Derek Mages, Brian Mages and their cousin Austin Mefford grew up in a racing family. They watched racing as children and always looked forward to the day they could do it together themselves.
On Saturday, the newly opened Cincy Speedway at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds, finally gave them the chance to do so.
"Ever since I’ve been a little kid we never really had this. We had tracks, but nothing like this and (nothing) this close because everything was always out in Indiana or way down in Kentucky," Mefford said. "It’s just real prideful and real big to bring it back to our hometown and have it in our backyard. It’s awesome.”
Cincy Speedway hosted its second race night on July 10. It brought together 77 racers who totaled to 121 different class entries.
Derek Mages competed in the tracks first race night on June 12, which inspired Mefford and Brian to enroll in Saturday night's event.
“I came out to the first one and I saw how it was put together. These guys do a great job here and I was really excited so I decided to get a bike from my cousin and I came out," Brian said. "It’s a whole family ordeal and it’s cool that Cincinnati brought it back.”
The family-friendly atmosphere is exactly the vision Cincy Speedway President Jason Spurrier had in mind when he opened the track.
“I personally have a couple special needs children and I can’t take them just anywhere," Spurrier said. "Lawrenceburg Motorcycle Speedway, which pretty much everybody here is from, has a huge family atmosphere. It’s one of the few tracks I can take my kids to and race. We wanted to be able to do the same thing here."
After other tracks in the area suffered shut downs, Spurrier took advantage of the open Saturday-night racing slot.
Cincy Speedway is open to racers of all ages and levels in motorcycle or go kart flat-track racing. On Saturday, the pit area was filled with trucks, tents and families celebrating the event. Cincy Speedway has welcomed racers as young as four-years-old.
“I think it’s absolutely awesome that we’re getting a chance to race this close to Cincinnati," Derek Mages said. "It’s a really good thing for the community I think just because this is a lot of people that you wouldn’t otherwise be around. It brings a lot of random people together.”
Tyler Shepard of Middletown, Ohio rides motorcycles in entertainment shows and came out to Cincy Speedway to race for fun. He said after seeing how the event ran on its opening night in June, him and his family invited the whole neighborhood to join them for the second night.
“It’s a big deal so you have all the kids, they go to school together, they’re all classmates and then they come out and ride and do something that’s productive and get’s their heads out of video games and phones," Shepard said.
Experienced racers come too. Trevor Brunner is a professional racer signed with Honda. Brunner has raced all over the country, but Cincy Speedway gives him the opportunity to return close to home and meet up with old friends.
“There are a lot of familiar faces and not a lot of people that you get to see on the road and in different states," Brunner said. "You get to see a lot of familiar faces that you grew up with in your hometown so that’s great.”
Cincy Speedway will host eight race nights throughout the summer. With two of those nights already complete, Spurrier said the turnout has been "two to three times" what him and his crew expected.
"The first night was phenomenal and we’re only hoping to build from there," Spurrier said.
The next race night at Cincy Speedway is July 31.
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