Willamette Speedway

10/16/2026

SIM NOW IS COMING TO TRACK-OR-TREAT!!

Get ready for some high-speed Halloween fun!

SIM NOW, Salem's Newest Racing Experience, will be joining us at Willamette Speedway's Track-OR-Treat on October 31st!

And here's the exciting part...

They're planning on bringing some of their RACING SIMULATORS so you can experience the thrill of getting behind the wheel!

Racing excitement meets Halloween thrills! Bring the whole family, enjoy the spooky fun, and come see what SIM NOW is all about!

October 31st — Willamette Speedway, Lebanon, Oregon!

10/15/2026

10/15/2026

What a great place! Sim Now is a must do! Check it out!
3790 Silverton Rd NE Salem with a second location opening VERY SOON in South Salem.

10/15/2026

We have been invited as guests on Dirt Talk on Dirt Track Rendgades page with Host Vahn Stone at 6:00. We're currently sitting in the studio waiting to fire the engine and go live.

Tonight's discussion includes:
•2026 Willamette Speedway recap
•NASCAR Transition
•2027 preview
•More!

10/13/2026

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2026
5:30 PM to 9:00 PM
WILLAMETTE SPEEDWAY
LEBANON, OREGON

FREE ADMISSION ALL AGES WELCOME PLENTY OF PARKING!

Something wicked is coming to Lebanon this Halloween…
and it's bringing enough candy to wake the dead!

As darkness falls on October 31st, the driveway of Willamette Speedway will come alive with ghosts, goblins, witches, skeletons, creepy creatures, and all sorts of things that go bump in the night! We're transforming the speedway's driveway into a hauntingly fun Halloween celebration, and we're inviting EVERYONE to come experience TRACK-OR-TREAT!

But don't worry! While you might encounter a few creepy characters lurking around the corner, this is one Halloween celebration where everyone is welcome! We're bringing together families, friends, neighbors, local businesses, and Halloween enthusiasts for an evening filled with candy, costumes, laughter, and just the right amount of fright! From the tiniest trick-or-treaters to the biggest Halloween fanatics, we want to see EVERYBODY getting into the spirit!

WHEN THE SUN GOES DOWN…
THINGS ARE GOING TO GET A LITTLE MORE INTERESTING!
The evening will begin with plenty of family-friendly trick-or-treating, giving our younger ghosts and goblins a chance to fill their candy buckets and enjoy the Halloween festivities. But as darkness creeps across the speedway, the shadows will grow longer, the atmosphere will get eerier!

CALLING ALL TRUNK-OR-TREATERS...
WE NEED YOUR HELP TO BRING THIS MONSTER TO LIFE!
Got a vehicle? Got some candy? Got a twisted imagination and a love for Halloween? THEN WE WANT YOU! We're inviting individuals, families, car clubs, community organizations, and anyone with a little Halloween spirit to decorate their trunks and join us along the driveway! Whether you create a haunted graveyard, a creepy laboratory, a pumpkin patch, a monster's hideout, or something completely outrageous, this is your opportunity to show off your creativity and help give our community an unforgettable Halloween night. Cute, creepy, funny, frightening...bring it all!

The more participants we have, the more incredible this event will become!

ATTENTION LOCAL BUSINESSES...
We're putting out the call to businesses throughout Lebanon, Albany, Sweet Home, and surrounding communities to come be part of the excitement! Bring your employees, decorate a company vehicle, create a spooky display, and help us hand out candy to the hundreds of little monsters we're hoping to welcome. What better way to promote your business than by becoming part of a community Halloween celebration? Show everyone your fun side, meet local families, and help create memories that will last long after the last jack-o'-lantern goes dark. Whether you want to participate with a decorated trunk, donate candy, provide decorations, or help support the festivities, we'd love to have you involved!

WE'RE STILL LOOKING FOR SOME REAL CHARACTERS!
Do you have what it takes to become a creature of the night? We're looking for Halloween enthusiasts, volunteers, costume lovers, and potential scare actors who want to help bring our spooky little world to life! Maybe you're a wandering zombie, a wicked witch, a mischievous goblin, a creepy clown, or a ghost who simply refuses to stay in the grave. Whatever your Halloween personality, we want to hear from you! Help us create an atmosphere that's part Halloween party, part haunted adventure, and completely unforgettable!

PARENTS, WE HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN ABOUT YOU!
We understand that families need time to get home, get the kids dressed, gather their costumes, and head out for the evening. That's why we're planning Track-or-Treat from 5:30 PM until 9:00 PM! There's no need to rush straight from work or worry about missing all the fun because the festivities will take place right in the driveway of Willamette Speedway, we'll have plenty of parking available for visitors! Bring the whole family and enjoy the Halloween atmosphere together.

THIS ISN'T JUST ABOUT HANDING OUT CANDY, IT'S ABOUT BRINGING OUR COMMUNITIES TOGETHER!

We want to see the driveway filled with glowing pumpkins, decorated vehicles, costumes of every kind, excited children, laughing parents, and teenagers enjoying a little Halloween mischief. We want the businesses that support our communities to stand alongside the families who call this area home. We want the kind of atmosphere where you hear a scream around one corner, laughter around the next, and somebody shouting, "LOOK HOW MUCH CANDY I GOT!" before disappearing into the crowd of trick-or-treaters.

Most importantly, we want everyone to feel welcome. You don't have to be a race fan, you don't need to know anything about racing, and you certainly don't have to be a kid to enjoy Halloween! This is a community event for EVERYBODY! If you love costumes, candy, spooky decorations, creepy characters, or simply spending a fun evening with friends and family, then Willamette Speedway is where you need to be!

SO HERE'S YOUR WARNING, LEBANON…
On October 31st, the dead may rise, the goblins may escape, the witches may take flight, and the monsters may take over the driveway of Willamette Speedway. But, somewhere among all those things that go bump in the night, you'll find a whole lot of smiling faces, and communities coming together to celebrate one of the most exciting nights of the year!

TRUNK-OR-TREATERS, BUSINESSES & CANDY DONORS WANTED!
Help us spread the word! Tag your friends, invite your neighbors, challenge your favorite businesses to participate, and share this event with every Halloween-loving person you know!

Once trick-or-treating begins, vehicles should remain stationary until the event ends and organizers authorize departure.
Participant schedule

Time Activity
4:00 PM Participant check-in and setup begins
4:00–5:00 PM Park vehicles, decorate trunks, prepare candy stations
5:00–5:15 PM Final decorations, lighting and safety checks
5:15 PM Setup complete; participating vehicles stay parked
5:30 PM Track-or-Treat officially opens
5:30–9:00 PM Family-friendly trick-or-treating
9:00 PM Event concludes; organized cleanup and vehicle departure

*These are the proposed operating times for participants

10/07/2026

TRACK-OR-TREAT IS COMING BACK AROUND… AND THIS YEAR WE’RE TAKING IT WIDE OPEN

Last year, Track-or-Treat rolled onto the scene and showed us just how much fun Halloween can be when the whole community gets behind it. This year, we’re not looking to simply run the same line again. We want to build on it, turn up the atmosphere, pack in more candy, add more decorations, create more surprises, and make the experience bigger and better than the year before.

And here’s the best part: TRACK-OR-TREAT IS 100% FREE FOR EVERYONE. No admission. No tickets. No entry fee. No paywall between families and a great Halloween night. This is about giving kids a fun, safe place to dress up, collect candy, see some cool cars, laugh, get a few good scares, and make memories with their families.

To pull that off, we need a pit crew.

We’re looking for volunteers, volunteer scare actors, decorators, performers, racers, businesses, clubs, organizations, families, and anyone with a slightly twisted Halloween imagination. If you can hang decorations, build a creepy display, hand out candy, help direct families, bring a race car, wear a costume, lurk in the shadows, or help turn an ordinary part of the grounds into something that makes kids stop and say, “WHOA!,” then we want you involved.

We’d also love to put together a Halloween flash mob. Imagine everything moving along like normal… then the music hits, a few people start dancing, a few more join in, and suddenly the whole place has gone completely off the rails in the best possible way. Dance teams, cheer groups, theater groups, schools, clubs, families, and anyone who wants to help choreograph or perform are invited to jump in.

And then there’s the fuel that keeps Halloween running:
CANDY.

Last year, Grocery Outlet in Lebanon, Dutch Bros. Coffee in Lebanon, Safeway in Lebanon, and Raulies Barber Shop came through as some of our biggest candy donors. They helped keep the buckets full and the kids smiling.

So this year, we’re throwing the challenge out there:
WHO’S GOING TO TAKE THE CANDY CROWN THIS YEAR?
Businesses, race teams, clubs, families, groups of friends, bring a bag, bring a box, bring a case, bring enough candy that we start needing a staging area for it. We want the candy pile to look like somebody missed the braking point and dumped an entire Halloween aisle in Turn 1.

We’re also looking for Halloween decoration donations. Skeletons, inflatables, lights, pumpkins, cobwebs, tombstones, creepy props, outdoor décor, fog machines, spooky characters, if it helps turn the grounds into something kids will talk about afterward, we can use it.

Now, not everybody can handle a jump scare, and that matters.
We know there may be kids or adults who need to avoid sudden scares for medical or personal reasons, so we’re also looking for red glow-stick necklace donations. Those necklaces will be our signal to the scare crew:

RED GLOW = NO SCARE ZONE

If someone is wearing red, the monsters back off, the ghouls stay in the shadows, and the zombies keep moving. It’s a simple way to keep the scary side fun for those who want it while making sure everyone can still enjoy the event safely.

We’ll be holding a Track-or-Treat planning meeting Saturday at 11:00 AM at Willamette Speedway for anyone who wants to take part. You do not need to show up with a finished plan. Just bring your ideas, your creativity, and your willingness to help. We’ll sort out the different groups, figure out where everyone fits, and start building this thing together.

Last year, we got the green flag.

This year, we want to put Halloween on the cushion and let it eat.
More candy.
More atmosphere.
More people involved.
More reasons for families to come back next year.
And still…

100% FREE. 100% COMMUNITY. 100% FOR THE KIDS.

So dust off the race car.

Wake up the skeletons.

Drag the decorations out of the attic.

Fill the candy buckets.

And somebody please find us some zombies who can dance.

TRACK-OR-TREAT… BWAHAHAHA!

SATURDAY • 11:00 AM • WILLAMETTE SPEEDWAY

COME HELP US MAKE THIS YEAR’S EVENT THE ONE EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT.

10/01/2026

HELP US MAKE TRACK-OR-TREAT GREAT!

Last year, Track-or-Treat showed us what can happen when a community comes together for the kids.

This year, we want to take that experience to another level and create something families will remember for a long time. The goal is simple: provide a fun, welcoming, and safe place for families to spend Halloween Night together — and make sure every family knows that this event is completely FREE.

There is no admission charge, no ticket required, and no cost to participate. We want families to be able to come out, enjoy the decorations, collect candy, see the cars, experience the entertainment, and make Halloween memories together without worrying about the cost. This night is about giving back to the community and creating something special for the kids.

The Speedway is simply the place where everyone can gather. This event is for the kids, the families, and the community. We want to create an atmosphere that feels exciting from the moment families arrive, and that means we need people willing to help us bring it to life.

We are looking for volunteers and volunteer scare actors who want to be part of the evening. Some may want to help with setup, decorating, activities, or assisting families, while others may want to put on a costume and help create the Halloween atmosphere. No acting experience is necessary. We are simply looking for people who want to help make the night memorable while keeping everything fun, safe, and family-friendly.

We would also love to put together a Halloween-themed flash mob during the event. Dance teams, cheer groups, theater groups, schools, clubs, families, friends, or anyone who loves to perform are encouraged to get involved. A surprise performance could become one of those moments the kids talk about long after Halloween is over.

Racers are invited to bring their cars out for one more night, not to race, but to be part of the experience. Decorate the car or pit area, hand out candy, take pictures with the kids, and give young race fans a chance to see the cars up close. Families, clubs, and community members are also encouraged to decorate vehicles and create their own Track-or-Treat stops.

We would love to see local businesses and community organizations involved as well. Set up a table, decorate a booth, create a small activity, hand out candy, or simply come spend the evening with local families. This is an opportunity to be part of something positive and help create a night that is truly centered around the community.

To make the experience as incredible as we know it can be, we need candy and decoration donations. Bags of candy, cases of candy, lights, props, inflatables, pumpkins, skeletons, cobwebs, fog machines, outdoor decorations, and other Halloween items can all help transform the grounds into something exciting and memorable. Whether someone donates one bag of candy, a box of decorations, or helps sponsor a larger portion of the event, every contribution directly helps us create a better experience for the kids.

At this stage, we are simply asking anyone who wants to volunteer, perform, bring a car, set up a display, donate candy, donate decorations, or help in any other way to reach out and let us know.

We will be holding a meeting at the track soon to bring everyone together and work through the details for each group so everyone knows where they fit and how they can help.

Last year was good. This year, we want to make it INCREDIBLE.
And most importantly, we want every family to know:
TRACK-OR-TREAT IS 100% FREE.

Free admission. Free family fun. Free Halloween memories.

Our kids. Our families. Our community. Let’s make Halloween Night something special.

09/26/2026

Bubba's Pro Mobile Service & Repair has added $200 to Hornet main event on Saturday night. Thank you for the support for Championship Night!
•1st $100
•2nd $50
•3rd $25
•4th $25

09/24/2026

Willamette Speedway Closes Historic 60th Anniversary Season With NASCAR Championships and a New Chapter Ahead

LEBANON, Ore. — Sixty years ago, What began in 1966 as a patch of Oregon dirt eventually became Willamette Speedway, a place where generations of racers, families and fans have spent their Saturday nights and where some of the Northwest’s best drivers have built their reputations. As the Speedway’s 60th anniversary season draws to a close, however, the focus is no longer only on the history behind it. The 2026 season may ultimately be remembered as the year Willamette Speedway began writing an entirely new chapter.

There was a different feeling around the track entering the season. Willamette Speedway had become NASCAR-sanctioned for the first time, opening the door for local competitors to measure themselves against drivers from across the country through the NASCAR Local Racing Series. Promoter Cory Penfold had spoken often about his belief that the Pacific Northwest was an untapped racing market, filled with talented drivers and passionate fans who had rarely been given the same national platform available in other parts of the country. In 2026, Willamette Speedway finally had a measuring stick. Oregon’s drivers responded by proving they belonged.

No driver made that point more clearly than Portland’s Joey Tanner. Driving the No. 46 Dirt Late Model, Tanner produced one of the most accomplished seasons in Willamette Speedway history. Tanner won the 2026 NASCAR Local Racing Series National Championship, while also claiming the NASCAR Local Racing Series Western Region Championship, the I-5 Silver Bullet Late Model Series Championship and the Willamette Speedway track championship. By season’s end, Tanner had collected four major championships while carrying an Oregon dirt-track program to the top of NASCAR’s weekly racing standings.

The significance of Tanner’s season extended well beyond a single driver or a single championship. For Willamette Speedway, his success represented exactly what the move to NASCAR sanctioning was intended to provide: an opportunity for Northwest racers to compete on a larger stage and be measured alongside some of the best weekly competitors in the country. Once that opportunity arrived, Tanner and other Oregon drivers quickly showed that the region’s talent was capable of much more than simply participating.

Dakota Godard added another major achievement to Willamette Speedway’s first NASCAR season by winning a NASCAR Local Racing Series Western Region Championship of his own. Godard’s championship further strengthened the case that the Pacific Northwest had been overlooked nationally for far too long. Between Tanner and Godard, Willamette Speedway’s first year under NASCAR sanctioning produced one national championship and two Western Region championships, an extraordinary return for a track entering the program for the first time.

Those championships became part of a season that already carried special meaning because of Willamette Speedway’s 60th anniversary. Fans who had spent decades watching races from the grandstands witnessed a year unlike any before it. The story also reached far beyond Lebanon. Through the Willamette Speedway YouTube channel, broadcasts were viewed in every U.S. state and in more than 38 countries, allowing fans around the world to watch Oregon racers compete, win and become part of NASCAR history.

That growing audience also helped reinforce Penfold’s belief about the potential of racing in the Pacific Northwest. Willamette Speedway’s success in 2026 was not simply about what happened on the racetrack. It showed that there was an audience beyond the gates, an appetite for Northwest short-track racing and an opportunity to introduce drivers from Oregon and the surrounding region to fans who otherwise may never have known their names.

For longtime supporters of Willamette Speedway, the season created a unique bridge between the track’s past and its future. The same facility that began six decades ago was now producing national and regional NASCAR champions and sending its races around the world. It was a reminder that while the Speedway has changed many times over the years, the foundation has remained the same: local racers, local families and a community built around Saturday-night dirt-track racing.

The 2026 season may be nearing its conclusion, but Willamette Speedway is already preparing for what comes next. The first official dates of 2027 have been announced, with the Willamette Speedway Racecar Show scheduled for March 20 and 21 at Heritage Mall. The event will give fans an opportunity to see the cars up close, meet drivers and begin looking ahead to another racing season.

Among the featured drivers will be 2026 NASCAR National Champion Joey Tanner and NASCAR Western Region Champion Dakota Godard, giving fans an early opportunity to celebrate two of the drivers who helped make the Speedway’s 60th anniversary season one of the most significant in its history.

After Sixty years, Willamette Speedway finds itself in a place few could have imagined in 1966. Its history remains an important part of what the Speedway is, but after a season that produced national and regional NASCAR champions and introduced Oregon racing to viewers around the world, the story of Willamette Speedway is no longer just about where it has been.

It is about where it is going next.