![\"\"](\"http:\/\/secksracing.files.wordpress.com\/2011\/02\/phil-harp.jpg\" "\\"Phil")
<\/a>Phil Harp – Series Founder\/Director<\/p>\n<\/div>\nThen, Phil got an idea.\u00a0 He decided to try and contact a few stock car track promoters, to see if any might schedule a senior champ kart race. \u00a0Phil entertained them on the idea of a race class that would average 15-20 drivers, have a devoted following, and was deserving of a chance to run as part of the \u201cbig show\u201d with the regular Saturday night classes.<\/p>\n
On Thanksgiving weekend of 2005, Desoto Super Speedway in Bradenton, Florida gave Phil a race date.<\/p>\n
Phil, who is employed as a plumber, worked the phone hard in the weeks leading up to the race, trying to convince every racer he knew to enter.\u00a0 Many in the karting community were skeptical.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I drove to the track\u00a0for that\u00a0first race,\u00a0 I was nervous.\u00a0 My biggest fear was that noone would show up\u201d, Phil later said.\u00a0 \u201cI decided to get there early, before the pit gate opened.\u00a0 But, when I turned off of Highway 64 onto the track road, I saw a\u00a0line of trailers already lined up at the pit gate.\u00a0 I thought wow\u2026 those car racers sure get to the track early.\u00a0 Then, as I got closer,\u00a0I realized that they were all karters, patiently waiting\u00a0for the track to open.\u00a0 You\u2019ve got to get up pretty early in the morning\u00a0if you\u00a0expect to\u00a0beat\u00a0my guys to the track on race day\u2026\u00a0karters are a passionate group\u201d,\u00a0Phil chuckled.<\/p>\n
Twenty-six champ karts showed up that night, and a series was born.<\/p>\n
Since 2005, the South East Champ Kart Series (SECKS) has traveled to\u00a0five stock car tracks in Florida including Desoto Super Speedway, Auburndale Speedway, Punta Gorda Speedway, Orlando Speedworld and Citrus County Speedway.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The drivers range in age from 15\u00a0years old,\u00a0\u00a0to 74.<\/p>\n
On February 26, the series will kick off the 2011 Season by sanctioning it\u2019s\u00a0 80th race, at Citrus County Speedway, in Inverness.<\/p>\n
When asked\u00a0how the South East Champ Kart Series has continued to average\u00a0nearly\u00a020\u00a0drivers at each event over the past three seasons,\u00a0despite the tough economy, Phil paused.\u00a0 \u201cThe economy has really hurt most traveling racing divisions, but for us, it\u00a0probably\u00a0has helped, as much as\u00a0hurt.\u00a0 When I started this, I didn\u2019t think that many car racers would be interested in racing with us.\u00a0 However, as the economy has soured, my series has\u00a0become a relatively inexpensive\u00a0way for\u00a0car racers to\u00a0keep\u00a0their faces visible\u00a0at the stock car tracks, while they are waiting to find funding for their cars\u201d,\u00a0 said Phil.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother possible reason\u00a0is that we really try and make our new and part-time racers feel welcomed.\u00a0\u00a0 When a\u00a0new racer\u00a0comes into our series, I always try to encourage them to pit next to me that first night, so that I can make sure they have all the tools, help and encouragement that they need to make\u00a0as many laps as possible.\u00a0 I can remember going to\u00a0races in my younger days\u00a0where the only person who\u00a0spoke to me was the\u00a0lady who took my money at the pit gate.\u00a0 That will never happen in my series.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure\u00a0some of my drivers\u00a0get tired of me\u00a0visiting their pits at each event\u201d, Phil chuckled.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe part-time racers are also a big key, I think. \u00a0In my experience, these racers are often overlooked by promoters.\u00a0 If you can grow your numbers of part-time racers, and give them reasons to dust off their equipment, it begins to pay big dividends.\u00a0 It\u2019s a lot easier for a guy with heavy financial or family commitments to race part-time, than to travel the entire series.\u00a0 One thing we did\u00a0to encourage the part-timers to race a little more is to award three \u2018Track Champions Trophies\u2019, to the drivers who gain the highest points at\u00a0 Auburndale Speedway, Citrus County Speedway\u00a0and Punta Gorda Speedway (respectively).\u00a0 This allows a racer who isn\u2019t able to travel the entire series to pick one track, and try to win a Track Champions Trophy.\u00a0 The last race of the season \u00a0at each track is pretty exciting for the guys who\u00a0are in contention for the Trophy.\u00a0 We had one race last year where seven drivers could have won the Track Champions Trophy on the final night.\u00a0 You\u2019d have thought those guys were racing for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship\u2026. they made Days of Thunder look pretty mild.\u00a0 They all wanted to win that big Trophy bad\u201d, Phil laughed.<\/p>\n
The series races for a cash purse at each event, and has several loyal sponsors who routinely post additional cash and prizes throughout the season.\u00a0\u00a0 They include\u00a0J. Hite Exterminating (Tampa), PBS Sales and Service, Inc. (Tampa), Top Deck Concrete Inc. (Riverview), BS Powerhouse Racing Engines (Zephryhills), Impact Racing Products and AlleyCat Grafix (Palm Bay), among others.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Tim Simmons – 2010 Overall Track Series Champion<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\u201cThree of our\u00a017 features during the 2010 season paid the winner $500 cash, or more, to win.\u00a0\u00a0 We are proud of that, and those types of payouts are always\u00a0popular with my guys.\u00a0 However, in our\u00a0normal\u00a0races, we try to keep the payout very flat, so that\u00a0we can give the guy who finishes deeper in the field a little\u00a0something extra in his pocket at the end of the night.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve noticed that some\u00a0drivers can seem pretty disappointed\u00a0after a feature,\u00a0because they didn\u2019t have a good finish.\u00a0 But then, when\u00a0he finds out that he finished in the money, and that we have\u00a0some cash waiting for him at the payout table, his mood quickly changes\u201d said Phil.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Chase Fitzgerald – 2010 Triple Crown Champion<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\u201cWhen the series began, I didn\u2019t think we would still be doing this, six years later\u201d, said Phil.\u00a0 \u201cI owe a lot of the credit to my wife Joan.\u00a0 She is a registrar, cashier, scorer, and official all rolled into one.\u00a0 Racers can sometimes get pretty upset after a race, but she always tries to listen to everyone, and treat them with respect when she explains a call.\u00a0 She is a big reason why our\u00a0guys keep coming back to race with us, even\u00a0after a bad night.\u00a0 Every racing series needs a Joan Harp\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe track promoters and their staff\u00a0have also been great to the champ kart group, and they always make us feel welcomed. \u00a0Critter, Rex, Greg, Rick, and all of their track staff\u2026 they are always patient with our guys, and make us feel just as important as the\u00a0car divisions\u201d, remarked Phil.<\/p>\n
NEXT RACE: <\/strong>Saturday night, February 26, 2011 <\/strong><\/p>\n Location:<\/strong> Citrus County Speedway,\u00a0 Inverness, FL<\/p>\n Track Website:<\/strong> www.CitrusCountySpeedway.com<\/a><\/p>\n