It might take a village to raise a child, but it definitely takes a community to revive and keep a race track alive.

While not everyone knows the history of the Murray County Speedway, there are hundreds of people that can't wait to see the dust fly and hear the buzz of race cars every Friday night all summer long.

"I remember when I was a kid, I couldn't wait to get to the races," said current MCS Board Member and Promoter Josh Schafer. "Everyone has so many toys now though, with jet skis, boats and four-wheelers. But we still have over 600 fans every week, plus all the drivers, pit crew and workers."

This season began May 1 this year and will conclude with championship night on August 28. Six divisions and 106 drivers hit the dirt track each week, with Hornets (13 drivers), Sportsmen (13), USRA Hobby (25), USRA B-Modified (17), USRA Stock Car (19) and USRA Modified (19).

While some loyal fans root for their favorite driver every week, almost everyone has enjoyed the new grandstands and concessions. But it has taken countless hours of work throughout the years to get MCS to its current state.

"The track was originally a horse track," said Randy Johnson, of Hadley. "Then once the cars came, it's been run by different organizations through the years. The Slayton JC's had it for awhile and then a guy from the Jackson Speedway came in twice a month. Freddy Widboom got the VFW to run it for awhile too."

Widboom was the promoter from 1970-1981, prior to the Slayton JC's taking over.

"Back in 1971 when I first started racing, 2,500 people would pack the grandstands every week," said Widboom. "We had cars from every little town around Slayton, like Hadley, Lake Wilson, Currie and Chandler."

But following the JC's ownership, the track sat lifeless for a few years until a group of dedicated people dug down and breathed life back into the Speedway.

"When I moved to Slayton from Alaska in 1991, there was no MCS," said Dave Baack, who now resides in Balaton. "The original starter-uppers were Earle Linder, Gary Muecke, Walt Muecke, Ron Mitchell and I. We would all get together and try to figure out how we could get the Speedway going again."

Other racing enthusiasts quickly showed up or jumped back on board. Johnson, Roger Tyrrell, Jim Lange and numerous others gave as much as they could, whether it was hard work, donations, lending equipment or whatnot.

"When we first decided to make a go of it, we really didn't know what we were biting off at first," said Johnson. "Dave traveled all over and got a lot of sponsors from Marshall and Roger really busted his hump. He must have spent hundreds of dollars inviting racers. Earle, Gary and all those guys worked their tails off."

There was so much to be done. Even though the crew of volunteers started in the fall, most of the work was done by the spring of 1992.

"A lot of bare knuckle work went into the track," Baack said. "You look at all the guard rails and fences now, and it was all put in by volunteers. Everyone in and around Slayton bent over backwards and helped."

Working together was the only way the Speedway was able to be revived.

"We bought a road graver from Jason Krohn's brother," said Baack. "The track was overgrown with weeds. But a lot of people showed up to help and one farmer brought a tractor. People in the community also gave up things they didn't need anymore."

Johnson, who raced from around 1975-2000, said the track was a lot more banked back then.

"When the modified and late models showed up, they liked a faster track," he said. "It used to be like going through a funnel on the front-stretch. It's a little wider now."

In addition to the physical work, sponsors had to be found, volunteer workers had to be contacted, drivers had to be recruited and a host of other tedious duties.

But one of the best assets has been the election of board members, who often have to make tough decisions.

"I was on the board for about 10 years," said Baack. "It's a tough job and you have to make some decisions that are unpopular with someone. But you have to do what's best for the overall situation."

The consistency and dedication of the board members throughout the years has helped MCS maintain its operations. Current board members are Jim Gregoire, Peter Ford, Alan Lange, Mark Sanow and Schafer.

"We just have keep doing what we've been doing," said Schafer. "There has always been someone to step up and promote the track. This is my first time on the board. You definitely get to look at things from the other side of the fence."

The board deals with a multitude of issues, including decisions about insurance, concession stand food, while also making and enforcing rules.

Getting sponsors is a big job too. In addition to the driver's having sponsors, each week of competition features a different sponsor.

"We have to run 16 shows a year," said Schafer. "We usually schedule 18 or 19 in case of rain outs. Pepsi Cola provided our scoreboard that tells what place a driver is in. Alltel helped purchase a media/VIP booth, which is air-conditioned."

The fans are high on the priority list and a lot of preparation goes into each season. This year, MCS held a Big Buddies Night. Schafer approached Alan Bakke from Western Community Action about bringing kids down to Slayton.

"Charlie Olson ended up driving the bus and we had about 60 people," said Schafer. "We brought the kids behind the scenes. Josh Bonstetter let them sign his car. The kids even got to try on helmets and hear the cars run."

MCS donates a lot of money toward Relay for Life every year too. This season, Jeremy Winter, who races in the Hornet division, is donating all of his earnings toward the cause.

"There's no way anything could be possible without drivers, sponsors and fans," said Schafer. "They're each a spoke in the wheel."

It hasn't always been smooth sailing though. According to Johnson, the track almost folded in the late '90s and early 2000s.

"We started to run Enduro cars, which were really big then," he said. "They'd run non-stop for two hours. It was a struggle for awhile, but then drivers started showing up. A lot of young kids started in the bomber class, which is called the sportsmen now. But that's what saved the track. It was a brilliant idea."

Johnson said that they got a call from the International Motor Contest Association, who was looking for a lower price class.

"The IMCA wanted to look at our bomber rules," said Johnson. "The next year, they borrowed our rules and adapted some similar ones for their hobby class for USRA and MCRA. Still to this day, we have the sportsmen class."

There have been some great racers that have made a huge impact at the track and many families that have racing in their blood. While it's important to keep the stories about the Speedway alive, the future of the track might very well depend on getting the keys into the hands of a new generation of race enthusiasts.

"Older drivers can spot the kids who will stay in racing," said Schafer. "So many kids have followed in the footsteps of someone in their family. The young kids that show interest are the future of the MCS. Racing has always pulled through and I don't think it will ever die out now."