With reserved tickets from 43 different states and a crowd of 8,000 race fans, it is safe to say last weekend’s Prairie Dirt Classic was a success at Fairbury Speedway.
In fact, the entire community benefited from that success as visitors to Fairbury spent plenty of money locally while enjoying a long weekend nestled among the corn and soybean fields of Central Illinois.
“People came to Fairbury with their pockets full,” said Fairbury Speedway owner and promoter Matt Curl.
Just the revenue alone for 29 merchandise vendors at the track who sold t-shirts, food and other items was around $750,000. The 137 race teams tied the record for the number of PDC entries.
“To have that many people come from that far away is pretty neat to see,” added Curl.
Following a year off in 2020, many business owners and city officials saw how excited everyone was to once again have the event in Fairbury. Overflow camping and parking spilled out from the speedway to the school grounds and other properties in town.
“We had well over 500 campers in Fairbury this last weekend,” Curl explained. “When we opened the doors last Wednesday, they came in full force.”
Many homeowners opened up their yards for parking for the first time – especially along the streets of Pine, First, Second, Third and Fourth.
Plans are already underway for next year's Prairie Dirt Classic, says Curl.
