MERIDIAN, Idaho — The roar of finely tuned racing engines may seem out of place in the pastoral sounding Dairy Days, but there’s a reason why the Meridian Speedway is the center point of the event.
“Really this is the Meridian dairy grounds it’s not Meridian Speedway, Meridian Speedway just operates inside it.” said Adam Nelson, General Manager for Meridian Speedway.
Back in 1951 it seems a couple farmers had a need for speed, so they built a track.
“A couple old school guys going at it and then it just grew from there into what it is today so it’s really cool to see what it’s morphed into.” said Nelson.
“They raced on dirt back then and in the early 60s the track was paved and it just kept growing and growing.” adds Mike Murgoitio, a sprint car racer and Dairy Days board member.
And it turns out the track has a symbiotic relationship with Dairy Days.
“They’re out at the carnival and they come watch a car race and e eventually they go lets go next weekend too cause we race every Saturday night at the speedway,” said Nelson.
This year, the Speedway is holding a Friday night Dairy Days Demolition Derby for the first time in a decade and at last check, they were still looking for drivers.
But the thrills and spills at the Meridian Speedway have a big impact on Dairy Days and future farmers.
“Proceeds from what the dairy board makes off this goes back into donating to those kids and giving them a shot when they’re struggling to raise money to go to college. And this is a platform to help them do that which is really cool,” said Murgoitio.
Before the Demo Derby they’re also holding a special contest where drivers try to flip their cars as many times as possible by hitting a ramp with just two wheels and seeing how many flips they can make. Excitement abounds at Dairy Days.
