Jeff Smith
The Ultimate Super Late Model Series is set to embark upon a three race weekend that will take them to the North Georgia Speedway, Modoc(SC) Raceway and Lavonia(GA) Speedway. Veteran Dirt Late Model racer Jeff Smith hopes that within the long weekend his luck will finally take a turn for the better.
The 48-year-old son of legendary dirt racing star and current Seymour, Tenn. resident Freddy Smith has been plagued by mechanical issues and rain outs throughout the 2014 season.
But despite his recent stretch of misfortune, Smith remains dedicated to the sport he grew up in.
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do from the time I was able to know anything about it,” he declared in a Tuesday night telephone interview. “My dad is my hero. He’s done great things on and off the race track and he’s a great role model for me or for anybody.”
From the time of his childhood, Smith has watched his father win countless numbers of big races, and has even had the opportunity to race with him. But with so many to choose from, he finds it difficult to narrow his racing memories down to just once instance.
“I don’t know,” he replies when asked about a lasting memory of his father’s accomplishments. “I’ve seen him do things in a race car that didn’t seem humanly possible. The Dirt Track World Championships were great, but the year he and I finished 1st and 2nd in my grandfather’s memorial race was a really special moment for me.”
That 1-2 finish came in the Grassy Smith Memorial at North Carolina’s Thunder Valley Raceway.
Memories aside, Jeff Smith is still focused on this season and his hope of turning his luck around.
“It hasn’t been the type of season we wanted,” Smith explained. “We’ve dealt with a lot of mechanical issues, but we have finished well when we’ve been able to finish. I feel blessed that we’re second in the Ultimate standings even with all that’s gone on.”
Smith’s #00
Smith has scored one win this season with a total of six top-5 finishes. However, he has also posted four results outside the top-10.
“The trouble we’ve been having really takes a toll on you,” the Dallas, NC resident added. “It’s been rough on me, my wife, my son and everybody who helps me. It just wears you down sometimes because you go to the track thinking ‘what’s going to happen next?’ We’ve just had a lot of pure bad luck.”
Along with the mechanical gremlins has been a multitude of rain outs. The Ultimate Super Late Model Series has been affected, perhaps more than any other series, by weather related postponements.
“In the race up in Kentucky(Ponderosa Speedway), I missed the line I wanted to run in qualifying and I told my dad and my son that I felt like it was because I’ve not been the car that much this year,” Smith said of all the rain outs. “This is the least racing I’ve done since I started in ’84. I haven’t been in the race car enough to get into a good rhythm. I’ve had to stick with one series this year for the most part because I’m down to just one motor and I can’t take the chance of putting too many laps on it in a non-series race.
“I follow the Ultimate Series because it’s a good group of guys that work for the series and the officiating is good. They seem to go out of their way to make you feel appreciated.”
The first stop of the weekend for the Ultimate competitors will be in Chatsworth, GA at the North Georgia Speedway. It’s a track Smith has mixed feelings about.
“I like the track even though I’ve only raced there a handful of times. I haven’t always had the best of luck there, but it’s a good place to race.”
InsideDirtRacing.com will be on the scene to provide live updates and a race re-cap from the Ultimate race at North Georgia so check back on this website this Friday night.
