Gateway Raceway
It was a dream in 1995, a work in progress in 1996, a construction
project still giving off dust in 1997 and it remains a work-in-progress,
constantly looking to improve. Now, in its 12th season, Gateway
International Raceway is positioned as one of America’s premier
motorsports facilities, and certainly one of the most versatile.
The land where Gateway International Raceway now sits was, about
two centuries ago, at the bottom of the Mississippi River. The Great
Earthquake of 1811, the one that shook the New Madrid fault and
rang church bells back in Washington, D.C., “re-zoned”
the land from River bottom to swamp.
Then in 1967, Wayne Meinert brought an eighth-mile drag strip to
life on the land and called it St. Louis Raceway Park. Its first
event was the old America Hot Rod Association Spring Nationals,
and the lesson was there to be learned from the get-go.
The big names in drag racing all came to test the new track, and
the fans followed – more than 8,000 in a facility designated
for 3,000. Names like Ron Colson, the Beebe Brothers, and Dick Harrell’s
Yenko Camero dominated the winner’s circle.
Just after the 1971 Spring Nationals, Meinert acquired enough land
to make a full quarter-mile strip and extend the track in just 14
days. The track was renamed St. Louis International Raceway. The
swampland promptly became the property of Swamp Rat.
The legendary “Big Daddy” Don Garlits and his Swamp
Rat cars paid the first call for the inaugural AHRA Gateway Nationals.
He laid down a track record of 6.49 seconds (231.95 mph), but lost
in the finals to Steve Carbone. This was the Garliet’s last
loss until the opening round of the 1984 event. He would win 33
straight races in St. Louis, eight AHRA Gateway Nationals and six
consecutive event wins between 1978-83.
“If I remember, that’s Swamp Rats 13 through 18 or 19,”
said Garlits, who has most of those old cars in his drag racing
museum in Ocala, FL. “St. Louis was one of those tracks that
could be really tricky, but if you were able to get the combination
and get the read on the place you could have a lot of success. Think
it’s because we had a lot of experience racing a lot of different
tracks, but we had some awfully good years at that facility. And
the fans? The fans were just great to us. It was a place we really
enjoyed coming to each year.
While Garlits made the headlines, it was the Pro Stockers, Super
Stocks and Pro Modifieds, that seemed to be the staple of racing
at Gateway. Harrell, “Dyno” Don Nicholson, Ronnie Sox,
Bill “Gumpy” Jenkins, Dick Landy and the late Lee Shepherd
ran Gateway constantly. St. Louis racers like Jerry Haas and Bill
Kuhlman went on to be the dominant chassis builders in Pro Stock.
“I’ve got a picture of me running three other guys in
a four-car one-race elimination on that strip. It’s true.
I doubt we’d run that kind of race any more.”
Then Chris Pook at the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach came
to town, and things started to perk. After a year of examination,
he bought Gateway in 1994 hinting of bigger and better days. In
1995, the wraps came off those plans after he was able to secure
$21.5 million in bonds by the State of Illinois through the Southwestern
Illinois Developmental Association.
The new Gateway opened in 1997 with the Motorola 300, which played
to a virtual sellout crowd that filled its grandstand seats to watch
Paul Tracy overtake Patrick Carpentier in the finals laps to score
the victory.
In 2001, the Indy Racing League debuted on the oval, bringing the
stars of the Indianapolis 500 from the Brickyard to our backyard.
Two-time Indy 500 champion Al Unser Jr. claimed the first Gateway
Indy 250 title.
Overflow crowds watched the Inaugural Sears Craftsman Nationals
drag races, highlighted by wins from NHRA legends Joe Amato and
Warren Johnson, and the first NASCAR Busch Series race (now the
Charter Pipeline 250) with Elliott Sadler scoring a sun-scorched
victory. And Gateway was off and running. In 1998, the NASCAR Craftsman
Truck Series was added to the schedule with the Inaugural Missouri-Illinois
Dodge Dealers Ram Tough 200.
The Truck Series has had a great presence at Gateway, with its event
here widely recognized as one of the highest-drawing stand-alone
NCTS events in the country. Ted Musgrave, the 2005 NCTS champion,
was the first-ever Dodge to visit Victory Lane here and is the only
two-time winner in the Truck Series at Gateway.
The track that many describe as a “flat Darlington”
made headlines in 2004 when David Starr won the final multi-“green,
white, checker” finish in NASCAR with an exciting finish that
still ranks as one of the best in Truck Series history.
Several future NEXTEL Cup Series stars made their mark at Gateway
as well. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kevin Harvick won back-to-back races
at the 1.25-mile oval, with Dale Jr. winning the 1998-1999 races
and Harvick winning in 2000 and 2001. Other Cup Series stars such
as Greg Biffle, Scott Riggs, Martin Truex Jr., Reed Sorenson, and
Columbia, Mo.-native Carl Edwards have all visited Victory Lane
at Gateway.
St. Louis’ First Family of NASCAR, the Wallaces, were honored
here in 2005 with the Wallace Family Tribute 250, the first time
brothers Rusty, Mike, and Kenny raced together in a Busch Series
event together. In honor of what the Wallace family has done for
motorsports in the St. Louis area, the grandstands in Turns 1 and
2 were re-named after them.
For fans not wanting to miss any of the great racing action at Gateway
International Raceway, season ticket packages are available by calling
866-35-SPEED.
Gateway International Raceway Winners:
NASCAR NATIONWIDE SERIES
1997 – Elliott Sadler
1998 – Dale Earnhardt Jr.
1999 – Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2000 – Kevin Harvick
2001 – Kevin Harvick
2002 – Greg Biffle
2003 – Scott Riggs
2004 – Martin Truex Jr.
2005 – Reed Sorenson
2006 – Carl Edwards
2007 – Reed Sorenson
2008 – Carl Edwards
NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES
1998 – Rick Carelli
1999 – Greg Biffle
2000 – Jack Sprague
2001 – Ted Musgrave
2002 – Terry Cook
2003 – Brendan Gaughan
2004 – David Starr
2005 – Ted Musgrave
2006 – Todd Bodine
2007 – Johnny Benson
2008 – Ron Hornaday
ARCA
1997 – Mark Gibson
2001 – Frank Kimmel
2004 – Ryan Hemphill
2005 – Joey Miller
2006 – Cale Gale
2007 – Bryan Clauson
IRL
2001 – Al Unser Jr.
2002 – Gil de Ferran
2003 – Helio Castroneves
CHAMP CAR
1997 – Paul Tracy
1998 – Alex Zanardi
1999 – Michael Andretti
2000 – Juan Pablo Montoya
NHRA
1997 – Joe Amato (TF)
Ron Capps (FC)
Warren Johnson (PS)
Jon Smith (PSB)
1998 - Gary Scelzi (TF)
Frank Pedregon (FC)
Kurt Johnson (PS)
Matt Hines (PSB)
Tim Freeman (PST)
1999 - Gary Scelzi (TF)
John Force (FC)
Jim Yates (PS)
Angelle Savoie (PSB)
Bob Panella (PST)
2000 - Gary Scelzi (TF)
Jerry Toliver (FC)
Ron Krisher (PS)
Matt Hines (PSB)
John Coughlin (PST)
2001 - Doug Kalitta (TF)
Tony Pedregon (FC)
Warren Johnson (PS)
GT Tonglet (PSB
Taylor Lastor (PST)
Danny Rowe (PSB)
2002 - Kenny Bernstein (TF)
John Force (FC)
Jeg Coughlin (PS)
Angelle Savoie (PSB)
2003 - Doug Kalitta (TF)
Del Worsham (FC)
Ron Krisher (PS)
Geno Scali (PSB)
2004 - Doug Kalitta (TF)
Gary Scelzi (FC)
Greg Anderson (PS)
Steve Johnson (PSB)
2005 - Brandon Bernstein (TF)
Ron Capps (FC)
Kurt Johnson (PS)
Angelle Sampey (PSB)
2006 - Tony Schumacher (TF)
Tony Pedregon (FC)
Mike Edwards (PS)
Chip Ellis (PSB)
2007 - Melanie Troxel (TF)
Ron Capps (FC)
Dave Connoly (PS)
Matt Smith (PSB)
2008 - Rod Fuller (TF)
Tim Wilkerson (FC)
Kurt Johnson (PS)
Andrew Hines (PSM)
Thanks to Pete Wickham for his assistance.
Dover Motorsports Inc.
Hundreds of events. Thousands of fans. Just four tracks.
Auto racing is no ordinary sport. It takes an abundance of courage, an understanding of mechanics and a burning desire to win in order to be successful. While the average person can learn how to run and throw on their own, it takes years of commitment and development for a driver to learn how to live life in the fast lane.
These “fast lanes” come in the form of race tracks. From asphalt to concrete, banked turns to tricky apexes, race tracks are built as unique as the people and various types of series that race on them. Dover Motorsports, Inc. (NYSE:DVD) is proud to operate four of the country’s premier motorsports facilities – Dover International Speedway, Gateway International Raceway, Memphis Motorsports Park and Nashville Superspeedway. The four facilities collectively host more than 500 motorsports events each season and serve major markets in the Northeast, Mid-West and Southern regions of the United States.
Affectionately known as the “Monster Mile,” Dover International Speedway is a one-mile, high-banked superspeedway in Dover, Del. Dover has been a fixture on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule since its inception in 1969 and will celebrate its 40th anniversary season in 2008. Coinciding with its special anniversary, Dover is also in the midst of the “Monster Makeover,” a multi-year capital improvement project that will bring new fan amenities and renovations to the 135,000-seat motorsports facility.
Dover is one of only seven racetracks to host a true NASCAR tripleheader consisting of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, scheduled for May 30 – June 1, 2008. Just 16 weeks separate the two race weekends in Dover as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to the Monster Mile in the heat of the “Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup,” along with the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Camping World Series East on Sept. 19 – 21, 2008.
On the bank of the mighty Mississippi is Gateway International Raceway, an all-purpose racing facility hosting the NHRA O'Reilly Midwest Nationals on its 1/4-mile drag strip and the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on its 1.25-mile oval. Gateway is the site of more than 250 racing events throughout the season. The facility hosts everything from local drag racing and drifting to the United Black Drag Racers' Association's "Black Sunday," the largest African-American motorsports event in the country. Gateway boasts a challenging 1.6-mile road course utilized by the Sports Car Club of America and a number of local, regional, and national racing clubs. In 2008, the track will begin its 12th season of providing intense racing action for the thousands of fans in St. Louis and the surrounding areas.
Just minutes from Graceland and world-famous Beale Street, Memphis Motorsports Park is one of the nation’s most versatile racing facilities. The multi-track complex features a 3/4-mile NASCAR oval and a 1/4-mile NHRA championship drag strip. After celebrating both the 20th anniversary of the O’Reilly NHRA Mid-South Nationals and the 10th anniversary of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series O’Reilly 200 in 2007, the track observes another milestone in 2008 with the 10th annual running of the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The Major League of Monster Trucks will return to Memphis in 2008 after a successful inaugural event last year. The facility also includes a 1.77-mile road course and annually hosts more than 200 events at its three distinct tracks within the complex. Located in the “Home of the Blues, Birthplace of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” Memphis Motorsports Park continues to excel as a sports entertainment destination and is consistently ranked as one of Tennessee’s Top 10 Attractions by the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development.
Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn., houses a 1.33-mile, fully lighted, “D” shaped, concrete track and grandstands with future capabilities of accommodating more than 150,000 fans. The facility also boasts a 1.8-mile road course that is host to numerous motorcycle and road course events. Built by Dover Motorsports, Inc. in April 2001, Nashville Superspeedway continues to provide “Music City, U.S.A.” with top-notch IRL IndyCar Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series racing events. The Major League of Monster Trucks was added to the schedule in 2007 and will return to Nashville Superspeedway in 2008.
From the time the green flag waves on the Dover Motorsports season at Nashville Superspeedway on March 22, 2008 until the checkered flag falls at Memphis Motorsports Park on October 25, 2008, hundreds of thousands of racing aficionados will enter the grandstands and experience great racing at four of the finest motorsports facilities in the country. |
