Speed Week: Grundy County Speedway ready to open its 2022 racing season

Located off of Interstate I-80 on Route 47 just north of Morris, the Grundy County Speedway sits on the fairgrounds and has been the "Friday Night Racin' Place" for the past 52 years. The original fairgrounds was located in Mazon, along with the Mazon Speed Bowl.

With the popularity on the speedway and annual fair, Frank Welch, president of the fair board, looked to move the fairgrounds to a new location. Welch found an ideal location in Morris that was located near the highway and the rest in history.

The track has held 961 feature races for the headlined late model class. Wheaton's Eddie Hoffman, a second-generation racer and seven-time track champion, has amassed 148 career wins in the late models.

Other top names who have won at Grundy County include Larry Phillips (five-time NASCAR weekly series national champion and member of the Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame), Rusty Wallace (1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Champion), Dick Trickle (billed as the winningest short track driver with more than 1,200 feature wins and 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year), Ted Musgrave (2005 NASCAR Truck Series Champion) and Rich Bickle Jr. five-time winner of the Snowball Derby are among the drivers that have won at Grundy County.

Some big name-drivers have competed at Grundy and left without a feature win, including Dale Earnhardt Sr., Buddy Baker, Bobby and Davey Allison, Darrell Waltrip, Michael Waltrip, Alan Kulwicki, Mark Martin and Ken Schrader.

The track is home to the Mazon Speed Bowl/Grundy County Speedway Hall of Fame. Each September, a committee elects worthy inductees for enshrinement. Livingston County race fans will recognize several names that include Bob Tattersall (Streator), Bob Watters (Dwight), "Wild Willie" Wildhaber (Pontiac), Bobby Shell (Piper City), Dan Curley (Pontiac) and Ward Houck (Dwight).

The 1/3-mile track has turns banked at 22 degrees and the straights are at 12 degrees. Two years ago, the speedway was given a face lift that has seen more side-by-side racing, plus a new late model qualifying track record.

Paul Shafer Jr. of Portage, Ind., has competed at Grundy County for the past five seasons. The 2020 track champion has 15 feature wins that include the 2019 Bettenhausen Memorial race, as well as the holder of the newest fast time at 14.453 second, explained what it takes to run a perfect lap.

"The track has changed quite a bit since it was repaved," explained Shafer. "The track is pretty line sensitive, so hitting the perfect line is important to have good speed.

“Going into turn one, the left front tire has to hook the edge of the rumble strips to help point the car in the right direction. Once it is pointed straight, you have to be hard on the gas all the way up to the wall. Turn three is all about having a huge arc and carrying as much speed as possible through the middle of the corner. I always try to be as low as possible off of turn four and go hard to the start/finish line.”

A open practice session will be held this Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. with Sunday as the rain date. Spectators will be admitted for free.

The first race is will be on Saturday, April 30, with late models, Mid-Am, street stocks, pure stock and the Midwest Champ Karts, before racing moves to Friday's on May 6.

Among the featured races for the year will include the ARCA Midwest Tour (July 9), the CRA JEGS All Stars (July 22), the Frank Welch Memorial (Aug. 5), the Night of Features (Sept. 4), and the Bettenhausen Memorial (Sept. 17). Enduro racing will return with three dates — May 7, July 4 and Sept. 24. For more information call (815) 942-5958.

Friday Racing

Farmer City Raceway

Defending stock car track champion Megan Erwin took the feature race win. Chase Osterhoff (late models), Trevor Neville (modified), Timmy Dick (pro late models), and Austin Seets (B-mods) were also victorious on opening night.

This Friday will be a full show, plus the hornet class. Adult admission is $12, Veterans $5, and kids 12 and under are admitted free. Parking along the fence in turn 1-2 is $10. Hot laps start at 6:30 p.m., followed by time trials and racing.

Lincoln Speedway

The 305 Sprint Cars will join the Big 10 Series pro late models, Big 10 Series stock cars, modified, midgets and hornets. Stands open at 5 p.m., hot laps are at 6 and racing will start at 7.

Allen Weisser (modified), Wes O'Dell (sportsman), Mark McMahill (midgets), Chase Osterhoff (pro late model) and Jeremy Reed (sport compacts) were the winners on the opening night of racing at the fairground track located in Lincoln.

Saturday Racing

Macon Speedway

Pontiac's Tanner Sullivan overtook Terry Reed in the closing laps to earn a hard-fought win in the stock car class last week. Braden Johnson (pro late model), Rick "the Destroyer" Conoyer took his first-ever Macon win in the modifieds, defending pro modified track champion Guy Taylor started his year right with a win, Dennis Vander Meersch (sportsman), Billy Mason (hornets) and Craig Ronk from Warsaw, Ind., made the long ride and took the POWRi Micro feature.

This week will see the pro late models, modified, pro modified, sportsman, stock cars and hornets on the 1/5-mile dirt oval. Stands open at 5 p.m., hot laps start at 6 and racing at 7. Adult admission is $15 and kids 11 and under are free.

In the Pits

Allen Weisser was the winner of the $1,564 Gary Cook Jr. Memorial race for the modifieds at the Peoria Speedway. Fairbury's Alan Stipp finished in fourth. Mike Chasteen Jr. was the late model victor and Buckingham's Glen Thompson placed sixth.

Red Hill Speedway

After closing in 2005, auto racing will return this summer at the Red Hill Speedway. Located south of Sumner on Route 1, the first race is scheduled for June 28 featuring the DIRTcar Summer Nationals. No weekly program has been set, but the Midwest Sprint Car Series has been penciled in for Aug. 6 and Sept. 10.

Jeremy Sneed, promoter at the Wayne County Speedway, has assumed duties as the new promoter of the ⅜-mile, dirt track. For more information call (618) 936-2112.

U.S. 41 Speedway

Fans of flat track motorcycle racing can make the trip just across the state line to Lake Village, Indiana. One of the finest facilities in the region for kart racing, RPM Promotions will feature racing on the ⅛-mile dirt track. For further information, call (260) 450-2796.

This article originally appeared on Pontiac Daily Leader: In Speed Week, Grundy County Speedway ready to open its racing season