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August 7, 1999

                DeSoto Speedway and Happy Endings      
                                            Part One

A lot has been said on the Florida Stock Car Racing Message Board over the last 10 or 11 months about DeSoto Speedway and it’s phantom owner. It’s not that there was silence on the subject before then , it’s just that the message board is a place where fans can interact and have free and open communication. The talk before was taking place in garages, local pubs and people’s homes. Now it’s out there for all to see. Of course there’s a price for this sort of open communication in the form of obnoxious comments that offend others. More communication, not less is always preferable in a free society.

“Who cares about the track ownership, as long as we have a place to race” a post recently questioned. The answer to that is simple. Lots of race fans, drivers and yes, sponsors care not so much about who owns a track, but how  they operate the place. When an entertainment business is doing great the owner or promoter gets the accolades and applause. When it is not, they take the heat. That’s the way the game is played.

Sponsors, media, participants, and fans stay away from a poorly managed speedway, just as they stay away from other poorly managed entertainments. You don’t want to spend your money at a lousy restaurant, now do you?  Of course not.  But what’s this have to do with the owner of DeSoto Speedway, Dewayne Musick? Read on.

Dewayne Musick is not the owner of DeSoto Speedway. He has been the “promoter”  of DeSoto Speedway. He didn’t buy the speedway in 1991 as as been reported over and over for 9 years. The person who owns the DeSoto Speedway and who controls the power of the final authority is in a far away place most of us have never seen. Somewhere out in the middle of Dakota Corn Country is a place called Mitchell, South Dakota. That’s where the man who is responsible for the upsets between fans, drivers, and management sleeps comfortably at night, far removed from the turmoil he has and is causing.

In March of this year I wrote the following: “When the facts are all on the table, which I can assure you will happen, the fans and drivers may, just perhaps, learn that the owner was willing to destroy the DeSoto Speedway in order to line his own pockets. Now that he has fired some of his best people, thrown the racing community into total confusion and chaos, what next?” . Little did I know that I was talking about someone other than Dewayne Musick.

In 1991 Lindell L. Musick paid $500, 000 or so for the Desoto Speedway and the property that it sits on, under the  name of L.L. Musick Company. Shortly thereafter the speedway was transferred to Musick Enterprises, Inc. L.L. Musick is the President of that company, his son Dewayne is the Vice President and Agent, and another member of the family by the name of Kenneth is the treasurer. Dewayne Musick is the president of DeSoto Speedway, Inc. a corporation registered in the state of Delaware.

I put a call into L.L. at his place out in the middle of Dakota this week. After informing  me that he was the owner and “Dewayne usually handle the promotion”, I asked him if he was trying to sell the place. Dumb question you say? Well, I thought maybe they didn’t have phones out South Dakota. You never know. Anyway he replied to the effect that “we are progressively working on it”. Feeling bold I asked he had any perspective buyers as of now. I found his response curious.  “We have had” , stumped me since it was pretty common knowledge that the speedway was near to changing hands.  When I followed by asking if there were currently and perspective buyers, he paused for an eternity and said he’d rather have me talk to his attorney. Gee, like I’m Dan Rather or somebody.

But I guess that’s how you play it when you are being sued by one of the potential buyers, your son the promoter is hiding out in Pensacola unwilling to show his face or return phone calls, and you have no idea what time of day it is.
The lawsuit filed in Manatee County on July 26th by Manatee Operating Company, Inc now adds more spice to the pie. That is the name of the corporate entity which reportedly had an agreement ot purchase the facility. Would you want to spend a million bucks to buy a business that was engaged in a legal mess? 

Then on August 2nd Todd Merilkle, the promotion director for the speedway until late last year filed his own lawsuit against Dewayne Musick for Contract and Indebtedness. Merikle was fired in the middle of the fiasco late last year when Musick backed out of a deal with potential owners from the midwest. According to sources close to the deal, the owners had flown in to Bradenton  to be announced at the Awards Ceremony, and were turned away at the last minute.

The Musicks may or may not come out in the winner’s circle before the Courts, but they are losers. Plain and simple. Dewayne pretended to be a promoter, pretended to be an owner, fronted for his dad, and now thankfully he is gone. 

Pat Bianchi, and her staff had had to endure a hardship most of us would have said the hell with. Working for an ownership that while being most stifling and deceiving, were something much worse. They could care less about that race track or any other one for that matter. And could care even less about a race fan or a race driver. Its money baby! A land buy, then use some very well meaning and caring and above all else, loyal people to line their pockets. And then not have the courtesy and humanity to leave gracefully, when they’ve used all they can use. Yes, most us us would have told the Musicks to stick it long ago. And yet without the loyalty, hard work and dedication displayed by the staff of the speedway, it certainly would have been much worse for the racing community.

There are 4000 or more race fans who will sit in the stands every Saturday night when this nightmare is over at DeSoto Speedway.  And no, the bitching and moaning won’t quit. Sunshine, Charlotte, and East Bay race to packed grandstands, and overflowing pit areas weekly. East Bay is running Mr Bud $2500 To Win every three weeks for a different series.  $100 a lap for ministocks.  The groaning and complaining go on regardless. That too is part of the game.

But there’s a huge difference between heartfelt and completely sincere opinions about your favorite track  with ideas for improvements, and useless slandering and complaining. With the level of competition in today’s world for the entertainment dollar, every speedway should be surveying the fans mercilessly to find out what to do to satisfy them.

Who makes the decision on whether a track is poorly run or not?  Not the IRS.  It’s the fans and participants, media and other interested parties. If the fans like your show, your stands will be full. If the drivers like to put on a show at your track and there is an opportunity for them, they’ll be there in droves. If the media likes your show they’ll write about you, put you on TV, radio and the web. If business owners like your show they’ll spend more money on your billboards etc. and more of them will put more into the drivers.

Why have Lindell Musick nor Dewayne Musick not been able to do that very well even with as dedicated and loyal staff as you could find. The answer is again simple. They don’t care about racing.  Never did. Never will. Only the bottom line.

L.L. Musick is the man who needs to get this track into someone’s hands who does care about racing, and the racers. And the fans. The family. It’s the least he can do to make up for the upset and suffering of the racing family, and even financial loss to the speedway.

Currently there is a new owner (unknown to me) negotiating with Musick Enterprises to buy the speedway. I hope they care. There is the other potential buyer who has filed a lawsuit as a result of trying to legitimately trying to buy the speedway. I know they care. The lawsuits may or may not result in anything postive for the fans, drivers, and current staff, but it will certainly bring the hidden shenanigans of the Musicks out of the closet and expose them for what they are.

There are lots of things that need fixing at DeSoto’s great facility. The current people, plus some new additions, and local management, will make huge improvements once they are no longer hampered, stifled and stopped by outsiders who are nothing more than modern day carpetbaggers.

But right now the most important thing is to help the current staff and Pat Bianchi make the best of it. At the very least we should show a little restraint and support the people who are having to deal with a very difficult situation. The staff at DeSoto didn’t create the conditions. The staff current and former have been blamed for running a poor show in a thousand ways, but they are the wrong target.

It does matter who owns the speedway. Lindell Musick’s address and phone number are a matter of public record. Write or call the Phantom of DeSoto Speedway and let him know what the speedway means to you. But be sincere.

You might also send Pat Bianchi a nice letter thanking her for hanging in there, and offering your help if you think you can be of service.

More communication, not less is always best.

One thing about outsiders is ‘they come and they go’.  Unless they decide to stay and become part of the family. Hopefully the new owners will choose the latter. And that my friends, would be a happy ending indeed.

Stay tuned for part two.

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