Devil’s Bowl Speedway

Deep in the heart of Mesquite (or Sunnyvale, or Seagoville… whatevs) lives a cute ‘lil dirt track called the Devil’s Bowl. It’s kinda like Nascar only cuter. And way more affordable.
We came for the World of Outlaws Sprint car racing and had no idea the evening would turn out to be so much fun. 900HP teeny cars screaming down a dirt track 2X2 and sideways? Yes, please.
Here’s a hint or two to make your visit the best it can be:
*I’m not sure if they’re all like this but the premium seats (we paid $ 40/​ticket) are actual chairs. No need to bring stadium chairs to save your butt from hard bleachers.
*No outside food and drink, but there are plenty of food vendors on site. Just know that the lines get absolutely ridiculously long during the race.
*This place fills up on the weekend. Get here early and experience all that is redneck racing!
*If you want to see pit road, you won’t see it from the main seats. The cars all exit and go behind the track for pit work. Whomp whomp.
*Don’t forget earplugs. This may be a dirt track but it still gets looooooud.
Until next time, Devil’s Bowl. Boogity boogity!

What can you say. This is one of the top two speedways in the region with Texas Motor Speedway’s dirt track offering some competition for the top spot.
Great seating, especially in the center with the chair backs. Great racing with high-​end top speeds that whip the cars around the track faster the the smaller community tracks. Also, with the added length there are fewer wrecks to put up with.
In addition, the pits are in the infield allowing spectators to keep an eye on their favorite cars!

For your local Dirt track racing Devil’s Bowl speedway is as good as it gets. If you can’t make it to TMS, then honey you’d better be headed to DBS. The racing is always exciting and the food and atmosphere out of this world. Vroom Vroom. Let’s go.

We have enjoyed coming to Devil’s Bowl for a few years now. Check the website to see which types of cars are racing on a given night, but usually they have stock cars, pro stocks, sprints, etc. Adults are $ 10, kids under 6 are free, and 6−11(?) are $ 2. Some weekends they have special events and tickets are higher priced. One weekend each season residents of every city around has a free entrance night (free with drivers license), check the schedule online for dates. You cant bring in any food or drink, but they sell beer and pretty good raceway type food for pretty reasonable prices. Beer is about $ 3, water is $ 1.75 I think, food like nachos, fries, hotdogs and corndogs are about $ 2-​$ 3.

You know… this place has been around forever. I have been going here since elementary aged. Who doesn’t love fast, loud, crazy entertainment? Go out and have some fun!

AUTHENTIC TEXAS /​BIG ‘D’
FORMAT: Dirt Track Racing
LOCATION: Good Area; Great Parking, Terrible Access Road
TIME: Saturdays, March — October
Let’s face the facts: Dallas is an awfully boring place to live. Honestly — what have we got in town that actually passes muster on an international scale? What are the must-​sees in Big D? A dozen overpriced major league sports arenas? A few small, modest arts museums? A city Fair sporting acres of unsafe parking and fried Bellini Matzo Balls? Or perhaps the endless miles of carbon-​copy strip malls and forgettable gallerias running as far and wide as the mega-developer’s eye can see?
Where are the big sights? The monuments to our own indomitable greatness; our divine and inspired domination over nature and our fellow man? What about the sounds, the laughter, the infectious energy of a vibrant, living city with that certain indescribable joie d’vive?
Actually, it’s right over there — buried under that condo development by the Starbucks. Crushed to smithereens like a grape beneath the bottom of a soft, warm monkey.
But for lunatics hankering true excitement, adventure, and a taste of what makes Dallas unique from all the other rent-​a-​cities in the American Wonderland, you need not look any further than Devil’s Bowl in the cornfields of Mesquite.
DB is a long-​standing Dallas tradition, with roots in the city stretching back to 1949. Most of you probably don’t know it even exists, and yet it’s nationally recognized as one of the premier racing dirt tracks in the US. Al Unser, Kenny Schrader, and other big names in racing started here, in the lauded (and suicidal) proving grounds of DB.
What is dirt track racing? Basically, it’s a collection of survivors from local demolition derbies that somehow managed to foil god’s twisted design and dodge the Reaper. Against all probabilities and the laws of physics, they somehow manage to limp painfully around the track, tossing dirt clumps and wailing loudly with the raucous noises of impending doom and transmission failure. In essence, it’s the automotive equivalent of the Special Olympics, where medals are awarded to any participant who makes it to the finish line.
It’s hilarious fun to watch.
Not because of the occasional wrecks or often amateur driving theatrics, but because most participants are hobbyists who obviously don’t have enough cash to fully support their habit. 8 cars enter the ring, 3 leave under their own power … who’s engine will blow next, and how badly? Let’s find out!
The real stars of the show, however, are the Sprint cars, also known as Outlaws. These things are fast as hell and run by real, genuine professionals.
Outlaws are very unique cars, designed solely for the purpose of racing on tight dirt tracks. They look like oversized Monopoly race cars with billboards on top, which act as wings to keep them from flipping over during high speed turns. (That’s the theory, anyway.)
Unlike normal cars, the engine in an Outlaw is directly linked to the drivetrain. Transmission? Gearshift? Bah! — toys for simpletons and sissies. With no heavy trannie to get in the way, engine speed = wheel speed. This also means that the wheels must be in motion for the engine to stay running. Wheels stop, engine stops. How do you get it to start? Why, a gentle nudge from behind from an overly-​friendly pickup, possibly one with gender identity issues.
«Steering», as it’s euphemistically called, is accomplished in these things by manually applying individual BRAKES one at a time, using a complicated series of levers, gears, pulleys, and a trained wombat weighing no more than 13 kilos. And wishful thinking. Lots and lots and lots of wishful thinking — and magic fairy dust. Think happy thoughts, campers! God doesn’t miss twice!
Sounds ridiculous, I know. But wait until you learn how they really operate these suicide buggies and a marsupial-​based brake linkage won’t sound so crazy.
In all, DB really is a gem, whether you’re watching the magnificent Sprints burn up the track or the laughable junkers trading paint in a vain attempt to stay in contention. In spite of the decidedly backwoods atmosphere, the place is actually a tightly-​run, professional operation. Races start, end, and clear for the next heat in just minutes. Accidents are rarely serious, and spectators are well protected from the mishaps on the field. The action barely ever pauses. There is no one else better in the business, that’s for sure. Truly, the whole thing is a sight to see, to feel, and behold in person.
And you can only do it here, in DFW.
$ 10 gets you five hours of butt-​rocking entertainment; $ 5 for the shorties. My advice is to spend the extra $ 2 a head for «reserved seats», which are much more comfortable than the standard metal bench seating. And watch out for Lawson Road — it’s in worse shape than the highway out of Baghdad. GO SLOW.