The 2023 schedule for Buckshot Speedway in Clanton, Alabama, features a bevy of special events. That includes a bonus race for the Dirt2Media American All-Star Series Presented by PPM Racing Products this Saturday. However, when Billy Wilkins, the junior and senior, dreamed up of the 3/10-mile dirt oval, they just wanted a place to have fun.
“Billy Wilkins Sr., his nickname was ‘Buckshot,’” track promoter Denny Edwards said of the origin for the track’s name. “[The track] was just something we wanted to do and have fun. We had our first practice in November 2021 just to see if anybody was interested.”
Interested? Why, yes. Yes, they were.
“There was a lot of support — that was kind of surprising,” Edwards said. “It blossomed from there.”
Opportunity came knocking the next season. ECM Speedway in Bremen, Alabama, had closed its doors and the Southern All-Stars needed a track to race at. They asked Buckshot Speedway if they could host a race. Only a few months into the racing business, they did in June 2022.
“I don’t know if they could tell it or not, we had no idea what we were doing,” said Edwards. “[However,] it was a packed house. Our folks just loved it.”
Now with some experience under their belts, Buckshot Speedway has an ambitious 2023 schedule, with a variety of series visiting. Among them includes the Red Clay Series, Schaeffer’s Oil Spring Nationals Series, Southern All Stars, USCS sprint cars, and, of course, the American All-Stars.
The track’s namesake, Billy Wilkins, unfortunately never got to see Buckshot Speedway open as he passed away in 2019. However, his son and their crew continue to put on a show in Clanton, Alabama.
“[Billy Sr.] would have loved it,” Edwards said. “It’s a 3/10-mile, with 11 degrees of banking, 72-feet wide … with three-wide racing. He’d be proud of us. He might shake his head with some of the stuff we try, but he’d be proud of us.”
The Dirt2Media American All-Star Series Presented by PPM Racing Products visit to Buckshot Speedway this Saturday, June 24, provides a good reason to check out the track. As a bonus race, American All-Stars regulars can use it to replace a bad points night or a missed event.
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.
