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Kirby Gobble qualifies as the guru of the Mountain Empire short track racing scene.
Since his on-track debut at age 14 in the Mod 4 class at Wythe Raceway, the 51-year-old Abingdon native estimates that he’s won over 400 events and seven championships on dirt, pavement and concrete tracks across 21 states.
“I’ve raced in every class from Pure 4 to Late Model. And I still love it,” Gobble said.
The roles for Gibson have ranged from racer, crew chief and engine builder to driver coach and car owner.
He currently oversees a thriving car rental program where he works with eight drivers from his Gobble Racing shop located near Exit 7 in Bristol, Virginia.
“We also do chassis work for dirt and pavement cars from Christiansburg to Knoxville,” Gobble said. “It’s hard for me to compete in the long races anymore, but I can still get after it if a race is 40 laps or less.”
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Gobble knows speed. Consider that he won at Bristol Motor Speedway in a 2009 UARA Series event and then helped popular Meadowview racer Duke Bare win the following year.
“I still have one of those big Bristol trophies,” Gobble said. “I miss seeing and racing with a lot of the old-timers, but I’m staying busy.”
The best place to catch Gobble these days is at Lonesome Pine Motorsports Park in Coeburn where he field cars for competitors such as John Battle graduate Alex Posey and Abingdon’s Jerry Stanley in the Super Street class along with racing evangelist Dennis Dees from Carter County and his son Josh Gobble in Sportsman.
Gobble’s umbrella also extends to Pulaski County Motorsports Park in Radford, where Tazewell’s Michael Deskins competes in Super Street.
“I grew up racing on dirt, but Lonesome Pine is where I really cut my teeth,” Goble said. “This is a great track with a lot of history, and I really hope the fans will come out and watch this year.”
PIT STOPS: Caden Kvapil will drive for the Blountville-based Highlands Motorsports team in today’s CARS Tour Pro Late Model race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. The green flag is set for 4 p.m….Former Kingsport Speedway Sportsman champion Kyle Barnes (Draper, Va.) swept the two Sportsman races in Saturday’s program at Lonesome Pine Motorsports Park, while Kingsport’s John Ketron executed a sweep in Pure 4. Tristen Barnes, Kyle’s younger brother, and Jimmy Mullins were the victors in Super Street, and Joey Owens finished first in Street Stock…
Jenson Ford (Johnson City) held off Tennessee drivers Rusty Ballenger (Seymour) and five-time track champion Vic Hill (Mosheim) to win Saturday’s Super Late Model feature at Volunteer Speedway. Other winners included David Clark (Tazewell, Tennessee) in Street Stock, James Burnette (Knoxville) in Front Wheel Drive, Bobby Mays (Jonesborough) in Classic, Terry James (Newport) in Open Wheel Modified and Bradley Lewellyn (Seymour) in the Combo Late Model class. Trey Bayne, younger brother of former NASCAR Cup racer Trevor Bayne, took sixth in Combo Late Model….
Bristol teen Jay Stanley (Bristol) was among the victors in the recent Hot Summer Nights Supercross Series event at the MX 221 track in Forest City, North Carolina. Carson Eads (Kingsport) earned the overall title in the Pro Class…The racing calendar for this weekend features the DER Bracket Series at Bristol Dragway on Friday through Sunday. The DER season opener attracted over 300 competitors, with Castlewood’s Justin McMillan (Sportsman), Cedar Bluff’s Braylee Griffith (Junior Street) and Hunter Street (Junior Dragster) of Richlands emerging with wins. Seth Street (Richlands) finished second in the elite Super Pro category…Another program is set for this Saturday at the Little Pine Kartway facility in Coeburn, with the first race on the dirt scheduled for 5 p.m.
[email protected] — Twitter: @Greg_BHCSports <&dateline> (276) 645-2544
