street Stocks being the most popular group.

"We have to keep things moving," says McDaniel. "We'll have 35 races on a typical Saturday night, so we can't afford a lot of down time."

There is a spirit of cooperation that is rare at higher profile tracks, where points and sponsorship exposure can sometimes trump sportsmanship.