MONROE — Evergreen Speedway is one of the many Snohomish County sporting institutions that is steeling itself for the brunt of the statewide ban on public gatherings.
The start of the racetrack’s 2020 season is being pushed back because of the ban, and Evergreen Speedway’s situation is illustrative of the challenges sports ventures — and their workers — face in the wake of sports being shut down across the country.
Evergreen Speedway was among the venues that heeded Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s call to prohibit public gatherings of more than 250 people in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus, announcing Wednesday it was canceling its March 28 season-opening races.
“We’re following all the Governors’ and the health department’s guidelines at this point,” track president Doug Hobbs said. “Several times a day we get updates from the county and the health department on what’s happening so we can communicate with our racers.
“But obviously safety is everybody’s concern. As much as it hurts, we don’t want to be part of the problem, we want to be part of the solution.”
The 2020 season is scheduled to bring some exciting additions to the Evergreen Speedway docket. The ARCA Menards Series West, a national stock car developmental series, is slated to come to the track on Aug. 8 in a race that will be broadcast on NBCSN. The Nitro Circus North America Tour, which features a host of motorcycle, BMX and other stunt riding, is scheduled for May 8.
In addition, this year’s Summer Showdown, the track’s premier event for Super Late Models, is set for July 24-25, which coincides with a two-week break in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track already announced Cup Series driver Ty Dillon as a Summer Showdown entrant.
But the ban, along with the uncertainty of how long it may last, could play havoc with the schedule.
“We sold more tickets to Nitro Circus than any of their other 13 North American stops,” Hobbs said. “It’s scheduled for May 8 and I hope it’s still on. I’m thinking any day it may be postponed or canceled. We’ve already come up with two dates for them in September should it be postponed.
“Right now we’re making contingency plans for if the ban lasts through April,” Hobbs added. “We’ll make up as many races as possible over the summer and add more events during the summer, and then we’ll carry that all into October.”
Championship Night #2, which is the final event for the track’s weekly classes, is scheduled for Sept. 19. The current final event of the year is Grassroots Drift Round #5, scheduled for Oct. 10.
The cancellation of opening night, and the likelihood of further cancellations, will have an effect on the financial bottom line, both for the track and its employees.
“Obviously it’s a financial hardship on any small business trying to pay bills,” Hobbs said. “And there are a lot of workers who count on these events. Even though a lot of our workers are seasonal, they have a lot of hours that are taken up by a lot of people. We have well over 200 part-time employees, and that’s a lot of hours on a Saturday and Sunday. When you cancel events it affects a lot of people financially, it affects the coffee stands, the food trucks, the food vendors, it’s a trickle-down effect. It’s not something that’s financially good for anyone, but I hope it settles down in the next few weeks, we can get back to a normal course of business and people don’t have to worry so much.”
But while any cancellations will cause financial pain, Hobbs understands their need.
“Our focus can’t be on the financials, but on the responsibility to do our part and make sure that we don’t help spread the disease, so that we get a check on it in the state,” Hobbs said. “Hopefully we get it stopped, or at least turned the other direction.”
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