Toledo Speedway

TOLEDO SPEEDWAY THROWBACK THURSDAY

A popular trend among social networking sites is Throwback Thursday, reminding us of some popular memory from the past. In recognition of Throwback Thursday, ToledoSpeedway.com will feature a “Blast From The Past” each week.

TOLEDO #1

Herb Koester, founder and then-owner of Monroe Asphalt Paving Company, takes a hands-on approach in the paving of Toledo Speedway in 1962. The track originated in the late 1950s as a small dirt go-kart track in a tomato field, then was paved. In 1960, Koester and associate Jim Bournes conceived the track’s current ½ mile length and Koester operated it as a dirt track for two seasons prior to paving in 1962. By 1964, John Marcum and his ARCA organization promoted races at Toledo and did so through the 1978 season. Thomas “Sonny” Adams bought the track from Koester and operated in from 1979 through 1998, when Roy Mott and Ron Drager acquired the facility from Adams and restored the ARCA identity which exists today.