Figure 8 racing has become a fixture at the Park County Fairgrounds, but there was some uncertainty heading into the 2025 season. After last year’s organizer ran into some financial challenges, a new leader was needed to keep the races going this summer. And that’s when Terren Plenert decided to step up.

“I didn’t want to let it die,” he said in a recent interview.

Over the past few years, Plenert has built over a dozen cars for himself, his wife and his friends.

“I had so much money into it that it’s like, ‘Man, I can’t let this just go away,’” he recalled, “and it’s going to be a big sport here.”

Plenert launched Only 8’s Motorsports and set up a series of summer races at the fairgrounds. As a result of his efforts — and those of a number of other helpers — dozens of drivers will again duke it out on the perilous criss-cross track Friday night. The grandstand gates open at 6 p.m. with the action getting underway at 7 p.m.

Revamped track

Fairgoers may notice some changes from last year’s race. The track’s a bit shorter, wider and faster, the field is a bit smaller and the format is new. And just wait till you see what Only 8’s is planning to do with some four-wheelers, balloons and sticks.

The core racing action, however, remains the same.

“Most of it’s the excitement in the center,” Plenert said of the sport’s appeal.

“There’s the certain group of guys that aren’t really too scared to just hammer through the center,” he said, “and then there’s the other ones that are hitting the brakes.”

Plenert counts himself in the first group, saying the bolder racers “are usually the ones that are finishing on the top.” 

Of course, nothing is guaranteed on a track where every lap comes with the risk of collisions.

“... Anything can happen with figure eight racing,” Plenert said. “I mean, you’re just one blown tire away from getting last place.”

New format

Racers will battle in a series of heats, with six cars in the arena at a time. Heat winners will automatically advance to the semi-final round, while the second- and third-place finishers earn a ticket to the quarter-finals. Everyone else has to drop into a consolation round and try taking the long route back to the title and the multi-thousand-dollar grand prize.

Those who fail to place in two races are eliminated.

Only 42 cars can enter and 36 drivers signed up on just the first day of registrations. The roster entirely filled up within four days, with drivers hailing not only from the Powell area, but also places like Riverton, Casper and Douglas.

Plenert said part of the sport’s appeal is its relative affordability. While prepping a car for the demolition derby can cost $20,000 or $30,000, you might only have to spend hundreds on a figure 8 car.

Getting started

Plenert had participated in some circle track races “back in the day,” before getting into figure 8 about three years ago. That’s when Dustin Short, who was running the local races at the time, approached him about building and entering some cars for the event. Plenert was game, and he and his TKO Auto and Repair initially built two cars.

“And then the second race, we had, like, 13 cars,” Plenert recalled. “So I got all my buddies in it and everything.”

It wound up being a roughly $30,000 investment for Plenert, which is one reason he decided to step up when Short ran into financial difficulties.

Only 8’s Motorsports has already hosted a pair of races at the fairgrounds this summer, kicking things off in early May. A July 5 event drew around 400 people, but a bigger crowd is expected on Friday.

Mario Kart battle?

In addition to the main races between the four- and six-cylinder cars, attendees can also catch a three-round battle between trucks, plus a unique ATV competition. In what might feel a bit like a Mario Kart battle, participants in the new “filler” event will hop aboard four-wheelers, arm themselves with sticks and attempt to pop balloons affixed to their competitors’ machines (all while trying to save their own balloons). Some early testing among the TKO team proved popular, Plenert said. “It’s amazing how [many] people we had that are now wanting to do a balloon pop with four wheelers.”

In his younger days in Dillon, Montana, Plenert recalls doing something similar on dirt bikes, but with the balloons mounted to the back of their helmets — and the participants armed with thumbtack-enhanced sticks.

The fair’s filler won’t be that intense, as “anymore … like with our insurance and everything else, I imagine they wouldn’t like to see that,” Plenert laughed.

Ongoing competition

The results from Friday’s race will be factored into a summerlong competition between figure 8 drivers around the state.

Plenert topped the circuit leaderboard early in the season, but after sitting out the past couple events, he’s been passed by fellow Powell driver Tyler Showalter and Plenert’s wife, Rique.

“That’s not great at home when she’s bragging about that,” Plenert quipped.

It’s one of the reasons that, as long as the schedule allows, he’s hoping to get in on the action himself on Friday night.

“I can’t let my wife get too far ahead of me in the leaderboard,” Plenert said.

Tickets for the figure 8 race are $17 for seats in the grandstands or $23 for box seats. They include gate admission to the fair.