Quaker City Reborn!?!?

[map351]

NHRA has Quaker city is listed as a DIVISION 3 track !
http://www.nhra.com/tracks/division_3.asp

And this on IHRA site..
http://www.ihra.com/article/359.html

[Balaska347]

I heard that QCR was going NHRA well before I heard that they were auctioning everything off. I know some guys from QCR that said it is done.

[Bluemeanietsi]

Someone mentioned to me something about cracking down on the "street car" thing, making them drive up the road or something. Not sure how true that is but I thought that was interesting.

[Sonic03snake]

Very good news!!!!!

[Bluemeanietsi]

NHRA still lists 150mph the cutoff for a chute for 2007 right?

[Sonic03snake]

This right here is my new background!!!

[Killercanary]

Sorry for the confusion, but is QCR now Dragway 42, or is it vise versa?

[Balaska347]

QCR is quaker city raceway, which is different from dragway 42, but they are both located in Ohio.

[Twin01cobra]

Great news, now it looks like I'll be making my plans for the steel valley super nationals, great event and it's only like 35.00 for 3 days of TNT.

[burntire]

Funny the latest national dragster has the auction info listed.

[Martin0660]

This right here is my new background!!!

DO NOT get MAP started on Garlits pictures ;)

10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4,.........

Bob Myers

[venom]

http://www.auctionzip.com/Listings/251026.html

[u1arunit]

Still looks like a done deal for QCR to me. Auction on Feb 24th..

[Bluemeanietsi]

So who's frontin the mil to bid up on that bitch so we can have a private track?

[map351]

Today was D-Day for Quaker city! Here's what happened From Dan R.
Just returned from the auction. The race track in it's entireity did not sell. They sold individual parcels first, then hoping someone would buy the entire area for more than the total of the parcels. The opening bid was 1 Million for everything but the commercial buildings outside the fence. No one bid ! Auctioneer said he saw a couple of $100,000 deposit checks, but when it came time to bid they all kept their hands in their pockets.
It seemed like a lot of quiet confusion after they auctioned each parcel individually. There has to be more to this.
After no one bid for the entire area, they sold off the track equipment, quad, fire truck, 2500 Chevy 2500, tractors etc.
Prior to the property they auctioned off small stuff: tools, blowers, pictures, old trophies etc.
I left after the quad went for $900+. I'm sure someone knows more about this than I.
Who knows what happens now. The guy from the Super Nationals was handing out cards saying their event would definitely take place. That should be interesting if track is closed for regular events until their date.
Many people like myself at the auction, bracket guys wondering about the track future. Had to be embarrassing for the auction company and the quaker owner. He supposedly turned down a 1 million offer before the auction. Now he didn't even get that.

[u1arunit]

See it's meant to be to stay open. C'mon guys lets buy it!

[03 OW SVT]

If all of us on this site were to pitch-in and buy it we would only have to come up with around 2,500 apiece(for 1,000,000). We have close to 400 members on this site. Hell, we all spend close to that on new parts for our cars anyway some of us more than that. Wouldn't that be awesome.

[One Sweet Day]

That actually sounds like fun. A member owned track.....hmmm.....

[map351]

Just got this on BS-Gassers from Dan R.

No takers for Quaker City Raceway
by Newsroom
February 24, 2007 5:29 pm

SALEM — Quaker City Raceway might soon be under new ownership despite the fact that there were no takers during an auction at the Green Township drag strip.

Just hours after the auction today failed to generate an opening bid of at least $1 million, owner Daniel Swindell said he was negotiating with “a couple groups” who were interested in buying the property on West South Range Road, which actually is in Mahoning County.

He declined to name the potential buyers, and said he was not sure whether the track will be ready, or able, to open in April for the traditional start of the drag racing season. “We’re trying to work something out. That’s all I can say at this point,” Swindell said.

For the complete story, see Sunday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the full story from this morning:

Owner expects drag strip to sell soon

Some prospective buyers flashed big money but refused
to put it on the table.

By BOB JACKSON

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

SALEM — Quaker City Raceway might soon be under new
ownership despite the fact that there were no takers
during an auction at the Green Township drag strip.

Just hours after the auction Saturday failed to
generate an opening bid of at least $1 million, owner
Daniel Swindell said he was negotiating with "a couple
groups" who were interested in buying the property on
West South Range Road, which actually is in Mahoning
County. He declined to name the potential buyers and
said he was not sure whether the track will be ready,
or able, to open in April for the traditional start of
the drag-racing season.

"We're trying to work something out. That's all I can
say at this point," Swindell said.

Swindell said he bought the raceway in February 1999
and had some $3 million invested in the property and
upgrades. It had been for sale for several years with
no takers, so he had hoped to sell it at the auction.

The property was broken down into nine tracts, which
were offered for sale individually, in combinations
and as an entire parcel. The total of the high bids
for the individual tracts was just less than $640,000,
and there were no bids on the combined-tract options.

What was surprising

That didn't surprise auctioneer Lee Hostetter of
Beaver Falls, Pa., who said by far the most interest
expressed to him by possible buyers before the sale
was in keeping the property together and retaining the
racetrack.

That's why he said he was dumbfounded when it came
time to offer the entire 181-acre property for sale,
but no one among the hundreds of spectators and
potential buyers budged.

"He's got more than $3 million in this," Hostetter
told the crowd. "If you think [Swindell] is going to
give it to you for nothing, well he's not going to do
that."

Some in the crowd said they were reluctant to bid when
there was no guarantee the winning bid would be
accepted. Hostetter said Swindell would have had the
option of rejecting the high bid and refusing to sell
at that price.

"I don't know what the hell happened here today," a
frustrated Hostetter said after the unsuccessful
auction. "I don't know what happened to all those
people who came up to me and showed me their money
this morning."

Hostetter said a $100,000 down payment would have been
required from the successful high bidder immediately
after the sale had the entire property been sold.
Before the sale, four people approached him and showed
him that they'd brought that much with them and said
they intended to bid for the track. He said all of
them said they wanted to buy the whole thing, not just
part of it.

Offers rejected

He said people had called him last week from as far
away as New Jersey and Georgia, offering to pay $1
million for the property if he would take it off the
auction block and sell it to them. He passed those
offers along to Swindell, who rejected them and said
to continue with the auction.

Swindell said he wasn't surprised at the lack of
response when it came time for prospective buyers to
open their checkbooks.

"I kind of expected it. It's the nature of the beast,"
he said. "They were hoping I would just give it away."

Many in the crowd said they had either been spectators
or drivers at the track for years and had come out
Saturday simply to find out its fate.

Wayne Mros of Clinton, Pa., said he started racing a
1978 Chevrolet Camaro at Quaker City about five years
ago. "I had a lot of good times here," said Mros, 57.
"I just want to see it stay a racetrack. It's a shame
that might not happen."

Despite the uncertainty over Quaker City's ownership,
the Steel Valley Super Nationals still will be held
there this summer, said owner Brian Caiazza.

"We have a contract, and we'll be here," Caiazza said.
"Even if we're the only event here this summer, we'll
be here."

The event is scheduled for June 22-24. It had been
held for years at the Canfield Fairgrounds but moved
to Quaker City last year.

[Mater]

http://www.quakercityraceway.com/