Practice

Latest Newsletter (updated 9/15/11)

(9/15/11)

There are only a few races left in the 2011 Mid-America season and this has been our most successful season yet. The weather is starting to cool which makes for excellent track conditions, and most of the other midwest tracks wrap their seasons up by the end of September. The weather in Indiana is pretty nice through October so we jump on the chance to get a few more races in before we mount the ice tires. Tyler Porter at www.fightfordt.com stated that we like to do things different than other tracks. We took that as both a compliment and a challenge. We have races on September 24th, October 8th, 22, and the 29th. The October 29th race is the second annual Halloween race and last year's event was one of the most fun races that we have ever had. Please read below to see what else is going on at Mid-America.

MotoGP Wrapup
The Mid-America crew has made several attempts to run on the Friday night of the Indy Mile/MotoGP weekend. We first tried to hold the event in 2008, and it started raining on the morning of the event and never stopped. The 2009 event was looking good until the rains came and washed the event out right before practice was to start. 2010 was better in that we had 15 speedway riders and 12 quads battling it out for a $2400 purse. There were even a couple hundred spectators on hand. The 2011 event was set up with a format that included speedway bikes, Mike O'Neill's 1949 Indian Arrows, and a 450 class with purse structure that was designed to get the attention of the top pro-riders in the country. It seemed that the cancellation of the Indy Mile and the purse that was paid to the 450 class got the attention of many of the top riders in the country as we had 39 entries in the class. The rider roster was impressive with 12 experts and 17 pro riders making the trip to Mid-America. There were a total of 183 entries in all of the classes with almost every class having multiple heats. The 450's had 6 heats with only the top two advancing. A rider had to win his semi to make the main. We are planning on running the event again next year but with a class structure that allows the program to be completed in no longer than three hours. There is one big question mark in that the 2012 MotoGP event has been moved up one week. This is the same weekend that the Peoria TT has run for the past three years. Once AMA Pro-Racing sets their schedule we will have the date for our Indy Mile weekend event.

Here is a link to Kurt Bauers article that was sent to Today's Cycle Coverage:

http://www.todayscyclecoverage.com/wordpress/2011/09/03/mees-wins-mid-america-flat-track/

Here is a link to photos from the event (listed aphabetically by photographer's name)

Jim Grant/JG Photowerx:

http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/18755822_z66q4R#1451638878_DsvtJm5

Kurt Bauer/ Dirt Bauer (3 albums):

http://www.dirtbauer.com/MidAmericaI/index.html

http://www.dirtbauer.com/MidAmericaII/index.html

http://www.dirtbauer.com/MidAmericaIII/index.html

Rusty Bauer/ Rusty's Shots in Action:

http://www.photoreflect.com/store/thumbpage.aspx?e=8187935

Updated start times

Through the end of the 2012 season, we are going to back up the start time for the riders meeting and practice by 30 minutes. Riders meeting will now be at 4:30 and practice will be at 5:00. Our spectator counts have been steadily increasing throughout the season and we received a lot of feedback when we moved the start of the heats up last week. We have found that it is easier to get the word out to the riders than it is to the spectators as the riders read these emails. With the cooler weather at least one and most likely two water breaks will be eliminated so the program will not end any later than usual.

Race for free

Through the end of the year, we are going to drop entry fees for the Dirt Diva class. The rules for the class are simple you must be a female aged 12 or older. You must be on an air-cooled motorcycle that is less than 200cc, and you do have to purchase a pit-pass. This class is designed to attract new riders so you cannot be entered in another class. It is a trophy class and trophy's will be awarded at a ratio of one trophy for every three riders.

Points series

Current points totals are on the website. As we stated over the winter you must have entered 51% of all races to be eligible for a year end award. There are four races left in the 2011 season so if you are below the 50% threshold you still have time to get above the 51%. Assuming that we don't have any rainouts for the rest of the year it is going to take six races to reach the 51% total. Standings are posted at:

http://midamspeedway.com/pages/results.htm

(7/4/11) Practice Day Added

We are having our regular Wednesday practice this week from 5-9. There will also be an open practice from 7p-11p on Saturday, July 9th. Anybody that is willing to come out from 5-7 on Saturday and help with some mowing, trimming and track prep can ride at no cost. We are going to set up some grills with complimentary burgers and hot dogs for everybody that makes it out. If you are planning on attending this Saturday, we would appreciate an email or text to 317.871.4392 so we have an idea of how much food to purchase.

Vintage Night July 16th

Our next race is July 16th when Mid-America pays tribute to the riders that have kept flattrack going for nearly 80+ years. In addition to the regular trophy/trophy buyback program Indy's Restaurant will throw in a $75 bonus to win the 50+ class, $50 bonus for second, and $25 to the oldest rider finishing 3rd through 16th. (Must take checkered flag to be eligible).

Times/Costs

Riders meeting is at 4:00, practice is at 4:30, and racing starts at 7:00. Pit passes are $10 for ages 10+, $5 for ages 5-9, and 4 and under are free. Entry fees for adult classes are $25, and youth classes are $20. Grandstand seating is $8 for ages 10+ $4 for ages 5-9 and free for 4 and under. Two adults and and all of the kids can get a "family pack" to the grandstands for $20.

Concessions

Ryan from "Taco's Without Borders" will be on hand for the July 16th race. He will start serving at 4:30pm. He sold over 40 pounds of chicken and beef at the last event and is planning on bringing even more food on July 16th.

(6/12/11)Thank you to everyone that came out on June 4th for the first event of the 2011 season. The event ran smoothly until the rains came after the 8th main event of the evening when the rains came. Racing returns to Mid-America this Saturday, June 18th. This is vet 30+ night with a $100 bonus being paid to the winner of the Vet 30+ class.

New start times!

Riders meeting will be at 4:00, practice will start at 4:30 and racing will start at 7:00. Please read below for more informatio regarding this time change.

One of the hardest tasks to complete at a dirt track is simply getting enough water down. It seems as though no matter how much water we put down for practice we still struggle to keep enough moisture in the track. For the months of June, July, and August we are going to move the riders meeting back to 4:00. Practice will start at 4:30 and end by 5:30. Racing will start at 7:00. We will water just before the start of practice so that the track has moisture in it at the start of practice. If you are at or near the beginning of the practice order, please be ready to go at 4:30. The additional time between practice and race time will allow us to get more water down before the start of the heats, and the later start time means that the sun will not be as hot compared to the 6:00 start time.

New Entrance

The Slammology car show is giong on at the fairgrounds on June 18th. For this event we are going to have to use Gate 5 as the main entrance will be blocked off. If you normally come to Mid-America using 465 or 74 to Southeastern Avenue to Troy Ave, go past the main entrance that we nomally use. When you get to the stop sign at Fisher Road, and turn left. Gate 5 is located just over a 1/4 mile down on the left. Once you enter the fairgrounds, follow the gravel drive to the T, and turn left go about 100' and turn right. This will bring you out on the road that leads to the pit entrance. If you come to the track from I-74 using the Wanamaker exit, Fisher road is the stop sign before you get to the main entrance. Simply turn right on Fisher Rd. and follow to gate 5 and follow the above directions.

Race Date added

July 23rd is our fourth annual fair race. We are making this a double header weekend with a race on Sunday, July 24th. Practice will start at 4:00, and racing at 6:00.

(5/26/11)The 2011 Mid-America Season kicks off on June 4th. Practice starts at 4:00 and racing starts promptly at 6:00. We are offering a $100 bonus to the winning bike owner in the 80-200cc youth class. Round two of the Mid-America points series takes place on June 18th. The winner of the Vet 30+ class will receive a $100 bonus on this night. The track is already in great shape considering the amount of rain that we have had. We have put a lot of effort into working on drainage so that in the event of a last minute storm we will not have water running across the track. The fair board has added asphalt millings to the access road into the track, and through about a third of the pit area. You will want to arrive early to get a prime parking spot off of the dirt. We also have a new food vendor this year. Ryan from Tacos without borders will be at our events. They have created about fifteen unique tacos from around the globe for you to sample, and will be rolling out new tacos periodically to keep things fresh. They offer a large variety of the worlds most popular foods and beverages for you to enjoy...inspired from the worlds most popular street foods!

We are always looking for ways to get more new riders involved. New for 2011 we are introducing the Borrowed Bike Class. The rules are pretty straightforward and are listed below.

Must be on a two wheeled motorcycle, no quads or speedway bikes.
The bike must be entered in another class.
The rider must borrow the bike from another entrant, but the rider in the Borrowed Bike class cannot be entered in any other class.
There will be a handicap start. Smaller bikes will start on the starting line, and big bikes will start some where between a ½ and 7/8 of a lap behind. All other bikes will start somewhere in between.
There will be three rounds to the series. Round 1 will be on July 23rd during the Marion County Fair, Round 2 will be September 10th and Round 3 will be October 29th.
If you ride in your Halloween costume during the October 29th event you will receive 5 bonus points.
Entry fee will be $15 of which $10 goes to the year end award. If there are 5 riders per event the winner would take home $150. (5 riders x 3 events x $10)
Riders will get a practice and a main event. (no heat race) the total number of entries is limited to 14, and no more than 6 riders per row.
Promoter reserves the right to adjust starting positions if a rider dominates a prior race.

We have always worked to make each event better than the previous one, but we need your help. When we prep the track on race day we apply water so that we can start practice at 4:00. We always start with quads, and then go to 450's and work down to the smaller bikes. With that said, we need everybody to be ready to practice at 4:00. When the track is watered and folks are not ready the track continues to dry. This leads to a drier track and requires us to take more water breaks which leads to a longer day for everybody. We have a new white board this year measuring approximately 4' tall by 7' long. The practice will be posted by 3:30, and the race order will be posted soon after signup closes. Please be ready to practice when your class is up.

Here is a link to our newest race flyer. Please feel free to print and share with friends. 2011 Mid-America Race Flyer

The New Year is upon us and the 2011 race season will be here before we know it. I have seen many of the regular Mid-America rider’s names in the results page of the various winter series that are going on, and we also saw several familiar faces at Cedar Lake’s Moto on Ice last weekend. If you have never ridden on ice it is a blast and you will be amazed at how fast you can enter a corner.

The 2011 schedule has been posted on our website. The first event will be on Saturday, June 4th. We always get asked about starting earlier in the season, but Indiana weather is just too unpredictable in May for us to start any earlier. The June 4th event is going to pay $100 to the winning bike owner in the 80-200 youth class. The winning rider will also receive the normal trophy/trophy buyback for winning the class. The person signing the winning rider’s release form will be considered the bike owner for the purpose of payout so that a rider’s amateur status is not jeopardized. We will race again on June 18th, and then we are going to offer some extra money to the riders in the 50+ Senior class on July 16th. In addition to the normal trophy/trophy buyback program, the winner of the class will receive $75, second place will receive $50, and the oldest rider finishing third through 16th will receive $25. Our fourth race of the season will be the fourth annual Marion County Fair race on July 23rd. In 2008 we put this race on for the first time, and Mid-America would not exist today had that race not been a success. We will be racing again on August 6th and August 13th. The biggest event of our 2011 season is going to be on Friday, August 26th. This is the night before the Indy Mile, and we are going to feature a 450 shootout with a purse that has already attracted the attention of some of the top pro riders in the country. We are also going to run the speedway bikes with 16 of the fastest speedway riders in the country, and a class similar to the old IROC series except in this case the riders will all be on identically prepared motorcycles. We then return to racing on Saturday nights with events schedule for September 10th and 24th, October 8th, and 22nd. The season finale will be on October 29th and this will be our second annual Halloween race. Last year’s race was a huge success and once again rider’s will be encouraged to dress up in their favorite costume.

Practice days will once again be held on Wednesday’s prior to non-race weekends. There will be some exceptions due to other activities occurring at the fairgrounds, but this format seemed to work fairly well last season. We will also have some Sunday practices throughout the year. These will be posted on our website as the season gets closer.

Scagg’s Design’s came up with some awesome Mid-America T-shirts. They can be purchased through our website and are normally mailed within 2-3 days. Shirts are $15 each, and shipping is $5 per order. We are currently out of adult medium and XL, but more will be ordered soon.

Anthony Barlow who is the promoter of the Extreme International Ice Series (www.xiir.com) has asked me to send a note out to let riders know that they are going to be running 450 flat-track bikes at their events in St. Charles, MO on January 22nd and in Danville, IL on February 25th. If you are interested in riding drop us a note and we can send more details. He will also have info on the XiiR website in the coming days.