![]() She says many drivers enter the super street class and can race what they drove to the track.įischer races a more expensive car, but says, "Once you get the main things bought, the car and the trailer, and you get it running right, the upkeep is very cheap. Boyd, however, insists you don't need to spend a lot of money to enjoy drag racing. But not everyone is so lucky and the sportĬan be expensive. Because he was track champion, he is able to race this season for free. There's an overlap between pro and super pro and I can run either class."įischer is able to race a little cheaper than some. "I won super pro and pro in the same day, in the same car. His best day came when he brought home two purses. "I do it because I enjoy it and I'm pretty successful at it," he says.įischer has been track champion for the last three years and was Male Driver of the Year last year. I was brought up around it and just naturally got into it." Fischer has continued to race for 15 years, once or twice a weekend from March through November at the Coles County Dragway, just west of Charleston. "I was always around drag cars and racing people as a child. Rob Fischer has grown up in the extended family of drag racers. That's just not something drag racers do." The drivers are very supportive and helpful of each other. "When a racer's car breaks down and needs a part, the other racers will come together to help that person get his or her car back together, even though they may be up on the line later competing against one another. A lot of lifetime friendships have been made and continued through racing."Īnd the friendships and family spirit of racers even conquers the competitiveness of the sport. "As soon as the trailers start showing up, people start talking,ġ0 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING Larry Newenham of Virginia waits in the confined space of his dragster for his next match at the Mason County Speedway. He wouldn't miss it for anything."īoyd remarks that the first day of racing season is the same every year. We have a man who is 79 years old who races here every week. This is something that seems to be a part of their lives, it just kind of gets into their blood. ![]() Boyd says, "We have racers who have been racing here since the 60s. Once a person gets hooked on racing, they may never want to leave it. Now they're grown up and are racing themselves, or bringing out families of their own." I have pictures of children when we first started here and they were just little bitty kids playing in the sand piles. Patty Boyd, whose family owns the Mason County Speedway drag strip near Havana, says, "Many kids have actually grown up at the track. A driver's son or daughter may race his or her father's car someday. Racing is a tradition that flows through generations. A track owner's entire family is often involved in helping the races run smoothly. Pit crews are often relatives or good friends of the drivers. He will complete his pass in about 7.40 seconds, traveling about 91 miles an hour.Ī family atmosphere is one component all Illinois raceways have in common. Rob Fischer of Mattoon takes off for a drag racing match at the Coles County Dragway. They are locally owned and operated, supported by loyal fans and drivers who come back week after week, year after year. And the majority of these tracks are in small towns and rural areas. Whether you prefer watching dragsters, stock cars, winged sprints, midgets, dwarfs, hobos, or any other kind of auto racing, you will probably find what you're looking for at one of the more than 35 tracks in Illinois. It's loud, it's exciting, and it's right here in Illinois. They stand with pride, and as the last patriotic chords fade away, the crowd yells the phrase they've been waiting to hear all week, "Let's go racing!" Finding their seats, the same place they sit every race, families spread their blankets out just as the National Anthem begins to play. The friends and neighbors they see here each week greet them as their kids get popcorn and sodas at the concession stand. The noise intensifies as families make their way towards the main gate. The silence of the rural area explodes as the thundering echoes of a hundred engines travel on the breeze. Families pile into their cars and drive out of town, down dirt country lanes to a crowded parking lot.
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