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We race in honor of our friend Mr. Will
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We race in honor of our friend Mr. Will |
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Thunder Valley History Located in the beautiful Laurel Highlands of Somerset County Pennsylvania, Thunder Valley Raceway opened up in spring 1997. The track was the dream and creation of Willie and Deanna Will and their family. During the summer of 1996 plans were made by the Wills to create a first class racing facility on the family property in Central City. With the opening of the track the following spring it immediately received a tremendous amount of support from fans, drivers, and sponsors; Thunder Valley instantly became one of the regions premier dirt tracks. The first night of racing at the new facility was Saturday, June 7, 1997. A capacity crowd of fans and competitors saw Jack Pencil narrowly beat out Scott Haus to win the tracks first Late Model feature. First season champions included Late Model standout Scott Haus, Eric Zembower in the Semi- Lates with Eric Corella and Jeremy Fama claiming the Street and Hobby Stock Championships. For the Will family the inaugural season in 1997 was nothing short of spectacular. Nearly every Saturday fans were greeted with beautiful weather to go along with the exciting action on the track Successful racers at the speedway in the late 1990’s included Todd Andrews, Robby Garlock, Randy Kimmel, Tom Myers, Scott Rhodes, and Bob Salathe. The 2001 season championship was claimed by Scott Rhodes, who would go on to record six consecutive titles. Rhodes would go on to become the tracks leading feature winner during that span. The 2002 season featured the largest event in the short history of the speedway, a $12,000 to win 100 lap show on July 5-6. Local star Scott Haus managed to hold off the stars of the Renegade series to claim one of the biggest wins of his career. Later that year another local star, Tom Myers again beat the Renegade racers on August 10th claiming $7000 for his efforts. The World of Outlaws made an appearance in their inaugural season for the annual July 4th special in 2004. Tour driver Dale McDowell claimed the $10,000 payday in that event. At the end of the 2004 season the Wills decided to close the speedway, citing heath and family concerns. The speedway sat idle through 2005, and its future appeared uncertain. In January 2006, former Bedford Speedway Promoter Joe Padula announced that he would be reopening the facility, after reaching an agreement to lease it from the Will family. The first season of the Joe Padula era brought excitement back to the Central City speedway. Highlights included local star Scott Rhodes notching his 100th career victory in June. Champions of the reopened speedway included Rhodes, Shawn McGarvey, Matt Hayman, Tom Warren and Chris Booher. Although Late Model competition was tough in 2007, with eight drivers claiming wins in 16 events, Rhodes managed to claim a sixth consecutive Thunder Valley title. The 2008 season started on a sad note, with speedway patriarch Willie Will passing away in March. Mr. Will, respected and praised by all who knew him guided the speedway throughout its history. His passing was a tremendous loss to the Thunder Valley family. The entire 2008 season was dedicated to Mr. Will, with the July 4th special becoming the Willie Will Memorial event. Steve Everhart claimed the victory that night on his way to becoming track champion. Entering its twelfth year of operations, Thunder Valley continues to be operated by Joe Padula and his team. The track will continue to deliver fun Saturday night excitement.
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