Terry and Jenni Hoenig announced last night that they will not return as the promoters of the Lee County Speedway in Donnellson for 2012. The Hoenigs were young and excited when they took over the lease on the facility fourteen years ago and I have had the pleasure to get to know them very well during their tenure at the 3/8-mile D-shaped track nestled into the southeast corner of Iowa. To me they are still young and while the past couple of seasons have been a challenge for them, they have not lost that excitement about putting on the best show possible for the drivers and fans who support the facility.
Terry has taken a full-time position in the area as the comfort of a steady paycheck and a different type of daily challenges was just too much to pass up for this father of two lovely daughters who will now be able to see all of those dance recitals and softball games that he has had to miss fairly regularly in the past. On a much smaller scale I completely understand, as that was the reason why I stopped announcing races weekly leaving Knoxville in 1998.
I had the pleasure of getting to know these two working with them on Shiverfest each year and that partnership on one race a year grew into a full-time friendship very quickly. Terry and Jenni love racing, they love the fans and most of all they love the racers. After all, Terry was a racer himself having been a track champion in the Hobby Stock ranks while Jenni is the daughter of car owner Leonard Carlson who fielded a Pro Stock numbered 75 that several drivers drove to victory lane back in the 1980's and 90's. While many drivers feel that promoters are only in it for the money (a notion that is wrong 99% of the time), I am pretty confident that the drivers who made the effort to actually know Terry and Jenni would have never made that accusation of these two. Were they always right? Heck no, and they were humble enough to admit when they made a rare mistake and usually it was because they were asking me for advice! Thank goodness they were smart enough to not always follow it. They would always try to do what was best for all involved and unfortunately over the past few years, what was best for racing was not what was best for their family and being the truly good people that they are, they made the decision that was announced to all last night at the speedway.
So what now becomes of the Lee County Speedway? I believe that there are nine years remaining on the current lease held by the Hoenigs and while the weekly program here is not as vibrant as it was a few years ago, it is definitely not broken. There is a solid following of drivers, fans and sponsors who will no doubt be looking to support anybody who would want to step in, purchase the lease, and continue to hold weekly racing at this fine fairgrounds facility. Another possibility would be to see what we just witnessed up in Webster City this season where the fairboard steps in, hires a race director and either runs a weekly schedule or, in this case perhaps a "specials" schedule. Or this fine facility could sit idle until somebody else decides to step in. I'd hate to see that, but let's face it, the possibility is there.
Terry and Jenni, I know that I speak for many when I say "thank you" for all of the great nights of racing that you have brought to everybody in Donnellson, as racetrack promoters you will be sorely missed. Now, as a friend though, I look forward to having you hop in the car with me much more often to go enjoy the efforts of another of the many hard working promoters out there, wherever that track may be.
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