Montana Raceway Park is a motorsports facility located near Kalispell, Montana in the state's Flathead Valley region. It features a 1/4 mile-long high-banked oval track paved with asphalt. Seating at the facility accommodates 4,000 spectators and parking areas can stage more than 100 race teams.[1]
The racetrack opened on May 1, 1991, as Raceway Park. During its first year, the facility also carried the names Kalispell Raceway Park and Flathead Valley Raceway Park. Weekly auto races and specialty events are currently the main uses for the facility.[2]
Drivers from the northwestern United States and Canada travel to Montana Raceway Park for the annual Coors Light Montana 200, a racing event hosted by the racetrack each year since the track opened.[3] Typically, a field of approximately 40 drivers competes for the 24 positions available in the race, which has yielded more than $40,000 in prize money during past years.[4]
Other racing at the track includes the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West,[5] Canadian Super Truck Racing Series[6] and local divisions of Super Late Models, Super Stocks, Bomber, Cruzin Compacts, Hobby Stocks, Hornets, Legends, Thunder Roadsters, and Bandoleros.[2]
Beyond racing, the facility hosts other sports competitions and music performances. Foghat, Blue Öyster Cult, Eddie Money, and Alice Cooper have entertained crowds at the racetrack.[7]
Charlotte Motor Speedway and noted racetrack manager Humpy Wheeler presented their 2007 Promoter of the Year award to the staff and management of Montana Raceway Park.[8]