Kankakee county speedway

[1bbmft]

No trash talking only the facts. And I only mentioned LaSalle and Sycamore because they are the only tracks within the Chicago area North of I-80 not to bash either. In 05 Kerriann ran me off with her attitude and the way she handled things. She WAS just what people are accusing Tom Smith of doing. As for Tony Jr. I only know him from when he raced at LaSalle in the late 90's and early 00's and yes he said hi when I walked by (I raced in a different class) and didn't act like a jerk (unlike his sister). He is doing a good job with the improvements and keeping the show moving along most nights my son who still races there is on his way home by 10pm. Read what is posted before you respond so you don't look like an idiot.

[Krooser]

I read where the 3K promoters are going to run Gas City this year…

My trip to 3K was in '81… I towed down from Wisconsin for an end of season special. Used two tanks of fuel in my 454 dually. I pulled in about 3PM figuring I'd be early and get a good pit spot. The show was advertised as 'qualifying at 6… racing at 8PM'. Big surprise when I found out the A main was about to start… they screwed up and ran their weekly ad with changes to the headline! The show started at 11 AM.

Tuff to spend $$$ on 75 gallons of gas to go watch a 50 lap main event.

[Peopleschamp15]

As a promoter you can't be hard headed. That's what his problem is... Drivers love coming to FALS and now Farmer City with the new fair board because they are willing to give and take, willing to hear both sides of a story and give a fair judgement..... TS has driven away a ton of drivers and once that starts happening things go downhill fast

[HoosierDirtFan]

I read where the 3K promoters are going to run Gas City this year...

You read wrong. The O'Connor Family the former promoters of Kankakee (current owners of Kokomo, and promoters of Terre Haute) will be promoting Gas City, IN.

[Cardirt0]

You read wrong. The O'Connor Family the former promoters of Kankakee (current owners of Kokomo, and promoters of Terre Haute) will be promoting Gas City, IN.

LIFE in stead of DEATH that's all-was GOOD... Glad good promoters are there not the bad one.. have know the O'Connors since the old man and D1ck hedrick ran a car back in the 80s

[Cardirt0]

Will I knowed the O'Connors from SANTA FE speedway got too know him real well from the 0 car driven by O'Connor and owned by Hedrick ... thats a track I miss alot

[Krooser]

You read wrong. The O'Connor Family the former promoters of Kankakee (current owners of Kokomo, and promoters of Terre Haute) will be promoting Gas City, IN.

The story never mentioned any names… just said the successful promoters of Kankakee Speedway were now adding Gas City to their resume. I saw the info on a blog somewhere. I guess 4M isn't the only place you can get bad info!

[HoosierDirtFan]

The story never mentioned any names… just said the successful promoters of Kankakee Speedway were now adding Gas City to their resume. I saw the info on a blog somewhere. I guess 4M isn't the only place you can get bad info!

yeah that's understandable. per the gas city website the track has 7/8 races this year.

[HoosierDirtFan]

Will I knowed the O'Connors from SANTA FE speedway got too know him real well from the 0 car driven by O'Connor and owned by Hedrick ... thats a track I miss alot

I agree about Santa Fe. That might have been the best track in the Midwest period. That dude knew hot to run a track and treat the drivers/ crews & fans with respect and dignity.

[Racer96m]

Whatever your personal dealings with Tom have been, its not very productive to get on here and bash him and the track. Lets bash it until it goes under. With the economy the way it is, Im sure promotors will be lined up to come in. Then you all can start a new post about, I wonder if K3 will ever open again? Lets close LaSalle also, so everyone can drive 2 1/2 hrs to see a race. Ya that will help.

Dave.

[dirtluver]

Who are the drivers Tom has run off? I think K3 does a good job. Last year was alot of rain and I still saw a lot good shows. Yes, late model car counts are down from the past. Most people just can't afford to race late models anymore. And with so many big shows every where any more. It hurts weekly tracks. I go to Lasalle, Fairbury, Farmer City every year. Good racing at all of them. But, K3 has had some of the better shows i went to. All class's run good. The PDC was the best last year...LOL...But, K3 summer nationals race was great also,

[1bbmft]

I don't want ANY track to close, We've already lost Santa Fe and Crown Point, just stating from my home in Joliet the closest dirt track is Kankakee, LaSalle and Sycamore, and LaSalle and Sycamore don't run the class I run in. I still go to LaSalle a couple times a year to watch one of my sons race, but I don't see myself going back and race. But then again Kerriann is gone and she was the problem then so I could give Tony Jr a try if they raced the class I race in. If Tom treated me like Kerrian treated me I'd be gone from Kankakee in a heart beat. Good luck to all tracks and whoever posted about the cost of a LM (I gave them up after 1988 because of costs) and with a big show almost every week at one track or another you were right on. I think soon very few tracks will run LM on a weekly basis.

[Pops15]

I've been going to K3 since it reopened and Sugar Island closed. I hate to see the track struggle.

When Smith took over the stands were packed and car counts were great...for awhile. Compare that with last season. Sure, some of the poor car counts and lousy attendance can be attributed to the economy, but mostly the blame falls on the promoter. Smith has done some outstanding things on the promotional side of the business, but he's his own worst enemy when it comes to people skills on race night.

The first thing that needs to happen for the track to be successful is for the promoter and his crew to stop pissing off racers and fans!


He needs to get a couple of wreckers.

Fans don't want to sit through a long drawn out show. There's no reason that the show can't be wrapped up by 11:00 most weeks. That might require some changes in personnel. So be it.

Yes, we all know supers are too expensive for most tracks to run weekly. Run them half of the shows, and make a concerted effort to get a good car count on the nights you do run them.

Instead of driving around on a 4 wheeler and racing a CLM maybe Smith should spend some time in the grandstands watching the show from the fan's perspective.
K3 is a tough track for a promoter but the place can be run successfully.

[ugly1]

What drivers has he run off?? Really? In the ss class alone....16 7 99 55 18 3 15g 23t 23a shark car!

[dirtyboy]

$$$$$$

Crates, IMods and 4 bangers run for small purses.
Small purses = more money in Promoters pocket.
There's your clue, now figure out why he chased off the UMP Late Models and UMP Mods.

Trick is, how to fill the stands without running the top classes....