[Chris Nunn]

PARAGON SPEEDWAY BEGINS NEW ERA IN 2022

Paragon Speedway, located just outside of Paragon, Indiana has been bought and will remain a racing facility in 2022 and beyond. Darrell Helton of Mooresville, IN and Robert Woodward of Greenwood, IN are the new owners of the 3/8ths mile paperclip oval. In the upcoming weeks ahead, we will have more about the two new owners of the facility in a more in depth interview.

Paragon Speedway was carved out of the countryside by Edd and Belle Sheppard, on what used to be dairy farmland. The red barn that Edd Sheppard used to keep his cattle in, still stands today on the hillside just behind the scoring tower, while the old chicken house still stands at the bottom of the hill by where the old ticket booth stood. Belle Sheppard would make her family recipes and serve the race fans every Saturday night. Edd Sheppard watched his first automobile race at the historic Jungle Park Speedway in 1926. He brought the idea of auto racing home with him, until his son Eddie said “look at this natural hill we have here, we can put people on it, and it's a perfect setting for a racetrack” And in 1954, Paragon Speedway was born. Throughout the Sheppard years, names like Bob Kinser, Allan Barr, Dick Gaines, Larry Miller, Rex Mitchell, and a young man named Steve Kinser made his non winged sprint car debut in the early 70’s right at Paragon Speedway winning his first feature at the age of 20 at Paragon in 1973. Sheppard was known as the “PT Barnum” of dirt track promotion, bringing in skydivers, daredevils, and people who would blow themselves up, which in conjunction with the exciting racing action, would fill the hillside with thousands of fans. Sheppard would keep the racing surface fresh with clay he got from a quarry. He would trade one fifth of his distilled whiskey for one load of fresh clay.

Fast forward a bit and a couple of owners later (Harry Redkey, Mike Johnson) in 1986, Keith and Judy Ford bought the property and the race track. Keith, a former state trooper, and GM Employee was a racer himself, racing for over 20 years. Judy was a life-long racefan herself so the purchasing of the track was a no brainer for the two. It did take some convincing from Keith to get Judy on board, but the purchase was made in 1986. With races such as the Johnson Memorial, numerous USAC, All Star, MCSC, events, and the massive amounts of cars that filled the pits, the Fords kept the track one of the can't miss places in racing. The format of “every sprint car runs a feature” would bring in upwards of between 50 to 60 sprint cars EVERY Saturday night, giving sprint car fans MUCH more than they bargained for for their $10 general admission ticket. It is our duty here at Paragon to keep the family friendly atmosphere that the predecessors before us have built, and we thank them for EVERYTHING they have done to keep Paragon Speedway alive.

Paragon Speedway will operate in 2022 with around 20 races with a schedule to be released shortly, along with rules, classes, and fan information.

Keep your eye on our Facebook page for more information! And we cant wait to see you at Paragon Speedway in 2022!

-Chris Nunn
Paragon Speedway