Inaugural weekend for Iowa Speedway
#1
09-16-2006, 11:35 AM
Inaugural weekend for Iowa Speedway
This weekend is the opening of the new Iowa Speedway that Rusty Wallace designed and built. It has 3 different degrees of progressive banking and has Safer(?) Barriers completely around the outside and inside of the track.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pb...MEDIA/60914031
Fans applaud, Newton beams as track opens
By BRYCE MILLER
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
September 16, 2006
Newton, Ia. - As the Iowa Speedway roared its arrival on Friday, some wondered whether the track will steer fans to gas stations and restaurants along Iowa's interstate system with credit card receipts reaching far beyond Jasper County.
Others wondered whether a seven-eighths-mile section of asphalt in the central Iowa countryside will buoy the morale of a city staggered by the impending loss of Maytag operations.
On Friday, it was too loud to hear the answers. Questions were drowned in revving engines and cheering fans.
Iowa's newest and biggest addition to auto racing made a $70 million debut in a state known for Knoxville sprint cars, Eddyville drag racers, Hawkeye Downs' paved oval in Cedar Rapids and dozens of tracks sprinkled in between.
The track, which has permanent seating for more than 25,000, drew an announced crowd of 18,041 for the very Iowa-sounding Soy Biodiesel 250 race.
Two hours before the green flag dropped, lines formed for souvenirs and fans stood 20 deep in four places at the Iowa Pork Producers stand.
Rick Lanferman of Newton brought his family of four to the opening of the track. Lanferman said the $35 tickets and concessions - most items priced in the $3 to $5 range - were "pretty good, compared to other" race events. "Being from Newton, I'm pretty proud how it's all turned out," he said.
Some fans said opening the track the same weekend as the Iowa-Iowa State football game affected attendance. The Friday race also faced off with high school football, an Iowa staple.
Iowa Speedway officials were pleased to lure fans like Ken Wiedenfeld, whose family decided to make the eight-hour round trip from Hickman, Neb.
Wiedenfeld's family knows racing, after crisscrossing the country to watch events in places such as Kansas City, Phoenix, Atlanta and Richmond, Va. "It's fantastic, because of the design of the track," Wiedenfeld said of Iowa Speedway. "Short-track racing always is more exciting. This place is state-of-the-art - bar none. It's just set up viewer-friendly."
Former NASCAR star and television personality Rusty Wallace, who designed the track, said organizers built the facility with an eye toward creating an identity.
"The amphitheater-style seating, looking down, is very unique," Wallace said Friday afternoon.
"If you're at a place like the Brickyard 400 or Indy (500), you only see the cars in the straightaways - and that's it.
"Here, you can almost see every spot on the track."
Wallace said the opening could spark optimism in Newton, where about 1,800 Maytag jobs will vanish by the end of next year.
"We hope this creates a bit of a bright spot for their incredible loss," he said. "I can only imagine what it feels like to work here their whole life, lose their jobs and be down in the dumps."
Debbie Wogan, who co-owns the Raceway Motorsports Cafe on the east edge of Newton, said the track's opening created a buzz in the city - although residents remain guarded about its potential impact.
Iowa Speedway officials said the track employs 30 to 40 full-time, year-round workers. As many as 500 could be hired for race weekends.
"It's given (Newton residents) something to look forward to, you know, when they're feeling down and out," Wogan said. "I think a lot of people feel it's going to help the community, but - as far as employing the people displaced by Maytag - it's not like there's that many jobs."
Ed Siddall, a Newton resident since 1994 who works at First Choice Realty in town, said that the track initially faced mixed reactions but that the roaring engines are catching the attention of more and more people.
"Some didn't want it, but those are the doomer-gloomers," Siddall said.
On Friday, little gloom existed as country singer Neal McCoy sang and Gov. Tom Vilsack dropped the flag on a beautiful September night.
Siddall, Johnson, Wogan and Iowans beyond Newton watched and listened, too, to see where this slam-the-accelerator, turn-left journey takes them. "There's a buzz and excitement about this," Siddall said.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pb...MEDIA/60914031
Fans applaud, Newton beams as track opens
By BRYCE MILLER
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
September 16, 2006
Newton, Ia. - As the Iowa Speedway roared its arrival on Friday, some wondered whether the track will steer fans to gas stations and restaurants along Iowa's interstate system with credit card receipts reaching far beyond Jasper County.
Others wondered whether a seven-eighths-mile section of asphalt in the central Iowa countryside will buoy the morale of a city staggered by the impending loss of Maytag operations.
On Friday, it was too loud to hear the answers. Questions were drowned in revving engines and cheering fans.
Iowa's newest and biggest addition to auto racing made a $70 million debut in a state known for Knoxville sprint cars, Eddyville drag racers, Hawkeye Downs' paved oval in Cedar Rapids and dozens of tracks sprinkled in between.
The track, which has permanent seating for more than 25,000, drew an announced crowd of 18,041 for the very Iowa-sounding Soy Biodiesel 250 race.
Two hours before the green flag dropped, lines formed for souvenirs and fans stood 20 deep in four places at the Iowa Pork Producers stand.
Rick Lanferman of Newton brought his family of four to the opening of the track. Lanferman said the $35 tickets and concessions - most items priced in the $3 to $5 range - were "pretty good, compared to other" race events. "Being from Newton, I'm pretty proud how it's all turned out," he said.
Some fans said opening the track the same weekend as the Iowa-Iowa State football game affected attendance. The Friday race also faced off with high school football, an Iowa staple.
Iowa Speedway officials were pleased to lure fans like Ken Wiedenfeld, whose family decided to make the eight-hour round trip from Hickman, Neb.
Wiedenfeld's family knows racing, after crisscrossing the country to watch events in places such as Kansas City, Phoenix, Atlanta and Richmond, Va. "It's fantastic, because of the design of the track," Wiedenfeld said of Iowa Speedway. "Short-track racing always is more exciting. This place is state-of-the-art - bar none. It's just set up viewer-friendly."
Former NASCAR star and television personality Rusty Wallace, who designed the track, said organizers built the facility with an eye toward creating an identity.
"The amphitheater-style seating, looking down, is very unique," Wallace said Friday afternoon.
"If you're at a place like the Brickyard 400 or Indy (500), you only see the cars in the straightaways - and that's it.
"Here, you can almost see every spot on the track."
Wallace said the opening could spark optimism in Newton, where about 1,800 Maytag jobs will vanish by the end of next year.
"We hope this creates a bit of a bright spot for their incredible loss," he said. "I can only imagine what it feels like to work here their whole life, lose their jobs and be down in the dumps."
Debbie Wogan, who co-owns the Raceway Motorsports Cafe on the east edge of Newton, said the track's opening created a buzz in the city - although residents remain guarded about its potential impact.
Iowa Speedway officials said the track employs 30 to 40 full-time, year-round workers. As many as 500 could be hired for race weekends.
"It's given (Newton residents) something to look forward to, you know, when they're feeling down and out," Wogan said. "I think a lot of people feel it's going to help the community, but - as far as employing the people displaced by Maytag - it's not like there's that many jobs."
Ed Siddall, a Newton resident since 1994 who works at First Choice Realty in town, said that the track initially faced mixed reactions but that the roaring engines are catching the attention of more and more people.
"Some didn't want it, but those are the doomer-gloomers," Siddall said.
On Friday, little gloom existed as country singer Neal McCoy sang and Gov. Tom Vilsack dropped the flag on a beautiful September night.
Siddall, Johnson, Wogan and Iowans beyond Newton watched and listened, too, to see where this slam-the-accelerator, turn-left journey takes them. "There's a buzz and excitement about this," Siddall said.