Wall Stadium is Back!

by Jeff Gravatt
WALL TOWNSHIP, N.J. -- Speedway promoter Jim Morton has announced that he plans to have his third-mile paved oval return to its glory days during the 2009 season. One of the first steps in that direction, according to Morton, is to officially change the name of the famous track back to Wall Stadium.

The stock car racing track, built by the Nicol family and originally opened in 1950, carried that moniker through 2001 when it was sold to an ownership group. After a name change the speedway suffered through some turbulent times during the following seasons and sat idle in 2008 before Morton opened the track of an overwhelmingly successful Turkey Derby last November. On the strength of that successful event, Morton has arranged to lease the facility and present a 2009 season.

Morton feels that changing the name back to Wall Stadium will show his dedication to the project and instill confidence in the fans and the racers about the future of the facility.

“For over 50 years Wall Stadium was a successful and stable track in the world of short track racing,” Morton said. “In addition, regardless of the name change, almost everyone knows the speedway at the Jersey Shore as Wall Stadium.

“We are doing a lot of new things to make it better for the racers and fans, but we are also falling back on many of the tried and true things that the Nicol family did to make their track a respected and stable one. We’ve also brought back several of the people who helped make Wall Stadium a great place to race.

“Looking back, many people have commented how proud they were to be associated with Wall Stadium. We want to make them feel that way again.”

On track action on the third mile high banked paved oval continues this Saturday with a practice session from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Practice sessions continue each Saturday until the April 18 season opener.

That opening night event for the 2009 season is set for Saturday, April 18. On the agenda will be a special 100-lap Championship Race for the Wall/SK Modifieds. Also on that agenda will be the Sportsman racers, Street Stocks, Legend Cars and the Flanagan Retail Development Factory Stocks. Next up will be racing events on May 9 and May 23 before several racing events are presented on Saturday nights during the summer months. The annual Turkey Derby caps off the season in November.

In addition to the auto racing events, Promoter Jim Morton is currently working with various promoters in an effort to bring other “family friendly” shows and events to the Wall Township stadium this season. Details will be announced soon.

Wall Township Speedway is located on Route 34 in Wall Township, N.J., just one mile north of Garden State Parkway exit 98 and Interstate 195 exit 35B. The speedway office is open from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and all day Saturday during events. The speedway hotline number is 732-681-6400, while more information is also available at www.wallspeedway.com.