Eastern Motorsport Press Association
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Glenn Donnelly​


Glenn Donnelly is best known as the founder and longtime president of DIRT Motorsports.

Donnelly’s racing career began In 1970 when bought 3/8 mile Weedsport Speedway, located 26 miles from Syracuse, NY and began promoting the track. In 1972, Donnelly created the Super Dirt Series. The series came from the idea of bringing rules uniformity and increased sponsorship to modified stock car racing at a trio of Upstate New York dirt tracks. 
In 1976, Donnelly joined forces with Bob and Donnie Petrocci, co-promoters of nearby Rolling Wheels Raceway, to form Drivers Independent Race Tracks (DIRT). The fledgling organization sanctioned, organized and promoted modified races at Weedsport, Rolling Wheels and the New York State Fairgrounds.

Under Donnelly’s direction since day one, DIRT Motorsports has sanctioned more than 12,200 feature races at 66 tracks from Canada to Texas. Its exotic big-block Modifieds, state-of-the-art distant cousins of the same modified Coupes which formed the early foundation of NASCAR, are familiar to race fans across the nation. In forming DIRT, Donnelly built one of the most successful sanctioning bodies in the motorsports industry. 

In 1992, Donnelly opened the DIRT Hall of Fame and Classic car museum in Weedsport. In 2004 Donnelly sells his interest in DIRT Motorsports and retired.
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  • Home
  • History of the EMPA
    • History of the EMPA-The 1970's
    • History of the EMPA- 80's
    • History of the EMPA- The 1990's
    • History of the EMPA- The 2000's
    • History of the EMPA- The 2010's
    • History of the EMPA- The 2020's
  • EMPA Application
  • EMPA Hall of Fame A thru L
  • EMPA Hall of Fame M thru Z
  • Convention Sponsors
  • Convention Hotel Info & Room Reservations
  • Convention Photos
    • Convention Photos 2016
    • Convention Photos 2017
    • Convention Photos 2018
    • Convention Photos 2021
    • Convention Photos 2022
    • Video acceptance speeches from Jan 2022 convention
  • Convention Contest Rules
    • Pocono Raceway/EMPA Writer's Contest >
      • Pocono Raceway Writer's Contest Judges Comments by Year
    • Brice's Auto Parts Inc./NAPA Auto Parts EMPA Photographer's Contest
    • Dirt Track Digest.com./EMPA Video and Broadcast Contest Rules
  • Award Winners
    • EMPA National Driver of the Year
    • Junie Donlavey Spirit of the Sport award
    • Richie Evans North East Driver of the Year
    • Ace Lane Photographer of the Year
    • Jim Hunter Writer of the Year
    • Newsmaker of the Year award
    • John Blewett lll Young Gun award presented by New England Fuels
    • Jerry Reigel Outstanding Contribution to Sprint Car Racing award
    • Promotional Effort of the Year
    • Ernie & Marilyn Saxton Service Award
  • Newsletter Archives