SRX Racing – ROVA DRIVE

Super Stars SRX at Pulaski County

July 28, 2023August 3, 2023 Missed Gear

Honestly… Well, it was a bit of a surprise. Pulaski County Motorsports Park has its share of history and holds a place for Virginia racing. That does not set aside certain realities of the facility. The season started as Motor Mile Speedway but was changed just weeks in to Pulaski County Motorsports Park.

The pieces fell together with a huge draw and a packed house for Thursday, July 27th. The name change highlights the region and the facility and the variety of attractions all together with a visit from a premiere racing series. The Matt Hagan connection to Tony Stewart / NHRA and the Motor Mile dealership cemented the foundation for the Superstar Racing Experience to wave a green flag over this racetrack with big time racing.

The SRX Racing show came in with a bang. The grandstands were packed. It was a pleasant site after seeing a season of open seating leading in. The showcase of a national spotlight and exiting racing should invite a few more fans to visit this track that does have a lot to offer.

(We’ll set aside some of the staffing issues that created some bottlenecks. We’ll also set aside our assistance for getting fans to their seats in the VIP viewing area housed under the control center. Our impression, after said and done, was that despite a few hiccups, the event went off very well and was quite a crowd pleaser.)

*Thank you, Mark, for getting us set where we were to get some work done on site. Thank you, Jasmine, for stepping up to fill some holes and get the edges smoothed over and for helping us help fans get to their spot. It is quite possible this event may have fallen into its own weight without Jasmine there to herd some cats and wrangle some ferrets…

The racing…? Well… It delivered on many fronts. The Collision Plus Sportsman ran with a 20 car field to start…. And then start again. In short, Kyle Barnes and Kyle Dudley were shuffled to the back but both made moves forward. Drew Bond had the starting pole but fell back as the 50 laps wound down. The shuffle for positions kept the racing lively but it was Brad Foy at the finish for the win with Karl Budzevski in for 2nd and Kyle Dudley racing back up to 3rd. Jacob Porter and Richard Caldwell rounded the top 5.

*Considering the short track attention, it would have been nive for ESPN to roll a 5 minute highlight recap of the support race before they got to the SRX main… But maybe we’re just wishing…

The SRX event was a ringer. Some cars were needing some heavy wrench time after the race was run. The next race is a bit of a haul to Michigan and Berlin raceway so the work on those cars will need as much time as they can get.

The heat races went off OK but Clint Bowyer had an engine go into “mystery mode” after heat 1 but got running hot enough to win heat 2. The car served well enough in the main to bring it in for 2nd place. Tony Stewart raced on for 3rd after being shuffled around a bit and taking a hit or two. Kyle Busch, making his SRX debut, drove it in for the win.

For the most part, the SRX racing is an exhibition, for fun, show for short track fans to see some of the biggest stars of racing turn laps on their home turf. However, the message does not always get to the drivers as the green flag drops and “race mode” is on. In short, some cars were damaged quite well. It made for exciting racing for the fans but an expensive fix for the next week.

A full house at Pulsaki County Motorsports Park was a sight to see. Having top tier racing stars come to the hills of southwest Virginia was a big deal. Some of these same drivers (Hailie Deegan, Ryan Newman, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch) were headed to Richmond Raceway for NASCAR weekend. Some fans don’t get a chance to see drivers like this in person so the short track visits with SRX is an exciting boost.

The SuperStar Racing Experience is a short, summer series designed to highlight short tracks and fans. Yes, the drivers bring the name but the fans fill the seats. Let’s hope this attention to this part of Virginia racing boosts some attendance forward for the local stars that make it happen week in and week out!

PHOTO Gallery – SRX at Pulaski County Motorsports Park – July 27, 2023

Race Day Showcase

Motor Mile – Ice Out Green Flag

March 26, 2023March 26, 2023 Missed Gear

Weather… Well… What can you do…?

Race tracks are going green. North Carolina has been on a little longer. South Boston was on a week earlier. Motor Mile Speedway had their eyes on March 25th for their “Ice Out Opener”. The folks at Motor Mile have also taken a hand in with Lonesome Pine in Coeburn, VA which already had their opening SMART Tour postponed for the possibility of snow and exceptionally cold temperatures. It wasn’t snow putting a kink in the “Ice Out” but a good chance of rain…

Decisions were made, based on what the forecast had in store a few days earlier. The scheduled green flag was pushed from 2pm to 4pm and then, a little closer to the weekend, to 6pm. Best plans and all that, go with the side of caution as it may be, give fans and teams the best information you can and you still wind up looking back that the original time would have been fine.

But we all know that if the original time had been kept then it would have rained until 4:30… Or later…

The sun was out but the wind blew plenty of clouds by and also took some of the new sponsor panels out along turn two. By the time the front stretch was open for fans to visit with drivers the wind had calmed a bit. As the ceremonies were done and the track ready it was just a few minutes after 6 when the green dropped on the first of six scheduled races. Twins for Limited Sportsman, Twins for Late Model, a Pure-4 and Super Street were on the show that was now set to finish under the lights.

The Sportsman started the evening with the first of their 35 lap events. It might have been Daryn Cockram who qualified on the pole but it was the double zero of Kyle Barnes who survived the cautions to take the first win. It was Charles Smith and Zach Peregoy in the top three. Barnes started back in the 8th spot later in the second race and, again, survived some multi car cautions but it was only good enough to finish second. The later Sportsman race was won by James Sweeney who had started in the 4th position. Richard Caldwell finished the 2nd race in third.

The Late Models ran after the first Sportsman race. Notably missing from the lineup was the #17 and Bryan Reedy. Earlier in the week, the Reedy family were mourning the passing but celebrating the life of Bryan’s grandfather, Orvil. Orvil Reedy was a much loved personality and racer that inspired Tink Reedy and, of course, on with Bryan. Reedy has said he is focusing on time with family and running the #17 at some events at Ace Speedway but we hope to see him at Motor Mile as well.

For the field on the “Ice Out”, it was defending track Late Model Champion, Kyle Dudley with a qualifying pole but the opening draw had him in the 6th position. It didn’t take long for Dudley to be challenging Mike Looney, who started 4th, for the lead. Looney and Dudley battled late race cautions and restarts but Dudley could not quite get around Looney’s #87 and came in with a 2nd position for the first 50 lap race. The second and final 50 laps finished the top two in the same order with Mike Looney sweeping the LMSC wins and Kyle Dudley finishing just behind even as they started way back in the field. Both drivers fought back to the front from the 7th and 9th positions. Derrick Lancaster and Cory Dunn grabbed third and fourth in both races.

The Pure-4 also had some caution but the 20 lapper was initially won by Kirby Shipman. However, post race inspection found the #7 Shipman car did not pass for weight. The race was then passed to first time Pure-5 starter, Caleb Sewell in the #93. With that move, Javon Parker and Keyshaun Clator filled the top three.

The Super Streets had hard charging Jimmy Mullins in the #12 driver quickly from the fifth position at the starting green to the front. Mullins kept that lead and protected himself from any mishaps further back and later. Tristen Barnes and Joe White finished the top three,

The next oval race at Motor Mile is on April 8 with the Spring Break Youth Sports Night. Keep an eye on July, too, as the SRX Super Star Racing Experience comes to town with world class drivers from NASCAR, IndyCar and more.

Full Photo Gallery – Ice Out Opener at Motor Mile Speedway – March 25, 2023

Race Day Showcase

New Year For Racing in Vrginia

January 2, 2023January 4, 2023 Missed Gear

Virginia racing in 2022 raised the bar a bit. There was quite a bit of attention on some profile events. NASCAR, for example, ran up some winning numbers.

Denny Hamlin had his first 2022 win at Richmond in April. Kevin Harvick rolled his second win there in August. Both of these drivers had 2 wins which put both in the playoffs.

William Byron also had 2 wins and a playoff bid with Martinsville hosting one of those in April. The playoff elimination race at Martinsville was also one for the books. Up to the final laps, the race was really conservative. Drivers and teams played the race with caution rather than charge and risk equipment or place. The late laps developed into more of a race but it was Ross Chastain that made the move to be remembered. Running on the outside with his foot on the floor, he drove the wall of turn 3 and 4, literally, to hold speed and pass Hamlin to make run at the “final 4”.

Late Model racing also came down to the wire for the championship. The NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series came down to some controversy and tight racing at Motor Mile and Dominion Raceway. Virginia was the focus from the western to the eastern part of the state. Defending Champ Peyton Sellers and Layne Riggs were separated by just a few points. The Motor Mile races ran hot with Sellers in a borrowed car for the wins. Those races were later held out and the Dominion races pushed the points with Riggs on top by 4. Riggs was now the youngest champion. The previous one to hold that distinction was Sellers.

Another big score for Virginia was the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) running at South Boston. Drivers from across the spectrum settled in for national TV network racing showcasing the track and the southside Virginia region. NASCAR and IndyCar stars such as Tony Stewart and Ryan Hunter-Reay were just a couple of highlight drivers running on the historic South Boston asphalt.

Virginia International Raceway has been a national showcase for the state with nothing but growth and support from IMSA (ROLEX 24 level of racing here in VA), Grand-Am, F3/F4 and more. VIR has been consistent with fans and drivers.

Dirt tracks certainly had a good showing with Virginia racing. There is good support from the east at Virginia Motor Speedway to to the west at Wythe Raceway. Winchester in the north to Natural Bridge in south central ran weekly with a good show variety.

Drag racing even had a national return as Virginia Motorsports Park added NHRA Nationals to their busy 2022 schedule.

The result is a strong racing foundation in Virginia grass roots and fan support. For 2023, we’re hoping these events keep the energy high. NASCAR, of course, has 4 appearances (6, if you count Bristol on the Tennessee side) split at Richmond and Martinsville. NHRA may be skipping VMP in 2023 but there will be plenty of other big series running the lights. The SRX series is also back in Virginia with a spot on the Motor Mile schedule! IMSA, SRO and Hyperfest are just some of the returning events for VIR.

Strap in, Virginia… Racing is coming in hot!

Tag: SRX Racing

Super Stars SRX at Pulaski County

Motor Mile – Ice Out Green Flag

New Year For Racing in Vrginia