Posted JANUARY 16, 2026

It all began on April 6,1991! That was our first race under the present ownership of the Mottville Speedway (then known as South West Michigan Speedway). We had what may well have been the biggest crowd in the history of the speedway! How many we are not sure as someone forgot to write down the beginning ticket numbers! Anyway it was in the 70’s and no other track was open and everyone was curious about the new ownership! 78 cars on hand too boot! Then the trouble started and started big time! Sewage backed up in both rest rooms in front and flooded them big time! No plumber could be found and later we found that  the problem was very simple-circuit breaker had never been turned on for the sewage pump!

We started right out running both Saturdays and Sundays, probably a mistake in hindsight! Weather was horrible the rest of April and most of May! The bridge in Mottville on US 12 was closed for the rest of the season! After Memorial Day week-end we switched to Saturday only (probably also a mistake) and ran 44 nights. Like for  most first time promoters it was a tough season!

Year 2-1992-we started April 4 and but did have 4 pre-season races prior to opening. But we only ran 38 nights-our lowest total ever!

1993 we started April 10 and ran 45 nights finishing October 31, the same date as 1992.

In 1994 we opened on April 9 and closed on October 29 and ran only 40 nights, our 2^nd lowest total.

1995 saw us open March 25 and close Oct 29 with 55 race dates. We followed in 1996 by opening March 30 and closing November 3(at that time our latest ever closing date) and we ran 52 nights.

1997 was similar as we opened March 23 and closed November 9 with 51 dates ran.

We cut way back in 1998 to 43 dates, opening April 4 and closing November 7.

In 1999-one of our better seasons-we jumped to 56 nights and opened March 21 and closed November 20, our earliest opener to date and latest closing.

2000 was the 50^th anniversary of the speedway and our best year to date! We opened march 18 and closed November 25 and raced 70 dates! We followed up in 2001 with 75 dates, opening March 3 and closing November 24. It was about equal to 2000 in terms of success!

2002 we opened March 9 and and closed on December 1 but had a benefit race on December 7. We set a new national record for most nights raced in a season at 85!

We had never intended to do this but George Roulette, former announcer and now historian for the former Chicago Raceway Park told me they had 83 and that was the record and we should try and break it! So never backing down from a challenge I accepted and we broke the record! But the 2^nd half of the season was much worse bottom line than the first half!

In 2003-our 13^th season under current management, we opened March 1, our earliest ever and started racing both Saturday and Sunday in March and that was clearly a mistake! Big time mistake! March weather was cold and wet for all 10 nights of racing! But we survived somehow despite generally poor weather and a horrible economy and ran 88 nights, setting a new national record and we did not close until December 20, our latest closing ever!

Over the 13 seasons we have averaged 57 nights per season! About triple or more what any other track in our area has done!

So as we plan our schedule for 2004 I do think we have learned some things from the past 13 seasons! First  one is do not open too soon but also do not open too late! On the closing end it now appears closing the week-end before Thanksgiving is best. Most years we have been most successful early in the season and late in the season. It’s the middle months that have hurt! This season we have some ideas to avoid that!

Our 3 triple header week-ends in 2004 should really be something special! Extra pay-offs in all divisions all 9 nights! On the 3 Mondays really extra special pay-offs in all divisions! Paying $500 to win for the Street Stocks on those nights should show to any and all that we are most serious about building this class!

We already have the flyer for the 19^th Annual Indiana-Michigan Challenge Cup which is October 16 and 17 posted on this web site! While we hope to get several sponsors before the big race we are committing to great pay-offs for all 4 divisions! In fact $900 to win Sunday night might well be a record for radial tire street stocks anywhere!

Our registration fee for 2004 is $20 per car/kart regardless of division. Sometimes we get a complaint about this but if you run 60 nights it’s about 33 cents per night! Anyway a track up north has the following registration fee: SS $55 and then $75 after April 1! Mini Stocks $45 and $60 after April 1! Actually it seems as you go north from Mottville each track charges more for about everything than we do!

Starting in 2004 the Mottville Speedway will be a non-alcohol facility. No bottles, coolers or cans will be allowed and we will have a sign near the entrance stating such. This is right in line with our desire to be a family track! While I am sure there will be those who are not happy with this in the long run it should bring in more families and less trouble! Nothing much worse than a loud mouth drunk making things uncomfortable for all those around him at a sporting event!

Great to have all our sponsors for the 13^th Annual Mottville Speedway Awards Banquet! Goshen Collision Center back on board with 8 plaques sponsored, Jim Moore Motors in Nappanee now has sponsored all 13 banquets with 6 more plaques! Plus long time sponsor Hair Dimensions in Nappanee!

Well I will wrap this edition with some race track rumors! It is sometimes amazing how these rumors are! For example the rumor was all over that an area track was purchased by a NASCAR driver from that city and that he would tear down the present track and rebuild an all new ½ mile track! Now why would a NASCAR star driver have any interest at all in a short track? And even if he did, and that is stretching it big time, why would he spend millions of dollars (which he could never ever hope to get back) tearing it down and rebuilding it? Plus what about zoning? The track is a “non-conforming use” for zoning and getting the required permits to tear it down and rebuild even bigger would be very, very difficult, especially in what is basically a residential area!

One time several years ago the rumor was making the rounds that Mottville Speedway had been sold! One man claimed he saw the new owner at the bank and getting the money in cash to pay me! Guess what? I never ever saw the money and no one had even approached me around that time about buying the track!

2004 will be a most interesting year to watch a track up north. It reopened late in 2003 (very late) after being closed several years. They are going to run on a week night, which is really tough, and one Sunday per month. They have scheduled more outside shows than I can ever remember seeing before at one track! It has been my experience that most outside shows lose money for the promoter! My guess is that by August 1, 2025 the new owners of the track will wake up and wonder what hit them!

Look over our triple-header holiday weekend specials and our 19^th Annual Indiana-Michigan Challenge Cup flyers, both located on this web site. We have more ideas yet for the new radial tire SS class and they all involve money to the drivers!

Next time I write this column I will talk about concessions for 2004 and what we plan to do there and there are some exciting items coming!

Well, anyway, that’s my view! The good news is that January, the worse month of the year and the longest month of the year, is now half over! PTL for that!

We hope to be back with another column around February 1 and until then keep warm and dry and get those racecars ready to roll!