LONESOME PINE RACEWAY HAS NEW MANAGEMENT, NEW SPOKESMAN, A NEW DIVISION, AND NEW ASA AFFILIATION

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida – Don’t bother asking “what’s new at Lonesome Pine Raceway this year?” In fact, it just might be easier to ask “What didn’t change?”

The historical 3/8-mile paved track in Coeburn, Va., starts its 35th year of operation with a new management group headed by Harold Crook and Jeff Roark.

“Well, we say it is a new group running the racetrack, and it is and it is not in a way,” stated Lynn Peters, PR director for Lonesome Pine Raceway (LRP). “You see, Harold was the track promoter through much of the ‘90s and the rest of the new management group has deep ties to the racetrack over the years as well. So even though they are ‘new’ to the job this year, they are not really new to Lonesome Pine.”

New also for 2008 is track spokesman Big Tom Buchanan. If the name sounds familiar it is because Buchanan was recently a contestant on the CBS reality television program “Survivor: Africa.” Buchanan will be involved in a variety of television and radio promotions for LPR, as well as representing the racetrack at different functions throughout the region.

When asked how Buchanan came to be involved with LPR, Peters said that he “was a race fan to start with and is close friends with a couple of guys who are involved in the management group. He said to them ‘I want in’ when he heard about their plans for the racetrack and they told him ‘Come on in.’”

Also new to the racetrack this year, and sure to quickly become a favorite of the race fans, is the Lonesome Pine Raceway Charger division. This new class joins the regular Saturday night divisions of Late Model, Street Stock, Mod-4 and Pure-4.

The Lonesome Pine Raceway Charger is a Late Model car fitted with a $2700 spec motor, spec carburetor and spec shocks to help contain the costs involved in racing the class. To further maintain equality, the track is implementing a “claimer” rule on the motor, carburetor and shocks to help keep anyone from becoming too creative, and to keep the emphasis on the driver and not the equipment.

The racetrack will open a 17-week slate of races on April 19 and run through November 1 with the Second Annual Virginia Mod-4 Championships. A special July 4 event is being planned, though details have not yet been finalized to the point of announcement. For those looking for more information, including the schedule, class rules, and the latest racetrack news, visit www.LPRaceway.net.

And as if all these new items wouldn’t be enough to bring enough enthusiasm to LPR in 2008, the track also recently announced that they have joined as a Level 1 participant in the ASA Member Track Program. This brings LPR into a network of short tracks and regional touring series around the United States that have joined together to work on enhancing the status of grassroots motorsports around the country and continue to develop the future stars of racing.

Harold Crook mentioned a variety of reasons behind joining the ASA Member Track program, but kept summarizing it with one word – credibility.

“I think, most of all, the ASA Member Track program will bring credibility to Lonesome Pine Raceway,” he said. “Most everyone who races without a sanction is considered an ‘outlaw’ racetrack. We haven’t had a sanction since the ‘90s and as far as I am concerned the ASA sanction is as good as any that are out there – better in fact. I am tickled to death with the ASA insurance package, and the other benefits that are available to the track operators. We don’t want to be an ‘outlaw’ track anymore. We want the credibility that comes with a national sanction and the credibility that Lonesome Pine Raceway will get in the short track community as being a part of the American Speed Association.”

With the ASA Member Track program, competitors at LPR will receive national recognition, a feeling that they are part of a program which goes beyond the Virginia borders, and of course, the protection of the renowned ASA insurance package.

ASA members in good standing are be eligible for a $500,000 Excess Medical Benefit as well as a $20,000 Accidental Death and Dismemberment Benefit. Coverage for the member begins while traveling to a location promoting an ASA-sanctioned event and continues until arrival home again. The American Speed Association is the only sanctioning body to offer insurance coverage which extends beyond the boundary of the racetrack itself (complete details are available online at www.ASA-Racing.com).

Peters mentioned that there is a high level of excitement surrounding LPR heading into the 2008 season.

“Last year was one that everyone wanted to forget. It seemed like everyone was gritting their teeth and clinching their fists. But with the new management, the new Charger division, and the ASA partnership, those days have been quickly forgotten and everyone is really looking forward to racing again,” he said.

“You can’t change what happened in the past, but you certainly can change what happens in the future and it really looks like Lonesome Pine Raceway has made many changes that will directly bring new racers, new fans, and plenty of new excitement to the facility,” said Dennis Huth, president of Racing Speed Associates which owns the American Speed Association. “I am proud of what Harold Crook, Jeff Roark and the rest of the management team has been able to accomplish in a short time during the offseason. They are certainly making the right moves for a successful 2008 racing season and well into the future. I welcome them into the ASA family and look forward to helping them to continue moving Lonesome Pine Raceway to the forefront of short tracks.”

As for Crook, he too is excited about the prospects of a new season at a racetrack he is so familiar with.

“I am more excited now than I have ever been at the start of a new season,” he exclaimed. “I can’t wait to see cars back on Lonesome Pine Raceway again, meet so many of the old friends I have, and to make a lot of new friends as well.”

To learn more of the Daytona Beach, Fla.-based ASA Racing Member Track program, call (386) 258-2221 or send an e-mail to info@asa-racing.com. For news and information from all the racetracks and regional tours involved in the ASA, visit www.ASA-Racing.com.

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