Known as the “Diamond of Dirt Tracks,” the Lucas Oil Speedway gets plenty loud, but a recently upgraded Bose® Panaray® LT loudspeaker sound system provides the horsepower needed to let announcements cut through the noise

Framingham, Massachusetts – The Lucas Oil Speedway Motorsports Complex in Wheatland, Missouri, includes a three-eighths-mile semi-banked clay oval that’s come to be known as the “Diamond of Dirt Tracks.” When Lucas Oil came in and took over what had been essentially a mom-and-pop dirt track raceway in 2004, the petroleum giant, known for its affiliation with motorsports as well as with the Indianapolis Colts and Professional Bull Riding, completely renovated the facility into the world-class track it is today and re-opened it in 2006, including placement of a huge permanent HD jumbotron video screen and 20-position scoring pylon in Turn 3. Included in that overhaul was an initial Panaray® LT sound system from Bose Professional, chosen for its ability to cut through the roar of a wide variety of racecar types and other events such as tractor pulls and monster cars, which regularly reach 120 dB. That original system consists of six clusters on the west side of the track, each comprised of a Bose Panaray LT 4402 loudspeaker, an LT 9702 loudspeaker and an MB24 subwoofer; five clusters on the east side each made up of an LT 4402 loudspeaker and an LT 9702 loudspeaker; and six LT 9702 loudspeakers arrayed to cover the pit areas. Earlier this year, the system was upgraded, with four new Panaray LT 9702 loudspeakers added to cover a recently opened grass seating area near Turn 4. The entire system is managed via a Bose ControlSpace® ESP-88 sound processor and a CC-64 control panel. Springfield, Missouri-based systems integrator Audio Acoustics did both the original and upgrade installations of the Bose components. “When we first acquired and updated the Speedway, we tested a wide range of sound systems, looking for speakers that could get above the noise but also deliver clear, intelligible announcements,” explains Dan Robinson, General Manager of the Lucas Oil Speedway Motorsports Complex. “The Bose system cut through far better than any other system we tried. It’s literally the best system for this kind of speedway. It had to be, for us to be able to continue to say we have the best track of this type in the United States. You can hear everything clear as a bell.” That mandate was part of the mission, says Jim Kinkade, Sales Manager at Audio Acoustics. “The client gave us and other contractors the criteria for the system, and we came in with a Bose LT solution that was the only system design that met the customer’s criteria, and the final result exceeded their expectations,” he explains. “In fact, the general manager at the time came back and told me later that the Bose sound system was the only one that they tested that prompted comments from nearby businesses about its volume. He said that’s how he knew he was picking the right system.” The LT 4402 and LT 9702 loudspeakers combine to form coherent-zone arrays in medium-to-large permanent installations requiring precise coverage and high intelligibility. The MB24 modular bass loudspeaker is designed to provide bass augmentation for Bose LT arrays and allows for minimal-height arrays when used with LT mid/high loudspeakers. Kinkade says the track is supremely happy with the Bose Professional system, which cut through the roar of the track but can deliver spoken words clearly. And the installation has become a source of pride for Audio Acoustics, with several projects on the table now directly attributable to what those prospective clients heard at Lucas Oil Speedway. “It’s become a calling card for us even as it supports the track’s reputation as being the best of its kind in the country,” says Kinkade. “So it’s really helped everyone involved.”