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Cow pasture was built for speed
By KEVIN KELLY
© St. Petersburg Times, published October 12, 2000
[Times photo: Amber Tenille Woolfolk]
Coming to the Sunshine Speedway on Saturday nights is a tradition for many folks. As a Mini Stock race rounds the bend, Jeremy and Amanda Chiger enjoy the moment.
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Leo Musgrave, a local dairy farmer and auto racing enthusiast, began building the facility in 1959 on 40 acres of his property at a cost of $250,000.
The speedway opened in January 1960. The quarter-mile oval was billed as the fastest in the state, with bleachers that could seat 4,200 fans.
Musgrave died in 1983, but the track is still owned by his wife, Sibyl. The couple's daughter and son-in-law, Bonnie and Frank Hill, now operate the facility.
"We try to provide a family atmosphere for all ages, from children up to grandmothers and grandfathers," Frank Hill said. "We want it to be good, clean fun even though racing is competitive and tempers flare sometimes."
Over the years NASCAR drivers Davey and Bobby Allison, as well as three-time Winston Cup champion Darrell Waltrip and drivers Jimmy Spencer, Dick Trickle and Joe Nemechek, have all raced or visited Sunshine Speedway.
Today, local drivers such as Sam Coghill, Art Calkins, Jay Zolciak, John Makula and Roger Stull are the big names.
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Making Tracks
Racing fans make their weekly pilgrimage to Sunshine Speedway where, around every bend, there's a wreck just waiting to happen. |
While crowds of roughly 2,500 fans routinely come out Saturday nights during the season, the track's future remains in question. The state Department of Transportation wants to buy part of the speedway's property and run a road through it to help ease east-west traffic in Pinellas County.
"I would say, at the fastest pace, that would probably be three to four years away," Frank Hill said.
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