I live in New Jersey, so whenever I see any piece of property that isn’t a ramshackle shed on a shoebox-sized lot for under $500,000, I take notice. This Boswell, Indiana listing may be abandoned, but it’s a far better value than the stuff I see near me for half a million, because it’s an entire oval race track. It’s got grandstands, parking lots, and even the equipment needed to run everything.
There is a bit of a catch, however, which you can likely determine from the photos. The track has been abandoned since 2020 and is in disrepair. It needs a lot of work. It used to be a dirt oval, but now it’s overgrown with weeds and looks more like a big grass field than anything else. Much landscaping will surely be needed to clear out the weeds and turn it into a venue worth using again. Perhaps the new owners might even choose to pave it. Either way, it isn’t a turn-key track in its current state.
While the grandstands look functional, they’ll need some work, too. Weeds have overtaken much of the track’s surrounding facilities, so some landscaping is clearly in order. Who knows if the concrete bathroom’s plumbing still works? And the fencing surrounding the property needs mending, too.
Thankfully, the nearly 26-acre property comes with various tractors that can do the job, so any owner willing to put in some elbow grease will already have the tools to do so. It doesn’t list exactly what sort of vehicles are available, but there seems to be a massive John Deere tractor, some heavy equipment, and maybe even a small firetruck for safety. And, hey, if the whole track thing doesn’t work out, all of those tractors are probably worth what the entire property is listed for right now—maybe even more.
At a listing price of $499,900, this track has a lot of potential as a future business. It was originally opened as Henry’s Speedway in 1967 and was used mostly for stock car and sprint races. It changed names to Benton County Speedway at one point, closed in 2001, was re-opened in 2002, and then closed again in 2009. Then, in 2013, Michael and Kim Daugherty bought it and tried to restore it to its old glory days of local racing. Now, someone else has the chance to bring it back to life yet again. Or, perhaps they’ll purchase the property to build a house on and have a track in their backyard, for personal use. There’s plenty of space on the land to do so.
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