Published: July 31, 2008 11:17 pm         

Despite rumors, speedway reopens tonight

Beckley Motor Speedway co-general manager David Creed cut straight to the chase Thursday.

“We will be open (tonight),” he said. “We will be running the Brandy Bragg Memorial. We’re ready to go racing again.”

After a week off for repairs, track officials have regrouped and are ready for the stretch drive of the season.

“Everybody needed a break,” Creed said. “All the track officials needed a break, especially after a late night on the last race. It was a very needed break. We got some stuff caught up at the speedway and at home, too. Now we’re ready to go.”

Some much-needed work was done on the track surface this week to try to alleviate the problems of the past few weeks of racing.

“They dug the surface up,” Creed said. “It was packed so hard that they went in and dug up the turns a little bit with an excavator, pulled new dirt back in and put new dirt on the track.

“They’ve dragged the dirt from the bottom of the speedway back to the top and then leveled it out to fill in the ruts and the dips that we had. They’re starting to use the sheep’s foot now and watering properly.”

The second annual Brandy Bragg Memorial 30 for Late Models will be the feature event tonight. The AMRA Modifieds, KOM Pro Lates, Outlaw Streets and Pure Stocks will also be in action as well as the Kids Hornet division, a front-wheel-drive four-cylinder class for young beginning racers.

General admission is $12, with children 9-12 paying $5 and children 8 and under admitted free. All pit passes are $25. For race day information, call 304-929-6809.

Note: Co-general managers David Creed and Don Mercer were relieved of their duties Thursday night during a meeting at the Bradley-Prosperity Volunteer Fire Department.