New Sterling owners delight racers, crowds with upgrades at Cordova World Series of Drag Racing

CORDOVA – The 68th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts World Series of Drag Racing returned over the weekend with perfect weather, massive crowds, and a reunion for many of the racetrack pioneers who celebrated new ownership for the quarter-mile International Hot Rod Association member track a few miles north of Cordova.

Dan and Shelly Crownhart of Sterling and their racing enterprise, 1320 Promotions, bought the historic Cordova International Raceway in January from International Race Group, while Scott and Laura Gardner owned and operated Cordova Dragway Park from 1995-2014.

The Crownharts, Gardners, former announcer Tazz Hines, and Dawn Bartel, widow of Quad City Drag Strip founder Bob Bartel, reunited for the World Series, which brings in racing pros and spectators from across the country.

Friday featured a “Night of Thrills” with Top Fuel IHRA World Champion Bruce Litton vs. Marc White, plus nitro funny cars, jet funny cars and dragsters.

Saturday’s “Grandaddy of Them All” Pro-Finale featured NHRA top fuel racers, nitro funny cars, the world’s quickest nitro altered cars, and pro Mmods, jets, gassers, and exhibition stars. There also were high roller classes, nitro Harleys, and junior dragsters racing during the day on Saturday, while Sunday was all about the brackets.

The weekend races were one of the first to showcase the dragway’s 2022 upgrades, with hundreds of thousands of dollars invested under the Crownharts.

In July, the track underwent major surface renovations – the whole track was resurfaced with concrete and asphalt, in addition to adding surface concrete through the 1/8-mile mark. The extended shutdown area was repaved with asphalt, and two new green LED scoreboards were installed.

The upgrades, which make for a safer track for the racers, closed the track for nearly three weeks in July and August.

It’s the vibe and the culture of racing that brings so many back to the Cordova track each year. Campers and RVs are parked in the expansive acreage, while golf carts and motorbikes traverse the grounds. Food trucks, racing vendors, pro racing teams, and car haulers make it an exciting atmosphere for the spectators and racers.

The Gardners were on site for the weekend’s races, Scott as a race director and Laura at the gates, just like old times.

After selling the track in 2014, they started a racetrack consulting company and eventually helped Crownhart, who they’ve known since childhood, acquire the racetrack of his dreams.

As part of the package, they offered to help the facility “get on track” this first year.

“It’s just fun to be around racing and our old friends again,” Laura said.

Dawn Bartel was accompanied by her daughter and son-in-law Pam and Bob Bartel Green of Erie for Saturday’s races. She recalled the early days of the track, when it was an empty lot with “lots of sand,” where workers had to spray water and oil to knock the dust down.

“I spent a lot of time out here,” she said while looking around and smiling.

She briefly chatted with Jason Seeley, a second-generation top fuel racer who applauded the Crownharts for doing “great things already,” even tearing up the track midseason to make it the best it can be.

“It’s outdoor sporting so you carry the weather with it,” he said of the improvements. “We’ll just keep showing up.”

As Saturday’s race kicked off, the Crownhart family was introduced to the thousands of spectators along the track.

“This is a dream of mine, with a full crowd and my family behind me,” Dan said.

“We’re excited to be bringing it back to what it was and to see it grow. I love the sport, and I love the people.”

This year’s Hall of Fame inductees were journalist and “Voice of Cordova” for 20 years Bret Kepner, track pioneer Dick Nyrick, and “go-to guy” Dan Driscoll, Cordova’s race director, who’s worked at the track since 1968.

The honorary grand marshal was 9-year-old Jeg Weets of Morrison, who has a rare genetic condition called niemann pick type c, who had the crowd cheering while giving the “start your engines” call.

Jeg later joined Tazz Hines in the tower and told the crowd his favorite quotes from the movie “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.”

Hines was the track announcer for more than 20 years and was back in action to give color commentary for one last World Series. He thanked the Crownharts for saving the racetrack and the event, and “understanding what corporate did not.”

People of all ages filled the bleachers throughout the weekend to watch the heart-thumping races and take in the whole experience, from the raw power of the engines to the smell of nitro fuel. Jaydan Nance, 12, of Noblesville, Indiana was wide-eyed after the jet fuel cars, saying it was an intense but awesome show.