Eastern Iowa Racetrack Offering Drive-In Viewing of This Weekend’s Races

If you're a racing fan who was concerned that you might not hear the roar of the engines in eastern Iowa this year, fear not. You'll hear them Sunday night at the Benton County Speedway in Vinton, while you watch the races in a different way.

Benton County Speedway announced on their website they'll be running six different classes Sunday night. The news came after the speedway heard from drivers from Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and even Oregon that were looking for a place to start their engines Sunday, May 24.

If you go to the races, your viewing experience will be much different, like so many things are these days. No one will be allowed into the grandstand. Instead, you can bring up to 10 people in a vehicle to watch the races on a portable jumbo screen and tune your FM radio to a set frequency to hear the play-by-play of the races.

Vehicles will be required to park six feet apart and you can view the races from in front of your vehicle, but everyone must stay a minimum of six feet away from other groups. The cost is $8 per person or $25 per vehicle. Remember, the maximum is ten people. Security will be enforcing all rules.

The schedule for Sunday night includes IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Stock Cars, IMCA SportMods, IMCA Hobby Stocks, Sport Compacts, and Micro Mod/Mini Late Models, according to the speedway. Gates will open at the Benton County Speedway Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. Hot laps begin at 4:30.

Kudos to this outside-the-box thinking by everyone at the Benton County Speedway. You can still see the racing action, hear the roar of the engines, and you might even smell some racing fumes.