A new 720-foot stretch of fresh concrete being poured this week at the Northland Dodge Motorsports Park will guarantee the future of the drag strip is back on solid footing.
For local businesses Rolling Mix Concrete and IDL Projects, who have agreed to donate the materials, equipment and labour to make the $300,000 paving project possible, it's their chance to contribute to a facility that will bring lifelong enjoyment to racing fans, whose attendance at race events will provide a never-ending source of funding for local charities.
Track owner Brent Marshall sees the two companies' contributions as a community gift that will keep giving, part of a business model he says is unlike any other motorsports facility in the country. The park, located nine kilometres northwest of the city off Chief Lake Road, will also be the site of a motocross track, BMX racing, radio-control model car racing, snowmobile racing, mud bog events, and dirt track motorcycle racing.
"The whole concept of the motorsport park is perpetual giving, like a foundation or annuity," said Marshall. "You've got companies that are sponsoring and paying for the infrastructure for the different events, whether its vintage motorcycle oval racing or motocross, and the proceeds go to five or six local charities they choose, so it will give back every year. It's the best of all worlds. The user groups get the benefit of the enhanced facilities and the money generated from the events goes right back to the local community."
The National Hot Rod Association-sanctioned track will be named Rolling Mix Concrete Raceway in tribute to company founder Joe Paolucci, who died in 1999. The Danny G. Memorial Start Line will commemorate former Rolling Mix co-owner Dan Gialleonardo, who died of cancer last September. Company president John Paolucci and his sister Joanne, Gialleonardo's widow, who also owns the business their father started in 1965, agreed to sponsor the project.
"My sister loved the idea, and that's what got everything going," said Paolucci.
"The new concrete will allow them to hold big NHRA events here, and all the proceeds from the track will go to local charities. We like to help the community as much as we can and we thought it was a really good cause."
The new six-inch deep concrete covers about one half of the quarter-mile track, replacing a large section of broken, worn-out asphalt that was laid down during the 1970s. About 100 loads are required to complete the job, which should be completed today. Previously, only the burn-out pit and the first 50 feet of track were concrete. Track conditions had deteriorated to the point many racers refused to travel to Prince George because they deemed it unsafe for their high-horsepower machines. The new concrete is more durable than asphalt and will offer a shelf life of at least 30 years.
IDL Projects prepped the site by removing the existing pavement before the concrete pour and supplied labour and equipment to spread the new pavement.
"Brent has shared his vision with us in terms of what he plans to do out there and I think this is going to be good for Prince George," said IDL's chief financial officer Todd Patterson.
"It's not just drag racers, there's a lot more to it, it will be an interesting spot for everybody. We just think it's a good community project that has a lot to offer people around town. That's why we're helping out."
Marshall has already invested close to $2 million in the motorsports park, installing better washroom and concession facilities, improving recreational vehicle/camping spots, and stocking an onsite lake with trout for fishing for boy scouts groups.
Formerly known as North Central Motorsport Park, the drag strip was purchased from local owner Gordon Schade in 1995 by Ron Cowie of Burnaby. Cowie brought the track up to NHRA specifications but the track was never a profitable venture for him. Shane Lodjn bought the 138-acre property in 2010 and sold it in June 2012 to Marshall.
The first big event of the summer will be July 26-28 when the NHRA Rolling Mix National Dragster Challenge comes to the Prince George, the first of three NHRA events this summer. The Rocky Mountain Nostalgia Funny Car series will also visit the city in July for its points final meet.
The FasGas/Lordco/Quaker State Street Legal series will begin in a few weeks, once the concrete has cured, giving owners of virtually any vehicle a chance to bracket race on the drag strip. Street legal races will be scheduled every Saturday during the summer, starting at 2:30 p.m.
"What these guys have done with these donations [from Rolling Mix and IDL] is they've made it possible for us to be a major NHRA centre for Canada, so we will be having points events, and it will be huge for the city, year after year," said Marshall.
"We'll have thousands of people from the U.S. and everywhere coming here because of this track. It will be the longest starting lane in Canada, and this will be the best facility in Canada. It will allow us to bring the fastest cars in the world to Prince George. We can race everything from jet cars to semi-trucks to top-fuel dragsters, and we're talking about getting into nationally-televised events."
