The Moultrie Observer
Edited by John Berti
MOULTRIE, GA —July 29, 2010 — Chris Hunnicutt was not much into racing as a youngster and says he went to “maybe two or three races when I was growing up.”
But Hunnicutt is into racing a big way now as he prepares for the grand opening of his Needmore Speedway on Saturday.
The 3/8-mile, 90-foot wide banked dirt oval is located at 1060 John Vickers Road in Norman Park just 7 miles West of I-75 off Exit 49.
If the number of cars that competed at the practice races the last two Saturdays is an indication, Hunnicutt should have a good turnout.
“We had between 60 and 70 car the last two weeks,” Hunnicutt said Thursday morning as he continued to get ready for Saturday’s races. “And I think about 80 percent of the ones last week were different.
“We’re hoping to have up to 50 late models Saturday. We’ve had calls from Daytona, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, South Alabama, Phenix 
City … from about a two- to three-hour radius.”
He called the interest in the track so far “pretty good.”
The gates will open at 3 p.m. Saturday with racing set to start at 7 p.m. General admission is $10 and pit passes are available for $25. Children 12 and under are admitted free.
Concessions will be available and no glass bottles are allowed.
Hunnicutt said his original intent was just to build a practice track for his son Austin, 14.
Austin Hunnicutt also plays baseball and football, but especially enjoys driving a race car. And it was a least an hour to get to track where he could run his car.
“It was hard to find anywhere for him to practice,” Hunnicutt said.
Hunnicutt broke ground last June, but by winter, he found there might be enough interest to support a dirt track in Colquitt County.
By July, the track, stands and concession area were complete and he was ready to open the gates.
“It’s been real time-consuming,” Hunnicutt said. “And it’s been stressful at times.
“But we enjoy it.”
And he’s hoping drivers will enjoy the Southeast’s newest racing venue.
There certainly is some incentive to enter the Late Model race on Saturday.
The winner will get $3,000.
The runner-up will get $1,200 and the driver of the third-place car will take home $1,200. The fourth- and fifth-place winners will get $1,100 and $1,200 respectively.
The winner of the Limited Sportsman class will get $1,000 and the second-place car’s drive will win $600.
The winner in all other classes will win $500.
“We want to keep the drivers happy,” Hunnicutt said. “They’ll bring the race fans.
“We’re going to throw some money out there.”
Hunnicutt said he also has races set for Aug. 14 and Aug. 28 and plans to race eight to 10 times through Thanksgiving.
He is trying to set his schedule to run the weeks that the Albany track is not.
For directions to the track and more information about Needmore Speedway, visit the track’s Web site at www.needmoreraceway.com
Hunnicutt said the raceway will be ready for its first official races.
“It’s all coming together,” he said.