Good stuff... I've had the chance to visit with the ghosts at N. Wilks. with my friend Chip. He tried to help bring the track back to life when he bought the USAR Hooters Pro/Cup (Stock Cars) series. He put up the cash, the other 'managing' partners didn't.
I had a one on one 5 minute conversation with J.J. about Dale Sr. death that took 10 minutes.
Junior... Johnson .... talks..... real.... slow, He is so darn cool!
No..I didn't ask for an autograph, lol.
Mrs.(Benny) Parsons got screwed by Alton McBride. I knew he was full of sh!t the first time I spoke to McBride on a conference call pertaining to this 'venture' and another racing 'scheme' he had going on.
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http://www.therecord...number=524&pg=F
Group plans to really return racing to speedway
Racing is set to return to the North Wilkesboro Speedway, again.
This time a group of race veterans have signed a three-year lease, with plans to bring racing back to the track by next year.
USARacing Pro Cup Championship Series announced Saturday during the drivers meeting prior to the series season finale Strutmasters.com 250 at South Boston Speedway, that they would be bring racing to the historic NASCAR track.
Scheduled for Oct. 3, 2010, the race will be on the traditional fall weekend that for many years hosted NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series from NASCAR's inception in 1949 until the track closed after its fall race in 1996. Its two Cup dates were then moved to New Hampshire and Texas.
“We are extremely pleased to be the first national touring racing series to return to the true roots of stock car racing,” USARacing Managing Partner Larry Camp said. “We know the people of Wilkes County and the surrounding area of North Carolina have missed stock car racing on this storied track.
He added, “All of us at the USARacing Pro Cup Series are proud to be a part of this rebirth. Personally, I know the Staley family, Junior Johnson and the many stock car racing purists will mark Oct. 3, 2010, as a red letter day in the sport. I know Benny Parsons would be extremely proud of (his wife) Terri for helping return stock car racing to the county that he and his family so dearly loved.”
In addition to Mrs. Parsons, the new ownership group consists of Alton McBride Sr., Alton McBride Jr., Dave Ehret, John Burwell and Bosco Lowe.
With the addition of North Wilkesboro Speedway, the USAR Pro Cup Series schedule contains five tracks that played key roles in NASCAR's first 50 years. The series travels to Hickory Motor Speedway on May 1, Rockingham Speedway on May 15, South Boston Speedway on June 12 and for the season finale on Nov. 6, and Bristol Motor Speedway on Sept. 11. Gresham Motorsports Park, site of the USAR Pro Cup Series season opener on March 27 and a Championship Series race on Oct. 23, is on the site of the old Peach State Speedway in Jefferson, Ga., which hosted NASCAR Cup races in the late 1960s.
“We are very excited to add the historic North Wilkesboro Speedway to the 2010 USARacing
Pro Cup Series schedule as this completes our 2010 schedule and adds another high profile venue to our already impressive list of quality and historic tracks,” Vice President and Series Director Jimmy Wilson said. “In addition to North Wilkesboro, we have solidified our date with Hickory Motor Speedway, moving it earlier in the season compared to years past. This is truly a schedule everyone can get excited over.”
The USAR Pro Cup Series 2010 schedule has the nation's premier short-track circuit visiting a dozen venues in eight states. The series' return to Bristol Motor Speedway, the reopening of North Wilkesboro Speedway, and a companion race with NASCAR's Nationwide Series at Iowa Speedway on July 30 highlight the 16-race schedule that boasts a five-event Championship Series.
Joining Gresham Motorsports Park, Bristol Motor Speedway and North Wilkesboro Speedway as added venues for the 2010 season are New Smyrna Speedway in New Smyrna Beach, Fla., on April 17; Lake Erie Speedway in Erie, Pa., on June 26; and Salem Speedway in Salem, Ind., on July 10.
The USARacing Pro Cup Series, formerly Hooters Pro Cup, is owned by Interstate Investment Group and is based in Concord, N.C. IIG is comprised of Jack McNelly, Gary Kale, Carl Hubbard, Chip Lofton and Larry Camp, who serves as the managing partner. For more information on the USARacing Pro Cup Series, go to www.usarprocup.com.
Another promoter, not connected with the current plans, remains in the Wilkes County Jail after being arrested in July.
Charles W. Collins Jr., 42, of Gentry Street, North Wilkesboro, faces multiple fraud charges.
Collins has been charged with three counts of obtaining property by false pretense, according to Wilkes Sheriff’s Department officials. Those charges came after April Myers of Lexington filed a report on July 2, alleging that she had paid Collins money to participate in a driving school which never materialized and that three checks he wrote to pay the refund bounced.
Additionally, Collins faces fraud charges in both Florida and Georgia, according to reports.
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The "Big Race" we held to help save the speedway.
https://www.youtube....h?v=WJ_RfSPcHOw
https://www.youtube....h?v=TdrKBB42YrQ
