Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 30, 1995 TAG: 9511300014
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BRUCE STANTON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Kenny Minter, 39, died Oct. 29 from injuries suffered in a Southern Modifieds Auto Racing Teams (SMART) event at Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, N.C. Less than a month earlier, Minter's father and crew chief, Bernard Minter, died of a heart attack.
Then, Kenny Minter's life insurance did not pay off because he was involved in a racing accident.
Knowing that, SMART officials and drivers decided to give the Minter family a big helping hand, which will come in the form of the Southern Modified Motorsports Expo. The event will be held from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Dec.16 at the old Moore's building on Business 220 in Collinsville.
Admission will be $3 for adults, and fans 12 and younger will be admitted free. All proceeds will benefit the Kenny Minter Foundation.
Minter had driven race cars most of his adult life and was a champion at Franklin County Speedway. He also was a popular driver on the SMART series.
``We just want Kenny's family to know how much he meant to us,'' said Randy Myers, vice president of SMART. ``He will be missed severely. He was a good competitor and a hard competitor.''
Some of the biggest names in auto racing have made donations to the Minter benefit. Show cars will be provided by Winston Cup drivers Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Michael Waltrip, Ward Burton and Mike Wallace and Busch Grand National driver Curtis Markham. In addition, there will be 15 SMART cars on display.
Top drivers also donated sheet metal, which will be sold at the 1 p.m. auction. Drivers donating sheet metal are reigning Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon, Ken Schrader, Jeff Green and Mike Skinner, the SuperTruck champion.
Advance Auto Parts gave more than $7,000 worth of parts and accessories to the benefit, and there will be a bingo session and a silent auction as additional fund-raisers.
Winston Cup driver Jimmy Hensley has committed to make an appearance, and Franklin County Speedway owner Whitey Taylor will operate a booth at the benefit.
There also will be a hot dog and pinto bean supper, with service provided by the SMART drivers.
Anyone interested in making a donation to the benefit should call SMART president Ollie Jenkins at 1-800-237-2565 or Myers at (910) 983-2865. Anyone interested in making a cash donation to the Kenny Minter Memorial Fund can do so by writing to the Kenny Minter Memorial Fund, c/o Patrick Henry National Bank, 220 South Office, Route 10, Box 59, Martinsville, 24112, Attention: Roxanne Collins.
TOY DRIVE: Souvenir Days, featuring, what else, racing souvenirs, toys, Santa Claus and an Allison Legacy Car exhibition race, will be held Dec. 9-10 at Martinsville Speedway.
Winston Cup souvenir trailers, including those belonging to Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Bill Elliott, Ricky Rudd, Bobby Labonte and the Ford Motorsports trailer, will be on site Dec.9 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Dec.10 from noon until 5 p.m. Thirteen trailers are expected.
The Allison Cars are down-sized versions - about five-eighths the size - of Winston Cup cars. They will race at 2 p.m. Dec. 9.
Shoppers can help the needy by bringing a new, unwrapped toy to be collected at the start/finish line. The speedway will give the toys to the Martinsville and Henry county departments of social services to be distributed in those counties. The speedway will give a free T-shirt to each person who brings a toy.
Last year, more than 1,700 toys were donated.
FCS HOLDS BANQUET: The 17th annual Franklin County Speedway awards banquet will be held Jan.13 at the Armory Building in Rocky Mount.
Tickets to the 6 p.m. dinner are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.
The banquet will honor the 1995 track champion and division champions. Bobby Radford is the track champion. He also won a track title in 1983.
Division champions are: Mike Elkins, Street Stocks; Chris Martin, Mini Stocks; Jay Perry, Pure Stocks; Ricky Ferguson, Rookie; and Chris Hatchett, Trucks.
To order tickets, call track promoter Whitey Taylor at 540-483-0713.
GETTING SMARTER: Franklin County Speedway will play host to three Southern Modifieds events in 1996, Taylor said.
The SMART cars will race at FCS on July 4, Sept.21 and a date to be announced.
Franklin County Speedway's first race in 1996 will be April 13.
Keywords:
FATALITY
by CNB