News FeedJuly 1, 2008
Throughout the history of motor sports in America there have been sterling examples of successful race tracks. They range in size from the local Saturday night bull ring tracks to the speed palaces such as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Daytona International Raceway. The one common denominator that these facilities have is healthy car counts that puts on a good show for the fans, an aggressive marketing plan and, most of all, the right people sitting in their offices overseeing the day to day operation.
Everyone of these key ingredients can be found at the Lucas OIl I 10 Speedway in Blythe-California. This quarter mile paved oval is located at the Colorado River Fairgrounds. It's claim to fame is its Winter Blast Racing Series. That's right. When race tracks all over the land are closed for the year this facility is racing during the winter months with multiple divisions thoroughly entertaining packed grandstands.
But to fully understand the success of the Lucas OIl I 10 Speedway you have to be aware of the unique circumstances that created it. To begin this track had been abandoned,the local government declared it a blighted area and the entire facility was facing execution by bulldozer. Then something totally unexpected happened in 2002. Lucas Oil came to Blythe and informed the Directors of the Colorado River Fair Board, as well a local city government, that they were very interested in leasing the facility with the intent of bringing stock car racing back to Blythe. While the local government agencies were likely amazed at the proposal there was one thing that was certain: Lucas Oil didn't have to ask them twice.
The famed oil company dispatched Greg Scheidecker, from their Special Events Department, to Blythe to oversee the operation. Scheidecker spent many mornings walking around the quarter mile oval while making notes on what what was needed to turn it into a race track again. At the same time he was envisioning the racing program he wanted to create. On many of these morning walks he was accompanied by former Colorado River Fairgrounds CEO Kenny Kalian and the two men excitedly shared ideas for the facility now known as the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway.
Traditionally a race track season runs from early spring to late fall. However, that tradition was not going to work in Blythe-California where the summertime temperatures hits triple digits on a daily basis. Even late at night the temperature there can be extremely warm. Scheidecker knew this was going to be a major obstacle. But from that came the initial thread of idea that would eventually lead to the creation of the Winter Blast Series. His years of experience told Scheidecker that the car count would not be a problem. That was confirmed when the word go out on what was going on at the track in Blythe. It was immediately apparent that teams, from a variety of racing divisions, were very eager to support a racing program during the so called off season. But the one unanswered question was: would race fans support a winter racing season?
The answer to that question was a resounding yes ! When the inaugural Winter Blast Series kicked off in 2002 it was quickly apparent that Scheidecker had a winning operation. The fan response was instant. They may have been wearing triple layers of clothing, while wrapped in blankets, but they packed the grandstands each and every Saturday night to cheer on their favorite drivers.
From the very beginning Scheidecker established a racing foundation that included late models, modifieds, legend cars, street stocks and factory stocks. He bolstered that with appearances by regional touring series such as the ASA Speed Truck Challenge Series, the West Coast Pro Truck Series, USAC midgets and on occasion he even scheduled some demolition derbies to make things a little more interesting. All of this is backed with local and regional sponsors who are excited to be a part of what's going on at this race track.
Equally interesting are the details on how all of this was created to begin with. Many racing fans are well aware that Lucas Oil has enjoyed a long and rich history with motor sports. In fact it's hard to imagine any form of motor sports that doesn't have this company name attached to it. Over the years the company has been directly involved in the American racing industry through multiple vehicle sponsorships and racing event promotions. It was the perfect format for them to promote their premium line of oils, greases and problem solving additives.
However the company's decision to actually lease and operate a race track lifted more than a few eyebrows and raised questions such as why would they do that and wouldn't it be easier, and more economical, to just simply sponsor the racing program at the I-10? In an interview, held in the winter of 2004, Scheidecker addressed those questions and pointed out that it was generally known that company founder Forrest Lucas wanted to own a state of the art motor sports facility. It was also felt that education was a key element in this process.
"We needed to learn more about the inner workings of what it takes to promote a race," he said adding "so we took into consideration several different factors: we're in California and that was a factor. We also took into consideration that if we just built another race track then we would have to compete with established California facilities such as Orange Show, Irwindale and Oildale. Lucas Oil's philosophy was let's do something the complete opposite of what everyone else is doing and use it as a learning curve." It was the same innovative and aggressive line of thinking that led to the creation of Lucas Oil back in 1989.
While the new racing program at the Lucas Oil I-10 Speedway had an immediate effect so did the learning curve. It wasn't long before Forrest Lucas announced plans to purchase a late model touring series headquartered in the southeast as well as a race track located in Wheatland-Missouri back in 2005. Scheidecker was dispatched to both locations to share the ins and outs of racing administration learned from the Blythe experiment. The end result was the fact that the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is now one of the most prestigious short track racing series in the country and is often seen on national television. The dirt track in Wheatland also quickly rose to Lucas Oil standards and is now considered to be one of the most prestigious, state of the art, facilities in the country. All of this sprang from a rather offbeat idea of leasing a race track in Blythe.
On the evening of November 26th, 2006 the fans once again packed the grandstands for another night of racing at the speedway. But on this particular night there was a feeling of apprehension in the air. It was generally known that Lucas Oil's five year lease of the race track was about to expire and many were wondering if there was going to be a future for stock car racing in Blythe. Scheidecker made quick work of alleviating any concerns the racing fans may have had on this evening. When he announced that Lucas Oil had renewed their lease to operate the speedway for another five years the roar of approval was likely heard all the way to downtown Blythe.
Later that same evening Scheidecker commented on the lease extension and said "we sat down and spoke with the City Council, the Chamber Of Commerce and of course the Fair Board Of Directors and told them what our intent was. They were very gracious in extending our lease for another five years. The community is stepping up in their support of the speedway and we have some plans to install additional grandstands as well as other improvements for the property. In this day and age for a race track to be adding grandstands is a very big deal. In fact it's huge."
The neighborly working relationship between Lucas Oil, the Colorado River Fairgrounds and Blythe community leaders has transformed into a win win situation that has benefited everyone involved. The Saturday night races alone brings in a lot of teams and fans from out of town. That translates into tourism dollars for the local economy from visitors who rent motel rooms, dine at local restaurants, shop at local retailers and spend extra time in the community to enjoy its many other recreational opportunities such as the nearby Colorado River.
Also there's the fact that Lucas Oil is genuinely proud to be a part of a community that they often refer to as their second home. A sterling example of this occurred in October of 2006 when company officials gathered at Blythe's Palo Verde College for the official dedication of the Lucas OIl Automotive Technology Program. With the help of the oil company the college now has a state of the art facility that has already become a major automotive educational center in southern California.
Just because it's summertime does not mean that Greg Scheidecker is on vacation. Far from it. He, along with good friend and co-promoter Bill Rozhon, is very much involved in another highly innovative Lucas Oil racing project: the Super Clean Modified Series. This highly touted ten race series runs events at five different tracks in three western states and features some of the best modified drivers in the region. With the aggressive marketing usually associated with any Lucas Oil project, this series has quickly become a fan favorite that is backed with a national television package and a small army of corporate sponsors. The Super Clean Modified Series will conclude its 2008 season at the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway on October 18th and November 8th.
There are many reasons why this speedway has become so successful. Without question one of them is the strong support from Lucas Oil as well as the Blythe community. But at the core of this success is the fact that the Lucas Oil I 10 Speedway has all of the necessary ingredients: a healthy car count, a high quality show for its fans, an aggressive marketing plan and, oh yes, they absolutely have the right man sitting in the office.
BY DAVE GRAYSON
