BOONE, Iowa — The 41st annual Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s has experienced unprecedented growth in recent years with a record car count of 1,014 through Friday’s events at Boone Speedway.
During media interviews on Friday, it was learned that IMCA and Boone Speedway officials are exploring doubling up for the 2024 edition of the event with twin race tracks to accommodate the ever-increasing interest in the event, which is the largest grassroots dirt racing event in the world.
“IMCA is committed to the continued growth of our flagship event, the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s,” said Brett Root, IMCA President. “It’s no secret parking more than 1,000 race cars has its challenges, as does running the events in a timely fashion. Because of the rapid growth of the event, feedback from fans and competitors has led us to plan drastic improvements to the event and the property at Boone Speedway, beginning with the construction of Boone Speedway x2.
According to Root’s eventual admissions, “Boone x2” as it has been dubbed internally, would be an identical clone race track to the current Boone Speedway layout. Through the assistance of track partners Van Wall Equipment, the local John Deere dealer, the current Boone Speedway layout would be replicated through laser scanning and the latest artificial intelligence developments available to surveyors and construction crews.
Additional technological improvements to the property will also be undertaken as part of the project.
“We want to make sure this construction concept does not in any way impact the current racing we see at Boone during Super Nationals, as it’s easily the best anywhere in the world,” Root said. “In fact, we are painstakingly replicating every detail of the original Boone surface for Boone x2 and are putting measures in place to allow both tracks to run simultaneously in identical conditions.”
Root and the team at Boone envision a dual layout format where drivers will be called to either track from a common staging area. As races run, drivers will be directed to one of the two race tracks at the time they are called onto the surface for competition.
Fans will also have the option to watch either event by traversing a spectator tunnel between tracks in addition to a dual-sided grandstand which will sit between the dirt ovals and allow fans to easily transition from one track to another.
“For starters, we know racers will be concerned about track prep,” Root conceded to reporters late on Friday. “We are preparing to invest in more than 100 specially-designed hygrometers per race track, developed through Fisher Scientific to measure moisture levels in the soil around the facility. With the tracks being next to each other, sun, wind, humidity and other factors will be identical per race track, allowing us to use the hygrometer information to exactly replicate the track conditions from Boone 1 to Boone x2.”
For fans who enjoy the entire Super Nationals experience, a new grandstand structure will have a limited section of special VIP seating, with some seats outdoors and others inside an air-conditioned structure with full views of both race tracks.
“We do call this event ‘America’s Racin’ Vacation’ for a reason and we know folks do not want to miss any of the racing,” said Root when asked about the fan experience. “We will have that covered, literally. A covered fan zone will be constructed underneath and alongside the new grandstand structure to allow for redraws and other fan-oriented activities to be held across both tracks. Additionally, the pit areas will be connected via a lit and air-conditioned tunnel with vendors stationed inside.”
This year’s IMCA Super Nationals has posed challenges yet again on run-of-show matters, causing officials to push up the start time on Friday after finishing racing after 2 a.m. CT on Thursday.
The dual-track format would allow future growth of the event without added time restrictions.
“We have more than 10,000 IMCA members this year and that number is also continuing to grow, as are the number of tracks we sanction across the country. If we ever colonize Mars, we plan to be the first auto racing sanctioning body there, too. That’s how committed we are to building dirt-track racing. And our goal is to expand the IMCA Super Nationals to more than 2,000 entries, then 5,000, and even 10,000. If we ever were crazy enough to pull this off, it would be an epic accomplishment. But do you really, really think we would ever do it?” Root asked with a sly smile before leaving reporters to address sponsor and event obligations.
The Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s continues through Saturday night when championship dances take to the track in front of a jam-packed facility at Boone Speedway.
Watch it now, and tomorrow night on IMCA.tv, a SPEED SPORT TV affiliate.
Editor’s Note: This story is a production of IMCA and the Super Nationals production team and its satire was meant both for entertainment and to educate the world on the expansive growth of the annual event.