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SELINSGROVE — Selinsgrove Speedway has an 80-year track record of making memories.
Since opening on July 20, 1946, racing at the one-half mile dirt track has served as a backdrop for countless gatherings and the start of many relationships.
The Selinsgrove Speedway now typically features Friday night races to avoid competing with Port Royal Speedway in Juniata County, but does host a few Saturday and midweek events presented by promoters Paula Schick, Jenna Mowery and Colin Rice of Snyder County Dirt Management Group LLC.
The facility attracts racers from all over, including former NASCAR driver David Stremme, of Mifflintown, who touted the facility after visiting this season's opening night with his 4-year-old son.
"The concessions were moving fast ... bathrooms were clean, the show moved along because they knew there was weather in the area, and they were done by 9:30. That's the things that all matter," Stremme said, crediting the promoters who took over the speedway management last year. "There's a lot of effort that goes into running a track."
Early on race day
The day before each race, Steve Paige and Blane Heimbach are at the facility by 6:30 a.m., watering and grooming the clay to what they hope will be an ideal consistency for racing.
"As a farmer, I know a little bit about dirt," said Heimbach, who calls his early years racing at the speedway more than two decades ago "a unique time. I cut my teeth here and (the racing community) embraced me. This is my giving back."
On race day, Paige and Heimbach are back at work early, driving vehicles around and watering, discing and grading the clay. The following day, they return and repeat the process, using what Paige estimates is about 70,000 gallons of water during the three days.
"Back in the '80s my dad did it," said Paige, who in retirement spends most of his days at the track during racing season.
Generations of racers
Racers also tend to be generational.
Former driver Jim Fedder watched his son, Arden Fedder, of Eliottsburg, take practice runs around the track and talked about the sport that has been a family tradition for decades.
"My family was coming here back in the '60s. We either participate or spectate," Jim Fedder said.
Driver Andrew Yoder and his wife, Krista, of Middleburg, met at the Speedway and say the family atmosphere extends beyond the track.
The parents of two children, 6 and 2, the Yoders, in 2023, lost racing gear, tools, merchandise and a 4-wheeler in a fire. Within hours the racing community raised nearly $13,000.
"Andrew was able to race" at the next event, Krista Yoder said of the outpouring of support they received.
Preparing for race day
As the Speedway promoters, staff, drivers and their crews arrive throughout the day before the 7 p.m. Friday, June 19, race, one of the property caretakers, Mike "Groundskeeper Willie" Flock moved around the facility on a ubiquitous four-wheeler.
Flock gave lifts to several people, including his daughter, Kelsey Folk, and 2-year-old granddaughter, Ellie Eaton, who joined him on his rounds before the 7 p.m. race began.
At 2 p.m., Twila Long arrived wearing an apron and ready to start cooking up sausages and burgers for the hungry crowd that would begin arriving at 5 p.m.
"I start with the barbecue. I like to get the hot stuff going first," said Long as she turned on two oven burners for separate pots holding plain and spicy sausage.
Long will cook alone for about two hours at the main concession stand before three other workers, Dorothy Bickhart, Shirley Ferguson and Aleiya Kreamer arrive about 4 p.m.
She carries out her tasks like a pro because she's been working at the Speedway every summer for 39 years, as well as a more recent gig as a cafeteria worker in the Midd-West School District.
"I've been coming here since the 1950s," the Middleburg native said of visiting the track to watch her four brothers, and later, her husband and two-time late model track champion, Paul Long, race. "Paul built his first car in shop" at high school.
"When I started here we sold hot dogs and hamburgers," Long said. While the main concessions menu has expanded, along with five additional food vendors offering pizza, peanuts, ice cream and more, prices have remained fairly steady with items costing between $1 and $8.
The $6 cheeseburger is most popular, which Long credits to cooking the ground meat in beef broth. She's suggested raising prices, but the promoters, including her daughter, Paula Schick, and granddaughter, Jenna Mowery, have so far resisted.
Paula Schick grew up at the track and sold programs as a youngster. "I got a dime for every program I sold," she said.
Vendors
At Rhoads Peanut Stand, Christy Schreck is also trying to maintain a family tradition serving up the same peanut recipe sold for years by her grandfather, Ed Rhoads.
"During race season, we are here every week," she said as her daughter, Maylee Beachel, 14, helped in the stand. Schreck took over the business in 2021, shortly after her grandfather passed away while heading to work at the racetrack. "People want to share stories of my pap. I love the fact that I'm keeping his legacy alive. You can't put a value on nostalgia."
Carolyn Neimond and her daughter, Mazie Neimond, arrived at the track a few hours before the crowd to set up the Fast Tees kiosk owned by friend Jamie Nace Kratzer.
"I've been helping out for 15 years," Carolyn Neimond said. "We can't see much of the race from here, but if there's someone we're following, we'll go out. Kids that I used to see playing here are now racing."
Race time approaches
In the parking area where race car drivers and their crews prep vehicles, Dolly Schoch, of Shamokin, prayed over the car her son, John Schoch, planned to race that evening.
"I pray every time he goes out," she said before joining her former husband, Craig Schoch, their son's wife, Amber, and her parents, Mike and Denise Keen, in the stands to watch the race.
Up in the air-conditioned announcing booth located in the middle of the track with a bird's-eye view of racers and spectators, announcer Bert Wojcik and intern Pete Theriault, perform a mic check before they address the crowd at about 6:45, 15 minutes before race time.
Wojcik has a spreadsheet on a computer with details about each driver and all the sponsors, information he and Theriault will share with attendees throughout the night as they closely watch the race from their perch with windows on all sides.
"We look like two spinning tops watching the race," said Theriault, a sports media major at Susquehanna University.
Also working in the booth during the race are track officials Keith Harro, Michelle Harro and Misty Wagner.
Spectators arrive
Reserved ticket-holder Andrew Berninger, of Williamsport, arrives mid-afternoon after work and sets up a chair in the stands before heading back to his car for a nap.
"I've been up since 2 a.m.," he said of needing the rest before meeting up with friends to watch the race. "I've been coming here for 35 years. It's my favorite track."
Ed Stanton settled into a folding chair outside the gate about an hour before it opened to patrons, with another chair, several folded blankets and a cooler at his side for relatives who planned to arrive closer to opening.
"This is a family thing. My grandkids love to come here," said Stanton, a longtime race fan who enjoys the sport with many of his 29 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. "We put earmuffs on them."
Security employees check customers' coolers for forbidden glass containers as they enter the race grounds. There is hardly a cellphone in sight as people mingle at the concessions and in the stand that accommodates up to 5,000.
Seated on a folding chair outside the reserved section for a better view of her energetic 9-year-old son, Parker, and the track, Carla Moyer and her husband, J.J., of Port Trevorton, have been dedicated fans for years and even met at the Speedway.
"We're here every week there are races. And if we're not here, we're watching racing on TV," she said.
At the ice cream stand, Carleigh Charles watches as the stands begin to fill.
"It's one of the only places where different people can come together. It's a melting pot here," she said.
When the race is done and the spectators and drivers have left, the vendor staff close up and depart.
Wojcik and Folk, and Rice when he's done cleaning up, often enjoy a beer with the sound of vehicles driving around the track continuing to fill the air as Heimbach and Paige resume working, at times until midnight, prepping the track to create the perfect racing surface for the next event.
Continue reading...
Since opening on July 20, 1946, racing at the one-half mile dirt track has served as a backdrop for countless gatherings and the start of many relationships.
The Selinsgrove Speedway now typically features Friday night races to avoid competing with Port Royal Speedway in Juniata County, but does host a few Saturday and midweek events presented by promoters Paula Schick, Jenna Mowery and Colin Rice of Snyder County Dirt Management Group LLC.
The facility attracts racers from all over, including former NASCAR driver David Stremme, of Mifflintown, who touted the facility after visiting this season's opening night with his 4-year-old son.
"The concessions were moving fast ... bathrooms were clean, the show moved along because they knew there was weather in the area, and they were done by 9:30. That's the things that all matter," Stremme said, crediting the promoters who took over the speedway management last year. "There's a lot of effort that goes into running a track."
Early on race day
The day before each race, Steve Paige and Blane Heimbach are at the facility by 6:30 a.m., watering and grooming the clay to what they hope will be an ideal consistency for racing.
"As a farmer, I know a little bit about dirt," said Heimbach, who calls his early years racing at the speedway more than two decades ago "a unique time. I cut my teeth here and (the racing community) embraced me. This is my giving back."
On race day, Paige and Heimbach are back at work early, driving vehicles around and watering, discing and grading the clay. The following day, they return and repeat the process, using what Paige estimates is about 70,000 gallons of water during the three days.
"Back in the '80s my dad did it," said Paige, who in retirement spends most of his days at the track during racing season.
Generations of racers
Racers also tend to be generational.
Former driver Jim Fedder watched his son, Arden Fedder, of Eliottsburg, take practice runs around the track and talked about the sport that has been a family tradition for decades.
"My family was coming here back in the '60s. We either participate or spectate," Jim Fedder said.
Driver Andrew Yoder and his wife, Krista, of Middleburg, met at the Speedway and say the family atmosphere extends beyond the track.
The parents of two children, 6 and 2, the Yoders, in 2023, lost racing gear, tools, merchandise and a 4-wheeler in a fire. Within hours the racing community raised nearly $13,000.
"Andrew was able to race" at the next event, Krista Yoder said of the outpouring of support they received.
Preparing for race day
As the Speedway promoters, staff, drivers and their crews arrive throughout the day before the 7 p.m. Friday, June 19, race, one of the property caretakers, Mike "Groundskeeper Willie" Flock moved around the facility on a ubiquitous four-wheeler.
Flock gave lifts to several people, including his daughter, Kelsey Folk, and 2-year-old granddaughter, Ellie Eaton, who joined him on his rounds before the 7 p.m. race began.
At 2 p.m., Twila Long arrived wearing an apron and ready to start cooking up sausages and burgers for the hungry crowd that would begin arriving at 5 p.m.
"I start with the barbecue. I like to get the hot stuff going first," said Long as she turned on two oven burners for separate pots holding plain and spicy sausage.
Long will cook alone for about two hours at the main concession stand before three other workers, Dorothy Bickhart, Shirley Ferguson and Aleiya Kreamer arrive about 4 p.m.
She carries out her tasks like a pro because she's been working at the Speedway every summer for 39 years, as well as a more recent gig as a cafeteria worker in the Midd-West School District.
"I've been coming here since the 1950s," the Middleburg native said of visiting the track to watch her four brothers, and later, her husband and two-time late model track champion, Paul Long, race. "Paul built his first car in shop" at high school.
"When I started here we sold hot dogs and hamburgers," Long said. While the main concessions menu has expanded, along with five additional food vendors offering pizza, peanuts, ice cream and more, prices have remained fairly steady with items costing between $1 and $8.
The $6 cheeseburger is most popular, which Long credits to cooking the ground meat in beef broth. She's suggested raising prices, but the promoters, including her daughter, Paula Schick, and granddaughter, Jenna Mowery, have so far resisted.
Paula Schick grew up at the track and sold programs as a youngster. "I got a dime for every program I sold," she said.
Vendors
At Rhoads Peanut Stand, Christy Schreck is also trying to maintain a family tradition serving up the same peanut recipe sold for years by her grandfather, Ed Rhoads.
"During race season, we are here every week," she said as her daughter, Maylee Beachel, 14, helped in the stand. Schreck took over the business in 2021, shortly after her grandfather passed away while heading to work at the racetrack. "People want to share stories of my pap. I love the fact that I'm keeping his legacy alive. You can't put a value on nostalgia."
Carolyn Neimond and her daughter, Mazie Neimond, arrived at the track a few hours before the crowd to set up the Fast Tees kiosk owned by friend Jamie Nace Kratzer.
"I've been helping out for 15 years," Carolyn Neimond said. "We can't see much of the race from here, but if there's someone we're following, we'll go out. Kids that I used to see playing here are now racing."
Race time approaches
In the parking area where race car drivers and their crews prep vehicles, Dolly Schoch, of Shamokin, prayed over the car her son, John Schoch, planned to race that evening.
"I pray every time he goes out," she said before joining her former husband, Craig Schoch, their son's wife, Amber, and her parents, Mike and Denise Keen, in the stands to watch the race.
Up in the air-conditioned announcing booth located in the middle of the track with a bird's-eye view of racers and spectators, announcer Bert Wojcik and intern Pete Theriault, perform a mic check before they address the crowd at about 6:45, 15 minutes before race time.
Wojcik has a spreadsheet on a computer with details about each driver and all the sponsors, information he and Theriault will share with attendees throughout the night as they closely watch the race from their perch with windows on all sides.
"We look like two spinning tops watching the race," said Theriault, a sports media major at Susquehanna University.
Also working in the booth during the race are track officials Keith Harro, Michelle Harro and Misty Wagner.
Spectators arrive
Reserved ticket-holder Andrew Berninger, of Williamsport, arrives mid-afternoon after work and sets up a chair in the stands before heading back to his car for a nap.
"I've been up since 2 a.m.," he said of needing the rest before meeting up with friends to watch the race. "I've been coming here for 35 years. It's my favorite track."
Ed Stanton settled into a folding chair outside the gate about an hour before it opened to patrons, with another chair, several folded blankets and a cooler at his side for relatives who planned to arrive closer to opening.
"This is a family thing. My grandkids love to come here," said Stanton, a longtime race fan who enjoys the sport with many of his 29 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. "We put earmuffs on them."
Security employees check customers' coolers for forbidden glass containers as they enter the race grounds. There is hardly a cellphone in sight as people mingle at the concessions and in the stand that accommodates up to 5,000.
Seated on a folding chair outside the reserved section for a better view of her energetic 9-year-old son, Parker, and the track, Carla Moyer and her husband, J.J., of Port Trevorton, have been dedicated fans for years and even met at the Speedway.
"We're here every week there are races. And if we're not here, we're watching racing on TV," she said.
At the ice cream stand, Carleigh Charles watches as the stands begin to fill.
"It's one of the only places where different people can come together. It's a melting pot here," she said.
When the race is done and the spectators and drivers have left, the vendor staff close up and depart.
Wojcik and Folk, and Rice when he's done cleaning up, often enjoy a beer with the sound of vehicles driving around the track continuing to fill the air as Heimbach and Paige resume working, at times until midnight, prepping the track to create the perfect racing surface for the next event.
Continue reading...
