With the recent stretches of warm days, race fans, drivers, and tracks are chomping to get their race season underway. Unfortunately, a near-record-setting winter for snow has put quite the damper on those hopes, as potential season openers have been postponed. However, things are looking up as some tracks take matters into their own hands. Nodak Speedway has taken a different step in track preparation than in previous years, as they have removed the snow on the track to prevent excessive moisture from being taken in by the track. The hope is to get the snow cleared off the grounds and the track dry enough to race on earlier than in previous years, and at this rate, they might be the first track to get a race in.
Looking just south of Minot, the Dacotah Speedway, unfortunately, has postponed its opening weekend of the Mandan Meltdown. The doubleheader faces many similar challenges that the other tracks are experiencing: cold temperatures, wet grounds, and other weather concerns. Underwood has significantly upgraded the track as they've secured a new scored board and added LED bulbs, to name just a few.
Southwest Speedway also had a ton of snow, but from recent photos, things are drying up nicely and will be ready to open before their big late model race. Williston still has plenty of time before opening the gates (May 13), and the same can be said for Jamestown and Wishek, as they have a later season opener (May 18 & 20). Devils Lake is still planning to be one of the first tracks to open (April 29), while Estevan is not far behind (May 6).
The state's east side looks for a promising start to the season as Lisbon looks to kick their season off on May 4. The following night (May 5), Grand Forks and Thunder Mountain kick their racing season off.
Yes, the state is poised to kick off an awesome racing season...well, that is everyone except for one track. The Red River Valley Speedway has yet to announce its 2023 schedule, with the exception of the Howie Schill Memorial, their World of Outlaws date, and a few racesaver sprint car dates. Outside of that, nothing has been announced or even passed along to the drivers. This is an interesting ordeal as it puts a lot of drivers, fans, and crews in a challenging position as they have less time to plan their summer and their racing schedules. To give an idea of how far behind they are, on this weekend last year, they were supposed to have a test n tune. Even more, eye-raising is that had the weather not interfered with this weekend, and multiple tracks would have kicked off their race season. They will probably announce their schedule here in the next couple of days, but the lack of schedule updates has drivers and fans concerned about what is occurring in the West Fargo area for racing.
We want to know where you plan to kick off your 2023 race season, so check out the track opening schedule and leave a comment below!
2023 Track Opening dates
Dacotah Speedway: April 28, 29
Devils Lake Speedway: April 29
Estevan Motor Speedway: May 6
Jamestown Speedway: May 20
McLean County Speedway: May 26
Nodak Speedway: May 7
Red River Valley Speedway: ???
River Cities Speedway: May 5
Sheyenne River Speedway: May 4
Southwest Speedway: May 13
Thunder Mountain Speedway: May 20
Williston Basin Speedway: May 13
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