La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway
Encyclopedia
The La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway is a semi-banked asphalt oval racetrack in West Salem, Wisconsin
. The outer track is 5/8 mile and the inner track is a 1/4 mile. The track was built on at the fairgrounds for La Crosse County. It used to host an event on the American Speed Association
(ASA) before the demise of the series. It currently hosts annual touring events on the ASA Midwest Tour
, Mid American Stock Car Series, and the ASA Late Model Series
. It hosts weekly stock car races
which are sanctioned by NASCAR
's Whelen All-American Series
. It was the first NASCAR-sanctioned race track in Wisconsin
, and the only NASCAR-sanctioned asphalt race track.
in 1957 in West Salem, Wisconsin
as part of the relocation of the La Crosse Interstate Fairgrounds from the site of Veterans' Memorial Stadium on the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse campus. It originally ran a single annual International Motor Contest Association
(IMCA) event and it was known as the La Crosse Inter-State Fairgrounds. The event featured IMCA "Big Car" (now known as sprint cars
), midgets
, and "New Model" stock cars
(similar to stock cars raced by USAC cars and NASCAR's Grand National series [now Sprint Cup Series]). The event ran until 1966, and numerous notable drivers competed in these events including: Johnny Beauchamp
, Jim Hurtubise
, Dick Hutcherson
, Ramo Stott
, Parnelli Jones
, Johnny Rutherford, and Tom Bigelow
.
The track was paved in 1970 as a half mile, with the track's current banked grandstand being built at the same time. Robert Morris and Larry Wehrs were the promoters for the first two seasons before Wehrs became the sole promoter in 1972. Racing alternated between Friday and Wednesday nights for the first five seasons before permanently running on Wednesday nights in 1975. The Central Wisconsin Racing Association (CWRA) Late Models were the featured division at La Crosse from 1970 until 1991. Following the 1986 season the La Crosse County Agricultural Society, the owners of the racetrack, decided to make a change with the promoter. Instead of renewing with Wehrs, the La Crosse County Ag Society went with Midwest Motorsports Management as the new promoter. Longtime ARTGO
Challenge Series president John McKarns and Rockford Speedway
president Jody Deery headed up the new promoter group, with Deery's youngest son Chuck named the track manager. In 1989 La Crosse became the first track in Wisconsin to become a part of the NASCAR Winston Racing Series (now the Whelen All-American Series
), NASCAR's national weekly short track program. The track would run the NASCAR shows on Saturday nights, which would become the main race night starting in 1992. Four drivers (Kevin Nuttleman, Paul Proksch, Charlie Menard
and Steve Carlson) would go on to claim either a regional, divisional or state championship. Carlson would capture the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship in 2007, the first for a driver from the state of Wisconsin. Nuttleman would become the first driver in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series history to claim a championship under all three formats (Great Northern Region in 1989, Division III in 2005 and Wisconsin State Championship in 2009), and is one of the 25 greatest drivers in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series history.
The headline division at the track is the NASCAR late model
s. Other classes include Grand National Sportsman, Thunderstox, Hornets, Outlawz (formerly the R.A.Y.S.), plus several novelty events are scheduled throughout the season. Starting in 2008, the track featured Friday Night Street Drags the second Friday of the month from May to September. Starting in 2009, the Street Drags concluded with the 300' Nationals the Saturday following the Oktoberfest Race Weekend.
race where the last car with a trailer left wins, along with Doug Rose's Green Mamba Jet Car, hornets, skidders, monster trucks, and motorcycle stunt riders. A similar event called the "Smash-O-Rama" takes place the third Saturday night in June.
. The Friday night headliner in the Dick Trickle
99, a 99 lap super late model
event. It runs in three 33 lap segments with the length taken from Trickle's #99 that he had raced in Wisconsin before moving to NASCAR. The race is patterned after the famous Milk Bowl race that takes place at the Thunder Road International SpeedBowl
in Vermont. Past winners include:
The sanctioning body for the main event for the weekend has varied through the years. It began using the Central Wisconsin Racing Association rules between 1970 and 1986. The ARTGO
touring series took over sanction from 1987 until 1997. ARTGO was sold to NASCAR and the series
took various names between 1998 until 2006. The 2006 main event was a Wisconsin Late Model event even though NASCAR ran its final Elite Division race that Friday night. The ASA Midwest Tour
took over the main event in 2007 and has held it ever since.
West Salem, Wisconsin
West Salem is a village in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, along the La Crosse River. It is part of the La Crosse Metropolitan Area. The population was 4,799 at the 2010 census.-History:...
. The outer track is 5/8 mile and the inner track is a 1/4 mile. The track was built on at the fairgrounds for La Crosse County. It used to host an event on the American Speed Association
American Speed Association
The American Speed Association is a sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States formed in 1968. The Association was based in Pendleton, Indiana and currently is headquarters in Daytona Beach, Florida. ASA was most famous for a national touring series which began in 1973 but was...
(ASA) before the demise of the series. It currently hosts annual touring events on the ASA Midwest Tour
ASA Midwest Tour
The American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour Presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment is a pavement Super Late Model Touring Series based in the Midwest United States...
, Mid American Stock Car Series, and the ASA Late Model Series
ASA Late Model Series
ASA Late Model Series is a nationally touring American stock car racing series. Founded by Ron Varney in 2003 as the "USPRO Cup Series" , it was renamed "ASA Late Model Series in when it was purchased by the American Speed Association in 2004...
. It hosts weekly stock car races
Stock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing found mainly in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Great Britain, Brazil and Argentina. Traditionally, races are run on oval tracks measuring approximately in length...
which are sanctioned by NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
's Whelen All-American Series
Whelen All-American Series
The Whelen All-American Series is a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local racetracks around the United States and Canada....
. It was the first NASCAR-sanctioned race track in Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, and the only NASCAR-sanctioned asphalt race track.
Track history
The track opened as a half mile dirt trackDirt track racing
Dirt track racing is a type of auto racing performed on oval tracks. It began in the United States before World War I and became widespread during the 1920s and 30s. Two different types of racecars predominated—open wheel racers in the Northeast and West and stock cars in the South...
in 1957 in West Salem, Wisconsin
West Salem, Wisconsin
West Salem is a village in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, along the La Crosse River. It is part of the La Crosse Metropolitan Area. The population was 4,799 at the 2010 census.-History:...
as part of the relocation of the La Crosse Interstate Fairgrounds from the site of Veterans' Memorial Stadium on the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse campus. It originally ran a single annual International Motor Contest Association
International Motor Contest Association
The International Motor Contest Association was organized in 1915 by J. Alex Sloan, and is currently the oldest active auto racing sanctioning body in the United States. IMCA is currently headquartered in Vinton, Iowa, and features several classes and divisions of weekly racing in six geographical...
(IMCA) event and it was known as the La Crosse Inter-State Fairgrounds. The event featured IMCA "Big Car" (now known as sprint cars
Sprint car racing
Sprint cars are high-powered race cars designed primarily for the purpose of running on short oval or circular dirt or paved tracks. Sprint car racing is popular in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa....
), midgets
Midget car racing
Midget cars, also Speedcars in Australia, are very small race cars with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four-cylinder engines.-Cars:Typically, these cars have 300 to 400 horsepower and weigh...
, and "New Model" stock cars
Stock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing found mainly in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Great Britain, Brazil and Argentina. Traditionally, races are run on oval tracks measuring approximately in length...
(similar to stock cars raced by USAC cars and NASCAR's Grand National series [now Sprint Cup Series]). The event ran until 1966, and numerous notable drivers competed in these events including: Johnny Beauchamp
Johnny Beauchamp
Johnny Beauchamp was an American NASCAR driver from Harlan, Iowa. He is best known for finishing second in the 1959 Daytona 500 in a photo finish after being declared the unofficial winner...
, Jim Hurtubise
Jim Hurtubise
In 1957, Hurtubise started his NASCAR career running two races. Over the next twenty years, he would race 36 races, winning one race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and amassing eleven top ten finishes.-Award:...
, Dick Hutcherson
Dick Hutcherson
Dick Hutcherson was an American businessman and a former stock car racer. A native of Keokuk, Iowa, Hutcherson drove in NASCAR competition from 1964 to 1967. In 1965 he finished second in the overall NASCAR Drivers Championship and had nine wins...
, Ramo Stott
Ramo Stott
Ramo Stott is a retired American stock car driver from Keokuk, Iowa. He competed in NASCAR Winston Cup, USAC stock car, and ARCA.-USAC:...
, Parnelli Jones
Parnelli Jones
Rufus Parnell "Parnelli" Jones , is a retired American racing driver and racecar owner. He is most remembered for his 1963 Indianapolis 500 win, and almost winning the 1967 Indy 500 in a turbine car...
, Johnny Rutherford, and Tom Bigelow
Tom Bigelow
Tom Bigelow , USA, is a former driver in the USAC and CART Championship Car series.-Midget car racing:...
.
The track was paved in 1970 as a half mile, with the track's current banked grandstand being built at the same time. Robert Morris and Larry Wehrs were the promoters for the first two seasons before Wehrs became the sole promoter in 1972. Racing alternated between Friday and Wednesday nights for the first five seasons before permanently running on Wednesday nights in 1975. The Central Wisconsin Racing Association (CWRA) Late Models were the featured division at La Crosse from 1970 until 1991. Following the 1986 season the La Crosse County Agricultural Society, the owners of the racetrack, decided to make a change with the promoter. Instead of renewing with Wehrs, the La Crosse County Ag Society went with Midwest Motorsports Management as the new promoter. Longtime ARTGO
ARTGO
The ARTGO Challenge Series was a United States midwest late model short track racing series that ran from 1975 until 1998. Many race car drivers have used the ARTGO series as a stepping stone to get into ASA, ARCA, and NASCAR. A guy by the name of Art Frigo created the series with the help of Bob...
Challenge Series president John McKarns and Rockford Speedway
Rockford Speedway
Rockford Speedway is a 1/4 mile short track high banked asphalt oval. It is located in the city of Loves Park on Illinois Route 173 near Rockford. Rockford Speedway is the only racetrack running under NASCAR sanction in Illinois....
president Jody Deery headed up the new promoter group, with Deery's youngest son Chuck named the track manager. In 1989 La Crosse became the first track in Wisconsin to become a part of the NASCAR Winston Racing Series (now the Whelen All-American Series
Whelen All-American Series
The Whelen All-American Series is a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local racetracks around the United States and Canada....
), NASCAR's national weekly short track program. The track would run the NASCAR shows on Saturday nights, which would become the main race night starting in 1992. Four drivers (Kevin Nuttleman, Paul Proksch, Charlie Menard
Charlie Menard
Charlie Menard was Chief Operating Officer of the Menards home improvement store chain until late 2007. He now heads up the Eau Claire, Wisconsin Menards Distribution Center. Named after his father, Larry Menard, Charlie never goes by his given name "Lawrence"...
and Steve Carlson) would go on to claim either a regional, divisional or state championship. Carlson would capture the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship in 2007, the first for a driver from the state of Wisconsin. Nuttleman would become the first driver in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series history to claim a championship under all three formats (Great Northern Region in 1989, Division III in 2005 and Wisconsin State Championship in 2009), and is one of the 25 greatest drivers in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series history.
Weekly racing
LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway hosts weekly stock car races on Saturday nights which are sanctioned by NASCAR.The headline division at the track is the NASCAR late model
Late model
A "late model car" is a car which has been recently designed or manufactured, often the latest model. The term is broadly used in car racing, and often appears in common use, as in "The officer was driving an unmarked, late model sedan."There is no precise...
s. Other classes include Grand National Sportsman, Thunderstox, Hornets, Outlawz (formerly the R.A.Y.S.), plus several novelty events are scheduled throughout the season. Starting in 2008, the track featured Friday Night Street Drags the second Friday of the month from May to September. Starting in 2009, the Street Drags concluded with the 300' Nationals the Saturday following the Oktoberfest Race Weekend.
Eve of Destruction
The track hosts an annual "Eve of Destruction" event the first Saturday after Labor Day. It features a trailerTrailer (vehicle)
A trailer is generally an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle. Commonly, the term trailer refers to such vehicles used for transport of goods and materials....
race where the last car with a trailer left wins, along with Doug Rose's Green Mamba Jet Car, hornets, skidders, monster trucks, and motorcycle stunt riders. A similar event called the "Smash-O-Rama" takes place the third Saturday night in June.
Oktoberfest Race Weekend
Since 1970 the track has featured the annual Oktoberfest Race Weekend as its season finale, usually the weekend after La Crosse's Oktoberfest celebration concludes. It began as a two-day event, then expanded to three days in 1975 and expanded to its current four-day format (Thursday through Sunday) in 1998. Touring series that race at the event include the Mid American Stock Car Series, the Big 8 Late Model Series, the ASA Midwest Truck Tour and the ASA Midwest TourASA Midwest Tour
The American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour Presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment is a pavement Super Late Model Touring Series based in the Midwest United States...
. The Friday night headliner in the Dick Trickle
Dick Trickle
Richard "Dick" Trickle is a retired American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle has competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All Pro, IMCA, NASCAR, and USAC.In more than an estimated 2,200 races, Trickle has logged...
99, a 99 lap super late model
Late model
A "late model car" is a car which has been recently designed or manufactured, often the latest model. The term is broadly used in car racing, and often appears in common use, as in "The officer was driving an unmarked, late model sedan."There is no precise...
event. It runs in three 33 lap segments with the length taken from Trickle's #99 that he had raced in Wisconsin before moving to NASCAR. The race is patterned after the famous Milk Bowl race that takes place at the Thunder Road International SpeedBowl
Thunder Road International SpeedBowl
Thunder Road International SpeedBowl, more commonly known as Thunder Road, is a high-banked, paved short track speedway located in the Town of Barre, Vermont . The track is co-owned by Ken Squier and Tom Curley. Currently, Thunder Road hosts four weekly divisions: Late Models, Tiger Sportsman,...
in Vermont. Past winners include:
- 2011 Neil Knoblock
- 2010 Dan Fredrickson
- 2009 Chris Weinkauf
- 2008 Nathan HaseleuNathan HaseleuNathan Haseleu is a racecar driver from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. He competed in the Craftsman Truck Series, and now competes in the ASA Midwest Tour, the CRA Super Series, and the Wisconsin Challenge Series....
- 2007 Steve Holzhausen
The sanctioning body for the main event for the weekend has varied through the years. It began using the Central Wisconsin Racing Association rules between 1970 and 1986. The ARTGO
ARTGO
The ARTGO Challenge Series was a United States midwest late model short track racing series that ran from 1975 until 1998. Many race car drivers have used the ARTGO series as a stepping stone to get into ASA, ARCA, and NASCAR. A guy by the name of Art Frigo created the series with the help of Bob...
touring series took over sanction from 1987 until 1997. ARTGO was sold to NASCAR and the series
NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Midwest Series
The AutoZone Elite Division, Midwest Series is a defunct racing league that operated from 1998 to 2006 under the direction of NASCAR. The series raced light-weight late model race cars....
took various names between 1998 until 2006. The 2006 main event was a Wisconsin Late Model event even though NASCAR ran its final Elite Division race that Friday night. The ASA Midwest Tour
ASA Midwest Tour
The American Speed Association Kwik Trip Midwest Tour Presented by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment is a pavement Super Late Model Touring Series based in the Midwest United States...
took over the main event in 2007 and has held it ever since.
- 2011 Johnny SauterJohnny SauterJohnathan Joseph Sauter is a NASCAR driver from Wisconsin. Sauter is the son of former NASCAR driver Jim Sauter, and the brother of NASCAR drivers Tim Sauter and Jay Sauter...
(ASA Midwest) - 2010 Dan Fredrickson (ASA Midwest)
- 2009 Travis Sauter (ASA Midwest)
- 2008 Dan Fredrickson (ASA Midwest)
- 2007 Dan Fredrickson (ASA Midwest)
- 2006 Steve Holzhausen (Wisconsin Late Model)
- 2005 Tim Schendel (NASCAR AutoZoneNASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Midwest SeriesThe AutoZone Elite Division, Midwest Series is a defunct racing league that operated from 1998 to 2006 under the direction of NASCAR. The series raced light-weight late model race cars....
) - 2004 Brian Hoppe (NASCAR AutoZone)
- 2003 Tim Schendel (NASCAR ITEMS)
- 2002 Brian Hoppe (NASCAR Re/Max)
- 2001 Eddie Hoffman (NASCAR Re/Max)
- 2000 Steve Carlson (NASCAR Re/Max)
- 1999 Eddie Hoffman (NASCAR Re/Max)
- 1998 Eddie Hoffman (NASCAR Re/Max)
- 1997 Terry Baldry (ARTGO Challenge)
- 1996 Joe ShearJoe ShearJoe Shear was an American racecar driver from Clinton, Wisconsin. He won an estimated 350 races in his career, including four of his last five races. Fred Nielsen, Shear's car owner from 1975 to 1984 and 1986 to 1994, said that his team won 250 races and he estimates that Shear won 600 races...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1995 Joe ShearJoe ShearJoe Shear was an American racecar driver from Clinton, Wisconsin. He won an estimated 350 races in his career, including four of his last five races. Fred Nielsen, Shear's car owner from 1975 to 1984 and 1986 to 1994, said that his team won 250 races and he estimates that Shear won 600 races...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1994 Joe ShearJoe ShearJoe Shear was an American racecar driver from Clinton, Wisconsin. He won an estimated 350 races in his career, including four of his last five races. Fred Nielsen, Shear's car owner from 1975 to 1984 and 1986 to 1994, said that his team won 250 races and he estimates that Shear won 600 races...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1993 Matt KensethMatt KensethMatthew Roy "Matt" Kenseth is an American stock car driver. Kenseth currently drives the No. 17 Crown Royal Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1992 Tom Carlson (ARTGO Challenge)
- 1991 Tom Carlson (ARTGO Challenge)
- 1990 Scott Hansen (ARTGO Challenge)
- 1989 Joe ShearJoe ShearJoe Shear was an American racecar driver from Clinton, Wisconsin. He won an estimated 350 races in his career, including four of his last five races. Fred Nielsen, Shear's car owner from 1975 to 1984 and 1986 to 1994, said that his team won 250 races and he estimates that Shear won 600 races...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1988 Ted MusgraveTed MusgraveTheodore Musgrave is an American race car driver.-Pre-NASCAR:Musgrave's father, Elmer, was a famous short-track racer in the Midwest who raced for over 25 years at Soldier Field, O'Hare, Waukegan, and Wilmot, Wisconsin before moving into asphalt late models in the American Speed Association and...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1987 Dick TrickleDick TrickleRichard "Dick" Trickle is a retired American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle has competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All Pro, IMCA, NASCAR, and USAC.In more than an estimated 2,200 races, Trickle has logged...
(ARTGO Challenge) - 1986 Rich BickleRich BickleRichard "Rich" Bickle, Jr. is a journeyman NASCAR driver. Bickle, who has never completed a full season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has a long history in short track racing.-Early career:...
(CWRA) - 1985 John Ziegler (CWRA)
- 1984 Bryan ReffnerBryan ReffnerBryan Reffner is a veteran of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. He was also a champion in the American Speed Association.-Career prior to NASCAR:...
(CWRA) - 1983 Tom Reffner (CWRA)
- 1982 Jim Back (CWRA)
- 1981 Junior Hanley (CWRA)
- 1980 Mark MartinMark MartinMark Martin may refer to:* Mark Martin , American racecar driver* Mark Martin , American cartoonist* Mark Martin , American judge* Mark Martin , British murderer...
(CWRA) - 1979 Butch MillerButch Miller (racing driver)Butch Miller is a racecar driver. He drives the #07 Toyota Tundra part time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on a limited basis, and is also a crew chief for SS-Green Light Racing. He is a multiple champion in the now-defunct American Speed Association stock car series...
(CWRA) - 1978 Dave Watson (CWRA)
- 1977 Larry Detjens (CWRA)
- 1976 Larry Detjens (CWRA)
- 1975 Tom Reffner (CWRA)
- 1974 Jerry Makara (CWRA)
- 1973 Marv Marzofka (CWRA)
- 1972 Joe ShearJoe ShearJoe Shear was an American racecar driver from Clinton, Wisconsin. He won an estimated 350 races in his career, including four of his last five races. Fred Nielsen, Shear's car owner from 1975 to 1984 and 1986 to 1994, said that his team won 250 races and he estimates that Shear won 600 races...
(CWRA) - 1971 Dick TrickleDick TrickleRichard "Dick" Trickle is a retired American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle has competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All Pro, IMCA, NASCAR, and USAC.In more than an estimated 2,200 races, Trickle has logged...
(CWRA) - 1970 Tom Reffner (CWRA)