MOORESVILLE, N.C. — In the busy world of motorsports, occasionally something happens that flies under your radar and is overlooked, or takes place without the fanfare that it deserves.
One such case of this occurred on the weekend of Sept. 29-Oct. 1 when the famed Rockford Speedway in Loves Park, Ill., ran its 58th and last National Short Track Championship.
The three-day, 12-division card saw 250 race cars battle on the famed quarter-mile, asphalt oval that is in the homestretch of its 76th and final season.
Two more events are scheduled at Rockford this fall, one on Oct. 21 and the Oct. 28 Last Lap Season Classic Finale, which will showcase six divisions of racing.
Industry veterans have grown accustomed to race tracks coming and going. It’s routine. But Rockford Speedway has never been a routine race track, and its departure from the midwestern racing scene is monumental, specifically for the generations of racers and fans who have called Rockford home over the years.
Rockford Speedway hosted its first event in 1948 with midget racing the primary attraction. Tony Bettenhausen won the inaugural championship there. The torch was passed to the roadsters and eventually to late model stock cars. Future Indianapolis 500 winner Jim Rathmann was Rockford’s hot rod champion in 1949 with another future 500 winner, Pat Flaherty, claiming the Rockford stock car title in 1950.
But the biggest happening in the history of the track came when Hugh and Jody Deery bought the facility in 1966 and began running it the following season. The Deerys created the National Short Track Championship and it became the signature event at a track with a loyal group of racers and fans. This event gave the locals a taste of the national scene.
Dick Trickle won the inaugural NSTC in 1966. Over the years, the list of race winners became a who’s-who of stock car drivers.
Joe Shear and Steve Carlson each won it eight times. Eddie Hoffman won it four times. Other winners included Rich Bickle, Mike Miller, Mark Martin, Jim Sauter, Scott Hansen, Butch Miller, Jeremy Lepak, Alex Prunty, Casey Johnson and Jeremy Miller, who became the 33rd different winner during the final running on Oct. 1.
Over the years, the Deerys changed with the times, implementing new rules and adding unique promotions, while also sticking with the tried and true.
When Hugh Deery died in 1984 at the age of 63, Jody continued to promote Rockford Speedway with the support and assistance of their eight children. While some of the Deery kids took what they learned and moved on to prominent roles with other tracks and racing series, a few have remained loyal to Rockford Speedway until the very end.
David Deery is the track’s general manager and Susan Deery is president of Rockford Speedway.
Following the pandemic in 2020, Jody Deery and her children began discussing a sale of the track and the property. Jody Deery died in 2022 at the age of 97.
That same year, the track had a gala celebration for its 75th season.
Then, in February, it was announced that the nearly 50-acre site had been transferred to HJS Development and would be developed commercially following one final season of racing. It wasn’t a surprise to most, as society moved closer and closer to the race track every year.
Sadly, it was time.
“This is a sad day for the racing community and our speedway family,” Susan Deery said at the time of the announcement. “Generations of families have been involved — racing, watching, working — and to see it come to an end breaks my heart. We are very proud of the contribution the speedway has made to the racing industry, as the starting spot for so many in racing and business, and the impact this place has had on the greater state line community, but it doesn’t take away the sadness.”
By all indications, the racers and the fans came out with overwhelming support of the National Short Track Championship.
Those of you who have never visited to Rockford Speedway have only two more chances to experience one of history’s great racing venues.
This story appeared in the Oct 11, 2023 edition of the SPEED SPORT Insider.
