The crowds were big and the races were competitive. Fans from all walks of life cheered. Few stopped to consider, however, the work required to make racing in Cortez a reality.
Regan Tafoya is, from head to toe, a racer. Involved with racing from a very young age, Tafoya loves nothing more than climbing behind the wheel of his Modified race car and pushing the pedal to the floor.
A driver at heart, Tafoya had given little thought to the idea of promoting a racetrack prior to the 2012. Then, with the 2012 race season fast approaching, Tafoya was offered an opportunity to take over track promotion at Fairgrounds Speedway in Cortez. For Tafoya, the opportunity was too good to pass up.
“I’ve been involved in racing for so long and I’m business oriented,” explained Tafoya. “I didn’t want to see the (Cortez) track just sit there. The place was ready to go.”
Ready to go in certain ways, perhaps, but to truly make racing in Cortez a reality, Tafoya has worked extremely hard. In addition to various administrative duties such as lineup creation, hiring staff and advertising, Tafoya is responsible for ensuring that the track is in top condition come race day.
“During race week, we start on Monday and we start watering every night,” explained Tafoya. “We wait until evening so we don’t use as much water. We work the track like crazy. A lot goes into it.”
Just how much work Tafoya has put into race promotion in Cortez has not escaped the eyes of local racers.
“Without Regan, I don’t think we would have any racing in Cortez, said Dove Creek driver Aaron Spangler. “My hat is off to him. He’s done nothing but good things out here.”
“It’s a good thing (Tafoya) came along and took over, echoed Farmington driver, Danny Bradford. Racing is a dying sport and anything to keep it going is a good thing.”
A good thing indeed and after another exciting weekend of racing in Cortez Aug. 23-24, there is little doubt that Fairgrounds Speedway is doing its part to inject energy into the sport.
Kicking off the action on Aug. 23, Josh Smith showed improvement in winning the Sport-Compact class for the second time this season. Luke Klemm came away victorious in the Hobby Stock class, while Brian Carey won the Sport-mod class.
In the Stock class, veteran Rex Higgins held off the hard-charging Hendershot brothers to add another trophy to his collection while Zane Devilbiss came from behind to win an exciting Modified race.
Official results for the races on Aug. 24 have yet to be published.
By the end of the two nights of racing, there could be little doubt that racing in Cortez in better than ever, thanks in large part to Tafoya’s hard work. Behind the scenes, but in no way forgotten, Tafoya will continue to push racing in Cortez to new heights.