Two Dollar Pistol Motor Speedway will cease operations, according to a message its promoters Dale and Josie Payne posted on its Facebook page. However, the track’s owners, the Murphy brothers, say it doesn’t necessarily mean the end to the Arkansas dirt track.
Jan Murphy, one of the brothers, said the Paynes had completed just two of three of the years on their lease. He added that the Paynes had not notified them of them not returning.
“Plumerville Speedway [one of the track’s previous names] is not closing,” co-owner Jan Murphy said. “I can’t talk business with a future promoter until I know Dale and Josie’s intentions.”
Nevertheless, Jan said many people have reached out to him with interest in leasing or purchasing the facility.
“You just can’t build new dirt tracks anymore,” Jan said. “Permits are almost impossible to get. One would spend more money getting permits than they could ever make operating a new speedway.”
Jan along with his brothers Jason and Regan built the speedway in 1993. Back then, they were young racers in their 20s.
“We hired an architect and built a perfect ¼-mile oval, measured at the center of the track, not from the inside or outside,” Jan said. “We hired a dirt moving company to truck in the finest clay for the track surface.”
The Murphy brothers had their father, Murray, serve as the track’s announcer and he maintained the track. Their mother, Barbara, ran the business side.
“We promoted the speedway for 18 years,” Jan said. “At the start, we were three single young guys with no families. As time went on, we got families. The speedway took up more and more of our time. Promoting a racetrack is not a part-time job — it requires dedication and commitment. When the kids came along and our parents got older, we lost interest in promoting and decided to lease the speedway out to someone who could promote it.”
The Paynes, who were the latest to promote it, wrote on Facebook, “we just wanted to give folks a place to have fun and keep something local going. But over time, it’s become more headaches than happiness. The negativity, the constant complaining, and the way people tear down anyone who tries to help—it’s just not worth our peace anymore.”
Jan believes there’s a bright future for Two Dollar Pistol Motor Speedway, or as it’s been known previously, Plumerville Speedway, with the right promoter at the helm.
“Plumerville Speedway is popular and in a good location,” Jan said. “It is not closing, despite what is on Facebook. There is plenty of interest from parties wanting operate the speedway. We will be very particular as to whomever we lease it to. We’re looking out for our best interest. Afterall, we still own Plumerville Speedway.”
If you have interest in operating Plumerville Speedway, Jan Murphy encourages you to email him.
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.
