Thank you for stopping by and checking out Business of the Week, a partnership between Real Country 101.7 and Franklin-Southampton Economic Development, celebrating the wide variety and hardworking “locally” owned and operated business in the Franklin-Southampton community. Locally owned business are the backbone of our community; giving tirelessly of their time and talents. We invite you to explore this page to learn more about our featured business and check back here each Monday to discover a new Business of the Week!
This week we are excited for you to get to know the guys behind the resurrection of the famed Southampton Motor Speedway, the local racetrack in Capron that has sat dormant for the better part of two decades. We chat with Chris DeBord, Chris Plummer, and Robert Barnes from CRC Entertainment, who are the NEW owners of SMS and get a chance to hear how their passion for motorsports are breathing life back into the local racetrack and exciting plans to host events on and off the track at the venue.
Q: What made you decide to purchase and reopen SMS?
A: The three of us drove by the track many times over the past year traveling to and from racing events and thought “why isn’t anyone doing anything with this?” and “what if…?”. The “racetrack revival” is also a really big thing right now. We are really excited about the future!
Q: Tell us about your opening event plans:
A: We don’t have an exact date yet, but we can tell you that it will happen sometime this summer. Stay tuned to our social media pages!
Q: Will it remain an asphalt track and what kind of racing will take place?
A: Yes! 2023 will focus primarily on drift racing events. From there we envision a multitude of events that could include things such as oval track racing, tractor pulls, and other uses for the 60+ acre site including adding ATV trails, drag racing and more. Our first goal though is to show both county residents and the county government that we are here to stay and operate the track in a legal and safe way.
Q: So, SMS will be mostly a drift racing track. What days will the drift events be held
A: All of our drift racing events will be two day events taking place on a Saturday and Sunday. Drift racers generally travel from further away so this allows for camping and comradery at night
Q: Why was it important to resurrect SMS?
A: All over the country we se local tracks being lost to large scale commercial property developers and we also saw an opportunity to bring it back to life. It’s an ideal location for motorsports events. We also wanted to offer an opportunity for kids to get introduced to an exciting sport and provide a venue for families to have a fun place to enjoy weekend entertainment and activities.
Q: How can folks stay up to date with news of events?
We are on all the social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) and you can always check out our website at www.southamptonmotorspeedway.com where you’ll be able to purchase tickets and merchandise.
If you would like to hear the entire interview with Chris DeBord, Chris Plummer, and Robert Barnes you can visit this link: https://on.soundcloud.com/GTj4E
