Dixie Motor Speedway promoters, Jeff and Pam Parish of West Branch, will be the promoters of Springport Motor Speedway in 2012.FLINT, Michigan —
There are few sure bets in the sporting world.
One of them is you will always find Jeff and Pam Parish at a racing facility on a summer weekend.
The Parishs have been heavily involved with short-track racing for several years, including recent stints as promoters of
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The couple ran Dixie the previous three seasons. Next year, they will be in charge of
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The West Branch residents are part of a 10-member group that has secured a purchase lease from track owner Jim Leasure.
“We love this business,” Jeff Parish said. “When we’re not running tracks, we’re going to spectate races. When it’s in your blood, it becomes your passion.”
The Parish group is the fourth group to operate the three-eighths mile oval since 2003.
The late Paul Zimmerman purchased the facility in 2003 and operated it as Calhoun County Speedway from 2003-04 and as Springport Motor Speedway from 2005-08.
Jerry Rabbers leased and operated the speedway under the name of Mid-Michigan Speedwday in 2009. Steve Martin held the lease and ran the track the last two seasons under the name Springport Motor Speedway.
Of the 10 members of their leadership group, the Parishs will be in charge of the day-to-day operations of the track.
“I’ve been looking at it for three years, but the timing wasn’t right,” Jeff Parish said of Springport. “I think Springport was priced the most competitively.”
The Parishs have a vast amount of experience in the racing industry.
Jeff Parish was the vice president of Whittemore Speedway in 2006 and the track’s president the following season.
The couple became co-owners of Owosso Speedway in Ovid on July 1, 2008. For months later, they signed a lease to run Dixie.
The managed both tracks from 2009-10 before operating only Dixie this past summer.
“We’ve been blessed with some great successes in racing,” Jeff Parish said. “I attribute it to being in the right place at the right time and being surrounded by great people.”