By Colleen Kane
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Kentucky Speedway will open its doors for its fifth season when it hosts the ARCA RE/MAX Series' "hhgregg Pole Night" and "The Channel 5-205" Friday and Saturday. Amid the hustle and bustle to get ready for opening day, Speedway general manager Mark Cassis took some time to discuss the track's last-minute preparations, what race fans can expect this season, and just how he came to get hooked on racing.

Q: Are these last couple weeks pretty busy for you?

A: Incredibly busy. We just opened up NASCAR 3D at the IMAX theaters. We have the Green Flag Festival at the Meijer store in Florence today. We've had summer testing with some of the NEXTEL Cup drivers. It's an exciting time, but it's good to get open.

Q: What have you been doing to get ready?

A: Just getting people lined up. We employ as many as 2,000 people on race day, so security, parking and everything down to the suite books, the menus ... the programs, the billboards. There's a lot on our plate to make sure we're ready.

Q: What kind of crowd do you expect for the season-opening ARCA event?

A: Probably 10,000 on Friday and 20,000 on Saturday, which is a good number to start our season.

Q: New additions to the schedule this year?

A: We have a fall date for the first time this year (the V-TAPS Triple Header Fall Classic on Sept. 18 with IPower Dash Series, NAEDSS and ASA). We've added another driving school. And we're trying for a fall concert series in September or October.

Q: What's the event you get most excited for each year?

A: There's nothing like having 70,000 people on our property for the Busch race. It's our showcase event, and it has put our venue on the map. I'm proud of that.

Q: What were your biggest projects this offseason?

A: We're constantly improving the venue. We're continually working with the state on roadways, with over $80 million dollars going to Kentucky roads. ... And of course, our biggest objective, to get a NEXTEL Cup date. That's our mission, and we're always asking, "How do we get there?"

Q: On race day, what can you be found doing?

A: I'm usually hooked at the hip with operations director Andy Vertrees, and then dealing with media and corporate sponsors. But sometime after the festivities get started, I'm a big race fan, so I like to walk the concourse. There's nothing like it, to watch the cars on the track and see the fans in person.

Q: How did you become a race fan?

A: I went to my first race when I was working for H.J. Heinz. It was at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1985, and I was just blown out. Not only the speed, but what really hit me was the marketing. ... So I went back to H.J. Heinz and helped them develop a racing team, and we put together the Heinz Ketchup Cars. And I helped do the same thing at Campbell and Johnson & Johnson.

Q: Have you ever raced?

A: Just schools - that's enough. I'm a business person.