TRI-CITY SPEEDWAY SOLD!!!
by Brian Spaid

February 19, 2009

   FRANKLIN, PA …. After months of negotiation, Rimersburg, Pa., businessmen Mike Graham and Roger Crick completed the sale of Tri-City Speedway this week to H&H Motorsports, which is co-owned by Rich Hetrick of Oil City, Pa., and Roy Hill of Richmond, Va. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

   Hetrick, who owns Hetrick Racing, an ATV race shop located in Oil City, is excited about this new venture, and immediately announced that there will be no changes in the racing format at the half-mile Venango County dirt track in 2009.  Tri-City will continue to run weekly on Sunday nights featuring the DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds, FASTRAK Late Models, E Mods, Pro Stocks and Thundercars.

   “We are very excited about the 2009 racing season at Tri-City,” said Hetrick. “We will be running the same weekly classes as last year, but we will be adding some Super Sprint, Late Model and Mod Lite shows to our lineup. We have also received excellent responses from sponsors that have been with Tri-City in past years, and we are signing on new marketing partnerships. Roy and I want to take the area’s best race track to new heights.”

   Hetrick stated that the track’s 2009 schedule will be released in the near future, but he indicated that H&H Motorsports would like to open Tri-City in early April and race through early October.

   “We have a lot of different ideas and plans for this season, and we really want to give our fans and race teams more opportunities to compete and enjoy the racing at Tri-City. We will have a number of announcements about our plans in the coming weeks. The local support of this track is amazing. In fact, we cannot thank everyone enough for all of their support in our efforts so far.”

   As H&H Motorsports continues to make plans for the upcoming season, Hetrick is pleased with the fact that many of the track’s officials and employees are returning in 2009.

   “We look forward to working with a fine group of track officials and workers that have helped make Tri-City a success. All of them will help make this sale a smooth transition.”

   Although Hill has no previous race track experience, Hetrick was a prior owner of Fox Raceway, a motocross track in Marienville, Pa. During negotiations for the sale of Tri-City, rumors circulated among the track’s faithful fans that the oval track would be closed and an ATV motocross track would be installed in its place. Hetrick quickly dismissed those rumors.

   “Tri-City has a lot of history and a huge following. Roy and I do not want to destroy that. Mike and Roger made Tri-City into a fantastic race track, and we want to continue the oval track tradition. We will explore other avenues for racing opportunities in other areas on the facility in due time.”

   Hetrick and Hill will make their first public appearance as Tri-City’s new owners at the upcoming Cranberry Mall Show in Cranberry, Pa., which is scheduled March 5-8.

   “We hope to see everyone at the mall show,” said Hetrick. “Roy and I will be there to greet everyone and thank them for their continued support.”  

   With the sale, Graham and Crick ended their 13-year tenure as owners and promoters of the half-mile Venango County dirt track, which they reopened in 1996 after the track lay dormant since 1987.

    “Roger and I believe that Rich and Roy will be excellent owners,” said Graham. “Their preliminary plans are impressive and we wanted to sell Tri-City Speedway to them because we believe it is in good hands.”

    “We would also like to thank all of our neighbors, friends, employees, fans, sponsors, and competitors over the last 13 years,” added Crick. “Mike and I have met a lot of great people, and we will never forget them. One thing stands out. Despite any challenges or difficulties we faced, we knew we had a great group of people that would stand behind us and make every effort to make Tri-City the region’s top Sunday night race track.”

   For more information, please contact the new track office at (814) 676-3000. 

   Tri-City Speedway is owned and operated by H&H Motorsports promoting Sunday night racing at the popular facility in 2009. The DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds, FASTRAK Late Models, E Mods, Pro Stocks and Thundercars race each week at the Venango County half-mile dirt oval. Tri-City is located seven miles north of Franklin, Pa., off State Route 417.