and relocate to the Florida panhandle .
Peake admits that when they first floated the idea to Josh , he thought they might have just been joking around , but the brothers couldn ’ t have been more serious . “ They told me that they seriously wanted me and my family to relocate to Florida and wanted me to manage the track full time !” After careful consideration , Peake realized that this was an opportunity he couldn ’ t pass up , and it didn ’ t take much convincing to persuade the family , so they relocated from Columbia , South Carolina , to Panama City , Florida , and haven ’ t looked back .
The facility he now manages is among the finest eighth-mile dragstrips you ’ ll ever come across , completely refurbished after the McDaniel brothers renovated it and reopened the track under the moniker North Florida Motorplex . “ Kevin and Cody have spent in excess of 2 million dollars in upgrades ; everything they did was over and beyond what was necessary ,” says Peake .
He ’ s not exaggerating either . Just walk into the bathrooms and you ’ ll find polished ebony sinks and toilets ! The concessions building features indoor dining , while open-air dining is offered in the VIP suites found on both sides of the track . The suites also feature as many as six large televisions on each level that are broadcasting college football games . “ College football is huge down here , so you can actually sit in these suites and enjoy cold drinks , drag racing , and football all at the same time ,” says Peake .
DIALED IN
Josh Peake , North Florida Motorplex general manager
The AMA / AHDRA All-American motorcycle drag racing series visited here in 2022 , and returned to kick off their national event series at North Florida Motorplex in March . Fans of Pro Modified doorslammers enjoy the Alabama-based Southern Nitrous Racers Association , which visits NFMP several times per season . “ We also have a robust points payout for our bracket racers , which awarded over $ 60,000 last year , including $ 22,000 that went to our Super Pro champion ,” says Peake .
The track is sanctioned by the new World Drag Racing Alliance ( WDRA ) of which Peake was instrumental in launching . A total of 12 points
bracket races are scheduled across six weekends in 2023 . “ We don ’ t quite have the population down here to hold successful one-day bracket events , so all of our bracket races are double events ,” Peake says . “ It ’ s so much better for the racers when they can show up on one weekend and have two separate point races . By doing that we ’ ve been able to pull cars from central Florida , Alabama , and Georgia .”
Tons of small-tire races are on tap this year , along with the Carolina N / T series , which will return in 2023 after a very successful outing last year . Peake and his right-hand man , Justin Parrish , are also anticipating another barn-burner Halloween race featuring triple $ 5K bracket races , a High Roller Race , SNRA Pro Mods , jet cars , trick-or-treating , along with a costume contest .
The potential for NFMP to expand is enormous , and so much more is already in the works , including plans for a playground for the children , and even concerts . “ Coca-Cola is a sponsor here and they ’ re interested in doing a Coca-Cola Concert series . The idea is to build a stage and just leave it intact ; it would be an open-air venue where fans can come and bring their own chairs and coolers and enjoy live music . In this business , you need to be ever-evolving and coming up with new stuff ,” concludes Peake .
North Florida Motorplex is perfectly situated for year-round operation , while offering a wide array of events that appeal to an ever-expanding fan base . DI
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