Sean C. Morgan
Almost everything is new this year at the Willamette Speedway in Lebanon.
“It’s pretty much not what has changed,” said Ben Deatherage, announcer and press officer for the course. “It’s what hasn’t changed.”
The flag pole in the center of the track is the same, he said. The address is the same.
The structure under the grandstands is the same, said General Manager Chris Nofziger. Everything else was overhauled this last spring.
Announcer and Press Officer Ben Deatherage, left, and General Manager Chris Nofziger talk about changes at Willamette Speedway.
Each week this summer, Willamette has added something new, Deatherage said. The bulk of the new construction was completed over seven months, allowing racing to start in May.
“It’s now becoming one of the most premiere, talked about race tracks in the entire nation,” Deatherage said. The track was owned by Clair and Evelyn Arnold. Clair Arnold died, and Jerry and Jimmy Schram purchased it in 2010.
The Schrams own and operate Gray’s Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., and Sunset Speedway Park in Banks. They’re also involved in other events and tracks.
The new track is wider and more racy, Deatherage said. Track records set in the past 10 years haven’t fallen, and times don’t appear higher, but top speed is.
The new track is a true one-third mile now, and it doesn’t bottleneck the drivers any more, Deatherage said.
“Bsaically, it was falling behind,” Nofziger said. “It needed a lot to get up to the top. It’s always been a premiere track in the Northwest.”
But now, it’s what shows up on television, Nofziger said. “It’s right up there with NASCAR-owned facilities.”
“Obviously, we’re not done. It’ll never be done. The technology changes constantly.”
The track is attracting high profile races, tours and drivers.
The American Sprint Cars Series went through the speedway two days in July, Deatherage said. “Those are the best 360 drivers in the country.”
The World of Outlaws will be there on Labor Day, Deatherage said. That’s the biggest there thing there is. Gates open at 1 p.m., and he expects 4,000 to 6,000 to attend the event.
It would have been difficult to get the World of Outlaws to come to the area with the old track, Deatherage said.
They’ll go to any track, Nofziger said, but they need to pit with their trailers, and that would have been more difficult when the pits, which have moved, were inside the track.