Montana Raceway Park in Kalispell Shuts Down Permanently

Now that Montana has been gradually re-opening over the past few weeks, we've seen many of the businesses that had to close back in action, usually with social distancing guidelines in place. But, a few places weren't able to survive the closure - Kettlehouse Brewing Company had to close its Northside taproom, and Unparalleled Movement Parkour had to shutter its location, too.

And now, we've learned that Montana Raceway Park in Kalispell will also be closing its doors for good. The Thornton Family, who've owned the track for 30 years, made the announcement on the Montana Raceway website.

They cite constant vandalism and declining fan bases as among the reasons they've decided to close, but they mention that the COVID-19 closure had "an unsurvivable economic impact forcing our hand." The Raceway Park would hold races every Saturday night from May through September, and would also host the annual Montana 200 Race.

It's always tough to hear about a beloved family-owned operation that is forced to close down, and I'm sure there's a lot of people in Montana who are sad to see the raceway go. Did you ever attend a race at the Montana Raceway Park? How do you feel about it shutting down for good?