XENIA, Ohio — The International Hot Rod Ass’n’s purchase of Kil-Kare Raceway has become final.
It is a multi-purpose facility with rich history for both the drag strip and oval track. The drag strip boasts a strong IHRA Summit SuperSeries program and even hosted an IHRA Sportsman Spectacular in 2024.
There’s a long tradition of racing at the venue 13 miles east of Dayton, Ohio. Built by the Marshall Brothers, the oval was first opened with a one-fifth-mile dirt track in 1951. After one race kicking up a dust storm, the track was paved with a full season of racing in 1952 and reconfigured to a three-eighths-mile oval in 1955.
The quarter-mile dragway opened in 1959, which made Kil-Kare a premier facility for both stock car and drag racing.
There’s even racing for quarter midgets, the small cars where drivers like Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart cut their teeth, much like the Junior Dragsters for drag racers. Drifting is also popular at the Ohio venue.
If you talk about big names, Kil-Kare has hosted some of the most prominent in the sport at both tracks. “Big Daddy” Don Garlits, Shirley Muldowney, “TV Tommy” Ivo and Bob Glidden are amongst the stars to make passes down the drag strip.
On the oval, the legendary A.J. Foyt scored a USAC Midget win at Kil-Kare in 1957. Three-time NASCAR champion Darrell Waltrip later competed on the oval in stock cars, as did another NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Labonte, who finished second in a Pro Late Model race at the track in 2021.
Recent improvements to the drag strip have included an all-concrete racing surface with concrete walls, Accutime timing system, bigger staging lanes, restroom facilities, and concession stands featuring the popular brick oven pizza.
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