Coles County Speedway is a ⅛-mile banked dirt oval which is located six miles east of Mattoon, Illinois. The track first opened in 1956 and has been open since then, and has undergone massive changes. Even though the track only averages no more than forty-five cars per week, this track has a unique history which is very important.
History
Coles County Speedway is one of the oldest operable micro sprint tracks in the United States. The track was constructed in 1960 by the Coles County Modified Midget Association (CCMMA), which is the oldest modified midget racing association in the country. The CCMMA has run on temporary tracks west and east of Charleston on Illinois Routes 316 and 16 since 1956. The initial CCMMA Board Officers were; Bill Fuqua, Sr., Dwight Kingery, Cliff Prince, Bill McMahon, Dean & Paul Sanford, and Everett Horn. Between 1964 and 1984, the track was asphalt and then was converted to dirt in 1985.
My first impressions
Impressions were good, at first. When pulling into the facility, it had a backyard feel to it. When I say backyard feeling, I mean that in a literal sense. Which gave the whole facility a whole different vibe. The facility was very small; which is not a bad thing at all, it was probably just me since I am used to medium to large facilities. The staff was very welcoming and was always happy to answer any questions I had about the track.
Things I like/dislike
There's not much to this list but here are my dislikes and likes about Coles County Speedway. One of the things I like is that there are picnic tables around the concession stands, to which people can wait on the food they order and eat said food. With other tracks I’ve been to, they don’t have that. Another like is they have a whole wall of memorabilia from the past. One thing that comes to mind is a photo of when the track was asphalt in 1982, then a photo of a year after the track's surface was converted to dirt in 1986. In terms of dislikes, I have none.
Racing
This track only races micros and jr sprints and is working on getting Modlites to race. The racing was great. The track was dusty, the track was well watered, and they didn’t overwater the track, it was just right. I was not able to judge how quickly they respond in an emergency situation (I.e a flip during a race), but I was told they are really quick. You can watch DRN’s official video on Coles County on the video link below!
Official DRN Rating
On a scale of 1-10, I rate Coles County Speedway a solid 9.5/10. This is because the racing was excellent, and the history was an amazing thing to learn. Why is it a 9.5? What deducts half a point is the fact that the facility was small. Not much of a reason to deduct half a point, but I know that they have to work with what they have. Other than that, I will definitely be going back when I can.
Written by Dylan L Ellis, DRN.
Comments