LEXINGTON, Neb. – Back when he was winning IMCA track championships at Dawson County Raceway, Chad Dolan didn’t give a thought to promoting.
Now that he’s in charge of the 3/8-mile dirt oval at Lexington, he’s looking for ways to give fans and drivers their money’s worth and then some.
“My vision is to give people the wow factor. If we can do that on opening night May 19, we won’t have anything to worry about,” he said. “I’m excited to give people in Central Nebraska something they haven’t seen at Dawson County Raceway before. There’s a real sense of excitement here.”
Sanctioned since 1994, Dawson County has eight Sunday dates scheduled for IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars, IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks, Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods and Mach-1 Sport Compacts.
All five divisions will also run at the Sept. 15 Connie Jewett Memorial.
“These are the divisions we have to have to make it work in this area. Everything will work if this track is promoted and prepared well,” Dolan said. “I’ve met with drivers and talked to fans, and made it a point to work with other tracks in the area (notably U.S. 30 Speedway in Columbus and Lincoln County Raceway in North Platte) because we’re all pulling from the same area and fan base.”
A $10,000 point fund has been established for four race dates at Dawson County and four at Lincoln County. The Modified champion earns $1,200, the Stock Car champion $800, SportMod champion $800, Hobby Stock champion $600 and Sport Compact champion $400.
“It’s super important to work with other tracks, especially on scheduling,” Dolan said. “Area economics are a factor. We are all trying to adapt to the economy.”
After retiring from racing in 2015, Dolan joined the Nebraska Racing Hall of Fame board. He was in charge of organizing the Central Nebraska Racers’ Reunion in 2016, an event that brought in a crowd of 1,200 and much impressed guest speaker Ken Schrader.
Dolan credits I-76 Speedway boss Butch Speicher and U.S. 30 Speedway promoter Bobby Lincoln with helping him learn the promotional tools of the trade.
Remodeling of concession stands, a new flag stand and a well-prepared racing surface remain on the to-do list. Dolan has also promised the Dawson County faithful they’ll see the final checkers of the night by 9 p.m. each race night.
IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing dates preceding the Jewett memorial are May 19, June 2, 16, 23 and 30, July 7, and Aug. 11 and 25.
Dawson County is part of IMCA’s Jet Racing Central Region for Modifieds, the EQ Cylinder Heads Northern Region for Stock Cars and the Big Daddy Race Cars Northern Region for Hobby Stocks.
