LEVITTOWN, Pa. — Langhorne (Pa.) Speedway and Trenton (N.J.) Speedway both played prominent roles in the history of the United States Auto Club before Langhorne closed in 1971 and Trenton staged its last race in 1980.
Many of the top drivers of the previous generation raced at both tracks, and in doing so etched their names in racing history.
Although those two tracks are no longer in existence, an accomplished driver from that area, Mike Haggenbottom of Levittown, Pa., will begin his second season of competition in USAC’s premier division, Silver Crown champ cars, March 22-23.
“I live three miles from where Langhorne Speedway used to be, and about eight miles from where Trenton was,” said Haggenbottom from his race car shop in Levittown, which is in Bucks County, Pa., within the Philadelphia metro area. “I was just a baby when Langhorne was running its last races, but I went to Trenton Speedway a few times growing up.”
Although Haggenbottom never raced at either of those storied tracks, he has competed at many others throughout his diverse career. He started in quarter midgets at the age of 5. He also ran go-karts and then proceeded to dirt modifieds, micro sprints, winged and non-wing sprint cars, asphalt modifieds and even ARCA stock cars before he drove in his first USAC Silver Crown race in 2018.
He started eight of the 10 USAC Silver Crown events last year and finished a respectable 11th in the championship even though six of the eight tracks he competed on were ones he’d never driven at previously. The series, which is contested on an even mix of paved and dirt tracks to test teams and drivers’ versatility, averaged 27 cars per race last season.
“I ran an ARCA stock car at Springfield and Du Quoin, but all the other tracks were new to me last year,” explained Haggenbottom, who finished third in the Rookie of the Year standings. “I never even tested a USAC Silver Crown car before last year.”
His run in last August’s 100-mile Ted Horn 100 at the DuQuoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds was impressive, as he finished 11th after starting 25th, earning the KSE Racing Products Hard Charger award for that event. He won a qualifying race at DuQuoin too.
The experience Haggenbottom gained last year should help him a great deal this season. There are 12 events on the 2019 USAC Silver Crown schedule, but this time around only two will be brand new to him: Memphis Int’l Raceway in Millington, Tenn., which will host the season opener March 22-23, and the third race on the schedule, Toledo (Ohio) Speedway on April 27.
“Technically I didn’t run at Lucas Oil Raceway last year either; I did a ‘start-and-park’ there because we just had a dirt car there,” he added of that asphalt oval in Clermont, Ind.
Competing in the series requires a great deal of highway driving for the Haggenbottom crew. Although it’s a national championship, seven of the 12 events will be held in Illinois or USAC’s home state, Indiana.
There are three events this year that Haggenbottom is especially looking forward to: the Illinois State Fairgrounds Aug. 17 and DuQuoin Sept. 1, since he had his best finishes at those tracks last year, and the series’ return to Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. on June 14.
“We’re going to have a new motor for our dirt car this year, and they’re just fun tracks to drive,” he said.
“Williams Grove is going to be like a home track for us; I’ve run there about a dozen times,” noted Haggenbottom, the 2001 URC sprint car champion. Surprisingly, the first race he ever ran at Williams Grove was a USAC sprint car race in 1996 when Billy Pauch defeated USAC’s best.
“I don’t think I’ve run any 410 sprint cars there; just 360s,” added Haggenbottom, who is a five-time Tri-State Race Savers 305 sprint car champion from 2012 through 2016.
What made Haggenbottom decide to tackle USAC’s premier division?
“It’s something we’ve always wanted to do, and at this point in my career it was time to try,” said Haggenbottom, who is 49 and makes his living as the owner of a landscaping company based in Levittown. “Our goal this year is to try to make all the races and try to get top-10 finishes. We’re still learning the pavement set-ups; that’s all new to us still, but we like the challenge.”