Alliance Driveaway Solutions STAR Super Stock Race Preview: King Of The Modifieds/URW Race Day at South Boston Speedway
By Julian Austin
March 21st, 2025
Following a six week break since the season opener at Florence, the Alliance Driveaway Solutions STAR Super Stock Tour roars back to action this weekend at South Boston Speedway in Virginia. This will be the tour's second trip to the historic Halifax County facility following their first trip last October.
Ricky Locklair Jr opened up the season with a win in the season's first race. At this moment, Locklair is not scheduled to compete this weekend thus opening up opportunities for someone else to take the checkered flag on Saturday.
Jeff Melton celebrates his win last October at South Boston Speedway. Photo by STAR Super Stock Tour
Defending Race Winner Jeff Melton Faces Serious Obstacles In Defending His Win.
Two time Alliance Driveaway Solutions STAR Super Stock winner Jeff Melton returns to the Halifax County facility looking to go back to back at this facility. Melton had a dominating performance last October en route to this victory. The win was his first on the tour and would propel him to another win in the season finale at Hickory Motor Speedway weeks later.
All has not gone smooth this season for the Mooresville North Carolina veteran. Jeff had a podium finish at Florence for the first STAR Tour event but a blown motor derailed his chances of adding another prestigious New Year's Bash trophy to his case back in January. Last week at Hickory Motor Speedway, Melton while competing in a MASS (Mid Atlantic Street Stock) race, ran into some trouble on the track putting his race winning title defense in jeopardy as of press time.
"I'm trying my best. I hope to be there Saturday." said Melton in a text message on Thursday. Jeff would go on to add that "I really want to be there on Saturday. I want this race for sure based on our win last October." "I will work all night long if I have to."
Jeff is as old school as they come. If the car will run, no doubt Jeff will be one to watch on Saturday.
Alby Ovitt Returns to South Boston After a Weekend To Forget
2024 tour champion Alby Ovitt returns South Boston Speedway five months after his worst weekend on the tour. Ovitt came into last season's event with a comfortable points lead over his closest competitor. A uneventful morning practice turned into big time trouble for Ovitt when him and Jeff Sparks made contact and crashed in turn two. The incident would knock Sparks who was one of the pre-race favorites for the win out of competition for the weekend. Ovitt's team got to work immediately on the car and by race time, he was ready to roll but definitely not a 100 percent. Ovitt's troubles would not end after practice as during the race, he was caught up in another incident while racing through the field thus ending his day.
Some drivers would be leery on returning to a place that gave them so many problems. Ovitt on the otherhand, embraces the challenge. In a text message exchange between Alby and myself, "I am super excited about coming to South Boston. I thought we had a good car in the fall but the practice wreck killed us for the weekend. I'm really hoping to have a better weekend this time." I asked him about what changes he made from Florence to now and he stated,"We haven't really changed anything from Florence honestly. We are just going back tomorrow (South Boston) and praciticing with what we had last fall. It was a good set up for us."
Only one more place to go up for Chris Riendeau
Vermont's Chris Riendeau notched his best tour finish at Florence Motor Speedway in February. He quickly backed that up with back to back runner up finishes in last Saturday's MASS event at Hickory Motor Speedway.
Riendeau had his own issues last fall at South Boston. An incident on the track with Cody DeMarmels put both on probation but that is over now and the two seemed to have hammered out their differences.
Riendeau spoke to me over the phone about his prospects this weekend.
"I'm pretty excited about coming (to South Boston). Hopefully, we have found some more speed. South Boston is by far the smoothest track I have been racing on."
When asked about if anything has changed on his car since Florence, Riendeau stated "Nothing has been changed at all except for the gears since each track requires something different."
"The two tracks are very different so I can't take much from last week (MASS Race) since both tracks has it's own set of characteristics."
Simpson Select Five Drivers Brittany Cockram, Mike Cooper and Cody Demarmels are scheduled to be in Halifax County on Saturday along with Gary Ledbetter, Kyle Lynch, Charles Baldwin, Mark Johnson and Wayne McGee.
The full schedule for this weekend is below. Do not miss a second of the action!
**PHOTO provided by South Boston Speedway.**
Alliance DriveAway Solutions Joins STAR Tour as Title Sponsor
By Julian Austin
February 17th, 2025
The STAR Super Stock Tour is proud to announce Alliance DriveAway Solutions as its new title sponsor, ushering in an exciting era for the growing short track racing series. Moving forward, the series will now be known as the Alliance DriveAway Solutions STAR Tour, a partnership that reinforces the tour’s commitment to grassroots racing.
Tour owner Boo Carlisle is fired up about the future, saying, “This is a huge step for our series. Alliance DriveAway Solutions believes in what we’re doing, and their support means everything. We’re here to keep old-school, hard-nosed short track racing alive, and this partnership only strengthens that mission.”
Alliance DriveAway Solutions, a trusted name in the transportation industry, is owned by Tate and LJ Lyda, lifelong short track racing fans who see this partnership as a way to give back to the sport they love.
“Short track racing is in my blood,” Lyda said. “Partnering with the STAR Tour is a way for us to support real racers and real racing. Boo and his team have built something special, and we’re proud to be part of it.”
The Alliance DriveAway Solutions STAR Tour will hit the track in 2025 with a seven-race schedule at seven different venues. The STAR Tour will continue showcasing Super-Stock Racing across Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
Fans can expect the same hard-hitting, door-to-door racing action that has made the STAR Tour a must-watch series for stock car racing purists.
For the latest updates and full schedule details, follow the Alliance DriveAway Solutions STAR Tour on social media or visit www.starsuperstocktour.com
STAR Super Stock Tour Introduces the Simpson Select Five for 2025 Season
By Julian Austin
February 7th, 2025
Simpson Race Products and the STAR Super Stock Tour have teamed up to establish the Simpson Select Five for the 2025 season. The program is all about celebrating drivers, their partners and providing exclusive perks that elevate the racing experience within the STAR Super Stock Tour the tour announced in the press release.
Five drivers that are committed to running the entire schedule were chosen to represent the tour and the brand.
The purpose of the program is to offer discounted entry fees, merchandise credits, discounted tires, big savings on Simpson Race Products, discounts on trackside communications radio services & purchases and other additional rewards.
Alby Ovitt
Brittany Cockram
Photo courtesy of STAR Super Stock Tour
STAR Super Stock Tour Reveals 2025 Schedule & Historic Combination Event with the MASS Series.
By Julian Austin
February 6th, 2025
On the heels of the STAR Super Stock Tour beginning their third season as a touring division, officials have announced a seven event schedule at seven different facilities for the 2025 season.
For the second straight season, the STAR Super Stock Tour will start at Florence Motor Speedway to coincide with the tenth annual Icebreaker Late Model Stock event. In 2024, Alby Ovitt claimed the win which ultimately led him to his first STAR Super Stock championship.
Alby Ovitt poses in victory lane following last season's win at Florence Motor Speedway. (Photo by Julian Austin)
The second stop for the tour will be a return trip to the legendary South Boston Speedway on March 22nd. This event will be on the same day as the SMART Modified Tour's King of the Modified's event which attracted racers up and down the east coast. Last fall's STAR Super Stock Event was won by Jeff Melton but was also the scene of many incidents on the race track before and after the event.
Jeff Melton's David Pearson Throwback following his win at South Boston Speedway last fall. (Photo by Jody Freeman)
Lonesome Pine Speedway will return on May 17th. Lonesome Pine was the scene of perhaps the best race of the season a year ago and biggest impact of the year as Marlin Yoder and Jeff Sparks raged war against each other before prematurely ending in a late race crash that saw both Super Stocks suffering major damage and making many social media highlight reels.
Anderson Motor Speedway which has been a mainstay on the tour returns on June 21st.
July 12th sees the tour visit a new facility but this facility is no stranger to Super and Street Stocks. Dillon Motor Speedway will host a historic event with the Mid Atlantic Street Stock (MASS) Series. The two series will come together for the first time ever and will be marking a milestone for Super Stock racing in the Southeast. This race will also serve as the Charles Hutto Memorial event which naturally brought the racing community together to honor a great competitor.
In the press release, STAR Tour Owner Boo Carlisle stated the following.
"This is a huge moment for Super Stock racing in the Southeast,” Carlisle said. “The racing at Dillon has always been phenomenal, as we saw during the New Year’s Bash, and bringing the STAR Tour and MASS Series together for the first time ever just adds to the excitement. Fans can expect hard-nosed, door-to-door racing from two of the best short track series around. It’s even more special that we are doing this in memory of Charles Hutto, who was a true racer and friend to so many of us.”
MASS Series owner and owner of Dillon Motor Speedway Ron Barfield echoed Carlisle with his statement.
“We are thrilled to work out a deal between these two great series,” said Barfield. “This event is about bringing the best of Street Stock racing together on one stage, and I believe it’s just the beginning of something even bigger in the future. Honoring Charles Hutto makes it even more meaningful, as he was someone who poured his heart into this sport and left a lasting impact on those who knew him.”
Photo Courtesy of the STAR Super Stock Tour
Following the July 12th event, there will be nearly a three month break before the Tour heads to Orange County Speedway in Rougemont North Carolina for what surely will be a fast paced event at one of the fastest 3/8ths mile speedways in the country.
The season finale is scheduled to be on November 8th at Hickory Motor Speedway which will be a part of the annual Fall Brawl weekend that takes place at the speedway in November.
For more information on the STAR Super Stock Tour, the MASS Series and details on the combination race, make sure to follow both entities on Social Media.
This weekend's season opening Bundrick Rail 40 presented by Slinger Speed Co will be televised on Ultra Broadcasting. To subscribe, go to www.ultrabroadcasting.com