Maple Grove Speedway will be a prominent part of the Wheels on Maple Grove Car Show scheduled for this weekend, Sept. 27, hosted by Revv’ed Up Events and Pat O’Connor as a fundraiser for the Seneca County Agricultural Society.
Maple Grove Speedway historians John Velte and Chuck Brownell have been hard at work with Revv’ed Up promoter Pat O’Connor to help bring new life to the extensive legacy of the famous Waterloo oval. Velte, who also holds a seat on the Seneca County Agricultural Society Board, has curated a collection of historical documents and memorabilia dedicated to preserving the stories of the drivers that used to compete at the famous oval still sleeping under the grass-covered expanse of the Seneca County Fairgrounds campus.
O’Connor was nominated to the board at their September monthly meetings.
“There are only a few drivers left from the era, and the cars are even harder to find — or get,” Velte said.
The trouble is the cars have long been scrapped, crushed and destroyed — or, instead — the owners value the historical significance of the old coupes and coaches, and will not part with them for restorations. As for the drivers, time catches up with everyone.
Velte knows of a handful of Waterloo Speedway and Maple Grove Speedway cars still living in the shadows of Seneca County — hidden in hedgerows, retired junkyards or farm lots. Several were lost when the Mitchell Auto Parts yard was scrapped out.
But, with the increased interest in vintage dirt racing, the variety of clubs and wide variety of rules, the liveries and build designs — and the stories tied to them — live on.
Velte said he has confirmation that Tom Fletcher will be bringing a Mike McLaughlin modified replica to the show. Fletcher won with that car at Land of Legends Raceway earlier this year. Eddie Lawrence will be displaying Weldon Lawrence’s Late Model replica. A replica No. 111 — entry popularized by Sammy Reakes — is owned by Jim Hilimire has been included in the past, and Velte is hopeful the car returns. Hilimire has six vintage races, and has been showing his No. 11 John McArdell Sedan recently. Brad Litzenberger will be “bringing something old,” Velte said. Among his rides is a Brett Hearn Pepsi No. 20 Olsen modified.
Brownell lit up talking about the Lloyd Holt machine that Lloyd’s son, Jeff Holt, restored after the car was damaged in a fire. Jeff Holt executed a meticulous restoration of the car, going so far as to find an original 1937 Chevy Body to put on the frame. It was at the last iteration of the Maple Grove Tribute.
The Tribute has twice been constructed during the Seneca County Fair, originally joining the Flora Hall exhibits a year out of the COVID-19 pandemic. The fair was looking to fill the venue during the fair. After a second year there, Velte joined the Wheels on Main Street event during Waterloo’s Memorial Day Celebrations.
“It was not very big that year, we were in a building with three or four cars outside, but people were lined up pretty deep outside,” Brownell said.
As the show evolved and the display changed in shape and scope, Velte approached O’Connor at the Wheels on Seneca event to hopefully find a way for the two entities to share space during the second Wheels on Maple Grove car show.
“It’s cars and people, and it’s at the fairgrounds where the track is. It goes hand-in-hand,” O’Connor said, adding his father, Mike, will be bringing a 1967 GTO Convertible and a 1923 T-Bucket to the show. “My dad, he can’t remember anything. But he can remember Maple Grove Speedway, all the cars and drivers and stories.”
The biggest addition this year will be a searchable driver and statistics database. Velte has loaded most of the archives into a searchable database that can produce results, statistics and some images if modern generations want to search their family members and learn of their careers. The event this year will include several new picture boards. There will be a historical record book covering four decades of racing, a slide show of about 500 images and several new video compilations showcasing racing from when the track was in operation.
While the Seneca County Fairgrounds will be occupied by a mix of vintage and classic cars, the racecars that are removed from transporters will be staged in the barn adjacent to Floral Hall off the Swift Street entrance. Cars staying on trailers will be positioned around the barn; vintage racecars are not being charged to be on display. Show cars and classic hot rods will be able to park around the grounds, outdoors on a first-come, first-served basis. O’Connor is expecting around 150 entries on the show car side, and Velte said any vintage racing organization or period-correct race cars are welcome for the day.
For now, this tribute to Maple Grove Speedway will be a one-off. Feedback Velte has received with regard to a more permanent display – even a temporary one that could be erected year after year and then taken down – has been the same: how will it generate revenue?
Ideally, the monetization model to follow is that of the Hall of Fame and Museum at the Fonda Speedway. That venue shares space on the larger fairground complex with the active racetrack, opening periodically with select hours and a donation required for admission to the museum. Seneca County Fairgrounds doesn’t have a campus that will support that model right now. He was met with the same roadblocks when approaching a space downtown, which would come with the added costs of renting the space. So, Velte had to figure out a way to share the story in different and creative ways.
“That sort of opened my eyes. We considered tagging onto the music festival that was here, but we needed to be part of something that would attract the people that know the racing and care about the racing and history that happened here,” Velte said. “We needed to be attached to something else; that’s why we were attracted to the car show.”
“They compliment each other, the car show and the racers. It’s amazing the number of people that see posts or send messages on Facebook. They remember,” Brownell said.
Velte said he had also approached the Waterloo Library and Historical Society at the Terwilliger Museum.
“We’ve got a lot of stuff from people, and I wanted to stay centered on the history of the Fairgrounds, and Waterloo and Maple Grove Speedways,” said Velte, noting a community supporter offered to erect a temporary building, but it was not approved. “The Waterloo Historical Society wants to see the display all set up this weekend.”
Several championship trophies from the early 60s era will be displayed, along with a loaned 1964 trophy and the Naragon family’s championships. Racing trade papers, newspaper clippings and racing programs will be included in the display. Gater Racing News photographer Bob Hunter and Don Eddes photos will be available to browse, as well. The model car collection, scaled versions of the racecars from the 60s and 70s will be part of static, non-interactive displays, with intricate replicas from Velte’s own collection and from John Isgar, John Klue, Ken Marsteiner, Joe Felber, Bill Bentley and Randy Scott. Scott also owns an original pushcart from Waterloo Speedway days.
There are a few small gaps in Velte’s historical record, dotting portions of the racing seasons contested between the late 1960s through 1975; Velte has leads on information within The Northeast Dirt Modified Museum and Hall of Fame archives, but has reached dead ends.
“This is still fun for me to do this. I have been trying to get back into researching. The stats are pretty accurate. And I am always looking for ways to connect and update or verify statistics,” he said, noting at-large articles are still periodically uncovered or something new comes to the surface.
As for what happens next, Velte is waiting to see how the weekend goes. Maybe the tie-in to the car show works, or maybe another year off is necessary to regroup and help clarify the focus, purpose and direction.
“There are fewer and fewer of the drivers who raced here living, less and less saved memorabilia. We want to save their stories for their families,” said Velte, noting the revival of nostalgia modified and vintage racing has helped keep the conversation going, but boxes of paper passed to third or fourth-generation families who have no connection to the racing make those archives too easy to lose.
Similarly, the amount of time Velte and Brownell have invested, it is tough to hand the research and archives to someone who will allow it to live on only in mothballs and storage cases.
“People care about racing, you can see it in the cars, and the replicas and that the cars are still around; in the models and people that have an interest once they learn about the track that was here and how famous it was,” said Velte. “We need the chance to share that story, and keep sharing it.”
O’Connor also oversees other area car shows, including the Seneca Falls Classic Cars, Wheels on Geneva in the city, and Wheels on Seneca at the Welcome Center in Geneva.
For those wishing to show their rides, pre-registration is available; gates and day-of registration opens at 9 am. Show car registration is $15. The event runs through 3 p.m. Wheels on Maple Grove will include an on-site DJ, concessions and a barbecue, several local vendors, awards and dash placards given to participants. Contact O’Connor by phone at 315-856-6020 to reserve.
Malta Massive Weekend goes to Sheppard
Matt Sheppard had only one Super DIRTcar Series victory at Albany-Saratoga, but it was during a previous Malta Massive Weekend. He added a historic second with his 102nd career SDS win this past weekend, taking the win while leading flag to flag. In doing so, he is now the only person to win two big block features during the Malta Massive Weekend.
Sheppard won over Jimmy Phelps and Anthony Perrego; Alex Yankowski ranked fourth and Erick Rudolph was fifth. Mat Williamson rallied to finish eighth.
In the accompanying 30-lap DIRTcar Pro Stock feature, Brandon Emigh took the win over Kyle Hoard and Chris Stalker.
For those Modifieds, their next action will be during Super DIRT Week 53 (Oct. 6-11) at Oswego Speedway, culminating in the Billy Whittaker Cars 200 on Saturday, Oct. 11. The DIRTcar Pro Stocks will be part of the action at Land of Legends Raceway on Sept. 27.
On Friday, Marc Johnson pulled down a popular win in the DIRTcar 358-Modified Series, winning the 50-lapper over Williamson and Felix Roy. Neil Stratton was fourth while Zach Payne raced to fifth. The 30-lap DIRTcar Sportsman Fall Championship Series event was won by Connor Crane, his first touring win. Richard Murtaugh was next, followed in the top five by Emmett Waldron, Gavin Eisele and Chris Crane Jr. It was Waldron’s second straight podium finish in touring action.
The Sportsman will be racing during Super DIRT Week 53, along with the DIRTcar 358 Modified Series. The Small Blocks will race in the Salute to the Troops 150 on Friday, Oct. 10.
Other action on Friday included Chris Stalker winning the Street Stock feature over Tyler Irwin and Matt Mosher, and Josh Reome taking the four-cylinder feature over JP Corrow.
Thomas, Payne win Lane Memorial features at Outlaw Speedway
Jordan Thomas scored a popular win in the annual Lane Memorial feature at Outlaw Speedway, hosted in memory of Cal Lane. The win was part of the 2025 Empire Super Sprints touring schedule; Davie Franek was second ahead of Jordan Poirier.
Alex Payne won the 30-lap modified feature, charging from eighth to win the main. Matt Sheppard was second in the feature, chasing Payne from ninth on the initial grid. Justin Wright ran third ahead of Tommy Collins and Tyler Siri.
Eighth on the grid proved to be lucky, as Brent Ayers won the 25-lap Sportsman feature while also starting from outside the fourth row. Chris Darling took second place overall, with Dale Welty securing third. Devon Green and Blake Parsons filled the top five. Glenn Whritenour tallied the Street Stock division victory over Joe Giardina and Willy Easling. Jerry Lobdell took the Hobby Stock checkers ahead of Lanson Albanese and Brett Crawford. In four four-cylinder starts, Willy Easling has won three times, with his third recorded Friday night at Outlaw.
Outlaw will host the Hoag Memorial to cap 2025, scheduled over two nights in October.
The 14th Hoag Memorial Weekend will kick off Oct. 17, featuring a $4,000-to-win Empire Super Sprints program and the Four-Cylinders, who will chase a $1,077 prize. There will be dash races for Modifieds, Sportsman and Street Stocks, with CRSA Qualifying rounding out the Friday card.
Saturday, the Modifieds take center stage with a feature paying $7,777.77 to win and $777.77 to start. The Street Stock Empire 50 will pay $2,777.77 to win and $277.77 to start. Four-Cylinders and Hobby Stocks winners will be rewarded with 1,777.77 in their respective features, and the CRSA sprints earn $4,000 in winning their feature.
For more, visit OutlawSpeedwayLLC.com.
Land of Legends Season Finale scheduled for Saturday
The Empire Street Stock Series will host the Top Gun Shootout on September 27 at Land of Legends Raceway. The race is the season finale for the Ontario County oval.
The card will include the CRSA Sprints, Sportsman, Hobby Stocks and the DIRTcar Pro Stocks. Grandstands open at 5 pm. Non-member pit admission is $45. Adult grandstand admission is $25, with children aged 6-16 years admitted for $10. Hot laps are scheduled for 5:30 pm.
Additional information is available on LandofLegendsRaceway.com.
Utica-Rome hosts New Yorker 50 & Victoria 50 this weekend
Utica-Rome Speedway will host a multi-division, multi-day program on Sept. 26-27, culminating in the Modified New Yorker 50.
First, Utica-Rome will host the Victoria 50, scheduled for Friday. All classes in action will race with a draw/redraw format. The card will include the 358-modified challenge event, racing under DIRTcar rules on Hoosier tires. The night will include the Jim Normoyle Memorial Pro Stock race (allowing American Racer or Hoosier tires). The Limited Sportsman will be in action, on either American Racers or Hoosier tires. The Four-Cylinders will be racing as well, under SCDRA rules. Timed hot laps will be hosted for Big Blocks and 602 Sportsman, both on Hoosiers, with the top two fastest times of the night offered Redraw spots in Saturday’s feature.
Saturday, Modifieds will compete under DIRTcar rules on Hoosier tires. The Modifieds will chase a $5,000 prize with $400 paid to start the feature. The 602 Sportsman will also be on Hoosiers and DIRTcar rules, with select exceptions to valve spring and shock bodies. Teams should inquire with the speedway for specifics. The class will offer $1,500 to win. The Street Stocks will be racing for $500, under Albany-Saratoga division rules. The Mohawk Valley Vintage Dirt Modified Series will also be racing.
Visit UticaRomeSpeedway.com for gate times, event schedules and specific rule books.
Outlaw 200 Test and Tune
Fulton Speedway will host a test and tune session for the Outlaw 200 Weekend tonight.
Pits open at 5 pm and the track opens at 6 pm. Pit access is $25. The Outlaw 200 is scheduled for Oct. 2-4.
For additional details, and a full Outlaw 200 Weekend schedule, visit www.FultonSpeedway.com.
Weedsport will run the ‘Encore’ this Sunday
Weedsport Speedway will host the Encore 50, scheduled for September 28. The card will include the DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds and the DIRTcar Sportsman Series Sportsman Classic 75, weather-delayed CRSA Sprints main from July.
The Sportsman Series Classic 75 will remain as it was scheduled, offering $2,500 to win and the race will count toward the Sportsman Series points championship chase.
For details, visit www.WeedsportSpeedway.com.
