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Never seen anything like it!

That was the general sentiment of Winston Speedway owner Tom Sprague during the brief conversation I had with him recently about the upcoming season. Brief, as he had his hands full, and maybe feet wet, getting rid of the water that had covered his infield and parking lot. If the Sprague’s take a bit to return your voice mail inquiry please be patient they’re very busy, and Mother Nature has a say in the matter. Nothing new for race fans as rain delays, cancellations, and red flag finishes have always been a chance factor in any Series. It builds the drama and can change track conditions faster then a bulldozer.

I took ‘A drive to think’ by the Winston Speedway today and the big melt continues on track. From decades as a horse rancher, competitor, stable builder and maintainer, I know of love / hate relationships with springtime. Auto race track promoters deal in mechanized horse power, but the situation is ironically the same. Still Tom is determined to keep working on drainage and preparation for practice April 4^th and opening day Friday April 10th.

Normally Mr. Sprague takes plenty of time for a good Q&A session preseason to inform patrons and drivers of pricing or rule changes and the new season’s big events through media like ours. In our current economy we have seen Oceana county and neighboring Muskegon county, where Sprague’s Auto Parts and car lot businesses are located, endure some of the highest unemployment rates in the nation; up to 15% . Furthermore the lucrative scrap metal trade of the last couple of years has turned the used car and auto parts businesses on their heads. Generally sales are down and costs have increased. It has become more expensive to have race cars as well. Many race car drivers may race less often due to economic problems.

Winston Speedway relies mainly on Michigan racers because of its location in relation to the natural barrier of the Great Lakes which tends to keep racers from out of state from visiting our area. The high cost to compete on the track is harming the sport in some ways. When a race teams' overhead greatly exceeds available pay outs the car counts tend to diminish, so tracks must compensate to stay afloat. Then again, Tom Sprague admits with a chuckle that, “I don’t want to count on the race track paying the bills.”

The Sprague name is known in racing and the auto parts business along the lake shore, and Tom Sprague gets his fair share of the credit. As a kid he watched Paul Wiesner race and became inspired. In 1972 while in high school and with guidance from Paul he began to race. Soon he was qualifying in the same races as Wiesner and fought for the $75 purse. Thirty-five years later Tom watches as both of his sons and his brother make him proud.

Winston Speedway is a great dirt track and will be UMP sanctioned this year. The addition of the Bomber Class is just one way the promoter is trying to help bring affordable racing to the track and help the local economy. “Pricing and pay outs have not changed in my two years of ownership and they won’t this year”, Sprague promised, “$12 for adults and $3 or $4 for kids”. Some of the big pay out series’ like the $11,000 Sunoco Late Models at seasons end might carry a premium ticket price, but these are races that are sure to please the fans.

One should remember that Michigan is the birthplace and home of the American Automotive Industry. The whiskey bootleggers that had a large hand in creating stock car racing might have had trouble without the Michigan based industries workforce giving them their first tools. I like to think of our little peninsula as the hand print of God on earth. Unfortunately every now and then I'm reminded that the finger paint isn’t dry ... yet.

dgo