This past weekend, the Stockton Dirt Track postponed its July 26 race. According to its promoter Tony Noceti, the reason for that postponement stems from the location of a new water well.
Noceti said he received a letter notifying him of the issue from Daniel Castillo. Castillo serves as CEO of the San Joaquin County Fair requesting “immediate assistance in finding a suitable alternative location for the track.”
The letter infuriated Noceti, a farmer and construction company owner who said he poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into revitalizing the fair’s racetrack and grandstands. Noceti vowed to continue his racing schedule.
“After review, the Water Board has informed us that the current location of the motor sports track is too close to the well site,” the letter from Castillo read. “Unfortunately, this proximity is in direct violation of regulations concerning wellhead protection zones and California Code of Regulations Sec. 64560.”
The well in question replaced an older well that sat near the racetrack. Noceti’s Tony Noceti Group, Inc. offered to fix the old well at his own expense three years ago. The well supplies water for the entire fairgrounds.
“There were holes in the casing of the old well,” said Noceti. “The Noceti Group offered to sleeve the old well at a cost of $25,000. Instead, the fairgrounds, which has 40 acres of land on which to drill a new well — and I have one place to put a racetrack and that is in front of the grandstand — chose to drill off of turn three of our racetrack. They did so at a cost to themselves of $900,000.”
After drilling the well, the Fair’s request to move the track blindsided Noceti.
“All it would have taken is for them to come over and talk to us beforehand,” Noceti said. “I’m working on resolving the situation, not moving my racetrack. We need to resolve this with common sense. There are solutions that don’t involve moving the racetrack. The track surface has plenty of distance from the well. The exit road off the track brings cars close to the well site. We can move the exit road. We can accomplish a solution in two days’ time.”
Noceti won’t stand for his shows being canceled.
“We are going to resolve this soon, one way or another, and hopefully in a room without attorneys.” said Noceti. “I put money in their [San Joaquin Fair’s] pockets. I’m tired of getting the runaround.”
Noceti said the premier event at the Stockton Dirt Track, the Tribute to Gary Patterson, currently scheduled for November 1 and 8, will go on.
“That race will take place in Stockton, even if I have to cover Stockton 99 [the paved track Noceti also runs] with dirt for one weekend,” Noceti said. “I will get it done one way or another.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
