Perris Schedule Update

The Perris schedule has been revised for the rest of the year. We will be running another 4 dates for sure, with August 24th being a possible 5th. The original plan was to run 6 more races this year, but I have had to trim that down as we have 5 weeks in a row at Victorville from 12 July - 9 August and its going to spread our efforts too thin by having two races in 2 days.

Here is the Perris Schedule (all Sundays)
   8th June 5pm
   21st September 2pm (2008 Track Championships)
   5 October 2pm (Team Racing)
   16 November 2pm (Team Racing)

"Steve Evans" remembered@sbcglobal.net

FIRECRACKER DERBY COMES TO RIDGECREST

We were informed last Thursday that the Victorville Fairgrounds did not want racing on July 4th this year as we went beyond our curfew last year. This is a little perplexing, as we did make an offer back to run a shorter show (we only went over by 15 minutes!), but this was to no avail, despite the fact we pointed out the car track next door regularly runs beyond curfew!

The good news is that following the roaring success of Saturday's High Desert Spring Festival Invitational at Ridgecrest, the Fair Manager asked us to move the Firecracker Derby to Ridgecrest. The Fair Manager there is a breath of fresh air - rightly seeing Speedway as a thrilling family show and one that should be the showcase of any venue lucky enough to have it, not low on the food chain!

We are also being invited back for the Desert Empire Fair. Our race will be on a Friday night (Auburn is dark that night) October 17. This event will also feature sidecar racing for the first time at the venue.

The Ridgecrest experience has been very positive and I think the potential is there. California now officially has seven speedway tracks!

"Steve Evans" dreamteamspeedway@sbcglobal.net

High Desert Spring Fair Invitational

Saturday 26th April is the Inaugural staging of the 'High Desert Spring Fair Invitational' up at Ridgecrest's Desert Empire Fairgrounds. The race will start at 6pm, and features Speedway bikes plus one class of Speedway Midgets (these are not John Aden's Sprints, but the Midgets who sometimes race at his show who are based out of Ridgecrest).

Entries are limited. The plan is to have a 16 rider D1 Championship event, plus 6 man fields in D2 and D3. We will only run juniors and PW's if there are 4 or more entries in each class. This event is an invitational, so placing an entry does not guarantee you will get to race until notified. Preference is given to riders who have supported Victorville & Perris, plus also based on their ability as far as D1 goes. This does not mean that you cannot enter have you not supported these tracks, but in D2 / 3, the riders who turn up for regularly will get the nod if entries are over 6. We will also be looking at attendance records if we have to chose between riders, since at an Invitational event, we cannot have riders as part of the show who have proven to be unreliable, since there is nothing worse to represent professional speedway as 2 and 3 man heats.

D1 will have a standard AMA sized minimum purse. It will most likely be distributed to the top 8 only (riders who make the semi's). We are also looking for a sponsor of $100-200 for a Last man Out Challenge. D2 maybe have a small purse for the winner only.

The track address is 520 South Richmond Rd, Ridgecrest, CA 93555. Look at Mapquest.com - it is up the 14 freeway and is about 150 miles / 2 and half hours From downtown LA. Pits will open at 3, races at 6. The fair is small, so riders will enter the main fair entrance and the pits will be signposted. The Fair is promoting the race (I am bringing the Speedway program) and the Fair is charging $35 to race, the pits will be either $20 or 25 (I will post this later when they clarify). There is a fair going on at the time, so expect a large crowd and plenty of fun at the fairgrounds once the main event is run. The Fairgrounds are
using their own insurance,as they run a Moto X track next door, so there are no memberships required.

Here are a list of entries I have received so far. If you have entered and you name is not here, please resubmit as due to a computer glitch, some of my emails have been lost. It is hoped that National Champion Billy Hamill will be racing. We are negotiating with a sponsor right now that may make this possible. Riders are;

Division 1 - 142, 13, 99, 17, 21, 55, 39
Bubble - 232,
Division 2 -155
Division 3 - 157

I think there a quite a few riders missing, so if your name is not here, please email or call ASAP as we don't want to put you to the back of the line.

This will be an excellent event. I am honored to have been asked to promote it, as much like Nate Perkins last year, I am bringing speedway to a whole new audience.

"Steve Evans" dreamteamspeedway@sbcglobal.net

Spring Classic at Perris

A number of riders have signed up for the Spring Classic at Perris on Sunday, 13th April at 2pm. We still need more riders however to make this viable - the overhead at Perris is about double of Victorville and every rider counts. Whilst I know we all have jobs and lives outside speedway, don't take this race track for granted and support us in these vital early days. Deadline to sign up is mid day this Thursday.

Gates open at 11:30, close at 1:30pm sharp. Races blast off at 2pm and we expect to be done by 4:30. Its an all speedway race and for those not eligible to race in the prestigious Gumball Rally the following Sunday, it is the last chance to race Perris for 2 months as there is no May event scheduled. For those of you coming back the following week, come down and get some racing in to get ready to win a Gumball Machine!

Spectators are welcome, costs $10 to sit in the stands, or $5 for kids. If its half as good as last time you'd have had your $10 worth by about heat #5! Programs are free, and there is food available at the track.

Call 310 309 9418 or email me back to get on the show!

The event presenting sponsor will be 'Friends of Speedway' - meaning Kelly, Hugh, Lee, RC Jones, Andy Schwarm, Gene, DDD, John Saddlemire, Jerky Man, Papa Facchini and Speedway Billy. I hope those of you in State can make it - this one is for all of you whom without there would be no racing at Perris.

THIS IS NOT A OFFICIAL USA SPEEDWAY RELEASE, The Grand Practice
by: "Harald Zechner" razamataz91107@yahoo.com speedwayzar
Thu Apr 3, 2008

Jeff Imediato's first Speedway practice at The Grand was quite the event. The afternoon was a little chilly and the weatherman had forecast rain but when I arrived at 3:30 there were already 50 or so people there.

After parking I went over to signup. Thought I had stepped into a time warp when former Grand promoter Lee Creclius said sign and print here as he pointed toward the release form. Hugh Randolf joined us in a good laugh as we flashed back to the years before when Lee would say the same thing every time I arrived.

After signing my life away I walked into the arena, the newly painted crash walls really made the track stand out. The starting gate was up, the piping was in place and the last of the track grooming was just being finished up.

The racing surface looked like someone had spent some time on it. Ryan "Ryno" Smith is the new track builder and I went and had a talk about his preparation of it. Ryno is a Arena Dirt Specialist and worked for Dirt Werks preparing Super X tracks. It showed, all the riders commented on how well it was prepared and held up.

At a little after four Jeff had a rider meeting that consisted of the usual, glad your here, be careful, don't get hurt. It didn't get interesting till he started talking about where he was going with the track and who some of his advertisers were for 08. I found his comments about advertisers having to help sponsor a rider as part of the tracks sponsorship requirements very interesting. This model is being used by the NHRA and could be a big boost to riders. Jeff was well received and got a huge applause when he finished talking.

By 4:20 skidding had started. 1st division guys like Hamill, Venegas and Wells hit the dirt first but were soon followed by the rest of the field. Except for some track dragging it never stopped. JT took pictures, Jones worked the gate. Tom Fox did the flag thing. Everyone was glad to see a wheel turning in the Arena again.

Billy Hamill was fast. I mean lightning fast. He plans on racing every Wednesday and will be a big part of Immediato's promotion in 2008. Billy wanted me to be sure and remind you all about the Gumball Rally April 19 & 20. This is a great event for the kids and deserves our full support. Be sure it on your calendar.

Charlie Venegas was testing the Supertrap Speedway muffler he has been using on the ICE circuit. It seems to perform very well and looks like it will be approved by The Grand for usage in 08. Supertrap's interest in developing a Speedway muffler could be a big deal for all you riders that complain about the horsepower loss of those other mufflers. Another point of interest "The Edge' had on his machine was a belt primary drive. Charlie's also mentioned that there is a possibility he will be opening a track this year. He doesn't want to talk about it yet because it's not a done deal. Close but not done. Good Luck "Edge". Last year we presented Charlie with the AMA #1 plate for ICE Racing. Looks like we get to do it again. Congratulations on winning the 2008 ICE Championship again this year.

"The Voice of Speedway" Bruce Flanders was there. Bruce will be the Grand announcer again this season. He is in my opinion one of if not the top motor sports announcers alive. I'm lucky I get to work with Bruce 34 times a season at the Toyota Speedway of Irwindale facility. Working daily with Bruce was one of the reasons I left Costa Mesa Speedway after being with them for 25 years.

So I can't forget to mention Penhall. Yes, he was there. BP told me he's happy to be a part of the Grand and happy to have Jeff as a partner. He confirmed what Jeff had told me about their major sponsor but here again I unfortunately can't tell you yet because contract negotiations are still taking place. That coupled with Jeff saying if I told anyone he would kill me. Bruce says he will be at a majority of the Wednesday night races and will be taking a more active roll in the sport. I predict that before this year is over we will see Bruce put a leg over a Speedway bike and ride it here at "The Grand".

The "Sarge" was there selling Speedway supplies. He will be at "The Grand" and Costa Mesa all season. With Scotty Brant gone this will be a big help for you riders needing parts at the track. There has been a movement afoot to make the "Sarge" a referee. He likes the idea and wants to do it. If you like the idea of him becoming a ref let the promoters know. Having more than one or not the same referee every week would be a good thing in my book.

Tim Kennedy was there. He will continue to write about Speedway for the local paper and internet. Bruce Flanders and I introduced Tim to the sport with our constant bragging about how exciting Speedway is. Tim is a member of the Irwindale media crew.

Jeff supplied sodas, water and chips for everyone at no charge. Jack Ballogg easily won the how many bags of chips can I eat award. I believe he set a new personal best at 42 bags of chips. Like I said, fun was had by all.

There were 22 riders and 18 mechanics. Another 53 signed a release but were there just to watch or help. By the time you add in the track personal over 130 people were there for this first practice session. Way cool.

Now let's do some bad news. 22 riders and 18 mechanic don't pay the rent and personal costs for a place like "The Grand' and Jeff has told me that no further practice sessions will be done this month. He accomplished his main goals of setting everything up, having it all function properly and doing a sound test so the money lost is acceptable. But only once. The plan is next time a wheel turns there it will be on opening night May 7th. I hope everyone will sign up because a weak turnout of riders could cripple this facilities growth and commitment.

Want to be sure that everyone is aware that I am not writing this report as Chairman of the Board of USA Speedway but as a friend of the promoters and of the sport. Seems that the Board I am Chairman of takes exception to me writing these kinds of reports without their approval. Seems they are not comfortable when I say things like some people have way to much time on their hands and ought to take their head out of the sand and get to work getting this sport running properly and supporting all our promoters and riders. I hope they get a clue soon or they will be minus one Chairman of the Board. In the mean time I will do no further writing for USA Speedway.

Howie

Points Standings by Steve Graham stephenagraham@hotmail.com

Practice day at The Grand

Want to remind everyone that this coming Wednesday April 2 is the first practice day at The Grand.

Provided rider participation is enough to pay for the arena rental, insurance and personnel costs there will be a practice there every Wednesday throughout the month of April.

Practice will be between 4 and 9pm. You must have a muffler that has been approved for running at The Grand. Like last year muffler rules will be strongly enforced with no exceptions.

For more information go to the usaspeedway.org website, click on Speedway Links and then click on the industryspeedway.com.

USA Speedway membership will not be a requirement for the practice events but will be mandatory by opening night on May 7th. If you haven't yet received your USA Speedway membership application it is available on our website. Click on Join USA Speedway and then on 2008 Membership application.

Jeff Immediato has not yet made a commitment to run a National round on July 23 or 26. It's a very expensive event and for a first year promotion a huge commitment. If you would like to see a round there I urge you to contact Jeff at jeff@industryspeedway.com and tell him you would support and help promote a round there.

This is our sport and it's up to us, all of us to work together.

Harald "Howie" Zechner
Chairman of the Board
USA Speedway
usaspeedway.org

2008 Speedway Long Track National Championships

The 2008 Speedway Long Track National Championships will be held again this year on May 24 & 25 at the Stark County Fairgrounds in Canton Ohio.

This is a half mile track and the promoter is former Dirt and Ice Speedway star Scotty Brown. It pays a $3000. purse.

The Speedway Long Track National Championships is a sanctioned AMA/USA Speedway event and the winner will receive the AMA # 1 plate at the end of the year and be honored at the AMA Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas and our USA Speedway Barbeque/Awards Ceremony.

For you California riders looking to add a very prestigious title to your resume this event is well worth considering.

For more information go to the usaspeedway.org website, click on Speedway Links and then click on the Bike Days poster. Once it opens click on Speedway.

If you haven't yet received your USA Speedway membership application it is available on our website. Click on Join USA Speedway and then on 2008 Membership application.

Harald "Howie" Zechner
Chairman of the Board
USA Speedway
usaspeedway.org

Ridgecrest Race April 26

Paperwork was signed today on the race in 4 weeks, so it is a go! The meeting will start at 6pm and will run till 9pm.

The plan is to run a 16 rider Division 1 Championship, plus Division 2, Division3 and juniors if there are enough riders. There will be a standard AMA Purse for Division 1.

Anyone who wants to ride can call my usual # (310 309 9418) or email me. You can EMAIL for details on joining, or call 310 309 9418. "Steve Evans" <dreamteamspeedway@sbcglobal.net>

2008 Gumball Rally

Signup's for the 2008 Gumball Rally have officially begun. The annual event is scheduled for the weekend of April 19 and 20 at Perris Raceway. 1996 World Champion and current National Champion Billy The Bullet Hamill is promoting the event for the fifth time since resurrecting the event several years ago.

There will have at least five different divisions of competition: an exhibition team event, Powder Puff, Pee Wee (perhaps split into two
divisions), Second Division Juniors, and First Division Juniors. The event will consist of an open practice on Saturday, April 19 with riders of all ages welcome to participate. The Gumball Rally meeting itself will be held on Sunday, April 20. There will be overnight camping at the facility

Hamill is proud to announce that former World Champion Ivan Mauger has stated his intention to attend the event as well and will serve as Grand Marshall of the event.

Defending Gumball Rally Champion Jason Ramirez has already signed up to defend his championship. Ramirez also captured the Youth National Championship last year as well and he would like nothing better than to start 2008 by taking home another of the coveted Gumball machine trophies that are presented to the winner.

In keeping with the theme of younger riders and the tradition of the event's junior roots, the intention of the team event will be to feature riders who are 21 or younger or are have raced junior speedway in the past. Riders who fit those two qualifications will have priority to participate in the team event.

Riders who wish to sign up can do so by e-mailing Ryan Evans at sideways31@aol.com through Thursday, April 17. Each rider who signs up for the race by this date is guaranteed a gift bag, so it is imperative to be signed up by this date. Entry fees for Sunday's race are $40 per rider and $10 per mechanic. The spectator fee will also be $10 and there will be an open pit so family and friends can spend time with the rider that they came to cheer on.

There will be more announcements regarding this special event coming soon.

Press Release from Wheel2Wheel Raceway

--- PRESS RELEASE ---

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wheel 2 Wheel Raceway
Contact: W2W Media Relations
March 21, 2008

2 Wheel Raceway announces exciting plans for 2008 Victorville CA.

Steve Evans of Los Angeles, California announced today that Jeb Onweiler of Kapa, Hawaii has become his new Speedway Motorcycle promotional partner at Wheel 2 Wheel Raceway (W2W) effective immediately. Evans has been working for track owner and promoter John Aden since 2005, at which time Evans brought the Speedway motorcycles and sidecars back to headline the Saturday night show at Wheel 2 Wheel.

Onweiler, a veteran motorsports promoter, has operated dirt tracks, asphalt ovals, and drag strips in Hawaii, Idaho, California, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oregon, Nevada and Texas. Onweiler will be responsible for sales, marketing, advertising, public/media relations, and special promotions.

Wheel 2 Wheel Raceway in Victorville, CA presents professional Speedway Motorcycle, Extreme Sidecar, and Team Speedway racing. John Aden, Wheel 2 Wheel owner and promoter of Apple Valley, CA founded and presents the Speedway Sprint portion of the show, which also race on the same program.

Future improvements at the 1/8-mile dirt track (decomposed granite) oval will include special events, advance ticket outlets, manufactures row, Thunder Theater featuring live televised racing from around the world, and a VIP hospitality village for company picnics and corporate entertainment.

Kids activates will also play an important role at all W2W events. The new (adult-supervised) Earnhardt Memorial Park will be introduced
featuring the KidsZone Klub playground, along with Bounce houses, Bicycle races, EconoBox drags, Kiddy Karaoke, face painting, and more.

Stated Evans; Victorville needs and deserves a first-class racing facility. I feel Jeb's experience and connections in the
motorsports industry will be a great asset at Wheel 2 Wheel Raceway. Jeb has over 25 years of NASCAR, NHRA, SCCA, and AMA motorsports expertise. With
the rapid growth and tremendous popularity of motorsports over the last several years, his knowledge and creativity will help us offer the best in racing and family entertainment.

I'm real excited about this new venture, said Onweiler. Steve and I are confident that we'll be able to provide strong entertainment value for the high desert community. The race fans and sponsors have expressed amazing support for our new family-oriented racing programs. In fact, the number one interest I hear from local folks is the need for quality family entertainment. So we'll work diligently to fill that important void in the market place. However we're getting a bit of a late start, so our new attractions will get developed as the season progresses.

Onweiler continued, the local businesses and media outlets have also expressed strong interest in partnering with us. But most importantly, Steve's already established a strong foundation for future success. So after some minor tweaking of the program, and operational procedures, we should be in great shape. We're both committed to the future at W2W, and we both have a vested interest in the outcome. In short, I think we have the necessary resources in hand, and people in place, to produce significant success for years to come.

Evans concluded; Jeb feels it's important that we focus on providing genuine and affordable family-oriented entertainment. We both agree that there needs to be non-stop fun and excitement for everyone in attendance. Jeb has a wide variety of new family oriented activities that we plan to implement this season. 2008 should be a banner year at Wheel 2 Wheel Raceway.

The 2008 schedule remains unchanged at present, with Speedway motorcycles and sidecars on the same card with John Aden's Speedway Sprints. However, future plans call for Speedway motorcycle and sidecar stand alone shows. Evans and Onweiler will make formal announcements and adjust the schedule once that opportunity becomes viable.

Wheel 2 Wheel Raceway is located at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds in Victorville, CA. The official Website is www.Wheel2WheelRaceway.com. For more info, contact Jeb Onweiler at 760.948.0397, or at Speedway@charter.net -- or Steve Evans at 310.309.9418, or at DreamTeamSpeedway@sbcglobal.net -- or John Aden at 760.247.1301

The Friends of Speedway Club

I am hereby launching a new initiative called 'The Friends of Speedway Club.' As those who know me well can attest, I put a lot of time and dedication into my speedway promotional ventures with very little personal return. It was from the success of the US Dream Team that I stepped into race promotion as I felt an intermediate tier of racing was missing, so that we could have a place to develop young riders and give the older crowd another place to race all at the same time. Given that our races have featured the likes of Hamill, Larsen, Janniro, Tomicek, Kerr, McConnell, Blair, Castro, Schwartz, Wells, Brandt, etc we have by far surpassed the initial plan of just catering to mid D1 riders down! That said, I am very honored to personally have done something to help riders such as Wells, Kerr, Browne, Ingalls, Gomez, Facchini, Facchini, Starr, Marquez, Novratl, Green, Mabry and many others progress in the sport. These riders are the backbone of the future - though sometimes its hard to convince myself otherwise, McConnell, Castro, Schwartz won't be here forever, and it is a testament to their amazing fitness and dedication we are still lucky enough to have them.

So, back to the point of the topic. I have come to realize over the last season that whilst I do put an incredible amount of time into speedway, there is only so much one man can do, particularly with having a day job, a young family and limited funds. There are a lot of people who help me on race days - Ryan, Tom, Dave D, Steve, Joe, Danny, Trish, Monique, Leah and Carrie to name a few. I have also had others who cannot commit race day help and cannot be corporate sponsors, ask how they can help.For those people I am launching the Friends of Speedway Club.

It works like this. We are going to have different membership levels, the initial one costs $200 (gold level). For $200, you get free entry all Victorville and Perris races this year, your name in a special honor roll section of the program at each race this season, a special plaque acknowledging your membership (presented on the infield at the next race event), and also you are named as a title sponsor of a heat at each event (Track Championship nights excluded). 100% of the membership dues raised go straight to the riders purse fund. So, the more members, the better the show we can put on for you at each of these events. The price above is less than admission alone to each of these events.

The first ten people who sign up will be given the extra accolade of being Founding Members.

You can EMAIL for details on joining, or call 310 309 9418. "Steve Evans" <dreamteamspeedway@sbcglobal.net>

INDUSTRY SPEEDWAY 2008 SCHEDULE

Opening Night
MAY 21

June 04
June 11
June 18
June 25

July 09
July 14

State Championship
July 26

August 06
August 13
August 20
August 27

CONTACT
www.IndustryExpoCenter.com
info@IndustrySpeedway.com
(626) 330-0324

Victorville Standings Through 03.02.08
by Steve Graham

1st Division
1. Ricky Wells 35 Ave: 11.27 (1)
2. Buck Blair 26 Ave: 8.73 (4)
3. Billy Lyons 16 Ave: 5.33 (10)
4. Billy Janniro 14 Ave: 8.80 (3)
5. Chris Kerr 14 Ave 9.60 (2)
6. Michael Hull 12 Ave 7.33 (6)
7. Shawn McConnell 12 Ave 8.00 (5)
8. John Marquez 11 Ave 4.00 (11)
9. Greg Ayers 11 Ave 7.33 (7)
10. Shaun Harmatiuk 7 Ave 5.60 (9)
11. Rudy Laurer 4 Ave 2.29 (14)
12. Tim Gomez 3 Ave 6.00 (8)
13. Rohn Zellner 3 Ave 3.00 (12)
14. Marvyn Sonnier 2 Ave 2.67 (13)
15. Allen Doss 2 Ave 2.00 (15)
16. Bryan Buffington 1 Ave 1.00 (16)

2nd Division
1. Steve Bowen 18
2. Bryan Buffington 16
3. Donnie Robinson 15
4. Rudy Laurer 10
5. Brad Moreau 8
6. Russell Green 8
7. Allen Doss 6
8. Tyler Hansen 6
9. Rohn Zellner 5
10. Steve Dzaidus 4
11. Jim Masters 3
12. Mike Nutting 1

3rd Division
1. Jim Masters 18
2. Brad Moreau 15
3. Tony DeAlmeida 15
4. Billy J Vaugn 14
5. Danny Baker 11
6. Jonni Jade 10
7. Jeff Remington 10
8. Mike Nutting 8
9. Paul Thornton 4
10. Rick Huspek 4

Junior Speedway
Austin Novratl 12
Joey Holt 6
Dylan Black 5

Teams for Victorville Saturday March 1, 2008

These are the line ups. D1 / Upper D2 is 15 heat British League format.

Lower D2 / D3 is a 7 heat (2 rides per rider) team event, with individual mains and consis to wrap the night.
We also have 4 250 cc juniors

Main Match
Victorville Vikings
1. Shawn McConnell
2. Marvyn Sonnier
3. Tim Gomez
4. Travis Henderson
5. Michael Hull
6. Rudy Laurer
7. Billy Lyons

LA Aces
1.Buck Blair
2. Tuff McBride
3. Ricky WElls
4. John Marquez
5. Greg Ayers
6. Allen Doss
7. Bryan Buffington

Support Team Event
Perris Eagles 1. Donnie Robinson, 2 Rohn Zellner, 3 Max Eddy, 4 JC Masters, 5 Mike Nutting, 6 Jonnie Jade, 7 Rikc Huspek, 8 Jeff Remington OC Silver Stars 1. Tyler Hansen, 2. Russell Green, 3 Steve Bowen, 4 Brad Moreau, 5 Billy Vaugn, 6 Tony DeAlmeida, 7 Paul Thornton, 8 TBC.

It should be a fun event with some of the lower guys getting their first taste of team riding! It all starts 3pm Saturday. See you there.

If any of you are following the posts on speedwaybikes.com, then you will already know we have sold our interests in the promotion at Industry Speedway to Jeffrey Immediato and the Dome Development Group. As much fun as we have had, we just couldn't do both, and Kelly has spent over 10 years building Specialized into the family enterprise it is today.

My Dad, Hugh, was just beginning to have fun at the Grand when he heard about the sound issues potentially preventing speedway from returning in 2006. So he solicited Bill Cody's help and got a muffler that The Grand approved. Then he hears they need a new promoter. When Dad asked if we would be interested in doing this, we didn't know Kelly had worked with Gene Woods promoting at Victorville. I already knew Kelly was really Superman in disguise at Specialized, but I didn't know he was also the Rhodes Scholar of Speedway. So, armed with this newfound information, we embarked on 2 great seasons of fun as the promoters. It never would have happened without Dad & Kelly. I feel very happy with the legacy we pass on.

Thank you Dad & Kelly, I had a great time. Thank you Pam, Lisa and Joan for letting us go play in the dirt on Wednesday nights. Thank you Mark Williams for letting the rest of the speedway world, via the net, in on our little secret, The Grand.

And then there's the crew. We cannot thank you enough, you all know who you are, for the hard work you put in helping us do this. Something like 40 events in 2 years.

Haddicks, Joker Machine, Sargeant Fab, Monarc, Azusa Inn, John Lanes Air Conditioning, Bill Cody Products, Pomona Valley Harley, Finks Printing, Warren Russell. Sponsors & Friends we could not have made it without. The staff at the Grand was the best, Carol and Company never said no to us. Total support and cooperation all along the way. Thank you Brad and Jaleen Oxley for your support and encouragement every step of the way.

Thank you all. Thanks for the great support. Thank you for helping my Dad fulfill a dream that began over 35 years ago.

Lee Crecelius

I have a tentative agreement to hold a race at the Desert Empire Fairgrounds in Ridgecrest, California on April 26th. Last year a race was held there during their Spring Fair which featured Speedway Sprint Cars and Midgets.

The plan is to run Speedway Sprints on Friday 25th and an all Speedway Bike program on April 26th. The race date is a free Saturday before Costa Mesa and Auburn openers.

There are still details to finalize on the logistics, but at this stage it looks very good. Most likely we would hold a D1 Championship event with Support Classes and hopefully Sidecars. Ridgecrest is about 100 miles East of Bakersfield and is about 150 miles out of the LA area.

More news as we have it, but pencil this one in your calendar while we finalize the details.

Razamataz: Industry Speedway Announces New Owners

Well it's official. Today Friday February 22, 2008 the American Speedway Coalition sold it's Wednesday Speedway racing operation to the Dome Development Group.

The face of this new management is none other than Jeff Immediato and Two Time World Individual Speedway Champion, Bruce Penhall. Penhall and Immediato have teamed up before as athlete and personal manager in the 80's for his record breaking back-to-back World Speedway Championships in 1981 and 1982. It was also Immediato who is responsible for guiding the acting career of Penhall to network television as a series regular on the hit NBC show "CHiP's" starring Erik Estrada. Penhall and Immediato got together once again in the 90's when Bruce and his life long friend Dennis Sigalos who is also a former Speedway Motorcycle star in Europe and America stormed the National Offshore Racing scene by dominating the oceans and their competitors with a 27' Scarab cigarette racing boat sponsored by Ocean Spray called "Crave the Wave". In all, Bruce Penhall has 9 World Championship titles to his resume.

"We are extremely confident that our group can make Speedway Motorcycle Racing once again the "Only Reason for Wednesday Nights said Dome Development Group Project Director Jeffrey Immediato…" The Industry Hills Expo Center is a hidden gem of Southern California sports and events facilities. The Grand Arena, where the Wednesday Night Speedway events are held is a 10 million dollar all-weather facility with grandstands that seat over 5,000 spectators in a racing event configuration. It boasts a 45,000 sq. ft. floor which adds another 4,000 seats in concert or boxing configurations. With it's breathtaking views of the skyline of downtown LA and the spectacular San Gabriel Valley Mountains from every seat the main arena at the Industry Hills Expo Center also boasts a broadcast capable audio visual production suite and editing tower and a programmable scoreboard with four 70" projector screens and a 10,000 watt fully equipped JBL/QSC sound system for race fans and our spectators. We Absolutely Love This Place!" exclaimed Immediato. Jeff is a local from the San Gabriel Valley. He graduated from Covina High before attending NYU and Redlands. His management include the Wheelie King Doug Domokos, Stuntman Jeff Winkie and others.

In addition to the last year of the American Speedway Coalition lease with Industry Hills Expo Center, the Dome Development Group extended its lease options to the year 2014. We're very excited about our new tenants the Dome Development Group explained Operations Manager Carol Perez, "Jeff has brought a lot of new ideas to the table and we strongly believe he will bring a whole new level of promotion to our facility".

The new management also purchased all assets related to operations and marketing of the AMA/USA Speedway Sanctioned Wednesday Night Motorcycle events from the American Speedway Coalition including their state of the art "special safety" crash wall and custom made rock concert style starting gate.

Immediato's been around forever and knows the sport as well as anyone on the planet and of course BP is a personal friend stated Chairman of the Board for USA Speedway Harald Zechner. I worked with Jeff at Ascot, Costa Mesa Speedway, Ventura Raceway and more other venues than I can count. The half time shows he brought to Speedway in the 70s and 80s were classic. I'm sure he will bring that level of promotion to this venue and that his and Bruce's knowledge of television production will also play a huge roll in bringing Speedway to the masses. I am proud to welcome Jeff, Bruce and the other yet unnamed Dome Development Group members to be a part of USA Speedway family and I look forward to working with them.

The Dome Development Group is still putting it's final touches on the 2008 season so a complete schedule is still a couple of weeks from being finalized. We do know their season opener will be on Wednesday night May 7th to coincide with the 40th Anniversary celebration of Speedway Motorcycle racing in Southern California. They also hope to be able to do several practice meetings and Speedway schools prior to their opening but until negotiating for insurance coverage is finalized no further details are available at this time. Bruce Flanders "The Voice of Speedway" will continue to be the announcer. Discussions are also in the works to bring Super Moto and Arena X to the facility.

The new promotion that will officially be called Industry Speedway and will have offices at the Industry Hills Expo Center 16200 Temple Avenue City of Industry, CA 91744, 626.330.0324. Details will soon be available at www.IndustrySpeedway.com

Harald "Howie" Zechner
Chairman of the Board
USA Speedway

Our official mailing address is USA Speedway, PO Box 376 Pasadena CA 91102