Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Permanent Autocross track to debut July 1
As of Wednesday, June 7, progress on the new Autocross track south of New Rockford was evident. In a few short weeks, the grounds should be filled with racers and spectators.
Autocross on Dirt is kicking off an exciting new chapter for racing in Eddy County.
On Saturday, July 1, drivers will hit the track as part of that weekend's 4th of July celebrations, and they won't just be racing on any temporary track carved into a farmer's field.
On 17th Street Northeast – not more than a mile west of Hwy. 281 – the New Rockford Car Club has leased a plot of land with plans to make it the permanent home of Autocross on Dirt.
Work began on the new track weeks ago, and Tanner Theis, a member of the New Rockford Car Club (NRCC), said transitioning away from a temporary track comes with numerous advantages.
For starters, it means not having to wait until fall to hold the event.
"How many [events] did we have where it was 42 degrees outside and rainy and crappy?" he said. "Now, if we have to cancel a race and reschedule for the next weekend, we can, whereas before we couldn't because there was a window to do it and that was it."
Since the first event in 2019, Autocross on Dirt has made a temporary track in a harvested field. Doing so limited them to one event per year, and also meant that track quality couldn't be optimized.
"We can do more prep now," said Tanner Theis. "We can get the ground firmed up. Before when you'd go out in the field you didn't know what's out there."
Brock Theis, also an NRCC member, added, "It could have been a dust bowl or a mud bowl. Now a guy can get it so the water drains and we don't have standing water, so we can have a nice race track."
With a permanent track, they can also operate earlier in the year, not to mention multiple times each year. In fact, there will likely be two Autocross on Dirt events this year, with even more possible in the future.
The track itself will be about a quarter-mile in length, and was described as a "road course track on dirt" by Brock Theis.
The July 1 event is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. and will have a $3,500 purse. Rules for entries, as well as any updated information, will be available at the "Autocross on Dirt New Rockford ND" Facebook page.
The Facebook page will also have updates regarding the "Smash Burgers" fundraiser, which takes place every other Wednesday at Buck-It's Bar in New Rockford. Money from the fundraiser is being put towards the new track.
Brock Theis also noted that they're always looking for volunteers to help prepare the new track for racing. They'll even accept volunteers on the day of the event.
Those interested can contact Brock at (701) 516-0791.
