Rice Lake Speedway Sold
By Ed Reichert
Rice Lake WI – On February 16th, 2024, pens were put to paper, the final documents were signed and the historic Rice Lake Speedway was officially sold. When the track opens for the 2024 racing season, it will be under the new ownership of Rice Lake Speedway L.L.C. comprised of Kolby Kiehl from Barron, Dean Kiehl from Cameron and Dick Kalow from Rice Lake. The previous ownership group of the Rice Lake Speedway, Adams-Hansen Inc., had purchased the track in the Spring of 2010 from Smith-Bisonette Inc. and had operated the track since that time.
The Kiehl’s have a locally based racing team and Kolby, 32, has raced for thirteen years in the Pure Stocks, Street Stock and Super Stock classes at tracks throughout WISSOTA while Kalow is the owner of Mastercraft Industries in Rice Lake.
Rice Lake Speedway LLC, as the new ownership group will be named, plans to continue Saturday night racing at the Rice Lake Speedway on a weekly basis and are already working to put a schedule in place for the upcoming season as well as proceed with a number of improvement projects at the track. A new track logo will be developed soon with a stronger social media presence being planned.
According to spokesman Kalow, “ I was introduced to the sport of dirt track racing by the Kiehl family and when I visited the track, I was struck by the broad appeal that the racing had to many different groups of people and I learned what a rich heritage that racing had in the Rice Lake community and throughout Barron County. When the track became available recently, I didn’t hesitate to join with the Kiehl’s to get involved more deeply.” The actual sale of the track happened in very rapid fashion, with much of that, according to Kalow, “because Dave and Mitch were very willing to work with us to ensure that racing would continue at the track.”
With the unseasonably warm weather and lack of snow, the new ownership group has already been working at the track to assess upcoming projects needing to be completed so that they can begin the season.
Not all projects will be able to be done right away but a schedule of improvements is already being planned out that will improve the racing experience for both fans and competitors. A thumb nail sketch of things already in the planning and development stage for the track will include a revamping of the concession stand, all new planks for grandstand seating, three hundred feet of new concrete retaining wall on the front chute, along with a new wheel fence, a new tech building to be located outside the track as the scales will be moved, a new sound system and new track lighting, a new pit grandstand and the facility will become fully digital with I-Pads and card machines for purchases. New equipment has already been purchased to prepare a better track surface for the racers and former co-owner Mitch Hansen has agreed to stay on to assist with track prep. A number of new employees have been hired for key positions at the track as while the track will retain many of the things fans have been accustomed to over the years, some new and exiting changes will also be part of the weekly show.
The Rice Lake Speedway Speed Pit Kart track was also a part of the sale but the new owners will continue to run that track too, with Jake Alton and Travis Busch being hired to run the progam at the Kart track. The Kart banquet and track banquet will be combined into one event in March.
“We are working on a number of projects but our first order of business is to make a visit to the track as pleasant as possible for the fans, whether they are veterans of the track or first time visitors,” according to Kalow.
A number of new promotional ideas are already being considered and the racing schedule for 2024 should look different in many ways while still retaining the tried and true fan and racer favorites. Expect the track to present more special events and double header weekend shows and bring in more varied types of racing and while booking all of these events may be hard to complete in time for the 2024 racing season , many new and exciting things are in the works ahead. Sprint Cars have already been scheduled for a show in 2024 and Late Models will also have at least one night of racing booked. Plans are being made to make the thirtieth annual Street Stock Little Dream race that best ever along with some other specials yet to be announced including a new, season ending event, The Dairyland Dash.
The Rice Lake Speedway LLC will continue to present five classes of WISSOTA racing on Saturday nights while also bringing in special events for Late Models, Sprint Cars and other various attractions.
More updates on the speedway and a race schedule for the 2024 season will be announced soon.
Adams-Hansen Inc. will host their final racing banquet on March 23rd at the Rice Lake Elks Club with more information expected soon on that event. The annual car show at Rice Lake’s Cedar Mall will be held on March 28-30 and the new owners of the speedway will be available at both events to meet the fans and drivers and provide more information on the upcoming racing season.
Anyone wishing to contact the new ownership group should e-mail them at ricelakespeedway@gmail.com. The track will soon have a new phone number that will also reach the new owners and that number will soon be published, at which time the owners request that is how they be contacted.
