Track Schedules

HAWKEYE DOWNS WALL OF FAME NIGHT- PRESENTED BY MILLER BEER- THIS FRIDAY
By Brad Grupe

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (June 8, 2011) - This Friday night, June 10 is the 10^th Annual Keith Fleck Memorial Wall of Fame Night at Hawkeye Downs Speedway. Five of the six divisions in the Papa John’s Cup/I-Wireless Championship Series will be in action with the Sunline Hornets taking the night off.

In addition, the ASA SCAG Power Equipment Midwest Truck Series will be on hand running the ‘Hawkeye 40’- A forty lap feature for the speedy trucks.

The Performance Concepts Late Models will also be running a special 50-lap race on the fast Hawkeye Downs half-mile.

The Innovative Signs Trophy Dash is also on the card with six drivers from the Legends division battling for six laps.

The Hawkeye Downs Wall of Fame Class of 2011 includes Les Burianek, Jim Gerber, Ron Hochstetler, Benny Jamison, John Mudd, Paul Newkirk, Charles “Chopper” Safley and Karl Sanger. They will be inducted during Intermission

The late Les Burianek of Marion, Iowa was a award-winning race photographer at the speedway in the 1950’s and 60’s and also penned a column, The Finish Line, for the Cedar Rapids Citizen-Times.

Jim Gerber of Davenport, Iowa the son of 2010 inductee Johnny Gerber, ran Jalopies and Stock Cars at Hawkeye Downs with great success in the 1950’s and 60’s.

Ron Hochstetler owns a towing service in Cedar Rapids and has provided tow trucks and safety equipment for Hawkeye Downs Speedway for over a decade.

Karl Sanger of Waterloo, Iowa was a consistent top-10 competitor in the Late Model division starting in the 1970’s and continuing into the early 80’s. Sanger posted numerous feature wins, competing against some of the best drivers in the Midwest during that time.

Benny Jamison was a successful racecar builder and owner for many years, having the likes of Roger Dolan and Bill Beckman behind the wheel of his race cars. 

The late Paul Newkirk of Cedar Rapids, Iowa was an accomplished Midget driver in the 1940’s and 50’s before a race-related accident cut short his driving career. He then became a nationally recognized mechanic for the Zebcol Lubaid Ford race team in the 1960’s, wrenching for legendary drivers such as Don White, Norm Nelson, Joe Leonard and Mario Andretti. 

Johnny Mudd of Cedar Rapids, Iowa was a model of consistency in the Sportsman division, regularly placing in the top five in the point standings and winning track titles in 1999 and 2003.

Charles “Chopper” Safley of Springville, Iowa competed at Hawkeye Downs Speedway starting in the late 1970’s in the Street Stock division when the Downs’ was a dirt surface and into the early 90’s in the Pro Stock class when it turned to asphalt. He was the Street Stock track champion in 1979 and 1980.

There will be a meet and greet with the new inductees as well as previous inductees under the main grandstand before the evening’s program.

Also during intermission, the Lil Racer Car Club will also have a Candy Dash on the front stretch.

Pre-race ceremonies including the Hanford Post #5 Color Guard kick off at 7:15 pm with the first green flag set to wave at 7:30pm.

Adult admission is still just $10, Senior Citizens (62+) are $7, Students over 12 are just $5, College Students are just $5 with a valid ID and Children 12 and Under are absolutely FREE!

The full schedule for the 2011 season is available on the Hawkeye Downs Website (http:www.hawkeyedownsspeedway.com).

Hawkeye Downs will again be using RainedOut.com in 2011 to notify fans of weather related announcements for the speedway.

Fans can also keep in touch by visiting the Hawkeye Downs Speedway and Expo Center facebook page.