Late model driver Shane Greco cut his teeth on racing slot cars at a facility owned by his father, Tony Greco. He’ll look to put those skills he honed on the 1:24 scale when the American All-Star Series Presented by PPM Racing Products rolls into his home track, Beckley Motor Speedway in West Virginia, this Friday, September 16. (For more on Beckley Motor Speedway, see “Beckley Motor Speedway Under New Ownership”.)
“There was a guy here named Randy Thurman, who used to race here,” Greco, who owns and manages Midway International SlotCar Racing when not competing with his late model, said. “He raced throughout the 1990s. He always said, ‘If you can’t drive a slot car, you can’t race a race car.’ [Slot car racing helps] with reaction time. It keeps your brain working.”
There might be something to that. The last time the American All-Stars ventured to Beckley Motor Speedway, Greco, of Midway, West Virginia, took the top spot among the locals — a ninth-place finish. A ninth might not seem like a huge deal, but in a race that attracted 45 entrants, and field stacked with big-race winners and champions, it meant a lot to Greco.
“The hard work that’s been put in is starting to show,” said Shane Greco of his finish. “There were some big names that didn’t even make [the feature]. That made it even more sweet to finish good in front of the hometown crowd.”
The American All-Star Series Presented by PPM Racing Products will race a doubleheader this weekend. Friday, September 16, they head to Greco’s home track, Beckley Motor Speedway in West Virginia. The next night, Saturday, September 17, the tour ventures to Willard Speedway in Kentucky. (For more on Willard Speedway, see “Willard Speedway Hosts Races Again”.)
Outside Groove Note of Transparency: Outside Groove is a sponsor of the American All-Star Series. The American All-Star Series paid for the production of this article. The content is not subject to the approval of the American All-Star Series.
The Outside Groove Executive Editor has covered motorsports since 2000. His many awards include the 2019 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Jim Hunter Writer of the Year and the 2013 Russ Catlin Award for Excellence in Motorsports Journalism.
