Eldora GM Kemp keeps Stewart's dirt track tidy

Larry Kemp, general manager of Eldora Speedway, has promoted races and run tracks from Cedar Rapids, Iowa to Montgomery, Ala., to Rossburg, Ohio, and even some points in between.

Prelude preview

Larry Kemp wants to remind people what's so special about watching the Prelude to the Dream at the half-mile dirt track -- whether it be live in person or on pay-per-view television

"I guess the thing that brings people to Eldora Speedway for this event is the chance to see their NASCAR drivers up close," Kemp said. "A lot of the people who come to this race maybe can't afford to go to a NASCAR race, and to see them up close and having fun is really special for the fans.

"The other thing I want to mention is the money we raise for charity. We've raised money for the Victory Junction Gang Camp and now we're raising money for the Fallen Heroes and Wounded Warriors. What an awesome thing. I just look forward so much to rewarding the guys and gals that we owe so much to.

"And for those who can't get to the track, obviously, for 25 bucks, get on and watch this thing [HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 7 p.m. ET]. Get some friends together and for four or five bucks a head, you can get a couple hours of really, really good entertainment -- and the proceeds go to such a great cause."

Tickets are available online at www.EldoraSpeedway.com or by calling the track office (937) 338-3815.

• Time to get a little dirty
• Military charities to benefit

But he's never had a boss like Tony Stewart. They'll team together to help put on the fifth annual Prelude to the Dream event at Eldora on Wednesday. Kemp took some time out Monday to talk about his boss and a variety of other subjects.

Q: What was it like getting a call from Stewart's people in 2004 when they asked you to come run Eldora Speedway, which he was in the process of purchasing?

Kemp: Initially, when they told me it was Eldora, I told them no. [Former owner] Earl Baltes was such a legend that I thought it would be career suicide to try to follow him into a place like Eldora.

Between Cary Agajanian [of Motorsports Management Inc.] and [Stewart associate] Brett Frood, they finally convinced me to come up here. So we came up here and jumped in with both feet, and it's hard to believe that now we're in our fifth year.

Q: What kind of boss is Tony?

Kemp: You know, Tony is very perceptive about things. Everybody thinks this is just some kind of a thing he just wanted to do. But he's a real good owner. He doesn't get here as much as he'd like, but he'll call and I'll be answering lots of questions. He does understand it obviously from the racer's standpoint, from being a racer. You can see from what's being done with their Cup team [at Stewart-Haas Racing] that he does have a little bit of business savvy.

He's a real idea man. He comes up with some things that I hadn't thought about. Now obviously, he'll come up with some things a little off the wall, too. But he'll throw spaghetti against the wall and some of it will stick and some of it won't. But he's real good. We've never had a cross word between us, or any kind of real issues.

Q: What is one of the most off-the-wall things he has suggested?

Kemp: The one we go 'round and 'round about, the one he brings up every year, is over these wooden beams under the main grandstand. The main grandstand is this old, traditional structure like a lot of the old fairgrounds had. And underneath are all these wooden rafters. And every year he says, 'I think we need to get these all cleaned up and stain 'em.'

Well, I mean, you don't understand how long [these beams are]. And so every year, we give him a price and it's just unreal. And he's always like, 'Well, I still think that would be nice.'

Q: Hey, he's got some money now he could throw at that project. He just won a million bucks by winning the Sprint All-Star Race, right?

Kemp: Well, I guess. But honestly, everything we do here is all funded by Eldora Speedway, which is good. We may do it yet -- but it's kind of a joke because every year he comes up in the spring. He gets on his four-wheeler and he'll ride the property and come back with a whole list of things that he would like us to do or look at or whatever. Every year, he brings it up. And I told him this year, I will promise you that I'll at least get a bid on it. Then at least we'll know exactly what the cost is going to be. (Continued)