LOXLEY, Ala. — Billy Roberson likes to build and make things happen.
He’ll make things happen for Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds with four dates this season at his Deep South Speedway.
The IMCA division returns to the Loxley, Ala., speed factory for March 30, April 12, May 24 and June 7 race dates.
“We’ve got a lot of people who started building these cars when they heard we were going IMCA,” said Roberson, retired from the road building business and going into his fifth year as sole owner, and promoter with Ryan Carpenter of the three-eighths-mile oval. “We should have about 30 cars in the area. I know of a bunch of guys in Mississippi who are building them.”
“I like the rules IMCA has and I like the way they’re set up,” he added. “We’ll go strictly by the rules here, tires and everything. That way people will know what to expect when they show up to race here.”
A long-time racer and race car owner himself, Roberson found himself looking for a new hobby after turning his construction business over to his kids.
That hobby turned out to be Deep South Speedway and while it’s been a lot of work those efforts have clearly paid off.
“The track is completely different. It’s exactly three eighths of a mile,” said Roberson, who still turns laps in both street stock and factory stock classes. “We’ve added 487 loads of clay to the track has some banking, and it’s got a lot of bite to it.”
New concrete walls and a 10-foot high fence surround the racing oval. New restrooms in the pit area and an enclosed tech shed complete with heating and air conditioning are also part of the $300,000 in improvements since Roberson bought Deep South.
IMCA modifieds ran at Loxley in 2006-’07. Points earned there this season figure toward DeVilbiss Racing Eastern Region standings.
IMCA modifieds are also on the Oct. 25 race card.
“It’s great to see IMCA Modified racing return to Alabama,” stated Jim Stannard, vice president of operations for the sanctioning body, “and it’s great to see drivers in the Eastern Region have the opportunity to race four more nights for points as Deep South dates do not conflict with IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing events at Northwest Florida Speedway or Southern Raceway in Florida.”