BARBERVILLE — Volusia Speedway Park and James Powell III have taken a grim day in history and turned it into an annual celebration of life and speed.
The Powell Family Memorial Late Model race will be staged Saturday night at the half-mile dirt oval.
The race’s odd lap count – 67 – represents the month and day (June 7, 1995) Powell lost his parents, two children and his aunt and uncle in a devastating private airplane crash near Gainesville.
This will be the 23rd annual Powell Memorial, which was first held at a dirt track in Ocala before moving to VSP.
“You can feel the electricity in the air again,” Powell said in a recent telephone interview from his home in Astor. “We’re tickled that Volusia is keeping the thing going and putting a lot of effort and heart into it.”
At last count Tom Whipple and John Allen, who promoted VSP in 2017, have elevated the prize money to $10,000 to win, plus $20,000 for the top-5 finishers Saturday night.
Whipple and Allen now share the duties of running the facility. Whipple does management and marketing and Allen concentrates on operations.
“The last several years, the race has gotten bigger and bigger and building momentum again,” Whipple said in a recent interview in his VSP office. “This will be the largest payout in Powell Memorial history.”
“Everyone is stepping up and helping out,” he added. “The people are coming together for this one. The community keeps adding to the purse.”
Some of the Powell’s former winners include Jeff Purvis and David Reutimann, who went on to compete at the NASCAR Cup Series level.
The track has more than 35 entries with competitors coming in from neighboring states to nab a share of that prize money.
“My family owned Ocala Speedway for 12 years and they made an impact on the sport,” Powell said. “The respect people have for my family makes me proud to be part of this.”
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Powell Family Memorial
Where: Volusia Speedway ParkTrack: Half-mile dirt oval
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
Laps: 67
Cars: Late Models
Prize money: $10,000 to win
More info: Call VSP at 386-885-4402
Online: vspracing.com