The first thing you need to rebuild a race track is the right equipment. Limed up and ready to go Friday night we had Empty Jug Racing's old reliable Galion Grader, a John Deere 450 dozer provided by G & G Stone and Ralph Davis, and a vibratory roller from Bill Case Excavating of Welcome Lake.

Once you have the equipment you need operators.  This year we were fortunate enough to have the services of one of the best dozer guys in the business.  Dennis Eckhart drove up to the Jug from his home in Bethlehem township to volunteer his talents for the day.  We've had dozers work on the track before, and the operators did a good job, but this time we learned what a real pro can do.  I don't think we spent a total of five minutes telling Dennis what we wanted done.  Basically it was to push the dirt that had washed into the infield back onto the track and use it to add 5 degrees more banking to the exit of turn 2.  Re-grade turns three and four so the water runs off completely into the infield. Widen the inside edge at the exit of turn 4 and shape the bank there so when a car spins into it it doesn't hang up. Re-grade the inside edge all the way around turns 1 and 2 both for drainage and a smoother apex.  Create a gentle swale that will divert water coming down the hill toward turn 4 out around the edge of the track. Build a road along the outside of the back stretch so cars going over the bank can get back into the race.  Dennis said "OK" and finished about 2:00p.

Working on turns 3 and 4 - In this photo the dozer is heading down hill, away from 4 into 3, opposite of the race direction. The trees on the outside of this turn look menacing, but in reality they are a full ten feet off the track.

Dennis seems to have a way of making dirt appear out of thin air wherever he needs it.

The new inside line of turn 4 - before it was rolled.  Many an exhaust system and oil pan have been lost to the sharp bank and rocks that used to make up this edge of the track.  The six feet of additional width should make for some great last second moves to the finish line which is right at the Jug cabin. I think we can get through this three wide if we have to, don't you?

Another area of improvement off the track was the clean up of "Smith Street".  Many of us have dropped our racecar over the bank along the back straight.  This can be a scary experience because it's a six foot drop down a very rocky and steep bank into a thicket of bay berry bushes with a few boulders hiding here and there.  Once you were in there, getting out meant being dragged back up the bank by a tow truck at the extreme detriment of your undercarriage.  Thanks to Dennis the bushes and boulders are gone and you can now drive out of Smith Street and reenter the track at turn 3.

While Dennis, Wayne and Ed rode around on the equipment, Rob and I struggled with rakes and shovels to redo the track out road.  (Well we did use the grader a little to get started). Did I mention that the May flies were absolutely brutal that day?

As I said the work was all done by around 2:00p, so it took a little less than eight hours to completely refresh and improve the track for this year's Empty Jug Racing Season.  No one was injured beyond a few bug bites, no equipment was broken, and a cold beer (or several) was enjoyed by everyone at the end of the day.  (photos of the completed track). HOME