Source: Jim Short
Date: 05/07/2008

INDUSTRY HILLS, California – Bruce Penhall was a major star during the golden age of Speedway Motorcycle racing, when there was action five nights a week at different tracks and sellout crowds were routine.

Now Penhall wants to play a part in the sport’s revival as one of the principals in Industry Speedway, which will open a 21-week season at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 7, at the Grand Arena at the Industry Hills Expo Center.

In February, Penhall and long-time friend and business associate Jeffrey Immediato purchased the assets of the American Speedway Coalition, including a Grand Arena lease that has been extended through 2014, and donned their promoter hats.

It’s a new role for Penhall, 50, who won two world individual championships and two U.S. titles on the methanol-powered, 500cc motorcycles before retiring in 1982 to pursue an acting career and other business interests, and he’s still adjusting to both his involvement and the differences in the sport today.

Immediato, who was an agent for both Penhall and the late Doug Domokos, revived a popular advertising slogan when he said “we are extremely confident that our group can make Speedway Motorcycle racing once again the ‘Only Reason for Wednesday Nights.’” But both he and Penhall know that it will take time and hard work to rebuild interest.

Speedway, which this week is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its debut in America, is a unique form of racing. The motorcycles have no brakes and only one gear and can reach speeds of about 80 miles per hour on a dirt oval track approximately 180 yards in length. A four-lap race can take less than a minute to complete, with the finishing order usually determined by the riders’ ability to control their motorcycles while sliding through the corners. Each rider will compete in five races, with the top scoring rider in a 3-2-1-0 point system taking the overall win.

“The crowd loves good, hard racing,” Penhall said, and that’s what Industry Speedway officials hope to provide while at the same time establishing a strong Junior program and developing mid-level riders to create a rider pool that will help offset the loss of many of the sport’s stars to England and Europe.

While Speedway has been in a period of decline in America it has retained a passionate fan base overseas, where there has been higher earnings potential for the riders.

Penhall said “we could spend hours” dissecting the reasons for speedway’s decline locally, but the result is obvious.

“I think Speedway is a great sport,” Penhall said. “It’s close by, there’s a lot of action, and if you have some good talent it will keep the spectators coming back. But we haven’t had a great amount of talent in Southern California in quite some time. As soon as they start getting good, off they go to Europe. We lose a lot of key players so we have to start over. It’s kind of a vicious cycle.

“The hardest thing right now is getting riders.”

Steps are being taken to remedy that problem, however. Immediato has initiated a sponsorship program in which venue sponsors also support at least one rider and the promoters have been working extremely hard on getting the riders to change old habits and register well advance of the event instead of on race night. Doing so will result in more publicity and exposure for both the riders and the racing program.

“There’s a lot of work that needs to be done,” Penhall said. But there is a plan in place.

The Grand Arena gates will open at 5:30 p.m. and racing will commence at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors, students and military, $5 for children 6-13.

Further information may be obtained by calling the Industry Speedway hotline at 949-640-0455 or by visiting the Internet web site at www.industryspeedway.com.

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