It’s been more than 6 years since races last took place at Belle-Clair Speedway. That’ll change on August 1, with the newly rebuilt dirt oval making its debut. And now its promoter is set.
WM Marketing, the owners of the nearby World Wide Technology Raceway — the track that hosts NASCAR and IndyCar — will operate it. That team tapped Toby Kruse, best known for being at the helm of Marshalltown Speedway for 20 years, as the promoter of the August 1 race.
“We’re under the gun to get the track done for August 1, with a media day scheduled for July 15,” Kruse said Wednesday. “I’m helping with the dirt work now.”
Rebuilding the track cost $13.9 million. The county allocated an additional $15.2 million for improvements for the entire fairgrounds. The races will be one of the headlining features during the July 30-August 1 Fair St. Clair. The event also includes concerts with Bret Michaels and Noah Cyrus.
The August 1 event will feature UMP modifieds, outlaw 600s and midgets. They will run on a newly rebuilt track. They have enlarged it to 1/4 mile from its previous 1/5-mile size. Kruse calls the new oval “an amazing little track.” He also has a clear goal for the grand reopening.
“I would like to see the three divisions bring 100-120 cars in the pits for an action packed, powerhouse show,” Kruse said.
St. Clair County Board Chairman Mark Kern praised WM Marketing’s role in revitalizing the track that dates back to 1948.
“They have helped us all along in designing the facility and giving us a lot of advice,” Kern said. “So, it’s natural to have these great people promote this track and be the ones who will run it.”
Many loved Belle-Clair Speedway before it shut down at the onset of covid pandemic. Its fans remain passionate about the St. Louis-area dirt track.
“The announcement has generated a crazy amount of buzz,” Kruse said. “In fact, it created so much buzz that Joe Carroll, who owns I-55, said his track will take August 1 off. [WM Marketing’s] Curtis [Francois, president] and Chris [Blair, GM and executive VP] will work with surrounding racetracks and be good neighbors. Local racing will benefit with the reopening of Belle-Clair Speedway.”
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.
