Drag Illustrated Issue 118, February 2017 | Page 62

DIALED IN
he laughed.
Bobby always enjoys reflecting on how Win-
terfest got started and how he would have never
even tried such an event had it not been for the
influence of his friend, Stan Welch, who assured
Bobby that he was really missing the boat for
not having a big race in January. "You see, Stan
came from up in Pennsylvania where the winters
were very harsh, and when he moved to North
Carolina he kept telling me that people would
travel far and wide to race in such a warm climate
in January, although I certainly had my doubts,"
laughed Smith.
Despite being skeptical, he reluctantly held the
first Winterfest in January 1987, and while the
attendance for the first race didn't exactly set the
world on fire, he instantly saw potential when a
total of 60 competitors showed up in the dead of
winter. Racing newspaper pub-
lisher Becky White got onboard
promoting the event, and the
even began to build steam in the
coming years from the grassroots
bracket racing scene. As you may
have guessed, the second annual
event was bigger than the first,
and thus was the pattern for
many years to come. When the
event peaked somewhere around
1998, Kinston barely had room
to accommodate the more than
400 entries that poured through the gates.
The event has definitely fluctuated over the last
three decades, and has been effected by various
economies, but one thing's for certain – Winter-
fest remains the staple event that everyone fondly
associates with Kinston each and every January.
Smith looks forward to each new running, and
is always excited to usher in a brand-new race
season at this beloved IHRA-
sanctioned facility.
Winners for the most recent
running include Shawn Carpen-
ter, who took home the win in
Top ET on Saturday, while Ohio's
Jose Diaz won on Sunday. Nick
Hastings won in Modified on
Saturday, with Ricky Rouse tak-
ing top honors on Sunday. Virginia racer Mallory
Logan doubled up in impressive fashion, collect-
ing wins on Saturday as well as Sunday in the Jr.
Dragster category.
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62 | D r a g
I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com
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Issue 118
WINTERFEST AT KINSTON